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Allah had dilated the chest of Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) for receiving knowledge and expanded his heart for sciences.
Secrets of facts and intricacies of things were uncovered for him without any
request or effort. People spoke about the vast knowledge he had, with none
equal to him in his amazing, scientific treasures, covering all sciences of
Hadith, jurisprudence, philosophy, theology, and other branches of knowledge. Scholars and jurisprudents often
referred to his opinions in complicated and mysterious questions on the
verdicts of the Islamic Sharia. Al-Mutawakkil, the Abbasid caliph, who was the
bitterest enemy of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) and of his fathers, referred to the
opinion of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) in the questions which the ulama’ of his age
disagreed on, and he preferred the opinion of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) to the
opinions of the rest of ulama’. We shall discuss this point in the coming
chapters. Anyhow, we shall talk in brief about
the knowledge and sciences transmitted from him and his maxims and literatures
that dealt with different educational and social matters. Traditions (Hadith) The traditions transmitted from the
Prophet (S) and the infallible Imams of his progeny were not limited to legal
verdicts and religious questions, but they included all aspects of life. They
had established the bases of morals, disciplines, good behaviors, and other
intellectual and social issues. Many traditions were transmitted
from Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) - some of them were narrated from the Prophet (S), and
some were narrated from his infallible fathers (a.s.). His traditions from the Prophet (S) Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated a group
of traditions from his fathers who narrated them one by one from the Prophet
(S). Here are some of them: 1. Al-Mas’oudi said, “Muhammad bin
al-Faraj told me in Jirjan…that Abu Du’amah said, ‘I visited Ali bin Muhammad
bin Ali bin Musa during his illness that led to his death and when I wanted to
leave, he said to me, ‘O Abu Du’amah, you have a right on me. Shall I tell you
a tradition that shall delight you?’ I said to him, ‘I am in utmost need of
that O son of the messenger of Allah.’ He said, ‘My father Muhammad bin Ali
told me from his father Ali bin Musa bin Ja’far from his father Ja’far bin
Muhammad from Muhammad bin Ali from Ali bin al-Husayn from al-Husayn bin Ali
from his father Ali bin Abu Talib that the messenger of Allah (SwT) said to
him, ‘Write down!’ Ali said, ‘What shall I write down?’ The messenger of Allah
(SwT) said, ‘Write down: “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Faith is that which hearts acknowledge and deeds prove, and Islam is that which
tongues witness and marriage becomes lawful with.’ Abu Du’amah said, ‘O son of the
messenger of Allah, I do not know which of them is better; the tradition or the
narrators!’ Ali al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘It is a book written down by the hand of
Ali bin Abu Talib and the dictation of the messenger of Allah (SwT) that we
inherit one from the other…’[78] This tradition shows the difference
between faith and Islam (being a Muslim). Faith is to settle inside the soul
and the depth of the heart and to be proved through good deeds, but Islam
(being or turning a Muslim) is to witness the oneness of Allah and the
prophethood of Muhammad (a.s.) and consequently marriage becomes lawful besides
other positive orders that require being a Muslim in order to be achieved. 2. Al-Hasan bin Ali narrated from
Abul Hasan al-Hadi from his fathers that Amir’ul- Mu’minin said, “Once, I heard
the messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his progeny) say, ‘When people
will be resurrected on the Day of Resurrection, a caller will call me: O
messenger of Allah, Allah has permitted you to reward your lovers and the
lovers of your household (progeny) who have followed them for your sake, and
have been opposed to their enemies for your sake. You can reward them as you
like.’ I shall say, ‘O my Lord, 3. Abul Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.)
narrated from his fathers that the Prophet (S) said, ‘Love Allah for the
blessings He gives you, and love me for the love of Allah, and love my household
for my love!’[80] 4. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers that the Prophet (S) said, ‘On the Day of Resurrection I will be
intercessor for four ones; the lovers of my progeny, one who follows them, one
who shows enmity against their enemies, one who carries out their needs, and
one who relieves their distresses…’[81] The Prophet (S) stressed on loving
his pure progeny and made this love as an obligation on every Muslim man and
Muslim woman, because loving and following them would protect the nation from
disagreement, separation, deviation and seditions. 5. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers that the Prophet (S) said, ‘Allah the Almighty says: O son of Adam,
you are not fair to Me. I endear Myself to you through blessings and you make
yourself hated through sins. My good comes down to you and your evil comes up
to Me. Every day and night an honorable angel comes to Me bringing ugly deeds
from you. O son of Adam, if you hear your description from other than you while
you do not know who the described one is, you will soon hate him…’[82] The tradition invites people to do
good deeds and avoids the deeds that Allah hates, because every deed goes up to
Allah. Allah has said, (To Him do ascend the good words; and the good
deeds…)[83] and He rewards His people due to
their deeds in the worldly life. 6. Imam Abul Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.)
narrated from his fathers that the Prophet (S) said, ‘My daughter was named 7. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers from his grandfather Imam al-Baqir (a.s.) that Jabir bin Abdullah
al-Ansari said, ‘Once I was with the Prophet (S). I was at his side and Ali
Amir’ul- Mu’minin at the other side when Umar bin al-Khattab came drawing some
man from the collars. The Prophet (S) asked Umar, ‘What is the matter with this
man?’ Umar said, ‘He narrated that you had said: ‘He, who says “there is no god
but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah” will be in 8. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers from his grandfather Imam Ali (a.s.) that the Prophet (S) said, ‘O
Ali, Allah has created me and you from His light. He created Adam and put that
light into Adam. This light reached to Abdul Muttalib and then it divided and
so I was in Abdullah and you were in Abu Talib. Prophethood does not befit
anyone other than me and guardianship does not befit anyone other than you.
Whoever denies your guardianship denies my prophethood and whoever denies my
prophethood Allah will throw him down on his nose into Fire…’[87] Allah created Prophet Muhammad
(a.s.) and his guardian Imam Ali (a.s.) from one light and then they
illuminated intellectual and social life and liberated the earth from idolatry
and superstitions of the pre-Islamic era. They were but one self. Whoever
denied the guardianship of Imam Ali (a.s.) denied the prophethood of Prophet
Muhammad (a.s.) and will have no share in the afterlife and will be among
losers. 9. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers that the Prophet (S) had said to Imam Ali (a.s.), ‘O Ali, he, who
loves you, loves me, and he, who hates you, hates me.’ There are many prophetic traditions
declaring that the love of Imam Ali (a.s.) is out of the love of the Prophet
(S) and the hatred towards Imam Ali (a.s.) is out of the hatred of the Prophet
(S) because Imam Ali (a.s.) was the very self of the Prophet (S), the gate of
the town of his knowledge, the father of his two grandsons, and his defender in
all situations and battles. 10. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated
from his fathers from his grandfather Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) that the Prophet
(S) said, ‘He, who likes to meet Allah (on the Day of Resurrection) safe,
purified, and without fearing the great horror, let him follow you O Ali, and
follow your two sons al-Hasan and al-Husayn, and (your grandsons) Ali bin
al-Husayn, Muhammad bin Ali, Ja’far bin Muhammad, Musa bin Ja’far, Ali bin
Musa, Muhammad bin Ali, Ali bin Muhammad, al-Hasan bin Ali, and al-Mahdi the
last of them. O Ali, at the end of time there will be a group of people
following you where people will hate them, but if they love them it will be
better for them if they know. They (that group) will prefer you to their
fathers, mothers, brothers, tribes, and all relatives. The best blessings of
Allah be upon them. Those people will be resurrected under the banner of Hamd
(praise). Allah will forgive their bad deeds and exalt their positions as
reward for what they have done.’[88] 11. He narrated that the Prophet (S)
said, ‘People (after death) are of two kinds; one will rest and the other will
relieve (others). One, who will rest, is a believer. He will be free from this
world with all its troubles and will go to the mercy of Allah and His great
reward. As for the one, who will relieve, is a dissolute. People, animals, and
trees will be relieved from him and he will go to what he has done.’[89] His narrations from Amir’ul-
Mu’minin Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated a good
collection of maxims and sayings from his grandfather Amir’ul- Mu’minin, the
pioneer of wisdom and justice in the earth. Here are some of them: 1. He narrated that Amir’ul-
Mu’minin Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘Beware of wishes because they are from the
wares of the dissolute ones.’[90] Islam resists all means that lead to
backwardness and deterioration. Among these means is the relying on wishing and
giving up work and labor, which means the end of progress and development in
life. 2. He narrated that Amir’ul-
Mu’minin said, ‘He, who busies himself thinking of the afterlife, will be rich
with no money, feel at ease with no family, and feel mighty with no fellows.’[91] One, who cares for the affairs of
the afterlife, will be rich with his piety and religiousness, will be happy
because he satisfies his conscience through associating with his Creator, and
will be respectable and honorable among people by his benevolence and piety. 3. He narrated that Amir’ul-
Mu’minin said, ‘Knowledge is a worthy inheritance, morals are graceful
garments, pondering is a clear mirror, and taking lessons is a sincere warner.
It suffices for you to have good manners by giving up what you hate of others.’[92] 4. He narrated that Imam Ali (a.s.)
said, ‘Whoever feels conceited will perish.’[93] 5. He narrated from Amir’ul- Mu’minin
his saying, ‘He, who is certain of recompense (from Allah), will give
generously.’[94] 6. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, “Once,
a Jew came to Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) and said to him, ‘Tell me about that
which is not of Allah, that which Allah does not have, and that which Allah
does not know!’ Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘What Allah
does not know is that He does not know (accept) that He has a child. This
refutes your (the Jews’) saying that Uzayr is the son of Allah. As for that
which is not of Allah, it is injustice because there is no injustice with Allah
against His people. And as for your saying about that which Allah does not
have, it is that Allah has no partner.’ The Jew was astonished and became
Muslim. He declared the shahada and then said to Imam Ali (a.s.), ‘I bear
witness that you are the truth, from the people of truth, and have said the
truth.’[95] Imam Ali was the gate of the town of
the Prophet’s knowledge. If he was given his right (in the caliphate), he would
have given verdicts to the people of the Bible from their Bible, to the people
of the Psalms (Zabur) from their Psalms, and to the people of the Torah from
their Torah. He often said that if the caliphate had come to him after the
death of the Prophet (S), every Jew or Christian would have turned Muslim and
followed the path of the truth. 7. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers that a man from Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘O sheikh (old
man), yes, it is. By Allah, you do not mount a castle or descend into a valley
unless it has been determined by the fate of Allah.’ The man said, ‘I expect the reward
of my efforts from Allah O Amir’ul- Mu’minin.’ Imam Ali (a.s.) explained fate by
saying, ‘O sheikh, wait! You may think it is inevitable fate and inescapable
doom! If it is so, then reward and punishment, enjoining and forbidding,
scolding, warning and threatening will be void, and a bad doer will not to be
blamed and a good doer will not be rewarded. A good doer will be worthier of
being blamed than a guilty one, and a guilty one will be worthier of reward
than a good doer. This opinion is of idolaters, enemies of Allah, fatalists,
and the magi. O sheikh, Allah the Almighty has charged His people but has given
them the option to do or not to do, and forbidden them as warning. He gives
much for a little. He is not disobeyed out of defeat and He is not obeyed by
force. He has not created the heavens, the earth, and what is between them in
vain. That is the opinion of those who disbelieve, and woe unto those who
disbelieve from the Fire…’ The man got up reciting some verses
of poetry in which he praised Imam Ali (a.s.) and showed his satisfaction
regarding what Imam Ali said.[97] We shall discuss in detail the
subject of fate in the following chapter insha’Allah. 8. He narrated that Imam Ali (a.s.)
said, ‘Many are they, those inattentive people, who may weave a dress to wear,
but it becomes their shroud, and build a house to live in but it becomes the
place of their grave.’[98] His narrations from Imam al-Baqir He narrated from his grandfather
Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (a.s.) his saying, ‘Beware of the physiognomy of a
believer because he sees by the light of Allah.’ Then he recited this verse, (Lo!
therein verily are portents for those who read the signs).[99] His narrations from Imam as-Sadiq Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated many
traditions from his grandfather Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.). Here are some of them: 1. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) said, ‘There are three prayers that are not blocked from Allah the
Almighty; the prayer of a father for his child if he is dutiful to him or
against his child if he is undutiful to him, the prayer of an oppressed one
against his oppressor or for his (oppressed one’s) supporter, and the prayer of
a believer for his believing brother if he comforts him or against him if he
does not, when he is able to do that (to comfort him)…’[100] 2. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) said, ‘Keep to piety because it is the essence of religion which you
keep to and believe in Allah through it. It is that which Allah wants from
those who follow us.’[101] 3. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) said, ‘He, who does not practice taqiyyah (dissimulation) to keep us
safe from the villains of people, is not from us.’[102] The infallible Imams (a.s.) urged
their followers to act due to taqiyyah to spare their lives from the tyrannical
governments who killed the Shia without a bit of mercy. If taqiyyah had not
been legislated, none of the Shia and lovers of the Ahlul Bayt (s) would have
remained alive. 4. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) said, ‘There are three times at which du’a is not blocked from Allah the
Almighty; the du’a after the obligatory prayers, the du’a during the falling of
rain, and the du’a when one of the signs of Allah appears in His earth.’[103] Allah the Almighty likes to be
supplicated at these times and He has promised to respond to His suppliants as
He also responds to supplication in the holy shrines of the infallible Imams. 5. He said, “Once, a man came to
Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) and said to him, ‘I am bored with this life. Would you
please ask Allah for death to me?’ Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) said, ‘The price of
life is to obey and not to disobey. That you live long to obey is better for
you than to die and neither disobey nor obey.’” 6. He said, “Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.)
was asked to describe death and he said, ‘For the faithful death is sweeter
than breeze that a faithful smells and refreshes with it and all fatigue and
ends pain, and for the unbelievers it is like the stinging of snakes and
scorpions or even bitterer.’ It was said to him, ‘Some people say that death is
bitterer than sawing, cutting with scissors, stoning, and turning of millstones
on the pupils of eyes.’ Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) said, ‘Yes, it is so for some
unbelievers and sinners. Do you not see that some of them suffer these
severities? What they will meet after that will be much more severe. It is the
torment of the afterlife which will be much more severe than the torment in
this life.’ It was said to him, ‘Then, why do we see some unbelievers die
easily while talking and laughing, and some believers too, and we see some
believers and unbelievers suffer much when dying?’ Imam As-Sadiq (a.s.) said, ‘The easy
death of a believer is an early reward for him, and when he suffers at death,
he is purified from his sins in order to be pure and then to deserve the
eternal reward in the afterlife. The easy death of some unbelievers is that
they are given the reward of their good deeds in this world and in the
afterworld they will have torment. And if some unbelievers suffer at death, it
is the beginning of the torment of Allah on them. Allah is just and He does not
wrong.’[104] 7. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) explained the saying of Prophet Jacob (a.s.) “Comely patience!” by
saying, ‘It is the patience that one undergoes without complaining.’[105] 8. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) interpreted this Qur’anic verse (Their sides draw away from
(their) beds)[106] by saying, ‘They did not sleep until
they offer the Isha’ (evening) prayer.’[107] 9. He narrated that Imam as-Sadiq
(a.s.) said in interpreting this Qur’anic verse (…We will most certainly
make him live a happy life),[108] ‘It means satisfaction.’ His narrations from Imam Musa bin
Ja’far Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated from
his fathers that his grandfather Imam Musa bin Ja’far al-Kadhim (a.s.) said,
‘Allah created creation and knew what they would be. He enjoined them to do
some things and forbade them from doing other things. He gave them a way to do
what He enjoined them to do and gave them a way to refrain from what He forbade
them from. He forced no one of His creation to disobey but He tried them with
misfortunes as He had said, (He may try you; which of you is best in
deeds).[109]’ In this tradition, Imam al-Kadhim
(a.s.) refuted the concept of “compulsion” which we shall discuss in one of the
coming chapters. His narrations from Imam ar-Ridha Imam Abul Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.)
narrated from his grandfather Imam Ali bin Musa ar-Ridha (a.s.) that one day
Abu Hanifah was with Imam Ja’far as-Sadiq (a.s.) and when he went out, he met
Imam Musa Bin Ja’far al-Kadhim (a.s.) and asked him, ‘O boy, from whom does
disobedience come?’ Imam Musa al-Kadhim (a.s.) replied,
‘It is one of three; it either comes from Allah the Almighty - and certainly
not - and it does not behoove the Generous Lord to punish His slave for
something he does not do, or from Allah and man - and it does not - and it does
not behoove the mighty partner to oppress the weak partner, or from man - and
it does - and if Allah punishes him, it will be for his guilt, and if He
forgives him, it will be out of His generosity and munificence.’[110] In this tradition the Imam (a.s.)
refuted the concept of “compulsion” and showed that man is free in this life.
