Question 808 - The Enlightening Answer Across the Ether, Vol 7

Ahmed al-Hasan Response:

A Q1/ In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, the Imams and the Mahdis, and grant them peace. May Allah grant you success and make your steps firm. Good is not confined to money and possessions (^[39]). If the verse were abrogated, the effect of the abrogation would not extend beyond what concerns the money and property that are the subject of division among the heirs. That is, making a testament concerning material money and property divided among the heirs ceased to be obligatory after the inheritance verses were revealed-that is, it is not obligatory concerning the two-thirds (^[40]). As for the verse’s ruling in matters other than this, it remains operative and in force, and one cannot claim that the inheritance verses abrogated it. From Muhammad ibn Muslim, from Abu Jaʿfar (peace be upon him), who said: ‘I asked him about making a testament for an heir. He said, “It is permissible.” He then recited this verse: “If he leaves good, a testament for parents and near relatives.”’ (^[41]). The verse also explains to the believer the condition of the one-third concerning which he is entitled to make a testament: he must bequeath it, or part of it, to Allah’s vicegerent in His earth in his time, as has been narrated from them (peace be upon them). Yes, Allah’s vicegerent is entitled to waive this obligation, just as he is entitled to waive the khums, because these are funds belonging to him and he may waive them whenever he wills. They are funds with which he supports the nation and its poor, and through which the governance of Allah’s vicegerent in His earth is sustained (^[42]). From Samaʿah ibn Mihran, from Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), concerning the saying of Allah, Mighty and Majestic: ‘A testament for parents and near relatives according to what is right-a duty upon the God-conscious.’ He said: ‘It is something that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has assigned to the Master of this Matter.’ I said: ‘Is there a limit for that?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ I said: ‘What is it?’ He said: ‘The least is one-third of the one-third.’ (^[43]). From Ammar ibn Marwan, from Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), who said: ‘I asked him concerning the saying of Allah: “If he leaves good, the testament.” He said: “It is a right Allah has assigned in the people’s wealth to the Master of this Matter.” I said: “Does it have a prescribed limit?” He said: “Yes.” I said: “How much?” He said: “Its least is one-sixth and its most is one-third.”’ (^[44]). Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Sayyari, in his book al-Tanzil wal-Tahrif, concerning the Most High’s saying, ‘If he leaves good, the testament,’ said: al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: ‘It is a right Allah, Mighty and Majestic, made obligatory for the Master of this Matter from the one-third.’ He was asked: ‘How much is it?’ He said: ‘Its least is one-third of the estate, and the remainder is disposed of as the deceased wishes.’ (^[45]). Also, there is the testament to be conscious of Allah and to urge the people to support Allah’s vicegerent in His earth, especially for one who thinks that his words or testament may influence some who read it after his death to recognize the truth and support Allah’s vicegerent. The Commander of the Believers (peace be upon him) did not command a person of little means to leave aside making a testament; rather, he commanded him not to leave it aside and to bequeath consciousness of Allah. From Abu Abdullah, from his father, from his forefathers, from the Commander of the Believers (peace be upon him): ‘A man of little means came before him and said, “Should I not make a testament, O Commander of the Believers?” He said, “Bequeath consciousness of Allah. As for the money, leave it to your heirs, for it is slight and little. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, only said, ‘If he leaves good,’ and you have not left good concerning which to make a testament.”’ (^[46]). As for Allah’s vicegerent in His earth, and the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) in particular, it is clear that he leaves abundant good-namely, the office of Allah’s vicegerency in His earth (^[47])-after he passes to the Highest Companion. Allah’s vicegerent is the path by which the religious charge reaches the people, so how could he leave aside the testament concerning the one who succeeds him?! Furthermore, the verse contains two expressions that clearly show that the testament is an obligatory duty when death approaches: ‘prescribed’ and ‘a duty upon.’ It is therefore not proper for the bearer of the law to turn away from it, because turning away from it is reprehensible (^[48]). How, then, could Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) turn away from the testament at death when he had sufficient time to write it even after he was prevented from writing it before the assembled witnesses on Thursday (^[49])? Did the Messenger of Allah lack two upright witnesses among the companions when Ali (peace be upon him), Salman, Abu Dharr, al-Miqdad, Ammar, and others who supported writing the document were present (^[50])?! Or did he lack time, when he had nearly three days and nights?! I do not believe that a person who respects the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) would say that he abandoned writing a document-the testament-which he himself (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) described as protecting the nation from misguidance until the Day of Resurrection. The statement of some Shia who claim knowledge is also incorrect: ‘Abandoning the writing of the testament altogether was preferable, because those who objected to its writing during the Calamity of Thursday-namely Umar and his group-and said that he was delirious or overcome by pain would not have refrained, after the Messenger of Allah’s death, from attacking the soundness of his mental faculties when he wrote the testament, just as they did during the Calamity of Thursday’ (^[51]). This statement of theirs is incorrect, because that could happen if the testament were written, brought out, and shown to those objectors. But if it were written for Ali and those companions who accepted it were made to witness it, without its being displayed to the objectors, there would be no attack upon the Messenger (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family). At the same time, the purpose of writing the testament would be achieved: that it reach later generations of this nation and repel misguidance from this nation until the Day of Resurrection. Yes, those who claim jurisprudence may offer the preceding argument to explain why the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) did not insist on writing the testament in that very situation-that is, during the incident of Thursday-not why he left it altogether. This is self-evident. Does a person for whom fasting one day of Ramadan is difficult abandon fasting that day altogether, or does he fast it on another day when he is able? Does one who cannot perform prayer in a place because impurity is present there refrain from prayer, or pray in another place? The document of the Messenger of Allah at the approach of death-the testament-is a tremendous matter, greater than fasting and prayer. Allah made it obligatory upon the Messenger through the Most High’s expressions ‘prescribed’ and ‘a duty upon,’ and the Messenger of Allah described it as protecting the nation from misguidance until the Day of Resurrection. How, then, could the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) abandon it altogether merely because a group objected to him on Thursday?! In truth, it is a tremendous and perilous matter to accuse the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) of abandoning the writing of the testament as death approached. It constitutes accusing the Messenger of leaving what Allah commanded him even though he was able to perform and undertake it. Allah obligates the master and Imam of the God-conscious, Muhammad, to write the testament twice in a single verse through His expressions ‘prescribed’ and ‘a duty upon’: ‘Prescribed for you, when death approaches one of you, if he leaves good, is a testament for parents and near relatives according to what is right-a duty upon the God-conscious’ [al-Baqarah 2:180]. Then so-and-so or so-and-so comes today to say that Muhammad abandoned the testament that identifies the Two Weighty Things!! Thus, with complete ease, he accuses the Messenger of Allah of disobeying Allah because the only narrated testament does not agree with his desire, and because it mentions the Mahdis and the name of the first of them. Simply because he dislikes it, he says that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) made no testament. Is there any following of desire more evident than this?! The calamity is that some of them claim to know what was in the testament of the Messenger of Allah that, according to their claim, he did not write: that it was merely a confirmation of the pledge at Ghadir and of the general hadith of the Two Weighty Things (^[52]). Thus, according to their claim, he (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) did not consider writing it important and did not write it after the calamitous incident, even for the poor people who