14 ma'asoomeenschool.ahlulbayt-columbus.org/abs_files/abs_history_14...died, his uncle, abu...
TRANSCRIPT
14 Ma'asoomeen
Shi’a-Muslim Association of Bay Area would like to thank the authors, editors, and reviewers for their contributions to the Islamic curriculum development project.
We are especially thankful to Sheikh Salim Yusufali, Sister Urooj Kazmi, Sister Samina Ali, Sister Bhavani Ali, Sister Sabika Mithani, Sister Fatima Falahati, Sister Zahra Sabur, Sister Liliana
Villalvazo, Brother Taymaz Tabrizi, Brother Mohammad Hendijanifard, Sister Fatima Hussain, the Tabatabai family, all the illustrators who allowed us to use their illustrations, both SAB and SABA
Academy syllabus committees, teachers, and staff for their support and assistance in the development and testing of the curriculum.
SABA is also very thankful to the Islamic organizations and authors whose syllabus and books were used for the inspiration and creation of this curriculum.
Please remember all the people involved in this project in your prayers.
Authors and Editors: Hujjatol Islam Nabi Raza Abidi and Curriculum Committee
© 2015 Shi’a-Muslim Association of the Bay AreaPublished by: Shi’a-Muslim Association of Bay Area 4415 Fortran Court, San Jose, CA 95134, USA [email protected]
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
vii
Ahmed’s mother told him that they were going on a very special trip. They were going to visit the 14 Maʿsoomeen!
“Who are the 14 Maʿsoomeen?” asked Ahmed.
His mom replied, “The 14 Maʿsoomeen are our ro le mode ls . They a re Prophet Muhammad (S), Sayyidah Fatimah (A), and the 12 Imams (A)!”
“Where are we going to visit them?” asked Ahmed?
“Many places,” replied his Mom. “We are first going to visit Prophet Muhammad (S). He is buried in the city of Medina.”
“Was he born there, too?” asked Ahmed
“No, he was born in the city of Mecca on the 17th of Rabi ul-Awwal, during the year of the elephant!”
“What’s the year of the elephant?” asked Ahmed.
“During the year that he was born, an evil man named Abraha wanted to destroy the Kaʿbah. He marched towards Makkah along with an army of elephants to ruin the Kaʿbah; but, before he was able to, Allah sent birds to throw pebbles at the elephants, stopping them from destroying the Kaʿbah!”
“Wow!” Ahmed was astonished, “Tell me more!”
“Prophet Muhammad (S) was born to the great woman Aminah. His father, Abdullah, passed away before he was born. For the first five years of his life, he was raised by Halima, who was a nurse. He was then returned to his mother, but she died when he was only 6 years old. His grandfather, Abdul Muttalib, took care of him for some time, but after he died, his uncle, Abu Talib and his uncle’s wife, Fatimah binte Assad, took care of him. Do you want to hear a story about the Prophet Muhammad (S) from his childhood?”
“Yes!” Ahmed replied eagerly, “Please tell me!”
2
LESSON 1: PROPHET MUHAMMAD (S)
3
PRO
PHET
MUH
AMM
AD (S
) The
hot
sun
shon
e br
ight
ly
thro
ugh
the
win
dow
as
Fatim
ah b
int
Asad
com
plet
ed h
er
mor
ning
cho
res.
She
loo
ked
out
the
win
dow
an
d ad
mire
d th
e ta
ll pa
lm
trees
fil
led
with
cl
uste
rs o
f del
icio
us d
ates
. H
owev
er, o
ne d
ate
tree
caug
ht h
er e
ye -
- it
was
an
old
tree
that
ha
d be
com
e dr
y an
d sh
rivel
ed u
p. S
udde
nly,
la
ught
er fr
om th
e ya
rd c
augh
t her
atte
ntio
n an
d sh
e lo
oked
ove
r at
the
chi
ldre
n pl
ayin
g in
the
ya
rd.
Littl
e M
uham
mad
sho
uted
, “M
arch
!” an
d al
l the
oth
er c
hild
ren
answ
ered
, “Ye
s, s
ir!”
Ever
y tim
e he
wou
ld g
ive
a co
mm
and,
the
kids
w
ould
run
and
play
aga
in. J
ust t
hen,
she
hea
rd
Muh
amm
ad t
ell
his
frien
ds,
“Wai
t, m
y de
ar
sold
iers
, let
me
run
insi
de a
nd g
et s
ome
wat
er!”
Fatim
a w
aite
d pa
tient
ly
for
Muh
amm
ad
to
com
e in
side
. As
he e
nter
ed, s
he n
otic
ed th
at h
e w
as
very
ex
cite
d.
She
lovi
ngly
ki
ssed
hi
s fo
rehe
ad.
Muh
amm
ad p
olite
ly a
sked
, “M
othe
r, m
ay I
plea
se h
ave
som
e w
ater
?”
Fatim
a re
plie
d ha
ppily
, “Y
es,
sir!
Rig
ht a
way
!” M
uham
mad
lau
ghed
and
sai
d to
his
mot
her,
“You
’re m
y m
om!
You
can’
t be
my
sold
ier!”
Th
ey b
oth
smile
d jo
yful
ly.
4
Fatim
ah
bint
As
ad
pour
ed
som
e w
ater
int
o a
bow
l an
d ha
nded
it
to
Muh
amm
ad a
s sh
e sa
id,
“I m
ay n
ot
be a
ble
to b
e yo
ur s
oldi
er, b
ut I
can
at
leas
t be
yo
ur
supp
orte
r, rig
ht?”
M
uham
mad
loo
ked
at h
is m
othe
r as
he
too
k th
e w
ater
and
sm
iled.
“M
y su
ppor
ter?
Yes
! Ye
s, t
hat’s
a g
reat
id
ea!”
They
bot
h la
ughe
d he
artil
y. M
uham
mad
too
k hi
s w
oode
n sw
ord
and
with
det
erm
inat
ion
said
, “I
mus
t go
out
side
, an
d he
lp m
y so
ldie
rs g
et
read
y to
pro
tect
the
truth
!” As
he
ran
thro
ugh
the
door
, he
stru
ck t
he d
ry
date
tre
e in
the
yar
d. F
atim
ah b
int
Asad
’s e
yes
wid
ened
as
the
dry
date
tre
e su
dden
ly
bega
n tu
rnin
g gr
een
and
prod
ucin
g lo
ts o
f dat
es!
5
Fatim
ah q
uick
ly w
alke
d to
war
ds th
e da
te
tree
and
pick
ed a
dat
e of
f fro
m i
t. Sh
e lo
oked
at i
t in
won
der a
nd th
en ta
sted
the
date
. Her
eye
s lit
up!
Wha
t a d
ate!
It w
as
bette
r th
an a
ny o
ther
dat
e sh
e ha
d ev
er
tast
ed! T
his
was
n’t
the
first
tim
e sh
e ha
d w
itnes
sed
a m
iracl
e fro
m
Muh
amm
ad;
how
ever
, ea
ch
time
was
a
won
derfu
l su
rpris
e. S
he k
new
the
re w
as s
omet
hing
ve
ry s
peci
al a
bout
this
boy
. Bei
ng a
roun
d hi
m
alw
ays
stre
ngth
ened
he
r be
lief
in
Alla
h an
d ga
ve h
er e
nerg
y!
As
she
loo
ked
at
the
tre
e,
she
rem
embe
red
how
Muh
amm
ad h
ad lo
st h
is
real
mot
her
at t
he y
oung
age
of
six.
She
th
ough
t to
her
self,
“H
ow l
ucky
am
I t
o ha
ve
the
grea
t pr
ivile
ge
of
taki
ng
Muh
amm
ad in
to m
y ho
me!
” Ev
en t
houg
h sh
e ha
d ch
ildre
n of
her
ow
n, M
uham
mad
w
as d
iffer
ent
from
the
m.
Even
his
fos
ter
mot
her,
Hal
ima,
ha
d to
ld
Fatim
ah
bint
As
ad a
bout
all
the
won
derfu
l bl
essi
ngs
and
mira
cles
that
Muh
amm
ad w
ould
brin
g to
her
hom
e, e
ven
as a
n in
fant
.
6
Hal
ima
had
told
her
, “O
ne d
ay,
I w
as
ou
t in
th
e d
ese
rt
wit
h M
uham
mad
and
sto
pped
to fe
ed h
im
belo
w a
dry
dat
e tre
e. A
s I
finis
hed
feed
ing
him
, w
e bo
th
fell
asle
ep.
Whe
n I
wok
e up
, I
look
ed u
p an
d sa
w t
he m
ost
amaz
ing
sigh
t! Th
e tre
e be
hind
me
had
beco
me
gree
n ag
ain
and
was
full
of d
ates
!” An
othe
r tim
e, H
alim
a w
as o
utsi
de
with
M
uham
mad
te
ndin
g to
th
e sh
eep,
and
one
of
the
baby
she
ep
fell
and
brok
e hi
s le
g. M
uham
mad
ca
refu
lly w
alke
d ov
er t
o th
e sh
eep
and
touc
hed
its le
g. R
ight
bef
ore
her
eyes
, the
leg
was
inst
antly
hea
led!
Fatim
a’s
eyes
jus
t gl
iste
ned
in t
he
sunl
ight
as
sh
e st
ared
at
th
e be
autif
ul g
reen
pal
m tr
ee; s
he fe
lt so
bl
esse
d to
be
part
of th
is c
hild
’s li
fe.
7
Sudd
enly,
Muh
amm
ad w
alke
d ba
ck
insi
de
and
star
ted
calli
ng
out,
“Mot
her,
mot
her!”
Fa
timah
tu
rned
to
war
ds h
im a
nd h
ugge
d hi
m t
ight
ly
as s
he s
aid,
“M
ay m
y fa
ther
and
m
othe
r be
sac
rific
ed f
or y
ou,
o m
y so
n. H
ow c
an I
help
you
?”
Muh
amm
ad
repl
ied
kind
ly,
“O,
my
mot
her,
my
sold
iers
nee
d fo
od a
nd
wat
er to
get
mor
e en
ergy
. The
y ca
n’t
defe
nd w
ell
with
out
food
. C
an y
ou
plea
se g
ive
me
som
e da
tes
so th
at I
may
feed
my
hung
ry s
oldi
ers?
”
Fatim
ah’s
eye
s fil
led
with
tea
rs a
s sh
e ki
ssed
Muh
amm
ad’s
div
ine
head
an
d he
ld h
im t
ight
er.
She
repl
ied,
“Y
es, s
ir!” a
nd th
en q
uick
ly g
rabb
ed a
ba
sket
and
wen
t to
the
ver
y tre
e M
uham
mad
had
just
bro
ught
bac
k to
lif
e an
d fil
led
the
bask
et w
ith d
ates
.
8
Fatim
ah f
ollo
wed
Muh
amm
ad a
s he
ra
n ou
tsid
e to
his
frie
nds
and
hand
ed
out t
he d
ates
. She
rais
ed h
er h
ands
up
and
aske
d Al
lah
(SW
T) t
o bl
ess
her
with
a c
hild
who
cou
ld b
e M
uham
mad
’s
assi
stan
t an
d su
ppor
ter.
Her
du’
a w
as
answ
ered
whe
n ye
ars
late
r, Fa
timah
ga
ve b
irth
to Im
am A
li (A
), w
ho b
ecam
e Pr
ophe
t Muh
amm
ad’s
(S) l
oyal
par
tner
! As
sh
e lo
oked
at
al
l th
e ki
ds,
she
smile
d an
d th
en q
uiet
ly w
alke
d ba
ck
into
he
r ho
me.
As
she
ente
red
the
hous
e, s
he t
urne
d ba
ck t
o lo
ok a
t th
e tre
e on
e m
ore
time.
It
seem
ed
to
outs
hine
al
l th
e ot
her
trees
as
it
glea
med
in th
e su
nlig
ht. I
t was
as
if th
e tre
e fe
lt ho
nore
d at
the
ver
y to
uch
of
youn
g M
uham
mad
.
WORKSHEET
1. How was Fatimah binte Assad related to the Holy Prophet (S)?
. What was the miracle the Prophet (S) performed?
. How would you describe the Prophet (S) as a child?
9
“That was a great story about Prophet Muhammad (S), Mom! Thank you for telling it to me! Who else will we be visiting on our trip?” Said Ahmed to his mom.
His mom replied, “While we are in Medina, we will also be visiting the daughter of Prophet Muhammad (S) and his wife, Hadhrat Khadija (A): Sayyidah Fatimah Zahra (A)! Although we do not know the exact location of her grave, we know that she is buried in Medina.”
“Wow! What was she like?” asked Ahmed.
“Sayyidah Fatimah (A) was a great woman and wife to Imam Ali (A)! She used to work very hard, so Prophet Muhammad (S) gave her a very special gift!”
“What was it?!” asked Ahmed.
“It was the Tasbeeh of Sayyidah Fatimah (A) that we recite after Salaah: 34 times Allahu Akbar, 33 times Alhamdulillah, and 33 times SubhanAllah. Salaah is like a flower, and this Tasbeeh is what gives the flower its beautiful smell!”
“Wow, that’s so cool! How many children did Sayyidah Fatimah have?” asked Ahmed.
“She had four children: Imam Hasan (A), Imam Husain (A), Sayyidah Zainab (A), and Sayyidah Umme Kulthoom (A).”
“She must have been a great mother!” exclaimed Ahmed.
“She sure was,” said his mom. “In fact, not only was she a great mother to her children, but she was also a great mother to her father. You see, Hadhrat Khadija (A) passed away when Sayyidah Fatimah (A) was very young. So, she would take care of the Holy Prophet (S) when the non-believers would trouble him,and he respected her very much. In fact, shewas called Umme Abiha - the mother of herfather - because of how well she used to takecare of her father! Would you like to hear astory about how she cared deeply for herfather?”
“Yes!” replied Ahmed, eager to hear the story.
10
LESSON 2: SAYYIDAH FATIMAH (A)
11
SAYY
IDA
FATI
MAH
ZAH
RA (A
)
The
hot
afte
rnoo
n su
n of
M
edin
a w
as b
eatin
g do
wn
on
ever
yone
as
th
ey
wor
ked
tirel
essl
y.
You
see,
P
roph
et
Muh
amm
ad (
S) h
ad o
rder
ed a
ll th
e pe
ople
of M
edin
a to
bui
ld a
la
rge
trenc
h ar
ound
the
city
to
prot
ect
them
selv
es
from
th
e po
lyth
eist
s of
Mec
ca w
ho w
ere
com
ing
to a
ttack
the
Mus
lims.
Eve
ryon
e w
as
hung
ry
and
thirs
ty,
but
they
all
knew
the
y ha
d to
wor
k fa
st. I
f you
wer
e in
M
edin
a th
at d
ay,
all y
ou w
ould
he
ar w
ere
the
loud
sou
nds
of
shov
els
and
pick
axes
hitt
ing
the
dirt
. Yo
u w
ould
se
e so
me
peop
le
pick
ing
and
thro
win
g ro
cks,
whi
le o
ther
s du
g up
the
gr
ound
. Bu
t th
e m
ost
beau
tiful
si
ght y
ou w
ould
hav
e se
en w
as
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S
) w
orki
ng
right
alo
ngsi
de th
e m
en, g
uidi
ng
and
enco
urag
ing
them
.
12Ever
yone
was
on
high
ale
rt, a
s th
e ar
my
was
al
mos
t ap
proa
chin
g.
They
ha
d be
en
wor
king
ver
y ha
rd o
ver t
he la
st c
oupl
e of
day
s to
fin
ish
on t
ime.
Afte
r m
any
mor
e ho
urs
of
digg
ing,
the
last
sol
dier
fina
lly y
elle
d ou
t, “T
ell
the
Prop
het
(S)
we
are
done
! W
e ar
e fin
ally
do
ne!”
The
sold
iers
rush
ed to
the
Prop
het (
S)
and
told
him
the
good
new
s! T
he P
roph
et (S
) pr
aise
d Al
lah
(SW
T) f
or a
ll H
is s
uppo
rt. H
e th
en c
alle
d ou
t to
all h
is s
oldi
ers
to b
e aw
are,
si
nce
the
Mak
kans
cou
ld c
ome
at a
ny t
ime.
A
ll th
e so
ldie
rs
bega
n w
alki
ng
hom
e to
pr
epar
e th
emse
lves
for
the
war
. Not
too
long
la
ter,
each
sol
dier
cam
e ou
t of
his
hom
e dr
esse
d in
war
clo
thes
.
The
Prop
het (
S) w
alke
d to
the
edge
of t
renc
h an
d sa
w a
larg
e cl
oud
of d
ust i
n th
e di
stan
ce.
Sudd
enly,
he
felt
the
earth
sha
ke b
elow
him
. Th
e en
emy
was
app
roac
hing
!
The
Prop
het
(S)
look
ed a
t hi
s ar
my.
The
y w
ere
very
tire
d an
d hu
ngry
, but
as
the
enem
y w
as a
ppro
achi
ng,
they
had
no
choi
ce b
ut t
o pr
epar
e th
emse
lves
for
a d
iffic
ult
war
. Th
e Pr
ophe
t (S
) hi
mse
lf ha
d no
t ea
ten
in t
hree
da
ys, a
nd w
as ju
st a
s hu
ngry
as
his
sold
iers
; ho
wev
er,
the
Prop
het
(S)
kept
a s
tead
y ey
e on
the
arriv
ing
enem
ies.
13Not
too
far i
n th
e di
stan
ce, y
ou
coul
d se
e th
e w
omen
of M
edin
a co
min
g ou
t of t
heir
hom
es, e
ach
scar
ed
and
wor
ried,
as
th
ey
clut
ched
th
eir
child
ren
tight
ly.
They
all
pray
ed t
o Al
lah
for
the
Mus
lim a
rmy
to b
e su
cces
sful
ag
ains
t the
ene
mie
s! H
owev
er,
whi
le e
very
one
else
w
as
wo
rrie
d a
bo
ut
the
ir
husb
and,
wife
, or c
hild
ren,
ther
e w
as o
ne p
erso
n in
the
cro
wd
who
se h
eart
was
wor
ried
only
ab
out t
he P
roph
et o
f Isl
am. T
his
pers
on
was
Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
Za
hra
(A),
the
loya
l an
d lo
ving
da
ught
er
of
the
Prop
het
(S).
She
lo
ved
her
fath
er,
the
Prop
het
(S),
so m
uch,
and
it
hurt
her
very
m
uch
know
ing
know
ing
how
hun
gry
he w
as.
14Sayy
ida
Fatim
ah (
A) w
as a
lso
know
n as
U
mm
e Ab
iha,
the
mot
her
of h
er f
athe
r, be
caus
e sh
e no
t onl
y lo
ved
him
dee
ply,
but
be
caus
e sh
e al
way
s to
ok c
are
of h
im. A
s sh
e th
ough
t ab
out
him
in
the
battl
efie
ld,
she
coul
dn’t
help
but
won
der h
ow ti
red
and
hung
ry h
e m
ust b
e.
She
coul
dn’t
take
it a
ny lo
nger
! She
rush
ed
hom
e an
d w
ent
stra
ight
to
the
kitc
hen.
