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The Proofs About the Reappearance of Imam al-Mahdi
By: Ayatullah al-Uzma Lutfullah as-Safi al-Gulpaygani
Verses from the Holy Quran which give glad-tidings about his reappearance, or can be interpreted to the signs of his reappearance, and what will happen before, during, and after his reappearance
In this section, we will mention the traditions that have been narrated which are interpretations of the Holy Quran or the opinions of commentators which are in harmony and accordance with these narrations.
Of course, some of these verses in their apparent form or according to their interpretations, exclusively refer to him. This will become clear for you by reading what has been mentioned. We will discuss or at least hint at twenty-eight verses from the Holy Quran and their interpretations (tafsīr) in this chapter. The number of traditions we will refer to, to explain these verses, are eighty-two.
The verses of the Quran which refer to his reappearance are many and exceed one hundred and thirteen in number—as some have enumerated. A few scholars have even compiled exclusive books on the subject. We will, God willing, mention a few of these verses only as examples and not as a complete study. They are as follows: Those who believe in the unseen and establish prayers and give away from what We have bestowed upon them 1
310. Kamāl al-dīn2: Muḥammad b. Mūsā al-Mutawakkil, may Allah be satisfied with him, from Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā al-`Aṭṭār, from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsā, from Muḥammad b. `Abd al-`Azīz, from a group of our companions, from Dāwūd b. Kathīr al-Riqqī, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, regarding the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, “Those who believe in the unseen,” means those who acknowledge [or believe]3 that the uprising of the Qā’im is true.
And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs4
311. Nahj al-balāgha5: Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, said: “The world will be kind to us after its defiance just like an ill-mannered she-camel which is kind towards its young [but bites those who want to milk it].” Then Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, recited the verse, “And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs.” Ibn Abī l-Ḥadīd says in his commentary on Nahj al-balāgha: “Our companions believe that he has given a promise about an Imam who will rule the earth and dominate the nations.”
Al-Ḥaskānī mentions in Shawāhid al-tanzīl from `Abd-al-Raḥmān b. al-Ḥasan, from Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm b. Salma, from Muḥammad b. `Abd-Allah b. Sulaimān, from Yaḥyā b. `Abd al-Ḥamīd al-Ḥammānī, from Sharīk, from `Uthmān, from ibn Ṣādiq, from Rabī`at b. Nājidh, from `Alī, peace be on him, who said: “The world will become kind to us like an ill-mannered she-camel towards her young.” He then recited: “And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened . . .”
312. Tafsīr al-Furāt6: Al-Ḥusayn b. Sa`īd, through a chain of narrators from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, who said:
Whoever wants to ask about our affairs and that of the people, then (he should know that) we and our followers were on the tradition (sunna) of Moses and his followers since the day Allah created the heavens and the earth, and surely our enemy and his followers were on the tradition of the Pharaoh (Fir`un) and his followers since the day Allah created the heavens and the earth. He [i.e. the one who wants to know] should recite the verses from the beginning of Sūrat al-Qaṣaṣ to Allah’s saying “they fear (yaḥdharūn).” I swear by Allah Who split the seed, created the soul, and sent the Book to Muḥammad—Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family—with truth and justice, these [people] will become kind to you like an ill-mannered she-camel becomes kind towards its young.
313. Shawāhid al-tanzīl7: From Abū Bakr al-Ma`marī, from Abū Ja`far al-Qummī, from Muḥammad b. `Umar al-Ḥāfiẓ in Baghdad, from Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn, from Aḥmad b. `Uthm b. Ḥakīm, from Shurayḥ b. Maslama, from Ibrāhīm b. Yūsuf, from `Abd al-Jabbār, from al-A`mash al-Thaqafī, from Abū Ṣādiq, from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, who either said: “The verse ‘And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs’ is about us” or “belongs to us.”
314. Tafsīr al-Furāt8: From furāt b. Ibrāhīm al-Kūfī, through a chain of narrators from Abū l-Mughaira, from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, who said: “The verse ‘And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs,’ was descended regarding us.”
315. Tafsīr al-Furāt9: From `Alī b. Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Zuharī, through a chain of narrators from Thuwair b. Abī Fākhta, from Imam `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, who asked him, “Do you recite the Quran?” He replied in the affirmative. The Imam, peace be on him, said, “Then recite Ṭā-Sīn-Mīm [Sūrat al-Qaṣaṣ], the Surah of Moses and the Pharaoh.” Thuwair says, “I recited four of its initial verses until I reached His saying, ‘and make them the Imams and make them the heirs.’ He, peace be on him, said: “That’s enough. By the One Who truly sent Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, as a giver of good news and warnings (bashīran wa nadhīrā), the righteous (al-abrār) from us Ahl al-Bait and their followers are like Moses, peace be on him, and his followers.”
316. Tafsīr al-Furāt10: From `Alī b. Muḥammad b. `Umar al-Zuharī, through a chain of narrators from Zaid b. Salām al-Ju`fī who said: I went to Abū-Ja`far [Imam Muḥammad al-Bāqir], peace be on him, and said, “May Allah improve your condition! Al-Khaithama al-Ju`fī has reported to me that he asked you concerning the verse ‘and make them the Imams and make them the heirs,’ and that you told him that you are the Imams and you are the heirs.” The Imam, peace be on him, replied, “By Allah, al-Khaithama has said the truth. I informed him exactly like this.”
317. Ghaybat al-Shaykh11: From Muḥammad b. `Alī, from al-Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad al-Qiṭa`ī, from `Alī b. Ḥātim, from Muḥammad b. Marwān, from `Ubaid b. Yaḥyā al-Thaurī, from Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn, from his father, from his grandfather, from `Alī, peace be on him, who said regarding the saying of Allah, the Exalted ‘And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs’: “They are the progeny of Muḥammad, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family. Allah will send their Mahdī after their struggles so that he may give them honor and humiliate their enemies.”
318. Al-Anwār al-muḍī’a12: From Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Ayādī, through a chain of narrators from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, who said, “We Ahl al-Bait are those who have been mentioned in (Allah’s) book as weakened in the earth and whom Allah will make the Imams. Allah will send their Mahdī so that he may give them honor and humiliate their enemies.”
319. Al-Anwār al-muḍī’a13: It has been narrated that the verse “And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs” was mentioned in the presence of Imam al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him. Tears started flowing from his eyes and he said: “By Allah, we are those who have been weakened.”
And indeed We have written in the Psalms after the Remembrance, that the earth will be inherited by my righteous servants14
320. Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām15: Aḥmad b. Muḥammad, from Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan, from his father, from Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad b. `Abd-Allah b. al-Ḥasan, from his father, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, who said: “The saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, ‘The earth will be inherited by My righteous servants’ refers to the companions of the Mahdī, peace be on him, in the end of times.”
321. Tafsīr al-tibyān16: Imam al-Bāqir, peace be on him, said: “Surely, this is a promise to the believers that they will inherit the entire earth.”
The author of Majma` al-bayān says: It has been narrated from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, that “they are the companions of the Mahdī, peace be on him, in the end of times.” The proof for this can be found in the traditions narrated by the Shias and the Sunnis on the authority of the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who said, “If only one day remains to the end of the world, Allah will prolong it until He sends a righteous person from my Ahl al-Bait. He will fill the earth with justice and fairness just as it will be filled with unfairness and injustice.” The renowned Sunni scholar, Abū Bakr Aḥmad b. al-Ḥusayn al-Bayhaqī has recorded numerous traditions concerning this concept in his book al-Ba`th wa l-nushūr. His grandson, Abū l-Ḥasan `Ubaid-Allah b. Muḥammad b. Aḥmad, narrated to us all these traditions in the year 518 AH . . . One of the things that Abū l-Ḥasan narrated to us was that he said, “Narrated to us Abū `Alī al-Rūdbārī, from Abū Bakr b. Dāsa, from Abū Dāwūd al-Sajistānī, from many different people, from the book al-Sunan, that the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said, ‘If only one day remains to the end of the world, Allah will prolong it until He sends a person from me or from my Ahl al-Bait.’ Some versions of the tradition also add, ‘His name will be my name. He will fill the earth with fairness and justice just as it will be filled with unfairness and oppression.’”
322. Tafsīr al-Qummī17: (From Imam al-Bāqir, peace be on him) who said: In the saying of Allah, “And indeed We have written in the Psalms after the Remembrance (al-dhikr),” Remembrance (al-dhikr) refers to all the [Holy] books and “The earth will be inherited by my righteous servants,”18 refers to the Qā’im, peace be on him, and his companions; The Psalms consist of the story of fierce battles, praises, glorifications and supplications.
