بیشترلیست موضوعاتDownloading the EncyclopediaIntroductionVERSION 2.0
Chapter 1.a
VERSION 2.0Quran and Ahlul-BaytWhy
School of Ahlul-Bayt?
Who are Ahlul-Bayt?
Part iPart iiPart iiiPart ivPart vPart viPart viiThe Word House (Ahlul-Bayt) in QuranSunni Feedback on the Issues of Infallibility
and Ahlul-Bayt
Chapter 1.b
VERSION 2.0Who Offended the Blind?
Infallibility of the Prophets
Part iPart iiPart iii
Leadership and Infallibility
Part iPart ii
The Twelve Imams
Part iPart iiThe Holy Quran and the Pure ImamsThe Reward of Loving Ahlul-BaytHow to Send Greetings to Prophet
Muhammad?Is Being a Member of a Party Forbidden in
Islam?The Term "Shia" in Quran and
Hadithal-Azhar Verdict on the Shia
Chapter 2
VERSION 2.0The Last LuminarySunni Documentation on Imam al-Mahdi (AS) Special specifications of Imam al-Mahdi (AS)
Necessity of the Existence of Imam al-Mahdi
(AS) More on Imam al-Mahdi (AS) The Knowledge of the Unseen & the
Knowledge of the BookSome Traditions on the Virtues of Imam Ali
(AS)
Chapter 3
VERSION 1.5
Caliphate of Imam Ali (AS)
The Major Difference Between the Shia and
the Sunni
Ghadir Khum
Part iPart iiPart iiiCertainly your Master is .Who is the successor of the Prophet
(PBUH&HF)?The Prophet Announcing His Successor in
His First PreachHow is This Possible?The Opinion of Imam Ali (AS) on
Caliphate
Chapter 4
VERSION 1.5Respecting the Righteous CompanionsA Shi'ite View of the CompanionsThe Tragedy of ThursdayConspiracy Against Imam Ali (AS)Attacking the House of Fatimah (AS)Usurping the Land of FadakLady Fatimah (AS) protests against Abu Bakr's
ActionsMore Facts on FadakA short history of Fadak after the
Martyrdom of Fatima
Chapter 5.a
VERSION 1.5Muawiyah and Abusing Imam Ali (AS)More on MuawiyahDevelopment of History and Hadith
Collections
Islam of Abu Talib (Parts I through IV)
Part iPart iiPart iiiPart ivWas Azar the Father of Prophet Abraham?Who was Umm Kulthum the wife of Umar?On the Companions who Murdered UthmanThe Innovations of the Early CaliphsAre Munafiqeen Counted Among the Sahabah?Shia vs. Iran
Chapter 5.b
VERSION 1.5Imam Husain (AS): A brief Description and
AnalysisSome Traditions on Imam al-Husain (AS)Reasons Behind the Commemoration of Imam
al-Husain (AS)Did Imam al-Husain (AS) Know He Would Be
killed?The Martyred Ones
Tragedy of Karbala as reported by the Sunnis
Part iPart iiPart iiiPart ivPart vPart viPart viiPart viiiPart ix
Chapter 6.a
VERSION 2.0
Temporary Marriage in Islam:
Part 1: Evidences From Quran and the Sunni
CommentariesPart 2: Evidences From the Sunni Hadith
CollectionsPart 3: Evidences From the Sunni
History/Fiqh/Misc. BooksPart 4: Some Contradicting ReportsPart 5: Purpose of Marriage; Prohibition of
Illegal Sex & AlcoholPart 6: Similarities and Differences of
Mut'a and Regular MarriagePart 7: The Necessities and the
Advantages of Mut'aPart 8: Some Frequently Asked Questions on
Mut'aDebate on the Legitimacy of Mut'a:
Chapter 6.b
VERSION 1.5
al-Taqiyya/Dissimulation
Part iPart iiPart iiiKhums (one fifth)Tawassul (Resorting to Intermediary)Evidence for Tawassul by a Sunni WriterDid Muhammad Receive Revelation by
Mistake?!
