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The Twelvers have given a lot of importance to establish the validity of the occultation of the Mahdi by way of evidence. In their search for evidence they focused on the book of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala, but when they did not find what they wanted they contrived, as is their wont, esoteric interpretations of the verses thereof which are filled with stark artificiality and immense exaggeration, they have interpreted many verses of the Qur’an in this manner.
The following appears in the most seminal book of the Shia in Qur’anic exegesis, Tafsir al Qummi, regarding the verse:
وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلّٰى
And [by] the day when it appears.[1]
النهار هو القائم منا أهل البيت
He said, “The day is the Mahdi from amongst us the Ahlul Bayt.”[2]
In the most authentic work from their four early canonical works, the following appears regarding the verse:
قُلْ أَرَأَيْتُمْ إِنْ أَصْبَحَ مَاؤُكُمْ غَوْرًا فَمَن يَّأْتِيْكُمْ بِمَاءٍ مَّعِيْنٍ
Say, “Have you considered: if your water was to become sunken [into the earth], then who could bring you flowing water?”[3]
إذا غاب عنكم إمامكم فمن يأتيكم بإمام جديد
He said, “If your Imam goes away from you, who can bring a new Imam for you.”[4]
And in Tafsir al ‘Ayyashi the following is reported regarding the verse:
وَأَذَانٌ مِّنَ اللّٰهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ إِلَى النَّاسِ يَوْمَ الْحَجِّ الْأَكْبَرِ
And [it is] an announcement from Allah and His Messenger to the people on the day of the greater pilgrimage.[5]
خروج القائم وأذان دعوته إلي نفسه
He said, “This is the emergence of the Mahdi and his call of invitation to himself.”[6]
There are numerous examples of this type of narrations, to the extent that some of them have compiled books on this topic, for example: Ma Nazl Min al Qur’an Fi Sahib al Zaman (that which has been revealed of the Qur’an regarding the man of the time)[7] and al Mahajjah Fima Nazl Fi al Qa’im al Hujjah (the straight path regarding that which came down regarding the Mahdi, the evidence).[8] The latter was published recently[9] with the revision of a contemporary Shia scholar.[10] In it the author has interpreted more than a hundred and twenty verses of the Qur’an with their awaited Mahdi, all of which are undoubtedly from their flaws which cannot be concealed. Amazingly, the reviser of the book was not satisfied with this amount, so he added another twelve verses to it from the Book of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala and he attached them at to the end of the book under the title ‘Addendum of the Evidence’.
An impartial and objective study of these esoteric interpretations whereby substantiation for the doctrine of occultation is intended clearly reveals that they entail colossal exaggeration and distortion of the Book of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala, therein there is no evidence whatsoever. It also reveals the invalidity of this doctrine which they are trying to establish from its ‘origins’.
Likewise the Shia tend to seek evidence from the absence/disappearance of the Prophets ‘alayhim al Salam in order to prove the validity of the occultation of their Mahdi. So, for example:
They likewise draw evidence from the hiding of our Nabi Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam in the cave. Al Tusi has produced this incident as evidence against those who object by saying, “If your Imam is responsible of up-keeping the order of Allah and bearing the burden of Imamah, then how could he have disappeared?”[12] He says:
أليس النبي صلي الله عليه وسلم قد اختفي في الشعب ثلاث سنين لم يصل إليه أحد واختفي في الغار ثلاثة أيام
Did not Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam disappear in the valley for a period of three years wherein no one had access to him and did he not hide in the cave for three days?[13]
However, the reality is that these similarities that the Shia draw in trying to convince their followers and those who doubt the doctrine of the occultation do not in any way help in extirpating the doubt which is embedded in the hearts of the people, which continues to perplex them wherever they ponder over it. To the extent that Ibn Babawayh had written a book in order to convince one of their senior scholars who was doubting the doctrine, and likewise to convince those who were always around him who were who were also victims of doubt and confusion, as he has indicated in his book.[14]
I reiterate, these similarities are of no benefit in establishing the doctrine of the occultation for many reasons, one being the following: regarding the disappearance of Musa, ‘Isa, Yunus, Yusuf, and Muhammad ‘alayh al Salam[15] Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala has informed us in the Qur’an with clear and emphatic verses wherein there is no confusion and intricacy. As opposed to the occultation of the their Mahdi, for the narrations in that regard end at Hakimah (that is if the attribution of them to her is correct) and the four Babs whose eligibility for attestation is dubious due to them vesting in their interests, i.e. focusing on amassing excessive wealth. Therefore, we find that many claimed to be the Bab.
Another reason is that the disappearance of the Prophets ‘alayhim al Salam was known to their people because they had previously stayed among them. As for their Mahdi, no one knew him, nor did anyone see any trace of him, so much so that his own family denied his existence, as is attested to by reliable historians that al Hassan al ‘Askari died without issue.
Furthermore, the disappearance of the Ambiya ‘alayh al Salam was for a specific time and to a specific place. They went away for a while and then returned to their people and families.
Likewise, the Messengers of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala who disappeared for a while established the evidence of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala against their people and conveyed his message to their generation, as opposed to their Mahdi upon who many generations have passed but we have not heard anything about him.
In addition, the disappearance of the Prophets was due to natural reasons. For example, Yusuf’s ‘alayh al Salam disappearance was due to the separation from his father Ya’qub ‘alayh al Salam and his travel to a distant land, which is just like a person who travels from one city to another. It was limited to a specific time. All of their disappearance was exceptional, for despite them being a lot in number it only happened to a few of them.
As for the substantiation of the Shia from the hiding of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam in the cave for three days, it is incongruous. Because the hiding of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was not in order to conceal his prophethood, but a strategy deployed in adverse conditions, so that the disbelievers do not prove to be an impediment in his progress. Likewise, he only went into hiding for three days. So justifying the occultation of their Mahdi based on his situation is very foolish. Simply because there is a very big difference between disappearing for three days which served as a preamble for the victory and dominance of din and between going into occultation for an abnormally extended period of time, the result of which is helplessness, the discarding of propagation, and the proliferation of tyranny.[16]
One of the many reasons whereby the false claim of the Shia regarding the existence of their Imam can be discerned is the improbability of him being alive after almost a thousand and a hundred years have passed since his occultation. Since such a prolonged life for a Muslim is something the falsehood of which can be picked up by the prevalent system of Allah regarding the Ummah of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, i.e. no one is known to have lived for a hundred and twenty years during the era of Islam, let alone living for the aforementioned period of time. It appears in Sahih al Bukhari that Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said the following regarding the end of his life:
أرأيتكم ليلتكم هذه فإن علي رأس مائة سنة منها لا يبقي علي وجه الأرض ممن هو اليوم عليها أحد
Do you notice this night of yours, none of the people who are upon the surface of the earth today will remain after hundred years have passed on it.[17]
Hence whoever at that time was one year of age did not live for more than a hundred years without a doubt. And if the ages of people did not exceed this limit in those times, then the times to follow thereafter would more so entail this prevalent norm. Likewise the ages of the members of this Ummah are between sixty and seventy; very few people actually exceed that,[18] as is established in an authentic narration.[19]
This objection sort of strangles the Shia and extirpates their dogma. The Shia scholars have tried to dispel it by again drawing similarities between their Mahdi and some of the Prophets ‘alayhim al Salam whose lives extended over the average ages of people. Hence the Mahdi, according, them is like Nuh ‘alayh al Salam who stayed amongst his people for 950 years.[20] They have attributed this juxtaposition to some of the Ahlul Bayt in order to lend it some credence. Hence Ibn Babawayh has narrated the following with his chain of transmission to ‘Ali ibn al Hussain:
في القائم سنة من نوح عليه السلام وهو طول العمر
In the Mahdi there is a trait of Nuh ‘alayh al Salam and that is prolonged age.[21]
Likewise, they say that the prolonged life of the Mahdi is like that of ‘Isa ibn Maryam, Khidar, and Ilyas ‘alayh al Salam.[22] They also draw a comparison between him and Iblis.[23] They attribute a good few of these comparisons to the Ahlul Bayt in order to blow within them the status of certainty for their followers, giving them the impression that they are the verdicts of the infallibles.[24] They likewise seek evidence in the abnormally long lives of some humans.[25] The only comparison that they forgot to make is between him and Jibril and Mika’il ‘alayh al Salam and all the angels of the heavens and the earth.
