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A. The Awaited Mahdi The Messenger of Allah, (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) predicted that a time would come when oppression, injustice and aggression would become extremely rampant all over the globe. At that period, a man from the offspring of Muhammad would rise to power over the entire earth, and he would successfully make oppression, injustice and aggression very rare on its surface. 1. Imam Ahmad (d. 241 H) records the hadith in his Musnad: حدثنا عبد الله حدثني أبي قال الحسن بن موسى قال ثنا حماد بن سلمة عن أبي هارون العبدي ومطر الوراق عن أبي الصديق الناجي عن أبي سعيد الخدري قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم تملأ الأرض جورا وظلما فيخرج رجل من عترتي يملك سبعا أو تسعا فيملأ الأرض قسطا وعدلا ‘Abd Allah (b. Ahmad) – my father (Ahmad b. Hanbal) – al-Hasan b. Musa – Hammad b. Salamah – Abu Harun al-‘Abdi and Maṭar al-Warraq – Abu al-Siddiq al-Naji – Abu Sa’id al-Khudri: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: “The earth will be filled with oppression and injustice. Then, a man from my offspring will come out. He will rule by kingdom for seven or nine years. He will fill the earth with equity and justice.”1 Shaykh al-Arnauṭ states: حديث صحيح دون قوله " يملك سبعا أوتسعا " It is a sahih hadith, with the exception of his statement: “he will rule by kingdom for seven or nine years.” 2. Imam Ibn Hibban (d. 354 H) also documents a mutaba’ah for it: أخبرنا أحمد بن علي بن المثنى قال حدثنا أبو خيثمة قال حدثنا يحيى بن سعيد قال حدثنا عوف قال حدثنا أبو الصديق عن أبي سعيد الخدري عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال لا تقوم الساعة حتى تمتلئ الأرض ظلما وعدوانا ثم يخرج رجل من أهل بيتي أو عترتي فيملؤها قسطا وعدلا كما ملئت ظلما وعدوانا Ahmad b. ‘Ali b. al-Muthanna – Abu Khaythamah – Yahya b. Sa’id – ‘Awf – Abu al-Siddiq – Abu Sa’id al-Khudri – the Prophet, peace be upon him: The Hour will not occur until the earth is filled with injustice and hostility. Then, a man from my Ahl al-Bayt, or my offspring, will come out. So, he will fill it with equity and justice just as it had been filled with injustice and hostility.”3 Al-Albani (d. 1420 H) says: صحيح Sahih And al-Arnauṭ concurs: إسناده صحيح على شرط الشيخين Its chain is sahih upon the standard of the two Shaykhs. This man will be “sent” by Allah Himself, in the same way that He sent His prophets and messengers, to purify His earth. 3. Imam Abu Dawud (d. 275 H) in his Sunan – under the heading: “The Book of al-Mahdi” (Kitab al-Mahdi) records: حدثنا عثمان بن أبي شيبة ثنا الفضل بن دكين ثنا فطر عن القاسم بن أبي بزة عن أبي الطفيل عن علي رضي الله تعالى عنه عن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم قال "لو لم يبق من الدهر إلا يوم لبعث الله رجلا من أهل بيتي يملؤها عدلا كما ملئت جورا" ‘Uthman b. Abi Shaybah – al-Fadhl b. Dukayn – Fiṭr – al-Qasim b. Abi Barzah – Abu al-Tufayl – ‘Ali, may Allah the Most High be pleased with him – the Prophet, peace be upon him: “Even if there remains only one more day left before the end of Time, Allah will surely SEND a man from my Ahl al-Bayt. He will fill it with justice just as it had been filled with injustice.” ‘Allamah al-Albani says: صحيح Sahih Dr. al-Bastawi, commenting upon the same hadith, states: إسناده صحيح. Its chain is sahih. The same word has been employed to describe the appointment and mission of the prophets and messengers, ‘alaihim al-salam, as well in the Qur’an: كان الناس أمة واحدة فبعث الله النبيين مبشرين ومنذرين Mankind were one community and Allah SENT prophets as givers of glad tidings and warners. And: ولقد بعثنا في كل أمة رسولا Verily, We have SENT within every Ummah a messenger. Of course, this man will not be a prophet or messenger. However, he obviously will occupy a separate divine rank which will certainly be very similar in nature to both. One of the top Imams of the Ahl al-Sunnah from the senior Tabi’in, Ibn Sirrin (d. 110 H), indicated the status of this man in one of his brave pronouncements. 4. Imam al-Maruzi (d. 288 H) records: حدثنا ضمرة عن ابن شوذب عن محمد بن سيرين أنه ذكر فتنة تكون فقال إذا كان ذلك فاجلسوا في بيوتكم حتى تسمعوا على الناس بخير من أبي بكر وعمر رضي الله عنهما قيل يا أبا بكر خير من أبي بكر وعمر؟ قال قد كان يفضل على بعض الأنبياء. Dhamrah – Ibn Shawdhab: Muhammad b. Sirrin mentioned a sedition that would occur. Then he said, “When that occurs, sit in your houses until you hear from the people about the one who is superior to Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both.” So, it was said, “O Abu Bakr, someone superior to Abu Bakr and ‘Umar?!” He replied, “He is even superior to some prophets.” Al-Hafiz (d. 852 H) says about the first narrator: ضمرة بن ربيعة الفلسطيني أبو عبد الله أصله دمشقي صدوق يهم قليلا Dhamrah b. Rubay’ah al-Filisṭini, Abu ‘Abd Allah, his origin was Damascus: Saduq (very truthful), hallucinates a little. Concerning the second narrator, he equally states: عبد الله بن شوذب الخراساني أبو عبد الرحمن سكن البصرة ثم الشام صدوق عابد ‘Abd Allah b. Shawdhab al-Khurasani, Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman, he lived in Basra, then Syria: Saduq (very truthful), a devout worshipper of Allah. So, the sanad is hasan. 5. Al-Maruzi has included the report under the heading “Way of Life of the Mahdi and His Justice and Length of His Time.” Meanwhile, here is another riwayah about this Mahdi, ‘(عليه السلام) from the same Abu Dawud: حدثنا سهل بن تمام بن بزيع ثنا عمران القطان عن قتادة عن أبي نضرة عن أبي سعيد الخدري قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم " المهدي مني أجلى الجبهة أقنى الأنف يملأ الأرض قسطا وعدلا كما ملئت جورا وظلما ويملك سبع سنين " Sahl b. Tammam b. Buzay’ – ‘Imran al-Qaṭṭan – Qatadah – Abu Nadhrah – Abu Sa’id al-Khudri: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: “The Mahdi is from me, with a broad forehead, a curved nose. He will fill the earth with equity and justice just as it had been filled with oppression and injustice, and he will rule by kingdom for seven years.”15 Al-Albani says: حسن Hasan. Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 H) also declares: الأحاديث التي يحتج بها على خروج المهدي أحاديث صحيحة The ahadith that are relied upon as hujjah (proof) for the coming out of the Mahdi are sahih ahadith. So, he will be “the Mahdi”, from the blood and flesh of the Messenger, and “will rule by kingdom”. He will be “sent” by Allah to reduce oppression and injustice on the earth to the barest minimum. He will rule the whole planet as a just, righteous and rightly guided royal khalifah, assisted by his Lord. 6. Interestingly, his personal name will be Muhammad, like that of our Prophet. Imam al-Tirmidhi (d. 279 H) documents: حدثنا عبيد بن أسباط بن محمد القرشي الكوفي قال حدثني أبي حدثنا سفيان الثوري عن عاصم بن بهدلة عن زر عن عبد الله قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم لا تذهب الدنيا حتى يملك العرب رجل من أهل بيتي يواطئ اسمه اسمي ‘Ubayd b. Asbaṭ b. Muhammad al-Qurashi al-Kufi – my father – Sufyan al-Thawri – ‘Asim b. Bahdalah18 – Zirr – ‘Abd Allah (b. Mas’ud): The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: “This world will not end until a man from my Ahl al-Bayt rules the Arabs by kingdom. His name will correspond with my name.” Al-Tirmidhi says: هذا حديث حسن صحيح This hadith is hasan sahih. And al-Albani agrees: حسن صحيح Hasan sahih. His government, obviously, will be that of the House of Muhammad, and he will bring the supreme glory to Islam all over the universe. He will achieve the impossible, with divine help, and will fulfill the dreams of all the prophets and messengers. 7. Meanwhile, there are certain quick points about the Mahdi that must not be overlooked. First, belief in his coming in an ‘aqidah of Islam, and has been so named by ‘ulama of the Ahl al-Sunnah too. For instance, al-Albani states: وما مثل هؤلاء إلا كمثل من ينكر عقيدة نزول عيسى عليه السلام في آخرالزمان التي تواتر ذكرها في الأحاديث الصحيحة، لأن بعض الدجاجلة ادعاها، مثل ميرزا غلام أحمد القادياني، وقد أنكرها بعضهم فعلا صراحة، كالشيخ شلتوت، وأكاد أقطع أن كل من أنكر عقيدة المهدي ينكرها أيضا These people are only like those who deny the ‘aqidah of the descent of ‘Isa, ‘(عليه السلام), at the end of Time - whose mention has reached the level of tawattur in sahih ahadith – simply because some impostors claim it, such as Mirza Ghulam Ahmad al-Qadiyani. Some of them, like Shaykh al-Shaltut, have explicitly denied it. Also, I am fairly certain that everyone who denies the ‘AQIDAH of the Mahdi also denies it too. This means that whoever does not believe in the descent of Prophet ‘Isa, ‘(عليه السلام), during the End Time or in the coming of the Mahdi and his mission and activities, has a defective iman (faith). Shaykh Ibn Baz (d. 1420 H) puts the matter forward in an even stronger manner: وقدصحت وتواترت هذه الأخبار عن رسول الله عليه الصلاة والسلام في نزول الممسيح ابن مريم من السمماء في آخر الزمان، ومن خروج يأجوج ومأجوج وخروج الدجال في آخر الزمان، ومن مجيء المهدي، كل هذا االأربعة ثابتة: المهدي في آخر الزمان يملأ الأرض قسطاً بعد أن ملئت جوراً، ونزول المسيح ابن مريم، وخروج الدجال في آخر الزمان، وخروج يأجوج ومأجوج، كل هذا ثابت بالأحاديث الصحيحة المتواترة عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم، فإنكارها كفر وضلال Sahih and mutawatir reports have been reported from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, concerning the descent of the Masih Ibn Maryam from the sky during the End Time, and concerning the coming out of Yajuj and Majuj and the coming out of the Dajjal during the End Time, and concerning the arrival of the Mahdi. All these four are well-proved - the Mahdi during the End Time who will fill the earth with equity after it had been filled with oppression; the descent of the Masih Ibn Maryam; the coming out of the Dajjal during the End Time, and the coming out of Yajuj and Majuj – each of these is well proved through sahih, mutawatir ahadith from the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. THEREFORE, denial of them is kufr (disbelief and apostasy) and dhalal (heresy).23 8. We also read this Q&A by the same Shaykh: يوجد لدينا رجل ينكر المسيح الدجال والمهدي ونزول عيسى عليه السلام ويأجوج ومأجوج ولا يعتقد في شيء منها، ويدعي عدم صحة ما ورد في ذلك من أحاديث… وهو يصلي ويصوم ويأتي الفرائض. فما حكمه؟…. مثل هذا الرجل يكون كافراً (Question) There is a man with us who denies the Masih al-Dajjal, THE MAHDI, the descent of ‘Isa, ‘(عليه السلام), and Yajuj and Majuj, and does not believe any of it, and rejects the authenticity of the ahadith narrated about (all) that …. And he performs salat and fasts, and fulfils the obligatory duties (of Islam). So, what is his status?.... (Answer) Anyone like this man is a kafir. It is thus absolutely obligatory upon all Muslims to believe in the coming of Muhammad the Mahdi from the offspring and Ahl al-Bayt of the noble Rasul to overturn oppression and injustice in our world. Failure to uphold this belief may kick a Muslim out of Islam. Another point is that the supplication ‘(عليه السلام) (peace be upon him) is added after the name of the Mahdi too, like in the case of prophets and angels. Al-Albani again says about ‘Isa b. Maryam: فيأتم هو بالمهدي عليهما السلام He (‘Isa) himself will be led in salat by the Mahdi, ‘(عليه السلام) (peace be upon them both). And: كما فعل بعض الفرق قديما حين بادروا إلى إنكار القدر الإلهي إبطالا للجبر، وبعض العلماء في العصر الحاضر إلى إنكار عقيدة نزول عيسى وخروج المهدي عليهما السلام It is like how some sects did in the past when they denied the existence of divine destiny in order to invalidate the doctrine of fatalism, and how some contemporary ‘ulama deny the ‘aqidah of the descent of ‘Isa and the rise of al-Mahdi, ‘(عليه السلام). 9. Imam al-Mubarakfuri (d. 1282 H) submits too: قال الخطابي ويكون ذلك في زمن المهدي أو عيسى عليهما الصلاة والسلام أو كليهما Al-Khaṭṭabi (d. 388 H) said: “That will occur during the time of the Mahdi or ‘Isa, ‘alaihima al-salat wa al-salam (peace and blessings be upon them both), or during the time of both of them.”27 However, we have seen Sunni scholars who prefer to say radhiyallahu ‘anhu and other supplications instead. Lastly, one of the titles of the Mahdi is al-Muntazar (the Awaited). Imam al-Kattani (d. 1345 H) gives this heading in his book: خروج المهدي الموعود المنتظر الفاطمي. The coming out of the Promised Mahdi, the Awaited (al-Muntazar) al-Faṭimi (i.e. from the offspring of Faṭimah). 10. Al-Mubarakfuri also writes: وقال القاضي الشوكاني في الفتح الرباني الذي أمكن الوقوف عليه من الأحاديث الواردة في المهدي المنتظر خمسون حديثا Al-Qadhi al-Shawkani (d. 1250 H) said in al-Fath al-Rabbani: “What I have been able to study from the ahadith documented about the Awaited Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntazar) are fifty ahadith.”29 The title of one of Dr. al-Bastawi’s books bears the appellation as well: المهدي المنتظر في ضوء الأحاديث والآثار الصحيحة وأقوال العلماء وآراء الفرق المختلفة The Awaited Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntazar) in the Light of Sahih Ahadith and Athar and the Statements of the Scholars and the Views of Different Sects. In that same book, he mentions this book by Imam Ibn Hajar al-Haythami (d. 974 H): القول المختصر في علامات المهدي المنتظر A Concise Statement on the Signs of the Awaited Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntazar). 11. He further cites a book by Shaykh Mur’i b. Yusuf al-Hanbali (d. 1033 H): فوائد الفكر في ظهور المهدي المنتظر The Benefits of Thinking about the Appearance of the Awaited Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntazar). He gives also the title of a treatise by Shaykh ‘Abd al-Muhsin al-‘Abbad, whom he identifies as a former Vice Chancellor of the Islamic University of al-Madinah al-Munawwarah, published in the journal of the university of Dhu al-Qa’dah 1389 H, pp. 126-164: عقيدة أهل السنة والأثر في المهدي المنتظر The ‘Aqidah of the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Athar Concerning the Awaited Mahdi (al-Mahdi al-Muntazar). This again reminds that the issue of the Mahdi is a matter of ‘aqidah. https://www.al-islam.org/imam-al-mahdi-twelfth-khalifah-sahih-sunni-ahadith-toyib-olawuyi/1-awaited-mahdi (......Continued)

Salam, Can anybody tell me if the 12th Imam will "reborn" or will "reappear" .

امن یجیب المضطر اذا دعاه و یکشف السوء Is He [not best] who responds to the desperate one when he calls upon Him and removes evil al-Naml:62 (a part of the verse) Many might ask what does the word moztar(مضطر) mean, no definition better definition can be given than what I saw in the voice of this man. It is more than 1170 years that our Master(af) is moztar and we live as if nothing is going on and no one is waiting for us to give him a hand for our own salvation.

Informative Documentary about the Signs of the Reappearance - Imam Mahdi (atf) #AreYouReady

In haidth it has been narrated "Person dies without knowing Imam of his time Dies a life of ignorant". What is to know IMAM OF YOUR TIME ?. Does that only mean all we need to know is that IMAM OUR TIME is in GAIB and he is 12th one THE MEHDI ?. It would be great if someone can explain what is exactly meant to KNOW IMAM OF OUR TIME ?

Note: This is not a shia sunni issue. So I am posting it here. And this is not to offend anyone. Focus on the message and its impact.

Assalam O Alaikum all dear brothers and sisters, I want to know, Why shia say this phrase "ajjil farajahum" (May Allah Hasten His Return). Is there any narration from Imams which confirm/support this? Plz share if anyone knows? While on the other hand there are narrations which are clearly against this phrase. Original source: https://www.al-islam.org/kitab-al-ghayba-book-occultation-sheikh-an-numani/chapter-16-forbidding-timing-and-naming-al-qaim#fref_63c9118a_1 (1) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Ali bin al-Hasan from al-Hasan bin Ali bin Yousuf from Muhammad bin Ali from Sa’dan bin Muslim that Abu Baseer had said: I said to Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as): “Does this matter (the appearance of al-Mahdi) not have an end so that we relieve ourselves?” He said: “Yes, it does. But you (people) announced it; therefore Allah put it off.” Other reference: Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.117. (15) Muhammad bin Ya'qoob narrated from al-Husayn bin Muhammad from Ja'far bin Muhammad from al-Qassim bin Issma'eel al-Anbari from al-Hasan bin Ali from Ibraheem bin Muhzim from his father that Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) had said when the (Abbasid) rulers had been mentioned before him: “People perished because they hastened this matter (deliverance). Allah does not become hasty just because that people urge on their matters to be achieved. This matter (the appearance of al-Qa'im) has a precise time that it must reach. If it reaches its time, it will occur neither an hour sooner nor an hour later.” Other reference: Al-Kafi, vol.1 p.369, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.118, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.418 Jazak Allah Khairan

The First Imam Ali al-Murtada (Alaihis-Salam wa Karramullahu Wajahu) Father: Abu Talib bin Abdul Muttalib bin Hashim. Mother: Fatimah bint Asad bin Hashim bin Abd Munaf. Kunniyat (Patronym): Abu'l Hasan and Husayn, Abu Turab Laqab (Title): Al-Wasi, Amir al-Mu'minin Birth: He was born in Makka. Martyrdom: He was martyred by the accursed Khwariji named ibn Muljam at Kufa during the month of Ramadan in the 40th year of Hijrah and is buried in Najaf on the outskirts of Kufa. The Second Imam Hasan (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Fatimah az-Zahra, the youngest daughter of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Kunniyat: Abu Muhammad Laqab: Al-Sibt al-Kabir (the elder grandson), Al-Mujtaba. Birth: He was born in Madina in the middle of the month of Ramadhan in 3 A.H. Martyrdom: He died [poisoned] on the 28th of Safar in the year 50 A.H. He was buried in the graveyard of Baqi in Madina. The Third Imam Husayn (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Fatimah az-Zahra, the daughter of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Kunniyat: Abu 'Abdillah. Laqab: Al Sibt, Shahid-e-Karbala. Birth: He was born in Madina in the month of Shaban in the year 4 A.H. Martyrdom: He was martyred with his companions by the army of Yazid in the month of Muharram 61 A.H. His tomb is in Karbala, a town of Iraq. The Fourth Imam 'Ali Zayn al-'Abidin (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Shahzanaan Kunniyat: Abu al-Hasan Laqab: Zayn al-'Abidin, Al Sajjad Birth: He was born in 38 A.H. in Madina. Martyrdom: He died of poison in the year 94 or 95 A.H. at Madina and is buried at Baqi near his uncle Hasan. The Fifth Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Umm Abdullah, the daughter of Imam Hasan. Kunniyat: Abu Ja'far. Laqab: Al-Baqir. Birth: He was born at Madina in the year 57 A.H. Martyrdom: He died of poisoning in Madina in 114 A.H. and is also buried at Baqi near his father. The Sixth Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Umm Farwa, the daughter of Qasim bin Muhammad bin Abu Bakr. Kunniyat: Abu 'Abdillah. Laqab: Al-Sadiq. Birth: He was born at Madina in 83 A.H. Martyrdom: He died of poison in 148 A.H. and is buried at Baqi near his father. The Seventh Imam Musa al-Kazim (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Hamidah Kunniyat: Abu al-Hasan Laqab: Al-Kazim Birth: He was born at Madina in the year 129 A.H. Martyrdom: He was poisoned in the prison of Harun al-Rashid at Baghdad in the year 183 A.H. He is buried in Kazimiyyah in Iraq. The Eighth Imam 'Ali al-Rida (Alaihi-Salam) Mother:Khayzran Kunniyat : Abu al-Hasan Laqab : Al-Rida Birth: He was born at Madina in 148 A.H. Martyrdom: He was poisoned in the year 203 A.H. and is buried in the Khurasan district of Iran. The Ninth Imam Muhammad Taqi (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Sakina Kunniyat (Patronymic): Abu 'Abdillah Laqab (Title): Al Jawad Birth: He was born at Madina in 195 A.H. Martyrdom: He died of poison at Baghdad in the year 220 A.H. and is buried near his grandfather at Kazimiyyah in Iraq. The Tenth Imam Ali al-Naqi (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Samana al-Maghribiya Kunniyat (Patronymic): Abu al-Hasan al Askari Laqab (Title): Al-Hadi Birth: He was born at Madina in the year 212 A.H. Martyrdom: He died of poison in 254 A.H. at Samarrah (Sarmanra) in Iraq and is buried there. The Eleventh Imam Hasan al-Askari (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Ummul Walad - Sawsan. Kunniyat (Patronymic): Abu Muhammad. Laqab (Title): Al-Askari. Birth: He was born at Samarrah in the year 232 A.H. Martyrdom: He was poisoned in 260 A.H. at Samarrah and is buried there. The Twelfth Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi (Alaihi-Salam) Mother: Ummul Walad Narjis alias Saiqal Kunniyat (Patronymic): Abu 'Abdullah, Abu al-Qasim Laqab (Title): Al-Qaim, Al-Muntazar, Al-Khalaf, Al-Mahdi, Sahib al-zamaan. Birth: He was born at Samarrah in the year 255 A.H. He is the last Imam (a.s.) and he is alive and hidden. Question: How will he die? Any authentic narration from ahlebayt in this matter? Jazak Allah Khairan.

