Library Al-Muraja'at = Sayyid 'Abd al-Husayn Sharaf al-D Letter 62
Letter 62
- Details
- Hits: 3147
Letter 62
Forty Ahadith
Safar 2, 1330
Yes, we will narrate to you consecutively reported ahadith with which the Sunnis are not familiar. These are narrated by members of the purified progeny of Muhammad (pbuh), of which we relate forty:[1]
1) Al¬Saduq Muhammad ibn `Ali ibn al¬Husayn ibn Babawayh al¬Qummi has included in his book Ikmal ad¬Din wa Itmam al¬Ni`mah, as transmitted by `Abdul¬Rahman ibn Samrah, one particular hadith in which the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, addresses `Abdul¬Rahman thus: "O Abu Samrah! If views differ and opinions vary, then refer to `Ali ibn Abu Talib, for he is my nation's Imam, and my successor over them after me."
2) In the same reference, i.e. the Ikmal, al¬Saduq quotes Ibn `Abbas narrating one hadith in which the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, says: "Allah, the Praised One and the Sublime, cast a scrutinizing look at the inhabitants of the earth and chose me from among them to be the Prophet, then he cast another look and chose `Ali as the Imam and commanded me to take him as my brother, and appoint him as the wali and vizier."
3) Al¬Saduq, also in the Ikmal, traces one hadith to Imam al¬Sadiq (as) who quotes his father and ancestors citing the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, saying: "Gabriel has told me that the Lord of Power, exalted is His Greatness, has said: `Whoever comes to know that I am the Lord without any partner, and that Muhammad is my Servant and Messenger, that Ali ibn Abu Talib is Muhammad's successor, and that the Imams from his descendants are My Arguments, then I would let him enter Paradise through My Mercy.'"
4) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, traces another hadith to Imam al¬Sadiq (as) who quotes his father and grandfather citing the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, saying: "The Imams after me are twelve: The first is `Ali and the last is al¬Qa'im [al¬Mahdi]; they are my successors and the executors of my will."
5) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, traces yet another hadith to al¬Asbagh ibn Nabatah who says that the Commander of the Faithful `Ali ibn Abu Talib (as) once approached, his hand in the hand of his son al¬Hasan, and said: "The Messenger of Allah once came to us and his hand was in mine like this, saying: `The best of creation after me, and their master, is this brother of mine who is the Imam of every Muslim, the prince of every believer after me.'"
6) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, tracing one hadith to Imam al¬Rida (as) who quotes his forefathers citing the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, saying: "Whoever likes to uphold my religion and embark upon the Ark of Salvation after me, let him follow the example of `Ali ibn Abu Talib, for he is the executor of my will, and my vicegerent over my nation during my lifetime and after my demise."
7) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, attributes another hadith by the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, to Imam al¬Rida (as) who quotes his ancestors stating that the Prophet (pbuh) once said: "I and `Ali are the fathers of this nation; whoever knows us very well also knows Allah, and whoever denies us also denies Allah, the Unique, the Mighty. And from `Ali's descendants are my grandsons al¬Hasan and al¬Husayn, who are the masters of the youths of Paradise, and from al¬Husayn's descendants shall be nine: whoever obeys them obeys me, and whoever disobeys them also disobeys me; the ninth among them is their Qa'im and Mahdi."
8) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, traces another hadith through isnad to Imam al¬Hasan al¬`Askari (as) who quotes his ancestors up to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, addressing Ibn Mas`ud thus: "O Ibn Mas`ud! `Ali ibn Abu Talib is your Imam after me; he is my successor over you."
9) Quoting one hadith related by Salman, al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, says that once Salman visited the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, and found al¬Husayn ibn `Ali (as) sitting on his lap, and the prophet was kissing him and saying: "You are a master, son of a master, an Imam and son of an Imam, brother of an Imam, father of Imams, and you are Allah's Argument, the son of His Argument (Hujjah), and father of nine Arguments from your loins, the ninth of them is their Qa'im."
10) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, quotes another hadith traced also to Salman who quotes a lengthy hadith by the Messenger of Allah in which he (pbuh) says: "O Fatima! Have you not come to know that we are Ahl al¬Bayt? Allah has made the Hereafter dearer to us than this life, and Allah the Exalted, Praised is His Name, cast a look at the inhabitants of the earth and chose me from among His creation; then he cast a second look and chose your husband and inspired me to marry you to him and take him as wali and vizier, and to make him my successor over my nation. So, your father is the best of prophets, your husband is the best of wasis, and you are the first to join me."
11) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, quotes a lengthy hadith and mentions in it that a meeting of over two hundred men from the Muhajirun (Meccan Immigrants) and the Ansar (Medenite Supporters) were seeking knowledge and studying jurisprudence, and that each one of them started bragging about himself, while `Ali (as) remained silent. They asked him: "O father of al¬Hasan, what stops you from saying something?" In response to their question, he (as) only reminded them of a statement made by the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) in which he said: "`Ali is my brother, vizier, heir, executor of my will, successor over my nation, and the wali of every believer after me; so, admit all of this about him."
12) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, quotes a lengthy hadith narrated by `Abdullah ibn Ja`fer, al¬Hasan, al¬Husayn, `Abdulllah ibn `Abbas, `Umer ibn Abu Salamah, Usamah ibn Ziyad, Salman, Abu Tharr al-Ghifari, and al¬Miqdad who all say that they heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: "I have more authority over the believers than the believers themselves have; my brother `Ali has after me more authority over the believers than the believers themselves have."
13) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal ad-Din wa Itmam al-Ni`mah, quotes al¬Asbagh ibn Nabatah who cites Ibn `Abbas saying that he heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, saying, "I, `Ali, al¬Hasan, al¬Husayn, and nine from the progeny of Husayn are Purified."
14) Al¬Saduq has also quoted in his Ikmal Ibn Abayah ibn Rab`i citing Ibn `Abbas saying that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, has said: "I am the master of the Prophets, while `Ali is the master of the wasis."
15) Al¬Saduq has also quoted in his Ikmal one hadith transmitted by Imam al¬Sadiq (as) through isnad stating that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) has said: "Allah, the Exalted, the Almighty, favoured me over all other prophets, and favoured `Ali over all other wasis, and favoured from `Ali's descendants al¬Hasan and al¬Husayn, and chose from al¬Husayn's progeny the wasis who safeguard the faith against the distortion of extermists, the adulteration of liars, and the misinterpretations of those who have strayed."
16) Al¬Saduq, also in his Ikmal, has quoted `Ali (as) citing the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, saying: "The Imams after me are twelve: the first of them is `Ali, and the last is al¬Qa'im through whom Allah, the Exalted and the Mighty, shall open the east of the earth as well as the west."[2]
17) Al¬Saduq has also quoted in his Amali a lengthy hadith narrated by `Ali (as) in which the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, says, "`Ali is of me, and I am of `Ali who is created of my own mould; he solves people's disputes regarding my Sunnah; he is the Commander of the Faithful, the leader of the foremost among all men, and the best of wasis."
18) Al¬Saduq, also in his Amali, has quoted another lengthy hadith reported by `Ali (as) in which the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, says: "`Ali is the Commander of the Faithful according to the Wilayat of Allah, the Exalted and the Mighty, which He tied in a knot upon His Throne and required the angels to witness; `Ali is Allah's Vicegerent and Proof [Hujjatullah]; he is the Imam of the Muslims."
19) Al¬Saduq, also in his Amali, has quoted Ibn `Abbas relating that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, has said: "O `Ali! You are the Imam of the Muslims, the Commander of the Faithful, the leader of the foremost renown of all men, Allah's Proof after me, and the master of all wasis."
20) Al¬Saduq, also in his Amali, has cited Ibn `Abbas quoting the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: "O `Ali! You are my successor over my nation, and you are to me like Seth to Adam."
21) Al¬Saduq, also in his Amali, has quoted Abu Tharr al¬Ghifari saying, ""We were once in the company of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) at his mosque when he said: `A man will enter through this door who is the Commander of the Faithful and the Imam of the Muslims,' whereupon `Ali ibn Abu Talib came in, and the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) welcomed him, turned his glorious face to us and said: `This is your Imam after me.'"
22) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has cited Jabir ibn `Abdullah al¬Ansari quoting the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: "`Ali ibn Abu Talib is the foremost among them in accepting Islam, and he is the most learned... He is the Imam and successor after me."
23) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted one hadith correct through isnad related by Ibn `Abbas who quotes the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: "O people! Whose words are better than Allah's? Your Lord, Mighty is His Grace, has commanded me to assign `Ali over you as the most outstanding Imam, as my own successor and executor of my will, and that you should regard him as my brother and vizier."
24) In his Amali, al¬Saduq also quotes one hadith correct through isnad narrated by Abu `Ayyash who says: "The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) once ascended the pulpit and delivered a sermon in which he said: `My cousin `Ali is also my brother, vizier, successor, and the one who pays my dues on my own behalf.'"[3]
25) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted one hadith correct through isnad reported by the Commander of the Faithful who says: "Once, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) delivered a sermon in which he said: `O people! The month of Allah has approached,' and he continued his sermon recounting the attributes of the month of Ramadan. I asked: `O Messenger of Allah! What is the best of deeds in this month?' He replied: `It is staying away from whatever Allah has forbidden you,' then he burst weeping, so I inquired: `What grieves you, O Messenger of Allah?' and he answered: `O `Ali! I am grieving at what horrible forbidden things that will happen to you in the same month,' adding, `You are my wasi, the father of my descendants, and my successor over my nation during my lifetime and after my death; your bidding is as good as mine, and so is your forbidding.'"
26) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has quoted another hadith narrated by `Ali, peace be upon him, thus: "The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) has said: `O `Ali! You are my brother and I am yours; I have been chosen to be the Prophet while you have been chosen to be the Imam; I take charge of the revelation [of the Holy Qur'an] while you take charge of its implementation; you are the father of this nation. O `Ali! You are my wasi and vicegerent, my vizier and heir, and the father of my offspring.'"
27) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted one hadith the isnad of which is authentic as transmitted by Ibn `Abbas who says: "While the Ansar were assembling at Quba' Mosque, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: `O `Ali! You are my brother and I am yours; you are the executor of my will and my own successor, and the Imam of my nation after me: Allah will assist whoever assists you, and He will be the enemy of whoever antagonizes you.'"
28) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted a lengthy hadith narrated by Ummu Salamah in which the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) addresses her thus: "O Ummu Salamah! Listen and bear witness: This `Ali ibn Abu Tlib is the executor of my will; he is my successor, the one who tries my enemies, and the one who safeguards my Pool [of al¬Kawthar]."
29) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted Salman al-Farisi saying, "I have heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: `O Muhajirun and Ansar! Shall I lead you to that which, as long as you adhere to, shall never let you stray after me?' They said: `O yes, Messenger of Allah!' He (pbuh) said: `This `Ali is my brother and the executor of my will, my vizier, heir and successor; he is your Imam; therefore, love him as much as I love him, and respect him as much as I respect him, for Gabriel has enjoined me to say so to you.'"
30) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has also quoted through isnad one hadith related by Zayd ibn Arqam in which the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is quoted saying: "Shall I lead you to that which, as long as you adhere to, will protect you against annihilation and straying? Your Imam and wali is `Ali ibn Abu Talib (as); therefore, do support him, listen to his counsel, and believe in him, for Gabriel has ordered me to say so to you."
31) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has quoted Ibn `Abbas relating one hadith in which the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says: "Allah, the Praised, the Sublime, has inspired to me: `I have selected from your nation a brother and heir for you, a successor and executor of your will.' I inquired: `O Lord! Who is he?' He replied: `It is he who loves me and I love him...,' till He said in His divine statement: `It is `Ali ibn Abu Talib.'"
32) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has quoted Ibn `Abbas citing another hadith related by his ancestors in which the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) says: "During my isra' (night journey), my Lord, Exalted is His Might, promised me that `Ali is the Imam of the pious, the leader of the foremost among renown men, the religion's chief."
34) In his Amali, al¬Saduq has quoted one hadith through isnad to Imam al¬Rida (as) who quotes his ancestors citing the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying: "`Ali is of me, and I am of `Ali; may Allah wage war against those who fight `Ali; `Ali, indeed, is the Imam of creation after me."