But the Shia themselves destroy this argument by asserting that their Mahdi is the legitimate ruler of the Ummah for the past eleven centuries or more, he is the safeguarder of the Qur’an without who it cannot be understood and without who there is no guidance for the humans therein, he possess the entire Qur’an, the manuscript of Fatimah radiya Llahu ‘anha thereof, the goat skin — the Jami’ah and everything else that the Ummah needs in their worldly and religious affairs. Considering this, their Mahdi is responsible for the Ummah, and with him are all the means of their good fortune in this world and the hereafter. As for those prophets and humans by way of who they support their arguments, they are very different than the ‘Mahdi. For example: Nuh ‘alayh al Salam stayed amongst his people for nine hundred and fifty years, inviting them till Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala revealed to him:
لَنْ يُّؤْمِنَ مِنْ قَوْمِكَ إِلَّا مَن قَدْ آمَنَ
No one will believe from your people except those who have already believed.[26]
He did not disappear into a cave in a way that no one had knowledge of his whereabouts; or in a way that he would see the people going astray but he would go away from them and they would thus not see him for ages and centuries. Not forgetting that the age of the Mahdi has now even exceeded the age of Nuh ‘alayh al Salam. Similarly, ‘Isa ‘alayh al Salam conveyed the message of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala to his people, established the evidence against them, and fulfilled the trust he was entrusted with before being raised to the heavens. Hence his disappearance did not in no way impact upon his followers, as opposed to the their Mahdi who disappeared since his childhood and left his Shia disputing over his existence and his vicegerency, being blinded by Taqiyyah from understanding the reality of the religion he brought and quarrelling to the extent of excommunicating each other.
As for Khidar and Ilyas ‘alayh al Salam, the research scholars are of the opinion that they both had passed away.[27] And even if they are hypothetically assumed to have remained alive, the similarity is still not valid, because they were not entrusted with providing guidance for this Ummah and leading it. As opposed to their Mahdi who is according to them responsible for all the Muslims in all their affairs.
As for Iblis, the information regarding his prolonged life appears in the Qur’an, but the Mahdi’s existence was denied by his families and many factions of his followers. Furthermore, Iblis exhorts all his efforts in misleading the creation from the way of Allah (and it is undeniably clear that the adherence of the Shia to a non-existent person is definitely from his efforts). As for their awaited, there is no sign of his existence, nor any information. Likewise Iblis is not a human, so drawing a similarity with him is not free from questions in all conditions.
As for the remaining humans who enjoyed prolonged lives, despite them having reached whatever age they reached they cannot even come close to a portion of the age they claim for their Mahdi. All the examples their scholars mentioned in the fourth century do not hold any weight today due to the age of their awaited Mahdi exceeding them by a thousand years and more, and also because the aforementioned examples were of people who did not have the responsibility of the Mahdi and his tasks.
One of their contemporary scholars has endeavoured to give a logical explanation of the possibility of the existence of the Mahdi and his life for such an extended period of time in light of modern day medical language. He says:
وطول الحياة أكثر من العمر الطبيعي أو الذي يتخيل أنه العمر الطبيعي لا يمنع منها الطب ولايحيلها، غير أن الطب بعد لم يتوصل إلي ما يمكنه من تعميره حياة الإنسان وإذا عجز عنه الطب فإن الله قادر علي كل شيء
The exceedingness of life over the average age or what is considered to be the average age is not an impossibility according to medicine. However, medicine has not reached the extent whereby it can elongate the life of a human, but if medicine is incapable then Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala is capable of doing anything.[28]
And Muhammad Hussain Al Kashif al Ghita’ says:
أن أكابر فلاسفة الغرب قالوا بإمكان الخلود في الدنيا للإنسان
Some of the great philosophers of the west suggest that it is possible for humans to remain forever in this world.[29]
He further says:
قال بعض كبار علماء أوروبا: لولا سيف بن ملجم لكان علي بن أبي طالب من الخالدين. لأنه قد جمع جميع صفات الكمال والإعتدال
A great scholar of Europe said, “Had it not been for the sword of Ibn Muljam[30] ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib would have lived forever, because he was an embodiment of all the qualities of perfection and balance.”[31]
This is what some of the views of the disbelievers, on condition that this proven from them, suggest in this regard, however, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala says the following to his Nabi:
وَمَا جَعَلْنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ الْخُلْدَ أَفَإِن مِّتَّ فَهُمُ الْخَالِدُوْنَ
And We did not grant to any man before you eternity [on earth]; so if you die – would they be eternal?[32]
And he says:
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ
Every soul shall taste death.[33]
Likewise he says:
نَحْنُ قَدَّرْنَا بَيْنَكُمُ الْمَوْتَ وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمَسْبُوْقِيْنَ
We have decreed death among you, and We are not to be outdone.[34]
He knows his creation better than anyone else and is the most truthful of all speakers. Hence after what he says, there is no room for the opinion of a disbeliever whose desire is to live forever in this world even though it be by clinging on to false hopes.
There is a very accurate statement of ‘Ali al Rida, which is documented in the books of the Shia, which he said in refuting those many Shia sects who believed in the life of some members of the Ahlul Bayt, refused to accept their death and claimed that they are in occultation and that they will return; this statement is one of the strongest refutations of the Twelvers from their own narrations. In Rijal al Kashshi it is reported that when ‘Ali al Rida was told that some people have terminated the line of Imamah upon your father and they claim that he did not die, he said:
كذبوا وهم كفار بما أنزل الله عزوجل علي محمد صلي الله عليه وسلم. ولو كان الله يمد في أجل أحد لمد الله في أجل رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم.
They have lied. And they are disbelievers in what Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala has revealed upon Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. If Allah were to extend the lifetime of any person he would have extended the lifetime of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.[35]
But they oppose the statement of their Imam and claim that Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala extended his life, i.e. the Mahdi, due to the people being in need of him, and due to everything in life revolving around him. For if it were not for him, the earth would sink and drown all its people.[36]
Ibn Babawayh has pointed out in his book al I’tiqadat, which also known as the religion of the Imamiyyah, that when the Mahdi will return he will abrogate the constitution of Islam regarding inheritance. He narrates from al Sadiq that he said:
إن الله آخي بين الأرواح في ألأظلة قبل أن يخلق لأبدان بألفي عام. فلو قد قام فائمنا أهل البيت أورث الأخ الذي آخي بينهما في الأظلة لم يرث الأخ من الولادة.
Allah established brotherhood between the souls in the shadows two thousand years before he created the bodies. Hence when our Mahdi will emerge he will make a brother inherit from his brother from the shadows and not from his brother from birth.[37]
Perhaps this narration discloses the intent of the spearheaders of this band on basing relationships on partiality and movements instead of basing them on blood and kinship in inheritance, thereby usurping the wealth of people under the pretext of this so called relationship and brotherhood. It similarly divulges that which they aspire to achieve after the establishment of their promised rule, i.e. the implementation of these base ambitions and also the fact that they endeavour to give credence to them by attributing them to the Ahlul Bayt.
This narration also exposes the position of the fabricators thereof regarding the implementation of the Shari’ah of Islam and their desire to discard it. It thus mirrors a heretic notion of striving to discard the Shari’ah and rebel against the belief of Khatm al Nubuwwah (seal of prophethood).
Together with these claims being diametrically opposed to the Shari’ah of Islam they are against the reasoning of logic. Simply because inheritance is based upon the outward relationship people have with each other which is based upon birth and kinship, as for the alleged brotherhood which existed from time immemorial, how do humans identify it and thus how can it be a basis for distributing inheritance.
Their awaited Mahdi will likewise alter the Shari’ah ruling of collecting tax from the people of the book, and their narrations clearly mention that their awaited Mahdi will in doing so oppose the precedent of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. The narration states:
ولايقبل صاحب هذا الأمر الجزية كما قبلها رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم
And the man of this matter will not accept tax as Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam had accepted.[38]
This acknowledgement is enough to show how drastically juxtaposed he will be from the Sunnah of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and how he will intentionally alter it. This raises the question: Was the intention of the fabricator of these narrations to make the Shari’ah of Islam lose its importance in the hearts of his followers and to instigate them to revolt against it?
Rather even the rulings of the courts of the Mahdi will be issued against the Shari’ah of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. In al Kafi and other books the following narration appears:
إذا قام قائم آل محمد حكم بحكم داود وسليمان ولايسأل بينة
When the ruler from the family of Muhammad will emerge he will issue rulings in accordance with the rulings of Dawood and Sulaiman and he will not be asked for evidence.[39]
Another version of the narration states:
إذا قام قائم آل محمد حكم بين الناس بحكم داود عليه السلام ولايحتاج إلي بينة
When the ruler of the family of Muhammad will emerge he will issue rulings regarding the disputes of people in accordance with the rulings of Dawood ‘alayh al Salam and he will require no evidence.[40]
Al Kulayni, the reliable transmitter of their Islam, has adopted this belief and established a chapter by the title, Chapter regarding the Imams issuing rulings in accordance with the rulings of Dawood and the family of Dawood without being required to provide any proof.[41] The Jewish connotations that this holds is not hidden. This is even more evident from the comment of one of them on this title:
أي إنهم ينسخون الدين المحمدي ويرجعون إلي دين اليهود
I.e. They will abrogate the Din of Muhammad and return to the Din of the Jews.[42]
See how the fabricators of these narrations, who have misleadingly worn the garb of Shi’ism, yearn for a state wherein rulings are issued contrary to the Shari’ah of Islam.
