Merits of Ali

Here is a Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic)[1] ḥadīth from the Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم), where he described the many faḍā’il (merits) of Imām `Alī (عليه السلام).

قال حدثنا أبو جعفر محمد بن علي بن الحسين قال حدثني أبي قال حدثني محمد بن يحيى العطار قال حدثنا أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى عن علي بن الحكم عن هشام بن سالم عن سليمان بن خالد عن أبي عبد الله جعفر بن محمد الصادق عن آبائه ع قال قال رسول الله ص لعلي ع

يا علي أنت مني و أنا منك وليك وليي و وليي ولي الله و عدوك عدوي و عدوي عدو الله يا علي أنا حرب لمن حاربك و سلم لمن سالمك يا علي لك كنز في الجنة و أنت ذو قرنيها يا علي أنت قسيم الجنة و النار لا يدخل الجنة إلا من عرفك و عرفته و لا يدخل النار إلا من أنكرك و أنكرته يا علي أنت و الأئمة من ولدك على الأعراف يوم القيامة تعرف المجرمين بسيماهم و المؤمنين بعلاماتهم يا علي لولاك لم يعرف المؤمنون بعدي

He (al-Mufīd) said: Abū Ja`far, Muḥammad b. `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn[2] has narrated to us. He said: his father[3] has narrated to me. He said: Muḥammad b. Yaḥya al-`Aṭṭār[4] (the perfumer) has narrated to me. He said: Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa[5] has narrated to us from `Alī b. al-Ḥakam[6] from Hishām b. Sālim[7] from Sulaymān b. Khālid[8] from Abī `Abd Allāh, Ja`far b. Muḥammad al-Sādiq (عليه السلام) from his fathers (عليهم السلام) said, the Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) said to `Alī (عليه السلام),

“O `Alī, you are from me, and I am from you. Your friend is my friend, and my friend is the friend of Allāh. Your enemy is my enemy and my enemy is the enemy of Allāh.

O `Alī, I am at war with whoever is at war with you, and I am at peace with whoever is at peace with you.

O `Alī, for you there is a treasure in al-Jannah, and you have both its sides[9].

O `Alī, you are the divider of al-Jannah and the fire (i.e. Hell). No one enters al-Jannah, except whoever recognizes you and you recognize him. No one enters the fire, except whoever denies you and you deny him.

O `Alī, you and the A’immah from your children are upon al-`Arāf on the Day of Judgment, you will recognize the criminals by their marks, and the believers by their signs.

O `Alī, if it was not for you, the believers would not be able to be recognized after me”[10]

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[1] al-Shāhrūdī says this ḥadīth is Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) (See: al-Shāhrūdī, Mustadarakāt `ilm al-Rijāl, vol. 4, pg. 129-130).

[2] Abū Ja`far, Muḥammad b. `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. Bābuwayh, commonly known as al-Ṣadūq, is thiqah (trustworthy) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 389, person # 1049), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 442, person # 710 & al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 439, person # 6275), and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 147, person # 44).

[3] Abū al-Ḥasan, `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. Bābuwayh, father of al-Ṣadūq, is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 261, person # 684), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 273, person # 393 & al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 432, person # 6191), and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 94, person # 20).

[4] Abū Ja`far, Muḥammad b. Yaḥya al-`Aṭṭār (the perfumer) al-Qummī is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 353, person # 946), and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 157, person # 110).

[5] Abū Ja`far, Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa al-Ash`ari al-Qummī is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 82, person # 198), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 60-61, person # 75 & al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 351, person # 5197), and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 13-14, person # 2).

[6] `Alī b. al-Ḥakam al-Kūfī al-Anbārī is thiqah according to al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 263, person # 376) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 93, person # 14).

[7] Abū al-Ḥakam, Hishām b. Sālim al-Jawālīqī is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 434, person # 1165) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 179, person # 2).

[8] Abū al-Rabī`, Sulaymān b. Khālid b. Dahqān b. Nāfilah is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 183, person # 484) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 77, person # 2).

[9] According to al-Ṣadūq, the saying وأنت ذو قرنيها (And you have both its sides) refers to al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥussayn (See: al-Ṣadūq, Ma `ānī al-Akhbār, pg. 206)

[10] al-Mufīd, al-Amālī, Majlis # 24, pg. 213 ḥadīth # 4

Bibliography

al-Ḥillī. al-Khulāṣah al-`Aqwāl. 1st ed. 1 vols. Qum: , Dār al-Dukhā’ir, 1411.

al-Mufīd. al-Amālī. Qum: al-Mu’tamar lil-Shaykh al-Mufīd, 1413.

al-Najāshī. Rijāl. Ed. Musa al-Shabiri al-Zanjani. 5. 1 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1416.

al-Ṣadūq. , Ma `ānī al-Akhbār. Ed. `Alī Akbar al-Ghaffārī. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1379.

al-Shahrūdī. Mustadarakāt `ilm al-Rijāl. 1st. 8 vols. Tehran: Ibn al-Mu'alif, 1412.

al-Ṭūsī. al-Fihrist. Najaf: al-Maktabah al-Raḍawiyyah, n.d.

