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Imam al-Mahdi will live a very long life
By: Ayatullah al-Uzma Lutfullah as-Safi al-Gulpaygani
Comprised of 363 traditions
641. Kamāl al-dīn1: Narrated to us Muḥammad b. `Alī b. Bashshār al-Qazwīnī, from Abū l-Faraj al-Muẓaffar b. Aḥmad, from Muḥammad b. Ja`far al-Kūfī, from Muḥammad b. Ismā’īl al-Barmakī, from al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad b. Ṣāliḥ al-Bazzāz, from (Imam) al-Ḥasan b. `Alī al-`Askarī, peace be on him, who said: My son is the one who will rise after me. He is the one in whom the customs of the Prophets will occur by his long-life and occultation. [This will continue] until the people’s hearts harden due to the prolonged duration. Then, no one will remain steadfast in believing in him except he who Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, has written faith in his heart and assisted with a Holy Spirit from Himself.2
642. Kamāl al-dīn3: `Alī b. Aḥmad al-Daqqāq and Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Shaibānī, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Abd-Allah al-Kūfī, from Mūsā b. `Imrān al-Nakha`ī, from his uncle al-Ḥusayn b. Yazīd al-Naufalī, from Ḥamzat b. Ḥumrān, from his father Ḥumrān b. A`yun, from Sa`īd b. Jubair who said: “I heard the Master of the Worshippers, `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, say, ‘In the Qā’im there is a resemblance to Noah and that is long-life.’”
643. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī4: `Abd al-Wāḥid b. `Abd-Allah b. Yūnus, from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Rabāḥ al-Zuhrī, from Aḥmad b. `Alī al-Ḥimyarī, from al-Ḥasan b. Ayyūb, from `Abd al-Karīm b. `Amr, from Muḥammad b. al-Fuḍail, from Ḥammād b. `Abd al-Karīm al-Jallāb who said: “The Qā’im was mentioned in the presence of (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, and he said, ‘When he appears, people will say [astonishingly], ‘How is this possible while his bones had decomposed years ago!’”
644. Al-Kharā’ij5: From Imam al-Ḥasan al-`Askarī, peace be on him, who said [the following] to Aḥmad b. Isḥāq who had come to ask him about his successor. When [the Imam] saw him, he himself began to answer before being asked: His example is like that of Khiḍr and his example is like that of Dhū l-Qarnain. Khiḍr drank from the elixir of life and he will live and not die until the trumpet is blown (nufikha fī l-ṣūr). He is present during the [Hajj] season every year. He stands in `Arafa and says Amen to the prayers of the believers. Through him, Allah will dispel the loneliness of our Qā’im during his occultation and he will accompany [the Mahdi] during his solitude. He will continue to live in the world despite being concealed from the eyes.
I say: His similarity to Dhū l-Qarnain is about him reaching the East and the West and possibly other aspects like occultation and longevity.
The following traditions also prove the above point: 497, 498, 535–539, 547, 549, 551–557, 559, 561, 562, 564, 574, 575, 580, 589, 599, 600, 602–605, 607–610, 612, 613, 618, 619, 623–626, 632, 645–650, 669, and 686. We can add to these all the traditions mentioned in chapters one and two—on account of the traditions that mention that surely the earth will not become empty of a Divine Proof and an Imam, and on account of definite rational arguments mentioned in dialectical books—because all of these indicate that the Imams and the Divine Proofs after the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, are limited to twelve. The first is `Alī the last is the Mahdī and the ninth from the progeny of al-Ḥusayn is the Qā’im and he is the son of Imam al-Ḥasan al-`Askarī, peace be on them all. Thus, the total number of such traditions will be 363 because all of these traditions indicate he has survived and has been alive from his birth until now. And Allah has the power to do what He pleases and He is the Wise, the Knowledgeable.
Notes:
1. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 46, p. 524, no. 4; Biḥār al-anwār, vol.51, chap. 13, p. 224, no. 11.
2. Some Sunnis have considered his longevity as improbable to the extent that they have even condemned the Shia belief about his survival. As you are aware, in scientific matters and religious subjects, improbability has no value after proofs have been established, and definite arguments based on intellect and narration have been demonstrated. This [belief] is a kind of uncertainty about Allah’s Power. It is based on our habit of opposing what we are used to and not on logic. Every day and night—in fact every hour and second—we agree to and witnesses thousands of normal phenomena and occurrences in the world of creation, even in the small creatures and the things that cannot be seen except with a microscope, that are more amazing and greater than the longevity of a man who has safe limbs and strength, who knows the rules of keeping himself healthy and well, and acts upon them. His longevity is not as strange as his creation, formation, and transfer from the realm of the loin (`alim al-aṣlāb) to the realm of the womb and then to this world. Using this reasoning in His Holy book, Allah refutes those who deny and view the hereafter as improbable. He, the Exalted, says, “O people! If you have doubts about resurrection, then surely We have created you from soil then from sperm . . .” (Quran 22:5). He also says, “Did not man see that We have created him from a sperm . . .” (Quran 36:77). In yet another place, He says, “And they say, ‘When we become bones and powder . . .” (Quran 17:49). This is in addition to the longevity of some of the Prophets like al-Khiḍr, Noah, Jesus, and etc., peace be on them all. How can the belief about the Mahdī’s longevity be a sign of ignorance whilst the Holy Quran has stated the possibility of similar occurrences: “Had he [i.e. Jonas] not been from the glorifying ones, he would have certainly remained in [the whale’s] stomach until the Day they are raised” (Quran 37:143–144). Regarding the Prophet Noah, peace be on him, the Holy Quran says, “So, he stayed amongst his people for a thousand years save fifty” (Quran 29:14). Regarding Jesus, it says, “And there will not remain even one of the followers of the Book (ahl al-kitāb) except that they will most certainly believe in him before his death” (Quran 4:159). It also informs us about Satan and that he has been given time until the appointed hour—a fact that is neither denied by any of the Muslims nor considered improbable. Muslim has recorded in his Ṣaḥīḥ, vol. 2, chap. “Ibn Ṣayyād,” al-Tirmidhī in his Sunan, vol. 2, and Abū Dāwūd in his Ṣaḥīḥ, chap. “The narration of ibn. Ṣā’id,” have recorded numerous traditions about ibn Ṣayyād and ibn Ṣā’id and that the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, considered it probable that he was al-Dajjāl who will emerge in the end of times. Ibn Māja has recorded in his Ṣaḥīḥ (part 2) in the chapters on fitnas, under the fitna of al-Dajjāl and the emergence of `Īsā, Abū Dāwūd has mentioned in vol. 2 of his Sunan from the book al-Malāḥim in the chapter on the narration of al-Jassāsa, Muslim in his Ṣaḥīḥ in the chapter on the Appearance of al-Dajjāl and his staying on earth from the narration of Tamīm al-Dārī—which clearly and explicitly mentions that al-Dajjāl was alive during the time of the Prophet, Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family, and that he will reappear in the end of times. If belief in the longevity of someone is a sign of ignorance, then why are none of the aforementioned scholars attributed with ignorance, whilst they have narrated many traditions in their books and Ṣaḥīḥs about the longevity of al-Dajjāl? How can someone be regarded as ignorant because he believes in the Mahdī’s longevity whilst the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, has considered this permissible for al-Dajjāl, the enemy of Allah?!
