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Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan al-'Askarī (Arabic: محمد بن الحسن العسکری) (born in 255/869), also known as Imam al-Mahdi (a) (Arabic: إمام المهدی), is the twelfth Imam in Twelver Shi'ism. He is the promised savior, who will rise one day and fill the earth with peace and justice. Imam al-Mahdi (a) has been in occultation from the early years of his life. Shi'as regard him as the Imam of the present age. Among his well-known titles are Imam al-Mahdi (the Imam of the time) and Wali l-'Asr (the guardian of the age). Imam al-Mahdi (a) became the Imam after the martyrdom of his father Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) in the year 260/874, when he was five. From that time until the year 329/941, he was in contact with his followers through his Four Deputies. After that, his Major Occultation started, in which period the direct guidance and leadership of the Shi'a community rests with religious scholars. There are many hadiths transmitted from the Imams (a) about Imam al-Mahdi (a), his life, his Occultation, and his government, and many collections of such hadiths have been written. In addition to hadith collections, many works have been published about Imam al-Mahdi (a). Every year, on fifteenth of Sha'ban, Shi'as celebrate the Imam's birth, marking one of the greatest Shi'i festivals. The possibility of meeting the Imam (a) during his Major Occultation, when and how he reappears, and the incidents related to his reappearance are some of the popular discussions among Shi'as. Lineage and Birth In Shi'a hadiths, the Twelfth Imam (a) is referred to by names such as Muhammad, Ahmad, and 'Abd Allah. However, among the Shi'as, he is most famously referred to as al-Mahdi which is one of his titles.[1] According to a number of hadiths, he is the Prophet's (s) namesake.[2] In some hadiths and written Shiite sources, such as al-Kafi and Kamal al-din, his name is written with separate letters as "م ح م د" (M Ḥ M D).[3] This is in accordance with hadiths forbidding any mention of Imam al-Mahdi's (a) name.[4] Titles In different sources, supplications, and ziyaras, the Twelfth Imam of the Shi'as is characterized with different teknonyms and titles, the best-known of which are: al-Mahdi (المَهدی, guided), Ṣāḥib al-Zamān (صاحب الزمان, the owner of the time), al-Muntaẓar (المُنتَظَر, expected), Baqīyyat Allāh (بَقیّة الله, what remains with Allah), al-Muntaqim (المُنتَقِم, avenger), al-Maw'ūd (المَوعود, promised), Khātam al-Awṣīyā' (خاتَم الأوصیاء, the last successor), al-Ghā'ib (الغائب, hidden), al-Ma'mūl (المأمول, hoped), and al-Muḍṭarr (المُضطرّ, distressed). Another well-known title of Imam al-Mahdi (a) is al-Qa'im (القائم, upriser or standing) upon the hearing of which the Shi'as stand up and put their hands on their heads, as practiced by Imam al-Rida (a).[7] The names and titles of the Twelfth Shiite Imam (a) are mentioned in Sunni sources as well. In these source, "al-Mahdi" is the mostly mentioned title. The title "al-Qa'im" is rarely found in Sunni sources.[8 Mother His mother is referred to in different ways: Narjis, Susan, Saqil or Sayqal, Haditha, Hakima, Malika, Rayhana, and Khamt.[9] In general, there are four accounts of her life and characteristics. According to a hadith cited by al-Shaykh al-Saduq in his Kamal al-din wa tamam al-ni'ma,[10] Imam al-Mahdi's (a) mother was a Roman princess. And in other hadiths, her life story is not mentioned and it is only said that she was trained and raised in the house of Hakima, the daughter of Imam al-Jawad (a).[11] According to a third group of hadiths (cited by al-Mas'udi in his Ithbat al-wasiyya),[12] Imam al-Mahdi's (a) mother was not only raised in the house of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari's (a) paternal aunt, but was also born there. The last group of hadiths has a fundamental difference with these three groups. According to these hadiths, Imam al-Mahdi's (a) mother was a black bondwoman.[13] The first three groups of hadiths can be considered as complementary, but the last one cannot be reconciled with them. However, some scholars have tried to reconcile the last group of hadiths with others by taking it to be concerned with Imam al-Mahdi's (a) nurse.[14] Time of Birth In historical sources, there are different accounts of the day on which the Twelfth Imam (a) was born, the best-known of which is Sha'ban 15th (July 29, 869).