Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

References

1. Al-Musnad (al-Maṭba`at al-Maymaniyya, 1313 AH), vol. 1, p. 99, and (Egypt: Dār al-Ma`ārif), vol. 2, pp. 117-118. Aḥmad Muḥammad Shākir says: “Both its chains are correct”; Sunan Abī Dāwūd (Egypt: Al-Maṭba`at al-Tāziyya), vol. 2, p. 207, in the Book of al-Mahdī: “Narrated to us `Uthmān b. Abī Shaiba, from al-Faḍl b. Dukain, from Fiṭr, from al-Qāsim b. Abī Bazza, from Abū l-Ṭufail, from `Alī, may Allah be satisfied with him,” with the difference that he said, “If there remains from time (al-dahr)” and “from my Ahl al-Bait.” Also, Dār al-Iḥyā’ al-Sunnat al-Nabawiyya edition, vol. 4, p. 107, no. 4283; Al-Muṣannaf, vol. 5, “Kitāb al-Fitan,” p. 198, no. 19494, similar to what has been narrated in Abū Dāwūd; Jāmi` al-uṣūl (1370 AH), vol. 11, book 9, chap. 1, sec.1, no. 7811; Maṭālib al-su’ūl (Maktabat Dār al-Kutub al-Tijāriyya) vol. 2, chap. 12; Tadhkirat al-khawāṣ (Najaf), p. 364; Mukhtaṣar sunan Abī Dāwūd (Dār al-Ma`rifa), vol. 6, p. 159, no. 4114; al-Nihāya or al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, (Egypt: 1388 AH), vol. 1, sect. “mentioning the Mahdī who will be in the end of times,” p. 25; al-`Arf al-wardī, vol. 2, p. 125; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa (Cairo: Dār al-Ṭabā`at al-Muḥammadiyya), p. 161; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 267, no. 38675; Mirqāt al-mafātīḥ, vol. 5, p. 179; al-Ishā’a, 1st ed., p. 113; al-Bayān (1399 AH), chap. 1, p. 93; `Iqd al-durar (1399 AH), vol. 1, p. 18; Nūr al-abṣār (al-Maṭba`at al-Maymaniyya), p. 154; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn (Damascus: 1347 AH). He writes: “The tradition of `Alī b. Abī Ṭālib has been narrated from him through various chains which exceed twenty. Aḥmad and Abū Dāwūd have recorded it from Fiṭr b. Khalīfa, from al-Qāsim b. Abī Bazza from Abū l-Ṭufail, from him [i.e. Alī b. Abī Ṭālib]. Abū Dāwūd has recorded it from Shu`ayb b. Abī Khālid, from Abū Isḥāq al-Sabī`ī, from him. Al-Ṭabarānī has mentioned it in al-Ausaṭ from `Abd-Allah b. Lahī`a from `Umar b. Jābir al-Ḥaḍramī, from `Umar, from his father. Al-Ḥākim has recorded it in al-Mustadrak from the narration of al-Ḥārith b. Yazīd, from `Abd-Allah b. Zarīr al-Ghāfiqī, from him. Again, al-Ḥākim has recorded it from `Ammār b. Mu’āwiya al-Duhnī, from Abū l-Ṭufail, from Muḥammad b. al-Ḥanafiyya, and has stopped at him. Nu`aim b. Ḥammād-one of al-Bukhārī’s teachers-has recorded it in Kitāb al-fitan. Similarly, ibn al-Munādī in al-Malāḥim, Abū Nu`aim in Akhbār al-Mahdī, Abū Ghanam al-Kūfī in Kitāb al-fitan, ibn Abī Shaiba, and many others from numerous chains and varying wordings, who have stopped at him [i.e. Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib]”; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, 1st ed., vol. 1, p. 37; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr (Egypt: 1373 AH), under the letter al-Lām, vol. 2, p. 131; al-`Umda, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī, `alayhi salām,” p. 225; Jawāhir al-`iqdain (manuscript), part 2, 8th discussion; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 432; al-Dur al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 58, under the exegesis of His saying, ‘Its conditions came’; `Alāmāt al-qiyāmat al-kubrā, p. 74; Sunan al-Dānī, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” no. 15; Bayna yaday al-sā’a, p. 111; `Aun al-ma`būd (The Commentary on Sunan Abī Dāwūd), vol. 11, p. 373. He says: “The chain of narrators of this tradition is good (ḥasan) and strong (qawī).” Thereafter, he refutes the view of those who regard Fiṭr b. Khalīfa as weak (ḍa`īf), saying: “Aḥmad and Yaḥyā have indeed regarded him as reliable.”

2. Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 4, chap. 52, no. 2230; al-Musnad, vol. 1, p. 376 and vol. 5 of Dār al-Ma`ārif edition, p. 99, no. 3572, with the difference that he, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: “The days will not finish and time will not perish until a person from my Ahl al-Bait, peace be on him, will rule the Arabs; his name will be my name.” Aḥmad Muḥammad Shākir says: “Its chain of narrators is correct (ṣaḥīḥ),” also, vol. 1, p. 377; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 2, p. 29; al-Sunan al-wārida fi l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” no. 22; Sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 4, p. 107, no. 4282, with the difference that he, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: “or it will not end”; al-Mu`jam al-kabīr (Maṭba`at al-Waṭan al-`Arabī), vol. 10, no. 10233/10218, which says: “the world will not come to an end”; Maṣābīḥ al-Sunna (Egypt: Muḥammad `Alī Ṣabīḥ), vol. 1, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a,” p. 193; Jāmi` al-uṣūl, 2nd Ed., chap. 1, vol. 11, p. 48, no. 7810; Farā’id al-simṭain, chap. 6, vol. 2, no. 577; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 2, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a,” sect. 2, no. 5452/16; al-Nihāya or al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, vol. 1, p. 26; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, sect. 12, p. 293, citing Musnad Abī Dāwūd; al-`Arf al-wardī, p. 125; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, p. 169; Mirqāt al-mafātīḥ, p. 179, no. 5; al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, chap. 17, p. 162, citing the chapters which he has recorded from Abū Yaḥyā Zakariyyā b. Yaḥyā’s Kitāb al-fitan; al-Qanā`a fī mā yuḥsin al-iḥāṭa bihī min ashrāṭ al-sā`a, p. 57; Ṣaḥīḥ al-jāmi`, no. 7152; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 1, p. 39; Bayna yaday al-sā`a, p. 111; Lawā’iḥ al-anwār al-bahiyya, vol. 2, under the explanation of this line of poetry:

From it is the last Imam, the eloquent

Muḥammad the Mahdī and the Christ

3. Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 4, Kitāb al-Fitan, chap. 52, no. 2231, p. 505; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 264, no. 38662; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 1, p. 39; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), p. 126; al-Idhā`a, p. 115; Jāmi` al-uṣūl, vol. 11, chap. 1, , p. 49, no. 7810; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl (printed within the margins of Musnad of Aḥmad), p. 3, vol. 6; Mahdī āl al-Rasūl, p. 19; Dhikru akhbār Iṣfahān, vol. 1, p. 329. He, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: “The affairs of this Umma-in the ends of its era-will be in the hands of a man from my Ahl al-Bait. His name will be my name”; Bayna yaday al-sā’a, p. 111.

4. Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 4, p. 505, Kitāb al-fitan, chap. 52, no. 2231; Tuḥfat al-aḥwadhī, vol. 5, p. 179; al-`Arf al-wardī, p. 126; al-Idhā’a, p. 115; Jāmi` al-uṣūl, chap. 1, vol. 11, p. 49, no. 7810; Iqd al-durar, pp. 2 & 28; Mahdī āl al-Rasūl, p. 19. Aḥmad b. Muḥammad al-Ṣiddīq says in his book Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn: “As for the tradition of Abū-Huraira, indeed it has been narrated from him through various chains... He mentions the names of those as follows: Aḥmad, ibn Abī Shaiba, ibn Māja, al-Ṭabarānī, al-Bazzār, Abū Ya`lā, al-Ḥākim, Abū-Nu`aim in al-Ḥilya, al-Dāraqutnī in al-Ifrād, al-Daylamī in Musnad al-firdaus, Abd al-Jabbār al-Khaulānī in Tārīkh dāriyā, ibn `Asākir in Tārīkh dimashq, al-Bayhaqī in Shu’ab al-īmān, al-Khaṭīb in al-Muttafiq wa l-muftariq, etc.; Bayna yaday al-Sā’a, p. 114.

I say: Apparently, this tradition has a second part, perhaps something like his saying: “A person from my Ahl al-Bait, his name will be my name,” or something similar. He has not mentioned it completely because he has mentioned the tradition after that of `Āṣim from Zirr from `Abd-Allah, and has thought both of them are the same tradition. Surely, his saying: “If there remains only one day from the world, Allah will prolong that day until...” was at the beginning of the first tradition or under it. Its contents are not unknown due to the repetition of these two traditions. The chain of one of them ends at ibn Mas`ūd and the other at Abū Huraira.

