The mass-transmitted secret! (12th Imam’s Mutawatir birth)

For those of you unable to grasp the sarcasm in the title, it is the fact that Shia keep claiming that the birth of their 12th Imam is common knowledge and popular to the point where it is Mutawatir. At the same time they want you to believe that the 12th Imam’s birth is a secret that was concealed from everyone and the Imam al-`Askari made sure that nobody would find out that he had a son.

Yes, a brazen contradiction and we will elaborate below.

When debating the Shia concerning their 12th Imam, they will tell you that his birth and existence are agreed upon between all Muslims. They will make it seem as if you are sinful for even doubting such a clear matter, as if you are doubting the existence of the Prophet (saw) himself. How can one deny a matter that is Mutawatir? The nation mass transmitted the story of the 12th Imam, the son of al-Hasan al-`Askari!!

However, when you stop and think, you notice that historians never mentioned anything regarding the man, as if he never really existed. Although a few geneologists may list him as a son for al-`Askari yet these guys only do so based on the stories of the Shia who insist the man had a son. They weren’t eye witnesses nor do they have a chain for such a wild claim. So if this guy is nowhere to be mentioned in historical sources and he’s stories can only be found in the books of those who believe in him, why are we supposed to believe in him exactly?

When you tell the Shia that we’ve no reason to believe in a guy whose birth is not agreed upon, a guy who was neglected by all historians. They will provide answers like the following:

[The clear matters documented by the mainstream historians, are matters that are apparent in people’s lives. Whereas, the occultation (of the Imam) is a private and secret matter.]

Source: Min al-Shakk ila al-Shakk by Sayyid Idris Husayni p150

Doesn’t this just mean that he’s unheard of? How can you convinse us to believe in a man whose very existence was concealed and whose whole life remains a secret to this day!?

If his life is a secret and he was concealed since childbirth then there shouldn’t even be any solid evidence for his existense, since if there were any proofs this would contradict the secrecy.

In this research, we will rely on the book of al-`Allamah al-Majlisi “Bihar-ul-Anwar”, Volumes 51 to 53, the Part of “Kitab Tarikh al-Hujjah” which is composed of many chapters related to the stories of their 12th Imam.

We will quote each text from the above book, referring to it by Page/Volume accompanied by the #Number of report.

(2/51 #3)

In this report, abu Muhammad al-Hasan al-`Aaskari invited his aunt Hakimah who is the daughter of Muhammad al-Jawad to break her fast with them in Ramadan.

Al-`Askari tells her that on that night his son will be born, she asked:

[I said: “Who’s his mother?” He told me: “Narjis” I told him: “May Allah make me your sacrifice, by Allah there are no traces (of pregnancy) on her!” He replied: “It is as I tell you.”]

Comment: We Muslims believe that these stories are of course all fabricated. We only wish to uncover the circumstances and purposes of such fabrications by the leaders of the Shia at the time.

If you wish to learn about the types of chains used by Twelvers to transmit the stories of the 12th Imam, refer to our article:

The low-quality of Shiite narrations about the Imam’s birth

From this report, we conclude that:

A- The aunt of al-Hasan al-`Askari, who is a close member of the household, did not know that al-Hasan was expecting a son.

Comment: How then can we expect the general public to know this matter and believe in it?

B- The aunt Hakimah herself only learned of it on the same night that this child was supposed to be born.

Comment: It is not unlikely that the household wouldn’t know of the pregnancy in the first two weeks. However, the suspicious matter is that close members of the household are said to not have known anything for the entire duration of the pregnancy up until the night of birth.

C- The identity of the mother was unknown, especially since no signs of pregnancy were present.

Comment: The fabricators of such stories had to deal with the fact that al-Hasan al-`Askari never left a son behind. In this context it makes perfect sense for them to inform us that the mother was unknown and had no signs of pregnancy, simply because nobody was ever pregnant.

This condition continued during the night with no signs of a baby being born until Hakimah herself became suspicious.

[Hakimah said: “Doubts entered my heart.” So abu Muhammad (as) cried from towards the sitting room saying: “Don’t be hasty O aunt, the matter is near.”]

Comment: We notice that the fabricator knows that the Shia are in doubt over this fictional character, so he wishes to show them that even the closest of household members were also suspicious of this miraculous birth. This is an attempt to encourage them to push their doubts aside and believe in the validity of Imamite faith regardless of how unbelievable the events may seem.

When both Hakimah and Narjis fell unconscious, suddenly the 12th Imam appears.

[I (suddenly) felt my master (as) (i.e 12th Imam), I uncovered the cloth and found him in prostration. I held him in my embrace and found that he was cleaned]

This is the beginning of the secrets of the after his birth. We were discussing the secrecy surrounding this character before his birth. Now we are seeing the secrecy surrounding him after his birth.

Comment: Habit in Arab societies is that the household would bring their own women or women from the neighborhood to act as midwives. These women would help in delivering the baby, cleaning him and then taking care of the mother after birth.