—. al-Rijāl. 1st. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1415.

Ulul Azm

Here is a Muwaththaq (Reliable) ḥadīth that gives the names of the Ulul `Azm Prophets (عليهم السلام), another beneficial thing about this ḥadīth is that it says that there were prophets after Prophet `Īsa (عليه السلام). It is commonly believed that there were no prophets between Prophet `Īsa (عليه السلام) and Prophet Muḥammad (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم).

Another great thing about this ḥadīth is that it says that the halāl of Muḥammad is halāl until the Day of Judgment, and his harām is harām until the Day of Judgment. I have given another ḥadīth that says this same thing (Click here)

«عِدَّةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ خَالِدٍ عَنْ عُثْمَانَ بْنِ عِيسَى عَنْ سَمَاعَةَ بْنِ مِهْرَانَ قَالَ قُلْتُ لِأَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع قَوْلَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ فَاصْبِرْ كَما صَبَرَ أُولُوا الْعَزْمِ مِنَ الرُّسُلِ فَقَالَ نُوحٌ وَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ وَ مُوسَى وَ عِيسَى وَ مُحَمَّدٌ ص قُلْتُ كَيْفَ صَارُوا أُولِي الْعَزْمِ قَالَ لِأَنَّ نُوحاً بُعِثَ بِكِتَابٍ وَ شَرِيعَةٍ وَ كُلُّ مَنْ جَاءَ بَعْدَ نُوحٍ أَخَذَ بِكِتَابِ نُوحٍ وَ شَرِيعَتِهِ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ حَتَّى جَاءَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ ع بِالصُّحُفِ وَ بِعَزِيمَةِ تَرْكِ كِتَابِ نُوحٍ لَا كُفْراً بِهِ فَكُلُّ نَبِيٍّ جَاءَ بَعْدَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ ع أَخَذَ بِشَرِيعَةِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ وَ بِالصُّحُفِ حَتَّى جَاءَ مُوسَى بِالتَّوْرَاةِ وَ شَرِيعَتِهِ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ وَ بِعَزِيمَةِ تَرْكِ الصُّحُفِ وَ كُلُّ نَبِيٍّ جَاءَ بَعْدَ مُوسَى ع أَخَذَ بِالتَّوْرَاةِ وَ شَرِيعَتِهِ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ حَتَّى جَاءَ الْمَسِيحُ ع بِالْإِنْجِيلِ وَ بِعَزِيمَةِ تَرْكِ شَرِيعَةِ مُوسَى وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ فَكُلُّ نَبِيٍّ جَاءَ بَعْدَ الْمَسِيحِ أَخَذَ بِشَرِيعَتِهِ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ حَتَّى جَاءَ مُحَمَّدٌ ص فَجَاءَ بِالْقُرْآنِ وَ بِشَرِيعَتِهِ وَ مِنْهَاجِهِ فَحَلَالُهُ حَلَالٌ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَ حَرَامُهُ حَرَامٌ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ فَهَؤُلَاءِ أُولُو الْعَزْمِ مِنَ الرُّسُلِ ع»

From a number of our companion[1] from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Khālid[2] from `Uthmān b. `Īsa[3] from Samā`ah b. Mihrān[4] said, I asked Abī `Abd Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) about Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) saying, “Have patience like the Ulul al-`Azm had patience” (46:35). And he (عليه السلام) said, “(They are) Nūḥ, Ibrāhīm, Mūsa, `Īsa and Muḥammad (عليهم السلام)” I said, ‘How did they become Ulil al-`Azm? He (عليه السلام) said: ‘Because Nūḥ was sent with a book and a sharī`ah, and whoever came after Nūḥ took Nūḥ’s book, and his (Nūḥ’s) sharī`ah, and his manhaj (course) until

Ibrāhīm (عليه السلام) came with his suḥuf and with determination. He abandoned Nūḥ’s book, but not disbelieving in it, and every prophet that came after Ibrāhīm (عليه السلام) took by the sharī`ah of Ibrāhīm, his manhaj, and the suḥuf until

Mūsa came with the Torah and his sharī`ah, his manhaj, and with determination. He abandoned the suḥuf, and every prophet that came after Mūsa (عليه السلام) took the Torah, and his sharī`ah, and his manhaj until

al-Masīḥ (`Īsa) (عليه السلام) came with the Injīl and with determination. He abandoned the sharī`ah of Mūsa, and his manhaj, and every prophet that came after al-Masīḥ took his (`Īsa) (عليه السلام) sharī`ah, and his manhaj until

Muḥammad (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) came with the Qur’ān, with his sharī`ah, his manhaj, so his halāl is halāl until the Day of Judgment, and his harām is harām until the Day of Judgment, and these are the Ulul `Azm from the Messenger”[5]

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[1] When al-Kulaynī says “From a number of our companions from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Khālid”, he is getting his ḥadīth from a number of people: `Alī b. Ibrāhīm al-Qummī, `Alī b. Muḥammad b. `Abd Allāh b. Udhaynah, Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Umayyah, `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn al-Sa`adābādī.