5. Al-Musnad, vol. 1, p. 376 and from the Dār al-Ma’ārif ed., vol. 5, pp. 196-197, no. 3571. Aḥmad Muḥammad Shākir says: “Its chains of narrators are correct (ṣaḥīḥ); `Iqd al-durar, chap. 2, p. 29.

6. Sunan al-Tirmidhī, vol. 4, p. 506, Kitāb al-fitan, chap. 53, p. 34, no. 2232; al-Tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl (Egypt: 1354 AH), vol. 5, p. 364; Musnad aḥmad, vol. 3, pp. 21-22, through his chains of narrators from Abū Sa`īd with minor variations. He has narrated, “So we asked the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who replied, ‘The Mahdī will rise in my Umma for five or seven or nine (the doubt is from Zaid).” I asked, ‘What are these?’ He said, ‘Years.’ Then he said, ‘The sky will pour rain on them [by Gods order]. The earth will not conceal anything from its vegetation and wealth will be amassed. A person will come to him and say, “O Mahdī! Give me, give me.” Then, as much as he can carry will be put in his cloth’”; Al-Tadhkira, p. 616; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 3, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a,” sec. 2, p. 19, no. 5454; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 126; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, p. 163; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 273, no. 38701; Mirqāt al-mafātīḥ, vol. 5, p. 118; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 1, p. 43; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 11, p. 237.

7. In the tenth chapter, we have brought a section about the length of his rule and the stability of the affairs at his hands. For more on this, refer to volume 3.

8. Sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 4, Kitāb al-Mahdī, no. 4284, p. 107; Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, p. 34, Kitāb al-Fitan, no. 4086; Ma`ālim al-sunan, p. 344; Maṣābīḥ al-sunna, vol. 1, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā’a,” p. 193; Jami` al-uṣūl, vol. 11, p. 49, no. 7812; Maṭālib al-su’ūl, vol. 2, chap. 12, p. 127; Mukhtaṣar sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 6, p. 149, no. 4115; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 3, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a,” sec. 2, no. 5453/17; al-Munār al-munīf, p. 146, sec. 50, no. 334; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” no. 29, 34, and 19, with the difference: “Mahdī is from the children of Fāṭima”; al-‘Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 124; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, p. 161. He says: “Similar to this is what has been recorded by Muslim, Abū Dāwūd, al-Nisā’ī, ibn Māja, al-Bayhaqī, and others: “Mahdī is from my progeny from the children of Fāṭima”; Firdaus al-akhbār, vol. 4, no. 4943, with the wordings: “Mahdī is from the children of Fāṭima.” The researcher of Firdaus al-akhbār writes: “The scholars have declared the traditions about al-Mahdī as correct (ṣaḥīḥ) and

have compiled exclusive books about it. Most of the scholars have put these traditions under the category of conceptual tawātur (al-mutawātir al-ma`nawī).” Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 264, no. 38662; Mirqāt al-mafātīḥ, vol. 5, pp. 179-180; Is`āf al-rāghibīn with the marginal notes of Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 145; Nūr al-abṣār, p. 186; al-’Idhā’a, p. 117; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 1, p. 40; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, vol. 2, p. 187, no. 9241; Kunūz al-ḥaqā’iq, vol. 2, p. 128; Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ, vol. 2, pp. 463-464; al-Tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl, vol. 5, p. 364 and vol. 2, p. 187; Yanābī’ al-mawadda, pp. 430 & 432; al-Bayān (Mu’assisat al-Hādī), chap. 2, p. 89; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 30; al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, p. 89, no. 2; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, p. 15, which says: “Abū Dāwūd, al-Nisā’ī, al-Bayhaqī, Abū `Amr al-Dānī, ibn Māja, and Abū Amr al-Muqrī have recorded it in their Sunan and ibn al-Munādī in Kitāb al-malāḥim; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 114, through two chains of narrators from Ummi Salma; Majma` al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 67, under the interpretation of the verse: “And indeed We have written in the Psalms...” (Quran 21:105), from Abū l-Ḥasan `Ubaid-Allah b. Muḥammad b. Aḥmad, from Abū Bakr Aḥmad al-Bayhaqī, from Abū `Alī al-Rūdbārī, from Abū Bakr b. Dāssa, from Abū Dāwūd, through his chains of narrators from Sa`īd, from Ummi Salma; Mahdī āl al-Rasūl, p. 4; Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ, 8th ed., vol. 2, p. 464; the author of Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn writes: “The tradition from Ummi Salma has been recorded by Abū Dāwūd from the tradition of Abū l-Khalīl...”; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, sec. 12, p. 294; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 438.

9. Sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 4, p. 101, Kitāb al-Mahdī, no. 4285; al-Mustadrak (India: Haydarābād, 1334 AH), vol. 4, p. 557; al-Tāj, vol. 5, p. 364, from Abū Dāwūd and al-Tirmidhī; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 154, from al-Tirmidhī, until his saying: “and oppression.” He says: “Tirmidhī states that this tradition is established (thābit) and correct (ṣaḥīḥ)”; Jāmi` al-uṣūl, vol. 11, chap. 1, p. 49, no. 7813; Mukhtaṣar sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 6, p. 160, no. 4116; Mukhtaṣar tadhkirat al-Qurtubī, p. 615; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 3, chap. 2, sec. 2, no. 5454. Al-Albānī-the researcher of this book-says: “Its chain of narrators is good (ḥasan)”; al-Munār al-munīf, sec. 50, p. 144, no. 330. He writes: “Abū Dāwūd has narrated it with really good (jayyid) chains of narrators.’; al-Nihāya or al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, vol. 1, pp. 298-299; Sharḥ al-maqāṣid, p. 307; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, sec. 12, p. 293; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 264, no. 38665; Mirqāt al-mafātīḥ, vol. 5, p. 180. Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 30; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, p. 33, no.1; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 437; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, no. 9244; al-Ṭarā’if `ani l-jam` bayn al-ṣiḥāḥ al-sitta, p. 177, no. 278; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, p. 39; Lawā’iḥ al-anwār al-ilāhiyya, vol. 2, under “His appearance and character”; Maṭālib al-su’ūl, vol. 2, chap. 12, p. 127; al-Idhā`a, p. 120; `Awn al-ma`būd, no. 4265; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 506; al-Bayān, chap. 8, p. 117, no. 1; `Alāmāt al-qiyāmat al-kubrā, p. 74; Bayna yaday al-sā`a, pp. 111-112; Ashrāṭ al-sā`a, p. 254, Mahdī āl al-Rasūl, p. 9; al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 57.

10. Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, vol. 2, Kitāb bad’ al-khalq, chap. “Nuzūl `Īsā b. Maryam”; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 1, chap. “Nuzūl `Īsā”; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 6, chap. “Mā jā’a fī nuzūl īsā,” no. 2; Firdaus al-akhbār, vol. 3, no. 4916; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 154; al-Bayān (Syria: Manshūrāt Mu’assisat al-Hādī), chap. 7, p. 112, through his chain of narrators from Nāfi` and he said: “This tradition is correct (ṣaḥīḥ) with a consensus on its correctness from the tradition of Muḥammad b. Shihāb al-Zuhrī; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 432; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 438; Maṭālib al-su’ūl, vol. 2, chap. 12, citing al-Baghawī’s Sharḥ al-sunna; Sharḥ al-maqāṣid, vol. 1, p. 308; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, sec. 12, p. 294; al-Burhān, chap. 9, p. 158, no. 4; al-`Umda, sect. on “What has been narrated about the Mahdī from the texts of the Ṣiḥāḥ al-sitta, citing al-Jam` bayn al-Ṣaḥīḥain and al-Jam` bayn al-ṣiḥāḥ al-sitta; Jāmi` al-uṣūl, vol. 11, chap. 1, no. 7808.

I say: There is no doubt that the Imam mentioned in this tradition is the Mahdī-the caliph of Allah. Therefore, it has been mentioned in Jāmi` al-uṣūl in the chapter of “al-Masīḥ wa l-Mahdī,” in Ibn Ṭalḥa al-Shāfi`ī’s Maṭālib al-Su’ūl, ibn Ṣabbāgh al-Mālikī’s al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma under “The Traditions About the Mahdī,” al-Muttaqī al-Hindī’s al-Burhān in the ninth chapter about “The gathering of the Mahdī With Jesus,” and al-Muqaddisī al-Shāfi`ī’s `Iqd al-durar in the tenth chapter. It has been written in Ghāyat al-ma’mūl sharḥ al-tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl: “It has already been mentioned that the Caliph in whose era Jesus, peace be on him, will descend, is the Mahdī, may Allah be satisfied with him.”

Some traditions explain others, therefore, no attention must be paid to the opinion of those who follow their internal desires and view themselves knowledgeable and civilized by rejecting the traditions about the Mahdī, al-Dajjāl, the life of Jesus and his descent in the end of times, and also by refuting the miracles mentioned in the Holy Quran with the help of absurd and false justifications. They say: “The traditions about the Mahdī, peace be on him, have not been recorded in the two Ṣaḥīḥs (of Bukhārī and Muslim).” As a result, those who have no experience and knowledge about traditions, think that the traditions that have reached us which are about the Mahdī, peace be on him-the person who will rise in the end of times and will rule the earth, and whom Jesus, peace be on him, will pray behind him, etc.-are merely speaking of a title (that can be given to anybody). Thus, they think that the belief of Mahdawiyya-on which the umma has consensus-revolves only around granting a name or bestowing a title on this promised person as the Mahdī. Hence, they say that: “this subject has not been mentioned in the Ṣaḥīḥain.” They did not understand that the belief about this promised person, who will rise in the end of times to give life to religion, destroy falsehood, establish justice, and eradicate oppression, is a belief based on a consensus (amongst the Muslims).

