FOOT NOTES : CHAPTER 3

1 N. Firaq, 65-6, 77, 79.
2 The reports of the early Shi'ite authors like al-Kulayni, Sa'd al-Qummi and al-Mufid did not reveal any external cause for al-'Askari's death (al-Kafi, I, 509; . Maqalat, 101-2, al-Irshad, 377, 383, 389; al-Mufid, al-Muqni'a fi al-Fiqh (Iran, 1274), 72-5; and his Tashih I'tiqadat al-Imamiyya (Tabriz, 1371), 63,) but the later Shi'ite authors followed al-Tabari, who claimed that the Imam was poisoned or killed. He based this assumption on a tradition whose chain of transmitters related to al-Sadiq, who said, "None of us die naturally, but are killed or martyred." (al-Tabarsi, I'lam al-Wara, 349; Muhammad . Ja'far al-Tabari, Dala'il al-Imama (Najaf, 1369), 223, Ibn Shahr Ashub, Manaqib, IV. 421; Bihar, L, 236-8, 335, Muhammad al-Sadr, Tarikh al-Ghayba al-Sughra (Beirut, 1972), 230-4).
3 Ibn Shahr Ashub, Manaqib, III, 533; Ithbat, 262; subhi, Nazariyyat al-Imama (Cairo, 1969), 230-4.
4 Al-Kulayni and al-Mufid report the same chain of transmitters for their information about al-'Askari's death (al-Kafi, I, 503-5; al-Irshad, 381-2, 389). Al-Nawbakhti agrees with Sa'd al-Qummi that Abu 'Isa prayed 'Askari's body (n. Firaq, 79; Q. Maqalat, 102). But Sa'd dates al-'Askari's death in Rabi' II, which agrees with al-Mas'udi's report (Ithbat, 248). Al Kulayni's report seems to be more reliable that the latter, since it adds several supporting reports.
5 N. Firaq, 79; Q. Maqalat, 102.
6 al-Irshad, 389-90; Kamal (Tehran 1378/1958), I, 101.
7 Al-Barqi and al-Kulayni mention many traditions with different chains of transmitters asserting that the world cannot be without a Proof (Hujja); al-Barqi, al-Mahasin (Tehran, 1370/1950), 92, 234-6; al-Kafi, I, 178-80, 514; see also Dala'il, 229-30; Ahmad b. 'Ali al-Tabarsi, al-Ihtijaj (Najaf, 1966), II, 48-9, 78.
8 al-Kafi, I, 285-6; al-Ghayba, 146.
9 al-Kafi, , 276-7.
10 Q, Maqalat, 109.
11 Because of the way al-shahristani classifies his information on these schisms, it seems that his study is based on the works of al-Nawbakhti and al-Ash'ari. Al-Nawbakhti deemed the Imamite sub-divisions to be as many as fourteen, although his work in its present form counts only thirteen. Fortunately al-Mufid, who discusses the various factions on the authority of al-Nawbakhti, mentions the fourteenth faction, which is missing from al-nawbakhti's work. Al-Mas'udi does not give any details on the splits. Later al-nawbakhti's work became more circulated than Sa'd al-Qummi's work, because the latter contains opinions on the occultation which contrast with the official opinion of the later Imamites from
the fifth/eleventh century onwards; al-Qummi's book was gradually withdrawn from these circles; N. Firaq, 79; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 258-60; Muruj, VIII, 50, Milal, 130-1.
12 Kamal, 40.
13 al-Kafi, I, 178-80, 514.
14 Q. Maqalat, 106; N. Firaq, 78-80; Milal, 129.
15 Q. Maqalat, 106-7.
16 al-Kafi, I, 178; al-Sharif al-Radi (ed.), Nahj al-Balagh (Beirut, 1967), 497; N. Firaq. 80-1.
