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Asbagh-ibn-Nubatah says: Amir-ul-Mumineen Ali (A.S.) recited a sermon and mentioned therein something about the emergence of Mahdi and his helpers. Abu Khalid Halabi or Kabuli said: 'O Ali, inform us something about his qualities.'
He replied: From the view-point of character and creation, he resembles the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) the most. Should I inform you about his helpers? They said: 'Yes, O Amir-ul-Mumineen.'
He replied: 'I heard the Messenger of Allah (S.A.W.A.) saying: 'The first of them would be from Basra and the last of them from Yamamah. Thereafter Hazrat began to count Mahdi's companions. People were crying and Ali (A.S.) was saying:
Two persons from Basra, one person from Ahwaz, one person from Mina, one person from Shushtar, one person from Duraq, four persons namely Ali, Ahmad, Abdullah and Jafar from Baastan, two persons by the names of Muhammad and Hassan from Amman, two persons - Shaddad and Shadid from Siraf, three persons - Hafas, Yaqub and Ali from Shiraz, four persons Musa, Ali, Abdullah and Ghalafan from Esfahan, one person by the name of Yahya from Abdah, one person by the name of Dawoud from Maraj or A'raj, one person by the name of Abdullah from Karaj, one person by the name of Qadeem from Burujerd, one person by the name of Abdur-Razzak from Nahawand, two persons - Abdullah and Abdus-Samad from Dainul, three persons - Jafar, Ishaaq and Musa from Hamadan, two persons - whose names are similar to the names of Holy Prophet's Ahl-e-bayt - from Qum, one person by the name of Darid and five others whose names are similar to the names of 'Ashab-e-Kahf' from Khurasan, one person from Aamol, one person from Jorjan, one person from Herat, one person from Balkh, one person from Qarah, one person from A'ane, one person from Damghan, one person from Sarkhas, three persons from Saiyar, one person from Savah, one person from Samarkand, twenty-four persons from Thaleqan - They are the same ones about whom the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) said: In Khurasan, treasures can be found which are not gold or silver. But they are men whom Allah and His Prophet will gather together - two persons from Qazvin, one person from Fars, one person from Abhar, one person from Birjan, one person from Shakh, one person from Sareeh, one person from Ardabil, one person from Morad, one person from T adammor, one person from Armani, three persons from Maragha, one person from Khuee, one person from Salmas, one person from Badlees, one person from Nasur, one person from Barkari, one person from Sarkhis, one person from Munarjerd, one person from Qaliqala, three persons from Waseth, ten persons from Baghdad, four persons from Kufa, one person from Qadasieh, one person from Surah, one person from Serat, one person from Nael, one person from Saidah, one person from Jurjan, one person from Qusur, one person from Anbaar, one person from Akbarah, one person from Hananeh, one person from Tabuk, one person from Jaamedah, three persons from Abadan, six persons from Hadisah Musel, one person from Mosul, one person from Maqlasaya, one person from Naseebeen, one person from Arwan, one person from Faraqeen, one person from Aamed, one person from Ra's-ul-Ain, one person from Reqqah, one person from Haran, one person from Bales, one person from Qabeeh, one person from Tartus, one person from Qasr, one person from Adneh, one person from Hamari, one person from Arar, one prson ferom Qures, one person from Anthakia, three persons from Halab, two persons from Hamas, four persons from Damascus, one person from Syria, one person from Qaswan, one person from Qaimut, one person from Sur, one person from Karaj, one person from Azrah, one person from Aamer, one person from Dakar, two persons from Baitul-Muqaddas, one person from Ramalleh, one person from Bales, two persons from Acca, one person from Arafat, one person from Asqalan, one person from Gazah, four persons from Fasath, one person from Qaramis, one p erson from Damyath, one person from Mahaleh, one person from Askanderiyeh, one person from Barqah, one person from Tanjah, one person from Afranjah, one person from Qirwan, five persons from Sus Aqsa, two persons from Qirus, three persons from Jamim, one person from Qus, one person from Aden, one person from Alali, ten persons from Medina, four persons from Mecca, one person from Ta'if, one person from Dair, one person from Shirwan, one person from Zubaid, ten persons from Saru, one person from Ahsah, one person from Qateef, one person from Hajar and one person from Yamameh.