And surely he is a sign of the Hour19
323. Al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa20: Ibn Ḥajar records in al-Ṣawā`iq in the chapter on the verses revealed about the Ahl al-Bait: Regarding the twelfth verse, Allah’s saying: “And surely he is a sign of the hour,” Muqātil b. Sulaimān and other commentators who have followed him say, “Verily, this verse was revealed concerning the Mahdī.” We will soon mention traditions that clearly show he is from the progeny of the Messenger of Allah. This verse shows the prosperity of the descendants of Fāṭima and `Alī—may Allah be satisfied with them—and that surely Allah will bring forth from them many pure people and that He will make their descendants the keys of wisdom and the mines of mercy . . .”
It has been recorded in Is`āf al-rāghibīn: “Muqātil b. Sulaimān and the commentators who followed him have said the verse ‘And surely he is a sign of the hour,’ was revealed concerning the Mahdī.” According to Nūr al-abṣār, “Muqātil b. Sulaimān and the commentators who followed him have said regarding the above verse, ‘He is Mahdī. He will be in the end of times. The signs of the Hour and its establishment will occur after his reappearance.’”
It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to make it superior over all religions, even though the polytheists detest it21
324. Tafsīr al-tibyān22: Imam al-Bāqir, peace be on him, says: This will occur when the Qā’im, peace be on him, emerges. According to Majma` al-bayān, Imam Al-Bāqir, peace be on him, says, “This will take place when the Mahdī from the progeny of Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, reappears. No one will remain but that he will testify to [the prophethood] of Muḥammad, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family.”
325. Al-Bayān23: Sa`īd b. Jubair says regarding the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, “to make it superior over all religions, even though the polytheists detest it” that “He is the Mahdī from the progeny of Fāṭima, peace be on her.”
326. Al-Kāfī24: `Alī b. Muḥammad, from one of our companions, from ibn Maḥbūb, from Muḥammad b. al-Fuḍail, from Abū l-Ḥasan al-Māḍī [i.e. the tenth Imam] who when asked about the verse: “to make it superior over all religions,” had said, “He [Allah] will dominate it over all the religions at the time of the Qā’im’s rising. Allah says, ‘And Allah will complete His Light,’ [means] the mastership (wilāya) of the Qā’im. . .”
327. The Book of Faḍl b. Shādhān25: Ṣafwān b. Yaḥyā, from Muḥammad b. Ḥumrān, from (Imam) Ja`far b. Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him, who said: Surely the Qā’im from us will be aided by fear and made powerful with assistance. The earth will twist for him [distances will be shortened for him], all the treasures will be exposed for him, and through him, Allah, the Exalted, will dominate His religion over all religions even if the polytheists detest it. His government will encompass the East and West of the earth. No ruined thing shall remain on the earth but that he will revive it. The Spirit of Allah, Jesus the son of Mary, peace be on him, will descend and pray behind him.
Ibn Ḥumrān narrates that someone asked him, “O son of Allah’s Messenger! When will the Qā’im from you appear?” He, peace be on him, replied: When the men will resemble women and the women will resemble men, men will suffice with men and women will suffice with women,26 women will ride on saddles, false testimonies will be accepted while the true ones will be refuted, blood [murder] will be taken lightly, unlawful sex will be committed, loans will be given with interest and bribes will be taken, the evil shall govern the good, the Sufyānī will emerge from Syria and the Yamānī from Yemen.
The earth will sink at Baydā’ and a young man from the progeny of Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, will be killed between the Rukn and the Maqām [at Ka`ba]. His name will be Muḥammad b. Muḥammad and his epithet will be al-Nafs al-Zakiyya (the pure soul). A cry will come from the skies that “salvation is for `Alī and his followers.”
It is then that our Qā’im will reappear. When he emerges, he will lean his back on the Ka`ba and three hundred and thirteen men will gather near him. The first thing that he will say will be the verse, “The remnant of Allah is better for you, if you are believers.”27
Then, he will say, “I am the remnant of Allah, His Proof, and His Caliph upon you.” No Muslim will salute him but through these words, “Peace be upon you, O remnant of Allah on His earth.” When the ten thousand men assembly meets for the covenant, he will emerge from Mecca. Then, besides Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, nothing that is worshipped and no idol will remain on earth except that it will catch fire and burn. This will occur after a long occultation.
328. Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī28: Narrated to us Ja`far b. Aḥmad, from Abū `Abd Allah (al-Ṣādiq), peace be on him, who said about the verse: “It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to make it superior over all religions, even though the polytheists detest it” that “When the Qā’im reappears, there shall not remain a polytheist nor a disbeliever except that he will dislike the reappearance [of the Qā’im]. If [one of them hides] in a boulder, the boulder will call out, ‘O believer! Within me is an unbeliever. Break me and kill him.’”
329. Mashāriq anwār al-yaqīn29: From Imam al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him, who said: “Surely, this affair will end in the one whom the horsemen will return to humbly from the horizons. He is the one who will make [Islam] prevail over all religions and he is the Mahdī.”
330. Majma` al-bayān30: al-`Ayyāshī narrates through his chain from `Imrān b. Maitham, from `Ibāya that he heard Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, say: “‘It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to make it superior over all religions,’ Has this already occurred?” [Those present] replied, “Yes.” He, peace be on him, said, “No, by the One in Whose hand is my life. Not until there remains no village but that from which the testimony of there is no god but Allah will be called out every morning and evening.”
331. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī31: From Samā`a, from Abū Abd-Allah (al-Ṣādiq), peace be on him, (under the verse), “It is He Who has sent . . . even though the polytheists detest it”: When the Qā’im, peace be on him, reappears, there shall remain no one who associates others with the Great Allah and no disbelievers, except that they will dislike his reappearance.
332. Mafātīḥ al-ghayb (al-Tafsīr al-kabīr)32: Under the interpretation of the saying of [Allah], the Exalted, “It is He Who has sent His Messenger . . .,” from al-Suddī: “This will occur when the Mahdī emerges.”
He also says in al-Sirāj al-munīr under the interpretation of the same verse: “Al-Suddī said, ‘This will occur when the Mahdī, peace be on him, emerges.’” It has also been narrated from al-Suddī in Tafsīr abū l-futūḥ33 that “This will occur when the Mahdī, peace be on him, emerges.”
Allah has promised those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them, and that He will most certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will most certainly, after their fear, give them security in exchange; They worship Me and don’t associate anyone with Me; and whoever is ungrateful after that, then those are the disobedient34
333. Shawāhid al-tanzīl35: Furāt b. Ibrāhīm, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Shīrawayh al-Qaṭṭān, from Ḥuraith b. Muḥammad, from Ibrāhīm b. Ḥakam b. Abān, from his father, from al-Suddī, from ibn `Abbās concerning the verse, “Allah has promised to those of you who believe . . .” He said: “It has been revealed about the family of Muḥammad, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family.”
334. Shawāhid al-tanzīl36: Furāt, from Aḥmad b. Mūsā, from Mukhawwal, from `Abd al-Raḥmān, from al-Qāsim b. `Uwf who said: “I heard `Abd-Allah b. Muḥammad say [concerning the verse], ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds . . .’ that ‘It is for (about) us Ahl al-Bait.’”
335. Al-Durr al-manthūr37: Aḥmad and ibn Mardawayh have both narrated and Bayhaqī has recorded in al-Dalā’il from Ubay b. Ka`b who said: “When the verse ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds . . .’ was revealed to the Prophet, he said, ‘Give good news to this nation about loftiness, elevation, religion, help, and establishment on earth. Whoever amongst them performs the deeds of the hereafter for this world [i.e. to reach worldly aims], he will have no share in the hereafter.’”
336. Tafsīr al-Qummī38: His saying: ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them, and that He will most certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will most certainly, after their fear, give them security in exchange; They worship Me and don’t associate anyone with Me’ was descended concerning the Qā’im from the progeny of Muḥammad, peace be on him and his forefathers.
337. Al-Iḥtijāj39: In a lengthy tradition from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, in which he mentions the shortcomings of some of the enemies of the Ahl al-Bait and those who had gained power and Allah’s delay in punishing them. He says: All these [delays] were [put in place] so that the respite would come to an end which Allah, Blessed and High be He, gave to His enemy Satan; until the Book reaches its time and the word is fulfilled against the disbelievers and the true promise which Allah has explained in His Book approaches: ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them.’ This will occur when nothing will remain from Islam except its name and from the Quran save its text.
The owner of the affair #7779;āḥib al-amr) will go in occultation because he will have an [obvious] excuse to do so as mischief will cover the hearts to such an extent that the closest of people to him will have the most enmity against him. It is then that Allah will assist him with an army that you cannot see and He will make the religion of His Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, prevail at his hands over all other religions, even if the polytheists dislike it.