Assalam-o-Alaikum, wa Rehmatullah, wa Barakatuhu. ARE THESE NARRATIONS ABOUT 12TH IMAM AUTHENTIC? ANSWER WITH EVIDENCES? All below narrations are taken from Kitab al-Ghaybah or The Book of Occultation of Sheikh Abu Abdullah Muhammad bin Ibraheem bin Ja'far al-Katib Known as Ibn Abu Zaynab an-Numani, earliest and most important shia work on occultation of 12th Imam. Same book was totaly included by Baqir Majlisi in his Bihar ul Anwar volumes 51, 52, & 53. All prominent shia scholars have narrated from this book. Like Toosi, Hurr Amili etc. Online: https://www.al-islam.org/kitab-al-ghayba-book-occultation-sheikh-an-numani Download: http://alhassanain.org/english/?com=book&id=903 About the author (Numani) Sheikh Numani got most of his knowledge from Yaqoob Kulayni, author of Al-Kafi. He wrote many books, Jami’ul Akhbar, Ar-Radd ala (answering) al-Isma’eeliyya, Al-Ghayba, Al-Fara’idh, Nathrul La’ali. He finished this book till 342 AH, he died in 360 AH, much before Sheikh Sadooq and Sheikh Toosi. An-Najashi said about him: “He is a sheikh (teacher) from among our companions. He is great in position, noble in rank, loyal in faith and he has narrated many traditions.” Al-Mahoozi said: “He is praiseworthy, lofty and one of the sheikhs, who give permission (who evidence others’ knowledge or works).” About the book (Ghaybah) Al-Hurr al-Aamily said: “It is good and sufficient.” Al-Mahoozi said: “It has many benefits and unheard traditions.” From Chapter 13: Al-Qaim’s aspects and deeds (16) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed bin Oqda narrated from Ali bin al-Hasan from Muhammad bin Khalid from Tha’laba bin Maymoon that al-Hasan bin Haroon had said: Once I was sitting with Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) when al-Mu’alla bin Khunays asked him: “Will al-Qa'im (as), when he appears, act unlike the way, in which Ali (as) has acted?” He said: “Yes, he will. Ali has acted with leniency and forgiving because he has known that his Shia are going to be controlled after him. But al-Qa'im (as), when appears, will kill and capture because he knows that his Shia will not be defeated after him forever.” (18) Ali bin al-Husayn narrated from Muhammad bin Yahya al-Attar from Muhammad bin Hassaan ar-Razi from Muhammad bin Ali al-Kufi from Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Abu Nasr from al-Ala’ fro Muhammad bin Muslim that Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (as) had said: “If people know what al-Qa'im (as) will do when he appears, most of them will wish he would not appear. He kills great numbers of people. He begins with the people of Quraysh. He kills much many of them until many people say: He is not from Muhammad’s progeny. If he is from Muhammad’s progeny, he will be merciful!” (19) Ali bin al-Husayn narrated from Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Abu Nasr from Aasim bin Hameed al-Hannat from Abu Baseer that Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (as) had said: “Al-Qa'im will rise with a new task, new principles and new judgements. He will be severe with the Arabs. He will do not but killing. He will not forgive anyone and he will not care for any blame because he acts for the sake of Allah. (22) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Yahya bin Zakariyya bin Shayban from Yousuf bin Kulayb from al-Hasan bin Ali bin Abu Hamza from Aasim bin Hameed al-Hannat that Abu Hamza ath-Thimali had heard Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (as) saying: “When al-Qa'im of Muhammad’s family appears, Allah will support him with His angels. Gabriel will be in front of him, Michael on the right and Israfel on the left. Terror will precede him about a month-travel before him, behind him, on the right side and on the left side. The close angels will be beside him. The first one to follow him will be Muhammad (as) and the second one will be Ali (as). With his sword he will conquer Rome, Daylam,51 Sind, India, Kabul and the area of the Caspian. Other sources: (16). Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.353, Hilyatul Abrar, vol.2 p.628. (18). Iqd ad-Durar p.227, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.539, Hilyatul Abrar, vol.2 p.629, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.354, Bisharatul Islam p.263, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.304. (19). Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.540, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.354, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.253. (22). Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.540, Biharul Anwar, vol.52, 349, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.183. From Chapter 16: Forbidding timing and naming al-Qaim (1) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Ali bin al-Hasan from al-Hasan bin Ali bin Yousuf from Muhammad bin Ali from Sa’dan bin Muslim that Abu Baseer had said: I said to Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as): “Does this matter (the appearance of al-Mahdi) not have an end so that we relieve ourselves?” He said: “Yes, it does. But you (people) announced it; therefore Allah put it off.” (10) Muhammad bin Ya'qoob al-Kulayni narrated from Ali bin Muhammad and Muhammad bin al-Hasan from Sahl bin Ziyad and Muhammad bin Yahya from Ahmad bin Muhammad from al-Hasan bin Mahboob that Abu Hamza ath-Thimali had heard Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (as) saying: “Allah had timed this matter to occur in the year seventy (A.H.) but when al-Husayn (as) was killed, He became so angry and put it off until the year one hundred and forty. We told you of that and you announced it and uncovered the secret, so after that Allah did not reveal any timing to us concerning this matter. Allah said: (Allah makes to pass away and establishes what He pleases, and with Him is the basis of the Book).15” Abu Hamza said: “I told Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) of that and he said: “Yes, it was so.” (15) Muhammad bin Ya'qoob narrated from al-Husayn bin Muhammad from Ja'far bin Muhammad from al-Qassim bin Issma'eel al-Anbari from al-Hasan bin Ali from Ibraheem bin Muhzim from his father that Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) had said when the (Abbasid) rulers had been mentioned before him: “People21 perished because they hastened this matter (deliverance). Allah does not become hasty just because that people urge on their matters to be achieved. This matter (the appearance of al-Qa'im) has a precise time that it must reach. If it reaches its time, it will occur neither an hour sooner nor an hour later.” Other sources: (1). Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.117. (10). Al-Kafi, vol.1 p.368, Tafseer of al-Ayyashi, vol.2 p.218, Ithbat al-Wassiyya p.131, al-Ghayba by at-Toossi p.,428, al-Khara'ij wel Jara'ih, vol.1 p.178, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.261.6. (15). Al-Kafi, vol.1 p.369, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.118, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.418. From Chapter 20: The army of anger (5) Abu Sulayman Ahmad bin Hawtha al-Bahili narrated from Ibraheem bin Iss’haq an-Nahawandi from Abdullah bin Hammad al-Ansari from Abdullah bin Bukayr that Abban bin Taghlub had said: “One day I was with Ja'far bin Muhammad as-Sadiq (as) in a mosque in Mecca. He said to me: “O Abban, Allah will bring three hundred and thirteen men in this mosque. The people of Mecca know that neither their (those men’s) fathers nor grandfathers have been created yet. They will come with their swords on their shoulders. On each sword the name of its keeper, his father’s name, his aspect and lineage are written. Then a caller will call out: “This is al-Mahdi. He judges with the judgments of Prophet David (as) and Prophet Solomon (as). He is not asked to show evidence for his judgements.” Other source: (15). Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.546, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.4 p.11. From Chapter 21: The Shia when al-Qaim appears (1) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed bin Oqda narrated from Hameed bin Ziyad from Ali bin as-Sabah from Abu Ali al-Hasan bin Muhammad al-Hadhrami from Ja'far bin Muhammad from Ibraheem bin Abdul Hameed from someone that Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) had said: “When al-Qa'im (as) appears, those, who have thought themselves as his followers, will apostatize and those, who are somehow like the worshippers of the sun and the moon, will believe in him.” (3) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Ali bin al-Hasan at-Taymali from al-Hasan and Muhammad, the sons of Ali bin Yousuf, from Sa’dan bin Muslim from Sabah al-Muzni from al-Harith bin Haseera from Habba al-Orani that Amirul Mo'mineen (as) had said: “As if I see our Shia in the mosque of Kufa setting up pavilions to teach the people the Qur'an as it has been revealed but when our Qa’im appears, he will destroy it (the mosque) and level its mihrab to the ground.” Other sources: (1). Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.363, Bisharatul Islam p.222, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.501. (3). Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.364, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.126. From Chapter 26: The period of al-Qaim’s rule (1) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed bin Oqda narrated from Ali bin al-Hasan at-Taymali from al-Hasan bin Ali bin Yousuf from his father and Muhammad bin Ali from his father from Ahmad bin Umar al-Halabi from Hamza bin Hamran from Abdullah bin Abu Ya’foor that Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (as) had said: “Al-Qa'im (as) will rule for nineteen years and some months.” (3) Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Muhammad bin al-Mufadhdhal bin Ibraheem bin Qays from Sa’dan bin Iss’haq bin Sa'eed, Ahmad bin al-Husayn bin Abdul Melik az-Zayyat and Muhammad bin Ahmad bin al-Hasan al-Qatawani from al-Hasan bin Mahboob from Amr bin Thabit that Jabir bin Yazeed al-Ju’fi had said: “I heard Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (as) saying: “By Allah, a man from us, Ahlul Bayt, will rule for three hundred and thirteen years and then for other nine years.” I asked him: “When will that be?” He said: “After the death of al-Qa'im (as).” I said: “How long will al-Qa'im rule until he dies?” He said: “It will be nineteen years since his rising until the day of his death.” Other sources: (1). Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.547, Hilyatul Abrar, vol.2 p.640, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.298, ar-Raj’a p.133, Bisharatul Islam p.187, 188, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.4 p.76. (3). Tafseer of al-Ayyashi, vol.2 p.326, al-khtisas p.257, al-Ghayba by at-Toossi p.478, Mukhtasar Basa’ir ad-Darajat p.38, 49, 213, Muntakhab al-Anwar al-Mudhee’a p.202, al-Eeqadh min al-Haj’a p.337, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.557, Hilyatul Abrar, vol.2 p.640, Tafseer al-Burhan, vol.2 p.465, Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.298, vol.53 p.100, 103, 146, ar-Raj’a p.71, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.329. JAZAK Allah KHAIRAN.

This post will seek to prove a great matter, the existence and appearance of the black banners of the East as promised by the Holy Prophet of Allah Muhammad (s) and the Ahlul-Bayt (as), it will also seek to prove the reality of the one who raised them on the blessed Friday of <<<<<23/01/2015>>>>> The Holy Prophet of Allah (s) said: "We (AhlulBayt) are members of a household that Allah has chosen for them the life of the Hereafter over the life of this world. And the members of my household (AhlulBayt) shall suffer a great affliction and they shall be forcefully expelled from their homes after my death. Then there will come a people from the East carrying black flags, and they will ask for some good to be given to them, but they shall be refused service, as such, they will wage war and emerge victorious, and will be offered that which they desired initially, but they will refuse to accept it till they pass it to a man from my family, who emerges to fill the Earth with justice as it has been filled with injustice. So whoever reaches that time, go to them even if crawling over ice/snow, for among them is the vicegerent of Allah, the Mahdi." -Sunan Ibn Majah, v2, Tradition #4082, -Tabari al-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar, Ch. 11, section 1, pp 250-251 The Messenger of Allah (s) said: (…Until black banners are raised from the East. They will ask for the truth/right but they will not be given it, then they will ask for the truth/right but they will not be given it, then they will ask for the truth/right but they will not be given it. So they will fight, so they will be given victory. So whoever realized him from you, or from your descendants, then let him go to the Imam of my Ahlul Bayt, even if crawling on ice, for they are banners of guidance, they will push it to a man from my Ahlul Bayt, his name matches mine, and the name of his father matches the name of my father, so he will rule the earth, so he will fill it with justice and equity as it was filled with oppression and injustice) -Mu’jam Ahadith Al Imam Al Mahdi Volume 1 Page 382 Thawban said that The Prophet of Allah (s) said: “The black banners come from the east, as if their hearts are pieces of iron, whoever hears about them then go to them and give allegiance to them, even if crawling over ice.” -Bihar Al-Anwar Volume 51, page 84, Ghayat Al-Maram v7 p104 From Thawban, he said: The Messenger of Allah s.a.w.w said: “Three will be killed at your treasures all of them are the son of a Khaleefa (Caliph/Successor) and then it will not be to anyone of them. And then black banners from the East will emerge and will fight them with a fighting not a folk will fight like it, and then he mentioned a youth and said: 'If you see him pledge allegiance to him, for he is the successor, the Mahdi” -Bisharat Al-Islam page 30 The Messenger of Allah (s) said: “If you saw the Black Banners came out from Khurasan (east) then go to them even if crawling on ice, for they have the Successor of Allah The Mahdi with them” -Sayyed Ibn Tawous Alhasani page 52 So what is the description of this blessed black banner which appears from the east? Ubayed ibn Karb said: I heard the Prince of the Believers Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (as) say: "Verily we, AhlulBayt have a banner, whoever goes before it has renegaded, whoever is late to it has perished, and whoever follows it has followed us, it is written upon it Allegiance is to Allah. -Book of 250 Signs, p15 "Allegiance is to Allah" is "Al Baya'tu Lillah" in Arabic. So far, we know the banner which shall have among it the promised Mahdi, it comes from the east, and it is black banner, and it has written upon it "Al Baya'tu Lillah" Let's continue to a famous hadith, The Holy Prophet of Allah Muhammad (s) said: Hejaz (Saudi Arabia) will be ruled by a man whose name is the name of an animal, when you see him from a distance, you would think he has a lazy eye, and if you get close to him, you do not see anything wrong in his eyes. He will be succeeded by a brother of his, named Abdullah. Woe to our Shia (followers) from him! Woe to our Shia (followers) from him! Woe to our Shia (followers) from him! - he repeated it three times - Give me the good news of his death, and I shall give you the good news of the appearance of the Hujjah (Imam al Mahdi). -Book of Two Hundred and Fifty Signs, sign number 122 Hijaz (Saudi Arabia) will be ruled by a man whose name is the name of an animal, The king with the name of animal - is King Fahad. Fahad means Cheetah/Leopard. When you see him from a distance, you would think he has a lazy eye, and if you get close to him, you do not see anything (wrong) in his eyes. Eyes appear normal from near Abnormal from far He will be succeeded by a brother of his, named Abdullah. Give me the good news of his death, and I shall give you the good news of the appearance of the Hujjah (Imam al Mahdi a.s). King Abdullah's death = Appearance of Imam al Mahdi a.s. On the night of the death of king Abdullah (la) twelve men came forth and claimed that they have met Imam al Mahdi Muhammad ibn al Hasan a.s Here is the link to the video made by one of those 12 men on that night giving the glad tidings (23/01/15) (in Arabic) (https://www.youtubedotcom/watch?v=4bsCD2dWaHI) With those twelve men was their Imam and master, the son and messenger and successor of Imam al Mahdi Muhammad ibn al Hasan, who is Ahmad al Hassan a.s. And on that night the blessed banner of the AhlulBayt a.s was raised "The Qaim shall not rise until twelve men come forth and say that they have seen the Qa'im, but the people shall belie them." -Al Ghaibah al Nu'mani p285 More undeniable proofs (https://www.youtubedotcom/watch?v=qphI255e7h0) These narrations are absolute narrations which cannot be claimed except by its rightful companions or else there is no wisdom in giving the glad tidings if it can be claimed by other than its rightful companion. Just as the Will of the Messenger of Allah (s) on the night of his death to Imam Ali a.s. it cannot be claimed except by its rightful companion. Al-Asbagh ibn Nabata said: "I went to the Commander of the Believers (as), I found him drawing lines on the ground, so I said to him: 'O Commander of the believers, why do I see you contemplating and drawing lines on the ground? Do you desire it? So he said: “By Allah, I have never desired it nor have i ever desired the world. Rather, I was thinking about a man who will be born from the eleventh from my sons, he is the Mahdi who will fill this world with justice and equity just as it was filled with oppression and injustice. There will be a confusion and an absence for him, people will go astray in it, and some others will be guided in it” So I said? How long will that confusion and absence be? So he (as) said: “Six days, or six months, or six years" -Ghaybat AlToosi p 165 hadith 127 Who is the 11th from Imam Ali’s a.s sons? The 11th son is Imam Mahdi (as). So who will be born from the 11th son/Imam Mahdi (as)?? Imam Ahmed Al Hassan a.s. The Holy Prophet of Allah (s) said: “O Ali, you are from me and I am from you, and you are my brother and vizier, so if i die there will appear to you the hatred in the chests of the people. And there will be after me a silent disastrous Fitna, every inner and hidden (every hypocrite) will fall in it. And that is when your shia lose the fifth from the seventh of your sons. The inhabitants of the heavens and the earth will grieve for his loss! How many believing men and women will be grievous and anxious and confused when he is lost! -Bihar al anwar v26 p350, Ghayat Al Maram v1 p212 Who is “the fifth from the sons of the seventh” of the sons of Imam Ali (as)? First let’s count and see who is the 7th son, then we can see who is the 5th from the 7th. first son - Imam al Hasan (as) second - Imam al Husayn (as) third - Imam Ali al Sajjad (as) fourth - Imam Muhammad al Baqir (as) fifth - Imam Ja'far al Sadiq (as) sixth - Imam Musa al Kathim (as) seventh - Imam Ali al Ridha (as) peace be upon them all So the 7th son is Imam al Ridha (as) Now let’s see who the 5th son from Imam al Ridha (as) is first son is Imam Muhammad al Jawwad (as) second son is Imam Ali al Hadi (as) third son is Imam al Hasan al Askari (as) fourth son is Imam Muhammad al Mahdi (as) fifth son is Imam Ahmad al Hassan (the son and messenger and successor of Imam al Mahdi, the promised Yamani, who shall be supported by the Khurasani and Shuayb ibn Saleh) So what is the condition of Ahmad al Hassan (as) during this silence? “…Then The Messenger of Allah sawas turned to us, raising his voice, saying: Be cautious when the fifth from the seventh of my sons is lost. So I said: O Messenger of Allah, so what would this absence be? So he said: Silence, until Allah gives him permission to emerge…” -Al-Bihar 36/333, Ithbat Al-Hudat 1/589, The Encyclopedia of the Hadiths of Imam Mahdi `63, 164 And it is a known fact that Imam Ahmed al Hassan (as) entered into an absence after being betrayed by some hypocrites, and he returned a year and a half before the death of king Abdullah of Hejaz l.a, Mid 2007 to Mid 2013 “So he (as) said: “Six days, or six months, or six years" Imam Al-Baqir (as) said: “The companion of this matter will go into an occultation in some of these passes” and he pointed out with his hand to the direction of Thee-Towa. Then he said: “Until before his rising, the Mawla [Imam Ahmed], who was with him will come forth until he meets some of his companions and ask: ‘How many of you are there?’ They will reply: ‘We are forty people.’ Then he will ask: ‘What will you do, if you see your Companion [Imam al Mahdi]’ They will reply: ‘By Allah, if he goes from here and takes refuge at any mountain, we will also be with him.’ Then he [Imam Ahmed] will come to them and say: ‘Point to ten of your leaders or the best of you,’ then they point to them for him, so he takes them and brings them to their Companion (Imam al Mahdi). He will promise them about the coming night..” - Ghaibat Al-Noa'mani, P. 187, Tafsir Al-Ayashy, V. 2, P. 56, Bihar Al-Anwar, V. 52, P. 341, Mu'jam Ahadith Al-Imam Al-Mahdi, V. 5, P. 2. And here brothers and sisters, is the story, told by one of the 12 men who met Imam al Mahdi Muhammad ibn al Hasan a.s on the night of king Abdullah's death, Keep the above hadith in mind. This is a question which was sent to one of the 12 Chiefs a.s who met Imam al Mahdi Muhammad ibn al Hasan a.s "Peace of Allah be upon you O companions of the Qaim, peace be upon you all, O purified twelve. – Was the situation like it was mentioned in the book ” An advice to the students of the Academic Hawzas” that you were forty men then Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (as) came to you and commanded you to point to the best ten of you then he took you to meet Imam Al-Mahdi (as)? – Was Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (as) already with you a while ago after his absence ended? Or he appeared to you for the first time on the day of King Abdullah’s death? Meaning if the absence started in 2008, did it end in the end of 2014? Answer: In the Name of Allah, The Abundantly Merciful, The Intensely Merciful All praises belong to Allah the Lord of the Worlds O Allah send Your prayers upon Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad the Imams and the Mahdies Peace, Mercy, and Blessings of Allah be upon you the believing Ansar of Allah in the easts of the Earth and its wests. I, and I seek refuge from the word of the I, am your servant Aba Gibra’eel (Aba Gabriel) one of the twelve men who have been honored to meet the Hujjah of Allah (Imam Muhammad son of Al-Hassan Al-Askari) pbuh. I will mention to you the story of the meeting, and I will make sure not to mention some of the details because of the sensitivity of the matter. May Allah grant you success to all which is good. We are forty two men, and with (Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan) (pbuh) we become forty three men. Among us is he who believes in this blessed call before hearing about it, and among us is he who believes in it since the first day he heard about it, and among us is he who believes not so long ago. The Sayyed the Father Ahmed Al-Hassan (pbuh) has gathered us from several countries, among which are Arab, Islamic, Western, and Asian countries, until one year and a half ago we gathered in one place. And Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (pbuh) was with us and among us. We had a place where all of us would gather at a certain time everyday, until after the Fajr prayer each of us would go to their job which the Father Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (pbuh) has given to him and charged him with. Until that blessed promised day came and we heard about the destruction of the criminal (Abdullah the king of Hijaz). As usual we gathered in that blessed place which is fortified by Allah swt. The Father (pbuh) had been absent from us for some nights before this night, and we were missing him very much. One hour before the Fajr prayer, the courageous lion of Allah came forth to us with his glory which seizes the hearts and eyesights, him and two of his companions from your purified brothers who are used to accompanying Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (pbuh) everywhere and wherever he goes. And he (pbuh) entered upon us while he was smiling, so he said: ”Peace be upon you and the Mercy of Allah and His blessings”. So everyone responded to the greetings with yearning and longing. So he (pbuh) said: “How are you O my sons, inshaAllah you are all well”. So the brothers said “All praises belong to Allah O my father, we are well and all praises belong to Allah”. So he (pbuh) said: “Did the news of the destruction of the tyrant Abdullah, may Allah curse him, reach you?” So they said: “Yes”. So he (pbuh) said: “This is the day of Allah. This is the promise of Allah The Almighty for His righteous sincere servants”. Then he (pbuh) said: “What will you do if you see Imam Al-Mahdi Muhammad son of Al-Hassan Al-Askari may my soul be sacrificed for him?” So they said: “By Allah by Allah if he goes from here and takes refuge at any mountain we will go with him”. So The Father (pbuh) said: “By Allah you have said the truth, for Allah did not create Ansar (supporters) on the Face of Earth like you, neither before you nor after you.” Then he said: “Now I want you to point at the best of you and to choose ten to meet Imam Al-Mahdi Muhammad son of Al-Hassan Al-Askari (pbuh)”. Here everyone was keen to choose their brothers, and it didn’t cross the mind of any of them to choose himself or to think that he is better than his brother. So everyone was telling everyone “I choose you”. And the Father (pbuh) was looking to them and smiling pbuh. Then he said: “Send prayers upon Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad the Imams and the Mahdis”. So everyone sent prayers upon Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad. Then the Father (pbuh) said again “I swear by Allah The High The Great that Allah never created Ansar like you, you are the best Ansar on the face of the Earth, there never came Ansar like you, and there will never come Ansar like you, with this sincerity, loyalty, and faith in Allah The Almighty”. Then he praised Allah and thanked Him. Then he became silent for some seconds, then he said: “You must choose ten”. So he (pbuh) said: “Form ten groups, each group has four believers, and let every group composed of four to choose one believer to represent them”. So the believers did as the Father (pbuh) requested. So each group chose a person. So the total number of the chosen ones were ten believers. So the Father (pbuh) said: “The Fajr prayer time has come”, so he pointed to one of the brothers and told him, “Rise and make the Athan”. So he made the Athan and we prayed in congregation by the leadership of the Sayyed the Father (pbuh). So we went forth twelve men and with us was the Sayyed the Father (pbuh) and we were filled with longing and yearning and excitement and a heart which was beating so fast like the speed of the lightning and a body which was shaking like a tree on a stormy winter day, because of the greatness of the matter. So we arrived to the place which Imam Al-Mahdi (Muhammad son of Al-Hassan Al-Askari) (pbuh) was at. So we met him (pbuh) and after the greetings and after a long conversation which took more than two and a half hours, he (pbuh) directed us and informed us of unseen matters which will take place, and events worldwide, with the most accurate details. And he (pbuh) informed us of what will happen in the world and in accurate details, from them are Iraq, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Japan, Italy, the greater Devil America may Allah curse it, North Korea, South Korea, Qatar, Jordan, and in the most accurate details, even with mentioning the day and the hour. And we take this occasion in our challenge with the Sameri and the Calf may Allah curse them the companions of the alleged Office which is falsely and by fraud attributed to Imam Al-Mahdi (pbuh) while he is innocent of them, and the cursed companion of the page, and the cursed companion of the voice, to bring forth one unseen matter (one future event) and to give us all the details with mentioning the day on which it will take place. And we will do them same; we will give you one matter of the unseen which no one has ever heard of and no one will hear of, and no one has ever talked about it, you will hear it for the first time from us, and it will take place inshaAllah, and we will give you the most accurate details with mentioning the day, the hour, and the minute. So if you are truthful like you claim, then accept our challenge to you. Otherwise, you are liars, hypocrites, immoral, corrupt, and disbelievers, and at that time nothing will remain as a cure except for the sword to you, and at that time, I swear by Allah The High The Great, we will not have mercy upon you, and we will crush and destroy your nests, the nests of misguidance, disbelief, lying and slandering against Ahlul Bayt (pbuh), and at that time no regret nor repentance will benefit you."