17 Q. Maqalat, 107.
18 N. Firaq, 89-90.
19 Q. Maqalat, Ill; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 259.
20 Al-Fathiyya: A Shi'ite sect which arose after the death of Ja'far al-Sadiq, the sixth Imam, who contended that the Imamate had passed on from al-Sadiq not to Musa but to his eldest son, 'Abd Allah, according to the tradition which says that the Imamate can only be vested in the eldest son, with the condition that he should be free from any bodily defects (al-Kafi, I, 285; Ikhtiyar, 282-3). They were also called al-Fathiyya as an allusion either to 'Abd Allah b. Ja'far because he had broad feet or was broad-headed, or it referred to their leader, who was called 'Abd Allah al-Aftah: N. Firaq 65; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 248-51; Ikhtiyar, 254.
21 N. Firaq, 93; Q. Maqalat, 111-2
22 Al-bada means the appearance of something or some knowledge after it has been concealed. In theological terms, it is a dogma which deals with the question of whether or not it is possible for God to change His decision about something. The theologians maintain that this is impossible, even if it often appears to happen, as for example, when Ja'far al-Sadiq designated Isma'il as his successor according to God's command, for when Ismal'il died, God then ordered Ja'far to designate Musa al-Kazim as his successor. So it seems that God changed his decision about who was to succeed Ja'far, But in fact, God's eternal knowledge never changes. What changes is the degree to which men are cognizant of that knowledge. Hence the doctrine of al-bada' states that God's ultimate judgement about something often appears to men only after first having been concealed. It declares that God cannot have changed His decision, for that would imply that His knowledge changes, or that He was ignorant and then gained knowledge. Finally, the Imamites hold that Goes does allow certain people to have knowledge of His ultimate judgement. Bandar, A., 'Aqidat al-Bada' (Baghdad, 1976); also a letter from the author dated 15th January 1978.
23 N. Firaq, 99; al-Shahristani's information concerning this sect is confused. He claims that Faris b. Hatim, not his sister, was a follower of Ja'far, but Faris had been assassinated by the order of al-'Askari himself; see Milal, 129; Ikhtiyar, 524.
24 For the dogma of Faris b. hatim, his political activities in Qazwin and Samarra, and his assassination, see Ikhtiyar, 522-8; al-Najashi, 238; T. al-Ghayba, 238.
25 Al-Nawbakhti and al-Qummi mention that a group maintained that Ja'far was the Imam after al-'Askari not by the testament of his brother but by that of his father. Thus they held that the adoption of the Imamate of al'Askari was incorrect and that people should go back to the Imamate of Ja'far; N. Firaq, 82-3; Q. Maqalat, 110-1; al-Fusul al-Mukhtaras, 259.
26 For this tradition see al-Kafi, I, 285-6; T. al-Ghayba, 146.
27 N. Firaq, 79; Muhammad b. 'Abd al-Rahman b. Qubba, al-Insaf fi al-Imama, quoted in Kamal, 55.
28 Kamal, 51-3.
29 Ibid., 511; Bihar, LIII, 190-1.
30 Q. Maqalat, 112-3; N. Firaq, 88-9, Ibn Qubba, op. cit., quoted in Kamal, 59. About Ibn Qubba and his work see al-Najashi, 290-1, T. al-Fihrast, 297-8.
31 Q. Maqalat, 103.
32 Q. Maqalat, 109.
33 N. Firaq, 84.
34 T. al-Ghayba, 128-9; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 259.
35 Q. Maqalat, 114; N. Firaq, 84-5; Milal, 130.
36 Kamal, II, 78, 109-10; see al-Galbaygani, op. cit., 356.
37 Q. Maqlat, 114; T. al-Ghayba, 147; al-Mufid also mentions this faction but thought that they held the same dogma as al-Qat'iyya (The Twelvers); al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 259-60.
38 Q. Maqalat, 114; N. Firaq, 85; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 261; Milal, 130.
39 Al-Nawbakhti's information about this sect is confused, whereas al-Qummi and and-Mufid are much clearer in their presentation; N. Firaq, 85-6; Q. Maqalat, 114-5; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 260.