338. Miṣbāḥ al-Shaykh40: In the ziyāra of Imam Ḥusayn, peace be on him, which he has narrated from Abū (Imam) `Abd-Allah, peace be on him: O Allah! multiply Your salutations, Your mercy, and Your blessings upon the progeny of Your Prophet—the progeny who were mistreated, terrified and belittled; the remnants of the clean, pure, and blessed tree. And O Allah! Elevate their word, make their arguments successful, free them from calamities, straits, the intense darkness of falsehood, and sorrows.
Make the hearts of their Shias and Your party steadfast upon their obedience, their mastership, their help, and their guardianship, and help them and bestow them with patience in the face of the tortures they receive in Your cause.
Make for them witnessed days and praised, fortunate times, in which their salvation will be near and which will be the cause of their establishment and them being assisted (by You), just as You have guaranteed for Your friends in Your revealed Book, for surely, You have said and Your word is the truth: ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them, and that He will most certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will most certainly, after their fear, give them security in exchange; They worship Me and don’t associate anyone with Me.’
339. Majma` al-bayān41: It has been narrated from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, that this verse is about the Mahdī from the progeny of Muḥammad, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family. Al-`Ayyāshī has narrated through his chain of narrators from Imam `Alī ibn al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, that after reciting the verse, he, peace be on him, said: By Allah! Those are the followers of us Ahl al-Bait. Allah will deal with them in this manner at the hands of a person from us and he is the Mahdī of this umma. He is the one about whom the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said, “Even if there remains one day from this world, Allah will prolong that day until a person from my progeny rules. His name will be my name. He will fill the earth with justice and fairness just as it will be filled with unfairness and injustice.”
He narrates a similar tradition from (Imam) Abū Ja`far and (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on them, and then says: “Therefore, the term “those of you who believe and do good deeds” refers to the Holy Prophet and his Ahl al-Bait, may Allah’s blessings be upon them. The verse also gives them glad-tidings about their governance and power in the cities and the removal of fear from them at the time of the rising of their Mahdī, peace be on him.”
340. Majāzāt al-āthār al-nabawiyya42: The Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, saw Fatima, peace be on her, hungry with a torn gown, so he wept and said: “Does it not satisfy you, O Fatima, that there shall not remain on the face of earth any house or tent except that respect or disgrace shall enter it because of your father?”43
341. Majāzāt al-āthār al-nabawiyya44: He, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: “This religion will certainly enter everywhere that night enters.”
I say: In this tradition as well as the previous one, there is no clear mention of the Mahdī, peace be on him, or that he will make such things happen. But, just like the Holy Quran, some narrations explain other narrations. Whoever ponders about what we have mentioned from the verses of the Holy Quran and the traditions— and traditions similar to these—will know that the aim of all of these traditions is one and that is, giving news about Islam’s domination over all other religions and the rule of the believers on earth during the government of the Divine Caliph, Imam Mahdī, peace be on him, whom Allah will help to conquer the entire globe.
342. Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām45: Narrated to us `Alī b. `Abd-Allah, from Ibrāhīm b. Muḥammad al-Thaqafī, from al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥusayn, from Sufyān b. Ibrāhīm, from `Amr b. Hāshim, from Isḥāq b. `Abd-Allah, from (Imam) `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, “And by the Lord of the heavens and the earth, it is most surely the truth, just as you do speak.”46 He, peace be on him, said: “It is most surely the truth,” refers to the rising of the Qā’im, peace be on him. Concerning him, was revealed, “Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them, and that He will most certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will most certainly, after their fear, give them security in exchange.”
343. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī47: Narrated to us Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Sa`īd b. `Uqda, from Abū l-Ḥasan Aḥmad b. Yūsuf b. Ya`qūb al-Ju`fī, from his book, from Ismā`īl b. Mihrān, from al-Ḥasan b. `Alī b. Abī Ḥamza, from his father and Wuhaib, from Abū Baṣīr, from (Imam) Abū Abd-Allah, peace be on him, regarding the meaning of His saying, Mighty and Glorified be He: “Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them, and that He will most certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them, and that He will most certainly, after their fear, give them security in exchange; They worship Me and don’t associate anyone with Me.” He, peace be on him, said: “It was revealed concerning the Qā’im, peace be on him, and his companions.”
Those, who if We give them power in the land, will keep up the prayers and pay the zakat and enjoin good and forbid evil, and the outcome of all affairs belongs to Allah48
344. Shawāhid al-tanzīl49: Furāt (al-Kūfī), from Aḥmad b. al-Qāsim b. `Ubaid, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad al-Jammāl, from Yaḥyā b. Hāshim, from Abū Manṣūr, from Abū Khalīfa who said: I and Abū `Ubaida al-Ḥadhdhā’ visited (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him. He asked his slave-girl to get a cushion for us. I said, “There is no need for it, we will sit.” He said, “O Abū Khalīfa! Don’t reject respect. For surely, none turns down respect except a donkey.” I asked him, “How can we recognize the owner of this affair #7779;āḥib al-amr)?” He replied, “The saying of Allah, the Exalted, ‘Those, who if We give them power in the land, will keep up the prayers and pay the zakat and enjoin good and forbid evil.’ When you see this man from us, then follow him, for surely, he is its owner.”
345. Shawāhid al-tanzīl50: Furāt (al-Kūfī), from al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī b. Zuray` and Ismā`īl b. Abān, from Fuḍail b. al-Zubayr, from Zaid b. `Alī who said: “When the Qā’im from the progeny of Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, rises, he will say, ‘O people! We are the ones about whom Allah has promised you in His Book: “Those, who if We give them power in the land . . .”’”
346. Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām51: Narrated to us Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn b. Ḥamīd, from Ja`far b. `Abd-Allah, from Kathīr b. `Ayyāsh, from Abū l-Jārūd, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, concerning His saying, Mighty and Glorified be He: “Those, who if We give them power in the land, will keep up the prayers and pay the zakat and enjoin good and forbid evil, and the outcome of all affairs belongs to Allah.” He, peace be on him, said: This (verse) is about the progeny of Muḥammad, the Mahdī, and his companions. Allah, the Exalted, will make them rule all the earth. Through them, Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, will destroy the innovations (al-bida`) and falsehood—the same way that the fools had caused the truth to die—until no sign of unfairness will be visible. They will enjoin good and forbid evil, and the outcome of all affairs belong to Allah.”
Permission (to fight) is given to those upon whom war is made, because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them52
347. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī53: Informed us `Alī ibn al-Ḥusayn al-Mas`ūdī, from Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā al-`Aṭṭār al-Qummī, from Muḥammad b. Ḥasan al-Rāzī, from Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Kūfī, from `Abd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Najrān, from al-Qāsim, from Abū Baṣīr, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He: “Permission (to fight) is given to those upon whom war is made because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them.” He said: “It is about the Qā’im, peace be on him, and his companions.”
348. Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām54: Narrated to us al-Ḥusayn b. Aḥmad al-Mālikī, from Muḥammad b. `Īsā, from Yūnus, from al-Muthannā al-Ḥannāṭ, from `Abd-Allah b. `Ajlān, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He: “Permission (to fight) is given to those upon whom war is made because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them.” He said: “It is about the Qā’im, peace be on him, and his companions.”
Wherever you are, Allah will bring you all together55
349. Majma` al-bayān56: It has been narrated from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, that this verse refers to the companions of the Mahdī, peace be on him, in the end of times. Imam al-Riḍā, peace be on him, says: “By Allah, when our Qā’im rises, Allah will gather towards him his Shias from all the lands.”
It has been narrated in Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī from Abī Sumayna, from one of the slaves of (Imam) Abū l-Ḥasan, peace be on him, who said: “I asked (Imam) Abū l-Ḥasan, peace be on him, about His saying, the Exalted, ‘wherever you are, Allah will bring you all together.’ He, peace be on him, replied, ‘By Allah, when our Qā’im rises, Allah will gather (for him) our Shias from all the lands.’”
350. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī57 : In a lengthy tradition from (Imam) Abū Ja`far al-Bāqir, peace be on him: Then, the Qā’im, peace be on him, will stand between the Rukn and the Maqām (beside Ka`ba) and will perform prayers. He will complete them while his minister is beside him. He will then say, “O People! Verily, we seek the help of Allah against those who oppressed us and withheld our rights. Whoever disputes us concerning Allah, then we are closer to Allah. Whoever disputes us concerning Adam, then we are the closest people to Adam.