He is forced neither to obey nor to disobey. His will makes him free to choose
whatever he likes. Referring Obscure Traditions to the
Ahlul Bayt Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) ordered his
followers to be certain about the traditions narrated from the infallible Imams
of the Ahlul Bayt (s). If they were certain that those traditions had come from
the infallible Imams and they understood their contents, they should act
according to them; otherwise, they should refer them to the Imams to verify and
explain them. Once, Dawud bin Farqad al-Farisi
said in a letter he sent to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.), ‘We ask you about the
knowledge transmitted to us from your fathers and grandfathers. There is some
contradiction in them. How do we act due to them with this contradiction?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied to him,
‘If you are certain it is our saying, you act upon it, otherwise, you refer it
to us.’[111] He ordered his followers to refer
such traditions to the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (s) so that they would show
whether they were theirs or fabricated. Contradictory traditions Al-Himyari wrote to Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) asking about contradictory traditions and how to act upon them. Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) replied to him, ‘He, who clings to the head of a spring, his
affairs will not be confused because they come out white and pure.’ Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) meant that whoever associated with the Imam directly nothing would
be confused to him because he would take facts from their origin and source. When al-Himyari read this reply, he
wrote to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.), ‘How can we get to the head as it is blocked
between us and it (him)?’ Al-Himyari meant that there was no way for people to
contact with Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) because of the political pressure and severe
punishment the government followed against the Shia who contacted with the
infallible Imams (a.s.). Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied, ‘The
truth is available for whoever sincerely seeks it…’[112] Jurisprudence Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) paid a lot of
attention to the spreading of the principles of the Islamic Sharia, the
explaining of its verdicts, and the teachings of its sciences. Jurisprudents
and scholars gathered around him acquiring from the springs of his knowledge
and recording his traditions that were of the sources of the Islamic rulings to
the Twelver Shia. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was the
unequalled jurisprudent of his age, to a degree that even al-Mutawakkil, the
Abbasid caliph, who was one of the bitterest enemies to the Alawids, referred
to him in complicated questions and preferred his fatwas to those of other
jurisprudents. Here we mention some traditions of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) that
Shiite jurisprudents refer to in deriving legal verdicts; Washing the Dead Ahmad bin al-Qassim wrote a letter
to Imam Abul Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.) asking if a believer died and a washer wanted
to wash the corpse (perform the ritual ghusl of the dead) while there were some
Murjites[113] present whether the washer would
wash the corpse of the believer in the way like the other (sects of) Muslims
did without putting a turban on his head and without putting a palm branch with
him or not. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied, ‘He should perform the ghusl of
believer even if they are present. As for the palm branch, it should be put
secretly and he (the washer) should try his best not to let them see him do
that.’[114] This tradition showed clearly that a
dead believer should be washed according to the way of the Ahlul Bayt (s)
paying no attention to the Murjites. It also instructed to place palm branches
with the corpse secretly due to taqiyyah. There are many traditions about the
recommendation of putting two green palm branches with a dead believer, or else
some branches of trees other than palm-tree. One of these traditions is the one
narrated by Ali bin Bilal from Imam al-Hadi (a.s.), on which jurisprudents
depend upon in deriving their fatwa.[115] Offering Prayers in (clothes of) Fur Shiite jurisprudents specify certain
conditions of one’s clothing, when offering prayers (Salat) for the validity of
the prayer, such as their purity and their not being illegally obtained. They
depend in these rulings on valid traditions transmitted from the Imams of the
Ahlul Bayt (s). Ali bin Eesa wrote to Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) asking about the permissibility of offering the prayer with clothes of
fur of the animals whose meat is unlawful to eat, and Imam al-Hadi (a.s.)
replied to him saying, ‘I do not like offering the prayer in any of these
furs.’ He wrote again to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) saying that he lived among people
such that he had to practice taqiyyah with them and that no one could travel in
his country without clothes of fur, and he feared that he would be harmed if he
put off his fur clothing. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied to him, ‘You wear fur of
fennec and beaver.’[116] This tradition permitted offering
prayer with clothes of the fur of fennec and beaver when one is obliged. Offering prayers with man’s hair There are many traditions from the
infallible Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) showing the impermissibility of
prayer with fur of animals whose meat is unlawful to eat, like cats, for
example. Of course, this does not include man’s hair. Once, ar-Rayyan bin as-Salt asked
Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) about the permissibility of offering prayer with a garment
on which some hair or nail of man were present and Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said to
him that it was permissible.[117] Passing before a prayer Twelver Shia jurisprudents believe
that prayer is not invalidated when someone passes in front of one who is
offering prayer. They depend in that on a tradition narrated by Abu Sulayman
from Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) in which a man asked him (Imam al-Hadi) whether prayer
would be invalidated if someone passed in front of one during offering his
prayer and Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘No, prayer is not so simply invalidated.
It is accepted from its keeper.’[118] Offering prayers in the desert Ali bin Mahziyar asked Imam Abul
Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.), ‘If someone is in the desert when the time of obligatory
prayer comes and he cannot get out of the desert before the time of prayer
elapses, what should he do with his prayer since it is forbidden to offer
prayer in the desert?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘He can offer prayer in the
desert but he should avoid roads.’[119] It is
unrecommended (makruh) to offer prayers in the middle of roads whether they are
busy with people or empty, and if one troubles the passers-by when offering
prayer in the middle of roads, prayer is unlawful in this case.[120] Prostrating on glass Shia jurisprudents have agreed that
prostration in prayer must be performed on the earth or what is grown from the
earth.[121] They have not permitted prostration
on things which are eatable or wearable and they have prohibited prostration on
glass. They depend in all these claims on traditions narrated from the Imams of
the Ahlul Bayt (s). Muhammad bin al-Husayn said, ‘One of
our companions wrote a letter to Imam Abul Hasan (a.s.) asking about
prostrating on glass. He said, ‘When I sent my letter, I thought to myself and
said: it (glass) is from that which is grown from the earth and I did not have
to ask about it. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to me, ‘Do not offer prayer on glass
even if your self says to you it is grown from the earth because it is from
salt and sand which are changed.’[122] An Unconscious Person is not to
Reoffer Prayer Jurisprudents say a mukallaf[123] must not be unconscious when prayers are required from him. If a
mukallaf is unconscious from the beginning of the time of charging to the end,
he is not charged with prayers neither ada’ nor qadha’.[124] They depend on many traditions of the infallible Imams (a.s.). Ali bin Mahziyar asked Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) about the unconscious and he said, ‘An unconscious one has neither to
offer qadha’ prayer nor to perform qadha’ fasting. Allah is worthier of
pardoning him.’[125] Ayyub bin Noah wrote to him asking
about one who was unconscious for a day or a little more whether he had to
offer qadha’ prayers or not. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to him, ‘He has to offer
neither prayers nor fasting.’[126] Offering qasr’ prayer in the journey
to Twelver Shia jurisprudents make
conditions on qasr prayer such that qasr prayers should be prayed while
traveling except if traveling is one’s job, like drivers, sailors, shepherds
and the like. Such persons offer tamam (full) prayer in travel. A traveling job
depends on one’s will, and practice of travel a time after another in a way
that there is no unusual break in it. Travelers who take pilgrims to the hajj
every year are not permitted to offer full prayer but they must offer qasr
(shortened) prayer.[127] Muhammad bin Jazzak said, ‘I wrote
to Abul Hasan the Third (Imam al-Hadi) that I had some camels and had employees
on them (to travel in caravans), but I did not go except in the way of Khums Khums (one fifth) is one of the
Islamic taxes that Islam has imposed to fight poverty, spread culture, develop
intellect, and revive Islamic sciences. Khums is obligatory on the profits of
trades, industries, and other kinds of work that are more than one and his
family’s expenditure of one year as it is mentioned in the books of
jurisprudence. Jurisprudents depend in this on the traditions transmitted from
the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (s). In al-Kafi it has been mentioned
that Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Hamadani said, “I wrote to Abul Hasan (al-Hadi)
(a.s.) saying, ‘Ali bin Mahziyar read to me your father’s letters in which he
imposed (a tax of) a half of the sixth on the owners of small villages after
deducting the costs, and one, whose village income does not cover the costs,
does not have to pay a half of the sixth or anything else. Some people
disagreed on this and said, ‘The khums must be paid from the income of
villages after deducting the costs of the village and the tax taken on it by
the government and not the expenditure of one and his family.’ Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) wrote replying, ‘After deducting his and his family’s expenditure and
after the tax of the government.’[129] Ali bin Mahziyar narrated that Ali
bin Muhammad bin Shuja’ an-Naysaburi said to Abul Hasan the Third, ‘Some man
got from his farm one hundred kurrs[130] of wheat which included zakat. The tenth, which was ten kurrs, was
taken, thirty kurrs were spent on repairing the farm, and sixty kurrs remained
for him. What must be paid to you (as khums) from that?...’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.)
wrote, ‘For me is the khums (fifth) of what remains after deducting his (the
owner’s) expenditure (of a year).’[131] Jurisprudents have depended on these
traditions in providing verdicts that khums is obligatory on whatever remains
from the expenditure of a year. Jurisprudential books and practical theses have
discussed this matter in details. Zakat Zakat is one of the effective
programs Islam has established in its economic system. It is one of the
wonderful means that pluck out the roots of poverty and wretchedness in
society. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked about some branches of zakat and he gave
answers to them where jurisprudents depended and still depend on in deriving
legal verdicts. Among the conditions jurisprudents
make on the deserving of zakat is that one, who deserves to be given zakat,
must be a believer. Unbelievers are not to be given from the zakat. It was
narrated that Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked whether it was permissible to give
those, who believed in embodiment (of God), from the zakat or not and he said,
‘Do not give whoever believes in embodiment from the zakat and do not offer
prayer behind him!’[132] Of course, there is no specification
for those who believe in embodiment and so this prevention from zakat includes
every unbeliever who does not believe in Allah and the Day of Resurrection. Jurisprudents say that one who is
given from zakat is not to be from those whose expense is on the giver of the
zakat like father or grandfather, children or grandchildren. However, al-Kulayni
mentioned in al-Kafi that Isma’il bin Imran al-Qummi said, ‘I wrote to Abul
Hasan the Third that I had male and female children and asked him whether I
could give them from the zakat or not. He wrote to me that I could.’ The sheikh
(at-Tusi) in at-Tahthibayn thought this tradition to concern the case of this
man, and his like, whose money did not satisfy the expenditure of his family.[133] There is no limitation to the money
given to the poor from zakat except the zakat al-fitr.[134] One of the Shia wrote to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) through Ahmad bin Isaaq
asking him, ‘Can I give my brothers two or three dirhams from the zakat?’ Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to him, ‘You can do so, insha’Allah.’[135] The first kind of zakat legislated
in Islam was the zakat al-Fitr which jurisprudents called the zakat of bodies.
It is obligatory on all people; faithful and unfaithful, old and young, male and
female. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Hamadani saying,
‘The zakat al-Fitr is (obligatory) on you and on all people and whoever you are
responsible for whether male or female, old or young, free or slave, suckling
or weaned. You pay six rotls according to the rotl of Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Hamadani
said, ‘Traditions were different on the zakat al-Fitr and so I wrote to Abul
Hasan asking him about that and he wrote to me saying, ‘The (amount of) zakat
al-Fitr is a sa’[137] of the usual food in your country.
On the people of Mecca, Yemen, Ta’if, the sides of Sham, Yamama, Bahrain, Iraq,
Persia, Ahwaz, and Kirman is a sa’ of dates, on the people of the middle of
Sham a sa’ of raisin, on the people of the island, Mosul, and all mountains a
sa’ of wheat or barley, on the people of Tabaristan a sa’ of rice, on the
people of KhurHasan a sa’ of wheat, on the people of Marw and Riy a sa’ of
raisin, on the people of Egypt a sa’ of wheat, and on other peoples is a sa’ of
their usual foods. On the nomads of the desert is a sa’ of uqt (dried cheese).
