Muhammad al-Mahdi
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| Part of a series on the Twelve Imams Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi |
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 A modern depiction |
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| Muhammad ibn Hasan ibn Ali | |
| The Twelfth Imam |
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| Kunya | Abu al-Qasim |
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| Birth | 15th Shaban 255 AH ≈ 868 C.E. |
| Death | ??? |
| Birthplace | Samarrah |
| Life Duration | Before Imamat: 5 years (255 - 260 AH) Imamat: ??? - Minor Occultation: 70 years (260 - 329 AH) - Major Occultaion: ??? (329 - ??? AH) |
| Titles | al-Hujjah (the proof) Hujjatullah (proof of Allah) |
| Father | Hasan al-Askari |
| Mother | Narjis |
| Children | none |
al-Sajjad · al-Baqir · al-Sadiq |
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According to Twelver Shi'as Imam Hujjat al-Mahdī (المهدى) (or Hujjat ibn Hasan ibn Ali) is the twelfth Imam and the Mahdi, the ultimate savior of humankind. Other Shi'a schools adhere to different Imam successions and do not, along with Sunnis, consider ibn-Al-Hassan the Mahdi. Twelver Shi'as believe that Mahdi was born in 868 and has been hidden by God (referred to as the Occultation) to later emerge to fulfill his mission.
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[edit] Birth and early life according to Twelver Shi'a
Twelver Shi'as believe that Mahdi was born in 868 AD as Hujjat ibn Hasan ibn Ali. There is debate within the Twelver community who his mother is. Many believe his mother, Narjis (Melika), was a Byzantine princess who pretended to be a slave so that she might travel from her kingdom to Arabia. [1] [2] His father, Hasan al-Askari, is believed to have been the eleventh and penultimate Shi'a Imam. Shi'as believe that his birth was kept a secret due to the persecution that the Shi'a were facing during this time at the hands of Al-Mu'tamid, the Abbasid Caliph. [3][4]
To support Mahdi's claim, Twelver Shi'as quote the following Hadith: "I and `Ali are the fathers of this nation; whoever knows us very well also knows Allah, and whoever denies us also denies Allah, the Unique, the Mighty. And from `Ali's descendants are my grandsons al-Hasan and al-Husayn, who are the masters of the youths of Paradise, and from al-Husayn's descendants shall be nine: whoever obeys them obeys me, and whoever disobeys them also disobeys me; the ninth among them is their Qa'im and Mahdi." [5] (These Hadiths are not recognized as authentic by Sunnis)
The eleventh Shi'a Imam Hasan al-Askari died on 1 January 874 AD (8th Rabi' al-awwal, 260 AH)[6] and since that day, his son Mahdi is believed by Shi'as to be the Imam, appointed by God, to lead the believers of the era. The most popular account of al-Mahdi in Shi'a literature is taken from his father's funeral. It is reported that as the funeral prayer was about to begin, al-Mahdi's uncle, Jafar ibn Ali approached to lead the prayers. However, al-Mahdi approached and commanded, "Move aside, uncle; only an Imam can lead the funeral prayer of an Imam." Jafar moved aside, and the five-year-old child led the funeral prayer for his father. It is reported that it was at this very moment that al-Mahdi disappeared and went into ghaybat, or occultation.
[edit] The Occultation
Shi'as believe that, for various reasons, God concealed the twelfth and current Shi'a Imam, al-Mahdi, from humankind.
[edit] Period
The period of occultation (ghaybat) is believed to consist of two parts:
- Ghaybat al-Sughra or Minor Occultation (874-939) is the shorter of the two periods, during which deputies of the Imam maintained communication to the rest of the world.
- Ghaybat al-Kubra or Major Occultation began 939 and is believed to continue until a time decided by God, when the Mahdi will reappear to bring absolute justice to the world.
[edit] Minor Occultation
During the Minor Occultation (Ghaybat al-Sughra), it is believed that al-Mahdi maintained contact with his followers via deputies (Arab. an-nuwāb al-arbaʕa). They represented him and acted as agents between him and his followers.
Whenever the believers faced a problem, they would write their concerns and send them to his deputy. The deputy would ascertain his verdict, endorse it with his seal and signature and return it to the relevant parties. The deputies also collected zakat and khums on his behalf. For the Shia, the idea of consulting a hidden Imam was not something new because the two prior Shia Imams had, on occasion, met with their followers from behind a curtain.
