Hadith
Abu Darda reported: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, “The scholars are the successors of the prophets. Verily, the prophets do not pass on gold and silver coins, but rather they only impart knowledge.”
عَنْ أَبِي الدَّرْدَاءِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الْعُلَمَاءُ خُلَفَاءُ الأَنْبِيَاءِ إِنَّ الأَنْبِيَاءَ لَمْ يُوَرِّثُوا دِينَارًا وَلا دِرْهَمًا إِنَّمَا وَرَّثُوا الْعِلْمَ
Ponder This Hadith
The Prophet ﷺ defines his true inheritors as scholars—those who deeply study the Quran, the Prophet’s ﷺ teachings, and their lived application—not inheritors of authority or lineage. If Imamat were divinely mandated, why is it missing from the Prophet ﷺ’s own explanation of prophetic inheritance?