Notice here, there was no need to bring such women. The baby suddenly appeared without warning, he was already clean and ready according to several reports. In other words, the fabricators made sure to paint a picture of absolute secrecy without any witnesses present.

[(Al-`Askari said): “O Aunt, on the seventh day return to us.” Hakimah said: I came back next morning to greet abu Muhammad (as). I uncovered the veil to check on my master (as) (i.e 12th Imam) but did not see him. I said: “May I be sacrificed for you, what happened to my master?” He (as) replied: “We bid him farwell just as Musa’s (as) mother bid her son farewell.”]

The baby doesn’t seem to be in the house.

Comment: Seems here that the baby was so well hidden, that they sent him God knows where right on the very next day. This section could be very helpful in case some of al-`Askari’s students or companions entered the house and did not see any baby. They would complain: “But we entered the house on the last days  of al-`Askari’s life, still we didn’t spot a baby inside!?” The Shia leaders would argue: “Well, they sent him to a divine hidden location. That’s why you never saw a baby.”

Narration continues with Hakimah returning on the seventh day to witness how al-`Askari fed his baby using only his tongue and she witnessed how the baby spoke and recited Qur’an. This is an attempt by the extremists to counter any sane man who would tell them: “How did he learn his knowledge if his father died while at the age of five?” The answer would be is that a kid who is born reciting Qur’an doesn’t even require to be taught. Report also shows the Imam offering his son a strange drink, yogurt or honey. This happens when the Imam inserts his tongue in the baby’s mouth and the tongue releases this nurishment.

At the end of the report, we read:

[Musa said: I asked `Uqbah the servant about this so he answered: “Hakimah speaks the truth.”]

This is Musa bin Muhammad bin al-Qasim bin Hamzah bin Musa bin Ja`far al-Sadiq.

The above report that they wish for us to believe in, is by a bunch of unreliable Shia extremists. These unreliable Shia narrated it from Musa who is an unknown man, he in turn narrates it from Hakimah who is an unknown woman. The reader can check the early Shia Rijali books to see that these two individuals are completely unknown, how then can they expect the entire nation to submit to such shaky stories is beyond me.

As for `Uqbah the servant, God only knows who the heck this character is. For all we know he himself could be just as fictional as their 12th Imam.

(5/51 #7)

Then the Shia report from other shady characters who are said to have witnessed this baby.

[Nasim the servant of abu Muhammad (as) told me, she said: The owner of this age told me, when I entered on him one night after his birth]

She says that the baby told her “God bless you” after she sneezed.

Comment: Why should we believe this story? Who in the world is Nasim? She’s an unknown. The “owner of the age” is a title given to their 12th Imam.

In the narration before this one, #6 it states that there were two characters: Nasim and Mariyah. That report states that it was al-Qa’im who sneezed.

In the one after it, #8 it states that Nasim is a man not a woman. It seems even the gender is unknown. This one says he/she entered after ten nights.

(5/51 #9)

Abu al-Hasan celebrates the birth by buying a gigantic amount of meat and bread and distributing it among Banu Hashim and others. Then he slaughtered several goats.

I say: Where the heck is all the secrecy now? This Imam won’t make up his mind whether he wants the birth to be secret or a public celebration. This was reported by abu Ja`far al-`Amiri one of the sinners who claimed to be the emissary of the hidden Imam. You will see how this will conflict with everything else below it.

(5/51 #10)

Abu `Ali al-Khayzarani reports this one from a female servant he had gifted to al-`Askari. Who this servant is beyond me but it seems they keep relying on random servants to take news. As if these unknown folks couldn’t be easily bribed by some Shia leaders to say whatever they wish.

[Abu `Ali al-Khayzarani, from a servant he had gifted to abu Muhammad (as): When Ja`far al-Kazzab broke into the house, she came back running from Ja`far. So he married abu `Ali and told him that she witnessed the birth of the master (as), that his mother’s name was Saqil and that aba Muhammad (as) told her what happened]

Suddenly, the name of the mother changes.

Comment: This was supposed to be a secret birth mind you, yet this un-named female servant claimed to have witnessed everything, not only that, she says the Imam himself told her everything. Why the heck would he do that? How does he know she’s reliable? Isn’t she spilling this secret by telling her husband abu `Ali? What importance and value does she have that she was allowed to witness when the closest companions of the Imam were not allowed?

Now here’s the great part:

[She asked him (as) to supplicate to Allah, that He may bring about her death before him. Thus she died in the life of abu Muhammad (as)]

Comment: So strange how all these witnesses are unheard of, unknown or dead. How exactly are we going to verify this information if she’s dead? Reminds us of the book of “Sulaym bin Qays”, a man secretly gave it to another man on his deathbed, then the book emerged only after the second man was also dead leaving no way to verify its legitimacy. This seems to be the good old fashioned methodology of expert fabricators.

I add, what sense does it make for the lady to wish for death? Such a random request!