As for his titles, attributes, reformatory actions, etc., although there is no source for these except narrations, there is no need for each narration to comprise of all of these. Such is the case in everything explained by the sharia, whether it be the principles of religion or the divine laws. The belief that whatever is not recorded in the Ṣaḥīḥain should not be relied upon is another act of defiance that has been unanimously rejected by the scholars of ḥadīth (muḥaddithīn). The doors of legal interpretation (al-ijtihād) are still vast open. No verse in the Holy Quran and no tradition states that what has not been recorded in the Ṣaḥīḥain is incorrect, just as no verse in the Holy Quran or tradition exists that testifies that whatever has been recorded in them is absolutely correct and reliable.

We will soon reject such beliefs by quoting what the author of Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn has said under the tradition: “In the end of times there will be a caliph who will distribute wealth without counting it.” Refer to tradition no. 383.

11. Musnad aḥmad (Egypt: Dār al-Ma`ārif), vol. 2, p. 58, no. 645 Its chains of narrators are correct (ṣaḥīḥ) as has been testified by Aḥmad Muḥammad Shākir in Sharḥ al-musnad, vol. 3, p. 58, no. 654; Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, chap. 34, p. 23, no. 4085; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” no. 32; Firdaus al-akhbār, vol. 4, no. 6942; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 264, no. 38664; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 124; al-Maqāṣid, p. 435; ibn Kathīr, al-Nihāya, vol. 1, p. 52; Faiḍ al-qadīr, vol. 5, p. 278; al-Taysīr, vol. 2, p. 258; Jam’ al-fawā’id, vol. 2, p. 734; al-Fatḥ al-rabbānī, 24/51, No. 146; ibn Kathīr, al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, vol. 1, p. 25, section “dhikr al-Mahdī”; al-’Idhā’a, p. 117; Muntakhab kanz al-ummāl in the marginal notes of al-Musnad, vol. 6, p. 30, also in Kanz al-`ummāl; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, vol. 2, p. 187, no. 9243; Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 432 & 488; al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa under the 12th verse, p. 163; al-Bayān, chap. 2, p. 100. He says: “Abū-Nu`aim has recorded it in Manāqib al-Mahdī and al-Ṭabarānī in al-Mu`jam al-kabīr.” The latter says: “These narrations are certainly true because (a) the chain of narrators of some of these complement the others and (b) the great memorizers of traditions have mentioned them in their books.”; al-Burhān, chap. 2, p. 89, no. 1, from Aḥmad, ibn Abī Shaiba, ibn Māja, and Nu`aim b. Ḥammād in al-Fitan; al-Tadhkira, p. 240. He says: “In a tradition narrated by Ḥāfiẓ Abū l-Qāsim, the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: ‘The Mahdī is from us Ahl al-Bait. Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, will straighten out his [affairs] in one night’ or he, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said, ‘in two days.’”; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 6, p. 135 and chap. 7, p. 158, with the difference that he, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, said: “in a single night.” He (author of `Iqd al-durar) says: “A group of narrators have recorded it in their books.” He goes on to mention them as Aḥmad, ibn Māja, al-Bayhaqī, al-Dānī, Nu’aim b. Ḥammād, Abū-Nu`aim al-Aṣbahānī, and al-Ṭabarānī; Dhikru akhbāri Iṣbahān, vol. 1, p. 170; al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 58; Tahdhīb al-tahdhīb, vol. 11, pp. 172-173; al-Fitan, vol. 5, chap. 11, p. 201, through his chain of narrators from `Alī, peace be on him, with the addition of: “Al-Mahdī is from us Ahl al-Bait.”

I say: From what can be judged from other traditions, perhaps his saying: “Allah will straighten out his [affairs] in one night,” points to the unknown time of his reappearance.

Thus, Allah will prepare the grounds of his government and rule in only one night after which he will reappear.

12. Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, p. 24; al-Fitan, chap. 34: “Khurūj al-Mahdī,” no. 4087; Dhakhā’ir al-`uqbā, p. 15, with the difference that he said: “the sons’ of Abd l-Muṭṭalib” and “Ja`far b. Abī Ṭālib.” He mentions that “ibn al-Sarī has recorded it”; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, sec. 12, p. 294; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), p. 124, with the difference that he said: “We seven from...” He cites al-Ḥākim, ibn Māja, and Abū-Nu`aim; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, p. 144, with the difference that he said: “We seven children of `Abd al-Muṭṭalib are the masters (sādāt) of the dwellers of Paradise: I, my brother `Alī, my uncle Ḥamza, Ja`far, al-Ḥasan, al-Ḥusayn, and al-Mahdī.” He says: “A group from the leaders of narrators have recorded it in their books”; Al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa, p. 158, under the 10th verse citing al-Daylamī and others. It is the same as `Iqd al-durar with the difference that he said: “I, Ḥamza, `Alī...”; Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 309 and 435; al-Bayān, chap. 3, p. 101; Maqtal al-Ḥusayn, vol. 1, sec. 6, p. 108; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 113; al-`Umda, vol. 1, sec. 9, through his chain of narrators from al-Tha’labī. It can also be found in its second volume; Hāmish al-jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, vol. 2, p. 129, no. 5; Tahdhīb al-tahdhīb, vol. 7, p. 321, no. 543; Lisān al-mīzān, vol. 3, p. 271; Dhikru akhbāri Iṣbahān, vol. 2, p. 130, the same as what has been mentioned in `Iqd al-durar; Tārīkh baghdād, vol. 9, pp. 434 & 550; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 438 and vol. 1, p. 52, he says: “I saw in another tradition: ‘We sons of `Abd al-Muṭṭalib are the masters (sādāt) of the people.’”

13. Al-Mu’jam al-kabīr, vol. 18, p. 51, no. 91; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 11, pp. 183-184, no. 31144; Majma` al-zawā’id, vol. 7, pp. 323-324; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 5, p. 404; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), which starts from his saying: “a fitna will occur...” pp. 137-138.

14. The words in the square brackets are mentioned in Majma` al-zawā’id and Kanz al-`ummāl.

15. Fitna usually refers to social unrest or rebellion, especially against a ruler-Ed.

16. Al-Musnad, vol. 3, p. 328; al-Mustadrak, vol. 4, p. 558; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, p. 16, which mentions: “Then a person from my progeny will emerge. He will fill the earth with fairness and justice. He will rule for seven or nine years.” (The author of `Iqd al-durar) says: “Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū-Nu`aim has recorded it like this in Ṣifāt al-Mahdī. Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Bakr al-Bayhaqī has also recorded it but with a little difference: “A person from my progeny will rule for nine or seven years, then, he will fill it with fairness and justice.”

17. The words sab` (seven) and tis` (nine) in the ancient Arabic Kūfī handwriting were displayed using the same word. When the scribes copied these narrations and wrote them down in Arabic, they used both words ‘nine’ and ‘seven’ because they didn’t know to what number the original word referred to. The uncertainty in the numbers originated from the scribes’ stringent attitude in correctly transmitting the narrations from one book to another-Ed.

18. Dhikr akhbāri Iṣbahān, vol. 1, p. 84; Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, p. 324, no. 574.

19. Al-Mustadrak, vol. 4, p. 465; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, sect. 1, p. 43 and chap. 7, p. 141; Al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa, p. 161, under the twelfth verse; Is’āf al-rāghibīn, p. 134; al-Bayān, chap. 6, p. 108; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 341.

20. Al-Musnad, vol. 3, p. 37 and similar to it in p. 52; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, pp. 261 and 262, no. 38653. It starts like this: “I give you glad tidings about the Mahdī; a man from the Quraish from my progeny”; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl in the marginal notes of al-Musnad, vol. 6, p. 29, citing Aḥmad and al-Bārūdī; Is`āf al-rāghibīn, chap. 2, p. 137; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 155; Al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa, p. 164; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 469; al-I`lām bi ḥukmi `Īsā `alayhi al-salām, p. 162 (8); `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, 7, 8 and 11, pp. 62, 156, 164, 166 and 237; al-Burhān, pp. 79-80, chap. 1, no. 21; al-Dur al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 57; Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, chap. 61, p. 310, no. 561; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 124; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 562, no. 31; Kashf al-ghumma fī ma`rifat al-A’imma, vol. 2, p. 471.

21. Firdaus al-akhbār, vol. 4, no. 6941; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, p. 148, citing al-Daylamī; Kunūz al-ḥaqā’iq under the section of Alif and Lām; Dalā’il al-imāma, p. 258; Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 94, p. 488; Al-Bayān, in the chapter of Alif and Lām through his chain of narrators from ibn Abbās; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 154; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 481.