Whoever disputes us concerning Noah, then we are the closest people to Noah. Whoever disputes us concerning Abraham, then we are the closest people to Abraham. Whoever disputes us concerning Muḥammad, may God’s blessings be on him and his family, then we are the closest people to Muḥammad, may God’s blessings be upon him and his family. Whoever disputes us concerning the Prophets, then we are the closest people to the Prophets.
Whoever disputes us concerning the Book of Allah, then we are the closest people to the Book of Allah. Surely, we testify and so does every Muslim today, that we have been oppressed, driven away, and rebelled against. [We have been] removed from our houses, our wealth, and our families and we have been defeated. Beware! Surely, we seek the help of Allah today and so does every Muslim.” By Allah! A little more than Three Hundred and Ten people—which include fifty women—will gather at Mecca all of a sudden and unexpectedly, like the wind-driven, scattered clouds of autumn58 while some of them are following the others. This is the [meaning of the] verse which Allah has stated: “Wherever you are, Allah will bring you all together, Allah has power over all things.”
351. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī59: Narrated to us Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Sa`īd, from Aḥmad b. Yūsuf, from Ismā`īl b. Mihrān, from al-Ḥasan b. `Alī, from his father and Wuhaib, from Abū Baṣīr, from Imam Abū `Abd-Allah (al-Ṣādiq), peace be on him, concerning His saying: “Therefore, hasten to [do] good deeds; wherever you are, Allah will bring you all together.” He, peace be on him, said: “It was revealed concerning the Qā’im and his companions. They will gather all of a sudden, without a previous appointment.”
And in the sky is your sustenance and what you are promised. And by the Lord of the sky and the earth! It is most surely the truth just as you are speaking60
352. Ghaybat al-Shaykh61: Informed us al-Sharif Abū Muḥammad al-Muḥammadī, from Muḥammad b. `Alī b. Tammām, from al-Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad al-Qiṭa`ī, from `Alī b. Aḥmad b. Ḥātim al-Bazzāz, from Muḥammad b. Marwān, from al-Kalbī, from Abū Ṣāliḥ, from `Abd-Allah b. al-`Abbās, concerning the saying of Allah, the Exalted, “And in the sky is your sustenance and what you are promised. And by the Lord of the sky and the earth! It is most surely the truth just as you are speaking.” He said: “[It is about] the rising of the Qā’im.” It is similar to: “wherever you are, Allah will bring you all together” which he also said about: “They are the companions of the Qā’im, Allah will gather them together in one day.”
I say: Regarding this subject, there are numerous traditions concerning the interpretation of this verse. The author of Tafsīr al-burhān has recorded fourteen traditions from reliable and authentic books.
The traditions with the following numbers—which are interpretations for the verses of the Holy Quran—also establish the goals of this chapter: 905, 904, 903, 696, 695, 692, 596, 574, 994, 993, 992, 991, 962, 936, 907, 906, 1121, 1122, 1123, 1124, 1125, 1126, 1040, 1014, 1004, 1156, 1152, 1151, 1149, 1148, 1147, 1146, 1144, 1143, 1142, 1141, 1158, 1157, and 1175.
The verses are as follows: “. . . and made complete to you His favors (both) apparent and hidden,”62no. 574
“And by the day when it shows it,”63 no. 596
“Or, He who answers the distressed one when he calls upon Him and removes the hardship,”64 no. 903–907
“And if We hold back from them the punishment until a certain time,”65 no. 903, 1142, 1147, and 1149
“And if you were to see when they become terrified, but (then) there shall be no escape and they shall be seized from a near place,”66 no. 903 and 1175
“The remnant of Allah is better for you if you are believers,”67 No. 936 and 1105
“. . . and give good news to the patient ones; those, whom when a misfortune befalls them,”68 no. 962
“If We want, We will send down upon them a sign from the heaven to which they would bend their necks in humility,”69 no. 991, 992, 993, 1004, 1014, and 1040
“And listen on the day when the caller shall call from a near place. The day when they shall truly hear the loud voice,”70 no. 994
“ Say: ‘On the Day of victory, becoming faithful will not benefit those who disbelieved (before), nor will they be given respite,”71 no. 1122
“. . . and to Him submits whoever is in the skies and the earth, willingly or unwillingly,”72 no. 1123 and 1124
“The kingdom on that day shall rightly belong to the Beneficent,”73 no. 1125
“And say: ‘truth has come and falsehood has perished, surely falsehood is bound to perish,”74 no. 1126
“We have entrusted with it a people who are not disbelievers in it,”75 no. 1146
“Then Allah will bring a people, He shall love them and they shall love Him, (they will be) humble before the believers, mighty against the unbelievers,”76 no. 1146
“Know that Allah gives life to the earth after its death,”77 no. 1156–1158
“On the day when some of the signs of your Lord shall come, becoming faithful shall not profit a soul, which did not believe before,”78 no. 692
“And most certainly We will make them taste the nearer punishment before the greater punishment,”79 no. 695
These are twenty-eight verses about him. Whoever wants to know all the verses in this regard must refer to books exclusively compiled on the subject like al-Baḥrānī’s al-Maḥajja fī mā nazala fī l-Qā’im al-Ḥujja.
Notes:
1. Quran 2:3.
2. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 33, p. 340, no. 19; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 52, no. 28; al-Maḥajja fī mā nazala fī l-Qā’im al-Ḥujja, p. 16; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 1, p. 26; al-Burhān fī tafsīr al-Quran, vol. 1, p. 53.
The author of al-Tibyān writes: “Unseen in this verse encompasses what our companions have narrated about the period of occultation and the time of the reappearance of Imam Mahdī, peace be on him.” Al-Ṭabarsī mentions a similar view in Majma` al-bayān.
Al-Nīsābūrī—while explaining the saying of Allah, the exalted, “those who believe in the unseen”—writes in Gharā’ib al-Quran: “According to some Shias, unseen in this verse means the awaited Mahdī about whom Allah has promised in the Quran ‘Allah has promised those who believed and did good deeds that He will certainly make them the heirs like He has made heirs those before them’ (Quran 24:55) and it has been narrated, ‘Even if there only remains one day before the end of the world, Allah will prolong it until a man emerges from my nation whose name will be my name and whose epithet will be my epithet (kunyatuhū kunyatī). He will fill the earth with fairness and justice just as it will be filled with unfairness and injustice.’”
Fakhr al-Rāzī mentions in his Tafsīr: “According to a Shia [scholar], unseen means the awaited Mahdī about whom Allah, the Exalted, has promised about in the Holy Quran and in a tradition.” Thereafter, he mentions the Quranic verse and the tradition and warns: “Know that assigning a single meaning (to the verse) without proof is incorrect.”
I say: From the statements of the two aforementioned scholars, it is apparent that they agree with the Shias concerning the usage of the word unseen (al-ghayb) for the awaited Mahdī, peace be on him, because this is an indisputable fact amongst the knowledgeable. The fact that they do not deny the Shia belief that Allah has made a promise about the awaited Mahdī in the Holy Quran, also shows their agreement with the Shias and with what has come in their traditions under the interpretation of this verse.
Now that this discussion has reached this particular topic, there is no harm in reporting the meaning of unseen (al-ghayb) and whether it refers to Imam Mahdī, peace be on him, in a general sense, or it is specifically about him.
An interpretative discussion
Anything that is hidden from a person and cannot be comprehended by any of his senses is regarded as ‘unseen with respect to him.’ Similarly, a thing that is concealed from everybody is regarded as ‘unseen with respect to all,’ regardless of: (a) The fact that intellect (`aql) guides towards this unseen or it is comprehended through reasoning, or its effects and signs; like the existence of Allah, the Exalted, His Attributes, and His Names. (b) The news and information given by the prophets and their successors which guide towards this unseen. Of course, these news’ are [the result of] extraordinary feats and include prophecies like the signs of Judgment day, punishment in the grave, the Bridge (al-ṣirāṭ), the Weighing Scale (al-Mīzān), Heaven, Hell, and informing people about what they had done in private and their beliefs. (c) There being absolutely no way to verify this unseen—either through intellect (`aql) or any other media— like the Reality of Allah’s Being (Dhāt Allah).
It makes no difference whether this unseen cannot be perceived by the senses because it cannot be viewed, heard, etc., or, it can be seen or heard but knowing about it is not ordinarily possible except for a selected group of people as a part of their extraordinary acts, like the Prophets who informed the people about what they had eaten and stored in their houses. It also makes no difference whether this unseen involves believing in what currently exists, what existed in the past but was destroyed and rendered non-existent, or what may exist in the future.