Imamat vs. Prophethood
Part iPart iiFinality of the Prophethood
Chapter 7
VERSION 1.5
The Shia/Sunni Jurisprudence:
Shia ScholarsThe Rules of Modesty (according to five
Schools)Fasting (according to five Schools)Call for Prayer (Adhan) and Ablution
(Wudu)Joining Prayers and Other related
IssuesPrayer (according to five Schools)
Chapter 8
VERSION 1.5
Shia/Sunni and Quran:
Belief of Shia in the Completeness of
QuranDifferent Arrangements of QuranSome Sunni Reports on the
Incompleteness of QuranThe Quran Compiled by Imam Ali (AS)Tabarsi and incompleteness of QuranThe Book of Fatimah (AS)Can ANY human do that?Early Debates on the Integrity of the
Quran (Incomplete)
Chapter 9
VERSION 1.5Outline of DifferencesTraditions which falsely allege physical
attributes to AllahAbu Huraira vs. PaulSimilarities of Jews/Christians/MuslimsIbn Taymiya and his WorksThe Wahhabis
Chapter 10
VERSION 1.5
Abdullah Ibn Saba
Part iPart iiPart iiiPart ivPart v
Kaab al-Ahbar
Part iPart iiPart iii
Chapter 11
VERSION 1.5Kumail's Invocation and other
SupplicationsFree Will and FatalismDivine Justice and the Problem of EvilSome traditions from al-Kafi on the place of
reason in religionSome stories on Imam Ali (AS)Islamic Scientistsتوضیحاتافزودن یادداشت جدید Abdullah Ibn Saba (Part II)After an overview in the previous part, I will Ensha Allah analyze the fictitious story of Abdullah Ibn Saba reported by Sayf, in comparison with the other Sunni reports.First I give a brief tour of the allegations of Sayf Ibn Umar attributed to Abdullah Ibn Saba:Sayf alleged that a Yemenite Jew, called Abdullah Ibn Saba (also known as Ibn Amutus-Sawda'; son of a black slave), declared his Islam at the time of * Uthman *.He willfully associated himself with Muslims and traveled in their cities and towns, from Damascus to Kufa to Egypt, propagating among Muslims that Muhammad (PBUH&HF) will be resurrected like Jesus.He also said Ali is Prophet's executor and was deprived of his divine office by Uthman.He provoked Abu Dhar and Ammar Ibn Yasir to agitate against Uthman and Muawiyah.He provoked Muslims to kill Uthman since he had usurped the seat of Ali.Sayf also alleged that Ibn Saba was the key element in the tragedy of the battle of Camel.Let us now discuss each of the above allegations one by one:The Return of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF)Sayf alleged Abdullah Ibn Saba was the one who invented the idea that Prophet Muhammad would return before the Day of Judgment.Sayf wrote that Ibn Saba based his allegation on the return of Jesus, saying: If Jesus is going to come back, Muhammad will also return because he is more importantthan Jesus.He alleged that Ibn Saba also quoted the following verse from the Quran to support his claim:"Certainly the one who ordained the Quran to you, shall return you."(Quran 28:85)The attribution to Ibn Saba of the idea that the prophet would return is ridiculous.It shows the ignorance of Sayf and his disciples throughout the history who repeated such allegation.They misunderstood the history of Islam.Had these mercenaries studied the Islamic history carefully, they would have known that the first one who declared the idea of the return of the Messenger of God was Umar Ibn al-Khattab.Muslim historians agree that:Umar stood at the Mosque of the Prophet when the Prophet passed away,and said: "There are hypocrites who allege that the Messenger of Godhas died.Certainly the Messenger of God did not die, but he went tohis Lord, as Moses, son of Imran, went to his Lord (for receiving theheavenly commandments).By God, Muhammad will return as Mosesreturned, and he shall cut off the hands and legs of those who allegedthat the Messenger of Allah has died."Sunni Reference: al-Sirah al-Nabawiyah, by Ibn Hisham, v2, p655We can not say that Umar took this idea from Abdullah Ibn Saba or any otherperson.Ibn Saba did not exist at that time, not even in the imagination ofSayf Ibn Umar al-Tamimi, who invented the entire allegation.Sayf wrotethat