The birth of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.)

Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was born thirty years after the year of elephant. He was martyred in month of Ramadan twenty first Sunday night in the year fortieth after Hijra (migration). He was sixty three years at that time. He lived for thirty years after the death of the Holy Prophet (s.a). His mother was Fatima daughter of Asad Ibrahimn Hashim ibn 'Abd Manaf. He was the first person whose both parents belonged to Hashim.

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Al-Husayn ibn Muhammad has narrated from Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Farisiy from abu Hanifa Muhammad ibn Yahya from al-Walid ibn Aban from Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah ibn Muskan from who has said the following. "Abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) has said, 'Once Fatima, daughter of Asad came to abu Talib with the glad news of the birth of the Holy Prophet (s.a).

Abu Talib said, "Wait for a sabt then I will give a similar glad news except prophet-hood." The Imam (a.s.) said, "A sabt is thirty years. Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was born thirty years after the birth of the Holy Prophet (s.a)."

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Ali ibn Muhammad ibn 'Abdallah has narrated from al-Sayyariy from Muhammad ibn Jumhur from certain persons of our people from abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following. "Fatima, mother of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was the first woman who has said the following. migrated to the Messenger of Allah from Makka to Madina on foot. She was the most kind person to the Messenger of Allah .

She heard the Messenger of Allah say, "On the Day of Judgment people will be raised naked as they were born." She said, "My goodness, what a shame!" The Messenger of Allah then said, "I will pray to Allah to resurrect you all dressed up." She heard him speak of the constraint in the grave." She then said, " Alas! How pitiful is my weakness!" the Messenger of Allah said, "I will pray to Allah to make it easy for you."

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One day she said to the Messenger of Allah, "I want to set my female slave free." He said, "If you would do so, Allah will set free for every part of her a part of you from fire. When she died she made her will to the Messenger of Allah and ordered that her female slave be set free. At the time of death her tongue could not move. 

She would make (great deal of ) gesture to the Messenger of Allah. The Messenger of Allah accepted her will. One day when he was sitting that Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) came weeping. The Messenger of Allah asked him of the reason for his weeping he answered, "My mother Fatima has died."

The Messenger of Allah (s.a) said, "By Allah, and my mother also." He went to her quickly and look at her and wept. He directed the ladies to wash her and said, "When you complete your task do not do anything else without informing me first. When the ladies informed him of the completion of their task he gave them one of his shirts that he would wear under all of his other clothes to be used as her shroud. He said to the Muslims, "If you would see me doing something that I have not done before you may ask me why I have done so." 

When the ladies completed the washing and shrouding he went to pick up her remains. He lifted up on his shoulder (one side of) the coffin and continued all the way to the grave-site. When her body was placed on ground near the grave he entered the grave and lied down in it. He then got up and (helped) with his hands to place the body in the grave.

Then he bent over the body for a long time whispering certain words and say to her, "Your son, your son, (your son). He then came out and leveled the grave-site. Then he bent over the grave and said, "I testify that there is no lord besides Allah. O Lord, I entrust her to You." He then left the grave yard. The Muslims asked him, "We found you doing certain things that you had not done before this day." He said, "Today I lost the kindness of abu Talib.

If she would ever anything good in her possession she would make it available to me before herself and her own children. Once I mentioned the Day of Judgment that everyone would be resurrected naked.

She said, "My goodness, what a shame!" I said to her, "I will pray to Allah to resurrect you all dressed up." She heard me speak of the constraint in the grave." She then said, " Alas! How pitiful is my weakness!" I guaranteed her that Allah to make it easy for her." Thus, I gave my shirt to use for her shroud and lied down in her grave for this reason.

I then bent myself over her body to dictate to her the answer to the questions that she would be asked. She was asked as to who her creator was. She gave the right answer. She was asked as to who was the messenger to her from Allah. She gave the right answer. She then was asked as to who her Wali and Imam (Leader and Guardian with Divine Authority) was. She stuttered. I said to her, "It is your son, it is your son, (it is your son)."

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Certain persons of our people have narrated from those he mentioned from ibn Mahbub from 'Umar ibn Aban al-Kalbi from al-Mufaddal ibn 'Umar who has said the following. "I heard abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) say, 'When the Messenger of Allah was born the whiteness (houses) of the Persian kingdom and the palaces of Sham (Syria) was shown to Amina, his mother, openly (conquered).

Fatima daughter of Asad, mother of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) came to abu Talib laughing with glad news and explained to him what Amina had said. Abu Talib said to her, "Has it surprised you so much? You will conceive a child who will be the executor of the will and the vizier of this new born."

