Regarding the Designation of Al-qa'imحَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ زِيَادِ بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ صَدَقَةَ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ عَبْدِ الْغَفَّارِ قَالَ: لَمَّا مَاتَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ الثَّانِي ع كَتَبَتِ الشِّيعَةُ إِلَى أَبِي الْحَسَنِ صَاحِبِ الْعَسْكَرِ ع يَسْأَلُونَهُ عَنِ الْأَمْرِ فَكَتَبَ ع الْأَمْرُ لِي مَا دُمْتُ حَيّاً فَإِذَا نَزَلَتْ بِي مَقَادِيرُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ آتَاكُمُ اللَّهُ الْخَلَفَ مِنِّي وَ أَنَّى لَكُمْ بِالْخَلَفِ بَعْدَ الْخَلَفِ.
8 - Narrated to us Ahmad bin Ziyad bin Ja’far (r.a.): Narrated to us Ali bin Ibrahim from his father from Ali bin Sadaqah from Ali bin Abdul Ghaffar that he said: “When Abu Ja’far the second passed away, the Shias wrote to Abul Hasan of Askar asking him about the position of Imamate. He wrote to them, ‘The position is mine as long I am alive. When the measures of Allah, the High, catch me, Allah will send my successor to you. And how would you be to the successor after the successor?’”