Ibn Saba came to Medina and became Muslim during the reign of Uthman,which is far after the death of Prophet.So if any Muslim believes in this,it would only be logical to say that the source of this doctrine is thesecond Caliph's speech on the day that the Messenger of God died, ratherthan Ibn Saba.Sunni history does not have any record of such allegationbefore the speech of Umar on the death of Prophet (PBUH&HF).The Doctrine of Ali's ExecutorshipSayf further alleged that Ibn Saba is the one who propagated the idea thatAli Ibn Abi Talib is the executor and the successor of the Messenger ofGod.He said that there were a thousand prophets before Muhammad, each ofwhich had an executor after him, and that Ali is the executor of theProphet.Furthermore, Sayf alleged that Ibn Saba said that the threecaliphs who ruled after the Prophet were usurpers of the Islamic rule.Sayf and his disciples forgot that they mentioned in their fiction thatAbdullah Ibn Saba came to Medina and adopted Islam during the reign ofUthman.This is long after the death of the Messenger of Allah.On theother hand, Sunni history testifies that the Messenger of God himself isthe one who declared that Ali would be his executor right at the *beginningof his mission*.Here is the tradition concerning the first open preach theprophet (PBUH&HF):Ali (AS) narrated: When the verse: "And warn your closest tribe" wasrevealed, the Messenger of God called me and said:" Ali, certainlyAllah commanded me to warn my closest tribe, and I feel the difficultyof this mission.I know that when I confront them with this warning, Iwill not like their response." Then Prophet invited the members of hisclan to dine with him on a small amount of food and little milk.Therewere forty of them.After they ate, the Prophet spoke to them:"O Children of Abdul Muttalib, by God, I do not know of any young manfrom the Arabs who brought to his people better than I brought to you.I have brought to you the goodness of this world and the Hereafter.The Almighty commanded me to invite you to it.Who among you willassist me on this mission and become my brother, my executor, andmy successor?"No one accepted the invitation, and I said: "O Messenger of God, Ishall be your assistant." He held my neck and said to them: "Thisis my brother, my executor (Wasi), my successor (Caliph) among you.So listen to him and obey him."They laughed, saying to Abu Talib:He (Muhammad) commanded you to listen to your son and to obey him.Sunni References:(1) History of Tabari, English version, v6, pp 88-92 (two traditions)(2) History of Ibn Athir, v2, p62(3) History of Ibn Asakir, v1, p85(4) Durr al-Manthur, by al-Suyuti, v5, p97(5) al-Sirah al-Halabiyah, v1, p311(6) Shawahid al-Tanzil, by al-Hasakani, v1, p371(7) Kanz al-Ummal, by al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, v15, p15, pp 100-117(8) Tafsir al-Khazin, by Ala-ud-Din al-Shafi'i, v3, p371(9) Dala'il al-Nabawiyah, by al-Baihaqi, v1, pp 428-430(10) al-Mukhtasar, by Abul Fida, v1, pp 116-117(11) Life of Muhammad, by Hasan Haykal, p104 (First Edition only.In thesecond edition the last sentence of Prophet (PBUH) has been removed.)(12) Tahdhib al-Athar, v4, pp 62-63.The above tradition was also reported by important Sunni figures such asMuhammad Ibn Is'haq (who is the most celebrated Sunni historian), Ibn AbiHatem, and Ibn Mardawayh.It is also recorded by orientalists such as T.Carlyle, E.Gibbon, J.Davenport, and W.Irving.Here we would like ask the following question: Imam Ali reported that theMessenger of God is the one who granted him the office of executorship,brotherhood, and successorship.Sayf Ibn Umar reported that the idea of theexecutorship of Ali had came from a Jew called Abdullah Ibn Saba.We shouldask the members of the Takfeer University (who call everyone who disagreewith them unbeliever) the following question: Do you believe in Imam Ali'sreport or Sayf Ibn Umar's? Sayf was accused by prominent Sunni scholars ofweakness, forgery, and heresy.Of