Shaykh Abu Ja’far said that our faith on the subject was that the Ahadith, which have reached us through consistent and authentic channels of the Imams, were all correct and reliable in their essence. These were in line with the Qur’anic commandments, due to their one-to-one relation with the revelations. If, however, Ahadith were from a source other than God, then there was likely to be greater division in its meanings and connotations.

If we found an apparent conflict in some Ahadith, then it should have some reasons of its own. For example, it was mentioned in a hadith regarding the compensation for Zihar (if someone said that his wife was like his mother), then that the alleged person should free a slave. At the same time, another Hadith suggested that he should fast continuously for two months, and the third Hadith proposed that he should feed sixty needy persons.

In this case there appeared to be some apparent conflict in the punishment that was awarded to the accused, but in fact all three recommendations were correct at its appropriate moment. Fasting was mandatory for a person who could not afford to free a slave and feeding the poor was recommended for the one who did not have the strength to fast for two months. It was also mentioned that if he had to pay Sadaqa (charity) for its compensation, then he should pay whatever he could afford. This order was for a person who could not afford to feed sixty people:

فَكَفَّارَتُهُ إِطْعَامُ عَشَرَةِ مَسَاكِينَ مِنْ أَوْسَطِ مَا تُطْعِمُونَ أَهْلِيكُمْ أَوْ كِسْوَتُهُمْ أَوْ تَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ ۖ فَمَنْ لَمْ يَجِدْ فَصِيَامُ ثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ

“… So, its expiation is the feeding of ten of the needy ones with the average of that wherewith ye feed your own folk, or the clothing of them, or the liberation of a slave, and he who findeth not (the wherewithal to do so), he must fast for three days” (5:89).

There were some Ahadith which apparently looked different but were not different at all. Instead, their recommendations could replace one another. An ignorant person would find conflicting reports regarding the atonement of breaking the oath, but in fact there was no divergence between any of those amends. It was mentioned about the recompense of breaking an oath that the accused should feed or clad ten destitutes or free a slave or fast for three days. It was understood that if the accused could fulfil anyone of those conditions, then the other two could be automatically replaced.

There were some Ahadith that were narrated in the state of taqaiyya (not revealing the identity of a Shi’a). The variation in these Ahadith had a reason. Qais Ibn Halali said: “I told Imam Ali (‘a) that I have heard explanations of some Qur’anic Verses and Ahadith of the Prophet from Abu Dharr, Salman and Miqdad that differ hugely, with the deliberations from other elucidators, and then I have heard you backing up the trio. I have also seen a treasure of the elucidation of the Qur’an and Ahadith of the Prophet with your opponents, which they use in order to defy your status. You, on the other hand, think that all of this literary treasure is fake and forged. Is it true that these people have knowingly misrepresented the Prophet, and added personal dimensions to the elucidation of the Qur’an?”

The narrator (Salim Ibn Qais Helali) said that Amir Al-Mu’minin (‘a) replied that he should try to understand, if his desire was to question him. He continued to say that whatever people had with them was a mixture of truth and deceit. It also included matter that invalidated a decree, and that had been made redundant. It also contained what was clear and established, along with the metaphor. People had remembered a few and were in doubt about the other. Lies were spread in his name, in the life of the Prophet, so much so that he had to openly say, ‘Beware, there are lots of people who are spreading untruths on my name. Remember such people are preparing their abode in the hell.’

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَسْأَلُوا عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ إِنْ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ تَسُؤْكُمْ وَإِنْ تَسْأَلُوا عَنْهَا حِينَ يُنَزَّلُ الْقُرْآنُ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ عَفَا اللَّهُ عَنْهَا وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ حَلِيمٌ

“O you who believe! do not put questions about things which if declared to you may trouble you, and if you question about them when the Quran is being revealed, they shall be declared to you; Allah pardons this, and Allah is Forgiving, Forbearing” (5:101).

قَدْ سَأَلَهَا قَوْمٌ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ ثُمَّ أَصْبَحُوا بِهَا كَافِرِينَ

“A people before you indeed asked such questions, and then became disbelievers on account of them” (5:102).

This act of lying was maintained after his death. All the Ahadith that reached you, had come from four types of people with no fifth component involved in them. First was from a hypocrite, who was a fake Muslim. He was apparently cladded in Islam, but did not feel any reservation in telling lies in the name of the Prophet. If people had known the reality of this person, they would not have trusted his words.

