First Objection by the Zaydis: the Reports Proving the Imams Being Twelve Was Fabricated by the Imamiyyah
Kamāl al-Dīn wa Tamām al-Niʿma|Volume 1|Book 1|Chapter 15
Kamāl al-Dīn wa Tamām al-Niʿma
Book 1, Chapter 15
First Objection by the Zaydis: the Reports Proving the Imams Being Twelve Was Fabricated by the Imamiyyah
2 hadiths · 1 commentary
مَا حَدَّثَنَا بِهِ أَحْمَدُ بْنُ الْحَسَنِ الْقَطَّانُ الْمَعْرُوفُ بِأَبِي عَلِي بْنِ عَبْدِ رَبِّهِ الرَّازِيِّ وَ هُوَ شَيْخٌ كَبِيرٌ لِأَصْحَابِ الْحَدِيثِ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو يَزِيدَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى بْنِ خَلَفِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ الْمَرْوَزِيُّ بِالرَّيِّ فِي شَهْرِ رَبِيعٍ الْأَوَّلِ سَنَةَ اثْنَتَيْنِ وَ ثَلَاثِمِائَةٍ عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ الْحَنْظَلِيِّ فِي سَنَةِ ثَمَانٍ وَ ثَلَاثِينَ وَ مِائَتَيْنِ الْمَعْرُوفِ بِإِسْحَاقَ بْنِ رَاهَوَيْهِ عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ يَحْيَى عَنْ هِشَامٍ عَنْ مُجَالِدٍعَنِ الشَّعْبِيِّ عَنْ مَسْرُوقٍ قَالَ: بَيْنَا نَحْنُ عِنْدَ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ نَعْرِضُ مَصَاحِفَنَا عَلَيْهِ إِذْ قَالَ لَهُ فَتًى شَابٌّ هَلْ عَهِدَ إِلَيْكُمْ نَبِيُّكُمْ ص كَمْ يَكُونُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ خَلِيفَةٌ قَالَ إِنَّكَ لَحَدَثُ السِّنِّ وَ إِنَّ هَذَا شَيْءٌ مَا سَأَلَنِي عَنْهُ أَحَدٌ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ نَعَمْ عَهِدَ إِلَيْنَا نَبِيُّنَا ص أَنَّهُ يَكُونُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ اثْنَا عَشَرَ خَلِيفَةً بِعَدَدِ نُقْبَاءِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ .
و قد أخرجت بعض طرق هذا الحديث في هذا الكتاب و بعضها في كتاب النص على الأئمة الاثني عشر عليه السلام بالإمامة و نقل مخالفونا من أصحاب الحديث نقلا ظاهرا مستفيضا
و قد أخرجت بعض طرق هذا الحديث في هذا الكتاب و بعضها في كتاب النص على الأئمة الاثني عشر عليه السلام بالإمامة و نقل مخالفونا من أصحاب الحديث نقلا ظاهرا مستفيضا
It is narrated by Ahmad bin al-Hasan al-Qattan known as Abi Ali bin Abde Rabb ar-Razi and he is a noted tradition scholar he says: Narrated to me Abu Yazid Muhammad bin Yahya bin Khalaf bin Yazid al-Maruzi in the city of Rayy in 302 A.H. in the months of Rabi I from Ishaq bin Ibrahim Hanzali who was there in 238 A.H. and was known as Ishaq bin Rahuya from Yahya bin Yahya from Hisham from Mujalid from Shobi from Masrooq that he said: One day we were in the company of Abdullah bin Masud to get our copies of Quran checked by him so that they were free of errors. A young man asked: Has your Prophet told you about the number of his successors? He replied: You are very young and it is something that no one has asked me before. Now I will tell you about it. Yes, our Prophet informed us that indeed there would twelve successors after him and it would be equal to the number of the chiefs of Bani Israel.
We have mentioned some chains of narrators of this tradition in this book of ours and some others are mentioned in our another book, An-Nass Alaal Aaimmatul Ithna Ashar عليه السلام bil Imamiyah. In this way, from our opponents some have narrated the traditions of reappearance to the level of usefulness.