“O
Al
lah,
ple
ase
help
me
to m
ake
the
best
fo
od fo
r m
y fa
ther
,” sh
e th
ough
t to
hers
elf,
but
all
she
coul
d fin
d in
the
hou
se w
as
som
e flo
ur.
Wha
t co
uld
she
do w
ith j
ust
flour
? Su
dden
ly, a
gre
at id
ea c
ame
to h
er
min
d! S
he q
uick
ly t
urne
d on
the
fire
and
w
arm
ed t
he o
ven.
Say
yida
Fat
imah
(A)
kn
eade
d th
e flo
ur i
nto
doug
h an
d be
gan
mak
ing
smal
l ci
rcul
ar p
iece
s of
bre
ad.
As
she
finis
hed
baki
ng t
he b
read
, sh
e w
as a
lit
tle u
pset
. Sh
e th
ough
t to
her
self,
“Is
thi
s re
ally
all
I ca
n gi
ve t
o m
y fa
ther
?” S
he
swal
low
ed h
ard
and
held
bac
k he
r te
ars.
H
owev
er,
rem
embe
ring
how
hu
ngry
he
r fa
ther
was
, she
qui
ckly
wra
pped
the
brea
d in
a r
ed c
loth
and
hea
ded
tow
ards
the
ba
ttlef
ield
.
15As S
ayyi
da F
atim
ah (
A) w
as w
alki
ng
tow
ards
the
bat
tlefie
ld,
the
thou
ghts
of
her
hung
ry f
athe
r ke
pt p
ushi
ng h
er t
o m
ove
quic
ker.
The
blis
terin
g su
n of
M
edin
a w
as b
eatin
g do
wn
on h
er fa
ce,
but
she
coul
d he
ar t
he s
ound
of
the
arm
y, s
o sh
e kn
ew s
he w
as c
lose
. She
sa
w
that
so
me
of
the
enem
ies
had
mad
e it
acro
ss t
he t
renc
h an
d w
ere
alre
ady
at w
ar w
ith h
er f
athe
r’s a
rmy.
W
hen
the
Prop
het
(S)
saw
Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
(A),
he q
uick
ly g
ot o
ff hi
s ho
rse
and
wal
ked
tow
ards
her
. Th
e P
roph
et
(S)
lean
ed
dow
n w
ith
kind
ness
in
his
eyes
and
gre
eted
her
. Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
(A)
hap
pily
unc
over
ed
the
clot
h w
ith th
e br
ead,
whi
ch w
as s
till
war
m,
and
put
them
bef
ore
her
fath
er.
He
smile
d an
d as
ked,
“W
here
did
you
ge
t thi
s fro
m?”
Say
yida
F
atim
ah
(AS
) an
swer
ed
war
mly,
“I b
aked
them
for y
ou, O
fath
er.”
16The
Prop
het (
S) to
ok a
whi
ff of
Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
’s
swee
t br
ead,
ge
ntly
br
oke
off
a pi
ece,
an
d to
ok
a bi
te.
His
fa
ce li
t up
with
joy,
and
he
said
to
hi
s lo
ving
da
ught
er,
“O
Fatim
ah,
this
is
the
swee
test
br
ead
I hav
e ev
er ta
sted
! You
r br
ead
is t
he f
irst
bite
of
food
th
at I
have
had
in th
ree
days
!” Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
(A
) sm
iled
from
ear
to
ear
and
hugg
ed
her f
athe
r. Th
ey th
en b
id e
ach
othe
r fa
rew
ell,
and
Sayy
ida
Fatim
ah
(AS
) w
atch
ed
her
fath
er w
alk
back
tow
ards
his
ho
rse.
As
she
wat
ched
him
rid
e of
f to
the
bat
tlefie
ld,
she
coul
dn’t
help
but
not
ice
that
he
look
ed
talle
r, st
rong
er,
and
mor
e vi
bran
t tha
n th
e bu
rnin
g M
edin
a su
n.
WORKSHEET
1. Why was Fatimah ahra (A) worried?
. What did Fatimah ahra (A) do for the Prophet (S)?
. Why hadn t the Prophet eaten in so many days?
17
“Mom, can you please tell me about the husband of Sayyidah Fatimah (A)?” asked Ahmed.
“Sure! Imam Ali (A) is our first Imam! He was the cousin and son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad (S). He was born on Friday, the 13th of Rajab, but do you know where he was born?”
“Where?!” asked Ahmed.
“Imam Ali (A) is the only person to be born inside of the holy Kaʿbah! The wall of the Kaʿbah cracked open so that his mother, Fatimah binte Assad could enter. Three days later, she came out with Imam Ali (A) and presented him to his father, Abu Talib.
“Wow! That’s so cool!” exclaimed Ahmed. “Will we visit Imam Ali (A) in Medina, too?”
“No,” replied his mom, “Imam Ali (A) was struck while he was in Sajdah during Fajr prayers in Masjid-e-Kufa on the 19th of Ramadhaan and passed away on the 21st of Ramadhaan. We will visit him where he is buried in Najaf, InshaʿAllah.”
“What was Imam Ali (A) like?!”
“He was very brave and always stood up for the truth. You see, Imam Ali (A) was basically raised by Prophet Muhammad (S) in his home. Therefore, he learned very good akhlaq and, like the Prophet (S), was always fair, honest, content, and polite. That is why Allah chose him to be the successor of Prophet Muhammad (S). Would you like to hear a story of how Imam Ali (A) was brave, even as a child?”
“Yes!” exclaimed Ahmed excitedly.
18
LESSON 3: IMAM ALI (A)
19
IMAM
ALI
(A)
Dar
k cl
ouds
cov
ered
the
city
of
Mak
kah
as
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S
) en
tere
d hi
s ho
me.
His
bo
dy w
as f
illed
with
cut
s an
d br
uise
s, a
nd
bloo
d w
as d
rippi
ng fr
om h
is fo
rehe
ad o
nto
his
bear
d.
The
Pro
phet
(S
) w
ent
out
to
the
back
yard
and
use
d a
clay
jug
of w
ater
to w
ash
the
bloo
d an
d di
rt fro
m h
is fa
ce.
As s
oon
as Im
am A
li (A
) hea
rd th
e Pr
ophe
t (S)
en
ter
the
hom
e, h
e ex
cite
dly
ran
outs
ide
to
gree
t hi
m,
but
his
happ
ines
s so
on t
urne
d in
to
sadn
ess
whe
n he
sa
w
the
Pro
phet
’s
(S)
wou
nds!
Im
am A
li (A
) qu
ickl
y ra
n in
side
and
br
ough
t a to
wel
for h
im to
dry
his
face
.
As t
he P
roph
et (
S) w
as w
ipin
g hi
s fa
ce,
he
reas
surin
gly
smile
d at
Imam
Ali
(A).
Still,
Imam
Al
i (A
) lo
oked
at
hi
m
and
sigh
ed
out
of
sadn
ess;
he
knew
exa
ctly
wha
t had
hap
pene
d.
The
poly
thei
sts
of
Mak
kah
had
hurt
and
both
ered
his
bel
oved
Pro
phet
(S) o
nce
agai
n.
20
The
idol
-wor
ship
pers
had
told
thei
r ch
ildre
n to
bot
her
the
Prop
het
(S)
as m
uch
as t
hey
coul
d! S
o, e
very
tim
e Pr
ophe
t Muh
amm
ad (S
) w
ould
wal
k ou
tsid
e, th
e ch
ildre
n w
ould
thro
w
ston
es a
nd m
ake
fun
of h
im.
Ever
sin
ce th
e Pr
ophe
t (S)
’s u
ncle
, Abu
Tal
ib,
had
died
, no
one
had
been
abl
e to
pro
tect
the
Prop
het
(S).
You
see,
Ab
u Ta
lib
was
a
resp
ecte
d el
der
in M
akka
h, s
o w
hile
he
was
al
ive,
nob
ody
dare
d to
bot
her t
he P
roph
et (S
).
21Imam
Ali
(A)
wis
hed
that
he
coul
d be
just
lik
e hi
s fa
ther
, Ab
u Ta
lib,
so t
hat
he c
ould
al
so p
rote
ct t
he P
roph
et (
S).
Seei
ng t
he
Prop
het (
S) in
so
muc
h pa
in m
ade
his
hear
t ac
he.
As h
e gl
ance
d at
the
Pro
phet
's (
S)
face
, he
coul
d se
e th
e sa
dnes
s in
his
eye
s.
He
resp
ectfu
lly s
aid,
“O
Ras
ulul
lah,
ple
ase
take
me
with
you
the
next
tim
e yo
u de
cide
to
leav
e th
e ho
use!
”
The
Prop
het (
S) s
mile
d an
d lo
ving
ly p
lace
d hi
s ha
nds
on I
mam
Ali’s
(A)
sho
ulde
rs.
He
nodd
ed i
n ag
reem
ent
and
said
, “O
kay,
my
belo
ved.
” H
e w
as v
ery
prou
d of
Imam
Ali
(A);
even
thou
gh h
e w
as ju
st a
you
ng b
oy, h
e w
as
as b
rave
as
a w
arrio
r!
As n
ight
time
fell,
Imam
Ali
(A) l
ay in
bed
, but
he
coul
d no
t sle
ep. H
e ke
pt re
mem
berin
g th
e pa
in
and
sadn
ess
he
had
seen
ea
rlier
in
th
e Pr
ophe
t's (
S) e
yes.
How
cou
ld t
he p
olyt
heis
ts
tortu
re
his
belo
ved
Prop
het
(S)?
Ev
eryo
ne
knew
how
kin
d an
d tru
stw
orth
y th
e Pr
ophe
t (S)
w
as! I
n th
at v
ery
mom
ent,
he p
raye
d to
Alla
h to
gi
ve h
im th
e st
reng
th to
pro
tect
the
Prop
het (
S)
and
neve
r le
t an
yone
bot
her
him
eve
r ag
ain!
O
nly
afte
r tru
stin
g in
Alla
h an
d m
akin
g th
is
prom
ise
was
he
able
to fa
ll as
leep
pea
cefu
lly.
22
The
next
da
y,
as
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S)
got
read
y to
go
out
for
the
day,
Im
am A
li (A
) w
as
alre
ady
read
y to
go
! Th
e Pr
ophe
t (S
) lo
ving
ly g
azed
at
Imam
Ali
(A) a
nd fe
lt a
sens
e of
st
reng
th.
This
you
ng b
oy w
as
only
10
ye
ars
old,
bu
t he
lo
oked
m
uch
stro
nger
an
d bi
gger
than
his
age
.
As
the
Prop
het
(S)
left
his
hom
e,
Imam
Al
i (A
) w
alke
d rig
ht b
ehin
d hi
m. I
t did
not
take
lo
ng
befo
re
they
st
arte
d w
alki
ng th
at th
ey c
ame
acro
ss
a gr
oup
of k
ids
play
ing
on t
he
stre
ets.
One
of
th
e bo
ys
saw
th
e Pr
ophe
t (S
) an
d te
ased
, “O
h,
look
, it’s
Muh
amm
ad!”
Then
, all
the
othe
r ki
ds
chim
ed
in,
“Cra
zy, c
razy
, cra
zy, c
razy
!”Th
e Pr
ophe
t (S
) ke
pt w
alki
ng,
but
as h
e go
t cl
oser
to
the
child
ren,
th
ey
bega
n ye
lling
lo
uder
and
pic
king
up
ston
es!
23
One
chi
ld h
eld
a st
one
in h
is h
and
and
mov
ed h
is
hand
bac
k, re
ady
to th
row
the
ston
e, b
ut a
s so
on a
s he
was
goi
ng to
thro
w it
, he
felt
som
ethi
ng tw
istin
g hi
s ha
nd b
ack,
and
the
ston
e fe
ll ou
t of h
is h
ands
. Sh
ocke
d, t
he b
oy l
ooke
d up
and
saw
tha
t it
was
Im
am A
li (A
). H
is fa
ce q
uive
red
with
fear
. As
the
boy
fell
back
, Im
am A
li (A
) beg
an to
cha
rge
tow
ards
the
rest
of
the
child
ren,
who
wer
e ye
lling
and
getti
ng
read
y to
thro
w s
tone
s at
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S)
. Im
am A
li (A
) w
as a
ble
to t
ake
the
ston
es f
rom
all
the
child
ren
and
tack
le th
em to
the
grou
nd. A
s so
on
as th
ey w
ere
all o
n th
e flo
or, s
obbi
ng a
nd m
oani
ng,
he
aske
d th
em,
“Any
body
el
se
wan
t to
th
row
ro
cks?
!“ Ea
ch c
hild
sto
od u
p, c
ryin
g, s
hook
the
ir he
ads
quic
kly,
and
ran
bac
k to
the
ir ho
mes
in f
ear!
They
w
ere
so s
care
d th
at t
hey
coul
dn’t
even
loo
k at
Im
am A
li (A
). Th
e Pr
ophe
t (S
) ha
d co
ntin
ued
wal
king
, so
Im
am
Ali
(A)
dust
ed o
ff hi
s cl
othe
s an
d qu
ickl
y ra
n to
ca
tch
up
with
hi
s be
love
d Pr
ophe
t (S
). As
he
re
ache
d th
e Pr
ophe
t (S)
, he
grab
bed
his
hand
and
ki
ssed
it,
and
then
the
y co
ntin
ued
wal
king
. Fr
om
that
day
forw
ard,
Imam
Ali
(A)
tried
his
bes
t nev
er
to le
ave
the
Prop
het's
(S) s
ide.
24Eve
ry
day,
th
e ki
ds
of
Mak
kah
wou
ld s
ee Im
am A
li (A
)w
alki
ng a
long
with
the
Prop
het
(S).
Yet,
each
and
ever
y da
y, t
hey
wou
ld j
ust
look
an
grily
to
war
ds
the
Prop
het
(S)
and
Imam
Ali
(A),
beca
use
they
no
long
erda
red
to
thro
w
ston
es
orev
en s
hout
ugl
y na
mes
at
the
Prop
het o
f Isl
am.
WORKSHEET
1. Why did the children hurt the Prophet (S)?
. Why couldn t mam Ali (A) sleep at ni ht?
. Why did the children stop throwin roc s at the Prophet (S)?
25
LESSON 4: IMAM HASAN (A)
“Mom, who else are we going to visit in Medina?” Ahmed asked his mom.
His mom replied, “there is a special cemetery in Medina called Jannatul Baqi. Many great people are buried there. One of these people is Imam Hasan (A), the eldest son of Imam Ali (A) and Sayyidah Fatimah (A).”
“Oh, I remember you told me about Imam Hasan (A)! He was born on the 15th of Ramadhaan, and everyone was very happy when he was born!” Ahmed replied.
“Yes, that’s right! Imam Hasan (A) was very dear to Prophet Muhammad (S). The Prophet (S) used to carry him on his shoulders and tell everyone that Imam Hasan (A) and his brother Imam Husain (A) are the leaders of the youth of paradise!” His mom explained.
“Wow!” Ahmed exclaimed, “He must have been very special to get that title.”
“Yes, he was! Imam Hasan (A) was the standard bearer of Imam Ali (A)’s army in many wars, such
as the battles of Siffin, Jamal, and Nahrawan. This means that he would hold up the army’s flag. He was strong and brave, just like his father! After Imam Ali (A) was killed, Imam Hasan (A) become the second Imam.”
“Mom, did Imam Hasan (A) die in one of these battles?” asked Ahmed.
“No,” replied his mom, “he was poisoned by his wife, Judah binte Ashath.”
Ahmed became very sad. “What?! Why would his wife kill him?”
“The evil ruler of the time, Muawiyah, did not want Imam Hasan (A) to be the leader, so he promised Imam Hasan (A)’s wife lots of money if she killed him. He passed away on the 28th of Safar,” Ahmed’s mom told him.
“That is very sad,” said Ahmed.
“Yes, it is. But Imam Hasan (A) lived a very great life. Even as a child, he was very smart! Let me tell you a great story about his childhood!”
26
27
IMAM
HAS
AN (A
)
The
Prop
het
(S)
said
th
e fin
al s
alaa
m a
nd t
hen
mov
ed
his
hand
s up
to
his
ears
and
re
cite
d, “
Alla
hu A
kbar
” as
he
finis
hed
lead
ing
the
Sala
ah.
Then
, he
slow
ly m
ade
his
way
to
war
ds th
e m
inba
r to
addr
ess
the
crow
d.
Ever
yone
be
gan
settl
ing
dow
n, t
ryin
g to
fin
d a
com
forta
ble
plac
e to
sit.
In
a sm
all
corn
er
near
th
e ba
ck o
f the
Mas
jid, a
five
yea
r ol
d bo
y sa
t, lis
teni
ng i
nten
tly.
This
bea
utifu
l chi
ld w
as n
one
othe
r th
an t
he P
roph
et’s
(S)
gr
ands
on, I
mam
Has
an (A
)!
28The
Prop
het
(S)
bega
n sp
eaki
ng a
nd t
each
ing
his
follo
wer
s ab
out
the
new
Qur
anic
aya
hs t
hat
had
just
be
en
reve
aled
. Yo
u co
uld
hear
th
e au
dien
ce s
niffl
ing,
as
they
wer
e m
oved
by
this
va
luab
le k
now
ledg
e th
ey w
ere
rece
ivin
g. T
hey
wer
e ju
st th
rille
d to
be
sitti
ng b
efor
e th
e Pr
ophe
t of
Isl
am!
His
hea
venl
y vo
ice
brou
ght
out
the
beau
ty o
f Alla
h’s
vers
es e
ven
mor
e!
The
Pro
phet
’s
(S)
pow
erfu
l vo
ice
echo
ed
thro
ugho
ut t
he M
asjid
, as
eve
ryon
e lis
tene
d in
aw
e. A
s hi
s se
rmon
cam
e to
an
end,
he
reci
ted
a du
’a,
and
som
e pe
ople
beg
an t
o le
ave.
Oth
ers
patie
ntly
sto
od i
n lin
e, e
ager
ly w
aitin
g to
sha
ke
the
hand
of
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S
). M
eanw
hile
, Im
am H
asan
(A) q
uick
ly ra
n ho
me
as s
oon
as th
e se
rmon
end
ed.
As h
e bu
rst
thro
ugh
the
front
doo
r, hi
s m
othe
r S
ayyi
da
Fatim
ah
Zahr
a (A
) qu
ickl
y tu
rned
ar
ound
, kn
eele
d do
wn,
and
lovi
ngly
ope
ning
up
her
arm
s as
Imam
Has
an (
A) r
an in
to th
em. S
he
look
ed a
t he
r so
n af
fect
iona
tely,
and
just
as
he
alw
ays
did,
he
bega
n te
lling
his
mot
her
abou
t all
the
beau
tiful
new
ver
ses
he h
ad le
arne
d fro
m th
e H
oly
Prop
het (
S). S
ayyi
da F
atim
ah (A
) lis
tene
d to
hi
m a
ttent
ivel
y an
d en
cour
aged
him
to
cont
inue
w
ith e
ach
vers
e he
reci
ted.
29
A fe
w h
ours
lat
er,
Imam
Ali
(A)
ente
red
the
hom
e,
and
Syed
a F
atim
ah
Zah
ra
(A)
war
mly
gr
eete
d he
r hu
sban
d, “
Sala
amun
Al
aiku
m.”
