Twelve imams determined by Allah

Kitāb al-Ghayba|Volume 1|Book 2|Chapter 4

Kitāb al-Ghayba

Book 2, Chapter 4

Twelve imams determined by Allah

Ḥadīth #10

10 - وبهذا الإسناد عن عبد الرزاق، عن معمر، عن أبان، عن سليم بن قيس الهلالي قال: قلت لعلي: إنّي سمعتُ من سلمان ومن المقداد ومن أبي ذرّ أشياء من تفسير القرآن ومن الرواية عن رسول الله غيرَ ما في أيدي الناس ثم سمعتُ منك تصديقاً لما سمعت منهم، ورأيتُ في أيدى الناس أشياء كثيرةً من تفسير القرآن ومن الأحاديثِ عن رسول الله يخالفونهم فيها ويزعُمون أن ذلك كان كلّه باطلاً، أفَتُرى أنّهم يُكذّبون على رسول الله متعمّدين ويفسّرون القرآن بآرائهم؟ قال: فأقبلَ عليٌّ وقال: قد سألتَ فافهمِ الجوابَ: إنّ في أيدي الناس حقاً وباطلاً وصِدقاً وكذباً وناسخاً ومنسوخاً وخاصّاً وعامّاً ومُحكَماً ومتَشابهاً وحِفظاً ووَهماً، وقد كُذب على رسول الله على عهده حتى قام خطيباً فقال: أيّها الناس، قد كثُرتْ عليَّ الكذابةُ، فمَن كذب عليَّ متعمّداً فلْيتبوَّءْ مقعدَه من النارِ. ثم كُذبَ عليه مِن بعده. وإنما أتاك بالحديث أربعةٌ ليس لهم خامس: رجلٌ منافق مظهر للإيمان متصنّع للإسلام باللسان، لا يتأثّم ولا يتحرّج أن يكذبَ على رسول الله متعمداً، فلو علِم الناسُ أنه منافق كاذب ما قبِلوا منه ولم يصدقوه، ولكنّهم قالوا: هذا قد صحبَ رسولَ الله وقد رآه وسمع منه، وأخذوا عنه وهُم لا يعرفون حاله وقد أخبرك الله عن المنافقين بما أخبرك ووصفهم بما وصفهم، فقال: وَإِذَا رَأَيْتَهُمْ تُعْجِبُكَ أَجْسَامُهُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ يَقُولُوا تَسْمَعْ لِقَوْلِهِمْ ۖ كَأَنَّهُمْ خُشُبٌ مُسَنَّدَةٌ ۖ يَحْسَبُونَ كُلَّ صَيْحَةٍ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ هُمُ الْعَدُوُّ فَاحْذَرْهُمْ ۚ قَاتَلَهُمُ اللَّهُ ۖ أَنَّىٰ يُؤْفَكُونَ ﴾ ثم بقُوا بعد رسول الله وتقرّبوا إلى أئمة الضلال والدعاة إلى النار بالزور والكذب والبهتان حتى ولَّوهُم الأعمال وحملوهم على رقاب الناس وأكلوا بهم الدنيا، وإنما الناس مع الملوك والدنيا إلاّ مَن عصم اللهُ ، فهذا أحد الأربعة. ورجلٌ سمع من رسول الله شيئاً ولم يحفظْه على وجهه فتوهّم فيه ولم يتعمّد كذباً فهو في يديه ويقول به ويعمل به ويرويه ويقول: أنا سمعته من رسول الله . فلو علِم المسلمون أنّه وهم فيه لم يقبلوا منه، ولو علم هو أنه وهمٌ لرفضه. ورجل ثالث سمع من رسول الله شيئاً أمرَ به ثم نهى عنه وهو لا يعلم أو سمعه ينهى عن شيء ثم أمرَ به وهو لا يعلم، فحفظ المنسوخَ ولم يحفظ الناسخَ، ولو علم أنه منسوخ لرفضه، ولو علم الناس إذا سمعوا منه أنه منسوخ لرفضوه. ورجل رابعٌ لم يكذب على الله ولا على رسوله بُغضاً للكذب وخوفاً من الله وتعظيماً لرسول الله ولم يسْهُ، بل حفظَ الحديثَ على وجهه فجاء به كما سمعه لم يزِد فيه ولم يُنقصْ منه، وحفظ الناسخَ والمنسوخ، فعمل بالناسخ ورفض المنسوخ، وإن أمْرَ رسول الله ونهيَه مثلُ القرآن ناسخ ومنسوخ وعام وخاص ومحكم ومتشابه، قد كان يكون مِن رسول الله الكلام له