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THE EXPECTED MAHDI

Who is Mahdi? His name is Muhammad, and his nickname is Abul-Qasim. His
titles are: - Al-Mahdi, which means the guided one, Al-Qaim the standing
because he is the current Imam or authority. Al-Muntazar meaning the awaited,
Al-Hujjah, the assignee or the proof of God, and his other title is Sahib-uz-
Zaman, which means the master of the age.

Mahdis father is Imam Hassan Al-Askari, who is the eleventh Imam. His
mothers name is Narjis, a descendant of the disciple Simon Peter, the vicegerent
of Jesus. Narjis was a Roman Princess and it was a sort of a miracle in the way
she got married to Imam Hassan Al-Askari, and subsequently to become the
mother of the last Imam, the Imam of the age.

Bashr Ibn Sulaiman narrates that, Imam Ali Al-Naqi who is the tenth Imam, the
grand father to Mahdi, wrote a letter and placed it in a red envelop together with
220 Dinars in gold coins then and said,

O Bashr!, take this and go to Bagdad to the ferry at the river where boats from
Syria are being offloaded. There you will see a slave trader named Amr Ibn
Yazid, observe when he exhibits a slave girl who is wearing two silk garments to
protect her from being seen or handled by the buyers. Then, you should Amr Ibn
Yazid that you have a letter written in Roman language from a certain nobleman.
You must give this letter to the girl to read. Bashr further narrates: - When I
carried out these instructions and gave the girl the letter so that she could read it,
she could not stop herself from crying as she read the letter. Then she said to
Amr Ibn Yazid, Sell me to the one who wrote this letter, for if you refuse, I will
surely kill myself.

I therefore, discussed the price of the girl with Amr; we agreed on the some
price as the money that the Imam had given me. I took the girl and she was very
happy. Filled with excitement she took the letter that the Imam had written from
her pocket and kissed it. I asked her why she was kissing a letter when she did
not even know its writer. She answered:-

How do you not know well the greatness of the successors of the prophet!? You
may listen to my life history; I am a princess the grand daughter of the Emperor
of Rome. My mother was a descendant of Simon the vicegerent of Jesus The
Emperor was anxious to marry me off to his nephew, he gathered a great crowd
at his cattle, including 300 monks and hermits, 700 noblemen and 400army
officials and the landed gentry. He had a special place which was laid with
jewels. It was placed in the court of the castle and had forty steps. At the head of
the steps, he had his nephew seated and around him where images standing.
Christian priests were there to pay him honour. They opened the New Testament
to read but suddenly, the poles holding the room all fell and the images all
crushed to the ground, the nephew fainted. The people gathering were over-
come with fear and the chief priest said, O king! Preserve us from witnessing
this ill-fated day. My grand father was extremely angry because the ceremony
had been disturbed. In my dreams the following night, I saw Jesus and his
disciples at the place where the building had been erected. There, they put a
pulpit and Muhammad, Ali and his descendants had come into the castle. Jesus
went forward and embraced Muhammad and the latter said:-

O spirit of God! I have come to seek the daughter of your successor Simon, for
my son Hassan Al-Askaris hand in marriage. Jesus looked at Simon and said:-

Nobility and glory has come to you in this opportunity to unite your mercy
with that of the family of Muhammad. After this, Simon ascended the pulpit
while Muhammad conducted the wedding ceremony.

After the dream, I wake up but did not dare to utter a word about the dream for
fear of my life. I could not help loving Hassan Al-Askari, because of that, I grew
thin and ill. My consulted every doctor in the city, but all in vain. Finally he
asked me if there was any desire in my heart that he could satisfy. I replied that
the doors of pleasure where closed for me, however, if he could set free the
Muslim prisoners, it could be possible that Jesus and his mother could help me.
My father did has I had asked him, after that, I ate a little food and felt better.

After a few days, I had another dream in which Fatima, the daughter of prophet
Muhammad and Mary mother of Jesus, came to me and they said:-

If you want God and Jesus to be placed with you, you must accept Islam. So I
declared, There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger.
Thereafter, I have been seeing Imam Al-Askari in my dreams every night.

Bashr feather asked her, But how did you come to be among the prisoners?
She replied:-

Imam Hassan told me that my father was planning to send an army to fight the
Muslims, and that I should disguise myself and some of my maids and go with
the army. I did as I was told, and before long, some Muslim guards captured us
and now you can see how it has turned out.

