How sound is the hadith: "He who dies without knowing the Imam of his time dies a death of Jahiliyyah (ignorance)," and what is meant by the Imam in this hadith?
The aforementioned , in its exact wording, has not been found. However, similar narrations have been reported, such as: "Whoever dies without having a pledge of allegiance (bay'ah) on his neck dies a death of Jahiliyyah (pre-Islamic ignorance)" (Narrated by Muslim), and "Whoever dies without having an Imam over him dies a death of Jahiliyyah" (Narrated by Abu Ya'la with a good chain of transmission). The intended meaning of "Imam" is the guardian of the affairs of the Muslims (Wali al-Amr) who looks after their religious and worldly interests, as stated in the hadith of Hudhayfah: "You should adhere to the main body of the Muslims (jama'at al-Muslimeen) and their Imam" (Narrated by Muslim).
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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