She
hand
ed h
im a
gla
ss
of w
ater
, and
he
lovi
ngly
re
plie
d,
“Wa
Ala
ikum
S
alaa
m”
and
than
ked
Alla
h (S
WT)
fo
r th
e w
ater
. A
s he
re
sted
, S
ayyi
da
Fatim
ah
(A)
bega
n to
te
ll hi
m
abou
t th
e ne
w
vers
es
that
th
e Pr
ophe
t of
Alla
h (S
) ha
d sp
oken
ab
out.
Imam
Ali
(A)
aske
d, “
How
di
d yo
u kn
ow t
hese
ver
ses?
You
w
eren
’t at
th
e M
asjid
to
day!
” S
ayyi
da
Fat
imah
(A
) sm
iled
wid
ely
and
said
, “O
ur s
on H
asan
ta
ught
me
thes
e be
autif
ul v
erse
s!”
30Imam
Ali
(A)
smile
d jo
yful
ly. H
e kn
ew t
hat
Imam
Has
an (
A) w
as
an in
tellig
ent c
hild
, but
he
wan
ted
to h
ear
him
rec
ite t
hese
ver
ses
with
hi
s ow
n ea
rs.
He
was
am
azed
at
how
suc
h a
youn
g ch
ild c
ould
mem
oriz
e al
l th
ose
vers
es
afte
r he
arin
g th
em
just
on
ce!
Just
the
n, I
mam
Ali
(A)
had
a gr
eat
idea
! H
e ca
me
up w
ith a
pl
an s
o th
at h
e co
uld
hear
Imam
H
asan
(A)
tel
l hi
s m
othe
r ab
out
the
Prop
het’s
(S) s
erm
on!
The
next
da
y,
afte
r th
e H
oly
Prop
het
(S)
finis
hed
lead
ing
the
pray
er,
Imam
Has
an (
A) c
ould
on
ce a
gain
be
seen
sitt
ing
in a
sm
all c
orne
r in
the
back
. Afte
r the
se
rmon
was
ove
r, Im
am H
asan
(A
)tri
ed
to
leav
e th
e M
asjid
quic
kly,
bu
t th
e ba
ck
entra
nce
was
to
o cr
owde
d.
Ther
efor
e,Im
am A
li (A
) w
as a
ble
to g
etho
me
befo
re Im
am H
asan
(A).
31
Imam
Ali
(A)
quic
kly
reac
hed
hom
e an
d gr
eete
d Sa
yyid
a Fa
timah
(A).
He
then
sea
rche
d fo
r th
e pe
rfect
hid
ing
spot
! He
foun
d a
door
pas
sage
with
a
curta
in a
nd q
uick
ly h
id b
ehin
d it
as
Imam
Has
an (
A) e
nter
ed t
he h
ouse
, an
d as
usu
al, r
an to
hug
his
bel
oved
m
othe
r. Sh
e th
en a
sked
him
, “M
y de
ar s
on, w
hat d
id y
ou le
arn
from
the
Prop
het o
f Alla
h to
day?
”
Imam
Has
an (A
) beg
an s
peak
ing,
but
no
m
atte
r ho
w
hard
he
tr
ied
expl
aini
ng t
he v
erse
s to
his
mot
her,
he
kept
ge
tting
to
ngue
-tied
. H
is
mot
her
aske
d, “
Wha
t ha
ppen
ed,
my
dear
son
? Yo
u co
me
hom
e ev
eryd
ay
and
reci
te
the
vers
es
to
me
so
beau
tiful
ly. Is
som
ethi
ng w
rong
?”
32Imam
Ali
(A) p
eeke
d ou
t beh
ind
the
curta
in a
nd lo
oked
at h
is s
on.
The
youn
g Im
am H
asan
(A)
was
cu
rious
ly
look
ing
arou
nd
the
hous
e an
d th
en
he
sudd
enly
un
ders
tood
.He
laug
hed
kind
ly
and
said
, “O
h m
othe
r, th
ere
is a
gr
eat
and
hono
rabl
e pe
rson
in
the
hous
e w
ho
is
hidi
ng
and
look
ing
at m
e. B
ecau
se o
f hi
s gr
eatn
ess,
I
have
be
com
e to
ngue
-tied
!”
Imam
Ali
(A) l
augh
ed h
earti
ly. H
e ca
me
out f
rom
beh
ind
the
curta
in
and
lovi
ngly
hug
ged
and
kiss
ed
his
son.
Im
am A
li (A
) w
as v
ery
pro
ud
tha
t h
is
son
tru
ly
unde
rsto
od
and
prac
ticed
th
e ve
rses
of
th
e Q
uran
w
ith
his
entir
e ex
iste
nce.
WORKSHEET
1. What did mam Hasan (A) do after listenin to the Prophet s (S) sermons?
. Why did mam Ali (A) hide behind the curtain?
. Why couldn t mam Hasan (A) spea when mam Ali (A) was hidin ?
33
LESSON 5: IMAM HUSAIN (A)
“Mom, can you tell me about Imam Hasan (A)’s brother?” asked Ahmed.
“Sure!” replied his mom. “Imam Husain (A) was born on the 3rd of Sha’ban to Imam Ali (A) and Sayyidah Fatimah (A). I’ve alreadytold you the story of his birth and the AngelFitrus.”
“Yes, I remember that story!” replied Ahmed.
“We remember Imam Husain (A) every year during the month of Muharram because he was killed on the day of Ashura,” his mom explained.
“Why was he killled,” asked Ahmed.
“There was an evil man named Yazid, who was the son of Muawiyah. Yazid wanted to be the ruler, and he wanted Imam Husain (A) to accept him as the ruler. Imam Husain(A) refused though, because Yazid was a
bad man and did many haram things. Because of this, Yazid sent a huge army to battle Imam Husain (A) and his family and friends. They were only a small army of 72, but Yazid’s army had thousands of people. They were killed on the day of Ashura in a land called Karbala.”
“Will we get to visit Karbala?” Ahmed asked.
“Yes, InshaʿAllah we will visit Sayyid as-Shuhadah in Karbala!” his mom replied.
Ahmed asked, “Who is Sayyid as-Shuhadah?”
She replied, “That is one of the titles of Imam Husain (A), which means the leader of the martyrs. Would you like to hear a story of Imam Husain (A) as a child?”
“Yes please!” replied Ahmed.
34
35
IMAM
HUS
AIN
(A)
The
child
ren
quie
tly w
aite
d in
the
clas
sroo
m,
dres
sed
neat
ly
and
read
y fo
r Q
uran
cla
ss t
o be
gin.
O
ne s
tude
nt w
hisp
ered
to a
noth
er,
“I’m
sur
e ou
r te
ache
r ha
s m
et t
he
Prop
het o
f Alla
h!”
The
othe
r re
plie
d,
“Oh
yes!
H
e m
ust h
ave!
” An
othe
r chi
ld s
aid,
“My
fath
er s
ays
that
he
was
pla
ymat
es w
ith I
mam
H
usai
n (A
) whe
n he
was
you
ng!”
The
first
chi
ld c
him
ed in
aga
in a
nd
said
, “S
o he
mus
t ha
ve s
een
the
Prop
het o
f Alla
h!”
The
door
cre
aked
ope
n sl
owly,
and
th
e ch
ildre
n qu
ickl
y sc
ram
bled
to
sit
in
thei
r as
sign
ed
seat
s. A
bu
Raa
fiʿ
peer
ed
insi
de
and
then
le
aned
ag
ains
t th
e do
or
as
he
slow
ly t
ook
off
his
slip
pers
. As
he
ente
red
the
clas
sroo
m,
the
rust
y do
or h
inge
s cr
eake
d lo
udly.
The
st
uden
ts
quic
kly
stoo
d up
an
d re
spec
tfully
gre
eted
the
ir te
ache
r, “S
alaa
mun
Ala
ikum
.”
Abu
Raa
fiʿ s
mile
d an
d re
plie
d, “W
a Al
aiku
m S
alaa
m.”
36Abu
Raa
fiʿ w
alke
d to
war
ds h
is d
esk
and
sat
dow
n. O
ut o
f res
pect
, the
chi
ldre
n w
aite
d fo
r him
to
sit
first
, an
d th
en t
hey
sat.
He
bega
n ta
king
at
tend
ance
by
aski
ng fo
r ea
ch c
hild
’s n
ame.
As
he c
ame
upon
one
chi
ld,
he a
sked
, “W
hat
is
your
nam
e, m
y de
ar s
on?”
The
youn
g ch
ild
answ
ered
, “M
y na
me
is
Hus
ain.
” Abu
Raa
fiʿ p
ause
d an
d sm
iled
whi
le h
e ge
ntly
whi
sper
ed to
him
self,
“Hus
ain,
O H
usai
n.”
As h
e w
as a
bout
to
mov
e on
to
the
next
chi
ld,
he h
eard
a q
uiet
voi
ce, “
O te
ache
r, is
it tr
ue th
at
you
met
Ras
ulul
lah,
and
you
pla
yed
with
Imam
H
usai
n (A
)?”
Abu
Raa
fiʿ s
mile
d an
d re
plie
d, “
Yes,
yes
my
dear
son
. I
was
Im
am H
usai
n’s
(A)
play
mat
e.
We
wer
e th
e ex
act
sam
e ag
e.”
The
sunl
ight
pe
ered
thr
ough
the
win
dow,
and
thr
ough
the
sh
imm
er o
f the
ligh
t, yo
u co
uld
see
Abu
Raa
fiʿs
eyes
twin
kle
as te
ars
bega
n to
wel
l up
insi
de.
Tear
s be
gan
trick
ling
dow
n hi
s ch
eeks
. W
ipin
g th
em,
he
cont
inue
d,
“He
was
th
e be
st
of
play
mat
es!”
One
chi
ld a
sked
kin
dly,
“O
tea
cher
, ca
n yo
u pl
ease
tel
l us
a s
tory
of
your
tim
e w
ith I
mam
H
usai
n (A
)?”
Abu
Raa
fiʿ d
id n
ot h
ear t
houg
h, a
s he
was
dee
p in
his
thou
ghts
, stil
l wip
ing
away
the
tear
s fro
m
his
chee
k.
37
Agai
n, a
noth
er c
hild
ask
ed s
wee
tly,
“Can
you
ple
ase
tell
us a
sto
ry o
f Im
am H
usai
n (A
)?”
Abu
Raa
fiʿ lo
oked
up
and
plac
ed th
e Q
uran
on
his
lap
as h
e lo
oked
bac
k at
th
e ch
ildre
n.
He
smile
d an
d as
ked,
“W
hat
wou
ld y
ou li
ke m
e to
te
ll yo
u ab
out
Imam
H
usai
n’s
child
hood
?”
One
chi
ld s
aid,
“Te
ll us
abo
ut t
he
gam
es y
ou u
sed
to p
lay!
”
Abu
Raa
fiʿ la
ughe
d so
ftly,
“You
wan
t to
kn
ow
abou
t ou
r ga
mes
?”
He
swal
low
ed
hard
an
d co
ntin
ued,
“W
hile
I w
as g
row
ing
up,
I w
ould
lo
ve p
layi
ng w
ith h
im!
One
of
the
gam
es w
e w
ould
pla
y w
as d
iggi
ng
hole
s. A
fter d
iggi
ng a
hol
e, w
e w
ould
ta
ke s
ome
rock
s an
d try
to
thro
w
them
in t
he h
ole.
If
you
mis
sed
the
hole
, the
nex
t per
son
had
to tr
y to
hit
your
roc
k w
ith h
is r
ock.
If
you
wer
e ab
le t
o hi
t th
e ot
her
pers
on’s
roc
k,
they
wou
ld h
ave
to g
ive
you
a pi
ggy
back
rid
e.
Imam
H
usai
n (A
) w
as
very
goo
d at
thi
s ga
me,
but…
” hi
s vo
ice
traile
d of
f as
he c
huck
led.
38The
child
ren
exci
tedl
y as
ked,
“B
ut
wha
t, bu
t w
hat?
!” A
bu
Raa
fiʿ
look
ed
play
fully
at
th
e ch
ildre
n an
d sa
id,
“You
se
e,
Imam
H
usai
n (A
) w
as
very
in
tellig
ent,
and
he
play
ed
this
ga
me
very
wel
l!”
“I w
ould
alw
ays
see
him
pla
ying
an
d rid
ing
on t
he s
houl
ders
of
his
gran
dfat
her,
Ras
ulul
lah.
The
Pr
ophe
t (S
) w
ould
wal
k pr
oudl
y w
ith I
mam
Hus
ain
(A)
on h
is
back
. W
hen
Imam
Hus
ain
(A)
wou
ld s
ee m
e, h
e w
ould
wav
e ha
ppily
at m
e.”
One
of
th
e ch
ildre
n be
gged
, “P
leas
e co
ntin
ue!”
Abu
R
aafiʿ
ag
ain
play
fully
te
ased
the
chi
ldre
n, “
You
real
ly
wan
t to
know
?”
All
the
kids
sho
uted
in
unis
on,
“Yes
, tea
cher
!”
39He
cont
inue
d, “
Imam
Hus
ain
(A)
was
ver
y go
od a
t gam
es, b
ut h
e w
ould
als
o jo
ke w
ith
me.
Man
y tim
es,
whi
le w
e w
ere
play
ing
the
gam
e of
sto
nes,
my
rock
wou
ld h
it hi
s ro
ck
and
he w
ould
hav
e to
giv
e m
e a
pigg
ybac
k rid
e, b
ut h
e w
ould
joki
ngly
teas
e m
e, ‘D
o yo
u re
ally
w
ant
to
ride
on
the
shou
lder
s of
so
meo
ne w
ho h
as ri
dden
on
the
shou
lder
s of
R
asul
ulla
h?!’
I w
ould
say
, ‘N
o, o
f co
urse
not
! Yo
u’re
the
gr
ands
on o
f Ras
ulul
lah!
’
Then
, whe
n he
wou
ld h
it m
y st
one,
he
wou
ld
say,
‘It’s
my
time
to ri
de o
n yo
ur s
houl
ders
!’
I wou
ld re
ply,
‘Rea
lly, b
ut y
ou d
idn’
t giv
e m
e a
ride!
’ Im
am H
usai
n (A
) w
ould
sm
ile a
t m
e an
d te
ase,
‘Bu
t do
n’t
you
wan
t to
giv
e a
pigg
ybac
k rid
e to
som
eone
who
wou
ld r
ide
on
the
shou
lder
s of
R
asul
ulla
h?’
I w
ould
re
aliz
e w
hat a
n ho
nor
that
was
and
sm
ile a
s Im
am
Hus
ain
(A)
wou
ld
ride
on
m
y sh
ould
ers.
You
mig
ht b
e w
onde
ring
how
I
man
aged
to
carry
Im
am H
usai
n (A
) on
my
shou
lder
s. T
hat’s
the
mira
cle…
” H
e pa
used
, “M
aybe
I’ll
cont
inue
this
tom
orro
w.”
The
stud
ents
beg
ged,
“No,
ple
ase
cont
inue
!”
40
Ab
u R
aa
fiʿ
smil
ed
an
d co
ntin
ued,
“Y
ou
see,
w
hen
Imam
Hus
ain
(A)
clim
bed
onto
m
y sh
ould
ers,
he
was
alm
ost
wei
ghtle
ss! I
t fel
t lik
e th
ere
was
no
thin
g on
my
shou
lder
s! A
nd
in
retu
rn,
Imam
H
usai
n (A
) w
ould
hu
g m
e an
d sh
ow
kind
ness
to m
e. T
his
happ
ened
m
any
times
, an
d to
thi
s da
y, it
is
one
of m
y fa
vorit
e ch
ildho
od
mem
orie
s.”
The
child
ren
all g
iggl
ed a
t th
is
stor
y.
The
sunl
ight
fro
m
the
mor
ning
w
as
now
sh
inin
g br
ight
ly
thro
ugh
the
win
dow
an
d up
on t
he c
lass
room
. Ab
u R
aafiʿ
aga
in lo
oked
tow
ards
the
child
ren
and
pick
ed
up
the
Qur
an f
rom
his
lap
and
sai
d,
“Alri
ght
child
ren,
it
is t
ime
to
begi
n ou
r Qur
an c
lass
.”
WORKSHEET
1. What was the ame that Abu a dh played with mam Husain (A)?
. What were the rules of the ame?
. How would mam Husain (A) o e with Abu a dh to et out of i in him api ybac ride?
41
“Mom, can you please tell me about some of the other 14 Maʿsoomeen that we will be visiting?” Ahmed asked his mom.
“Sure!” replied his mom. “While we are in Medina, in addition to Prophet Muhammad (S), Sayyidah Fatimah (A), and Imam Hasan (A), we will be visiting three more Imams. The first is Imam Zainul Abideen (A) or Sajjad (A), who is also buried inJannatul Baqi. He is the son of ImamHusain (A) and his wife, Shaherbano. Hewas born in Medina on the 15th of Jamaadiul-Awwal and died on the 25th ofMuharram.”
“Was Imam Sajjad (A) killed in Karbala with the rest of Imam Husain (A)’s family?” asked Ahmed.
“Actually, Imam as-Sajjad (A) was present in Karbala, but he did not fight because he
was very sick. This is because Allah wanted to protect him. So, after Imam Husain (A) died, he became the fourth Imam. Imam Sajjad (A) is called ‘Sajjad’ because he used to do a lot of Sajdah and pray to Allah a lot. This is how he taught people about Islam and spread the message of Allah. In fact, he has a book with all his Du’as. Do you know what it is called?” asked his mother.
“I know! Sahifa as-Sajjadiyya!” exclaimed Ahmed.
“Yes, that’s correct!” His mom smiled. “Imam as-Sajjad (A) was very wise from even a young age. Let me tell you a story to show you what I mean.”
42
LESSON 6: IMAM AS-SAJJAD (A)
43
IMAM
ZAI
NUL
ABID
EEN
(A)
As t
he c
arav
an t
rave
led
thro
ugh
the
dese
rt, y
ou c
ould
hea
r a
flurry
of
sou
nds.
The
bel
ls o
f the
cam
els
jingl
ed a
s th
ey r
ode,
ech
oing
the
pi
lgrim
s’ ex
cite
men
t ab
out
goin
g fo
r H
ajj.
This
was
mix
ed i
n w
ith
qu
iet
wh
isp
ers
, te
arf
ul
supp
licat
ions
of
the
pilg
rims,
and
lo
ud p
rais
e fo
r Al
lah
(SW
T),
as
they
eith
er w
alke
d or
rod
e th
eir
cam
els
to th
e H
oly
City
of M
akka
h.
Amon
gst
the
crow
d,
ther
e w
as
one
man
na
med
Ib
rahi
m.
He
stop
ped
to g
rab
som
ethi
ng f
rom
hi
s ho
rse’
s po
uch,
but
fou
nd t
hat
his
knif
e w
as
mis
sing
! H
e ru
mm
aged
thr
ough
all
his
item
s,
but w
as u
nabl
e to
find
it. S
ince
he
was
onl
y ha
lf a
mile
aw
ay f
rom
M
edin
a, h
e de
cide
d to
hea
d ba
ck
and
quic
kly
retri
eve
his
knife
. H
e co
uld
then
re-jo
in th
e ca
rava
n.
Ibra
heem
gr
abbe
d th
e ho
rse’
s re
ins
and
turn
ed
arou
nd
as
he
swift
ly ro
de b
ack
to M
edin
a.