22. Al-Musnad, vol. 3, p. 17; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, p. 35. He says: “It has been recorded by al-Imam Aḥmad in his Musnad and by al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū `Abd-Allah Nu`aim b. Ḥammād in Kitāb al-fitan.

I say: I did not find it in al-Fitan, although, he has narrated it in a scattered form in the chapter of Sīrat al-Mahdī wa ṣifatih wa nasabih wa qadr mā yamlik; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 270, no. 38690, with the difference: “He will rule the earth” and “it will be filled with unfairness”; al-Dur al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 57

23. Al-Mustadrak, vol. 4, Kitāb al-fitan wa l-malāḥim, p. 557; al-Musnad, vol. 3, p. 36; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, pp. 36-37.

24. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 15, p. 372, no. 1241.

25. The statement between the square brackets belongs to the author of Sharḥ al-akhbār.

26. This paragraph probably belongs to the author of Sharḥ al-akhbār.

27. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, pp. 62-63; al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, chap. 2, p. 92, no. 12; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 74, under: “‘What has been narrated from the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, about the Qā’im, peace be on him,” no. 23; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 448, al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 133.

28. `Iqd al-durar, chap.1, p. 16. He says: “al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū-Nu`aim has recorded it in Awālī and in Ṣifat al-Mahdī.” Also chap. 3, p. 34 and chap. 8, p. 170; al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, chap. 19, p. 139, no. 1, with the difference: “he will fill the earth with fairness and justice.” He says: “al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū-Nu`aim has recorded it in al-`Awālī exclusively from Ṭālūt b. Abbād, who is famous with us for his narrations; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 423 from Jawāhir al-`iqdain; Is`āf al-rāghibīn, sect. 2, p. 135.

29. Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, book 36, chap. 34, p. 22, no. 4082; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fi l-Mahdī,” no. 1 & 2; al-Fitan, vol. 4, chap. 13, p. 166; al-Bayān, chap. 5, p. 106; al-Mustadrak, vol. 4, p. 464; Talkhīṣ al-mustadrak, vol. 4, p. 464; Al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa, p. 162. The twelfth verse is similar to this and he says at the end of it: “Then, he should go towards them even if he has to crawl on ice because in it is Allah’s Caliph, the Mahdī”; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 5, p. 124; al-Munār al-munīf, sect. 50, p. 149, no. 341; al-Nihāya or al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, vol. 1, p. 28; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 127.

30. Al-Fitan, vol. 5, p. 198; al-Bayān, sect. 11, p. 125 with the difference: “I asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah! Is the Mahdī from us-the progeny of Muḥammad-or from other than us?’ The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], replied, ‘No, he is from us. Through us Allah will end the religion just as He began it through us. Through us they will be freed from the fitnas.’” He also said, “Like He has united by us,” and “in their religion” has not been mentioned. He also said: “I say, ‘This is indeed a good (ḥasan) and great (`ālin) tradition which has been recorded by the narrators in their books. Al-Ṭabarānī has recorded it in al-Mu’jam al-ausaṭ, Abū Nu`aim has narrated it in Ḥilyat al-auliyā, and Abd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Ḥātim has mentioned it in `Awālī just as we too have recorded it.

Majma` al-zawā’id, vol. 7, p. 316; Al-Ṣawā’iq al-muḥriqa, p. 161, under the twelfth verse. He says: “Mahdī is from us; through us Allah will seal the religion just as He has commenced it through us”; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, pp. 24 & 142; Al-Mu`jam al-ṣaghīr, vol.1 p. 137; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 129; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 598, no. 38682; `Abaqāt al-anwār, vol. 2, p. 68, no. 12, who cites Nu`aim in al-Fitan; al-Ṭabarānī in al-Mu`jam al-ausaṭ, Abū-Nu`aim in Kitāb al-Mahdī, and al-Khaṭīb in al-Talkhīṣ; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 491; Nūr al-abṣār, chap. 2, p. 155; al-Burhān, p. 91, no. 7.

31. Sunan ibn Māja, vol. 2, chap. 11, pp. 928-929, no. 2779; al-Bayān, chap. 1, p. 92 with the difference: “Allah will prolong that day until he rules...”; Lawāmi` al-`uqūl, vol. 4, p. 3, from Aḥmad; Sharḥ sunan al-Tirmidhī by ibn al-A`rābī, vol. 9, p. 74; al-Tadhkira, p. 619, and he says: “Its chains of narrators are authentic (ṣaḥīḥ )”; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 266, no. 3874; Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, p. 318, who has narrated it through his chain of narrators from Abū Huraira like this: “The Hour will not be established until a person from my house rules. He will conquer Constantinople (Istanbul) and the mountain of Daylam. If only one day remains, Allah will prolong that day until he conquers it”; al-Munār al-munīf, sect. 50, p. 147, no. 336, similar to Farā’id al-simṭain; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 474, no. 36, from al-Arba`īna ḥadīthā (Forty Traditions) by al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim.

32. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, p. 33; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 124; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 448; Farā’id al-simṭain (Beirut: Mu’assisat al-Maḥmūdī li l-Nashr), vol. 2, p. 330; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, pp. 469-470.

33. Musnad aḥmad, vol. 3, p. 49, and similar to it on p. 60; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 263, no. 38659; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 131.

34. Al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, chap. 10, p. 124; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, p. 62, and chap. 8, p.167, with a minor difference; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 133; al-Burhān, chap. 1, p. 84, no. 33, with a minor difference, and p. 83, no. 28.

35. Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 259 & 445, with the difference: “and when `Alī dies.”

36. Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 258 & 445.

37. Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 8, p. 185; Tārīkh ibn `Asākir, vol. 1, p. 186; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “What has been narrated about the Mahdī,” no. 23, through his chain of narrators which are connected until they reach Jābir and its wordings are: “In the last of my umma, there will be a caliph; he will give away wealth profusely and will not even count it”; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 264, no. 38660; Maṣābīḥ al-sunna, vol. 2, p. 192, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a”; al-Bayān, chap. 10, pp. 122-123, no. 3; Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 182 & 230, from Jābir; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 8, p. 161; Is`āf al-rāghibīn, chap. 2, p. 135; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 131; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 3, book 27, no. (5) 5441.

The author of Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn (pp. 513-514)-in reply to those who criticize this tradition on the bases that there is no mention of the Mahdī in it and there is no argument to show that it refers to him-writes: “The text of these traditions are ambiguous whilst the method for recognizing [the Mahdī] is obvious and established...”

I say: There is no doubt that some traditions explain other traditions. Also, there is no doubt that the person about whom glad-tidings have been given in the traditions, who will fill the earth with justice and fairness, will give away wealth profusely, and he who has signs, symbols, attributes and titles that are known in the traditions that have been narrated in numerous chapters, is only one person, not many. Hence, no one has thought it to be anyone other than the Mahdī or thought that Jesus, peace be on him, will perform prayers behind someone else. All these quotes point to his magnificent character.

38. Al-Fitan, vol. 5, chap. 8, p. 194; Ṣaḥiḥ Muslim, vol. 8, p. 158; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 134, with a slight difference; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 581, no. 98, the same as al-`Arf al-wardī.

39. al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 134; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 581, no. 99.

40. Musnad aḥmad, vol. 3, p. 96; `Iqd al-durar, chap 8, p. 168, citing Musnad aḥmad and Sunan al-dānī.

41. Musnad aḥmad, vol. 3, p. 98; al-Burhān, chap. 1, p. 81, no. 24; al-`Arf al-wardī, p. 128; al-Nihāya or al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, vol. 1, p. 31.

42. Musnad aḥmad, vol. 3, p. 317; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fi l-Mahdī,” no. 23; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol.2, p. 128. He has narrated a similar tradition from al-Bazzār, from Jābir; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 26, no. 38659; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 8, p. 185, with a slight difference; Maṣābīḥ al-sunna, vol. 2, chap. “Ashrāṭ al-sā`a,” p. 192; al-Tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl, vol. 5, p. 342; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 31; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 230; Mishkāt al-maṣābīḥ, vol. 3, book 27, no. 5441 (5).

43. Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, vol. 8, p. 185; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 266, no. 38672; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 8, p. 161; al-Tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl, vol. 5, p. 341 (The Seventh chapter about the caliph, al-Mahdī).

The author of Ghāyat al-ma’mūl (a commentary on al-Tāj al-jāmi`), says: “According to the traditions that will be mentioned, this is the Mahdī, may Allah be pleased with him. This act of his is because of the abundance of war booties and victories along with his generosity and his giving away goodness to all the people.”

44. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, p. 19, from Abū Nu`aim in Ṣifat al-Mahdī; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, under the letter Lām, vol. 2, p. 123; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 471, no. 22, citing al-Arba`īn by al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim, with a little difference; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 186.