Whenever you felt alone think of this clip

The lecturer spoke of his dream about Imam Al-Mahdi(af) and his desire for arrival. اللهم عجل لولیک الفرج والعافیه و النصر و اجعلنا من خیر انصاره و اعوانه و شیعته و المستشهدین بین یدیه

034:003 The faithless say, ‘The Hour will not overtake us.’ Say, ‘Yes, indeed it will surely overtake you, by my Lord,’ the Knower of the Unseen; not [even] an atom’s weight escapes Him in the heavens or in the earth, nor [is there] anything smaller than that nor bigger, but it is in a manifest Book, 027:075 There is no invisible thing in the heaven and the earth but it is in a manifest Book. If no invisible thing is present in the book of knowledge of Allah swt, then no one is also invisible from the book of Sayings of Allah swt ie Al-Quran. The attempt has been made to verify the ghayba of 12th Imam from the following holy verses. بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ الٓمٓ {١} ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْكِتَٰبُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًۭى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ {٢} ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ {٣} وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ {٤} أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًۭى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ {٥} {١} ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْكِتَٰبُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًۭى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ {٢} ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ{٣} 1. This is the Book, there is no doubt in it, a guidance to the Godwary, (002:002) . who believe in the (Ghayb) Unseen, maintain the prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them; (002:003) Hadith: 1 - Narrated to us Muhammad bin Musa bin Mutawakkil (r.a.): Narrated to us Muhammad bin Yahya al-Attar: Narrated to us Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Isa from Umar bin Abdul Aziz from more than one of our associates from Dawood bin Kathir Raqqi from Abi Abdullah (a.s.) regarding the words of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime: Those who believe in the unseen. “That is regarding those who believe that the uprising of the Qaim is truth.” 2 - Narrated to us Ali bin Ahmad bin Muhammad Daqqaq (r.a.): Narrated to us Ahmad bin Abi Abdullah Kufi: Narrated to us Musa bin Imran Nakhai from his uncle Husain bin Yazid from Ali bin Abi Hamza from Yahya bin Abil Qasim that he said: I asked as-Sadiq (a.s.) regarding the words of Allah, the Mighty and Sublime: Alif Lam Mim. This Book, there is no doubt in it, is a guide to those who guard (against evil). Those who believe in the unseen. He said: Those who guard against evil (Muttaqeen) are the Shias of Ali (a.s.) and ‘unseen’ is the hidden proof.” (Chapter Thirty-three Statements of As-Sadiq (a.s.) regarding the occurrence of Ghaibat, Kamaaluddin wa Tamaamun Ni’ma, by Shaykh as-Sadooq) Tafseer: A- Tafsir Majma’al-Bayan by Shaykh Tabarsi Shaykh Tabarsi (Majma’ al-Bayan,Vol.1 p.60) explains that the verse concerns the attributes of the virtuous ones guided by the light of the Qur’an. Their first attribute is their belief in the unseen (ghayb). He then gives several views concerning the meaning of ghayb here: i. It means jurisprudence ii. The Day of Judgement, the Heaven, the Hell (according to Hasan) iii. Anything from God (according to ibn ‘Abbas) iv. The Qur’an (according to Zirr ibn Hubaysh) v. Anything that is outside the knowledge of ordinary people (according to ibn Mas’ud). Here, Shaykh Tabarsi makes a connection between this verse and the Mahdi and says that this view includes what the Imams said concerning the Occultation (ghayba) of the Mahdi and the time of his Appearance since no one but God knows the date of his appearance. B- Tafsir al-Mizan by Allama Tabataba’i Tabatabai,(Al-Mizan: Vol.1, p.68) in his explanation of the term "al-Ghayb" (the unseen), says that it is the opposite of "the perceived", and that we cannot perceive through our usual senses. He adds that the term is used to denote Allah, and His great signs, including the revelation, which is referred to in the Qur’an 2: 4; And who believe in the Revelation sent to thee, and sent before thy time, and (in their hearts) have the assurance of the Hereafter. (02:004) He affirms that it also includes the hereafter, but in this verse, the belief in the revelation and in the hereafter have been mentioned separately. Therefore, "the unseen" must have been used only to mean Allah. In this way the belief in the three fundamentals of religion becomes complete. Tabatabai then reports from the Ma’ani a1-akhbar a tradition from Imam al-Sadiq (sixth Imam), who said that: “Who believe in the Unseen” means those who believe in the rising of al- Qa’im (the Mahdi) and consider it as the Truth.” C- Tafsir Makhzan al-Irfan by Banu Nusrat Amin Banu Amin (Tafsir Makhzan al-ëIrfan : Vol.1 p. 91) describes the word Ghayb in this verse as something that is not perceptible through our senses like the sense of hearing or the sense of sight. She gives as examples, the existence of God, the Hereafter that we cannot perceive through our usual senses, or the Imam of the Time who is not visible and hidden from our sight; however, at the same time she says that he is attentive to the situation of his Shi’ites. She then explains the superiority of those who have faith and are living in the time of the great Occultation of the Mahdi, which is the most difficult period in which to preserve one’s faith: the Prophet in his greatness declared, concerning believers of this time, that he was impatient to meet them and considered them as his brothers. 2. It has already been detailed at the link given below that the Religion of Ibrahim AS that has been mentioned in Quran for following by the Muslims means following 12 Imams after the prophet Muhammad saww. http://www.shiachat.com/forum/topic/235031965-quran-for-religion-of-ibrahim/?comment=2829543 3. Now we continue to get the information from quran regarding بِٱلْغَيْبِ “(Bil-Ghayb) ٢_٣ ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ ٥_٩٤ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَيَبْلُوَنَّكُمُ ٱللَّهُ بِشَىْءٍۢ مِّنَ ٱلصَّيْدِ تَنَالُهُۥٓ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَرِمَاحُكُمْ لِيَعْلَمَ ٱللَّهُ مَن يَخَافُهُۥ بِٱلْغَيْبِ ۚ فَمَنِ ٱعْتَدَىٰ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَلَهُۥ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌۭ ١٢_٥٢ ذَٰلِكَ لِيَعْلَمَ أَنِّى لَمْ أَخُنْهُ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِى كَيْدَ ٱلْخَآئِنِينَ ١٨_٢٢ سَيَقُولُونَ ثَلَٰثَةٌۭ رَّابِعُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ وَيَقُولُونَ خَمْسَةٌۭ سَادِسُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ رَجْمًۢا بِٱلْغَيْبِ ۖ وَيَقُولُونَ سَبْعَةٌۭ وَثَامِنُهُمْ كَلْبُهُمْ ۚ قُل رَّبِّىٓ أَعْلَمُ بِعِدَّتِهِم مَّا يَعْلَمُهُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلٌۭ ۗ فَلَا تُمَارِ فِيهِمْ إِلَّا مِرَآءًۭ ظَٰهِرًۭا وَلَا تَسْتَفْتِ فِيهِم مِّنْهُمْ أَحَدًۭا ١٩_٦١ جَنَّٰتِ عَدْنٍ ٱلَّتِى وَعَدَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ عِبَادَهُۥ بِٱلْغَيْبِ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ وَعْدُهُۥ مَأْتِيًّۭا ٢١_٤٩ ٱلَّذِينَ يَخْشَوْنَ رَبَّهُم بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَهُم مِّنَ ٱلسَّاعَةِ مُشْفِقُونَ ٣٤_٥٣ وَقَدْ كَفَرُوا۟ بِهِۦ مِن قَبْلُ ۖ وَيَقْذِفُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ مِن مَّكَانٍۭ بَعِيدٍۢ ٣٥_١٨ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌۭ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ۚ وَإِن تَدْعُ مُثْقَلَةٌ إِلَىٰ حِمْلِهَا لَا يُحْمَلْ مِنْهُ شَىْءٌۭ وَلَوْ كَانَ ذَا قُرْبَىٰٓ ۗ إِنَّمَا تُنذِرُ ٱلَّذِينَ يَخْشَوْنَ رَبَّهُم بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَأَقَامُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ ۚ وَمَن تَزَكَّىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَتَزَكَّىٰ لِنَفْسِهِۦ ۚ وَإِلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلْمَصِيرُ ٣٦_١١ إِنَّمَا تُنذِرُ مَنِ ٱتَّبَعَ ٱلذِّكْرَ وَخَشِىَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ ۖ فَبَشِّرْهُ بِمَغْفِرَةٍۢ وَأَجْرٍۢ كَرِيمٍ ٥٠_٣٣ مَّنْ خَشِىَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَجَآءَ بِقَلْبٍۢ مُّنِيبٍ ٥٧_٢٥ لَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلَنَا بِٱلْبَيِّنَٰتِ وَأَنزَلْنَا مَعَهُمُ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ وَٱلْمِيزَانَ لِيَقُومَ ٱلنَّاسُ بِٱلْقِسْطِ ۖ وَأَنزَلْنَا ٱلْحَدِيدَ فِيهِ بَأْسٌۭ شَدِيدٌۭ وَمَنَٰفِعُ لِلنَّاسِ وَلِيَعْلَمَ ٱللَّهُ مَن يَنصُرُهُۥ وَرُسُلَهُۥ بِٱلْغَيْبِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ قَوِىٌّ عَزِيزٌۭ ٦٧_١٢ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَخْشَوْنَ رَبَّهُم بِٱلْغَيْبِ لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةٌۭ وَأَجْرٌۭ كَبِيرٌۭ This word بِٱلْغَيْبِ has been used in quran 12 times in exactly 12 verses. This clearly resembles the presence of 12th Imam Al-Mahdi and his Ghayba / occultation. وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ {٤} 4. and who believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down before you, and are certain of the Hereafter. (002:004) What is meant by أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ (unzila Ileka)? We need to give it a thought as mentioned in quran. ٢_٤ وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ ٤_٦٠ أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى ٱلَّذِينَ يَزْعُمُونَ أَنَّهُمْ ءَامَنُوا۟ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ يُرِيدُونَ أَن يَتَحَاكَمُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱلطَّٰغُوتِ وَقَدْ أُمِرُوٓا۟ أَن يَكْفُرُوا۟ بِهِۦ وَيُرِيدُ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ أَن يُضِلَّهُمْ ضَلَٰلًۢا بَعِيدًۭا ٤_١٦٢ لَّٰكِنِ ٱلرَّٰسِخُونَ فِى ٱلْعِلْمِ مِنْهُمْ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ ۚ وَٱلْمُقِيمِينَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ ۚ وَٱلْمُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْءَاخِرِ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ سَنُؤْتِيهِمْ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا ٤_١٦٦ لَّٰكِنِ ٱللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ بِمَآ أَنزَلَ إِلَيْكَ ۖ أَنزَلَهُۥ بِعِلْمِهِۦ ۖ وَٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ يَشْهَدُونَ ۚ وَكَفَىٰ بِٱللَّهِ شَهِيدًا ٥_٦٤ وَقَالَتِ ٱلْيَهُودُ يَدُ ٱللَّهِ مَغْلُولَةٌ ۚ غُلَّتْ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَلُعِنُوا۟ بِمَا قَالُوا۟ ۘ بَلْ يَدَاهُ مَبْسُوطَتَانِ يُنفِقُ كَيْفَ يَشَآءُ ۚ وَلَيَزِيدَنَّ كَثِيرًۭا مِّنْهُم مَّآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ طُغْيَٰنًۭا وَكُفْرًۭا ۚ وَأَلْقَيْنَا بَيْنَهُمُ ٱلْعَدَٰوَةَ وَٱلْبَغْضَآءَ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ ۚ كُلَّمَآ أَوْقَدُوا۟ نَارًۭا لِّلْحَرْبِ أَطْفَأَهَا ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَيَسْعَوْنَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَسَادًۭا ۚ وَٱللَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُفْسِدِينَ ٥_٦٨ قُلْ يَٰٓأَهْلَ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ لَسْتُمْ عَلَىٰ شَىْءٍ حَتَّىٰ تُقِيمُوا۟ ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةَ وَٱلْإِنجِيلَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ ۗ وَلَيَزِيدَنَّ كَثِيرًۭا مِّنْهُم مَّآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ طُغْيَٰنًۭا وَكُفْرًۭا ۖ فَلَا تَأْسَ عَلَى ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلْكَٰفِرِين ٧_٢ كِتَٰبٌ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ فَلَا يَكُن فِى صَدْرِكَ حَرَجٌۭ مِّنْهُ لِتُنذِرَ بِهِۦ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ١٣_١ بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ الٓمٓر ۚ تِلْكَ ءَايَٰتُ ٱلْكِتَٰبِ ۗ وَٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ٱلْحَقُّ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ ١٣_١٩ ۞ أَفَمَن يَعْلَمُ أَنَّمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ٱلْحَقُّ كَمَنْ هُوَ أَعْمَىٰٓ ۚ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُو۟لُوا۟ ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ ١٣_٣٦ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَاتَيْنَٰهُمُ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ يَفْرَحُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ ۖ وَمِنَ ٱلْأَحْزَابِ مَن يُنكِرُ بَعْضَهُۥ ۚ قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَعْبُدَ ٱللَّهَ وَلَآ أُشْرِكَ بِهِۦٓ ۚ إِلَيْهِ أَدْعُوا۟ وَإِلَيْهِ مَـَٔابِ ٣٤_٦ وَيَرَى ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ هُوَ ٱلْحَقَّ وَيَهْدِىٓ إِلَىٰ صِرَٰطِ ٱلْعَزِيزِ ٱلْحَمِيدِ ٥_٦٧ ۞ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلرَّسُولُ بَلِّغْ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ وَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلْ فَمَا بَلَّغْتَ رِسَالَتَهُۥ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ The most important point revealed from the above verses is again that أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ has been mentioned 12 times in 12 verses of quran. The important aspect is that the verse of Ghadeer also include it. This reflects the presence of 12 Imams; the first one Imam Ali was selected by the prophet as per the instruction of Allah swt. Similarly 12th Mahdi has also been selected by Allah swt. وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ {٤} 5. and who believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down before you, and are certain of the Hereafter. (002:004) The statement وَبِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ has been used in the following verses of the quran: ٢٧_٣ ٱلَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَهُم بِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ ٣١_٤ ٱلَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَهُم بِٱلْءَاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ If we look from the quran for يُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ, we get the following: ٥_٥٥ إِنَّمَا وَلِيُّكُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَهُمْ رَٰكِعُونَ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ فَإِنَّ حِزْبَ ٱللَّهِ هُمُ ٱلْغَٰلِبُونَ {٥٦} These refer back to the verses of al-Maeda which are explaining the wilayat of 12 imams with the first one is Imam Ali AS. The verses of wilayah is 55 the verse of Al-maeda. The verse of Ghader as seen in the details of أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ at sr no. 4 , is placed at 67th verse of the Sura al-Maeda. ٥_٦٧ ۞ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلرَّسُولُ بَلِّغْ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِن رَّبِّكَ ۖ وَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلْ فَمَا بَلَّغْتَ رِسَالَتَهُۥ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْصِمُكَ مِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ These are placed at reference of 12 verses (67 -55 = 12). أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًۭى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ {٥} 6. Those follow their Lord’s guidance and it is they who are the felicitous. (002:005) Who are ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ? ٢_٥ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًۭى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٣_١٠٤ وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌۭ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى ٱلْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ ٱلْمُنكَرِ ۚ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٧_٨ وَٱلْوَزْنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ ٱلْحَقُّ ۚ فَمَن ثَقُلَتْ مَوَٰزِينُهُۥ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٧_١٥٧ ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَّبِعُونَ ٱلرَّسُولَ ٱلنَّبِىَّ ٱلْأُمِّىَّ ٱلَّذِى يَجِدُونَهُۥ مَكْتُوبًا عِندَهُمْ فِى ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةِ وَٱلْإِنجِيلِ يَأْمُرُهُم بِٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَىٰهُمْ عَنِ ٱلْمُنكَرِ وَيُحِلُّ لَهُمُ ٱلطَّيِّبَٰتِ وَيُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلْخَبَٰٓئِثَ وَيَضَعُ عَنْهُمْ إِصْرَهُمْ وَٱلْأَغْلَٰلَ ٱلَّتِى كَانَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ فَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ بِهِۦ وَعَزَّرُوهُ وَنَصَرُوهُ وَٱتَّبَعُوا۟ ٱلنُّورَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ مَعَهُۥٓ ۙ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٩_٨٨ لَٰكِنِ ٱلرَّسُولُ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مَعَهُۥ جَٰهَدُوا۟ بِأَمْوَٰلِهِمْ وَأَنفُسِهِمْ ۚ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ لَهُمُ ٱلْخَيْرَٰتُ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٢٣_١٠٢ فَمَن ثَقُلَتْ مَوَٰزِينُهُۥ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٢٤_٥١ إِنَّمَا كَانَ قَوْلَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذَا دُعُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَهُمْ أَن يَقُولُوا۟ سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا ۚ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٣٠_٣٨ فَـَٔاتِ ذَا ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ حَقَّهُۥ وَٱلْمِسْكِينَ وَٱبْنَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَ ٱللَّهِ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٣١_٥ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًۭى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٥٩_٩ وَٱلَّذِينَ تَبَوَّءُو ٱلدَّارَ وَٱلْإِيمَٰنَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ يُحِبُّونَ مَنْ هَاجَرَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَا يَجِدُونَ فِى صُدُورِهِمْ حَاجَةًۭ مِّمَّآ أُوتُوا۟ وَيُؤْثِرُونَ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ وَلَوْ كَانَ بِهِمْ خَصَاصَةٌۭ ۚ وَمَن يُوقَ شُحَّ نَفْسِهِۦ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٦٤_١٦ فَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ مَا ٱسْتَطَعْتُمْ وَٱسْمَعُوا۟ وَأَطِيعُوا۟ وَأَنفِقُوا۟ خَيْرًۭا لِّأَنفُسِكُمْ ۗ وَمَن يُوقَ شُحَّ نَفْسِهِۦ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ ٥٨_٢٢ لَّا تَجِدُ قَوْمًۭا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْءَاخِرِ يُوَآدُّونَ مَنْ حَآدَّ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَلَوْ كَانُوٓا۟ ءَابَآءَهُمْ أَوْ أَبْنَآءَهُمْ أَوْ إِخْوَٰنَهُمْ أَوْ عَشِيرَتَهُمْ ۚ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ كَتَبَ فِى قُلُوبِهِمُ ٱلْإِيمَٰنَ وَأَيَّدَهُم بِرُوحٍۢ مِّنْهُ ۖ وَيُدْخِلُهُمْ جَنَّٰتٍۢ تَجْرِى مِن تَحْتِهَا ٱلْأَنْهَٰرُ خَٰلِدِينَ فِيهَا ۚ رَضِىَ ٱللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا۟ عَنْهُ ۚ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ حِزْبُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ أَلَآ إِنَّ حِزْبَ ٱللَّهِ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ This word ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ has been described 12 times in 12 verses of the holy quran. The last verse mentions حِزْبَ ٱللَّهِ are those who are ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ. ٥_٥٥ إِنَّمَا وَلِيُّكُمُ ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَهُمْ رَٰكِعُونَ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ فَإِنَّ حِزْبَ ٱللَّهِ هُمُ ٱلْغَٰلِبُونَ {٥٦} Your guardian /Wali is only Allah, His Messenger, and the faithful who maintain the prayer and give the zakat while bowing down.( 005:055) Whoever takes for his guardians Allah, His Messenger and the faithful [should know that] the confederates of Allah are indeed the victorious. (005:056) 7. Imam Mahdi’s Resemblance with Hz Yusuf AS: A. Muhammad bin Hammam and Muhammad bin al-Hasan bin Muhammad bin Jumhoor narrated from al-Hasan bin Muhammad bin Jumhoor from his father from some of his companions from al-Mufadhdhal bin Umar that Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (s) had said: A tradition that you perceive is better that ten that you narrate (without perceiving them). Every truth has a fact and every rightness has a light. By Allah we do not consider a Shiite as a jurisprudent until it is mistaken before him and he notices the mistake. Amirul Mo'mineen (s) has said from upon the minbar of Kufa: “There will be dark, blind and dim seditions awaiting you, from which no one will be saved except the (nooma).” People asked: “What is the (nooma)?”He said: “It is one, who knows people but people do not know him.” Then he added: “Know well that the world will not be empty of an authority (Hujjah) from Allah but Allah will make His people not see His authority because of their injustice, oppression and excessiveness in disobedience. If the world remains without an authority (from Allah) for an hour, it will sink with its people. The authority knows people but they do not know him. It is like Prophet Joseph (s), who knew people but they denied him. “Alas for (My) servants! There comes not to them a messenger but they mock at him. ( Biharul Anwar, vol.51, p.112, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.532, Awalim al-Uloom, vol.3 p.526, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.5 p.366), B. Imam Ali as mentioned the example of the prophet Joseph: “Then he gives an example by mentioning Prophet Joseph (s). Imam al-Mahdi (s) is existent in substance and person but at his time he sees and he is not seen until-as Amirul Mo'mineen (s) says: “the promised time and determined appointment” when the call comes from the heaven: “This is the day that brings forth joy to the descendants of Ali and to the Shia of Ali.” (Biharul Anwar, vol.51, p.112, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.532, Awalim al-Uloom, vol.3 p.526, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.5 p.366. ) C. Ali bin Ahmad narrated from Obaydillah bin Musa al-Alawi from Ahmad bin al-Husayn from Ahmad bin Hilal from Abdurrahman bin Abu Najran from Fudhala bin Ayyoob that Sadeer as-Sayrafi had said: I heard Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (s) saying: “The master of this matter has a likeness to Prophet Joseph (s).” I said: “As if you want to tell us about a disappearance or confusion!” He said: “Why do this damned people, who are like the pigs, deny this matter (the disappearance of imam al-Mahdi)? The brothers of Prophet Joseph (s) were skilled, intelligent and sons of prophets. When they came to him, they talked and dealt with him and although they were his brothers they could not know him until he himself told them that he was their brother Joseph. Then why do this umma deny that Allah may want to hide His authority from people for a certain time? Prophet Joseph (s) was the king of Egypt and there was between him and his father a distance of eighteen days-travel. If he wanted to inform his father of his place, he could do that. By Allah, Jacob (s) and his sons, after having heard the news of Joseph, traveled from their village to Egypt within nine days. So why do this umma deny that Allah may do for his authority (al-Mahdi) as He has done for Prophet Joseph (s)? Perhaps the master of this matter (al-Qa'im), who has been wronged and whose right has been denied, goes and comes among people frequently, walks in their markets and sits on their mats but they do not know him until the will of Allah permits him to introduce himself to them as Allah has permitted Prophet Joseph (s) to introduce himself to his brothers by saying: (They said: Are you indeed Yousuf? He said: I am Yousuf). The same was narrated by Muhammad bin Ya'qoob al-Kulayni from Ali bin Ibraheem bin Hashim from Muhammad bin al-Husayn from ibn Abu Najran from Fudhala bin Ayyoob from Sadeer as-Sayrafi from Abu Abdullah as-Sadiq (s). (Al-Kafi, vol.1 p.336, Kamal ad-Deen p.144, Ilal ash-Sharayi’ p.244, Dala’il al-Imama p.290, Taqreeb al-Ma’arif p.189, I’lam al-Wara p.405, al-Khara’ij wel Jara’ih, vol.1 p.934, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.442.) D. Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed bin Oqda narrated from Muhammad bin al-Mufadhdhal bin Qayss bin Rummana al-Ash’ari, Sa’dan bin Iss~haq bin Sa'eed, Ahmad bin al-Husayn bin Abdul Melik and Muhammad bin al-Hasan al-Qatawani all from al-Hasan bin Mahboob az-Zarrad from Hisham bin Salim from Yazeed al-Kinasi that Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (s) had said: “The man of this matter has a likeness to Prophet Joseph (s). …..The likeness to Prophet Joseph (s) concerns the disappearance. (Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.225, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.532, Muntakhab al-Athar p.300.) 8. Twice ghayba of Imam Mahdi A. “From among the descendants of Ali is al-Qa’im al-Mahdi, who will change the world into another one and by whom Jesus Christ (s) will argue against the Christians of Rome and China. Al-Qa’im al-Mahdi is the most similar one to Jesus Christ (s) in form, character, nobility and dignity. Allah will give him all what He has given to the prophets and more than that and He will prefer him to the all. Al-Qa’im, the descendant of Ali (s), will disappear like the disappearance of Prophet Joseph (s) and will reappear like the reappearance of Jesus the son of Mary (s). He will reappear, after his disappearance, with the appearance of the red star, the destruction of az-Zawra’ (ar-Riy), the sinking of al-Muzawarra (Baghdad), the rising of as-Sufyani, the war of the progeny of al-Abbas against the people of Armenia and Azerbaijan, in which thousands and thousands will be killed. Each one of the warriors will seize on an adorned sword, over which black banners will flutter. It will be a war full of red death and terrible plague.” (Biharul Anwar, vol.52 p.225, Ithbat al-Hudat, vol.3 p.532, Muntakhab al-Athar p.300.) B. Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Sa'eed narrated from Muhammad bin al-Mufadhdhal, Sa’dan bin Iss~haq bin Sa'eed, Ahmad bin al-Husayn and Muhammad bin Ahmad bin al-Hasan al-Qatawani all from al-Hasan bin Mahboob from Hisham bin Salim al-Jawaleeqi that Yazeed al-Kinasi had heard Abu Ja'far al-Baqir (s) saying: “The master of this matter (al-Qa’im) has a likeness to Prophet Joseph ….”. (Biharul Anwar, vol.51 p.41, Muntakhab al-Athar p.300, Mo’jam Ahadeeth al-Imam al-Mahdi, vol.3 p.239) The above hadiths are sufficient evidence to prove that the Ghayba of Imam Mahdi has the resemblance with that of the prophet Joseph. 9. Now we should look from the Quran for Ghayba of Imam Mahdi keeping in view his resemblance with that of Hz Yusuf AS. We get from Sura Yusuf. - The Imam of our time ie Imam Al-Mahdi is 12th Imam from the progeny of the prophet Muhammad saww. His Ghayba has resemblance with the case of Hz Yusuf AS. - The Sura named on the prophet Yusuf AS has been placed in the Quran at the sr no 12 which is the order for Imam Mahdi being 12th Imam. - Imam Mahdi AS has two Ghayba / occultation / disappearances and appearances. - The Quran in Sura Yusuf mentions twice the word Ghayabat in the following verses for the brothers of Yusuf hiding him in the well:: - ١٢_١٠ قَالَ قَآئِلٌۭ مِّنْهُمْ لَا تَقْتُلُوا۟ يُوسُفَ وَأَلْقُوهُ فِى غَيَٰبَتِ ٱلْجُبِّ يَلْتَقِطْهُ بَعْضُ ٱلسَّيَّارَةِ إِن كُنتُمْ فَٰعِلِينَ 10. “Said a speaker among them: ‘Do not slay Yusuf, and if you must do it, throw him into the bottom of the well (so that) some caravan (of travelers) may pick him up’.” The Arabic term /jubb/ means a kind of well in which stones have not been used in its construction. The word /gayabat/ also refers to a platform on the wall of a well near the water which cannot be seen from above the wall. - ١٢_١٥ فَلَمَّا ذَهَبُوا۟ بِهِۦ وَأَجْمَعُوٓا۟ أَن يَجْعَلُوهُ فِى غَيَٰبَتِ ٱلْجُبِّ ۚ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْهِ لَتُنَبِّئَنَّهُم بِأَمْرِهِمْ هَٰذَا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ 15. “So when they did take him with them, and they agreed to put him in the bottom of the well, and We revealed unto him: ‘You will certainly inform them of this deed of theirs while they know (you) not’.” The word /gayabat/ also refers to a platform on the wall of a well near the water which cannot be seen from above the wall. At the sensitive times, Allah’s help comes unto the saints of Allah. The best means of calmness for Yusuf, when he was at the bottom of well, was Allah’s inspiration due to his bright future and his deliverance. - Yusuf AS informed their brothers about himself in the following verses: - قَالُوٓا۟ أَءِنَّكَ لَأَنتَ يُوسُفُ ۖ قَالَ أَنَا۠ يُوسُفُ وَهَٰذَآ أَخِى ۖ قَدْ مَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْنَآ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ مَن يَتَّقِ وَيَصْبِرْ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُضِيعُ أَجْرَ ٱلْمُحْسِنِينَ {٩٠} - 90. “They said: ‘Are you indeed Yusuf?’ He said: ‘(Yes), I am Yusuf and this is my brother. Allah has been indeed gracious to us. Verily whoever keeps from evil and is patient (is always rewarded) for verily Allah does not waste the reward of the righteous’.” - Imam Sadiq (as) said: “There is indeed a course of Yusuf in Hadrat Qa’im (as)… People will not recognize him (as) until when Allah will allow him to introduce himself.” (Bihar-ul-’Anwar, vol. 12, p. 283) - Also the word بِٱلْغَيْبِ (bil-ghayb) has been mentioned as in verse no 3 of Sura Al-baqra has also been mentioned in this Sura Yusuf in the following verse: - ١٢_٥٢ ذَٰلِكَ لِيَعْلَمَ أَنِّى لَمْ أَخُنْهُ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِى كَيْدَ ٱلْخَآئِنِينَ Already stated in sr. no. 3, this word has been mentioned 12 times in 12 verses to prove the presence of 12th imam Al-Mahdi in ghayba. 10. Finally it can be concluded with the following verse and hadith: هُوَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَرْسَلَ رَسُولَهُۥ بِٱلْهُدَىٰ وَدِينِ ٱلْحَقِّ لِيُظْهِرَهُۥ عَلَى ٱلدِّينِ كُلِّهِۦ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ ٱلْمُشْرِكُونَ {٩} It is He Who has sent His Messenger with Guidance and the Religion of Truth, that he may proclaim it over all religion, even though the Pagans may detest (it). [61:9] In the interpretation of “liyudhhirahu ‘ala al-din kullihi” (“that he may proclaim it over all religion”) Banu Amin ( Makhzan al-ëIrfan, Vol. 5, p. 279) says that there is no doubt that the pronoun hu refers to the Qur’an and the religion of Islam which means that Islam will prevail and reign over all the religions of the world. She adds that we can see that Islam has not yet reached the whole world but we know that the promise of God is the Truth, so a time must certainly come when Islam will dominate all the religions, and this can only be realized with the help of the Mahdi's reappearance from the Prophet’s offspring, after which no one will remain unless he pronounces the declaration of faith in Islam (Shahada). She then reports from the Minhaj al-Sadiqin and from Ali ibn Ibrahim Qummi that the al-Qa’im from the Prophet’s offspring will complete the religion of God and will establish it and enable it to reign over all other world religions in such a way that, apart from God, nothing else will be worshipped, and this is the meaning of the Prophet’s saying: “he will fill the earth with justice and equity as it was filled with oppression and tyranny.” Wassalam

