۱.
Shia hadith sources contain numerous narrations indicating the announcement of Imam Mahdi's (AS) birth. However, other narrations seemingly contradict these, suggesting the concealment of his birth. In an Arabic academic dissertation titled "Narrations Regarding the Mahdi in the Authentic Hadith Books of the Twelver Shia: A Critical Study," Walīd ibn Ṣāliḥ Bāṣmad uses these and similar narrations to argue that Shia narratives on the Mahdi are weak, contradictory, and irreconcilable, thus casting doubt on the Shia concept of the Mahdi itself ". The present study, using a descriptive-analytical method, aims to address the objections raised in the aforementioned dissertation regarding Imam Mahdi's (AS) birth. It first categorizes and reports the claim under two headings: Narrations indicating the announcement of the birth and narrations indicating its concealment. Then, by examining the chain of transmission ( Isnād ) and text ( Matn ) of each narration, it concludes that while credible narrations exist in both categories, based on both narrator-centered and context-centered approaches to evaluating authenticity, their apparent conflict can be resolved. The concealment of the birth refers to general concealment, while the announcement refers to disclosure to select individuals. This duality in concealment or announcement was necessitated by the oppressive circumstances of Imam Ḥasan al-ʻAskarī (AS) time and was essential for protecting God's proof. Therefore, these seemingly contradictory narrations are theologically reconcilable, and there is no need to prioritize one over the other.
۲.
Human understanding of divine knowledge, particularly abstract and intangible concepts such as death, significantly influences human behavior and ultimate destiny. Consequently, the concept of death in verses and hadiths, especially in the words of Imam Ali (AS), has been depicted in a tangible manner. A descriptive-analytical study of "Death" with a focus on conceptual metaphors within the cognitive semantics framework has transformed tangible spaces into unfamiliar ones and opened up new perspectives on religious knowledge about death. Based on Verses of the Qur'an and the words of Imam Ali (AS) in the context of embodied conceptual metaphor, the concrete concepts of humans, animals, and plants are mapped onto death: 1) Death is portrayed as a human who preaches, comes, and meets one's soul; or as a human who pursues another, waiting to seize them like an officer with a judicial order, or a thief and hunter who takes advantage of one's negligence and steals or hunts all their possessions (life and soul); 2) Another image for death is that of a ferocious animal with sharp claws, directly targeting a person's soul; 3) The third embodied conceptualization presents death as a plant with a pleasant scent or as autumn, symbolizing the end of life. In some of these tangible depictions, pleasure, comfort, and tranquility are the focal points, while in most cases, the certainty and imminence of death, its harsh and terrifying nature, the transience of life, the inevitability of death, and the feelings of loss and regret are emphasized.
۳.
Given that established governments in human societies have always faced internal opposition, the appropriate strategy for Islamic rulers is to emulate the practical conduct of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali (AS) in dealing with and confronting opponents. From the perspective of Imam Ali (AS), as a model of justice in the world, employing moral education, even when dealing with opponents of the Islamic government, is an important issue. Based on this, he endeavored to reform and guide opposing political and social groups to the best of his ability. The present study aims to examine a portion of his statements to internal opponents of the Islamic government, analyzing them using content analysis to uncover and identify the details of Imam's educational behaviors. The results indicated that Imam Ali's educational efforts to reform and guide internal opponents can be categorized under five strategic actions: public awareness, correcting religious beliefs and ideological perspectives, tolerance and Leniency, reprimand and threat, and finally, punishment commensurate with the circumstances. Among these, the Imam's efforts towards public awareness and correcting the religious and ideological beliefs of opponents are of paramount importance. To attract and guide opponents, he individually and specifically addressed their misconceptions, explaining the correct and true interpretation of verses from the Holy Quran and the hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
۴.
