Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Section Seven: The traditions that indicate he is from the descendants of the Master of the Women of the world, Fāṭimat al-Zahrā, peace be on her

Comprised of 220 traditions

516. Al-Mustadrak `alā l-ṣaḥīḥain1 : In the book al-Fitan wa l-malāḥim, it has been recorded that Abū l-Naḍr al-Faqīh informed me, from Uthmān b. Sa`īd al-Dārimī, from `Abd-Allah b. Ṣāliḥ, from Abū l-Malīḥ al-Riqqī, from Ziyād b. Bayān (and he mentions his virtues), from `Alī ibn Nufayl, from Sa`īd b. al-Musayyib, from Umm Salma, from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], who mentioned the Mahdī and said:“Yes, he is a reality and he is from the descendants of Fāṭima.”

[And narrated to us] Abū Aḥmad Bakr b. Muḥammad al-Ṣairafī at Marv, from Abū l-Aḥwaṣ Muḥammad b. al-Haytham al-Qāḍī, from `Amr b. Khalid al-Ḥarrānī, from Abū l-Malīḥ, from Ziyād b. Bayān, from `Alī ibn Nufayl, from Sa`īd b. Musayyib, from Umm Salma, may Allah be satisfied with her, from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], who mentioned the Mahdī and said:“He is from the progeny of Fāṭima.”

517. Al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān2 : Abū Nu`aim has recorded from al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, that the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], said to Fāṭima,“O my daughter! The Mahdī is from your descendants.”

518. Ghaybat al-Shaykh3 : From Aḥmad b. Idrīs, from `Alī b. Muḥammad b. Qutayba, from al-Faḍl b. Shādhān, from Muḥammad b. Sinān, from `Ammār b. Marwān, from al-Munakhkhal b. Jamīl, from Jābir al-Ju`fī, from (Imam) Abū Ja`far, peace be on him, who said:“The Mahdī is from the descendants of Fāṭima. He will have a tanned complexion.”

519. Al-Fitan4 : Narrated to us Abū Hārūn, from `Amr b. Qays al-Mulā’ī, from al-Minhāl b. `Amr, from Zirr b. Ḥubaish, who heard `Alī, peace be on him, say:“The Mahdī is a man from us, from the descendants of Fāṭima, may Allah be satisfied with her.”

520. Al-Amālī5 : Informed us a group from Abī l-Mufaḍḍal, from Muḥammad b. Fīrūz b. Ghiyāth al-Jallāb at the suburb Bāb al-Abwāb, from Muḥammad b. al-Faḍl b. al-Mukhtār al-Bānī-who is also known as Faḍlān Ṣāḥib al-Jār-from Abū l-Faḍl b. al-Mukhtār, from al-Ḥakam b. Ẓuhair al-Fazārī al-Kūfī, from Thābit b. Abī Ṣafiyya Abū Ḥamza, from Abū `Āmir al-Qāsim b. `Auf, from Abī l-Ṭufail `Āmir b. Wāthila, from Salmān al-Farsī, may Allah be satisfied with him, (in a lengthy tradition) from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who said to Fāṭima:

Surely Allah, the Exalted, chose me from my family. He also chose `Alī, al-Ḥasan, al-Ḥusayn, and you. I am the master(sayyid) of the sons of Adam, `Alī is the master(sayyid) of the Arabs, you are the master of all the women, and al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn are the masters of the youths of Paradise. From the descendants of you two is the Mahdī. Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will fill the earth by him with justice just as it will be filled before him with injustice.

521. Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī6 : From Muḥammad b. al-Qāsim b. `Ubaid, from various narrators, from `Abd-Allah b. `Abbās, from Salmān al-Farsī, from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family (in a lengthy tradition in which he mentioned the virtues of `Alī, peace be on him), where he said to Fāṭima, peace be on her:“The Mahdī-the one behind whom `Īsā-will pray, is from you and from him [i.e. `Alī].”

522. Al-Manāqib7 : `Abd al-Malik asked al-Zuhrī,“Do you know anything about him whose name will be called out from the sky?” Zuhrī answered,“(Imam) `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn informed me that he is the Mahdī from the descendants of Fāṭima.”

523. Al-Sīrat al-Ḥalabiyya8 : He said:“It has been narrated that the Mahdī is from the progeny of the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him [and his family], from the descendants of Fāṭima.”