course, we should not expect any true Muslim to choose the report of aliar such as Sayf Ibn Umar and to reject the report of the Imam Ali Ibn AbiTalib, the Leader of the Faithful, the "brother" of the Prophet (PBUH&HF).The Messenger of God used to say to Ali:"Your position to me is like the position of Aaron to Moses, exceptthat there shall be no Prophet after me"Sunni References:(1) Sahih al-Bukhari, Arabic-English version, Traditions 5.56 and 5.700(2) Sahih Muslim, Arabic, v4, pp 1870-71(3) Sunan Ibn Majah, p12(4) Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v1, p174(5) al-Khas'is, by al-Nisa'i, pp 15-16(6) Mushkil al-Athar, by al-Tahawi, v2, p309The Prophet (PBUH&HF) thereby meant that as Moses had left behind Aaron tolook after his people as his Caliph when he went to receive theCommandments, in the same way he was leaving Ali behind as his deputy tolook after the affairs of Islam after him.Allah said in Quran:"...And Moses said unto his brother Aaron: Take my place among mycommunity." (Quran 7:142).Notice that "Ukhlufni" and "Khalifa" (Caliph) are exactly from the sameroot.Do the mercenary writers who endeavor to spread hostility among Muslimsforget that while returning from his farewell pilgrimage, and in thepresence of over a hundred thousand pilgrims in Ghadir Khum, the Messengerof God declared:"Do I not have more right over the believers than what they have overthemselves?" People cried and answered: "Yes, O' Messenger of God."Then Prophet (PBUH) held up the hand of Ali and said: "Whoever I amhis leader, Ali is his leader.O' God, love those who love him, and behostile to those who are hostile to him."Some of Sunni References:(1) Sahih Tirmidhi, v2, p298, v5, p63(2) Sunan Ibn Maja, v1, pp 12,43(3) Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v1, pp 84,118,119,152,330, v4, pp 281,368,370,372,378, v5, pp 35,347,358,361,366,419 (from 40 chains of narrators!!!)(4) Fada'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Hanbal, v2, pp 563,572(5) al-Mustadrak, by al-Hakim, v2, p129, v3, pp 109-110,116,371(6) Khasa'is, by al-Nisa'i, pp 4,21(7) Majma' al-Zawa'id, by al-Haythami, v9, p103 (from several transmitters)(8) Tafsir al-Kabir, by Fakhr al-Razi, v12, pp 49-50(9) al-Durr al-Manthur, by al-Hafiz Jalaluddin al-Suyuti, v3, p19(10) Tarikh al-Khulafa, by al-Suyuti, pp 169,173(11) al-Bidayah wal-Nihayah, by Ibn Kathir, v3, p213, v5, p208(12) Mushkil al-Athar, by al-Tahawi, v2, pp 307-308(13) Habib al-Siyar, by Mir Khand, v1, part 3, p144(14) Sawaiq al-Muhriqah, by Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, p26(15) al-Isabah, by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, v2, p509; v1, part1, p319,v2, part1, p57, v3, part1, p29, v4, part 1, pp 14,16,143(16) Tabarani, who narrated from companions such as Ibn Umar, Malik Ibnal-Hawirath, Habashi Ibn Junadah, Jari, Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas,Anas Ibn Malik, Ibn Abbas, Amarah,Buraydah,...(17) Tarikh, by al-Khatib Baghdadi, v8, p290(18) Hilyatul Awliya', by Abu Nu'aym, v4, p23, v5, pp26-27(19) al-Istiab, by Ibn Abd al-Barr, Chapter of word "ayn" (Ali), v2, p462(20) Kanzul Ummal, by al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, v6, pp 154,397(21) al-Mirqat, v5, p568(22) al-Riyad al-Nadirah, by al-Muhib al-Tabari, v2, p172(23) Dhaka'ir al-Uqba, by al-Muhib al-Tabari, p68(24) Fayd al-Qadir, by al-Manawi, v6, p217(25) Usdul Ghabah, by Ibn Athir, v4, p114(26) Yanabi' al-Mawaddah, by al-Qudoozi al-Hanafi, p297...And hundreds more...No Muslim would ever doubt that the Messenger of God is the leader of allMuslims for all generations.The Prophet in his statement granted Ali thesame position as his, when he said that Ali is the leader of everyone whofollows the Prophet.This declaration which was narrated by more than one hundred and tencompanions and rated authentic (Sahih) and frequent (Mutawatir) by theleading Sunni scholars, not only indicates that Ali is the executor ofMessenger, but also indicates that Ali