و إن الناس لما صح لهم عن رسول الله ص أمر الغيبة الواقعة بحجة الله تعالى ذكره على خلقه وضع كثير منهم الغيبة غير موضعها - أَوَّلُهُمْ عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ فَإِنَّهُ قَالَ لَمَّا قُبِضَ النَّبِيُّ ص وَ اللَّهِ مَا مَاتَ مُحَمَّدٌ وَ إِنَّمَا غَابَ كَغَيْبَةِ مُوسَى عليه السلام عَنْ قَوْمِهِ وَ إِنَّهُ سَيَظْهَرُ لَكُمْ بَعْدَ غَيْبَتِهِ.
حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ الصَّقْرِ الصَّائِغُ الْعَدْلُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْعَبَّاسِ بْنِ بَسَّامٍ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَزْدَادَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا نَصْرُ بْنُ سَيَّارِ بْنِ دَاوُدَ الْأَشْعَرِيُّ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ رَبِّهِ وَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ خَالِدٍ السَّلُولِيُّ أَنَّهُمَا قَالا حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو مَعْشَرٍ نَجِيحٌ الْمَدَنِيُّ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ قَيْسٍ وَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ كَعْبٍ الْقُرَظِيُّ وَ عُمَارَةُ بْنُ غَزِيَّةَ وَ سَعِيدُ بْنُ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْمَقْبُرِيُ وَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَبِي مُلَيْكَةَ وَ غَيْرُهُمْ مِنْ مَشِيخَةِ أَهْلِ الْمَدِينَةِ قَالُوا لَمَّا قُبِضَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ص أَقْبَلَ عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ يَقُولُ وَ اللَّهِ مَا مَاتَ مُحَمَّدٌ وَ إِنَّمَا غَابَ كَغَيْبَةِ مُوسَى عَنْ قَوْمِهِ وَ أَنَّهُ سَيَظْهَرُ بَعْدَ غَيْبَتِهِ فَمَا زَالَ يُرَدِّدُ هَذَا الْقَوْلَ وَ يُكَرِّرُهُ حَتَّى ظَنَّ النَّاسُ أَنَّ عَقْلَهُ قَدْ ذَهَبَ فَأَتَاهُ أَبُو بَكْرٍ وَ قَدِ اجْتَمَعَ النَّاسُ عَلَيْهِ يَتَعَجَّبُونَ مِنْ قَوْلِهِ فَقَالَ ارْبَعْ عَلَى نَفْسِكَ يَا عُمَرُ مِنْ يَمِينِكَ الَّتِي تَحْلِفُ بِهَا فَقَدْ أَخْبَرَنَا اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ فِي كِتَابِهِ فَقَالَ يَا مُحَمَّدُ إِنَّكَ مَيِّتٌ وَ إِنَّهُمْ مَيِّتُونَ فَقَالَ عُمَرُ وَ إِنَّ هَذِهِ الْآيَةَ لَفِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ يَا أَبَا بَكْرٍ فَقَالَ نَعَمْ أَشْهَدُ بِاللَّهِ لَقَدْ ذَاقَ مُحَمَّدٌ الْمَوْتَ و لم يكن عمر جمع القرآن.
[Al-Saduq says:] The Holy Prophet had made the matter of occultation perfectly imaginable such that some people tried to relate it at wrong occasions. Umar bin al-Khattab was the first to do so. When the Holy Prophet passed away, he declared: By Allah! Muhammad has not passed away. He is not but in occultation like Musa was. He will surely return to you after his occultation.
It is narrated from Ahmad bin Muhammad Saqar the goldsmith who was just, from Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin al-Abbas ibn Basaam from Abu Ja’far Muhammad bin Yazdan from Nasr bin Sayyar bin Dawood Ashari from Muhammad bin Abde Rabb and Abdullah bin Khalid al-Sulooli from Abu Masher Najeeh al-Madani from Muhammad bin Qais and Muhammad bin Kaab al-Qarzi and Imarah bin Ghazya and Saeed bin Abi Saeed al-Maqbari and Abdullah bin Abi Maleeka and other seniors of Medina that: “When the Holy Prophet ﷺ passed away, Umar bin al-Khattab came saying: By Allah, Muhammad has not passed away. He is not but in occultation like Musa went away from his Ummah. He will surely return to you shortly after his occultation. He was repeating these words so much that people began to think that he is out of his mind. People were surprised at what Umar was speaking and surrounded him. Then Abu Bakr came to him and said: O Umar! Behold, do not swear by that name. Certainly, the Almighty Allah has mentioned in his book: Surely you shall die and they (too) shall surely die. (39:30) Umar asked: O Abu Bakr! Is this verse really present in the book of Allah? He replied: Yes, I bear witness that Muhammad has passed away. It was either because Umar had not studied the entire Holy Quran or he didn’t remember this verse.