40 T. al-Ghayba, 60.
41 al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 260.
42 Q. Maqalat, 102-4; Abu Sahlal-Nawbakhi, Kitab al-Tanbih, quoted in Kamal, 88; al-Insaf, quoted in Kamal, 61.
43 This group dated his birth as mentioned but the later Imamites differ about it. Ibn Rustam al-Tabari dates it as 15th Sha'ban 257, while al-Kulayni mentions several traditions giving the dates 252, 255 and 256 respectively. Al-Saduq and al-Mufid follow al-Kulayni on this point. Some of the factions opposed to the Imamites may have abandoned their claims and joined the Imamites, who then accepted their differing transmissions concerning the birth of the twelfth Imam; al-Kafi, I, 514-16; Dala'il, 271; al-Fusul al-Mukhtara, 258; Kamal, 430.
44 al-Insaf, quoted in Kamal, 55-6.
45 N. Firaq, 90-91.
46 Ibn al-Nadim, al-Fihrist, (Tehran, 1972), 225; Kamal 482; Q. Maqlat, 106.
47 Milal, 130-1; N. Firaq, 88-9.
48 Q. Maqalat, 107-8.
49 Q. Maqalat, 108-9; T. al-Ghayba, 147.
50 Kamal, 485, 487.
51 al-Kafi, I, 518-9.
52 T. al-Ghayba, 142-6; al-Fusul al-Mukhtar, 261.
53 Ithbat, 248. For the later authors who named her as Narjis see al-Irshad, 392; T. al-Ghayba, 153, 158; 'Uyun, 32-3.
54 Bihar, LI, 28, quoted from al-Dirus.
55 Kamal, 431-2.
56 Kamal, 317-23. 57 Tabari, III, 1434.
58 Ikhtiyar, 147-8; al-Najashi, 298; Ibn Dawud, al-Rijal, 541.
59 al-Kafi, , 323.
60 N. al-Ghayba, 84, 85, 120; Kamal, 329.
61 Kamal, 280, 345; al-Marwazi, Kitab al-Fitan, Mss fol, 150-63.
62 T. al-Ghayba, 134-9; Dala'il, 262-4.
63 al-Irshad, 390-1.
64 Kamal, 431.
65 al-Najshi, 268.
66 Ibn Qubba, Naqd Kitab al-Ashhad, quoted in Kamal, 113.
67 al-Kafi, I, 178; N. Firaq. 91.
68 al-Kafi, I, 285-6; Abu Sahl al-nawbakhti states in his work al-Tanbih that the main argument used by the Imamites to prove the existence of the twelfth Imam was the traditions of the preceding Imams, which had been narrated before the death of the eleventh Imam in 260/874; quoted in Kamal, 92-3; also see N. Firaq. 90-91; Q. Maqalat, 102.
69 N. al-Ghayba. 90.
70 t. al-Ghayba, 90.
71 Abu Sahl al-Nawbakthi, al-Tanbih, quoted in Kamal, 92-3.
72 for example, see al-Kafi, I, 514; Kamal, 424; al-Irshad, 390. However, Ibn Rustam al-Tabari mentions that al-'Askari's son was born on the 8th of Shab'ba, 257/870; Dala'il, 272.
73 Q. Maqalat, 114; al-Saduq reports a narration the authority of Ya'qub b. Manfush who claimed that al-'Askari had shown him his son, whose age at that time was between eight and ten years old; Kamal, 407.
74 al-Kafi, I, 329; al-Irshad, 390-1.
75 T. al-Ghayba, 150-1, 153.
76 al-Kafi, I, 514-5.
77 Ibid., I, 328; al-Irshad, 394.
78 Q. Maqalat, 114; N. Firaq. 85.
79 Kamal, 33.
80 According to al-Tabari, Abu Hashim al-Ja'fari died in 261/875; Tabari, III, 1887.
81 al-Kafi, I, 328.