The narration continues to say that a great light emanated from the baby, then white birds descended from the sky to take his blessings… Yet nobody noticed and the birth was a secret.

Ja`far al-Kazzab is al-`Askari’s sibling, he had a dispute over his brother’s inheritance with one of al-`Askari’s female servants who claimed to be pregnant after his death.

(5/51 #11)

[Muhammad bin Ahmad al-`Alawi, from abu Ghanim the servant, he said: Abu Muhammad (as) recieved a son and called him Muhammad, he presented him to his companions on the third day and said: “This is your companion after me, my successor etc…”]

Oh great, another servant!

Comment: How many servants did this man have? Probably many since if you didn’t know these Imams were wealthy beyond your imagination. Of course, assuming these narrators didn’t lie and assuming that there was actually a man called abu Ghanim, we don’t know whether he was even a servant or not. It seems at this point, that Shia leaders would pay any fool and bring him to their followers and say: “Look, this man was a servant of the Imam, he saw the birth.” Out of the large amount of male and female servants, I’m sure they’d find quite a bunch of godless ones who are willing to make a few coins after their master’s death.

Abu Ghanim is unknown. Besides, wasn’t the birth supposed to be secret? What’s the point of all the secrecy of he’s going to invite all his friends and show them the Imam? You will also see how this conflicts with many reports under it that state that the Imam’s birth will be hidden from the Shia.

(6/51 #12)

A long narration, the Imam abu al-Hasan sends his companion on a secret mission to buy him a female servant. The name changes here to Malikah a descendant of Sham`un. The woman embraces Islam and the Imam orders his sister Hakimah to teach her Islam and tells her:

[Take her to your house, teach her the duties and traditions for she will be the wife of abu Muhammad (as) and the mother of al-Qa’im (as).]

How is it then that in the previous narration Hakimah was shocked and surprised when al-`Askari told her that the girl is bearing a child? She should have already known since `Ali al-Hadi already told her. What’s funnier is that Hakimah keeps asking the Imam “Which of your women is pregnant?”

(11/51 #14)

A man called Muhammad bin `Abdullah al-Mutahhiri meets Hakimah after the death of abu Muhammad al-`Askari to ask her about the Imam’s birth and the state of confusion that engulfed the Shia.

[(Hakimah says): I had a female servant called Narjis, my nephew (as) visited me and started looking at her sharply. I said: “O master, maybe you liked her, shall I send her to you?”]

Notice this insult towards their own Imam, that he’s staring at women.

The Imam tells her that he’s marveling at the fact that she will be the mother of the 12th Imam. This opposes previous reports that it was abu al-Hasan `Ali who bought her for his son, here it seems that she belonged to Hakimah. This contradicts the fact that Hakimah acted oblivious in the first report whereas here he tells her that Narjis will be the 12th Imam’s mother.

The Imam one day tells Hakimah to stay and says:

[O aunt, sleep with us tonight for on this night shall be born the kind child.]

She asks as if completely oblivious, as if he never told her before:

[From who will he be born O master? I saw no traces of pregnancy on Narjis]

He said:

[When Fajr time comes, it will appear since she is like Musa’s mother, no pregnancy showed on her nor did anyone know about her until the time of birth]

Comment: Again, this reaffirms their previous stories that absolutely nobody knew about this pregnancy or child at least to the point before the birth.

We ask again, how can they blame the people for rejecting their beliefs? They believe in 12 leaders, yet when we search for the 12th one there’s no trace of him nor did anyone know of his birth. How are we expected to believe it? Makes no sense.

The Shia leaders only wished to conform their beliefs to the popular narration of “Islam will remain strong up to twelve leaders; they’re from Quraysh”. If by any chance that narration mentioned 13 leaders instead of 12, the Shia would have said that Muhammad bin al-Hasan al-`Askari went into occultation, then they received a letter from him stating that he had a married a woman and received a newborn, the holy 13th Imam.

Going back to topic…

Hakimah says while Narjis was sleeping in front of her, suddenly the 12th Imam was born, he started reciting Qur’an in his mother’s womb.

Hakimah says:

[Then Narjis was hidden from me, as if a barrier was created between us […] I returned and the barrier was lifted and she had a glow of light surrounding her. The child was in prostration while raising his index fingers towards the sky]

Fantastic, again we have these hollywood visual effects to add to the drama of this movie.

[Al-Hasan (as) carried him while the birds circulated on top of his head, he (as) cried to one of the birds: “Carry him, guard him well then return him to us every forty days.” The birds carried him and ascended to the sky.]

The Imam is flying with the birds.

Comment: Remember, if any of al-`Askari’s students or companions entered his house to visit him they wouldn’t see the child. The Shia leaders will tell their doubtful followers: “He didn’t mention him out of Taqiyyah and you didn’t see him because the birds took him.”

May Allah destroy them, how weak are their intellects and how pathetic are their excuses. All of this so they won’t say: “We’re wrong, `Ali was never an appointed leader.”

Who will breast feed him? Birds?