Therefore, all the aforementioned are instances of the unseen, whether they are absolutely impossible to perceive, cannot be comprehended except through intellect and understanding, or cannot be understood by the senses for all or some people except by miracles and extraordinary feats. Allah, the Exalted, the Eternal, and the Everlasting, is unseen, for He can neither be indicated at—except through intellect and rational proofs—nor is it possible to perceive Him through the senses. He is unseen because the recognition of His Essence and His Reality is impossible even through intellect and intelligence.
The signs of Judgment day, the descent of Jesus, the reappearance of Imam Mahdī, peace be on him, the questioning by Munkar and Nakīr, the punishment in the grave, the Bridge (al-Ṣirāṭ), the Weighing Scale (al-Mīzān), Heaven, Hell, the beginning of creation, the creation of Adam and Jesus, rewards and punishments, angels and their kinds, Prophetic revelations and inspirations, life of the previous Prophets and their nations, future occurrences, miracles of the past Prophets like: converting a staff into a serpent, the she-camel (nāqa) of the Prophet Ṣāliḥ, splitting of the ocean, curing the blind and the lepers, and all other such incidents that have been mentioned in the Holy Quran and reliable traditions, which cannot be known ordinarily except through the news of the Prophet or his successors, are all examples of the unseen, because our intellect has no access to such information and news except through he who has been informed by Holy Revelations.
Sometimes the word unseen (al-ghayb) is used to refer to things that cannot be comprehended by using rational arguments or by viewing their apparent effects and signs. Things like the existence of Allah, the Exalted, His Attributes, and His Names. It is also used for those things which are not known by all and whose existences are proved through mutawātir traditions. Things like the existence of remote and distant cities, famous people who are now part of history, our ancestors, structures built by past nations, etc. Thus, some have interpreted the unseen (al-ghayb) in this verse to anything which intellect has no clue about, like the signs of Judgment Day, punishment in the grave, the Gathering (al-Ḥashr) and Scattering (al-Nashr), the Bridge (al-Ṣirāṭ), the Weighing Scale (al-Mīzān), Heaven, and Hell.
Al-Rāghib writes in al-Mufradāt that “Unseen (al-ghayb) in the Quran . . . denotes anything hidden from the senses or from human knowledge. A thing is said to be unseen with respect to people, not Allah, the Exalted, because nothing is unseen for Him. The word unseen in the verse: ‘Those who believe in the unseen’ (Quran 2:3) means things which can neither be felt by the senses nor understood by the intellect (aql) at a first glance. They can be known only through the Prophets and those who deny them are regarded as disbelievers . . .”
Al-Ṭūsī writes about the aforementioned verse in Tafsīr al-Tibyān: “A group from the companions #7779;aḥāba) like ibn Mas`ūd and others have said, ‘Verily, the unseen (al-ghayb) refers to all things whose knowledge is hidden from the people. [Things] like: Heaven, Hell, sustenance (al-rizq), actions, etc., and this interpretation is more preferred because it is more general and encompasses the view of our companions about the time of occultation and the reappearance of Imam Mahdī, peace be on him.”
Perhaps, this interpretation can be justified by saying that the meaning of unseen— although it might point to all unseen things in general—includes the known facts which cannot be perceived except through intellect. It is also possible that in the interpretation, al-ghayb was viewed as a word which points to something specific while ibn Mas`ūd and some others viewed it as a word which points to all things that cannot be perceived. By using a group of narrations mentioned by the commentators (mufassirīn), it can be implied that al-ghayb is a general term which refers to those things which people cannot see using their sight—although they have knowledge about them (see al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 1, p. 26-27). Allah knows the best.
It is worth mentioning that some commentators (see al-Ṭabarsī in Tafsīr majma` al-bayān, vol. 1, p. 38, and al-Zamakhsharī in Tafsīr al-kashshāf, vol. 1, p. 38) have interpreted unseen and have remarked, ‘They believe in a state that the people don’t see them.’ Such an interpretation and explanation, apart from being incompatible with the obvious and apparent [structure of the verse], is refuted by authentic narrations and the views of the companions. Such an explanation is acceptable in other verses like “And fears the Most Gracious (Allah) while he is unseen” (Quran 36:11), and “Those who fear their Lord while they are unseen” (Quran 21:49).
It should be known that there are numerous opinions about the explanation of the verse under discussion and the difference between the meaning of unseen (al-ghayb) and the absent (al-ghā’ib) which we haven’t mentioned. Anyone who is interested should refer to the major tafsīr books.
According to all interpretations—which are backed by traditions, views of the companions, and renowned commentators—there is no doubt that unseen does not refer to those things which are hidden from the senses only, because surely it is not obligatory to believe in them and no purpose or aim in connection with human perfection and the goals of the Prophets is achieved through believing in them. Thus, it is not compulsory to believe in the worlds which are hidden from our senses, or the incidents of the past, or the occurrences of the future which have no place of importance in religion. So, unseen refers to all the things which should be believed in, either because they are [a part of] sharia or [are deduced through the reasoning of] intellect (`aql), or because it is not permissible to deny them or have doubt about them because the Messenger of Allah or his successors have informed us about them and it is obligatory for us to accept these facts even if they are not a precondition of having true faith. A little pondering will make the difference between these absolutely clear; (in this regard, refer to my book, Ma`a l-khaṭīb, the chapter of Ghalat al-khaṭīb).
Undoubtedly, believing in the unseen, hidden, and non-material world, as opposed to the visible, apparent, and material world, is obligatory, whether it is what this verse refers to or not. Because the essence of the Prophets’ call was to make the people understand that existence is confined to the apparent, material creation and that there is an unseen world, which clearly dominates this universe. Believing in its unseen armies is like believing in the evident armies of this visible and material world and this material world is a sign of the unseen world and that the unseen world is prior to the visible world just as cause is prior to effect, Creator is to creature, writer is to what has been written, and speaker is to speech. The world of the unseen will neither exhaust nor terminate nor be annihilated nor be destroyed. In comparison to it, the material world is like a shadow and despite all its visible displays, it is merely a manifestation of the unseen world and its signs.
O Allah! Make us believe in You and all that is not visible to us from Your Power and Your Manifestation! Make us taste the sweetness of belief (al-īmān) to the extent that we won’t love the delay of whatever You have advanced nor the hastening of whatever You have delayed.
Although it was beyond the scope of this book, but by now, it should have become apparent to you by what we have put forward in this lengthy discussion that believing in the Mahdī—whose news was foretold by the Messengers and the Seal of the Prophets and their Chief, and has been accepted by both the sects (Shias & Sunnis) via definite mutawātir traditions and all Muslims are unanimous about—is part of the belief in the unseen that Allah has attributed to the pious. The narrations from the Ahl al-Bait which mention Imam Mahdī and have related him to this matter, have done this as a reminder to show that he is an instance of al-ghayb. Even if these narrations had not interpreted this verse, we would have certainly believed that he is an instance of the unseen just like other things like the descent of Jesus, the Beast of the Earth (Dābbat al-Arḍ), the splitting of the sky, the tearing up of the earth, the successor-ship of the twelve Imams, the domination of Islam over all religions, etc., because these have either been proved in the sharia or have been mentioned in the Holy Quran or by the Holy Prophet, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family.
The reason we claim Imam Mahdī, peace be on him, is just one of the many instances of the unseen, is what has been narrated by `Alī b. Ibrāhīm through his chain of narrators from Imam al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him, about the verse “Those who believe in the Unseen.” (The Imam says,) “They testify to the Resurrection (Ba`th), the Scattering (Nashr), the Promise (Wa`d), and the Threat (Wa`īd).” Amazingly, Ālūsī has criticized the Shias in his Tafsīr: “People have differed on the meaning [of the unseen] and have various opinions, to an extent that Shias think that it refers to the Qā’im, but they don’t bring any proof for it.” It seems that he has not understood what the Shias mean or he has distorted their view and thinks that Shias say that the unseen only refers to the Qā’im and not the other unseen things that the Holy Prophet, peace be on him, has informed about. He says “but they don’t bring any proof for it” so that the readers may misunderstand and become confused. The practice of people like him, when they see the correctness of the Shia viewpoint, is to narrate their views in a distorted form. Here too, when he sees that the occultation and reappearance of the Mahdī—which has been proved by mutawātir traditions to be an instance of unseen—cannot be denied, he twists the Shia viewpoint and claims that the Shias have restricted the unseen only to the belief in the Qā’im. Suppose we accept his claim and interpret the traditions of the Ahl al-Bait as restricting the unseen to the Mahdī, peace be on him, because of the high stature of his affair (as is apparent in the narration of Yaḥyā b. Abī l-Qāsim from Imam al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him), because the religion will end through him and Islam will dominate over all religions; he will fill the earth with fairness and justice and will destroy the forts of deviation. Which evidence is stronger than the interpretation of the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, who are one of the two weighty things that holding to prevents from going astray. We are amazed by those who learn their religion from the enemies of the Ahl al-Bait, the tyrants, and those who were known for their wrongdoings, lies, crimes and treacheries; and use their sayings as proofs and then they say about the beliefs of those who rely on the sayings of Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī ibn Abī-Ṭālib, peace be on him, and hold onto the Ahl al-Bait, those who have the knowledge of the Quran: “but they don’t bring any proof for it” (Refer to our book Amān al-umma min al-ḍalāl wa l-ikhtilāf)
3. According to another manuscript—Ed.
4. Quran 28:5.
5. Nahj al-balāgha, vol. 3, p. 199-200, saying 209; Ibn Abī l-Ḥadīd, Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha, vol. 19, p. 29, saying 205; Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 431, no. 590 and p. 432, no. 595.