35) Abu Ja`fer Muhammad ibn al¬Hasan al¬Tusi, the sect's shaykh, in his Amal quotes one hadith narrated by `Ammar ibn Yasir in which the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is quoted telling `Ali, "Allah has decorated you in a way that is most dear to Him: through asceticism to the extent that you do not feel deprived of any of this life's pleasures, and none of them feels deprived of you, and He has endowed you with the love for the destitute, making their fellowship welcomed by you, and they welcome you as their Imam; therefore, congratulations to whoever loves you and believes in you, and woe unto whoever hates you and tells lies about you."
36) In his Amali, Shaykh al¬Saduq has also quoted one hadith through isnad to `Ali (as) who has said while preaching from Kufa's pulpit: "O people! The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) granted me ten attributes that are dearer to me than anything upon which the sun shines: He (pbuh) has said to me: `O `Ali! You are my brother in this life and the life hereafter, and you are the closest to me among all creation on the Day of Resurrection; your residence in Paradise faces mine; you are my heir, the executor of my will after me, faring with both my foes and family; you protect my family on my own behalf during my absence; you are my nation's Imam; you execute justice among my followers; you are my friend, and my friend is the friend of Allah; your enemy is my enemy, and my enemy is surely the enemy of Allah.'"
37) In al¬Saduq's book titled Al-Nusus `ala al-A'Imma, which contains texts relevant to the Imams, al¬Hasan ibn `Ali (as) is quoted saying: "I have heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) say the following to my father: `And you are the inheritor of my knowledge, the substance of my own judgment, and the Imam after me.'"
38) Also in his work containing texts about the Imams, al¬Saduq quotes `Umran ibn Hasin saying: "I have heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) say to `Ali, `You are the Imam and successor after me.'"
39) Also in his same work, al¬Saduq quotes `Ali (as) citing the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) saying to him: "O `Ali! You are the wasi over those who have died among my household, and the caliph of those who are alive among my nation."
40) Also in the same reference cited above, al¬Saduq quotes al¬Husayn ibn `Ali (as) saying: "When Allah revealed the verse: `And those who are kin of each other are more worthy of each other in the Book of Allah,' I asked the Messenger of Allah to interpret it, and he said: `You are the kin; when I die, your father `Ali is the most worthy of me and my station; when your father dies, your brother al¬Hasan is most worthy of it; and if al¬Hasan dies, then you are most worthy of his station.'"
This is the conclusion of what we wanted to quote in such a hurry. Its ratio to the remainder of the texts is like that of one bouquet to the remainder of all flowers, or the drop of water to the ocean; yet a portion should suffice; praise be to the Lord of the worlds, Wassalam.
Sincerely,
Sh
-----------------------------------
[1] This much suffices due to the fact that we have narrated quite a few ahadith from sources such as the Commander of the Faithful `Ali ibn Abu Talib (as), `Abdullah ibn `Abbas, `Abdullah ibn Mas`ud, `Abdullah ibn `Umer, Abu Sa`id al-Khudri, Abul-Darda', Abu Hurayrah, Anas ibn Malik, Ma`ath ibn Jabal, quoting various sources, all stating that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his progeny, has said: "Whoever teaches my nation forty ahadith related to its faith, Allah will resurrect him on the Day of Judgment in the company of the faqihs and the learned." In another wording of the same hadith, "Allah will resurrect him as a learned faqih." According to Abul-Darda', the statement reads: "I will include him in my intercession on the Day of Judgment, and he shall be a witness." According to Ibn Mas`ud, "It will be said to him: `Enter Paradise from whichever gate you please.'" According to Ibn `Umer's narration, "... he will be included with the men of knowledge, and be resurrected in the company of martyrs." Suffices us in learning these forty ahadith and others included in all our Letters his statement, peace be upon him and his progeny, "Allah will look after whoever listens to my statement, comprehends it and conveys it just as he heard it." And also his hadith: "Let those of you who witness [my Sunnah] convey it to those who are absent."
[2] This hadith and the ones before it exist in a chapter containing what has been narrated about the Prophet (pbuh) regarding the Qa'im, and that he is the twelfth in the line of Imams; it is Chapter Twenty-Four of Ikmal ad-Din wa Itmam al-Ni`mah, pages 149-167.
[3] This hadith, together with the four preceding it, is quoted from al-Saduq's Ghayat al-Maram. These are quite lengthy, and we have quoted from them whatever testifies to our argument. As regarding the ahadith which succeed it, they are to be found in Chapter 13 of Ghayat al-Maram.