Ali (A.S.) said: The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) counted them to me until they became 313 in number, the same as the companions of 'Badr'. Allah will gather them from the East and West and place them near the Holy Ka'aba by the wink of an eye. When the people of Mecca will witness this, they will say: 'Sufyani has gathered us around himself'. After coming in contact with the people of Mecca they will see a group gathered around the 'Ka'aba' and the darkness and gloom will have departed from them and the dawn of hope ascended and they will tell each other. Salvation (perhaps meaning to say that we have found salvation). The noble people will watch and their rulers we go in deep thought.
Amir-ul-Mumineen (A.S.) said: 'As if I am seeing them - their appearance, height, physique, face, beauty and clothes are all one and the same. As though they are in search of something which they have lost and are now thoughtful and perplexed over this matter until a person who resembles the Prophet the most in creation and appears before them from behind the curtain of the Ka'aba. They will ask him: 'Are you the Mahdi?' He will reply: Yes, I am the Promised Mahdi.' Thereafter Hazrat will address them as such: 'Swear allegiance to me with regards to forty qualities and enter into a covenant with me with regards to ten qualities.
Annaf said: 'O Ali what are those qualities? He replied: They will swear allegiance that they will not steal, commit adultery, kill someone injustly, defame the honour of a respectable person, abuse a Muslim, swarm a house, mount on a thin and weak animal, decorate themselves falsely (wear gold), wear fur, wear silk, wear clogs obstruct the path for anyone, commit injustice to the orphans, play trick and deceit anyone, eat the wealth of the orphans, indulge in homosexuality, drink wine, commit treason in trust, breach the promises, hoard wheat and barley, kill someone who seeks refuge in him, pursue the defeated one, shed blood injustly and embark on killing the injured one. Moreover one should wear coarse garments, consider the ground as ones pillow, eat bread made out of barley, be satisfied with whatever meagre he receives, participate in 'Jihad' (holy war)the way it should be done, smell musk and other good fragrances, avoid impurity.....'
The following are the references of the book 'AL-MAHDI':
1. The book 'Esaaf-ar-Raghebeen' is about the virtues of the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.A.) and his Ahl-e-bayt (A.S.). Its written by Shaikh Muhammad Saban who died in the year 1206.
2. The book 'Ja'ame-ul-Lalif' is about the excellence of Mecca and the construction of the Holy Mosque. Its author is Allama Shaikh Jamaluddin Muhammad Jarrullah-ibn-Muhammad -ibn-Nuruddin-ibn-Abu Bakr-ibn-Ali Zahiray Qurshi Makhzumi. This book was written in the year 950 Hijri and was printed in the year 1276 in the printing-house of Dar Ehya-ul- Kitab-ul-Arabiya.
3. Commentary on Nahjul-Balagha - written by a leading personality in literacy and history by the name of Shaikh Ezzuddin Abu Hamed Abdul Hamid-ibn-Hebtullah Mada'eni famous as Ibne-Abil Hadid who died in the year 655 Hijri. This book has been printed in four volumes in Darul-Kitab al-Arabiya in Egypt.
4. Sahih Bukhari - written by a leading traditionist Abu Abdullah Muhamamd-ibn-Isma' eel- ibn-Ibrahim-ibn-Mughaira who died in the year 256 Hijri. This book has been printed in the year 1312 in the publishing-house of Maimaniya in Egypt.
5. Sahih Sunan Mustafa - written by a leading traditionist Abu Dawoud Sulaiman-ibn-Asha'r Sajestani who died in the year 357.
6. Sahih Tirmidhi - written by Abu Isa Muhammad-ibn -Surah who died in the year 278. This book was printed in the year 1310 at Lucknow in India.
7. Sawa'eq Muharreqa - written by Shaikh Shahabuddin Ahmad-ibn-Hajar Haisami against the people of innovation and heresy. He died in the year 974 in Mecca. This book was printed in Egypt in the year 1933.
8. Eqdud-Durar - written about the Awaited Imam by the great scholar Abu Badr Shaikh Jamaluddin Yusuf ibn-Yahya-ibn-Ali-ibn-Abdul Aziz-ibn-Ali Muqaddasi, Shafa'ee, Selmi, Damashqi who finished writing this book in the year 658 A.H. This book is the best and the most comprehensive book written by one Sunni brethren in this regard. I have not come across the printed script of this book and perhaps it may not have been printed at all.
Verily, two copies of the said book is present in the library of Hazrat Ali-ibn-Musa ar-Ridha (A.S.) where one of them had been written in the year 953 A.H.
Another copy of this book is present in the library of the leader of all leaders in traditions i.e. Mirza Muhammad Hussein Nouri Tabarsi (died in 1320) just as the same can be known from his book «Kashful-Astar».