Hakimah then asks about the birds, the Imam responds that they’re the angels who care for the Imams, raise them and teach them. So now you know dear reader, that they believe their Imams are like prophets who receive revelation from angels.

[After forty days, the boy was returned so my nephew (as) invited me. I found a little boy moving and walking. I said: “Master, this is a two year old!?” He smiled and said: “Children of prophets, legatees, they mature differently. A boy from us grows in one month like others grow in a year etc…”]

What’s the purpose of them growing faster?

Comment: Purpose is that these frauds were trying to find excuses as to the young age of the Imam at the time when his father died. He was too young to lead, too young to learn knowledge and too young to know of how to escape and hide himself. This magical formula above solves their issue.

Here’s the evidence:

[I kept seeing that boy every forty days until he became a man before abu Muhammad (as) passed]

Two birds with one stone.

Comment: The Shia leaders who fabricated this solved two issues, A- The fact that this boy was never seen nor was a baby seen in their house, since he was busy flying. B- How can a baby escape and go into occultation? Of course he had to be a man!

[Hakimah said: aba Muhammad (as) passed a short-while after. The people differed as you see but by Allah I see him (i.e 12th Imam) day and night. He (as) would tell me about your questions so that I may answer you […] I would receive a question and he (as) would send me the answers right away etc…]

A fifth emissary!

Comment: We assumed the emissaries of the hidden Imam were four, yet this new one seems to have came out of nowhere. If that’s the case then we must have had hundreds of narrations from Hakimah, everyone would be seeking her for answers since:

A- There was great doubt over the four emissaries, even al-Kulayni, al-Himyari and al-Saffar barely narrated anything from them.

B- Hakimah should have been more trustworthy since no one can doubt her, she’s from the household and she is in constant and direct contact with the hidden Imam.

(15/51 #18)

A man called Hamzah bin abi al-Fath told al-Hasan bin al-Mundhir:

[He gave me glad tidings, yesterday a boy was born to abu Muhammad (as) but he ordered to keep it secret. I asked what his name was, he (i.e Hamzah) told me: He’s called Muhammad]

The Imam ordered to keep it secret but Hamzah is telling people.

Comment: We don’t know who Hamzah heard this from since he wasn’t an eye witness of the birth. Who the heck is Hamzah anyway? Why would he tell people the 12th Imam’s name when the Imam strictly told them not to mention the boy’s name in many narrations?

(16/51 #19)

In this report, al-Saduq who died in 381 hijri narrates from the emmissary of the Imam, Muhammad bin `Uthman al-`Amiri who died in 305 hijri. However, he narrates from him through six people!!

[Al-Taliqani, from al-Hasan bin `Ali bin Zakariya, from Muhammad bin Khulaylan, from his father, from his grandfather, from Ghayyath bin Asad, that he heard Muhammad bin `Uthman al-`Amiri etc…]

Has al-Saduq not heard of the elevated chains? There’s only 75 years difference between the two men yet Saduq places six narrators between them. In Sunni standards of Hadith, a man living in the era of Saduq can narrate from the Prophet (saw) himself via six narrators!!

Sunni scholar al-Daraqutni who died in 385 which is later than al-Saduq would narrate from the Prophet (saw) himself through seven narrators!! With six narrators al-Daraqutni could easily reach a Companion of the Prophet (saw), not some man who died 75 years before him!!

Al-`Amiri said:

[When the successor, the Mahdi (i.e 12th Imam) was born, a ray shot up from the top of his head to the sky]

These nonsensical stories about glowing beams and light rays show the weakness in the minds of the fabricators.

Comment: Imagine you’re living back in those days and at night time a light shoots up to the sky from a man’s house, yet he’s supposed to be a secret baby that nobody must know about. Alright, explain this bollywood special effect in the context of keeping the matter secret? Imagine our Prophet (saw) when escaping from the pagans in Makkah and hiding in the cave, a light shoots up to the sky! He’d be exposed in the blink of an eye, how counter-productive.

In the next narration #20, has the same chain. It says the 12th Imam was born circumsized. He says he heard Hakimah say that no post-natal bleeding was observed on his mother after birth. He said, that’s the condition of all mothers of Imams.

Again, more signs that the woman was never pregnant, these narrations are a testimony that none of the common folks or the mainstream Muslims saw any signs or any trace from any of the Imam’s women, no proof that they are pregnant or about to give birth. In other words, there’s no evidence al-`Askari had a son other than accepting these 1,000 year old narrations by a bunch of nobodies and considering them indisputable facts.

I say: Everybody has the complete right to doubt these stories due to their weakness, their unreliability, their shakiness and their inconsistency.

(16/51 #21)

A narrator tells us how his grandfather Ahmad bin Ishaq al-Qummi recieved a letter from al-`Askari after the 12th Imam was born, telling him of the birth and its secrecy:

[The child is born, keep the matter concealed from all people. We did not disclose this to anyone excep to close relatives due to their closeness and our servants due to their nearness. We liked to inform you of this so that Allah may bring you joy just as he brought us joy.]

