Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

References

1. Know that numerous traditions-some of which we mentioned in the twenty-seventh section of the third chapter-indicate that he has two occultations and one is longer than the other. The minor occultation lasted until 329 AH, the same year that Abū l-Ḥasan `Alī b. Muḥammad al-Samurī died. By his death, the period of the special representation (al-niyābat al-khāṣṣa) came to an end and the period of ambassadorship was terminated. Its duration was seventy-four years-if we calculate it from the birth of al-Ḥujja, peace be on him-and sixty nine years if we calculate it from the death of his father in the year 260 AH. During this period, the representatives were the media between him and his followers. His representatives and some special Shias had access to him and signed letters (al-tauqī`āt) were written by him to these elite. The representatives also brought his replies to those who had questions about religious issues and laws and other matters. The Shia elite knew his holy hand-writing and recognized it.

Perhaps, the secret of the minor occultation was to make the Shias familiar with complete occultation. Therefore, the minor occultation took place before the major one so that they would not feel hopeless when it occurred. A quick look into history will show that they, peace be on them, used to accustom their Shias to the occultation of the Imam since the time of Imam Abū l-Ḥasan `Alī b. Muḥammad al-Hādī, peace be on him. Al-Mas`ūdī, the great historian, has mentioned in Ithbāt al-waṣiyya that “It has been narrated that Abū l-Ḥasan al-`Askarī was concealed from most of the Shias except for a small number of people who were close to him. When the affair [of Imamate] was handed to Abū Muḥammad, he would speak with his close followers and also others from behind a curtain-except those times when he rode to the royal court. This behavior practiced by him and his father was a prelude to the occultation of Ṣāḥib al-Zamān so that the Shias would become familiar with the occultation and not deny it and so that they would become accustomed with hiding and concealment.”

After the minor occultation ended, the major occultation began. His reappearance will take place only after Allah, the Exalted, permits. No one will be permitted to be in his service except a very few. The doors of special representation and ambassadorship were closed and the matters were delegated to the jurists (al-fuqahā), who were proficient in divine laws and are the bearers of the traditions and sciences of the immaculate Imams. Al-Ṣadūq has narrated in Kamāl al-dīn from Muḥammad b. Muḥammad b. `Iṣām, from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb, from Isḥāq b. Ya`qūb who reports, “I asked Muḥammad b. Uthmān al-`Amrī to convey for me a letter [to Imam Mahdī] in which I had asked numerous problematic issues. Soon, a signed letter (tauqī`) reached me with the handwriting of our Master Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, peace be on him, which said, ‘As for what you have asked, may Allah guide you and make you steadfast... As for the events that will occur [in the future], then regarding those, refer to the narrators of our traditions (ruwāt ḥadithinā); for undoubtedly, they are my proof upon you and I am the proof of Allah upon them.’” Al-Ṭūsī has recorded the same tradition in al-Ghayba from a group of people, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad al-Qūlawayh, Abū Ghālib al-Zurārī, and others, who have all narrated it from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb. It has also been narrated in al-Iḥtijāj from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb, from Isḥāq. Imam Abū `Abd-Allah has said in a famous tradition recorded by al-Kulainī through his chain of narrators from `Umar b. Ḥanẓala that “Whoever from amongst you who narrates our traditions, has insight into what we have allowed or prohibited, and knows our laws, then they should be satisfied with him as a judge because I have appointed him as a judge upon you. When he judges [in accordance] with our judgment but [his judgment] is not accepted, then [the one who has not accepted the judgment] has neglected the judgment of Allah and has rejected us; and he who rejects us is like he who rejects Allah and [he who performs this act] is standing on the borderline of polytheism.” Shaykh (al-`Āmilī) has also narrated it through his chain of narrators in Wasā’il al-shī`a, vol. 18, chap. 11, from the chapters about the attributes of a judge, no. 1.