Bashr narrated this story when they reached Samarra. Upon arriving, Imam Ali
Al-Naqi welcomed them with both hands and informed the girl that she was to
be married to his son, Imam Hassan Al-Askari, as she had seen in her dreams.
He also told her that she was to be the mother of the one who will fill the earth
with justice. She was then put in the care of Hakimah, Imam Al-Naqis sister as
per Islamic custom.

THE BIRTH OF MAHDI

Mahdis birth greatly resembles that of Prophet Moses. The birth of Moses
signaled the down fall and extinction of Pharaoh's empire. Pharaoh, had ordered
that all the newly born children of the Israelites were to be killed because the
magicians had informed him that a prophet, who would bring an end to his rule,
was to be born from the Israelites.

Similarly, the Abbasid Kings were apprehensive of the traditions narrated by the
Holy Prophet about the birth of Imam MAHDI who was to bring a curse on all
unjust kingdoms. Therefore, they were very eager to know about the birth of this
Mahdi so that they could put an end to his life. But his birth was enveloped and
shielded by the same divine protection and miraculous phenomena which had
marked the historical birth of Prophet Moses.

Mahdis birth remained strictly confidential and his nursing shrouded in secrecy
except to a few devotees. He was born at the time of the reign of al-Muatamad
the Abbasid king who was fully aware of the prophecy that, the birth of the
twelfth Imam would occur during his reign. He naturally was very worried and
anxious to find him. This was the main reason for keeping Imam Mahdis birth a
secret. Upon the death of his father, Hassan Al-Askari, al-Muatamad was
informed that Al-Askaris funeral was conducted by his five year old son; al-
Muatamads perplexity knew no bounds.

There are more than 214 traditions about the birth of Imam Mahdi. However, we
shall look at some of them. One of them is narrated by Hakimah, the daughter of
the ninth Imam, Imam Muhammad Al-Taqi. She narrates to say that her nephew
Imam Al-Askari invited her saying:-

O auntie! Stay in my house tonight and break your fast with us, because it is the
night of 15th Shaaban that the Hujjar, who is Gods Hujjar on earth will be born.

She said she asked him who his mother was. The Imam answered Narjess.
Again she said, May God make my life your sacrifice, by God, she does not
show any signs of pregnancy. The Imam answered: That is I said to you.
Then I went in and when I greeted her and sat, she came to take off my socks
saying, O my master and master of my family how are you? I said, But you
are my master and master of my family. She answered, O auntie what are you
saying? I said my daughter, certainly God will offer you a son tonight who is
master in this world and the hereafter. When the sun had set and I finished my
evening prayer and broke the fast, I went to bed. At mid-night I got up for my
night prayer, she was sleeping and nothing had happened. Later on she got up,
performed her night prayer and slept again. Afterwards, I got out of the room to
look at the sky, it was nearly dawn and she was still sleeping. A sudden doubt
came to my mind, the Imam called out from his room saying: - Do not hurry O
auntie, the event is nearly near. I then recited surah 32 and 36 of the Quran, and
saw her undergoing labour. I hurried to her and said: - May Gods peace be
upon you, do not worry. Then I fainted and when I wake up, I saw my master
prostrating, I embraced him, and he was circumcised and clean.

The Imam called me to take the baby to him. He put his hand under the childs
legs and back and the childs feet on his chest and his tongue in his mouth, then
passed his hand on his eyes, ears and joints and said:-

Speak my son. The child said: - I bear witness that there is no god but Allah,
he has no partner and Muhammad is his messenger. Then he prayed for Ali
Amirul-Mumin and all the Imams (peace be upon them). Then his father told me
to take him to his mother so that he may greet her, and then take him back to
him. When I returned the child to his father, the father told me to go back there
after seven days. The next morning I went to say good morning to Abu
Muhammad (Imam Hassan Al-Askari), I was surprised that the child was not
there. I asked his father where the child was. He answered: O auntie, he has
been entrusted to God just as Moses was.

On the seventh day, I went to the Imam and sat next to him. He told me to bring
him his son. I took my master who was in a cloth; he did what he had gone
before, then put his tongue in his mouth as if feeding him with milk and honey
and said: Speak my child. The child said: I bear witness that there is no god
but Allah. He also prayed for Muhammad, Ali and all the Imams then recited
the following verse from the holy Quran, And we wish to bestow on those who
were weakened in the earth and to make them Imams and to make them the
heirs. (28: 4)

Thus the twelfth Imam, Imam Mahdi grew up under the cherishing care of his
father till the 8th of Rabi-ul-awwal 260 AH. That was the time when the Abbasid
tyrant Muatamad poisoned the eleventh Imam and Imam Mahdi retired into
seclusion by Gods command.
It is true that Jesus talked from the cradle, saying he was a servant of God.
Yahya whilst a boy was endowed with wisdom, i.e. apostleship. Holy Quran
(19: 12, 30)

The holy prophets and the chosen Imams from birth are gifted with the extra
ordinary power of receiving the divine blessings and expressing it to others.