The author of Majma` al-bayān writes: “An authentic Tradition has been narrated from Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī ibn Abī-Ṭālib, peace be on him, who said, ‘I swear by the One Who split the seed and created the soul! The world will become kind after its defiance just like an ill-mannered she-camel which is kind towards its young.’ He then recited the verse: ‘And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth” (vol. 7, p. 239); Tafsīr nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 4, p. 109, no. 10; Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, pp. 406-407, nn.1 & 2; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 64, no. 66.
I say: This tradition has been confirmed by what has been narrated in Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 430, no. 589, through his chain of narrators from al-Mufaḍḍal b. `Umar from Imam Ja`far al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him, who said: “The Messenger of Allah, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family, looked at `Alī, al-Ḥasan, and al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them all, then started crying and said, ‘You are the weakened ones after me.’” Al-Mufaḍḍal asked, “What did he mean, O Son of Allah’s Messenger?” He answered, “It means, you are the Imams after me. Surely, Allah, the Exalted, says, ‘And We intend to bestow a favor upon those who have been weakened in the earth and make them the Imams and make them the heirs.’ This verse applies to us until the Day of Judgment.” This has also been narrated in Ma`ānī al-akhbār, p. 79, Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 4, p. 10, no. 14. The same concept has also been narrated in al-Kāfī, vol. 1, The Book of Divine Proof, chap. 128, p. 306, no. 1; Majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 239, from al-`Ayyāshī through his chain of narrators from Abū l-Ṣabbāḥ al-Kinānī, from Imam Abū-Ja`far al-Bāqir, peace be on him.
6. Tafsīr al-Furāt, p. 116; Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 431, no. 591, through his chain of narrators from Ḥanash from `Alī, peace be on him; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 24, chap. 49, p. 171, no. 9.
7. Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 432, no.593; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 4, p. 111, no.15; al-Amālī (al-Ṣadūq), Session 72, p. 387, no.26; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 1, sect. 8, chap. 9, p. 532, no.309.
8. Tafsīr al-Furāt, p. 116; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 4, p. 109, no. 9; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 24, p. 167–168; Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 432, no. 594.
9. Tafsīr al-Furāt, p. 116; Majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 239, which mentions “and surely our enemies and their followers are like the Pharaoh and his followers”; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 24, chap. 49, p. 171, no. 8.
10. Tafsīr al-Furāt, p. 117.
11. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 184, no. 143; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 4, p. 110, no. 11; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, p. 54, chap. 5, no. 35; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 32, sect. 12, p. 10, no. 299.
12. Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 63, no. 65; Muntakhab al-anwār al-muḍī’a, p. 17.
13. Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 64, no. 65.
14. Quran 21:105.
15. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, under verse 21:105, pp. 326–327; al-Burhān fī tafsīr al-Qurān, vol. 3, p. 75, no. 5; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 24, chap. 67, p. 358, no. 78; al-Maḥajja fī mā nazala fī l-Qā’im al-Ḥujja, p. 141; Ilzām al-nāṣib, vol. 1, p. 75, under verse 56; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 32, sect. 21, p. 50, no. 419.
16. Tafsīr al-tibyān, vol. 7, p. 284; Majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 66–67; Jawāmi` al-jāmi`, p. 296; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 3, p. 464; Ilzām al-nāṣib, p. 75–76; al-āyāt al-bāhira fī faḍl al-`Itrat al-ṭāhira, under the verse 21:105; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, sect. 9, p. 563, no. 639.
17. Tafsīr al-Qummī, vol. 2, p. 77; al-Maḥajja fī mā nazala fī l-Qā’im al-Ḥujja, p. 141, verse 51; Ilzām al-nāṣib, vol. 1, p. 75, verse 56, citing Imam al-Ṣādiq, peace be on him, although, according to the context of Tafsīr al-Qummī, it has been narrated from Imam al-Bāqir, peace be on him; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 425; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 75, no. 6.
I say: The interpreters (mufassirīn) differ on the interpretation of this verse. Some of them have interpreted it as the land which the souls of the believers will gather while others view it as the land of Syria. Nevertheless, the explanation of the interpreters cannot be relied upon when they differ on any verse except when the interpretation is based upon a certain logical argument which acts as a strong reason that shows the verse had a specific meaning, or upon another verse which has an obvious interpretation, or an authentic tradition. Preferring one probability over another, without any of the aforementioned reasons, leads to an assumption which in the least should not be followed. Therefore, no commentary and Islamic knowledge should be accepted, and no saying from anyone from the Islamic nations should be used as proof, except those whose words are regarded as proof and errorless by divine decree. Evidently, no one from the Muslim nation qualifies for this status except the Imams from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, and the progeny of the Messenger of Allah, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family. Mutawātir traditions have made it clear that it is compulsory to hold onto and refer to them, that they are infallible and holding onto them protects from going astray, they and the Holy Quran will never separate from each other until they meet [the Prophet, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family] at the Pond (of Kauthar), and that they are the Ship of Salvation (Safīnat al-Najāt). This is a fact that is approved by intellect (`aql), because intellect rules that it is necessary that there be somebody in the nation who has the last say and is the point of reference for all disputes concerning the divine laws. When Imam Zain al-`Ābidīn, peace be on him, recited the verse “O you who believe, fear Allah and be with the truthful ones” (Quran 9:119), he, peace be on him, used to say a lengthy supplication comprised of requests to reach the level of the truthful and high stature. He also described in it the calamities and what the innovators (al-mubtadi`a)—who separated themselves from the Imams of the religion and the tree of prophethood—attributed to themselves: “Others fell short of our affair and argued on the basis of the ambiguous (al-mutashābih) verses of the Quran, which they interpreted according to their desires. They discredited the reliable traditions . . .” Until he, peace be on him, said: “Then to whom will the latter of this nation take refuge, while the signs of this nation are being destroyed, and the nation is being defeated by divisions and disagreements, and people are calling each other infidels. Allah, the Almighty, says: ‘And do not be like those who became divided and disagreed after clear arguments had come to them’ (Quran 3:105). Who can be relied upon for conveying the proofs and interpreting the laws except the People of the Book [i.e. the Ahl al-Bait]? Surely, we are the Imams of guidance and the lights of darkness, those through whom Allah argues against His servants that he[Allah] did not leave the creatures to wander aimlessly without a proof #7717;ujja) [to guide them]. Can you recognize or find them except from the branches of the Blessed Tree and the chosen progeny, those from whom Allah has removed all uncleanness, purified them a thorough purification, kept them away from all calamities, and made their love compulsory in the Holy Quran?” (Jawāhir al-`iqdain, part 2, discussion 4; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, chap. 11, part 1, p. 150, concerning the verses revealed about them under the fifth verse).
Therefore, it is not permitted to rely upon or argue using what the umma disagrees on concerning the interpretation of the Book or whatever is related to the religion, when there is no definite proof or clear document from the Book [of Allah] or the traditions, except what has emerged from the noble house of the Holy Prophet, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family, and originated from the infallible progeny, peace be on them. It is not allowed to turn away from them and refer to other than them, whosoever they may be. Hence, while interpret any verse, only the traditions of the holy Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, should be followed.
Additionally, interpreting earth in the above verse as the land of Syria is contradictory to the context of the verse and its apparent meaning. Propriety demands that the righteous shall inherit all cities and parts of earth. Similarly, there is no reason to confine earth to the land where the souls gather, as this too is against the context of the verse and its obvious meaning. Apparently, this verse is simply giving information and news about an affair that will occur in the future—in the end of times. That time will end this era which has been predominantly and mostly governed and ruled by the transgressors, the disbelievers, and the tyrants. Allah, the Exalted, has given glad tidings to His righteous servants about a virtuous era for this earth, which shall be inherited by them.