وجهان: كلام عام وكلام خاص مثل القرآن، قال الله في كتابه مَا أَفَاءَ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ رَسُولِهِ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَىٰ فَلِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ وَلِذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ وَالْيَتَامَىٰ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ كَيْ لَا يَكُونَ دُولَةً بَيْنَ الْأَغْنِيَاءِ مِنْكُمْ ۚ وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانْتَهُوا ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ ۖ إِنَّ اللَّهَ شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ يسمعه مَن لا يعرف ولم يدرِ ما عنيَ الله ولا ما عنيَ به رسولُ الله . وليس كلُّ أصحابِ رسول الله كان يسأله عن الشيءَ فيفهم، وكان منهم مَن يسأله ولا يستفهم حتى أنهم كانوا ليُحبّون أن يجيء الأعرابيُّ أو الطاري فيسأل رسولَ الله حتى يسمعوا، وقد كنتُ أنا أدخل على رسولِ الله كل يوم دخلة وكل ليلة دخلة فيخليني فيها خلوةً أدور معه حيث دارَ وقد علِم أصحابُ رسول الله أنه لم يكن يصنع ذلك بأحدٍ من الناس غيري، فربما كان ذلك في بيتي، يأتيني رسول الله أكثر من ذلك في بيتي، وكنتُ إذا دخلت عليه بعضَ منازله أخلاني وأقام عنّي نساءَه، فلا يبقى عنده غيري. وإذا أتاني للخلوةِ معي في منْزلي لم تقُم عني فاطمةُ ولا أحدٌ من ابنيَّ وكنتُ إذا ابتدأتُ أجابني وإذا سكتُّ عنه وفنِيت مسائلي ابتدأني ودعا الله أن يحفظني ويفهمني، فما نسيتُ شيئاً قط مذ دعا لي، وإني قلتُ لرسول الله: يا نبيَّ الله إنك منذ دعوتَ الله لي بما دعوتَ لم أنْسَ ممّا علمتني شيئاً وما تُمليه عليَّ فلِم تأمرني بكتبه أتتخوف عليّ النسيان؟ فقال: يا أخي لست أتخوّف عليك النسيانَ ولا الجهل، وقد أخبرني الله أنه قد استجاب لي فيك وفي شُركائِك الذين يكونون مِن بعدك، وإنما تكتبه لهم. قلتُ: يا رسول الله ومَن شركائي؟ قال: الذين قرنهم الله بنفسه وبي، فقال: يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ ۖ فَإِنْ تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ وَأَحْسَنُ تَأْوِيلًا {59} فإنْ خِفتم تنازعاً في شيء فأرجِعوه إلى الله وإلى الرسول وإلى أولي الأمر منكم، فقلت: يا نبي الله ومَن هم؟ قال: الأوصياءُ إلى أن يرِدوا عليَّ حوضي، كلُّهم هادٍ مُهتدٍ، لا يضرُّهم خذلانُ مَن خذلهم، هم مع القرآن والقرآنُ معهم لا يفارقونه ولا يفارقهم، بهم تُنصر أمّتي ويُمطرون، ويُدفع عنهم بعظائم دعواتهم. قلتُ: يا رسول الله سمِّهم لي، فقال: ابني هذا - ووضع يدَه على رأس الحسن - ثم ابني هذا - ووضع يدَه على رأس الحسين -، ثم ابنٌ له على اسمِك يا عليّ، ثم ابنٌ له محمّد بن علي. ثمّ أقبل على الحسين وقال: سيولد محمّد بن علي في حياتك فأقرِئه مني السلام، ثم تكمله اثني عشر إماماً. قلت: يا نبيّ الله سمِّهم لي، فسمّاهم رجلاً رجلاً. منهم، واللهِ يا أخا بني هلال، مهديُّ هذه الأمّةِ الذي يملأُ الأرضَ قسطاً وعدلاً كما مُلئتْ ظلماً وجوراً.