However, due to ignorance they considered him as a companion of the Prophet. Their narrations were accepted since he had seen the Prophet and had heard him, although God warned us of the presence of hypocrites among the companions of the Prophet and has explained how to identify them. It is said:

وَإِذَا رَأَيْتَهُمْ تُعْجِبُكَ أَجْسَامُهُمْ وَإِن يَقُولُوا تَسْمَعْ لِقَوْلِهِمْ كَأَنَّهُمْ خُشُبٌ مُّسَنَّدَةٌ

“When thou lookest at them, their exteriors please thee; and when they speak, thou listenest to their words. They are as (worthless as hollow) pieces of timber propped up, (unable to stand on their own)” (63:4).

After the death of the Prophet these people dispersed. They acquired special positions near corrupt and distorted leaders by telling lies and using deceitful means. These crooked rulers appointed them as leaders over the people and they accumulated lots of worldly allure. These hypocrites were placed over the necks of the people. It has been an established fact that people always sided with the rulers, other than those whom God had saved. This was first of the four kinds of the narrators of the Hadith of the Prophet.

The second type of narrator was the one who had heard the Prophet but could not remember completely the contents of his address. So, he was confused and totally misrepresented the message of the Prophet. This person did not lie on the Prophet purposely, and acted upon whatever right or wrong he had accrued, and also claimed that he had heard a particular hadith from the Prophet. If Muslims had realised that he was confused in his understanding, they would have opted not to receive the hadith from him. Also, if the narrator himself had realised his confusion, he would not have offered himself as a narrator of the hadith.

The third type of narrator of hadith was a person, who heard one directive of the Prophet but was not present at the time when the Prophet withdrew the order. Therefore, he remembered the annulled but was unaware of the statement that negated it. If he had known that this particular command has been annulled then he would have certainly dissociated himself from that, as so was the community of the faithful.

The fourth was the person who had never lied about hadith of the Prophet. In fact, he hated lying due to fear of God and respect for the Prophet. He had not forgotten anything and remembered the message of the Prophet in its spirit and letter. He had not added or subtracted any content. He had the knowledge of the invalid and also that of its replacement. Therefore, he acted upon the substitute and kept away from the annulled.

In the Prophet’s work, like the word of God there was a pattern of metaphoric and lucid decrees. Like Qur’an, sometimes the Prophet’s directives had two facets. At one point, it was relevant in general and at another, it was particular or specific. God said in His book:

وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا

“...And whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it, and from whatever he forbids you, keep back…” (59:7).

This dual featured phrase became mystified by less erudite people because not all the companions of the Prophet were such that they could question him on every issue to discover the truth of his saying, as indicated in the Qur’an:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَسْأَلُوا عَنْ أَشْيَاءَ إِن تُبْدَ لَكُمْ تَسُؤْكُمْ وَإِن تَسْأَلُوا عَنْهَا حِينَ يُنَزَّلُ الْقُرْآنُ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ عَفَا اللَّهُ عَنْهَا وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ حَلِيمٌ

“O ye who believe! Ask not questions about things which, if made plain to you, may cause you trouble. But if ye ask about things when the Qur'an is being revealed, they will be made plain to you, Allah will forgive those: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Forbearing” (5:101).

قَدْ سَأَلَهَا قَوْمٌ مِّن قَبْلِكُمْ ثُمَّ أَصْبَحُوا بِهَا كَافِرِينَ

“Some people before you did ask such questions, and on that account lost their faith” (5:102).

To summarise it, we could say that some people were stopped from asking questions to the Prophet (S). For this reason, they used to wait for a Bedouin to come to the Prophet for seeking some explanations regarding a theme, and they should benefit from that talk. However, my status was such that I used to go the Prophet every evening in privacy to talk to him. Whatever subject I chose for discussion, the Prophet used to answer me.

I have travelled with the Prophet (S) in every one of his journeys. All the companions of the messenger of God knew that the Prophet (S) had not given this privilege to anyone else other than me. These private meetings with the Prophet (S) were usually held at my residence, and whenever I visited the Prophet, he used to arrange seclusion for me by even asking his wives to leave from the meeting place. Every time, the Prophet visited me, he asked all attendants to leave, other than Fatimah (‘a) and my two sons Hasan (‘a) and Husayn (‘a).

