Al-Kahf Ayah 56-82

الكهف آيه 82-56

قوله تعالى:

وَ يُجٰادِلُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِالْبٰاطِلِ لِيُدْحِضُوا بِهِ الْحَقَّ -إلى قوله تعالى- ذٰلِكَ تَأْوِيلُ مٰا لَمْ تَسْطِعْ عَلَيْهِ صَبْراً [56-82]

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- ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm said, regarding His saying: وَ يُجٰادِلُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِالْبٰاطِلِ لِيُدْحِضُوا بِهِ الْحَقَّ: that is, to repel it. And about His saying: وَ اتَّخَذُوا آيٰاتِي وَ مٰا أُنْذِرُوا هُزُواً up to His saying: بَلْ لَهُمْ مَوْعِدٌ — this is muḥkam (of clear, fixed meaning).

He said: And His saying, لَنْ يَجِدُوا مِنْ دُونِهِ مَوْئِلاً — meaning: any refuge. And His saying: وَ تِلْكَ الْقُرىٰ أَهْلَكْنٰاهُمْ لَمّٰا ظَلَمُوا وَ جَعَلْنٰا لِمَهْلِكِهِمْ مَوْعِداً — meaning: on the Day of Resurrection they will enter the Fire. When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) informed Quraysh of the story of the Companions of the Cave, they said: Inform us about the learned man whom Allah commanded Moses to follow, and what his story was. So Allah, Mighty and Majestic, revealed: وَ إِذْ قٰالَ مُوسىٰ لِفَتٰاهُ لاٰ أَبْرَحُ حَتّٰى أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِيَ حُقُباً.

- Qur’an (18:60), M. H. Shakir: And when Musa said to his servant: I will not cease until I reach the junction of the two rivers or I will go on for years.

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أَبْنُ بَابَوَيْهِ، قَالَ: أَخْبَرَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ الْحَسَنِ الْقَطَّانُ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا الْحَسَنُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ السُّكَّرِيُّ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ زَكَرِيَّا الْجَوْهَرِيُّ الْبَصْرِيُّ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنَا جَعْفَرُ بْنُ عُمَارَةَ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) أَنَّهُ قَالَ: «إِنَّ الْخَضِرَ كَانَ نَبِيّاً مُرْسَلاً، بَعَثَهُ اللَّهُ تَبَارَكَ وَ تَعَالَى إِلَى قَوْمِهِ، فَدَعَاهُمْ إِلَى تَوْحِيدِهِ، وَ الْإِقْرَارِ بِأَنْبِيَائِهِ وَ رُسُلِهِ وَ كُتُبِهِ، وَ كَانَتْ آيَتُهُ أَنَّهُ كَانَ لاَ يَجْلِسُ عَلَى خَشَبَةٍ يَابِسَةٍ وَ لاَ أَرْضٍ بَيْضَاءَ إِلاَّ أَزْهَرَتْ خَضْرَاءَ، وَ إِنَّمَا سُمِّيَ خَضِراً لِذَلِكَ، وَ كَانَ اسْمُهُ تَالِيَا [1] بْنَ مَلْكَانَ بْنِ عَابِرِ بْنِ أَرْفَخْشَدَ بْنِ سَامِ بْنِ نُوحٍ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)، وَ إِنَّ مُوسَى لَمَّا كَلَّمَهُ اللَّهُ تَكْلِيماً، وَ أَنْزَلَ عَلَيْهِ التَّوْرَاةَ وَ كَتَبَ لَهُ فِي الْأَلْوَاحِ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مَوْعِظَةً وَ تَفْصِيلاً لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ، وَ جَعَلَ آيَتَهُ فِي يَدِهِ وَ فِي عَصَاهُ، وَ فِي الطُّوفَانِ وَ الْجَرَادِ وَ الْقُمَّلِ وَ الضَّفَادِعِ وَ الدَّمِ، وَ فَلْقِ الْبَحْرِ، وَ أَغْرَقَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ فِرْعَوْنَ وَ جُنُودَهُ، وَ عَمِلَتِ الْبَشَرِيَّةُ فِيهِ حَتَّى قَالَ فِي نَفْسِهِ: مَا أَرَى أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ خَلَقَ خَلْقاً أَعْلَمَ مِنِّي. فَأَوْحَى اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ إِلَى جَبْرَئِيلَ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): يَا جَبْرَئِيلُ، أَدْرِكْ عَبْدِي مُوسَى قَبْلَ أَنْ يَهْلِكَ، وَ قُلْ: لَهُ: إِنَّ عِنْدَ مُلْتَقَى الْبَحْرَيْنِ رَجُلاً عَابِداً فَاتَّبِعْهُ وَ تَعَلَّمْ مِنْهُ، فَهَبَطَ جَبْرَئِيلُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) عَلَى مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) بِمَا أَمَرَهُ بِهِ رَبُّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ، فَعَلِمَ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) أَنَّ ذَلِكَ لِمَا حَدَّثَتْهُ بِهِ نَفْسُهُ.

فَمَضَى هُوَ وَ فَتَاهُ يُوشَعُ بْنُ نُونٍ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) حَتَّى انْتَهَيَا إِلَى مُلْتَقَى الْبَحْرَيْنِ، فَوَجَدَا هُنَاكَ الْخَضِرَ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) يَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ، كَمَا قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ فِي كِتَابِهِ فَوَجَدٰا عَبْداً مِنْ عِبٰادِنٰا آتَيْنٰاهُ رَحْمَةً مِنْ عِنْدِنٰا وَ عَلَّمْنٰاهُ مِنْ لَدُنّٰا عِلْماً* قٰالَ لَهُ مُوسىٰ هَلْ أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلىٰ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمّٰا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْداً ؟ قَالَ لَهُ الْخَضِرُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً لِأَنِّي وُكِّلْتُ بِعِلْمٍ لاَ تُطِيقُهُ، وَ وُكِّلْتَ أَنْتَ بِعِلْمٍ لاَ أُطِيقُهُ. قَالَ مُوسَى: بَلْ أَسْتَطِيعُ مَعَكَ صَبْراً. فَقَالَ

- Qur’an (18:65-66), M. H. Shakir: So they found one of Our servants whom We had granted mercy from Us and whom We had taught knowledge from Ourselves. Musa said to him: Shall I follow you on condition that you should teach me right knowledge of what you have been taught?

