پژوهش نامه علوم حدیث تطبیقی
پیاپی 8 (بهار و تابستان 1397)

One of the important issues in the discussion on Mahdism and the emergence of the Qāʾim (may the Almighty hasten his reappearance) is the signs of the reappearance [of the Mahdi]. One of the most important signs of the reappearance is the rise of the Sufyānī. Sufyānī is the name of a tyrant who will rise up from Syria and sends troops to Madina and Kufa to kill the Shīʿahs. The present article seeks to compare the two works: al-Ghaybah of al-Nuʿmānī and al-Fiṭan of Naʿīm ibn Ḥammād, which are the oldest Shīʿī and Sunnī sources on the subject respectively, and to investigate the common themes in these two sources as well as the unique features of each in relation to what they offer about the characteristics of Sufyānī and the way he will rise.

Khaṭīb Baghdadi is a well-known hadith scholar of the Islamic world who has authored many works. His views on the principles of hadith are generally considered authoritative by Sunnī hadith scholars. Understanding the foundational principles of establishing the reliability of narrators who are Shīʿī from the viewpoint of Khaṭīb Baghdādī is important because it reflects the views of Sunnī scholars about Shīʿah narrators in general, and their degree of adherence to scientific methods as well as the effect of religious bias in considering these narrators reliable or weak. The main question addressed in this research is: What was the attitude of Khaṭīb Baghdādī towards Shīʿī narrators and did religious bias play a role in his judgment? By examining his works, we have been able to record and analyze the views of Khaṭīb Baghdādī towards Shīʿah narrators. Baghdādī has occasionally paid attention to the honesty of some Shīʿī narrator and in other instances he has considered the fact that they are Rāfīḍī (lit. rejecters) to be enough of a reason to reject their narrations. It can be seen that his bias against the narrators is more evident in traditions such as those of the ‘two weighty things’ (thaqalayn), Ghadīr, and the status and virtues of the Ahl al-Bayt (a).

In the Imāmī literary heritage, Saḥīfah Sajjādiyah is a precious treasure and a compendium of Shīʿah cultural thought, which contains an expressive and exquisite array of teachings that has the potential to transform the cultural poverty we face today. Tawḥīd (Oneness of God) is the cornerstone of the Saḥīfah’s teachings and the masterpiece of the Infallibles’ thought. The subject of monotheism when studied more closely and precisely, is often more intimately related to the “theoretical doctrines of monotheism”, while an observational inquiry into Saḥīfah tells us that the more appropriate method is something else. It can be said that Imam Sajjād (a) has explained tawḥīd, employing the form of supplication, in a different manner than the other teachings of monotheism, and instead of familiarizing the mind with an entity known as God and removing the doubts by providing proof of His Oneness, he employs the method of establishing a ‘present connection’ with God to create a marvelous movement that strengthens faith in God. By analyzing the first, thirteenth and twenty-eighth supplications of Saḥīfah, we have on the one hand drawn comparisons with some other deduced or narrated teachings while on the other, tried to understand the concept of monotheism in life and its application as a model for strengthening faith and cognizance of God.

In the Imāmī literary heritage, Saḥīfah Sajjādiyah is a precious treasure and a compendium of Shīʿah cultural thought, which contains an expressive and exquisite array of teachings that has the potential to transform the cultural poverty we face today. Tawḥīd (Oneness of God) is the cornerstone of the Saḥīfah’s teachings and the masterpiece of the Infallibles’ thought. The subject of monotheism when studied more closely and precisely, is often more intimately related to the “theoretical doctrines of monotheism”, while an observational inquiry into Saḥīfah tells us that the more appropriate method is something else. It can be said that Imam Sajjād (a) has explained tawḥīd, employing the form of supplication, in a different manner than the other teachings of monotheism, and instead of familiarizing the mind with an entity known as God and removing the doubts by providing proof of His Oneness, he employs the method of establishing a ‘present connection’ with God to create a marvelous movement that strengthens faith in God. By analyzing the first, thirteenth and twenty-eighth supplications of Saḥīfah, we have on the one hand drawn comparisons with some other deduced or narrated teachings while on the other, tried to understand the concept of monotheism in life and its application as a model for strengthening faith and cognizance of God.

In al-Kāfī, Sheikh Kulaynī has dedicated only one section, with a total of 257 traditions, to ‘Chapters on History’, which we have evaluated in five respects: the method of transmission, connection of the chains of transmission, the direct and indirect teachers of Kulaynī, and the narrators [who transmitted them] from the Imam (a). Kulaynī has taken most of his historical narrations from his Qummī teachers, most of whom have been deemed reliable and sound in creed according to the existing works on Rijāl. As for the few whose beliefs have not been recorded, it is only due to lack of information about them, not because of their unreliability or the soundness of their beliefs. Kufi narrators have the greatest share in narrating these traditions and from this it can be deduced that [on the whole,] most of the narrations of al-Kāfī from Qummī teachers have been transmitted by Kufi narrators.

Traditions from the Prophet’s progeny include many medical teachings that contain many wonders and scientific points. Among them are doctrines pertaining to health and hygiene as pertains to the subject of dentistry. In this paper, these teachings are compiled and, using a descriptive-analytical analysis, compared to [the discoveries of] modern science. Some of the scientific points contained in these teaching are explained in terms of the science of dentistry, and the discovery of scientific facts from the traditions of the Ahl al-Bayt (a) demonstrates their profound knowledge of extra-religious matters. Some of the findings of the present paper are that the Ahl al-Bayt (a) had a proactive approach to prevention and emphasized on issues of hygiene such as: gargling water in the mouth and brushing teeth. In narrations, brushing teeth with a twig from a tree known as Arak has been recommended and its benefits have been established through physical observation as well as phytochemical analysis. Some of the natural ingredients of this plant, such as sodium chloride, fluoride, vitamin C etc., play a special role in preventing tooth decay. Also, some foods such as frankincense, vinegar, salt and cuttle-bone, pomegranate juice and certain kinds of watermelon are among the ingredients recommended in the narrations and their benefits for the prevention and treatment of oral and dental problems have been established by modern science