Some of their narrations suggest that sometimes he will issue rulings in accordance with the rulings of Adam, sometimes Dawood, and sometimes Ibrahim ‘alayh al Salam. They further state that some of his followers will oppose him due to not ruling in accordance with the Shari’ah of Islam, however, he will tackle them with severity by issuing an order of their execution.[43]
The narrations present some examples of his rulings and judgements:
إنه يحكم بثلاث لم يحكم بها أحد قبله: يقتل الشيخ الزاني، ويقتل مانع الزكاة، ويورث الأخ أخاه في الأظلة، وإنه يقتل من بلغ العشرين ولم يتفقه في الدين
He will issue three rulings which no one before him ever issued: He will kill a married person who commits adultery, he will kill the person who refuses to pay Zakat, he will make his brother from the shadows inherit from his brother,[44] and he will kill any youngster who reaches the age of twenty and has not acquired the knowledge of Din.[45]
Likewise the rule of the awaited Mahdi will be based upon issuing rulings for every denomination in accordance with its religion, whereas according to Islam it is impermissible to rule but in accordance with the Shari’ah of the Qur’an. This is unanimously agreed upon by all Muslims.[46] One of their narrations state:
إذا قام القائم قسم بالسوية وعدل في الرعية واستخرج التوراة وسائر كتب الله تعالي من غار بأنطاكية، حتي يحكم بين أهل التوراة بالتوراة وبين أهل الإنجيل بالإنجيل وبين أهل الزبور بالزبور وبين أهل القرآن بالقرآن.
When the Mahdi emerges he will distribute with fairness, he will exercise justice with his subjects, he will extract the Torah and all the divine books from the cave of Antioch and issue rulings for the people of the Torah with the Torah, for the people of the Bible with the Bible, for the people of the Zabur with the Zabur, and for the people of the Qur’an with the Qur’an.[47]
This institution which the fabricators of these narrations aspire to implement and whose implementation they attribute to the Mahdi is to a very large extent in harmony with the idea of a global religion which is being espoused by the freemasons. It is a heretical idea which is based upon discarding all heavenly religions under the pretence of freedom of thought and belief.
Amidst all of these devious ideas which strive to abrogate the Qur’an, invent new rulings which Allah has not sanctioned, having recourse to the rulings of Dawood ‘alayh al Salam and not to the Shari’ah of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and implementing the constitutions of other religions other than the injunctions of the Qur’an, we learn of a poisonous idea which can be considered the aftermath of all the aforementioned changes. The crux of this idea is the discarding of the Qur’an and supplanting it with another book. This is what the narration of al Nu’mani which he narrates from Abu Basir suggests:
قال أبو جعفر رضي الله عنه: يقوم القائم بأمر جديد وقضاء جديد. لكأني أنظر إليه بين الركن والمقام يبايع الناس علي كتاب جديد
Abu Jafar said, “The Mahdi will emerge with a new matter, with a new book, and with a new constitution.[48] It is as if I can see him accepting the allegiance of the people between the black stone and Maqam (the stone which holds the imprints of the feet of Ibrahim ‘alayh al Salam upon a new book.”[49]
Whilst some other narrations state that their Mahdi will try to avert the people from the Qur’an claiming that it is interpolated and he will produce another book which is opposed to it. He will try and misguide the people by claiming that his book is the complete book which Allah revealed upon Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. The non-Arabs will be the ones making an effort to propagate it amongst the people and instruct them in it. And in doing so, they will encounter tremendous difficulty because of wanting to change the sentiments of the people regarding the Book of Allah.[50]
These are the narrations which were being surreptitiously circulated regarding the rule of the Mahdi after his return during the glorious days of the Islamic empire.
A person who does not believe in the doctrine of their Mahdi might assume that it is purely based upon imagination and has no reality to it, because the Mahdi does not exist and thus his fictitious rule will never reach realisation, so discussing it might just be an exercise in futility. Whilst this is true, it is important to understand that these narrations expose the inner intentions of their fabricators and their goals against the Shari’ah of Islam. They are inferiority complexes which entail grave implications which sort of smack of the aspirations of these fabricators and the type of governance they are yearning for; They are dreams which divulge the ploys of those elements which creeped into the ranks of the Muslim empire under the disguise of Shi’ism with the intention of interpolating the Qur’an. Their struggle against the Muslim empire under the pretext of ‘there is no rule but for the Imams’ is intended to destroy the Muslim empire and replace it with another one which will be governed by the governance of the alleged awaited Mahdi.
As for his way of life, it entails characteristics of his new Shari’ah. He will be responsible for harassing the Muslims regarding their holy places and Masjids, i.e. he will be responsible for demolishing the two holy Harams. Their narrations state:
إن القائم يهدم المسجد الحرام حتي يرده إلي أساسه ومسجد الرسول صلي الله عليه وآله إلي أساسه ويرد البيت إلي موضعه وإقامته علي أساسه
The Mahdi will demolish the Masjid Haram (Masjid Aqsa) and return it to its foundation, the Masjid of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and return it to its foundation, and he will return the Ka’bah to its place and establish it on its foundations.[51]
Similarly, he will advance toward the graves of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and his two Companions and will start, as their narrations suggest, with demolishing the wall around them. He will then remove them from their graves (i.e. Abu Bakr and ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhuma) fresh and full of life. Subsequently, he will curse them, denounce them, crucify them, take them down, burn them, and then dispose of their ashes in the wind.[52] Another narration mentions:
أول ما يبدأ به القائم… يخرج هذين رطبين غضين فيحرقهما ويذريهما في الريح ويكسر المسجد
The first thing the Mahdi will start with is that he will extract these two from their graves fresh and kicking. He will burn them and scatter their ashes in the air and demolish the Masjid.[53]
They have attributed to Allah, and Pure is He from what the transgressors attribute to Him, that He told Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam the following on the journey of Mi’raj:
وهذا القائم.هو الذي يشفي قلوب شيعتك من الظالمين والجاحدين والكافرين، فيخرج اللات والعزي (يعنون خليفة رسول الله صلي عليه وسلم) طربين فيحرقهما
This Mahdi will cool the hearts of your partisans from the two oppressors, deniers, and disbelievers; he will remove Lat and ‘Uzza from their graves (i.e. the two successors of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) fresh and he will burn them.[54]
Their narrations also state that this will cause upheaval amongst the Muslims:
ثم يحدث حدثا فإذا فعل ذلك قالت قريش: أخرجوا بنا إلي هذا الطاغية، فوالله لو كان محمديا ما فعل، ولو كان علويا ما فعل ولو كان فاطميا ما فعل
Then he will do something unprecedented and the Quraysh will say, “Let us go out to combat this tyrant. By Allah if he was a Muhammadi he would not have done so, and if he was an ‘Alawi he would not have done so, and if he was a Fatimi he would not have done so.”[55]
Commenting on this narration, their scholar and pride[56] al Majlisi says:
لعل المراد بإحداث الحدث إحراق الشيخين المعونين، فلذا يسمونه عليه السلام الطاغية
Perhaps what is meant by doing something unprecedented is his burning of the two accursed Sheikhs, due to which they will call him the tyrant.[57]
It is unambiguously clear that these promises regarding the doings of the Mahdi which are replete in their narrations smack of the intent of their hearts on relegating the Din of Islam and plotting against it, so much so that they yearn for an opportunity wherein they can demolish the two holy sites of the Muslims, and exhume the graves of the two pure men. But when they find themselves unable to carry out these ploys due to the might of the Islamic empire at that time, they pacify themselves, console themselves, and cool the grudges in their hearts against those who conquered their lands, destroyed their monarchies and propagated Islam among them with these dreams and hopes. These narrations, thus, in essence expose what they desire to accomplish if they are given an opportunity to rule and dominate.
It is in this connection that their contemporaries desire to conquer Makkah and Madinah, as has been heard from their scholars, i.e. in order to accomplish their dreams which are recorded in their narrations, as will appear.[58] They plan and Allah plans, and Allah is the best of planners.
