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Born Through the Dua of the Imam Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. Ali b. al-Husayn b. Musa b. Babawayh, famously known as Shaykh al-Saduq (d. 381), is not a new name to Shi’i readers. He was a great Hadith scholar whose magnum opus Man La Yahdhuruhu al-Faqih is considered one of the Four books. Less commonly known about him is that he was born through the supplication of the Twelfth Imam. His father Ali b. al-Husayn was not granted off-spring from his first wife for many years. He decided to send a plea to the Imam via the Third Safir [Na'ib Khass] Abu al-Qasim b. al-Ruh, the reply was that he would be granted two male sons from a Daylami bond-woman and that both would grow up to become learned scholars of the religion. The aim of the post is to gather documentary evidence for this historical incident. I. وأخبرنا جماعة، عن أبي جعفر محمد بن علي بن الحسين بن موسى بن بابويه وأبي عبدالله الحسين بن علي أخيه قالا:حدثنا أبوجعفر محمد بن علي الاسود رحمه الله قال: سألني علي بن الحسن بن موسى بن بابويه رضي الله عنه بعد موت محمد بن عثمان العمري قدس سره أن أسأل أبا القاسم الروحي قدس الله روحه أن يسأل مولانا صاحب الزمان عليه السلام أن يدعو الله أن يرزقه ولدا ذكرا قال: فسألته فأنهى ذلك، ثم أخبرني بعد ذلك بثلاثة أيام أنه قد دعا لعلي بن الحسين رحمه الله فإنه سيولد له ولد مبارك ينفع الله به، وبعده أولاد ... قال: فولد لعلي بن الحسين رضي الله عنه تلك السنة إبنه محمد بن علي وبعده أولاد ... قال أبو جعفر بن بابويه: وكان أبو جعفر محمد بن علي الأسود كثيرا ما يقول لي - إذا رآني أختلف إلى مجلس شيخنا محمد بن الحسن بن الوليد رضي الله عنه وأرغب في كتب العلم وحفظه - ليس بعجب أن تكون لك هذه الرغبة في العلم وأنت ولدت بدعاء الإمام عليه السلام [Ghayba of al-Tusi] A large number – Abi Ja’far Muhammad b. Ali b. al-Husayn b. Musa b. Babawayh and his brother Abi Abdallah al-Husayn b. Ali – Abu Ja’far Muhammad b. Ali al-Aswad رحمه الله who said: Ali b. al-Husayn b. Musa b. Babawayh رضي الله عنه asked me - after the death of Muhammad b. Uthman al-Amri قدس سره - to request Aba al-Qasim al-Ruhi قدس سره to implore our Leader the Master of the Age عليه السلام to supplicate to Allah that He grant him a male child. He [al-Aswad] says: I asked him [al-Ruhi] that but he refused to do that. Then he informed me three days after that that he [the Imam] had supplicated for Ali b. al-Husayn رحمه الله and that ‘will be born for him a blessed son through whom Allah will benefit [many] and after him many sons’. He said: so was born to Ali b. al-Husayn رضي الله عنه that same year his son Muhammad b. Ali and after him other children … Abu Ja’far b. Babawayh (al-Saduq) said: Abu Ja’far Muhammad b. Ali al-Aswad would always say to me - when he sees me going to the Majlis of our Shaykh Muhammad b. al-Hasan b. al-Walid رضي الله عنه and after observing my motivation for the books of knowledge and mastery over them: it is not strange that you have this desire for knowledge for you were born because of the supplication of the Imam عليه السلام II. وقال أبو عبد الله بن بابويه: عقدت المجلس ولي دون العشرين سنة، فربما كان يحضر مجلسي أبو جعفر محمد بن علي الأسود، فإذا نظر إلى إسراعي في الأجوبة في الحلال والحرام يكثر التعجب لصغر سني ثم يقول لا عجب لأنك ولدت بدعاء الإمام عليه السلام [Ghayba of al-Tusi] Abu Abdallah b. Babawayh (the brother of al-Saduq) said: I began leading a study-session when I was not yet twenty years old. Abu Ja’far Muhammad b. Ali al-Aswad would sometimes attend these sessions. He would be greatly amazed after seeing my quickness in answering questions about the Halal and Haram despite my young age and would say: there is no surprise - for you were born through the supplication of the Imam عليه السلام III. قال أبو العباس أحمد بن علي بن نوح: وحدثني أبوعبدالله الحسين بن محمد بن سورة القمي حين قدم علينا حاجا قال: حدثني علي بن الحسن بن يوسف الصائغ القمي ومحمد بن أحمد بن محمد الصيرفي المعروف بابن الدلال وغيرهما من مشايخ أهل قم أن علي بن الحسين بن موسى بن بابويه كانت تحته بنت عمه محمد بن موسى بن بابويه فلم يرزق منها ولدا فكتب إلى شيخ أبي القاسم الحسين بن روح رضي الله عنه أن يسأل الحضرة أن يدعو الله أن يرزقه أولادا فقهاء فجاء الجواب إنك لاترزق من هذه وستملك جارية ديلمية وترزق منها ولدين فقيهين [Ghayba of al-Tusi] Abu al-Abbas Ahmad b. Ali b. Nuh– Abu Abdallah al-Husayn b. Muhammad b. Sura al-Qummi [when he came to us making the Hajj] – Ali b. al-Hasan b. Yusuf al-Saigh al-Qummi and Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Muhammad al-Sayrafi better known as Ibn al-Dalal and others among the Shuyukh of the people of Qum that: Ali b. al-Husayn