Hi, I have got the name of a book called "Aina Jamaal" by Safi Golpaygaani. Can anyone could guide me towards a pdf online so that I could read it? Its about Imam Mahdi a.s God bless you. :)

Salam. Shi'a Hadeeth On Imam Al-Mahdi (as) And His Occulation In This Section Of This Article We Shall Cover: Designation Of Imam Al-Mahdi (as) And His OccultationRecorded Reports Prior To The Occultation Of Imam Mahdi (as)Reports On The Two OccultationsThe Age Of Imam Al-Mahdi (as)The Myth Of The Sirdaab (Cellar) Read here: http://www.revisitingthesalaf.org/2015/04/imam-al-mahdi-ajf-part-v.html

Salam. Rebuttal to the deception of Ahmad al-Hassan with Shia hadith. Read here: http://shia-rafidah.com/articles/97-ahmad-13th-disciple.html#.VMQXz_6G98F

Salam, So, I found the the book: ''The Promised Hujjatullah Al-Yamani'' - Did you know? Ahmad al-Hassan's real father [salman] was unbeliever like all other 12er Shias - because Ahmad al-Hassan is first ''believer'' in 12th Imam (as) - if we follow the interpretation of Ansar and Ahmad al-Hassan. Also the so called ''Sheikh Haydar Az-Zyadi'' [author of the book] forgets to quote the beginning of the hadith, and the hadith is clear - dabbat al-arḍ is Imam Ali (as). Yet the so called ''Sheikh'' claims it is Ahmad al-Hassan.

Salaam to all my brothers and sisters I heard the new noha from Ali Safdar 2011 / 2012 and it is really beautiful and want that lyrics from anyone who has noted down and would like to share with here...... It is my request to my brothers and sisters.... "Yabna Zahra" Thank You Waiting for you reply . . . Quote

Just came across this one on youtube. I was under the impression that even from a salafi lanati perspective sufyani (la) was a condemned disgrace, as per the famous sunniHadith where the Holy Prophet (sawas) mentions him as an antithesis to the Qaim (as). What are your thoughts? http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xgmk8N1CpvY

I The Name Of Allah Hello everybody Mahdism and justice Shia’s the green wing Shias doctrine as one of 3 principles of Islamic republic of Iran besides people and leadership principles ,with deferent content from other common doctrine that usually explains as socialism and liberalism ,it could make bases for a revolution that has basic deference with materialistic doctrine in manner,ideals and aims. As philosophers testify being Shia`s two basic parameters ”Jihad and martyrdom” and “expectation and Mahdism” in Islamic revolution of Iran causes that this revolution can not jam as other common revolution analysis. In western society revolutions occur exactly formulated , in simple meaning and as one formula :”government levels declaim “ and “people displeasure” are two prerequisite for revolutions and revolutions are this displeasure`s result. Marxism doctrine attitude toward to revolution is completely materialistic with supporting “infrastructure” and “superstructure” theory and Karle Marx levels gaps .in other meaning all of revolutions that occurred in world and specially in west yet , can explain as this formula . for e.g. great revolutions as France revolution ,the Bolshevik`s revolution in Russia or China`s revolution can explain easily with above formula. The Islamic revolution of Iran as a “special sample “ occurred that government level hasn`t declaim even was in perfect situation ,this matter is clear whether in internal politics arena and or in foreign politics arena and there is lots of proof for this claim(including unexampled oil price increasing in 50th solar decade ) because of this western theories in both level , practical and theoretical they aren`t able to prove or explain this revolution and Islamic revolution of Iran`s soul has basic deferent with other world`s revolutions .Michel Foucault is one of people that has studied basic Islamic revolution of Iran . Philosopher ,historian and contemporary French thinker and who is one of main post modernism leaders,Michel Foucault Foucault favor to Islamic revolution of Iran is because of his special theories that he tabled around history ,power and modernism. He finds this revolution a good exam for his theories.(Frahani,Resalat newspaper ,1385 solar)Foucault analyses Iran`s revolution from cultural aspect , he spoke about Islamic and Shia culture as a strong potential.and believes that Iran`s people with their Shia and Islamic religion made a power that defeat Shah`s invincible regime .spirituality is that factor that Foucault has stressed on it .Michel Foucault in himself studies about Iran`s Islamic revolution, enchant to two meanings “expectation” and ”martyrdom” (Nazari ,Aftab site,1385 solar) He believed unlike Marxist theorist no factor except religion beliefs can not unify these groups but it`s Shia religion that could make this political unification. Encountering with Iran`s revolution , Michel Foucault instigate him to study about Shia`s doctrine. That point was too interesting for him was at first having some things in common in Christianity and Shia`s theologies and second Shia`s theology`s hidden facilities for breaking and overlooking from modern speeches principles. Foucault knows Iran`s revolution promising for appearance of new political-theosophical radical discourse that is raised fromthe bottom part of religion`s heart that was buried with superstition and Lethe .(ZarShenas,Andhishe`s club site,1386) Foucault stresses to appearance`s meaning in Shia`s religion in an attitude ; that reality that truth will not end with the last prophet and after Muhammad(PBUH) will start a new time that is endless time of imams that with their speech,with being fugleman by their life, and with themselves martyrdom are carrier of the light,that is always unique and always change,the light that will make shiningsharia;that shouldn`t just save but it has an internal meaning that should get clear by passing time.so 12th imam, although is hidden from our eyes , he is not exactly absent .this is people that if the truth`s light shines them , they will make his appearance basis.(Michel Foucault,1377.page 42) By this meaning spiritually orientation ,make his analysis heart about Islamic revolution of Iran. Foucault catch glance on two Shias parameter : martyrdom and the waiting and name them an opportunity and call Shia the unique way to exit from modernize dead end and in opposite point we have Francis Focoyama`s idea that call Shia and its two principles(martyrdom and the waiting) threat for mankind and specially for west and he wants to block its spreading. This idea was propose while Islamic revolution of Iran got result and Shia got more important in world. Francis Focuyama is conservative , researcher and Japanese-born and American citizen historian .he has a semi-political and semi-philosophic , he is acquainted in NSA(national clandestine service) and is military analyzer in Rend co. dependent Pentagon. He grew famous with his essay ((the end of history and the last man)) in 1989 that published in a book with more explanation in 1991 .Fokuyamain two essays ,does ahistorical defense from wests political valuesand argued that events in 20th century shows that appeared an universal consensusfavor liberal democracy .Fokuyamahad been drawing Shias political idea in a conference in Jerusalem. Hesais in this conference that titled «reinvestigation of Shia Identity»: “Shia is a bird that its horizon flight is so upper than our arrows , it`s a bird that has two wings. One red wing and another green one, its green wing is Mahdism and seeking justice ,because Shia is expecting justice, is hopeful and hopeful person is unbeatable and you can`t conquer a person that claims a person will come that in the climax of cruelty , will glut the world with justice.”according to Fokuyama`s theory Shias green wing is waiting or seeking justice .he sais ; Shias red wing is seeking martyrdom that its root in Karbala and have made Shia unbeatable” Shia with this two has very up flight horizon and toxic arrows in politics, economy , society ,culture , manner and…. Won`t damage it. He adds : that point is momentous is that; “Shia has an armor that is called Velayat (leadership) that has made Shia invincible” in all Islams sects Shia is the unique sect that hasjurisprudence attitude two leadership ,it means thatJurisconsult can be leader. This view, is superior than Plato geniuses theory. Fokuyama believes that : Shias leadership forms by merit too that have made Shia out of treat . in invincibility explanation he sais; Shia grows double with martyrdom . Shia is a principle that becomes more and more with killing them and examples Iran-Iraq war .he sais after that :you should create for west an Imam and Karbala(martyrdom)and jurisprudence leadership. Offered a new doctrine that titled (evangelist) that its history starts from 1989 ,six month after Fokuyamas theory . they believe that Jesus of Nazareth will come.theyattribute all and all Imam Zamans factors to Jesus of Nazareth ! is said that when world filled with cruelty he will come and fill world with justice ! according to this they`ve made a net that is called T.B.N that its work is analysis events that happen in society , when tsunami occurred professor Holding Zee (Fokuyamas student) after 20 horses he analyzed that its one of Jesus appearance signs. So this idea has 4 principles : captivity ,absence, waiting and rescue , in waiting and belief they believe that a rescuer that is absent will come and will bases justice in world and will rescue mankind and truth and justice and equality will win ,in negative path justice enemies and corruption and crime agents and people who don`t know any task in their life and there is no border for their cruelty and corruption making reason.by this meaning that mankind rescuing and justice making just and just is postponed to a special unseen rescuer`s rise ,its usual and common , its no unusual and so its usual we should accept it because its acceptable and because its imminent its impossible to resistance and every try for justice is meaning-less . We can see absence, by this explanation “negative waiting” it’s the best tool for people who corrupt and oppress and they`ve made religion a tool for their group and material and political and spiritual benefits that can use the Imam`s followers and can ride their ideas and economy and life and try and activity . but this principles with this beliefs :believe waiting ,believing waiting and believe to imminent apocalypse`s rescue ,it’s a apposite path with this path that it`s the biggest negate for this factors and people who are equipped by this ideology they have the most strong weapon for destroying corruption and the biggest impact for destroying cruelty and the biggest energy to move to feature. Author: JavadHaghgoo Sources: -Resalatnews paper,AbbasFarahani -short readout to Foucault idea about Islamic Republic of Iran ,ShahriarZarshenas -what wishes Iran has? ,MichelFoucualt -Iran,an ego for a egoless world,Foucualt -Islamic Revolution,ManoochehrMohammadi -Islamic Revolution analysis , M.M Nazari Shabestan

