The Psychological Role of Waiting, in Life

Question: What is the psychological role of waiting in our lives?

Answer: The psychological effects of "waiting" are too many some of which we shall point out as under:

A) Desire for Victory

Waiting means hope and aspiration.[1] To hope for a better future and to be pessimistic about the over all system of nature and about the evolution of history and to be confident that a brighter future lie ahead are termed and interpreted in the language of the narrations as "waiting for the reappearance" (Intezar al-faraj). Awaiting the reappearance emanates from the general Islamic principles i.e. divine grace and mercy and the prohibition of despair and hopelessness. The Holy quran says:

{وَ لاَتَيْأَسُوا مِن رَّوْحِ اللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لاَ يَيْأَسُ مِن رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ}[2]

"And despair not of Allah's mercy; surely none despairs of Allah's (soothing) mercy except the unbelieving people."

Laying hope in God's mercy and grace has also been recommended by Imam Ali (a.s.): "Wait for the reappearance and do not despair of God's grace and mercy because the best deed is to wait for the reappearance."[3] Therefore, based on the Quranic verses and narrations, God has promised Muslims and the weakened ones victory which enjoys a very fundamental role in the individual and social lives of the awaiting ones because the awaiting believers engage in amending and reconstructing themselves and the society in the hope of the prevailance of the truth over falsehood; they tolerate the difficulties and stand up against oppression and rebellion. According to psychology, promise of decisive victory creates psychological resistance within the awaiting individual.[4] For this reason, the awaiting believers who have high morale and spirit have been able over the history to defeat the biggest powers that are equipped with the most advanced weapons.

The victory of the Islamic revolution of Iran under the leadership of Imam Khomeini (may Allah bless him) against the puppet and tyrant regime of Shah, the victory in the eight year imposed war against Saddam, the dazzling success in the field of nuclear energy, the resistance and victory of Hizbollah of Lebanon against the Israeli army have been achieved in the light of waiting for the reappearance of Mahdi (a.s.).

The arrogant powers consider themselves to be superior to Muslims in the field of science, industry, technology and military weapons. Despite all of this, they have been defeated psychologically against Muslims and they do not have the guts to fight them. It is for the same reason that William Hanaway considers "waiting" to be the element of life.  He says: "Nonetheless, if mankind were not to await, it would die out slowly like candle or it would end up in absurdim."[5]

B) The Crumbling Awe and Majesty of the Arrogant Powers

According to religious doctrines, the arrogant powers are a historical reality that has existed ever since men's birth. For example, Pharaoh, Nimrod, Abu Lahab and Abu Jahl are the people who have been the enemies of the weakened.

Today, the military and technological superiority of the arrogant powers has given courage to the arrogant world and a feeling of weakness and inability to the weakened. Many Islamic countries do not pay heed to God's decisive and inviolable promise and are under the influence of the arrogant powers' arms advancement. That is why they keep wondering as to how is it possible for Imam Mahdi (ajt) to achieve victory over the enemies who are equipped with present weapons. The answer to this question becomes clear in the light of the following points:

1. Promises of victory and glad-tidings in the Quranic verses and narrations invigorate Muslims psychologically and spiritually, and further strengthen the followers of Islam and crush the glory of the arrogant, in the same that God abased and humiliated the arrogant rulers in the eyes of the Companions of the cave.[6]

1. Ayatollah Saafi says: "It was these promises that made the Muslims steadfast and forbearing against incidents like the domination of Bani Umayyad, the crusades, and which finally led Muslims to wage a holy war against them. These promises whose actuality has been substantiated by decisive and indisputable religious and historical realities always promised the continuation of the era of Islam and that it also proved that the Umayyad and Abbasid governments and the likes are not the expressions of progress, display of political regime, righteous and just leadership.  We must wait for the future and should not retreat; we should protect the borders and fortifications so that the golden age, the age of the prevailance of absolute right and absolute justice should arrive."[7]

2. Despite possessing the most advanced weapons and technology, the morale of the arrogant powers and the arrogant world is weak and fragile vis-à-vis the Muslims. With a crushed morale, they do not have the power of resistance. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) says: "When the time (of the government of Mahdi) arrives, God removes fear from the hearts our followers and puts it in the heart of our enemies. Then, each and every of our follower becomes sharper than a spear and braver than a lion."[8]

According to the narrations, when the Mahdi (ajt) rises up, lethargy, laziness and weakness are wiped out from the minds of Shi'ites and their hearts become firm and strong like a piece of iron.[9] Every Shi'ite is braver than a lion and sharper than a spear. They shall trample upon the enemies and will kill them with their hands.[10]

Based on the narrations, the most advanced war gears are with Imam Mahdi (ajt) but they are concealed and hidden to the enemies. The enemies weapons and military gears will have no effect on the weapons and defensive tools used by the Mahdi's forces. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) says: "If the friends of the Mahdi (ajt) enter into a war with those who have taken over the east and the west, they will destroy them immediately and the enemy's weapons will have no effect on them."[11] Without doubt, the type of weapons used by the Mahdi (ajt) in the battles will be different from the weapons present in those days. The word "sword" in the narrations signifies weapon and it does not refer to the sword only. According to the narrations, the weapons which Imam Mahdi's soldiers use are made of iron but they are such that if they land on a mountain, the mountain will be split into two parts.[12] Imam Mahdi (ajt) and his friends use the most advanced military tactics. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says: "After you, there will come nations under whose feet the earth becomes condensed and the world is opened up to them… the earth is treaded under their feet in less than the wink of an eye."[13] The Mahdi (ajt) is helped by the angels, believers and also by way of fear and horror put in the heart of enemies.[14] Therefore:

1. The fear and dread that hovered over the awaiting lovers before the reappearance will be removed from Muslims' minds and thoughts.