I want to tell you so you can be happy!?

(This contradicts the report by the “servant” who claimed al-Hasan himself shared this knowledge with his trusted companions)

Comment: Another narration showing the deep secrecy behind the birth. This report implies that nobody knew except near relatives and a few servants as well as this man from Qum. We ask, how can the Shia claim that the birth of their 12th Imam is mass-transmitted (Mutawatir) if the whole thing was a hidden secret that was concealed?

This dear readers is evidence that the so called mass-transmission (Tawatur) happened much later, and thus it isn’t binding on us. In order for the matter to be legitimately Mutawatir, then the birth needed to be public, popular and known by all people. Unfortuinately for them, we find that the matter is very weak, nowhere near being Mutawatir.

Moreover, why did the Imam write a letter to inform this man specifically? What significance did he hold? He’s another unknown individual, we can’t even be certain that this letter is in the Imam’s handwriting.

In narration #22, Saduq narrates from his teacher Ibn al-Walid, from an unknown man called `Abdullah bin al-`Abbas al-`Alawi, from another unknown man called Hasan bin al-Husayn al-`Alawi, that he entered upon al-`Askari and congratulated him on the birth of his son al-Qa’im.

(17/51 #25)

Another narration about Hakimah, it says:

[I (i.e Hakimah) left right away until I reached abu Muhammad (as) while he sat in his house surrounded by his female servants. I asked: “May I be sacrificed for you O master, who is the mother of your successor?” He replied: “Sawsan” I turned around and saw no other servant with signs of pregnancy except Sawsan]

This time it’s Sawsan with signs of pregnancy.

Comment: Different scenario, now the servant in question is Sawsan. I guess the main reason Shia differed on which female servant it is was due to the large amount of al-`Askari’s servants. Each liar carried this story but attributed it to a different servant since it seems they never agreed on that part. Additionally, Hakimah was able to spot signs of pregnancy on her as opposed to previous stories.

Again she doubts her Imam:

[The beginning of Fajr was upon us, so doubts entered my heart concerning the promise of abu Muhammad (as). He called me from his room: “Don’t doubt, a while and you will see it God-Willing.”]

Also in this one there is a procedure for child delivery:

[I (i.e Hakimah) sat in the position of women who wish to help in delivery, she (i.e Sawsan) grabbed my shoulder, I pressed strongly and she moaned once then looked under her to find Allah’s beloved friend (i.e 12th Imam)]

Comment: What about the barriers and the glowing lights and the rays shooting to the sky? No need right?

She says:

[After three days I missed Allah’s beloved friend. I headed to their house and entered the room that Sawsan was in. I saw no trace nor did I hear a noise. I hated to ask, so I entered on abu Muhammad (as) and was shy but he spoke up: “O aunt, he (i.e 12th Imam) is in Allah’s care and under Allah’s concealment until Allah permits. When I pass away and you see my followers (Shia) differ, then tell the reliable ones among them of this but tell them to keep it as a concealed secret […] Allah will conceal him from his slaves so that nobody will see him until Jibril (as) offers him his horse]

From this report we learn the following:

A- The baby was hidden as soon as he was born. Hakimah never heard a voice or saw a trace.

Comment: Maybe he’s flying with the birds? If his own close relatives “never saw a trace or heard a noise” How is the matter Mutawatir as the liars claim? When did this Tawatur happen? The answer is it happened around a hundred years after al-`Askari’s death.

B- The Imam doesn’t care about his Shia, his just tells her to inform the most reliable and trustworthy ones, who will be at most twenty to thirty people out of thousands.

Comment: This shows that absolutly nobody knew, the baby was born secretly. The followers had no clue nor did they see a trace or hear a voice. They thought al-`Askari died without successor, according to this she was supposed to tell the most reliable of them, but even if she did that means they couldn’t get to see him or verify his birth so their words hold no weight whatsoever.

(This contradicts the report by the “servant” who claimed al-Hasan himself shared this knowledge with his trusted companions)

C- These trustworthy people are supposed to keep the secret concealed and they’re supposed to not spread this news.

Comment: This means every single Shia spreading this news today is a wicked sinner. They all disobeyed their Imam who clearly told them not to mention this. I guess those “reliable companions” weren’t that reliable after all. I add, How can there be Tawatur regarding his birth as the liars claim if only a small group of people knew about it and were instructed to keep it secret?

(19/51 #26)

The Hakimah story again with extra details and more emphasys on secrecy:

[Then he (as) handed him to it and said: I bid you farewell just as Musa’s mother did her son, be in Allah’s care and be near to Him. He said: “Return him to his mother O aunt and conceal the matter of this childbirth, do not tell anybody until Allah fulfills His decree etc…”]

Don’t tell anybody.

Comment: No reliable companions mentioned here, he just tells her to keep it an absolute secret and specifically asks her to not mention the matter to anybody. The boy is then sent away to a secret location, most likely the birds flew him up to the sky so he can be near Allah as his father said.