82 Ithbat, 251.
83 According to al-Kulayni the tenth Imam, al-Hadi, died on 26 Jumada II, 254/2 June 869; al-Kafi, I, 479.
84 Kamal, 432.
85 al-Kafi, I, 329, 514; Kamal, 430; T. al-Ghayba, 144.
86 Tabari, III, 1813; al-Kamil, VII, 157.
87 Ithbat, 261-2.
88 According to al-Kulayni each Imam when he comes out from the womb of is mother puts his hands on the ground and holds his head towards the sky, and then recites some Qur'anic verses; al-Kafi, I, 386.
89 al-Qasas, XXVIII, 5-6.
90 Kamal, 424-6; the account of the birth of the twelfth Imam has been related in the Imamites' works with some differences in detail. See Ithbat, 248-50; T. al-Ghayba, 150-4; Dala'il, 269-70. All the Imamite sources agree that al-'Askari left only one son; al-Saduq, however, reports a narration on the authority of Ibrahim al-Mazyar which indicates that al-'Askari had two sons, Muhammad and Musa, who were
living in Hijaz. A critical study of the context of the narration and its chain of transmitters suggests it was invented, mainly because the narrator Ibrahim b. al-Mazyar died before 260/874, whereas according to the narrative al-'Askari's sons were mature, and this is unlikely if the twelfth Imam was born in 256/874; Kamal, 445-53.
91 'Ilal, 243-4; Kamal, 24; N. al-Ghayba, 86-7; al-Kafi, I, 340; al-Murtada, Mas'ala wajiza fi al-Ghayda. 11; al-Fusul al-'Ashara, 16.
92 N. al-Ghayba, 101; Kamal, 303, 485.
93 'Ilal, 245; Kamal, 316.
94 al-Kafi, I, 336.
95 al-Kafi, I, 369.
96 Ibid., I, 328, 330.
97 al-Kafi, I, 333.
98 Ibid, VIII, 247.
99 The Imamite works record the names of many individuals who saw the son of al-'Askari. One report attributed to Muhammad b. 'Uthman, the second safir of the twelfth Imam, says that al'Askari gathered together forty of his reliable followers and showed them his son; Kamal, 435; al-Kafi, , 330-1; T. al-Ghayba, 148-152.
100 Kamal, 429.
101 Ithbat, 247-8, 253.
102 al-Kafi, I, 328, 240; N. al-Ghayba, 99-100; t. al-Ghayba, 149.
103 'Abd al-Razzaq al-San'ani, al-Musannaf (Beirut, 1972), XI, 371; N. al-Ghayba, 98-9.
104 al-Kafi, I, 339.
105 al-Fusul al'Ashara, 13.
106 Al-Hasan b. Muhammad was related to an Umayyad family called Al Abi al-Shawarib. During the 'Abbasid period most of his relatives works in the office of Judge (al-Qada'). As part of his anti-shi'ite policy al-Mutawakkil included al-Hasan b. Abi al-Shawarib among his courtiers (Tabari, III, 1428). Later al- Mu'tazz appointed him chief judege in 252/866 (Tabari, III, 1684). Three years later he was discharged from his office, but recovered it during al-Mu'tadid's regime. He continued in this office until his death in Mecca in 261/875; Tabari, III, 1787, 1790-1, 1891, 1907.
107 al-Kafi, I, 505; Kamal, 43.
108 Kamal, 43.
109 Ibid., 476-8.
110 Kamal, 473.
111 Ibid., 476.
112 Ibid., 474.
113 al-Fusul al'Ashara, 13.
114 According to Imamite law, if a dead person leaves a mother and a son and a brother, the brother has no right to take anything from the estate; al-Saduq, al-Muqni'a (Tehran, 1377), 171; Kamal, 47, 58.
115 Muhammad al-Sadr, op. cit., I, 314.