IN THE NAME OF Allah Hello Everybody Imam Mohammad al-Mahdi (Peace be Upon him) Name: Muhammad. Title: al-Mahdi, al-Qa'im, al-Hujjah, al-Gha'ib, Sahibu'z-Zaman, Sahibu 'l-Amr. Agnomen: Abu'l-Qasim. Father's name: al-Hasan al-'Askari. Mother's name: Nargis. Birth: In Samarra', on Friday, 15th Sha'ban 255 AH. ________________________________________ He is still living and will appear before the end of the world. Minor Occultation: 8th Rabi 'u 'I-awwal 260 AH. Major Occultation: 10th Shawwal 329 AH. There Existed a good deal of harmony and uniformity between the aspects pertaining to the births of Prophet Muhammad, the last Apostle of Allah and Imam al-Mahdi, the last Apostolic Imam. Just as the coming of the Holy Prophet was prophesied well in advance by the preceding prophets, similarly the impending news of the gracious birth of Imam al-Mahdi was foretold by the Holy Prophet. Innumerable traditions in this context, quoted right from the Holy Prophet, from the glowing contents of many books of Masanid, Sihah and Akhbar, and of Shi'ite scholars ('ulama') existed Many Sunni scholars have accumulated these traditions in complete volumes also, e.g.: al-Bayan fi akhbar Sihibi'z-Zaman by al-Hafiz Muhammad ibn Yusuf ash-Shafi'i and Dhikriyyatu'l- Mahdi by al-Hafiz Abu Nu'aym al-Isfahani as well as as-Sahih of Abu Dawud and as-Sunan of Ibn Majah. All of the above books record the traditions bearing evidence of the coming of this Holy Imam. The promised Mahdi, who is usually mentioned by his title of Imamu'l-'Asr (the Imam of the Period) and Sahibu 'z-Zaman (the Lord of the Age), is the son of the Eleventh Imam. His name is the same as that of the Holy Prophet. He was born in Samarra' in 255/869 and until 260/874 when his father was martyred, lived under his father's care and tutelage. He was hidden from public view and only a few of the elite among the Shi'ah were able to meet him. After the martyrdom of his father he became Imam and by Divine Command went into occultation (ghaybah). Thereafter, he appeared only to his deputies (na'ib) and even then only in exceptional circumstances. The Imam chose as a special deputy for a time 'Uthman ibn Sa'id al-'Amri, one of the companions of his father and grandfather who was his confident and trusted friend. Through his deputy the Imam would answer the demands and questions of the Shi'ah. After 'Uthman ibn Sa'id, his son Mutammad ibn 'Uthman al-'Amri was appointed the deputy of the Imam. After the death of Muhammad ibn 'Uthman, Abu'l-Qasim al-Husayn ibn Ruh an-Nawbakhti was the special deputy, and after his death 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samuri was chosen for this task. A few days before the death of 'Al; ibn Muhammad as-Samuri in 329/939 an order was issued by the Imam stating that in six days 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samuri would die. Henceforth the special deputation of the Imam would come to an end and the major occultation (ghaybatu 'l-kubrd ) would begin and would continue until the day God grants permission to the Imam to manifest himself. The occultation of the Twelfth Imam is, therefore, divided into two parts: the first, the minor occultation (ghaybatu's-sughra) which began in 260/872 and ended in 329/939, lasting about seventy years; the second, the major occultation which commenced in 329/939 and will continue as long as God wills it. In a hadith upon whose authenticity everyone agrees, the Holy Prophet has said, "If there were to remain in the life of the world but one day, God would prolong that day until He sends in it a man from my community and my household. His name will be the same as my name. He will fill the earth with equity and justice as it was filled with oppression and tyranny." On the Appearance of the Mahdi: In the discussion on prophecy and the Imamate it was indicated that as a result of the law of general guidance which governs all of creation, man is of necessity endowed with the power of receiving revelation through prophecy, which directs him toward the perfection of the human norm and the well-being of the human species. Obviously, if this perfection and happiness were not possible for man, whose life possesses a social aspect, the very fact that he is endowed with this power would be meaningless and futile. But there is no futility in creation. In other words, ever since he has inhabited the earth, man has had the wish to lead a social life filled with happiness in its true sense and has striven toward this end. If such a wish were not to have an objective existence it would never have been imprinted upon man's inner nature, in the same way that if there were no food there would have been no hunger. Or, if there were to be no water there would be no thirst and if there were to be no reproduction there would have been no sexual attraction between the sexes. Therefore, by reason of inner necessity and determination, the future will see a day when human society will be replete with justice and when all will live in peace and tranquillity, when human beings will be fully possessed of virtue and perfection. The establishment of such a condition will occur through human hands but with Divine succour. And the leader of such a society, who will be the saviour of man, is called in the language of the hadith, the Mahdi . In the different religions that govern the world such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrian-ism and Islam there are references to a person who will come as the saviour of mankind. These religions have usually given happy tidings of his coming, although there are naturally certain differences in detail that can be discerned when these teachings are compared carefully. The hadith of the Holy Prophet upon which all Muslims agree, "The Mahdi is of my progeny," refers to this same truth. There are numerous hadiths cited in Sunni and Shi'ite sources from the Holy Prophet and the Imams concerning the appearance of the Mahdi, such as that he is of the progeny of the Prophet and that his appearance will enable human society to reach true perfection and the full realization of spiritual life. In addition, there are numerous other traditions concerning the fact that the Mahdi is the son of the Eleventh Imam, Hasan al-'Askari. They agree that after being born and undergoing a long occultation the Mahdi will appear again, filling with justice the world that has been corrupted by injustice and iniquity. As an example, 'Ali ibn Musa ar-Rida (the Eighth Imam) said, in the course of a hadith, "The Imam after me is my son, Muhammad, and after him his son 'Ali, and after 'Ali his son, Hasan, and after Hasan his son Hujjatu'l- Qa'im, who is awaited during his occultation and obeyed during his manifestation. If there remain from the life of the world but a single day, Allah will extend that day until he becomes manifest, and fill the world with justice in the same way that it had been filled with iniquity. But when? As for news of the 'hour,' verily my father told me, having heard it from his father who heard it from his father who heard it from his ancestors who heard it from 'Ali, that it was asked of the Holy Prophet, 'Oh Prophet of God, when will the "support" (al-Qa'im) who is from thy family appear? ' He said, 'His case is like that of the Hour (of the Resurrection). He alone will manifest it at its proper time. It is heavy in the heavens and the earth. It cometh not to you save unawares (7:187) Saqr ibn Abi Dulaf said, "I heard from Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn 'Ali ar-Rida (the Ninth Imam) who said, 'The Imam after me is my son, 'Ali; his command is my command; his word is my word; to obey him is to obey me. The Imam after him is his son, Hasan. His command is the command of his father; his word is the word of his father; to obey him is to obey his father.' After these words the Imam remained silent.' I said to him, 'Oh son of the Prophet, who will be the Imam after Hasan?' The Imam cried hard, then said, 'Verily after Hasan his son is the awaited Imam who is "al-Qa'im bi'l-haqq" (He who is supported by the Truth)." Musa ibn Ja'far Baghdadi said, "I heard from Imam Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn 'Ali (the Eleventh Imam) who said, I see that after me differences will appear among you concerning the Imam after me. Whose accepts the Imams after the Prophet of God but denies my son is like the person who accepts all the prophets but denies the prophethood of Muhammad, the Prophet of God, upon whom be peace and blessing. And whose denies (Muhammad) the Prophet of God is like one who has denied all the prophets of God, for to obey the last of us is like obeying the first and to deny the last of us is like denying the first. But beware! Verily, for my son there is an occultation during which all people will fall into doubt except those whom Allah protects." The opponents of Shi'ism protest that according to the beliefs of this school the Hidden Imam should by now be nearly twelve centuries old, whereas, this is impossible for any human being. In answer it must be said that the protest is based only on the unlikelihood of such an occurrences not its impossibility. Of course, such a long lifetime or a life of a longer period is unlikely. But those who study the hadiths of the Holy Prophet and the Imams will see that they refer to this life as one possessing miraculous qualities. Miracles are certainly not impossible nor can they be negated through scientific arguments. It can never be proved that the causes and agents that are functioning in the world are solely those that we see and know and that other causes which we do not know or whose effects and actions we have not seen nor understood do not exist. It is in this way possible that in one or several members of makind there can be operating certain causes and agents which bestow upon them a very long life of a thousand or several thousand years. Medicine has not even lost hope of discovering a way to achieve very long life spans. In any case, such protests from "Peoples of the Book" such as Jews, Christians and Muslims are most strange for they accept the miracles of the prophets of God according to their own sacred scriptures. The opponents of Shi'ism also protest that, although Shi'ism considers the Imam necessary in order to expound the injunctions and verities of religion and to guide the people, the occultation of the Imam is the negation of this very purpose, for an Imam in occultation who cannot be reached by mankind cannot be in any way beneficial or effective. The opponents say that if God wills to bring forth an Imam to reform mankind, He is able to create him at the necessary moment and does not need to create him thousands of years earlier. In answer it must be said that such people have not really understood the meaning of the Imam, for in the discussion on the Imamate it became clear that the duty of the Imam is not only the formal explanation of the religious sciences and exoteric guidance of the people. In the same way that he has the duty of guiding men outwardly, the Imam also bears the function of walayah and the esoteric guidance of men. It is he who directs man's spiritual life and orients the inner aspect of human action toward God. Clearly, his physical presence or absence has no effect in this matter. The Imam watches over men inwardly and is in communion with the soul and spirit of men even if he be hidden from their physical eyes. I{is existence is always necessary even if the time has not as yet arrived for his outward appearance and the universal reconstruction that he is to bring about. al-Imam al-Hujjah, peace be Upon him, said: Rest assured that no one has a special relation- ship with Allah. Whoever denies me is not my (follower). The appearance of the Relief (al-faraj) depends solely upon Allah; therefore, those who propose a certain time for it are liars. As to the benefit of my existence in Occultation, it is like the benefit of the sun behind clouds where the eyes do not see. Indeed, my existence is an amnesty for the people of the earth.-Pray much to Allah to hasten the Relief, for therein also lies the release from your sufferings. (A Brief History of The Fourteen Infallibles, p. 159-166) * * * The Twelfth Imam Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.) The Imam, the just Guide, Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.) was born half-way through the month of Sha'ban in the year 255 A.H. in the town of Samarra, and in 260 A.H., when his great father died, he reached the exalted position of the Imamate. His name (Muhammad) and his agnomen (Abu'l-Qasim) are the same as the Prophet's. His father, the 11th Shi'a Imam, was Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.), and his mother, the great lady Nargis. For various reasons, the twelfth Imam, from the first day of his life, did not appear publicly, and for about seventy years people were in communication with him through the intermediary of his special representatives, in order of succession: 'Uthman ibn Sa'id, Muhammad ibn 'Uthman, Husayn ibn Ruh, and 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samarri. This period of seventy years is known as the minor occultation (al-ghaybat as-sughra), and at the end of that period the major occultation (al-ghaybat al-kubra) began. During the major occultation till the time of his reappearance, no one has been his special representative, and there will be no one in the future, and the people have the duty to refer to the fuqaha, those excelling in knowledge of the shari'ah, and the narration of hadith who are specialised in the matters of the religion. * * * Belief in Hazrat Mahdi, and Universal Reform. The belief in the reappearance of the expected Mahdi (A.S.)the universal reformer is not confined to the Shi'ite Muslims. Other Islamic groups and even non-Islamic groups like the Jews and the Christians and some of the great world intellectual figures believe in the appearance of a great spiritual reformer. In Psalm 37 is written: "...Trust in the Lord and do good; so you will dwell in the land, and enjoy security. ...For the wicked shall be cut off: but those who wait for the Lord shall possess the land. ...But the weak shall possess the land, and delight themselves in abundant prosperity. ...The Lord knows the days of the flawless, and their heritage will abide forever. ...For those blessed by the Lord, shall possess the land, but those cursed by Him shall be cut off. ...The righteous shall possess the land, and dwell upon it at peace for ever..." * * * The Qur'an and belief in al-Mahdi In the Qur'an a time is promised when the worshippers of Truth, the world's people of righteousness, will take over the power and government of the world, and the glorious din of Islam will reign all over the earth. Other ayahs have been revealed which exegetically point to Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.). "For We have written in the Psalms, after the Remembrance, 'The earth shall be the inheritance of My righteous servants." (XXI; 105) "Allah has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds that He will surely make you successors in the land, even as He made those who were before them successors, and that He will surely establish their religion for them, and will give them in exchange, after their fear, security: They shall serve Me, not associating with Me anything. " (XXIV:55) "It is He Who has sent His Messenger with the religion of truth, that he may lift it above every religion, though the unbelievers be averse. (LXI:9) "Yet We desired to be gracious to those that were abased in the land, and to make them leaders, and to make them the inheritors. " (XXII:5) The above ayahs clearly show that in the end the world will fall to the hands of Allah's worthy and righteous servants and that they will become the leaders of the people of the world. Then Islam will be victorious over all religions. * * * Belief in al-Mahdi and the Sunni authorities In this subject, the scholars in the Sunni school have related many hadiths from the Prophet of Islam, through narrators whom they themselves trust. From among them are such hadiths as tell that the Imams are twelve persons and that are all from the Quraysh. Al-Mahdi(A.S.), the promised one, is from the family of the Prophet and is a descendent of Hazrat 'Ali and Hazrat Fatimah Zahra (A.S.), and in many of these hadiths it is mentioned that he is from the line of Imam Husayn (A.S.). They have mentioned and recorded hundreds of hadiths about the Mahdi in more than seventy books by their valued and dependable authorities of which we shall mention a few examples. al-Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 241 A.H.) Sahih of al-Bukhari (d. 256 A.H.) Sahih of Muslim ibn Hajjaj Nishabouri (d. 261 A.H.) Sunan of Abu Dawud Sajistani (d. 275 A.H.) Sahih of Muhammad ibn 'Isa at-Tirmidhi (d. 279 A.H.) The authors of the above books - each one of them among the most authoritative books of the Sunnis - died either before the birth of the Imam of the Age (225 A.H.) or shortly after his birth. Let us also mention: - Masabih as-Sunnah of al-Baghawi (d. 516 A.H.) Jami' al-Usul of ibn al-Athir (d. 606 A H.) Al-Futuhat al-Makkiyyah of Muhyi'd-din ibn 'Arabi (d.638 A.H.) Tadhkirat al-Khawass of Sibt ibn al-Jawzi (d. 654 A.H.) Fara'd as-Simtayn of al-Hamawi (d. 716 A.H.) as-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah of Ibn Hajar al-Haytami (d. 973 A.H.) Yanabi'al-Mawaddah of Shaykh Sulayman al-Qunduzi (d.1293 A.H.) Some of the Sunni scholars have written books especially about the Imam of the Age: 1. Al-Bayan fi Akhbar Sahib az-Zaman of Al-Ganji ash-Shafi'i 2. 'Iqd ad-Durar fi Akhbar al-Imam al-Muntazar of Shaykh Jamalu'd-din Yusuf al-Dimashqi 3. Mahdi Al ar-Rasul of 'Ali ibn Sultan Muhammad al-Harawi al-Hanafi 4. Kitab al-Mahdi of Abu Dawud 5. 'Alamat al-Mahdi of Jalalu'd-din as-Suyuti 6. Manaqib al-Mahdi of Hafiz Abu Nu'aim al-lsfahani 7. Al -Qawl al -Mukhtasar fi 'Alamat al -Mahdi 8. al-Muntazar of Ibn Hajar 8. Al-Burhan fi 'Alamat Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman of Mulla 'Ali al-Muttaqi 9. Arba'un Hadith fi al-Mahdi of Abu'l-A' la'al-Hamadani * * * The Hidden Reformer We have at hand more than three thousand hadiths from the Prophet (S.A.) and from the pure Imams about the Imam of the Age. From them it is clear that the Imam of the Age is the ninth son of Husayn ibn 'Ali (A.S.), his father is Hazrat Imam Hasan 'Askari (A.S.), his mother Nargis Khatun. His name is the same as that of the Prophet of the end of time, his title is al-Mahdi. It was to happen that he would be born during his father's lifetime in Samarra, that his father would die when he was young, that he would live even to this day, and as long as God wished it. Then he will reappear and the world will be filled with justice at a time when there is injustice everywhere and that is why he is now hidden from the sight of men. And when he comes with his back towards the Ka'bah's edifice, he will lean against the wall and cry out and call for his followers, who will number 313 persons. Hazrat 'Isa (A.S.) will come from the heaven down to the earth, and will pray in a prayer led by al-Mahdi. The Imam of the Age will cause the commands of Islam to reach all over the world, and the earth will be like paradise. There are very many hadiths related by the Shi'a and Sunni scholars on many aspects connected with this great Imam, and these are mentioned in books like Bihar al-Anwar and Muntakhab al-Athar. First we shall indicate here some of these hadiths which the author of Muntakhab al-Athar wrote down in his book and then we shall give the text of some of them. The total amount of hadiths 1. A hadith in which it is related that the Imams are twelve, the first being 'Ali, the last being al-Mahdi (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 58) 2. A hadith which give news of the appearance of al-Mahdi(A.S.). (No. of hadith: 657) 3. A hadith which identify him as descendent of the Prophet (S.A.). (No. of hadith: 389) 4. A hadith which say that his name and agnomen are the same as the Prophet's. (No. of hadith: 48) 5. A hadith which say al-Mahdi is a descendent of Amir al-Muminin(A.S.). (No. of hadith: 214) 6. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Hazrat Fatimah (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 192) 7. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Hazrat Husayn (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 185) 8. A hadith which say he is the ninth descendent of Imam Husayn (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 148) 9. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 185) 10. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Baqir (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 103) 11. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (AS.) (No. of hadith: 103) 12. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Musa Kazim (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 101) 13. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Rida (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 95) 14. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Jawad (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 90) 15. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Hadi (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 90) 16. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 146) 17. A hadith which say that the name of his father is Hasan(A.S.) (No. of hadith: 147) 18. A hadith which say that he will fill the world with justice (No. of hadith: 123) 19. A hadith which say his occultation will be prolonged (No. of hadith: 91) 20. A hadith which relate the extent of al-Mahdi's life (No. of hadith: 318) 21. A hadith which say that Islam will rule over the world through him (No. of hadith: 47) 22. A hadith which say he will be the twelfth and the last Imam. (No. of hadith: 136) When looking at the above mentioned and other hadiths, it should be kept in mind that the hadiths mentioning al-Mahdi (A.S.) have been narrated most frequently, and that there are few subjects in Islam which have been mentioned in hadiths so often. Thus, in this light, anyone who believes in Islam and its Prophet (S.A.) must necessarily declare his belief in the existence of the promised al-Mahdi who is now in occultation. Now we shall relate some of these hadiths. 1. The author of Yanabi' al-Mawaddah relates that the Prophet (S.A.) said: "A1-Mahdi is a descendent of mine. He will be in concealment, and when he manifests himself, the earth will become filled with justice, just as it was previously filled with injustice." 2. In this book it is also related that Salman al-Farsi said: "I went to the Prophet, when Husayn ibn 'Ali was sitting in his lap and the Prophet was kissing his eyes and mouth, and he said: 'You are a noble one, the son of a noble one, and the brother of a noble one; you are the Imam, the son of the Imam, and the brother of the Imam. Your are the Proof, son of the Proof and the brother of the Proof; you will be the father of nine Proofs of whom the ninth will be the Qa'im." 3. Ibn Abi Dalaf says: "I heard from Hazrat 'Ali ibn Muhammad (the 10th Imam) that he said: 'The Imam after me will be Hasan, my son, and after him his descendent the Qa'im, who will fill the earth with justice, when it was previously filled with injustice. 4. Hudhayfah said that the Prophet (S.A.) said: "If no more than one day is left of the world, Allah will make that day so long that a man, descendent of mine, whose name is my name, will appear." Salman asked: "O Prophet of Allah, which descendent will he be?" The Prophet put his hand on Husayn and said that he would be one of his descendents. 5. Mas'adah relates from Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: "The Qa'im will be born of Hasan (the 11th Imam, Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari), and Hasan will be son of 'Ali (the tenth Imam, Hazrat Imam 'Ali al-Naqi), and 'Ali will be son of Muhammad (the ninth Imam, Hazrat Imam Muhammad at-Taqi), and Muhammad will be born of 'Ali (the eighth Imam, Hazrat 'Ali ibn Musa ar-Rida) and 'Ali will be son of this child (he pointed to Hazrat Musa ibn Ja'far, the seventh Imam). We are twelve Imams, all pure and of a noble birth. I swear by Allah, if there remains of the world no more than one day, Allah will make that day so long that the Qa'im of us, the Husehold of the Prophet (S.A.), will appear." * * * The Opinion of Sociologists The world's foremost intellectuals are of the opinion that the wars, massacres, murders, prostitution, and all the evils of this age which are daily in the increase are because there is no equilibrium between man's material and spiritual requirements. The man of today has turned his back on moral virtues and spiritual riches, although he has conquered the sea, the desert and space, and has taken himself to the moon. It is obvious that by relying in force and power he cannot establish order and justice in the world, and that only with technology and the material sciences the happiness of humanity will not be secured. Man has no other resort than to strengthen his social relations on the basis of faith and virtue, and to save himself from the vortex of dangers with the guidance of a great world reformer, to establish a rule based on justice together with peace, security and sincerity. In this state of affairs, human society is moving quickly towards preparation for the rising up of the Imam of the Age (A.S.) * * * The Length of al-Mahdi's Life We believe that the lengthening of a man's life is not an impossibility, because it is explicitly said in the Qur'an that: "We sent Nuh to his people, as he tarried among them a thousand years, all but fifty. " (XXIX; 14) What is more, research undertaken in the biological sciences has corroborated the possibility of lengthening the human life-span. Even great scientists are of the opinion that food and drugs may be prepared which can prolong man's life. The late Ayatullah Sadr (A learned scholar of Qom (1882-1953), father of the well-known Imam Musa-Sadr of the Lebanon.) in his book "al-Mahdi", quoted from a scientific article written in 1959 which stands as a witness to what we have said above. Here we shall give a summary of it. "Authoritative scientists say that all the basic tissues of the animal body can live forever, and it is possible for man to live for a thousand years, provided that it doesn't happen that the thread of his life is severed. These scientists do not speak on the basis of guesswork or surmise, for they have arrived at their conclusion through scientific experiment. "A professor at Johns Hopkins University has said that it has been proved that the basic members of the human body have the potentiality for eternal life. Apparently the first person to carry out these experiments on parts of an animal's body was Dr. Jack Lubb, and after him Dr. Warren Lewis, who, together with his wife, proved that parts of bird foetuses could be kept alive in buffer solutions. These experiments were systematically continued until Dr. Alexis Karel, as a result of further experimental work, established that parts of animals subjected to experiments did not degenerate, and even that they lived longer than the animal from which they had been taken. In January 1912 he started his experiments and by dint of self-sacrifice and removing the numerous difficulties, he discovered the following facts: " 1. Unless complications such as lack of nutrition or attack by microbes intervened, living cells would continue living forever. 2. These cells which continued to live, also grew and multiplied. 3. The growth and division of these could be controlled by the nutrition given to them. 4. The passing of time did not affect them and did not make them age or lose strength. Not even the smallest effect of ageing was seen. Each year they grew and multiplied exactly as in previous years. So why does man die? Why is his span of life rarely more than a hundred years? The parts of the human or animal body are numerous and various, and there is also a perfect relationship and unity between them; so that the life of some of them depends on the life of others, and the failure or death of parts of human or animal bodies is the consequence of the death of the other parts. Sudden deaths which are the result of infection are for this reason, and it also provides the reason for the average limit of man's life being around seventy to eighty years. Of course, what experiments have shown is that the cause of death is not the arrival at seventy or eighty years of age, but that the fundamental causes are diseases and accidents which may attack one of the body's organs and put it out of work; then the death of this part causes a break in its relation to other parts and the death of all the organs ensues. "Thus if science could eliminate these accidents or obstruct their harmful effects, there would be no impediment to the prolongation of life." So if we know that a greatly extended life is not an impossibility, there is no hindrance to prevent God, the All-powerful, from keeping a man safe and sound for thousands of years, because the regulations of a man's life is in the hands of God. He can bring a new harmony into existence which has precedence over the usual order of things, just as He did in the case of all the miracles. The miracles of the prophets, the cooling of the fire for Ibrahim al-Khalil, the turning into a serpent of Hazrat Musa's staff, the bringing to life of the dead through Hazrat 'Isa, and so forth, are all against the usual flow of things, but God brought another order into existence by His own power and a miracle occurred; all Muslims, Jews and Christians, believe in miracles. Similarly for the length of the life of the Imam of the Age there remains no place for any kind of objection, because if someone says that such a length of life is impossible, his claim cannot be at all accepted after the stipulation of the Qur'an concerning the length of Hazrat Nuh's life, and also after the latest revelations of biology. If it is said that it is possible, but against the normal natural order of things, it can be retorted that the length of life of the Imam of the Age is against the natural order just as the miracles of the prophets, and is carried out according to the will of God. Someone who believes in the power of God and the occurrance of the miracles of the prophets cannot have the slightest objection to the length of the Imam's life. * * * The Occultation of the Imam of the Age The Prophet of Islam (S.A.) sometimes hinted to people concerning the occultation of the twelfth Imam, and the pure Imams (A.S.) also reminded people of this matter. The news of the occultation of the Imam of the Age was so well known even before his birth, that everyone who believed in the birth of the Imam also believed in his prolonged occultation. Let us look at some of the indications that have come down to us from many hadiths on this subject. 1. The Prophet said: "The Qa'im of my descendents will become hidden, as the result of a covenant between me and him, and then people will say that Allah has no need of the family of Muhammad, and some will doubt his birth. So everyone who is aware of his time must act according to his religion, and must not let Shaytan enter him by faltering lest he be thrown out from my people and my religion." 2. Amir al-Mu'minin said: "Our Qa'im has an occultation which will be of great devotion... Beware! Everyone who is firm in his religion, and does not become hard-hearted from the lengthening of the occultation of this man (and turn away from his religion) will find himself in the same rank as me on the Day of Resurrection." Then he said: "Our Qa'im, when he rises, has no responsibility for anyone's allegiance to him, and for this reason his birth will be secret and he will be hidden." 3. Muhammad ibn Muslim said that he heard from Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: "If you hear of the occultation of your Imam, do not deny it." 4. At-Tabarsi wrote: "The hadiths of the occultation were recorded by the Shi'ite narrators in books which were composed in the time of Imam Baqir and Imam Sadiq (A.S.). Of all these reliable narrators one was Hasan ibn Mahbub. About a hundred years before the time of the occultation, he wrote a book called "al-Mashyakhah," and mentioned the hadiths about the occultation in it. The following is one of them. "Abu Basir said: "I said in the presence of Imam Sadiq (A.S.) that Hazrat Abu Ja'far had said: 'The Qa'im of the family of Muhammad will have two occultation; one prolonged, one short.' He said: 'Yes, O Abu Basir, one of those occultation will be longer than the other." Therefore, the Prophet of Islam (S.A.) and the pure Imams (A.S.) reminded people that the occultation of the Imam of the Age (A.S.) went together with the announcement of the existence of the Prophet himself, and that belief in the Imam's occultation went together with belief in the Prophet's existence. Shaykh Saduq narrated from Al-Sayyid al-Himyari: "I had some exaggerated idea about Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, and believed that he was hidden, till Allah enlightened me through Imam Sadiq and saved me from the Fire. I was guided to the true way, whereby after the Imamate of Ja'far ibn Muhammad had been proved to me by evidence and demonstration, I said one day to him: 'O son of the Prophet of Allah, tell me some hadiths from your forefathers about occultation and the truth of it. If you please, I would that you tell me for whom the occultation is.' He replied: 'The occultation will occur for my descendent in the sixth generation, and he will be the twelfth Imam after the Prophet of Allah, the first one being 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, and the last the Qa'im of the Truth, the one who remains with Allah on earth, and the Lord of the Age..."' * * * Why is the Imam of the Age in Concealment? In previous lessons we have said that the existence of the Imam (A.S.) and the successor of the Prophet (S.A.) was necessary for a number of reasons, such as settling differences, explaining the laws of Allah, and giving spiritual, inward guidance, and that Allah, the Merciful, appointed Amir al-Mu'minin (A.S.) and after him eleven descendents, one after the other, as Imams after the Prophet of Islam. It is obvious that the duties of the Imam of the Age, in all the aspects of the Imamate, are the same as that of his predecessors. If there were no hindrance, it would be necessary that he be clearly manifested, so that people might prosper from all the benefits of his existence. So why was he hidden from the very first? Basically, there is no need to look for the philosophy or reasons behind his occultation so as to believe in the rule of Allah, for there is no obligation on us to know the basic reason for it, just as we remain ignorant of the metaphysics behind many other things. It is sufficient that we know on the basis of the many hadiths and true Proofs that God, the All-Mighty, sent his own Proof, but that, for various reasons, He kept him hidden behind the curtain of occultation. It can also be found from some hadiths that the basic and fundamental reason for the occultation will become known after the appearance of al-Mahdi. 'Abdullah al-Fadl al-Hashimi says: "I heard from Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: 'The occultation will be indispensible for the Lord of Power, so that the people of vanity will fall into doubt about him.' I asked: 'Why?' He said: 'For a reason which I am not at liberty to declare.' I asked: 'What will his rule be?' He replied: 'The same rule as existed in the occultations of previous Proofs. It will not be disclosed until-after his appearance, just as the rule of the works of Khidr was not known (meaning the drilling of a hole in the boat, the killing of the youth, the repairing of the wall in the story of Khidr in the Qur'an) until Musa and Khidr decided to part company. O Fadl, the subject of the occultation is a command of Allah and a secret of His secrets, and since we acknowledge Allah to be Wise, we must accept that all his acts are done with Knowledge and Wisdom, even if the reason for them is not known to us."' Of course the benefits of al-Mahdi's occultation can be discovered, and these have been indicated in some of the hadiths. For example: 1. A test for people is one of the benefits of the occultation of the Imam of the Age: on one side, a group without faith, whose inner feelings become evident; on the other side, those in the depths of whose hearts faith have taken root, their hope of deliverance, their patience in adversity, their faith in the unseen becoming more perfect, their worthiness becoming known, and degrees of spiritual reward falling to them. Musa ibn Ja'far (AS.) said: "When my fifth descendent becomes hidden, persevere in your religion, so that no one may turn you away from it. There will be an occultation for the Lord of that Age, when a group of believers in him will relinquish their belief. This occultation is a test by which Allah will test his slaves." 2. A Protection for the Imam against being killed: From a study of the leaders of Islam, and their situation vis-a-vis the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphs, we can clearly see that if the twelfth Imam manifested himself they would surely kill him or poison him like his forefathers. Because when they heard and knew that there would arise from the family of the Prophet, from the descendents of 'Ali and Fatimah (A.S.) someone who would destroy the government of the oppressors, and that that person would be child of Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.), the Abassids planned to kill him. But Allah protected him and his enemies lost hope. Zurarah relates from Imam Sadiq (AS.) that he said: "There will be an occultation prior to the appearance of the Qa'im." Zurarah asked: "Why?" He said: "So that he may escape being killed, and that occultation will continue till the ground for his appearance and triumph over the rule of the oppressors is ready." 3. The third benefit that can be gleaned from the hadiths is that by this means al-Mahdi will be saved from having allegiance made to him by the oppressors, Caliphs, and usurping rulers. When he appears no one will swear allegiance to him, so that he can freely expose the truth and establish a just and righteous rule. * * * The Purpose of the Hidden Imam. We have said above that God appointed the Imam of the Age to be a guide amongst people; however it is the people who are the obstacle to his appearance, and whenever they are ready for a single, divine world rule, formed on true justice observing rights, truths and realities, putting into practice all the laws of Islam without any dissimulation or fear, al-Mahdi will openly declare himself. So, with regard to Allah, the Merciful, there is not the slightest lack of favour or mercy, for the fault lies with the people that the Imam is hidden and the appearance of his rule is delayed. Still, it must be remembered that the benefits of the existence of the Imam are not limited to outward guidance among people, for the pure existence of the Imam has other benefits which are not necessarily evident among people. The most important benefit of the Imam's existence is that he is the intermediary for Divine Favor. For, one the basis of the evidence scholars have produced and also according to numerous hadiths which speak about the Imamate, if there were no Imam (a.s), the relation between the world and its creator would no longer exist, because all of the fovours of Allah come through the Imam to the rest of humanity. In many hadiths it is said very clearly that the earth will not remain without an Imam. The Imam is the heart of the world of existence, the leader, the preceptor of mankind, and for this reason his presence or his absence makes no difference. what is more, the spiritual guidance of the Imam towards worthy individuals will always be there, although they may not see him, especially as it is mentioned in hadiths that the Mahdi comes and goes in among the people in the meetings of the believers without anyone understanding. Thus the guarding of Islam and the protection of the worthy is well undertaken by the Imam, even during the time of his occultation. In reality the hidden Imam is like the sun behind a cloud from whose light and heat existent things may profit, although the ignorant and the blind may not see it. Imam Sadiq (a.s) also said in answer to the question: " How can people benefit from a hidden Imam?": " Just as they do from the sun when it is behind a cloud." We would now like you to look at this excerpt from the that the shi'a sect is the only religion which maintains eternally the link of Divine guidance between God and his creation , and continually keeps alive the union of walayat, The Jewish religion, finished prophethood, which is the relationship between god and the world of man, with Moses, and do not acknowledge the prophethood of Jesus or Muhammad. Thus they have served this link , The Christians, also , stopped with Jesus, and the Sunni Muslims stood still with Muhammad. With the seal of prophethood among the latter, they admit of no further link being maintained between the Creator and creation. "Only the Shi'a faith believes that the prophethood ended with Muhammad, but that wilayat, which is this link of guidance and progression, continues to live after him and forever. "Indeed, only among the Shi'a does this reality between the world of man and the Divinity remain forever." * * * A Necessary Reminder Belief in the Imam of the Age means that the link between people and the unseen world is inseparable, and someone who believes this must always remember al-Mahdi and await the appearance of this hidden reformer. Of course, waiting for the Imam of the Age does not mean that all Muslims and Shi'as should fold their arms and take no measures in the way of furthering the aims of Islam, only waiting for him to appear. For as the great Shi'ite scholars have been saying from the earliest times, all Muslims and Shi'as have the duty to make every effort in the path of establishing and strengthening Islamic knowledge and laws in the face of injustice and evil, to struggle against this with all their possibilities; or, in other words, to strive till the preparation for a just rule has been made, till society has been so harmonised that all those with complaints have seen justice; and if there is any oppression or cruelty reigning among people, to protest against it, and continue in this way. Every Muslim has the duty to sacrifice himself in the way of Imam and Islam, and to always be prepared to welcome the promised al-Mahdi (A.S.), that is, to so order his life that it may not be a contradiction of the project of the Imam, so that he can take his place in the ranks behind him and fight against his enemies. * * * ________________________________________ (Roots of Religion, p. 217-235)