The fabricators knew some would seek Hakimah and try to verify, they knew Hakimah didn’t believe al-`Askari had a son. In order to avoid looking like liars, they claimed that they heard from her that the Imam asked her to keep it a secret, thus she’s not going to reveal that this baby was born no matter how many times you ask her.

Taqiyyah, a life saver!

(20/51 #27)

A group of their elders from Hakimah with the same story as before including the talking baby, he was cleaned and ready etc…

[Then a barrier was placed between me (i.e Hakimah) and abu Muhammad (as), like a veil, so I couldn’t see my master. I told abu Muhammad: “Where is my beloved friend?” He said: “He was taken by the One who has more claim to him than us.”]

Again with the barriers and the child disappearing into nothingness!!

Hakimah returned after forty days, she found the baby talking and walking:

[He (as) smiled and said to me: O aunt, did you not know that we Imams grow in one day like others grown in one year?”]

Before it was one month like one year, now it’s one day like one year!

Comment: Imagine you hear your leader had a baby, you visit after 40 days and find a grown man, you ask “Who are you?’ He replies: “I’m the baby.” That’s the situation above, may Allah save us from retadedness.

[I returned later to check on him but couldn’t spot him, I told abu Muhammad (as): “What did our beloved friend do?” He said: “O aunt, we bid him farewell as Musa’s mother did.”]

In narration #28, a Nasibi man who was the neighbor of al-`Askari narrates from some old lady.

The old woman says to the Nasibi neighbor:

[I will tell you what I saw two years after you left our house.]

We should believe nice old ladies, no?

Apparently they’re narrating that this lady was invited to the house to help deliver the baby. They wrapped her head with a cloth and a servant took her inside.

[The servant took me by the hand, wrapped my head with a cloth and took me out of the house back to my own. He handed me a bag of coins and told me: “Do not tell people what you saw.”]

Comment: See the extent of secrecy surrounding his birth? They wouldn’t even trust an old weak lady. Then they tell you that the 12th Imam’s birth is common knowledge and is Mutawatir. Of course this lady did tell people it seems othertwise we wouldn’t have this report.

Obviously, as per the narration this lady told them this story ages after al-`Askari died, nobody could verify her story nor was there a trace of this so called new born (man?).

In narration #30, it says the master was born two years after his father died. Thus opposing all we read before it.

(22/51 #31)

Al-Shalmaghani narrated from the servant of `Ali al-Hadi, from his father that he recieved an order to by meaty treats, they told him:

[This is for our young beloved freind (as)]

Again with these servants, he says he recieved the order to buy treats, never claims to have witnessed the birth or seen the baby.

In narration #32, a man called Ibrahim bin Idris (an unknown man) claims that al-`Askari sent him a sheep and ordered him to sacrifice it for the sake of the new born. However, he continues:

[Then I met him (i.e the Imam) after this so he told me: “The newborn has died.” Later, he sent me two sheeps and wrote: “In the name of Allah, these two sheep are for the sake of your beloved friend. Eat may Allah bless you and feed your brothers.” I met him a second time after it but he never said a word.]

1 Sheep = No Mahdi, 2 Sheep = Mahdi.

Comment: We all know these are lies because if al-`Askari had a son before this one and he openly sacrificed for him, the Shia would have made a big deal out of it and they would’ve denied the baby’s death and claimed it was hidden in Taqiyyah.

As for the narration itself, it makes no sense. The text is very vague, we don’t know what exactly is going on but we’re supposed to assume they’re slaughtering sheep to celebrate the 12th Imam’s birth? Then the Imam mentioned no words when the man met him in person. Well couldn’t that mean that someone was forging letters in the Imam’s name? The Imam never said a word since he had no clue? I add, it seems that this guy barely got in touch with the Imam, from this story we conclude that he only met him twice in person, how reliable is he and why would we believe him? Where’re those letters? What’s the evidence that any of these private meetings took place? Why would the Imam slaughter sheep and celebrate publicly then suddenly embrace Taqiyyah and act like nobody was born? Too many questions for such a small vague narration by this nobody.

The next couple of narrations are words of historians and authors, each claiming a different date of birth and a different name for the mother.

(26/51) Al-Majlisi reports from Hakimah:

[I observed her but couldn’t see a sign of pregnancy, I asked my master abu Muhammad (as): “I do not see a sign of pregnancy.” He smiled and said: “We the legatees are not carried in the wombs but we’re only carried in the thighs etc…]

Too pure to be born the usual way.

Comment: In this way, no one could accuse the Shia leaders of lying as none of the man’s women were pregnant. They will reply right away: “No no, the Imams are born from the thighs, that’s why none of his women looked pregnant!” Then you tell them that nobody saw this baby, they reply: “He was hidden and kept concealed then the birds came and carried him right away. That’s why you never saw him!”

Good luck convinsing brainless folks with this.

Not only that, they insist that he was born at the time of Fajr, when nobody could find out and the sky is shrouded in darkness.

