Some commonly used phrases are given below.

تنصيب إلهي

Divine appointment: used in the context of divine leadership e.g. Imam or Vicegerent

 

منصب من الله

Divinely appointed by Allah: describes the method through which a divine leader has been appointed

 

خليفة الله في أرضه

Allah’s vicegerent in His earth: the person with ultimate divine authority on the earth

 

الوصية المباركة

Blessed Will: the written will that the Prophet Muhammad pbuhahf had written by Imam Ali the night he passed away

 

إمام

Imam: leader, typically refers to a divine leader, although it is also used in a more general sense to denote someone who leads the congregational prayers

 

رسول

Messenger: is also used for a messenger (e.g. Imam) from a messenger (Messenger Muhammad)

 

نبي

Nabi: Someone who receives ‘news from heaven’ in the form of divine dreams or direct inspiration

 

مهدي

Mahdi: an individual who is guided (some narrations mention that he is guided to a hidden matter, whilst others say he is guided to the truth)