Their Mahdi will not suffice upon this, rather he will go about killing the Arabs and annihilating them from their roots. Their narrations portray the Arabs as victims who will suffer at the hands of their Absent Imam; when he returns he will not leave any man, woman, child or adult, rather he will inflict all of them without exception. Al Nu’mani narrates:
عن الحارث بن المغيرة وذريح المحاربي: قال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام: ما بقي بينن وبين العرب إلا الذبح
Harith ibn al Mughirah and Dharih al Muharibi say that Abu ‘Abdullah said, “Nothing besides slaughter remains between us and the Arabs.”[59]
This narration seemingly does not differentiate between those who are Shia and those who are not, but their narrations emphasise that no one from the Arabs will be a partisan of their Mahdi. They state:
اتق العرب فإن لهم خبر سوء إما إنه لم يخرج مع القائم منهم أحد
Fear the Arabs for there is bad news for them. Behold none of them will join the Mahdi.[60]
But there are a lot of Shia amongst the Arabs. Their narrations, however, mention that they will be cleansed till only a very few will remain.[61]
They specifically mention the various types of murder tactics which will be carried out against the tribe of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, the Quraysh, wherefrom were his elite Companions. In al Irshad of al Mufid the following narration appears:
عن عبد الله بن المغيرة عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال: إذا قام القائم من آل محمد عليه السلام إقام خمسمائة من قريش فضرب أعناقهم ثم أقام خمسمائة فضرب أعناقهم ثم خمسمائة أخري حتي يفعل ذلك ست مرات. قلت: ويبلغ عدد هؤلاء هذا؟ قال: نعم منهم ومن مواليهم
‘Abdullah ibn Mughirah narrates from Abu ‘Abdullah ‘alayh al Salam that he said, “When the ruler from the family of Muhammad will rise he will make five hundred members of the Quraysh stand and he will decapitate them. He will then again make five hundred stand and he will decapitate them and then another five hundred. He will do this six times.”
I asked, “Will their numbers reach that amount?”
He said, “Yes, including them and their allies.”[62]
It is clear that specifically targeting the Arabs and killing them posits the nationalistic inclinations of the inventors of these narrations. It also tells us of the deep seated enmity the godfathers of Shi’ism had for the Arabs and the desire to mitigate their anguish by killing, in actual fact, is not due to their ethnicity but due to the religion that they adhere to.
Furthermore, their narrations do not forget to inflict the pure family of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam with a catastrophe from the catastrophes of their Mahdi: they claim that the Mother of the Believers, Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha, the truthful daughter of a truthful father and the beloved of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, will be raised from her grave before the Day of Judgment.[63] This is because, as they lie, she committed a crime inducing a capital punishment in the time of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, but Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam did not execute the punishment upon her, as they claim. Whereas he is the one who is reported to have said:
وأيم الله لو أن فاطمة بنت محمد سرقت لقطعت يدها
By Allah! If Fatimah the daughter of Muhammad were to steal I would cut her hand.[64]
They claim that his mercy for her had stopped him from executing the punishment upon her, whereas Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala says:
وَلَا تَأْخُذْكُمْ بِهِمَا رَأْفَةٌ فِي دِيْنِ اللّٰهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُؤْمِنُوْنَ بِاللّٰهِ
And do not be taken by pity for them in the religion [i.e., law] of Allah.[65]
Therefore he did not execute the punishment upon her, but ironically their Mahdi will execute what the Best of Creation was unable execute; and this will be in the era of Raj’ah (return), as they allege.[66]
This suggests that their Mahdi is more competent than Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, the Seal of All Prophets, and is more capable of implementing the Din of Allah than the one who was sent as an exemplar for the world.
This is explicitly mentioned in some of their narrations, for Ibn Babawayh narrates the following from Abu Basir:
قال أبو عبد الله عليه السلام في قوله عزوجل: هُوَ الَّذِيْ أَرْسَلَ رَسُوْلَهُ بِالْهُدٰى وَدِيْنِ الْحَقِّ لِيُظْهِرَهُ عَلَى الدِّيْنِ كُلِّهِ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْمُشْرِكُوْنَ والله ما نزل تأويلهما بعد ولاينزل تأويلهما حتي يخرج القائم عليه السلام
Abu ‘Abdullah ‘alayh al Salam said regarding the verse, It is He who has sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth to manifest it over all religion, although they who associate others with Allah dislike it,[67] “By Allah its interpretation has not come down as yet, nor will it come down but after the emergence of the Mahdi…”[68]
In other words, the Mahdi will accomplish that which the Prophets ‘alayhim al Salam were unable to accomplish. This is also clear from the statements of some of their scholars in contemporary times[69] which were denounced by the Muslim world, as will come.[70] This is so because they claim that the knowledge that their Mahdi will be tenfold more than that of the Prophets ‘alayhim al Salam. The following appears in Bihar al Anwar and other books:
عن أبان عن أبي عبد الله قال: العلم سبعة وعشرون حرفا فجميع ما جاءت به الرسل حرفان. فلم يعرف الناس حتي اليوم غير الحرفين، فإذا قام قائمنا أخرج الخمسة العشرين حرفا فبثها في الناس، ضم إليها الحرفان حتي يبثها سبعة وعشرين حرفا
Aban narrates from Abu ‘Abdullah that he said, “Knowledge has twenty seven dimensions; all the knowledge of the Prophets equates to two dimensions, as result, people only knew two dimensions of knowledge to date. When our Mahdi will emerge he will reveal the other twenty five dimensions of knowledge and spread them amongst the people. He will include the two dimensions to them and propagate them as twenty seven dimensions.”[71]
Moving on, the formidable operation of slaughtering which the Twelver Shia dream of will include all denominations and ethnicities with the exception of their sect. This is because their Mahdi will emerge as:
موتور غضبان أسفا… يجرد السيف علي عاتقه
A revengeful, angry, and depressed person… who will place the sword on his shoulder.[72]
He will start killing and exterminating the Ahlus Sunnah whom the Shia at times dub ‘the Murji’ah’ (postponers)[73] regarding whom the Imam said:
ويح هذه المرجئة إلي من يلجأون غدا إذا قام قائمنا
Woe be to the Murji’ah. By who will they seek shelter tomorrow when our Mahdi will emerge?[74]
He will only exclude the one who repents, i.e. the one who accepts their creed, hence he says:
من تاب تاب الله عليه، ومن أسر نفاقا فلايبعد الله غيره، ومن أظهر شيئا أحرق الله دمه.
The one who repents he will accept his repentance. The one who hides his hypocrisy Allah will not distance anyone besides him. And the one who reveals some of it Allah will burn his blood.
He then said:
ثم يذبحهم والذي نفسي بيده كما يذبح القصاب شاته- وأومأ بيده إلي حلقه
He will slaughter them, by the one in whose hand is my life, like a butcher slaughters his sheep. He said this indicating with his hand to his neck.[75]
And at times they call them Nawasib and they say:
إذا قام قائمنا عرضوا كل ناصب عليه. فإن أقر بالإسلام وهي الولاية وإلا ضربت عنقه أو أقر بالجزية فأداها كما يؤدي أهل الذمة
When the Mahdi will emerge, they will present every Nasibi to him. If he concedes Islam, which is the Imamah of the Imams, well and good, or else his head will be decapitated. Or he can commit to paying taxes like the non-Muslim citizens.[76]
However, some of their narrations aver that taxes will be accepted from them as they will be accepted from the People of the Book. For their Imam was asked regarding the situation of the non-Muslim citizens under the rule of the Mahdi and he said:
يسالمهم كما سالمهم رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم ويؤدون الجزية عن يد وهم صاغرون
He will grant them amnesty just as Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam had granted them amnesty. And they will pay taxes with humiliation.[77]
As for the others who oppose the Shia, the Imam says the following regarding them:
ما لمن خالفنا في دولتنا نصيب. إن الله قد أحل لنا دماءهم عند قيام قائمنا
There is no share for those who oppose us under our rule. Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala has made their blood permissible for us after the emergence of our Mahdi.[78]
To the extent that their Imam will hunt the Zaidiyyah, a non-extremist Shia sect, and kill them. Their narrations state:
إذا قام القائم عليه السلام سار إلي الكوفة فيخرج منها بضعة عشر آلاف أنفس يدعون البترية عليهم السلاح. فيقولون له: ارجع من حيث جئت فلا حاجة لنا في بني فاطمة فيضع فيهم السيف حتي يأتي علي آخرهم
When the Imam will emerge, he will go to Kufah and banish therefrom ten thousand and some odd people who will be known as the Batriyyah[79] and will be armed. They will say to him, “Return from where you came, for we have no need for the Banu Fatimah.” He will thus unsheathe the sword upon them till he will kill all of them.[80]
Instead their narrations mentions that he will kill innocent people:
إذا خرج القائم قتل ذراري قتلة الحسين بفعل آبائها
When the Mahdi emerges he will kill the children of the murderers of Hussain for what their forefathers did.[81]
In light of these narrations their Mahdi will have no other task but to kill people. He will not leave anyone alive[82] and he will not accept the repentance of anyone.[83]
Some of their narrations portray the extent to which bloodshed will reach at the hands of the Mahdi, they state:
لو يعلم الناس ما يصنع القائم إذا خرج لأحب أكثرهم ألا يروه مما يقتل من الناس…حتي يقول كثير من الناس: ليس هذا من آل محمد. لو كان من آل محمد لرحم
If people come to know of what the Mahdi will do after his appearance most of them would prefer not to see him due to the amount of people he will kill… To the extent that many people will say, “This person is not from the family of Muhammad. Had he been from the family of Muhammad he would have had mercy.”[84]
This takes the Mahdi out of the characteristic of mercy and justice for which the Ahlul Bayt were known, rather with this behaviour he has parted from the Sunnah of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. In fact they actually boldly claim this:
سئل الباقر: أيسير القائم بسيرة محمد؟ فقال: هيهات! إن رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم سار في أمته باللين وكان يتألف الناس، والقائم أمر أن يسير بالقتل وألا يستتيب أحدا، فويل لمن ناوأه
Al Baqir was asked, “Will the Mahdi tread the way of Muhammad?”