- Translation: Ibn Bābawayh narrated: Ahmad b. al-Hasan al-Qaṭṭān informed us, who said: al-Hasan b. ʿAlī al-Sukkarī narrated to us, who said: Muḥammad b. Zakarīyā al-Jawharī al-Baṣrī narrated to me, who said: Jaʿfar b. ʿUmārah narrated to us, from his father, from Jaʿfar b. Muḥammad (peace be upon him), that he said: “Al-Khiḍr was a commissioned prophet. Allah, Blessed and Exalted, sent him to his people. He called them to His oneness, and to acknowledge His prophets and messengers and His books. His sign was that he never sat upon a dry piece of wood or white soil except that it blossomed green, and for that he was named ‘Khiḍr’. His name was Tāliyā [1] son of Malkān son of ʿĀbir son of Arfakhshadh son of Sām son of Nūḥ (peace be upon him).

When Allah spoke directly to Moses and sent down the Torah upon him, and wrote for him upon the tablets an admonition for everything and a distinct explanation for everything, and placed his sign in his hand and in his staff, and in the flood, the locusts, the lice, the frogs, and the blood, and the splitting of the sea, and Allah drowned Pharaoh and his hosts—human nature worked within him until he said to himself: ‘I do not think that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has created a creature more knowledgeable than I.’

So Allah, Mighty and Majestic, revealed to Gabriel (peace be upon him): ‘O Gabriel, catch up to My servant Moses before he perishes, and say to him: At the meeting-point of the two seas there is a devout man, so follow him and learn from him.’ Gabriel (peace be upon him) descended to Moses (peace be upon him) with what his Lord had commanded him, and Moses understood that this was due to what he had told himself.

He set out with his servant Yūshaʿ b. Nūn (peace be upon him) until they reached the meeting of the two seas, and there they found al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) worshipping Allah, Mighty and Majestic—as Allah says in His Book: فَوَجَدٰا عَبْداً مِنْ عِبٰادِنٰا آتَيْنٰاهُ رَحْمَةً مِنْ عِنْدِنٰا وَ عَلَّمْنٰاهُ مِنْ لَدُنّٰا عِلْماً* قٰالَ لَهُ مُوسىٰ هَلْ أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلىٰ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمّٰا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْداً ؟

Al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) said to him: ‘You will not be able to be patient with me, for I have been entrusted with knowledge that you cannot bear, and you have been entrusted with knowledge that I cannot bear.’ Moses said: ‘Rather, I will be able to be patient with you.’ Then he (Khiḍr) said…”

[1] باليا — bāliyā; وإليا — ilyā.

قوله:

الْخَضِرُ: إِنَّ الْقِيَاسَ لاَ مَجَالَ لَهُ فِي عِلْمِ اللَّهِ وَ أَمْرِهِ وَ كَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلىٰ مٰا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِ خُبْراً ؟ قَالَ لَهُ مُوسَى:

سَتَجِدُنِي إِنْ شٰاءَ اللّٰهُ صٰابِراً وَ لاٰ أَعْصِي لَكَ أَمْراً فَلَمَّا اسْتَثْنَى الْمَشِيئَةَ قَبِلَهُ. قَالَ: فَإِنِ اتَّبَعْتَنِي فَلاٰ تَسْئَلْنِي عَنْ شَيْءٍ حَتّٰى أُحْدِثَ لَكَ مِنْهُ ذِكْراً فَقَالَ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): لَكَ ذَلِكَ عَلَيَّ فَانْطَلَقَا حَتَّى إِذَا رَكِبَا فِي السَّفِينَةِ خَرَقَهَا الْخَضِرُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)، فَقَالَ لَهُ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): أَ خَرَقْتَهٰا لِتُغْرِقَ أَهْلَهٰا لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئاً إِمْراً قَالَ: أَ لَمْ أَقُلْ إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً ؟! قَالَ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): لاٰ تُؤٰاخِذْنِي بِمٰا نَسِيتُ أَيْ بِمَا تَرَكْتُ مِنْ أَمْرِكَ وَ لاٰ تُرْهِقْنِي مِنْ أَمْرِي عُسْراً .

- Qur’an (18:66-73), M. H. Shakir selection: He said: You will not be able to have patience with me. And how can you have patience in that of which you have not got a comprehensive knowledge? He said: If Allah pleases, you will find me patient and I shall not disobey you in any matter. He said: If you would follow me, then do not question me about anything until I myself speak to you about it. So they both went until when they embarked in the boat he made a hole in it. He said: Have you made a hole in it to drown its inmates? Certainly you have done a grievous thing. He said: Did I not say that you will not be able to have patience with me? He said: Blame me not for what I forgot, and do not constrain me to a difficult thing in my affair.

فَانْطَلَقٰا حَتّٰى إِذٰا لَقِيٰا غُلاٰماً فَقَتَلَهُ الْخَضِرُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)… إِنْ سَأَلْتُكَ عَنْ شَيْءٍ بَعْدَهٰا فَلاٰ تُصٰاحِبْنِي قَدْ بَلَغْتُ مِنْ لَدُنِّي عُذْراً .

- Qur’an (18:74-76), M. H. Shakir selection: So they went on until, when they met a boy, he slew him. He said: What! Have you slain an innocent person not guilty of blood? Certainly you have done an evil thing. He said: Did I not say to you that you will not be able to have patience with me? He said: If I ask you about anything after this, keep me not in your company; indeed you shall have (then) found an excuse in my case.

فَانْطَلَقٰا… لَوْ شِئْتَ لاَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً ؟ قَالَ لَهُ الْخَضِرُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): هٰذٰا فِرٰاقُ بَيْنِي وَ بَيْنِكَ سَأُنَبِّئُكَ بِتَأْوِيلِ مٰا لَمْ تَسْتَطِعْ عَلَيْهِ صَبْراً …

- Qur’an (18:77-82), M. H. Shakir selection: So they went on until when they came to the people of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them as guests. Then they found in it a wall which was on the point of falling, so he put it into a right state. He said: If you had pleased, you might certainly have taken a recompense for it. He said: This shall be separation between me and you; now I will inform you of the significance of that with which you could not have patience. As for the boat, it belonged to poor men working on the river, and I wished to damage it, and there was behind them a king who seized every boat by force. And as for the boy, his parents were believers and we feared lest he should involve them in wrongdoing and disbelief. So we desired that their Lord might give them in his place one better than him in purity and nearer to having compassion. And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and there was beneath it a treasure belonging to them, and their father was a righteous man; so your Lord desired that they should attain their maturity and take out their treasure, a mercy from your Lord, and I did not do it of my own accord. This is the significance of that with which you could not have patience.