b. Musa b. Babawyh had married the daughter of his paternal uncle Muhammad b. Musa b. Babawayh. He was not granted a son through her. He wrote to the Shaykh Abi al-Qasim al-Husayn b. Ruh رضي الله عنه asking him to request the holy presence to supplicate to Allah to grant him knowledgeable off-spring. There came in reply: ‘You will not be granted through this one, but you will have ownership of a Daylami slave and you will be granted through her two knowledgeable sons’ قال: وقال لي أبوعبدالله بن سورة حفظه الله: ولابي الحسن بن بابويه ثلاثة أولاد محمد والحسين فقيهان ماهران في الحفظ يحفظان مالا يحفظ غيرهما من أهل قم ولهما أخ اسمه الحسن وهو الاوسط مشتغل بالعباده والزهد لايختلط بالناس ولا فقه له قال ابن سورة: كلما روى أبوجعفر وأبوعبدالله ابنا علي بن الحسين شيئا يتعجب الناس من حفظهما ويقولون لهما: هذا الشان خصوصية لكما بدعوة الامام عليه السلام لكما، وهذا أمر مستفيض في أهل قم He [Abu al-Abbas] said: Abu Abdallah b. Sura said to me: Abi al-Hasan b. Babawayh had three sons. Muhammad and al-Husayn became jurists, very capable in memorization. They could memorize what others could not among the residents of Qum. They had a brother called al-Hasan who was the middle brother. He spent a lot of his time in worship and abstinence [from the worldly things]. He used not to mix with people. He was not learned in Fiqh. Ibn Sura said: Whenever Abu Ja’far and Abu Abdallah the two sons of Ali b. al-Husayn would narrate something the people would wonder at their memorization capacity and say to them both: this merit is unique to you two because of the supplication of the Imam عليه السلام for you [to be born]. This matter [that they were born by the supplication of the Imam] is widely known among the people of Qum. IV. قدم (علي بن الحسين بن موسى بن بابويه) العراق واجتمع مع أبي القاسم الحسين بن روح رحمه الله وسأله مسائل ثم كاتبه بعد ذلك على يد علي بن جعفر بن الأسود يسأله أن يوصل له رقعة إلى الصاحب عجل الله تعالى فرجه يسأله فيها الولد، فكتب إليه: قد دعونا الله لك بذلك وسترزق ولدين ذكرين خيرين، فولد له أبو جعفر وأبو عبد الله من أم ولد وكان أبو عبد الله الحسين بن عبيد الله يقول: سمعت أبا جعفر يقول: أنا ولدت بدعوة صاحب الامر عليه السلام، ويفتخر بذلك [Fihrist of al-Najashi] He (Ali b. al-Husayn b. Musa b. Babawayh) came to Iraq and met up with Abi al-Qasim al-Husayn b. Ruh رحمه الله and asked him questions. Then he wrote to him via the mediation of Ali b. Ja’far b. al-Aswad (sic. Muhammad b. Ali al-Aswad) asking him to carry a note on his behalf to the Master عجل الله تعالى فرجه asking him for a son. He [the Imam] wrote to him: ‘We have supplicated to Allah about that for you and you will be granted two male sons who are good’. After which was born to him Abu Ja’far and Abu Abdallah from a female slave. Abu Abdallah al-Husayn b. Ubaydallah (al-Ghadhairi) used to say: I heard Aba Ja’far (al-Saduq) saying: I was born through the supplication of the Master of the Order عليه السلام, and pride himself because of that. I say: And it is such a thing which is befitting for pride.

Perfection of Faith and Completion of Divine Favor Now it is about 12 centuries passed from Imam Mahdi's hidden life, and the bothering time of his hidden life will continue up to his reappearance. According to imam Ridha (as), Imam's reappearance will be extended to the day of Doom, no one knows this but God, it is hard to people and it will happen suddenly. Therefore, any investigation to find the exact time of his reappearance is fruitless and our duty is to wait. The meaning of "waiting for" is to desire his reappearance desperately and looking forward to his reappearance; this waiting results from faith and it is rewarded. In addition, it has spiritual values. Waiting for him, like other religious practices, has practical aspects which is pointed out by our infallibles. Following infallibles' orders in this regard is the duty of people who live in the time of his hidden life. The book deals with the personality of the Hidden Imam, his occultation and everything related to him in an analytical and systematic manner and is penetrating in its subject and exceptional in its domain. Shaikh Saduq has presented strong arguments from the life-story of the Prophets regarding their occultation [ghaibah] to prove the occultation of the Twelfth Imam; and Ahadith have been quoted extensively from the Holy Prophet sawa and the Infallible Imams in support of the writer's contentions. VOL1: http://www.al-islam.org/kamaaluddin-wa-tamaamun-nima-vol-1-shaykh-saduq VOL2: http://www.al-islam.org/kamaaluddin-wa-tamaamun-nima-vol-2-shaykh-saduq