A sweet story

I want to tell you a story which began in my childhood:

When I was a kid my toys were my friends. I used to talk with them and tell them my secrets, believing that they could really hear me. When I was upset and crying I used to grab and hold them tight so that I might forget all my sorrow. But when I got a little older, I realized that they were not hearing me! I mean they were not able to hear me. In the depth of their eyes, there was no emotion. I had lost my intimate companions.

HEAVEN on earth

Part 2

Then I (Haji Ali Baghdadi) asked another question from the Sayyed: I told him that in the year 1269 A.H. I had gone for the Ziyaarat of Imam Reda (PBUH); then in Darroot [approximate pronunciation of the name of a town] we met a Sharooqiyeh Arab -who were desert living Arabs in the east side of Najaf-, and we invited him to be our guest, so we asked him about the WELAAYAT of Imam Reda (PBUH), and he said that it was "HEAVEN".

At the end of the month of Safar, year 410 A.H., Hadrat Mahdi (PBUH), by Allah's Permission, sent a Toqee' (Signed Letter) to Mohammad son of Mohammad son of No'maan, the Shaikh Mofeed, in which the Imam (PBUH), while referring to himself as the Depositary of the Covenant made with the servants of Allah, addressed that very learned and pious Shi'ah scholar and Faqeeh (jurisprudent and theologian) as a steadfast brother and guided friend and follower.

The Amir-Ol-Mo'menin, Hadrat Ali (PBUH), has declared:

“One who takes his religion from the mouths of the people, the people will deviate him. But the one who acquires Religion from the Book (Qur'an) and Traditions, mountains may move but he will not.”

(Wasaa'el-O-Shshi'ah, vol. 18, p. 95; …)

The very first individual of human species created on this old earth was Adam (PBUH), the starter of this human race. In other words, Allah -the Compassionate and Merciful- first created a Hojjat and Proof, a Representative and Caliph of Allah, before creating the rest of human race on earth, so that His people would never be without an Allah-Chosen Infallible Proof to follow. This has been the unchangeable Sunnah of the Merciful Allah; the human race on earth has never been and will never be deprived of a Divinely Chosen Guide and Hojjat of Allah.

Ever since the year 260 A.H. that Hadrat Mahdi (PBUH) has been in Occultation, sincere and devoted Believers, with tearful eyes and hopeful hearts, have been Anticipating his glorious and Promised Emergence, but many passed away brokenhearted without witnessing that which they had wholeheartedly anticipated.

In the first verse of Surah Nooh (71) of the Karim Qur'an, Allah -Glory be to He-, after confirming the Prophethood of the Prophet Nooh -Noah- (PBUH), has stated that he (PBUH) was commanded to deliver His message" Warn your people before there come upon them a painful chastisement".

Allah -Glory be to He- in verse 148 of Surah Baqarah (2) of the Majeed Qur'an has said:

And for each, there is a direction toward which he shall turn to; therefore vie in "Khayraat" [good deeds]; wherever you may be, Allah will bring you together; surely Allah is Omnipotent over all things.

Allah -Glory be to He- in verse 62 of the Surah Naml (27) of the Karim Qur'an has stated:

Or, Who answers 'the Moztar' [the Distressed] -when he calls upon Him-, and removes the suffering, and makes you the successors and viceroys of the earth? Is there a god with Allah? Little it is that ye heed!

On the very auspicious occasions of birth anniversaries of the most beautiful and perfect creation of Allah, the most kind and benevolent Hadrat Muhammad (PBUH&HP), and his Allah-Chosen sixth Successor, the manifestation of Divinely Bestowed Knowledge, Hadrat Saadeq, Ja'far son of Muhammad (PBUT), we wish to offer those who truly love and follow them, a celestial Golden Key decorated with the heavenly white ribbon of Ever-Anticipated Peace, and celestial blue bows of True Monotheism and Justice.