takes the place of the leadership ofall Muslims after the Messenger of Allah.However, these mercenaries stillallow themselves to say that the belief that Ali was the executor of theMessenger had come from a Jew who declared his Islam during the days ofUthman!!!Abdullah Ibn Saba has no base on the disputes immediately after the deathof prophet related to his successorship, and all relevant claims of Shia isproven to be on the death of the prophet or even before that, not duringthe reign of Uthman which is far long after prophet's demise.At the verystart and immediately after the death of the prophet (PBUH&HF), the Shia ofAli included those companions who where loyal to Imam Ali, such as AmmarIbn Yasir, Abu-Dhar al-Ghafari, Miqdad, Salman al-Farsi, Ibn Abbas ...etc.,all gathered in the house of Fatimah (AS).Even Talha and Zubair were loyalto Imam Ali at the beginning and joint the others in the house of Fatimah.al-Bukhari narrated:Umar said: "And no doubt after the death of the Prophet we wereinformed that the Ansar disagreed with us and gathered in the shed ofBani Sa'da.'Ali and Zubair and whoever was with them, opposed us,while the emigrants gathered with Abu Bakr."Sunni Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari, Arabic-English, v8, Tradition #817Other Sunni traditionists narrated that on the day of Saqifah:Umar said: "Ali Ibn Abi Talib, Zubair Ibn Awwam and those who werewith them separated from us (and gathered) in the house of Fatimah,the daughter of the messenger of Allah."Sunni References:- Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v1, p55- Sirah al-Nabawiyyah, by Ibn Hisham, v4, p309- History of Tabari (Arabic), v1, p1822- History of Tabari, English version, v9, p192Also:They demanded confirmation of the oath, but Ali and al-Zubair stayedaway.al-Zubair drew his sword (from the scabbard), saying, "I willnot put it back until the oath of allegiance is rendered to Ali." Whenthis news reached Abu Bakr and Umar, the latter said, "Hit him with astone and seize the sword." It is stated that Umar rushed (to the doorof the House of Fatimah) and brought them forcibly while telling themthat they must give their oath of allegiance willingly or unwillingly.Sunni reference: History of al-Tabari, English version, v9, pp 188-189Certainly that Jew did not have any role in the division of the companionsinto two factions right at the death of Prophet since he was non-existentat that time.=Attacking Two of Most Beloved Companions ofthe Prophet (PBUH&HF) and Their Disciples=Sayf alleged that Ibn Saba is the one who instigated the two prominentcompanions of the Prophet Muhammad, namely Abu Dhar (RA) and Ammar IbnYasir (RA), against Uthman.He said this Jew met Abu Dhar in Damascus, andthat he introduced to him the idea of prohibiting treasuring gold andsilver.Sayf included the following great companions of prophet and theirdisciples, among the list of the followers of Ibn Saba:(1) Abu Dhar (RA),(2) Ammar Ibn Yasir (RA),(3) Muhammad Ibn Abi Bakr (RA), son of the first Caliph,(4) Malik Ashtar (RA)....and moreTo better understand the heresy of Sayf and his allegation, let us quicklyreview the biography of the above great Muslim pioneers:(1) Abu Dhar al-Ghafari (Jundub Ibn Jonadah): He is the THIRD person inthe list of the four pioneers who first embraced Islam.He was amonotheist even before his conversion.He frankly declared his faithin Islam at Mecca beside the Holy House of God.The infidels of Meccabeat him almost to death but he survived, and on the instruction ofthe Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF) he returned to his tribe.After theBattles of Badr and Uhud he came to Medina and stayed with Prophetuntil the demise of the Prophet (PBUH&HF).During the reign of theearly Caliphs, Abu Dhar was sent to Damascus where he could not agreewith Muawiyah.Later Muawiyah complained about Abu Dhar to Uthman, thethird Caliph, and thus Uthman sent Abu Dhar into exile at Rabadhawhere he later died.Rabadha was known for having the worst climate.