“How Can We Tell Right From Wrong Without the Messenger?”

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Abdullah Hashem Aba Al-Sadiq,
Jan. 1, 2025 By AimanAbir18plus –
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An Examination of Mutashabihat Questions 101–106 and the Foundations of High-Control Religious Authority

Introduction

When studying high-control religious movements, one of the most important questions is:

How does authority become centralized in a single individual or movement?

Rarely does this happen overnight.

Instead, authority is gradually transferred away from traditional sources and increasingly concentrated in a special claimant who is presented as possessing unique access to divine truth.

One revealing example can be found in Mutashabihat Questions 101–106, published on the Hashem Studios forum and attributed to Ahmad al-Hassan.

While many readers focus on the mystical interpretations, the more important issue is the underlying authority structure being created.

Throughout these answers we repeatedly see:

  • The elevation of the Qa’im.
  • The elevation of hidden knowledge.
  • The diminishing of ordinary scholarship.
  • The creation of an elite inner group.
  • The claim that truth can only be properly understood through the divinely appointed representative.

These are common features found in many high-control religious movements.

Question 101: The “Middle Nation” Becomes an Elite Group

Ahmad al-Hassan begins by discussing the “Middle Prayer” and then moves into a much broader interpretation.

He writes:

“The prayer is following the authority of Allah’s guardian and Hujja upon His servants.”

Notice what has happened.

Prayer is no longer primarily an act of worship.

Prayer becomes linked to following a specific authority figure.

He then writes:

“The Qa’im prayer is the Friday prayer because he unites the Islamic nation upon the truth.”

But the most significant statement follows.

He declares:

“They are the 313 ones, and they are the witnesses for mankind.”

And further:

“They are the true servants of Allah.”

Why This Matters

This creates an inner-circle mentality.

Instead of:

All believers striving together.

The narrative becomes:

A special group exists.

That group possesses unique status.

That group represents God’s true servants.

Such teachings create a powerful sense of exclusivity.

The reader is encouraged to identify not with ordinary believers but with a chosen remnant.

This is a recurring feature of high-control groups.

Question 104: The Earth Depends Upon the Hujja

Question 104 contains one of the clearest examples of spiritual dependency.

Ahmad al-Hassan writes:

“The Hujja is the Earth’s outlying border.”

Then:

“He is the start and the end.”

Then:

“Without the presence of the Hujja of Allah’s authority in His Earth the Earth would be desecrated by its people.”

The language becomes even stronger.

He claims:

“Without it the Earth would be returned back to nothingness.”

The Implication

This moves far beyond ordinary leadership.

The Hujja is not merely:

  • A teacher.
  • A scholar.
  • A guide.

The Hujja becomes the very reason divine abundance continues to reach the earth.

The practical effect is profound.

If followers accept this premise, questioning the claimant becomes extraordinarily difficult because the claimant is no longer viewed as merely human.

He becomes the essential channel through which God sustains the world.

Question 105: The Qa’im Can Override Existing Religious Law

This is arguably one of the most dangerous sections.

Ahmad al-Hassan writes:

“Imam Mahdi has made many commands which are different to the Shari’a that some people believe in.”

Pause and consider the significance.

He is openly teaching that the divinely guided leader may issue commands that appear to contradict established religious law.

He then says:

“Some of his companions will oppose him.”

And cites traditions describing followers rejecting these commands.

Why High-Control Experts Notice This

Most religions possess mechanisms for evaluating truth.

People can ask:

  • Is this consistent with Scripture?
  • Is this consistent with tradition?
  • Is this consistent with previous revelation?

But if a leader can simply declare:

“My command appears to contradict existing religion because I possess higher knowledge,”

then ordinary safeguards disappear.

The authority of the claimant becomes greater than the authority of the established tradition.

That is one of the classic warning signs found in many authoritarian religious movements.

Question 105: Dreams Become the Verification Method

The next statement is equally important.

Ahmad al-Hassan writes:

“They can return it to Allah… so that He can show him through visions.”