Al-Ālūsī says: “It means the land of this world. The believers shall inherit it and rule over it.” He also says: “If we say that all this will occur in the lands of the believers during the reign of Mahdī—may Allah be satisfied with him—and the descent of Jesus, then there is no need for what was mentioned” (Tafsīr rūḥ al-ma`ānī, under verse 21:105). In other words, according to him, the above verse speaks about the divine promise that the entire earth will become a territory of Islam and the believers, during the rule of Mahdī and his universal government, peace be on him.
In Rūḥ al-bayān under verse 21:105: “The earth will be inherited by my righteous servants,” it has been mentioned: “It refers to all the believers, after they have driven out the disbelievers. Just as Allah has said, ‘Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good deeds that He will most certainly make them rulers in the earth as He has made rulers those before them’ (Quran 24:55). This is a promise about the domination of religion and the honor of its followers.”
There is no doubt that this verse is a glad tiding about the victory and domination of this umma over the entire earth. This is supported by numerous prophecies in the Old and New Testaments about the twelve Imams from the progeny of Ismā`īl, peace be on him, and about the Imam who will dominate the earth and the righteous who shall inherit it. These can be found in the Torah, in the Psalms, Joshua, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, and the Bibles of Luke, Matthew, John, etc. Also, refer to the books Man dhā, the writings of Fakhr al-Islām, especially his celebrated work Anīs al-a`lām, my book in Persian Iṣālati Mahdawiyyat (The Originality of Mahdawiyya), and other authored books on this subject—which we cannot enumerate here.
18. Quran 21:105.
19. Quran 43:61.
20. Al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, p. 162; Is`āf al-rāghibīn, p. 141, chap. 2; Nūr al-abṣār, p. 143, chap. 2; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 301; al-Bayān, p. 109, chap. 25.
I say: There is no doubt that the reappearance of Imam Mahdī, peace be on him, and the descent of Jesus, peace be on him, and even the proclamation (bi`tha) of the last Prophet, the Messenger of Allah, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family, and the descent of the Holy Quran, are signs of the Hour (i.e. Judgment Day), as has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah that he showed his index and middle fingers and said: “My proclamation (bi`tha) and the Hour are like these” (Refer to Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, chap. 25, p. 1341, no. 4040). Therefore, some have the view that the pronoun he in “surely he is a sign of the hour,” refers to the Quran, while others believe that it refers to Jesus, peace be on him (Refer to Tafsīr ibn Kathīr [Beirut: Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth], vol. 4, p. 132; Tafsīr al-Ālūsī (Rūḥ al-bayān), vol. 25, p. 96; Tafsīr al-tibyān [Beirut: Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth], vol. 9, p. 212).
It has been mentioned in Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira that “The Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, have explained that the pronoun he refers to `Alī, peace be on him.” Then, a tradition has been mentioned to support it and it has been followed with a discussion to show harmony between the different interpretations and to remove the contradictions between them. He finally writes, “If the Qā’im, peace be on him, is a sign and symbol of the hour and he is the son of Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, then it is correct to state that his father too is a sign of the Hour, and this is the purpose of the discussion.”
Anyway, in all the books authored by our Shia companions about the traditions of the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, that I have browsed through, I did not find any tradition which specifically mentions this interpretation. Perhaps, it did exist but it did not reach us, or perhaps, I have not discovered it. Allah knows the best.
21. Quran 9:33 and 61:9.
22. Tafsīr al-tibyān, vol. 5, p. 244; Tafsīr majma` al-bayān, vol. 5, p. 25. He says, “It is the opinion of al-Suddī.” Al-Kalbī says, “No religion shall remain but that Islam will prevail over it. This will occur soon—not later—and the Hour will not occur until this happens. Al-Miqdād b. Aswad said, ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah say, “There shall not remain a house on the face of the earth belonging to the nomads or those in the cities, except that Allah will enter into it the word of Islam, whether with the honor of an honorable person or the disgrace of a disgraceful person. Either He will honor them and make them believe in [Islam], by which they will be respected, or He will disgrace them and only then they shall believe in Him”’”; Musnad of Aḥmad, vol. 6, p. 4; al-Jāmi` lil-aḥkām al-Qurān, vol. 12, p. 300; Jawāmi` al-jāmi`, p. 318; al-Mustadrak of Ḥākim al-Nīsābūrī, vol. 4, p. 430.
23. Al-Bayān, chap. 35, p. 109; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 153.
I say: Apparently, this is Sa`īd b. Jubair’s interpretation, but according to the scholars of hadith, if we are unsure that these are Sa`īd b. Jubair’s own words, we can attribute these words to the Prophet, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family.
24. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, p. 432, no. 91.
25. Kifāyat al-muhtadī (al-Arba`īn), under tradition no. 39; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 32, sect. 44, p. 140, no. 686; Kashf al-ḥaqq (al-`Arba`īn), no. 30. A tradition similar to this will be mentioned in chapter 36 under no. 669, from Muḥammad b. Muslim, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far Muḥammad al-Bāqir, peace be on him, and it includes: “his name is Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan al-Nafs al-Zakiyya.”
26. This refers to homosexuality and lesbianism—Trans.
27. Quran 11:86.
28. Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī, p. 184; Kamāl al-din, vol. 2, chap. 58, p. 670, no. 16, through his chain of narrators from Muḥammad b. Musa b. al-Mutawakkil, from `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn al-Sa`dābādī, from Aḥmad b. Abī `Abd-Allah al-Barqī, from his father, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from `Alī b. Abī Ḥamza, from Abū Baṣīr, that Imam Abū `Abd-Allah (al-Ṣādiq), peace be on him, said concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, “It is He Who has sent His Messenger with guidance . . . even though the polytheists detest it”: By Allah, its meaning has not yet occurred nor will it occur in the future until the Qā’im reappears. When the Qā’im, peace be on him, reappears, there will not remain a disbeliever in Allah, the Great, nor anyone who associates others with the Imam except that they will dislike his reappearance. Even if an infidel (kāfir) or a polytheist (mushrik) hides in a rock, it will call out, “O believer! Within me is a disbeliever; break me and kill him.”
In Yanābī` al-Mawadda, chap. 71, p. 423, a similar narration has been mentioned from Abū Baṣīr and Samā`a, recorded by Muḥammad b. al-`Abbās in his book Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām from al-Āyāt al-bāhira, p. 263, under the interpretation of sura 61; al-Maḥajja, p. 85, verse 22; al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 2, p. 87, no. 52; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 60, no.58.
29. Mashāriq anwār al-yaqīn, p. 172; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, sect. 25, chap. 32, p. 61, no. 453.
30. Majma` al-bayān, vol. 9, p. 280, under sura 61; Mā nazala min al-Qurān fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām, citing al-Āyāt al-bāhira, p. 263, which says: “the testimony of there is no god but Allah and Muḥammad is the Messenger of Allah will be called out every morning and evening”; Jawāmi` al-jāmi`, p. 492 (a short version).
31. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 2, p. 87, no. 52; al-Maḥajja, p. 85, verse 22.
32. Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 16, p. 40, under verse 9:33; Rauḍ al-jinān wa rūḥ al-janān, vol. 10, p. 233.
33. Tafsīr abū l-futūḥ al-rāzī, vol. 6, p. 16, under Verse 9:33.
34. Quran 24:55.
35. Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 413, no. 572. It is worth mentioning that although such traditions do not clearly mention the Mahdī, peace be on him, they do imply that this verse is a promise to the family of Muḥammad, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family, to rule the earth, which will be fulfilled during the government of the Mahdī, peace be on him, in the end of times. This can be understood by using other traditions that clearly explain this concept. God willing, this will be explained later on. Anyhow, this tradition has been included amongst those that give glad tidings about his reappearance.
36. Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 413, no. 572.
37. Al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 5, p. 55. Al-Qurtubī writes in al-Jāmi` li aḥkām al-Qurān (vol. 12, p. 298): “Some people suggest that this promise is for the entire nation in ruling all of earth under the banner of Islam as he, peace be on him, has said, ‘The earth folded up for me and I saw its Easts and Wests. Soon, the rule of my nation will reach the places which have been folded up for me.’ This is the view of ibn `Aṭiyya in his tafsīr where he says: ‘The correct interpretation of this verse is that it is talking about the rule of the entire nation [i.e. all the Muslims]. And making them rulers means they will control the cities and will make them part of [their nation] like what has happened in Syria, Iraq, Khurāsān (North-East Iran), and in the West.’”
