Imam RÄ«á¸a (pbuh):
An Imam (pbuh) is [like] a fire, above a tall hill.
He heats up whoever looks for heat [spiritual heat],
and guides whoever gets caught up in disasters.
[Well,] whoever avoids him will be  destroyed.
An Imam (pbuh) is [like]:
A rain cloth,
showers,
the shelter sky,
the vast earth,
a boiling spring,
a pond and a flower bulb.
An Imam (pbuh) is the trustable friend, sympathetic father and close brother.
[An Imam (pbuh)] is such as a good mother toward her little child.
[He] is the refuge for the servants [servants of God]
An Imam (pbuh) is God’s trustable one on the earth, and among the people.
[He] is kind to the servants, and is the successor in  cities.
[He] invites people to God, and defends God’s privacy
Tuhaf al-Uqul An Ale Rasul, ibn Shu’ba al-Harrani, P. 439