Shia Tradition hold that four deputies acted in succession to one another:
- Uthman ibn Sa’id al-Asadi
- Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn Uthman
- Abul Qasim Husayn ibn Ruh al-Nawbakhti
- Abul Hasan Ali ibn Muhammad al-Samarri
In 941 (329 AH), the 4th deputy announced an order by al-Mahdi, that the deputy would soon die and that the deputyship would end and the period of the Major Occultation would begin.
The 4th deputy died six days later and the Shi'a Muslims continue to await the reappearance of the Mahdi. In the same year, many notable Shi'a scholars such as Ali ibn Babwayh Qummi and Muhammad ibn Yaqub Kulayni, the learned compiler of al-Kafi also died.
[edit] Major Occultation
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According to the last letter of al-Mahdi to Ali ibn Muhammad al-Samarri "from the day of your death [the last deputy] the period of my major occultation (al ghaybatul kubra) will begin. Hence forth, no one will see me, unless and until Allah makes me appear. My reappearance will take place after a very long time when people will have grown tired of waiting and those who are weak in their faith will say: What! Is he still alive?"[citation needed]
As he said in this letter, nobody will claim to have seen him except liars. However, this is interpreted to mean that those individuals who claim to have a relationship with the Mahdi like the four deputies did in the Minor Occultation, then those individuals are liars.[citation needed]
Another letter from al-Mahdi says: "Rest assured, no one has a special relationship with Allah. Whoever denies me is not from my (community). The appearance of the Relief (al-Faraj) depends solely upon Allah. Therefore those who propose a certain time for it are liars. As to the benefit of my existence in occultation, it is like the benefit of the sun behind the clouds where the eyes do not see it."[citation needed]
With regards to advice for his followers during his absence, he is reported to have said: "Refer to the transmitters of our traditions, for they are my hujja (proof) unto you and I am God’s proof unto them."[citation needed]
[edit] Reappearance
Twelver Shi'as cite various references from the Qur'an and reports, or Hadith, from Mahdi and the twelve Shi'a Imams with regard to the reappearance of al-Mahdi who would, in accordance with God's command, bring justice and peace to the world by establishing Islam throughout the world.
- Mahdi is reported to have said:
"During the last times, my people will be afflicted with terrible and unprecedented calamities and misfortunes from their rulers, so much so that this vast earth will appear small to them. Persecution and injustice will engulf the earth. The believers will find no shelter to seek refuge from these tortures and injustices. At such a time, God will raise from my progeny a man who will establish peace and justice on this earth in the same way as it had been filled with injustice and distress."[citation needed]
Shi'as believe that al-Mahdi will reappear when the world has fallen into chaos and civil war emerges between the human race for no reason. At this time, it is believed, half of the true believers will ride from Yemen carrying white flags to Mecca, while the other half will ride from Karbala, in Iraq, carrying black flags to Mecca. At this time, al-Mahdi will come wielding God's Sword, the Blade of Evil's Bane, Zulfiqar (Arabic: ذو الفقار, ðū l-fiqār), the Double-Bladed Sword.
[edit] Sunni view
Sunni Muslims do not consider the son of Hasan al-Askari to be the Mahdi nor to be in occultation. Of those Sunnis that hold to the existence of the Mahdi, some believe the Mahdi will be an ordinary man, born to an ordinary woman. Umm Salamah said:
I heard the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon Him) say: ‘The Mahdi is of my lineage and family…’
— Sunan Abu Dawud, 11/373; Sunan Ibn Maajah, 2/1368. Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri said:
The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon Him) said: "He is one of us…"
— Reported by Abi Na’eem in Akhbaar al-Mahdi, see al-Jaami’ al-Sagheer, 5/219, hadith 5796.
In the light of traditions and interpretations, the personality of the Promised Mahdi would be as such:
It is said "predictions and lore conscerning the Mahdi abound"[9] Among them are that the promised Mahdi would be a Caliph of God and that to make a covenant with him is obligatory. He would belong to the House of Muhammad and would be in the line of Imam Hussein. His name would be Muhammad and his family name would be Abul Qasim, his father's name would be ‘Abdu’llah, and he would appear in Mecca. He would protect the Muslims from destruction and would restore the religion to its original position.