2. Fear and horror are created with the reappearance of the Qāim (ajt) in the hearts of the arrogant ones as a result of which they lose the power of resistance.

3. With God's decisive glad-tidings, the spirit of honor, nobility and superiority is created in the lovers which will lead them to believe that they have an army which no power can challenge. With such a high morale, they never give up, even for a while, their combat and resistance against the arrogant powers because they know that the incident that happened with the Companions of the cave would also happen to them.

C) Honoring the Lovers and Reproaching the Arrogant

Some of the narrations have praised the personalities of the lovers during the period of occultation. Imam Sajjad (a.s.) said: "The people who live in the time of the occultation and who believe in his Imamate and are awaiting his reappearance are better than the people of every other time because God has granted them so much wisdom and understanding that the absence of the Imam has become for them like the time of reappearance. God has made the people of the time (of occultation) like real holy warriors who fight in the company of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). They are the real devotees and the true followers and they are the ones who call to the religion of Allah openly and secretly."[15]

The awaiting of the people of the age of occultation has been considered to be the best deed in the eyes of the holy Prophet of Islam (pbuh):

"Waiting for the reappearance is worship, and the best and most valuable deed of my nation is to expect God, the Exalted, for the reappearance."[16]

There are many narrations reproaching the arrogant ones and the deviants and mentioning their drawbacks and faults. Imam Sadiq (a.s.) says: The arrogant turn into ants (on the Day of Judgment) and people trample upon them so that God gets rid of them.[17] Imam Ali (a.s.) also said: "My father is ransom of the son of the best slave woman (who is the Rising Imam). He will make abject and despised (the arrogant ones and the oppressors) and will pour a cup of poison into their mouths and deal with them with a sword and will slay them widely."[18] The positive effect of these two categories of narrations on the souls, minds and lives of the lovers are:

1.      Increase in the spiritual power of the awaiters against the arrogant ones.

2.      Psychological envigoration of the awaiters.

3.      Maintenance of the superiority and power of the awaiters in their interaction with the arrogant.

Reproach and condemnation of the arrogant are but a reminder of their disgrace and humiliation in spite of having the most advanced equipments and weapons. Eventually, praising and commending the awaiters and reproaching the arrogant will bring about the defeat of the arrogant and break their pomp and glory and shall uplift the weak and take the awaiters out of laziness and suffering and enable them in different aspects of their lives and save them from falling. 

D) Withstanding Social Deviations

One of the benefits of belief in "awaiting" is the resistance of the awaiters against any kind social deviations. Belief in victory and in the blossoming of the world entails profuse positive educational and ideological benefits. It has been stated in the narrations that: "Whoever remains steadfast in his belief in our Wilayah during the occultation of our qāim (support), God will give him the rewards of one thousand martyrs like the martyrs of Badr and Uhud."[19]

The holy Prophet said: "After you there will come people whose one person will gain the reward of fifty people of you." They said: "O Messenger of Allah, we were with you in Badr, Uhud and Hunayn and the Quran was revealed amongst us." The Prophet (pbuh) said: "If what befalls them befalls you, you will not be patient and tolerant like them."[20]

Ayatollah Saafi believes: "Awaiting does not mean being lazy and lethargic or negligence in fulfilling duties and obligations nor is it a justification for leaving struggle and abandoning amr bil ma'ruf wa nahy 'anil munkar (enjoining good and forbidding from evil).  Silence, immobility, indifference and surrendering to the status quo cannot be justified. Awaiting means movement, devotion, rejecting deviation and combating retrogression and apostasy. To move and to await are together and they do not separate from each other. Awaiting is the cause of movement and it is the stimulus."[21] Therefore, it is in the light of the dynamic belief in awaiting that the warriors of the Islamic world are putting up unwaveringly with all the pressures from the arrogant world and they leave no stone unturned to provide the ground for the establishment of the government of truth.[22]

E) The Balance between Hope and Despair

There are numerous narrations promising deliverance, victory and prevailence of Muslims. The holy Prophet (pbuh) said: "O people! You have been given the happy tiding of deliverance. Verily, God's promise is inviolable and His decree is irresistible; He is All-Wise and All-Knowing; and victory is at hand."[23]

Based on narrations, in the time of the greater occultation, especially during the end of the time, a lot of deviations take place. Imam Ali (a.s.) says:  "The earth is filled with oppression and tyranny to the extent that none could utter God's name except in secret. Then Allah shall bring a righteous and worthy community that will fill the earth with justice and equity."[24]

In the period after the demise of the Prophet (pbuh), mischief will spread and reach its climax. The Prophet (pbuh) says: "A time will come when people wish for death."[25]

Today, Muslims' are faced with many problems and deviations and at the same time Islam's power and solidarity are visible. Muslims become hopeful of Islamic power and solidarity while they are suffering deviation and difficulty and become disappointed. There are narrations which give the happy tiding of the victory of Muslims and the awaiters and which create a balance between hope and despair in the personality of the awaiter, so that the person concerned should, during the period of occultation, do away with the psychological weaknesses that have long prevented him from fulfilling his obligation, something that creates fear in the hearts of the arrogant.

Further Reading

1.      Lotfullah Saafi Gulpaigani, Imamate and Mahdism, Vol.2, p.370

2.      Sayyid Asadullah Hashemi Shahidi, The Reappearance of Mahdi (ajt) According to Islam and the World's Religions, p.2 onward.

3.      Alireza, The Impacts of the Reappearance on Individual and Social Life, p.2 onward.

A Closing Hadith

Imam Baqir (a.s.) said: "When the Imam of Time reappears, Allah will place his hand upon the heads of His servants.  Then through him their minds will come together and through him their intellects will become perfected."[26]