Masadeh says, I was with Imam Jafar as-Sadeq (a.s.), when suddenly an old man with an arched back walked in, leaning on his stick. He conveyed his salam to Imam (a.s.) and Imam (a.s.) answered him.
The old man said, O son of the Messenger of God (a.s.), give me your hand so I can kiss it, so he (a.s.) gave him his hand and he kissed it and then wept.
Imam (a.s.) asked him: O Shaikh! Why are you crying?
He replied, may I be your ransom. I have been waiting for Qaem (a.t.f.s.) for the last hundred years. I keep saying that it will (reappearance) take place in this month and this year.
But my age is advancing and my bones are getting brittle and my death is nearing. But I do not like to see you sick, far from home, and your enemies flying with their wings, so how can I not cry?
Imam Sadeq (a.s.)’s eyes welled up and he said: O Shaikh! If Allah keeps you alive till you see our Qaem, you will be at the highest level with us. And if death befalls you (and you do not see the Imam), you will come with the weight of Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) and we are his weight.
He (s.a.wa.) said, “I leave among you two weighty things, so hold on to themto, and if you cling to them, you will never go astray. Those two precious gems are the Book of Allah and my progeny, that is, my family.”
After hearing this, the old man said, “After hearing this news, I am no longer afraid of dying.”
Imam Sadeq (a.s.) continued:
O Shaikh! Indeed, our Qaem is the offspring of Hasan (Askari), Hasan is the offspring of Ali(an-Naqi), Ali is the offspring of Muhammad (al-Jawwad), Muhammad is the offspring of Ali (ar-Raza) and Ali is the offspring of my son Musa (al-Kazim), peace be upon them all. And at this time, he pointed to him and said: Musa has also come out of my loin.
We are Ahl al-Bayt, the twelve people, all of whom are infallible and purified.”
“We witnessed the funeral prayer of Abu Bakr after that we gathered around Umar bin Khattab and paid allegiance to him and visited him in the masjid for some days, till we addressed him by the title of chief of believers. One day we were seated with him when a Jew, who claimed to be a descendant of Prophet Harun (a.s.), brother of Prophet Musa (a.s.) came and stood before Umar and said: O chief of believers,
who among you is most knowledgeable regarding the Sunnah of your Prophet and the Book of your Lord so that I can ask questions? The narrator says: Umar pointed out towards Ali Ibne Abi Talib (a.s.). The Jew said: O Ali, are you such? He replied: Yes, ask me whatever you want.
The Jew said: I have three, three and one question. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: Why don’t you say that you have seven questions? He replied: If you answer the first three questions correctly, I will ask the next three and if you reply to them also correctly, I will ask the remaining one. But if you answer the first three questions incorrectly, I will not ask any more questions. Imam Ali (a.s.) asked: How would you know whether the replies I have given are right or wrong?
The narrator says: The Jew put his hand inside his garment and took out an old book and said: I have inherited this book from my ancestors. It was dictated by Musa (a.s.) and written down by Harun (a.s.). It contains replies to all the questions. I am going to ask you.
Imam Ali (a.s.) said: If I reply to all your questions correctly, will you accept Islam? “Yes,” he said, by Allah, if you reply to my questions, I will immediately embrace Islam at your hands. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: You may ask. He said: Which was the first stone to come down to the earth? Which was the first spring of water that gushed out on the earth? And which was the first tree that grew on the earth?
Imam Ali (a.s.) said: O Jew, you people say that the first stone is that of Baitul Muqqadas. It is a lie. The first stone is the Black Stone which came with Prophet Adam (a.s.) from Paradise. Which he placed at the Rukn of the House of Allah. People touch and kiss it and through it renew their covenant with Allah.
The Jew said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: Jews say that the first tree that grew on the earth is olive. It is a lie. The first tree is that of Ajwa dates that came down with Adam (a.s.) and his wife. The Jew said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: You people say that the first spring that gushed forth is the spring of Baitul Muqqadas. You lie. The first spring is that in which the companion of Musa (a.s.) forgot the salted fish and when the water of the spring of life reached it, it became alive and swam away and Musa and his companion followed it and met Khizr.
The Jew said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) asked: Ask the next three questions? He said: How many just Imams are there after the Prophet in this nation? What is the place of Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) in Paradise? And who all will stay with him in his house in Paradise?
Imam Ali (a.s.) replied: O Jew, there are twelve Imams in this nation and their enemies cannot do them any harm. The Jew said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: The house of Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) in Paradise is in the Jannat of Adn. It is at the center of Paradise and nearest place to the throne of the Beneficent.
The Jews said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: And those who will stay with him in his house are the twelve Imams. The Jew said: By Allah, you are right. Imam Ali (a.s.) said: You may ask the remaining question also. He asked: For how many years will the successor of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.a.) live?
Would he have a natural death or will be murdered? Imam Ali (a.s.) replied: O Jew, he would live for thirty years after the Prophet. This will be dyed with this. Saying this he pointed towards his beard and his blessed head. The narrator says: At that moment the Jew got up from his place and said: I bear witness that there is God except Allah; Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah and you are the successor of the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.).”