[edit] Bahá'í view
Bahá'u'lláh and `Abdu'l-Bahá considered the story of the occultation of the Twelfth Imam to have been a pious fraud conceived by a number of the leading Shí`ahs in order to maintain the coherence and continuity of the Shí`ah movement after the death of the 11th Imam, Hasan al-`Askarí [1]. Bahá'ís believe that Siyyid `Alí Muhammad-i-Shírází, known as the Báb (1819-1850), is the promised Twelfth Imam, the Mahdi, who had already made his advent and fulfilled all the prophecies. The Shaykhi movement of the early 19th century claimed to have made preparations for the Mahdi. In 1848 the Báb and his followers began to teach more openly, and the Báb was publicly executed in 1850.
[edit] Scholarly observations
Some scholars, including Bernard Lewis[7] also point out, that the idea of an Imam in occultation was not new in 873 but that it was a recurring factor in Shia history.
Later, Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim, the grandson of the Imam Nizar, and Taiyab abi al-Qasim were believed by their followers to have gone into occultation as well.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ The Expected Mahdi
- ^ Online Islamic Courses
- ^ The Imams
- ^ mahdi and the manner of his occultation
- ^ Ikmal of AlSaduq
- ^ The Imams
- ^ The Assassins: A Radical Sect in Islam, Bernard Lewis, pp. 23, 35, 49.
[edit] References
- Kitab al-Irshad, Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Nu'man (al-Shaikh al-Mufid), 4th A.H./10 A.D.
- Review of 'Kitab al-Irshad' by Al-Mufid , by Dr. I. K. A. Howard
[edit] Further reading
- al-Qarashi, Baqir Sharif (2006). The Life of Imam Al-Mahdi, translated by Syed Athar Husain S.H. Rizvi. Ansariyan Publications. ISBN 9644388062.
- al-Sadr, Muhammad Baqir (1983). Awaited Saviour. Imam Al Khoei Islamic. ISBN 0686903986.
- Amini, Ibrahim (1996). Al-Imam Al-Mahdi: The Just Leader of Humanity, translated by Abdulaziz Abdulhussein Sachedina. Islamic Education and Information Center. ISBN 0968071708.
- Corbin, Henry (1993). History of Islamic Philosophy, translated by Liadain Sherrard and Philip Sherrard. Kegan Paul International
in association with Islamic Publications for The Institute of Ismaili Studies. ISBN 0710304161.
- Hussain, Jassim M. (1986). Occultation of the Twelfth Imam: A Historical Background. Routledge. ISBN 0710301588.
- Nasr, Seyyed Hossein; Hamid Dabashi (1989). Expectation of the Millennium: Shiʻism in History. SUNY Press. ISBN 088706843X.
- Sachedina, Abdulaziz Abdulhussein (1981). Islamic Messianism: The Idea of Mahdī in Twelver Shīʻism. Suny press. ISBN 0873954424.
- Tabatabae, Sayyid Mohammad Hosayn; Seyyed Hossein Nasr (translator) (1979). Shi'ite Islam. Suny press. ISBN 0-87395-272-3.
[edit] External links
- Muhammad al-Mahdi al-Hujjah an article by Encyclopedia Britannica Online
- ghaybah an article by Encyclopedia Britannica Online
- Mahdi an article by Encyclopedia Britannica Online
- ghaybah(The Occultation) an article by Encyclopedia Britannica Online
- MAHDI'S DEPUTIES by Verena Klemm, an article by encyclopedia Iranica
- List of sites about Imam Mahdi
- Guide to the 12 Imams - Inc. Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi (www.shiacode.com)
- Information and Biography of Imam Mohammed Al Mahdi
- The Awaited Saviour by Ayatullah Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr & Ayatullah Murtadha Mutahhari
- A Discussion concerning the Mahdi, by Ayatullah Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr
- Imam Mahdi's Biography
- The Period of Confusion and Perplexity After the Death of Imam al-Askari
- - Iran prepares people for 'messiah miracles'
- [2] Unravelling lies from people about Imam Muhammad Mahdi
- MISC. Information on Sunni & Shia Documentation about Imam Mehdi
| Preceded by Hasan al-Askari |
Twelver Shia Imam 874– |
Succeeded by none |