To sum it up, once it is shown there have lived people who have had long lives, there remains no reason for being amazed and surprised, let alone considering it improbable or believing it to be impossible for others to have long lives too. Sayyid b. Ṭāwūs, may Allah have mercy on him, writes in sect. 79 of his book Kashf al-Maḥajja the story of his debate with some Sunnis: “If a person comes and says, ‘I can walk on water in Baghdad,’ people will gather to witness him thinking that perhaps he may be able to carry it off. If he does so successfully, they will indeed be surprised at his feat. Now, if a second man comes before they have dispersed and also claims to walk on water, their amazement will certainly be less than the first one. The second one too pulls it off successfully. When some of those present disperse, their amazement will surely have been reduced. If a third person comes and makes the same claim, only a few people will wait to see him perform the feat. If he does it successfully, the amazement will definitely diminish. Finally, if a fourth person comes and makes the same claim, no one will wait to see him walk on water and [no one] will be amazed at his feat. The same applies to the Mahdī, peace be on him, because you [Sunnis] narrate that [the Prophet] Idrīs is alive and present in the sky from his era until now. You have also narrated that Khiḍr has been alive from the time of Moses, peace be on him, or even before him until now. You also believe that Jesus is alive and in the sky and will return to earth along with the Mahdī. These are three human beings who have lived long lives and no one is amazed at their longevity. Then, why can’t there be a person from the descendants of Muḥammad b. `Abd-Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who follows their example as a sign of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, in his nation with his longevity? Indeed, you have mentioned and narrated that he will fill the earth with fairness and justice just as it will be filled with unfairness and injustice. If you ponder, you will verify that your acknowledgement and testimony that he will fill the earth’s east, west, far, and near with justice and fairness, is more amazing than his long survival and a greater honor conferred by Allah, Mighty be His Majesty, on His friends. You have also testified that the great Prophet, Jesus, son of Mary, peace be on him, will perform prayers behind him, will accompany him, and will help him in his wars and battles. This is an even greater position than the long-life you are considering improbable.”
Al-`Allāma Sibṭ b. al-Jauzī writes in Tadhkirat al-khawāṣ, p. 377: “Most Shias believes that the Successor, the Proof (al-khalaf al-ḥujja), is present, alive, and being given sustenance. They put forward arguments to show he is alive, some of which are: There are many people whose lives have been elongated like al-Khiḍr and Ilyās and no one knows their age. Every year, they meet and . . . It has been mentioned in the Torah that Dhū l-Qarnain lived for three thousand years but the Muslims believe that it was one thousand and five hundred years. The [Shias] also narrate from Muḥammad b. Isḥāq the names of a large number of people who have been granted long lives. They have given a detailed presentation about the probability of him surviving since his occultation until now and that there is nothing extraordinary about his long-life.”
Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-Kanji al-Shāfi’ī argues about his longevity through the long-lives of Jesus, Khiḍr, and Ilyās and also the survival of al-Dajjāl and Iblīs. For the longevity of al-Dajjāl, he has mentioned the lengthy tradition Muslim has recorded in his Ṣaḥīḥ about al-Jassāsa as a reason of al-Dajjāl’s longevity (al-Bayān, p. 25).
The Old Testament contains the names of quite a few people who had long-lives and has mentioned their stories in the Book of Genesis, as per the Hebrew, Caledonian, and Greek translation into Arabic (Beirut: 1870):
Chap. 5, Verse 5: “Adam lived for a total of 930 years and died.”
Verse 11: “Enosh lived for a total of 905 years and died.”
Verse 14: “Kenan lived for a total of 910 years and died.”
Verse 17: “Mahalalel lived for a total of 895 years and died.”
Verse 20: “Jared lived for a total of 962 years and died.”
Verse 23: “Enoch lived for 365 years.”
Verse 27: “Methuselah lived for 969 years and died.”
Verse 31: “Lamech lived for 777 years and died.”
Chap. 9, Verse 29: “Noah lived for 950 years and died.”
Chap. 11, Verses 10–17: “These are Shem’s descendants; when Shem was 100, Arpachshad was born to him, two years after the flood and, after Arpachashad’s birth Shem lived five hundred years, getting sons and daughters. Arpachashad got Shelah at thirty-five and lived 403 years after Shelah’s birth, getting sons and daughters. At thirty, Shelah got Eber and he lived 403 years after Eber’s birth, getting sons and daughters. Eber at thirty-four got Peleg and lived 403 years after Peleg’s birth, getting sons and daughters.
In this chapter, more people with long lives have been discussed other than those that we have mentioned. Here, for the sake of conciseness, we will only mention some of their names: Peleg, Reu, Serug, Nahor, and Terah.
In chap. Twenty-five, Verse 7, it has been mentioned that Abraham lived 175 years and in Verse 17, it is recorded that Ishmael lived for 137 years. These are some of the names that have been recorded in the Old Testament from those who have had long lives. This is proof for the Jews and the Christians.