While the time of Appearance is not prefixed and no one except Allah knows when it shall occur, but Imam Saadeq (PBUH) has given us a Golden Key which can open the dark door of Occultation, sooner rather than later! In a lengthy Hadith, the Imam has mentioned that when the hardships of Bani-Israel, being captured under the rulership of Pharaoh of Egypt, became too long and intolerable, for forty consecutive mornings, they cried and prayed wholeheartedly and implored Allah to hasten the Promised Relief. Hence, Allah communicated with Hadrat Moosa and Hadrat Haaroon (PBUT) through Divine Revelations, and commanded them to go to Egypt and free the Bani-Israel from their calamity. In this manner, as the result of their sincere supplication and repentance, Allah reduced one hundred and seventy years from the previously ordained four hundred years of hardship (due to their disobedience and …).

In one Tawqee' (signed letter), Imam Mahdi (PBUH) has warned:

“… And, as for the Reappearance, then it is with Allah. And, those who fix a time are liars.”

(Kamaal-O-Ddeen, p. 484, H. 4; …)

The glorious month of Rabi'-Ol-Awwal is upon us -the month in which the most beautiful and perfect creation of Allah, Hadrat Mohammad (PBUH&HP), and years later, his sixth beloved Successor, blessed this tired old and anticipating earth with their magnificent births-, and after the eighth day on which the earth lost another star, on the ninth day of this blessed month, among other auspicious occasions, we are observing the start of the Imamat of the Last Infallible Imam from the wonderful progeny of that same Prophet Muhammad (PBUT), the Ever-Anticipated Mahdi of Fatemah (PBUT). We are honored to narrate a true story through which it is clearly demonstrated that without a doubt, OCCULTATION is absolutely not tantamount to non-existence, rather it is PRESENCE, that is if the pious and obedient souls truly believe in and seek the benevolence and kindness and …, the Allah-Bestowed lordship and leadership, i.e. the Divinely Ordained Imamat of him whom we are Anticipating, moment by moment.

From the beginning of declaration of his Prophethood, the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH&HP), repeatedly, introduced Ali and his Ahl-Ol-Bayt (PBUT) as his Allah-Chosen Successors, and at the Day of Ghadir, by Allah's command, in presence of the Prophet, over one hundred thousand people pledged their allegiance to Hadrat Ali and the AhlulBayt (PBUT), including AbuBakr and 'Omar as the first two who shook the Prophet's and Ali's hands as the so-called sign of their loyalty and allegiance; but as every one knows, they were also the first to break their promise of loyalty after the Prophet (PBUH&HP), and therefore, they usurped the Allah-bestowed Right of Ali and the AhlulBayt and thus distorted the Path of Everlasting Salvation … .

Imam Saadeq (PBUH) has said:

Any one who believes in all the Infallible Imams and rejects Mahdi, is like he who believes in all Prophets and rejects Mohammad (PBUT).

(Kamaal-O-Ddeen, …)

On that unforgettable day next to the Pond of Ghadir, The most beloved, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HP) raised Hadrat Ali's (PBUH) kind and strong hand and formally established the Divinely Ordained Successorship Covenant, and clearly defined the only Straight Path as the Path of Ali and his Infallible sons from Ali (PBUT); then the Prophet (PBUH&HP) required every one until Eternity, man and woman, young and old, black and white, …, to pledge allegiance to them; that is of course if they and we wish to be considered as Believers!

… Every year, eagerly, moments chase nights and days, to reach the dawn of a glorious day, the anniversary of Ghadir, the ever-living day; and when the warm kisses of the morning rays, touch the teary cheeks of that pond, from that dream pond, love drops, LONGING FOR ONE EVER-PROMISED DAY, climb up the ladder of the morning rays, ascend toward the heart of skies, ride upon the wings of white clouds, fly to far and near skies, to Mecca and Medina, to Najaf, Koofah and Karbala, to Kaazemain, Mashhad and Samarra -Ah! Samarra! Broken may be that structure on that land, but Ever-Risen, its heart is in the land of hearts-; in search of ONE DAY, they are, those anxious drops from that love Pond, ONE DAY, in the midst of one of these same seemingly wandering days; and when they will finally find that DAY, they shall fall with the rain, and kiss the land next to the Ka'bah between the Rokn and Maqaam, where he shall stand and say:

… I AM THE ONE, REMAINED BY ALLAH, I AM MAHDI …

… And at the Last Days when the Ever-Promised Savior -Imam Mahdi (PBUH)- shall Emerge, all Shaitaan-directed misguidance as propagated by usurpers and liars will be disclosed. It has been exactly such Shaitaan-directed misguidance and distortions of the usurpers throughout history -such as …, Paul, AbuBakr, 'Umar, …- which have caused the concealment of the Truth, i.e. the Divinely Bestowed Position and Rightfulness of Mohammad and his AhlulBayt (PBUT) -the Allah Appointed lords and masters of all creations- from many; and that has exactly been the goal and promise of Shaitaan as the clear enemy of humankind, i.e. to deviate human from the 'Straight Path' leading to Everlasting Salvation: Qur'an 7:16 … Verily I (Shaitaan) shall lurk in ambush for them on Thy 'Straight Path'.; the 'walaayat' (Wilayat) -Divinely Ordained lordship and mastership- of Muhammad and his AhlulBayt (PBUT) over all other creations, has always been the only 'Straight and Right Path' to Everlasting Salvation.

Two Messiahs – part v

Another thought-provoking point is the role of Paul in Christianity; Paul was originally a Jew:

The New Testament, Book of Acts 22:3 "I (Paul) am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus …"

Two Messiahs - Part IV

Let us explore another interesting aspect of the issue of 'Two Messiahs'.

Two Messiahs - Part III

Many verses of Qur'an state the various favors which were bestowed upon the Bani-Israel, such as verses 47 and after in Surah Baqarah [2], for instance:

Two Messiahs - Part II

This is how the Christians have tried to justify the prophesied concept of 'two Messiahs' through combining the two Promised Ones into one; according to M. P. L. Dunteman:

Two Messiahs - Part I

Stay with us as we shall, Allah-Willing, explore the issue of the 'Two Messiahs', and its connection to Imam Mahdi (May Allah hasten his glorious Emergence) … .

From the beginning, the "Religion of Allah" has been under attack by the evil-ones who have been seeking worldly power, wealth and… while pretending to be the rightful-ones.

…And they tried to kill Jesus (PBUH), then forsook the true Successor of Jesus and as the result, changed the teachings of Jesus (PBUH) from Monotheism to polytheism; the "Religion of Allah" was under attack and thus, the Path to everlasting Salvation was darkened and concealed…

And then Mohammad (PBUH&HP) came and re-invited the followers of the "Religion of Allah" back to the Right Path of Islam, and brightened the concealed Path to Salvation; but the "Religion of Allah" was once again under attack by the evil-ones; they set the house of Imam Ali and Lady Fatima (PBUT) on fire and turned their backs to the true Divinely chosen Successor of the Prophet of Allah and killed…

The evil-ones, just like their lord Eblis, have always known that the "Religion of Allah, Islam" has been ever-existing, and it shall be everlasting; but they have been trying hopelessly, so that they may gain a few more days of worldly so-called achievements, because they know that they have lost Eternity…

When they set the house of Imam Ali and Lady Fatima (PBUT) on fire, Imam Ali (PBUH) was watching, and the Lady's heart broke as well as her bones; that day not only their unborn child was aborted but also the Child of Humanity… .

Ali (PBUH) was commanded to remain patient so that the "Religion of Allah, Islam" would remain; today that they are destroying the house of Imam Mahdi (PBUH) and breaking the Lady's heart again, Imam Mahdi (PBUH) is watching, but he is commanded to remain patient until the Promised Day… .

We announce, with the loudest possible voice, that we detest the actions of the evil-ones from the beginning until today, and we also say, with the loudest possible voice, that Imam Mahdi (PBUH) will return and this time, he shall not be commanded to remain patient, and Islam -Religion of Allah- will prevail… .

O' our beloved Mahdi! We wish to try to share your grief and pain; your forefather, Ali (PBUH), remained patient while -as he said himself- he felt that he had thorns in his eyes and…

O' our lord! We feel in our hearts that this patience is just as difficult for you, and that your mother's -Fatima's- (PBUH) heart, as broken; please accept our tearful eyes and broken hearts… .