45. Musnad Abī Ya`lā, vol. 2, p. 356-357, no. 131 (1105).

46. Tārīkh ibn `Asākir (1329 H.), vol. 2, p. 62; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 269, no. 38682, with a slight difference and p. 266, no. 38671; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, pp. 30-31; al-Sīrat al-Ḥalabiyya (Egypt: Maṭba`atu Muṣṭafā Muḥammad), vol. 1, p. 227; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 134; al-Taṣrīḥ bi mā tawātara fī nuzūl al-Masīḥ, p. 181, no. 27. He says: “Al-Nisā’ī has narrated it and so has Abū Nu`aim in Akhbār al-Mahdī. Al-Ḥākim and ibn `Asākir have narrated it in their Tārīkh with the following wordings: “How can a nation that I am at its beginning be destroyed...,” which is like [what has been narrated] in Kanz al-`ummāl. This is a good (ḥasan) tradition as has been stated in al-`Azīzī’s al-Sirāj al-munīr.

He writes under it: “‘middle’ means ‘before the last’ because Jesus will descend to kill the Dajjāl during the era of the Mahdī. Our master Jesus will pray behind him just as it has been mentioned in the traditions.”

Al-Taysīr bi sharḥ al-jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, vol. 2, p. 302; Faiḍ al-qadīr, vol. 5, p. 301; al-Sirāj al-munīr, vol. 3, p. 196; al-`Arāyis (Maṭba’atu `Āṭif Wa Wuldih), p. 227, through his chain of narrators from ibn `Abbās with the difference: “Al-Mahdī from my Ahl al-Bait is in the middle”; al-Jāmi` al-ṣaghīr, vol. 2, p. 128 (under the letter Lām); `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, p. 146. He says: “Imam Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal has also recorded it in his Musnad and Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim has narrated it in his `Awālī.

I say: I did not find it in the published edition of Musnad Aḥmad although it is apparent that the tradition was recorded in the copy he possessed. We can only rely on a copy in which the tradition has been recorded; Tafsīr Rūḥ al-jinān, vol. 3, p. 158. He has narrated it from al-Manṣūr, from his ancestors, from ibn Abbas, who said: “The Mahdī from my Ahl al-Bait is in its middle.” Abū l-Futūḥ-the author of Rūḥ al-jinān-has used this tradition to prove the existence of the Mahdī, peace be on him, because it will not be correct if it is said that “The Mahdī will exist in the end of times prior to the descent of Jesus. Such an interpretation would make it necessary for the Mahdī not to exist in the long period of time between the Messenger of Allah, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, and the descent of Jesus, whilst glad-tidings have been given that he will be in the middle of these two.

I say: Yes, the umma is unanimous that Jesus, peace be on him, will descend at the time of the reappearance of the Mahdī, peace be on him, and during his universal government. Jesus will pray behind him and assist him in achieving reformist goals, spreading justice, and destroying unfairness, which has been clearly elaborated in mutawātir traditions. Therefore, the belief that the Mahdī will be between them will not hold true for anyone except the one who has been mentioned in the Shia belief. Because the Mahdī was born in 255 AH and continues to live and is sustained by Allah until he reappears by the command of Allah, the Exalted, for the announcement of His Word.

The middle is understood by some commentators to show that the appearance of the Mahdī, peace be on him, will be before the descent of Jesus. This is definitely not the meaning of the tradition and here the middle and end have the same meaning.

Some sycophants-who were the servants and on the pay-roll of the arrogant and devilish rulers-thought that this tradition referred to the Mahdī who was one of the Abbasid caliphs. No explanation is needed to show the wrongness of this view. Such innovations are actually an insult to the lofty stature of the Seal of the Prophets, Muḥammad, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, and the great personality of the Prophet Jesus, and the divine successor-ship of Imam Mahdī, peace be on him. Moreover, the mutawātir traditions which describe the Mahdī, his attributes, and his signs, clearly reject such misguided interpretations.

There is no proof in the tradition that Jesus will live after the Mahdī, peace be on him, in addition to the fact that such an idea has also been contradicted by a number of traditions about the Mahdī and other traditions like those about security (al-amān), etc.

It is possible to interpret the tradition like this: His saying: “I am its first (awwaluhā)” means that he is its founder, chief, and source. Thus, this umma will not be destroyed, because its founder and the caller towards it is “a mercy for all the worlds” (raḥmatan lil-`ālamīn). A nation will not be destroyed if its founder possesses such traits and this was the purpose of his dispatching? How can a nation be destroyed that has the Mahdī in its middle? As long as he exists and is alive, this nation will not be destroyed. Amongst the greatest benefits of his existence-even though he is in occultation-is the survival of the nation because of his existence. And how can a nation be destroyed that has Jesus at its end,

who will descend in the end of times? This means that this religion will remain and last until the descent of Jesus from the sky. He will descend in the last nation and acknowledge this religion in this very world.

We can conclude that this narration serves to give glad-tidings about the lasting of this religion, the continuous survival of this nation because of the blessings of the Prophet of Islam, who is a mercy for the worlds, and the existence of the Mahdī, peace be on him. This nation will not be destroyed and will remain until the end of times because the descent of Jesus-which is one of the conditions of the Hour-will occur in the last nation. Hence, this nation will survive and remain, as long as humanity exists on the face of earth. Allah, His Messenger, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, and the possessors of knowledge-those from his Ahl al-Bait who are steadfast in it-have more knowledge about the meanings of the Book and the Sunna.

47. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, p. 148. He says: Imam Abū `Abd al-Raḥmān al-Nisā’ī has recorded it in his Sunan. I say: I could not locate it in al-Mujtabā min Sunan al-Nisā’ī but this does not mean it does not exist in his Sunan. In fact, there is no doubt about it being present there.

48. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, p. 146. He says: Imam Abū `Abd al-Raḥmān al-Nisā’ī has recorded it in his Sunan; Bahjat al-naẓar, sect. 6, has recorded it from Sunan al-Nisā’ī in the chapter: “What has been narrated about the Arabs and the non-Arabs” and this is its last chapter; al-Taṣrīḥ bi mā tawātara fī nuzūl al-Masīḥ, pp. 247-250, no. 66, with a slight difference in the wordings and that he said: “But between this will be a crooked group; they will not be from me nor will I be from them.” He says in his commentary: “The Holy Prophet has described them as a group, then distanced himself from them because of their deviation from the way and path that he had brought.”

I say: This tradition praises the beginning of the nation and its end. The latter, being the time when the universal government of the Mahdī appears, in which Jesus will descend, stay amongst them, and pray behind Imam Mahdī, peace be on him. Also, both versions condemn the majority of the nation between these two eras. This is because of the domination of the kings or those who call themselves the Caliphs. They will come to power and rule without the permission and satisfaction of Allah. Apart from this vast majority, there will be some who will wait for the reappearance of Allah’s command and the establishment of the rightful government of Allah’s Caliph, the Mahdī, peace be on him. They will not approve the atrocities committed by these tyrant kings upon the people, will not assist them in their tyrannies and sins, and will not gain closeness to them or try to satisfy them, because of Allah’s wrath towards them. These are none but the followers of the Imams from the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them. The same Imams that the tyrants tried to conceal their virtues and what Allah had specially given to them and to destroy their guidance and that of their followers. The crooked groups are the majority which have left the clear path of the Ahl al-Bait and have not held on to them. They have opposed the mutawātir traditions like ḥadīth thaqalain, ḥadīth safīna, ḥadīth amān, etc.

`Alī al-Qārī writes in al-Mirqāt, vol. 5, p. 658: “Traditions with chains of narrators like this are called golden chained (silsilat al-dhahab).”

Al-Mishkāt, vol. 3, p. 293; Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 489; al-`Umda, vol. 2, sect. “What has been narrated about the Mahdī in the texts of Ṣiḥāḥ al-Sitta from al-Jam’ bain al-ṣiḥāḥ al-sitta of Razīn al-`Abdarī,” p. 224.

49. ‘the most widest and deepest’ probably means they will have the biggest population and will live the longest on earth-Ed.

50. Yanābī` al-mawadda, p. 490.

51. Al-Istī`āb, vol. 1, p. 223; al-`Iṣāba, vol. 1, p. 216, no. 1037 (short version); Usd al-ghāba, vol. 1, p. 260: “After me, there will be caliphs, after the caliphs there will be rulers, after the rulers there will be oppressive kings; then, a person from my Ahl al-Bait will emerge who will fill the earth with justice just as it will be filled with injustice...”; `Iqd al-durar, sect. 1, p. 19, which is the same as Usd al-ghāba, with the difference: “Then, the Mahdī from my Ahl al-Bait will emerge” and “Then he will rule.” He says: “Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim has narrated it in al-Fawā’id and al-Ṭabarānī has recorded it in al-Mu`jam.

I say: The beginning of the tradition of Al-Istī`āb and Usd al-ghāba is strange. Closer to it in strangeness is the note beneath the tradition of Usd al-Ghāba. Thus they cannot be relied upon. One can only rely on his saying: “The Mahdī-who is from my Ahl al-Bait-will

emerge,” or, “a man from my Ahl al-Bait will emerge who will fill the earth with justice as it will be filled with injustice.” These can be found in many mutawātir narrations.

Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 265, no. 38667

52. Al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, sect. 13, p. 129. He writes: “This tradition is good (ḥasan). Praise be to Allah for bestowing this upon us. The meaning of his saying “his morals will be my morals,” is one of the best indications that the Mahdī, peace be on him, will take revenge on those who do not believe in the religion of Allah- just as the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, did. And indeed, Allah-the Exalted-has said to His Prophet: “And surely, you are on the greatest morals” (Quran 68:4).

