Al-Kafi · Hadith 13

The Book about people with Divine Authority · The Issue of Disappearance (of the twelfth Imam (a.s.) from Public Sight · Volume 1, book 4, chapter 80, Hadith 13

Original Arabic text

13ـ عَلِيُّ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى وَغَيْرُهُ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ جَمِيعاً عَنِ ابْنِ مَحْبُوبٍ عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ سَالِمٍ عَنْ أَبِي حَمْزَةَ عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ السَّبِيعِيِّ عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحَابِ أَمِيرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) مِمَّنْ يُوثَقُ بِهِ أَنَّ أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) تَكَلَّمَ بِهَذَا الْكَلامِ وَحُفِظَ عَنْهُ وَخَطَبَ بِهِ عَلَى مِنْبَرِ الْكُوفَةِ اللهمَّ إِنَّهُ لا بُدَّ لَكَ مِنْ حُجَجٍ فِي أَرْضِكَ حُجَّةٍ بَعْدَ حُجَّةٍ عَلَى خَلْقِكَ يَهْدُونَهُمْ إِلَى دِينِكَ وَيُعَلِّمُونَهُمْ عِلْمَكَ كَيْلا يَتَفَرَّقَ أَتْبَاعُ أَوْلِيَائِكَ ظَاهِرٍ غَيْرِ مُطَاعٍ أَوْ مُكْتَتَمٍ يُتَرَقَّبُ إِنْ غَابَ عَنِ النَّاسِ شَخْصُهُمْ فِي حَالِ هُدْنَتِهِمْ فَلَمْ يَغِبْ عَنْهُمْ قَدِيمُ مَبْثُوثِ عِلْمِهِمْ وَآدَابُهُمْ فِي قُلُوبِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ مُثْبَتَةٌ فَهُمْ بِهَا عَامِلُونَ وَيَقُولُ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) فِي هَذِهِ الْخُطْبَةِ فِي مَوْضِعٍ آخَرَ فِيمَنْ هَذَا وَلِهَذَا يَأْرِزُ الْعِلْمُ إِذَا لَمْ يُوجَدْ لَهُ حَمَلَةٌ يَحْفَظُونَهُ وَيَرْوُونَهُ كَمَا سَمِعُوهُ مِنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ وَيَصْدُقُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهِ اللهمَّ فَإِنِّي لاعْلَمُ أَنَّ الْعِلْمَ لا يَأْرِزُ كُلُّهُ وَلا يَنْقَطِعُ مَوَادُّهُ وَإِنَّكَ لا تُخْلِي أَرْضَكَ مِنْ حُجَّةٍ لَكَ عَلَى خَلْقِكَ ظَاهِرٍ لَيْسَ بِالْمُطَاعِ أَوْ خَائِفٍ مَغْمُورٍ كَيْلا تَبْطُلَ حُجَّتُكَ وَلا يَضِلَّ أَوْلِيَاؤُكَ بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَهُمْ بَلْ أَيْنَ هُمْ وَكَمْ هُمْ أُولَئِكَ الاقَلُّونَ عَدَداً الاعْظَمُونَ عِنْدَ الله قَدْراً.

Published English translation

13. Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad and Muhammad ibn Yahya and others from Ahmad ibn Muhammad and Ali ibn Ibrahim from his father, all three of them from ibn Mahbub from Hisham ibn Salim from abu Hamza from abu Ishaq al-Sabi’Isma‘il from a reliable one of the companions of Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s.) who has said the following. “Amir al-Mu’minin (a.s.) once spoke the words herein below from the pulpit in Kufa and I memorized them. “O Lord it is certain that You must have a person with Your Authority on Yaour earth. Such persons would come one after the other whith Your authority over the creatures who would guide people in your religion and teach them your knowledge so that your friends would not scatter. They can be in the public sight but disobeyed or out of public sight whose reappearance would be expected. Even though their persons will be hidden form the people in peace time but their knowledge that has spread before will not be hidden from the people. Their discipline will firmly be established in the hearts of people and they will act up on them.” In another part of this sermon he has (a.s.) said, “Who would it be to have such discipline?” For this reason knowledge becomes obscure when it does not find any one to bear, protect and narrate it to others just as they have heard it from the scholars and speak truthfully from them in it. O Lord, I know that all the knowledge will not become obscure and all of its sources will not banish. You will not leave your earth without a person with Your authority over Your. He may either live in public sight but is not obeyed and followed or is afraid and hidden from public sight so that Your authority is not invalidated and Your friends are not mislead after You have granted them guidance. In fact, where are they and how many are they? They are very few in number but of very great honor and respect before Allah.”

Narrator and transmission

See the transmission information preserved in the original source text.

Attributed scholarly assessments

Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi: مجهول

Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (4/47)

Assessment transcribed from the source's named scholar and reference. No new grading or consensus is asserted; differing entries remain separate.

Shaykh Baqir al-Behbudi: Catalogue non-inclusion note (not an authenticity grade)

Ṣaḥīḥ al-Kāfī

Source records non-inclusion in this scholar's selection; this is not itself a weak or authentic grade.

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translator: Muhammad Sarwar
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