524. Sharḥ al-akhbār9 : From the narration of Mikhnaf b. `Abd-Allah, through his chain of narrators from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], who said:

The Mahdī is from the generation of Fāṭima, the Master of the Women of the World. He will emerge and will fill the earth with fairness and justice just as it will be filled with injustice and unfairness, regardless of the days being prolonged or shortened. In his era, life will become pleasant. A caller will call out and will curse the Umayyads and their followers and send salutations on Muḥammad and will send blessings on `Alī and his followers. On that day, all the people will be safe.

525. Biḥār al-anwār10 : Citing al-Amālī, From al-Ḥaffār, from Uthmān b. Aḥmad, from Abū Qilāba, from Bishr b. `Umar, from Mālik b. Anas, from Zaid b. Aslam, from Ismā’īl b. Abān, from Abū Maryam, from Thuwair b. Abī Fākhta, from `Abd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Laylā, from his father who said:

On the day of [the Battle of] Khaibar, the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, gave the standard to `Alī b. Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him, and Allah granted him victory. Then, he mentioned him being appointed on the day of Ghadīr and some of his virtues that were mentioned there... (until he said), the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, started crying.

He was asked,“What has made you cry, O Messenger of Allah?” He replied,“Jabra’īl, peace be on him, informed me that the people will oppress him, deprive him of his right, fight against him, kill his children, and oppress them after him. Jabra’īl, peace be on him, also informed me from his Lord, Mighty and Majestic be He, that this will continue until the Qā’im rises. [When he does], their word will become high, the nation will gather on their love, those having hatred towards them will be a minority, those who dislike them will be disgraced, and those who will praise them will be the majority.

This will happen only after the cities have changed, the people have been weakened, and there will be no hope for relief (faraj). It is then that the Qā’im will appear amongst them. His name is my name and his father’s name is like the name of my son. He is from the descendants of my daughter. Through them, Allah will manifest the truth and through their swords He will destroy falsehood. People will follow them either because they fear them or are inclined towards them.”

Then, the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, stopped crying and he continued,“O group of believers, know that there will be relief, because surely, Allah’s promise will not be violated and his decision cannot be countered, and He is the Most Wise and the Most Informed.

Verily, Allah’s victory is near. O Allah! They are my family. So, keep away from them all uncleanness and purify them a thorough purification. O Allah, guard them, protect them, take care of them, be there for them, assist them, help them, make them mighty, don’t degrade them, and make them my successors. You are Powerful over all things.”

The traditions with the following numbers also show the aforementioned concept: 80, 118, 120, 126, 127, 129, 158, 168, 170, 171, 173, 176, 178, 181, 191, 193, 196, 205-308, 323, 359, 382, 397, 414, 417, 428, 450, 463, 467, 470, 492, 497-499, 526-543, 546-548, 550-572, 588, 589, 600, 608, 612, 624, 641, 670, 765, 770, 771, 786-807, 859, 918, 973, 1104, and 1230.

References

1. Al-Mustadrak `alā l-ṣaḥīḥain, vol. 4, p. 557; al-Talkhīṣ, vol. 4, p. 557; Sunan Abī Dāwūd, vol. 4, p. 107, no. 4284, which says: “The Mahdī is from my progeny from the descendants of Fāṭima”; al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, p. 99, which says: “from my progeny from the descendants of Fāṭima”; Nihāyat al-bidāya wa l-nihāya, vol. 1, p. 40, which says: “from my progeny, from the descendants of Fāṭima”; al-Ṣawā`iq al-muḥriqa, chap. “khuṣūṣiyatihim al-dāllat `alā `alā `aẓīm karāmatihim,” p. 236, which he has recorded from Abū Dāwūd, al-Nisā’ī, ibn Māja, and others. It’s wording is: “from my progeny, from the descendants of Fāṭima”; Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 3, part 15, p. 395, no. 1274, with the following wording: “The Mahdī is from my progeny, from the descendants of Fāṭima, my daughter”; Ghaybat al-Shaykh, pp. 185-186, no. 145, and pp. 187-188, no. 148.

I say: This tradition is famous and well-known. Refer to the collection of traditions and books compiled concerning the Mahdī, peace be on him, and the conditions of the Hour. Thus, we have not added any sources to those that we have already mentioned.