We have mentioned some chains of narrators of this tradition in this book of ours and some others are mentioned in our another book, An-Nass Alaal Aaimmatul Ithna Ashar عليه السلام bil Imamiyah. In this way, from our opponents some have narrated the traditions of reappearance to the level of usefulness.
من حديث جابر بن سمرة مَا حَدَّثَنَا بِهِ أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِسْحَاقَ الدِّينَوَرِيُّ وَ كَانَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ الْحَدِيثِ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي دَاوُدَ عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ شَاذَانَ عَنِ الْوَلِيدِ بْنِ هِشَامٍ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ ذَكْوَانَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنِ ابْنِ سِيرِينَ عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ سَمُرَةَ السُّوَائِيِّ قَالَ: كُنَّا عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ ص فَقَالَ يَلِي هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةَ اثْنَا عَشَرَ قَالَ فَصَرَخَ النَّاسُ فَلَمْ أَسْمَعْ مَا قَالَ فَقُلْتُ لِأَبِي وَ كَانَ أَقْرَبَ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص مِنِّي مَا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ص فَقَالَ قَالَ كُلُّهُمْ مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ وَ كُلُّهُمْ لَا يُرَى مِثْلُهُ .. و قد أخرجت طرق هذا الحديث أيضا و بعضهم روى اثنا عشر أميرا و بعضهم روى اثنا عشر خليفة فدل ذلك على أن الأخبار التي في يد الإمامية عن النبي ص و الأئمة عليه السلام بذكر الأئمة الاثني عشر أخبار صحيحة.
Among these is the report of Jabir bin Samura that Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Ishaq ad-Dinawar, a tradition scholar, has narrated. He says: Narrated to me Abu Bakr bin Abi Dawood from Ishaq bin Ibrahim bin Shazan from Walid bin Hisham from Muhammad bin Zukwan from his father from his father from ibn Sirreen from Jabir bin Samura as-Sawai that he said: We were in the company of the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وعلى آله وسلم when he said: There are twelve leaders for this Ummah. Samura said: A clamor arose so I couldn’t hear what else the Prophet said. So I asked my father who was nearer to the Prophet, what he had said. My father said: He said: All of them shall be from Quraish, such that their like is not seen. I have also mentioned the various chains of reporters of this tradition. Some versions say: There will be twelve Amirs (chiefs) and some say: There will be twelve successors. Thus it proves that traditions in Imamiyah books regarding the twelve Imams are authentic.
Commentary #1
قالت الزيدية فان كان رسول الله ص قد عرف أمته أسماء الأئمة الاثني عشر فلم ذهبوا عنه يمينا و شمالا و خبطوا هذا الخبط العظيم فقلنا لهم إنكم تقولون إن رسول الله ص استخلف عليا عليه السلام و جعله الإمام بعده و نص عليه و أشار إليه و بين أمره و شهره فما بال أكثر الأمة ذهبت عنه وتباعدت منه حتى خرج من المدينة إلى ينبع و جرى عليه ما جرى فإن قلتم إن عليا عليه السلام لم يستخلفه رسول الله ص فلم أودعتم كتبكم ذلك و تكلمتم عليه فإن الناس قد يذهبون عن الحق و إن كان واضحا و عن البيان و إن كان مشروحا كما ذهبوا عن التوحيد إلى التلحيد و من قوله عز و جل لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌإلى التشبيه.
The Zaidis said: If the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) informed his nation of the names of the twelve Imams, then why did they stray to the right and left and stumble greatly? We said to them: You claim that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) appointed Ali (peace be upon him) as his successor, made him the Imam after him, explicitly designated him, indicated him, and made his matter clear and public. So why did most of the nation turn away from him and distance themselves, to the point that he left Medina for Yanbu and what befell him happened? If you say that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did not appoint Ali (peace be upon him), then why did you entrust your books to that effect and speak about it? Indeed, people may turn away from the truth even when it is clear and from explanation even when it is explicit, as they turned away from monotheism to polytheism and from the verse “There is nothing like unto Him” (42:11) to anthropomorphism.