I usually asked him the questions and he replied. When I became silent and my questions ended, Prophet (S) himself used to initiate conversation. Therefore, there was no Verse in the Holy Qur’an that was revealed to the Prophet or any other teaching message from God that was related to legal code, episodes of the past or the happenings of the future, that were not taught to me by the Prophet (S). He then, advised me to preserve those commands in writing. I wrote those facts in my handwriting and the Prophet taught me about their apparent and intrinsic meanings.

I learnt these teachings by heart and did not miss a single word. During the process of teaching, he used to put his hand on my chest and asked God to enhance my capabilities; and further extend my knowledge of all things and do not let forgetfulness to prevail over me. I asked the Prophet, if he was afraid of empty-mindedness on my behalf. The Prophet replied that he had no such fears about me as God had informed him that He had accepted his supplication for the associates of the mission that will follow. I asked the Prophet about those associates of mine. The Prophet replied that they were those people, whose obedience was mandated with the obedience of God and the Prophet according to the Qur’anic Verse:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

“O believers obey God, the Prophet and people of authority, who are among you” (4:59).

I asked the Prophet (S) about their identity. He replied that they were his legatees, who would not differ from each other. They would meet him at the banks of the springs of Kawthar, after fulfilling their duties. Whoever deceived them and did not help them in their endeavour would not be able to harm them. They will always remain with the Qur’an, and Qur’an will also to side with them. My Ummah will get help, there will be rain, calamities will be removed and supplications will be accepted through their intervention. I asked the Prophet to provide me with their names. He replied,

“O Ali (‘a), you are the first of them. He then, he put his hand on the heads of Hasan (‘a) and Husayn (‘a), suggesting that they will be the Imams after me. Then Zayn Al-’Abidin (‘a), your namesake will be the Imam followed by his son Muhammad (‘a), who will expand knowledge and he will be the custodian of the God’s revelations. He asked Husayn (‘a) to send his greetings on him.

Then Ja’far As-Sadiq (‘a), Musa Ar-Ridha (‘a), Ali Ibn Musa Ar-Ridha (‘a), Muhammad Ibn Ali (‘a), Ali Ibn Muhammad (‘a), Hasan Ibn Ali (‘a) - better known as Hasan Al-’Askari (‘a). And, after them the last one whose name and appearance is in my mould, who will establish his rule towards the end of the time and fill the earth with peace and justice in place of injustice and tyranny with which it will be filled at that time.

Imam Ali (‘a) then said to the recipient of this Hadith that he knew, in the name of God, where oath of allegiance will be offered to him in the place between Hajar al-Aswad and Maqam Ibrahim. He also knew the names of the people and their tribes who will offer their allegiance.”

Salim Ibn Qais said that after a time, when Mu’awiyah was in Syria, he went to Medina to meet Imams Hasan (‘a) and Husayn (‘a) and related this Hadith of the Prophet, S) to them. They replied that I was telling the truth, as they were also present in the company of the Prophet (S) at that time. They also remembered this hadith after listening to him, and said that the same Hadith narrated later by their father to them with almost the same details, just as he had related to you.

Salim said that after some time he went to the presence of Imam Zayn Al-’Abidin (‘a), when his son Muhammad Al-Baqir (‘a) was also present with him. I narrated the hadith, which I had heard from his grandfather. He also confirmed that he had heard this hadith from his grandfather in his childhood, while he was ill. Imam Al-Baqir (‘a) also confirmed that he has heard this Hadith from his grandfather (Imam Al-Husayn, ‘a) who had passed on the salutations of the Prophet (S) to him.

Aban Ibn Abi Ayyash said that when he had narrated the hadith, which he had heard from Qais Ibn Salim, to Imam Zayn Al-’Abidin (‘a), he had confirmed the contents of the hadith. He had said that Jabar Ibn Abdullah Ansari had come to his son, while he was going to Kaaba and presented the salutations of the Prophet (S) and had kissed him.

The same Aban Ibn Abi Ayyash says that after the death of Imam Zayn Al-’Abidin (‘a), he went to Makkah for Hajj, and met with Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (‘a) and discussed with him the hadith narrated by Qais Ibn Salim Halali. Imam became emotional and said,

“May God send His blessing on Qais. He was telling the truth. He had come to see my father after the martyrdom of my grandfather, while I was also present and the same hadith was presented there in the same manner, and my father had confirmed the contents of his narration.”