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Section Thirty-Two: 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`qūb 2 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.

References

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.

Section Thirty-Three: 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 (ṣāḥibukum).” 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 boy 7 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 (ṣāḥibukum). 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.

References

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.’

Section Thirty-Four: 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.

References

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.

Section Thirty-Five: 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.

References

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.

Section Thirty-Six: 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 unwillingly 7 ” :“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.

References

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.