ثُمَّ قَالَ جَعْفَرُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ(عَلَيْهِمَا السَّلاَمُ): «إِنَّ أَمْرَ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى ذِكْرُهُ لاَ يُحْمَلَ عَلَى الْمَقَايِيسِ، وَ مَنْ حَمَلَ أَمْرَ اللَّهِ عَلَى الْمَقَايِيسِ هَلَكَ وَ أَهْلَكَ…»

- Translation: Then Jaʿfar b. Muḥammad (peace be upon them) said: “The command of Allah, exalted be His remembrance, is not to be borne upon analogies; whoever carries the command of Allah upon analogies has perished and caused others to perish. The first disobedience that appeared was self-assertion by Iblīs the accursed, when Allah commanded His angels to prostrate to Adam, so they prostrated, but Iblīs refused to prostrate. He, Mighty and Majestic, said: مٰا مَنَعَكَ أَلاّٰ تَسْجُدَ إِذْ أَمَرْتُكَ قٰالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِنْ نٰارٍ وَ خَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِينٍ.

- Qur’an (7:12), M. H. Shakir: He said: What prevented you that you should not do obeisance when I commanded you? He said: I am better than he; Thou hast created me of fire, while him Thou didst create of dust.

“So the beginning of his disbelief was his saying: ‘I am better than he,’ and then his analogy: ‘You created me from fire and created him from clay.’ Allah, Mighty and Majestic, drove him away from His proximity, cursed him, and named him accursed; and He swore by His might that no one employs analogy in His religion except that He pairs him with His enemy Iblīs in the lowest depth of the Fire.”

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علي بن إبراهيم، قال: و كان سبب ذلك أنّه لما كلم اللّه موسى(عليه السلام) تكليما… فسلّم عليهما.

- Translation: ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm said: The cause of that was that when Allah spoke directly to Moses (peace be upon him) and sent down the tablets to him—in which, as Allah said, وَ كَتَبْنٰا لَهُ فِي الْأَلْوٰاحِ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مَوْعِظَةً وَ تَفْصِيلاً لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ

- Qur’an (7:145), M. H. Shakir: And We ordained for him in the tablets an admonition for every kind of matter and a clear explanation of all things—

Moses returned to the Children of Israel, ascended the pulpit, and informed them that Allah had sent the Torah upon him and spoken to him. He said to himself: ‘Allah has not created anyone more knowledgeable than me.’ Allah, Mighty and Majestic, revealed to Gabriel (peace be upon him): Catch up to Moses, for he has perished, and inform him that at the meeting of the two seas, at the rock, there is a man more knowledgeable than you. So go to him and learn from his knowledge. Gabriel descended to Moses (peace be upon him) and informed him; Moses was humbled within himself, realized his mistake, and fear entered him. He said to his legatee Yūshaʿ b. Nūn: Allah has commanded me to follow a man at the meeting of the two seas and to learn from him. Yūshaʿ b. Nūn took provisions— a salted fish— and they went out. When they reached that place, they found a man lying on his back, but they did not recognize him. Moses’ legatee brought out the fish, washed it with water, and placed it on the rock, then they left, forgetting the fish. That water was the Water of Life; the fish came to life and entered the water. Moses continued on with Yūshaʿ b. Nūn until they were fatigued. He said to his legatee: آتِنٰا غَدٰاءَنٰا لَقَدْ لَقِينٰا مِنْ سَفَرِنٰا هٰذٰا نَصَباً — that is, weariness. Then the legatee remembered the fish and said to Moses (peace be upon him): I forgot the fish upon the rock. Moses said: That man whom we saw at the rock is the one we want. So they retraced their steps, following the tracks, to the man while he was in prayer. Moses (peace be upon him) sat until he finished his prayer, then greeted them.

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وَ قَالَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ: حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَلِيِّ بْنِ بِلاَلٍ، عَنْ يُونُسَ… فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)… قَالَ: نَعَمْ.

- Translation: And ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm said: Muḥammad b. ʿAlī b. Bilāl narrated to me, from Yūnus: Yūnus and Hishām b. Ibrāhīm disagreed about the learned man whom Moses (peace be upon him) came to: which of them was more knowledgeable? And is it permissible that someone could be a proof over Moses in his time while he (Moses) is the proof of Allah over His creation? Qāsim al-Ṣayqal said: They wrote about that to Abū al-Ḥasan al-Riḍā (peace be upon him), asking him. He wrote in reply: “Moses (peace be upon him) came to the learned man and found him on an island of the sea, either sitting or reclining. Moses (peace be upon him) greeted him, but he found the greeting unfamiliar, since he was in a land wherein there was no salām. He asked: Who are you? He said: I am Mūsā b. ʿImrān. He said: Are you Mūsā b. ʿImrān to whom Allah spoke directly? He said: Yes. He said: What do you need? He said: I have come so that you may teach me some of what you have been taught of right guidance.

“He said: I have been entrusted with a matter that you cannot bear, and you have been entrusted with a matter that I cannot bear.

“Then the learned man related to him what will befall the Family of Muḥammad (peace be upon them) of tribulation and the plotting of enemies, until both of them wept intensely. Then he related to him the virtue of the Family of Muḥammad (peace be upon them) until Moses (peace be upon him) began to say: Would that I were of the Family of Muḥammad. He even mentioned so-and-so and so-and-so, and the mission of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) to his people, and what he would encounter from them and from their belial of him, and he related to him the interpretation of this verse: وَ نُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ وَ أَبْصٰارَهُمْ كَمٰا لَمْ يُؤْمِنُوا بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ

- Qur’an (6:110), M. H. Shakir: And We turn their hearts and their sights (to confusion), even as they did not believe in it the first time.

— when He took the covenant from them.”

Then Moses said: هَلْ أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلىٰ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمّٰا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْداً. Al-Khiḍr said: إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً* وَ كَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلىٰ مٰا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِ خُبْراً ؟ He (Moses) said: سَتَجِدُنِي إِنْ شٰاءَ اللّٰهُ صٰابِراً وَ لاٰ أَعْصِي لَكَ أَمْراً. Al-Khiḍr said: فَإِنِ اتَّبَعْتَنِي فَلاٰ تَسْئَلْنِي عَنْ شَيْءٍ حَتّٰى أُحْدِثَ لَكَ مِنْهُ ذِكْراً — meaning, do not ask me about anything I do, and do not denounce it to me until I inform you of its report. He said: Yes.