In other words:

When a command seems questionable,

the verification method becomes dreams and visions.

The Problem

Dreams are subjective.

Two people can have completely different dreams.

A person can dream because of:

  • Stress.
  • Emotion.
  • Expectation.
  • Suggestion.

Yet throughout the movement dreams become an increasingly important validation tool.

This creates a system where external verification is replaced by subjective experience.

That is highly effective for maintaining belief because contradictory evidence can always be overridden by a claimed spiritual experience.

Question 106: Muhammad Becomes “Allah Within Creation”

Question 106 contains perhaps the most extraordinary statement in the entire document.

Discussing Moses and the burning bush, Ahmad al-Hassan writes:

“Muhammad is the fire in this verse.”

Then he goes much further:

“Muhammad is Allah within the creation.”

And:

“The emergence of Allah in Mecca by Muhammad.”

Why This Is Significant

Traditional Islamic theology sharply distinguishes:

  • Creator.
  • Creation.

Muhammad is honoured as God’s Messenger.

He is not God.

Yet here the language moves into territory that many Muslims would consider deeply problematic.

The boundary between Creator and creation becomes blurred.

The Progressive Elevation of Sacred Figures

Notice how the movement’s theology develops.

First:

Muhammad is a prophet.

Then:

Muhammad becomes the manifestation of divine realities.

Then:

Muhammad becomes “Allah within creation.”

The pattern is gradual.

Each step builds upon the previous one.

This is often how theological escalation occurs within new religious movements.

The Hidden Psychological Mechanism

The most revealing part of the discussion may not be the theology itself.

It is the psychological effect.

Followers repeatedly encounter statements such as:

“The Qa’im unites humanity.”

“The Qa’im possesses hidden knowledge.”

“The Qa’im may issue commands beyond ordinary religion.”

“The Qa’im’s companions are the true servants.”

“The Hujja sustains the earth.”

Over time these teachings create an environment where loyalty to the claimant becomes increasingly central.

The movement’s authority structure gradually shifts from:

Faith in God

to

Faith in God’s appointed representative.

The Forum Reactions Reveal the Effect

The responses underneath the article are revealing.

One follower writes:

“Every word from him is such a blessing upon us.”

Another writes:

“His words are truly amazing.”

Another says:

“These precious pearls of knowledge.”

And perhaps most revealing:

“How can we tell wrong and right without the Messenger?”

That statement captures the entire authority structure.

The reader is gradually led toward the belief that ordinary believers cannot reliably discern truth without the movement’s divinely guided representative.

The Architecture of Control

When Questions 101–106 are examined together, a clear framework emerges.

Step 1

Create a special chosen group.

“The 313.”

Step 2

Elevate the Qa’im above ordinary scholarship.

Step 3

Teach that he may issue commands beyond accepted religious understanding.

Step 4

Use dreams and visions as verification.

Step 5

Teach that opposition is expected.

Step 6

Present the representative as essential to understanding truth.

Step 7

Gradually elevate sacred figures beyond traditional boundaries.

Conclusion

Mutashabihat Questions 101–106 are not simply unusual theological reflections.

They reveal a developing system in which:

  • Authority becomes centralised.
  • Hidden knowledge becomes essential.
  • Subjective revelation becomes validation.
  • Traditional safeguards are weakened.
  • Loyalty to the claimant becomes increasingly important.

The most concerning feature is not any single statement.

It is the cumulative effect.

When readers are taught that:

  • The Hujja sustains the earth.
  • The Qa’im can override accepted understanding.
  • Dreams confirm truth.
  • The chosen companions alone fully understand.

then a framework is created in which questioning leadership becomes progressively more difficult.

This is precisely why researchers of high-control religious groups pay close attention not only to what leaders teach, but also to how those teachings reshape authority, identity, and dependency within a movement.

Archive Source

Hashem Studios Board Archive:

https://web.archive.org/web/20120103114341/http://hashemstudios-board.com/viewtopic.php?f=118&t=5193