The details of the life of Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Jaʻfar Nuʻmānī (b. 342 AH) are not entirely clear, and significant information about him is not readily available. Furthermore, one of the unclear aspects surrounding Nuʻmānī 's life is the extent to which Imamiyyah writers and scholars paid attention to Nuʻmānī 's narrations and the current book al-Ghayba attributed to him. Therefore, since some consider Nuʻmānī to be among the prominent Imamiyyah scholars, it is necessary to investigate and research the "Status of Nuʻmānī 's narrations and narrators in early Shi'a hadith sources": ‘What narrations from Nuʻmānī exist among early Imamiyyah Shi'a hadith sources?’ ‘Who are Nuʻmānī 's narrators among the Imamiyyah Mashāyikh?’ And, focusing on Nuʻmānī 's narrations and narrators, ‘What is the extent of the attention paid by Imamiyyah scholars to Nuʻmānī and his works and narrations?’ The present study was conducted using a library-based approach, employing an inductive strategy and a descriptive-analytical method. Existing Shi'a hadith sources were explored, ultimately revealing that only sixteen narrations (repeated and unrepeated) from Nuʻmānī exist in a few sources from the regions of Iraq and Syria. On the other hand, and separate from common Imamiyyah sources, in examining the heritage of the Ghulāt (extremists), sources were found containing narrations from Nuʻmānī ; however, none of these are found in Imamiyyah sources or Sunni sources. The majority of the narrators in the chains of transmission of Nuʻmānī 's narrations in these sources are disreputable narrators, leaders of the Ghulāt , or those interested in the Ghulāt heritage.
۵.
There is no doubt about the reception and stop of Imam Riḍā (AS) in Nīshābūr during his transfer to Merw; however, there is inconsistency in the sources regarding those who held the reins of his mount and those who requested the narration of hadith. The present study, by compiling a library of research papers and presenting them in an analytical-descriptive manner, aims to provide a documented demarcation of the individuals who made the request. Aḥmad ibn Ḥarb Nīshābūrī (d. 234 AH), Ibn Rāhwayh (d. 238 AH), Muḥammad ibn Aslam Ṭūsī (d. 242 AH), Muḥammad ibn Rāfiʻ Qushayrī Nīshābūrī (d. 245 AH), Yāsīn ibn Naḍr Nīshābūrī (d. 252 AH), Yaḥyā ibn Yaḥyā Nīshābūrī (d. 226 AH), and Muḥammad ibn Yaḥyā Dhuhlī Nīshābūrī (d. 258 AH) are those whose names have been reported by reliable sources; however, including Abū Zurʻah Rāzī (d. 264 AH), Ibn Khuzaymah Sullamī Nīshābūrī (d. 311 AH), Abū Alī Thaqafī Nīshābūrī (d. 328 AH), Ᾱdam ibn Abī Ayās ʻAsqalānī (d. 220 AH), Naṣr ibn Alī Jahḍamī Rāzī Ḥanafī (d. 250 AH), and Muʻallā ibn Manṣūr Rāzī Ḥanafī (d. 211 AH) among them is shaky, and the evidence does not support it. These individuals were either not yet born, were not of an age to comprehend hadith, or lived in other regions. Shia scholars must avoid accusations of historical distortion and fabrication by relying on authentic narrations.
۶.
The book Faḍāʼil Fāṭimah al-Zahrā by al-Ḥākim al-Nīshābūrī was composed amidst intense religious controversies and opposing discourses surrounding the status of the Ahl al-Bayt. The present study aims to examine how the position of Lady Fāṭimah al-Zahrā is represented in response to opposing discourses and analyzes the underlying ideological constructs embedded in the linguistic choices and narrations within this work. Utilizing Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), this research analyzes the text on three levels: Description, interpretation, and explanation. On the descriptive level, it explores the linguistic methods and word choices employed by al-Ḥākim al-Nīshābūrī to emphasize the virtues of Lady Fāṭimah al-Zahrā , with meticulous attention to detail. On the interpretive level, this study examines the social and political contexts of the author’s time and their impact on shaping the book’s discourse. At the explanatory level, it thoroughly analyzes power relations and the author’s endeavors to fortify the status of the Ahl al-Bayt while countering opposing discourses. The findings indicated that the selection and use of linguistic elements in this book were specifically designed to highlight the elevated status of Lady Fāṭimah al-Zahrā . Furthermore, the political, social, and cultural contexts of the Samanid and Buyid periods significantly shaped the composition of this work. This research sheds light on the intricate interplay between religious and political discourses in Islamic history and underscores the pivotal role of the Ahl al-Bayt within this framework.