He said, “Far-fetched indeed! Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam treaded the path of mercy with his Ummah and he united the hearts of the people, as for the Mahdi, he will tread the path of murder, he will not accept the repentance of anyone. So woe be to one who disassociates from him.”[85]
So the Shia claim that he will be instructed with a way other than the way of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Whereas the unanimity of the Muslims asserts that whatever goes against the way of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam is not part of Islam. So will he be sent with another message other than Islam?
And how is it possible that he will be ordered to oppose the way of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam? Will he be a Nabi who will receive revelation afresh, whereas it is an accepted fact that there is no Nabi after the Seal of the Prophets and there is no revelation after his demise? And any person who claims the contrary is a liar and a fraudster due to him opposing the epistemologically certain texts and the unanimity of the Ummah regarding the termination of revelation and Nubuwwah with the demise of Rasul Allah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
These narrations, nonetheless, portray what is in the hearts of their fabricators, viz. hatred for people, especially the Muslim Ummah, which opposes them in their ways, their yearning for a day to come wherein they can make their dreams a reality, the reality which is divulged in these narrations, and which is represented in the Shia world of the Safawid era, the country of the scholars and in their movements in Lebanon, as will come.[86]
It is an undisputed fact that Amir al Mu’minin ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu, whom they claim to be partisans of, did not excommunicate his opponents and did not combat but those who rebelled against him. It follows that their Mahdi who will do all these horrendous acts and those who follow him in doing so, are not from the partisans of ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu. More so when they have acknowledged in their narrations that their Mahdi will not tread the way of ‘Ali; it is narrated that al Sadiq was asked:
أيسير القائم بخلاف سيرة علي؟ فقال نعم. وذاك أن عليا سار بالمن والكف لعلمه أن شيعته سيظهر عليهم من بعده، وأما القائم فيسير بالسيف والسبي، لأنه يعلم أن شيعته لن يظهر عليهم من بعده أبدا
“Will the Mahdi tread a path other than that of ‘Ali?”
He said, “Yes. And that is because ‘Ali treaded the path of forgiving and withholding due to having knowledge that his partisans will be defeated in the future. As for the Mahdi, he will tread the path of the sword and imprisonment due to knowing that his Shia will never be defeated after him.”[87]
Whilst addressing some of the Shia Jafar al Sadiq said:
كيف أنت إذا رأيت أصحاب القائم قد ضربوا فساطيطهم في مسجد الكوفة، ثم أخرج المثال الجديد علي العرب شديد. قال قلت: جعلت فداك ما هو؟ قال: الذبح. قال: قلت بأي شيئ يسير فيهم بما سار فيهم علي بن أبي طالب في أهل السواد؟ قال لا. إن عليا سار بما في الجفر الأبيض، وهو الكف، وهو يعلم أنه سيظهر علي شيعته من بعده. وإن القائم يسير بما في الجفر الأحمر وهو الذبح، وهو يعلم أنه لا يظهر علي شيعته
“What will be your condition when you see the companions of the Mahdi erecting their tents in the masjid of Kufah? The Mahdi will then extract the new example which will be severe upon the Arabs.”
The narrator says that he asked, “May I be sacrificed for you, what will that be?”
Jafar al Sadiq said, “Slaughter.”
He asked, “How will he deal with them? Like how ‘Ali dealt with the people of Iraq?”
Jafar al Sadiq said, “No! ‘Ali implemented what is in the white goat skin, i.e. withholding, knowing that his partisans will be defeated after him. And the Mahdi will implement that which is the red skin, i.e. slaughter, knowing that his Shia will never be defeated after him.”[88]
In this way, the alleged Mahdi will emerge with a new matter, a new book, a new way and a new constitution.[89]
This is enough in explaining that what the Shia dream of has no basis in the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of his Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Rather it is a new innovation which their Mahdi will emerge with.
And when people will be living in bloodshed, severed bodies, and fear from the Mahdi of the Shia whose emergence will be a punishment upon them—just as the prophethood of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was a mercy[90]—the army of the Mahdi and his companions will be living a completely different life which will be filled with all types of bounties and delights. He will tell them not to carry any food, drink, or fodder on their campaigns whereupon his companions will say:
إنه يريد أن يقتلنا ويقتل دوابنا من الجوع والعطش، فيسير ويسيرون معه. فأول منزل ينزله يضرب الحجر فينبع منه طعام وشراب علف فيأكلون ويشربون ودوابهم حتي ينزلوا النجف من ظهر الكوفة
“He intends to kill us and kill our animals out of starvation and thirst.”[91]
But he will advance and they will as well alongside him, and in the first place where he will halt he will strike the rock and food, water, and fodder will gush forth therefrom. They will thus eat, drink, and their animals will be satiated. They will then halt in Najf which is behind Kufah.[92]
In this manner:
لاينزل منزلا إلا انبعث منه عيون، فمن كان جائعا شبع ومن كان ظمآن روي
He will not halt at any place but that springs will gush forth. Hence whoever will be hungry will be satiated and whoever will be thirsty will be quenched.[93]
And wherever he will stand the wealth of the world will accumulate by him from within the land and from without. He will thus give his companions so much wealth from there that no one before had given. Sustenance will increase in his rule due to which he will give two salaries a month and two bonuses a year.[94] So much so that a Shia will not find anyone to give his Dinars and Dirhams to.[95]
These narrations to the contrary, portray the desires and ambitions which overwhelm the hearts of the Shia in anticipation for tomorrow. They also portray the materialistic inclinations that they share with the Jews, i.e. the proliferation of the communist system in the world which was invented by Carl Marks.
As for the details regarding the army of the Mahdi and his people who will be with him in his slaughtering campaign, and who will enjoy his bounties and abide in his paradise, I shall present the details thereof ahead.
Some of their narrations suggest that the army of the Mahdi will primarily consist of slaves and non-Arabs and that their total will be twelve thousand. The Mahdi will provide them with weaponry from his side which will be a sword and a double sided shield. He will then say to them:
من لم يكن عليه مثل ما عليكم فاقتلوه
Whoever is not upon the belief you are, kill him.[96]
And the narration of al Nu’mani states that the amount of followers the Mahdi will have is three hundred and thirteen all of who will be from the children of non-Arabs.[97]
Whilst on the other hand, the narrations of Bihar al Anwar states:
إذا قام قائم آل محمد استخرج من ظهر الكعبة سبعة وعشرين رجلا، خمسة وعشرين من قوم موسي الذين يقضون بالحق وبه يعدلون، وسبعة من أصحاب الكهف، ويوشع رصي موسي، ومؤمن آل فرعون، وسلمان الفارسي، وأبا دجانة الأنصاري ومالك الأشتر
When the Mahdi of the family of Muhammad will emerge, he will extract from the Ka’bah twenty seven men: twenty five men will be from the nation of Musa ‘alayh al Salam who pass their decisions based on the truth and with which they establish justice, seven will be from the sleepers of the cave, Yusha’ ibn Musa, the believer of the family of the Pharaoh, Salman al Farisi, Abu Dujanah al Ansari, and Malik al Ashtar.[98]
In this narration the strong element of Judaism which was part of those who fabricated these narrations is completely clear.
Likewise, it is clear that Shi’ism is an umbrella for various types of elements, each one doing what his desires dictate to him and what his tribalism dictates to him. Hence the non-Arabs fabricate narrations in their favour and so do the Jews. In this way the collections of the Shia have included everyone without sifting.
In some of their narrations the details of the names of each soldier is mentioned one by one. Together with that there is mention of the place, the tribe, and the occupation of each one of them. For example:
ومن أهل الشام رجلين يقال لهما إبراهيم بن الصباح يوسف بن جريا (صريا). فيوسف عطار من أهل دمشق وأبراهيم قصاب من قرية صويقان
From the people of Syria there will two men who will be known as Ibrahim ibn al Sabbah and Yusuf ibn Jarya (Sarya).[99] Yusuf, the perfume merchant, will be from Damascus and Ibrahim, the butcher, will be from the Suwayqan village.