would have accepted it, such as Ammar, Abu Dharr, and al-Miqdad. He did not even write it for Ali so that it might reach those who would accept it after him, so that no one still in the loins of men would become lost and misguided, and so that it would protect the nation from misguidance (^[53]). I do not know how they learned that the testament was merely a repetition or confirmation of the event at Ghadir or other preceding events and statements of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), such as the general hadith of the Two Weighty Things, although he (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) is a prophet and messenger from Allah, revelation continued to come to him, and his mission of guiding the people continued until the final moment of his life. Did Allah, for example, inform them that He had revealed nothing new to Muhammad one day, one month, or two months before his death-no new details concerning one of the Two Weighty Things, namely the vicegerents after him, and the names and attributes of some of them, in a manner guaranteeing that the nation would not go astray until the Day of Resurrection-even though this accords with wisdom?! If Allah did not reveal anything to these claimants, why do they assert that the testament merely repeated what had preceded, and that it was therefore better, according to their claim, to leave it unwritten after the Calamity of Thursday?! Does this mean that Umar decides for the Messenger of Allah that it was better not to write the testament on Thursday, as those who considered Umar’s objection to writing the document to have been divinely guided and directed claim (^[54]), while you decide for the Messenger of Allah that it was better not to write the testament after Thursday-and you never lack straw with which to kindle your fire? By your Lord, who is the Messenger: Muhammad ibn Abdullah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), Umar and his group, or you who have named yourselves Shia? I call those who make this statement to repentance and seeking forgiveness, if they fear Allah. The reason and wisdom for Allah’s vicegerent to make the testament as death approaches is that revelation and conveying the message continue for Allah’s vicegerent in His earth until the final moment of his life. His testament therefore contains the last that is revealed to him concerning the matter of Allah’s vicegerent or vicegerents after him, or his vicegerents. For this reason the Absolute Wise, Glorious is He, said: ‘Prescribed for you, when death approaches one of you, if he leaves good, is the testament …’; He did not merely say that the testament is prescribed for you. For this reason the Messenger Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), during what was called the Calamity of Thursday, explained that his testament at death-and no other thing-is the protection from misguidance, because it identifies the Two Weighty Things-the successors who protect from misguidance-by name and attribute, such that no one who adheres to this testament until the Day of Resurrection can become misguided. Here I repeat, as a warning and to draw attention, that the Messenger’s statement on the day of the calamity-as Ibn Abbas called it-‘Bring me writing material so that I may write for you a document after which you will never go astray’ means that the preceding message conveyed by the Messenger-including the Quran and Ali (peace be upon him), whose vicegerency he proclaimed many times, and even al-Hasan and al-Husayn (peace be upon them both), who were identified through the Hadith of the Cloak and otherwise (^[55])-does not protect the nation from misguidance until the Day of Resurrection. Rather, what protects the nation from misguidance is this precise identification of the Two Weighty Things, which was revealed to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) and which Allah commanded him to convey to the people through his blessed testament as death approached, at the conclusion of his life and blessed mission. In conclusion: We have a verse that makes writing the testament obligatory when death approaches, using two expressions that indicate obligation-‘prescribed’ and ‘a duty upon.’ The Most High said: ‘Prescribed for you, when death approaches one of you, if he leaves good, is a testament for parents and near relatives according to what is right-a duty upon the God-conscious’ [al-Baqarah 2:180]. Whoever denies the writing of the testament accuses the Messenger of disobedience. We have narrations indicating that the testament was written or that the Messenger intended to write the testament as death approached, such as the Calamity of Thursday narrated in al-Bukhari and what Sulaym ibn Qays narrated in his book (^[56]). We have narrations agreeing with the testament’s content, namely the narrations of the twelve Mahdis. They are present in the supporters’ books, and their sources among both Shia and Sunnis may be consulted (^[57]). We also have what al-Tusi narrated from them (peace be upon them), that the Mahdi’s name is ‘Ahmad, Abdullah, and al-Mahdi’ (^[58]), and what the Sunnis narrated, that the Mahdi’s name corresponds to the Prophet’s name (^[59])-that is, Ahmad, as stated in the testament. We have the text of the testament written as death approached, narrated in al-Tusi’s al-Ghaybah (^[60]), and we have no text opposing the testament. Every objection they have produced to reject the testament has been answered and its falsity explained. After all this, how can a rational person reject the testament? How can one who fears the Hereafter reject the testament? How can one who is conscious of Allah reject the testament?! A Q2: ‘I said to Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), “For what reason was the Qaʾim named the Qaʾim?” He said, “Because he rises after he dies. He rises with a tremendous matter; he rises by the command of Allah, Glorious is He.”’ (^[61]). Shaykh al-Tusi said in Kitab al-Ghaybah: ‘As for the reports containing the statement that the Master of the Age dies and then lives, or is killed and then lives, such as what al-Fadl ibn Shadhan narrated from Musa ibn Saʿdan, from Abdullah ibn Qasim al-Hadrami, from Abu Saʿid al-Khurasani, who said: I said to Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), “For what reason was the Qaʾim named the Qaʾim?” He said, “Because he rises after he dies. He rises with a tremendous matter; he rises by the command of Allah, Glorious is He.”’ Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Jaʿfar al-Himyari also narrated from his father, from Yaʿqub ibn Yazid, from Ali ibn al-Hakam, from Hammad ibn Uthman, from Abu Basir, who said: I heard Abu Jaʿfar (peace be upon him) say: ‘The likeness of our matter in the Book of Allah is the likeness of the man with the donkey: Allah caused him to die for a hundred years and then raised him.’ And from him, from his father, from Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad al-Kufi, from Ishaq ibn Muhammad, from al-Qasim ibn al-Rabiʿ, from Ali ibn Khattab, from the caller to prayer of the Red Mosque, who said: ‘I asked Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), “Is there in the Book of Allah a likeness for the Qaʾim (peace be upon him)?” He said, “Yes, the verse of the man with the donkey: Allah caused him to die for a hundred years and then raised him.”’ Al-Fadl ibn Shadhan narrated from Ibn Abi Najran, from Muhammad ibn al-Fudayl, from Hammad ibn Abd al-Karim, who said: Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him) said: ‘When the Qaʾim (peace be upon him) rises, the people will say, “How can this be, when his bones decayed long ago?”’ Shaykh al-Tusi-may Allah have mercy upon him-then commented: ‘The proper approach to these reports and those resembling them is to say that his remembrance dies and most people believe his bones have decayed, then Allah causes him to appear as He caused the man with the donkey to appear after his actual death. This is a plausible way of interpreting these reports. Nevertheless, one does not turn away, on the basis of isolated reports that do not yield knowledge, from what reason has demonstrated, sound consideration has led to, and the widely transmitted reports we presented have supported. Rather, one must suspend judgment concerning these and adhere to what is known. We have interpreted them only after conceding their authenticity, as is done with their counterparts, while reports that negate them oppose these reports.’ (^[62]). Shaykh al-Tusi understood from the apparent meaning of these hadiths and their counterparts, which were narrated in his time, that they meant there is a person who enters this world and leaves it after being killed, then returns to it when Allah brings him to life once again in this world, and that he is the Qaʾim from the family of Muhammad-the Mahdi, savior, or deliverer. Shaykh al-Tusi-may Allah have mercy upon him-said when introducing the narrations: ‘As for the reports containing the statement that the Master of the Age dies and then lives, or is killed and then lives.’ Since Shaykh al-Tusi understood that the Qaʾim intended by these reports was Imam al-Mahdi Muhammad ibn al-Hasan (peace be upon him), and since he had no understanding that reconciled this apparent meaning with the remaining hadiths, he resorted at one time to interpretation, at another to saying that they are isolated reports from which certainty is not obtained, and finally to suspending judgment regarding their meaning. In every case, may Allah reward him with good, although his interpretation was not successful and the preceding texts cannot accept it in any way. How can the Qaʾim’s rising from death merely mean his appearance after his remembrance died, when the example given for him is the man with the donkey, whose death and revival after death Allah explicitly mentioned in the Quran? ‘Or like the one who passed by a town that had fallen into ruin. He said, “How will Allah bring this to life after its death?” So Allah caused him to die for a hundred years, then raised him. He said, “How long have you remained?” He said, “I have remained a day or part of a day.” He said, “Rather, you have remained a hundred years. Look at your food and drink; they have not spoiled. Look at your donkey-and We will make you a sign for the people-and look at the bones, how We raise them and then clothe them with flesh.” When it became clear to him, he said, “I know that Allah has power over all things”’ [al-Baqarah 2:259]. Then who are those who believe that Imam al-Mahdi Muhammad ibn al-Hasan is dead at the time of the appearance, as Shaykh al-Tusi explicitly said, ‘most people believe his bones have decayed’?! The Shia believe he is alive, and the Sunnis do not believe he exists in the first place, so how could they believe in his death?! The correct understanding of the preceding hadiths, which does not conflict with what has been narrated from them (peace be upon them), is that the Mahdi, the Qaʾim who appears, tells the people that he is the very substitute who was crucified. Some people cannot comprehend this matter, and consequently they tell him that the substitute was crucified, died upon the cross, and his affair ended long ago: ‘When the Qaʾim (peace be upon him) rises, the people will say, “How can this be, when his bones decayed long ago?”’ Pay attention to when they speak: ‘when he rises,’ not before it. That is, when he rises, he tells them something and they answer him, ‘How can this be, when his bones decayed long ago?’ We now say: why resort to interpretation or reject the hadiths so long as their apparent meaning can be reconciled with what has been narrated from them (peace be upon them), especially when we find other narrations and texts that explicitly state and support this understanding of the apparent meaning, as will follow? In truth, there is no need or preponderant reason to turn these hadiths away from their apparent meaning and what they indicate: that the Qaʾim has an attribute-he descended to this world and was killed before he was born and entered it again, and he is the Qaʾim, the Mahdi, savior, or deliverer. This matter and its explanation resemble a secret code or password: it is evidence for the claim of the Qaʾim himself. The texts exist just as numbers and letters exist and are available to everyone, but who other than their owner can derive the correct password from them? Everyone else will fail to reach the code because their statements will amount to no more than possibilities and conjectures filled with contradictions. The Qaʾim, however, comes with this code or password and uses it to open the secret, so that whoever wants to know him may recognize him simply, plainly, and clearly. I explained the matter of the crucified one and the substitute in Mutashabihat, volume four, but there is no harm in explaining it here in another form. First: In the Quran: The Most High said: ‘And for their saying, “We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah.” They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but it was made to appear so to them. Those who differed concerning him are surely in doubt about him. They have no knowledge of it except following conjecture, and they certainly did not kill him’ [al-Nisaʾ 4:157]. Thus, according to the Quran, Jesus (peace be upon him) was neither killed nor crucified. Rather, there was a person who was made to resemble him and was crucified in his place. The verse above also gives a clear answer to an important question: does anyone possess knowledge of the secret of the crucifixion and what occurred in it? The answer to this question renders people’s conjectures-especially those of people who claim Islam-worthless. The answer from the Quran is: ‘Those who differed concerning him are surely in doubt about him. They have no knowledge of it except following conjecture’ [al-Nisaʾ 4:157]. Thus, knowledge of this matter is confined to Allah, Glorious is He, and to those connected to Allah-His Proofs over His creation-inasmuch as He acquaints them with hidden realities and the unseen when He wills, as the Most High explained in the Quran: ‘Knower of the unseen, He does not disclose His unseen to anyone except a messenger whom He has approved; then He appoints guards before him and behind him, so that He may know that they have conveyed the messages of their Lord. He encompasses what is with them and has numbered all things precisely’ [al-Jinn 72:26–28]. The verse clearly states that Allah teaches some of the unseen that He knows to His messengers. All Allah’s vicegerents in His earth are messengers of Allah, Glorious is He, to His creation, whether the prophets and messengers before Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), or Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) and the Imams after him (peace be upon them). All of them, therefore, are included among those whom Allah informs of whatever He wills of the unseen. The Most High also said: ‘He knows what is before them and what is behind them, and they encompass nothing of His knowledge except what He wills’ [al-Baqarah 2:255]. ‘What is before them’ does not mean what they hold in their hands, nor does ‘what is behind them’ mean what lies behind their backs, for otherwise His knowledge, Glorious is He, would have no distinction. Rather, ‘before them’ means the future and ‘behind them’ means events of the past. Thus, the Most High’s saying, ‘He knows what is before them and what is behind them,’ means that He knows the unseen unknown to people concerning future and past events. The continuation of the verse makes the intended meaning still clearer: ‘and they encompass nothing of His knowledge’-that is, of the unseen before them and behind them. The Most High then explained that He teaches some of the unseen to whomever He wills among His creation, as He wills: ‘except what He wills.’ The conclusion from the foregoing: The Quran establishes that the one who was killed and crucified was not Jesus: ‘And for their saying, “We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah.” They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but it was made to appear so to them.’ The identity of the crucified person, the circumstances surrounding his being made to resemble Jesus, and how the event occurred are unknown to the people-Jews, Christians, Muslims, and others. Those who engage in it will merely flounder in ignorance: ‘Those who differed concerning him are surely in doubt about him. They have no knowledge of it except following conjecture.’ Allah knows the unseen and the events of the future and the past, and He informs His vicegerents in His earth of some of them. Thus the crucifixion and its surrounding circumstances are a secret-not only among Muslims but even among Christians, as will be discussed. Its reality is accessible only to one whom Allah informs of it. This is a matter pertaining to Allah’s Proofs; therefore, passing smoothly and easily into this secret indicates the authority of the one who passes into it, because he has brought the password or passcode that can come only from one connected to Allah, Glorious is He. Second: In the Gospel: 1. Jesus asks not to be crucified and not to be the one crucified. ‘…And he went a little farther, fell on his face, and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me …”’ [Matthew 26]. ‘…And he went a little farther, fell on the ground, and prayed that, if possible, the hour might pass from him. He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You; take this cup away from me …”’ [Mark 14]. ‘…And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, saying, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup away from me …”’ [Luke 22]. How would Allah reject Jesus’s request, prayer, and entreaty not to be crucified and fail to avert the crucifixion from him? Is Jesus unworthy of having his prayer answered, or does Allah have no substitute for Jesus (peace be upon him) who could be crucified? Moreover, Christians believe Jesus (peace be upon him) is the Absolute Divinity itself. They therefore need an explanation of his preceding request that does not contradict and negate his absolute divinity as they believe in it. This is unattainable. If they say he asked for the crucifixion to be averted because he did not know it was inevitable, they invalidate his absolute divinity by describing him with ignorance, which is darkness; he is thereby light and darkness, not light without darkness. If they say he asked for it to be averted while knowing it was inevitable, they accuse him of foolishness-otherwise, what meaning would his request have? This negates his absolute divinity and even something less: the wisdom of the prophets (peace be upon them). 