A Metaphysical Analysis of Infallibility [Ismah]

Infallibility عصمت is both divinely bestowed as well as individually acquired by man albeit in different respects and there is no contradiction here because the aspect in which it is divinely bestowed it is not individually acquired in that same aspect and the aspect in which it is individually acquired it is not divinely bestowed in that same aspect.

It is important to understand that God is a Necessary Being واجب الوجودand a necessary being must be necessary from all aspects واجب من جميع الجهات , meaning that all perfections كمال that are consistent with and not inconsistent with the status of the divine must be necessary for it, such as life حيات , knowledge علم , power قدرت, creativity-causality علية , perception ادراك etc and if a necessary being is not necessary from any single aspect of perfection, so then it must be possible ممكن from that aspect but in that case it will become a composite مركب of necessity وجوب and possibility امكان and every composite is dependent مهتاج upon its parts and that which is dependent cannot be necessary from all aspects, in brief that which is composite and hence dependent upon its parts cannot be necessary by its own essenceبالذات , and any existent which is not necessary by its own essence must have been rendered necessary through another and is therefore ultimately an effect of some external cause, therefore if God is necessary from every aspect so He must also be necessary from the aspect of effusion of divine grace فيض , meaning that he must be a provider of grace فياض in actuality فعليت and not just in potentiality قوت , otherwise He will become a composite of actuality & potentiality, necessity and possibility, which is inadmissible as stated above, therefore as soon as a capableقابل and a qualified receptacle or recipient ظرف is available so the Necessary Being does not withholds his grace from such a recipient because withholding the effusion of grace even after the actualization of the capacity استعدادto receive grace within a recipient or a receptacle is contrary to the necessity & actuality of God's Justice and Wisdom.

However the divine or the giver is just one aspect or part of the entire equation here, the other aspect or end being the receiver or the recipient which must be capable to receive the effusion of grace [in this case infallibility] from the divine in other words the recipient or the receptacle must have sufficient capacity استعداد to receive grace from the Necessary Being and in the absence of this sufficient capacity استعداد the recipient shall not be able to receive grace فيض because it is not existentially worthy enough; but given the actualization or the realization of this requisite capacity استعداد to receive grace, the bestowal of grace is not withheld from such a worthy recipient even for a slight moment because any delay in the effusion of grace فيض even after the acquisition of the required capacity is contrary to the notion of divine justice.

Now the existence of the above mentioned capacity استعداد as an actuality فعليت within a recipient or its acquisition as a capacity is dependent upon a number of factors and prior to its actualization as a capacity, comes the potential or the possibility of the acquisition of such a capacity امكان استعدادى which includes a number of factors the most significant among which are the existence of pure-loins اصلاب شامخة , from which the material-substance جوهر مادى of the soul نفس originates, and pure-wombs ارحام مطهرة , to which that substance is transferred and held therein for a specified term اجل مسم ; now the purity or impurity of the loins and the wombs is dependent upon the physical طبيعى and spiritual روحانى quality of the male-loins and the female-wombs. By the physical-quality of the male-loins and the female-wombs is meant the quality of the food-substance غذاfrom which the substance of the male-loins and the female-wombs is made, which consists of the food being subtle لطيفor gross كثيف , legally-pure حلال or impure حرام , therefore if the substance of the loins or the wombs is made of impure and gross food then the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace [infallibility] امكان استعدادى , will be eliminated or diminished; and if the substance of the loins and the wombs is made of pure and subtle food then the potential or the possibility for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace [infallibility] امكان استعدادى , increases. By the spiritual quality of the male-loins and the female-wombs is meant the moral or ethical اخلاق character of their souls, which consists of the inner-disposition, character-traits, attributes صفات or features that render the kingdom of the soul ملكوت نفس either divine رحمانىor satanic شيطانىsuch as generosity, compassion, mercy, kindness, loyalty, patience, courage, wisdom, knowledge and their opposite viscous traits; it is these ethical character traits or attributes that are referred to as the hosts of intellect and ignorance جنود عقل و جهل by the Imams (as) in their metaphysical utterances; therefore if the soul of the male and female parents, possesses virtuous traitsصفات حسنه so the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace امكان استعدادى , will be enhanced; and if their soul possesses viscous traits then the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace, will be reduced or eliminated. In addition to the male-loins and female-wombs the material and legal quality of the food-substance consumed by the male-parent is also of the utmost importance because a part of the food consumed by the male-parent gets converted into human-semen نطفه انسانيه ; hence if the food consumed by the male-parent is impure or gross so the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace, will be diminished or eliminated; and if it is pure and subtle so the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace, will be enhanced.

Now once the possibility or the potential for acquiring the capacity to receive divine grace is actualized in the form of an actual-existent capacity استعداد to receive grace فيض, and the potential-recipient or receptacle becomes worthy قابل to absorb grace, so the Necessary Being illuminates it with the light of His Grace without any delay. Hence from the aspect of the effusion of divine grace فيض infallibility is divinely bestowed and from the aspect of acquiring and possessing the capacity استعداد to absorb grace, infallibility is individually acquired.