He goes on to mention their names till he makes mention of three hundred and thirteen men, which is the amount of the veterans of Badr.[100]
When reading these names you cannot help but laugh when you notice the clear falsity of this narration and the foolish endeavour to conceal it. One cannot stop musing at the boldness to lie and the disregard for intellect. What is even more appalling is that the Shia of our times are not ashamed of producing such an indictment for public consumption, revising it, and publishing it! Or maybe it is just that Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala intends to expose them and disclose their falsehood.
During the period of the occultation which the Shia subscribe to and in accordance with which they lived for more than a thousand and a hundred years, the scholars of the Shia stopped many injunctions of the Din, due to their ‘representation’ of the Mahdi. Likewise they invented many beliefs and rulings which are not sanctioned by Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala.
For example: the Shia have due to the occultation of the Mahdi stopped the Jumu’ah Salah just as they have prohibited the appointment of a ruler for the Muslims, they said:
الجمعة والحكومة لإمام المسلمين
The Jumu’ah and leadership is only for the Imam of the Muslims.[101]
And the Imam is the awaited Mahdi.
That is why majority of the Shia do not perform Jumu’ah till today,[102] to the extent that some of the later scholars have said:
إن الشيعة من زمان الإئمة كانوا تاركين للجمعة
The Shia were deserters of the Jumu’ah prayer from the time of the Imams.[103]
Similarly, the Shia do not believe in allegiance but to the Awaited Mahdi, they, therefore, renew their allegiance on a daily basis. Hence in a prayer of theirs which is known as the ‘prayer of allegiance’ their say the following:
اللهم إني أجدد له في صبيحة يومي هذا وما عشت من أيامي عهدا أو عقدا أو بيعة له في عنقي لا أحول عنها ولا أزول أبدأ
O Allah I renew in the morning of this day of mine and the evenings of my days an allegiance and a pact for him which is my responsibility. I will never turn away from it or give it up.[104]
Al Majlisi says that he should then put his right hand into his left hand as in a handshake when pledging allegiance.[105]
Furthermore, the Imam whose obedience is obligatory upon the Muslims from 260 A.H till today is their awaited Mahdi who is hiding in the basement. Before the year 260 A.H the obedience of the remaining twelve Imams was obligatory. As a result, the Jihad which was fought in the times of Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Uthman radiya Llahu ‘anhum, and the remaining Muslim rulers was illegitimate and Haram just as carrion and blood are Haram. It is narrated in al Kafi and other books that Abu ‘Abdullah said:
القتال مع غير الإمام المفترض طاعته حرام مثل الميتة والدم والخنزير
Fighting with an Imam whose obedience is not obligatory is impermissible just as carrion, blood, and pork are impermissible.[106]
The armies of the Muslims who safeguard the borders, strive in the path of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala not wanting authority and without causing corruption upon earth, and those who conquered the lands of Persia are not but murderers according to the Shia. There is destruction awaiting them due to them wanting to hasten to their abode. Al Tusi narrates the following in al Tahdhib:
عن عبد الله بن سنان قال: قلت لأبي عبد الله عليه السلام: جعلت فداك ما تقول في هؤلاء الذين يقتلون في هذه الثغور؟ قال: فقال: الويل يتعجلون قتلة في الدنيا وقتلة في الآخرة والله ما الشهيد إلا شيعتنا ولو ماتوا علي فرشهم
‘Abdullah ibn Sinan narrates:
I asked Abu ‘Abdullah, “What do you say regarding those who patrol the borders and get killed doing so?”
He said, “They are seeking destruction in advance; they are murderers in this world and murderers in the hereafter. By Allah only our Shia attain martyrdom, even if they die on their beds.”[107]
As you can see, according to the Shia the Jihad of the Muslims across history is illegitimate, there is no reward therein nor any compensation, to the extent that they describe the Muslim soldiers as murderers and they strip them of the names: Mujahid and Shahid with which Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala privileged them.
Can any person who is sane and free from being subject to his fanaticism and base desires ever doubt that the fabricators of these narrations are enemies seeking revenge and a group of jealous heretics; a people who are waiting for calamities to overtake the Ummah and who want it to meet ruination, who do not want Jihad for the cause of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala to remain in order to protect his Din and his lands. The conspiracy reaches an extent where they attribute these fabrications to Jafar al Sadiq and other members of the Ahlul Bayt so that they may advocate these lies amongst their people on the one hand and so that they may harm the Ahlul Bayt on the other by tarnishing their reputation.
The Shia have likewise prohibited the establishment of the capital punishments of Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala in a Muslim state due to the absence of their Imam, because, as they allege, the execution of the capital punishments is the duty of the emphatically appointed Imam. According to them Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala has only emphatically appointed the Twelve Imams, the last among who went into occultation during the mid-third century and anticipation for who is compulsory in order to establish the capital punishments. However, after approximately seventy years from his occultation he gave permission to the Shia scholars only—and not any judge from the judges of the Muslims—to execute the capital punishments on his behalf. Hence if none of their scholars are found in any given place, it is not permissible to execute the capital punishments due to that solely being the prerogative of the hidden Imam and his representatives from the scholars of the Shia. Their scholar Ibn Babawayh narrates the following:
عن حفص بن غياث قال: سألت أبا عبد الله عليه السلام من يقيم الحدود؟ السلطان؟ أو القاضي؟ فقال: إقامة الحدود من إليه الحكم
Hafs ibn Ghayath says, “I asked Abu ‘Abdullah, “Who will execute the capital punishments, the ruler or the judge?”
He said, “Executing the capital punishments is the prerogative of the one who has the right to rule.”[108]
And al Mufid mentions:
فأما إقامة الحدود فهو إلي سلطان الإسلام المنصوب من قبل الله، وهم أئمة الهدي من آل محمد عليهم السلام، ومن نصبوه لذلك من الأمراء والحكام، وقد فوضوا النظر فيه إلي فقهاء شيعتهم مع الإمكان
As for the execution of the capital punishments, it is the prerogative of the Imam who is appointed by Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala, and they are the Imams of guidance from the family of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. And secondly, those whom they have nominated for their representation in that regard from the rulers and judges, i.e. the scholars of the Shia whom they have accorded this authority.[109]
Similarly, the narrations of the Shia warn against going to the courts of the Muslims and their judges:
من تحاكم إليهم في حق أو باطل فإنما تحاكم إلي الطاغوت، وما يحكم له فإنما يأخذ سحتا، وإن كان حقه ثابتا، لأنه أخذه بحكم الطاغوت
Whoever raises his case to them in a matter of truth or falsehood has indeed raised his case to the idols. And whatever he receives because of their decision in his favour is Haram even though it be his legitimate right due to him taking it with the decision of the idols.[110]
These are but few examples of the injunctions of the Shari’ah of Islam which the Shia have forbidden and postponed till the emergence of their Imam due to his absence.
They have on the other hand contrived many injunctions for themselves during the period of his occultation, such injunctions which are not sanctioned by Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala. One among them is Taqiyyah which in Islam is a concession which is temporary and should only be practiced at the time of need. They made it a compulsory action which has to continually be practiced during the era of the occultation, it is not permissible to leave it till the emergence of the Mahdi who is never going to return due to him never being born, as emphasised by the historians the genealogists and many sects of the Shia themselves, returns. Whoever does not practice upon Taqiyyah is like a person who abandons salah.[111]
Another one is that they have given a person the status of martyrdom when he dies solely because of embracing Shi’ism and awaiting the Mahdi, not because of striving in the path of Allah. Hence a Shia is a martyr even if he dies upon his bed. Their Imam is reported to have said:
إذا مات منكم ميت قبل أن يخرج قائمنا كان شهيدا، ومن أدرك قائمنا فقتل معه، وكان له أجر شهيدين
If anyone of you passes away before the emergence of our Mahdi, he is a martyr. And a person who finds the era of our Mahdi and fights with him will get the reward of two martyrs.[112]
Their scholar al Bahrani has established a chapter in his book al Ma’alim al Zulfa with the title Chapter 59: Regarding the Shia being martyrs even if they die upon their beds.[113] Therein he cites multiple narrations.
Their exaggeration, as usual, than increases, to the extent that Ibn Babawayh narrates the following from ‘Ali ibn al Hussain:
من ثبت علي موالاتنا في غيبة قائمنا أعطاه الله عزوجل أجر ألف شهيد من شهداء بدر وأحد
Whoever remains firm upon our alliance during the absence of the Mahdi, Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala will grant him the reward of a thousand martyrs from the martyrs of Badr and Uhud.[114]
Likewise one of the injunctions is allegiance to the absent Imam being compulsory, to the extent that allegiance to him is renewed several times by way of prayers when visiting the tombs of the Imams, as has passed. This is because the narration states:
من أصبح من هذه الأمة لا أمام له من الله جل وعز ظاهرا عادلا أصبح ضالا تائها، وإن مات علي هذه الحال مات ميتة كفر ونفاق
Whoever in this Ummah becomes such that he does not have allegiance to the Imam whom Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala has appointed as an open[115] and just Imam is misguided and lost. If he dies in this condition he will die a death of disbelief and hypocrisy.[116]
As for the greatest principle which they have invented during the period of occultation, it is the representation of the Shia jurist for the absent Imam. Owing to this artificial representation the Shia jurist has made many things permissible.