Al-Irbilī writes in Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 486: “His comment, ‘is one of the best indications... (to the end)’ is truly amazing! How can he confine the moral attributes of the holy Prophet and only limit them to revenge?! While he possesses all the attributes of the Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, like his nobility, honor, knowledge, forbearance, bravery, and other morals that we have mentioned at the beginning of this book. Even more shocking, is the endorsement of his view by using the aforementioned verse!”

Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, pp. 325-326; `Iqd al-durar, sect. 2, pp. 31-32, from Abū l-Ḥasan al-Raba`ī al-Mālikī, with a little difference; al-Ghadīr, vol. 7, p. 126, citing Zakhāīr al-`uqbā, p. 126, with the following wording: “‘If there remains only one day from the world, Allah will prolong that day until He sends a person from my progeny; his name will be my name.’ Salmān asked, ‘From which of your sons, O Messenger of Allah?’ He replied, ‘From this son of mine,’ then patted (Imam) al-Ḥusayn’s back, peace be on him.”

53. Al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” no. 26; `Iqd al-durar, sect. 1, p. 18. He writes: “Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim has recorded it in Ṣifat al-Mahdī.” On p. 20, he writes: “Al-Imam Abū `Amr al-Muqri’ has recorded it in his Sunan”; Mawārid al-ẓam’ān, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” p. 463, no. 1876; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. vol. 14, p. 269, no. 38684, with a little difference; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 31; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 123. He has recorded it from al-Ḥasan b. Sufyān and Abū Nu`aim.

Al-Ḥasan b. Sufyān is al-Ḥasan b. Sufyān b. `Āmir al-Nasawī, the author of al-Musnad al-kabīr and al-`Arba`īn-who passed away in 303 AH-as has been mentioned in Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ. Or (he could be) al-Fasawī who also expired in 303 AH-as has been mentioned in al-Lisān. Apparently, it is al-Nasawī and al-Fasawī is an error made by the writer of the manuscript.

Al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, chap. 2, p. 92, no. 13, from al-Ḥasan b. Sufyān and Abū Nu`aim.

54. Kashf al-yaqīn, p. 117; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 1, p. 2, from Kitāb al-āl of ibn Khālawayh; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 7, chap. 32, sect. 2, p. 182, no. 7.

55. Al-Mu`jam al-kabīr, vol. 10, no. 10215 and 10219; al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” p. 96, no. 16; Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ, vol. 2, p. 487, with the difference: “The days and the nights will not pass until the Arabs are ruled by a person from my Ahl al-Bait; his name will be my name.”

56. Al-Mu`jam al-kabīr, vol. 10, no. 10216; Mawārid al-ẓam’ān ilā zawā’id ibn Ḥibbān, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” p. 464, no. 1877; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 125; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 269, no. 38683 with a minor difference.

57. Al-Mu`jam al-kabīr, vol. 10, no. 10227; Dhikr akhbār Iṣbahān, vol. 1, p. 329.

I say: al-Ṭabarānī has recorded numerous traditions through his chain of narrators from ibn Mas`ūd from the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him and his family. You can refer to these traditions which are numbered from 10213 to 10230.

58. Al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 132; Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, chap. 61, p. 317, with the difference: “Allah will send him in a clear manner and the nation will be blessed by him.”

59. ‘correctly’ probably means ‘justly’-ed.

60. Al-Fitan, pp. 192-193; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 153, from Nu`aim, with a little difference; al-Burhān, chap. 1, p. 78, no. 10, with a slight difference. He will fill the earth with justice just as it will be filled with injustice. This will continue until the people will no longer have their initial state; the sleeping one will not be awakened and no blood will be shed.”

61. Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 273, no. 38700.

62. Dhikr akhbār Iṣbahān, vol. 2, p. 165.

63. Al-Rauḍa min al-Kāfī, p. 396, no. 597; al-Wāfī, vol. 2, chap. 52, p. 459, no. 977-9.

64. Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 561.

65. Al-Fitan, vol. 4, chap. 13, p. 167.

I say: This flag which Allah will send is not from the Abbasid flags, as has been clearly explained by Nu`aim in the title of the chapter: “The Black Flags of Mahdī [That Will Come] After the Abbasid and Other Flags”

66. Al-Fitan, vol. 5, p. 195.

67. Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, pp. 592-595, no. 39679. Ibn al-Athīr writes in al-Nihāya: “In the tradition of `Alī: ‘Surely after you there is a fitna and calamity that is tedious and frowning’, frowning means people will frown from its intensity.” Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 34.

68. Al-Bayān wa l-tabyīn, vol. 2, p. 58; Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha, vol. 1, pp. 276 & 281, sermon 16; al-Mustarshid, p. 160.

69. Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 13, p. 130, no. 36413; `Abaqāt al-anwār, vol. 2, p. 68, no. 12. He writes: “Ḥāfiẓ `Abd al-Ghanī b. Sa`īd has recorded it in Īḍāḥ al-ishkāl.”

70. Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha, vol. 1, pp. 281-282; Yanābī` al-mawadda, pp. 497-498.

71. Al-Fitan by Nu`aim, vol. 5, chap. 11, pp. 198-199.

72. Al-Fitan by Nu`aim, vol. 5, chap. 11, pp. 199-200.

73. Al-Fitan by Nu`aim, vol. 5, chap. 11, p 201; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 155.

74. Al-Fitan by Nu`aim, vol. 5, chap. 11, p 201.

75. Al-I`lām bi ḥukm `Īsā `alayhi al-salām by al-Suyūṭī, published in the collection of books titled: al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī, vol. 2, p. 289.

He says in Ma`ālim al-sunan, vol. 4, p. 344: “Al-Shaykh says, al-jirān is the beginning of the neck (the front part of the camel’s back); it’s mainly referred to the camel when it stretches its neck on the earth. Hence, it is said: The camel has stretched its neck. It does so when it rests in a place for a long time.’ The stretching of the neck of the camel is used as an example for Islam to indicate its establishment and that there will neither be a fitna nor turmoil. Islamic laws will be implemented justly and steadfastly.”

76. Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 16, p. 196, under no. 44216.

77. Murūj al-dhahab, vol. 1, pp. 42-44; Also, refer to Tadhkirat al-khawāṣ, pp. 128-130, the 6th chapter about the selected sayings of Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him. He has recorded similar to this-with minor differences in wording and meaning-through his chain of narrators from Aḥmad b. `Abd-Allah al-Hāshimī, from Imam Ḥasan al-`Askarī, from Imam al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī, from his father Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, peace be on them.

78. Nahj al-balāgha, trans. Sayed Ali Reza (Iran: Sayed Mujtaba Musavi Lari Foundation), sermon 181; Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha by ibn Abī l-Ḥadīd, vol. 10, sermon 183, p. 96.

79. The sermon is a long one, the likes of which is not found except in his speech or the speech of his cousin, the Messenger of Allah, Allah's blessings be on him and his family. Al-Raḍī has mentioned it with all its length in Nahj al-balāgha.

80. Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 74, pp. 438-439.

81. Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 74, p. 438; Sharḥ al-dīwān, under the letter al-Bā’, p. 166

I say: al-Dīwān is a name given to a collection of poems attributed to Amīr al-Mu’minīn `Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him. It has been published several times and one of its commentaries is the commentary by al-Ḥusayn b. Mu`īn al-Dīn al-Maybudī al-Ḥakīm al-Ṣūfī (d. 870 AH) who was a Sunni. He writes in his commentary: “‘Our Qā’im’ means the one from us who will stand up for the affairs of religion and he is the promised Mahdī who was mentioned in the seventh preface.” He says in Persian what translates to: “The term ‘Master of Judgment Day’ (ṣāḥib al-qiyāma) has been used to refer to the Mahdī because Judgment Day (al-qiyāma) will be established after his rule comes to an end.” He then discusses a second reason for referring to him by this title by saying that in the time of his rising and reappearance, hidden things will become apparent and the realities will become

manifest; hence, it will be: “The day when the hidden things become manifest” (Quran 86:9).

I say: It is clear that qiyāma refers to the day of his rising because of the following reasons: domination of the word of Islam, manifestation of truth, and the filling of earth with justice and fairness.

82. Al-Dīwān under the letter al-Lām, p. 371.

83. Yanābī` al-mawadda, chap. 68, p. 406.

84. Al-Muṣannaf by ibn Abī Shaiba, vol. 15, p. 23, no. 19000; al-Fitan, vol. 5, p. 210, with some variations; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 557, no. 39591, with a little difference; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, pp. 19-20; refer to al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, chap. 37, sect. 3, p. 176 and chap. 181, sect. 1, p. 80; Nahj al-balāgha, sermon 258. Ibn Abī l-Ḥadīd writes in Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha: “This narration is from the narrations about bloody battles which he, peace be on him, has informed of and has mentioned the Mahdī.” Ibn al-Athīr says in al-Nihāya: “And from it is what `Alī, [peace be on him], said: ‘They will gather around him like the gathering of the scattered clouds of autumn.’ Here, autumn is specifically mentioned because it is the beginning of winter and the clouds are scattered in it, neither piled up nor in layers. After that, some of them integrate with others.”