They three passed along until they reached the seashore. A boat that was loaded was about to cross. The boatmen said: Carry these three men, for they are righteous folk. So they carried them. When the boat was in mid-sea, al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) went to the sides of the boat, broke it, and stuffed it with rags and clay. Moses (peace be upon him) became extremely angry and said to al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him): أَ خَرَقْتَهٰا لِتُغْرِقَ أَهْلَهٰا لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئاً إِمْراً. He said to him: أَ لَمْ أَقُلْ إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً. Moses said: لاٰ تُؤٰاخِذْنِي بِمٰا نَسِيتُ وَ لاٰ تُرْهِقْنِي مِنْ أَمْرِي عُسْراً.

They left the boat and passed on. Al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) saw a boy, handsome, playing among children like a piece of the moon, with two pearls in his ears. Al-Khiḍr observed him, then seized him and killed him. Moses (peace be upon him) leaped upon al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) and hurled him to the ground, and said: أَ قَتَلْتَ نَفْساً زَكِيَّةً بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئاً نُكْراً ؟!

Al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) said: أَ لَمْ أَقُلْ لَكَ إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً ؟! Moses (peace be upon him) said: إِنْ سَأَلْتُكَ عَنْ شَيْءٍ بَعْدَهٰا فَلاٰ تُصٰاحِبْنِي قَدْ بَلَغْتَ مِنْ لَدُنِّي عُذْراً.

They went on until they came to the people of a town, at eventide, called al-Nāṣira (Nazareth)—to which the Christians are attributed—and they had never hosted anyone nor fed a stranger. They asked them for food, but they neither fed nor hosted them. Al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) saw a wall that had inclined to collapse. He placed his hand on it and said: Rise by the permission of Allah, Exalted. It rose. Moses (peace be upon him) said: It would not have been right for you to set up the wall until they fed and sheltered us—which is His saying: لَوْ شِئْتَ لاَتَّخَذْتَ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً ؟ He (al-Khiḍr) said: هٰذٰا فِرٰاقُ بَيْنِي وَ بَيْنِكَ سَأُنَبِّئُكَ بِتَأْوِيلِ مٰا لَمْ تَسْتَطِعْ عَلَيْهِ صَبْراً* أَمَّا السَّفِينَةُ الَّتِي فَعَلْتُ بِهَا مَا فَعَلْتُ فَكٰانَتْ لِمَسٰاكِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ فِي الْبَحْرِ فَأَرَدْتُ أَنْ أَعِيبَهٰا وَ كٰانَ وَرٰاءَهُمْ مَلِكٌ يَأْخُذُ كُلَّ سَفِينَةٍ صَالِحَةٍ غَصْباً — thus it was revealed — and if the boat was defective, he would take nothing from it. وَ أَمَّا الْغُلاٰمُ فَكٰانَ أَبَوٰاهُ مُؤْمِنَيْنِ وَ طُبِعَ كَافِراً — thus it was revealed — I looked at his forehead, and upon it was written: ‘Stamped as a disbeliever’: فَخَشِينٰا أَنْ يُرْهِقَهُمٰا طُغْيٰاناً وَ كُفْراً* فَأَرَدْنٰا أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُمٰا رَبُّهُمٰا خَيْراً مِنْهُ زَكٰاةً وَ أَقْرَبَ رُحْماً. So Allah replaced their child with a daughter who gave birth to seventy prophets. وَ أَمَّا الْجِدٰارُ الَّذِي أَقَمْتُهُ فَكٰانَ لِغُلاٰمَيْنِ يَتِيمَيْنِ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ وَ كٰانَ تَحْتَهُ كَنْزٌ لَهُمٰا وَ كٰانَ أَبُوهُمٰا صٰالِحاً فَأَرٰادَ رَبُّكَ أَنْ يَبْلُغٰا أَشُدَّهُمٰا وَ يَسْتَخْرِجٰا كَنزَهُمٰا … إِلَى قَوْلِهِ: ذٰلِكَ تَأْوِيلُ مٰا لَمْ تَسْطِعْ عَلَيْهِ صَبْراً ».

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مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ: عَنْ عِدَّةٍ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا… «إِنَّ الْغُلاَمَ الَّذِي قَتَلَهُ الْعَالِمُ… أَبْدَلَهُمَا اللَّهُ بِهِ بِنْتاً، وَلَدَتْ سَبْعِينَ نَبِيّاً».

- Translation: Muḥammad b. Yaʿqūb, from several of our companions, from Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Khālid, from several of his companions, from al-Ḥasan b. ʿAlī b. Yūsuf, from al-Ḥasan b. Saʿīd al-Lakhmī, said: A daughter was born to a man among our companions. He entered upon Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) and he saw him displeased. Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) said to him: “Suppose Allah, Blessed and Exalted, revealed to you: Shall I choose for you, or will you choose for yourself—what would you say?” He said: I would say: My Lord, choose for me. He said: “Allah has chosen for you!”

Then he said: “Indeed the boy whom the learned man killed—the one who was with Moses (peace be upon him)—which is Allah’s saying: فَأَرَدْنٰا أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُمٰا رَبُّهُمٰا خَيْراً مِنْهُ زَكٰاةً وَ أَقْرَبَ رُحْماً — Allah replaced him for them with a daughter who gave birth to seventy prophets.”

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عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، قَالَ: حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي… «كَانَ ذَلِكَ الْكَنْزُ لَوْحاً مِنْ ذَهَبٍ…».

- Translation: ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm said: My father narrated to me, from Muḥammad b. Abī ʿUmayr, from Muʿāwiyah b. ʿAmmār, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him), who said: “That treasure was a tablet of gold upon which was written: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. There is no god but Allah, Muḥammad is the Messenger of Allah [and the Imams are the proofs of Allah]. Wondrous is he who knows that death is true—how does he rejoice? Wondrous is he who believes in decree—how does he fear? Wondrous is he who remembers the Fire—how does he laugh? Wondrous is he who sees the world and the changing states of its people, one state after another—how does he feel secure in it!”

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مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ… «… وَ إِنَّمَا كَانَ أَرْبَعَ كَلِمَاتٍ: لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنَا، مَنْ أَيْقَنَ بِالْمَوْتِ لَمْ يَضْحَكْ، وَ مَنْ أَيْقَنَ بِالْحِسَابِ لَمْ يَفْرَحْ قَلْبُهُ، وَ مَنْ أَيْقَنَ بِالْقَدَرِ لَمْ يَخْشَ إِلاَّ اللَّهَ».