SUCCESSORS OF THE HOLY PROPHET MUHAMMAD

It is clear that a doctor alone can take the place of a doctor or only an engineer
taking the place of another engineer. It is also natural that the successor of a
prophet should be but infallible, superior in knowledge and piety as the prophet
himself. Therefore, no one has the power to appoint anyone as successor of a
prophet except a prophet himself through revelation fro God. We do not need
any elections among men to nominate another man as a successor of the prophet.

In reference to this fact, the holy prophet Muhammad named his successors in
ascending order, mentioning that they are 12 Imams to succeed him, nothing
more nothing less. He also mentioned the names of the Imams, and that the last
of them all is Mahdi. All these Imams are purified by God himself (holy Quran
33: 33), they are of the same caliber and excellence and purity as the prophet
himself.

The holy prophet said: Ali and I are of one and the same light or

Ali and I are of the same tree, in another version. The names of the twelve
Infallible Imams are as follows:-

1) Ali Ibn Abu Talib, the immediate successor of the holy prophet

2) Hassan Al-Mujtaba,

3) Hussein Abu Abdullah Al-Shaheed

4) Ali, Sajjad Zain-ul-Abidin

5) Muhammad Al-Baqir

6) Jafar Al-Sadiq

7) Musa Al-Kazim
8) Ali Al-Reza

9) Muhammad Al-Javad Al-Taqi

10) Ali Al-Naqi Al-Hadi

11) Hassan Al-Askari

12) Muhammad Al-Mahdi, the awaited one.

The prophet also declared in unequivocal terms:

Whoever dies without knowing the Imam of his time dies a paganic death.
Hence it is the duty of every Muslim to know the Imam of his time. He will
also have to know his qualities so that he can recognize imposters.

SOME TRADITIONS ABOUT MAHDI FROM THE HOLY PROPHETS


FAMILY

There are numerous traditions from the holy prophet and his successors about
Mahdi the awaited one.

Ali Ibn Abu Talib, the first Imam said:

Mahdi the promised one will be our descendant in the last age, there was no
Mahdi in any age before to be awaited.

In another version; The ninth of Hussein's descendants would be the


propagator of Islam and justice.

Fatima, the daughter of the holy prophet narrates from her father;

Hussein is an Imam, father of nine Imams. These Imams are pious and the last
of them is their QAEM.

Hassan Ibn Ali the second Imam said:-

The Imams after the holy prophet are twelve; nine of them will descend from
my brother Hussein. And Mahdi of these people is one of them.

Hussein Ibn Ali the third Imam also narrates:-


The first of the twelve Imams is Ali Ibn Abi Talib and the last of them is the
ninth of my descendants. He will stand up for the truth and through him God
will give to the dead earth life. Through him, the true religion (Islam) shall
over power other religions and during his absence, many shall go astray and
only a few shall be true to their creed and they shall suffer for it. Those who
suffer in this cause shall have the same blessings as if they had fought in the
company of the prophet.

Imam Ali Ibn Hussein the forth Imam said:-

The birth of our QAEM shall remain so much a secret that the common
people will say he has not yet been born.

Muhammad Al-Baqir, the fifth Imam said:-

By God, Imamate (leadership) is a testament which reached us from the


massager of God. The Imams after the prophet are twelve, nine of the are
Hussein's descendants. The last one is Mahdi who will guard the religion in
the last age.

Jafar Al-Sadiq, the sixth Imam said:-

The fifth of the descendants of my son Musa Kazim, shall be the Mahdi.

Musa Kazim in reply to Yunus Abdurahman who asked the Imam if he was
the Qeam Bil-Haq, said:-

Yes I am but the Qeam who will clear the earth from the enemies of God, and
fill it with justice is the fifth of my descendants. He will disappear for a long
time during which many shall go astray and just a few shall remain faithful

Ali Reza the eighth Imam was asked by Rayan Salt if he was the Qeam. The
Imam answered:-

Yes I am, but I am not the one who shall fill the earth with justice.