Al-Karājukī writes in Kanz al-fawā’id in the chapter called “Al-Burhān `alā ṣiḥḥat ṭūl `umr al-imām Ṣāḥib al-Zamān”: “The people of all religions are unanimous on the possibility of longevity.” After mentioning some names from the Old Testament, he says: “Islamic [books] too, contain similar contents. A single Muslim scholar cannot be found who opposes this or believes in its falsity. Rather, they have consensus on the possibility of longevity like what we mentioned.” He has also recorded similar things from the books of the Zoroastrians, Hindus, Buddhists, and etc. Whoever desires to study more about those who had long lives must refer to the following books: Biḥār al-anwār, al-Mu`ammirīn by Abū Ḥātim al-Sajistānī, Kamāl al-dīn, Kanz al-fawā’id in the treatise called “Al-Burhān `alā ṣiḥḥat ṭūl `umr al-imām Ṣāḥib al-Zamān.” In this treatise, he has mentioned a group of those who had long lives and has thoroughly discussed the many reasons that prove longevity.
This is in addition to what has been proved in biology, anatomy, and pharmacology about the possibility of longevity when the laws of health and hygiene are observed with utmost care. The reason for a human’s death is not because he has lived eighty, ninety, or whatever years. Rather, death is caused by the factors that prevent the continuation of life . . . Further explanation on this topic can be found in our book al-Imāmat wa l-mahdawiyyat.
3. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 1, chap. 31, p. 322, no. 5; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 13, p. 217, no. 5; al-Kharā’ij wa l-jarā’iḥ, vol. 2, p. 965; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 6, chap. 32, p. 399, no. 25.
4. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 155, no. 14; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 13, p. 225, under the 13th tradition with a slight variation; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 32, sect. 27, pp. 66–67, no. 467.
5. Al-Kharā’ij wa l-jarā’iḥ, vol. 3, p. 1174; Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 38, p. 390, no. 4. He has narrated it from Imam al-Riḍā, peace be on him, with differences in the narrator(s) and slight variations in the wording; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 23, p. 152, no. 3. He has also narrated it from Imam al-Riḍā, peace be on him, in vol. 13, chap. 10, p. 299, no. 17; Muntakhab al-anwār al-muḍī’a, p. 40, from Imam al-Ḥasan al-`Askarī, peace be on him.
The traditions that indicate when he reappears, he will look young and the passing of time will not make him old
Comprised of ten traditions
645. Kamāl al-dīn1: Muḥammad b. Muḥammad b. `Iṣām, from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb al-Kulainī, from al-Qāsim b. al-`Alā, from Ismā’īl b. `Alī al-Qazwīnī, from `Alī b. Ismā’īl, from `Āṣim al-Ḥannāṭ, from Muḥammad b. Muslim al-Thaqafī al-Ṭaḥḥān, who recounts: I went to see Abū Ja`far Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Bāqir, peace be upon him, with the intention of asking him about the Qā’im from the family of Muḥammad, Allah's blessings be on him and his family. He started the conversation [before I could ask my question]: “O Muḥammad b. Muslim! Surely in the Qā’im from the progeny of Muḥammad, there are customs [i.e. similarities] from five Messengers: Yūnus b. Mattā, Yūsuf b. Ya`qūb, Moses, Jesus, and Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family. As for the custom from Yūnus b. Mattā, it is his return after his occultation while he will [look] young despite his old age. As for the custom from Yūsuf b. Ya`qūb, it is his concealment from his close companions as well as the masses, his concealment from his brothers, and the difficult situation for his father Ya`qūb2 despite the little distance between him and his father, family, and followers.
As for the custom from Moses, it is the continuation of his fear, the lengthening of his occultation, the concealment of his birth, and the hardships his followers will experience after him from the tortures and degradations—until Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, allows him to appear and gives him victory and assists him against his enemies. As for the custom from Jesus, peace be on him, it will be the differences people have concerning him, to the extent that a group will say, ‘He has not been born.’ Another group will say, ‘He has died,’ yet another will say, ‘He has been killed and crucified.’
As for the custom from his great grandfather, al-Mustafa Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, it is his emergence with the sword and the slaying the enemies of Allah, the enemies of His Messenger, the oppressors and the tyrants, and that he will be helped with the sword and awe. His flag will never return defeated. From the signs of his emergence are: the emergence of al-Sufyānī from Syria, the emergence of al-Yamānī [from Yemen], a loud cry from the sky in the month of Ramaḍān, and an announcer calling out his name and the name of his father from the sky.”
646. Kamāl al-dīn3: Muḥammad b. Ibrāhīm b. Isḥāq al-Ṭāliqānī, from Aḥmad b. `Alī al-Anṣārī, from Abū l-Ṣalt al-Harawī who said: I asked (Imam) al-Riḍā, peace be on him, “What are the signs of your Qā’im when he emerges?” He replied, “His sign is that he will be old in age [but] young in appearance. When someone looks at him he will guess his age to be forty years or less. And from his signs is that he will not become old with the passing of the days and nights until the arrival of his death.
647. `Iqd al-durar4: From Imam Abū `Abd-Allah al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī, peace be on him: “[When] the Mahdī rises, the people will refute him because he will return to them as a healthy youth. One of the greatest tests is that their master will emerge for them as a youth while they had thought he would be a very old man.”
648. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī5: From Abū `Abd-Allah [al-Ṣādiq], peace be on him, in a tradition: “One of the greatest tests is that their master will emerge for them as a youth while they had considered him a very old person.”
649. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī6: Narrated to us `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn al-Mas`ūdī, from Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā al-`Aṭṭār, from Muḥammad b. Ḥassān al-Rāzī, from Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Kūfī, from al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb, from `Abd-Allah b. Jabala, from `Alī b. Abī Ḥamza, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “[When] the Mahdī rises the people will refute him because he will return to them as a healthy youth. No one will keep faith in him except those whose covenant Allah has taken in the first [world of] particles (al-dharr al-awwal).”
650. Ghaybat al-Shaykh7: It has been narrated in a tradition that the Master of Time has a similarity with Jonah (Yūnus): “His return from his occultation while he is in the prime of his youth.”
Some of the traditions which we mentioned or will soon mention, interpret and clarify other traditions like the following two:
651. Ghaybat al-Shaykh8: Sa`d b. `Abd-Allah, from Muḥammad b. `Īsā b. `Ubaid, from Ismā’īl b. Abān, from `Amr b. Shimr, from Jābir al-Ju`fī, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, who said: Umar b. al-Khaṭṭāb asked Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī b. Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him, “Inform me about the Mahdī, what is his name?” He replied, “As for his name, my beloved took a covenant from me that I will not reveal his name until Allah sends him.” He then asked, “Then inform me about his attributes.” He replied, “He will be a young man of medium figure with beautiful hair that will flow over his shoulders. The light of his face will make the blackness of his beard and hair shine. May my father be sacrificed for the son of the best maid.”