44As Ib
rahi
m g
ot c
lose
r to
Med
ina,
he
stop
ped
at a
sm
all h
ill, a
s so
met
hing
stra
nge
caug
ht
his
eye.
The
re w
as a
sm
all b
oy s
tand
ing
right
ac
ross
the
hill.
As
he q
uick
ly p
ulle
d on
his
ho
rse’
s re
ins,
the
hor
se n
eigh
ed l
oudl
y an
d ki
cked
up
his
two
front
legs
. Thi
s st
artle
d th
e bo
y, w
ho lo
oked
ove
r at h
im, b
ut Ib
rahi
m w
as
mor
e su
rpris
ed t
han
the
boy.
Wha
t w
as a
yo
ung
child
, no
old
er t
han
7 or
8,
doin
g al
l al
one
in t
he d
eser
t? W
here
cou
ld t
his
child
po
ssib
ly b
e go
ing
with
no
food
or w
ater
? Ib
rahi
m q
uick
ly f
orgo
t ab
out
his
knife
and
sl
owly
app
roac
hed
the
child
ask
ing,
“D
ear
son,
whe
re a
re y
ou g
oing
?”
The
youn
g ch
ild
resp
onde
d,
“Sal
aam
un
Alai
kum
! I
am g
oing
to
visi
t th
e ho
use
of
Alla
h.”
Ibra
him
loo
ked
asto
nish
ed,
not
only
at
the
child
’s a
nsw
er,
but
also
at
the
brig
htne
ss o
f th
e yo
ung
child
; his
face
was
shi
ning
brig
hter
th
an a
ful
l moo
n! I
brah
im m
oved
clo
ser
and
gent
ly s
aid,
“Dea
r son
, you
are
too
youn
g; th
e pi
lgrim
age
of H
ajj i
s no
t waj
ib o
n yo
u ye
t.” H
e sl
ight
ly c
huck
led
and
cont
inue
d, “
Plea
se t
ell
me
the
truth
; whe
re a
re y
ou a
ctua
lly g
oing
?”
45
Ibra
him
co
uld
unde
rsta
nd
from
th
e ch
ild’s
fac
ial
expr
essi
on t
hat
he w
as
serio
us. T
he y
oung
chi
ld r
eplie
d fir
mly,
“H
ave
you
not s
een
som
eone
you
nger
th
an m
e go
on
a jo
urne
y be
fore
?”
Ibra
him
thou
ght t
o hi
mse
lf, “T
his
child
’s
answ
ers
are
muc
h m
ore
soph
istic
ated
th
an a
nor
mal
chi
ld h
is a
ge;
ther
e’s
som
ethi
ng s
peci
al a
bout
him
.” H
e go
t off
his
hors
e an
d qu
ickl
y m
ade
his
tone
mor
e re
spec
tful.
Ibra
him
pla
ced
his
hand
on
his
hear
t an
d ap
olog
ized
for
jok
ing.
He
aske
d,
“Whe
re
are
your
fo
od,
wat
er,
and
hors
e? H
ow d
o yo
u pl
an o
n ge
tting
to
Mak
kah?
”
The
youn
g bo
y an
swer
ed, “
My
food
on
this
pat
h is
pie
ty a
nd ta
qwa;
I w
ill w
alk
to th
e H
ouse
of A
llah
with
my
two
feet
.” Ib
rahi
m w
as s
peec
hles
s at
the
you
ng
child
’s a
nsw
er,
but
one
ques
tion
still
linge
red
in h
is m
ind.
46“So,
wha
t will
you
eat?
I se
e yo
u ha
ve n
o fo
od,”
aske
d Ib
rahi
m.
The
youn
g bo
y sm
iled
and
kind
ly r
eplie
d, “
I am
go
ing
to b
e a
gues
t in
the
Hou
se o
f Alla
h; is
n’t y
our
host
sup
pose
d to
feed
you
?” O
nce
agai
n, Ib
rahi
m
was
stu
nned
by
the
child
’s b
eaut
iful r
espo
nse.
He
thou
ght t
o hi
mse
lf, “
This
chi
ld is
spe
akin
g tru
th
far
deep
er t
han
mos
t pe
ople
can
eve
r be
gin
to
unde
rsta
nd.”
Ibra
him
scr
atch
ed h
is h
ead
in c
onfu
sion
and
the
n ca
lmly
sai
d to
the
you
ng c
hild
, “P
leas
e at
lea
st
com
e w
ith m
e on
my
hors
e.”
The
child
ans
wer
ed s
oftly
, “D
o yo
u no
t kn
ow t
hat
goin
g to
Haj
j req
uire
s ha
rd w
ork
and
pure
inte
ntio
n to
get
clo
ser
to A
llah?
Hav
e yo
u no
t re
ad i
n th
e Q
ur’a
n w
here
Alla
h sa
ys, ‘
Som
eone
who
trie
s ha
rd
for
me,
I w
ill gu
ide
them
, an
d Al
lah
is w
ith t
he
virtu
ous.
’” Ib
rahi
m w
as s
peec
hles
s; th
is c
hild
had
res
pond
ed
to e
very
que
stio
n so
inte
lligen
tly.
Sudd
enly,
out
of
the
corn
er o
f hi
s ey
e, h
e sa
w a
rid
er q
uick
ly a
ppro
achi
ng t
hem
. H
is h
eart
bega
n be
atin
g fa
ster
-- w
as it
a th
ief?
! He
quic
kly
step
ped
back
, bu
t th
e rid
er h
ad a
lread
y ap
proa
ched
the
m
and
said
“Sal
aam
un A
laik
um” t
o th
e yo
ung
child
.
47
He
got
off
the
hors
e, k
neel
ed b
efor
e th
e yo
ung
child
, and
sai
d, “
My
mas
ter,
I am
he
re
for
you
if yo
u ne
ed
anyt
hing
.” Th
e yo
ung
child
sm
iled
and
said
, “I d
o no
t nee
d an
ythi
ng.”
The
rid
er q
uick
ly g
ot b
ack
on h
is
hors
e an
d ga
ve
his
sala
am
to
the
youn
g ch
ild, b
ut b
efor
e he
cou
ld le
ave,
Ib
rahi
m s
tepp
ed f
orw
ard
and
grab
bed
the
hors
e’s
rein
s. H
e re
aliz
ed t
hat
the
rider
was
not
a th
ief a
nd k
indl
y as
ked
him
, “W
ho is
thi
s ch
ild?
Why
did
you
ca
ll hi
m m
aste
r?!
By A
llah,
he
is n
o or
dina
ry c
hild
! H
e is
in
the
mid
dle
of
the
dese
rt w
ith n
o fo
od a
nd w
ater
!” Th
e rid
er a
nsw
ered
, “Yo
u do
not
kno
w
who
thi
s is
? Th
is i
s Al
i, th
e so
n of
H
usai
n.”
As
thes
e w
ords
pi
erce
d th
roug
h Ib
rahi
m’s
ear
s, h
e dr
oppe
d th
e ho
rse’
s re
ins
and
alm
ost
fell
over
his
ow
n fe
et t
ryin
g to
rea
ch t
he y
oung
ch
ild.
He
knee
led
befo
re
Imam
as
-Sa
jjad
(A) a
nd k
isse
d hi
s sm
all h
ands
. Ib
rahi
m n
ow u
nder
stoo
d w
hy th
is c
hild
a
nd
his
a
ns
we
rs
we
re
so
extra
ordi
nary
. H
owev
er,
he
still
had
one
ques
tion.
48He
said
, “M
ay m
y pa
rent
s be
sac
rific
ed f
or y
ou!
Plea
se t
ell
me
wha
t yo
u ha
ve b
roug
ht w
ith y
ou?
Plea
se le
t me
carry
it fo
r you
!” Im
am a
s-Sa
jjad
(A)
repl
ied,
“M
y on
ly b
agga
ge o
n th
is jo
urne
y co
nsis
ts o
f fou
r thi
ngs.
”
Ibra
him
’s f
ace
lit u
p! H
e co
uldn
’t w
ait
to h
ear
wha
t th
e Im
am n
eede
d he
lp c
arry
ing!
Th
e Im
am (A
) con
tinue
d, “Y
ou s
ee, w
hen
goin
g on
a
trip,
eve
ryon
e w
orrie
s ab
out t
heir
phys
ical
bag
gage
, bu
t the
mos
t im
porta
nt b
agga
ge is
wha
t we
carry
in
our
hear
ts a
nd s
ouls
. O
n th
is t
rip,
I re
ly c
ompl
etel
y on
Alla
h. T
his
grea
t big
wor
ld is
the
king
dom
of A
llah,
so
I’m
not
wor
ried
abou
t w
here
I w
ill st
ay.
Ever
y cr
eatio
n is
His
ser
vant
, so
Alla
h w
ill pr
ovid
e he
lp fo
r m
e w
hen
I nee
d it.
All
bles
sing
s co
me
from
Him
, so
I’m n
ot w
orrie
d ab
out
wha
t I
will
eat.
Last
ly, a
ll de
cisi
ons
are
in H
is h
ands
, so
I k
now
He
will
take
th
e be
st c
are
of m
e.”
Ibra
him
’s e
yes
fille
d up
with
tea
rs.
He
stoo
d up
, br
ushe
d of
f his
kne
es, a
nd s
aid,
“Wha
t gre
at lu
ggag
e yo
u ha
ve!
With
thi
s lu
ggag
e, i
t is
eas
y to
tra
vel
thro
ugh
any
type
of d
eser
t!''
He
gave
his
sal
utat
ions
to th
e Im
am a
nd s
wift
ly ro
de
back
to h
is c
arav
an, f
orge
tting
all
abou
t his
kni
fe, f
or
he h
ad fo
und
som
ethi
ng m
uch
mor
e va
luab
le!
Plea
se n
ote
that
this
stor
y do
es n
ot in
tend
to d
iscou
rage
phy
sical
lugg
age,
it is
em
phas
izing
the
need
of s
pirit
ual lu
ggag
e, th
at s
pirit
ual
stat
e a
pers
on s
houl
d st
rive
to b
e in
.
WORKSHEET
1. Who was the little boy that brahim met?
. Why didn t the boy ha e any lu a e?
. What did he say his lu a e was?
49
LESSON 7: IMAM MUHAMMAD AL-BAQIR (A)
“The next Maʿsoom that we will be visiting in Medina is our 5th Imam, Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (A), who is also buried in Jannatul Baqi. He was the son of Imam Sajjad (A) and Fatimah binte Hasan. He was born on the 1st of Rajab and passed away on the 7th of Dhul Hijjah.” Ahmed’s mom told him.
“What does Baqir mean?” Ahmed asked.
“Baqir is short for Baqir ul-Uloom, which means the splitter and spreader of knowledge!” his mom replied.
“Wow! Was Imam al-Baqir really smart?!” asked Ahmed.
“Yes, he was! When Imam al-Baqir (A) became the Imam, he was able to teach people about Islam freely and openly. He would hold many classes teaching people about Islam and also about math and science! In fact, he was the one who gave
the idea about what should be on the first Islamic coin!”
“What was it?!” asked Ahmed
“One side of the coin said ‘La ilaaha ill A l l a h ’ a n d t h e o t h e r s i d e s a i d “Muhammadur Rasulullah,’” his mom said.
“That’s a great idea!” exclaimed Ahmed.
“It sure was! Imam al-Baqir (A) was very smart. Did you know that he was also present in Karbala with Imam Husain (A)?” she asked.
“Really?!” asked Ahmed.
“He was only five years old. Afterwards, he was taken as a prisoner along with the women and chi ldren to Kufa and Damascus. He was very brave, though! Let me tell you a story about his bravery in Damascus!”
50
51
IMAM
MUH
AMM
AD A
L-BA
QIR
(A)
The
soun
d of
the
wat
er d
rippi
ng fr
om
the
foun
tain
ech
oed
outs
ide
the
larg
e ca
stle
. Th
e su
n gl
iste
ned
agai
nst
the
wat
er,
caus
ing
it to
spa
rkle
. H
owev
er,
this
pea
cefu
l sce
ne w
as s
oon
ruin
ed b
y th
e so
unds
of s
tom
ping
as
the
sold
iers
m
arch
ed o
utsi
de th
e ca
stle
. O
ne
sold
ier
appr
oach
ed
the
arriv
ing
cara
van
roug
hly.
His
evi
l eye
s an
d st
iff
dem
eano
r wer
e so
har
sh th
at e
ven
the
cam
el
star
ted
to
cry
as
he
brut
ally
pu
lled
its b
ody
dow
n to
the
grou
nd. A
ll of
a s
udde
n, t
he s
oldi
er p
ulle
d ou
t hi
s w
hip
and
lash
ed th
e gr
ound
nex
t to
the
cam
el,
caus
ing
the
cam
el t
o sc
reec
h,
and
forc
ing
the
othe
r ca
mel
s to
kne
el
dow
n ou
t of f
ear.
The
sold
ier
hars
hly
calle
d ou
t to
the
pe
ople
in th
e ca
rava
n, “G
et o
ff!”
The
othe
r so
ldie
rs
bega
n m
arch
ing
tow
ards
the
car
avan
and
gra
bbed
the
w
omen
and
chi
ldre
n, t
ying
the
ir ha
nds
toge
ther
bef
ore
drag
ging
them
tow
ards
th
e en
tranc
e of
the
cast
le.
52Afte
r ty
ing
up
all
the
wom
en
and
child
ren,
they
rea
ched
the
only
man
in
the
cara
van.
The
ang
ry s
oldi
er t
ried
with
all
his
mig
ht t
o pu
sh t
he m
an o
ff th
e ca
mel
, but
the
man
sta
yed
stea
dy.
Even
thou
gh h
e ha
d la
rge
wou
nds
and
his
hand
s w
ere
tied,
he
was
abl
e to
get
of
f the
cam
el o
n hi
s ow
n. C
an
you
gues
s w
ho
thes
e ca
ptiv
es
wer
e? T
his
stro
ng m
an w
as I
mam
as-
Sajja
d (A
), an
d th
e w
omen
and
chi
ldre
n w
ere
the
love
d on
es o
f Kar
bala
! Th
e an
gry
sold
ier
said
to
the
othe
r so
ldie
rs, “
Mak
e su
re th
ey a
ll ge
t ins
ide.
M
ake
sure
no
ne
of
thes
e w
orth
less
pe
ople
leav
e yo
ur e
yes!
” Th
e so
ldie
rs
bega
n w
hipp
ing
the
wom
en a
nd c
hild
ren,
tryi
ng to
get
them
in
to a
stra
ight
line
. The
chi
ldre
n st
arte
d sc
ream
ing
and
cryi
ng a
s th
ey t
ried
to
mov
e as
cl
ose
to
thei
r m
othe
rs
as
poss
ible
. Sa
dly,
the
y w
ere
all
herd
ed
like
shee
p in
to th
e ca
stle
.
53
Fina
lly, t
hey
ente
red
a la
rge
room
with
gr
een
velv
et
curta
ins
and
luxu
rious
fu
rnitu
re. A
terri
ble
man
sat
ato
p a
larg
e th
rone
co
vere
d in
je
wel
s,
glee
fully
w
aitin
g fo
r the
pris
oner
s to
ent
er.
This
ter
rible
man
was
the
evi
l ca
liph,
Ya
zid.
He
sat
on h
is t
hron
e, d
rinki
ng
win
e an
d ea
ting
luxu
rious
food
with
his
ad
viso
rs,
all
whi
le
the
cara
van
of
Karb
ala
was
bei
ng b
ruta
lly b
roug
ht in
. Ya
zid
let
out
a lo
ud
and
men
acin
g la
ugh
as th
e fa
mily
of t
he P
roph
et w
as
brou
ght
befo
re
him
. H
owev
er,
he
stop
ped
laug
hing
abr
uptly
whe
n he
saw
Im
am
as-S
ajja
d (A
) am
ong
the
pris
oner
s. H
e ro
se fr
om h
is th
rone
and
de
man
ded,
“Who
is th
is?!
I th
ough
t you
sa
id a
ll th
e m
en d
ied
in K
arba
la!”
One
of h
is a
dvis
ors
whi
sper
ed in
to h
is
ear,
“My
mas
ter,
this
man
is S
ajja
d; h
e is
the
son
of
Hus
ain.
It
seem
s th
at
whe
n ou
r so
ldie
rs f
ound
him
, he
was
ve
ry s
ick,
so
they
did
not
kill
him
and
m
ade
him
a p
rison
er in
stea
d.”
54Yazi
d sn
icke
red
loud
ly a
nd s
aid
to I
mam
as
-Saj
jad
(A),
“So,
Ali,
son
of H
usai
n, w
hat
did
you
see
in K
arba
la?”
Th
e Im
am (
A) l
ooke
d at
Yaz
id a
nd c
alm
ly
resp
onde
d,
“I sa
w
som
ethi
ng
that
Al
lah
knew
of
ev
en
befo
re
He
crea
ted
the
heav
ens
and
the
earth
.” Ya
zid’
s sm
ile q
uick
ly f
aded
and
he
angr
ily
sat b
ack
dow
n in
his
thro
ne. H
e pi
cked
up
an a
pple
and
sta
red
at i
t, th
inki
ng h
ard
abou
t w
hat
he s
houl
d do
. H
e tu
rned
to
a gr
oup
of
his
advi
sors
an
d th
ey
quie
tly
disc
usse
d th
is
mat
ter
for
a sh
ort
whi
le.
Then
, Yaz
id s
udde
nly
yelle
d, “K
ill hi
m!”
Imm
edia
tely,
tw
o so
ldie
rs d
ress
ed i
n re
d ca
me
forw
ard
and
drew
thei
r sw
ords
. The
y gr
abbe
d th
e Im
am (
A) b
y hi
s ar
ms
and
bega
n dr
aggi
ng h
im o
utsi
de.
Upo
n se
eing
th
is te
rrify
ing
sigh
t, th
e w
omen
and
chi
ldre
n be
gan
cryi
ng l
oudl
y. H
owev
er,
one
youn
g ch
ild a
mon
gst t
he p
rison
ers,
who
was
onl
y fiv
e ye
ars
old,
mar
ched
righ
t up
to Y
azid
!
55This
you
ng b
oy w
as t
he b
rave
Im
am a
l-Baq
ir (A
). H
e st
ood
befo
re Y
azid
and
gla
red
at h
im i
n an
ger!
Yazi
d fu
rious
ly lo
oked
dow
n at
the
child
and
sho
uted
, “W
ho a
re
you
and
wha
t do
you
wan
t?! S
houl
d I k
ill yo
u, to
o?!”
Yazi
d th
rew
his
app
le to
the
side
and
laug
hed
agai
n.
The
youn
g Im
am (
A) w
as n
ot s
hake
n by
this
. He
brav
ely
repl
ied,
“O
h Ya
zid,
you
r vi
zier
s ga
ve y
ou t
he c
ompl
ete
oppo
site
adv
ice
of w
hat
the
Phar
aoh’
s vi
zier
s to
ld h
im.
Whe
n th
e Ph
arao
h as
ked
them
for
advi
ce o
n w
hat t
o do
w
ith P
roph
et M
usa
and
his
brot
her
Har
un, t
hey
said
, ‘D
o no
t ki
ll hi
m!’