(2) Ammar Ibn Yasir: He was also known as Abuyaqzan.His mother's name wasSomayyah.He and his parents were pioneers in embracing Islam, and hewas the SEVENTH person to declare his faith.His parents were executedafter the torture by the infidels of Mecca, because of theirconversion to Islam, but Ammar managed to escape to Medina.Ammarfought on Imam Ali's side in the battle of Jamal (Camel) and later inthe war of Siffin where he was killed in the battle field by Muawiyahsoldiers, at the age of ninety-three.(3) Muhammad Ibn Abi Bakr: He was adopted by Imam Ali after his father,Abu Bakr, died.Muhammad was one of the commanders of the army ofImam Ali (AS) in the battle of Camel.He was also in the battle ofSiffin.Imam Ali appointed him as the governor of Egypt, and he tookhis office 15/9/37 AH.Later, Muawiyah sent an army under theleadership of Amr Ibn al-Aas to Egypt in the year 38 AH, who foughtand captured Muhammad, and then killed him.His body was placed in abelly of a dead donkey and then was brutally burnt.(See al-Istiab,v1, p235; History of al-Tabari, v4, p79; Ibn Kathir, v3, p180; IbnKhaldoon, v2, p182)(4) Malik Ashtar al-Nakha'i: He met the Prophet and was one of thetrustworthy disciple of companions (Tabe'in).He was chief of histribe, and after receiving an injury to one of his eyes in the battleof Yarmuk, he became known as Ashtar.He was the general of the armyof Imam Ali in the battle of Siffin and known for his bravery andcombating the enemies of Islam.At the age of 38, he was appointed byImam Ali as the governor of Egypt.But on his way to Egypt, near theRed Sea, he died after eating poisonous honey which had been plannedby Muawiyah.The above were the short bibliographies of some eminent Muslim pioneers.Itis regrettable that some historians who reported from Sayf's heresy, allegethat they followed a mysterious Jew.The mercenary workers did not evenhesitate to attack such outstanding companions.They said that Abu Dhar andAmmar Ibn Yasir met Ibn Saba, were affected by his propaganda, and thusturned against Uthman.However, we should not forget that by theirattacking those two prominent companions, they are actually attacking theMessenger of God who attested to their purity and righteousness frequently:The Messenger of God said: "Certainly Allah commanded me to love fourpersons and informed me that He loves them." The companions asked:"O' Messenger of God, who are those four persons?" The Prophet(PBUH&HF) said: "Ali is from them (repeating that three times),Abu Dhar, Salman al-Farsi, and Miqdad."Sunni references:- Sunan Ibn Majah, v1, pp 52-53, Tradition #149- al-Mustadrak, by al-Hakim, v3, p130- Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v5, p356- Fada'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v2, p648, Tradition #1103- Hilyatul Awliya', by Abu Nu'aym, v1, p172The Messenger of Allah also said:"Every prophet was given by God seven righteous companions.I wasgiven fourteen righteous companions".He included in them Ali, al-Hasan, al-Husain, Hamza, Ja'far, Ammar Ibn Yasir, Abu Dhar, Miqdad,and Salman.Sunni references:- Fada'il al-Sahaba, by Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v2, Traditions #109, #277- Sahih al-Tirmidhi, v5, p329, p662- Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, v1, pp88,148,149 from several chain of narrators- al-Kabir, by al-Tabarani, v6, p264, p265- Hilyatul Awliya', by Abu Nu'aym, v1, p128Also al-Tirmidhi, Ahmad, al-Hakim and many others narrated that theMessenger of Allah said:"Heaven has not shaded, nor has the earth carried a person morestraight forward than Abu Dhar.He walks on earth with theimmaterialistic attitude of Jesus, the son of Mary."Sunni reference:- Sahih al-Tirmidhi, v5, p334, Tradition #3889- Tahdhib al-Athar, v4, pp 158-161- Musnad Ahmad Hanbal, #6519, #6630, #7078- al-Mustadrak, by al-Hakim, v3, p342- al-Tabaqat, by Ibn Sa'd, v4, part 1, pp 167-168- Majma' al-Zawa'id, by al-Haythami, v9, pp 329-330Ibn