[22] This date is reported by Shiite scholars such as al-Kulayni, al-Mas'udi, al-Shaykh al-Saduq, al-Shaykh al-Mufid, al-Shaykh al-Tusi, Fattal al-Nisaburi, al-Tabrisi, Ibn Tawus, Ibn Taqtaqi, al-Allama al-Hilli, al-Shahid al-Awwal, al-Kaf'ami, and al-Shaykh al-Baha'i, and Sunni scholars such as Ibn Khallakan, Ibn Sabbagh al-Maliki, al-Sha'rani al-Hanafi, and Ibn Tulun. According to other reports, mentioned in al-Saduq's Kamal al-din, the birthday of the Imam (a) was the eve of the first Thursday of Ramadan or the eve of one of the Thursdays in Ramadan. Place of Birth Historians who talked about the issue agree that Imam al-Mahdi (a) was born in the house[23] of his father, Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a), in Samarra. The house is now part of the shrine of Imam al-Hadi (a) and Imam al-'Askari (a).[24] Imam al-Hadi (a) and Imam al-'Askari (a) were summoned to Samarra, the center of the Abbasid Caliphate, years before the birth of Imam al-Mahdi (a) and lived there until they were martyred.[25] The Account of the Birth The famous account of the Imam's (a) birth is given by Hakima, the aunt of Imam al-Hasan al-Askari (a). In some parts of this account, as reported by al-Shaykh al-Saduq, we read, Imam al-Hasan al-Askari called me and said, "O aunti! Stay with us tonight, which is the eve of the 15th of Sha'ban. Tonight God Almighty will reveal His proof on earth." I said, "Who is his mother?" He replied, "Narjis." I said, "But—May I be your ransom! —There are no sign of pregnancy in her!" The Imam (a) replied, "It will be as I said to you." I went and when I said salam and sat down, Narjis came, took my shoes, and said, "O my lady and the lady of my family! How are you?" I said, "You are my lady and the lady of my family … God is giving you tonight a son, who is the master of this world and the hereafter." Then [I prayed, and] when I finished my prayer, I ate in order to end my fast, and then I slept. In the middle of the night, I woke up and prayed while Narjis was sleeping. Then I followed up my prayer with some dhikrs and then I also slept. I woke up again, and then Narjis woke up, prayed, and slept again. I came out of the house and looked at the sky, and it was the time of the first fajr. As soon as I started to have some doubt, Abu Muhammad [i.e., Imam al-Hasan al-Askari (a)] called me and said, "O auntie! Do not hasten, because the time is about to arrive." So I sat down and started to recite sura al-Sajda and sura Yasin. As I was reciting the Qur'an, Narjis woke up, so I hastened unto her and told her, "Do you feel anything?" She responded, "Yes, auntie!" I told her, "Be calm and let your heart be strong. This is what I told you about. Afterwards, a kind of weakness got me and Narjis. Then, I woke up by the voice of my master [i.e., Imam al-Mahdi] … I saw him prostrating himself … I held him in my arms and found him clean and pure. Abu Muhammad told me, "O auntie! Bring me my child." I did so … [He held him,] and said, "O my son! Speak!" He said, "I testify that there is no God but Allah alone; He has no partners. And I testify that Muhammad is His apostle." Then he sent salutations upon Amir al-Mu'minin and the rest of the Imams until his father. Secret Birth Abbasid caliphs knew from the hadiths by the Prophet (s) and the Imams (a) that the Twelfth Imam was al-Mahdi, and thus, they assigned some guards to monitor Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) and his house. According to historians, al-Mu'tamid al-'Abbasi had ordered the midwives to drop by sadat's houses, especially the house of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a), search inside the house, learn about his wife, and report him about it.[26] The birth of Imam al-Mahdi (a) was hidden from people. The secrecy of his birth and its reasons are mentioned in some hadiths.[27] According to a hadith from Imam al-Sajjad (a), "our al-Qa'im bears some traditions of the prophets. A tradition from Abraham (a) is the secrecy of his birth and his isolation from the people".[28] And according to a hadith from Imam al-Sadiq (a), "the birth of Sahib al-Amr is hidden from the people until he reappears. This is in order for him not to have to pledge allegiance to anyone".