How
ever
, yo
ur v
izie
rs t
old
you
to k
ill m
y fa
ther
. The
re is
a re
ason
for t
hat.”
Th
is re
spon
se m
ade
Yazi
d st
op la
ughi
ng. H
e w
as p
uzzl
ed
at th
e yo
ung
Imam
’s w
ords
and
impa
tient
ly a
sked
, “W
hat
is th
e re
ason
?”
Imam
al-B
aqir
(A)
resp
onde
d, “
Your
viz
iers
are
the
wor
st
of p
eopl
e, b
ut th
e vi
zier
s of
the
Phar
aoh
wer
e no
t lik
e th
at.
They
are
the
wor
st b
ecau
se y
ou a
re th
e w
orst
and
low
est
of h
uman
s. Y
ou k
now
why
? Be
caus
e no
one
in h
is r
ight
m
ind
orde
rs fo
r a P
roph
et o
r his
fam
ily to
be
kille
d.”
The
room
sud
denl
y fe
ll si
lent
. Eve
ryon
e he
ld th
eir
brea
th
as t
hey
wai
ted
to s
ee h
ow Y
azid
wou
ld r
eply.
As
Yazi
d lo
oked
aro
und,
all
he c
ould
see
was
the
awe
in e
very
one’
s ey
es a
s th
ey s
tare
d at
the
brav
e yo
ung
Imam
(A).
56
The
Imam
(A
) ha
d sp
oken
so
w
isel
y th
at
no
one
coul
d sa
y an
ythi
ng.
Yaz
id’s
de
mea
nor
imm
ed
iate
ly
cha
ng
ed
fro
m
arro
ganc
e to
em
barra
ssm
ent.
He
lifte
d up
his
ring
-fille
d ha
nd to
war
ds
the
two
sold
iers
, and
they
bow
ed to
Ya
zid
befo
re s
low
ly m
ovin
g aw
ay
from
Imam
as-
Sajja
d (A
). Ya
zid
quic
kly
turn
ed h
is a
nger
from
th
e fa
mily
of
the
Prop
het
to h
is
advi
sors
. The
y be
gan
to s
hake
with
fe
ar a
nd t
heir
face
s tu
rned
gre
en
with
pan
ic.
He
shou
ted
at t
hem
, “I
shou
ld k
ill yo
u al
l ins
tead
, you
low
ly b
eing
s!”
He
didn
’t kn
ow w
hat
to d
o; h
e fe
lt so
def
eate
d! H
e hi
t the
sid
es o
f his
th
rone
lo
udly
an
d sc
ream
ed,
“Eve
ryon
e,
out!
Out
!” E
very
one
quic
kly
bega
n st
ream
ing
out o
f the
ca
stle
, al
l th
e w
hile
, th
e w
ords
of
youn
g Im
am a
l-Baq
ir (A
) co
ntin
ued
to h
aunt
Yaz
id.
WORKSHEET
1. Why did a id want to ill mam Sa ad (A)
. How did mam a ir (A) stand up to a id?
. What happened as a result of mam a ir (A) s speech?
57
LESSON 8: IMAM JAʿFAR AS-SAQIQ (A)
“Ahmed, do you remember the names of all of the Maʿsoomeen we will be visiting in Medina?” Ahmed’s mom asked him.
Ahmed replied, “We will be visiting Prophet Muhammad (S), Sayyidah Fatimah (A), Imam Hasan (A), Imam as-Sajjad (A), and Imam al-Baqir (A) InshaʿAllah!”
“Yes, that’s right! There is one more Maʿsoom we will be visiting: Imam Jaʿfar as-Sadiq (A). He is our 6th Imam and is also buried in Jannatul Baqi. Imam as-Sadiq (A) was born on the 17th of Rabi ul-Awwal and passed away on the 25th of Shawwaal,” Ahmed’s mom explained.
“Was he the son of Imam al-Baqir (A)?” Ahmed asked.
“Yes, he was the son of Imam al-Baqir (A) and Umme Farwah,” she said.
“Was he smart like his father?” Ahmed asked.
“He sure was! Imam Jaʿfar as-Sadiq (A) continued the work of his father by holding classes and teaching people about Islam, math, and science. Through his classes, he was able to produce over 4,000 scholars and had many famous students, like Hisham bin Hakam, Abu Hanifa, and Jaabir bin Hayyaan,” Ahmed’s mom explained.
“Wow! I wish I could have been his student!” Ahmed exclaimed.
His mom replied, “Yes, it would have been an honor to learn from him. Even as a young child, he would teach others! Let me tell you a story!”
58
59
IMAM
JA’
FAR
AS-S
ADIQ
(A)
It w
as
a da
rk
and
still
ni
ght,
and
Muh
amm
ad
foun
d hi
mse
lf co
nsta
ntly
lo
okin
g le
ft an
d rig
ht a
s he
qui
ckly
wal
ked
tow
ards
th
e do
or.
He
look
ed
over
hi
s sh
ould
er
to
mak
e su
re
no
one
was
w
atch
ing,
and
the
n kn
ocke
d on
the
doo
r. H
e th
ough
t to
him
self,
“I h
ope
no o
ne s
ees
me
visi
ting
Imam
al-B
aqir
(A),
or th
e ca
liph
will
kill
me!
” Th
e la
tch
on th
e do
or c
reak
ed, a
nd th
e do
or
slow
ly o
pene
d. A
s so
on a
s he
saw
the
Im
am’s
br
ight
fa
ce,
he
said
, “S
alaa
mun
Al
aiku
m.”
The
Imam
rep
lied,
“W
a Al
aiku
m S
alaa
m,”
and
chee
rful
ly
aske
d,
“Is
that
yo
u M
uham
mad
? Pl
ease
com
e in
!” As
he
ente
red,
he
snuc
k on
e la
st g
lanc
e at
th
e da
rk s
treet
s be
hind
him
and
qui
ckly
sh
ut th
e do
or.
The
Imam
(A
) w
elco
med
hi
m
in,
and
Muh
amm
ad
brea
thed
a
sigh
of
re
lief,
feel
ing
safe
bei
ng in
the
Imam
’s p
rese
nce.
H
e fo
llow
ed th
e Im
am (A
) int
o a
smal
l roo
m.
60As M
uham
mad
wal
ked
in,
he s
aw a
be
autif
ul c
hild
pla
ying
in th
e ro
om. T
he
child
was
pla
ying
with
a s
tick
that
had
a
red
tass
el h
angi
ng f
rom
it.
The
Imam
(A
)gen
tly w
alke
d to
war
ds th
e ch
ild a
ndsm
iled
as h
e sa
id, “
May
my
pare
nts
besa
crifi
ced
for y
ou! A
re y
ou p
layi
ng?”
The
hand
som
e ch
ild s
mile
d w
idel
y an
d re
plie
d, “Y
es!”
Muh
amm
ad
notic
ed th
at th
e Im
am (A
) w
as c
ares
sing
the
you
ng c
hild
’s h
air
and
show
ing
a lo
t of l
ove
and
affe
ctio
n as
the
you
ng c
hild
pla
yed.
The
Im
am
turn
ed t
owar
ds M
uham
mad
and
sai
d,
“O M
uham
mad
, th
is c
hild
, Ja
'far
as-
Sadi
q (A
), w
ill be
the
Im
am a
fter
me.
O
bey
him
and
ben
efit
from
him
. I s
wea
r by
Alla
h th
at h
e is
pat
ient
and
tru
thfu
l. H
e ha
s be
en g
iven
the
sam
e be
autif
ul
nam
e as
the
Hol
y Pr
ophe
t (S)
!” Th
e Im
am c
ontin
ued,
“Al
lah
will
help
hi
s fo
llow
ers
in th
is w
orld
and
the
next
w
orld
, an
d A
llah
will
re
mov
e H
is
bles
sing
s fro
m h
is e
nem
ies.
”
61Muh
amm
ad c
ould
not
sto
p st
arin
g at
th
e ch
ild’s
pl
easa
nt
face
. Th
e ch
ild
notic
ed t
his
and
beca
me
shy.
He
tried
no
t to
laug
h, b
ut t
his
only
cau
sed
his
face
to
tu
rn
red.
N
otic
ing
this
, M
uham
mad
als
o st
arte
d to
sm
ile a
nd
laug
h rig
ht a
long
with
the
youn
g ch
ild.
Muh
amm
ad t
hen
turn
ed t
o Im
am a
l-B
aqir
(A)
and
said
, “O
so
n of
R
asul
ulla
h,
I ha
ve
man
y qu
estio
ns.
Cou
ld
you
plea
se
answ
er
them
fo
r m
e?
” T
he
Ima
m,
wh
o w
as
enth
usia
stic
ally
pla
ying
with
his
chi
ld,
turn
ed to
war
ds M
uham
mad
and
ask
ed,
“Why
don
’t yo
u as
k m
y ch
ild?”
Muh
amm
ad
was
su
rpri
sed
and
thou
ght,
“Thi
s bo
y is
onl
y a
child
! How
is
he
goin
g to
ans
wer
my
ques
tions
?”
62How
ever
, he
kn
ew
that
th
e Im
am
spok
e th
e tru
th,
and
he t
rust
ed h
im.
Besi
des,
he
was
one
of t
he Im
am’s
bes
t st
uden
ts,
so h
e kn
ew t
hat
he h
ad t
o fo
llow
his
teac
her’s
adv
ice.
As M
uham
mad
was
get
ting
read
y to
ask
hi
s qu
estio
ns t
o th
e yo
ung
Imam
, he
pa
used
and
real
ized
he
had
forg
otte
n al
l hi
s qu
estio
ns!
He
rubb
ed
his
lon
g bl
ack
bear
d,
tryin
g to
re
mem
ber
his
ques
tions
. As
he w
as d
eep
in t
houg
ht,
his
eyes
cau
ght t
he e
yes
of th
e gi
gglin
g ch
ild a
nd h
e be
gan
to s
mile
.
“My
mas
ter,
whe
re d
oes
laug
hter
com
e fro
m?”
he
aske
d.Th
e yo
ung
child
sto
pped
laug
hing
and
ha
ppily
re
plie
d,
“O
Muh
amm
ad,
emot
ions
com
e fro
m th
e he
art;
sadn
ess
com
es
from
th
e liv
er;
brea
th
com
es
from
th
e lu
ngs;
an
d la
ught
er
com
es
from
the
sple
en.”
63
Muh
amm
ad w
as s
hock
ed!
He
had
aske
d on
e qu
estio
n an
d re
ceiv
ed fo
ur
answ
ers!
He
coul
dn’t
cont
ain
his
joy;
he
beg
an t
o la
ugh
alon
g w
ith t
he
youn
g Im
am.
Muh
amm
ad’s
lau
ghte
r w
as s
o bo
iste
rous
that
you
cou
ld s
ee
the
whi
tene
ss o
f his
teet
h th
roug
h hi
s lo
ng b
lack
bea
rd.
Muh
amm
ad k
new
now
wha
t a s
peci
al
boy
this
was
! H
e st
ood
and
kiss
ed
the
head
of
the
youn
g Im
am,
and
then
sat
bac
k do
wn
to e
njoy
dat
es
and
brea
d w
ith Im
am a
l-Baq
ir (A
).
64Aft
er
so
me
tim
e,
Muh
amm
ad
stoo
d up
to
le
ave.
The
Imam
(A) w
alke
d hi
m to
the
door
and
bid
him
fa
rew
ell.
As
Muh
amm
ad
wal
ked
hom
e,
the
dark
st
reet
s w
ere
over
com
e w
ith
a st
rang
e si
lenc
e, b
ut if
you
lis
tene
d ca
refu
lly, e
very
now
an
d ag
ain,
you
cou
ld h
ear
Muh
amm
ad’s
qui
et la
ught
er
as h
e th
ough
t ab
out
all t
he
won
derfu
l thi
ngs
he h
ad ju
st
lear
ned.
WORKSHEET
1. Why was uhammad scared to isit the mam (A)?
. Why do you thin mam al a ir (A) told uhammad to as mam as Sadi(A) his uestion?
. What was mam as Sadi (A) s answer?
65
LESSON 9: IMAM MUSA AL-KADHIM (A)
“Mom, can you please tell me about another place we’ll be visiting?” Ahmed asked his mom.
“Sure! We will also be visiting the city of Kadhmain in Iraq. Two Imams are buried here. One of them is our 7th Imam, Imam Musa al-Kadhim (A). He was born on the 7th of Safar to Imam Jaʿfar as-Sadiq (A) and Hamida Khatoon,” his mom explained.
“What was his life like?” Ahmed asked.
“Well, you see, Imam al-Kadhim (A) was alive under the rule of many evil caliphs, such as Haroon Rashid. Haroon did not like that Imam Musa al-Kadhim (A) was popular with the people, so he put him in
prison. Imam al-Kadhim (A) was very patient, though, and even while he was in prison, he would thank Allah for having the opportunity to worship him,” Ahmed’s mom said.
“Wow, he really was patient! How long was he in prison for?” Ahmed asked.
His mom replied, “He was in prison for the last 19 years of his life. He was poisoned by one of his prison guards and passed away on the 25th of Rajab.”
“Oh, that’s so sad. Can you tell me a story about Imam al-Kadhim (A)?” Ahmed asked.
His mother replied, “Sure! I know a great story about him as a child!”
66
67
IMAM
MUS
A AL
-KAD
HIM
(A)
The
stud
ents
sat
pat
ient
ly lo
okin
g ar
ound
th
e pl
ain
room
, w
hile
re
citin
g dh
ikr.
The
bare
roo
m h
ad
just
a s
impl
e ru
g an
d bl
eak
curta
ins
hang
ing
by
the
win
dow.
At
last
, Im
am J
a’fa
r as
-Sad
iq (
A) e
nter
ed,
and
the
stud
ents
qui
ckly
sto
od u
p ou
t of r
espe
ct. T
hey
wai
ted
until
he
sat
dow
n be
fore
si
tting
do
wn
them
selv
es. A
s th
e Im
am (A
) beg
an
teac
hing
his
stu
dent
s, a
sm
all l
ittle
bo
y sa
t dow
n ne
xt to
him
.
All t
he s
tude
nts
wer
e lis
teni
ng v
ery
care
fully
, exc
ept t
wo
stud
ents
, who
w
ere
whi
sper
ing
ques
tions
to
each
ot
her.
Man
soor
loo
ked
at S
afw
an
very
con
fuse
d. H
e w
as n
ot s
ure
how
to
ask
the
Imam
his
bur
ning
qu
estio
n. Y
ou s
ee,
he w
ante
d to
kn
ow w
ho w
ould
be
the
Imam
afte
r hi
m,
but
he f
elt
that
thi
s ty
pe o
f qu
estio
n w
as r
ude
and
shou
ld n
ot
be a
sked
. St
ill, t
he q
uest
ion
kept
pl
ayin
g on
his
min
d.
68As t
he I
mam
(A)
spo
ke,
his
kind
ness
sh
one
thro
ugh
his
wor
ds a
nd a
ctio
ns,
givi
ng M
anso
or m
ore
cour
age
to a
sk h
is
ques
tion.
He
felt
like
the
Imam
kne
w
wha
t he
was
thi
nkin
g. S
udde
nly,
Im
am
as-S
adiq
(A
) tu
rned
to
M
anso
or
and
look
ed
at
him
ki
ndly.
Lo
okin
g at
th
e Im
am’s
ki
nd
eyes
, M
anso
or
felt
com
forta
ble
and
knew
he
coul
d as
k hi
s qu
estio
n. H
owev
er, h
e st
ill fe
lt a
little
shy
! M
anso
or l
ooke
d do
wn
and
said
, “M
ay
mot
her
and
fath
er b
e sa
crifi
ced
for
you!
D
eath
will
com
e fo
r eve
ry p
erso
n, ri
ght?
”
The
Imam
(A)
sm
iled
and
nodd
ed i
n ag
reem
ent.
Man
soor
th
en
cont
inue
d,
“May
I
be
sacr
ifice
d fo
r yo
u;
if th
is
happ
ens,
who
will
be t
he I
mam
afte
r yo
u?”
The
room
be
cam
e pi
n dr
op
sile
nt;
nobo
dy e
ven
dare
d to
bre
athe
. Man
soor
lo
oked
aro
und
the
room
, an
d hi
s ey
es
fell
on h
is fr
iend
Saf
wan
. He
felt
relie
ved
to fi
nally
ask
the
ques
tion
that
had
bee
n bo
ther
ing
him
for
so
long
. It
seem
ed a
s th
ough
the
Im
am (
A) h
ad b
een
wai
ting
for t
his
exac
t que
stio
n.
69The
Imam
(A
)’s
face
be
cam
e br
ight
er a
nd h
is s
mile
gre
w w
ider
. M
anso
or
felt
mor
e re
laxe
d.
The
Imam
(A) h
ugge
d th
e sm
all c
hild
nex
t to
him
and
sai
d, “W
hen
deat
h co
mes
fo
r m
e, t
his
child
, Im
am M
usa
al-
Kadh
im (A
), w
ill be
you
r Im
am.”
The
child
lo
oked
lo
ving
ly
at
his
fath
er. T
he Im
am (A
) beg
an to
car
ess
the
child
’s
head
. Ev
eryo
ne
look
ed
happ
ily to
war
ds th
e ch
ild, w
hose
face
w
as s
hini
ng b
right
ly li
ke th
e m
oon.
70It w
as o
bvio
us t
hat
eve
ryon
e ha
d be
en w
onde
ring
this
sam
e th
ing,
so
Man
soor
fel
t be
tter
abou
t hi
s de
cisi
on
to a
sk th
e qu
estio
n.
Now
ev
eryo
ne
knew
w
ho
the
Imam
w
ould
be
af
ter
Imam
as
-Sad
iq
(A).
They
all
wat
ched
as
the
youn
g ch
ild
wen
t ou
tsid
e to
pla
y, a
nd I
mam
as-
Sad
iq
(A)
cont
inue
d te
achi
ng
his
stud
ents
. Th
e Im
am e
nded
the
cla
ss
with
a D
u’a,
and
eve
ryon
e w
as g
rant
ed
perm
issi
on
to
leav
e.
Then
, th
ey
all
follo
wed
the
Imam
(A) o
ut to
the
yard
.
71Out
side
, Im
am
al-K
adhi
m
(A)
was
pla
ying
with
a s
tick
in h
is h
and
and
usin
g it
as a
cane
. As
he w
as p
layi
ng, h
ege
ntly
nud
ged
the
poin
t of
the
stic
k on
the
sid
e of
the
shee
p an
d sa
id,
“Hur
y up
,yo
u ha
ve
to
have
to
do
sajd
ah to
Alla
h, w
ho c
reat
edyo
u an
d ta
kes
care
of y
ou.”
All
the
com
pani
ons
stoo
d ar
ound
sm
iling
and
laug
hing
as
they
wat
ched
. The
y w
ere
all
so i
mpr
esse
d th
at e
ven
whi
le
this
lit
tle
boy
was
pl
ayin
g, h
e ha
dn’t
forg
otte
n ab
out A
llah.
Im
am a
s-Sa
diq
(A)w
alke
d to
war
ds Im
am a
l-Ka
dhim
(A) a
nd h
ugge
d an
dki
ssed
him
. The
com
pani
ons
then
ca
me
forw
ard
and
kiss
ed th
e lit
tle c
hild
’s h
and.