It has been recorded in al-Fitan, vol. 5, chap. “Nisbat al-Mahdī,” pp. 197-198, through his chain of narrators from Qatāda who said: “I asked Sa`īd b. al-Musayyib, ‘Is the Mahdī real?’ He replied, ‘He is the truth.’ I asked, ‘From whom will he be?’ He responded, ‘From the Quraish.’ I asked, ‘From which clan of the Quraish?’ He said, ‘From the Banī-Hāshim.’ I asked, ‘From which [family] of Banī-Hāshim?’ He said, ‘From Banī `Abd al-Muṭṭalib.’ I asked, ‘From which [family] of Banī `Abd al-Muṭṭalib?’ He said, ‘From the children of Fāṭima.’”

It has been recorded in `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, p. 23, with the difference that he said: “From which descendants of Banī `Abd al-Muṭṭalib?” and “I said, ‘From which children of Fāṭima?’” He replied, “For now, this is enough for you.” He says, “Imam Abū l-Ḥusayn Aḥmad b. Ja`far b. al-Munādī has recorded it. He has also recorded a similar tradition on p. 22, to his saying, ‘From the children of Fāṭima,’ citing al-Muqri’ or al-Dānī”; al-`Arf al-wardī, vol. 2, p. 48, which is a short version; Jawāhir al-`iqdain, vol. 2, p. 8; Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 3, part 15, pp. 394-395, no. 1273

2. Al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, chap. 2, p. 94, no. 17; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 137, with the wording: “Mahdī is from your descendants,” citing Abū Nu`aim; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, pp. 21-22, from (Imam) `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, from his father, from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who said to Fāṭima, “The Mahdī is from your descendants.” He has recorded it from Abū Nu`aim in Ṣifat al-Mahdī; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, p. 468, no. 4, from Abū Nu`aim in al-Arba`īn from al-Zuhrī, from (Imam) `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, like what has been narrated in `Iqd al-durar; Dalā’il al-imāma, “Ma`rifat wujūb al-Qā’im wa annahū lābudda an yakūn,” p. 234; Dhakhā’ir al-`uqbā, p. 136

3. Ghaybat al-Shaykh, p. 187, no. 147; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 51, chap. 4, p. 43, no. 32; Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, chap. 32, p. 504, no. 303.

4. Al-Fitan, vol.5, p. 201; Kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 14, p. 591, no. 39675; Muntakhab kanz al-`ummāl, vol. 6, p. 34; al-Malāḥim wa l-fitan, chap. 162, p. 75, citing Nu`aim.

5. Amālī l-Shaykh, vol. 2, session 10, p. 219; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 22, chap. 1, pp. 502-503, no. 48, and vol. 40, chap. 91, pp. 66-67, no. 100. In both these places it has been recorded: “and from your progeny is the Mahdī.” Apparently, the manuscript that al-Majlisī possessed was more accurate than the one that is presently available to us. Therefore, we have mentioned the tradition in this section. According to both manuscripts, the tradition proves that he is from her descendants, peace be on her.

6. Tafsīr Furāt al-Kūfī, under the exegesis of Sura al-Wāqi`a, p. 179.

7. Al-Manāqib, vol. 1, p. 288.

8. Al-Sīrat al-Ḥalabiyya, vol. 1, p. 227.

I say: All the great Sunni memorizers (al-Ḥuffāẓ) and traditionists are unanimous that the Mahdī is from the descendants of Fāṭima, peace be on her. The opinion of anybody who suggests otherwise from the Umayyads, the Abbasids, and their supporters is baseless. Indeed, they have rejected such opinion with the contempt it deserves. Mutawātir traditions and narrations recorded in the Ṣiḥāḥs, Musnads, and Jawāmi`-which must be followed by and believed in by the Muslim nation-repel such an opinion.

It has been mentioned in `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, pp. 153-154, that al-Ḥāfiẓ `Abd al-Raḥmān al-Nakha`ī al-Suhailī has recorded in the book Sharḥ sīrat al-rasūl, the superiority

of Fāṭima over the women of the worlds. He has mentioned the saying of the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him and his family, “Fāṭima is a part of me” and “She is the best of my daughters,” and other similar traditions. Later, he proceeds to establish her mastership and superiority over other women and cites numerous reasons for this fact. Amongst these is the fact that the Mahdī-about whose reappearance in the end of times glad-tidings have been given-is from her progeny. This merit exclusively belongs to her, peace be on her, and is shared by no one else.