In the name of AllahHello everybody Name: Muhammad. Title: al-Mahdi, al-Qa'im, al-Hujjah, al-Gha'ib, Sahibu'z-Zaman, Sahibu 'l-Amr. Agnomen: Abu'l-Qasim. Father's name: al-Hasan al-'Askari. Mother's name: Nargis. Birth: In Samarra', on Friday, 15th Sha'ban 255 AH. He is still living and will appear before the end of the world. Minor Occultation: 8th Rabi 'u 'I-awwal 260 AH. Major Occultation: 10th Shawwal 329 AH. There Existed a good deal of harmony and uniformity between the aspects pertaining to the births of Prophet Muhammad, the last Apostle of Allah and Imam al-Mahdi, the last Apostolic Imam. Just as the coming of the Holy Prophet was prophesied well in advance by the preceding prophets, similarly the impending news of the gracious birth of Imam al-Mahdi was foretold by the Holy Prophet. Innumerable traditions in this context, quoted right from the Holy Prophet, from the glowing contents of many books of Masanid, Sihah and Akhbar, and of Shi'ite scholars ('ulama') existed Many Sunni scholars have accumulated these traditions in complete volumes also, e.g.: al-Bayan fi akhbar Sihibi'z-Zaman by al-Hafiz Muhammad ibn Yusuf ash-Shafi'i and Dhikriyyatu'l- Mahdi by al-Hafiz Abu Nu'aym al-Isfahani as well as as-Sahih of Abu Dawud and as-Sunan of Ibn Majah. All of the above books record the traditions bearing evidence of the coming of this Holy Imam. The promised Mahdi, who is usually mentioned by his title of Imamu'l-'Asr (the Imam of the Period) and Sahibu 'z-Zaman (the Lord of the Age), is the son of the Eleventh Imam. His name is the same as that of the Holy Prophet. He was born in Samarra' in 255/869 and until 260/874 when his father was martyred, lived under his father's care and tutelage. He was hidden from public view and only a few of the elite among the Shi'ah were able to meet him. After the martyrdom of his father he became Imam and by Divine Command went into occultation (ghaybah). Thereafter, he appeared only to his deputies (na'ib) and even then only in exceptional circumstances. The Imam chose as a special deputy for a time 'Uthman ibn Sa'id al-'Amri, one of the companions of his father and grandfather who was his confident and trusted friend. Through his deputy the Imam would answer the demands and questions of the Shi'ah. After 'Uthman ibn Sa'id, his son Mutammad ibn 'Uthman al-'Amri was appointed the deputy of the Imam. After the death of Muhammad ibn 'Uthman, Abu'l-Qasim al-Husayn ibn Ruh an-Nawbakhti was the special deputy, and after his death 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samuri was chosen for this task. A few days before the death of 'Al; ibn Muhammad as-Samuri in 329/939 an order was issued by the Imam stating that in six days 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samuri would die. Henceforth the special deputation of the Imam would come to an end and the major occultation (ghaybatu 'l-kubrd ) would begin and would continue until the day God grants permission to the Imam to manifest himself. The occultation of the Twelfth Imam is, therefore, divided into two parts: the first, the minor occultation (ghaybatu's-sughra) which began in 260/872 and ended in 329/939, lasting about seventy years; the second, the major occultation which commenced in 329/939 and will continue as long as God wills it. In a hadith upon whose authenticity everyone agrees, the Holy Prophet has said, "If there were to remain in the life of the world but one day, God would prolong that day until He sends in it a man from my community and my household. His name will be the same as my name. He will fill the earth with equity and justice as it was filled with oppression and tyranny." On the Appearance of the Mahdi: In the discussion on prophecy and the Imamate it was indicated that as a result of the law of general guidance which governs all of creation, man is of necessity endowed with the power of receiving revelation through prophecy, which directs him toward the perfection of the human norm and the well-being of the human species. Obviously, if this perfection and happiness were not possible for man, whose life possesses a social aspect, the very fact that he is endowed with this power would be meaningless and futile. But there is no futility in creation. In other words, ever since he has inhabited the earth, man has had the wish to lead a social life filled with happiness in its true sense and has striven toward this end. If such a wish were not to have an objective existence it would never have been imprinted upon man's inner nature, in the same way that if there were no food there would have been no hunger. Or, if there were to be no water there would be no thirst and if there were to be no reproduction there would have been no sexual attraction between the sexes. Therefore, by reason of inner necessity and determination, the future will see a day when human society will be replete with justice and when all will live in peace and tranquillity, when human beings will be fully possessed of virtue and perfection. The establishment of such a condition will occur through human hands but with Divine succour. And the leader of such a society, who will be the saviour of man, is called in the language of the hadith, the Mahdi . In the different religions that govern the world such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Zoroastrian-ism and Islam there are references to a person who will come as the saviour of mankind. These religions have usually given happy tidings of his coming, although there are naturally certain differences in detail that can be discerned when these teachings are compared carefully. The hadith of the Holy Prophet upon which all Muslims agree, "The Mahdi is of my progeny," refers to this same truth. There are numerous hadiths cited in Sunni and Shi'ite sources from the Holy Prophet and the Imams concerning the appearance of the Mahdi, such as that he is of the progeny of the Prophet and that his appearance will enable human society to reach true perfection and the full realization of spiritual life. In addition, there are numerous other traditions concerning the fact that the Mahdi is the son of the Eleventh Imam, Hasan al-'Askari. They agree that after being born and undergoing a long occultation the Mahdi will appear again, filling with justice the world that has been corrupted by injustice and iniquity. As an example, 'Ali ibn Musa ar-Rida (the Eighth Imam) said, in the course of a hadith, "The Imam after me is my son, Muhammad, and after him his son 'Ali, and after 'Ali his son, Hasan, and after Hasan his son Hujjatu'l- Qa'im, who is awaited during his occultation and obeyed during his manifestation. If there remain from the life of the world but a single day, Allah will extend that day until he becomes manifest, and fill the world with justice in the same way that it had been filled with iniquity. But when? As for news of the 'hour,' verily my father told me, having heard it from his father who heard it from his father who heard it from his ancestors who heard it from 'Ali, that it was asked of the Holy Prophet, 'Oh Prophet of God, when will the "support" (al-Qa'im) who is from thy family appear? ' He said, 'His case is like that of the Hour (of the Resurrection). He alone will manifest it at its proper time. It is heavy in the heavens and the earth. It cometh not to you save unawares (7:187) Saqr ibn Abi Dulaf said, "I heard from Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn 'Ali ar-Rida (the Ninth Imam) who said, 'The Imam after me is my son, 'Ali; his command is my command; his word is my word; to obey him is to obey me. The Imam after him is his son, Hasan. His command is the command of his father; his word is the word of his father; to obey him is to obey his father.' After these words the Imam remained silent.' I said to him, 'Oh son of the Prophet, who will be the Imam after Hasan?' The Imam cried hard, then said, 'Verily after Hasan his son is the awaited Imam who is "al-Qa'im bi'l-haqq" (He who is supported by the Truth)." Musa ibn Ja'far Baghdadi said, "I heard from Imam Abu Muhammad al-Hasan ibn 'Ali (the Eleventh Imam) who said, I see that after me differences will appear among you concerning the Imam after me. Whose accepts the Imams after the Prophet of God but denies my son is like the person who accepts all the prophets but denies the prophethood of Muhammad, the Prophet of God, upon whom be peace and blessing. And whose denies (Muhammad) the Prophet of God is like one who has denied all the prophets of God, for to obey the last of us is like obeying the first and to deny the last of us is like denying the first. But beware! Verily, for my son there is an occultation during which all people will fall into doubt except those whom Allah protects." The opponents of Shi'ism protest that according to the beliefs of this school the Hidden Imam should by now be nearly twelve centuries old, whereas, this is impossible for any human being. In answer it must be said that the protest is based only on the unlikelihood of such an occurrences not its impossibility. Of course, such a long lifetime or a life of a longer period is unlikely. But those who study the hadiths of the Holy Prophet and the Imams will see that they refer to this life as one possessing miraculous qualities. Miracles are certainly not impossible nor can they be negated through scientific arguments. It can never be proved that the causes and agents that are functioning in the world are solely those that we see and know and that other causes which we do not know or whose effects and actions we have not seen nor understood do not exist. It is in this way possible that in one or several members of makind there can be operating certain causes and agents which bestow upon them a very long life of a thousand or several thousand years. Medicine has not even lost hope of discovering a way to achieve very long life spans. In any case, such protests from "Peoples of the Book" such as Jews, Christians and Muslims are most strange for they accept the miracles of the prophets of God according to their own sacred scriptures. The opponents of Shi'ism also protest that, although Shi'ism considers the Imam necessary in order to expound the injunctions and verities of religion and to guide the people, the occultation of the Imam is the negation of this very purpose, for an Imam in occultation who cannot be reached by mankind cannot be in any way beneficial or effective. The opponents say that if God wills to bring forth an Imam to reform mankind, He is able to create him at the necessary moment and does not need to create him thousands of years earlier. In answer it must be said that such people have not really understood the meaning of the Imam, for in the discussion on the Imamate it became clear that the duty of the Imam is not only the formal explanation of the religious sciences and exoteric guidance of the people. In the same way that he has the duty of guiding men outwardly, the Imam also bears the function of walayah and the esoteric guidance of men. It is he who directs man's spiritual life and orients the inner aspect of human action toward God. Clearly, his physical presence or absence has no effect in this matter. The Imam watches over men inwardly and is in communion with the soul and spirit of men even if he be hidden from their physical eyes. I{is existence is always necessary even if the time has not as yet arrived for his outward appearance and the universal reconstruction that he is to bring about. al-Imam al-Hujjah, peace be Upon him, said: Rest assured that no one has a special relation- ship with Allah. Whoever denies me is not my (follower). The appearance of the Relief (al-faraj) depends solely upon Allah; therefore, those who propose a certain time for it are liars. As to the benefit of my existence in Occultation, it is like the benefit of the sun behind clouds where the eyes do not see. Indeed, my existence is an amnesty for the people of the earth.-Pray much to Allah to hasten the Relief, for therein also lies the release from your sufferings. The Twelfth Imam Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.) The Imam, the just Guide, Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.) was born half-way through the month of Sha'ban in the year 255 A.H. in the town of Samarra, and in 260 A.H., when his great father died, he reached the exalted position of the Imamate. His name (Muhammad) and his agnomen (Abu'l-Qasim) are the same as the Prophet's. His father, the 11th Shi'a Imam, was Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.), and his mother, the great lady Nargis. For various reasons, the twelfth Imam, from the first day of his life, did not appear publicly, and for about seventy years people were in communication with him through the intermediary of his special representatives, in order of succession: 'Uthman ibn Sa'id, Muhammad ibn 'Uthman, Husayn ibn Ruh, and 'Ali ibn Muhammad as-Samarri. This period of seventy years is known as the minor occultation (al-ghaybat as-sughra), and at the end of that period the major occultation (al-ghaybat al-kubra) began. During the major occultation till the time of his reappearance, no one has been his special representative, and there will be no one in the future, and the people have the duty to refer to the fuqaha, those excelling in knowledge of the shari'ah, and the narration of hadith who are specialised in the matters of the religion. Belief in Hazrat Mahdi, and Universal Reform. The belief in the reappearance of the expected Mahdi (A.S.)the universal reformer is not confined to the Shi'ite Muslims. Other Islamic groups and even non-Islamic groups like the Jews and the Christians and some of the great world intellectual figures believe in the appearance of a great spiritual reformer. In Psalm 37 is written: "...Trust in the Lord and do good; so you will dwell in the land, and enjoy security. ...For the wicked shall be cut off: but those who wait for the Lord shall possess the land. ...But the weak shall possess the land, and delight themselves in abundant prosperity. ...The Lord knows the days of the flawless, and their heritage will abide forever. ...For those blessed by the Lord, shall possess the land, but those cursed by Him shall be cut off. ...The righteous shall possess the land, and dwell upon it at peace for ever..." The Qur'an and belief in al-Mahdi In the Qur'an a time is promised when the worshippers of Truth, the world's people of righteousness, will take over the power and government of the world, and the glorious din of Islam will reign all over the earth. Other ayahs have been revealed which exegetically point to Hazrat Mahdi (A.S.). "For We have written in the Psalms, after the Remembrance, 'The earth shall be the inheritance of My righteous servants." (XXI; 105) "Allah has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds that He will surely make you successors in the land, even as He made those who were before them successors, and that He will surely establish their religion for them, and will give them in exchange, after their fear, security: They shall serve Me, not associating with Me anything. " (XXIV:55) "It is He Who has sent His Messenger with the religion of truth, that he may lift it above every religion, though the unbelievers be averse. (LXI:9) "Yet We desired to be gracious to those that were abased in the land, and to make them leaders, and to make them the inheritors. " (XXII:5) The above ayahs clearly show that in the end the world will fall to the hands of Allah's worthy and righteous servants and that they will become the leaders of the people of the world. Then Islam will be victorious over all religions. Belief in al-Mahdi and the Sunni authorities In this subject, the scholars in the Sunni school have related many hadiths from the Prophet of Islam, through narrators whom they themselves trust. From among them are such hadiths as tell that the Imams are twelve persons and that are all from the Quraysh. Al-Mahdi(A.S.), the promised one, is from the family of the Prophet and is a descendent of Hazrat 'Ali and Hazrat Fatimah Zahra (A.S.), and in many of these hadiths it is mentioned that he is from the line of Imam Husayn (A.S.). They have mentioned and recorded hundreds of hadiths about the Mahdi in more than seventy books by their valued and dependable authorities of which we shall mention a few examples. al-Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 241 A.H.) Sahih of al-Bukhari (d. 256 A.H.) Sahih of Muslim ibn Hajjaj Nishabouri (d. 261 A.H.) Sunan of Abu Dawud Sajistani (d. 275 A.H.) Sahih of Muhammad ibn 'Isa at-Tirmidhi (d. 279 A.H.) The authors of the above books - each one of them among the most authoritative books of the Sunnis - died either before the birth of the Imam of the Age (225 A.H.) or shortly after his birth. Let us also mention: - Masabih as-Sunnah of al-Baghawi (d. 516 A.H.) Jami' al-Usul of ibn al-Athir (d. 606 A H.) Al-Futuhat al-Makkiyyah of Muhyi'd-din ibn 'Arabi (d.638 A.H.) Tadhkirat al-Khawass of Sibt ibn al-Jawzi (d. 654 A.H.) Fara'd as-Simtayn of al-Hamawi (d. 716 A.H.) as-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah of Ibn Hajar al-Haytami (d. 973 A.H.) Yanabi'al-Mawaddah of Shaykh Sulayman al-Qunduzi (d.1293 A.H.) Some of the Sunni scholars have written books especially about the Imam of the Age: 1. Al-Bayan fi Akhbar Sahib az-Zaman of Al-Ganji ash-Shafi'i 2. 'Iqd ad-Durar fi Akhbar al-Imam al-Muntazar of Shaykh Jamalu'd-din Yusuf al-Dimashqi 3. Mahdi Al ar-Rasul of 'Ali ibn Sultan Muhammad al-Harawi al-Hanafi 4. Kitab al-Mahdi of Abu Dawud 5. 'Alamat al-Mahdi of Jalalu'd-din as-Suyuti 6. Manaqib al-Mahdi of Hafiz Abu Nu'aim al-lsfahani 7. Al -Qawl al -Mukhtasar fi 'Alamat al -Mahdi 8. al-Muntazar of Ibn Hajar 9. Al-Burhan fi 'Alamat Mahdi Akhir az-Zaman of Mulla 'Ali al-Muttaqi 10. Arba'un Hadith fi al-Mahdi of Abu'l-A' la'al-Hamadani The Hidden Reformer We have at hand more than three thousand hadiths from the Prophet (S.A.) and from the pure Imams about the Imam of the Age. From them it is clear that the Imam of the Age is the ninth son of Husayn ibn 'Ali (A.S.), his father is Hazrat Imam Hasan 'Askari (A.S.), his mother Nargis Khatun. His name is the same as that of the Prophet of the end of time, his title is al-Mahdi. It was to happen that he would be born during his father's lifetime in Samarra, that his father would die when he was young, that he would live even to this day, and as long as God wished it. Then he will reappear and the world will be filled with justice at a time when there is injustice everywhere and that is why he is now hidden from the sight of men. And when he comes with his back towards the Ka'bah's edifice, he will lean against the wall and cry out and call for his followers, who will number 313 persons. Hazrat 'Isa (A.S.) will come from the heaven down to the earth, and will pray in a prayer led by al-Mahdi. The Imam of the Age will cause the commands of Islam to reach all over the world, and the earth will be like paradise. There are very many hadiths related by the Shi'a and Sunni scholars on many aspects connected with this great Imam, and these are mentioned in books like Bihar al-Anwar and Muntakhab al-Athar. First we shall indicate here some of these hadiths which the author of Muntakhab al-Athar wrote down in his book and then we shall give the text of some of them. The total amount of hadiths 1. A hadith in which it is related that the Imams are twelve, the first being 'Ali, the last being al-Mahdi (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 58) 2. A hadith which give news of the appearance of al-Mahdi(A.S.). (No. of hadith: 657) 3. A hadith which identify him as descendent of the Prophet (S.A.). (No. of hadith: 389) 4. A hadith which say that his name and agnomen are the same as the Prophet's. (No. of hadith: 48) 5. A hadith which say al-Mahdi is a descendent of Amir al-Muminin(A.S.). (No. of hadith: 214) 6. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Hazrat Fatimah (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 192) 7. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Hazrat Husayn (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 185) 8. A hadith which say he is the ninth descendent of Imam Husayn (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 148) 9. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Zayn al-'Abidin (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 185) 10. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Baqir (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 103) 11. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (AS.) (No. of hadith: 103) 12. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Musa Kazim (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 101) 13. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Rida (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 95) 14. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Jawad (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 90) 15. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Hadi (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 90) 16. A hadith which say he is a descendent of Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.) (No. of hadith: 146) 17. A hadith which say that the name of his father is Hasan(A.S.) (No. of hadith: 147) 18. A hadith which say that he will fill the world with justice (No. of hadith: 123) 19. A hadith which say his occultation will be prolonged (No. of hadith: 91) 20. A hadith which relate the extent of al-Mahdi's life (No. of hadith: 318) 21. A hadith which say that Islam will rule over the world through him (No. of hadith: 47) 22. A hadith which say he will be the twelfth and the last Imam. (No. of hadith: 136) When looking at the above mentioned and other hadiths, it should be kept in mind that the hadiths mentioning al-Mahdi (A.S.) have been narrated most frequently, and that there are few subjects in Islam which have been mentioned in hadiths so often. Thus, in this light, anyone who believes in Islam and its Prophet (S.A.) must necessarily declare his belief in the existence of the promised al-Mahdi who is now in occultation. Now we shall relate some of these hadiths. 1. The author of Yanabi' al-Mawaddah relates that the Prophet (S.A.) said: "A1-Mahdi is a descendent of mine. He will be in concealment, and when he manifests himself, the earth will become filled with justice, just as it was previously filled with injustice." 2. In this book it is also related that Salman al-Farsi said: "I went to the Prophet, when Husayn ibn 'Ali was sitting in his lap and the Prophet was kissing his eyes and mouth, and he said: 'You are a noble one, the son of a noble one, and the brother of a noble one; you are the Imam, the son of the Imam, and the brother of the Imam. Your are the Proof, son of the Proof and the brother of the Proof; you will be the father of nine Proofs of whom the ninth will be the Qa'im." 3. Ibn Abi Dalaf says: "I heard from Hazrat 'Ali ibn Muhammad (the 10th Imam) that he said: 'The Imam after me will be Hasan, my son, and after him his descendent the Qa'im, who will fill the earth with justice, when it was previously filled with injustice. 4. Hudhayfah said that the Prophet (S.A.) said: "If no more than one day is left of the world, Allah will make that day so long that a man, descendent of mine, whose name is my name, will appear." Salman asked: "O Prophet of Allah, which descendent will he be?" The Prophet put his hand on Husayn and said that he would be one of his descendents. 5. Mas'adah relates from Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: "The Qa'im will be born of Hasan (the 11th Imam, Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari), and Hasan will be son of 'Ali (the tenth Imam, Hazrat Imam 'Ali al-Naqi), and 'Ali will be son of Muhammad (the ninth Imam, Hazrat Imam Muhammad at-Taqi), and Muhammad will be born of 'Ali (the eighth Imam, Hazrat 'Ali ibn Musa ar-Rida) and 'Ali will be son of this child (he pointed to Hazrat Musa ibn Ja'far, the seventh Imam). We are twelve Imams, all pure and of a noble birth. I swear by Allah, if there remains of the world no more than one day, Allah will make that day so long that the Qa'im of us, the Husehold of the Prophet (S.A.), will appear." The Opinion of Sociologists The world's foremost intellectuals are of the opinion that the wars, massacres, murders, prostitution, and all the evils of this age which are daily in the increase are because there is no equilibrium between man's material and spiritual requirements. The man of today has turned his back on moral virtues and spiritual riches, although he has conquered the sea, the desert and space, and has taken himself to the moon. It is obvious that by relying in force and power he cannot establish order and justice in the world, and that only with technology and the material sciences the happiness of humanity will not be secured. Man has no other resort than to strengthen his social relations on the basis of faith and virtue, and to save himself from the vortex of dangers with the guidance of a great world reformer, to establish a rule based on justice together with peace, security and sincerity. In this state of affairs, human society is moving quickly towards preparation for the rising up of the Imam of the Age (A.S.) The Length of al-Mahdi's Life We believe that the lengthening of a man's life is not an impossibility, because it is explicitly said in the Qur'an that: "We sent Nuh to his people, as he tarried among them a thousand years, all but fifty. " (XXIX; 14) What is more, research undertaken in the biological sciences has corroborated the possibility of lengthening the human life-span. Even great scientists are of the opinion that food and drugs may be prepared which can prolong man's life. The late Ayatullah Sadr (A learned scholar of Qom (1882-1953), father of the well-known Imam Musa-Sadr of the Lebanon.) in his book "al-Mahdi", quoted from a scientific article written in 1959 which stands as a witness to what we have said above. Here we shall give a summary of it. "Authoritative scientists say that all the basic tissues of the animal body can live forever, and it is possible for man to live for a thousand years, provided that it doesn't happen that the thread of his life is severed. These scientists do not speak on the basis of guesswork or surmise, for they have arrived at their conclusion through scientific experiment. "A professor at Johns Hopkins University has said that it has been proved that the basic members of the human body have the potentiality for eternal life. Apparently the first person to carry out these experiments on parts of an animal's body was Dr. Jack Lubb, and after him Dr. Warren Lewis, who, together with his wife, proved that parts of bird foetuses could be kept alive in buffer solutions. These experiments were systematically continued until Dr. Alexis Karel, as a result of further experimental work, established that parts of animals subjected to experiments did not degenerate, and even that they lived longer than the animal from which they had been taken. In January 1912 he started his experiments and by dint of self-sacrifice and removing the numerous difficulties, he discovered the following facts: " 1. Unless complications such as lack of nutrition or attack by microbes intervened, living cells would continue living forever. 2. These cells which continued to live, also grew and multiplied. 3. The growth and division of these could be controlled by the nutrition given to them. 4. The passing of time did not affect them and did not make them age or lose strength. Not even the smallest effect of ageing was seen. Each year they grew and multiplied exactly as in previous years. So why does man die? Why is his span of life rarely more than a hundred years? The parts of the human or animal body are numerous and various, and there is also a perfect relationship and unity between them; so that the life of some of them depends on the life of others, and the failure or death of parts of human or animal bodies is the consequence of the death of the other parts. Sudden deaths which are the result of infection are for this reason, and it also provides the reason for the average limit of man's life being around seventy to eighty years. Of course, what experiments have shown is that the cause of death is not the arrival at seventy or eighty years of age, but that the fundamental causes are diseases and accidents which may attack one of the body's organs and put it out of work; then the death of this part causes a break in its relation to other parts and the death of all the organs ensues. "Thus if science could eliminate these accidents or obstruct their harmful effects, there would be no impediment to the prolongation of life." So if we know that a greatly extended life is not an impossibility, there is no hindrance to prevent God, the All-powerful, from keeping a man safe and sound for thousands of years, because the regulations of a man's life is in the hands of God. He can bring a new harmony into existence which has precedence over the usual order of things, just as He did in the case of all the miracles. The miracles of the prophets, the cooling of the fire for Ibrahim al-Khalil, the turning into a serpent of Hazrat Musa's staff, the bringing to life of the dead through Hazrat 'Isa, and so forth, are all against the usual flow of things, but God brought another order into existence by His own power and a miracle occurred; all Muslims, Jews and Christians, believe in miracles. Similarly for the length of the life of the Imam of the Age there remains no place for any kind of objection, because if someone says that such a length of life is impossible, his claim cannot be at all accepted after the stipulation of the Qur'an concerning the length of Hazrat Nuh's life, and also after the latest revelations of biology. If it is said that it is possible, but against the normal natural order of things, it can be retorted that the length of life of the Imam of the Age is against the natural order just as the miracles of the prophets, and is carried out according to the will of God. Someone who believes in the power of God and the occurrance of the miracles of the prophets cannot have the slightest objection to the length of the Imam's life. The Occultation of the Imam of the Age The Prophet of Islam (S.A.) sometimes hinted to people concerning the occultation of the twelfth Imam, and the pure Imams (A.S.) also reminded people of this matter. The news of the occultation of the Imam of the Age was so well known even before his birth, that everyone who believed in the birth of the Imam also believed in his prolonged occultation. Let us look at some of the indications that have come down to us from many hadiths on this subject. 1. The Prophet said: "The Qa'im of my descendents will become hidden, as the result of a covenant between me and him, and then people will say that Allah has no need of the family of Muhammad, and some will doubt his birth. So everyone who is aware of his time must act according to his religion, and must not let Shaytan enter him by faltering lest he be thrown out from my people and my religion." 2. Amir al-Mu'minin said: "Our Qa'im has an occultation which will be of great devotion... Beware! Everyone who is firm in his religion, and does not become hard-hearted from the lengthening of the occultation of this man (and turn away from his religion) will find himself in the same rank as me on the Day of Resurrection." Then he said: "Our Qa'im, when he rises, has no responsibility for anyone's allegiance to him, and for this reason his birth will be secret and he will be hidden." 3. Muhammad ibn Muslim said that he heard from Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: "If you hear of the occultation of your Imam, do not deny it." 4. At-Tabarsi wrote: "The hadiths of the occultation were recorded by the Shi'ite narrators in books which were composed in the time of Imam Baqir and Imam Sadiq (A.S.). Of all these reliable narrators one was Hasan ibn Mahbub. About a hundred years before the time of the occultation, he wrote a book called "al-Mashyakhah," and mentioned the hadiths about the occultation in it. The following is one of them. "Abu Basir said: "I said in the presence of Imam Sadiq (A.S.) that Hazrat Abu Ja'far had said: 'The Qa'im of the family of Muhammad will have two occultation; one prolonged, one short.' He said: 'Yes, O Abu Basir, one of those occultation will be longer than the other." Therefore, the Prophet of Islam (S.A.) and the pure Imams (A.S.) reminded people that the occultation of the Imam of the Age (A.S.) went together with the announcement of the existence of the Prophet himself, and that belief in the Imam's occultation went together with belief in the Prophet's existence. Shaykh Saduq narrated from Al-Sayyid al-Himyari: "I had some exaggerated idea about Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, and believed that he was hidden, till Allah enlightened me through Imam Sadiq and saved me from the Fire. I was guided to the true way, whereby after the Imamate of Ja'far ibn Muhammad had been proved to me by evidence and demonstration, I said one day to him: 'O son of the Prophet of Allah, tell me some hadiths from your forefathers about occultation and the truth of it. If you please, I would that you tell me for whom the occultation is.' He replied: 'The occultation will occur for my descendent in the sixth generation, and he will be the twelfth Imam after the Prophet of Allah, the first one being 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, and the last the Qa'im of the Truth, the one who remains with Allah on earth, and the Lord of the Age..."' Why is the Imam of the Age in Concealment? In previous lessons we have said that the existence of the Imam (A.S.) and the successor of the Prophet (S.A.) was necessary for a number of reasons, such as settling differences, explaining the laws of Allah, and giving spiritual, inward guidance, and that Allah, the Merciful, appointed Amir al-Mu'minin (A.S.) and after him eleven descendents, one after the other, as Imams after the Prophet of Islam. It is obvious that the duties of the Imam of the Age, in all the aspects of the Imamate, are the same as that of his predecessors. If there were no hindrance, it would be necessary that he be clearly manifested, so that people might prosper from all the benefits of his existence. So why was he hidden from the very first? Basically, there is no need to look for the philosophy or reasons behind his occultation so as to believe in the rule of Allah, for there is no obligation on us to know the basic reason for it, just as we remain ignorant of the metaphysics behind many other things. It is sufficient that we know on the basis of the many hadiths and true Proofs that God, the All-Mighty, sent his own Proof, but that, for various reasons, He kept him hidden behind the curtain of occultation. It can also be found from some hadiths that the basic and fundamental reason for the occultation will become known after the appearance of al-Mahdi. 'Abdullah al-Fadl al-Hashimi says: "I heard from Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: 'The occultation will be indispensible for the Lord of Power, so that the people of vanity will fall into doubt about him.' I asked: 'Why?' He said: 'For a reason which I am not at liberty to declare.' I asked: 'What will his rule be?' He replied: 'The same rule as existed in the occultations of previous Proofs. It will not be disclosed until-after his appearance, just as the rule of the works of Khidr was not known (meaning the drilling of a hole in the boat, the killing of the youth, the repairing of the wall in the story of Khidr in the Qur'an) until Musa and Khidr decided to part company. O Fadl, the subject of the occultation is a command of Allah and a secret of His secrets, and since we acknowledge Allah to be Wise, we must accept that all his acts are done with Knowledge and Wisdom, even if the reason for them is not known to us."' Of course the benefits of al-Mahdi's occultation can be discovered, and these have been indicated in some of the hadiths. For example: 1. A test for people is one of the benefits of the occultation of the Imam of the Age: on one side, a group without faith, whose inner feelings become evident; on the other side, those in the depths of whose hearts faith have taken root, their hope of deliverance, their patience in adversity, their faith in the unseen becoming more perfect, their worthiness becoming known, and degrees of spiritual reward falling to them. Musa ibn Ja'far (AS.) said: "When my fifth descendent becomes hidden, persevere in your religion, so that no one may turn you away from it. There will be an occultation for the Lord of that Age, when a group of believers in him will relinquish their belief. This occultation is a test by which Allah will test his slaves." 2. A Protection for the Imam against being killed: From a study of the leaders of Islam, and their situation vis-a-vis the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphs, we can clearly see that if the twelfth Imam manifested himself they would surely kill him or poison him like his forefathers. Because when they heard and knew that there would arise from the family of the Prophet, from the descendents of 'Ali and Fatimah (A.S.) someone who would destroy the government of the oppressors, and that that person would be child of Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.), the Abassids planned to kill him. But Allah protected him and his enemies lost hope. Zurarah relates from Imam Sadiq (AS.) that he said: "There will be an occultation prior to the appearance of the Qa'im." Zurarah asked: "Why?" He said: "So that he may escape being killed, and that occultation will continue till the ground for his appearance and triumph over the rule of the oppressors is ready." 3. The third benefit that can be gleaned from the hadiths is that by this means al-Mahdi will be saved from having allegiance made to him by the oppressors, Caliphs, and usurping rulers. When he appears no one will swear allegiance to him, so that he can freely expose the truth and establish a just and righteous rule. The Purpose of the Hidden Imam. We have said above that God appointed the Imam of the Age to be a guide amongst people; however it is the people who are the obstacle to his appearance, and whenever they are ready for a single, divine world rule, formed on true justice observing rights, truths and realities, putting into practice all the laws of Islam without any dissimulation or fear, al-Mahdi will openly declare himself. So, with regard to Allah, the Merciful, there is not the slightest lack of favour or mercy, for the fault lies with the people that the Imam is hidden and the appearance of his rule is delayed. Still, it must be remembered that the benefits of the existence of the Imam are not limited to outward guidance among people, for the pure existence of the Imam has other benefits which are not necessarily evident among people. The most important benefit of the Imam's existence is that he is the intermediary for Divine Favor. For, one the basis of the evidence scholars have produced and also according to numerous hadiths which speak about the Imamate, if there were no Imam (a.s), the relation between the world and its creator would no longer exist, because all of the fovours of Allah come through the Imam to the rest of humanity. In many hadiths it is said very clearly that the earth will not remain without an Imam. The Imam is the heart of the world of existence, the leader, the preceptor of mankind, and for this reason his presence or his absence makes no difference. what is more, the spiritual guidance of the Imam towards worthy individuals will always be there, although they may not see him, especially as it is mentioned in hadiths that the Mahdi comes and goes in among the people in the meetings of the believers without anyone understanding. Thus the guarding of Islam and the protection of the worthy is well undertaken by the Imam, even during the time of his occultation. In reality the hidden Imam is like the sun behind a cloud from whose light and heat existent things may profit, although the ignorant and the blind may not see it. Imam Sadiq (a.s) also said in answer to the question: " How can people benefit from a hidden Imam?": " Just as they do from the sun when it is behind a cloud." We would now like you to look at this excerpt from the that the shi'a sect is the only religion which maintains eternally the link of Divine guidance between God and his creation , and continually keeps alive the union of walayat, The Jewish religion, finished prophethood, which is the relationship between god and the world of man, with Moses, and do not acknowledge the prophethood of Jesus or Muhammad. Thus they have served this link , The Christians, also , stopped with Jesus, and the Sunni Muslims stood still with Muhammad. With the seal of prophethood among the latter, they admit of no further link being maintained between the Creator and creation. "Only the Shi'a faith believes that the prophethood ended with Muhammad, but that wilayat, which is this link of guidance and progression, continues to live after him and forever. "Indeed, only among the Shi'a does this reality between the world of man and the Divinity remain forever." A Necessary Reminder Belief in the Imam of the Age means that the link between people and the unseen world is inseparable, and someone who believes this must always remember al-Mahdi and await the appearance of this hidden reformer. Of course, waiting for the Imam of the Age does not mean that all Muslims and Shi'as should fold their arms and take no measures in the way of furthering the aims of Islam, only waiting for him to appear. For as the great Shi'ite scholars have been saying from the earliest times, all Muslims and Shi'as have the duty to make every effort in the path of establishing and strengthening Islamic knowledge and laws in the face of injustice and evil, to struggle against this with all their possibilities; or, in other words, to strive till the preparation for a just rule has been made, till society has been so harmonised that all those with complaints have seen justice; and if there is any oppression or cruelty reigning among people, to protest against it, and continue in this way. Every Muslim has the duty to sacrifice himself in the way of Imam and Islam, and to always be prepared to welcome the promised al-Mahdi (A.S.), that is, to so order his life that it may not be a contradiction of the project of the Imam, so that he can take his place in the ranks behind him and fight against his enemies.