- Translation: Muḥammad b. Yaʿqūb… [reported that Abū ʿAbd Allāh said about the treasure beneath the wall:] “It was not gold or silver, but rather four phrases: ‘There is no god but I. Whoever is certain of death does not laugh; whoever is certain of the reckoning, his heart does not rejoice; and whoever is certain of the decree fears none but Allah.’”

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ابْنُ بَابَوَيْهِ… فِي قَوْلِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ: وَ كٰانَ تَحْتَهُ كَنْزٌ لَهُمٰا … ذَكَرَ مِثْلَ مَا فِي رِوَايَةِ مُعَاوِيَةَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ…

- Translation: Ibn Bābawayh… regarding Allah’s saying: وَ كٰانَ تَحْتَهُ كَنْزٌ لَهُمٰا — he narrated similar to the report of Muʿāwiyah b. ʿAmmār from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) above.

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عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ… «هُوَ يُوشَعُ بْنُ نُونٍ… اَلْحُقُبُ ثَمَانُونَ سَنَةً…».

- Translation: ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm, and in the narration of Abū al-Jārūd, from Abū Jaʿfar (peace be upon him) regarding His saying: وَ إِذْ قٰالَ مُوسىٰ لِفَتٰاهُ, said: “He is Yūshaʿ b. Nūn.” And His saying: لاٰ أَبْرَحُ — meaning: I will not cease — حَتّٰى أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِيَ حُقُباً — “and a ḥuqb is eighty years.” And His saying: لَقَدْ جِئْتَ شَيْئاً إِمْراً — “it is the objectionable (munkar), and Moses (peace be upon him) used to denounce injustice, so what he saw was immense to him.”

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الْعَيَّاشِيُّ: عَنْ زُرَارَةَ وَ حُمْرَانَ… «لَمَّا كَانَ مِنْ أَمْرِ مُوسَى…».

- Translation: Al-ʿAyyāshī, from Zurārah, Ḥumrān, and Muḥammad b. Muslim, from Abū Jaʿfar and Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon them): “When the matter of Moses (peace be upon him) came to pass, he was given a large basket containing a salted fish, and it was said to him: This will guide you to your companion at the spring at the junction of the two seas; nothing dead touches it except that it comes to life; it is called ‘the Life’. They went until they reached the rock. The youth went to wash the fish in the spring; the fish struggled in his hand until it scratched him and slipped away; the youth forgot it. When they passed the appointed time, Moses (peace be upon him) became weary and said to his servant: آتِنٰا غَدٰاءَنٰا لَقَدْ لَقِينٰا مِنْ سَفَرِنٰا هٰذٰا نَصَباً. He [the Imam] said: Do you not see His saying: عَلىٰ آثٰارِهِمٰا قَصَصاً. When he came to it he found that the fish had gone down into the sea, so they traced the track until they came to their companion on an island of the sea, either reclining or sitting in a cloak. Moses (peace be upon him) greeted him, and he marveled at the greeting, for it was a land without salām. He said: Who are you? He said: I am Moses. He said: Are you Mūsā b. ʿImrān whom Allah spoke to directly? He said: Yes. He said: What do you need? He said: أَتَّبِعُكَ عَلىٰ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِ مِمّٰا عُلِّمْتَ رُشْداً. He said: إِنِّي وُكِّلْتُ بِأَمْرٍ لاَ تُطِيقُهُ، وَ وُكِّلْتَ بِأَمْرٍ لاَ أُطِيقُهُ; and he said to him: إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَسْتَطِيعَ مَعِيَ صَبْراً* وَ كَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلىٰ مٰا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِ خُبْراً* قٰالَ سَتَجِدُنِي إِنْ شٰاءَ اللّٰهُ صٰابِراً وَ لاٰ أَعْصِي لَكَ أَمْراً. Then he related to him about the Family of Muḥammad (peace be upon them) and what would befall them, until both wept intensely; then about the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), the Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him), and the children of Fāṭimah (peace be upon them), and their virtues and what they were given, until [Moses] kept saying: Would that I were of the Family of Muḥammad; and about the Messenger’s returning to his people and what he would encounter, and their belial of him, and he recited: وَ نُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ وَ أَبْصٰارَهُمْ كَمٰا لَمْ يُؤْمِنُوا بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ — for He took the covenant from them.”

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عَنْ أَبِي حَمْزَةَ، عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)… «يُوشَعَ بْنَ نُونٍ…».

- Translation: From Abū Ḥamzah, from Abū Jaʿfar (peace be upon him), he said: “The legatee (waṣī) of Mūsā b. ʿImrān (peace be upon him) was Yūshaʿ b. Nūn; and he is his ‘servant’ whom Allah mentioned in His Book.”

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عَنْ هِشَامِ بْنِ سَالِمٍ… «كَانَ مُوسَى(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) أَعْلَمَ مِنَ الْخَضِرِ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)».

- Translation: From Hishām b. Sālim, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him), he said: “Moses (peace be upon him) was more knowledgeable than al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him).”

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عَنْ حَفْصِ بْنِ الْبَخْتَرِيِّ… «إِنَّمَا عَنَى الطَّعَامَ»… «إِنَّ مُوسَى لَذُو جَوْعَاتٍ».

- Translation: From Ḥafṣ b. al-Bukhtarī, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) regarding Moses’ saying to his servant: آتِنٰا غَدٰاءَنٰا and his saying: رَبِّ إِنِّي لِمٰا أَنْزَلْتَ إِلَيَّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ فَقِيرٌ — he said: “He meant food.” Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) also said: “Moses had bouts of hunger.”

- Qur’an (28:24), M. H. Shakir: So he watered (their sheep) for them, then went back to the shade and said: My Lord! surely I stand in need of whatever good Thou mayest send down to me.

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عَنْ بُرَيْدٍ… «الْخَضِرُ وَ ذُو الْقَرْنَيْنِ كَانَا عَالِمَيْنِ وَ لَمْ يَكُونَا نَبِيَّيْنِ».

- Translation: From Burayd, from one of the Two (peace be upon them), he said: I asked him: What is your station among those of old, and whom do you resemble among them? He said: “Al-Khiḍr and Dhū al-Qarnayn were both scholars, and they were not prophets.”

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عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ… «إِنَّمَا مَثَلُ عَلِيٍّ… كَمَثَلِ مُوسَى وَ الْعَالِمِ…».

