Chapters
The Riser Ahmed-A Bud from Muhammad, and a Branch from Jacob and the Tribe of Judah
Ahmed the Promised One · Alaa Alsalem
12. The Riser Ahmed: A Bud from MuhammadPBUHAP and a Branch from Jacob and the Tribe of Judah
It has become clear that the lineage of the Mahdi and Riser Ahmed goes back to Ali and FatimahPBUT and that his great grandfather is Prophet Muhammad, according to the Holy Will and the frequently mentioned religious accounts that are with all Muslims.
Prophet MuhammadPBUHAP said: “The Mahdi is a descendant of Fatimah.”103 HePBUHAP also said: "The Mahdi is one of us, Ahl al-Bayt. God will prepare his affairs in one night."104
HePBUHAP also said: “The Hour will not happen until a man of my Ahl al-Bayt rules. His name agrees with my name."105 Agreement means similarity, and undoubtedly, Ahmed is one of the Prophet’s names. In relation to words from JesusPBUH, God Almighty said: {And [mention] when Jesus, son of Mary, said: “O children of Israel, I am the messenger of God to you confirming what came before me of the Torah and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name is Ahmed"} Quran Chapter “The Ranks” 61:6.
In the Torah we read the following:
[1] There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
[2] And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
[3] And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide disputes by what his ears hear,
[4] but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
[5] Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
and faithfulness the belt of his loins.
[6] The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
. . . .
[9] They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD
as the waters cover the sea.
[10] In that day the root of Jesse, who shall stand as a signal for the peoples-of him shall the nations inquire, and his resting place shall be glorious (Isaiah 11).
All of these events are consistent with the Minor Resurrection. They have never happened before and will only happen in the State of Divine Justice, as we have previously mentioned. As for Jesse, known in the Torah as the father of Prophet DavidPBUH, the mother of Imam Mahdi is a descendant of Prophet DavidPBUH. Thus Imam Mahdi Muhammad Ibn Al-Hassan Al-AskariPBUH is a descendant of Israel (JacobPBUH) from his mother's side, and a descendant of MuhammadPBUHAP from his father's side. It holds true that: Imam Mahdi is “a shoot from the stump of Jesse”; and that the First Mahdi of the Twelve Mahdis is “a branch” that comes forth from that “shoot from the stump of Jesse” because he is a descendant of Imam Al-MahdiPBUH. As for the interpretation that “the branch” is Jesus, this is incorrect. The text refutes this because according to the belief of most Christians, Jesus is the absolute Lord himself, so how can he fear the Lord and how can his delight be in fear of Him?! Also Jesus did not rule or judge among people, as he was not able to establish justice or equity for the oppressed. Moreover, the text's descriptions weren't fulfilled in his time regarding the earth being filled with knowledge of the Lord as water covers the ocean and this knowledge resulting in the rich comforting the poor, the strong helping the weak, and the earth being almost free of oppression, etc.
Knowing this, in addition to what we previously explained from the Revelation to John, we are now able to understand the meaning of the following text:
[1] Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals. [2] And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” [3] And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, [4] and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. [5] And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
[6] And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. [7] And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. [8] And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb
. . . . . .
[9] Saying,
“Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5).
And in Revelation 4: [2] At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. [3] And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian . . . [4] Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders . . .
We know that the “one seated on the throne" is the Messenger of God, MuhammadPBUHAP, and the twenty four elders are the twelve Imams and the twelve Mahdis. But who is "the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David" who opens the scroll and its seals?! He is the Riser, Ahmed. He is "of the tribe of Judah" because Narjis, the mother of Imam Al-MahdiPBUH, is from the children of Israel.
Also, if we combine the elder sitting on the throne (MuhammadPBUHAP) with the twenty-four elders, we have a total of twenty-five elders. Among them will be the thirteenth elder who is the standing lamb in the saying: “and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain”. On the authority of Abu Sulaiman, a shepherd of the Messenger of GodPBUHAP:
I heard the Messenger of God say: “In the night He raised me to Heaven, God (Glory to Him) told me: ‘Muhammad, if a servant of mine worshiped me until he breaks down like a worn-out waterskin, and then comes to me while rejecting your guardianship [of your Ahl al-Bayt], I will not forgive him until he accepts it. Muhammad, would you like to see them?’ I said, ‘Yes my Lord.’ He said, ‘Look toward the right side of the throne.’ I turned and suddenly I saw Ali, Fatima, Al-Hassan, Al-Hussein, Ali Ibn Al-Hussein, Muhammad Ibn Ali, Jaffar Ibn Muhammad, Musa Ibn Jafar, Ali Ibn Musa, Muhammad Ibn Ali, Ali Ibn Muhammad, Al-Hassan Ibn Ali, and Al-Mahdi in a shoal of light standing in prayer. The Mahdi was among them as if he was a brilliant star between them. He said: ‘Muhammad, these are the Proofs and this is the avenger from from your lineage. Muhammad, I swear by my Glory and Greatness he is the Proof (Hujja) that is obligatory for my friends and the one who will take vengeance on my enemies.’”106
This religious account is clearly another depiction of the heavenly description that we have previously read in the Revelation to John.
What remains is that the lamb (ie. the thirteenth, the Riser Ahmed), bearing seven horns and seven eyes, means that he bears his fourteen infallible ancestors that preceded him. They are are: Muhammad, Ali, Fatima, Al-Hassan, Al-Hussein, and the ImamsPBUT up to his father Imam Al-MahdiPBUH, as mentioned in the Holy Will and the above narration. He bears them in the sense that he reveals their rights, calls people to their guardianship, and unites mankind through loving them, knowing them, and following their way. At that time the earth will be filled with equality and justice as God has promised, and His promise is true.
In clarifying the role of the first Mahdi (Ahmed) and the eleven Mahdis from his descendants after him, Imam Al-SadiqPBUH said the following: “. . . yet they are a people from our followers that call on people to accept our guardianship and to recognize our rights.”107
Furthermore this lamb in the divine revelation to John is the same as the lamb in the following text: [1] Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his Father's name written on their foreheads (Revelation 14).