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his progeny) informed his companion Jabir ibn Abdullah Al Ansari (May Allah’s mercy be on him)
“Mahdi is from my descendants. His name is my name and his agnomen (Kunniyat) is my agnomen. He most closely resembles me in appearance and behavior than all other people. There will be occultation and confusion for him. So much so that people will deviate from their religion. Then a time will come when he will appear like a shooting star and he will fill up the earth with equity and justice just as it will be filled with injustice and oppression.”
In His Name And With The Remembrance of His Last Proof (a.s.) on Earth
Many similarities exist in the circumstances of Imam Husain (a.s.) and Imam Mahdi (a.s.). Among them are:
1 – The fervor and importance with which they are mentioned in the Holy Quran and the traditions of prophets in the heavenly scriptures as is not hidden from the researchers. If one likes one may refer to the book of Al-Muhajja Feema Nazala minal Quran lil Qaaimil Hujja and the tenth volume of Biharul Anwar
2 – Special efforts of the past prophets to lament for His Eminence, Imam Husain (a.s.) and their arranging of assemblies and gatherings of mourning for the martyrdom of His Eminence. In the same way the special care of the past Imams when they prayed for the success of the Master, Hujjat Ibnul Hasan (a.t.f.s.) and supplicating for his reappearance before his occultation.
In his epic work Kamal-al deen wa tamam al-nemah, Shaikh Sadooq (a.r.) narrates a tradition which leads to Ibne Abbas.
Ibne Abbas says: I heard the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.) say:
“There is an angel of Allah named Dardaeel. He is having sixteen thousand wings and the distance between each wing is equal to that of the distance between the earth and the sky. One day a thought crossed the mind of this angel that is there anything greater than the Almighty Allah? The Almighty Allah gave him the same number of wings again and now he had thirty-two thousand wings. Then the Almighty Allah ordered him to fly. So, he continued to fly for fifty years but could not reach any end of the heavens. When he was tired, the Almighty Allah told him: O angel come back to your original place, Our greatness is effective on all great things and there is no one greater than Me, nor can I be related to a particular place. Then the Almighty Allah confiscated his wings and expelled him from the rows of angels.
When Imam Husain (a.s.) was born on a Thursday night the Almighty Allah commanded Maalik, the caretaker angel of hell to extinguish the fire as a mark of celebrating the birth of the son of the Prophet and told the caretaker of Paradise Rizwan to decorate Paradise.
93 years ago, on the twenty-fifth of Holy Month of Ramadhan in 1348 AH, the filthy hand of the deviant Baha’i sect was stained with the great blood of the man of Shiite history, and the great mujtahid Allamah Mohammad Taqi Mousavi Isfahani was martyred at the age of 47. He is the author of the epic book Mikyal ul-Makarim — A book written under the auspices of the Imam of the Age (as).
In the Name Of Allah, the Beneficent and the Merciful
In this sermon (khutba) Ameerul Momeneen Ali ibn Abi Taleb (a.s.) predicts about the impending dangers to mankind and about #ImamMahdi, who will bring succor to humanity.
” When men will have twisted the meaning of the Holy Quran to gain their sinful desires and will have given a false interpretations to its orders to suit their vicious ways, he [Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.)] will bring them back to obey the orders of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) and the Holy Book (Quran).”
Continuing his address Imam Ali (a.s.) mentions the conditions that would prevail during the time of which he was prophesizing.
” The society will be engulfed by ravaging wars, overflowing with havoc and devastation. In the beginning the conquerors will feel very happy over their successes and booties gathered therein, but it will have a very sad end. I warn you of the wars of the future, you have no idea the enormity of evil which they will carry. The Imam (Mahdi) who will create a world state, will make the ruling nations pay for their crimes against humanity. He will bring succor to humanity. He will take out the hidden wealth from the depths of the earth and distribute it equitably amongst the needy and deserving. He will teach you simple living and high thinking. He will make you understand that virtue is a state of character which is always a mean between two extremes and which is based on equity and justice. He will revive the teaching of the Holy Quran and the traditions of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) after the world had ignored them as dead letters. ”
Imam Ali (a.s.) further says about Antichrist (Dajjal)
” I feel as if I am actually seeing him with my own eyes. He reveals his identity in Syria and quickly extends his domain his vicinity of Kufa (Iraq) then he invades it with the ferocity of a beast and litters the earth with death bodies. He plunders countries after countries till the earth groan under his tyrannies. His domain will be extensive and his invasions will be cruelly ferocious. By Allah, he will scatter you (Muslims) all over the earth; your numbers will be considerably reduced and you will be made to pass through disasters, calamities and sorrows.
This will continue till the Arabs get back their lost mental superiority and come back to the path of Allah and religion. During these dreadful times you should carefully follow true teachings of the Holy Quran and the correct traditions of Holy Prophet (s.a.w.a.s.) and you must abide by the orders of the person of Ahle Bayt (a.s.) who will be amongst you. Remember this will be a difficult task because the Satan will make its ways easily accessible and alluring for you to be entrapped. ”
Ref: Sermon #141Nahjul Balagah (Published by Library of Chehel Sotoon, Tehran)
Yaqoob (a.s.): The Almighty Allah, after a long time, brought his dispersed affairs together and removed his distress. Qaim (a.s.) is also such that the Almighty Allah would solve his problems and remove his distress after a long time. Yaqoob (a.s.) wept so much for Yusuf (a.s.) that his pupils became white with blindness.