In the name of Allah Hello everyone Introduction The report card of all the schools of thought through out the history reveals many weak points. The majority of them concentrated on one aspect, but ignored other important aspects of humanity. All these ideologies were "self-centered", meaning that they considered themselves as the central ideology and others (rest of mankind) as the surrounds, and most important of all, they had great claims; however, they made a poor performance. In other words, they propagated goodness in theory, but were extremely weak in practice. After the middle ages, there has not been almost any improvement in humanity; Humans seem tired and bored of any materialistic ideology. The western conclusion about any materialistic ideology is that none of the schools of thoughts have fulfilled humanity needs; therefore it is not necessary to depend on any of ideology; there is no need for a new one. They believe that have been deceived enough, and a worldwide revolution could never happen. At this blind point, where people feel a gap, a great revolution will occur that will take over the whole world. Mahdi(as)will come, and will "change the humane condition". The east and the west of the world are Mahdi's(as); although his message implies denial of east and west, it considers both hemispheres in terms of audience and covers the whole world. Mahdi's(as)mother was a Christian from Rome Empire, who was taken as a captive of war and chose Islam on her own. He is from two different races; so, Imam Mahdi's(as)arise is a global change for all humans, not specific to certain nationality or tribe. His mother, as well as mothers of some other Imams (PBUT), was not apparently from a high prestige family from social, economic, or political aspects. Therefore, the greatness of this movement is obvious since the wrong system of social leveling does not intervene this worldwide rising. The humane characteristics of the community Mahdi(as) will establish This article aims to cite, though briefly, some characteristics of the society which is going to be set up by Imam Mahdi(as). The government of Imam Mahdi(as)is a religion-worldwide government; however, it is not the government of stereotypes. In other words, it doesn't mean that it would be a world full of identical people who think and act in a similar fashion just like machines do; they will not have identical appearances or tastes. In fact, the relationships will be based on divine criteria, and all the people will recognize the rights and limitations while they are different. People will all be educated and learned persons who know their rights and responsibilities; they will be balanced, yet different. There will be no disputes since all the people will recognize the truth. The definition of obedience in the society of Imam Mahdi(as)does not intend to disregard human intellect and replace human understanding and feelings with machines. This obedience within the leadership of Imam Mahdi(as)in the worldwide revolution guarantees the right of people and advances each individual's intellect. The effort in his revolution is to fight for the "right of people", and the flag of this revolution is the flag of "justice". As stated in the Ahadith, the main act of Imam Mahdi(as)will be to give the people their physical and spiritual rights. Therefore, the main pledge in the society of Imam Mahdi(as)is "justice"; once the former society has been filled with injustice and crimes, it will be replaced with justice and the rights of the people will be given to them. His main goals and philosophies of his revolution consist of saving the people, executing human rights, removing racism... His power will flourish upon the east and west of the world, and no land will be left outside of this empire. The question that can arise to this is:" Is this victory going to be the same as those victories that the Roman and Egyptian kings were seeking?" Imam Ali(as)has answered this question as follows:" Mahdi will reappear to free all the slaves on earth". The idea that slavery has ended its course in today's world is a false analogy. Though at this time we do not see the old fashioned slavery in most part of the world, however, slavery is being practiced in a more modern state. Most of the people are slaves in the hands of masters who practice slavery in a modern fashion of buying and selling generations of people. Thus, it becomes clear as to why Imam Ali (as) said, "Mahdi will not leave any slave on earth without having freed him". By slavery, it is referred to all sorts of slavery such as economic slavery, political slavery, and other kinds of slavery. Imam Mahdi(as)will not leave any debtor on earth without having paid his debt. He will not allow any oppression free without having paid back the oppressed. The future and rights of each single person is important to him. The revolution and reform by Imam Mahdi(as)is so humane that he will not kill any innocent person, even if that person is in the opponent army. His revolution is a determined revolution in that it will not negotiate with any oppressor; however, it is a completely humane revolution; it is not a blind revolution that takes advantage of the individuals to achieve victory and power. "Human", even a single individual, is important to him. The smallest right is significant for him. He explains that there is nothing more obligatory than executing justice, even if it is the smallest right for the most common person. The revolution of Imam Mahdi(as)is in fact the revolution of people, and it will be established by a pious and accomplished leader. As he has to deal with two kinds of persons, he will present two different characteristics. His first characteristic is toward the most of the people of the world and especially to the poor. He will act so kindly and modestly towards them that it is as if he was feeding them with honey (exact words of a Hadith). Nonetheless, his second characteristic is toward the cruel of the world. He will just fight with them and does not forgive them anyway. They have been asked to repent from what they had done for thousands of years. Now, the age of recommendation and forgiveness is ended and it is the time to bring into action what all the prophets (PBUT) had promised. According to the Ahadith, everything in Mahdi's(as)society will end to peace, friendliness, brotherliness, mercy, and unity. Mahdi(as)will fight, but for peace; that is because he knows that these wars won't end unless a war brings them to end. He will fight for peace accompanied by justice. The slogan of Mahdi's(as)society is kindness. In his society, people help each other without playing any trick on each other. Wherever somebody commits a crime, no matter who he is, he will be punished instantly without any exceptions. In his governorship, he will be very strict towards the operators of the worldwide Islamic government; however, he will be very patient with people, especially the poor. He will treat people in a very kindly and modestly manner. He will give every one his due and finally, he will bring all the goals of the prophets (PBUT) into action. His revolution is not a single revolution; rather it consists of several revolutions in one. This revolution is an exception from all points of view throughout the history. It is not just a political revolution, but a vast cataclysm in all the material and spiritual aspects of the human's life. In this article, we will take a look at several aspects of this revolution: Revolution in women rights, intellectual improvement, and scientific rights He will choose 313 persons who will be the main operators of his government. According to the Ahadith, there are 50 women amongst them, who will perform in the highest level of global management. This clearly illustrates the role of women in this revolution. In his society, women will be honored without loosing their chastity. Thus, we understand three great revolutions in the society of Mahdi(as), namely intellectual revolution, rights revolution (women rights) and scientific revolution. Economic revolution At that time (the reappearance era), an economic and technological revolution will take place; he will take over the whole world; all the superficial and underground resources will be available for the deprived people; the soils will become fertile; there would remain no ruined place on earth except that it would become habitable in Mahdi's(as)government. It will not be so that a small minority is full while the majority is hungry. The entire world will become habitable and every where is prosperous; the springs will be overflowed by water. At this time, there will be abundant favors for mankind, and they share them without any injustice and prodigality. Revolution in the human relations Another revolution will happen in the inter-relation of human beings. The sincere and friendly relations will improve to the extent that if a person needs something, he can use the other one's property without any struggle or dissatisfaction. At that time, everything will be for everyone. There is no conspiracy among the people and they consider each other as brothers since they all respect each other. Besides being great and bloody, his revolution brings brotherhood rather than revengefulness. Revolution against discrimination At that time, all the people live like each other; they will be all either full or hungry, whenever there is not enough supply, unanimously. According to the Ahadith, when Mahdi (as) comes, he will divide the properties among the people properly, or identically as the Hadith states. It will be so that no one would remain hungry on the entire earth. Even in our time, in the wealthiest countries (in spite of the fact that such wealth is brought about as a result of oppression and social leveling across the world) there are thousands of people who are deprived of primary facilities. In today's world, the exact meaning of social leveling and class distinction is demonstrated. Nevertheless, at that time convenience and wealth will be spread without any discrimination everywhere. Social revolution Whilst the human being will experience convenience, egoism and profiteering will no longer exist. In that society, all the people will help each other. Although the social aspects of the revolution are magnificent, they are realistic. Of course it is obvious that in today's world, providing such situation is impossible; nevertheless, this is the extreme of Islam's doctrine and it will definitely be practiced. Security revolution The other aspect of Mahdi's(as)revolution is for security. According to the Ahadith, in the government of Mahdi(as), a young girl (who likely is sensitive to harshness and aggression) can have a trip from on corner to another corner of the world lonely, while no danger threatens her. At that time, people will gradually forget the word "fear"! Civil revolution The entire world will be civilized by him; the whole societies will experience pleasure and joy. This joy will be humane, not gained by oppressing others or usurping others' rights. Revolution against ignorance A huge revolution will take place in understanding the religion, and knowing the religion will improve and ameliorate. According to the Ahadith, when he arises, some Muslims will oppose him and apply verses of the Holy Quran against him. Those are people who have neither understood the true religion nor helped it. They have not experienced any hardship for the religion, but made benefit of it. There is a Hadith implying that he will arise against both ignorance and innovations. He will fight against ignorance, teach people the pure religion as it was descended, and eliminate incorrect interpretations of the religion. Cultural revolution A great cultural revolution will occur by Imam Mahdi(as)too. As mentioned in some Ahadith, the ratio of all the sciences know by human to the sciences which Imam Mahdi(as) will discover is 2 to 27. This means that human, though having made such progresses, is not highly knowledgeable. The characteristics of the companions of Mahdi(as) At the end of this section, we will name some of the characteristics of Imam Mahdi's(as)companions extracted from the Ahadith: In comparison with the 16th and 17th century, people tend to reach unity in today's world due to human and Islamic knowledge and communications. They have the readiness to say the same, recognize the same and react in the same manner. Perhaps these communications have led us to Globalization (established by Imam Mahdi(as)not by western countries). His companions are 313 people from different races at first. They are the main staff of the global rising of Imam Mahdi(as). Then, according to the Ahadith, their number will increase to the extent that besides those 313 people who are the main executives, the operative staff will include His companions are 313 people from different races at first. They are 10'000 people, and finally the rising will become worldwide. As the Ahadith state, most of Imam Mahdi's(as)companions are from the youth. His revolution is done by the youth, as changing the world could be done by them. In another Hadith, they are described as follows: Their hearts are firm as iron; they fear nothing and will control the world rapidly and powerfully. They will pass a difficult examine, and the superiors of them are 313 people. Their reward is more than Prophet Muhammad's(as)companions; because they have never seen the Prophet(as), their situation is more complicated, and resistance is more difficult at that time; nonetheless, they remain in the right path. One important thing that needs to be considered is that organizing the world won't be simple; it requires patience and hard working. His companions will wear military uniform for a long time and eat little till they spread justice in the world. This era will be a beginning of difficulties for them, as it will be a beginning of comfort for others. It is basically a beginning of difficulties for Imam Mahdi's(as)companions in order to achieve global justice. They have to dress simply, be respectful, and live in the lowest level among people. The comfort and welfare gained in Imam Mahdi's(as)governorship does not belong only to the rulers, but to all the people. Imam Mahdi(as) will live simply during his governorship. There will be no compliment between Mahdi(as) and other nations and he will do full justice to everyone. When he rises, he is not under oath of any corrupt ruler. It means that he is not responsible towards any previous government. The content of the treaty between Mahdi's(as) and his companions The last part of this article explains the content of a treaty between Mahdi(as) and his followers. This treaty will glorify the magnificence and divinity of Mahdi's(as)rising, while it also merges great decisiveness and humanity. It should be noted that these purports are extracted from authentic Ahadith of Shia: Mahdi(as)will ask his followers to promise that they would not insult anyone, assault on anyone, or attack anyone's house without getting permission during the great revolution. Usually in revolutions and croups, assaulting and attacks are often done and no pity is accepted; however, Mahdi'(as)revolution is different from other manmade systems. Moreover, he will have his followers promise not to gather gold and silver for themselves; he wants the governors of the religious revolution not to proliferate their properties. He obliges them not to use the orphan's or the defenseless people's wealth. He notifies them not to abuse their power to use the defenseless wealth. He demands them not to wear expensive clothes or the one that is different from the others. He orders them not to rule people the way kings do, and to fight for the sake of Allah (SWT) with their most power and in a manner that the Almighty Allah (SWT) is pleased. He wants them to live in difficulty so that the rest live in convenience. Consequently, the revolutionists will not corrupt after the revolution, and the revolution outcome will not be lost. This revolution will not be forgetful about the people. It will begin for people and continue for them as well. Mahdi(as)also considers himself responsible for behaving as like as his followers promise. He promises to use the same road, move the same way, and have the same clothing as they do. The morality principles for rulers are not different from those of other people. Overall, Mahdi(as)will be the same as his followers, and will promise what they promise. After the revolution, he will live in the worst conditions, and will content to the little. He will also promise that there would be no courts, barriers, or distance between him and the people; this means the lowest conditions for a worldwide leader. Also, this is a part of his promise that no distance will be made between people and rulers. His reappearance is the right of the human, thus man should be waiting for him, and try to pray for his appearance.