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A number of our people has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn 'Isa from al-Barqi from Ahmad ibn Zayd al-Naysaburi who has said that narrated to me 'Umar ibn Ibrahim al- Hashimi from 'Abd al-Malik ibn 'Umar from 'Asid ibn Safwan the companion of the Messenger of Allah who has said the following. "On the day that Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) passed away the place shock as people wept and cried and they were frightened like al- Thaqafi day the Holy Prophet (s.a) passed away.

A man came weeping who seemed in a hurry and saying the words of the Holy Quran, "We are the servants of God and to Him we shall all return." (2:156) He continued, "Today the government as succession of that of the Holy Prophet (s.a) is discontinued." He stood at the door of the house in which Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was and said, "May Allah grant you blessing, O abu al-Hassan. You were the first in the nation who accepted Islam and were of the purest faith among them.

You were of the most solid certainty and feared Allah the most among them. The degree of your hard work (for the cause of Allah) was the greatest and you were the most cautious in protecting the Messenger of Allah among them. You were the most trusted in the affairs of his companions and of the most distinguished in excellence, of the most honorable past credentials, of the highest degree of virtue and the closest as relatives to the Messenger of Allah among them.

You were the most similar among them to him (the Messenger of Allah) in the matters of providing guidance, moral discipline, mannerism and deeds. You were the most precious to him (the Messenger of Allah) among them, in value and the most honorable to him among them. May Allah grant you good rewards on behalf of Islam, His Messenger and the Muslims.

You exercised strength when his (the Messenger of Allah's) companions became weak. You would come out (to face the enemy) when they showed humiliation, you rose up whenever showed laziness. You maintained steadfastness in adherence to the system of the Messenger of Allah whenever his companions attended othewise. You, indeed, were his undisputed successor and you did not cause strife 9in the community) despite the mischief of the hypocrites, of the anger of the unbelievers, the dislike of the jealous ones, and lowliness of the transgressors. 

You stood firm for the truth when they failed, spoke clearly when they became speechless, marched forwards in the light of Allah and they halted and if they followed you they found the right guidance. You were the softest in tone and of the highest degree of prayer among them, of the smallest amount of speech and of the most correct and valid statements.

You were of the greatest ideas, of the bravest heart, of the most solid certainty, of the best of deeds and the most knowledgeable of the issues among them. You, by Allah, were the lead figure in religion at first and at last. You were the first when people digressed in chaos and the last when they failed.

Your as a kind father to the believers as they become dependent up on you and you bore such burdens that others felt much weak to carry. Your protected what they had lost and guarded what they had ignored. You tightened your belt when they accumulated (wealth with greed), you rose high when they despaired (in humiliation).

You exercised patience when they rushed and you achieved what they had never dreamed to achieve and through you they gained what they had never expected to gain. You were as pouring calamity and disaster up on the unbelievers and the fortress and support for the believers. You were invented for the task of Leadership with Divine Authority with its blessing and you succeeded to achieve its awards, established its prerequisite and left with its distinctions. 

Your evidence in support your divine Authority never last its sharp edge and your heart never wavered, your intelligence never weakened, your soul did not falter or become frightened. You were like a mountain that strong winds could not move. It is just as the Holy Prophet (s.a) has said, "People lived secure in your company and their property well preserved in your hands." You were just as the Holy Prophet (s.a) has said, "Physically weak but very strong to support the cause of Allah, of a very humble soul, but very great in the sight of Allah, the chief on earth and majestic in the sight of the believers. 

No one could ever find faults with you or advance criticism. No one could ever involve you in corruption. You never showed anyone (corrupt) compliance. The weak and feeble to you were strong popular until you would restore their rights and the powerful and popular were weak and feeble to you until you would make to yield to others rights. People of close relation or otherwise were all equal to you in such cases.

You aimed the truth, the true and kindness. Your words were law and final and your commands were based on forbearance and determination your view was knowledge and the final decision in what you would do. The system is established, the pitfalls are routed, the fires (of mischief) are extinguished, religious issues are balanced and through you Islam has become strong. The guidance of Allah has become manifest even though the unbelievers dislike. Islam, the through you, and the believers are strengthened.

You have raced (for Divine excellence) a long race and cause a great deal of weariness to those behind you. Losing you can never be compensated with weeping and your death is a great issue in heavens and it has threatened the people (with emergence of chaos). "We are the servants of God and to Him we shall all return." (2:156) We accept the decision of Allah and submit to His commands. By Allah, the Muslims will never find any one like you.