652. Is`āf al-rāghibīn9: It has also been narrated about his characteristics that he is young, has applied kohl on his eyes, has arched eyebrows, an aquiline nose, a thick beard, and he will have a mole on his right cheek and another on his right hand.
The following traditions also prove the above concept: 539 and 555.
Notes:
1. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 1, chap. 32, p. 327, no. 7; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 13, pp. 217–218, no. 6.
2. I say: The difficult situation of his father, peace be on him, is perhaps because Allah, the Exalted, did not inform his father about some of the things that he would go through—like the duration of his occultation and the time of his reappearance.
3. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 57, p. 652, no. 12; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, p. 285, no. 16; al-Kharā’ij wa l-jarā’iḥ, vol. 3, p. 1170, under no. 65; I`lām al-warā, chap. 4, sect. 4; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 34, sect. 8, p. 733, no. 91.
4. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, pp. 41–42; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 492 (short version).
5. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 188, no. 43; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 420, no. 398; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 536, no. 483; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, chap. 21, p. 583, no. 2.
6. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 188, no. 43; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 420, no. 398; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 536, no. 483; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, chap. 21, p. 583, no. 2.
7. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 421, no. 399; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 512, no. 341.
8. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 470, no. 487; I`lām al-warā, chap. 4, sect. 4; al-Irshād, chap. “The attributes of the Qā’im, peace be on him,” no.1; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 464; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 3, p. 36; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 34, sect. 6, p. 730, no. 71; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, p. 41 (short version).
9. Is`āf al-rāghibīn (published in the margin of the book Nūr al-abṣār by Shablanjī), chap. 2, p. 135.
The traditions that indicate his birth will be concealed
Comprised of thirteen traditions
653. Kifāyat al-athar1: Abū `Abd-Allah al-Khuzā`ī informed us, from Muḥammad b. Abū `Abd-Allah al-Kūfī, from Sahl b. Ziyād al-Ādamī, from `Abd al-`Aẓīm b. `Abd-Allah al-Ḥasanī, who said: I said to (Imam) Muḥammad b. `Alī b. Mūsā, peace be on him, “I hope that you are the Qā’im from the Ahl al-Bait of Muḥammad who will fill the earth with fairness and justice just as it will be filled with injustice and unfairness.” He replied, “O Abū l-Qāsim! There is no one from us but that he rises with Allah’s commands and is the guide towards the religion of Allah. But the Qā’im through whom Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will cleanse the earth from the disbelievers and deniers and will fill it with justice and fairness, is the one whose birth will be concealed2 from the people.
He will disappear from them and they will not be allowed to say his name. His name will be the same as the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, and also his epithet. He is the one for whom the earth’s distances will be shortened, every difficulty will be eased for, and for him will gather his companions—who are equal to the ones who participated in the Battle of Badr, three hundred and thirteen men—from distant places on earth. This is the [meaning of the] saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, ‘Wherever you may be, Allah will bring forth all of you. Surely, Allah has power over all things’ (Quran Surah Baqarah 2:148).
When this number of sincere people gathers for him, he will make his affair evident. When ten thousand men are complete, he will emerge with Allah’s permission. Then, he will continue slaying Allah’s enemies until Allah, Blessed and Exalted be He, becomes satisfied.” I said to him, “My Master! How will he know that Allah has become satisfied?” He answered, “Mercy will be inspired in his heart . . . (to the end of the tradition).”
654. Kamāl al-dīn3: Through the same chain of narrators— meaning `Alī b. Aḥmad al-Daqqāq and Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Shaibānī, may Allah be satisfied with them, from Muḥammad b. Abū `Abd-Allah al-Kūfī, from Mūsā b. `Imrān al-Nakha`ī, from his uncle al-Ḥusayn b. Yazīd, from Ḥamzat b. Ḥumrān, from his father Ḥumrān b. A`yun, from Sa`īd b. Jubair—from `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, the Master of the Worshippers, peace be on him, who said: “The birth of our Qā’im will be concealed from the people until they will say, ‘He hasn’t been born yet.’ [It is concealed] so that when he reappears, he will not have pledged allegiance to anybody.”
655. Kamāl al-dīn4: Narrated to us Aḥmad b. Hārūn al-Fāmī and `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn b. Shādhawayh al-Mu’addib Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Masrūr and Ja`far b. al-Ḥusayn, may Allah be satisfied with them, from Muḥammad b. `Abd-Allah b. Ja`far al-Ḥimyarī, from his father, from Ayyūb b. Nūḥ, from al-`Abbās b. `Āmir al-Qaṣabānī, from Ja`far b. `Alī b. al-Ḥasan b. `Alī b. `Abd-Allah b. al-Mughaira al-Kūfī, from his grandfather al-Ḥasan b. `Alī b. `Abd-Allah, from al-`Abbās b. `Āmir al-Qaṣabānī, from Mūsā b. Hilāl al-Ḍabbī, from `Abd-Allah b. `Aṭā who said: I said to (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, “Your followers in Iraq are plenty. By Allah, there is no one in your Ahl al-Bait like you! So, why do you not rise [against the government]?” He replied, “O `Abd-Allah b. `Aṭā! You have you have filled your ears with nonsense. By Allah, I am not your Master #7779;āḥibukum).” I asked, “So, who is our Master?” He answered, “See [who is the one] whose birth is concealed from the people; he is your master.”
656. Kamāl al-dīn5: `Abd al-Wāḥid b. Muḥammad al-`Aṭṭār, from Abū `Amr al-Laithī, from Muḥammad b. Mas`ūd, from Jabra’īl b. Aḥmad, from Muḥammad b. `Īsā, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from Sa`īd b. Ghazwān, from Abū Baṣīr, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The birth of the Master of this affair will be concealed from these people so he will not have pledged allegiance with anyone when he reappears. Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will set right his affairs in one [single] night.”
657. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī6: Al-Kulainī, from a number of our companions, from Sa`d b. `Abd-Allah, from Ayyūb b. Nūḥ who said: I said to Abū l-Ḥasan al-Riḍā, peace be on him, “We hope that you are the master of this affair and that Allah will hand it to you by pardoning [the people] and not by using the sword; because they have pledged allegiance to you and the coins have been forged with your name inscribed on them.” He responded, “There is no one from us except that when letters are sent to him or is pointed at by fingers [i.e. he becomes famous] or is asked questions or wealth is taken to him, that he is either assassinated or will die in his bed until Allah sends a boy7 from us for this affair. His birth and upbringing will be hidden but his parentage will not be concealed.”
658. Ithbāt al-Waṣiyya8: From Sa`d b. `Abd-Allah, through his chain of narrators from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him: “The Qā’im is the one whose birth will be concealed from the people.”
659. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī9: Narrated to us `Alī b. Aḥmad, from `Ubaid-Allah b. Mūsā al-`Alawī, from Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Qalānisī—in Mecca in the year 267 AH—from `Alī b. al-Ḥasan, from al-`Abbās b. `Āmir, from Mūsā b. Hilāl, from `Abd-Allah b. `Aṭā al-Makkī who said: I started the Hajj pilgrimage from Wāsiṭ and I met (Imam) Abū Ja`far Muḥammad b. `Alī, peace be on him, who asked me about the people and the prices. I replied, “I left the people while they were yearning for you. If you rise, the people will indeed follow you.” He answered, “O son of `Aṭā! You have listened to [the speech] of foolish people. By Allah, I am not your master #7779;āḥibukum). None of us is pointed at with fingers or with eyebrows but that he will be killed or that he will die naturally.”
I asked, “What do you mean by he will die naturally?” He replied, “He will die in his deathbed but in a state of anger, until Allah raises the one whose birth is unknown.” I said, “And who is the one whose birth is unknown?” He answered, “See who is the one that the people are not sure whether he has been born or not. He is your master.”
The following traditions also prove the above concept: 539, 574, 610, 645, 686, and 688.
Notes:
1. Kifāyat al-athar, chap. “What has been narrated from Abū Ja`far Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Riḍā, peace be on him,” p. 277, no. 2; Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 36, p. 377, no. 2, with an addition at the end; I`lām al-warā, chap. 2, sect. 2, with the aforementioned addition at its end; al-Iḥtijāj, vol. 2, p. 449; Kifāyat al-muhtadī, pp. 100–101, no. 26, citing Kamāl al-dīn.
2. The reason of his concealed birth was that when the Abbasids found out about the traditions from the Holy Prophet and the Imams from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, that the Mahdī is the twelfth Imam who will fill the earth with justice, will conquer the forts of deviation, annihilate the governments of the merciless, will kill the tyrants, and will takeover the East and West of the earth, they decided to extinguish His light by killing him. Hence, they appointed spies, secret agents, and midwives to keep a watch on the house of the father of the Ḥujja, Imam Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥasan al-`Askarī, peace be on him. But Allah desired to complete His light. Therefore, He, Mighty and Majestic be He, concealed the pregnancy of his mother Narjis from the people. It has been narrated that al-Mu`tamid, the Abbasid Emperor, sent midwives secretly and ordered them to enter the houses of the Banī-Hāshim, especially the house of Imam al-`Askarī, peace be on him, without permission whenever they wanted to investigate and find out about his condition and affairs. But they were unable to find anything for Allah had decided to repeat the custom of His Prophet, Moses, in His proof, just as his enemies adopted the tradition of the Pharaoh and implemented his policies. When the Pharaoh found out that his kingdom would be destroyed by a man from the Israelites, he appointed inspectors to check the pregnant women and monitored their births with strict surveillance. If the new-born was a male, they would kill him instantly and if it was a female, they would spare her. Consequently, they killed thousands of infants in their quest to find Moses. Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, says: “They killed your sons and let you daughters live” (Quran 2:49). In this situation, Allah, the Exalted, placed His Prophet under His protection and concealed his birth from them. Allah, the Exalted, says: “And We revealed to the mother of Moses, ‘Suckle him and when you fear for him, throw him in the river and neither fear nor grieve. Surely, We will return him to you and appoint him as a messenger’” (Quran 28:7). His similarities with Abraham and Moses have also been mentioned in numerous traditions.
It has been narrated in Ilzām al-nāṣib from one of the books of the highly learned scholar, Muḥammad Yūsuf al-Dihkhārqānī, which he authored during the reign of Shah Abbās II: “One day, he [i.e. Imam al-Mahdī] was in the room of his mother in the courtyard when Narjis realized that some midwives were near. She became extremely anxious but did not have enough time to hide that light. An announcer called out to her, ‘Throw the Proof of Allah, the defeater (al-qahhār), in the well in the courtyard.’ So she did. The midwives heard the voice of the child and rushed into the house. They thoroughly searched the house but found no trace of him. They went out confused and perplexed. When the house became empty of strangers, Narjis went towards the well to find out what had happened to the apple of her eye. As she looked over the well, she saw that its water had risen to the level of the ground of the house and the Divine Proof was floating on the water, safe and sound, like a shining full moon. His diaper had not become wet at all. So she took him, suckled him, and praised Allah and prostrated to express her gratitude for Him . . .”
From what we have mentioned, it becomes clear why al-Ḥujja’s birth was concealed—but not his forefathers’ births. The reason is the glad tidings that were given about him: that he would conquer the forts, destroy the foundations of polytheism and hypocrisy, and inherit the earth and rule it in the end of times. The enemies of his forefathers knew they were practicing dissimulation (taqiyya) and would not rise with the sword until the voice would be heard from the sky and the signs were manifested. They also knew that the Mahdī—who is the last Imam and their seal—would rise with the sword, would put aside dissimulation (al-taqiyya), and would kill the enemies of Allah and cleanse the earth from polytheism, merciless rulers, oppressors, and disbelievers.
3. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 1, chap. 31, pp. 322–323, no. 6; I`lām al-warā, chap. 2, sect. 2; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 4, p. 135, no. 3; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 466, no. 126.
4. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 1, chap. 32, p. 325, no. 2; I`lām al-warā, chap. 2, sect. 2; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, pp. 522–523; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 467, no. 129.
I say: Other traditions have also been recorded with this meaning, see al-Kāfī, vol. 1, chap. 138, p. 342, no. 26; Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, pp. 167–168, no. 7–9; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, p. 128.
5. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, p. 480, no. 5; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 20, p. 96, no. 15.
6. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 168, no. 9; Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 35, p. 370, no. 1, similar to it.
7. The author of Lisān al-`Arab writes: “It is said ‘so and so is the boy of the people’ even if he is old, which is like saying, ‘so and so is the youth of the army’ even if he is old” (Lisān al-`Arab, vol. 12, p. 440).
8. Ithbāt al-waṣiyya, pp. 222–223.
I say: Here, ‘people’ means ‘non-Shias’ because in numerous traditions ‘non-Shias’ have been referred to as ‘people.’
9. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 168, no. 8.
I say: As we already mentioned above, ‘people’ refers to ‘non-Shias.’
The traditions that indicate he will not have pledged allegiance with anyone
Comprised of twelve traditions
660. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī1: `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, from Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā, from Muḥammad b. Ḥassān al-Rāzī, from Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Kūfī, from Ibrāhīm b. Hishām, from Ḥammād b. `Īsā, from Ibrāhīm b. `Umar al-Yamānī, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The Qā’im will rise and he will not have pledged allegiance with anybody.”
661. Al-Kāfī2: Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā, from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad, from al-Ḥusayn b. Sa`īd, from ibn Abī `Umair, from Hishām b. Sālim, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah al-Ṣādiq, peace be upon him, who said: “The Qā’im will rise while he will not have pledged an oath, promise, or allegiance to anybody.”
662. Ithbāt al-Waṣiyya3: al-Ḥimyarī from Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn, from Muḥammad b. Sinān, from Abū l-Jārūd, from Uthmān b. Nashīṭ, from Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, who said: “The Master of this affair will not have pledged an oath, promise, or pact to anybody.”
663. Kamāl al-dīn4: Narrated to us Muḥammad b. Mūsā al- Mutawakkil, may Allah be satisfied with him, from Muḥammad b. Yaḥyā al-`Aṭṭār, from Muḥammad b. `Īsā b. `Ubaid, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from Sa`īd b. Ghazwān, from Abū Baṣīr, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The birth of the master of this affair will be concealed from [these] people so that he will not have pledged allegiance with anyone when he emerges.”
664. Kamāl al-dīn5: Narrated to us my father and Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan, may Allah have mercy on both of them, from Sa`d b. `Abd-Allah, from Muḥammad b. `Ubaid and Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn b. Abū l-Khaṭṭāb, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from Jamīl b. Ṣāliḥ, from Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The Qā’im will be sent while he will not have pledged allegiance to anyone.”
665. Kamāl al-dīn6: My father, may Allah have mercy on him, narrated to me from Sa`d b. `Abd-Allah, from Ya`qūb b. Yazīd and al-Ḥasan b. Ẓarīf, both from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from Hishām b. Sālim, from Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The Qā’im will rise while he will not have pledged allegiance to anybody.”
The following traditions also establish the aforementioned concept: 539, 601, 610, 634, 654, and 656.
Notes:
1. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 191, no. 45.
2. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, p. 342, no. 27; Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 10, p. 171, no. 4.
3. Ithbāt al-waṣiyya, p. 223.
4. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 44, p. 479, no. 1.
5. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 44, pp. 479–480, no. 2; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 6, chap. 32, p. 453, no. 208.
6. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 44, p. 480, no. 3; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 6, chap. 32, p. 436, no. 209.
The traditions that indicate he will kill Allah’s enemies, purify the earth from polytheism and all injustice and unfairness, destroy the kingdoms of the tyrants, and will fight for the interpretation (yuqātil `alā l-ta’wīl) of the Holy Quran just as the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, fought for its descent (al-tanzīl)
Comprised of eighteen traditions
666. Kamāl al-dīn1: Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Masrūr, from al-Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad b. `Āmir, from his uncle `Abd-Allah b. `Āmir, from Muḥammad b. Abī `Umair, from someone he mentioned, from Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “The Qā’im will not reappear until the deposits of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, are brought forth. When these are brought forth, he will reappear and will fight against the enemies of Allah and kill them.”
667. Kamāl al-dīn2: Al-Muẓaffar b. Ja`far al-Muẓaffar, may Allah be satisfied with him, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Mas`ūd, from his father, from `Alī b. Muḥammad, from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad, from al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb, from Ibrāhīm al-Karkhī who said: I—or someone—asked (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, “May Allah set right your affairs! Wasn’t `Alī, peace be on him, strong in the religion of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He?” He replied, “Yes [he was].” I said, “Then how did the people defeat him and why didn’t he repel them? What stopped him from doing so?” He answered, “A verse from the Book of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, prevented him from doing so.” I said, “And what was that verse?”
He replied, “The saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, ‘Had they been separated, We would have surely punished those who disbelieved from amongst them with a painful punishment.’3 Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, put in the loins of the disbelievers and hypocrites the deposits of the believers. `Alī, peace be on him, did not kill the fathers until the deposits came out [i.e. their faithful children were born]. When the deposits came out, he stood up against [the opponents] and fought against them. The same applies to the Qā’im from our Ahl al-Bait. He will not reappear until the deposits of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, appear. When they all appear, he will stand up against [his opponents] and will kill them.”
The following traditions also prove the above concept: 283, 423, 432, 446, 450, 463, 529, 535, 537, 551, 553, 554, 574, 645, 653, and 1195.
Notes:
1. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, p. 641.
2. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, pp. 641–642; Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalain, vol. 5, p. 70; Tafsīr al-Qummī, vol. 2, p. 316; al-Maḥajja, verse 38, p. 206; `Ilal al-sharā’i`, vol. 1, p. 147, no. 3.
3. Quran 48:25.
The traditions that indicate he will manifest the affairs of Allah, make the religion of truth victorious, destroy innovations and falsehood, will be assisted with Allah’s help, will be helped with Allah’s angels, will spread Islam on earth and will rule it, and Allah will give life to the earth after its death
Comprised of 51 traditions
668. Kitāb Faḍl b. Shādhān1: Narrated to us Faḍālat b. Ayyūb, may Allah be satisfied with him, from `Abd-Allah b. Sinān, who said: My father asked Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, about the Just Sultan (al-sultān al-`ādil). He said, “He is the one whom Allah has made his obedience compulsory upon the Jinn and the humans—all of them—after the Prophets and the Messengers. There will be a sultan after a sultan until they terminate at the twelfth sultan.”