In another version, when the poet, Daabal recited his famous eulogy to Imam
Reza, .And certainly our imam shall come and will stand by Gods name
and his blessings. He will distinguish between right and wrong among us, and
he will give rewards and punishment. The Imam wept and said:

O Daabal, the holy spirit recited these verses through your tongue. After me,
my son Muhammad shall be Imam and after him, his son Ali, Alis son
Hassan, shall succeed him, the successor of Hassan is Al-Hujjah Al-Qeam, the
awaited Imam. He shall disappear for a certain period of time. When he
reappears, all shall obey him, he will fill the earth with justice, after it had
been filled with tyranny and injustice. The time of his reappearance is not
known certainly my father narrated from his fathers, and his fathers from the
prophet who said, Mahdi shall appear suddenly.

Muhammad, Al Taqi the ninth Imam said to Abdu-Azeem al-Hasani:-

Our QEAM is the promised Mahdi who will be awaited in his concealment
and when he shall reappear, he will be obeyed. He is the third of my
descendants. By God who sent Muhammad as a messenger and made us
Imam, if only one day of this world remained, God would lengthen that day
till the appearance of Mahdi and fill the earth with justice as it had been filled
with oppression.

God will do this in one night as he had for Moses in one night. Moses had
gone to obtain fire for his wife but he returned with possession of prophet
hood.

The Imam further said: - waiting for the ease of Mahdis coming is the best
duty of our devotees.

The tenth Imam, Ali al Naqi said:-

After me, my son Hassan will be Imam, and after Hassan, his son who is the
QEAM. His justice will cover the whole earth.

The eleventh Imam, Hassan al Askari said:-

The period of my sons concealment will be so long that the people will doubt
his coming, except those whose faith is protected by God.

Ibn Abbas narrates that the holy prophet said;

I am the master of the apostles, Ali is the master of executors and certainly the
executors after me are twelve. The first one is Ali Ibn Abi Talib, and the last
one of them is Mahdi.

Umma Salama also relates that the holy prophet said:-

Al-Mahdi is from my family, he is a descendant of Fatima.

Jaber Samura narrates that he heard Gods messenger say:-


Islam will continue to be strong during the time of the twelve Imams, all of
them belong to the Quraish tribe.

Another version, Mens interests will continue to proceed well as long as they
are governed by the twelve men all of whom belong to Quraish.

Another version: - The religion will continue to be established till the last
hour comes and there are twelve caliphs all of whom belong to Quraish.

Abdullah Ibn Abbas related that the holy prophet said: Certainly my
successors, executors and the assignees of God to his creatures after me are
twelve, first of them is my brother and the last of them is my son. The
prophet was asked; Who is your brother and son. He answered; Ali son of
Abu Talib is my brother. And Mahdi who will fill the earth with justice as it
was filled with injustice and tyranny. By the one who has sent me as
announcer of the truth, if only one day of this world had remained, God would
lengthen that day until my son appeared. Then Jesus son of Mary would
descend and follow him in prayer. The earth will shine with his light and his
authority will reach East and West.

Salman Al-Farsi relates that one day the holy prophet had put Hussein son of
Ali on his lap. He was kissing Hussein's eyes and mouth and saying; You are
a master son of a master and father of masters, you are an Imam, brother of an
Imam, and father of Imams, you are a hujjah of God, son of Gods hujjah and
father of nine hujjahs. The ninth will be the QEAM.

Abu Zar Al-Ghaffari relates that the prophet said;

The Imams after me are twelve, nine of them are Hussein's descendants, and
the ninth of them is their QEAM.

Abdullah Ibn Masuaad reported that the prophet said;

The world will not pass away until the Arabs are ruled by a man from my
family whose name is the same as mine.

Abu Sayyid related that the holy prophet said;

The Mahdi of this people, who Jesus follows in prayer, is of us (Ahlul-Bait)


Then the prophet put his hand on Hussein's shoulder and said; Mahdi of this
people will descend from this child of mine.
THE QUALITIES OF MAHDI

The qualities of Mahdi are recorded in nearly all tradition books, and there
are also many books which were written about him before his birth. Here are
some of the titles of the numerous traditions.

1) Mahdi is a descendant of the prophet through his daughter Fatima

2) He is a descendant of Ali Ibn Abu Talib, Hussein and other eight Imams

3) Mahdis name and title is the same as the prophets

4) Mahdi is like the prophet in manner

5) His fathers name is Hassan and his mother is the best of bondmaids

6) Mahdi is the 12th Imam and seal of the Imams

7) He has two occultations, long and short period

8) His concealment is so long that the common people will doubt his coming

9) He will fill the earth with justice after it had been filled with injustice and
tyranny

10) In spite of living so many years, he is still a young man

11) Through him, Islam will spread all over the world and all its enemies
will be defeated.