72
They
sto
od a
roun
d fo
r a
long
tim
e w
atch
ing
Imam
al-K
adhi
m (A
) pl
ay.
A sh
ort
whi
le l
ater
, Sa
fwan
as
ked
if th
ey c
ould
be
excu
sed.
Th
e Im
am (
A) p
ut h
is s
on o
n hi
s sh
ould
ers
and
bid
fare
wel
l to
his
st
uden
ts.
Eac
h of
th
em
left
happ
ier t
han
ever
bef
ore.
WORKSHEET
1. What was ansoor s burnin uestion?
. Why was ansoor hesitant about as in his uestion?
. What did mam al adhim (A) tell the sheep?
73
LESSON 10: IMAM ALI AR-RIDHA (A)
“Mom, who is the 8th Imam? Is he also bur-ied in Kadhamain?” Ahmed asked his mom.
His mom replied, “The 8th Imam is Imam Ali ar-Ridha (A). He is buried in Mashhad, which is in Iran. InshaʿAllah we will go there, too.”
Ahmed asked, “Was he born in Iran, too?”
“No, Imam ar-Ridha (A) was born in Med-ina on the 11th of Dhul Qa’dah to Imam Musa al-Kadhim (A) and Najmah,” his mom replied.
Ahmed was confused, “Then how did he end up in Mashhad?”
His mother answered, “After his father was martyred and Imam ar-Ridha (A) became the Imam, the evil caliph, Ma’moon, knew that Imam ar-Ridha was very intelligent and
popular. He didn’t want people to follow the Imam, so he came up with a plan. He in-vited the Imam to come to him in Mashhad and invited him to become the next king. Imam ar-Ridha (A) refused, because he knew this was a trick. Still, Ma’moon forced him to accept a position. So, Imam ar-Ridha (A) took advantage of his position and used it as an opportunity to teach peo-ple about Islam. He would hold majaalis and tell people about Karbala. People would come from all over to ask him ques-tions and learn from him. Maʿmoon realized what was happening, so he decided to poi-son Imam ar-Ridha. The imam died on the 29th of Safar and was buried in Mashhad.”
“Wow, what a mean man! Can you tell me another story about Imam al-Ridha (A)?” Ahmed asked.
74
“Yes, certainly!” his mother replied.
75
IMAM
ALI
AR-
RIDH
A (A
)
As t
he o
ld m
an s
at b
y th
e ca
ndle
w
ritin
g hi
s le
tter,
a ge
ntle
bre
eze
blew
thro
ugh
the
curta
ins,
cau
sing
the
can
dle
to
flick
er. H
e w
as d
eep
in th
ough
t, an
d w
ith e
ach
wor
d he
wro
te,
he
seem
ed
mor
e co
nfus
ed.
Eac
h tim
e he
w
ould
fin
ish
writ
ing
a se
nten
ce,
he
wou
ld
sh
ak
e h
is
he
ad
in
diss
atis
fact
ion,
th
en
crum
ple
his
pape
r in
frust
ratio
n!
The
man
sto
od u
p an
d w
alke
d to
war
ds
the
win
dow
, ho
ping
th
at
the
cool
br
eeze
w
ould
re
fresh
his
min
d a
nd a
llow
him
to
co
lle
ct
his
th
ou
gh
ts.
Sudd
enly,
a b
right
sta
r in
the
ni
ght s
ky c
augh
t his
eye
. It w
as
as t
houg
h ev
en t
he d
ate
trees
no
ticed
the
brig
ht s
tar a
nd w
ere
wav
ing
thei
r lea
ves
tow
ards
it.
76The
bree
ze h
it hi
s fa
ce a
gain
, and
his
face
an
d bo
dy s
hive
red
as h
e th
ough
t ab
out
his
lette
r. Al
thou
gh h
e w
as v
ery
inte
lligen
t, he
kn
ew w
hen
to a
sk f
or h
elp.
W
hene
ver
he
was
stu
ck, h
e w
ould
turn
to th
e Im
am (A
). In
hi
s ol
d ag
e, h
e ha
d m
et a
nd s
poke
n w
ith
man
y of
the
Imam
s: Im
am a
l-Baq
ir (A
), Im
am
as-S
adiq
(A),
and
Imam
al-K
adhi
m (A
). H
e ga
zed
up a
t th
e br
ight
sta
r ag
ain,
and
th
en d
ecid
ed t
o pu
t on
his
war
m s
carf
and
shoe
s. A
s he
wal
ked
out t
he d
oor,
the
cold
air
seem
ed e
ven
cool
er,
but
the
brig
htne
ss o
f th
e st
ar t
win
kled
at
him
a
s th
ough
it
was
en
cour
agin
g hi
m to
kee
p go
ing.
He
look
ed a
t th
e da
te t
rees
aga
in,
and
they
als
o se
emed
to
qui
ver a
s if
they
wan
ted
to g
uide
him
to h
is
dest
inat
ion,
Im
am
al-K
adhi
m
(A)’s
ho
use.
Th
e ol
d m
an w
alke
d qu
ickl
y un
til h
e fo
und
him
self
at th
e Im
am’s
doo
rste
p.
The
man
sto
od u
p an
d w
alke
d to
war
ds t
he
win
dow,
hop
ing
that
the
coo
l br
eeze
wou
ld
refre
sh h
is m
ind
and
allo
w h
im to
col
lect
his
th
ough
ts. S
udde
nly,
a b
right
sta
r in
the
nigh
t sk
y ca
ught
his
eye
. It
was
as
thou
gh e
ven
the
date
tre
es n
otic
ed t
he b
right
sta
r an
d w
ere
wav
ing
thei
r lea
ves
tow
ards
it.
77As th
e ol
d m
an s
tood
out
side
the
hous
e, h
e fe
lt an
unc
erta
inty
in h
is
deci
sion
to c
ome
so la
te. H
e pi
cked
up
his
han
d to
kno
ck,
but
quic
kly
brou
ght
it ba
ck
dow
n.
“May
be
I sh
ould
not
dis
turb
the
Imam
(A);
it’s
so la
te!”
he t
houg
ht t
o hi
mse
lf. H
e tu
rned
aro
und
and
was
abo
ut t
o le
ave,
but
the
n he
hea
rd a
voi
ce
callin
g ou
t hi
s na
me,
“M
ufad
dhal
!” Th
e ol
d m
an w
as s
tunn
ed,
but
at
the
sam
e tim
e, h
e fe
lt re
lieve
d an
d ge
ntly
kno
cked
on
the
door
.
As th
e Im
am (
A) o
pene
d th
e do
or,
Muf
addh
al n
otic
ed a
sw
eet
child
pl
ayin
g be
hind
him
. The
Im
am (
A)
wel
com
ed h
im in
to th
e ho
use.
The
ol
d m
an k
ept
smilin
g at
the
you
ng
child
, w
ho
was
pl
ayin
g on
th
e sh
ould
ers
of t
he I
mam
. Th
e ch
ild
was
lau
ghin
g as
he
kept
clim
bing
on
to th
e Im
am’s
bac
k an
d sl
ippi
ng
dow
n. T
he Im
am w
ould
sm
ile a
t the
ch
ild,
kiss
him
, an
d th
en h
elp
him
ba
ck o
nto
his
shou
lder
s.
78Imam
al-K
adhi
m (
A) s
mile
d an
d sa
id,
“Ple
ase
, M
ufa
dd
ha
l, a
sk
you
r qu
estio
ns!”
Muf
addh
al b
egan
ask
ing
his
ques
tions
, an
d ea
ch t
ime
the
Imam
(A)
ga
ve a
n an
swer
, M
ufad
dhal
fel
t pe
ace
and
tranq
uilit
y in
his
hea
rt. W
hile
the
Im
am (
A) w
as a
nsw
erin
g hi
s qu
estio
ns,
he
cont
inue
d pl
ayin
g w
ith
the
youn
g ch
ild
. T
he
you
ng
chil
d m
ad
e M
ufad
dhal
’s
hear
t fe
el
war
m
with
ha
ppin
ess.
Muf
addh
al h
eard
Im
am a
l-Kad
him
(A)
sa
y to
his
son
, “M
ay m
y fa
ther
and
m
othe
r be
sa
crifi
ced
for
you!
Yo
ur
fragr
ance
is s
o de
ar to
me!
” U
pon
hear
ing
this
, an
othe
r qu
estio
n po
pped
into
Muf
addh
al’s
min
d. H
e sa
id,
“May
my
fath
er a
nd m
othe
r be
sacr
ifice
d fo
r you
, o m
y Im
am! I
feel
a s
trang
e pu
ll of
love
tow
ards
this
you
ng c
hild
; he
has
give
n m
e a
spec
ial
joy
that
I h
ave
felt
only
for y
ou. W
ho is
this
chi
ld?”
79The
Imam
’s
face
be
amed
w
ith
a sm
ile a
nd h
e pl
aced
his
han
d on
the
yo
ung
child
nex
t to
him
. He
said
, “O
h M
ufad
dhal
, th
is i
s m
y so
n ar
-Rid
ha.
He
is to
me
like
I was
to m
y fa
ther
.” M
ufad
dhal
fel
t hi
s he
art
skip
a b
eat.
He
had
hear
d th
is s
ame
sent
ence
be
fore
! H
e be
gan
repe
atin
g th
is
sent
ence
in
his
min
d an
d th
ough
t to
hi
mse
lf, “
If th
is c
hild
has
the
sam
e re
latio
nshi
p to
his
fath
er th
at Im
am a
l-Ka
dhim
(A)
had
to
his
fath
er...
then
th
is m
eans
that
he
is th
e ne
xt Im
am!”
He
exci
tedl
y as
ked,
“Oh
my
Imam
, will
this
you
ng c
hild
be
Imam
afte
r you
?!”
Imam
al
-Kad
him
(A
) lo
oked
at
M
ufa
dd
ha
l a
nd
smil
ed
as
he
resp
onde
d, “
Yes,
any
one
who
follo
ws
the
Imam
will
find
the
right
pat
h, a
nd
anyo
ne w
ho d
oes
not o
bey
him
will
be
mis
guid
ed.”
Muf
addh
al n
odde
d w
ith
unde
rsta
ndin
g an
d fe
lt ex
trem
ely
happ
y th
at in
add
ition
to g
ettin
g al
l his
qu
estio
ns a
nsw
ered
, he
was
als
o ab
le
to m
eet t
he n
ext I
mam
!
80
Muf
addh
al s
taye
d fo
r a li
ttle
whi
le
long
er, b
ut h
e kn
ew th
at h
e sh
ould
le
t the
Imam
(A) r
est.
He
stoo
d up
an
d pa
id h
is r
espe
cts
to Im
am a
l-Ka
dhim
(A)
and
Im
am a
r-Rid
ha
(A),
and
then
wal
ked
out
smilin
g.
As h
e w
alke
d ou
tsid
e, h
e st
ood
by
the
Imam
(A)
’s d
oor
for
a lit
tle
whi
le a
nd n
otic
ed t
hat
the
date
tre
es w
ere
no l
onge
r qu
iver
ing,
an
d th
e ni
ght s
ky h
ad c
lear
ed u
p.
He
look
ed d
irect
ly o
verh
ead
and
saw
tha
t th
e br
ight
sta
r th
at h
e ha
d se
en s
hini
ng f
rom
his
hom
e w
as n
ow r
ight
abo
ve t
he I
mam
’s
hous
e.
He
look
ed
agai
n at
th
e da
te tr
ees
and
coul
d no
w s
ee th
at
they
wer
e po
intin
g st
raig
ht u
p at
th
e br
ight
sta
r!
WORKSHEET
1. What did the bri ht star represent?
. Why did ufadhel isit the mam?
81
LESSON 11: IMAM MUHAMMAD AL-JAWAD (A)
Ahmed asked his mother, “Mom, are there any more Imams buried in Mashhad?”
“Nope, Imam al-Ridha (A) is the only one. The 9th Imam, Imam Muhammad al-Jawad (A) is buried in Kadhmain, just like his grandfather,” his mother replied.
“Oh, can you tell me more about him please?” Ahmed asked.
His mother answered, “Imam al-Jawad (A) is the 9th Imam and the son of Imamal-Ridha (A) and Sabika.”
“ I s n ’ t h e a l s o k n o w n a s I m a m Muhammad at-Taqi (A)?” Ahmed asked.
“Yes, at-Taqi, ‘the pious,’ is one of his titles. He was born on the 10th of Rajab in Medina and was poisoned by the evil caliph Mo’tasim on the 29th of Dhul Qa’dah. He became the Imam after his father died at the young age of 8 years! Even though he was so young, he was very wise and kind. He was also very brave! Let me tell you a story to show just how brave he was!” His mother told him.
82
83
IMAM
MUH
AMM
AD A
L-JA
WAD
(A)
The
sun
was
sl
owly
da
wni
ng
upon
the
city
, an
d th
e hu
stle
and
bu
stle
of t
he c
ity g
radu
ally
cam
e to
lif
e as
peo
ple
got
read
y to
beg
in
thei
r da
y. H
owev
er,
the
peac
eful
m
orni
ng w
as s
oon
dist
urbe
d as
the
grou
nd s
hook
with
the
loud
clic
king
of
ho
rses
. A
s pe
ople
w
alke
d ou
tsid
e th
eir
hom
e to
see
wha
t w
as g
oing
on,
the
y ye
lled
out
of
fear
as
they
wer
e at
tack
ed b
y tw
o la
rge
sold
iers
on
blac
k ho
rses
. The
la
shin
g no
ise
of th
e w
hips
was
so
loud
and
frig
hten
ing
that
peo
ple
wer
e af
raid
to
leav
e th
eir
hom
es
and
quic
kly
ran
back
insi
de!
They
pee
red
out t
heir
win
dow
s fu
ll of
fea
r, pr
ayin
g fo
r th
e sa
fety
of
ever
yone
on
th
e st
reet
s.
They
co
uld
n
ot
un
de
rsta
nd
wh
y M
aʿm
oon,
the
evi
l C
alip
h, w
ould
be
cau
sing
suc
h a
com
mot
ion
with
hi
s so
ldie
rs;
the
road
was
wid
e,
and
no o
ne w
as b
lock
ing
his
way
to
get
thro
ugh
the
stre
ets.
84A lit
tle f
urth
er a
head
, an
old
man
se
lling
date
s fro
m a
tray
was
cal
mly
w
alki
ng d
own
the
stre
et, w
hen
all o
f a
sudd
en,
one
of
Maʿ
moo
n’s
sold
iers
yel
led
at h
im,
“O o
ld m
an,
mov
e or
I w
ill tra
mpl
e rig
ht o
ver
you!
”
Be
fore
th
e ol
d m
an
coul
d ev
en
blin
k, t
he s
oldi
er w
hipp
ed h
is la
sh,
hitti
ng th
e ol
d m
an o
n th
e sh
ould
er.
The
lash
was
so
seve
re a
nd p
ainf
ul
that
the
old
man
dro
pped
his
tra
y,
and
the
date
s fe
ll al
l ov
er
the
grou
nd.
He
quic
kly
tried
to
gath
er
the
date
s, b
ut i
t w
as t
oo l
ate;
the
ho
rses
had
tra
mpl
ed o
ver
mos
t of
th
em,
smoo
shin
g th
em,
and
even
th
e on
es t
hat
wer
e no
t sm
ashe
d w
ere
now
too
dust
y an
d di
rty to
eat
! P
eopl
e w
ere
so
conf
used
an
d di
sgus
ted
by
the
acti
ons
of
Maʿ
moo
n an
d hi
s so
ldie
rs th
at th
ey
wou
ld
curs
e th
em
unde
r th
eir
brea
th
ever
ytim
e he
an
d hi
s co
mpa
nion
s ar
roga
ntly
pas
sed
by.
85Maʿ
moo
n co
ntin
ued
mak
ing
his
way
dow
n th
e st
reet
. H
e ne
ither
no
ticed
any
body
, nor
did
he
both
er
sayi
ng s
alam
to a
sin
gle
soul
. As
he
an
d hi
s w
icke
d so
ldie
rs
mov
ed
thro
ugh
the
city
st
reet
s,
they
cam
e ac
ross
a s
treet
ful
l of
yo
ung
child
ren
play
ing.
O
ne
sold
ier
bega
n ye
lling,
“H
ey,
kids
! Ar
e yo
u de
af?!
Do
you
not h
ear u
s co
min
g?! M
ove
out!”
As s
oon
as t
he k
ids
hear
d th
e ye
lls
and
loud
cl
acki
ng
of
the
hors
es,
they
all
bega
n sc
ream
ing
and
anxi
ousl
y ru
nnin
g ba
ck
to
thei
r ho
mes
. H
owev
er,
one
six
year
old
boy
, w
ho w
as a
mon
gst
the
child
ren,
did
not
mov
e. H
e ha
d no
t bee
n pl
ayin
g, b
ut h
e ha
d be
en
sitti
ng a
nd w
atch
ing
all
the
othe
r ch
ildre
n pl
ay. A
s th
e so
ldie
rs g
rew
cl
oser
, th
e yo
ung
child
sto
od u
p;
the
harm
ony
on h
is f
ace
caus
ed
the
sold
iers
to
stop
dea
d in
the
ir tr
acks
. A
ll th
e so
ldie
rs
wer
e en
chan
ted
by th
e ch
ild’s
face
.
86The
youn
g bo
y le
aned
aga
inst
the
wal
l and
w
atch
ed M
aʿm
oon
and
his
sold
iers
as
they
w
alke
d rig
ht b
y hi
m.
The
youn
g bo
y’s
face
ca
ught
M
aʿm
oon’
s at
tent
ion,
an
d he
im
med
iate
ly
felt
unea
sy;
he
coul
dn’t
unde
rsta
nd w
hy t
his
youn
g bo
y w
as s
till
outs
ide!
He
stop
ped
in fr
ont o
f the
sm
all c
hild
an
d de
man
ded,
“W
hy d
id y
ou n
ot r
un in
side
lik
e al
l the
oth
er c
hild
ren?
!” Th
e yo
ung
boy
calm
ly re
plie
d, “W
hy s
houl
d I
go in
side
? I h
ave
done
not
hing
. The
stre
ets
are
very
wid
e; y
ou c
ould
eas
ily p
ass
thro
ugh
whi
le o
ther
s ar
e st
ill ou
tsid
e.”
Maʿ
moo
n w
as
take
n ab
ack;
how
dar
e so
meo
ne s
peak
to
him
like
this
, esp
ecia
lly a
chi
ld?!
Maʿ
moo
n fin
ally
man
aged
to s
tutte
r, “W
hat i
s yo
ur n
ame?
! Who
is y
our f
athe
r?!”
Onc
e ag
ain,
the
you
ng c
hild
cal
mly
rep
lied,
“M
y na
me
is M
uham
mad
, an
d m
y fa
ther
is
Ali.”
Maʿ
moo
n im
med
iate
ly r
ecog
nize
d th
e yo
ung
child
; he
kne
w t
his
was
Im
am a
l-Ja
wad
(A),
the
son
of Im
am a
r-Rid
ha (A
). H
e no
w u
nder
stoo
d w
hy t
his
child
had
not
run
aw
ay f
right
ened
lik
e th
e ot
her
child
ren;
he
was
from
the
brav
e lin
eage
of I
mam
Ali
(A).
