🕊️ The Psychological Danger of Misplaced Obedience: A Critical Response to Islamic Pulses own Sheikh Ali's Majlis
How reversing the divine order from “Iqra” to “Obey” creates followers instead of thinkers — a critique grounded in Islamic theology, psychology, and the INTJ archetype.
🗓️ Muharram Reflection
📍 Spiritual Commentary | Theology | Psychology | MBTI | Islamic Awakening
✦ INTRODUCTION
In a recent Islamic Pulse live Muharram majlis, Sheikh Ali Qomi addressed what he referred to as the current victory of the believers. Central to his message was the assertion that at the top of the believer’s responsibilities is obedience to the Rahbar — placing political allegiance above all else in the hierarchy of Islamic practice.
While this may seem motivational in a politically charged climate, both theologically and psychologically, this framework is not only Islamically inaccurate — it is deeply dangerous.
❖ The Divine Order: “Iqra” Before “Ati‘u”
The very first revelation to our Holy Prophet ﷺ was not a call to obedience or leadership. It was:
“Iqra’ bismi Rabbika allathee khalaq...”
“Read in the name of your Lord who created…”
(Surah al-‘Alaq, 96:1)
This is not a trivial point — it is a divine prioritization. The Qur’anic process of transformation begins with reading — not merely in the literal sense, but as a call to:
Engage, reflect, analyze, understand, and ultimately, create.
Create what? Ourselves.
It is a message of awakening consciousness and activating the soul’s potential — a developmental model rooted in divine knowledge, not institutional loyalty.
Compare this with the verse often cited to justify political obedience:
“O you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those in authority among you…”
(Surah an-Nisa, 4:59)
Even here, the order is intentional:
-
Obey Allah — direct divine alignment.
-
Obey the Messenger — embodiment of revelation.
-
Then, those in authority among you — conditional, and only within the framework of the above two.
By reversing this order and placing political obedience first, we short-circuit the divine educational system that begins with literacy of the soul.
❖ MBTI and the Model of the A’imma (as)
If we turn to psychological tools like the MBTI model, we find an interesting parallel. The A’imma (peace be upon them) most closely resemble the INTJ archetype: quiet visionaries, introspective, structured, long-term thinkers, and profoundly independent.
They were not mobilizers of crowds — they were architects of truth, willing to stand alone in strategy, patience, and divine foresight.
The model now being promoted, however, encourages the opposite: extroversion without insight, emotional allegiance without spiritual grounding, and action without understanding. It subtly conditions the ummah to follow, but not to form themselves.
❖ Obedience Rooted in Fear, Not Faith
At the root of this obedience-driven model lies fear — fear that if we wait, reflect, or take a more long-term and visionary approach, the Imam (ajtf) will be left unsupported or even lost.
But this fear is not supported by our sacred history.
Imam Ali (as) waited in silence for 25 years without compromising truth. Imam Hussain (as) did not gather an army — he gathered a core of insight. The victory of the A’imma was never in numbers — it was in their clarity, consistency, and inner alignment.
❖ The Real Victory
Victory in Islam is not achieved by shouting slogans, attending rallies, or following orders. It is achieved when a believer becomes someone who:
-
Engages with divine knowledge
-
Reflects on their purpose and position
-
Analyzes truth from falsehood with intellectual honesty
-
Understands the path of Wilayah in its spiritual, ethical, and eschatological depth
-
And finally, Creates — not a movement, not a slogan, but themselves
🖋️ "This is the true trajectory that began with 'Iqra': a process of self-becoming, of crafting the nafs into something aligned with the divine."
This is not obedience in the political sense — it is devotion through consciousness. It is the path walked by the A’imma, by the few who followed them in sincerity, and by the souls that will be prepared to stand with the awaited Imam (ajtf).
✦ Tags:
#Muharram2025 #Wilayah #SpiritualPsychology #INTJIslam #SelfCreation #ImamTime #IqraBeforeObey #ShiaThought #UloomENafs
Comments