A person from his companions requested, “Describe them for us, O Son of Allah’s Messenger!” He replied, “They are those about whom Allah, the Exalted, has said, ‘Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those who have authority amongst you.’2 They are those that during the rule of the last of them, Jesus, peace be on him, will descend, and pray behind him. He is the one who will slay the Anti-Christ (al-Dajjāl). Through him, Allah will conquer the Easts and the Wests of the earth. His government will remain until to the Day of Judgment.”
669. Kamāl al-dīn3: Narrated to us Muḥammad b. Muḥammad b. `Iṣām, may Allah be satisfied with him, from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb al-Kulainī, from al-Qāsim b. al-`Alā, from Ismā’īl b. `Alī al-Qazwīnī, from `Alī b. Ismā’īl, from `Aṣim b. Ḥamīd al-Ḥannāṭ, from Muḥammad b. Muslim al-Thaqafī who said: I heard Abū Ja`far Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Bāqir, peace be on him, say, “The Qā’im is from us. He will be helped with awe and assisted with victory. The earth’s [distances] will be shortened for him, treasures will be manifested for him, and his kingdom will extend to the East and the West. Through him, Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will make his religion victorious over all other religions even if the polytheists detest it. Then, there will not remain a ruin on earth but that he will repair it. The Spirit of Allah, Jesus, son of Mary, peace be on him, will descend and pray behind him.”
I asked, “O Son of Allah’s Messenger! When will your Qā’im emerge?” He replied, “When men will make themselves look like women and women will make themselves look like men. Men will fulfill [their sexual desires] using men and women using women. Women will mount on saddles, false testimonies will be accepted, the testimonies of the just will be rejected, bloodshed, adultery, and loans with interest will be regarded as normal, the wicked will be respected for fear of their tongue, al-Sufyānī will emerge from Syria, al-Yamānī will come from Yemen, the desert will sink in the earth at al-Baidā’, a youth from the family of Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who will be called Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan—al-Nafs al-Zakiyya (the Pure Soul)—will be killed between the Rukn and the Maqām (at Ka`ba). A cry will be heard from the sky that ‘the truth is with him and with his followers.’ It is then that our Qā’im will appear. When he appears, he will lean his back towards the Ka`ba and 313 men will gather around him. The first thing that he will say will be this verse, ‘The remnant of Allah is better for you if you are believers.’4
Then, he will say, ‘I am the Remnant of Allah on His earth; His Caliph and His Proof upon you.’ No Muslim will salute him except by these words, ‘Peace be on you, O Remnant of Allah (baqiyyat Allāh) on His earth.’ When the `iqd—meaning ten thousand men—gather around him, he will rise. Then, there will not remain anything being worshipped on earth other than Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He—from the idols or any other thing—except that it will catch fire and be destroyed. This will occur after a long occultation so that Allah [tests] and recognizes those who obey Him regarding the unseen and believe in Him.”
670. Kamāl al-dīn5: Abū Ṭālib al-Muẓaffar b. Ja`far b. al-Muẓaffar al-`Alawī al-Samarqandī, may Allah be satisfied with him, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Mas`ūd, from his father, from Muḥammad b. Naṣīr, from Muḥammad b. `Īsā, [from Ḥammād b. `Īsā], from `Amr b. Shimr, from Jābir b. Yazīd al-Ju`fī, from Jābir b. `Abd-Allah al-Anṣārī who heard the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, say: Dhū l-Qarnain was a righteous servant whom Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, appointed as a proof upon His servants. He called his people towards Allah and ordered them to fear Him but they struck his temple. Consequently, he went into occultation for some time until they said, “He has died, or perished, or to which land has he gone?”
After some time, he reappeared and returned to his people but they struck his other temple. Amongst you is the one who will follow his custom. Surely, Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, gave power to Dhū l-Qarnain on earth and gave him a means for everything and he conquered the East and the West. Allah, Blessed and High be He, will implement this custom in the Qā’im from my descendants. He will conquer the East and the West of the earth.
There will neither remain a waterhole nor a spot from the land or the mountains that Dhū l-Qarnain tread on but that the Qā’im will set foot on it. Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will bring out for him the treasures of the earth and its mines and He will help him with awe. Through him, He will fill the earth with justice and fairness just as it will be filled with injustice and unfairness.
671. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī6: From Rifā`at b. Mūsā who heard (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, say about the verse “And to Him submits whatever is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly7”: “When the Qā’im, peace be on him, rises, there will not remain a land but that the testimony, ‘There is no god but Allah and that surely Muḥammad is the Messenger of Allah,’ will be called out in it.”
672. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī8: From Zurāra, from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: My father was asked about the sayings of Allah, “And fight against all the polytheists just as they all fight against you”9 and “Until there remains no fitna and religion becomes exclusively for Allah.”10 He replied, “The interpretation of this verse has not occurred yet. When our Qā’im rises, those who will have reached his time will see the occurrence of the interpretation of this verse. The religion of Muḥammad, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, will reach wherever that night reaches [i.e. everywhere]. There will remain no polytheism [or polytheist] on the face of earth just as Allah has stated.”
673. Yanābī` al-mawadda11: From Zain al-`Ābidīn and from al-Bāqir, [peace be on them]: “When the Qā’im, peace be on him, rises, Allah will make Islam victorious over all religions.”
674. Yanābī` al-mawadda12: From Abū Baṣīr, from Ja`far al-Ṣādiq, may Allah be satisfied with him: “When the Qā’im rises, the believers will rejoice because of the victory from Allah.”
675. Tafsīr `Alī b. Ibrāhīm al-Qummī13: Regarding the interpretation of the verse, “Or He who answers the distressed one when he calls Him and removes the badness, and He will make you the successors on earth,”14 narrated to me my father, from al-Ḥasan b. `Alī b. Faḍḍāl, from Ṣāliḥ b. `Uqba, from Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said: “This verse was revealed concerning the Qā’im from the family of Muḥammad, peace be on them. By Allah, he is the distressed one. When he prays beside the Maqām [of Ibrāhīm] two units of prayers (rak`atain) and invokes Allah, He will answer him and will remove the badness and make him the successor on earth.”
