Kashf-ul-Yaqīn

Written by Allāmah Hillī, Hasan son of Yūsuf (Died in 726
Hegira).

Subject:

Magnifying virtues of the Lord of
the Faithful, Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn Ali (A.S).

Order of
contents:

The book is divided into a preface
and four chapters.

Preface:

Preface mentions the motivation and reason for compilation of the book, pointing
out that the virtues of Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn (A.S.) are uncountable, and refers to
some quotations of dignitaries in this respect.

((Even the water contained in an ocean

is not enough to wet tip of one's finger

and count the pages of the book,

which contains your virtues)).

The
excellence of citing and hearing merits of His Holiness are also briefly
discussed in this part.

Four
chapters follow the preface:

Chapter
one:
This
chapter is about the virtues of Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn(A.S.) before his birth, such as
approval of Adam's repentance after his resorting to Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn (A.S).

Chapter Two:

This chapter contains virtues of His
Holiness during his creation, as his honorable mother was invited in to the holy
Ka'bah to give birth to him.

Above two chapters are short.

Chapter Three:

This chapter is about his virtues
during growth and puberty. The chapter is the longest one and is divided into
two units.

Unit One:
Addressing intrinsic virtues, which include intrinsic traits, qualities, and
virtues related to his performances like praying, taking part in holy wars, etc.

Unit Two:

Addressing extrinsic virtues of Imām Alī (A.S), like revealed verses about him
as well as the Holy Prophet's (S.A) Narrations predicting different incidents,
which happened to him during his life, as well as issues about his wives,
ancestors, descendants, etc.

Allāmah Hillī has given a new title for each subject and even for each Narration
in order to be found easily.

Chapter four:

This chapter discusses about the virtues of Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn
(A.S.) after his death. This is also a short chapter, which mainly consists of
charismata attributed to Amīr-ul-Mu'minīn (A.S.), and Allāmah has quoted them by
their relevant documents.

Sources:

Except for some cases, all Narrations of this book are narrated from reliable
sources of Sunni scholars such as Manāqib of Kharazmī, Musnad of Ahmad,
Bishārat-ul Mustafā, Khasāyes-e Tabarī, Al-Yawāqīt, Asbāb-un-Nuzūl Wāhedī and
Manaqib-e Ibn Maghāzilī.

The
compiler of the book with much of efforts has adopted the book's contents
with reliable Shī'a books and sources.

Translation:

Kashf-ul-Yaqīn' has been translated twice, one of translators is unknown, and
the other's name is Muhammad Ismā'īl Majd-ul-Udabā Khurāsānī who translated the
book in the 13th century. Its name is Rashaf-ul-Mu'īn'.

Publication:

This book has been reprinted for several times as follows:

1-
Lithography dated 1298 Hegira, in Tabrīz

2-
Typography dated 1371 Hegira, in Najaf Ashraf

3-
Printed copy by Islāmīc Publication Institute affiliated to the Ministry of
Culture and Islamic Guidance, which is a very beautiful printing, complete with
a comprehensive research and an introduction by Mr. Husain Dargāhī.

All
contents of the book have been compared with different copies. The main book has
also been compared to Allāmah Majlisī's quotations in the book Bihār' and
references are made from the same book. There is also a list of Quranic verses
and Narrations along with their sources in footnotes.