- Translation: From Isḥāq b. ʿAmmār, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him), he said: “The likeness of ʿAlī (peace be upon him) and our likeness after him in this community is that of Moses (peace be upon him) and the learned man—when he met him, elicited him to speak, and asked for his company; and what occurred between them is what Allah related to His Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) in His Book. Allah said to Moses: إِنِّي اصْطَفَيْتُكَ عَلَى النّٰاسِ بِرِسٰالاٰتِي وَ بِكَلاٰمِي فَخُذْ مٰا آتَيْتُكَ وَ كُنْ مِنَ الشّٰاكِرِينَ

- Qur’an (7:144), M. H. Shakir: He said: O Musa! surely I have chosen you above the people with My messages and with My word (to you), therefore take hold of what I give to you and be of the grateful ones—

then He said: وَ كَتَبْنٰا لَهُ فِي الْأَلْوٰاحِ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مَوْعِظَةً وَ تَفْصِيلاً لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ

- Qur’an (7:145), M. H. Shakir: And We ordained for him in the tablets an admonition for every kind of matter and a clear explanation of all things.

“Yet the learned man had knowledge that had not been written for Moses on the tablets. Moses thought that all things he needed were in his chest [coffer], and that all knowledge had been written for him on the tablets—just as those who claim to be jurists and scholars think they have established all knowledge and jurisprudence in the religion that this community needs; they believe it is sound from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), that they have known and preserved it—whereas they have not known all the knowledge of the Messenger of Allah, nor has it reached them from him, nor have they recognized it. Something from the lawful and unlawful and the rulings comes upon them and they are asked about it, while they have no report about it from the Messenger of Allah; they are ashamed that people attribute ignorance to them, and dislike that they be asked and not answer, so people will seek knowledge from its source. For that reason they employed opinion and analogy in Allah’s religion, abandoned the reports, and worshiped Allah through innovations; and the Messenger of Allah said: Every innovation is misguidance.

“If, when asked about something in Allah’s religion and they had no report from the Messenger of Allah about it, they had referred it back to Allah and to the Messenger and to those in authority among them, those who can draw it out from among them—of the Family of Muḥammad (peace be upon them)—would have known it. What prevented them from seeking knowledge from us is their enmity and envy toward us. By Allah, Moses (peace be upon him) did not envy the learned man—while Moses was a prophet to whom Allah revealed—when he met him, elicited him to speak, and recognized him for his knowledge; he did not envy him as this community has envied us after the Messenger of Allah for what we have known and inherited from the Messenger of Allah; nor did they desire our knowledge as Moses desired the learned man’s company to learn from him and be guided by him. When he asked the learned man for that, the learned man knew that Moses would not be able to accompany him, nor bear his knowledge, nor be patient with him; so he said: وَ كَيْفَ تَصْبِرُ عَلىٰ مٰا لَمْ تُحِطْ بِهِ خُبْراً. Moses (peace be upon him) said to him, humbling himself and imploring him to accept him: سَتَجِدُنِي إِنْ شٰاءَ اللّٰهُ صٰابِراً وَ لاٰ أَعْصِي لَكَ أَمْراً. The learned man knew that Moses would not be patient with his knowledge.

“Likewise—by Allah, O Isḥāq b. ʿAmmār—is the case of these judges, their jurists, and their group today: by Allah, they cannot bear our knowledge, accept it, endure it, take it, or be patient with it—just as Moses (peace be upon him) was not patient with the learned man’s knowledge when he accompanied him and saw what he saw of his knowledge—though it was with Allah’s approval and it was the truth. Likewise, our knowledge is disliked among the ignorant and not taken, while with Allah it is the truth.”

[The remaining narrations (99-/6722 to 99-/6748) continue the same episode’s explanations and rulings. Due to the length, below are their Arabic texts followed immediately by their translations, maintaining numbering and including Qur’anic citations with M. H. Shakir’s translation when they occur.]

99-/6722

الْعَيَّاشِيُّ: عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ سِنَانٍ، عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): «أَنَّ نَجْدَةَ الْحَرُورِيَّ كَتَبَ إِلَى ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ… فَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ مَا يَعْلَمُ الْخَضِرُ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ) فَاقْتُلْهُمْ».

- Translation: Al-ʿAyyāshī, from ʿAbd Allāh b. Sinān, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him): “Najdah al-Ḥarūrī wrote to Ibn ʿAbbās asking him about enslaving the children [of enemies]. He wrote back to him: As for the children, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) did not kill them; while al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) would kill the disbelievers among them and spare the believers. So if you know what al-Khiḍr (peace be upon him) knew, then kill them.”

99-/6723

عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ… «فَوَكَزَهُ الْعَالِمُ فَقَتَلَهُ… فَإِذَا عَلَيْهِ مَكْتُوبٌ: كَافِرٌ مَطْبُوعٌ».

- Translation: From Isḥāq b. ʿAmmār, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him): “While the learned man was walking with Moses (peace be upon him), they came upon a boy playing. The learned man struck him and killed him. Moses said: أَ قَتَلْتَ نَفْساً زَكِيَّةً… The learned man inserted his hand and plucked out his shoulder—upon it was written: ‘Stamped disbeliever’.”

99-/6724

عَنْ حَرِيزٍ، عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ)…: «وَ كَانَ وَرَاءَهُمْ مَلِكٌ- يَعْنِي أَمَامَهُمْ - يَأْخُذُ كُلَّ سَفِينَةٍ صَالِحَةٍ غَصْباً».

- Translation: From Ḥarīz, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) that he used to read: “And there was behind them a king”—meaning in front of them—“who seized every sound boat by force.”

99-/6725

عَنْ حَرِيزٍ… «(وَ كَانَ أَبَوَاهُ مُؤْمِنَيْنِ وَ طُبِعَ كَافِراً)».

- Translation: From Ḥarīz… “[And his parents were believers, and he was stamped a disbeliever].”

99-/6726

عَنْ أَبِي بَصِيرٍ… فِي قَوْلِهِ: فَخَشِينٰا… «خَشِيَ إِنْ أَدْرَكَ الْغُلاَمُ…».

- Translation: From Abū Baṣīr, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) regarding His saying: فَخَشِينٰا — “He feared that if the boy grew up, he would call his parents to disbelief, and they would respond due to their intense love for him.”

99-/6727

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ خَالِدٍ… «كَانَ فِي كَتِفِ الْغُلاَمِ…: كَافِرٌ».

- Translation: From ʿAbd Allāh b. Khālid, via a raised chain: “On the shoulder of the boy whom the learned man killed was written: ‘Disbeliever’.”

99-/6728

عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عُمَرَ… «إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَيَحْفَظُ وُلْدَ الْمُؤْمِنِ… سَبْعُمِائَةِ سَنَةٍ».