In this version we read:

[So I fell asleep, I couldn’t help it. Narjis also fell asleep and so I didn’t notice anything until I sensed my master al-Mahdi]

She could have been dreaming.

Comment: No mention of an old hag coming to help deliver or glowing lights or barriers or any bollywood visual effects, both women slept then woke up finding this miracle child.

Narration continues similarly to past stories, born clean, in prostration, Imam sticks his tongue in the baby’s mouth, he speaks eloquent words and she returns to find him after seven days reciting Qur’an and Torah and speaking in tongues.

Their Imam says:

[When my Lord blessed me with the guided one, He sent two angels that carried him to the throne where he stood in front of Allah]

More extremist nonsense.

Of course they narrated more random things, such as in (31/51 #2)

The Imam said about the 12th one:

[You (i.e Shia) will not see him nor is it permitted for you to call him by his name]

Comment: There’s a bunch of narrations like this one. In fact there’s a couple of narrations saying he’s dead and he shall emerge after death that’s why he’s called al-Qa’im (the one who rises).

In (32/51 #6) their Imam says:

[Al-Qa’im is the one whose birth shall be concealed from the people, his person will be hidden from them and they are not allowed to mention his name]

Let’s take a pause.

Comment: This means no one witnessed his birth, no one saw the baby after birth and even the people who did believe there was a son didn’t know the name.

In another report #7:

[I asked: “What about the name?” He (i.e the emissary) replied: “Do not dare to look into it! The people think that this lineage was cut.”]

Do not dare ask since you might find the truth! That we’re all frauds and liars!

Comment: Here the story of the fabricators is explicit that the people didn’t see that the man had any children, thus the people in that city who were living at the time thought the lineage stopped because they never saw a descendant.

After they attributed a lot of nonsense to their Imams, now came the easy part, they began attributing things to the hidden baby.

A Shia man called al-Salihi said in (33/51 #8)

[After abu Muhammad (as) died, our companions asked us about the name and location (of their 12th one) so a letter came out saying: “If you speak the name they will spread it and if they know the location they will point to him.”]

A very reliable letter!!

Comment: This is evidence that the Shia never knew this baby’s name, this raises more questions since they’ve narrated many reports that did include the name explicitly and narrated others in which the Prophet (saw) said: “His name is like my name.”

According to these numerous Shia narrations the name should be common knowledge by now. However, here we find the reality on the ground very different, the Shia themselves never seemed to know let alone the mainstream Muslims.

The emissary Muhammad bin `Uthman al-`Amiri said in (33/51 #10)

[A letter came in a handwriting I recognized: “Whoever names me in public may Allah’s curse be upon him.”]

It must be serious if he’s cursing, as if he’s scared he’d be exposed.

Comment: The emissary says he recognized the handwriting, so what? How can he recognize it anyway if the kid has never written letters before? How can you know if this latter came from the 12th Imam if he was hidden the moment he was born and never came into contact with anybody!? I add, couldn’t letters be easily forged at the time!? Didn’t they forge letters in the name of `Uthman, `Ali and `A’ishah during the Fitnah!?

These reports make it seem as if the emissaries themselves don’t meet the Imam in person, as if they’re only in contact with him through these letters. If this is established then even they could have been fooled by any forger.

They attribute to their ancient Imams reports such as #12:

[I asked al-Rida (as) about al-Qa’im, he replied: “His body shall not be seen nor will his name be mentioned.”]

(34/51 #2)

What’s funny is that the Shia want to convince us he’s born yet it is from his signs that the people won’t know of his birth!! What a contradiction!!

[I asked: “Who is our companion then?” He (as) replied: “Look for the one whose birth shall be hidden from the people, he will be your companion.”]

(36/51 #8)

[Until Allah sends one whose birth shall not be noticed. I asked: “Whose birth shall not be noticed?” He (as) replied: “One that people won’t know whether he’s born or not, that is your companion.”]

Al-Majlisi then quotes the words of their leader al-Tusi in (201-202/51)

[As for Ja`far bin `Ali, the uncle of the owner of the age (as), he rejected the words of the Imami Shia who said his brother al-Hasan bin `Ali (as) had a son in his life. He rejected the boy’s existence then took his possessions and inheritence. Then Ja`far requested from the Sultan to arrest the female servants of al-Hasan (as) and made them observe al-Istibra’ (waiting period after pregnancy) so he may prove with certainty that his brother never had a son. He then permitted the spilling of the blood of Shia who claimed that al-Hasan (as) had a successor who was more worthy than him. This does not raise a doubt for the knowledgeable ones since everyone agrees that Ja`far was not infallible like the prophets, he is capable of refusing truth and speaking falsehood. Rather, he is prone to error just like we find in the Qur’an, Ya`qub’s children mistreating their brother Yusuf even though they were sons of prophets, some believed that they themselves are prophets. If this great mistake is possible for them then why would it not be possible for Ja`far bin `Ali to do the same with his nephew due to greed and the desire to acquire worldly benefits.]