I say: In the old hand-written manuscript (the name) has been mentioned as al-Ḥāfiẓ `Abd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥanafī but perhaps the correct name is al-Khath`amī, as has been recorded in his biography in sources like Tadhkirat al-ḥuffāẓ and Wafiyyāt al-a`yān.

9. Sharḥ al-akhbār, vol. 3, part 15, p. 394, no. 1272.

10. Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 28, chap. 2, pp. 45-46, no. 8 and vol. 51, chap. 1, p. 68, no. 7, citing al-Amālī.

The wording of the tradition varies according to the manuscripts we have referred to. It is apparent from Biḥār al-anwār that the copy of al-Amālī which al-Majlisī possessed had the following wording: “His name is like my name and his father’s name is like my son’s name.” He has recorded the tradition in two places in Biḥār al-anwār citing al-Amālī with the aforementioned wording, just as the renowned traditionist al-Ḥurr al-`Āmilī has recorded it in Ithbāt al-hudāt, vol. 3, sect. 12, chap. 32, p. 518, no. 379, also citing al-Amālī. It has been recorded in Biḥār al-Anwār, vol. 37, chap. 52, pp. 191-193, no. 75, citing al-Ṭarā’if. The phrase, “his father’s name is like the name...” is not found in it. This is the same as the published copy of al-Ṭarā’if, p. 522, with the wording, “his name is like my name and he is from the descendants of my daughter.” It is also the same as al-Qundūzī al-Ḥanafī’s Yanābī`’ al-mawadda, chap. 145, pp. 135-136, citing Manāqib al-Khāwrazmī. In the new editions of al-Amālī, al-Manāqib al-Khāwrazmī, Kashf al-ghumma, and al-Ṭarā’if, the following wording is found: “and his father’s name is my father’s name”. Undoubtedly, even with all these copies, the veracity of neither phrase can be established. Based on strong conjecture, it can be said that the phrase “and his father’s name...” either did not exist at all in the tradition or it was originally: “and his father’s name is like my son’s name.” Some of the copy-writers have corrected it, considering it as an addition to the original tradition. This will be discussed in the twenty-second section under no. 568. Moreover, the sentence “and his father’s name is like my father’s name,” is rejected by a number of traditions which announce that the name of his father was al-Ḥasan. Thus, one cannot rely on this statement-regardless of its original wording-especially after the seeing the differences between the manuscripts.

Section Eight: The traditions that indicate he is from the descendants of the two grandsons, al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them

Comprised of 125 traditions

526. Zakhāīr al-`uqbā1 : The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], said:“From these two-meaning al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn-is the Mahdī of this nation.”

527. Al-Mu`jam al-kabīr2 : Narrated to us Muḥammad b. Ruzaiq b. Jāmi` al-Miṣrī, from al-Haytham b. Ḥabīb, from Sufyān b. `Uyayna, from `Alī b. `Alī al-Makkī al-Hilālī, from his father who recounts:

I went to the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], during his sufferings in which he passed away. Fāṭima [peace be on her] was sitting near his head. She began crying until her voice rose. The Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, looked up to her and asked,“My beloved Fāṭima! Why are you crying?” She replied,“I fear neglect after you.” He replied,“My beloved Fāṭima! Do you not know that Allah, Mighty and Glorified be He, searched the earth thoroughly, then chose from it your father and sent him with His message.

Then, He searched the earth thoroughly and chose from it your husband. Then he revealed to me that I should marry you to him. O Fāṭima! Indeed Allah has granted us Ahl al-Bait seven characteristics that have not been given to anyone before us nor to anyone after us: I am the seal of the Prophets, the noblest of Prophets in front of Allah, the most beloved of the creatures to of Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, and I am your father. My heir (waṣī) is the best of heirs and the most beloved of them to Allah and he is your husband. Our martyr is the best of martyrs and the most beloved of them to Allah and he is Ḥamzat b. `Abd al-Muṭṭalib, the (paternal) uncle of your father and the (paternal) uncle of your husband.

From us is the one who has two green wings by which he flies where he wishes in Paradise along with the angels and he is the cousin of your father and the brother of your husband. From us are the two grandsons of this nation and they are your two sons-al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn-and they are the masters of the youths of Paradise. I swear by the One Who truly sent me, their father is better than both of them. O Fāṭima! I swear by the One Who sent me with truth, surely from these two is the Mahdī of this nation.