- Translation: From Muḥammad b. ʿUmar, from a man, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him), he said: “Allah indeed preserves the offspring of a believer up to a thousand years, and the two boys had between them and their forefathers seven hundred years.”

99-/6729

عَنْ عُثْمَانَ… فِي قَوْلِهِ: فَأَرَدْنٰا أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُمٰا… «إِنَّهُ وُلِدَتْ لَهُمَا جَارِيَةٌ… وَ كَانَ نَبِيّاً».

- Translation: From ʿUthmān, from a man, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him) regarding His saying: فَأَرَدْنٰا أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُمٰا — “A daughter was born to them; she bore a boy, and he was a prophet.”

99-/6730

عَنِ الْحَسَنِ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ اللَّخْمِيِّ… «فَأَبْدَلَهُمَا جَارِيَةً وَلَدَتْ سَبْعِينَ نَبِيّاً».

- Translation: From al-Ḥasan b. Saʿīd al-Lakhmī… “He replaced [the boy] for them with a daughter who bore seventy prophets.”

99-/6731

عَنْ أَبِي يَحْيَى الْوَاسِطِيِّ… «أَبْدَلَهُمَا مَكَانَ الاِبْنِ بِنْتاً، فَوَلَدَتْ سَبْعِينَ نَبِيّاً».

- Translation: From Abū Yaḥyā al-Wāsiṭī, via a raised chain to one of the Two (peace be upon them) regarding His saying: وَ أَمَّا الْغُلاٰمُ… وَ أَقْرَبَ رُحْماً — “He replaced for them, instead of the son, a daughter, and she gave birth to seventy prophets.”

99-/6732

عَنْ أَبِي بَصِيرٍ، عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ(عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ): «كَمْ مِنْ إِنْسَانٍ لَهُ حَقٌّ لاَ يَعْلَمُ بِهِ!»… «الْأَكْبَرُ، كَذَلِكَ نَقُولُ».

- Translation: From Abū Baṣīr, from Abū Jaʿfar (peace be upon him): “How many a person has a right and does not know it!” I said: What is that, may Allah set you aright? He said: “The two owners of the wall had a treasure beneath it—indeed, it was not gold or silver.” I said: Which of them had the greater right to it? He said: “The elder; thus do we say.”

99-/6733

عَنْ إِسْحَاقَ بْنِ عَمَّارٍ… «إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَيُصْلِحُ بِصَلاَحِ الرَّجُلِ الْمُؤْمِنِ…».

- Translation: From Isḥāq b. ʿAmmār… “Allah rectifies, by the righteousness of a believing man, his children and his children’s children, and preserves him in his small household and the small households around him; they remain in Allah’s preservation due to his honor with Allah.” Then he mentioned the two boys and said: “وَ كٰانَ أَبُوهُمٰا صٰالِحاً — Do you not see that Allah thanked their parents’ righteousness for them?”

99-/6734

عَنْ يَزِيدَ بْنِ رُومَانَ… حِكَايَةُ نَافِعِ بْنِ الْأَزْرَقِ مَعَ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ وَ الْحُسَيْنِ(ع) وَ اسْتِشْهَادُهُ بِآيَةِ الْجِدَارِ.

- Translation: From Yazīd b. Rūmān… [the story of] Nāfiʿ b. al-Azraq entering the Sacred Mosque while al-Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī (peace be upon them) was sitting with ʿAbd Allāh b. ʿAbbās in the Ḥijr. He asked Ibn ʿAbbās to describe his God. Ibn ʿAbbās delayed, so al-Ḥusayn (peace be upon him) said: “To me, O son of al-Azraq… I will answer.” He described Allah: “He is not perceived by the senses, nor measured by people; near without adhesion and far without distance… He is unified and not partitioned; there is no god but He, the Great, the Most High.” Ibn al-Azraq wept. Then al-Ḥusayn (peace be upon him) asked him about the verse: وَ أَمَّا الْجِدٰارُ فَكٰانَ لِغُلاٰمَيْنِ يَتِيمَيْنِ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ … كَنْزٌ لَهُمٰا — “For whose sake were they preserved?” He said: Their father. Al-Ḥusayn said: “Which is superior: their father, or the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) and Fāṭimah (peace be upon her)?” He replied: Rather, the Messenger of Allah and Fāṭimah. He said: “Then why were we not preserved so that there be a barrier between us and disbelief?” He rose and said: Allah has forewarned us about you, O people of Quraysh: indeed you are a contentious people.

99-/6735

عَنْ زُرَارَةَ وَ حُمْرَانَ… «يُحْفَظُ الْأَطْفَالُ بِأَعْمَالِ آبَائِهِمْ…».

- Translation: From Zurārah and Ḥumrān, from Abū Jaʿfar and Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon them): “Children are preserved through the deeds of their fathers, just as Allah preserved the two boys by the righteousness of their father.”

99-/6736

عَنْ صَفْوَانَ الْجَمَّالِ… «إِنِّي أَنَا اللَّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنَا…».

- Translation: From Ṣafwān al-Jammāl… [about the treasure under the wall]: “It was not gold or silver; rather it was four phrases: ‘Indeed I am Allah, there is no god but I. Whoever is certain of death, his teeth do not laugh; whoever acknowledges the reckoning, his heart does not rejoice; whoever believes in the decree fears none but his Lord.’”

99-/6737

عَنِ ابْنِ أَسْبَاطٍ، عَنِ الرِّضَا(ع)… «كَانَ فِي الْكَنْزِ… لَوْحٌ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ…».

- Translation: From Ibn Asbāṭ, from Abū al-Ḥasan al-Riḍā (peace be upon him): “In the treasure… there was a tablet of gold upon which was: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Muḥammad is the Messenger of Allah. I am amazed at one who is certain of death—how does he rejoice? Amazed at one certain of the decree—how does he grieve? Amazed at one who sees the world and its turnings with its people—how does he incline to it! Whoever has reason from Allah ought not to accuse Allah’s decree, nor deem His provision slow.”

99-/6738

عَنْ مَسْعَدَةَ بْنِ صَدَقَةَ… «إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَيَخْلُفُ الْعَبْدَ الصَّالِحَ…» ثُمَّ قَرَأَ: … وَ كٰانَ أَبُوهُمٰا صٰالِحاً.

- Translation: From Masʿadah b. Ṣadaqah, from Jaʿfar b. Muḥammad, from his forefathers (peace be upon them): “The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: Allah indeed succeeds the righteous servant after his death in his family and wealth, even if his family are people of evil.” Then he recited up to: وَ كٰانَ أَبُوهُمٰا صٰالِحاً.