Surah Yusuf 12:84
Qaim (a.s.) weeps intensely for his great grandfather, Husain (a.s.) and in Ziarat Nahiya he says:
“And I weep on you blood instead of tears.”
Biharul Anwar; Vol. 101, Pg. 320
Yaqoob (a.s.) was in anticipation of reappearance and he said:
“O my sons! Go and inquire respecting Yusuf and his brother, and despair not of Allah’s mercy; surely none despairs of Allah’s mercy except the unbelieving people.”
Surah Yusuf 12:87
Qaim (a.s.) is also waiting for the reappearance as proved by the traditional reports regarding this matter.
It’s clear as daylight that Imam Mahdi (may Allah hasten his holy reappearance) and Prophet Isa (a.s.) are two separate and different individuals. Hazrat Isa (A.S.) will offer namaz under the leadership of Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) and swear allegiance to him. Hence it is definitely impossible that Mahdi and Isa could be one and the same person. At the most, for the sake of supposition, he may either be Mahdi or Isa and not both. While Ghulam Ahmed is none of them. He is neither the promised Mahdi of Islam nor the son of Maryam, Isa, which is more evident because he never claimed that like Hazrat Isa he was born without a father. He cannot be Mahdi even because:-
Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) is an Arab, Quraishi, Muttalibi, Fatemi and his name is Mohammad. While Ghulam Ahmed is none of these, he was a Moghul and not a Quraishi, an Indian and not an Arab. His name was Ghulam Ahmed and not Mohammad.
Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will reappear from Mecca, Masjidul Haram, between Hajar-e-Aswad and Maqam-e-Ibraheem. While Ghulam Ahmed rose from Qadian (presently in Punjab, a province in Pakistan).
Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will not be under the sway of anybody, he will combat with all the tyrants and oppressors, eliminating them in the process. He will avenge the blood of the oppressed and the helpless. While Ghulam Ahmed was extremely faithful to the Britishers and prohibited to fight with the tyrants.
Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will rule over the whole world, will obviate injustice and inequity from each and every nook and corner of the world, while Ghulam Ahmed did not rule over even the entire Qadian and since his appearance, injustice and tyranny have increased in this world day by day.
When Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will reappear then earth and skies will shower all their blessings, bounties will increase manifold, poverty and want will perish, no one will accept alms. While since the birth of Ghulam Ahmed Qadian blessings have sharply reduced and poverty has multiplied to an immeasurable extent.
When Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will come then whole world will become monotheistic and infidelity and polytheism will cease to exist. The false religions will meet their end. The religion of Islam and its laws will reign supreme while with the coming of Ghulam Ahmed nothing as such has happened. Infidelity, polytheism and false religion are ruling the roost as ever and in fact have intensified their onslaughts.
The era of Imam Mahdi (a.t.f.s.) will be an era of prestige for the Muslims. Muslims will remove their mutual differences and live like brethren among themselves. Peace and tranquillity will prevail everywhere, law and order will be established in the world while since Ghulam Ahmed has appeared Muslims are mercilessly massacred, their differences are scaling new heights. Law and order has nosedived alarmingly.
These firm reasons make it absolutely evident that Ghulam Ahmed could never-never-never-never be the promised Mahdi of Islam.
Now the obvious question is that, “Then what was he?” The answer to this question could be provided by the following tradition of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.a.s.):
“Such liars will appear in my nation who will narrate new (fabricated) traditions to you. Such novel traditions which you may not have heard of, even your forefathers would not have heard of those traditions. Beware of such fabricators lest they may mislead you.”
In His Name And With The Remembrance of His Last Proof (a.t.f.s.)
Hakimah Khatoon, the daughter of Imam Muhammad Taqi al-Jawad (a.s.), and the aunt of Imam Hasan al-Askari (a.s.) narrates the conditions of the birth of Hazrat Mahdi (a.s.) as follows:
Abu Muhammad Imam Hasan Ibn Ali (al-Askari) (a.s.) sent for me and said,
“O Aunt! Break your fast with us tonight. This is the eve of 15th of Shabaan and Allah, the High, will bring forth the Hujjah on this night. He will be his Proof on His earth.” Lady Hakimah says that she asked him, “Who is his mother?” He (a.s.) replied, “Narjis”. On this she said, “May Allah make me your ransom! There is no sign (of pregnancy) in her.” He (a.s.) said, “It is as I tell you.” Lady Hakimah continues, “I came and when I greeted and sat, she came to take off my…
Yaqoob (a.s.): The Almighty Allah, after a long time, brought his dispersed affairs together and removed his distress. Qaim (a.s.) is also such that the Almighty Allah would solve his problems and remove his distress after a long time. Yaqoob (a.s.) wept so much for Yusuf (a.s.) that his pupils became white with blindness.
MAHDAVIYAT 