When the world becomes engulfed in chaos and turmoil, fitnas appear, the paths are cut-off, and people will loot each other. And when there will be no elder who will have mercy on the young and there will be no young who will respect the elders. Then, Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will send from the two of them [i.e. al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn] a man who will conquer the forts of deviation and the shrouded hearts. He will rise with religion in the end of times just as I rose with it in the first era. He will fill the earth with justice just as it will be filled with injustice.

O Fāṭima, Don’t grieve and don’t cry, for surely, Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, is more merciful and kinder to you than me. This is because of your position to me and your [close] place to my heart. Allah has married you to your husband while he possesses the most noble lineage amongst [the members] of your family, is the most honorable of them in position, the most merciful of them with the people, the most just of them in being fair, and the most insightful of them in judgment. I asked my Lord, Mighty and Majestic be He, that you be the first to join me from my Ahl al-Bait [after my death].” `Alī, [peace be on him,] said,“When the Holy Prophet, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], passed away, Fāṭima, peace be on her, did not live after him for more than seventy-five days, and Allah, the Exalted, took her to him.”

528. Al-Amālī al-Shaykh3 : In a lengthy tradition through his chains of narrators from Imam `Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, which includes Jābir honoring Imam al-Ḥasan and Imam al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them... to where Jābir said:

One day, the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, was with us in the mosque and was surrounded by the people, when he said to me,“O Jābir! Call Ḥasan and Ḥusayn for me,” and he was extremely fond of both of them. I went and called them and carried them in my arms-in turns-until I we reached him. He asked me-and I could see the joy in his face on seeing me being so affectionate towards both of them and my respect for them-“Do you love them, O Jābir?” I replied,“And what would prevent me from that while I know their stature with you, may my father and my mother be sacrificed for you?”

He said,“Should I not inform you about their virtues?” I replied,“Yes! May my parents be sacrificed for you!” He said,“When Allah, the Exalted, intended to create me, He created me as a pure white liquid (nutfa) which He placed in the loin of my father Adam, peace be on him. This liquid was continuously transferred from one pure loin to another pure womb until [it reached] Noah and Abraham, peace be on them. This continued to `Abd al-Muṭṭalib, thus, nothing from the filth of ignorance (jāhiliyya) touched me.

Then, this liquid was split into two halves: One went to `Abd-Allah and the other to Abū Ṭālib. I was born to my father [`Abd-Allah] and Allah sealed prophethood through me. `Alī was born to Abū Ṭālib and waṣiyya 4 became terminated through him. These two halves-from me and `Alī-came together and resulted in the birth of al-Jahr and al-Jahīr (i.e. al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn) and through them, He sealed the grandsons of prophethood. He placed my seed (al-dhurriya) in both of them and ordered me to conquer the city-or cities-of disbelief. From his seed-pointing to al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him-a person will emerge in the end of times. He will fill the earth with justice just as it will be filled with unfairness and injustice. These two are the pure and purified ones. They are the masters of the youths of Paradise. Salvation is for those who love them, their father, and their mother, and woe to those who fight them and have hatred towards them.”

The traditions with the following numbers also show the aforementioned concept: 94-160, 463, 464, 465, 543, 546-548, 550-571, 590, 608, 641, 770, and 786-807.

References

1. Dhakhā’ir al-uqbā, “Fi dhikr mā jā’a anna l-Mahdī fī ākhir al-zamān,” p. 136.

I say: The mother of Imam Abū Ja`far Muḥammad b. `Alī ibn al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them, was Fāṭima, the daughter of Imam (Ḥasan) al-Mujtabā, the older grandson. Thus, our master Imam al-Bāqir and all the seven Imams who succeeded him to Imam al-Mahdī, peace be on them, are from the generation of Imam al-Ḥasan as well as Imam al-Ḥusayn as has been mentioned by the Holy Prophet, Allah's blessings be on him and his family. This news is knowledge of the unseen and one of the signs of his prophethood.