It has been narrated in al-Iḥtijāj from Imam Abū Muḥammad al-`Askarī, in a tradition from (Imam) Abū `Abd-Allah, peace be on him, who said, “From amongst the jurists (fuqahā), whoever protects himself (ṣā’inan li nafsih), guards his religion (ḥāfiẓan li dīnih), disobeys his desires (mukhalifīn li hawāh), and obeys the commands of his Master, then it is obligatory upon the people to follow him.” It has also been narrated in al-Iḥtijāj through his chain of narrators from Imam Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥasan, from his father `Alī b.

Muḥammad al-Hādī who said, “After the occultation of your Qā’im, if it was not for those scholars who will call towards him, guide to him, will protect his religion with Allah’s proofs, and will save the servants of Allah from the traps of Iblīs and his rebels and the snares of the enemies of the Ahl al-Bait, no one would remain but that he would reject the Religion of Allah. These scholars are those who firmly hold the reins of the hearts of the weak Shias just like captains who firmly grip the ships steering wheel. These are the most superior people before Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He.” The Second Martyr (Shahīd al-Thānī) has recorded a similar tradition from Imam al-Hādī, peace be on him, in Munyat al-murīd. This concept can be inferred from traditions other than those that we mentioned which our companions have narrated in their books. May Allah be satisfied with them.

An important note: Know that-as we have indicated earlier-special representation and ambassadorship terminated with the end of the minor occultation and the commencement of the major occultation. Thereafter, no one has the right to claim the esteemed positions of being an ambassador (safīr), door (bāb), representative, special attorney (wikālat al-khāṣṣa), or a medium between the Imam and the people until Allah manifests the affair of the guardian appointed by him and His proof, peace be on him. Whoever makes any of the above claims must be refuted and rejected. This is one of the necessary beliefs of our religion-that has been unanimously agreed upon by all the great scholars, generation after generation without exception. This is also proved by the traditions which speak about his major occultation and mention that the people will be tested with intense examinations and calamities. For our purpose, the quote of the majestic teacher, Abū l-Qāsim Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Ja`far b. Mūsā al-Qūlawayh (d. 368 or 369 AH)-the author of the book Kāmil al-ziyārāt-will suffice: “We believe that whoever claims the affair [of representation or deputyship] after al-Samurī, may Allah have mercy on him, is a mischievous, deviated, and deviating disbeliever.”

2. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43: “Those who have witnessed the Qā’im, peace be on him, seen him, and talked to him, p. 440, no. 9; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 251, no. 222; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, p. 351, and vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 30, no. 23; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 452, no. 69; Tabṣirat al-walī, p. 71, no. 37; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, p. 607.

3. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43: “Those who have witnessed the Qā’im, peace be on him, seen him and talked to him,” p. 440, no. 9; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 251, no. 222, which says, “O Allah! Take revenge for me from Your enemies”; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 83, p. 463; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 453, no. 70; Tabṣirat al-walī, p. 71, no. 38; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, p. 607.

4. A section of Ka`ba approximately located on the side which is opposite its door-Ed.

5. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, chap. “The birth of the Master, peace be on him,” pp. 515-517, no. 3; Kamāl al-dīn has narrated it using three different chains (chap. 43, pp. 437-440, no. 6); Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 83, p. 463.

6. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, p. 441, no. 12; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 246, no. 215, which says, “from Ẓarīf”; al-Kharā’ij, chap. “al-`Alāmāt al-dālla `alā Ṣāḥib al-Zamān”; Ithbāt al-waṣiyya, pp. 221-222; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 83, p. 463 (similar to it); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 30, no. 25; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 499; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 508, no. 219 (short version); Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, pp. 544-545; Tabṣirat al-walī, p. 72, no. 39.

7. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, p. 435, no. 3, and pp. 441-442, no. 14. The latter has some differences like: “from his father and Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan, may Allah be satisfied with both of them, from `Abd-Allah b. Ja`far al-Ḥimyarī,” and an addition at its end which indicates the prohibition of saying his name; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 26, no. 20; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 49-50, no. 17; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, chap. 20, p. 581.

8. Quran 2:260.

9. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, p. 442, no. 15; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 82, p. 461 (similar) to it; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 42, no. 31; Iḥqāq al-ḥaqq, vol. 19, p. 642.

10. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 443-444, no. 17; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 464 (similar to it); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 31-32, no. 27; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 76-78, no. 44; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 33, p. 671, no. 38.

11. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 444¬-445, no. 18; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 253-254, no. 223, through his chain of narrators from al-Awdī; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 83,

p. 464 (similar to it); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 1-2, no. 1; I`lām al-warā, fourth rukn, part 2, chap. 3, sect. 2; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 78-79, no. 45; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 33, pp. 670-671, no. 39; Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, p. 573; al-Thāqib, pp. 613-614, no. 559/7; al-Kharā’ij, chap. 15, pp. 784-785.

I say: al-Azdī or al-Awdī is Aḥmad b. al-Ḥusayn (or al-Ḥasan) b. `Abd al-Malik al-Awdī or al-Azdī. He was a Kūfī, a reliable person (thiqa), and referred to [by the people for their needs/questions]. See Jāmi` al-ruwāt, etc.

12. The ritual circumambulation around Ka`ba-Ed.

13. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 470-473, no. 24, which has narrated “Abū l-Qāsim Ja`far b. Aḥmad al-`Alawī” instead of “Abū l-Qāsim Ja`far b. Muḥammad al-`Alawī”; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 259-263, no. 227, which has recorded it using two chains: “From Aḥmad b. `Alī al-Rāzī, from `Alī b. `Ā’idh al-Rāzī, from al-Ḥasan b. Wajnā al-Naṣībī, from Abū Nu`aim Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Anṣārī” and “A group informed us from Abū Muḥammad Hārūn b. Mūsā al-Talla’ukbarī, from Abū `Alī Muḥammad b. Hammām, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Mālik al-Kūfī, from Muḥammad b. Ja`far b. `Abd-Allah, from Abū Nu`aim Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Anṣārī.” He then mentions all the tradition; Dalā’il al-imāma, pp. 298-300, no. 3, which says: “Narrated to me Abū l-Ḥusayn Muḥammad b. Hārūn, from his father, from Abū `Alī Muḥammad b. Hammām, from Ja`far b. Muḥammad b. Mālik al-Fazārī al-Kūfī, from Muḥammad b. Ja`far b. `Abd-Allah, from Ibrāhīm b. Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-Anṣārī who said, ‘I was present at the Mustajār... (to the end of the tradition)’”; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 83, pp. 465-466; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 115-122, no. 50; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 6-9, no. 5, and vol. 61, chap. 35, pp. 187-190, no. 2, and vol. 62, p. 157, and vol. 83, pp. 27-28; Mustadrak al-wasā’il, vol. 5, pp. 70-72, no. 5382/3 and 5383/4; Falāḥ al-sā’il, pp. 179-182; Nuzhat al-nāẓir, chap. “A gleam from the words of al-Imam al-Ḥujjat ibn al-Ḥasan b. `Alī, peace be on him,” pp. 147-151

14. Special garments worn by those who are performing Hajj-Ed.

15. After the stay in `Arafāt, the pilgrim must stay at Muzdalifa. Muzdalifa is the name of a place which is about six kilometers from `Arafāt and fourteen kilometers from Mecca-Ed.

16. A place in modern-day Afghanistan-Ed.

17. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43: “Those who have seen the Qā’im, peace be on him,” pp. 475-476; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 50, chap. 5, pp. 322-333, no. 4, and vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 67-68, no. 53; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 127-130, no. 41; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 82, p. 461 (similar to it from Abū l-Adyān); Ḥilyat al-abrār, vol. 2, pp. 547-549; al-Thāqib fī l-manāqib, pp. 607-608, no. 554/2; al-Kharā’ij, chap. “al-`Alāmāt al-dālla `alā l-Ṣāḥib al-Zamān”

18. A guitar-like musical instrument-Ed.

19. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, p. 331, no. 8; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 268, no. 232, through his chain from Ibrāhīm b. Idrīs; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 14, no. 10; al-Irshād, chap. “Those who have seen the twelfth Imam, peace be on him,”; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 61 and 274, no. 18 and 107; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 450; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 82, p. 461, which says: “From the book al-Ghayba, from Ibrāhīm b. Idrīs who said, ‘I saw the Mahdī while he was an adolescent after Abū Muḥammad passed away. I kissed his hand and his holy head.’”

20. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 476-479, no. 26; al-Kharā’ij, vol. 3, p. 1104, no. 24, similar to it through his chain of narrators from al-Mauṣilī; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 130-136, no. 55; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 82, p. 462 (short version); Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 47-50, no. 34. A part of it has been narrated in vol. 73, chap. 108, pp. 63-64, no. 4; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 33, p. 301, no. 43; al-Kharā’ij, chap. “al-`Alāmāt al-dālla `alā Ṣāḥib al-Zamān”; al-Thāqib, pp. 608-611, no. 555/3.

21. Any kind of aromatic powder which is used to make a corpse fragrant-Ed.

22. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 248-250, no. 218, in the section concerning the birth of Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, peace be on him; al-Kharā’ij, vol. 1, chap. 13, p. 460, no. 5; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 81: “The extraordinary feats and miracles of the Mahdī which he will show to the people,” p.248; Faraj al-mahmūm, p. 248; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 56-58, no. 25; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 51-52, under footnote of no. 36; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3,

chap. 33, pp. 683-684, no. 92; Rashīq was the slave of al-Mu`taḍid (see al-Kāmil, vol. 7, p.365).

Amongst the made-up beliefs of some Sunnis and their baseless accusations, is attributing the belief to the Shias that the Qā’im disappeared in the cellar (sardāb) and he has remained there and not emerged from it until now; No one has seen him and he will reappear from it and the Shias are waiting for his reappearance from it. They have gone to the extent that ibn Ḥajar writes in al-Ṣawā`iq a couplet which says: How can a cellar give birth to a child and how can the Shias believe in such things.

I say: Allah, the Exalted, says, “Those who forge lies are those who do not believe in the signs of Allah and they are the liars” (Quran 16:105). O scholars! O reciters of the Quran! O people of justice! These are the books of the Shia scholars-since the period of occultation and even before it, until now. They are in front of you. Browse through them so that the intensity of prejudice and enmity dawns upon you. Go through them and realize that these are worthless lies. Read them thoroughly so that you see that there is no sign-absolutely whatsoever-of these accusations even in a single book written by the lowest statured Shia scholars, let alone the renowned and celebrated ones like al-Kulainī, al-Ṣadūq, al-Nu`mānī, al-Mufīd, al-Shaykh al-Ṭūsī, the two Sayyids-al-Murtaḍā and al-Raḍī-al-Ḥillī, and etc. Browse through these books so that you become aware of the only reason that this umma is divided and the single obstacle in their unity and oneness of their word. By Allah! Such accusations make one tremor and baffle the intellects. These are men who regard themselves as scholars, thinkers, researchers, and Muslims but forge such lies and accusations against a large group of the Muslims. A group amongst whom, in every era and generation, thousands of scholars, philosophers, litterateurs, poets, theologians, writers, compilers, and experts of different fields of sciences have lived who have written books read by the Muslims, the scientists, and the knowledgeable, generation after generation. Through these books they can understand the level of their knowledge and the extent of their efforts. We seek refuge in Allah from all those things that the pens and tongues say!