[2] Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Khālid al-Barqī is thiqah (trustworthy) according to according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 76-77, person # 182), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 53, person # 65) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 15, person # 7)

[3] `Uthmān b. `Īsa al-Kilābī is thiqah (trustworthy) according to al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Ghaybah, pg. 63-63). He is said to be a Wāqifī according to al-Ṭūsī.

[4] Samā`ah b. Mihrān is thiqah (trustworthy) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 193, person # 517) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 15, person # 7). al-Ṭūsī said Samā`ah is of the Wāqifiyyah (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 337, person # 5021).

[5] al-Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 2, pg. 17-18, ḥadīth # 2.

Al-Majlisī grades this ḥadīth Muwaththaq (Reliable) (See: al-Majlisī, Mir’āt Al-`Uqūl, vol. 7, pg. 98)

Bibliography

al-Ḥillī. al-Khulāṣah al-`Aqwāl. 1st ed. 1 vols. Qum: , Dār al-Dukhā’ir, 1411.

al-Kulaynī. al-Kāfī. Ed. `Alī Akbar al-Ghaffārī. 3rd. 8 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1388.

al-Majlisī. Mir’āt Al-`Uqūl. 26 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1410.

al-Najāshī. Rijāl. Ed. Musa al-Shabiri al-Zanjani. 5. 1 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1416.

al-Ṭūsī. al-Fihrist. Najaf: al-Maktabah al-Raḍawiyyah, n.d.

—. al-Ghaybah. Ed. `Ibād Allāh al-Ṭihrānī. 1st ed. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Ma`ārif al-Islāmiyyah, 1411.

—. al-Rijāl. 1st. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1415.

1000 Doors of Knowledge

One of the commonly known things of both the Shī`ahs and Sunnīs is the great knowledge of Imām `Alī (عليه السلام). Even Sunnīs acknowledge that Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) was one of the most knowledgeable, if not the most knowledgeable companion of the Prophet Muḥammad (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم).

            This article will analyze one of the most famous aḥādīth that shows the reason for the vast knowledge of Imām `Alī (عليه السلام). The narration I am talking about is before the death of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم), he (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) brought Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) close and Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) says that the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) taught him a door (of knowledge), and that door opens a 1000 more doors, which in turn opened up a 1000 more doors. This is seen in both the Shī`ah and Sunnī books.

            The focus of this article is to analyze the narrations that are found in al-Ṣadūq’s al-Khiṣāl, all of these narrations are from his al-Khiṣāl. We have analyzed the chains of narrators in depth, and have placed them into three categories.

Click here -> 1000 Doors of Knowledge

Memorize 99 Names of Allah

Here is a Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) or Muwaththaq (Reliable) ḥadīth that gives the number of names of Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) and tells us to call by them. It also says whoever memorizes them will go to heaven.

«حدثنا أحمد بن زياد بن جعفر الهمداني رضي الله عنه قال حدثنا علي بن إبراهيم بن هاشم عن أبيه عن أبي الصلت عبد السلام بن صالح الهروي عن علي بن موسى الرضا عن أبيه عن آبائه عن علي (ع) قال قال رسول الله (صلى الله عليه وآله) لله عز وجل تسعة وتسعون اسماً، من دعا الله بها استجاب له، ومن أحصاها دخل الجنة»

Narrated to us Aḥmad b. Ziyād b. Ja`far al-Hamadānī (رضي الله عنه)[1] said `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim[2] from his father[3] from Abī al-Ṣalt `Abd al-Salām b. Ṣāliḥ al-Harawī[4] from `Alī b. Mūsa al-Riḍā from his father from his fathers from `Alī (عليه السلام) said, the Messenger of Allāh (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم) said: “For Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) has ninety-nine (99) names, whoever does du`ā’ by them, he will be answered. And whoever memorizes them[5] will enter jannah.”[6]

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[1] Aḥmad b. Ziyād b. al-Hamadānī is thiqah (thiqah) according to al-Ṣadūq (See: al-Ṣadūq’s Kamāl al-Dīn, vol. 2, pg. 369) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāsah, pg. 19, person # 37).