In the name of Allah, That is stronger than any nuclear bombs and any warships. Hello everybody My name is Morteza i am from IRAN . I have a website (www.qm313.com) we are working here for Imam Mahdi(as) and we answer every question about Imam mahdi(as). In this website we research about ( Arrivals,Apocalypse, ...) and we research about signs of Imam Mahdi Arrivals,signs of Apocalypse and we show result of researchs to people. we also work on Islam Hadith . and we work on Ahl al-Bayt (as) hadith and ... . and a lot of topics can be attractive for you. How much you know about Imam Mahdi(as)? How much you love Imam Mahdi(as)?

I have one serious question regarding Al-kafi. It might have been posted differently in this forum previously but I am unable to get clear answer… When I read translated ‘Introduction’ by Kulayni. He says to his friend… Now According to Kulayni he did refer his collection to the 12th Imam and he did reply by saying that “, "Whichever you would follow in submission and obedience is excusable for you." Since it is possible because it was compiled during minor occultation and if it was the case than Kulayni must have done it through one of Imams four representatives. At present, majority of shias neither believe that Al-kafi is authentic (which should have been authentic if 12th Imam approved so) nor they believe that it was approved by 12th Imam. There is one tradition attributed to 12th Imam that Kitab al-kafi was authenticated by himself…. which majority of shia’as rejects since it doesn’t have chain of narrations…. So just forget this tradition. Now my question is WHO LIED? Kulayni? (Although he said it in his Introduction but he never managed to approach any of four representative) Representatives? (It might be possible that Kulayni did ask them to approve his book but neither of them were able to approach the 12th Imam) 12th Imam? (not possible) No one, but at least one of them was doing Taqayya.