12) Jesus will follow him in prayer

13) Some great events will occur before his appearance

14) In less than an hour, his313 companions will appear before him as well.

Some faithful Muslims have the honour to be visited by Mahdi. All Muslims
and of course some religions know about the coming of Mahdi.
OCCULTATION OF MAHDI

The occultation of the twelfth Imam is divided into two, thus long and short
period. During the short occultation, he was only accessible to his immediate
deputies and representatives. In this period the general believers could not
meet with him. Propagation of Islam was entrusted to various distinguished
scholars who worked as representatives and legates of the Imam.

In cities and villages, the Imam was represented by one person or more, and
these representatives were under one chief deputy of the Imam whose
permanent headquarters was in Baghdad. Through these representatives, the
Imam continued to guide people.

Up to the time of his disappearance, there are four men who acted as his chief
deputes. These men were appointed one after another and their names are:-

1) Othman Ibn Sayyid

He held office at the time of the tenth and eleventh Imams. He was the private
secretary and treasurer as well as a reliable person for both Imams. He worked
on their behave and his decisions were the same as those of the Imams

After the death of Imam Askari, Imam Mahdi appointed him as his personal
secretary too. He acted as his secretary from 260 H, until he died in Baghdad in
304 H.

2) Muhammad Ibn Othman

Muhammad succeeded his father as the chief deputy of Mahdi. During his
fathers life time, he served Imam Askari too.

3) Hussein Ibn Rooh

He was appointed by Imam Mahdi as his deputy after the death of


Muhammad Ibn Othman. He was respected by everyone and was
acknowledged as the most learnt man of that time. He died in 326 H.

4) Ali Ibn Muhammad Samarri

He was the last legate and he succeeded Hussein Ibn Rooh. A few days before
his death, he received a letter from Imam Mahdi telling him: - In the name of
God the Beneficent the merciful. May God grant patience to you brother on
your departure. You are going to die in six days, so be patient and appoint no
one after you. My special deputation will come to an end and the major and
second occultation will begin. It will continue until God grants permission
that I manifest myself. Beware of people who will claim to have seen me
before the heavenly announcement, for such people are liars and impostors.

Six days after receiving this letter, the last representative of Mahdi died. It
was in the year 329 H. Thus, the first concealment was from 260 H to 329H,
lasting about seventy years. Mahdi miraculously disappeared under divine
protection.

REASONS FOR THE OCCULTATION

Those who have studied the history of antiquity and ancient prophets are
similar several instances of various apostles of God who resorted to their
concealment as the only measure of shielding them from the hostile designs of
their enemies in compliance with the divine decree. After certain periods of
time, God unveiled those apostles and sent them back to their assigned posts
again. Even in the state of their concealment, they never failed in the execution
of their apostolical responsibilities; such as, Salih, Hood, Yunus, Jesus e.t.c.
Even prophet Muhammad remained in a state of concealment for days.

The same reason mentioned above is one of the reasons of Mahdis


concealment. According to some traditions, we do not know the real reason for
his concealment, but in compliance with Gods will, he disappeared and will
appear when he is commanded by God to do so.

MAHDIS LIFE AND HIS PARTICIPATION IN WORLDLY


AFFAIRS

Mahdi lives amongst us but is not recognized. It is only the pious ones, those
who are very faithful in religious matters, have the privilege of meeting him.
There are many stories told by those who have met him and they have also
written books about there encounter with the Imam of the age. Mahdi
performs the pilgrimage to Mecca guides and helps people. He maintains a
spiritual contact with those who develop their souls to a high degree of faith
and piety according to the Islamic teachings.
It is a known fact that if something is hidden, it does not mean that it can not
have influence on the things that are not hidden. Cosmic rays, electricity,
magnetic currents, thoughts, impulses, radiation, distant stars and millions of
objects known to exist and exert influence in the physical world, yet they can
not be seen by the naked eyes.

When the holy prophet was telling his companions about the twelfth Imam,
Jaber Ibn Abdullah asked him, How will the people benefit from him during
the time of his concealment? The prophet replied, Just like the way the
people benefit from the sun when it is hidden in the clouds.

