H 76 - Ja’far bin Muhammad bin Malik has narrated from Muhammad bin Husain bin Abil Khattab from Muhammad bin Abi Umair from Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Abi Nasr – an inhabitant of Mehran – like all inhabitants of this place, he was also a follower of the Waqifite sect. He narrates that he wrote a letter to Abul Hasan Ridha and in order to harass him wanted to pose some difficult questions to him. He says: Initially, I wrote a letter to him; after that I said to myself: when I meet him, I would ask him three important questions about the Holy Quran: like for example [40th verse of Surah Zukhruf], which says: “What! Can you then make the deaf to hear or guide the blind and him who is in clear error?” And verse 25 of Surah Anam, which says: “Therefore (for) whomsoever Allah intends that He would guide him aright, He expands his breast for Islam, and (for) whomsoever He intends that He should cause him to err, He makes his breast strait and narrow as though he were ascending upwards; thus does Allah lay uncleanness on those who do not believe.” And verse 56 of Surah Qasas, which says: “Surely you cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whom He pleases; and He knows best the followers of the right way.” Ahmad says: He replied to my letter and at the end he mentioned the verses about which I wanted to ask him and no one had any information about them. When I received his reply, I forgot what I had told myself, therefore, I said: What is this reply, which you have given me? After that I remembered that this was the reply of the same questions that I had myself prepared.