[2] `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim al-Qummī is thiqah (trustworth) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 260, person # 680) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī’s al-Khulāṣah, pg. 100, person #45).

[3] Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim is praised according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 16, person # 18), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 12, person # 6) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī’s al-Khulāṣah, pg. 5, person #9).

[4] `Abd al-Salām b. Ṣāliḥ, Abū al-Ṣalt al-Harawī is thiqah (thiqah) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī’s al-Rijāl, pg. 245, person # 643) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāsah, pg. 117, person # 2).  al-Ṭūsī calls Abū al-Ṣalt an `Āmī (Sunnī) (See: al-Ṭūsī’s al-Rijāl, pg. 360, person # 5328). al-Khoei contends that Abū al-Ṣalt was not an `Āmī, rather he was a Shī`ah. Either way, his status a thiqah narrator does not change.

[5] There is a difference of opinion regarding the words (من أحصاها – man aḥṣāhā). According to Ibn Athīr some say that it means مَنْ حَفِظَها عَنْ ظَهْرِ قَلْبِهِ “whoever memorizes them (learns by heart)”. This ḥadīth is also found in Sunnī books, and they have translated it as “whoever memorizes them”. Other people have said it means “having knowledge of its meanings and acting by it, while others say “having knowledge of it, believing in it, and having certainty of the characteristics of Allāh”. (See: Ibn Mundhūr, Lisān al-`Arab, vol. 14, pg. 184 & Abū Manṣūr al-Harawī (d. 370), Tahdhīb al-Lughah, vol. 5, pg. 107)

[6] al-Ṣadūq, al-Tawḥīd, ch. 29 – Chapter on Names of Allāh and the Difference Between their Meanings, pg. 195, ḥadīth # 9

Bibliography

al-Harawī, Abū Manṣūr. Tahdhīb al-Lughah. Ed. Muḥammad b. `Awḍ Mur`ab. 1st ed. 8 vols. Beirut: Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth al-`Arabī, 2001.

al-Ḥillī. al-Khulāṣah al-`Aqwāl. 1st ed. 1 vols. Qum: , Dār al-Dukhā’ir, 1411.

al-Najāshī. Rijāl. Ed. Musa al-Shabiri al-Zanjani. 5. 1 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1416.

al-Ṣadūq. al-Tawḥīd. 2nd ed. Vol. 1. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1398/1978.

—. Kamāl al-Dīn. 2nd. 2 vols in 1 vols. Qum: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1395/1975.

al-Ṭūsī. al-Fihrist. Najaf: al-Maktabah al-Raḍawiyyah, n.d.

—. al-Rijāl. 1st. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1415.

Mundhūr, Ibn. Lisān al-`Arab. Qum: Nashr Adab al-Hawzah, 1405.

Prophet Noah's Age

The age of Prophet Nūḥ (عليه السلام) is an age that is hard for us to grasp, since today the average age is about 75 years old. Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) has said in the Qur’ān that Prophet Nūḥ (عليه السلام) called to his people for 950 years[1]. We have many conflicting narrations on the age of Nūḥ (عليه السلام), al-Majlisī says this after a narration that states he lived for 2450 years[2]:

«بيان اعلم أن أرباب السير اختلفوا في عمره ع فقيل كان ألف سنة و قيل كان ألفا و أربعمائة و خمسين سنة و قيل كان ألفا و أربعمائة و سبعين سنة و قيل ألفا و ثلاثمائة سنة و أخبارنا المعتبرة تدل على أنه عاش ألفين و خمسمائة سنة و هذا الخبر لا يعتمد عليه لمخالفته لأقوال الفريقين و أخبارهم»

«Commentary: Know that the great biographers differ on his (عليه السلام) age. Some say he was 1000 years, others say he was 1450 years, others say he was 1470 years, and others say he was 1300 years. Our authentic narrations show that he (عليه السلام) lived for 2500 years, and this khabar (narration)[3] should not be relied upon for it contradicts the opinions of the two sects and their narrations»[4]

This Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) narration shows that Prophet Nūḥ (عليه السلام) lived for 2500 years, and Imām al-Ṣādiq (عليه السلام) breaks down the life of Nūḥ (عليه السلام) and divides it into parts.