An Interpretative Discussion
It is apparent from the verse that it is addressed to the entire umma and the promise of Allah mentioned in the verse is addressed to those who believed and did good deeds—regardless of these addressees being present or absent during the time in which the verse was revealed—because an address includes both the parties (present as well as absent), as has been demonstrated in the principles of jurisprudence. Apparently, the term earth refers to all of it, not only the lands of Mecca and Medina and those ruled by the Muslims during the era of the Prophet, Allah\'s blessings be on him and his family, or in the reign of the companions. Therefore, the verse implies that the believers and the believing nation, along with their tribes and groups are the addressees of this divine promise. Thus, in whichever time the aforementioned promise is fulfilled—for this nation in general—the promise of Allah, the Exalted, will be fulfilled.
Because of its improbability, it is incorrect to state that the verse implies the rule of the entire umma on the earth from those present during the time of the address to those that shall follow them until the Day of Judgment. For, such an event did not occur even for those who were present during the address or in the era of the Prophet and the companions, when Islam had conquered the Arabian Peninsula and because some of them died or were martyred before this. This does not imply that the verse is of the kind that is general (`ām), but rather, that it has a specific (khāṣ) intention. This arises from the arrangement and the obvious meaning of the context. As we already mentioned, it is improper to interpret the verse as the victories achieved by the Muslims during the era of the companions, because they did not rule the entire earth nor did religion acquire absolute power.
The context of the verse also rules out that the promise is only confined to the believers who lived during the time of the companions, and not those who were present during the revelation of the verse, or those who will follow later.
The promise to the faithful nation in this verse and its occurrence during the reign of the Mahdī, peace be on him, who will rule the entire earth and fill it with justice, equality, and safety, is the only interpretation that is in harmony with the verse just as it has been interpreted in the traditions. This can be implied even if the addressees are specifically the Ahl al-Bait and the twelve Imams, peace be on them. We have stated earlier that the word those in the verse is used to show an explanation and not to make a distinction, as has been mentioned in some commentaries. This means that while it is addressed to all of them, the fulfillment of the promise at the hands of one of them is equal to its occurrence for all of them.
From what has been mentioned, the falsity of the interpretation of the verse to the conquests of the Muslims during the era of the companions has become clear, because such an interpretation changes the context of the verse from general to specific and changes the meaning of the word ‘earth’ to a specific piece of land. There is also no reason to apply it to a specific group of people after its generality has been proved and a number of verses in the Holy Quran and mutawātir traditions along with the prophecies of the past prophets, peace be on them, have informed about it.
Some of the traditions explaining the reason of the revelation of this verse, in addition to having weak links in the chain of narrators, cannot be cited as a cause for particularizing the generality of the verse—especially since the occurrence is a general event. One wonders at those who argue about the correctness of the rule of the first three caliphs (i.e. Abū Bakr, `Umar, and `Uthmān) on the basis of this verse, without paying attention to the fact that this requires the establishment of some premises and that proving—even one—of these premises is equal to achieving the impossible. Some of these premises are as follows:
(a) The promise of Allah, the Exalted, was made specifically to the believers present in the time of the revelation of the verse who lived to see the rule of the companions, and [this promise was not made to] the believers who died prior to that time, came after that time, or Allah will bring forth in the future.
(b) The term earth refers to the earth that was ruled by the Muslims in the era of the companions. It neither refers to the land which the Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, ruled over, nor the earth in its entirety that shall be in the control of the Mahdī, peace be on him, in the end of times.
(c) One can use this verse to make this argument when they have proved that those people were indeed believers. This has not been proved and thus we cannot apply the verse generally to everyone. Allah has promised only those who believe and do good deeds. Whenever it is proved that someone qualifies for these two criteria, then the divine promise includes them.
(d) Proving that religion has gained absolute power and the fear of the believers has been converted to security. This was definitely not accomplished for the believers during the reign of the three caliphs.
(e) Proving the fact that the power the three caliphs equals to the power of religion, because when governance crosses the redlines of religion or even if there is doubt about it following the rules of religion, the promise of religion becoming powerful will not have been accomplished; even if, apparently all other affairs are in conformity with religion, thus, it is not permitted to use this verse to prove that their power was a power for religion.
38. Tafsīr `Alī b. Ibrāhīm, vol. 1, p. 14; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 3, p. 619, no. 22; Tafsīr al-ṣāfī, vol. 2, p. 178; al-Maḥajja, p. 148.
39. Al-Iḥtijāj, vol. 1, p. 382; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 3, p. 619, no. 231.
40. Miṣbāḥ al-Shaykh, p. 727, in the second ziyāra in the Day of `Āshūrā; Nūr al-Thaqalain, vol. 3, p. 619, no. 223.
41. Majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 152; Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, under the commentary of verse 55:55.
42. Al-Majāzāt al-nabawiyya, p. 420, under no. 337.
43. That is, those who will follow and obey your father will be respected while others will be disgraced regardless of their place of dwelling—Trans.
44. Al-Majāzāt al-nabawiyya, p. 419, no. 337.
45. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 596, under the commentary of 51:23; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 176–177, no. 33, which mentions “Isḥāq b. `Abd-Allah b. `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him,” instead of “Isḥāq b. `Abd-Allah from `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him”; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, pp. 53–54, no. 34; al-Maḥajja, p. 149, verse 57, no. 3; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, pp. 501–502, no. 289; Tafsīr al-burhān, vol. 4, p. 232; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, pp. 426 & 429; Ilzām al-nāṣib, vol. 1, pp. 94–95, verse 109.
46. Quran 51:23.
47. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 13, p. 240, no. 35; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 426.
48. Quran 22:41.
49. Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, pp. 400–401, no. 555; Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī, p. 99, except that it includes “until he is recognized” and “He, peace be on him, said, ‘When you see this in a man from us, follow him; for surely, he is your master.’”
50. Shawāhid al-tanzīl, vol. 1, p. 401, no. 556; Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī, p. 100, with the difference: “from al-Ḥusayn b. Bazī`”
I say: The printed manuscript which we have, is from an original one in which the manuscript-writer has intentionally not mentioned the chain of narrators for the sake of conciseness. In this narration he says: “Narrated to us al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī b. Bazī`, through his chain of narrators from Zaid b. `Alī.” It is apparent from Shawāhid al-tanzīl that al-Ḥākim (al-ḤHaskānī—its author) had the complete manuscript and hence, he has narrated from Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī using his chain of narrators.
51. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 339; Tafsīr `Alī b. Ibrāhīm al-Qummī, vol. 2, p. 87, from Abū l-Jārūd; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, pp. 47–48, no. 9; al-Maḥajja, p. 143, verse 53; Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalain, vol. 3, p. 506, no. 1611; Tafsīr majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 88, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, who said: “By Allah, we are them . . .”; Ilzām al-nāṣib, p. 76, verse 58; Tafsīr al-burhān, vol. 3, p. 95.
52. Quran 22:39.
53. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 13, p. 241, no. 38; Apparently, a mistake has occurred while recording the name of the narrator who narrates from Abū Baṣīr. It should be `Āṣim b. Ḥamīd, not Qāsim. He is the one from whom `Abd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Najrān has narrated. As for Abū Baṣīr, it is possible that he is Laith b. al-Bakhtarī or Yaḥyā b. al-Qāsim, because `Āṣim b. Ḥamīd has narrated from both of them. Allah knows the best; al-Maḥajja, p. 142.
54. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 334; al-Maḥajja, p. 142, verse 52.
55. Quran 2:148.
56. Majma` al-bayān, vol. 1, p. 231; Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 1, p. 66, no. 117. Apparently the tradition no. is 118 because 117 is the previous tradition; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 26, p. 291, no. 27.
57. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 1, p. 64, no. 117.
58. The author of al-Nihāya says: “the saying of `Alī, peace be on him, ‘Then they will gather towards him, peace be on him, like the clouds of autumn,’ i.e. like the scattered clouds. Autumn has been specifically mentioned because it is the beginning of winter, in which the clouds are all scattered and tattered, then they gradually integrate” (vol. 4, p. 59, under the root Qa-Za-`A).
59. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 13, p. 241, no. 37; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 58, no. 52.
60. Quran 51:22–23.
61. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 175–176, no. 132; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 53, no. 23 and p. 63, no. 65; Tafsīr al-burhān, vol. 4, p. 232; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, sect. 12, p. 501, no. 286; al-Maḥajja, pp. 210–211, verse 91.
62. Quran 31:20.
63. Quran 91:3.
64. Quran 27:62.
65. Quran 11:8.
66. Quran 34:51.
67. Quran 11:86.
68. Quran 2:155–156.
69. Quran 26:4.
70. Quran 50:41–42.
71. Quran 32:29.
72. Quran 3:83.
73. Quran 25:26.
74. Quran 17:81.
75. Quran 6:89.
76. Quran 5:54.
77. Quran 57:17.
78. Quran 6:158.
79. Quran 32:21.
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