[29] According to al-Shaykh al-Mufid, the reason behind the hidden birth of Imam al-Mahdi (a) was the persecutions and the fact that the governor of the time was on the watch to murder the last Proof of God. It should be noted that the hidden birth of the Twelfth Imam (a) was not an unprecedented phenomenon. Abraham's and Moses's births also reportedly occurred in a hidden manner. The Witnesses of the Birth Apart from Hakima, two female slaves named Mariyah and Nasim also witnessed the birth of the Twelfth Imam (a). Al-Shaykh al-Tusi and al-Shaykh al-Saduq have recorded the accounts of the birth of the Imam (a) as reported by these two female slaves: "When the Master of the Time was born, he sat down on his knees and raised his forefingers toward heaven. Then, he sneezed and said, 'All praise belongs to God the Lord of the worlds. May God send his blessings on Muhammad and his family. The oppressors have thought that the Proof of God is destroyed. Were we permitted to speak, the doubt would fade away.'" Shi'as' Awareness of the Birth After Imam al-Mahdi's (a) birth, some Shi'as who were close and reliable companions of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) saw Imam al-Mahdi (a). Al-Shaykh al-Mufid mentions some Shi'as who saw Imam al-Mahdi (a) during the life of Imam al-'Askari (a): Muhammad b. Isma'il b. Musa b. Ja'far (a), Hakima bt. al-Imam al-Jawad (a), Abu 'Ali b. Mutahhar, 'Amr al-Ahwazi, and Abu Nasr al-Turayf, the servant of Imam al-'Askari (a).[34]. For example, according to a hadith, Muhammad b. 'Uthman al-'Amri and forty other people were in Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari's (a) house. The Imam (a) showed his son to them and said, "this is your Imam after me and my successor among you. Obey him and do not dispute about your religion. Otherwise, you will be disorganized and you will never see him again".[35] A similar hadith is cited by al-Shaykh al-Tusi. He also mentioned other people who saw Imam al-Mahdi (a) in the meeting: 'Ali b. Bilal, Ahmad b. Bilal, Muhammad b. Mu'awiya b. Hakim, and Hasan b. Ayyub b. Nuh.[36]. Al-Shaykh al-Mufid also refers to other people, such as Abu 'Umar 'Uthman b. Sa'id al-Samman and his son, Abu Ja'far Muhammad b. 'Uthman, who saw Imam al-Mahdi (a) during the life of his father. Imam al-Mahdi (a) was also seen during the life of Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) by people from Banu al-Rahba family from Nusaybin, Banu Sa'id, Banu Mahziyar from Ahvaz, Banu l-Rukuli from Kufa, Banu Nawbakht from Baghdad, and a group of people from Qazvin, Qom, and Jibal.[37] After the Demise of Imam al-'Askari (a) When the caliph of the time, al-Mu'tamid al-'Abbasi, learned about Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari's (a) illness, he sent five of his reliable officers to the Imam's (a) house in order to monitor him. Also, al-Mu'tamid ordered his Grand Judge to commission ten reliable people to monitor Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a).[38] In his will, Imam al-Hasan al-'Askari (a) gave all his property to his mother, Hudayth, although the Abbasids did not allow the whole property to be given to Hudayth. They gave half of the property to Ja'far b. 'Ali b. Muhammad, Imam al-Mahdi's (a) uncle.[39] After Imam al-Hasan al-'Askaris (a) demise, the Abbasid caliph sent a group of agents to his house. They shut down the house and confiscated the Imam's (a) property. They looked for the Imam's (a) son, examined the Imam's (a) wives and bondwomen for pregnancy,[40] and arrested a heavy bondwoman who was suspected to be pregnant. She was monitored for two years and was released afterwards.[41] ............Continued

Salam, Imam Ali says in the first sermon of Nahj al-Balagha that God doesn't have any attributes. Imam Reza reiterates this in Sheikh Saduq's al-Tawhid. Shia Islamic scholars have interpreted this as meaning that all the traditional attributes of God (e.g. omniscience, omnipotence, etc.) are identical with God and are not distinct or "accidental properties" of God. But this creates the problem of mercy and freedom. If mercy is an essential property of God, and not an "accidental property," then that means God must be merciful (or else He wouldn't be God anymore). This seems to contradict with the Shia Islamic traditions which say that God "chose" mercy for Himself (i.e. He could have not been merciful, but He chose to be merciful). This also makes the whole concept of thanking God meaningless, because he had to be merciful to us all the time because reality couldn't have been otherwise (he's a Necessary Being, couldn't have not existed, and couldn't have not been merciful). Why thank God for being merciful to us when things simply could not have been otherwise? It was not possible for God to have not been merciful to us, so why should we thank him for being merciful to us? Unless there is a rational way to solve this problem, this problem demonstrates that the whole concept of a merciful, free, and "worthy of being grateful to" God is incoherent. And hence the Islamic concept of God is logically incoherent and should not be believed in.