2. Al-Mu`jam al-kabīr, vol. 3, pp. 57-58, no. 2675; Ṣifat al-Mahdī by Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim who has recorded it from him in `Iqd al-durar, chap. 7, pp. 151-153, and chap. 9, pp. 217-218, sect. 3; Majma` al-zawā’id, vol. 9, pp. 165-166; al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, chap. 1, p. 55, no. 1; Dhakhā’ir al-`uqbā, pp. 135-136. He writes, “al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū l-`Alā al-Hamdānī has recorded it in Arba`īna ḥadīthan fī l-Mahdī; Kashf al-ghumma, citing al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim in al-Aḥādīth al-arba`īn, vol. 2, p. 84, no. 403; al-Burhān fī `alāmāt Mahdī ākhir al-zamān, chap. 2, pp. 94-95, no. 19; `Abaqāt al-anwār (India), Under ḥadīth al-ṭair (The Tradition of the Bird), vol. 4, second minhāj, p. 86; al-`Arf al-wardī (al-Ḥāwī lil-fatāwī), vol. 2, p. 137, shortened version citing al-Ṭabarānī in al-Mu`jam al-kabīr; al-’Idhā`a, p. 136; Usd al-ghāba, vol. 4, p. 42, has recorded a shortened version from Abū Nu`aim and Abū Mūsā and also al-’Iṣāba; al-Qaul al-mukhtaṣar, p. 27, he has recorded that the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], said to Fāṭima, [peace be on her], “I swear by the One Who truly sent me as a Prophet, surely, from these two (meaning al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn) is Mahdī of this umma.”

Al-Dhahabī’s rejection of this tradition in his book Mīzān al-i`tidāl is not the least surprising because he is notorious for rejecting authentic and famous traditions that glorify the Ahl al-Bait and criticize their enemies. Since this tradition is in conflict with his desires, he has judged it to be false and has accused al-Haytham but has not put forward any evidence for his accusation against al-Haytham or for his rendering it to be false; except for the fact that he cannot tolerate the merits of the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them, which have been mentioned in it. Had this tradition been in accordance with his desires-that is, against the Ahl al-Bait and in favor of their enemies like Mu`āwiya-he would have announced it to be correct in content as well as chain of narrators and would have declared its narrators as Sunnis. Surely, we have come from Allah and to Him we will return. There is no power and strength save that of Allah, the Exalted, the Great.

As far as we are concerned, this tradition is absolutely reliable in content. There is nothing amazing in it and there are numerous traditions which support it like the narration of `Abāya from Abū Ayyūb al-Anṣārī and the tradition of Abū Sa`īd al-Khudrī that has been recorded in Yanābī`’ al-mawadda, p. 490, citing al-Sam`ānī’s Faḍā’il al-ṣaḥāba from Abū Sa`īd. Moreover, this view is reinforced by the fact that this al-Haytham is the same al-Haytham b. Ḥabīb al-Ṣairafī al-Kūfī-the brother of `Abd al-Khāliq b. Ḥabīb- about whom Aḥmad [b. Ḥanbal] has said: “His traditions are the best and his is his steadfastness is the greatest.” It has not been proven that these two are two different people, even if ibn Ḥajar claims so. I think that when people see that they have no rational reason regarding their claims against this tradition-because it has been narrated by someone like al-Haytham, who has been praised by Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal using the words mentioned above-then they claim that there are many al-Haythams!

3. Amālī al-Shaykh, vol. 2, pp. 113-114, no. 2; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 37, pp. 44-47, chap. 50, no. 22.

I say: Perhaps, it would have been better if had I mentioned this tradition in the forthcoming chapter. Anyhow, I have recorded it here by considering the version in Biḥār al-anwār which seems to be more accurate, and Allah knows the best. It is like this: “He made my progeny in these two, and the one who will capture the city-or cities-of disbelief. He will fill the earth...”

4. The state of being the heir of a prophet-Ed.

Section Nine: The traditions that indicate he is from the descendants of Imam al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him

Comprised of 208 traditions

529. Ṣifat al-Mahdī1 : From Ḥudhayfa, may Allah be satisfied with him, who recounts:

The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], delivered a sermon about the events that will occur in the future. Then he said,“Even if one day remains from the world, Allah, Mighty and Majestic be He, will prolong that day until He sends in it a person from my descendants Whose name is my name.” Salmān al-Farsī, may Allah be satisfied with him, stood up and enquired,“O Messenger of Allah! From which one of your sons?” He answered,“He is from his descendants,” and patted al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him.”

In `Iqd al-durar2 , the same tradition has been recorded from Ḥudhayfa using another wording:“The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family], said, ‘If there remains only one day from the world, Allah will certainly send in it a person whose name is my name and whose character is my character. His epithet will be Abū `Abd-Allah.’”

