Declaration – 12 Safar 1445 (2023-08-29)

Declaration from His Holiness, Engineer Haj Sayyid Alireza Jazbi, Sabet Ali Shah
On the Appointment of the Honorable Sheikh Sayyid Habibollah Hashemi Tayefeh as Successor,
with the Title “Sadiq Ali Shah” (may God preserve him)

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وَلَا تَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِينَ قُتِلُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَمْوَاتًا بَلْ أَحْيَاءٌ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ يُرْزَقُونَ
[Quran, 3:169]
(Do not think of those who are slain in the way of God as dead; rather, they are alive and sustained by their Lord.)

And now, to continue:

أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ
(“I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner”)
يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
(“He gives life and causes death, and He is capable of all things.”)

I bear witness that Muhammad (PBUH) is His servant and messenger. I also bear witness that Ali ibn Abi Talib (AS) is Amir al-Mu’minin and that the eleven Imams after him—culminating with Hujjat ibn al-Hasan, Sahib al-Zaman, the Most Merciful Imam of mankind and jinn (AJ)—are alive and in occultation, and by God’s will shall reappear to fill the earth with justice after it has been filled with tyranny and oppression. I bear witness that death is truth, Nakir and Munkar (Angels who question about the faith of the deads) are truth, As-Sirat (the bridge) is truth, the Scale is truth, Paradise is truth, and the balance of deeds is truth. As the Prophet (PBUH) said, the “wilayah” of Ali ibn Abi Talib and his infallible progeny (may God’s blessings be upon them all) is the foundation of faith, and بِهٰا تَقَبَّل الطٰاعَاتِها و الْعِبٰاداتْ (“through it, acts of obedience and worship are accepted”) before God.

O Lord, keep me steadfast in the religion and “wilayah” of Your guardian, by the right of Muhammad (PBUH) and his pure household. Peace be upon them all.

And now, since making a testament is strongly emphasized, and the time and place of one’s death is known only to God Almighty, on this date—the 7th of Shahrivar 1402 Solar Hijri, corresponding to the 12th of Safar 1445 Lunar Hijri—and as this shameful sinner has lived past 97 years and may depart at any moment, I find it incumbent upon myself to advise my spiritual brothers and sisters to be mindful of God, to worship Him sincerely, to resist the ego, to believe in God, His Messenger, and the rightly-guided Imams (peace be upon them), to remain connected to the authorized “wali al-amr” of the time, to maintain devotion and obedience to the Master, to love and be kind to all of God’s creation, to serve and show compassion to fellow believers, to keep company with the righteous, and to avoid the companionship of the sinful and seekers of indulgence. All should carefully observe the outward rituals of the Shari‘ah in accordance with the general guidelines outlined in the books of jurisprudence, and perform them with sincerity and the intention of drawing closer to God.

Since no responsible believer is ever exempt from adhering to the practices of the Shari‘ah, it is necessary to follow a Sheikh, and obedience to the Sheikh of the path is incumbent upon everyone. Therefore, I, the least among the Dervishes and their servant, who—after the passing of His Holiness Majzoub Ali Shah (may his noble secret be sanctified)—have been entrusted with the seat of guidance in the noble Alawi-Ridhawi Ni‘matullahi Sultan Ali Shahi Order and authorized to teach and transmit the litanies and invocations “hand to hand, chest to chest” from the Prophet (PBUH) and the Twelve Imams (AS), find it my duty to convey this trust to those deserving and to appoint for the guidance of others anyone I deem fit.

On this date, I appoint the honorable brother Mr. Sayyid Habibollah Hashemi Tayefeh, a refined “faqir” detached from worldly desires who has served the “path of faqr” with sincerity and devotion and is a distinguished Sheikh, to the position of successor. I honor him with the title “Sadiq Ali Shah”. The “Mashayekh”, authorized deputies, and other “fuqara” should recognize the significance of this declaration and promptly renew their allegiance, for verily the chain of spiritual authorization continues unbroken until it reaches the hand of the “Wali al-Amr” (AJ).