Recognition and Analysis of Structural Metaphors in Explaining the Concept of Imamah and the Position of Ahl al-Bayt (pbut) in Nahj al-Balagha

The most important identity component of Shia is the Imamah and Wilayah of Ahl al-Bayt (pbut), which is the distinguishing factor of this religion from other Islamic religions. These concepts have a high frequency in the words of the first Shia imam to the extent that its numerous reflection is obvious in Nahj al-Balagha. In the meantime, it’s noteworthy that  Imam Ali (pbuh) extensively employs conceptual metaphors to utilize the cognitive abilities of their audiences and making it easier for them to understand the position of Imamah by using sensible and tangible concepts. In this article, based on cognitive linguistics and using Likoff and Johnson's approach in metaphors, the most important conceptual metaphors of the structural type have been examined in explaining the concept of Imamah and the position of Ahl al-Bayt (pbut). At the end, 6 source domain are identified and mapped to the corresponding concepts in the target domain. The most frequent conceptual domains are "light", "travel and movement" and "life and death". Paying attention to these mappings will have a major impact upon the understanding and explanation of Nahj al-Balagha.