[He says]: Al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim has recorded it in Ṣifat al-Mahdī. He has narrated a more complete version from Abū l-Ḥasan al-Raba`ī al-Mālikī, from Ḥudhayfa, who said:

The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him [and his family] said,“If there remains only one day from the world, Allah will raise in it a person whose name is my name and whose character is my character. His epithet will be Abū `Abd-Allah. People will pledge allegiance to him between the Rukn and the Maqām. Allah will return religion through him and will grant him victories. There will remain no one on the face of earth but that he will declare, ‘There is no god but Allah.’” Salmān stood up and asked,“O Messenger of Allah! From which of your sons is he?” He replied,“From the descendants of this son of mine,” and he patted al-Ḥusayn.

530. Al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān3 : Through his chains of narrators from al-Dāraqutnī, through his chain(sanad) from Sahl b. Sulaimān, from Abū Hārūn al-`Abdī who recounts:

I came to Abū Sa`īd al-Khudrī and asked,“Were you present during the Battle of Badr?” He replied in the affirmative. I enquired again,“Can you narrate to me something that you heard from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, concerning `Alī, peace be on him, and his excellences?” He replied,“Yes, I will inform you. Surely the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, became ill and was recovering. Fāṭima, peace be on her, came to visit him and I was sitting on the right side of the Messenger of Allah, Allah's blessings be on him and his family.

When she saw how weak the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, had become, she started gasping until her tears rolled down her cheeks. The Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, asked, ‘Why are you crying, O Fāṭima? Do you not know that Allah, the Exalted, searched the earth thoroughly and chose from it your father, whom He sent as a prophet? He searched it thoroughly a second time and chose your husband.

Then, He revealed to me and I married you to him and made him the executor of my will (waṣī). Did you not know that because of the respect that Allah, the Exalted, has for you, He married you to the most knowledgeable, the most patient, and the foremost from them in accepting Islam?’ [On hearing this] she smiled and rejoiced.

So, the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, decided to increase her joy greatly by informing her about what Allah had destined for Muḥammad and his family. He continued, ‘O Fāṭima! `Alī has eight virtues: Belief in Allah and His Messenger, his wisdom, his wife, his sons al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them, and his enjoinment of good and forbidding from evil.

O Fāṭima! We Ahl al-Bait have been granted six characteristics that have been granted to no one before us and no one after us. Our prophet is the best of prophets and he is your father; our heir (waṣī) is the best of heirs and he is your husband; our martyr is the best of martyrs and he is Ḥamza, your father’s uncle; from us are the two grandsons of this nation and they are your two sons; from us is the Mahdī of this nation-behind whom Jesus, peace be on him, will pray.’ Then, he patted al-Ḥusayn on the shoulder and said, ‘From him is the Mahdī of this nation.’”

I say: This is how al-Dāraqutnī, the author of al-Jarḥ wa l-ta`dīl has recorded it.

531. Al-Fitan4 : Narrated to us al-Walīd and Rushdain, from Abū Lahī`a, from Abū Qubail, from `Abd-Allah b. `Amr who said:“A person from the descendants of al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, will emerge from the East. If mountains come in his way, he will destroy them and create paths through them.”

The traditions with the following numbers-directly and indirectly-show the aforementioned concept: 80, 113, 126, 127, 129, 167, 168, 170, 171, 173, 176, 178, 181, 191, 193, 196, 205-308, 382, 397, 414, 428, 465, 466, 526, 527, 528, 532-543, 546, 547, 548, 550-571, 588, 600, 608, 612, 641, 770, 786-807, 859, 918, 973, 1104, 1116, 1139, 1140, 1159, 1168, 1216, and 1230.

References

1. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 1, pp. 24-25. He says: “al-Ḥāfiẓ Abū Nu`aim has recorded it in Ṣifat al-Mahdī”; Dhakhā’ir al-`uqbā, pp. 136-137. He says the traditions that mention he is from the descendants of the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, and from the descendants of Fāṭima, refer to the fact that he is from the descendants of Imam al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him. Yanābī`’ al-mawadda, chap. 94, pp. 488 & 490; Kashf al-ghumma, citing Abū Nu`aim’s al-Aḥādīth al-arba`īn, vol. 2, p. 469, no. 6; Farā’id al-simṭain, vol. 2, pp. 325-326, no. 575; Lisān al-mīzān, vol. 3, p. 238, from ibn Ḥibbān, from al-Abbās b. Bakkār al-Ḍabbī al-Baṣrī who said: “Narrated to us `Abd-Allah b. Ziyād al-Kalbī, from al-A`mash, from Zirr, from Ḥudhayfa, may Allah be satisfied with him, who said about the Mahdī... Salmān asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah! From which of your sons will he be?’ He replied, ‘From this son of mine,’ and he patted al-Ḥusayn, [peace be on him], with his hand.” Dhahabī has narrated this from ibn Ḥibbān in Mīzān al-i`tidāl, no. 4160.