حدثنا أحمد بن زياد بن جعفر الهمداني ره قال حدثنا علي بن إبراهيم عن أبيه إبراهيم بن هاشم عن علي بن الحكم عن هشام بن سالم عن الصادق جعفر بن محمد ع قال عاش نوح ع ألفي سنة و خمسمائة سنة منها ثمان مائة و خمسون سنة قبل أن يبعث و ألف سنة إلا خمسين عاما و هو في قومه يدعوهم و مائتا سنة في عمل السفينة و خمسمائة عام بعد ما نزل من السفينة و نضب الماء فمصر الأمصار و أسكن ولده البلدان ثم إن ملك الموت جاءه و هو في الشمس فقال السلام عليك فرد عليه نوح و قال له ما جاء بك يا ملك الموت فقال جئت لأقبض روحك فقال له تدعني أدخل من الشمس إلى الظل فقال له نعم فتحول نوح ع ثم قال يا ملك الموت فكان ما مر بي في الدنيا مثل تحولي من الشمس إلى الظل فامض لما أمرت به قال فقبض روحه ع

Narrated to us Aḥmad b. Ziyād b. Ja`far al-Hamadānī (عليه السلام)[5] said `Alī b. Ibrāhīm[6] narrated to us from his father Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim[7] from `Alī b. al-Ḥakam[8] from Hishām b. Sālim[9] from al-Ṣādiq Ja`far b. Muḥammad (عليه السلام) said, “Nūḥ lived for 2500 years, from it 850 before he was sent (ba`ath - becoming a Prophet), 950 years he was calling to his people, 200 years in building the safīnah (ship), and 500 years after the ship descended and the water dried out, then he built the cities and resided there with his children in the cities. Then the Malik al-Mawt (Angel of Death) came to him and he was in the sunshine, and he said, ‘Assalāmu `Alaykum’. And Nūḥ replied to him. He (عليه السلام) said to him, ‘Why have you come, O Angel?’ So he said, ‘I have come to take your life’. Then he (عليه السلام) said, ‘Can you let me enter from the sunshine to the shade?’ So he (the angel) said, ‘Yes’. Nūḥ (عليه السلام) moved, then he (عليه السلام) said, ‘O Angel of Death, what has passed by me in this world was like me moving from the sunshine to the shade. You may now do what you were commanded.’ He (عليه السلام) said: ‘Then he captured his (عليه السلام) soul.’[10]

This ḥadīth is also Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) through another chain of narrators in al-Ṣadūq’s Kamāl al-Dīn[11]

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[1] Sūrah al-`Ankabūt (29) : Verse 14

[2] al-Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 8, pg. 284, ḥadīth # 429; al-Majlisī said this ḥadīth is Mursal (Disconnected) (See: al-Majlisī, Mir’āt al-`Uqūl, vol. 26, pg. 303

There is also another ḥadīth that says 2450 and it is narrated in al-Ṣadūq’s Kamāl al-Dīn, vol. 2, ch. 46, ḥadīth # 3. This ḥadīth is also Da`īf (Weak), because of Muḥammad b. Yūsuf al-Tamīmī, who is majhūl (unknown) (See: al-Shāhrūdī, Mustadarakāt `ilm al-Rijāl, vol. 7, pg. 378, person # 14748).

[3] Referring to the narration that says he lived for 2450 years.

[4] al-Majlisī, Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 11, pg. 290

[5] Aḥmad b. Ziyād b. al-Hamadānī is thiqah (thiqah) according to al-Ṣadūq (See: al-Ṣadūq’s Kamāl al-Dīn, vol. 2, pg. 369) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāsah, pg. 19, person # 37).

[6] `Alī b. Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim al-Qummī is thiqah (trustworth) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 260, person # 680) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī’s al-Khulāṣah, pg. 100, person #45).

[7] Ibrāhīm b. Hāshim is praised according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 16, person # 18), al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 12, person # 6) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī’s al-Khulāṣah, pg. 5, person #9).

[8] `Alī b. al-Ḥakam al-Anbārī is thiqah (trustworthy) according to al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 263-264, person # 376) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī, al-Khulāṣah, pg. 93, person # 14).

[9] Hishām b. Sālim is thiqah (trustworthy) according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, al-Rijāl, pg. 434, person # 1165) and al-Ḥillī (See: al-Ḥillī’s al-Khulāṣah, pg. 152, person #71).

[10] al-Ṣadūq, al-Amālī, Majlis # 77, pg. 511-512, ḥadīth # 7

`Āṣif al-Muḥsinī says this ḥadīth is Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) (See: `Āṣif al-Muḥsinī’s Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 1, pg. 261). Al-Majlisī says this ḥadīth is Mu`tabar (Authentic) (See: al-Majlisī’s Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 11, pg. 290). `Alī Namazī al-Shāhrūdī says this ḥadīth is Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) (See: al-Shāhrūdī’s Mustadarak Safīnah al-Bihār, vol. 10, pg. 160).