The zakat al-Fitr is obligatory on you and on all people.’[138] The substance of the zakat al-Fitr
is to be from the usual food of the people of a country like wheat or barley
for example. The obligatory amount of this kind of zakat is one sa’ which is
about three kilograms. One can pay money instead of food substances as
jurisprudents say. Fasting Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked about
many questions about fasting and he answered them in traditions transmitted by
his followers. Fasting on seeing the crescent The surest way of ascertaining the
beginning of Ramadan is the sighting of the crescent. Whoever sees the
crescent, whether alone or with others, must fast. Ali bin Rashid narrated from Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) his saying, ‘Do not fast except on the sighting (of the
crescent).’[139] Jurisprudents believe in the
impermissibility of fasting with the intention of obligation when the sighting
of the crescent of Ramadan is not proved. Fasting of a suckling mother Ali bin Mahziyar wrote to Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) asking him, ‘There is some woman who suckles her son or other
than her son in the month of Ramadan. She suffers much in her fasting. She
suckles until she faints and cannot fast. Does she suckle her child and breaks
her fast and instead keep it later if she is able, or does she give up suckling
in order to fast? If she cannot hire some woman to suckle her child, what does
she do?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to him
saying, ‘If she can hire a wet nurse for her child, she may do and keep her
fasts; otherwise, she breaks fasting and continues suckling her child and
performs her fasting later on whenever she is able to.’[140] Jurisprudents depend on this
tradition in giving a fatwa that a suckling mother, whose milk is little, is
permitted not to fast in Ramadan if her fasting harms her child and she cannot
hire a wet nurse. Expiation (kaffara) of specified
fasts Al-Husayn bin Ubayda wrote to Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) saying, ‘O my master, some man vowed to fast on a certain day,
but he slept with his wife on that day. What expiation is on him?’ Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) replied to him, ‘He has to fast for one day instead of that day and set
free a slave.’[141] In the light of this tradition, jurisprudents
say that the kaffara of breaking one’s specified fast is the same as the
kaffara of breaking one’s oath which is the freeing of a slave, or feeding ten
needy persons, or giving them clothes, and if he cannot do that, he must fast
for three days. Trade Narrators transmitted from Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) many questions about trade, which jurisprudents depend on in
deriving their fatwas. Here are some of them: Prohibition of working with the
unjust Since the Abbasid rulers were unjust
and oppressive, work with them was unlawful as the Shia believed. Muhammad bin
Ali bin Eesa wrote to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) asking whether the work for the
Abbasids and taking from their monies was permissible or not. Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) said, ‘That which happens by force and subjection is pardoned by Allah,
otherwise, it is hated. There is no doubt that the little of it is better than
the excess. The expiation of that is that one does what may delight us and our
followers.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said in his
reply that Allah did not punish one, who worked for the Abbasids, if his work
was by force and subjection, but if it was by one’s will, it would be hated -
or it might mean forbidden here. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said that the expiation on
one who worked with the Abbasids was to delight the Ahlul Bayt (s) by carrying
out the needs of the faithful and the poor and saving them from misfortunes and
oppression (of the government). Jurisprudents mentioned many traditions in
their studies on “working with tyrants”.[142] When the letter of Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) came to Muhammad bin Ali bin Eesa, he wrote to the Imam, ‘I want to work
with them to cause them trouble and to take revenge on them through being close
to them.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied, ‘Whoever does so his work is not
unlawful, but rather he will be rewarded (by Allah).’[143] Renting 1. Muhammad bin Eesa al-Yaqtini
wrote to Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) saying to him, ‘Someone sent his son to some man
to work for him as a busheler for one year and for specified wage. Then another
man came to the father and asked him for employing the son for one year but
more wage. Does the father have the right to send his son to the second man and
is it permissible for him to annul his agreement with the first man?’ Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote to him that the father had to fulfill his agreement with
the first man except if his son became ill or weak.[144] 2. Muhammad bin Isaaq said, “I
wrote to Abul Hasan (peace be upon him) saying, ‘Some man rented a farm from
another man. Then, the lessor sold the farm in the presence of the tenant who
did not deny the sale, but rather he was present and as a witness. Then the
buyer died and left some heirs. Does that property go into the inheritance or
it remains in the hand of the tenant until the period of renting ends?’ Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote, ‘until the period of renting ends.’[145] 3. Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Hamadani
said, ‘I wrote to Abul Hasan (a.s.) asking him about some woman who rented out
her land for ten years on the condition that the rent was to be given at the
end of every year. Nothing of the rent would be given to her except after the
end of every year. Before (or after) three years, the woman died. Should her
heirs carry out the renting to the specified period, or would the renting
condition be invalidated by the death of the woman?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote,
‘If the renting had a specified time that did not end when the woman died, then
the heirs would have the right to determine on the renting condition, and if a
third or a half or some period of renting has passed, then the heirs could
decide on the remaining period of renting insha’Allah.’[146] Jurisprudents disagreed on renting
whether it would be invalid or not by the death of the lessor or the tenant.
Some of them said it would not be invalid and some others said it would be
invalid since the death of the lessor and not from the beginning. They relied
in that on this saying of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.). Entailment Ali bin Mahziyar said, ‘I wrote to
Abul Hasan the Third (a.s.) that I had entailed a piece of land to my children,
hajj, and other ways of charity, and you have a right from it after me and for
me after you, but I changed it from this way.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘You
are free from any blame and permitted to do so.’[147] Sheikh al-Hurr al-Aamili understood
from this tradition that the change here took place before receiving the
entailment. It is also possible that the entailment here might mean “will”
because he said “after me”[148] in order not to contradict entailment, which, if it takes place with its
correct conditions, becomes inevitable and cannot be renounced. Foods Once, Ayyub bin Noah asked Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) about buffalo. He said, ‘The people of Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) replied to him saying, ‘Have you not heard the saying of Allah, (And
two of camels and two of cows)[149]?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) refuted this
spuriousness and proved that the buffalo was a kind of cow and not a
metamorphosed animal. Judgment Ja'far bin Eesa said, ‘I wrote to
Abul Hasan (al-Hadi) (a.s.) asking that, if a woman dies and her father claims
that he has lent her some things and some slaves, is his claim accepted without
evidence?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied that the
father’s claim might be accepted without evidence. I also wrote to him, ‘If the
husband of the dead woman, or his father or mother claim, like her father does,
that they have lent her some things or some slaves, are they considered like
her father in the claim?’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote, ‘No…’[150] Penalties 1. Al-Hasan bin Ali bin Shu’bah
narrated that Abul Hasan the Third (a.s.) said, ‘As for a man who confesses
sodomy, if there is no evidence proved against him, but he willingly confesses
his guilt against himself, and if the Imam, who is from Allah, is to punish on
behalf of Allah, he can pardon on behalf of Allah. Have you not heard the
saying of Allah, (This is Our free gift, therefore give freely or
withhold without reckoning)?’[151] This tradition shows clearly that a
legal Imam, who is appointed by Allah, may pardon whoever confesses sodomy
against himself, though he has the right to punish for that. However, if one is
proved by clear evidence that he has committed sodomy, the Imam is not to
pardon him. 2. Ja'far bin Rizqillah said, ‘Some
Christian man, who committed adultery with a Muslim woman, was brought to
al-Mutawakkil, the Abbasid caliph, in order to be punished. When the caliph wanted
to punish the man, the man converted to Islam. Yahya bin Aktham said, ‘His
faith (in Islam) cancelled his polytheism and sin.’ Some other person said, ‘He
is to be punished with three penalties.’ Another one said, ‘He is to be
punished with so-and-so.’ Then, al-Mutawakkil ordered his men
to ask Imam Abul Hasan (al-Hadi) about his opinion on the matter and the Imam
said, ‘He (the sinner) is to be hit until he dies.’ Yahya and the rest of
jurisprudents denied this fatwa and asked al-Mutawakkil to write to Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) and ask him for the evidence he depended on in his fatwa. Al-Mutawakkil wrote to Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) and Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied, ‘But when they saw Our
punishment, they said: We believe in Allah alone and we deny what we used to
associate with Him. But their faith could not avail them when they saw Our
doom. This is Allah's law which hath ever taken course for His bondmen. And
then the disbelievers will be ruined).’[152] Then, al-Mutawakkil ordered the
sinner to be hit and he was hit until he died.’[153] Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) depended on the
Book of Allah in issuing his fatwa that made al-Mutawakkil and the
jurisprudents feel astonished at his abundant knowledge. Disbelief of the Excessive The Shia unanimously believe that
the excessive are unfaithful and impure and so it is permissible to kill them.
It was narrated that Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said to one of his companions, ‘If you
see one of them (the excessive) alone, you break his head with a stone.’[154] We shall talk in details about them in one of the coming chapters. We
have mentioned above a few examples of Imam al-Hadi’s jurisprudence. The
questions he was asked showed that he was the highest authority of fatwas in
the Islamic world at his time and he had great scientific treasures of
knowledge in the Islamic laws. Theological Arguments At the age of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.)
many doubts and illusions spread about the basics of Islam. The beginning was
during the Umayyad rule that paved the way for the spread of deviant and
misguiding thoughts and concepts. The Umayyads encouraged those misguiding
cultures which spread more strongly during the Abbasid rule. Muslim ulama’, at
the head of whom were the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (s), resisted and confuted
the atheistic opinions and thoughts using irrefutable, scientific evidences.
All these are recorded in the books of “argumentation” written by Shia scholars
to prove the struggle of their Imams in supporting Islam and fighting against
disbelief and atheism. Here we mention some examples transmitted from Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) in this concern. The Impossibility of Seeing Allah Ahmad bin Isaaq wrote to Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) asking him about (the possibility of) seeing Allah and
what people said in this regard. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) replied, ‘seeing is not
possible if there is no air (space) between the seer and the seen thing through
which sight goes through. If there is no air and no light between the seer and
the seen thing, there will be no sight. When the seer equals the seen thing in
the cause of sight between them, sight takes place, but those who compare the
seer (man) to Allah, they are mistaken because they liken Allah to man…for
effects must relate to causes.’[155] Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) proves the
impossibility of seeing where there is no air (space) and light, because the
eye sees through these two means; air and light, otherwise, seeing is
impossible and these two powers cannot see Allah the Almighty because they are
limited possibilities that cannot see the great power that created and managed
these amazing worlds and universes with all their wonders. The system of seeing sees things
when they equal the seer in the possible aspect of seeing, and if there is no
equality between them, there will be no sight. Prophet Moses tried his best to
see Allah; (And when Musa came at Our appointed
time and his Lord spoke to him, he said: My Lord! show me (Thyself), so that I
may look upon Thee. He said: You cannot (bear to) see Me but look at the
mountain, if it remains firm in its place, then will you see Me; but when his
Lord manifested His glory to the mountain He made it crumble and Musa fell down
in a swoon; then when he recovered, he said: Glory be to Thee, I turn to Thee,
and I am the first of the believers).[156] Prophet Moses (a.s.) received the
words of Allah and his soul longed and wished to see his Lord, but he forgot
who and what he was when he asked for that which no human being in the earth
was allowed or could bear this great seeing. However, Prophet Moses (a.s.) was
occupied by his great longing and forced by wish until the decisive words of
Allah woke him up, (You cannot (bear to) see Me). Then the Great
Creator pitied His prophet and taught him why he could not see Him, (but
look at the mountain, if it remains firm in its place, then you will see Me). The
mountain is firmer and more fixed, though less sensitive and responsive than
man but nevertheless, (when his Lord manifested His glory to the mountain
He made it crumble). Prophet Moses (a.s.) understood the awe of the
situation and fell in a swoon, and when he woke up, said, (Glory be to
Thee, I turn to Thee, and I am the first of the believers).[157] See how Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) spoke
with his Lord with these bright words, showing the extent of his recognition of
Allah the Almighty: ‘O my Lord, thoughts of thinkers went astray,
sights of seers fell short, descriptions of describers dissipated, sayings of
fabricators vanished before the wonders of Your affair, or the reach to Your
highness, for You are in the unreachable place, and no eye can fall upon You
with a glance or expression. How far, and how far! O You the First, the Only,
the Unique! You have exalted in highness with the glory of greatness, and risen
up beyond every bottom and end with the omnipotence of pride…’[158] Impossibility of Embodiment It is impossible for the Necessary
Being to be described with features of embodiment because this is an aspect of
possible beings, which need, for their existence a cause, and for their
non-existence a cause, because they are created things. In many traditions Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) confuted those who believed in embodiment. Here are some of
these traditions: 1. As-Saqr bin Abu Dalf said, ‘I
asked Abul Hasan Ali bin Muhammad about monotheism and said to him that I
believed in that which Hisham bin al-Hakam believed. He believed in embodiment
before his guidance. The Imam (a.s.) became angry and said, ‘What do you have
to do with the saying (belief) of Hisham? He, who claims that Allah has a body,
is not from us and we are free from him in this world and in the afterworld. O
ibn Abu Dalf, body (substance) is created and it is Allah Who has created and
embodied it.’[159] 2. Hamza bin Muhammad said, ‘I wrote
to Abul Hasan (a.s.) asking him about the body and the shape (of Allah) and he
wrote to me, ‘Glory be to Him, Whom nothing is like neither in body nor in
shape.’[160] 3. Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Hamadani
narrated, ‘I wrote to the man (he meant Abul Hasan) saying to him, ‘With us
there are some of your followers who have disagreed on monotheism. Some of them
say (Allah is) “a body” and some say “shape”.’ He wrote saying, ‘Glory be to
Him Who can not be limited, and can not be described. Nothing is like Him and
He is the Hearing, the Knowing.’[161] It is impossible to describe Allah
the Almighty with the limits of the created things and it is impossible to
describe Him with multiplicity of aspects because His attributes are His very
essence as theologians have proved. Impossibility of Describing Allah Imam Abul Hasan al-Hadi (a.s.), in
his talk with al-Fatah bin Yazeed al-Jirjani, declared the impossibility of
describing the Wise Creator with any attribute that might cover his essence and
truth. He said, ‘The Creator is not described except with that which He Himself
had described Himself with. How can the Creator, Whom senses fail to conceive,
minds to arrive at, imaginations to contain, and sights to surround, be
described? Exalted is He above what describers
say, and glorified is He above what depicters describe. He is far in His
nearness, and near in His farness. He has adapted the “how” that it is not said
(for Him) how, and has adapted the “where” that it is not said (for Him) where.
He is out of how and where. He is Only, One, Eternal, Absolute. He
begetteth not, nor was begotten, and there is none comparable unto Him. Glory
be to Him. Or how is Muhammad (blessings be on him and on his progeny)
described in his essence where Allah the Sublime compared him with His own
name, participated him in His gift, and promised whoever obeyed him to be
rewarded for his obedience when He said, (and they did not find fault
except because Allah and His Messenger enriched them out of His grace)?[162] It relates the saying of those who
give up His obedience and He tortures them between the covers of Hellfire and
its garments of tar, (O would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the
Messenger).[163] Or how are those (the Ahlul Bayt),
whom Allah the Sublime compared their obedience with the obedience of His
messenger, described in their essence when He said, (O you who believe!
obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority from among you),[164] and (and if they had referred it to the Messenger and to those in
authority among them),[165] and, (Surely Allah commands you to make over trusts to their
owners),[166] and, (so ask the followers of
the reminder if you do not know)?[167] O Fatah, as Allah, glory be to Him,
the messenger, the guardian (Imam Ali), and the sons of Fatima (the infallible
Imams) can not be described, neither can a believer who believes and submits to
our matter be.’[168] The tradition shows the
impossibility of describing Allah in a way that expresses His very essence and
truth. It is the same for the Prophet (S) and the infallible Imams and even a
believer who loyally submits and believes in the Ahlul Bayt (s), for
descriptions fail to surround a believer’s noble tendencies and virtuous
qualities. Monotheism Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked about
the truth of monotheism and he said, ‘Allah the Almighty was still alone
nothing with Him, and then He created things skillfully, and chose names for
Himself. Names and words are still with Him since eternity. Allah was and is still existent.
