What People will Have to Do about the Occultation

Saʿd, al-Ḥimyarī and Ibn Idrīs said: “Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. ʿĪsā, Muḥammad b. al-Ḥusayn b. Abī’l-Khaṭṭāb, Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Jabbār and ʿAbd Allāh b. ʿĀmir b. Saʿd al-Ashʿarī narrated to us, from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Najrān, from Muḥammad b. al-Musāwir, from al-Mufaḍḍal b. ʿUmar al-Juʿfī, from Abī ʿAbd Allāh عليه السلام. Al-Mufaḍḍal narrated: “I heard him saying: “Beware of drawing attention,[1] for truly, by Allāh, your Imam will be occulted from you for years of your lives, and you will be sifted until it will be said: “He has died or perished, or which valley has he gone into?” The eyes of the believers will shed tears over him, and you will be thrown about as the ships are upon the waves of the sea. None will be saved but he from whom Allāh has taken His covenant, inscribed belief into his heart and supported him with a spirit from Him. Twelve banners will be raised, resembling each other, such that it will not be known which is which.” Al-Mufaḍḍal continued his narration: “I started crying,” so the Imam said to me: “What has made you cry, o’ Abā ʿAbd Allāh?”[2] I responded: “How can I not cry? You said: “Twelve banners resembling each other, such that it will not be known which is which,” so what are we to do?” Al-Mufaḍḍal continued to narrate: “He observed the Sun as its light shone into the portico, whereupon he said: “O’ Abā ʿAbd Allāh, do you see this Sun?” I said: “Yes.” He concluded: “By Allāh, our Ordinance is clearer than this Sun.”