Majah, in his authentic Sunan, narrated that Imam Ali said:I was sitting in the house of the Prophet and Ammar asked to see him.Then Prophet said: "Welcome the good and the purified." Ibn Majahalso narrated that Aisha narrated that the Messenger of God said"Whenever Ammar is given two alternatives, he always chooses the mostrighteous of the two."There are much more authentic narrations told by the Prophet (PBUH&HF)about Ammar, such as "Ammar is full of faith." Also Prophet said:"A band of rebels will kill Ammar."Sunni references:- Sahih Muslim, English version, Chapter # MCCV, pp 1508-1509,Trditions #6966-6970 (five traditions).- al-Mustadrak, by al-Hakim, v3, p383Now to see who those rebels were, look at Musnad Ahmad and Tabaqat Ibn Sa'dwho narrated:"In the Battle of Siffin, when the head of Ammar Yasir (RA) was cutoff and taken to Muawiyah, two people were arguing over it, each oneclaimed that he had killed Ammar."Sunni references:- Musnad Ahmad (Pub.in Dar al-Maarif, Egypt 1952), Tradition #6538, #6929- Tabaqat, by Ibn Sa'd, v3, p253Also it is narrated that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH&HF) said:"Paradise longs for three men, Ali, Ammar and Salman."Sunni reference: Sahih al-Tirmidhi, v5, p332, Tradition #3884Moreover al-Tirmidhi narrated:When the Messenger of God heard that Ammar and his parents weretortured in Mecca, he (PBUH&HF) said: "Members of Yasir's family, bepatient.Your destination is paradise."Sunni Reference: Sahih al-Tirmidhi, v5, p233,Thus, Ammar and his parents were the first people declared by the Prophetto be dwellers of paradise.Here we should say: When a Muslim knows that the Prophet has commendedthese two important companions (Abu Dhar & Ammar Ibn Yasir) so highly, andif he is a believer in the truthfulness of Muhammad, he does not allowhimself to insult these two companions.Such an insult discredits theProphet.As we just saw, the above authentic traditions in the six Sunnicollections claim that Prophet said he has only four or fourteen righteouscompanions, out of his 1400 companions.Interestingly enough that Abu Dharand Ammar Ibn Yasir were mentioned among those very few individuals.We find that the hostility of Sayf Ibn Umar al-Tamimi, who lived during thesecond century after the Prophet, and the hostility of his students towardsthe Shi'ites, motivated them to spread such cheap propaganda.Sayf knewthat attributing the revolt against Uthman to the work of Ibn Sabacontradicts known historical facts which show that the two companions, AbuDhar and Ammar, were opposed to Uthman's ever coming to power.Because Sayfknew of their opposition to Uthman, he tried to smear their reputations byadding the names of the two prominent companions to the list of students ofthat fictitious Jew.If Ibn Saba ever existed, he had declared his Islam after Uthman waskilled.Now let us suppose we accept what Sayf alleged concerning thatAbdullah Ibn Saba declared his faith after Uthman came to power.Abu Dharand Ammar Ibn Yasir, on the other hand, had been opposed to Uthman'scaliphate before he came to power.The two companions were followers of theImam Ali (AS), and they firmly believed that Ali was appointed by theProphet to be his successor.Since this was their belief before theappearance of Ibn Saba, the story of Sayf about their being influenced byIbn Saba, is unfounded and untrue.Thus, in order to clear the third caliph from all accusations pertaining tohis ill-management of the Islamic treasury, Sayf accused the revoltersbeing the students of Ibn Saba.He then completed his story by adding thetwo companions to the class of Ibn Saba's students, intentionallyoverlooking the fact that the two companions belong to the first successfulclass of the school of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF).They were among theimportant companions who were honored by the Prophet.In fact, Sayf was ledby his untrue story to reject the testimony of the Prophet.By this, Sayfhad disproved his whole tale.