Then He formed what He willed and nothing can repel His will or delay His
determination…’[169] Refuting of Compulsion and Free Will Perhaps one of the most wonderful
intellectual and scientific traditions transmitted from Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was
this letter that he sent to the people of Ahwaz (in Iran) in which he refuted
the concept of “compulsion” that the Ash’arites adopted and spread when they
said that man was compelled into his actions and he had no will or option. He
also refuted the concept of “free will” that the Mu’tazilites believed in
saying that Allah had authorized people in their actions due to their will and
there were no will or power over them. After refuting these two concepts, Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) proved with irrefutable, scientific proofs the concept of “the
matter between the two matters; a moderate concept between compulsion and free
will”, which was the concept adopted by the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (s) and by
their followers. This letter was one of the best discussions in this concern.
Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) wrote in this letter: ‘From Ali bin Muhammad, peace, mercy, and
blessings of Allah be upon you and upon whoever follows the guidance. Your
letter came to me and I understood what you mentioned of your disagreement in
your religion, your plunging in the matter of “fate”, the belief of some of you
in “compulsion”, and others in “free will”, and the disagreement, separation,
and enmity among you because of that. Then you asked me about that and to
explain it you. I understood all that… Know, may Allah have mercy on you,
that we looked up in the abundant traditions and news and we found, for all
Muslims who understand from Allah, them (traditions) not free from two
meanings; either truth that is to be followed or falsehood that is to be
avoided. The nation has agreed unanimously with no disagreement between them
that the Qur'an is the truth that has no doubt in it for Muslims of all sects. Their agreement is the proof of the
Book and that they are right and guided due to the saying of the messenger of
Allah (peace be upon him and on his progeny), “My nation does not agree on
deviation.” He told that what the entire nation agreed on is truth when no
group disagrees with another. The Qur'an is the truth that there is no
difference between them (Muslims) in its revelation and truthfulness. So when
the Qur'an witnesses the truthfulness of some news but a group of the nation
denies it, they should acknowledge it as a necessity, for basically the nation
has agreed unanimously on the truthfulness of the Qur'an, and if they deny,
this requires them to be out of the (Muslim) nation…’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) says in this
passage that Muslims must refer to the Qur'an, which falsehood shall not
approach from before it nor from behind it, in the matters they disagree on and
see that which agrees with the Qur'an is the truth and that which contradicts
it is falsehood. Whoever believes this falsehood will be out of Islam. He added, ‘The first news that is
proved, witnessed, and confirmed by the Book is the saying of the messenger of
Allah (SwT), ‘I leave to you the two weighty things; the Book of Allah and my
household. You shall not go astray as long as you keep to them. They shall not
separate until they shall come to me at the pond (in (Only Allah is your Vali and His
Messenger and those who believe, those who keep up prayers and pay the
poor-rate while they bow. And whoever takes Allah and His messenger and those
who believe for a guardian, then surely the party of Allah are they that shall
be triumphant).[170] All Muslim sects narrated traditions
that Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) had given his ring as charity while he was bowing
in prayer and Allah praised him for that and revealed this verse. We found the
messenger of Allah (SwT) saying, ‘Whoever I was his guardian, Ali is to be his
guardian’ and (addressing Imam Ali), ‘You are to me as was Aaron to Moses but
there will be no prophet after me’ and, ‘Ali repays my debts, carries out my
promises, and he is my caliph over you after me’… The tradition indicated clearly the
caliphate of Imam Ali (a.s.) after the Prophet (S) and that there was no one
worthier of the Prophet (S) than Imam Ali (a.s.), the pioneer of intellectual
and civilizational development in the earth.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) added, ‘The
first tradition, from which these traditions were derived, is a true tradition
that all Muslims have agreed on with no disagreement among them. It also
conforms to the Book. When the Book witnesses the truthfulness of these
traditions besides other evidences, then the nation has to acknowledge them as
a necessity, for their evidences are clear in the Qur'an and they conform to
the Qur'an and the Qur'an conforms to them. Moreover, the truth of these
traditions were transmitted from the messenger of Allah (SwT) through the
truthful (infallible Imams) and narrated by known, reliable people. Therefore, following these
traditions is obligatory on every believing man and believing woman, and no one
deviates except the obstinate. That is because the sayings of the messenger of
Allah (SwT) and his progeny are connected with the sayings of Allah, as in this
verse, (Surely (as for) those who speak
evil things of Allah and His Messenger, Allah has cursed them in this world and
the hereafter, and He has prepared for them a chastisement bringing disgrace).[171] We found the like of this verse in
this saying of the messenger of Allah (SwT), ‘He, who harms Ali, harms me, and
who harms me harms Allah, and whoever harms Allah is about to be revenged on
(by Allah)’[172] and his saying, ‘He, who loves Ali,
loves me, and who loves me, loves Allah’[173], and, ‘…in bani Wulay’ah…I will
send to them a man who is like myself. He loves Allah and His messenger and
Allah and His messenger love him. O Ali, get ready to march to them!’, and his
saying on the day of Khaybar, ‘Tomorrow, I will send to them a man who loves
Allah and His messenger, and Allah and His messenger love him. He is brave and
not a runaway. He shall not come back until he shall conquer by the will of
Allah.’[174] The messenger of Allah (SwT)
confirmed the conquer before the marching. The companions of the messenger of
Allah looked forward to that, but on the next day, the messenger of Allah (SwT)
sent for Ali and sent him at the head of the army. He singled him out with this
virtue and called him “brave and not a runaway”. Allah called him “a lover of
Allah and His messenger” and informed that Allah and His messenger loved him. We just introduced this explanation
as evidence and confirmation to what we want to say about the matter of
“compulsion and free will” and “the matter between the two matters”. We ask
Allah for help and assistance and on Him we rely in all our affairs. We begin
with the saying of Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.), ‘It is neither compulsion nor free
will but it is a position between the two positions. It is the soundness of
creation, freedom, enough time, equipment, and the cause that provokes a doer
towards his doing.’ These are five things with which Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.)
grouped the items of virtue. If someone lacks one of these items, obligations
are not required from him. Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) informed of the necessary thing
that people must know and the Book confirmed it. The clear verses of the Qur'an
and the messenger of Allah proved it. The messenger of Allah and his
progeny do not exceed by their sayings the limits of the Qur'an. If traditions
conform to the Qur'an and agree with its proofs, following them is obligatory
and no one violates them except the people of intransigence. When we pondered
on the saying of as-Sadiq about “the position between the two positions” and
his denying of “compulsion and free will”, we found the Book proving and
confirming his saying, besides that there was another saying by him confirming
the first one. Once, as-Sadiq was asked, ‘Has Allah forced His people to commit
sins?’ He said, ‘He (Allah) is more just than this.’ It was said to him, ‘Has
He, then, completely authorized them to do that (commit sins)?’ He said, ‘Allah
is mightier and more omnipotent over them than this.’ It was narrated that he said,
‘People, in fate, are of three kinds; one claims that people are authorized to
do as they like and thus he deems Allah weak in His authority, and this one
will perish. The other one claims that Allah forces people into sins and
charges them with what they are unable to do, and this one mistakes Allah and
he will perish. And one claims that Allah charges people with what they are
able to do and does not charge them with what they are unable to do, so when
this one does good, he thanks Allah and when he does wrong, he asks Allah to
forgive him and this is a true Muslim.’ As-Sadiq (a.s.) told that he, who
believed in “compulsion” or “free will”, opposed the truth. I have already
explained “compulsion” and “free will” and that whoever believed in them is
wrong, and therefore the truth is “the position between the two positions”…’ I give example on each topic to
explain the meaning for requesters and make research easier. These examples are
confirmed by the Qur’anic verses and proved true by men of understanding. We
ask Allah for success and perfection. ‘As for “compulsion”, it is the belief of those
who claim that Allah forces people into committing sins and disobediences and
then He punishes them for that. Whoever believes in this concept wrongs Allah,
falsifies Him and denies His saying, (and your Lord does not deal
unjustly with anyone)[175] and, (This is due to what your two hands have sent before, and
Allah is not in the least unjust to the servants)[176] and, (Surely Allah does not do any injustice to men, but men are
unjust to themselves)[177] besides many other verses regarding this. He, who claims he is forced
into disobedience, ascribes his sins to Allah and considers Allah as unjust in
punishing him. Whoever considers Allah as unjust
denies His Book, and whoever denies His Book must be an unbeliever due to the
consensus of the nation. The example of this is like the example of a man
having a slave, who neither possesses himself nor does he have any property at
all. The lord knows this about his slave; nevertheless, he orders the slave to
go to the market to bring him something but without giving him the price of
that thing. The lord knows well that that something has an owner that no one
can take that thing from him except after paying the price. The lord of the
slave considers himself as just, fair, wise, and free from any kind of
injustice. He threatens his slave with
punishment if he does not bring him that thing, though he knows well that no
one can take that thing except after paying its price and the slave does not
have the price. When the slave comes back to his lord unsuccessfully, his lord
becomes angry at him and punishes him. If the lord is just and fair in his judgment,
he should not punish his slave; otherwise, he shall be considered as unjust and
oppressive, and if he does not punish his slave, he shall contradict himself
and be a liar for he has threatened his slave with punishment. So lying and
oppression contradict justice and wisdom. High Exalted is He above what they
say! ‘Whoever believes in “compulsion” or in what
leads to “compulsion” considers Allah as unjust and oppressive if He punishes
those whom He forces into committing sins. Whoever claims that Allah forces His
people into their doings must say that Allah should not punish them, and
whoever claims that Allah does not punish sinners denies Allah when He says, (Yea, whoever earns evil and his
sins beset him on every side, these are the inmates of the fire; in it they
shall abide)[178] and, ((As for) those who
swallow the property of the orphans unjustly, surely they only swallow fire
into their bellies and they shall enter burning fire)[179] and, ((As for) those who
disbelieve in Our communications, We shall make them enter fire; so oft as
their skins are thoroughly burned, We will change them for other skins, that
they may taste the chastisement; surely Allah is Mighty, Wise)[180] and many other sayings in different
verses. Thus, whoever denies the threat of Allah must be an unbeliever and be
one of those about whom Allah has said, (Do you then believe in a part of
the Book and disbelieve in the other? What then is the reward of such among you
who do this but disgrace in the life of this world, and on the day of
resurrection they shall be sent back to the most grievous chastisement, and
Allah is not at all heedless of what you do).[181] We say that Allah the Almighty
rewards people for their doings and punishes them for their doings that they do
with their will and ability He has given to them. He has enjoined them to do
some things and forbidden them from doing some other things. He says in His
Book, (Whoever brings a good deed, he
shall have ten like it, and whoever brings an evil deed, he shall be
recompensed only with the like of it, and they shall not be dealt with
unjustly)[182] and, (On the day that every
soul shall find present what it has done of good and what it has done of evil,
it shall wish that between it and that (evil) there were a long duration of
time; and Allah makes you to be cautious of (retribution from) Himself; and
Allah is Compassionate to the servants)[183] and, (This day every soul shall be rewarded for what it has
earned; no injustice (shall be done) this day).[184] These clear verses refute
“compulsion” and deny whoever believes in it. There are many other verses like
these ones but we do not mention them in order not to expatiate. We pray to
Allah for success. ‘As for the concept of “free will”, which Imam
as-Sadiq (a.s.) refuted, it is the concept of saying that Allah the Almighty
has authorized His people to choose His enjoinments and prohibitions and He
neglected them. The infallible Imams of the Prophet’s progeny say that if Allah
has authorized people and neglected them, then he must be pleased with what
they choose and they deserve reward for that and should not be punished for
sins they commit if indeed there is negligence. This belief (of free will) has two
meanings; the first is that people have defeated Allah and forced Him,
willingly or unwillingly, to accept their choices; and this shows that He is
weak, or He has failed to make them worship Him through the enjoinments and
prohibitions according to His will, whether they wanted or not, and therefore,
He authorized them to choose His enjoinments and prohibitions according to
their wills when He failed to make them worship according to His will, and so
He gave them the option in choosing faith or unfaith. It is like a man who buys a slave to
serve him, acknowledge his favor, submit to his lordship, follow his orders,
and refrain from his prohibitions. The lord of the slave claims he is mighty
and wise. The lord orders his slave to do things and forbids him from doing
other things. He promises the slave of great rewards if he follows his orders
and threatens him with severe punishments if he disobeys. The slave contradicts
the will of his lord and does not submit to his orders and prohibitions. Whatever the lord orders or forbids
the slave to do or not to do, the slave does not obey but follows his own will
and tendency and not his lord’s. The lord is not able to make the slave act
according to his will, and so he lets him free to choose by his own will and
tendency and accepts whatever he does. One day, the lord sends the slave to do
something for him. The slave carries out that thing according to his tendency
and not to his lord’s. When he comes back, the lord finds
that the slave has done unlike what he (the lord) wants. He says to him, ‘Why
did you do unlike what I have asked you to do?’ The slave says, ‘I depended on
your authorization to me and did as I liked.’ An authorized one is free in his
doing; therefore, “free will” is impossible for people towards their Lord…’ Free will is the belief that Allah
has left His people free to do as they like and that Allah has no relation in
people’s doings. The Imam (a.s.) refuted this belief with clear proofs and said
it was impossible. He added,‘It is, due to that, that the lord of the slave is
either able to make the slave follow his orders and refrain from his
prohibitions according to his will and not to the slave’s will, and to give him
ability as much as that which he orders him to do and forbids him from. If he
orders him to do something and forbids from doing another thing, he should tell
him the reward and punishment for each. He should warn him against his
punishment and encourage him towards his reward so that the slave will know the
power of his lord through the power the lord has given to the slave himself
that makes him able to follow his orders, refrain from his prohibitions,
approve his encouragement, and keep off his warning. Thus, the lord will be
just and fair to the slave and his excuse in pardoning and warning will be clear.
Then, if the slave follows his lord’s orders, he shall be rewarded by him, and
if he does not refrain from his prohibitions, he shall be punished. The second
meaning is that the lord is unable to punish the slave and make him follow his
orders and so he lets the slave free to do good or bad, to obey or disobey.