You were a fortress and the stronghold like a heavy mountain and the intense anger for the unbelievers. May Allah join you with His Holy Prophet (s.a). May Allah not deprive us of your rewards and keep us safe against mis-guidance after you. People remained silent until he finished his words. He wept and the companions of the Messenger of Allah wept. Thereafter, they searched for him but he was nowhere to be found."

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A number of our people has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from Ali ibn al-Hakam from Safwan al-Jammal who has said the following. "Once I , 'Amir and 'Abdallah ibn Jiza'Abdallah al-'Azdi were in the presence of abu 'Abdallah (a.s.). The narrator has said that 'Amir said to The Imam (a.s.), May Allah take my soul in service for your cause, people think that Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was buried in al-Rahba (and open space near the mosque of Kufa)." The Imam (a.s.) said, "No, he was not buried there."

He then asked, "Where is he buried?" The Imam (a.s.) said, "When he dies al-Hassan (a.s.) carried him towards behind Kufa near al-Najaf, towards the right of al-Ghari and the left of al-Hira. He buried him among the small dunes of white sands." Later on I went to the place and I thought of one place as being it. I then returned and informed The Imam (a.s.) about it. The Imam (a.s.) said, "You found it three times. May grant you blessing."

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Ahmad ibn Muhammad has narrated from ibn abu 'Umayr from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad from 'Abdallah ibn Sinan who has said the following. "Once 'Umar ibn yazid came to me and said, "Ride with us and rode with them and went until we came to the house of Hafs al- Kunasi. He took him also with us and we continued the journey until we arrived at al-Ghari and to the grave. He said, "dismount, this is the grave of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.)." 

We asked him, "How did you find out?" He said, "I have come here several times with abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) when he was in al-Hira and he told me that this is his (Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) grave."

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Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Salma ibn al-Khattab from 'Abdallah ibn Muhammad from 'Abdallah ibn al-Qasim from 'Isa Shalqan who has said the following. "I heard abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) say, 'Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) has maternal uncles in tribe of descendant of Makhdhum and a young man from them came to him (Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a. s.) and said, "Uncle, my brother has died and I am very sad because of his death." The narrator has said that he asked him, "Do you want to see him?" He said, "Yes, I want to see him." He said, "show me his grave."

The narrator has said that he (Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a. s.) came out with him with the gown of the Messenger of Allah on him and when he reach the grave he moved his lips and knocked his grave with hid foot and he came of his grave speaking in Persian language. Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) asked, "Did you not die as a Arab man?" He said, " Yes, but we died in the tradition of so and so son of so and so then our language changed."

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Muhammad ibn Yahya has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad and Ali ibn mmd from Sahl ibn Ziyad all from kbn Mahbub from abu Hamza from abu Ja'far (a.s.) who has said the following. "When Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) passed away, al-Hassan ibn Ali stoop up in the Mosque if Kufa. He praises Allah and spoke of His Glory prayed to Allah to grant blessings up on the Holy Prophet (s.a) and then he said this.

People tonight a man has passed away the like whom can not be found in previous and the coming generations. He was the standard bearer of the Messenger of Allah, with Jibril on his right micha'il on his left. He would not turn back until Allah would grant him victory. All that he has left of the worldly belongings is a seven hundred Dirham extra from his gifts with which he wanted to buy ( hire) a servant for his household. 

By Allah, he died during a night in which the executor of the will of Musa (Moses) Yusha' ibn Nun had passed away, the night in which Jesus son of Mary was taken to heavens and the night in which the Holy Quran was revealed."

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Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from in a marfu' manner from abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following. "When Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) was washed for burial they called from the side of the house, "If you would lift up the front of the coffin you would not need to lift up the back of the coffin and if you would lift up the back side then you would not need to lift up the front side."

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'Abdallah ibn Ja'far and Sa'd ibn 'Abdallah together have narrated from Ibrahim ibn Mahziyar from his brother, Ali ibn Mahziyar from al-Hassan ibn Mahbub from Hisham ibn Salim from Habib al-Sajistani who has said the following. "I heard abu Ja'far (a.s.) say, "Fatima, daughter of the Holy Prophet (s.a) was born five years after the proclaimed to be the Messenger of Allah and she passed away when she was eighteen years and seventy five days old."

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Sa'd ibn 'Abdallah has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn 'Isa from al-Hassan ibn Ali ibn Faddal from 'Abdallah ibn Bukaayr from certain persons of our people who has said the following. "He heard abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) say, ' When Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (a.s.) died, al- Hassan and al-Husayn and two other man carried his body out until they went out of Kufa. They continued with Kufa on their right and then they moved forwards on the path of Jabana until they passed al-Ghari. They then buried him and leveelled his grave and then return (home)."