85. This might refer to the testimony of ‘there is no God but Allah,’ as can be inferred from the previous footnote-Ed.

86. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 3, p. 38 and chap. 1, p. 23-24 (short version).

I say: In the published edition of `Iqd al-durar, p. 23, it is mentioned, “`Alī looked at al-Ḥasan.” The researcher of the book says: “In the original [narration] it was ‘al-Ḥasan’ and ‘al-Ḥusayn’ has been mentioned by mistake.” You should know that what the researcher has said is wrong and it is up to him to prove what has been mentioned in the original narration. The oldest manuscript that we have access to and have seen is present in al-Raḍawiyya Library (Kitābkhāniyi Āstān Quds, no. 1752), dated 942 AH, and it is not the manuscript that the researcher has relied on. The one used by the researcher is also available in al-Raḍawiyya Library with the Serial no. 1751, dated 953 AH. We saw that ‘al-Ḥusayn’ was mentioned in the tradition of Abū Wā’il and in the tradition of Abū Isḥāq which he has been mentioned on p. 39 after the current tradition. Anyhow, the oldest manuscripts of this book are two: The first is the manuscript that bears the year 910 AH and belongs to the Berlin Library, with serial no. 2723. This is the manuscript which the researcher has regarded as the original. Yet, he uses other manuscripts when this manuscript is not in conformity with his opinions. The second manuscript is the one in the al-Raḍawiyya Library with the serial no. 1752/185, which is probably older than the Berlin manuscript and al-Ḥusayn has been clearly mentioned in it. Moreover, it is apparent from the book al-Mahdī that in the manuscript which al-Ṣadr possessed, the term ‘al-Ḥusayn’ has been used.

The correctness of the view about al-Ḥusayn is further endorsed by the many mutawātir traditions recorded by us in this book and other books-some of which we have narrated from Sunni sources. For example, in the narration which speaks about al-Ḥasanī handing the affairs over to the Mahdī, peace be on him, he says: “O paternal cousin (yabn al-`am)! This belongs to you.” It is also mentioned in this tradition that “he is from the descendants of Fāṭima and the progeny of al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them. Beware! Whoever accepts other than him as his master, will be cursed by Allah.” Refer to `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, sect. 2, pp. 90, 99, 137, and 138; and al-Burhān, chap. 1, pp. 76,77, no. 15

87. Al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, chap. 17, pp. 116-117. He has recorded it from the book Uyūn akhbār Banī-Hāshim, by Muḥammad b. Jarīr al-Ṭabarī, the famous historian.

88. Quran 4:54.

89. Quran 64:7.

90. Al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, sect. 2, pp. 117-118.

91. Al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī’,” no. 4.

92. Al-Iḥtijāj, “The Arguments of the Prophet on the Day of Ghadīr,” pp. 66-84.

93. Al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, chap. 6, p. 144, no.8, from the published version that was copied from the manuscript of Ḥaram al-Makkī that was finished by its writer Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan al-Rashīdī in 1272 AH and from the hand-written manuscript that was copied by al-Sharīf al-Sayyid Muḥammad Bāqir al-Sabziwārī from the hand-written script preserved in the Library of the Holy Shrine of the Messenger of Allah,

Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, in Medina and the third manuscript is in the al-Jāmi` Library (A`ẓam Mosque) that was established and built by our master Ayatullah al-Burūjirdī, may Allah reward him with the best of rewards on behalf of Islam and the Muslims.

It has been recorded in Kashf al-astār, sect. 2, p. 164, with the difference: “When a person says ‘Allah,’ he will be killed. Then, Allah will gather for him like the gathering of clouds in autumn; Allah will unite their hearts. They will neither submit to anybody nor will they be recognized by anybody. They will be equal to the number of the soldiers of [the battle of] Badr.” He says: “Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū `Abd-Allah al-Ḥākim has recorded it in al-Mustadrak and has said: “This tradition is correct (ṣaḥīḥ) based on the criteria set by of al-Bukhārī and Muslim, but they have not recorded it [in their Ṣaḥīḥs].”

The author of Kashf al-astār continues: “It is worth mentioning that his saying, ‘He will emerge in the end of times (ākhir al-zamān),’ then counted with his hand to nine, shows the nine names from the progeny of al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him. When he reached Ḥujjat b. al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, he said, ‘He will emerge in the end of times,’ and this is a clear comment from him that the Mahdī is the ninth descendant from the progeny of Imam al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him. Thus, they should be aware.”

I say: This is an acceptable interpretation and there is no harm in it. In the published copy of al-Mustadrak and its summary (vol. 4, p. 554) and similarly in `Iqd al-durar (chap. 4, sect. 1 p. 59, and chap. 5, p. 131) it has been written ‘seven’ instead of ‘nine’ and you will not find a proper interpretation for this. Hence, it is better to leave the interpretation to those who have knowledge about it. In these manuscripts, it is difficult to understand the meaning of the tradition unless we assume that ‘seven’ refers to the years of his kingdom and rule. Of course it is more probable that the three available handwritten manuscripts of al-Burhān and the handwritten manuscript of al-Mustadrak, from which the author of Kashf al-astār has recorded the tradition, are correct. Allah knows the best.

This idea is supported by what some Sunni scholars have mentioned. Muḥammad b. Pāyandi al-Sāwī, in his treatise-which is a manuscript, dated 979 AH, and is an appendix to the book al-Burhān-writes: “I have seen in history books that one day Muḥammad b. Ḥanafiyya came to `Alī, peace be on him, and asked, ‘When will the Mahdī appear?’ He replied, ‘It is far!’, then he counted nine with his hand and said, ‘In the end of times.’”

94. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, p. 26.

95. Musnad Abī Ya`lā, vol. 12, p. 19, no. 825 (6665); Majma` al-zawā’id, vol. 7, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” p. 315; al-Maṭālib al-`āliya, vol. 4, p. 343, no. 4554; Ibn Khaldūn’s al-Muqaddama, p. 379; Ibrāz al-wahm al-maknūn, p. 577; al-`Arf al-wardī, (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 131, to his saying: “five and two”.

I say: Apparently, his saying “And what is five and two?” is the question of the narrator from Abū Huraira or other than him from one of the other narrators. It is not unlikely that his saying “to the truth,” marks the end of the narration and the two questions were in fact from the narrators who were asking each other. Allah knows the best.

96. Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 572, no. 39635.

97. Musnad Abī Ya`lā, vol. 2, pp. 356-357, no. 131 (1105); Similar to it can be found in Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, no. 38703, from Abī Ya`lā and ibn `Asākir.

98. Al-Fitan, vol. 1, pp. 19-20; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 138, He says: “Nu`aim b. Ḥammād has recorded it in his book al-Fitan through a reliable chain of narrators in accordance with the criteria set by Muslim.

99. Al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Mā jā’a fī l-Mahdī,” p. 99, no. 3; Al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 138, from ibn Sa`īd and ibn Abī Shaiba.

100. Al-Sunan al-wārida fī l-fitan, vol. 6, chap. “Mā jā’a fī nuzūl `Īsā,” p. 142, no. 5; Al-`Arf al-Wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 162; al-Taṣrīḥ bi mā tawātara fī nuzūl al-Masīḥ, p. 274, no. 5. Tradition no. 4 and 6 which have been narrated from Jābir are similar to it.

101. Al-Fitan, vol. 4, p. 167, which we mentioned it under no. 409.

102. Al-Fitan, vol. 4, p. 168.

103. Al-Fitan, vol. 5, p. 172, and similar to it p. 168, no. 1.

104. Al-Fitan, vol. 4, p. 168; al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, chap. 102, p. 55.

105. Nahj al-balāgha, sermon 100, ibn Abū al-Ḥadīd writes while explaining this sermon (vol. 7, p. 93): “Know that Amīr al-Mu’minīn, peace be on him, delivered this

sermon on the third Friday after he became the caliph.” While explaining his saying, “Until Allah brings out for you one who will gather you together and unite you after your separation,” he writes, “that person [who will unite them] is from the Ahl al-Bait, and refers to the Mahdī who will emerge in the end of times” (vol. 7, p. 94). Under his saying: “Allah has completed his obligations upon you... ,” he writes: “He then informs them about the closeness of relief (faraj) and says, ‘Allah perfects his obligations upon you and what you hope for is near-as if it has already occurred.’ This is like the divine promise about the establishment of the Hour. All the Holy Books have explicitly declared that it is nearn even though it is far from us and in Allah’s knowledge, all far things are near. He, Glory be to Him, declares, ‘Surely, they deem it to be far while We consider it to be near’ (Quran 70:6-7).”

106. Sharḥ nahj al-balāgha by ibn Maitham, vol. 3, p. 9. He has mentioned this tradition while explaining his saying: “Allah has completed his obligations upon you,” and says: “What he has said is an indication of Allah’s bestowal upon them by the appearance of the Awaited Imam and the reformation of their condition by his presence.” He then writes, “I have seen in the course of some of his sermons a section in which he foretells the events that will occur after him-in addition to explaining this promise. This is what he said, ‘O people! Be aware... ,’” which is what we mentioned in the text.