2. The crucified one does not accept saying he is king of the Children of Israel. Why would he not accept it if he were Jesus himself (peace be upon him), who came proclaiming that he was king of the Children of Israel? Does this not clearly indicate that the one arrested and crucified was someone other than Jesus? ‘…Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say it” …’ [Gospel of Matthew, chapter 27]. ‘…Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” He answered, “You say it” …’ [Gospel of Mark, chapter 15]. ‘…33 Then Pilate entered the praetorium again, called Jesus, and said, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Do you say this of yourself, or did others tell you about me?” 35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your nation and the chief priests delivered you to me. What have you done?” 36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight so that I would not be delivered to the Jews; but now my kingdom is not from here.” 37 Pilate said, “Are you a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth …”’ [Gospel of John, chapter 18]. 3. The crucified one’s address to Mary, Jesus’s mother, indicates he is not her son. Otherwise, is it fitting for a son to address his mother as ‘woman’? It is proper if he was not Jesus himself; this word clarifies that she is not his mother and he is not Jesus. ‘25 Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son.” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother”’ [Gospel of John, chapter 19]. 4. Peter offers to put himself in Jesus’s place for crucifixion, and Jesus explains his inability: ‘The Lord said, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned, strengthen your brothers.” 33 He said, “Lord, I am ready to go with you, both to prison and to death.” 34 He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today before you deny three times that you know me”’ [Gospel of Luke, chapter 22]. ‘Simon Peter said, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you shall follow me afterward.” 37 Peter said, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down myself for you.” 38 Jesus answered, “Will you lay down yourself for me? Most assuredly, the rooster shall not crow before you deny me three times”’ [Gospel of John, chapter 13]. From these two texts we understand that Jesus in one form or another offered the disciples the opportunity to ransom him, or at least that Jesus explained to Peter-the best disciple-that he was unable to ransom him. This discussion did not arise from nothing. What made Peter offer this if Jesus had not presented the matter to them? How can Peter’s words, ‘I will lay down myself for you,’ be understood apart from resemblance? How could Peter take Jesus’s place to be crucified unless first made to resemble him, so the Jews-who sought Jesus, not Peter-would take him as Jesus himself? Jesus’s response was not, ‘You must not ransom me,’ or, ‘I must be crucified,’ but that Peter was unable. If Peter and the disciples were unable to take Jesus’s place and endure crucifixion, did Allah have no one who could perform this task after Jesus clearly asked for crucifixion to be averted? 5. ‘Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given me?”’ [John 18:11]. These words were uttered by the crucified one while being arrested. They are the words of one who accepts crucifixion and has no objection; he regards hesitation about drinking its cup as unthinkable: ‘Shall I not drink it?!’ How could this come from the same person who hours earlier said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for You; take this cup away from me’ [Mark 14]? Thus they are entirely different persons. The one arrested and crucified was someone other than Jesus, who asked not to be crucified. 6. The Gospel of Judas is an ancient Gospel discovered and dating to before Islam, so it cannot be impugned as fabricated by Muslims. It is a Christian Gospel that circulated among early Christians, demonstrating that they differed then over the crucified one’s identity. The following text explains that the crucified one was not Jesus and identifies his name, attributes, and an attribute of his progeny. The Gospel of Judas-the third scene: ‘Judas said, “Master, could it be that my seed is under the control of the rulers?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Come, that I [000 two lines missing …] but you will grieve much when you see the kingdom and all its generations.” When Judas heard this, he said to him, “What good have I received? For you have separated me from that generation.” Jesus answered, “You will be the thirteenth and will be cursed by the other generations-but you will come to rule over them. In the last days they will curse your ascent ^[47] to the holy generation.”’ ((But you will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me)) ‘But you will exceed them all, for you will sacrifice the man who clothes me. And your horn will be raised at once. Your divine punishment will blaze. Your star will appear brightly, and your heart [000] ^[57].’ [Source note: The source prints marker 000, but no footnote 000 exists.] Besides clearly showing that the crucified one was not Jesus-‘But you will exceed them all, for you will sacrifice the man who clothes me’-the text gives the crucified one’s name as Judas. Certainly this Judas is not Judas Iscariot, the traitor who went to the Jewish scholars and brought the religious police to arrest the crucified one. The Judas crucified instead of Jesus in the Gospel of Judas is a righteous person who sacrifices himself for Jesus. Jesus even describes him with an attribute Judas Iscariot could not possess: he will be the thirteenth. The disciples, by universal agreement, were only twelve; after Judas Iscariot’s betrayal they brought a replacement to complete twelve and were never thirteen. The Judas addressed here must therefore be someone else. Moreover, ‘you will come to rule over them’ confines the matter to the savior who comes at the end time to fill the earth with justice. Judas Iscariot does not come at the end time; he was an unrighteous person born and dead in that age. ‘Judas said, “Master, could it be that my seed is under the control of the rulers?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Come, that I [000 two lines missing …] but you will grieve much when you see the kingdom and all its generations.” When Judas heard this, he said, “What good have I received? For you have separated me from that generation.”’ ‘Could it be that my seed is under the control of the rulers?’ Rulers govern everyone, so what meaning or wisdom is there in asking whether one’s progeny are under rulers’ control? These words have meaning only if the progeny in question are Allah’s vicegerents in His earth. He asks whether they will remain under tyrannical rulers or the people will empower them to govern. Thus not only Judas but his progeny are expected to be Allah’s vicegerents. He asks whether, despite their divine appointment, they may be under tyrannical rulers as many earlier vicegerents-Abraham, Moses, and Jesus himself-were, or whether people will empower them to implement Allah’s governance on earth. This question and Jesus’s answer necessarily show this is not Judas Iscariot: he was not one of Allah’s vicegerents, he had no progeny but died after the crucifixion incident, and how could the unrighteous Judas Iscariot see the kingdom? Judas can see it if he is here a divine person who came from the kingdom and returns after completing his mission of being crucified instead of Jesus. He is therefore not Judas Iscariot. ‘What good have I received? For you have separated me from that generation.’ From what generation was Judas Iscariot separated? These words are coherent only if Judas here is not Judas Iscariot but a divine, heavenly person who came in Jesus’s time and generation although it was not his own, came to perform a mission, and returned whence he came. He also came because Jesus prayed that crucifixion be averted from him, so he could properly say, ‘For you have separated me from that generation.’ Thus the Judas in some Gospel of Judas passages is not Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus and delivered him to the Jewish scholars, as at its end: ‘They approached Judas and said, “What are you doing here? You are Jesus’s disciple.” Judas answered them as they desired, received some money, and delivered him to them’ [Gospel of Judas-the third scene]. Rather, this Judas is described as righteous, one of Allah’s vicegerents, with some progeny who are also Allah’s vicegerents. He was not of Jesus’s generation or time, meaning he descended from the kingdom in Jesus’s time. The text also says this Judas will fill the earth with justice and rule at the end time. These attributes of the Judas crucified instead of Jesus apply to the savior who comes at the end time. If we finally ask the meaning of ‘Judas,’ we find that in Arabic it means praise, or Ahmad. The Torah confirms this meaning in Genesis chapter 29: ‘35 She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she stopped bearing.’ Thus Judas means Ahmad-the name of the Mahdi, savior, or promised comforter at the end time, mentioned in the Torah, Gospel, Quran, and the testament of the Messenger Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family). In the Torah and Gospel, the crucified one’s positions and reported words after arrest show he was wise, fully content with what befell him, and not Judas Iscariot. Satan had taken possession of Judas Iscariot, so wisdom could not proceed from him, nor could he remain calm and steadfast while being led to crucifixion instead of Jesus, in whom he had disbelieved. In Isaiah, and in Acts chapter eight, is this text: ‘…Like a sheep he was led to slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he did not open his mouth …’ Besides indicating, as actually occurred, that he proceeded calmly and steadfastly to torment and crucifixion, the text indicates something else: he did not speak, protest his wrong, or declare his right and messengership, whereas Jesus reproached the scholars and people, admonished them, and declared his right. Thus it is not true of Jesus that he went silently to slaughter. In the Gospel, the crucified one gives glad tidings to one crucified with him that he will go to Paradise because he defended him. With this wisdom and glad tidings from the crucified one, could he be Judas Iscariot? What Paradise could Judas Iscariot promise if Allah had changed his appearance and he were led to crucifixion instead of Jesus, in whom he disbelieved? In that case he would certainly know he was unjust and would be punished, so what Paradise would he promise the one defending him? ‘One of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed him, saying, “If you are the Messiah, save yourself and us.” 40 But the other answered and rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? 41 We indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing improper.” 42 Then he said to Jesus, “Remember me, Lord, when you come into your kingdom.” 43 Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise”’ [Gospel of Luke 23]. Also in Luke: ‘33 When they had gone with him to the place called Skull, they crucified him there with the criminals, one on his right and the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do”’ [Gospel of Luke 23]. The foregoing wisdom and the crucified one’s sober, steadfast positions in the most difficult circumstances could not proceed from a foolish or satanic unbeliever-Allah forbid-such as Judas Iscariot, as some like to portray the substitute without any evidence merely to provide a substitute crucified instead of Jesus. It must also be noted that Judas Iscariot came and directed the religious police to the crucified one, and they arrested the crucified substitute. How could Judas Iscariot come with the police and direct them to the substitute while himself being the substitute? Was Judas Iscariot two persons? Proposals should be more rational, not at this level of naivety and contradiction. How can anyone conceive a scene where Judas Iscariot stands with the police and points out the substitute while he himself is the substitute, existing in one place as two persons, two appearances, and two completely contradictory states? What level of proposal is this? I am amazed that some accept it despite this contradiction. The foregoing also negates what some Muslims say without evidence-that the crucified one was Judas Iscariot. Narrations explain that the crucified substitute was a righteous young man made to resemble Jesus; it is even narrated from the Prophet that he was specifically from Ali’s progeny. The conclusion from the foregoing: The Torah and Gospels recognized by Christians contain texts indicating Jesus was not crucified. Even if each text alone is insufficient, together they constitute evidence that the crucified one was not Jesus (peace be upon him): Jesus asks Allah not to be crucified. The crucified one refuses to say he is king of the Children of Israel, although Jesus is their king. The crucified one addresses Mary, Jesus’s mother, as ‘woman.’ Peter offers to put himself in Jesus’s place-that is, asks to be the substitute: ‘Peter said, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down myself for you.”’ Jesus refuses because he knows Peter cannot do this, and gives him a sign of his inability: he will disown the crucified one three times, which is certainly a disowning of Jesus (peace be upon him). Comparing Jesus’s words before the soldiers came and arrested the crucified one with the crucified one’s words during arrest shows they are completely different persons, adopting different positions toward accepting crucifixion. The one who says, ‘Shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given me?’ cannot be the same one who hours earlier said, ‘Abba, Father, all things are possible for You; take this cup away from me.’ From the Gospel of Judas: The crucified one is not Jesus himself, but a substitute made to resemble Jesus (peace be upon him). The crucified one is described as the thirteenth. He is described as coming at the end time to rule. His name is Judas-Ahmad, as explained-but he is not Judas Iscariot. He descended from the kingdom and was not of Jesus’s generation. He has progeny who are Allah’s vicegerents in His earth. The Torah, Gospel, and Gospel of Judas also contain clear texts showing the crucified one cannot be Judas Iscariot, refuting those who say he was. Third: In the narrations: In Shia books: In Ali ibn Ibrahim’s Tafsir, from Abu Jaʿfar (peace be upon him), who said: ‘On the night Allah raised Jesus (peace be upon him) to Himself, he appointed his companions to meet him. At evening they gathered, twelve men, and he admitted them into a house. Then he came out to them from a spring in a corner of the house, shaking water from his head, and said: “Allah will raise me to Himself this hour and purify me from the Jews. Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him, be killed and crucified, and be with me in my rank?” A young man among them said, “I, O Spirit of Allah.” He said, “Then you are he” …’ Then he (peace be upon him) said: ‘The Jews came that night seeking Jesus (peace be upon him) … They took the young man upon whom Jesus’s likeness had been cast, killed him, and crucified him’ (^[63]). This narration explains that someone other than Judas Iscariot had the resemblance cast upon him and was crucified, and that he has Jesus’s rank. Jesus is one of Allah’s vicegerents in His earth, a prophet, an Imam, and one of the resolute messengers. Thus the crucified substitute is at least one of Allah’s vicegerents in His earth: ‘Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him, be killed and crucified, and be with me in my rank?’ It also states that twelve were present with Jesus while Judas was with the Jewish scholars to deliver Jesus to them. Who, then, was the twelfth other than the crucified one who entered and left without drawing anyone’s attention, or even being seen at first, other than Jesus (peace be upon him): ‘Like a sheep he was led to slaughter, and like a lamb silent before the one who slaughters it, so he did not open his mouth.’ This matter is present, though not so clearly, in the Gospel available today, as shown above: ‘The Lord said, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned, strengthen your brothers.” 33 He said, “Lord, I am ready to go with you, both to prison and to death.” 34 He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today before you deny three times that you know me”’ [Gospel of Luke, chapter 22]. ‘Simon Peter said, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you shall follow me afterward.” 37 Peter said, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down myself for you.” 38 Jesus answered, “Will you lay down yourself for me? Most assuredly, the rooster shall not crow before you deny me three times”’ [Gospel of John, chapter 13]. It is narrated that the substitute is one of Allah’s vicegerents, that those who rejected and killed him are disbelievers, and those who accept him upon his return and defend him are good believers. From Abu al-Jarud, from Abu Jaʿfar (peace be upon him), concerning His saying, ‘O you who believe, shall I direct you to a trade that will save you from a painful punishment?’ They said, ‘If we knew what it was, we would expend wealth, lives, and children upon it.’ Allah said: ‘You believe in Allah and His Messenger and strive in Allah’s way with your wealth and yourselves’-through His saying-‘That is the tremendous triumph. And another that you love: help from Allah and a near victory,’ meaning in this world through the victory of the Qaʾim; he also said the victory of Mecca. His saying: ‘O you who believe, be supporters of Allah’-through His saying-‘A faction of the Children of Israel believed and a faction disbelieved.’ He said: ‘The faction that disbelieved is the one that killed and crucified Jesus’s substitute, while the faction that believed is the one that fought for Jesus’s substitute so that he would not be killed. It fought the faction that killed and crucified him, and this is His saying: “We supported those who believed against their enemy, and they became dominant.”’ (^[64]). Who are those in whom people must believe other than Allah’s vicegerents in His earth-‘the faction that believed is the one that fought for Jesus’s substitute so that he would not be killed’?! Thus the narration clearly explains that the crucified one is one of Allah’s vicegerents in His earth, and people must believe in and support him when he comes to this world. This is present in the Gospel, and the crucified substitute stated it with complete clarity: ‘Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight so that I would not be delivered to the Jews; but now my kingdom is not from here”’ [Gospel of John, chapter 18]. That is, he explains that when he comes to this physical world in his own generation and time, there will be those who defend him so that he is not delivered to the Jews of his time and crucified: ‘If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would fight so that I would not be delivered to the Jews; but now my kingdom is not from here’; ‘the faction that believed is the one that fought for Jesus’s substitute so that he would not be killed.’ It is narrated that the crucified substitute is from the progeny of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family): The Messenger Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), while praying for Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him), said: ‘O Allah, grant him the fortitude of Moses, and place in his progeny the counterpart of Jesus (peace be upon him). O Allah, You are my successor over him and over his progeny and his good, purified descendants from whom You have removed filth and impurity’ (^[65]). In Sunni books: The Sunnis narrated in their commentaries that the one crucified was not Judas Iscariot, but a young man who was with the disciples: ‘Saʿid ibn Jubayr narrated from Ibn Abbas that, when Allah willed to raise Jesus, Jesus came out to his companions and said: “Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him, be killed in my place, and be with me in my rank?” A young man stood and said, “I.” He said, “Sit.” Then he repeated the statement and the young man stood. Jesus said, “Sit.” Then he repeated it, and the young man said, “I.” He said, “Yes, you are the one.” Jesus’s likeness was cast upon him, Jesus was raised, and the Jews came, took the man, killed him, and then crucified him. Wahb ibn Munabbih, Qatadah, and al-Suddi also held this view’ (^[66]). ‘Bishr ibn Muʿadh narrated to us, saying: Yazid narrated to us, saying: Saʿid narrated to us, from Qatadah, concerning His saying, “We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah; but they did not kill him nor crucify him” … through His saying, “Allah is Mighty and Wise.” Those enemies of Allah, the Jews, became notorious for killing Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah, and claimed they killed and crucified him. It has been mentioned to us that Allah’s prophet Jesus son of Mary said to his companions: “Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him, for he will be killed?” A man among his companions said, “I, O prophet of Allah.” That man was killed, while Allah protected His prophet and raised him to Himself. Al-Hasan ibn Yahya narrated to us, saying: Abd al-Razzaq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, from Qatadah, concerning His saying, “They did not kill him nor crucify him, but it was made to appear so to them.” He said: His likeness was cast upon a man among the disciples and he was killed. Jesus son of Mary had presented this to them, saying: “Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him and have Paradise?” A man said: “Upon me.” Al-Muthanna narrated to me, saying: Abu Hudhayfah narrated to us, saying: Shibl narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Najih, from al-Qasim ibn Abi Bazzah: Jesus son of Mary said: “Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him and be killed in my place?” A man among his companions said: “I, O Messenger of Allah.” His likeness was cast upon him and they killed him. That is His saying: “They did not kill him nor crucify him, but it was made to appear so to them.” Al-Qasim narrated to us, saying: al-Husayn narrated to us, saying: Hajjaj narrated to me, saying: Ibn Jurayj said: It reached us that Jesus son of Mary said to his companions: “Which of you will volunteer to have my likeness cast upon him and be killed?” A man among his companions said: “I, O prophet of Allah.” His likeness was cast upon him and he was killed, while Allah raised His prophet to Himself. Muhammad ibn Amr narrated to us, saying: Abu Asim narrated to us, saying: Isa narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Najih, from Mujahid, concerning His saying, “It was made to appear so to them.” He said: They crucified a man other than Jesus, thinking he was Jesus. Al-Muthanna narrated to me, saying: Abu Hudhayfah narrated to us, saying: Shibl narrated to us, from Ibn Abi Najih, from Mujahid, concerning “but it was made to appear so to them,” and he mentioned the like of it. Al-Qasim narrated to us, saying: al-Husayn narrated to us, saying: Hajjaj narrated to me, from Ibn Jurayj, from Mujahid, who said: They crucified a man whom they made to resemble Jesus, thinking he was Jesus, while Allah raised Jesus alive to Himself’ (^[67]). ‘Then He, Glorious is He, informed that the Children of Israel neither killed Jesus nor crucified him, but it was made to appear so to them. The narrators differed regarding this story. What is beyond doubt is that Jesus (peace be upon him) traveled through the earth calling to Allah, while the Children of Israel sought him and their king at that time placed rewards for him. The disciples had joined Jesus and traveled with him wherever he went. At one time Jesus’s matter was detected. It is narrated that a man among the Jews had a reward assigned to him and continued searching until he indicated Jesus’s location. When Jesus and his companions sensed the pursuers overtaking them, they entered a house within view of the Children of Israel. It is narrated that they counted them as thirteen, and it is narrated as eighteen. They were besieged at night. It is narrated that Jesus dispersed the disciples from himself that night and sent them to the regions, while he and one man remained. Jesus was raised, his likeness was cast upon the man, and that man was crucified’ (^[68]). ‘The Jews gathered to kill him, so Allah informed him that He would raise him to heaven and purify him from the company of the Jews. He said to his companions: “Which of you is content to have my likeness cast upon him, be killed and crucified, and enter Paradise?” A man among them said, “I.” Allah cast his likeness upon him, and he was killed and crucified’ (^[69]). ‘…The governor of Jerusalem complied and went with a group of Jews to the house where Jesus (peace be upon him) was with a group of his companions-twelve or thirteen, while seventeen was also stated. It was Friday after the afternoon, the eve of Saturday, and they besieged him there. When he sensed them and that they would inevitably enter upon him or he would go out to them, he said to his companions: “Which of you will have my likeness cast upon him and be my companion in Paradise?” A young man among them volunteered. It was as though Jesus considered him too young, so he repeated it a second and third time, and each time only that young man volunteered. He said: “You are he.” Allah cast Jesus’s likeness upon him until he appeared to be Jesus. An opening in the house’s roof opened, drowsiness took Jesus (peace be upon him), and he was raised to heaven in that state, as Allah Most High said: “When Allah said, O Jesus, I will take you and raise you to Myself,” to the end of the verse. When he was raised, those people came out. When the others saw the young man, they thought he was Jesus, took him at night, crucified him, and placed thorns upon his head … They did not kill him nor crucify him, but it was made to appear so to them-that is, they saw his likeness and thought he was Jesus’ (^[70]). Thus the conclusion from the Torah, Gospel, Quran, reason, and narrations is that the crucified one was neither Jesus nor Judas Iscariot. We found narrations saying he was from the progeny of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) and Ali (peace be upon him), and indicating he was one of Allah’s vicegerents. What should we do? Remain arguing, reject these narrations, advance nothing but desire-based delusions that conflict with the Torah, Gospel, narrations, and reason, and say that the crucified one was Judas Iscariot-insisting it is a goat even if it flies?! Or should our statement be what the heavenly books-the Torah, Gospel, and Quran-agree upon and what the Messenger of Allah and the family of Muhammad explicitly stated: the crucified one was not Jesus; he was righteous, one of Allah’s vicegerents in His earth, from the family of Muhammad and Ali’s progeny? All these facts come from texts in the Torah, Gospel, Quran, and the statements of Muhammad and his family, and no considerable evidence opposes them. Now, after establishing that Jesus was neither crucified nor killed, that a substitute was crucified, and identifying him from the Torah, Gospel, Quran, and the statements of Muhammad and his family, we return to what al-Tusi narrated: people cannot comprehend resemblance and crucifixion, or cannot accept that the person confronting them is that very person, so they begin objecting, as al-Tusi-may Allah have mercy upon him-narrated from Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him): ‘When the Qaʾim rises, the people will say: “How can this be, when his bones decayed long ago?”’ Or let us state their objection another way: how could the crucified substitute be a person who descended miraculously to earth and was killed, then afterward be born as a child and grow until he is the Qaʾim or Mahdi?! In truth, those who make this objection do so because they do not know or notice that spirits were created before this physical world. This is established by reason and transmitted evidence. Reason does not accept that a lower-ranking spirit was created before a higher-ranking spirit, because the lower subsists through the higher’s existence. This is not the place to discuss and explain how creation proceeds from the Absolute Reality, but a simple explanation causes no harm. What proceeds from the Absolute Reality, or the created being nearest the Absolute Reality, cannot be repeated; otherwise the repeated one would itself be the first and nothing else. The next created being is therefore farther from the Absolute Reality than the first, meaning lower in rank. The first created being consequently mediates in creating the second, as the Most High said, ‘with My two hands’: ‘He said, “O Iblis, what prevented you from prostrating to what I created with My two hands? Were you arrogant, or were you among the exalted?”’ [Sad 38:75]. Thus the first created being is Allah’s hand in relation to the second, and the second is likewise Allah’s hand in relation to the third. It is not one hand or two, but many hands, as the Most High said: ‘We built the heaven with hands, and indeed We are expanding it’ [al-Dhariyat 51:47]. Reason therefore says that Muhammad’s spirit (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), higher in rank, was created before Adam’s spirit (peace be upon him), lower in rank, and there is no rational proof refuting this truth. Adam being created before Muhammad in this physical world does not mean Adam’s spirit preceded his, for there is no necessary connection between creating the body and creating the spirit; they are in two different worlds. The Quran supports this proof that accords with wisdom and reason. The Most High said: ‘He said, “O Iblis, what prevented you from prostrating to what I created with My two hands? Were you arrogant, or were you among the exalted?”’ [Sad 38:75]. Exalted is Allah above having a hand. ‘What I created with My two hands’ means by a created hand that represented His strength, will, and power to create in this station. This created hand or spirit created Adam, or mediated in Adam’s creation (peace be upon him). Thus this spirit preceded Adam (peace be upon him). This created hand or spirit is Muhammad-may Allah send prayers upon him and his family-and whomever Allah willed to be a hand for Him, Glorious is He, to carry out what He wills from and within creation: ‘We built the heaven with hands, and indeed We are expanding it’ [al-Dhariyat 51:47]. These are Allah’s hands by which He creates, the first created beings brought near: ‘This is a warner from the former warners’ [al-Najm 53:56]. They are the possessors of the exalted station who were not charged to prostrate to Adam because they rank above him: ‘He said, “O Iblis, what prevented you from prostrating to what I created with My two hands? Were you arrogant, or were you among the exalted?”’ [Sad 38:75]. ‘The exalted’ means the spirits who created Adam; they were not charged to prostrate to him because they are above him and higher in rank. As for transmitted evidence, it clearly explains that the spirit of Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) and the family of Muhammad (peace be upon them) were created long before Adam and all creation, and before bodies or this physical world. From the Quran: The Most High said: ‘Say: if the Most Gracious had a son, then I am the first of the worshippers’ [al-Zukhruf 43:81]. The verse responds to those who say Jesus is Allah’s son. In summary, it negates this sonship on the basis that Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), the first created being, preceded Jesus in existence, and it offers as an explanation for this precedence his precedence in worship: ‘then I am the first of the worshippers.’ The verse therefore clearly establishes that Muhammad’s spirit was created before Jesus’s and Adam’s spirits, indeed before the spirits of all creation; otherwise, he could not properly be described as the first worshipper in temporal or eventive precedence. From narrations through Sunni and Shia paths: Al-Mufaddal narrated that Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him) said: ‘Allah, Blessed and Most High, created the spirits two thousand years before the bodies. He made the highest and noblest of them the spirits of Muhammad, Ali, Fatimah, al-Hasan, al-Husayn, and the Imams after them-Allah’s prayers be upon them. He displayed them to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, and their light overwhelmed them …’ (^[71]). Al-Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: ‘Allah established brotherhood among the spirits in the shadows two thousand years before creating the bodies. When our Qaʾim of the Ahl al-Bayt rises, a brother will inherit from the one with whom he was paired in brotherhood in the shadows, not the brother by birth’ (^[72]). Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Abd al-Rahman ibn Abdullah ibn al-Husayn ibn Ibrahim ibn Yahya ibn Ajlan al-Marwazi al-Muqriʾ narrated to us, saying: Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Jurjani narrated to us, saying: Abu Bakr Abd al-Samad ibn Yahya al-Wasiti narrated to us, saying: al-Hasan ibn Ali al-Madani narrated to us, from Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak, from Sufyan al-Thawri, from Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq, from his father, from his grandfather, from Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon them), who said: ‘Allah, Blessed and Most High, created the light of Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) before He created the heavens, the earth, the Throne, the Footstool, the Tablet, the Pen, Paradise, the Fire, and before He created Adam, Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Jesus, David, Solomon, and everyone whom Allah, Mighty and Majestic, mentioned in His saying, “We granted him Isaac and Jacob”-through His saying-“and guided them to a straight path,” and before He created all the prophets, by four hundred twenty-four thousand years. Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created with him twelve veils …’ (^[73]). Abu Saʿid al-Khudri narrated: ‘We were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) when a man approached him and said, “O Messenger of Allah, inform me concerning Allah’s saying to Iblis, ‘Were you arrogant, or were you among the exalted?’ Who, O Messenger of Allah, are those higher than the angels?” The Messenger of Allah said: “I, Ali, Fatimah, al-Hasan, and al-Husayn were in a pavilion of the Throne, glorifying Allah, while the angels glorified Him through our glorification, two thousand years before Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created Adam. When Allah created Adam, He commanded the angels to prostrate to him but did not command us to prostrate. All the angels prostrated except Iblis, who refused. Allah, Blessed and Most High, said, ‘Were you arrogant, or were you among the exalted?’-that is, among these five whose names are written in the pavilion of the Throne. We are Allah’s gate through which He is approached. Through us those guided are guided. Whoever loves us, Allah loves him and admits him to His Paradise; whoever hates us, Allah hates him and admits him to His Fire. None loves us except one whose birth is pure.”’ (^[74]). Al-Saduq-may Allah have mercy upon him-narrated in Kitab al-Miʿraj through his transmitters to Ibn Abbas, who said: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) addressing Ali (peace be upon him), saying: “O Ali, Allah, Blessed and Most High, existed when nothing was with Him. He created me and you as two spirits from the light of His majesty. We stood before the Throne of the Lord of the worlds, glorifying, sanctifying, praising, and declaring Allah’s oneness before He created the heavens and the earths. When He willed to create Adam, He created me and you from one clay, from the clay of Illiyyin, kneaded us with that light, and immersed us in all the lights and rivers of Paradise. Then He created Adam and entrusted that clay and light to his loins. When He created him, He brought his progeny forth from his back, caused them to speak, and made them acknowledge Lordship. The first creation to acknowledge Lordship was me and you, and the prophets according to their stations and nearness to Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Allah, Blessed and Most High, said: ‘You have spoken truth and acknowledged, O Muhammad and O Ali, and preceded My creation in obeying Me. Thus were you in My prior knowledge concerning you. You are My chosen ones from My creation; the Imams are from your progeny and your Shia. Thus I created you …’”’ (^[75]). Al-Husayn ibn Ubayd Allah informed us, saying: Abu Muhammad informed us, saying: Muhammad ibn Hammam narrated to us, saying: Ali ibn al-Husayn al-Hamdani narrated to us, saying: Muhammad ibn Khalid al-Barqi narrated to me, saying: Muhammad ibn Sinan narrated to us, from al-Mufaddal ibn Umar, from Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him), from his forefathers (peace be upon them), from the Commander of the Believers (peace be upon him): ‘One day he was sitting in al-Rahbah with the people gathered around him. A man stood and said: “O Commander of the Believers, you occupy the station in which Allah placed you, while your father is tormented in the Fire!” He said: “Silence! May Allah disfigure your mouth. By the One who sent Muhammad as a prophet with the truth, if my father interceded for every sinner upon the face of the earth, Allah Most High would accept his intercession for them. My father is tormented in the Fire while his son is the distributor of the Fire?!” Then he said: “By the One who sent Muhammad as a prophet with the truth, the light of Abu Talib on the Day of Resurrection will extinguish the lights