Another copy too can be found in the library of our leader Sayyed Shahabuddin Mar'ashi Najafi just as he himself told me about the same.
Yet another copy is present in the library of our master Abul-Mujed Muhammad Ridha Esfahani. This is the same copy on which we have relied and narrated from but was not devoid of any errors. In the book «Durrarul Musawwiyah, (just as we pointed in the preface of this book) he ascribes the book «Eqdud-Durar» to Ali-ibn-Shahab Hamadani. However this is apparently a mistake because I have never come across anyone ascribing this book to the afore-said Sayyed. Verily, the book «Muwwadah al-Qurba» belongs to the afore-mentioned Sayyed.
From the last portion of the book «Yanabi-ulMuwadda» and the book «Ghayat-ul-Maram» it appears that Abu Abdullah Ganji in his book «Al-Bayan-Fi Akhbar Saheb-uz-Zaman» and the book «Kefayat-Talib-Fi-Faza'el Ali-ibn-Abi Talib» narrates some of his collections from the book «Eqdud-Durar».
9. The book «Fotouhat-Islamiyah» after «Fotouhat-Nabawiyah» - written by the scholar Sayed Ahmad Zaini Dehlan a 'Mujtahid' (expert in Islamic jurisprudence) of Mecca who died in the year 1304. This book has been published in two parts in the publishing house of Mustapha Muhammad in Egypt.
10. The book «Fotouhat-Makkiyah» written by the mystic scholar and researcher Shaikh Abu Abdullah Mohyiddin Muhammad-ibn-Ali famous as Ibn-Arabi Hatemi Tha'ee. Truly, this book is a useful book in its own field and I don't imagine there exists another of its kind. This book has been printed in Egypt in Darrul-Kitab al-Arabia al-Kubra publishing-house.
11. The book «Kashf-uz-Zunoon - an - Asami al-Kutub wal-Funoon». As it can be judged from its name, this book is majestic in its own field. It has been written by the scholar Mulla Kateb Chalabi who died in the year 1067. This book was printed in Darrul-Sa'adeh in two volume.
12. The book «Mafatih-ul-Ghaib» which is a famous exegesis written by the research scholar Muhammad Fakhruddin Razi who died in the year 606 A.H. This book was printed in eight volumes in the publishing-house of 'Aamera' in the year 1308 A.H. The exegesis of Abu Saud too has been printed in the margin of this exegesis.
13. Mufradat al-Quran - written by the research scholar Abul-Qasim Hussein-ibn-Muhammad-ibnMufazzal famous as Ragheb Esfahani who died in the year 502 A.H. This book has been printed in the margin of «Nihaya» of Ibn-Athir in Egypt.
14. The book «Nur-ul-Absar» written about the virtues of Ahl-e-bayt of the Holy Prophet. It has been written by the scholar Sayyed Mu'min Ibn-Hassan Shablanji who died in the year 1208 A.H. This book was printed in the year 1304 A.H. in Egypt in the Uthmani printing-house.
15. The book «Nihaya» which is on the subject of explanation of words used in traditions and Quran and is written by the research scholar and lexicographist Abus-Saadat Mubarak-ibn-Muhammad-ibn Muhammad Jauzi well-known as Ibn-Athir who died in the year 606 A.H. This book has been printed in four volumes in the publishing-house of «Khairiyah» in Egypt.
16. Nahjul-Balagha - compiled by Allama Sharif Razi Muhammad-ibn-Abu Ahmad Musawi who was the chief of seekers of knowledge in Baghdad. In this book, he has collected the sermons, letters and aphorisms of Amir-ul-Mumineen Ali-ibn-Abi Talib (A.S.). This book has been printed into three parts in one volume in the printing-house of 'Esteqamah' in Egypt. Shaikh Muhammad Abdoh who was the 'Mofti' (passing judicial decrees) of Egypt, Shaikh Mohyiddin and Muhammad Abdul Hamid who was the professor of Al-Azhar have written a commentary on this book.
17. The magazine «Hudal-Islam» which is printed weekly in Egypt under the guidance of Muhammad Ahmad Sairafi and a number of scholars of Egypt have given their share of contribution to this magazine. Undoubtedly this magazine is a religious magazine and is rare in its own field. It was started from 1354 A.H. and is still being published.
18. The book «Yanabi-ul-Muwadda-Fi-Muwaddat-Zul-Qarba» - written by the mystic scholar Shaikh Sulaiman-ibn-Khawja Kalan Husseini Balkhi Qunduzi who died in the year 1294 A.H. This book was printed in the publishing-house of 'Akhtar'.
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