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The Event of Di'bil al-Khuza’i
Di'bil al-Khuzai is one of the famous poets of Imam al-Reza (A.S.) era. He went to the presence of his holiness and said, “O son of the Apostle of Allāh! I have composed a lyric poem about you and I have sworn not to recite it for anyone except after I read it to you.”
His holiness said, “Read it!” and Di'bil started to recite his famous poem that begins with the following lines: The schools of Divine signs are left devoid of recitation [of the Qur’ān], And the descending place of Revelation has become slack and worn-out.
After expressing the oppressed state of the Ahl al-Bayt (A.S.) and their deprivation from their own rights, he went on with the poem: I see their spoils are being divided among others, And their hands are empty of what is theirs.
At this moment Imam al-Reza(A.S.) wept and said, “O Khuza‘i! You told the truth.” Di'bil continued until he got to these lines: I was apprehensive in the world and in its time of striving; And I hope to be safe after I die.
Imam al-Reza(A.S.) told him: “May Allāh keep you safe in that Great Dread [on the Resurrection Day]. Then, Di'bil pointed out the dispersion of the Ahl al-Bayt’s (A.S.) graves until he got to the following poem: And a grave in Baghdad [that is, Imam al-Kāzim’s (A.S.) grave] For a purified soul that the Merciful God has encompassed him in chambers [of Paradise].
Imam al-Reza(A.S.) said, “Shall I add two couplets to this stanza to make your poems perfect?”
Di'bil said, “Yes. O son of the Apostle of Allāh!”
The Imam (A.S.) said, And there is a grave in Tūs; what a tragedy That sets the hearts on fire that will be burning Till the Resurrection until God will raise the Qā’im (the awaited Imam), Who will relieve us of our sorrows and tribulations.
Di'bil said, “O son of the Apostle of Allāh! Whose is this grave that is in Ṭūs?” His holiness answered: “It is my grave. In the near future, however, Ṭūs will become the frequenting place of my Shi'as and visitors. Indeed, whoever visits (makes a pilgrimage to) me in my desolation in Ṭūs will be with me in the same rank on the Resurrection Day, while having been forgiven.
Imam al-Reza's (A.S.) Gift to Di'bil
When Di'bil finished reciting the poems, Imam al-Reza(A.S.) told him to stay on and went into the house. After a while, the Imam’s servant brought one hundred Razawī dīnārs (which were minted in the name of his holiness) and said to Di'bil: “My master says spend these for your journey expenses.”
Di'bil said, “I swear by God that I did not come for this and I did not write my poems for a reward.” He gave back the money bag and asked the Imam to give him one of his garments to get blessed by it.
Imam al-Reza(A.S.) sent back the money along with a robe and told the servant: “Tell him to take this bag, as he is soon going to need it.”
Di'bil took the bag and the robe and left for Marv with a caravan. When they reached Mayān Qawhān, the highway robbers waylaid and plundered the caravan and took all the people of the caravan as captives, including Di'bil.
The robbers were busy dividing the booty while one of them was reciting the couplet: “I see their spoils are being divided among others, And their hands are empty of what is theirs.” (And this was the very poem that Di'bil had written 
Di'bil asked him: “Who said this poem?” The man answered: “Someone from Khuzā‘a named Di‘bi b. ‘Alī.” Then Di'bil said, “I am Di'bil.”
The robber rushed to his chief and informed him of what had happened. The chief came to Di'bil and said, “Are you Di'bil?” he said, “Yes.” The man told him to recite his poem and Di'bil did so. The chief of the robbers ordered Di'bil and all others to be freed and gave them back their properties out of respect for Di'bil.
Di'bil continued with his journey until he reached Qum. People of Qum asked Di'bil to recite his poem. He told them to gather in the grand mosque, and when they did, he recited the poem. People of Qum gave him a lot of money and gifts as sila (prize given to a poet). Then, the people happened to get informed of the robe that Imam al-Reza(A.S.) had given to him. They asked him to sell that robe to them for a thousand dīnārs. Di'bil did not accept. They said, “Sell a piece of that to us for a thousand dīnārs.” He refused and left Qum.
In one of the villages near Qum, a group of Arab youths grabbed the robe from him. Di'bil went back to Qum and asked them to return the robe. The youth refused; they even did not listen to their elderly and told Di’bil: “We do not give back the robe; take a thousand dīnārs for it, instead.” Di'bil did not accept, but as he got hopeless, he asked them to give him a piece of it. They agreed and gave him a piece of the garment along with a thousand dīnārs.
Di'bil returned home and found out that the burglars had stolen all his furniture. He sold the hundred dīnārs that Imam al-Reza(A.S.) had given to him to the Shi'as for one hundred dirhams each. Thus he obtained ten hundred dirhams and recalled that the Imam had said, “You are soon going to need it.
The Healing Robe
Di'bil had a handmaiden who was very dear to him. She was afflicted with severe eye disease. The physicians said her right eye was incurable and is lost, but they would try to cure her left eye.
Di'bil got very sad and restless, until he remembered the piece of cloth from the robe that the Imam (A.S.) had given to him; he rubbed it to her eyes and tied it to her head before she slept at night. When the morning came, her eyes were cured and even healthier than before with the blessings of Imam al-Reza(A.S.).
Reference:
Story of the Sun
A Look at Imam al-Reza's Life
Author: Sayyid Muhammad Najafi Yazdi
Translated by: Ahmad Rezwani
Published by: Islamic Research Foundation, Astan Quds Razavi, Mashhad - I.R. Iran
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