of creation except five lights: the light of Muhammad, my light, the light of Fatimah, the lights of al-Hasan and al-Husayn, and those of the Imams from his descendants, because his light is from our light, which Allah, Mighty and Majestic, created two thousand years before creating Adam”’ (^[76]). The Commander of the Believers Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) said: ‘Allah existed and nothing was with Him. The first thing He created was the light of His beloved Muhammad-may Allah send prayers upon him and his family-four hundred twenty-four thousand years before creating the water, Throne, Footstool, heavens, earth, Tablet, Pen, Paradise, Fire, angels, Adam, and Eve. When Allah Most High created the light of our prophet Muhammad, it remained standing before Allah, Mighty and Majestic, for a thousand years, glorifying and praising Him, while the Truth, Blessed and Most High, looked upon it … When the lights were complete, the light of Muhammad dwelt beneath the Throne for seventy-three thousand years; then his light moved to Paradise and remained seventy thousand years; then to the Lote Tree of the Furthest Boundary and remained seventy thousand years; then to the seventh heaven, the sixth, the fifth, the fourth, the third, the second, and the lowest heaven. His light remained in the lowest heaven until Allah Most High willed to create Adam (peace be upon him) …’ (^[77]). Jabir ibn Abdullah narrated: ‘I said to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family), “What was the first thing Allah Most High created?” He said: “The light of your Prophet, O Jabir. Allah created it, then created every good from it, and stationed it before Him in the station of nearness as long as Allah willed. Then He divided it into portions: He created the Throne from one portion, the Footstool from one, and the bearers of the Throne and keepers of the Footstool from one. He stationed the fourth portion in the station of love as long as Allah willed, then divided it into portions: He created the Pen from one, the Tablet from one, and Paradise from one. He stationed the fourth portion in the station of fear as long as Allah willed, then divided it into parts: He created the angels from one part, the sun from one, and the moon and stars from one. He stationed the fourth portion in the station of hope as long as Allah willed, then divided it into parts: He created reason from one, knowledge and forbearance from one, and infallibility and success from one. He stationed the fourth portion in the station of modesty as long as Allah willed, then looked at it with the eye of awe. That light perspired and one hundred twenty-four thousand drops fell from it; from every drop Allah created the spirit of a prophet and messenger. Then the spirits of the prophets breathed, and from their breaths Allah created the spirits of the friends of Allah, martyrs, and righteous”’ (^[78]). From Muhammad ibn Sinan, from Ibn Abbas, who said: ‘We were with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) when Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) approached. The Prophet said to him: “Welcome to one whom Allah created forty thousand years before his father.” We said, “O Messenger of Allah, was the son before the father?” He said: “Yes. Allah created me and Ali from one light before creating Adam by this period, then divided it into halves. Then He created things from my light and Ali’s light and placed us to the right of the Throne. We glorified, and the angels glorified; we declared His oneness, and they declared His oneness; we magnified Him, and they magnified Him. Everyone who glorifies and magnifies Allah does so through Ali’s instruction”’ (^[79]). Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak narrated from Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad, from his father, from his grandfather, from the Commander of the Believers (peace be upon him), that he said: ‘Allah created the light of Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) fourteen thousand years before created beings, and created with him twelve veils; the veils mean the Imams (peace be upon them)’ (^[80]). Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Muhammad, known as Ibn al-Maghazili al-Wasiti al-Shafiʿi, reported in al-Manaqib through his chain from Salman al-Farsi, who said: ‘I heard my beloved Muhammad (may Allah send prayers and peace upon him and his family) say: “Ali and I were a light before Allah, Mighty and Majestic; that light glorified and sanctified Allah fourteen thousand years before Allah created Adam. When He created Adam, He placed that light in his loins. Ali and I remained one thing until we separated in the loins of Abd al-Muttalib: prophethood is in me and the Imamate in Ali”’ (^[81]). See the hadith from Salman also in Tarikh Madinat Dimashq, vol. 42, p. 67; Manaqib Ibn al-Maghazili, p. 87; Fadaʾil al-Sahabah by Ibn Hanbal, vol. 2, p. 662; Manaqib al-Khwarizmi, p. 145. Ibn al-Maghazili also reported from Salim ibn Abi al-Jaʿd, from Abu Dharr, who said: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers and peace upon him and his family) say: “Ali and I were a light to the right of the Throne before Allah, Mighty and Majestic. That light glorified and sanctified Allah fourteen thousand years before Allah created Adam. Ali and I remained one thing until we separated in the loins of Abd al-Muttalib: one part is me and one part Ali”’ (^[82]). Ibn Abbas-may Allah be pleased with him-narrated: ‘I heard the Messenger of Allah (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) say: “Ali and I were a light before Allah fourteen thousand years before He created Adam. When Allah created Adam, He placed that light in his loins. Allah continued transferring it from loins to loins until He settled it in the loins of Abd al-Muttalib, then brought it forth and divided it into two parts: one part in the loins of Abdullah and one in the loins of Abu Talib. Ali is from me and I am from him; his flesh is my flesh and his blood my blood. Whoever loves him in truth, I love; whoever hates him thereby hates me, and I hate him”’ (^[83]). ‘Abd al-Wahhab ibn Ataʾ informed us, from Saʿid ibn Abi Arubah, from Qatadah; and Umar ibn Asim al-Kilabi informed us, saying: Abu Hilal informed us, from Qatadah, who said: the Messenger of Allah-may Allah send prayers and peace upon him-said: “I was the first of the people in creation and the last of them in being sent”’ (^[84]). Abu Hammam al-Walid ibn Shujaʿ ibn al-Walid al-Baghdadi narrated to us, saying: al-Walid ibn Muslim informed us, from al-Awzaʿi, from Yahya ibn Abi Kathir, from Abu Salamah, from Abu Hurayrah, who said: They said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, when was prophethood made obligatory for you?’ He said: ‘While Adam was between spirit and body’ (^[85]). Abu al-Nadr al-Faqih and Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Salamah al-Anazi narrated to us, saying: Uthman ibn Saʿid al-Darimi and Muhammad ibn Sinan al-Awfi narrated to us, saying: Ibrahim ibn Tahman narrated to us, from Budayl ibn Maysarah, from Abdullah ibn Shaqiq, from Maysarah al-Fakhr, who said: I said to the Messenger of Allah, ‘When were you a prophet?’ He said: ‘While Adam was between spirit and body’ (^[86]). It is now clear from the Quran and narrations that the spirits of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad (peace be upon them) existed at the time Jesus was sent, indeed before Jesus was born. Is there then any obstacle to creating a physical body for the spirit of one of them-or in reality, to his appearing in the physical world in a form resembling Jesus (peace be upon him)-by Allah’s will, power, and might, at least just as Gabriel, who is a spirit, is narrated to have appeared to Muhammad (may Allah send prayers upon him and his family) in this physical world in the form of Dihyah al-Kalbi? I say: after transmitted evidence and reason have demonstrated this matter, is there now any rational impediment? Does one who rejects it as inconceivable have an alternative supported by the texts, reason, and wisdom as the foregoing is, or merely obstinacy, argument, and following desire to reject the truth? Accepting reality as it is may involve some difficulty, especially amid ignorance, Satan, and their soldiers, who labor to prevent people from listening attentively to the truth, hearing Allah’s words, submitting to evidence, and recognizing reality. But when evidence is established to reveal the truth, rational people must say, ‘Yes, this is the truth; we have seen it clearly.’ Otherwise they would be neither human nor rational. [Source note: The Arabic source proceeds from A Q2 directly to A Q4 and contains no discernible answer to Q3.] A Q4/ ‘We do not descend except by the command of your Lord. To Him belongs what is before us, what is behind us, and what is between that; and your Lord is never forgetful’ [Maryam 19:64]. The verse explains the angels’ descent (peace be upon them), that they do not know the unseen, and that Allah, Glorious and Most High, is the Knower of the unseen from whom nothing of it escapes. ‘To Him belongs what is before us, what is behind us, and what is between that’: the future is ‘what is before us,’ the past ‘what is behind us,’ and the present ‘what is between that.’ ‘Your Lord is never forgetful’: nothing of the unseen escapes or is absent from Him, Glorious and Most High. ‘Forgetfulness’ here means that something escapes or is absent from Him.