If we place the Shia books-old and new-in front of our eyes, we will definitely find them filled with traditions, narrations, and stories, all of which deny and falsify these baseless and unfounded accusations and fabrications. We have mentioned a large group of these traditions in the current book. The great traditionist, al-Nūrī, may Allah have mercy on him, writes in Kashf al-astār: “No matter how much we searched and investigated, we could not find the slightest trace of what they have mentioned. In fact, there is no mention of the cellar (sardāb) at all except in the incident of al-Mu`taḍid which has been narrated by Nūr al-Dīn `Abd al-Raḥmān al-Jāmī in Shawāhid al-nubuwwa, which has also been recorded in Sunni books and with their chains of narrators. Instead, they have narrated what Rashīq Ṣāḥib al-Mādrāy has mentioned (he then mentions what we mentioned here from Ghaybat al-Shaykh from Rashīq, then says,) And there is no mention of the cellar in it whatsoever, except that al-Quṭb al-Rāwandī has mentioned this narration in al-Kharā’ij and according to our companions, he has said in another place (although we could didn’t find such thing in the copy available with us) that ‘Then they sent a huge army. When they entered the house, they heard the recitation of Quran from the cellar. So, they gathered at its door and guarded it so that no one could come up or exit it. The chief was standing there until the entire army had come. He, peace be on him, emerged from the alley adjacent to the door of the cellar and passed through them. When he disappeared, the chief ordered, “Go down and get him.” They said, “Didn’t he just pass by you?” He replied, “I did not see him. Why did you let him go?” They said, “We thought you were watching him.”’ Apparently, this narration is the reason that some of the scholars have called the cellar as the Cellar of Occultation (Sardāb al-Ghayba). This can particularly be seen in the books of ziyāra.” What has been narrated from al-Kharā’ij (although I could not find it in the copy available with me), does in no way prove or indicate what the Shias have been accused of. Rather, it invalidates such unfounded allegations because it clearly mentions he came out of the cellar then disappeared.

Moreover, this incident occurred many years after the beginning of his occultation. His occultation, peace be on him, commenced in 260 AH while al-Mu`taḍid became the caliph in the month of Rajab, 279 AH. If you seek more details, refer to the book Kashf al-astār because he has indeed discussed it as it is worthy of being discussed. As for the Shia custom of visiting the cellar and reciting the ziyāra of our master, the Mahdī, peace be on

him, it is certainly not on account of the belief that he is hiding in the cellar and that he will reappear from it. Rather, it is because this place-which is known as the cellar (al-sardāb)-and the shrines of the tenth and the eleventh Imams, were the place of their residence and their blessed houses, which Allah has permitted to be Exalted and His Name be mentioned in. Moreover, it is the birthplace of the Qā’im and the place some of his miracles and extraordinary feats occurred. Besides the above, there is nothing special about it, but these are enough to attract his Shias and lovers there, to recite his ziyāra and the Quran and to pray to Allah for his relief and the hastening of his appearance and to send blessings upon him, his father, his grandfather, and his mother, peace be on them all. Besides the cellar, Shias recite his ziyāra in many other holy sites that have been proven to be a place that he, peace be on him, has visited.

23. Meaning I am not from the Abbasids.

24. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, chap. “Those who have seen him, peace be on him,” p. 331, no. 7; al-Irshād, chap. “Those who have seen the Imam, peace be on him,” p. 377; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 463; Tabṣirat al-walī, p. 61, no. 27, from Muḥammad b. Ya`qūb through his chain of narrators from Abū `Abd-Allah b. Ṣāliḥ; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 450.

25. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, chap. “Those who have seen him, peace be on him,” pp. 263-267, no. 228; Dalā’il al-imāma, chap. “Those amongst our companions who have seen Ṣāḥib al-Ẓamān, peace be on him, and recognized him during his occultation,” pp. 269 and 297; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 9-12, no. 6; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 143-147, no. 60, and pp. 156-161, no. 65.

26. A unit of distance-Ed.

27. Ahwāz is now part of Iran-Ed.

28. A tree that has long leaves and fragrant white blossoms-Ed.

29. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 445-452, no. 19; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 32-37, no. 28; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 80-90, no. 46; al-Kharā’ij, vol. 3, pp. 1099-1101.

I say: Apparently, what has been recorded in Yanābī` al-mawadda (chap. 83, p. 466) from the Book al-Ghayba, from Ibrāhīm b. Mahziyār, is a short version of this tradition.

30. This literally means that the child was born to parents who were legally married to each other-Ed.

31. Located in northeastern Palestine-Trans.

32. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 465-470, no. 23; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 42-46, no. 32; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 109-115, no. 49.