This inability disproves might and deity and makes “enjoining of the right and
forbidding from the wrong” vain. It contradicts the Holy Book where Allah says,
(and He does not like ungratefulness
in His servants; and if you are grateful, He likes it in you)[185] and, (be careful of (your duty to) Allah with the care which is
due to Him, and do not die unless you are Muslims)[186] and, (And I have not created the jinn and
the men except that they should serve Me. I seek no livelihood from them, nor
do I ask that they should feed Me)[187] and, (And serve Allah and do not associate any thing with Him)[188] and, (Obey Allah and His Messenger and do not turn back from Him
while you hear).[189] He, who claims that Allah has
entrusted His orders and prohibitions to His people, describes Allah as unable
and consequently He must accept all that which His people do whether good or
bad. This one also denies the orders, prohibitions, warnings and threatening of
Allah. When one claims that Allah has entrusted all that to man, it means that
man is free to believe or disbelieve and he shall not be blamed for his
decision. He, who believes in “free will” in this meaning, denies the orders,
prohibitions, warning, and threatening of Allah and he is one of those who are
included in this verse, (Do you then believe in a part of
the Book and disbelieve in the other? What then is the reward of such among you
as do this but disgrace in the life of this world, and on the day of
resurrection they shall be sent back to the most grievous chastisement, and
Allah is not at all heedless of what you do).[190] Allah is too far above that which the people of “free will” believe in…’ After refuting the concepts of
“compulsion” and “free will”, Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) proved the concept of “the
matter between the two matters” which was the theory of the infallible Imams of
the Ahlul Bayt (s). He said, ‘But we say: Allah the Almighty created people by
His power and gave them the ability of obeying Him. He ordered them to do what
He wanted and forbade them from what He wanted. He accepted from them their
obedience to His orders and He was pleased by it, and He prohibited them from
disobeying Him, dispraised the disobeyers, and punished them for that. Allah
has the choice of enjoining His people on doing some things that He is pleased
with and forbidding them from other things that He hates. He punishes for
disobediences due to the ability he has given to His people by which they can
obey Him and avoid His prohibitions because He is just, fair, wise, and has
clear excuses. He chooses from among His people as
He wills to inform of His mission and authority over people. He chose Muhammad
(a.s.) and sent him with His mission to His creation, but some unbelievers from
(Muhammad’s) people said out of envy and haughtiness, (Why was not this
Qu’ran revealed to a man of importance in the two towns).[191] They were Umayyah bin Abussalt and Abu Mas’oud ath-Thaqafi. But Allah
refuted their sayings and thoughts when revealing, (Will they distribute
the mercy of your Lord? We distribute among them their livelihood in the life
of this world, and We have exalted some of them above others in degrees, that
some of them may take others in subjection; and the mercy of your Lord is
better than what they amass).[192] ‘Therefore, He enjoined on what He liked, and
forbade from what He disliked. He would reward whoever obeyed Him and would
punish whoever disobeyed Him. If Allah entrusted His affairs to His people, He
would permit Quraysh[193] to choose Umayyah bin Abussalt or
Abu Mas’oud ath-Thaqafi for they were preferred by Quraysh to Muhammad (a.s.). When Allah disciplined the believers
by saying, (And it behooves not a believing man and a believing woman
that they should have any choice in their matter when Allah and His Messenger
have decided a matter),[194] He did not allow them to choose according to their desires, and He did
not accept from them except to follow His orders and avoid His prohibitions
that had been informed by those, whom He had chosen (as prophets). He, who
obeyed Him, was guided, and he, who disobeyed Him, deviated and went astray and
would not be excused because he had the ability to obey Allah’s orders and
avoid His prohibitions; therefore, Allah prevented a disobeyer from His reward
and He would punish him instead…’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) proved in the
previous paragraphs the theory of “the matter between the two matters” that the
Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (s) believed in. This concept was established on a firm
basis of understanding, intellect, and logic. Grand Ayatollah al-Khoei, in his
studies on Usul, proved the matter. He said, ‘The matter is not a matter of
worship, but the medium way, by which the problem of “compulsion and free will”
can be solved, is limited to it. Deeds of people depend on two sides; the first
is their lives, abilities, knowledge, and the like, and the second is their
wills and doings. The first side is from Allah and connected to His Eternal
Being and is submissive to Him. It is the very connection and submission itself
and not something with this connection and submission. In this light, if Allah
the Almighty stops that for a moment, surely life will stop… The second side is from people.
Supposing the existence of the first side, it is connected with the second one
in its essence and branched with it naturally. Hence, no deed comes from man
except by the correlation of these two sides. But, if one side prevails, no
deed is achieved. On this base, it is true to ascribe deeds to Allah and to
man. To explain this point, we give examples to show the difference of the
concepts of “compulsion” and “free will” from the theory of the Twelver Shia. A
deed of man comes in three kinds: First, the deed that comes without man’s will and choice; as when we suppose
that there is someone with a trembling hand who is unable to control his hand.
If his master ties a sword in his trembling hand, supposing that there is
someone lying beside him, though this man knows that when the sword slips from
his hand and falls on that sleeping person, it will kill him, naturally this
deed is not from his will and choice. Reasonable people see that he is not
responsible for this deed and he is not to be blamed for it. The one, who is
responsible and to be blamed for that, is the one who ties the sword to that
man’s hand. This is the theme of the theory of “compulsion”. Second, the deeds that come from man by his will, choice, and independency with
no need to resort to any other than him; it is like when we suppose that a
master gives a sword to a free person who is free to do what he wants and able
to move his hand freely. In this case, if this person commits a murder in the
outside, he himself will be responsible for that murder and not the giver of
the sword, though the giver of the sword knows that giving the sword to that
person leads to a murder, and besides that, he can take the sword from that
person whenever he wants; nevertheless, the murder cannot be imputed to the
giver of the sword but to that person who was free in moving his hand with no
external influence. This is the theme of the theory of “free will”. Third, the deeds that come from man by his choice and power, though he is not
independent by himself but in need of other than him, so that if the aid of
that other one stops at any time, his deeds will stop definitely; as an example
we suppose that the master has a paralyzed slave that is unable to move. The
master connects an electric current to the slave’s body to arouse power in his
muscles and make him able to move and act. The master holds the control of the
electric current, which gives power to the slave’s body at all time, with his
hand that if he cuts the current for a moment, the power will be cut from the
slave’s body and he becomes unable to move. On this base, if the master connects
that power to the slave’s body and the slave goes by his will and kills someone
where the master knows what the slave does, in this case this deed is imputed
to both of them; to the slave because he is able to or not to do that deed as
he wills after power is connected to his body, and to the master because he gives
power to the slave even at the time of committing that murder though he is able
to cut that power from the slave at any time he wants. This is the theme and
fact of the theory of “the matter between the two matters”…’[195] We come back again to the tradition
of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.). He says,‘The matter between the two matters is neither
“compulsion” nor “free will”. It is this what Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) told
Abayah bin Rub’iy al-Asadi about when he asked him about the ability by which
man could stand up, sit down, and act. Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) said to Abayah,
‘You asked about ability. Do you have it without Allah or with Allah?’ Abayah
kept silent and did not know what to say. Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘If you say that
you have it with Allah, I will kill you, and if you say that you have it
without Allah, I will kill you.’ Abayah said, ‘Then what shall I say, O
Amir’ul- Mu’minin?’ Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘You say that you have it
by Allah Who has it without you. If He makes you possess it, it is from his
favor, and if He deprives you of it, it is from His trial for you. He is the
Possessor of what He makes you possess, and He is the Powerful over what He
gives you power in. Do you not hear people asking (Allah) for ability and power
when they say: there is no ability and power save in Allah (la hawla wela
quwwata illabillah)?’ Abayah said, ‘O Amir’ul- Mu’minin, what does it mean?’
Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘There is no ability to keep away from disobediences save
by the preservation of Allah, and we have no power to obey Allah save by the
assistance of Allah.’ Abayah jumped and kissed Imam Ali’s hands and
feet.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) added, ‘It is
narrated from Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) that one day Najda came to him asking
about how to know Allah. He asked, ‘O Amir’ul- Mu’minin, with what you have
known your Lord?’ Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘With the thinking that has empowered
me and the mind that has led me.’ Najda said, ‘Are you molded into that? (i.e.,
Is this thinking forced upon you)’ Imam Ali (a.s.) said, ‘If I am molded into
that, I shall not be praised for good deeds and blamed for bad deeds, and so a
good doer shall deserve blame more than a wrongdoer. I know that Allah is
Eternal, Everlasting and anything other than Him is transient and mortal. The
Eternal, Everlasting One is not like a transient creature.’ Najda said, ‘I see
you have become wise.’ Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) said, ‘I am free to choose. If
I commit a bad deed instead of good deed, I shall be punished for it.’ It is also related that Amir’ul-
Mu’minin (a.s.) said to a man who asked him after coming back from Sham, ‘O
Amir’ul- Mu’minin, tell us about our marching to Sham! Is it by the fate of
Allah?’ Amir’ul- Mu’minin (a.s.) said, ‘O sheikh (old man), yes. You do not
ascend up a hill or descend a valley unless it is by the will and fate of
Allah.’ The old man said, ‘I expect the reward of my efforts from Allah O
Amir’ul- Mu’minin.’ Imam Ali (a.s.) explained fate by
saying, ‘O sheikh, wait! Allah has rewarded you for your marching as you march,
for your resting as you rest, and for your going back as you go back. You may
think it is inevitable fate and inescapable doom. If it is so, then reward and
punishment, enjoining and forbidding, scolding, warning and threatening will be
void, and a bad doer shall not be blamed and a good doer shall not be rewarded.
A good doer shall be worthier of
being blamed than a guilty one, and a guilty one shall be worthier of reward
than a good doer. This opinion is of idolaters, enemies of Allah, fatalists,
and the magi. O sheikh, Allah the Almighty has charged His people but given
them the option to do or not to do, and forbidden them as warning. He gives
much for a little. He is not disobeyed out of defeat and He is not obeyed by
force. He has not created the heavens, the earth, and what is between them in
vain. That is the opinion of those who disbelieve, and woe unto those who
disbelieve from the Fire…’ The old man got up, kissed Imam Ali’s head, and
recited some verses of poetry praising him. ‘Amir’ul- Mu’minin proved what complied with the
Book and he denied “compulsion” and “free will” and showed that whoever
believed in them denied the Book of Allah and was unbeliever. We seek the
protection of Allah from deviation and disbelief. We believe neither in
compulsion nor in free will, but we believe in “the matter between the two
matters” that is the trial of the ability which Allah has given to us in order
to worship Him with it as the Book witnessed and the pure Imams of the
Prophet’s progeny (peace be upon them) believed in…’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) gave an example
by saying, ‘The example of the trial of ability is like the example of a man
who possesses a slave and he has a lot of money. He wants to try his slave
though he knows what his slave shall do. He gives the slave some of his money
and agrees on certain conditions with him. He orders him to spend the money on
some things and forbids him from other things that he (the master) does not
like. He orders him to avoid them and not to spend from his money on those
things, though money is spent in both sides. The slave spends some money in
obeying the master and seeking his pleasure, and some in the way he has
forbidden. The master houses the slave in a temporary house and informs him
that he shall not live in this house forever but he shall live in another
house, which the master will take him to, where there shall be eternal reward
and eternal punishment. If the slave spends the money in the way that the
master has ordered him to do, he shall be rewarded with the eternal reward as
his master has promised to reward him in the other house that he will take him
to, and if he spends the money in the way that his master has forbidden him
from, he shall be punished with eternal punishment in the eternal house. The
master determines a limit for that. It is the abiding in the first house. When the limit is reached, the
master changes the slave and the money, though he is still the owner of the
slave and money in all times but he has promised that he shall not deprive the
slave of that money as long as he lives in that house until he completes his
abiding in it. The master fulfils the desires of the slave because justice,
loyalty, fairness, and wisdom are from the qualities of the master. If the
slave spends that money in the way he is ordered to, the master shall carry out
his promise to him by rewarding him with eternal bliss in an everlasting house,
and if he spends the money in the way he is forbidden from and contradicts the
orders of his master, he shall be punished with the eternal punishment that the
master has warned him of. Doing so, the master is not unjust
to the slave because he has pre-informed him that he will carry out his promise
and threat to him. It is for this reason that the master is described as mighty
and omnipotent. The master is Allah the Almighty, the slave is man, money is
the vast power of Allah, the trial is the showing of wisdom and might, the
temporary (transient) house is the worldly life, the sum of money that the
master has given to the slave is the ability that man has, and the way Allah
has ordered the money to be spent in is the ability of following the prophets
and acknowledging what they have brought from Allah the Almighty. The ways Allah has forbidden are the
ways of Iblis, the promise of the eternal bliss is the This example presented by Imam
al-Hadi (a.s.) is clear that man has full control over his will and choice.
When man obeys Allah, he obeys Him out of his satisfaction and choice and he is
not forced into it, and when he disobeys his Lord, he does so by his will and
choice too. On the basis of this choice, the concept of “the matter between the
two matters” is based, which is the concept that has been adopted by the
infallible Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.). Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) added, ‘As for
the saying of as-Sadiq (a.s.), it means the perfection of man’s morals, the
perfection of senses, constancy of mind, discernment, and eloquence. Allah
says, (And surely We have honored the children of Adam, and We carry them
in the land and the sea, and We have given them of the good things, and We have
made them to excel by an appropriate excellence over most of those whom We have
created).[196] Allah informs that He has preferred
man to all His creatures of animals, beasts, sea creatures, birds, and all
living creatures by virtue of reason and speaking. Allah says, (Certainly
We created man in the best make),[197] and, (O man ! what has beguiled you from your Lord, the Gracious
one, Who created you, then fashioned you, then proportioned you, into whatever
form He pleased He constituted you),[198] and in many other verses. The first blessing of Allah for man
is the soundness of his mind and his preference to all creatures with the
perfection of his mind and the faculty of speaking. Every living creature in
the earth is independent in its senses and complete in its being, but man is
preferred by the faculty of speaking to all other sensitive creatures. It is
for this faculty of speaking that Allah has made man prevail over all
creatures. Man is the commander while other creatures are submissive to him.