[11] al-Ṣadūq, Kamāl al-Dīn, vol. 2, ch. 46, ḥadīth # 1:

حدثنا محمد بن الحسن بن أحمد بن الوليد رضي الله عنه قال حدثنا محمد بن الحسن الصفار عن أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى عن علي بن الحكم عن هشام بن سالم عن الصادق

Narrated to us Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan b. Aḥmad b. al-Walīd (رضي الله عنه) said Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan al-Ṣaffār narrated to us from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa from `Alī b. al-Ḥakam from Hishām b. Sālim

Bibliography

al-Ḥillī. al-Khulāṣah al-`Aqwāl. 1st ed. 1 vols. Qum: , Dār al-Dukhā’ir, 1411.

al-Majlisī. Bihār al-Anwār. 4th. 110 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1362.

—. Mir’āt Al-`Uqūl. 26 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1410.

al-Muḥsinī, `Āṣif. Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār. 2nd. 2 vols. Beirut: Mu’assasah al-`Ārif lil-Maṭbū`āt, 1426/2005.

al-Najāshī. Rijāl. Ed. Musa al-Shabiri al-Zanjani. 5. 1 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1416.

al-Ṣadūq. al-Amālī. 4th. 1 vols. Qum: Maktabah al-Islamiyyah, 1404.

—. Kamāl al-Dīn. 2nd. 2 vols in 1 vols. Qum: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1395/1975.

al-Shāhrūdī. Mustadarak Safīnah al-Bihār. Ed. Ḥasan `Alī al-Namāzī. 10 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1419.

al-Shahrūdī. Mustadarakāt `ilm al-Rijāl. 1st. 8 vols. Tehran: Ibn al-Mu'alif, 1412.

al-Ṭūsī. al-Fihrist. Najaf: al-Maktabah al-Raḍawiyyah, n.d.

Imam Ali's Knowledge of the Quran

Here is a Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) ḥadīth on the amount of knowledge Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) had of the Qur’ān. This ḥadīth is found in a much larger ḥadīth. Also this ḥadīth is not only found in Shī`ah books, but it is found all over the Sunnī books as well. I have posted another ḥadīth where Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) says, “Ask me whatever you wish” (Click here).

«ما في كتاب الله عز و جل آية إلا و أنا أعرف تفسيرها و في أي مكان نزلت من سهل أو جبل و في أي وقت نزلت من ليل أو نهار و أن هاهنا لعلما جما و أشار إلى صدره و لكن طلابه يسيرة و عن قليل يندمون لو قد يفقدوني»

Imām `Alī (عليه السلام) said: “There is not an ayah in the Book of Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ) except that I know its tafsīr, and in whichever place it was revealed, on a plain or a mountain, and in whatever time it was revealed, in the night or the day.’ – Pointing to his chest – ‘here there is abundant knowledge, but the seekers of it are few, and from the few they will regret when they lose me.’

Source:

1.       al-Sadūq, `Ilal al-Sharā`i’, ed. Muḥammad Ṣādiq Bahr al-`Ulūm, 1 vol. (Najaf, Maktabah al-Ḥaydariyyah, 1385), vol. 1, ch. 38, pg. 40

Three Worst of Creations

Here is a Ḥasan (Good)[1] or Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic)[2] ḥadīth which shows us three prideful things for a mu’min (believer), and the three worst or most evil of creations which afflicted the best of creations.

The sanad seems like it only starts with al-Ḥasan b. al-Maḥbūb, but this is one of the truncated asānīd (pl. of sanad) that al-Kulaynī employs in his al-Kāfī, especially in the al-Rawḍah, volume 8 of al-Kāfī.

I have combined the sanad for you, in order for you to see the full chain of narrators.

علي بن إبراهيم عن أبيه‏ عن ابن محبوب عن عبد الله بن سنان قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ ثَلَاثٌ هُنَّ فَخْرُ الْمُؤْمِنِ وَ زَيْنُهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَ الْآخِرَةِ الصَّلَاةُ فِي آخِرِ اللَّيْلِ وَ يَأْسُهُ مِمَّا فِي أَيْدِي النَّاسِ وَ وَلَايَتُهُ الْإِمَامَ مِنْ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ ع

`Alī b. Ibrāhīm from his father from al-Ḥasan b. Maḥbūb from `Abd Allāh b. Sinān said, I heard Abā `Abd Allāh (عليه السلام) say, ‘Three (things) are prideful for the mu’min and his adornment in this world and the next.