The Shia scholars, however, have differed as to the limitations of this representation. Some keeping it very limited whilst others establishing it to a very large extent, to the extent of representation in the highest levels of the responsibility; i.e. ruling a state and a referendum for enacting a state in the present country of the scholars, despite them not believing but in the explicitly nominated Imam. Due to the graveness of the idea of representation and because, at least according to me, it represents the ‘definite’ emergence of the ‘Mahdi due to a very large number of their scholars claiming it, we will analyse it in the next chapter.
NEXT⇒ The Representation of the Hidden Mahdi
[1] Surah al Layl: 2
[2] Tafsir al Qummi 2/425.
[3] Surah al Mulk: 30
[4] Usul al Kafi 1/339. See also: Tafsir al ‘Ayyashi 2/76; Ikmal al Din p. 239; al Burhan 2/102.
[5] Surah al Tawbah: 3
[6] Tafsir al ‘Ayyashi 2/76; al Burhan 2/102.
[7] The book of ‘Abdul ‘Aziz al Jaludi (see: al Dhari’ah 19/30).
[8] The book of Hashim al Bahrani.
[9] It was published in 1403 A.H. by Mu’ssasah al Wafa’ in Beirut.
[10] He goes by the name Muhammad Munir al Maylani. He has referenced the narrations of the book to a substantial number of their reliable works.
[11] Al Tusi: al Ghaybah p. 77.
[12] Ibid. p. 13.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ikmal al Din p. 2-4.
[15] As for the three years in the valley of Abu Talib, that was a boycott and not a disappearance, so it is unrelated to our topic.
[16] Mukhtasar al Tuhfah p. 119.
[17] Minhaj al Sunnah 2/65. See the narration in Sahih al Bukhari: chapter of knowledge: sub-chapter regarding discussing academic issues at night: 1/37; Musnad Ahmed 1/121, 131.
[18] Minhaj al Sunnah 2/165. See the narration in Sunan al Tirmidhi: Chapter of Zuhd: Sub-chapter regarding the ending of the lives of people between sixty and seventy years: 4/566, Chapter regarding Du’a’: sub-chapter regarding the Du’a’ of Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam 5/553. Commenting of the narration al Tirmidhi says, “This narration is sound but only transmitted with one transmission; it is only known with this transmission.” Ibn Hajar commenting on this says, “It is strange of him to say that, because he himself has narrated the narration in the chapter of Zuhd with another chain of transmission from Abu Hurairah radiya Llahu ‘anhu. (See: Fayd Qadir 2/11). Sunan Ibn Majah: chapter of Zuhd: sub-chapter regarding hopes and death: 2/1415; Fayd al Qadir 2/11: the narration of Abu Hayyan; Mustadrak Hakim 2/427; al Khatib: Tarikh Baghdad 6/397, 12/48; al Suyuti: al Jami’ al Saghir p. 48: he has classified it to be Hassan, sound; Ibn Hajar has labelled it sound as well (see: Fayd al Qadir 2/11); Hakim has dubbed it authentic and in accordance with the requirements of Muslim, and al Dhahabi has agreed with him (al Mustadrak 2/427); al Albani has commented thusly, “It is Hassan Li Dhatihi and Sahih li Ghayrihi” i.e. sound but not authentic. (Silsilah al Ahadith al Sahihah 2/397; al Albani: Sahih al Jami’ 1/354.
[19] Minhaj al Sunnah 2/165.
[20] Al Ghaybah p. 79.
[21] Ikmal al Din p. 488.
[22] ‘Aqa’id al Imamiyyah p. 108.
[23] Al Ha’iri: Ilzam al Nasib 1/283.
[24] See: Usul al Kafi 1/336-337; al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 108, onwards; Ikmal al Din p. 134; Ilzam al Nasib 1/285.
[25]Al Tusi: Al Ghaybah p. 79, onwards.
[26] Surah al Hud: 36.
[27] Al Muntaqa p. 26. According to Ibn Hazm the view of the life of Ilyas and Khidar ‘alayh al Salam is taken from Judaism because the Jews believed in the life of Ilyas, Finhas ibn al ‘Azar ibn Harun ‘alayh al Salam. Some Sufis followed them in claiming that they met Ilyas ‘alayh al Salam in the jungles (see: al Fasl 5/37). Likewise some Sufis were of the opinion of the life of Khidar ‘alayh al Salam, there are stories regarding them meeting him and benefitting from him (see: Ibn ‘Arabi: al Futuhat al Makkiyyah 1/241; Ibn ‘Ata’ al Iskandari: Lata’if al Minan p. 52-53; Tabaqat al Sha’rani 1/97, 2/5; see also: al Fasl 5/37-38; Ibn Hajar: Tahdhib al Tahdhib 7/477. Ibn Hazm has considered the claims of the Sufis of benefitting from Khidar ‘alayh al Salam to be against the belief of Khatm al Nubuwwah (see: al Fasl 5/38).
And the claim that Khidar ‘alayh al Salam is alive till today is against evidence and the views of the research scholars. See: Minhaj al Sunnah 1/28; Ibn al Qayyim: al Manar al Munif p. 67-76. And for details regarding Khidar ‘alayh al Salam see: Ibn Kathir: al Bidayah wa al Nihayah 1/325-327; Ibn Hajar: Fath al Bari 6/309-312; al Isabah 2/286-335. Ibn Hajar has written a small booklet in investigating the matter of Khidar ‘alayh al Salam at the end of which he is strongly inclined to the opposite of what the commonality believe regarding his continuous life (see: al Zahr al Nadr fi Naba’ Khidar as part of Majmu’ah al Rasa’il al Minbariyyah 2/234).
[28] ‘Aqa’id al Imamiyyah p. 108.
[29] Asl al Shia p. 70.
[30] This is based upon the Mu’tazili viewpoint who aver that a murderer reduces the life of the murdered person. This is a view in complete contrast with what is firmly established in Qur’an and the Sunnah which prove that whoever dies only dies after he has completed his time (see: Majmu’ Fatawa Ibn Taymiyah 8/516; Sharh al Tahawiyyah p. 92; Lawami’ al Anwar 1/348).
[31] Asl al Shia p. 70.
[32] Surah al Ambiya’: 34.
[33] Al ‘Imran: 184; al Ambiya’: 35; al ‘Ankabut: 57.
[34] Al Waqi’ah: 60.
[35] Rijal al Kashshi p. 458.
[36] Usul al Kafi 1/179.
[37] Al I’tiqadat p. 83.
[38] Bihar al Anwar 52/349.
[39] Usul al Kafi 1/397.
[40] Al Mufid: al Irshad p. 413; al Tabarsi: A’lam al Wara p. 433.
[41] Usul al Kafi 1/397.
[42] Muhibb al Din al Khatib: commentary notes on al Muntaqa p. 302.
[43] Bihar al Anwar 52/389.
[44] Ibn Babawayh: al Khisal p. 169; Bihar al Anwar 52/359; al Kazimi: Basharah al Islam p. 275.
[45] Al Tabarsi: A’lam al Wara p. 431; Bihar al Anwar 52/152.
[46] Ibn Taymiyah: Minhaj al Sunnah 3/127; al Muntaqa p. 343.
[47] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 157; Bihar al Anwar 52/351.
[48] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 154; Bihar al Anwar 52/354; Ilzam al Nasib 2/283.
[49] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 176; Bihar al Anwar 52/135.
[50] This has passed in an earlier post. Click Here
[51] Al Tusi: al Ghaybah p. 282; Bihar al Anwar 52/338.
[52] Bihar al Anwar 52/386.
[53] Ibid.
[54] Ibn Babawayh: ‘Uyun Akhbar al Rida 1/58; Bihar al Anwar 52/379.
[55] Tafsir al ‘Ayyashi 2/58; Bihar al Anwar 52/342.
[56] One of the titles accorded to him is ‘The pride of the Ummah,’ as you will find on the cover of his books.
[57] Bihar al Anwar 52/346.
[58] In the chapter regarding contemporary Shia and their connection with their predecessors.
[59] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 155; Bihar al Anwar 52/349.
[60] Al Tusi: al Ghaybah p. 284; Bihar al Anwar 52/114.
[61] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 137; Bihar al Anwar 52/114.
[62] Al Irshad p. 411; Bihar al Anwar 52/338.
[63] This is based on their doctrine of Raj’ah which will discuss after this discussion if Allah wills.