87Maʿ
moo
n tri
ed to
turn
aw
ay,
but
coul
dn’t.
It
was
as
if hi
s bo
dy
had
froz
en;
he
felt
asha
med
bec
ause
he
knew
th
at t
he I
mam
(A)
kne
w t
hat
he h
ad k
illed
his
fath
er, I
mam
ar
-Rid
ha (A
). Ev
en th
ough
he
had
done
it
very
sn
eaki
ly,
ever
yone
ha
d ev
entu
ally
fo
und
out
abou
t M
a'm
oon’
s ev
il ac
tion.
Im
am
al-J
awad
(A
) lo
oked
st
raig
ht
into
M
aʿm
oon’
s ey
es.
Sudd
enly,
M
aʿm
oon
rem
embe
red
that
hi
s pe
ople
w
ere
star
ing
at
him
and
eag
erly
wai
ting
for
him
to
give
a w
itty
repl
y to
Im
am a
l-Jaw
ad (
A),
but
he
was
at a
loss
for w
ords
.
Maʿ
moo
n pu
t up
hi
s ha
nd
and
stiff
ly
said
, “V
ery
wel
l, le
t’s g
o!”
His
sol
dier
s w
ere
stun
ned!
Thi
s lit
tle b
oy h
ad
dum
bfou
nded
th
e ca
liph!
C
onfu
sed,
the
y fo
llow
ed h
is
com
man
d an
d be
gan
mov
ing
onw
ards
.
88As M
aʿm
oon
and
his
sold
iers
m
oved
thr
ough
the
stre
ets,
he
coul
d no
t st
op t
hink
ing
abou
t th
e yo
ung
Imam
(A)
. H
e fe
lt be
little
d an
d an
gry
and
thou
ght
to h
imse
lf, “
How
dar
e th
is c
hild
ta
lk t
o m
e lik
e th
is?!
I
’m t
he
mig
hty
calip
h!”
As t
hey
mov
ed
furth
er a
nd f
urth
er a
way
fro
m
the
city
st
reet
s,
a re
new
ed
feel
ing
of p
eace
ove
rcam
e th
e st
ree
ts.
All
the
chil
dre
n su
rroun
ded
Imam
al-J
awad
(A)
an
d ap
plau
ded
him
fo
r hi
s br
aver
y. S
oon
afte
r, th
e st
reet
s w
ere
once
aga
in f
illed
with
the
w
onde
rful c
heer
s an
d no
ises
of
all t
he y
oung
chi
ldre
n pl
ayin
g.
WORKSHEET
1. Why did e eryone et off the streets?
. Who was a moon?
. What did mam awad say to a moon?
89
LESSON 12: IMAM ALI AL-HADI (A)
“After we visit Kadhmain, we will then go to Samarra, InshaʿAllah!” Ahmed’s mom told him.
“Who is buried in Samarra?” Ahmed asked.
“One of the Imams buried in Samarra is our 10th Imam, Imam Ali al-Hadi or an-Naqi (A). He is the son of Imam al-Jawad (A) and Samana. He was born on the 3rd of Rajab and died on the 15th of Dhul Hijjah. Just like his father, he also became the Imam at the young age of 8!” His mom said.
“How did Imam al-Hadi (A) end up in Samarra?” he asked.
“The evil caliph during his time, Mutawakkil, forced Imam al-Hadi (A) to leave Medina and move to Samarra. He was in prison for a very long time in Samarra. Finally, Mutawakkil poisoned our Imam, who died at the age of 42.”
“Why did the caliph poison him?” Ahmed asked.
“He was scared that too many people would follow him. You see, our Imam was very smart, even from a very young age. Let me tell you a story to show you what I mean,” his mother replied.
90
91
IMAM
ALI
AL-
HAAD
I (A)
The
evil
calip
h Mʿu
tasi
m g
runt
ed a
nd
mur
mur
ed.
He
push
ed h
is f
ood
arou
nd
his
plat
e as
he
angr
ily g
lanc
ed a
roun
d hi
s pa
lace
. He
rem
oved
his
cro
wn
and
wip
ed
his
head
, w
hich
was
dre
nche
d in
sw
eat
beca
use
of h
is e
xtre
me
ange
r. H
is v
izie
r ne
rvou
sly
knee
led
befo
re h
im
and
shak
ily s
aid,
“M
y m
aste
r, m
ay m
y fa
ther
and
mot
her
be s
acrif
iced
for
you
.” H
owev
er,
this
on
ly
ange
red
Mʿu
tasi
m
even
mor
e!
He
shou
ted,
“Q
uiet
! I
don’
t w
ant
to h
ear
anyo
ne!”
The
vizi
er q
uick
ly s
tood
up
agai
n, m
akin
g su
re to
avo
id e
ye c
onta
ct. T
he s
oldi
ers
in
the
room
shu
dder
ed in
fear
. You
see
, the
ca
liph
was
kno
wn
for
mak
ing
very
cru
el
deci
sion
s ag
ains
t hi
s so
ldie
rs w
hen
he
was
ang
ry. T
he la
st ti
me
he w
as a
ngry
, he
sent
a s
oldi
er t
o th
e ex
ecut
ione
r ju
st f
or
mak
ing
a sm
all s
ound
.
92Mʿu
tasi
m g
ot u
p an
d st
arte
d pa
cing
bac
k an
d fo
rth in
the
pala
ce, w
hile
he
mut
tere
d un
der
his
brea
th,
“We
put
him
in p
rison
, an
d he
tea
ches
th
e pr
ison
gu
ards
. W
e ba
nish
hi
m
to
the
outs
kirts
of
the
city
, an
d he
gui
des
the
peop
le
ther
e. I
have
to…
we
have
to…
pois
on h
im! B
ut if
w
e po
ison
him
, th
e Sh
iʿas
will
prot
est!
Ugh
! W
hat
do I
do
with
thi
s fa
mily
?!”
He
thre
w h
is
arm
s up
in fr
ustra
tion.
He
had
just
mar
tyre
d Im
am a
l-Jaw
ad (
A),
but
now
he
did
not
know
wha
t to
do
with
his
son
, Im
am a
l-Had
i (A)
. Im
am a
l-Had
i (A)
was
onl
y a
seve
n ye
ar o
ld c
hild
and
had
alre
ady
star
ted
win
ning
th
e he
arts
of
th
e pe
ople
! If
he
impr
ison
ed h
im,
the
peop
le w
ould
rev
olt,
but
if he
did
not
hing
, he
kne
w t
hat
Imam
al-H
adi (
A)
wou
ld e
arn
ever
yone
’s lo
ve a
nd s
ympa
thy
and
over
thro
w th
e ca
liph!
Peo
ple
alw
ays
seem
ed to
fin
d th
eir w
ay to
war
ds th
e tru
th, s
o he
had
to d
o so
met
hing
to g
et ri
d of
him
! Th
e vi
zier
fel
t he
had
fou
nd a
goo
d tim
e to
in
terru
pt
Mʿu
tasi
m’s
th
ough
ts
and
nerv
ousl
y sa
id, “
May
I be
sac
rific
ed fo
r yo
u, m
y m
aste
r. I
have
a g
ood
idea
!” Mʿu
tasi
m s
harp
ly t
urne
d ar
ound
and
wal
ked
tow
ards
his
viz
ier.
93Mʿu
tasi
m v
icio
usly
gra
bbed
the
vizi
er’s
col
lar
and
angr
ily f
lash
ed a
ll hi
s te
eth
at h
im a
nd
yelle
d, “
I w
ill m
ake
your
mot
her
cry
for
you!
Yo
u be
tter n
ot s
ay a
nyth
ing
ridic
ulou
s, o
r I w
ill ki
ll yo
u!”
The
vizi
er’s
m
outh
tu
rned
dr
y.
He
gulp
ed
loud
ly a
nd t
rem
bled
, “U
h…ye
s m
y m
aste
r! W
hate
ver y
ou o
rder
!” Mʿu
tasi
m
let
go
of
the
vizi
er’s
co
llar
and
shou
ted,
“Spe
ak!”
The
vizi
er c
augh
t hi
s br
eath
and
sai
d, “
He
is
very
you
ng. W
hy d
on’t
we
brin
g hi
m h
ere
and
train
him
our
selv
es?”
Mʿu
tasi
m
peer
ed
at
him
co
nfus
edly
an
d de
man
ded,
“Wha
t do
you
mea
n?!”
The
vizi
er a
nsw
ered
, “Si
nce
he is
just
a c
hild
, w
e ca
n st
ill te
ach
him
. I
know
of
a Q
urʿa
n te
ache
r na
med
Jun
aydi
who
hat
es t
he A
hlul
Ba
yt. A
ll w
e ha
ve to
do
is p
ay h
im g
ener
ousl
y,
and
he c
an te
ach
the
youn
g bo
y ho
w to
hat
e th
e Ah
lul B
ayt!
This
is m
uch
bette
r tha
n pu
tting
th
e yo
ung
boy
in j
ail,
and
no o
ne w
ill re
volt
agai
nst
you,
bec
ause
the
y w
ill ha
ve n
o id
ea
wha
t w
e ar
e do
ing!
” Th
e vi
zier
w
as
very
pl
ease
d w
ith h
is o
wn
answ
er,
but
was
stil
l w
orrie
d ab
out Mʿu
tasi
m’s
reac
tion.
94Mʿu
tasi
m
star
ed
at
the
vizi
er
for
a m
omen
t, an
d th
en lo
oked
aw
ay. H
e bi
t int
o an
app
le, a
s th
e ju
ice
trick
led
dow
n in
to h
is
mus
tach
e an
d be
ard.
All
of a
sud
den,
he
bega
n la
ughi
ng
unco
ntro
llabl
y,
caus
ing
piec
es o
f th
e ap
ple
to f
all
out
from
his
m
outh
. He
wip
ed h
is m
outh
with
his
sle
eve
and
then
sna
rked
at
the
vizi
er,
“I kn
ew I
co
uldn
’t fin
d an
yone
sm
arte
r tha
n yo
u!”
Mʿu
tasi
m g
rabb
ed a
bag
of g
old
and
thre
w
it at
the
vizi
er. T
he g
old
bag
hit h
is c
hest
so
hard
that
it c
ause
d th
e go
ld c
oins
to s
pill
all
over
the
floor
. The
viz
ier t
hank
ed th
e ca
liph
as h
e qu
ickl
y pi
cked
up
the
coin
s.
That
sam
e af
tern
oon,
the
cal
iph
sent
a
mes
seng
er to
Jun
aydi
with
a le
tter a
nd tw
o ba
gs o
f go
ld c
oins
. H
e kn
ocke
d on
the
do
or,
and
as i
t sw
ung
open
, a
very
old
Ju
nayd
i sto
od th
ere.
He
was
so
old
that
his
ba
ck
was
be
nt,
and
his
face
w
as
so
wrin
kled
tha
t it
seem
ed a
s th
ough
hol
es
had
been
bur
row
ed in
to it
. Jun
aydi
hap
pily
ac
cept
ed t
he jo
b, a
nd t
old
the
mes
seng
er
to s
end
Imam
al-H
adi (
A) to
his
sch
ool t
he
next
day
.
95The
next
mor
ning
, as
all t
he k
ids
filed
into
Jun
aydi
’s
Qurʿa
n cl
ass,
he
anxi
ousl
y lo
oked
aro
und
for
Imam
al
-Had
i (A
). H
e fin
ally
spo
tted
him
nex
t to
him
and
no
ticed
tha
t he
was
the
onl
y ch
ild w
ithou
t a
Qurʿa
n.
Juna
ydi s
mile
d an
d th
ough
t to
him
self,
“Ha!
Thi
s ch
ild
prob
ably
doe
sn’t
know
any
thin
g! I
can
tra
nsla
te t
he
ayah
s of
the
Qurʿa
n ho
wev
er I
like,
and
he
won
’t ha
ve
a cl
ue!”
Juna
ydi c
lear
ed h
is th
roat
as
all t
he s
tude
nts
open
ed
thei
r Qurʿa
n m
usha
fs, r
eady
to b
egin
cla
ss.
A m
onth
la
ter,
Mʿu
tasi
m’s
m
esse
nger
in
form
ed
Juna
ydi
that
the
cal
iph
wan
ted
to s
ee h
im f
or a
n up
date
on
how
thi
ngs
wer
e go
ing.
Jun
aydi
gra
bbed
hi
s ca
ne
tight
ly
and
slow
ly
wal
ked
tow
ards
th
e ca
liph’
s ca
stle
. Ea
ch
step
of
th
e w
ay,
he
was
m
utte
ring
som
ethi
ng t
o hi
mse
lf, a
s th
ough
he
was
w
orrie
d.
As h
e w
alke
d in
to t
he p
alac
e, J
unay
di r
espe
ctfu
lly
bow
ed b
efor
e th
e ca
liph,
who
was
in th
e m
iddl
e of
a
mea
l. Mʿu
tasi
m w
as s
o ex
cite
d to
hea
r go
od n
ews
that
he
didn
’t ev
en w
ait t
o sw
allo
w a
nd w
ith a
mou
th
full
of fo
od a
sked
, “So
, wha
t new
s do
you
hav
e ab
out
the
boy?
” Ju
nayd
i res
pect
fully
sai
d, “
Oh
my
mas
ter,
plea
se d
o no
t sa
y ch
ild;
say
teac
her.”
Mʿu
tasi
m i
mm
edia
tely
st
oppe
d ch
ewin
g hi
s fo
od. H
is ja
w d
ropp
ed o
pen
and
his
eyeb
row
s m
et a
t the
mid
dle
with
an
angr
y fro
wn.
96He
dem
ande
d,
“Wha
t do
yo
u m
ean,
Ju
nayd
i?! B
e cl
ear!”
Juna
ydi
repl
ied,
“M
y m
aste
r, ev
eryo
ne
know
s m
e as
a te
ache
r.” Ju
nayd
i co
ntin
ued,
“Bu
t th
is c
hild
is
muc
h m
ore
educ
ated
than
I am
! He
has
the
entir
e Q
urʿa
n m
emor
ized
-- h
e ev
en p
oint
s ou
t my
mis
take
s! H
e do
esn’
t br
ing
a Q
urʿa
n, b
ut
whe
neve
r I
ask
him
to
reci
te f
rom
a l
ong
sura
h, h
e kn
ows
whe
re to
sta
rt an
d w
here
to
end.
As
I hea
r him
reci
te th
e ve
rses
, I fe
el a
s if
I kno
w n
othi
ng. H
e kn
ows
the
answ
ers
to
the
mos
t cha
lleng
ing
ques
tions
; I d
on’t
even
kn
ow w
here
he
gets
all
his
know
ledg
e! W
hat
coul
d I p
ossi
bly
teac
h hi
m?
He
is m
y te
a…”
Befo
re J
unay
di c
ould
fin
ish
his
sent
ence
, Mʿu
tasi
m
loud
ly
shou
ted,
“S
TOP
!” H
e gr
abbe
d th
e ne
ares
t po
meg
rana
te
and
thre
w it
at J
unay
di. E
very
one
stoo
d st
ill an
d w
atch
ed
the
calip
h’s
actio
ns
in
shoc
k.
Mʿu
tasi
m ra
n to
war
ds o
ne o
f his
gua
rds
and
grab
bed
his
swor
d.
He
bega
n ru
nnin
g to
war
ds h
is v
izie
r whi
le s
hout
ing,
“I t
old
you
I w
ould
mak
e yo
ur m
othe
r cr
y!”
Ever
yone
w
atch
ed a
s th
e vi
zier
ran
out
of t
he p
alac
e ha
ll, n
ever
to b
e se
en a
gain
.
WORKSHEET
1. Why was o tasim so an ry?
. What was the i ier s su estion?
. What happened when unadi tried to teach mam al Hadi (A)?
97
LESSON 13: IMAM HASAN AL-ASKARI (A)
“So, who else is buried in Samarra?” Ahmed asked his mother.
“Our 11th Imam, Imam Hasan al-Askari (A), the son of Imam al-Hadi (A) and Sayyidah Sausan, is buried in Samarra. He was born on the 8th of Rabi ul-Thaani and passed away on the 8th of Rabi ul-Awwal,” his mom replied.
Ahmed asked, “At what age did Imam al-Askari (A) become the Imam?”
“He became the Imam at age 22, after his father died. He was only the Imam for 6 years. You see, the evil caliph knew that Imam Hasan al-Askari (A) would give birth to the final Imam, who would fill the world with justice and equality, and they wanted to stop this from
happening. So, they kept the Imam under house arrest,” his mom told him.
Ahmed was confused. He asked, “So then how was the 12th Imam born?”
His mother replied, “Allah is the best of planners! He arranged for Imam Hasan al-Askari (A) to marry Hadhrat Narjis, and she secretly gave birth to our 12th Imam. When Imam al-Askari (A) was poisoned by the caliph and died, it was the 12th Imam who led his funeral prayers, to show everyone that he was the last Imam!”
“Allah really is the best of planners! Can you please tell me a story about Imam al-Askari (A)?” Ahmed asked.
His mother answered, “Sure!”
98
99
IMAM
HAS
AN A
L-AS
KARI
(A)
The
dust
y st
reet
s w
ere
fille
d w
ith
nois
e as
chi
ldre
n pl
ayed
the
ir ga
mes
. In
on
e co
rner
, so
me
child
ren
wer
e pl
ayin
g an
exc
iting
gam
e of
soc
cer.
As
they
pla
yed,
the
ball
wou
ld b
ounc
e of
f th
e do
ors
and
wal
ls
of
build
ings
ne
arby
, so
met
imes
acc
iden
tally
hitt
ing
peop
le w
ho w
ere
pass
ing
by.
On
the
othe
r si
de o
f th
e st
reet
, ki
ds
wer
e pr
eten
d sw
ord-
fight
ing,
try
ing
to
see
who
was
the
best
sol
dier
am
ongs
t th
em.
On
the
foot
step
s of
a n
earb
y ho
use,
so
me
othe
r ch
ildre
n w
ere
spin
ning
col
orfu
l top
s, la
ughi
ng
each
tim
e th
e to
p tu
mbl
ed.
One
wom
an f
inal
ly c
ame
out
of h
er
hom
e w
avin
g a
broo
m i
n he
r ha
nd
shou
ting,
“W
hy
are
you
mak
ing
so
muc
h no
ise?
! D
on’t
you
have
so
mew
here
els
e yo
u ca
n pl
ay?!
” Th
e ch
ildre
n pa
id
no
atte
ntio
n to
he
r, th
ough
, as
they
wer
e to
o bu
sy p
layi
ng.
100Just
th
en,
a ve
ry
tall
man
w
alke
d th
roug
h th
e st
reet
. H
e w
as w
earin
g a
gray
tho
be a
nd
had
a pu
rple
aba
dra
ped
on h
is
shou
lder
s.
He
was
on
e of
th
e co
mpa
nion
s of
Imam
al-H
adi (
A).
