SOME OF THE ACTS OF WORSHIP ON

WHICH IMAM MAHDI (A.S.) HAS PAID ATTENTION

At the end of the book, we will mention a few points which are recommended by his holiness (A.S.). They comprise of a few supplications and Ziyarats, and some recommendations and valuable points that have relevance with the topic of this book. Firstly, we will mention the incident of Sayyid Rashti (R.A.), because the incident of his meeting holds such points which have been recommended by our master, Imam Mahdi (A.S.).

Mohaddis e Noori (R.A.) says:

            Sayyid Rashti (R.A.) said: in the year 1280 Hijri, I travelled with the intention of performing the holy pilgrimage, from Rasht to Tabriz. In Tabriz, I went to the house of Haj Safar Ali, a famous merchant of Tabriz, and as I did not find any caravan for my journey of Haj, I became worried; until Haj Jabbar Jilodaar Sada’ei Isfahani found a caravan travelling towards ‘Tarbuzan’.

            I took a horse from him on rent and started my journey. When I reached the first stoppage point on my way, as per the recommendation of Haj Safar Ali Tajir, three more men joined me and we accompanied each other for the journey. Those three men were: 1. Haj Mulla Baqir Tabrizi (who was performing pilgrimage as a deputy of another person, and was famous between the clerics); 2. Haj Sayyid Husain Tajir Tabrizi; 3. A servant name Haj Ali.

            We reached a city named ‘Arzroom’ on our way, and moved towards the city of ‘Tarbuzan’ from there. In one of the rest houses situated between the two cities, Haj Jabbar Jilodar (head of the caravan), came to me and said: our next stay is quite frightful; therefore, we should be quick and not leave the caravan.

            As we had slightly distanced ourselves from the caravan on our way, approximately two and half or three hours were left until morning, when we all left together. We hadn’t travelled more than half or 3/4^th Farsakh from our resthouse when suddenly the atmosphere changed and it became dark. Then came the snowfall.

            In this condition, each one of my friends covered his head and quickly moved ahead. I did the same but couldn’t travel in their pace. They went far ahead and I was left alone. Therefore, I descended my horse and sat near the road, extremely frightened and worried, because I had about 600 Toman with me for the expense of my journey. After pondering upon my condition, I reached to this conclusion that I should remain in that place until dawn, and return to the previous rest-house from where I could take a few servants for my protection, until I meet the caravan again.

            I was stuck in this very thought when suddenly I saw a beautiful garden in front of me. I saw a gardener with a shovel in his hand cleaning the snow from the branches and leaves of the trees. The gardener came near me, such that there was hardly any distance between me and him.

            He asked: Who are you?

            I said: My friends went forward and I was left here all alone. I don’t know the way and am worried about it.

            He said in Persian language: Offer Nafila (recommended prayer) so that you find your way, he intended the night prayer. I began to offer the night prayer. When I completed it, he came near me again and said: why haven’t you left yet?

            I said: By God, I don’t know the way.

            He said: Recite Jamia. I had not memorized Ziyarat Jamia, and could never memorize it or recite it without looking at the book; though I had visited the holy shrines of Imams (A.S.) several times. However, I stood there and began to recite Ziyarat Jamia from whatever I remembered and recited it completely.

            That person came to me again and said: You haven’t left yet? Tears began to flow unintentionally from my eyes and I wept; I said: I am here from so many days but do not know the way.

            He said: Recite Ziyarat of Ashura.

I had the same condition regarding Ziyarat of Ashura as well. I couldn’t recite it from my memory just like Ziyarat Jamia, but I stood up and recited it involuntarily till the end, and also recite the curse and the Salaam, along with the supplication of Alqama. I saw him come again and say: You haven’t left yet?

I said: No, I will stay here till the morning.

He said: Now I will help you reach your caravan. He went and rode a donkey, placed his shovel on his shoulder, and said to me: Sit behind me on the donkey. I rode on the donkey and caught the bridle in my hand but my horse didn’t move.

He said: Give me the bridle. I gave the bridle in his hands and he placed his shovel on his left shoulder, caught the bridle of my horse with his right hand and set forth. My horse obeyed him in an astonishing manner and followed him through the path.

Then he placed his hand on my knee and said:

            Why don’t you offer Nafila? Nafila, Nafila, Nafila, why don’t you recite Ashura? Ashura, Ashura, Ashura, why don’t you recite Jamia? Jamia, Jamia, Jamia.

He was travelling through the path in such a way as though the land was folding beneath his feet. Suddenly, he turned towards me and said: Your friends are there. I saw that my friends descended on the bank of a river and performed ablution from its water.

I descended the donkey to ride my horse but I couldn’t. They came down their donkeys and began to break the ice with their shovels, then made me ride their horse. Thereafter, they turned the horse’s head towards the area where my friends were.

In the meantime, a thought struck my mind that who is this person who can speak Persian so fluently? I was well aware that the people of this area knew how to speak Turkish only. Most of them were Christians. On the other hand, how did he bring me to my friends so quickly? Just when I returned and looked behind me, I couldn’t find anyone nor any sign of that person. Hence, I went near my friends.