1.    Salāh at the end of the night

2.    His despairing of which is in the hands of the people

3.    His Wilāyah of the Imām from family of Muḥammad (عليه السلام)

قَالَ وَ ثَلَاثَةٌ هُمْ شِرَارُ الْخَلْقِ ابْتُلِيَ بِهِمْ خِيَارُ الْخَلْقِ أَبُو سُفْيَانَ أَحَدُهُمْ قَاتَلَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ص وَ عَادَاهُ وَ مُعَاوِيَةُ قَاتَلَ عَلِيّاً ع وَ عَادَاهُ وَ يَزِيدُ بْنُ مُعَاوِيَةَ لَعَنَهُ اللَّهُ قَاتَلَ الْحُسَيْنَ بْنَ عَلِيٍّ ع وَ عَادَاهُ حَتَّى قَتَلَهُ

He (عليه السلام) said, ‘Three are the worst of creations, which afflicted the best of the creations,

1.    Abū Sufyān, he fought the Messenger of Allāh and hated him (صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم)

2.    Mu`āwiyah, he fought `Alī (عليه السلام) and hated him (عليه السلام)

3.    Yazīd b. Mu`āwiyah, may Allāh curse him, he fought al-Ḥusayn b. `Alī (عليه السلام) and hated him until he killed him (عليه السلام).[3]

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[1] al-Majlisī said this ḥadīth is Ḥasan (Good) (See: al-Majlisī, Mir’āt al-`Uqūl, vol. 26, pg. 178)

[2] Hādī al-Najafī said this ḥadīth has a Ṣaḥīḥ Isnād (See: Hādī al-Najafī, Mawsū`ah Aḥādīth Ahl al-Bayt, vol. 4, pg. 445, ḥadīth # 5115; vol. 5, pg. 305, ḥadīth # 6058; vol. 8, pg. 333, ḥadīth # 10164)

[3] al-Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 8, pg. 234, ḥadīth # 311

Bibliography

al-Kulaynī. al-Kāfī. Ed. `Alī Akbar al-Ghaffārī. 3rd. 8 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1388.

al-Majlisī. Mir’āt Al-`Uqūl. 26 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1410.

al-Najafī, Hādī. Mawsū`ah Aḥādīth Ahl al-Bayt. 1st. 12 vols. Beirut: Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth al-`Arabī, 1423/2002.

Dhul Qarnayn

I was asked a question via the Contact Us form of the blog, about Dhu’l Qarnayn and his identity. Here is the Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) ḥadīth we have detailing who was Dhu’l Qarnayn. This ḥadīth is also supported by other Ṣaḥīḥ aḥādīth we have that states that both al-Khiḍr and Dhu’l Qarnayn were not prophets, but they were righteous servants of Allāh.

This post is not about the identity of Dhu'l Qarnayn, because it is not stated in authentic ḥadīth who he is, therefore I will not resort to dhann (speculation) as some scholars have done.

Inshā’Allāh, I will make a lengthy article responding to those people who claim that al-Khiḍr was a prophet of Allāh (عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ).

This ḥadīth is narrated in `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. Bābuwayh al-Qummī’s[1] (al-Ṣadūq’s father) book al-Imāmah wa al-Tabṣirah[2], al-Ṣadūq’s Kamāl (or, Ikmāl) al-Dīn[3] and al-Rawāndī’s Qasas al-Anbiyā’[4], with the same chain of narrators. This same ḥadīth is also narrated in al-`Ayyāshī’s Tafsīr, with a truncated chain from Abī Baṣīr[5].

سعد بن عبد الله ، عن أحمد بن محمد بن عيسى ، عن علي بن النعمان ، عن هارون بن خارجة ، عن أبي بصير ، عن أبي جعفر عليه السلام قال : إن ذا القرنين لم يكن نبيا ، ولكنه كان عبدا صالحا أحب الله فأحبه الله ، وناصح لله فناصحه الله ، أمر قومه بتقوى الله ، فضربوه على قرنه ، فغاب عنهم زمانا ، ثم رجع إليهم ، فضربوه على قرنه الآخر ، وفيكم من هو على سنته

 Sa`ad b. `Abd Allāh[6] narrated from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa[7] from `Alī b. al-Nu`mān[8] from Hārūn b. Khārijah[9] from Abī Baṣīr[10] from Abī Ja`far (عليه السلام) said, “Dhu’l Qarnayn was not a prophet, but he was a righteous slave, he loved Allāh, and Allāh loved him. He was an adviser of Allāh, and Allāh advised him. He commanded his people to taqwa of Allāh, and they hit him on the (side) of his head, and he disappeared from them for a time, then he returned to them and they hit him on his other (side) of his head, and there is among you who is upon his sunnah (tradition)”[11]

`Āṣif al-Muḥsinī has said this ḥadīth is Ṣaḥīḥ (Authentic) in his Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār[12], he also says that there is a ḥadīth that alludes to Dhu’l Qarnayn being a prophet of Allāh[13], but it is da`īf (weak)[14].

