Reincarnation

Does death definitively mark the end of our presence on Earth? Or can the soul return to continue its journey through a new existence?

The question of life after death has accompanied humanity since its origins.

Religious traditions offer different answers concerning the destiny of the soul, the resurrection and the judgment.

In the ninth Door of The Goal of the Wise, Abdullah Hashem Aba Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) presents a particular interpretation of the Raj'a, or Return, which he connects to reincarnation.

To develop this doctrine, he relies in particular on traditions attributed to the Imams of the Family of Mohammed and on the manuscript Al-Haft Al-Shareef.

1. What is the Raj'a?

In certain Shia traditions, the Raj'a refers to the return of certain people to earthly life before the final resurrection.

The book attaches fundamental importance to this concept.

It reports in particular sayings attributed to Imam Jaafar Al-Sadiq concerning belief in the Return.

In the interpretation proposed by the author, the Raj'a should not be understood solely as an extraordinary resurrection.

It can also refer to the return of souls in new bodies.

This understanding differs from the interpretations held by many Muslim theologians, including Shia ones.

2. The return of the believers in the time of the Qaim

The chapter mentions several traditions according to which deceased believers could return at the time of the appearance of the Qaim.

One of the narrations cited presents the return as a possibility offered to certain believers.

They could choose to join their companion who has appeared in the world or to remain in their spiritual state.

The author interprets these accounts as indications that death would not prevent a new participation in human history.

The Return thus becomes an important dimension of the eschatological mission of the Qaim.

3. The difference between the Raj'a and the final resurrection

The ninth Door establishes a distinction between two notions.

The Raj'a concerns the return of certain souls to the earthly world.

The final resurrection, or Qiyama, concerns the judgment and the ultimate fulfillment of human destiny.

To support this distinction, the book draws on interpretations of Quranic verses attributed to the Imams.

It cites in particular Surah Al-Anbiya, verse 95, and Surah Al-Qasas, verse 85.

The author considers that these passages make it possible to understand the Return as an event distinct from the general resurrection.

This reading constitutes a doctrinal interpretation of the texts, and not a universally accepted meaning.

4. The return of the prophets and the Imams

According to several traditions presented in the chapter, major figures of religious history would return to the world.

The work mentions in particular the Prophet Mohammed, Imam Ali and Imam Al-Hussein.

It also mentions other figures, among them Joshua son of Nun, Salman Al-Farsi, Al-Miqdad and Malik Al-Ashtar.

The return of these figures is associated with the time of the Qaim.

From the perspective of the book, spiritual history is therefore not limited to a succession of definitively separated generations.

Certain souls could take part in several periods of human history.

5. Al-Haft Al-Shareef: a central text

The ninth Door gives a special place to the manuscript Al-Haft Al-Shareef.

This work reports conversations attributed to Imam Jaafar Al-Sadiq and Al-Mufaddal ibn Omar.

According to The Goal of the Wise, it contains detailed teachings on the Return of souls.

The author considers it a major source of spiritual knowledge.

He also reports that Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) attributes exceptional importance to it.

This religious assessment must, however, be distinguished from the historical and academic debates concerning the origin, transmission and authenticity of the manuscript.

6. The different forms of the return of the soul

One of the particular teachings of the chapter concerns the diversity of the forms that the return of a soul could take.

The work presents a doctrine according to which souls would not necessarily be limited to a succession of human lives.

It also mentions incarnations or transformations involving animal, plant or inanimate forms.

These notions will be defined more precisely in the following Door.

They belong to a metaphysical conception of existence and do not correspond to scientifically demonstrated phenomena.

7. Do family ties change from one incarnation to another?

The chapter introduces another important question.

If a soul returns to the world several times, does it keep the same parents, the same brothers and the same sisters?

According to the teachings reported, biological ties concern physical bodies and can vary from one incarnation to another.

The identity of the soul would therefore be distinct from its earthly family belonging.

This distinction prepares the Door devoted to the Soul Family.

8. The Return and spiritual responsibility

Beyond the accounts of reincarnation, the chapter invites us to reflect on the responsibility of the human being.

If the existence of the soul goes beyond a single earthly life, choices and actions could be part of a much vaster journey.

This perspective gives a particular meaning to justice, repentance and spiritual evolution.

It also leads us to examine the difference between a person’s visible identity and their inner reality.

Conclusion — Does the soul go beyond a single existence?

The ninth Door of The Goal of the Wise presents the Raj'a as a key to understanding the return of the prophets, the Imams and certain believers.

It proposes a vision in which the history of humanity and that of souls would be closely linked.

Are we only the beings we know today, or does our soul have a history that goes beyond the limits of our present memory?

The tenth Door explores this question further by distinguishing reincarnation from transmigration.