As h
e w
alke
d th
roug
h th
e st
reet
s,
ther
e w
ere
kids
in h
is w
ay, b
ut h
e di
dn’t
wan
t to
dist
urb
thei
r gam
es,
so
he
wou
ld
wai
t fo
r th
em
to
finis
h an
d th
en w
alk
whe
n th
e pa
th w
as c
lear
. So
met
imes
, th
e ki
ds
wou
ld
even
ru
n rig
ht
into
hi
m, b
ut h
e w
ould
just
sm
ile a
t all
the
fun
they
wer
e ha
ving
. As
he
cont
inue
d to
wal
k, h
e ca
me
acro
ss o
ne c
hild
who
was
qui
etly
si
tting
by
him
self
on th
e st
eps
of
a ho
use.
Th
e ch
ild
was
ju
st
wat
chin
g th
e ot
her
kids
pla
y. T
he
man
won
dere
d w
hy th
is li
ttle
boy
was
not
pla
ying
. W
as it
bec
ause
he
did
not
hav
e a
toy?
101The
kind
com
pani
on d
ecid
ed to
go
to
one
of t
he li
ttle
shop
s an
d su
rpris
e th
e ch
ild w
ith a
bea
utifu
l w
oo
de
n sw
ord
. T
he
ma
n pr
esen
ted
the
toy
to th
e ch
ild a
nd
said
, “L
ook
wha
t I
got
for
you!
I
boug
ht y
ou a
won
derfu
l w
oode
n sw
ord
so y
ou c
an g
o pl
ay w
ith
the
othe
r kid
s.”
The
boy
smile
d at
the
man
and
sa
id, “
Than
k yo
u ve
ry m
uch,
but
I am
si
tting
he
re
beca
use
I am
th
inki
ng
abou
t Al
lah’
s w
onde
rs.
Do
you
know
tha
t Al
lah
says
in
the
Qurʿa
n th
at w
e ha
ve n
ot b
een
crea
ted
only
to p
lay?
'' Th
e m
an w
as s
hock
ed b
y th
e lit
tle b
oy’s
res
pons
e. H
e re
aliz
ed
that
this
was
no
ordi
nary
boy
; thi
s w
as a
ver
y sp
ecia
l boy
inde
ed.
Plea
se n
ote
that
the
topi
c of
this
stor
y is
not p
layin
g an
d it
do
es n
ot in
tend
to d
iscou
rage
kid
s pl
ayin
g, it
sho
wing
a
diffe
rent
per
spec
tive
and
deep
er u
nder
stan
ding
of t
he p
urpo
se o
f life
.
102The
man
sat
dow
n ne
xt to
the
child
and
as
ked,
“So,
why
hav
e w
e be
en c
reat
ed?”
The
child
co
nfid
ently
re
plie
d,
“To
gain
kn
owle
dge
and
wor
ship
Alla
h.”
The
man
was
now
eve
n m
ore
curio
us
abou
t th
e yo
ung
boy
and
aske
d, “
Whe
re
did
you
lear
n th
is fr
om?”
Th
e yo
ung
boy
look
ed
at
him
an
d an
swer
ed, “
In th
e Q
urʿa
n, A
llah
says
, ‘D
o yo
u th
ink
that
you
hav
e be
en c
reat
ed
with
out a
ny p
urpo
se?’
” (23
:115
)
Now
, th
e m
an w
as c
ompl
etel
y sh
ocke
d.
This
chi
ld k
new
the
Qurʿa
n so
wel
l! H
e kn
ow t
hat
only
an
Imam
cou
ld s
peak
so
beau
tiful
ly. I
mam
al-H
adi
(A)
wou
ld a
lso
spea
k in
this
way
and
quo
te th
e Q
urʿa
n in
hi
s di
scus
sion
s. S
low
ly, i
t da
wne
d up
on
the
man
w
hom
he
w
as
spea
king
to
. Su
rely,
this
chi
ld m
ust b
e fro
m th
e fa
mily
of
Ras
ulul
lah
(S).
103
Can
you
gue
ss w
ho th
is c
hild
was
? Ye
s, th
e ch
ild w
as
Imam
Has
an a
l-Ask
ari (
A), t
he s
on o
f Im
am a
l-Had
i (A)
! Th
e m
an w
as a
lmos
t don
e as
king
que
stio
ns; h
owev
er,
he h
ad o
ne la
st q
uest
ion.
He
said
, “Yo
u ar
e ju
st a
kid
! Yo
u ar
e no
t eve
n ba
ligh!
You
sho
uld
be h
avin
g fu
n!”
Imam
Has
an a
l-Ask
ari
(A)
repl
ied,
“I
know
, bu
t it
is
neve
r to
o ea
rly to
sta
rt ga
ther
ing
good
dee
ds b
ecau
se
bad
deed
s se
em to
pile
up
very
qui
ckly.
Let
me
expl
ain.
So
met
imes
, I
used
to
wat
ch m
y m
othe
r try
to
light
a
fire.
Firs
t, sh
e w
ould
try
to
light
the
big
logs
but
the
y w
ould
not
cat
ch fi
re e
asily
. So
, in
orde
r to
light
the
big
firew
ood,
sh
e w
ould
ga
ther
an
d lig
ht
smal
l tw
igs.
Be
caus
e th
e tw
igs
wer
e so
sm
all,
they
wou
ld c
atch
fire
ea
sily
and
wou
ld t
hen
help
lig
ht t
he b
igge
r fir
ewoo
d.
Hum
ans
are
the
sam
e. I
f w
e st
art
prac
ticin
g fro
m a
yo
ung
age
to d
o go
od d
eeds
and
sta
y aw
ay fr
om b
ad
deed
s, th
en a
s w
e ge
t old
er, t
hese
goo
d de
eds,
like
the
twig
s, w
ill lig
ht o
ur h
earts
to
do m
ore
good
dee
ds.
How
ever
, if w
e do
bad
dee
ds fr
om a
you
ng a
ge, i
t will
be e
asie
r to
perfo
rm s
ins
as w
e ge
t old
er.''
This
repl
y le
ft th
e m
an s
peec
hles
s; h
e ha
d ne
ver h
eard
su
ch a
wis
e re
ply
from
an
inno
cent
chi
ld. H
e st
ood
up
and
bid
fare
wel
l to
the
youn
g Im
am (A
).
104
As h
e he
aded
hom
e, t
he m
an
thou
ght
deep
ly a
bout
wha
t Im
am
Has
an a
l-Ask
ari
(A)
had
said
. H
e th
ough
t, “N
ow I
see
why
it
is s
o im
porta
nt
for
ever
yone
to
st
art
doin
g go
od d
eeds
and
sta
y aw
ay
from
bad
dee
ds fr
om s
uch
a yo
ung
age.
” A
s he
w
alke
d do
wn
the
stre
et,
the
noon
su
n be
gan
to
shin
e hi
gh
abov
e hi
m,
and
he
coul
d he
ar t
he s
oft
nois
es o
f th
e ot
her c
hild
ren
laug
hing
and
pla
ying
in
the
dis
tanc
e. H
e th
anke
d Al
lah
for s
uch
a sp
ecia
l enc
ount
er.
WORKSHEET
1. Why wasn t mam Hasan al As ari (A) playin with the other ids?
. What did the mam mean by the e ample of the re and stic s?
105
LESSON 14: IMAM MUHAMMAD AL-MAHDI (A)
“Mom, where will we go to visit our 12th Imam, Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi (A)?” Ahmed asked his mom.
His mother replied, “Well, since our Imam is alive, we do not have to go anywhere. We will visit Masjid al-Jamkaran in Iran, which is the Masjid of our Imam, as well as the sardab in Samarra, which is the last place he was seen before going into ghaybah.”
“What’s ghaybah?” Ahmed asked.
“Ghaybah means ‘occultation;’ the period during which the Imam is not present is called ghaybah. There are two periods of ghaybah” Ghaybat al-Sughra and Ghaybat al-Kubra,” his mother said.
“What’s the difference between the two?” Ahmed asked.
His mother replied, “Ghaybat al-Sughra, the smaller occultation, took place from when the Imam was 5 years old and lasted for 68 years. Although the Imam was not present at this time, he would answer people’s questions through his four representatives. Ghaybat al-
Kubra, or the greater occultation, began after the Imam’s fourth representative died, and is still continuing until today.”
“Why does the Imam have to be in hiding?” Ahmed asked.
“You see, when the Imam was born on the 15th of Sha’baan, his father used to keep him hidden. He only told a few close companions about the Imam, because he knew that the evil caliphs would want to kill the Imam. They were scared that the 12th Imam would overthrow them and spread peace and equality. After leading the funeral prayers of his father, Imam al-Mahdi (A) quickly disappeared. After seeing the Imam’s face, the evil caliph knew his plan had failed. Allah has kept the Imam in hiding to protect him from the enemies. He will come back once he has enough followers to help him spread peace and justice,” his mother said.
“Do you have any stories about our 12th Imam?”
106
“Yes, let me tell you a great story!” his mother replied.
107
12TH
IMAM
: MUH
AMM
AD A
L-M
AHDI
(A)
As A
hmad
’s s
peec
h ca
me
to a
n en
d, e
very
one’
s ey
es
fille
d w
ith te
ars
of jo
y. H
e w
as a
stro
ng b
elie
ver
with
a
lot o
f taq
wa,
so
his
wor
ds h
ad a
pow
erfu
l effe
ct o
n al
l th
ose
arou
nd h
im.
Peop
le b
egan
to
surro
und
him
, gi
ving
him
lette
rs a
nd g
ifts
that
they
wan
ted
him
to g
ive
to Im
am H
asan
al-A
skar
i (A)
. Peo
ple
had
com
e fro
m a
ll di
ffere
nt p
lace
s to
Qom
, m
any
not
even
kno
win
g w
ho
he w
as, j
ust t
o m
ake
sure
they
cou
ld g
ive
him
thei
r gift
s to
del
iver
to th
e Im
am (
A)! A
hmad
car
eful
ly p
ut a
ll th
e le
tters
and
gift
s on
the
side
of h
is h
orse
’s s
addl
e. Af
ter p
acki
ng a
ll th
e le
tters
and
gift
s, A
hmad
clim
bed
up
on h
is h
orse
and
gra
bbed
the
rei
gns.
Onc
e ag
ain,
he
bid
fare
wel
l to
all t
he b
elie
vers
and
beg
an h
is jo
urne
y.
108
As A
hmad
’s h
orse
beg
an m
ovin
g th
roug
h th
e vi
llage
, an
old
wom
an c
ame
out,
wav
ing
a sm
all w
oven
clo
th a
t him
. “W
ait,
wai
t, de
ar
boy,
wai
t!” s
he c
ried
out.
He
stop
ped
in fr
ont
of h
er a
nd g
ot d
own
from
his
hor
se.
She
hand
ed h
im t
he c
loth
and
sai
d, “
O m
y so
n,
plea
se t
ake
this
gift
to
my
Imam
on
my
beha
lf. I
have
wea
ved
it w
ith m
y ow
n ha
nds!
” H
e to
ok th
e w
oven
gift
and
not
iced
it lo
oked
ve
ry
old.
Th
e ol
d w
oman
no
ticed
th
e di
sapp
oint
men
t in
Ahm
ad’s
fac
e an
d sa
id,
“My
son,
I k
now
it
is n
ot m
uch,
but
I h
ave
hope
that
my
Imam
will
acce
pt it
, and
may
be,
just
may
be,
he m
ay p
ray
on i
t ju
st o
nce.
” Ah
mad
nod
ded,
ash
amed
of h
is a
ttitu
de, a
nd
plac
ed th
e w
oven
clo
th w
ith a
ll th
e ot
her g
ifts
and
lette
rs. O
nce
agai
n, h
e lif
ted
his
hand
up
to b
id f
arew
ell t
o th
e ol
d w
oman
and
tho
se
who
wer
e su
rroun
ding
her
. M
any
bega
n to
te
ar u
p as
the
y sa
id g
oodb
ye,
wis
hing
the
y w
ere
youn
g an
d st
rong
like
Ahm
ad to
be
able
to
als
o vi
sit t
heir
Imam
.
109
Ahm
ad’s
ho
rse
mov
ed
with
so
m
uch
spee
d an
d st
reng
th th
at it
left
a sm
all c
loud
of
du
st
behi
nd
him
. Af
ter
trave
lling
for
man
y da
ys,
Ahm
ad f
inal
ly m
ade
it to
the
ci
ty o
f Sam
arra
. As
he e
nter
ed th
e ci
ty, h
e w
as m
esm
eriz
ed b
y th
e hu
stle
and
bus
tle
of
the
city
. Th
ere
wer
e m
any
peop
le
com
ing
and
goin
g in
all
dire
ctio
ns; t
his
was
ve
ry d
iffer
ent t
han
the
smal
l and
qui
et c
ity
of Q
om.
Ahm
ad d
id n
ot k
now
whe
re t
he
Imam
(A)
’s h
ouse
was
, but
luck
ily, h
e w
as
able
to
find
out
from
a m
an w
ho w
as
pass
ing
by. A
s he
reac
hed
the
hom
e of
the
Imam
, his
hea
rt be
gan
to ra
ce. H
e co
uldn
’t be
lieve
tha
t he
was
fin
ally
abo
ut t
o m
eet
the
Imam
(A)!
110Ahm
ad g
ot o
ff hi
s ho
rse,
gra
bbed
all
the
gifts
an
d le
tters
, an
d kn
ocke
d on
the
doo
r. Th
e Im
am (
A) c
alle
d ou
t to
him
to
com
e in
side
. U
pon
hear
ing
the
Imam
’s v
oice
wel
com
ing
him
in
, his
hea
rt flu
ttere
d. H
e w
iped
the
tear
s th
at
wer
e ru
nnin
g do
wn
his
chee
ks a
nd w
alke
d in
. W
hen
he e
nter
ed,
he s
aw t
hat
the
Imam
(A)
w
as s
ittin
g an
d w
ritin
g a
lette
r, an
d a
beau
tiful
ch
ild w
as p
layi
ng b
esid
e hi
m. T
he c
hild
was
no
mor
e th
an th
ree
year
s ol
d, b
ut h
e w
as p
ayin
g ve
ry c
lose
atte
ntio
n to
wha
t hi
s fa
ther
was
do
ing
as h
e pl
ayed
. Ev
ery
time
the
Imam
(A)
st
oppe
d an
d w
rote
som
ethi
ng, t
he c
hild
wou
ld
smile
and
loo
k at
his
fat
her.
The
child
eve
n tri
ed t
akin
g th
e pe
n fro
m h
is f
athe
r, so
the
bl
esse
d Im
am (
A) s
mile
d an
d th
rew
a s
mal
l ba
ll to
war
ds t
he o
ther
sid
e of
the
roo
m.
The
youn
g ch
ild la
ughe
d an
d qu
ickl
y ra
n to
get
the
ball.
Thi
s al
low
ed t
he I
mam
(A)
to
cont
inue
w
ritin
g hi
s le
tter.
As th
e ch
ild r
an fo
r th
e ba
ll, A
hmad
cou
ld n
ot
stop
ga
zing
at
hi
m
and
smilin
g.
He
said
“S
alaa
mun
Ala
ikum
” an
d lo
ving
ly h
ugge
d th
e ch
ild a
nd k
isse
d hi
s fo
rehe
ad.
111
He
put
the
Imam
’s g
ifts
and
lette
rs o
n th
e flo
or a
nd s
aid
to t
he I
mam
(A)
, “O
son
of
Ras
ulul
lah,
I h
ave
com
e al
l the
way
fro
m t
he
city
of Q
om; I
hav
e m
any
ques
tions
to a
sk y
ou,
if yo
u w
ill al
low
me!
” The
Imam
(A) p
lace
d th
e pe
n do
wn
and
smile
d. H
e tu
rned
tow
ards
the
smal
l ch
ild i
n th
e ro
om a
nd k
indl
y sa
id,
“My
dear
son
, ple
ase
com
e ov
er h
ere.
” Th
e Im
am (A
) sai
d, “O
, Ahm
ad, p
leas
e as
k m
y so
n al
-Mah
di
the
ques
tions
.” Ah
mad
w
as
surp
rised
, bu
t he
kne
w h
is I
mam
(A)
had
a
reas
on f
or e
very
thin
g, s
o he
sat
nex
t to
the
sm
all
child
. H
is h
eart
stop
ped
as h
e qu
ickl
y re
aliz
ed t
hat
he w
as s
ittin
g be
fore
the
nex
t Im
am! H
e be
nt o
ver
slig
htly
and
lovi
ngly
sai
d,
“May
my
fath
er a
nd m
othe
r be
sac
rific
ed f
or
you!
I h
ave
been
wai
ting
so p
atie
ntly
to
see
you!
I th
ank
Alla
h fo
r thi
s gr
eat b
less
ing!
”
Ahm
ad
gent
ly
plac
ed
the
bags
be
fore
th
e Im
am
and
bega
n ta
king
ou
t th
e gi
fts
and
lette
rs,
one
by o
ne.
He
said
, “O
, Im
am a
l-As
kari,
thes
e ar
e th
e gi
fts a
nd le
tters
that
the
peop
le o
f Qom
hav
e se
nt to
you
.”
112
As A
hmad
sho
wed
the
gift
s to
Im
am a
l-Ask
ari (
A),
the
youn
g ch
ild a
sked
, “A
hmad
, do
you
not
wan
t to
gi
ve th
e gi
ft th
at th
e ol
d w
oman
gav
e yo
u?”
Ahm
ad w
as s
tunn
ed!
Did
thi
s yo
ung
child
als
o ha
ve
know
ledg
e of
the
uns
een
like
his
fath
er?
He
quic
kly
bega
n lo
okin
g th
roug
h th
e ite
ms,
but
he
coul
dn’t
find
it! H
e su
dden
ly fe
lt ve
ry a
nxio
us a
nd b
egan
to s
wea
t. H
e ap
olog
ized
and
sai
d, “U
mm
, may
be h
er g
ift is
stil
l in
the
sad
dle
of t
he h
orse
; I
will
go a
nd g
et i
t rig
ht
now
!” H
e qu
ickl
y ru
shed
out
the
door
and
to h
is h
orse
. H
e ru
mm
aged
thr
ough
his
sad
dle,
thr
owin
g th
ings
ev
eryw
here
, bu
t he
co
uld
not
find
it.
He
look
ed
thro
ugh
all
his
item
s, b
ut t
here
was
no
sign
of
the
wov
en
gift.
Ahm
ad
was
ve
ry
upse
t an
d sc
olde
d hi
mse
lf, “I
can
’t be
lieve
I lo
st it
!” H
e w
alke
d ba
ck i
nto
the
hom
e of
the
Im
am (
A),
hold
ing
his
head
dow
n in
em
barra
ssm
ent,
but t
hen
he
saw
an
amaz
ing
sigh
t! Th
e yo
ung
al-M
ahdi
(A)
was
st
andi
ng o
n th
e w
oven
clo
th a
nd p
rayi
ng! A
hmad
sai
d,
“Sub
haan
Alla
h,”
as h
e su
dden
ly r
ealiz
ed th
at th
e ol
d w
oman
’s d
uʿa
had
been
ans
wer
ed b
y Al
lah
(SW
T)!
Her
gift
may
hav
e se
emed
wor
thle
ss,
but
her
pure
in
tent
ion
mad
e it
the
mos
t val
uabl
e gi
ft of
them
all!
WORKSHEET
1. Why was e eryone i in ifts to Ahmed?
. What ift did mam ahdi (A) as for? What did he do with it?
. Why do you thin the mam as ed speci cally for that ift?
113
xlii