107. Al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 4, p. 215; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, pp. 141-142; al-`Umda, pp. 223-224; al-Burhān, chap. 1, p. 87, no. 44; al-Ṭarā’if, p. 84; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 105, no. 40 and vol. 39, chap. 17, p. 150, no. 14.

108. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 4, sect. 3, pp. 110-111; Al-Irshād, p. 385, through his chain of narrators from Saif b. `Umaira; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 265-266; Rauḍat al-Kāfī, p. 178, no. 255, from Saif.

109. Al-Ṣadūq, al-Amālī, session 63, p. 328, no. 2.

110. Al-Ṣadūq, al-Amālī, session 92, p. 504, no. 4; Al-Faiḍ, al-Nawādir, the book of al-Nubuwwa wa l-imāma, chap. 41, p. 70; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, pp. 65-66, no. 3.

111. Al-Ṭūsī, al-Amālī, vol. 2, p. 126; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 68, no. 9; al-Nawādir, chap. 46, with some differences.

112. In the narration, the term ‘pieces of liver’ has been used instead of ‘treasures.’ Treasures have been likened to ‘pieces of the liver’ and this is indeed an amazing metaphor. For, the liver is one of the most vital organs of the body and so are the treasures of the earth. This is what Sayyid al-Raḍī has mentioned in his book Majāzāt al-āthār al-nabawiyya, no. 231.

113. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 178, no. 135; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, pp. 72 and 74, no. 22; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 502, no. 291.

114. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 179, no. 137; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 74, no. 24; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 502, no. 293.

115. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 180, no. 138; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 74, no. 25; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 502, no. 294.

116. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 182, no. 141; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 75, no. 28; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 503, no. 297.

117. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 185, no. 144; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 75, no. 29; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 503, no. 300.

118. Al-Ṣadūq, al-Amālī, session 74, p. 396; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 6, p. 143, no. 3; al-Ṭūsī, Al-Amālī, vol. 1, part 7, p. 182, no.1: “Through his chain of narrators from al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb, from Abān, from Ismā`īl al-Ju`fī who recounts, ‘A person came to (Imam) Abū Ja’far Muḥammad b. `Alī, peace be on him, and with him was a page of questions which were like [arguments for use in] a dispute. (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, said to him, ‘This is a page which disputes the religion by which Allah accepts the deeds.’ He replied, ‘May Allah have mercy on you! This is what I intend!’ (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, said, ‘Testify that there is no god except Allah, He is Alone and has no partner, and that Muḥammad is His servant and Messenger. Acknowledge what he has brought from Allah and the Mastership (wilaya) of us Ahl al-Bait and express hatred toward our enemies and submit to us with humility and contentment and await our rule, because surely for us is a government that will come if Allah wills.’”

119. Dalā’il al-imāma, p. 235, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,’ no. 6. Traditions with the same meaning have also been narrated in pp. 223, 224, and 226.

120. Dalā’il al-imāma, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,” pp. 239¬-240, no. 15; `Uyūn akhbār al-Riḍā, vol. 2, p. 60, no. 230.

121. Dalā’il al-imāma, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,” pp. 249-250, no. 41.

122. Dalā’il al-imāma, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,” p. 255, no. 54.

123. Dalā’il al-imāma, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,” pp. 256-257, no. 57.

124. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 188, no. 149; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 6, p. 146, no. 16; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 504, no. 305.

125. Al-Kāfī, vol. 1, pp. 397-398, no. 2; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, chap. 27, p. 230, no. 22.

126. Al-Mufīd, al-Irshād, p. 340, no. 1; I`lām al-warā, chap. 8, sect. 2, p. 330; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 50, chap. 2, p. 21, no. 7.

127. This refers to the mother of Imam Muḥammad b. `Alī al-Riḍā, peace be on him. She was from the city of Nūbiyya and was called Sabīka. “The son of the best lady from the city of Nūbiyya” does not refer to our master Imam al-Mahdī, peace be on him, as is suggested by the author of al-Wāfī, who writes, “It refers to the Mahdī, the Master of Time, Allah’s blessings be on him. It seems he has been attributed to his grand-mother, the mother of Imam Abū Ja`far al-Thānī, peace be on him...” He has reached this conclusion by relying on the manuscript of al-Kāfī. Apparently, the following statement has been deleted from it: “From his progeny will be the driven-away (al-ṭarīd), the wanderer (al-sharīd)”. The manuscript of al-Irshād clarifies the meaning.

128. Nafas al-mahmūm, pp. 242-243. It is worth mentioning that the book al-Kāmil, has been written in Persian and it mentions the translation of the Imam’s sermon, Al-Kāmil, vol. 2, pp. 299-302.

129. Maqātil al-ṭālibīn, p. 143; Dalā’il al-imāma, sect. “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im,” p. 234, no. 5.

130. Al-Amālī (known as al-Amālī al-khamīsiyya), vol. 2, p. 83.

131. Qurb al-isnād, pp. 13-14.

132. Kāmil al-ziyārāt, chap. 14, p. 52, no. 10.

133. This word is used to refer to someone who has no hair on the sides of his forehead.

134. Mukhtaṣar baṣā’ir al-darajāt, p. 18; Īqāḍ al-ḥaj`a, chap. 9, p. 282, no. 100.

135. The ‘Day of Returning’ is the Day of Raj`a and it is the day about which Allah, the Exalted, says: “And on the day when We will gather from every nation a group from among those who reject Our signs, then they will be held in ranks” (Quran 27:83). On this day, only a group from the deniers and a group from the believers will be gathered. This has been mentioned in detail in mutawātir traditions. As for the Day of Judgment, then on that Great Day, all the people will be raised without exception as has been announced by Allah, the Exalted: “and We will gather them and leave not any one of them behind” (Quran 18:47), and His saying: “On that day people will come in scattered groups to be shown their deeds” (Quran 99:6), “The day in which people will be like scattered moths” (Quran 101:4), “On the day that you will see every breast-feeder forgetting about what she was breast-feeding, and every pregnant female will drop her fetus, and people will be drunk but (in fact) they are not drunk, and the punishment of Allah will be severe” (Quran 22: 2). The clear verses that describe the Day of Judgment are indeed numerous and so are the verses that refer to the ‘Day of Returning.’. These two groups of verses can be separated by pondering in their style and wordings. Indeed, traditions narrated from the infallible Imams, peace be on them, have also distinguished between these two groups of Quranic verses.

One must never consider the return of the dead to this world as improbable, because such things have already happened by the miracles of the divine Prophets and Allah, the Exalted, has informed us about them in the following verses: “Or like the person [`Uzair] who passed by a town and its [walls] had fallen down upon its roofs... So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years then raised him to life” (Quran 2:259), and: “Did you not see those who deserted their homes for fear of death, and they were thousands, then Allah said to them, ‘Die’ and then He gave them life [again]” (Quran 2:243), and in the story of Ayyūb: “Then We responded to him and removed what was harming him, and We gave him his family and the like of them with them” (Quran 21:84). Moreover, prominent Sunni scholars like ibn Mardawayh and others have narrated from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, that the Companions of the Cave (aṣḥāb al-kahf) will return to this world when the Mahdī rises.

We must always remember that surely Allah is powerful over all things. The belief in Mahdawiyya and the faith in Raj`a are not two things that are inseparable. The importance of believing in Raj`a is not like the importance of believing in Mahdawiyya about which the entire Muslim nation has consensus about, and which has reliable traditions from both the sects to support it. In this book, we intend to establish the belief in the Awaited Mahdī, peace be on him, and explain it and elaborate on it. The matter of Raj`a-in addition to the fact that its position is unlike that of Mahdawiyya-has no role in proving the belief in Mahdawiyya. Discussions about Raj`a, investigations concerning it, and its details must be debated elsewhere.

136. Al-Mustarshid, pp. 186-187.

137. Sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 2, “Kitāb al-Mahdī,” pp. 208-209; al-Tāj al-jāmi` lil-uṣūl, “Kitāb al-fitan wa `alāmāt al-sā`a,” vol. 5, chap. 7, p. 344. The author of Ghāyat al-ma’mūl (printed in the marginal notes of al-Tāj) writes: “In the end of times a righteous person will emerge from Mā Warā al-Nahr. His name will be Ḥārith. He will have a great army that will be led by a great person whose name will be Manṣūr. This man will prepare the ground for the seed of Muḥammad. He will prepare the army, the reserves, and the wealth to help the caliph who will appear and he will be the Mahdī. Just like the companions who prepared the ground for the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him [and his family]. It is compulsory for every believer to help this army and this caliph because both are [on the path] of truth.”

138. `Uyūn akhbār al-Riḍā, vol. 2, chap. 35, p. 131, no. 13.

139. Al-Khiṣāl, chap. “Seventy and Beyond,’ pp. 578-579, no. 1. The entire tradition with the chain of narrators and text has been mentioned on pp. 572-581.

140. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 14, p. 360, no. 1227.

141. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 15, p. 388, no. 1265.

142. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 15, p. 390, no. 1267.

143. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 15, p. 393, no. 1270.

144. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 14, p. 359, no. 1224.