Allah says, (thus has He made them subservient
to you, that you may magnify Allah because He has guided you aright)[199] and, (And He it is Who has made the sea subservient that you may
eat fresh flesh from it and bring forth from it ornaments which you wear)[200] and, (And He created the cattle for you; you have in them warm
clothing and (many) advantages, and of them do you eat. And there is beauty in
them for you when you drive them back (to home), and when you send them forth
(to pasture). And they carry your heavy loads to regions which you could not
reach but with distress of the souls).[201] For that, Allah invited man to
follow His orders and obey Him by preferring him through straightening his
shape and giving him the faculty of speaking and knowledge after giving him the
ability of carrying out what He has ordered him to do. Allah says, (Therefore be careful of (your duty
to) Allah as much as you can, and hear and obey)[202] and, (Allah does not impose upon any soul a duty but to the extent
of its ability),[203] and, (Allah does not lay on any soul a burden except to the extent
to which He has granted it),[204] and in many other verses. If Allah deprives man of one of his senses, He
exempts him from his duty by that sense. Allah says, (No blame is there
upon the blind nor any blame upon the lame nor any blame upon the sick).[205] Allah has exempted these persons
from jihad and all duties that they cannot do. Rather, He has imposed on
wealthy people to offer the hajj and pay the zakat for they have the ability of
that. Allah has not imposed the hajj and zakat on poor people. He says, (and
pilgrimage to the House is incumbent upon men for the sake of Allah, (upon)
everyone who is able to undertake the journey to it),[206] and, (Those who put away their wives (by saying they are as their
mothers) and afterward would go back on that which they have said, (the
penalty) in that case (is) the freeing of a slave…and for him who is unable to
do so (the penance is) the feeding of sixty needy ones).[207] This proves that Allah has not
imposed on His people what is beyond the ability He has given to them, nor
forbidden them from what they have no ability to refrain from. This is the
soundness of creation. ‘And as for his saying “clearing the way”, it
means that there is no watch over man that prevents him from carrying out what
Allah has ordered him to do. It is due to the saying of Allah about the
disabled who are not free to act as Allah says, (Except the feeble among
men, and the women, and the children, who are unable to devise a plan and are
not shown a way).[208] He informs that a disabled one is not given a way and so he is not to be
blamed if his heart is full of faith. ‘As for the time limit, it is the age of man
where he is required to seek knowledge, from the time he comes of age until
death. He, who dies while seeking the truth and does not get perfection, shall
be to good. Allah says, (and whoever goes forth from his house emigrating
to Allah and His Messenger, and then death overtakes him, his reward is indeed
with Allah).[209] ‘Equipment are wealth and power by which man is
be able to follow the commands of Allah. Allah says, (There is no way (of
blame) against the doers of good).[210] Do you not see that Allah has accepted the excuse of those who have no
further money to spend, but imposed on the people who have enough money and
riding camels (or horses)[211] to go to the hajj and jihad? He has also accepted the excuse of the poor
and imposed to them a share from the wealth of the rich. He has said, ((Alms
are) for the poor who are confined in the way of Allah).[212] Allah has exempted them and has not charged them with what they are
unable to do. ‘As for his saying “the provoking cause”, it is
the intention that leads man to all his deeds. The sense of this intention is
in the heart (mind). Whoever does a thing without intending it by his heart
(sincerely) it shall not be accepted from him. Allah does not accept from man
any deed except those with sincere intentions, and therefore He has said about
hypocrites, (They say with their mouths what is not in their hearts, and
Allah is best aware of what they conceal).[213] Then Allah revealed to His messenger (a.s.) a blame on the believer, (O
you who believe! why do you say that which you do not do).[214] If man says something and believes
in it, his true intention makes him prove his saying by acting upon it, and if
he does not believe in his saying, the truth of his saying shall not appear.
Allah has accepted the true intention even if the action does not comply with
the intention because of something that may prevent the person from achieving
so, as Allah says, (…except he who is compelled while his heart is still
content with faith)[215] and (Allah does not punish you for what is vain in your oaths, but
He will punish you for what your hearts have earned).[216] The Qur'an and the traditions of the
Prophet (S) show that the heart is the possessor of all senses and it confirms
their doings, and nothing invalidates what the heart confirms. This is the
explanation of the five examples mentioned by as-Sadiq (a.s.) which determine
“the position between the two positions”. The two positions are “compulsion”
and “free will”. If these five items are found in a man, it is obligatory on
him to do as Allah and His messengers have ordered, and if that man lacks one
of these items, he is exempted from the doing concerning that item. ‘As for the proofs in the Holy Qur'an on the
“trying according to ability” which means the concept of “the matter between
the two matters”, are many, such as this holy verse (And verily We shall
try you till We know those of you who strive hard (for the sake of Allah) and
the patient, and till We test your record),[217] and (And those who deny Our revelations, We draw them near (to
destruction) step by step from whence they know not),[218] and (Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, We
believe, and not be tried),[219] and (And certainly We tried Sulaiman),[220] and in the story of Prophet Moses (He said: So surely We have
tried your people after you, and the Samiri has led them astray),[221] and the saying of Moses (It is naught but Thy trial).[222] These verses are compared one to another and they confirm one another. As for the verses of affliction
which mean “trying”, they are also many such as, (but that He might try
you in what He gave you),[223] and (then He turned you away from them that He might try you),[224] and (We have tried them as We tried the people of the Garden),[225] and (Who created death and life that He may try you; which of you
is best in deeds),[226] and (And when his Lord tried Ibrahim with certain words),[227] and (and if Allah had pleased He would certainly have exacted what
is due from them, but that He may try some of you by means of others).[228] ‘These verses and many others like them prove
the “trying”. Allah the Almighty has not created the creatures in vain, nor has
He ignored them, nor has He showed His wisdom for play. He has said, (What!
did you then think that We had created you in vain and that you shall not be
returned to Us?).[229] If someone says, ‘Did Allah not know what His people would do so that He
tried them?’ We say, ‘Yes, He knows what they shall do before they do. He says,
(and if they were sent back, they would certainly go back to that which
they were forbidden).[230] Allah tries people to show them His
justice and that He does not torture them except by a certain excuse and after
committing their deeds. Allah says, (And had We destroyed them with
chastisement before this, they would certainly have said: O our Lord, why didst
Thou not send to us a messenger, for then we should have followed Thy
communications before that we met disgrace and shame),[231] and (and We never punish until we have sent a messenger),[232] and ((We sent) messengers as the givers of good news and as
warners, so that people should not have a plea against Allah after the (coming
of) messengers).[233] So the trial of Allah is on the
ability that He has given to man and this is the concept of “the matter between
the two matters”. About this the Qur'an spoke and the traditions of the
infallible Imams (a.s.) confirmed. ‘If someone says: What is the argument in this
saying of Allah (Surely Allah makes err whom He pleases and guides aright
whom He pleases),[234] and in other verses like it? It is said: the metaphor in all these
verses has two meanings; one is that Allah tells about His might that He is
able to guide whomever He pleases and misguide whomever He pleases, and if He
forces them into one of these two ways, neither reward nor punishment they
would deserve, and the second is the “informing” like in this verse (And
as to Thamud, We gave them guidance, but they chose error above guidance).[235] It means that Allah has showed them the right
way. If He had forced them into guidance, they would not be able to go astray.
It is not right that, whenever an allegorical verse is mentioned, that it be
used as an argument agaisnt the clear verses which we have been ordered to
follow. Allah says, (He it is Who has revealed the Book to you; some of
its verses are decisive, they are the basis of the Book, and others are
allegorical. Then as for those in whose hearts there is perversity, they follow
the part of it which is allegorical, seeking to mislead and seeking to give it
(their own) interpretation),[236] and (…give good news to My servants who listen to the word, then
follow the best of it; those are they whom Allah has guided, and those who are
the men of understanding).[237] The best of the word means the clearest and most decisive. ‘May Allah make us successful in saying and
doing to what He likes and pleases, and may He keep us away from His
disobedience by His favor and grace. Much praise be to Allah as He deserves,
and His blessings be on Muhammad and on His good progeny. Allah is sufficient
for us and most excellent is the Protector.’[238] This is the end of the wonderful
letter of Imam al-Hadi (a.s) in which he refuted the illusions of the
Ash’arites and the Mu’tazilites and proved with irrefutable proofs the concept
of “the matter between the two matters” which the infallible Imams of the Ahlul
Bayt (a.s) believed in. Samples of his supplications The supplications of the Ahlul Bayt
(a.s) form a wonderful part of the Islamic heritage. They had established the
bases of behaviors and morals and the spiritual elements of personality. They
included important, political documentation that showed the extent of
persecution and oppression the Islamic nation faced during those ages under the
rule of the Umayyads and the Abbasids who spared no effort in oppressing people
and using them as tools to serve the rulers and their retinues. Besides that,
these supplications showed the reliance and devotedness of the Imams to Allah,
and that they believed with their hearts, feelings, and passions. His supplication (du’a) during
distress When Imam al-Hadi (a.s) suffered a
distress or he wanted some need to be satisfied, he prayed to Allah with this
du’a. Narrators said that before reciting this du’a Imam al-Hadi (a.s) fasted
on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, performed a ghusl in the morning of Friday,
paid charity to a poor person, offered a four rak’ah prayer, and then he spread
his palms towards the heaven and invoked sincerely by reciting, “O Allah, praise be to You with the best praise
that You deserve, the most pleHasant praise to You, the most appropriate praise
to You, the most beloved praise to You. Praise be to You as You deserve, and as
You accepted for Yourself, and as those, whose praise You accepted, praised You
from all Your creation. Praise be to You as Your prophets, messengers, and
angels praised You with, and as fits Your glory, highness, and greatness.
Praise be to You that tongues are unable to express, and speech stops before
reaching its end. Praise be to You that is not less than Your contentment, and
that is better than every praise. ‘O Allah, praise be to You in joy and trouble,
ease and distress, soundness and illness, years and ages. Praise be to You for
Your favors and blessings to me. Praise be to You for what You have gifted me,
tried me, healed me, provided me with livelihood, given me what I need,
preferred me, honored me, dignified me, and guided me to Your religion; a
praise that no describer can describe and no speaker can suffice. ‘O Allah, praise be to You for Your kindness to
me, and Your favors on me, and Your preferring me to other than me. Praise be
to You for Your adjusting my creation, and for Your educating me well as a
favor from You and not for a precedent good from me. O my Lord, then which
blessings have You not given me? And which gratitude is not required from me to
You? I am satisfied with Your kindness, and You suffice me from among all
creation. ‘O my Lord, You are the Bestower upon me, the
Beneficent, the Gracious, the Beautiful, the Lord of glory and honor, and of
great favors and blessings, so praise be to You for all that. O my Lord, You
did not disappoint me in any distress, did not betray me for any guilt, and did
not expose me for any concealed sin. Your blessings are continuous on me in
every difficulty and ease. You have always done me good and pardoned me. ‘O Allah, make me enjoy my hearing, sight, and
organs and all that which the earth has for me. O Allah, my first need I ask
You for, and my wish I request from You, and make it the means before my
request, and I come nearer to You by it, is the sending of blessing on Muhammad
and the progeny of Muhammad. And I ask You to send blessings on him and on them
as the best blessings that You have commanded Your people to send on them, and
as the best of that which any of Your people has ever asked You for, and as You
are responsible for them until the Day of Resurrection. O Allah, send blessing
on them inasmuch as all those who have sent blessings on them, inasmuch as all
those who shall send blessings on them; a continuous blessing with the means,
exaltedness, and virtue, and send blessings on Your prophets, messengers, and
Your good slaves, and send blessings on Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad
and send much peace on them! ‘O Allah, and Your generosity is that You do not
disappoint whoever asks You for something, and looks forward to what You have,
and You dislike whoever does not ask You, and no one is so other than You. O my
Lord, my greed for Your mercy and forgiveness, and my trust in Your kindness
and favor has led me to call on You, yearn for You, and offer my need before
You. I have presented before my request, the aiming at You by the means of Your
Prophet, who had brought the truth from You, and brought Your light and
straight path by which You have guided the people, and by whose light You have
enlivened the earth, and whom You have endowed with the highest dignity, and
honored with the shahada, and sent him after a cessation of the messengers. O Allah,
I believe in his secret and openness, and in the secret of his progeny whom You
had kept uncleanness away from and purified a thorough purifying…O Allah, do
not cut ties between me and them in this life and in the afterlife and accept
my deeds by them! ‘O Allah, You had guided Your people to Yourself
when You said, (And when My servants ask you concerning Me, then surely I
am very near; I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me, so they
should answer My call and believe in Me that they may walk in the right way),[239] and (O my servants, who have acted extravagantly against their own
souls, do not despair of the mercy of Allah; surely Allah forgives the faults
altogether; surely He is the Forgiving, the Merciful),[240] and (And Noah did certainly call upon Us, and best of answerers
are We).[241] O Lord, yes! The best of the called
upon are You, the best of lords are You, and the best of answerers are You! You
say, (Say: Call upon Allah or call upon the Beneficent; whichever you
call upon, His are the best names),[242] and I call upon You, O Allah, by Your names which if You are called upon
by, You respond, and if You are asked by, You give. I call upon You
suppliantly, humbly with the call of one whom inadvertence has taken away and
neediness has exhausted. I call upon You with the call of one who has given up,
confessed his guilt, and hoped for Your great pardon, and wide reward. ‘O Allah, if You have singled out someone, who
followed what You have ordered him and acted as You have created him for, with
Your mercy, he would not reach that except by You and Your assistance. O
Allah…to You my Master is my preparing, hoping for Your prizes and gifts. I ask
You to send blessings on Muhammad and on the progeny of Muhammad and to satisfy
my request and need… ‘O You, the most generous of givers, the best of
the beneficent, send blessings on Muhammad and on the progeny of Muhammad, and
whoever from Your people wants to harm me disconcert his heart, refute his
tongue, blind his sight, curb his head, make him busy with himself, and make me
safe from him by Your might and power! O Allah, do not make it the last time to
me that I call upon You suppliantly, and if You do, then forgive me all my
faults with forgiveness that does not leave behind a single guilt. Make my call
among the responded calls, my deed among the accepted deeds near you, and my speech
among that which comes up to You of good deeds, and make me be with Your
Prophet and chosen, and the Imams, peace be upon them all. By them I beseech
You, and by them I yearn to You. Respond to my call O the most Merciful of the
merciful, and forgive me my slips.’ Then Imam al-Hadi (a.s) asked for his need
and went down into prostration and said, “There is no god but Allah the Forbearing, the
Generous. There is no god but Allah the Most High, the Great. Glory be to Allah
the Lord of the seven heavens, the lord of the seven earths, and the Lord of
the Great Throne. O Allah, I resort to Your pardon from Your punishment, and to
Your contentment from Your wrath, and to You from You. I cannot reach Your
praise, or the gratitude You deserve. You are as You have praised Yourself.