The Night Prayer: Beware! The value of the night prayer is much beyond any limit which can be mentioned. It holds such significance and such secrets that only some of them have been indicated in by Quran and traditions. Therefore, in some of the narrations, when the night prayer is mentioned, its name is repeated three times.

Sheikh Kulayni, sheikh Sadooq and Sheikh Barqi (R.A.) narrate from Imam Sadiq (A.S.) that the holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.) made a few recommendations to Imam Ali (A.S.) in his will and commanded him to observe them and perform each one of them. Then he besought Allah (S.W.T.) to assist his holiness for enacting these deeds. One of the recommendations he made is as follows:

“I recommend you to offer the night prayer; upon you is the night prayer; upon you is the night prayer.”

In the book ‘Fiqh ur Reza’, the same narration has been mentioned.

Ziyarat Jamia: A group of scholars have made evident that this Ziyarat is the best and the most comprehensive Ziyarat.

Allama Majlisi (R.A.), after briefly illustrating a few lines of the Ziyarat Jamia which he hasn’t mentioned in any other Ziyarat, he said:

            I have slightly elongated the elucidation of this Ziyarat, though I didn’t fulfil its right, because I didn’t wish to extend my word. This Ziyarat has the most correct authentication, the most famous narrators, (the most widespread Ziyarat between the Imams), with the most eloquent words, the deepest of meaning, and the mightiest of Ziyarats.

            Ziyarat of Ashura: with respect to its virtue and status, this is enough to say that this Ziyarat is not matchable with any other Ziyarat; because even though the words and speeches of the Infallibles (A.S.) has been taken from the upper world. And this Ziyarat (apparently) and also the other Ziyarats, are recommended by Infallibles (A.S.); but Ziyarat e Ashura is one of the divine discourses (Hadith e Qudsi); and this text, including the curse, the Salaam and the supplications, has been comprehended in this very manner from the Almighty Allah by angel Jibraeel and has reached the holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.).

Experience has portrayed that if for forty days or less, we recite this Ziyarat on a continuous basis, then there is no supplication that can be comparable to it for the fulfilment of demands and for obtaining the intended motives, and for repelling the enemies.

The best benefit that can be obtained by the recitation of this Ziyarat is something that was achieved by one of the authentic personalities, who is also a well-behaved and pious person, Haj Mulla Hasan Yazdi (R.A.) – one of the best inhabitants of the city of Najaf who engaged himself in continuous worship and Ziyarat- from Haj Mohammad Ali Yazdi, who is also an authentic and reliable person, having good character and is among one of the eligible and renowned people of the city of Yazd; he says:

A man lived in Yazd who was one of the noble and renowned men of that city. At nights, he used to leave the city for a cemetery that was situated in the outskirts of Yazd (which was a highly visited mausoleum). A few noble men were buried in that mausoleum. Sayyid Ahmad has a neighbour with whom he grew up since his childhood. They had a common tutor, studied together in the same class until he became a member of the tax collecting committee of the country. In fact, he passed away and his place of burial was near the same place where Haj Mohammad Ali used to worship.

After his death, he saw him in a pleasant condition, enjoying the bounties of heaven. In the state of dream, he went near his dead friend and said: I am aware of your beginning and end, your apparent and your hidden; also, I am very well aware that you weren’t a man who was good from within and whose wicked deeds could be reasoned as the act of Taqayyah as per the Sharia, or it could be said that you chose to enter the government administration with the intention of aiding the oppressed and the helpless. Your deeds were only worthy of punishment and misfortune. Tell me how you attained such a position and status after your death?

He said: You are right. It’s exactly how you stated it. I was suffering from dreadful punishment and was being punished from the day of my death till yesterday. When the wife of Ustad Ashraf Ahangar passed away yesterday, and was buried within 50 metres of my grave and your place of worship. When last night, she was buried here, Aba Abdullah Al-Husain (A.S.) came to visit her three times and on his third visit, he asked the punishment to be lifted from the entire graveyard. Therefore, even I was relieved, and bounties and happiness enveloped me.

He suddenly woke up from his sleep and as he didn’t know Ustad Ashraf Ahangar and his place of residence, he went to the Bazar of Ahangar in search of him and found him there. He said to Ahangar: Do you have a spouse?

He said: Yes, she passed away yesterday and was buried in that place (and he took the name of that same place)?

He asked: Was your wife fortunate enough to visit Imam Husain (A.S.)?

He said: No.

He asked: Did she mourn for his holiness (A.S.)?

He said: No.

He asked: Did she conduct his commemoration programs in her house?

He said: No.

Ahangar asked: What is your motive behind these queries?

He described his dream before Ahangar and said: I wish to know the kind of relationship she had with Imam Husain (A.S.)?

Ustad Ashraf Ahangar said: My wife used to regularly recite Ziyarat of Ashura.

It shouldn’t be left untold that Sayyid Ahmad was a noble and pious person, and was known for his worships and prayers, his fulfilment of divine rights and the rights of people, and for his purity and the purity of his clothes and body from all kinds of dirt and impurities.

Moreover, he was recognized by everyone for his piety and good character, and was renowned between the people of Yazd and other cities. In fact, whenever he used to perform Ziyarat, he earned such exclusive graciousness for himself mentioning which is not suitable here.^[1]