This is why they claim that this Ja`far is a liar.

Comment: We learn from this that al-`Askari’s own brother denied that he had a son, he disputed with the Shia and contacted the authorities to settle the dispute. They then proved that none of these women were pregnant as the Shia of the time claimed.

Hakimah never said a word of course, she had no objection to Ja`far’s actions since the man really had no children. Shia would like us to believe she never spoke due to Taqiyyah.

In order to learn more about the true events surrounding the 12th Imam, refer to the last section of our article:

The Shia Mahdi: history of confusion

Tusi continues in his defense.

[If it was said to us: How can al-Hasan bin `Ali (as) have a son when during his last sickness, he transmitted his will to his mother who was named in a narration and called Umm al-Hasan. He offered her his endowments, his charities and made her in charge of this. If he (as) had a son he would have mentioned him in his will. We respond: He (as) only did so, intentionally, to hide his birth and conceal him from the Sultan. If he (as) mentioned his son or transmitted his will to him, he would have opposed his own goal. Especially since he (as) had to bring as witnesses the top figures in the government as well as the judges to guard his endowments and charities and to conceal and protect his child by ignoring him and neglecting his mention.
Whoever thinks that this is evidence against the Imami Shia’s belief in a son for al-Hasan (as) does not recognize the habits (of the time). Ja`far bin Muhammad al-Sadiq (as) did a similar thing when he passed his will to five individuals, starting with the Sultan al-Mansur. He did not pass it exclusively to his son Musa (as) and took as witnesses al-Rabi`, the judge and the mother of his son, a servant called Hamidah al-Barbariyyah. He finished it by mentioning his son Musa bin Ja`far (as) so as to keep him concealed and guard him from harm, he never mentioned any of his other children since he suspected that some would falsely claim his position and argue that they’re included in the will. If Musa hadn’t been popular among his kids, of known lineage, location, knowledge and virtue and had been concealed instead, then he wouldn’t have mentioned him, he would have mentioned others as al-Hasan bin `Ali (as) did with the owner of the age.]

Al-Tusi finds resemblance between a man who mentioned his son in his will and another who didn’t mention his son in his will!!

Comment: We see al-Hasan al-`Askari ignoring this so called son, instead he bequeathed the authority over his charities and endowments to his mother as al-Tusi states. Of course whenever the Shia encounter a historical event that opposes their view, they shout “Taqiyyah!” in this way history holds no meaning and they manipulate anything to suite their story. The fact is, al-Hasan never mentioned his son in his will as opposed to previous Imams, he could have included his son’s name among several other names as al-Sadiq did according to al-Tusi, instead he acted as if there was no successor.

What’s funny is that al-Tusi claims the emissaries themselves were of great status in th eye of the Sultan whom they’re supposed to be afraid of.

[They (i.e emissaries) were of great status in the eyes of the Sultan of that time because of their high value and respected positions. They were treated with honor due to their trust and they were famous for their justice to an extent that he (i.e Sultan) would defend them from the accusations of their opponents]

With this, we are done with the narrations pertaining to the 12th Imam’s birth and the events surrounding it.

CONCLUSION:

So far we’re concluding from all the above,

– Shia sects differed on whether al-`Askari had a son.

– They’re confused about his mother’s identity, many names are mentioned.

– Al-`Askari never spoke of him due to fear.

– No signs of pregnancy were shown on any of the Imam’s women.

– The baby was not in al-`Askari’s house, he was carried by birds, angels or taken God knows where.

– Nobody was allowed to mention his name thus the people (Sunnah & Shia) weren’t able to know his name since it was secret.

– He was hidden so no one saw him or knew where he was. Only one man (the emmissary) would claim to be in direct contact with him and whenever an emissary dies he’d be succeeded by another.

– The regular people living at the time never knew al-`Askari had a son, they thought the lineage was cut.

– The Imam never mentioned he had a son in his will.

– The Imam’s brother said he never had a son, a group from the Shia opposed him.

– The ones who claimed to have been in contact with this hidden leader are four emissaries, they were the link between the Shia and their leader. We ask, at that time the number of descendants of al-Hasan and al-Husayn was very large, couldn’t they find among the hundreds of descendants a few who were trustworthy to act as link between the 12th leader and the people? Why trust these four strangers!?

The Shia wish for us to believe in his birth and affirm his existence, yet the whole matter is a secret and the man’s birth and identity are supposed to be hidden from us according to your Imams. The reason according to the consensus of Shia scholars, led by al-Mufid, al-Tusi and al-Murtada is that he fears the enemies will kill him.

If his existence is supposed to be hidden from everybody due to fear from the enemy and at the same time the only reason he does not emerge is because it is not yet safe according to the consensus of Shia leaders. This means that his existence must remain hidden, his name and his birth cannot be disclosed and therefore every Shia trying to convince us to believe in this ancient secret not only is contradicting himself but he’s also a sinner for jeopardizing his Imam’s safety!!