Make my life a growth for me in every goodness, and my death a relief to me
from every evil. Make the delight of my eyes in Your obedience. O my Trust and
Hope, do not burn my face in Fire after my prostration to You my Master. With no favor from me on You, You
have the favor upon me, so pity my weakness and delicate skin, and relieve me
from the distresses of this life and of the afterlife, and favor me with the
company of the Prophet (a.s) and his progeny (peace be upon them) in the high
ranks in Paradise…O You the Light of light, the Manager of affairs, Generous,
Glorious, One, Unique, Eternal, Who neither begot nor was begotten, and there
is none comparable to You, O You Who are so, and no one is so other than You, O
You Whom there is no god in the high heavens or in the low earth other than
You, O You Who honor every humble one, and humble every mighty one, by Your
glory and loftiness I have lost my patience, so send blessings on Muhammad and
the progeny of Muhammad and relieve me…!’ His Du’a at Sleeping time When he went to bed or awoke from
sleep, he recited this du’a: “There is no god but Allah the Alive, the
Eternal, and He has power over all things. Glory be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds
and the Deity of the messengers. Glory be to Allah, the Lord of the seven
heavens and all that which they have, and the Lord of the seven earths and all
that which they have, the Lord of the Great Throne, and peace be on the
messengers, and praise be to Allah the Lord of the worlds.” The Du’a of Resorting “O You, my supply, my hope and reliance, my
resort and support, O You the One and Unique, O You, Who “say: He, Allah, is
One”, O Allah, I ask You by those like whom You have not created in Your
creation, to have blessing on them…” His Du’a of Seeking Protection from
Satan “O You Who are mighty in Your might, Who are the
mightiest in Your might, make me mighty from Your might, assist me with Your
help, keep away from me the evil suggestion of the Devils, defend me by Your
defense, protect me by Your protection, and make me from the good people of
Your creation, O You One, Unique, Eternal!’ A Lofty Du’a “O You the most hearing of hearers, the most
perceptive of seers, the best of lookers, the promptest of accounters, the Most
Merciful of the merciful, the wisest of judges, have blessing on Muhammad and
on the progeny of Muhammad, and increase my livelihood, prolong my old, favor
me with Your mercy, make me from those who defend Your religion and do not
replace me by other than me…!’[243] His communes Imam al-Hadi (a.s) communed Allah
the Almighty in the darkness of night with a suppliant heart and peaceful soul.
It was narrated that he said in his communes: 1. “O my Lord, a guilty has come,
and a poor has sought; do not disappoint his effort! Have mercy on him, and
forgive his faults.’[244] 2. “My Lord, bless Muhammad
and the progeny of Muhammad, and have mercy on me when my trace will disappear
from this life and my mention will be removed among people, and I shall be
forgotten as those who had been forgotten. My Lord, I have become old, my skin
has become delicate, my bones have become thin, time has affected me, my death
has approached me, my days have elapsed, my lusts have gone but my guilt
remained! O my Lord, have mercy on me when my shape will change!”[245] 3. “O my Lord, thoughts of thinkers
went astray, sights of seers fell short, descriptions of describers dissipated,
sayings of fabricators vanished before the wonders of Your affair, or the reach
to Your highness, for You are in the unreachable place, and no eye can fall
upon You with a glance or expression. How far, and how far! O You the First,
the Only, the Unique! You have exalted in highness with the glory of greatness,
and risen up beyond every bottom and end with the omnipotence of pride.”[246] His Ziyarahs A collection of wonderful Ziyarahs[247] were transmitted from Imam al-Hadi (a.s) by which he visited his pure
fathers, the infallible Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s). These ziyarahs are full
of arguments on the right of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s) in the Islamic caliphate.
They also include important documentations of their achievements, morals,
virtues, and qualities. Az-Ziyarah al-Jami’ah is the most
famous and important ziyarah of the infallible Imams (a.s). It is very
widespread among the Shia and all followers of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s) who have
memorized it. They recite it on Fridays as a visit to the pure Imams (a.s). It
has been published hundreds of times in different editions and we think there
is no need to mention it here for it is very well-known and widespread among
Muslims. Ziyarah of Al-Ghadir The Day of al-Ghadir is one of the
most important occasions for the Twelver Shia who consider it as an Eid where
the Prophet (a.s) had appointed Imam Ali (a.s) as the caliph over Muslims after
him. The Shia visited and still visit the holy shrine of Imam Ali (a.s) on the
Day of al-Ghadir every year to confirm their guardianship and allegiance to
him. Imam al-Hadi (a.s) visited the holy
shrine of his grandfather Imam Ali (a.s) in the year when al-Mu’tasim, the
Abbasid caliph, brought him from “…And you were the first one who believed in
Allah and offered prayer to Him, fought in His way, and did well in the house
of polytheism where the earth was full of deviation and Satan was worshipped
openly. You had the memorable situations,
famous occasions, and great days; the Day (battle) of Badr and the Day of
al-Ahzab (when the eyes turned dull, and the hearts rose up to the
throats, and you began to think diverse thoughts of Allah. There the believers
were tried and they were shaken with severe shaking, and when the hypocrites,
and those in whose hearts was a disease, were saying: Allah and His messenger
promised us naught but delusion, and when a party of them said: O people of
Yathrib, there is no place to stand for you here, therefore go back, and a
party of them asked permission of the prophet, saying: Surely our houses are
exposed; and they were not exposed; they only desired to fly away)[249] and Allah said, ( And when the believers saw the allies, they
said: This is what Allah and His Messenger promised us, and Allah and His
Messenger spoke the truth; and it only increased them in faith and submission).[250] Then you killed their Amr[251] and defeated their parties (and Allah turned back the unbelievers
in their rage; they did not obtain any advantage, and Allah sufficed the
believers in fighting; and Allah is Strong, Mighty).[252] And on the Day of Uhud (when you climbed (the hill) and paid no
heed to anyone, while the messenger, in your rear, was calling you (to fight),[253] but you drove away the polytheists from the Prophet (a.s) on the right
and on the left until Allah drove them from it (war) fearfully and gave victory
by you to the (disappointers), and on the Day of Hunayn as Allah said, (when
your great numbers made you vain, but they availed you nothing and the earth
became strait to you notwithstanding its spaciousness, then you turned back
retreating. Then Allah sent down His tranquility upon His Messenger and upon
the believers).[254] And the believers were you and your
companions…And on the Day of Khaybar when Allah showed the weakness of the
hypocrites and cut the roots of the unbelievers- praise be to Allah the Lord of
the worlds- (And certainly they had made a covenant with Allah before,
that they would not turn (their) backs; and Allah's covenant shall be inquired
of).[255] And you participated with the
Prophet (a.s) in all his wars and battles holding the banner before him, and
beating with the sword in front of him. Then for your well-known resolution and
insight on affairs, he made you the emir in the battles and there was no emir
over you… In your sleeping in the bed (of the
Prophet)[256] you were like the slaughtered
(Prophet Ishmael) Peace be upon him, that you responded as he responded, and
you obeyed as he obeyed patiently hoping for the reward when his father said to
him, (O my son! surely I have seen in a dream that I should sacrifice
you; consider then what you see. He said: O my father, do what you are
commanded; if Allah please, you will find me of the patient ones),[257] and so were you when the Prophet (a.s) ordered you to sleep in his bed
to save him by your self and you hurried to respond obediently and to expose
your self to killing, and so Allah thanked your obedience and showed your good
deed by saying, (And among men is he who sells himself to seek the
pleasure of Allah).[258] I witness that you contradicted
desires, allied with piety, suppressed anger, pardoned people, became angry
when Allah was disobeyed, became pleased when Allah is obeyed, carried out what
you were entrusted with, kept what you were confided, achieved what you were
charged with, and waited for what you were promised, and I witness that you did
not avoid (some people) out of humbleness, nor refrained from your right (in
the caliphate) with grief, nor abstained from confronting the extorters of your
right out of subservience, nor you showed satisfaction unlike the satisfaction
of Allah out of flattering, nor you became weak after what you faced for the
sake of Allah, nor you weakened or gave up the demanding of your right and lay
in wait. God forbid! You were not so, but if you were wronged, you were content
with your Lord and entrusted your affairs to Him. You did not mind misfortunes, and
did not weaken at distresses, and did not abstain from fighting against
falseness…It was you who said: neither do the masses of people around me
increase my glory, nor does their separation from me cause me loneliness even
if all people betray me… Allah the Almighty responded to His
prophet’s call concerning you,[259] and then He ordered him to announce that he entrusted you with the
affair (caliphate) of his nation as glorification to you, declaring your proof,
and refuting the falsehood and fabricated excuses. When he feared a sedition
from the dissolute and feared for you from the hypocrites, the Lord of the
worlds revealed to him, (O Messenger, deliver what has been revealed to
you from your Lord, and if you do it not, then you have not delivered His
message, and Allah will protect you from the people).[260] He burdened himself with journey,
stopped at the hot desert, and made his speech. He called out and made everyone
hear, and asked them, ‘Have I informed?’ They said, ‘By Allah, yes!’ He said,
‘O Allah, bear witness!’ Then he said, ‘Am I not worthier of Muslims than
themselves to them?’ They said, ‘Yes, you are.’ Then, he took your hand and
said, ‘Whoever his guardian I am, here is Ali to be his guardian. O Allah,
support whoever supports him, be enemy to whoever shows enmity towards him, help
whoever helps him, and disappoint whoever disappoints him!’ They did not
believe in what Allah had revealed to His prophet concerning you except a few,
and most of them did not add save perdition…! Then was your ordeal on the Day of
Siffin when the copies of the Qur'an were raised trickily and cunningly.
Suspicion appeared, the truth was known, but supposition was followed. It was
like the ordeal of Aaron when Moses made him the emir over his people but they
separated from him and left him alone while Aaron calling out, (O my
people! you are only tried by it, and surely your Lord is the Beneficent Allah,
therefore follow me and obey my order. They said: We will by no means cease to
keep to its worship until Musa returns to us).[261] So were you when the copies of the
Qur'an were raised and you said: ‘O people, you are tried by it and deceived.’
But they disobeyed and objected to you and called for the two judges. You,
before Allah, exempted yourself from their doing and made Allah the judge over
them. When the truth shone, and their abominable doing was refuted, they
confessed their fault and deviation from the truth, and after that they
disagreed. Then, they forced you to accept the
arbitration which you denied and prohibited but they liked. They permitted
their guilt that they committed. You were on insight and guidance and they were
in deviation and blindness. They still insisted on hypocrisy and were still in
error until Allah made them taste the evil results of their doing and He killed
from them by your sword who opposed you and became wretched and lost, and gave
life by your argument to whoever followed the guidance and was happy. The
blessings of Allah be on you everywhere and everywhen. Neither can a praiser
cover your description, nor can a dispraiser encompass your virtues…’ From the prophets’ stories In some traditions Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) told his companions some stories of the prophets. Noah And Iblis Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) related a
dialogue between Prophet Noah (a.s.) and Iblis. He said, ‘One day, Iblis came
to Noah and said to him, ‘You have done me a great favor. Trust in me and I
shall not betray you.’ Noah became angry. Allah revealed to him to let Iblis
speak out. Noah said to Iblis, ‘Speak out!’ Iblis said, ‘If we find the son of
Adam stingy, envious, arrogant, or rash, we (the Devils) snatch him as the
snatching of a ball. If all these morals gather in him, we call him a mutinous
devil.’ Noah said, ‘What is the great favor I have done to you?’ Iblis said,
‘You invoked Allah against the people of the earth and sent them to Hell, and
so I was free. Without your invoking against them, I would be busy with them
for a long time.’[262] Moses And Allah Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) related, “Moses
said, O my Lord, what is the reward of one who avoids treason out of being shy
of You?’ Allah the Almighty said, ‘He shall
be safe on the Day of Resurrection.’ Moses said, ‘What is the reward of
one who loves the people of Your obedience?’ Allah the Almighty said, ‘I will
save his body from My Fire.’ Moses said, ‘What is the reward of
one who kills a believer intentionally?’ Allah the Almighty said, ‘I will not
look at him on the Day of Resurrection and I will not pardon his sin.’ Moses said, ‘My Lord, what is the
reward of one who refrains from harming people and helps them instead?’ Allah the Almighty said, ‘On the Day
of Resurrection, Fire will say to him: I have no way over you.’[263] Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) told such stories to his companions to be examples
for them on good morals and manners. A Maxim From Jesus Christ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) narrated to his
companions, ‘If one of you gives (charity) with his right hand, let him conceal
that from his left hand, and if he prays, let him conceal that.’ Allah the Almighty loves that when a
believer gives charity or does good, he is to keep it secret and not to
announce or spread it among people lest he shall lose the reward, for he has to
seek the reward from Allah. From The Islamic Events Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) talked to his
companions about some important Islamic events that happened at the first
Islamic age. One of them was the killing of the martyr Qanbar, Imam Ali’s
servant, at the hand of the tyrant al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf ath-Thaqafi.[264] He said, ‘Qanbar came in to al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf who
shouted at him, ‘What service did you offer to Ali bin Abu Talib?’ Qanbar said, ‘I helped him in
performing ablution.’ Al-Hajjaj said, ‘What did he say
when he finished his ablution?’ Qanbar said, ‘He recited this
Qur’anic verse: (But when they neglected that with which they had been
admonished, We opened for them the doors of all things, until when they
rejoiced in what they were given We seized them suddenly; then lo! they were in
utter despair. So the roots of the people who were unjust were cut off; and all
praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the worlds).[265] Al-Hajjaj said, ‘I think he meant
us?!’ Qanbar said, ‘Yes, he did.’ Al-Hajjaj said to Qanbar, ‘What do
you do if I behead you?’ Qanbar said, ‘Then I shall be happy
and you shall be wretched.’ The tyrant ordered his men to behead
this good man and he was killed.’[266] The Virtue of The Prophet and Ali Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) praised the
innumerable favors the Prophet (S) and Imam Ali (a.s.) did the nation. He said,
‘From glorifying Allah is the preferring of the two fathers of religion
Muhammad and Ali to the fathers of kinship, and from being indifferent to the
loftiness of Allah is to prefer the fathers of kinship to the fathers of
religion; Muhammad and Ali…’[267] He also said, ‘If the two fathers of
religion Muhammad and Ali are not glorified to one more than his fathers of
kinship, one shall have no value near Allah.’[268] The Prophet (S) and his guardian
Imam Ali (a.s.) have had rights on the nation more than the rights of fathers.