676. Mā nazala min al-Quran fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām15: Through his chains of narrators [from Ḥumaid b. Ziyād, from al-Ḥasan b. Muḥammad b. Samā`a, from Ibrāhīm b. `Abd al-Ḥamīd], from `Abd al-Ḥamīd, from Muḥammad b. Muslim, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, “Or He who answers the distressed one when he calls,”16 he, peace be on him, said: “This verse was descended about the Qā’im, peace be on him. When he emerges, he will wear a turban and will pray beside the Maqām [of Ibrāhīm]. He will plead to his Lord, then, none of his flags will return [defeated].”
677. Mā nazala min al-Quran fī Ahl al-Bait `alayhim al-salām17: Narrated to us Yūsuf b. Ya`qūb, from Muḥammad b. Abī Bakr al-Muqrī, from Nu`aim b. Sulaimān, from Laith, from Mujāhid, from ibn `Abbās, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, “So that He makes it victorious over all religions even if the polytheists detest it,”18 he said: This will not happen until there remains no follower of Judaism, Christianity, or any other religion except Islam; until the sheep[s], the wolf[s], the cow[s], the lion[s], the men, and the snake[s] are all safe and secure; until the rat does not nibble at the sack; until jizya is imposed; the cross is broken; and the pig is killed. [This] is the saying of Allah, the Exalted, “So that He makes it victorious over all religions even if the polytheists detest it.” All this will happen when the Qā’im, peace be on him, rises.
678. Kamāl al-dīn19: Through this chain of narrators [meaning `Alī b. Ḥātim, from Ḥumaid b. Ziyād, from al-Ḥasan b. `Alī b. Samā`a], from Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan al-Maithamī, from al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb, from Mu’min al-Ṭāq, from Salām b. al-Mustanīr, from Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, “Know that Allah will give life to the earth after its death” (Quran Surah Hadid 57:17)
He said, “Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will give life to it through the Qā’im, peace be on him, after it has died. Its death means the disbelief (kufr) of its inhabitants and a disbeliever (kāfir) is [regarded as] a dead person.”
679. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī20: Narrated to us Abū Sulaimān Aḥmad b. Haudha, from Ibrāhīm b. Isḥāq al-Nahāwandī, from `Abd-Allah b. Ḥammād al-Anṣārī, from `Alī b. Abī Ḥamza, who said: (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, said, “When the Qā’im, Allah’s blessings be on him, rises, the angels [present during the Battle of] Badr—which are five thousand—will descend. One-third will be on white horses, one-third on black and white horses, and one-third on al-ḥuw horses.” I asked, “What is al-ḥuw?” He answered, “Red.”
680. `Uyūn akhbār al-Riḍā21: In a tradition recorded by him from Muḥammad b. `Alī Mājīlawayh, may Allah be satisfied with him, from `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim, from his father, from al-Rayyān b. Shabīb, from al-Riḍā, peace be on him, who said [in a part of it]: O son of Shabīb! If you [want to] cry for anything, then cry for al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī b. Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him. Because he was slaughtered like sheep are slaughtered and with him were killed eighteen of his family members whose kind could not be found anywhere on earth. The seven skies and the earths cried for his death. Four thousand angels descended on the earth to help him but they were not given permission. They remain by his grave—disarrayed and dusty—until the Qā’im, peace be on him, rises. Then, they will assist him and their slogan will be, ‘[Let us] avenge the blood of al-Ḥusayn,’ (yā lathārāt al-ḥussain).
681. `Uyūn al-mu`jizāt22: It has been narrated from one of the knowledgeable [Imams] from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, that Allah, the Exalted, sent down four thousand angels to [assist] al-Ḥusayn. These were the same angels that had descended on the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, on the day of (the Battle of) Badr. He was asked to choose between being victorious against his enemies and meeting his grandfather. He chose meeting his grandfather. So, Allah, the Exalted, ordered the angels to stand by his grave while they are disarrayed and dusty, awaiting the rising of the Qā’im from his descendants—the Master of the Time, peace be on him. The following traditions also prove the above concept: 161, 205, 243, 324–332, 337–339, 342, 343, 346, 373, 419, 423, 432, 435, 525, 529, 536, 538, 548, 553, 719, 807, 936, 1105, 1138, 1177, 1195, and 1199.
Notes:
1. Kifāyat al-muhtadī (al-Arba`īn), under no. 39; Kashf al-ḥaqq (al-Arba`īn), no. 34.
2. Quran 4:59.
3. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 1, chap. 32, pp. 330–331, no. 16; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 25, pp. 191–192, no. 24.
I say: We already mentioned a similar tradition in the first section under no. 327 from Imam Abū `Abd-Allah al-Sadiq, peace be on him, which mentioned: “His name is Muḥammad b. Muḥammad and his title is al-Nafs al-Zakiyya.”
4. Quran 11:86.
5. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 38, p. 394, no. 4; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 12, chap. 8, pp. 194–195, no. 19. I say: Apparently, Muḥammad b. Naṣīr—the narrator from Muḥammad b. `Īsā—refers to Muḥammad b. Naṣīr al-Kashī, the highly reliable and extremely learned scholar. He should not be confused in such traditions and reliable narrations with Muḥammad b. Naṣīr al-Numayrī.
6. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 1, p. 182, no. 81; al-Maḥajja, Verse 4, p. 5; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 421, which says: “When the Qā’im—the Mahdī—rises.”
7. Quran 3:83.
8. Tafsīr al-`Ayyāshī, vol. 2, p. 56, no. 48; Majma` al-bayān, vol. 4, p. 543, with very minor differences and the addition of the following at its end: “just as Allah, the Exalted, states, ‘They will worship only Me [and] will associate nothing with Me’” (Quran 24:55); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 55, no. 41; al-Maḥajja, verses 21 and 25; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 423.
9. Quran 9:36.
10. Quran 8:39.
11. Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 423, citing al-Maḥajja.
12. Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 426, citing al-Maḥajja.
13. Tafsīr `Alī b. Ibrāhīm al-Qummī, vol. 2, p. 129; al-Maḥajja, verse 73, p. 165.
14. Quran 27:62.
15. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 399.
16. Quran 27:62.
17. Ta’wīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 663; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 71, p. 423 (short version); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 5, p. 61, no. 59.
18. Quran 9:33.
19. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 58, p. 668, no. 13.
20. Ghaybat al-Nu`mānī, chap. 13, p. 244, no. 44.
21. `Uyūn akhbār al-Riḍā, vol. 1, chap. 28, pp. 233–234, no. 58.
22. `Uyūn al-mu`jizāt, p. 70.
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