[64] A portion of a Hadith which features in Sahih al Bukhari: Chapter of the Ambiya’: 4/151, Chapter regarding the virtues of the Sahabah: sub-chapter regarding the mention of Usamah ibn Zaid: 4/214, Chapter of capital punishments: sub-chapter regarding amputating the hand of a thieve: 2/1315; Sunan Abi Dawood: chapter of capital punishments: sub-chapter regarding intercession in a capital punishment: 4/537; Sunan al Tirmidhi: chapter of capital punishments: subchapter regarding the undesirability of intercession in capital punishments: 4/37-38; Sunan al Nasa’i: chapter regarding amputating the hand of a thieve: sub-chapter regarding the mention of the Makhzumiyyah who stole: 8/72; Sunan Ibn Majah: chapter of capital punishments: sub-chapter regarding intercession in capital punishments: 2/851; Sunan al Darimi: chapter of capital punishments: sub-chapter regarding capital punishments in front of the ruler: 1/569, etc.
[65] Surah al Nur: 2.
[66] The narration which is allegedly attributed to Abu Jafar states:
إما لو قام قائمنا لقد ردت إليه الحميراء حتي يجلدها الحد وحتي ينتقم لابنة محمد فاطمة عليها السلام. قلت: جعلت فداك ولم يجلدها الحد؟ قال: لفريتها علي أم أبراهيم صلي الله عليه. قلت: فكيف أخره الله للقائم عليه السلام. فقال له: إن الله تبارك وتعالي بعث محمدا صلي الله وآله رحمة وبعث القائم عليه السلام نقمة.
“Behold, when our Mahdi will emerge, Humaira’ (a title of Aisha ) will be brought to him so that he may execute the punishment upon her and so that he may take revenge for Fatimah radiya Llahu ‘anha the daughter of the Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam from her.”
I asked, “May I be sacrificed for you, why will she be punished?”
He said, “Because of her allegation against the mother of Ibrahim.”
I asked, “So why did Allah delay it till the emergence of the Mahdi?”
He said, “Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala sent Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam as a mercy and he will send the Mahdi as a punishment.” (See: ‘Ilal al Shara’i’ p. 579-580; Bihar al Anwar 52/314-315).
Commenting on this narration one of their contemporary scholars provides a text which makes mention of the allegation:
إن إبراهيم ليس منك وإنه ابن فلان القبطي
Ibrahim is not from you, he is the son of so and so Coptic.
The narration states that Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam entrusted ‘Ali with executing her but ‘Ali revealed her innocence. (See: Bihar al Anwar 52/315: the footnotes).
[67] Surah al Tawbah: 33.
[68] Ikmal al Din p. 628; Bihar al Anwar 52: 324.
[69] Khomeini for example.
[70] In the chapter: ‘the contemporary Shia and their link with their predecessors.
[71] Bihar al Anwar 52/336: Taken from al Khara’ij of al Rawandi, as is indicated by al Majlisi (ibid).
[72] Bihar al Anwar 52/361.
[73] Their scholar al Tarihi says, “They have been dubbed ‘the Murji’ah’ because they claim that Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala suspended the appointment of an Imam so that his appointment takes place by way of the election of the Ummah of Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.” See: Majma’ al Bahrayn 1/177-178; see also: Mir’at al ‘Uqul 4/371.
[74] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 190; Bihar al Anwar 52/357.
[75] Bihar al Anwar 52/357; al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 190-191.
[76] Tafsir Furat p. 100; Bihar al Anwar 52: 373. The aspect of accepting taxes from them is against those narrations which state that they will not be accepted from them, as has passed already under the discussion of his Shari’ah.
[77] Bihar al Anwar 52/ 376.
[78] Ibid.
[79] Al Batriyyah: the followers of al Hassan ibn Salih ibn Hayy and the followers of Kathir al Nawa who was known as Abtar. They are also known as the Salihiyyah. Part of their beliefs is, as al Ash’ari states, that they deny the return of the dead before the coming of the Day of Judgement and they do not believe in the rule of ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu but after his election. They are the subsect of the Zaidiyyah. (See: Maqalat al Islamiyyin 1/144; al Milal wa al Nihal 1/161; al Khutat 2/352).
[80] Al Irshad p. 411-412; Bihar al Anwar 52/338.
[81] ‘Ilal al Shara’i’ p. 411-412; ‘Uyun Akhbar al Rida 1/273; Bihar al Anwar 52/313.
[82] Bihar al Anwar 52/231.
[83] Bihar al Anwar 52/249. One version of the narration mentions that he will not appoint anyone as his deputy i.e. he will do all the killing himself (see: Ibid).
[84] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 154; Bihar al Anwar 52/354.
[85] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 153; Bihar al Anwar 52/353
[86] In the chapter regarding the influence of the Shia on the Islamic world.
[87] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 153; Bihar al Anwar 52/353.
[88] Bihar al Anwar 52/318: the narration appears in Basa’ir al Darajat, as indicated by al Majlisi (ibid).
[89] Ibid. 52/231.
[90] Al Kulayni has narrated in al Kafi that Allah subhanahu wa ta ‘ala sent Muhammad salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam as a mercy and he will send the Mahdi as a calamity. (See: Bihar al Anwar 52/376: he attributes the narration to the chapter of Rawdah in al Kafi p. 233).
[91] This shows that they will be in doubt regarding the decisions of the Mahdi, so how can they be from his people?
[92] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 158.
[93] Ibid.
[94] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 158.
[95] Ibid.
[96] Bihar al Anwar p. 214.
[97] Al Nu’mani: al Ghaybah p. 214.
[98] This is how the narration appears in Bihar al Anwar: 52/346. The committee of revising the book did not comment on this narration despite al Majlisi stating that the total amount of soldiers will be twenty seven and when he went on to give details of these soldiers they amounted to thirty seven! And in Tafsir al ‘Ayyashi 1/32 it is mentioned: “Fifteen men from the people of Musa ‘alayh al Salam,” this narration is in harmony with the total amount ‘twenty seven’. As for Tafsir al Burhan 2/41, the author has added ‘and’, he says, “Twenty seven men and twenty five men from the nation of Musa…” The ‘and’ obviously is an addition to make the narration more sensible.
[99] This is how the narration appears in the source. Seemingly the reviser penned both names as they appeared in two variant manuscripts.
[100] Al Bahrani; al Hujjah p. 46, the author has given reference to Dala’il al Nubuwwah p. 314.
[101] Miftah al Karamah: chapter of Salah: 2/69.
[102] Kazim al Kifa’i, one of their contemporary scholars from Iraq, says, “All the Shia besides al Sheikh al Khalisi who performs Jumu’ah in the Safawid Masjid, in the Kazimi courtyard do not perform the Jumu’ah Salah.” (He wrote this in a letter to Doctor ‘Ali al Salus which the latter published in his book Fiqh al Shia p. 263). And in Kuwait none besides Ibrahim Jamal al Din, the scholar of the Akhbaris, performs Jumu’ah (see: al Salus: Fiqh al Shia p. 203). When one of the Shia asked one of their senior scholars who goes by the name Muhsin al Hakim regarding the evidence for the presence of the Mahdi to be condition for Jumu’ah, he told him that he should not ask such questions. Likewise some of their scholars assert that Jumu’ah is obligatory but they do not perform it (see: Muhammad ‘Abdul Rida al Asadi: Nass al Kitab wa Mutawatir al Akhbar ‘ala Wujub al Jumu’ah fi Kul al A’sar p. 24/27-28).
[103] Al Bahbani in his footnotes upon al Madarik. The very same has been quoted by their scholar al Khalisi in his book al Jumu’ah p. 131
[104] ‘Abbas al Qummi: Miftah al Jinan p. 538.
[105] Bihar al Anwar 102/111; Miftah al Jinan p. 538-539.
[106] Furu’ al Kafi 1/334; Tahdhib al Ahkam 2/45; Wasa’il al Shia 11/32.
[107] Al Tahdhib 2/42; Wasa’il al Shia 11/21.
[108] Ibn Babawayh: Man la Yahduruhu al Faqih 4/51; Tahdhib al Ahkam 10/155; Wasa’il al Shia 18/338.
[109] Al Muqni’ah p, 130; Wasa’il al Shia 18/338.
[110] Furu’ al Kafi 7/412; al Tahdhib 6/218; Wasa’il al Shia 18/4.
[111] See the chapter of Taqiyyah.
[112] Bihar al Anwar 52/123, it is narrated in the Amali of al Tusi as well (see: Ibid, 52/122-123).
[113]Al Ma’alim al Zulfa Fi Bayan Ahwal al Nash’ah al Ula wa al Ukhra p. 101.
[114] Ikmal al Din p. 315; Bihar al Anwar 52/125.
[115] This suggests that their Mahdi is not an Imam because he is not open.
[116] Usul al Kafi 1/375.