TIME OF MAHDIS REAPPEARANCE

God alone knows the time when Mahdi will come. But according to some
traditions, many signs will occur before his coming. Such are like; the world
groaning under the yoke of tyranny, the value of human life will be no higher
than that of a flea or a gnat, bloodshed will be taken lightly, usury will be
considered lawful, the wicked will be respected for their capacity to do
mischief and the virtuous will be despised, suffering humanity will cry out to
despair. That will signal Mahdis re-appearance.

A divine announce will announce his name and his appearance. Upon hearing
this call, 313 men will be drawn towards him just like iron fillings are pulled
by a magnet. The men will form the nucleus army of the Imam. The world will
be prepared and the minds of men will be ready to aid his great revolt against
all evil.

THE PROLONGED LIFE OF MAHDI

It has often been argued that the belief in the Imam after so many centuries is
unreasonable. But is known that Mahdi was born and is living in terrestrial
form as a pivot and medium between the creator and his creatures.

For a person of great spiritual accomplishment, the question of the long life of
Mahdi does not arise. His soul is so strong and high that it is far from being
fettered with the conditions of matter

His will power controls his body and other material things, so his life and
death are under his disposal and his will is controlled by God. Science and
reason has not been able to tell that there is a fixed time for the length of life.
In order to continue life, it is necessary to keep the material means intact. As
long as the essential materials of life remain active, life also remains active.
Thus, it is possible for an ordinary individual to live a very long life. Besides,
what limits can be placed upon him when God himself wishes to keep him
alive for centuries? Angles have been in existence for thousands of years,
Satan is older than Adam, Noah lived more than 950 years, the cave
companions, (Ashab-ul-Khahf) slept in their hide-out for many centuries,
Prophet Khezr, Edris and Jesus were all born long before the twelfth Imam
and yet are believed still to be alive. History has it that they lived for many
centuries leading ordinary lives.

OUR DUTY DURING THE CONCEALMENT OF MAHDI

After the first concealment which lasted for seventy years, the second
concealment began. The second concealment will last until the re-appearance
of Mahdi. During the second concealment, no person has been or was
nominated as deputy of Mahdi.

Almost all Imams in particular the tenth, eleventh and twelfth Imams
declared and affirmed the authoritative status of those pious and righteous
scholars who exclusively followed the twelfth imam. These men reached high
spiritual levels that they could understand the connotations of the Quran and
the sayings (traditions) of the prophet through rational approach which is
called IJTEHAD. These scholars have been declared by the Imams to have the
right of discharging the duty of a person nominated by the Imam within the
limit of their ability. A person, who has not attained the standard of becoming
a Mujtahid, should do taqlid from a living Mujtahid who is the most superior
in knowledge and piety.

Therefore, recognition of the authoritative status of a qualified living


Mustached of the time (as a representative and general deputy of the Imam
during his concealment) is the most important part of the theocratic form of
government recognized by Islam. It is different from other theocratic forms of
government in other sects and religions of the world. It has nothing to do with
temporal or secular forms of government.

Imam Mahdi said; In all the events of life, I refer you to those (scholars) who
bear our traditions. They are the authority over you on my behave and I am the
authority on behalf of God.

There is no room left for any individual or choice except the open door for
every human being irrespective of any racial or geographical basis or
restrictions to qualify oneself in knowledge and piety to the level of Ijtehad.
BELIVING IN THE UNSEEN

Believing in the unseen is the basis of all fundamental articles of faith. No


one can deny the possibility of the existing religions and the realms within the
terrestrial folds or beyond them which are populated with living beings of
various forms, faculties and functions. No one can deny the existence of
anything without a clear sensible proof.

Modern scientific devices are gradually detecting the possibilities of existing


societies of invisible beings surrounding our space and beyond it. The stories
about genies, evil and good spirits, angles, accomplished personalities in
invisible forms such as Ilyas, Khezr, Jesus and the 12th Imam of the house of
the prophet Muhammad, are all possible and science or reason never rejects
them. And Islam confirms them all, such as problems in this world that are
unknown to men. When one believes in God, they know that his orders are
according to his wisdom and real reason. We can not reject a subject of which
we do not know its reason.

The holy prophet, a pivot man, blessed and directed by God, repeatedly
prophesized many events which later on were to occur. None of his
companions rejected his prophecy, for a Muslim believes that a prophet is
inspired by God and whatever he says, is nothing but a revelation from God
(Holy Quran 53: 2-4). Among the prophets prophecies, the advent of Mahdi is
very important for it was announced through numerous traditions which are
narrated by many companions of the prophet and are as well recorded in
almost all traditional books of Islam.

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