I say: It is very probable that the last three traditions and the narration we cited from Dalā’il al-imāma are all the same. The difference in their wordings, the difference in their contents, the existence of concepts in them that are not popular amongst the Shias, and the narrator being `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Mahziyār in traditions 835 and 837 but Ibrāhīm b. Mahziyār in tradition 836-which we narrated from Kamāl al-dīn from a correct chain of narrators-do not weaken the tradition and the meeting of Ibrāhīm b. Mahziyār or `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Mahziyār with the Mahdī, peace be on him, even though his name has not been recorded in the rijāl books. Such differences occur where the tradition has not been narrated word-for-word and errors have occurred in the names because of the existence of many similar names or other reasons. We have completely discussed this issue in a treatise which we have named al-Nuqūd al-latīfa, which will be mentioned in the third volume of this book, if Allah, the Exalted, wills.

Moreover, when a tradition is narrated through many different chains of which one or more of the chains are unreliable, the correctness of the contents of the tradition cannot be disputed, especially when scholars like al-Ṣadūq and al-Ṭūsī, may Allah be satisfied with them, have relied on them and have even used them as arguments.

33. A city located just south of present-day Tehran (Iran)-Ed.

34. Al-Marwazī means ‘the person from Marw’. Marw is a city located in northeastern Iran in the province of Khurāsān-Ed.

35. Najaf, Ḥīra, and Gharī are all places located near Kūfa-Ed.

36. Quran 10:24.

37. Quran 54:1.

38. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 257-258, no. 225; al-Kharā’ij, vol. 1, chap. 13, pp. 466-467, no. 13; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 5, no. 3; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 33, p. 684, no. 93; al-Thāqib, pp. 614-615, no. 562.

39. A seat or pavilion on the back of an elephant or camel (Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary)-Ed.

40. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 269-270, no. 224 ; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, p. 14, no. 12; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 161-162, no. 66; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 33, pp. 684-685, no. 94.

41. Al-Hidāya (Manuscript), chap. “The twelfth Imam, Allah’s blessings be on him and his forefathers”; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 68-70, no. 54, citing the writings of some of our companions from al-Ḥusayn b. Ḥamdān, from Abū Muḥammad `Īsā b. Mahdī al-Jauharī; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 195-198, no. 83.

42. A fort near Mecca.

43. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, chap. 135, p. 331, no. 6; I`lām al-warā, fourth rukn, part 2, chap. 1, sect. 3: Through his chain of narrators from the female-servant of Ibrāhīm b. `Abda-and she was a righteous person-who said, “I was standing with Ibrāhīm on [the mountain of] Ṣafā when the Master of the affair, peace be on him, came and stopped beside him... (to the end)”; al-Wāfī, vol. 1, chap. “The names of those who have seen him,” p. 172; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 13-14, no. 9; al-Irshād, chap. “Those who have seen the twelfth Imam, peace be on him,” p. 350; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, chap. “Those who have seen him,” p. 268, no. 231, which mentions “Ibrāhīm b. `Abda”; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 55-56, no. 24, and p. 274, no. 105; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 450.

I say: I did not find the biography of this female-servant in the rijāl books available to me, although her name has been mentioned in al-Kulainī’s chain of narrators. As for Ibrāhīm b. `Abda, al-Kashī has recorded in his Rijāl that signed letters (al-tauqī`āt) have been sent in his favor from Imam Mahdī, peace be on him. Tanqīḥ al-maqāl mentions that he was above justness and reliability (fauq martabat al-`idāla wa l-thiqa).

44. Muhaj al-da`awāt, pp. 278-279; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 15, pp. 307-308, no. 23, and vol. 92, chap. 107, pp. 266-279, no. 34; Tabṣirat al-walī, chap. 233, p. 210, no. 90-91.

I say: Similar to it has also been narrated in Muhaj al-da`awāt (p. 280) under the explanation of this supplication from Abū l-Ḥasan `Alī b. Ḥammād al-Miṣrī, from al-Ḥusayn b. Muḥammad al-`Alawī, from Muḥammad b. `Alī al-`Alawī al-Ḥusaynī al-Miṣrī... The supplication is quite long and whoever desires it, should refer to Muhaj al-da`awāt and other supplication compilations.

45. Kamāl al-dīn, vol. 2, chap. 43, pp. 442-443, no. 16; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 18, pp. 30-31, no. 26; Tabṣirat al-walī, pp. 74¬-76, no. 43, and pp. 269-271, no. 99.