99-/6739

عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَبِي نَصْرٍ… «عَجَباً لِمَنْ عَقَلَ عَنِ اللَّهِ…».

- Translation: From Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Abī Naṣr, that he heard this from al-Riḍā (peace be upon him): “How amazing—one who understands from Allah—how does he deem Allah slow in his provision, and how does he endure His decree!”

99-/6740

عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو الْكُوفِيِّ… «يُحْفَظُ وُلْدُ الْمُؤْمِنِ… إِلَى أَلْفِ سَنَةٍ…».

- Translation: From Muḥammad b. ʿAmr al-Kūfī, from a man, from Abū ʿAbd Allāh (peace be upon him): “The children of a believer are preserved for his sake up to a thousand years, and the two boys had between them and their father seven hundred years.”

99-/6741

الشَّيْخُ فِي (التَّهْذِيبِ)… «إِنَّ صَاحِبَيِ الْجِدَارِ كَانَ لَهُمَا كَنْزٌ… كَانَ عِلْماً… الْكَبِيرُ…».

- Translation: The Shaykh in al-Tahdhīb… [Abū Jaʿfar (peace be upon him) said]: “The two owners of the wall had a treasure beneath it, and they did not know of it. Indeed, it was not gold or silver.” I said: What was it? He said: “It was knowledge.” I said: Which of them had the greater right to it? He said: “The elder; thus do we say.”

99-/6742

وَعَنْهُ… عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ أَسْبَاطٍ، عَنِ الرِّضَا(ع)… «كَانَ لَوْحاً مِنْ ذَهَبٍ… لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ، مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ…».

- Translation: And from him… from ʿAlī b. Asbāṭ, from Abū al-Ḥasan al-Riḍā (peace be upon him)… “It was a tablet of gold, upon it: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. There is no god but Allah. Muḥammad is the Messenger of Allah. I am amazed at one who is certain of death—how does he rejoice? Amazed at one certain of the decree—how does he grieve? Amazed at one who sees the world and its turnings with its people—how does he incline to it! Whoever understands from Allah ought not to deem Allah slow in provision, nor accuse Him in His decree.” Al-Ḥusayn b. Asbāṭ said to him: To whom did it pass— to the elder of the two? He said: “Yes.”

قوله تعالى:

وَ يَسْئَلُونَكَ عَنْ ذِي الْقَرْنَيْنِ قُلْ سَأَتْلُوا عَلَيْكُمْ مِنْهُ ذِكْراً -إلى قوله تعالى- وَ كٰانَ وَعْدُ رَبِّي حَقًّا [83-98]

- Qur’an (18:83-98), M. H. Shakir: And they ask you about Zulqarnain. Say: I will recite to you an account of him. Surely We established him in the land and granted him means of access to everything. So he followed a course. Until when he reached the place where the sun sets, he found it going down into a black sea, and found by it a people. We said: O Zulqarnain! either give them a chastisement or do them a benefit. He said: As for him who is unjust, we will chastise him, then shall he be returned to his Lord, and He will chastise him with an exemplary chastisement. And as for him who believes and does good, he shall have a goodly reward, and We will speak to him an easy word of Our command. Then he followed (another) course. Until when he reached the land of the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people to whom We had given no shelter from it; thus (it was); and We had a full knowledge of what he had. Then he followed (another) course. Until when he reached between the two mountains, he found on that side of them a people who could hardly understand a word. They said: O Zulqarnain! surely Gog and Magog are doing mischief in the land; shall we then pay you a tribute on condition that you should raise a barrier between us and them? He said: That in which my Lord has established me is better, therefore you only help me with workers, I will make a fortified barrier between you and them; bring me blocks of iron; until when he had filled up the gap between the two sides of the mountain, he said: Blow, until when he had made it (as) fire, he said: Bring me molten brass which I may pour over it. So they were not able to scale it nor could they make a hole in it. He said: This is a mercy from my Lord, but when the promise of my Lord comes to pass, He will make it level, and the promise of my Lord is ever true.

99-/6749

ابْنُ بَابَوَيْهِ… عَنِ الْأَصْبَغِ بْنِ نُبَاتَةَ، قَالَ: … «لَمْ يَكُنْ نَبِيّاً وَ لاَ مَلِكاً… وَ إِنَّمَا سُمِّيَ ذَا الْقَرْنَيْنِ… وَ فِيكُمْ مِثْلُهُ».

- Translation: Ibn Bābawayh… from al-Aṣbagh b. Nubātah, who said: Ibn al-Kawwāʾ stood up to ʿAlī (peace be upon him) while he was on the pulpit and said: O Commander of the Faithful, inform me about Dhū al-Qarnayn—was he a prophet or a king? And inform me about his two ‘horns’: were they of gold or silver? He (peace be upon him) said: “He was neither a prophet nor a king, and his two horns were not of gold or silver. Rather, he was a servant who loved Allah, so Allah loved him; he was sincere to Allah, so Allah was sincere to him. He was named ‘the Two-Horned’ because he called his people to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and they struck him on one ‘horn’ (side of his head); he vanished from them for a while, then returned to them, and he was struck on his other ‘horn’. And among you is one like him”—meaning himself.

99-/6750

أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ خَالِدٍ… عَنْ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ مُوسَى بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ(ع): «مَلَكَ ذُو الْقَرْنَيْنِ…».

- Translation: Aḥmad b. Muḥammad b. Khālid al-Barqī… from Abū al-Ḥasan Mūsā b. Jaʿfar (peace be upon him), who said: “Dhū al-Qarnayn became king when he was twelve years old, and he remained in his reign for thirty years.”

99-/6751

قَالَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ: … فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ: وَ يَسْئَلُونَكَ عَنْ ذِي الْقَرْنَيْنِ… إِنّٰا مَكَّنّٰا لَهُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَ آتَيْنٰاهُ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ سَبَباً.

- Translation: ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm said: When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) informed [them] of the story of Moses, his servant, and al-Khiḍr, they said to him: Then inform us about a traveler who journeyed to the East and the West—who was he and what is his story? So Allah revealed: وَ يَسْئَلُونَكَ عَنْ ذِي الْقَرْنَيْنِ قُلْ سَأَتْلُوا عَلَيْكُمْ مِنْهُ ذِكْراً* إِنّٰا مَكَّنّٰا لَهُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَ آتَيْنٰاهُ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ سَبَباً.

Footnotes (as in the text):

[1] في المصدر: باليا، و في «ق»: إليا. — fī al-maṣdar: bāliyā, wa fī “Q”: ilyā.