معرفت

Man’s history has always witnessed the reference of a non-specialist to a specialist; it is what wisdom directly orders, and the holy Shari'ah confirms. Also, the greatest blight on religiosity is blind imitation, which has caused great tragedies throughout history. Using a descriptive- analytical method, this paper analyzes the types of imitation and expresses its correct and incorrect characteristics through the Quranic and narrative criteria. It is understood from the Qur'an and narratives that forbidden imitation does not merely mean the blind imitation of the culture and costumes of the ancestors; the imitation of the ignorant from the scholar and the reference of lay people to the jurisprudent are of two kinds: prohibited and legitimate. Intellectual immaturity, blind imitation of the predecessors, retrospection, great interest in ancestors and predecessors, prejudice and group-orientedness are among the factors and motives behind blind imitation.