By them Allah has taken people out of the life of ignorance, meanness, and
wretchedness to the life of Islam that is full of honor, glory, and dignity. The Virtue of the Ulama’ During the
Time of Occultation Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) talked about the
virtue of the ulama’ during the time of the occultation of his grandson Imam
al-Mahdi (a.s.). He said, ‘If, after the occultation of Imam al-Mahdi, there
will be no ulama’ who will invite and guide to him, defend his religion with
clear proofs, and save the weak faithful from the traps of Iblis and his
followers and from the traps of the enemies of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.), no one
remains unless he will apostate from the religion of Allah, but it is they who
will hold the hearts of the weak of the Shia as a shipper when holding the
rudder of his ship. Those are the best of people near Allah.’ The Virtue Of Patience Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) talked about
patience and the great reward the patient shall get from their Lord. Al-Hasan
bin Ali narrated, “I heard Abul Hasan saying, ‘On the Day of Resurrection, a
caller will call out: where are the patient? Some people will get up. Then, a
caller will call out: where are the discerning? Some people will get up. The
patient are those who are patient with the performing of the obligations, and
the discerning are those who are discerning in refraining from sins.’[269] Pessimism Towards Days Islam resisted all bad habits and
traditions of the pre-Islamic era. From those habits that Islam resisted was
the pessimism at days which the pre-Islamic society believed in. It neither
brought good nor did it save from evil, for all things were determined by Allah
the Creator of the universe and Giver of life. Al-Hasan bin Mas’oud[270] said, “One day, I went to Abul Hasan Ali bin Muhammad (a.s.) after my
finger was scratched, and a rider knocked against my shoulder, and I went into
a crowd that some of my clothes were torn. I said: may Allah save me from your
evil O day! How ill-omened you are!’ Abul Hasan (a.s.) said to me, ‘O
Hasan, you say so though you frequent us! You throw your guilt on that which is
guiltless!’ I recovered my senses, understood my
mistake, and said: I ask Allah to forgive me.’ Abul Hasan (a.s.) said, ‘O Hasan,
what is the guilt of days that you are pessimistic at when you are punished for
your deeds on them?’ I said, ‘I always ask Allah for
forgiveness. It is my repentance O son of the messenger of Allah.’ He said, ‘By Allah, it does not
benefit you. Allah punishes you for blaming days which have no guilt in what
you blame them for. O Hasan, do you know that it is Allah Who rewards and
punishes for deeds whether sooner or later?’ I said, ‘O yes, my master.’ He said, ‘Do not give days a role in
the judgment of Allah!’ I said, ‘O yes, my master.”[271] Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) confirmed what
the Prophet (S) had announced in one of his traditions that it was not from
Islam that a Muslim be pessimistic, but he must have a strong will and
determination in doing everything except sins. Cleanness Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) invited to
cleanness and prettification. He said, ‘Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty
and prettification, and He hates misery and miserable ones. Allah the Almighty
likes, when He gives a blessing to His slave, to see the effects of that
blessing appear on him.’ He was asked, ‘How is that?’ He said, ‘To clean his
dress, make his smell good, order his house, and sweep the yard. Even a lamp
lit before sunset takes poverty away and increases livelihood.’[272] Rarity of Lawful Income Sayyid bin Tawus narrated that
Muhammad bin Harun al-Jallab said, ‘I said to my master Ali bin Muhammad
al-Hadi (a.s.): we narrated from your fathers that a time would come where
there would be nothing rarer than a friendly brother or gaining a lawful dirham
(well-gotten money).’ He said, ‘O Muhammad, a friendly brother is available,
but you are in a time where there is nothing rarer than a well-gotten dirham
and a loyal, faithful brother.’[273] The rarity of well-gotten money
results from the impiety in gaining and the greediness to get money in any way.
As for a friendly brother who seeks his own benefits, he is available
everywhere and everywhen, but as for a god-fearing brother who keeps his
brother away from committing sin and takes him to do good, he is rare at all
times. Ignoring the Fact of Death Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked, ‘Why
do these Muslims hate death?’ He said, ‘Because they ignore it, and therefore,
they hate it. If they knew it and were from the devotees of Allah, they would
surely love it and know that the afterlife would be better than the worldly
life.’ Then Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) turned to his companions and said, ‘Why do a
child and an insane refrain from drug that recovers their bodies and relieves
them from pain?’ They said, ‘Because they ignore the
benefit of drug.’ He said, ‘I swear by Him Who had
sent Muhammad with the truth as prophet, whoever prepares himself to death, it
would be better for him than this curative drug. If they know what bliss death
gets to, they will love it and call for it more than a sane, determined man
when calling for drug to cure his diseases and get safety.’[274] In another tradition it was related
that one day Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) visited a sick companion and saw him cry
fearing from death. He said to him, ‘O Abdullah (slave of Allah), you fear from
death because you do not know it. If you become dirty and filthy, and you
suffer from this dirt and filth that cause you sores and mange, and then you
know that washing in the bathroom will relieve all that, do you not want to go
to the bathroom and remove all that from you, or you hate to do that and you
let filth, sores, and mange on you?’ The sick man said, ‘O yes, son of
the messenger of Allah, may Allah have blessing and peace on you and your
household.’ Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘Death is
that bathroom. It is the last thing remaining for you to wash your guilt and
purify you from your sins. If you come to it and be its neighbor, you shall be
free from every distress, grief, and pain, and shall get to every happiness and
delight.’ The sick man was calm. He submitted to death and pleased with the
fate of Allah.[275] True Repentance Ahmad bin Hilal asked Imam al-Hadi
(a.s.) about true repentance and he replied to him, ‘that the inward and the
outward are to be the same and better.’[276] The Meaning Of “Rajeem” Abdul Adhim al-Hasani narrated that
he heard Abul Hasan Ali bin Muhammad al-Hadi (a.s.) saying, ‘The meaning of
“rajeem-accursed” that Satan is described with is that he is stoned with curse,
and rejected from every place of good. No faithful mentions him unless he
curses him. In the eternal knowledge of Allah that when Imam al-Mahdi
(al-Qa’im) (a.s.) will reappears, every believer at his time will stone Satan
as he had been stoned with curse before.’[277] Mob Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said, ‘Mob are
the killers of the prophets…Allah was not pleased with them when He compared
them to the livestock and said, (but they are worse).[278] Mobs are those groups of people who
have no social or religious understanding. It is they whom tyrannical powers
push to kill prophets and reformers throughout history. Words Of Light A collection of precious words was
narrated from Imam al-Hadi (a.s.). These words are from the wonderful
intellectual treasures in Islam, in which Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) has discussed
different educational, moral, and psychological issues. Here are some of his
words: 1. “Better than good is its doer,
better than favor is its sayer, and more preferable than knowledge is its
follower.’ 2. He said to one of his servants,
‘Blame so-and-so (friendly) and say to him: if Allah wants good for someone, He
made him be pleased when he is blamed.’ 3. “He, who asks for more than his
merit, is worthier of deprivation.” 4. “The rightness of one, who
ignores dignity, is his lowness.” 5. “Patience is to possess yourself
and control your anger when you are able to show it.” 6. “People (run their affairs) in
this life with money and in the afterlife with deeds.” 7. “Whoever is pleased with himself,
many are those who are displeased at him.” 8. “Fates show you what you do not
imagine.” 9. “The evilest of misfortune is bad
morals.” 10. “Wealth is the littleness of
wishing and the satisfaction with what suffices you, poverty is greediness and
despair, and lowness is following the little and looking forward to
insignificants.’ 11. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was asked
about resolution and he said, ‘It is to see your opportunity and hurry to
achieve it as possible as you can.’ 12. “The rider of a reluctant horse
is a captive of himself.” He, who walks in crooked ways, is led by his fancy
that throws him into the abyss of misfortunes. 13. “An ignorant one is a captive of
his tongue.’ 14. “Disputing destroys old
friendship, and unties firm knots. The least of it is that it leads to hatred
which is the first cause of the rupture of relations.” 15. “Blaming is the key to
haughtiness, though it is better than spite.” 16. One of Imam al-Hadi’s companions
exaggerated in praising the Imam who said to him, ‘Much flattery attacks
discernment. If you are trusted by your brother, turn from flattery to good
will.” 17. “Misfortune for the patient is
one, and for the impatient is two.” 18. “Envy eradicates good deeds, and
pride brings detestation.” 19. “Self-conceit turns one away
from seeking knowledge and leads him to ignorance.” 20. “Stinginess is the worst of
morals, and greediness is a bad nature.” 21. “Associating with the wicked
shows the wickedness of one who associates with them.” 22. “The denying of blessings is a
sign of ungratefulness and a cause for changing (of blessings).” 23. “Importunity takes peacefulness
away and leads to regret.” 24. “Mockery is the joking of the
foolish and the craft of the ignorant.” 25. “Undutifulness (to parents)
lessens offspring and leads to meanness.” 26. “Sleeplessness makes sleep more
pleHasant, and hunger makes food more delicious.” 27. “Think of your death between
your family where no physician shall defend you and no friend shall benefit
you!” 28. “Think of the regrets of wasting
to be more determined!” 29. “A niggard and a wise man do not
rest.” 30. “There is no cure for corrupted
natures.” 31. “He, who cannot prevent, cannot
give.” 32. “Worse than evil is its doer and
more horrible than horror is an adventurer into it.” 33. “Beware of envy for it harms you
and not your enemy.” 34. “In a time where justice is more
than oppression, it is unlawful to suspect anyone before being certain of that
which is suspected of, and in a time where oppression is more than justice, one
should not trust in anyone except after being certain of him.” 35. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) said to
al-Mutawakkil (the Abbasid caliph), “Do not expect good will from one whom you
have offended, or loyalty from one whom you have betrayed, or sincerity from
one whom you have suspected, because the hearts of others towards you are like
your heart towards them.” 36. “Retain blessings by being good
neighbor to them (by spending them in the right way and helping people through
charities), expect more by being grateful to Allah for them, and know that soul
is very willing to what it is given and very unwilling to what it is prevented
from, so carry it on a sumpter that does not slow.” 37. “Ignorance and niggardliness are
the worst of morals.” 38. “Good appearance is apparent
beauty and good mind is hidden beauty.” 39. “It is from inadvertence to
Allah that one keeps on disobedience and wishes forgiveness from Allah.” 40. “If people walked in a vast
valley, I would walk in a valley of a man who worshipped Allah alone
sincerely.” 41. “The anger at one, over whom you
have authority, is meanness.” 42. “A grateful one is happier with
gratitude than with the blessing that requires gratitude, because blessings are
enjoyment and gratitude is a blessing.” 43. “Allah made the worldly life a
place of trying and the afterlife a place of reward. He made the misfortunes of
the worldly life as a means for the reward of the afterlife, and the reward of
the afterlife as a compensation for the misfortunes of the worldly life.” 44. “An understanding oppressor is
about to take attentions away from his oppression through his understanding,
and a foolish just man is about to put out the light of his justice through his
foolishness.” 45. “Whoever shows you his sincere
love you are to show him your obedience.” 46. “Do not feel safe from the evil
of one who despises himself.” 47. “The world is a market in which
some people gain and others lose.” 48. “Think of your death among your
family where no physician shall save you and no lover shall benefit you.”[279] Notes: [78] Muruj ath-Thahab, vol.4 p.114. [80] Al-Amali by Sheikh at-Tusi. [82] Al-Amali by Sheikh at-Tusi. [84] In Arabic “fatama” means weaned. [92] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, vol.3 p.219. [93] Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol.1 p.78. [96] Nowadays [99] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, vol.3 p.220. [100] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol.4 p.163. [102] Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol.11 p.466. [105] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, vol.3 p.228. [112] Ad-Dur an-Nadhim (a manuscript). [113] Or “Murji’a”: the name of a politico-religious movement in early Islam. [114] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.2 p.737. [115] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.2 p.738, al-Hada’iq an-Nadhirah, vol.4 p.41. [116] Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol.3 p.254. [117] Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol. 3 p.277. [119] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.3 p.251. [121] This especially concerns the place where the forehead is put during
prostration. [122] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.4 p.604. [123] A mukallaf is one who is obliged to fulfill the religious duties. [124] [125] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.5 p.352. [126] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.5 p.352. [127] Minhaj as-Salihin, vol.1 p.216-217. [128] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.5 p.518. [129] Al-Hada’iq an-Nadhirah, vol.12
p.348. [130] Kurr is a unit of weight. [131] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.6 p.123. [132] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol. 6 p.157. [133] Al-Hada’iq an-Nadhirah, vol. [134] The zakat that is given at the end of fasting in Ramadan. [135] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.6 p.177. [137] Sa’ is a measure of about [138] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.6 p.238. [139] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.7 p.187. [141] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.7 p.187. [142] Al-Makasib by Sheikh al-Ansari. [143] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.12 p.137. [145] Wassa’il ash-Shia, Vol.13 p.268. [150] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.18 p.213.s [153] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.18 p.331. [154] Wassa'il ash-Shia, vol.18 p.554. [155] Usul al-Kafi, vol.1 p.97, at-Tawhid, p.109. [157] Fee Dhilal al-Qur’an (in the shadows of the Qur’an), vol.9 p.39. [161] Ad-Durr an-Nadhim, at-Tawhid, p.100. [168] Kashf al-Ghummah, vol.3 p.176. [169] Al-Ihtijaj by at-Tabarsi. [172] Mustadrak as-Sahihayn, vol.3 p.122, al-Isabah,vol.4 p.304, Kanzul Ummal,
vol.6 p.152, Majma’ az-Zawa’id, vol.9 p.129, ar-Riyadh an-Nadhirah, vol.2
p.165. [173] Mustadrak as-Sahihayn, vol.3 p.130, Tareekh Baghdad, vol.13 p.32, Usd
al-Ghabah, vol.4 p.383, Majma’ az-Zawa’id, vol.9 p.131. [174] Sahih of ibn Majah, p.12, Hilyat al-Awliya’, vol.1p.62, Khasa’is of
an-Nassaei, p.32, Kanzul Ummal, vol.6 p.395. [193] Quraysh was the tribe which inhabited [195] Lectures on usul al-Fiqh, vol.2 p.87-89. [211] Means of transportation. [238] Tuhaf al-Uqul, p.458-475, also mentioned in brief in al-Ihtijaj by
at-Tabarsi. [243] A’yan ash-Shia, vol.4 p.285. [247] Ziyarah linguistically means “a visit” but here it refers to the special
sacred wordings said by the infallible Imams of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s) and by
others as a kind of greeting, respect and reverence offered to the Ahlul Bayt
(a.s) and other holy personalities when visiting their shrines or may be recited
on certain days and occasions wherever one is. [248] Mafatih al-Jinan by Sheikh Abbas al-Qummi, p. 363. [251] Amr bin Abd Widd was the most famous, and bravest hero of the
polytheists who fought in the battle of al-Ahzab. [256] Here Imam al-Hadi (a.s) talked about the sleeping of Imam Ali (a.s) in
the Prophet’s bed when Quraysh decided to kill the Prophet (a.s) but Imam Ali
(a.s) sacrificed his life for him. [259] In this passage Imam al-Hadi (a.s) talked about the famous event of
al-Ghadir when Muslims paid homage to Imam Ali (a.s) as the caliph after the
Prophet (a.s) due to the decree of the Prophet (a.s) himself. [262] Qisas al-Anbiya’ (The stories of the prophets) by ar-Rawandi. [264] He was one the most oppressive walis of the Umayyads. [267] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, vol.3 p.227. [270] He might be al-Hasan bin Sa’eed al-Ahwazi. [271] Tuhaf al-Uqul, p.482-483. [272] Al-Amali by Sheikh al-Mufid. [273] Ma’athir al-Kubara’, vol.3 p.227. [274] Ma’ani al-Akhbar by as-Saduq. [276] Ma’ani al-Akhbar by as-Saduq. [277] Ma’ani al-Akhbar by as-Saduq. [279] These sayings are quoted from ad-Durr an-Nadhim, al-Ittihaf Bihubil
Ashraf, Bihar al-Anwar, al-Amali of Sheikh at-Tusi, Aa’yan ash-Shia, Nuzhat
an-Nadhir, Tuhaf al-Uqul, al-Amali of Sheikh al-Mufid, Ma’ani al-Akhbar of
Sheikh as-Saduq, Ma’athir al-Kubara’. |