I say: People like al-Abbās b. Bakkār have committed no crime except narrating some traditions about the virtues of the Ahl al-Bait, peace be on them. He has not concealed these traditions because of greed for this world or the rewards of the kings and politicians. He did not fear imprisonment, whips, and getting killed, whilst, the courtier scholars and narrators had the habit of concealing the merits and excellences of the Ahl al-Bait and not narrating them. As for ibn Ḥibbān, he is criticized by the Sunnis for denying prophethood because he believed that prophethood “is naught but knowledge and action.” They deemed him to be an atheist and denounced him. They complained against him to the Caliph who ordered him to be killed. Such prophetic information about the unseen cannot be accepted from a person like him who holds such beliefs!

2. `Iqd al-durar, chap. 2, pp. 31-32; al-Bayān, chap. 13, p. 129, through his chain of narrators from Ḥudhayfa.

3. Al-Bayān fī akhbār Ṣāḥib al-Zamān, chap. 9: “The Prophet’s declaration that the Mahdī is from progeny of al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him,” pp. 121-122; al-Fuṣūl al-muhimma, pp. 195-196; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 38, chap. 56, pp. 10-11, no. 17, and vol. 51, p. 91; Kashf al-ghumma, vol. 2, pp. 481-482; Dalā’il al-imāma, p. 234.

4. Al-Fitan, “Nisbat al-Mahdī,” vol. 5, p. 199; al-Bayān, chap. 16, p. 93. He writes: “al-Ṭabarānī and Abū Nu`aim have narrated it from him”; al-Malāḥim wa -Fitan, pp. 85-86, chap. 195, citing al-Fitan, with the difference that he has narrated from `Abd-Allah b. `Umar and he has said “he will break them up.” ; `Iqd al-durar, chap. 5, p. 127, citing al-Ṭabarānī in his Mu`jam and Abū Nu`aim and Nu`aim. He has also recorded it on chap. 9, sect. 3, p. 223, with the wording: “The Mahdī will. [He will be] from the descendants of al-Ḥusayn.”

Section Ten: The traditions that mention he is from the nine Imams from the descendants of (Imam) al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them

Comprised of 165 traditions

532. Kifāyat al-athar1 : Muḥammad b. `Abd-Allah b. al-Muṭṭalib, from Ibrāhīm b. `Abd al-Ṣamad b. Mūsā b. Isḥāq al-Hāshimī, from his father, from `Abd-Allah b. Bukair [or Bakr] al-`Anawī [or al-Ghanawī], from Ḥakīm b. Jubair, from Abū l-Ṭufail `Āmir b. Wāthila, from Zaid b. Thābit, from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, who said:

`Alī b. Abī Ṭālib is the leader of the righteous and the annihilator of the transgressors. Whoever helps him will be helped and whoever deserts him will be deserted. One who has doubts about `Alī, peace be on him, has doubts about Islam. He is the best [person] that can succeed me after me. The best of my companions is `Alī; his flesh is my flesh and his blood is my blood. He is the father of my two grandsons. From the loins of al-Ḥusayn, peace be on him, will emerge nine Imams and from them is the Mahdī of this nation.

The traditions with the following numbers also show the aforementioned concept: 127, 129, 168, 170, 173, 181, 191, 193, 205-308, 533-541, 543, 545, 550, 551, 558, 560-571, 590, 786-807, 859, 902, and 973.

Reference

1. Kifāyat al-athar, “What has been narrated from Zaid b. Thābit from the Messenger of Allah, Allah’s blessings be on him and his family, concerning the reports about the twelve Imams, Allah’s blessings be on them”, chap. 12, pp. 96-97, no. 2; Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 36, chap. 41, p. 318, no. 168.

I say: `Abd-Allah b. Bukair is al-Ghanawī al-Kūfī; it has been mentioned in al-Lisān that ibn Ḥibbān has mentioned him amongst the reliable ones (al-thiqāt) narrators. He has narrated from Ḥakīm b. Jubair.