Al-Kafi · Hadith 38

The Book on Dying People · The Rare Ahadith · Volume 3, book 3, chapter 95, Hadith 38

Original Arabic text

38ـ عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنِ ابْنِ مَحْبُوبٍ عَنْ أَبِي أَيُّوبَ عَنْ يَزِيدَ الْكُنَاسِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ (عَلَيْهِ الْسَّلام) قَالَ إِنَّ فِتْيَةً مِنْ أَوْلاَدِ مُلُوكِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ كَانُوا مُتَعَبِّدِينَ وَكَانَتِ الْعِبَادَةُ فِي أَوْلاَدِ مُلُوكِ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَإِنَّهُمْ خَرَجُوا يَسِيرُونَ فِي الْبِلاَدِ لِيَعْتَبِرُوا فَمَرُّوا بِقَبْرٍ عَلَى ظَهْرِ الطَّرِيقِ قَدْ سَفَى عَلَيْهِ السَّافِي لَيْسَ يُبَيَّنُ مِنْهُ إِلاَّ رَسْمُهُ فَقَالُوا لَوْ دَعَوْنَا الله السَّاعَةَ فَيَنْشُرُ لَنَا صَاحِبَ هَذَا الْقَبْرِ فَسَاءَلْنَاهُ كَيْفَ وَجَدَ طَعْمَ الْمَوْتِ فَدَعَوُا الله وَكَانَ دُعَاؤُهُمُ الَّذِي دَعَوُا الله بِهِ أَنْتَ إِلَهُنَا يَا رَبَّنَا لَيْسَ لَنَا إِلَهٌ غَيْرُكَ وَالْبَدِيعُ الدَّائِمُ غَيْرُ الْغَافِلِ وَالْحَيُّ الَّذِي لاَ يَمُوتُ لَكَ فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ شَأْنٌ تَعْلَمُ كُلَّ شَيْ‏ءٍ بِغَيْرِ تَعْلِيمٍ انْشُرْ لَنَا هَذَا الْمَيِّتَ بِقُدْرَتِكَ قَالَ فَخَرَجَ مِنْ ذَلِكَ الْقَبْرِ رَجُلٌ أَبْيَضُ الرَّأْسِ وَاللِّحْيَةِ يَنْفُضُ رَأْسَهُ مِنَ التُّرَابِ فَزِعاً شَاخِصاً بَصَرَهُ إِلَى السَّمَاءِ فَقَالَ لَهُمْ مَا يُوقِفُكُمْ عَلَى قَبْرِي فَقَالُوا دَعَوْنَاكَ لِنَسْأَلَكَ كَيْفَ وَجَدْتَ طَعْمَ الْمَوْتِ فَقَالَ لَهُمْ لَقَدْ سَكَنْتُ فِي قَبْرِي تِسْعَةً وَتِسْعِينَ سَنَةً مَا ذَهَبَ عَنِّي أَلَمُ الْمَوْتِ وَكَرْبُهُ وَلاَ خَرَجَ مَرَارَةُ طَعْمِ الْمَوْتِ مِنْ حَلْقِي فَقَالُوا لَهُ مِتَّ يَوْمَ مِتَّ وَأَنْتَ عَلَى مَا نَرَى أَبْيَضُ الرَّأْسِ وَاللِّحْيَةِ قَالَ لاَ وَلَكِنْ لَمَّا سَمِعْتُ الصَّيْحَةَ اخْرُجْ اجْتَمَعَتْ تُرْبَةُ عِظَامِي إِلَى رُوحِي فَبَقِيَتْ فِيهِ فَخَرَجْتُ فَزِعاً شَاخِصاً بَصَرِي مُهْطِعاً إِلَى صَوْتِ الدَّاعِي فَابْيَضَّ لِذَلِكَ رَأْسِي وَلِحْيَتِي.

Published English translation

38. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from ibn Mahbub from abu Ayyub from Yazid al-Kunasiy who has said the following: “Abu Ja’far (a.s.), has said, ‘Certain youth from the children of Israelite kings were devoted worshippers. Worshipping was a practice among the children of the Israelite kings. These youth decided to travel around in the land. They passed by a gravesite above the road. Winds had almost wiped out its marks. They said to each other, “We should pray to Allah to bring out our fellow from his grave so that we can ask him about his experience of dying.” They prayed to Allah and their prayer was as follows: “You are our Lord. O Lord, no one other than You is our Lord. You are the eternal inventor, never unaware, the ever living who never dies. Every day You work. You know all things without being taught. Please bring this deceased out of his grave by Your power.’” The Imam said that a man with hairs of his head and beard all gray came out of the grave shaking dust off his head, terrified and gazing to the sky and asked them, “What has made you stand on my grave?” They replied, “We called you so we can ask about your experience of facing death.” He replied, “I have remained in my grave for ninety-nine years, but the pain and hardship of experiencing death have not gone away, and its bitterness is still in my throat.” They asked, “Were your hairs of head and beard all gray on the day you died?” He replied, “No, but when I heard the cry, ‘come out,’ the ashes of my bones came together with my soul (spirit) and I took a breath in it and then came out, terrified and gazing to the sky following the voice that called me and that made my hairs to turn all gray.’””

Narrator and transmission

See the transmission information preserved in the original source text.

Attributed scholarly assessments

Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi: حسن

Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (14/264)

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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