(10) The previous series of narrators from Abdurrazak from Ma’mar from Abban that Sulaym bin Qayss al-Hilali had said: “I said to Ali : “I have heard from Salman, al-Miqdad and Abu Tharr some interpretations of the Qur’an and some traditions of the Prophet different from what the people have had with them and I heard from you what confirmed that I have heard from those men. In the meanwhile I found among the people some interpretations of the Qur’an and some prophetic traditions, in which they denied those interpretations and traditions (narrated by those three men) and claimed that they were false. Do you think that they (the people) ascribed false things to the Prophet and interpreted the Qur’an according to their own opinions?” Ali said: “With people there are truth and falsehood, abrogating and abrogated verdicts, special and general verdicts, allegorical and clear Qur’anic verses, memorization and illusion. False things were ascribed to the Prophet when he was still alive until he made a speech saying: “O people, the fabricators, who ascribed false things to me, became so many. Let him, who ascribes false things to me intendedly, take his seat in Hell.” Nevertheless many people ascribed false things to him after his death. The narrators of traditions are of four kinds; one is a hypocrite showing faith with his tongue only. He does not refrain from ascribing false things to the Prophet intendedly. If people know that he is a hypocrite and a liar, they will never believe him or accept anything from him but they see that he has accompanied the Prophet , has seen him and heard from him; therefore they trusted in him without knowing his reality. Allah has told us about the hypocrites and described them to us when saying, “And when you see them, their persons will please you, and If they speak, you will listen to their speech; (they are) as if they were big pieces of wood clad with garments; they think every cry to be against them. They are the enemy, therefore beware of them; may Allah destroy them, whence are they turned back.” They kept on that after the Prophet and approached to the deviant rulers, who invited people towards Hell via lies and fabrications. They entrusted them with positions and authorities and imposed them on people by force. They hastened towards the pleasures of this worldly life. In fact most of people follow the kings and look forward to the pleasures of this life except a few, whom Allah has guided. The other kind is a man, who heard something from the Prophet and could not memorize it correctly. He mistook when narrating it without intending to fabricate it. If the Muslims knew that he had mistaken, they would not accept a tradition from him and if he himself knew that his tradition was incorrect, he would deny it. The third is a man, who heard the Prophet ordering of something and then the Prophet prohibited it but the man did not know or he heard the Prophet prohibiting something and then he permitted it but the man did not know; therefore he memorized the abrogated verdict and ignored the abrogating verdict. If he knew that it had been abrogated, he would deny it and if people, when hearing it, knew that it had been abrogated, they would deny it. The fourth one is he, who never fabricates the sayings of Allah or the sayings of His messenger because he hates lying, fears Allah and glorifies the Prophet . He does not forget but he keeps the tradition as he hears it. He narrates it with no word more and no word less. He knows the abrogating and the abrogated verdicts. He acts according to the abrogating verdicts and refuses the abrogated ones. The orders and prohibitions of the Prophet are like those of the holy Qur’an; among them there are abrogating and abrogated verdicts, particular and general, allegorical and clear sayings. Allah says, “Whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it, and from whatever he forbids you, keep back.” Many people hear the allegorical sayings and do not know what Allah and His messenger mean. Not all of the Prophet’s companions used to ask about many things to understand them well. They often liked that a nomad or a passerby might ask the Prophet so that they would hear the answer. I used to come to the Prophet once in the day and once in the night. He let me alone with him. The Prophet’s companions knew well that the Prophet did not do that with anyone else than me. The Prophet often came to my house and when I came to him in one of his houses, he asked his wives to leave us alone. But when he came to my house, Fatima would stay with us and would not leave nor would any of my sons. If I began asking, he would answer me and if I finished my questions and became silent, he would begin talking to me and praying Allah to make me perceive and memorize. Since he has prayed Allah for me, I have never forgotten anything at all. Once I said to the Prophet : “O messenger of Allah, since you have prayed Allah for me, I have never forgotten anything of what you have taught me and dictated to me. But you have not ordered me to write it down. Do you not fear that I may forget?” He said: “O my brother, I do not fear that you may forget or ignore any thing. Allah has revealed to me that He has responded to my praying for you and your partners coming after you. But you are to write it down for them.” I asked: “O messenger of Allah, who are my partners?” He said: “They are those, whom Allah has connected with Himself and me when He said: (O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority from among you). If you fear that you may quarrel about something, then refer it to Allah, the Messenger and those of authority among you.” I said: “O messenger of Allah, who are they?” He said: “They are the guardians, one after the other, until they come to me at the pond (in Paradise). Every one of them is guided and he is a guide for people. They will not be affected by disappointment of anyone, who will disappoint them. They are with the Qur’an and the Qur’an is with them. They will not part with the Qur’an nor will it part with them. By them my umma will win and by their praying the heaven will rain for people and calamities will be away from them.” I said: “O messenger of Allah, would you tell me their names?” He said: “My son; this-and he put his hand on al-Hasan-then my son; this-he put his hand on al-Husayn-then his son, whose name will be like your name, O Ali, then Muhammad the son of Ali.” Then he turned towards al-Husayn and said: “Muhammad bin Ali will be born during your life. Give him my regards! Then will be the rest of the twelve imams.” I said: “O messenger of Allah, would you tell me their names?” He mentioned their names one after the other. O Sulaym, by Allah, from them is al-Mahdi of this umma. He will spread justice and equity allover the world after it has been filled with injustice and oppression.”