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[1] He is thiqah (trustworth) according to al-Najāshī, al-Tūsī’s Rijāl and al-Fihrist (See: al-Najāshī, Rijāl, pg. 261, person # 648;  al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 432, person # 6191 (in book); al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 273, person # 393)

[2] `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. Bābuwayh, al-Imāmah wa al-Tabṣirah, Ch. on Ghaybah, pg. 121, ḥadīth # 116

[3] al-Ṣadūq, Kamāl al-Dīn, vol. 2, ch. 38, section on Dhu’l Qarnayn, pg. 393, ḥadīth # 1, with a chain from his father:

al-Ṣadūq – from his father – Sa`ad b. `Abd Allāh – Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa -- `Alī b. al-Nu`mān – Hārūn b. Khārijah – Abī Baṣīr – Abī Ja`far (عليه السلام)

[4] Quṭb al-Dīn al-Rawāndī, Qaṣaṣ al-Anbiyā’, pg. 120 with his chain from al-Rawāndī to al-Ṣadūq

Al-Adīb Abū `Abd Allāh al-Ḥussayn al-Mu’addab al-Qummī – Ja`far al-Dawraysī – his father – al-Ṣadūq – from his father – Sa`ad b. `Abd Allāh – Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa -- `Alī b. al-Nu`mān – Hārūn b. Khārijah – Abī Baṣīr – Abī Ja`far (عليه السلام)

[5] al-`Ayyāshī, Tafsīr, vol. 2, pg. 339-340, ḥadīth # 72

                From Abī Baṣīr – Abī Ja`far (عليه السلام)

[6] Sa`ad b. `Abd Allāh b. al-`Asharī al-Qummī is thiqah according to al-Najāshi al-Ṭūsī (See: al-Najāshī, Rijāl, pg. 178, person # 467; al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 427, person # 6141; al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 75, person # 306)

[7] Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. `Īsa is thiqah according to al-Najāshī and al-Ṭūsī  (See: al-Najāshī, Rijāl, pg. 81-83, person # 198; al-Ṭūsī, al-Rijāl, pg. 351, person # 5197; al-Ṭūsī, al-Fihrist, pg. 61, person # 75)

[8] `Alī b. al-Nu`mān al-`Alam al-Nakha’ī is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, Rijāl, pg. 274, person # 719)

[9] Hārūn b. Khārijah Kūfī is thiqah according to al-Najāshī (See: al-Najāshī, Rijāl, pg. 437, person # 1176)

[10] Abū Baṣīr here could be either Yaḥya b. Abī al-Qāsim al-Asadī or Layth b. al-Bakhtarī al-Murādī, it wouldn’t matter since both of them are thiqah, al-Khoei discusses this in depth in his Mu`jam Rijāl al-Ḥadīth (See: al-Khoei, Mu`jam Rijāl al-Hadīth, vol. 22, pg. 49-66, person # 13988)

[11] `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. Bābuwayh, al-Imāmah wa al-Tabṣirah, Ch. on Ghaybah, pg. 121, ḥadīth # 116

[12] `Āṣif al-Muḥsinī, Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 1, pg. 276

[13] al-Majlisī, Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 12, ch. 8, pg. 181, ḥadīth # 9, originally quoting from al-Ṣadūq’s al-Khiṣāl, vol. 1, ch. 4, pg. 248, ḥadīth # 110

[14] al-Muḥsinī, Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār, vol. 1, pg. 275

Bibliography

al-`Ayyāshī. Tafsīr, . Ed. Hāshim al-Rasūlī al-Maḥlātī. 2 vols. Tehran: al-Maktabah al-`Ilmiyyah al-Islāmiyyah, 1380.

al-Khoei. Mu`jam Rijāl al-Hadīth. 5th. 24 vols. 1413.

al-Majlisī. Bihār al-Anwār. 4th. 110 vols. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1362.

al-Muḥsinī, `Āṣif. Mashra`ah Bihār al-Anwār. 2nd. 2 vols. Beirut: Mu’assasah al-`Ārif lil-Maṭbū`āt, 1426/2005.

al-Najāshī. Rijāl. Ed. Musa al-Shabiri al-Zanjani. 5. 1 vols. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1416.

al-Rawāndī, Quṭb al-Dīn. Qaṣaṣ al-Anbiyā’. 1 vols. Mashhad: Mu’assasah al-Buhūth al-Islāmiyyah, 1409.

al-Ṣadūq. al-Khiṣāl. 2nd. 1 vols. Qum: Mu'assasah al-Nashr al-Islami, 1403.

—. Kamāl al-Dīn. 2nd. 2 vols in 1 vols. Qum: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyyah, 1395/1975.

al-Ṭūsī. al-Fihrist. Najaf: al-Maktabah al-Raḍawiyyah, n.d.

—. al-Rijāl. 1st. Qum: Mu’assasah al-Nashr al-Islāmī, 1415.

Bābuwayh, `Alī b. al-Ḥussayn b. al-Imāmah wa al-Tabṣirah. 1st. 1 vols. Qum: Madrisah al-Imām al-Mahdī, 1404.