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Introduction |
Chapter 1 |
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The Beginning of the Belief in the Mahdi |
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The Mahdi from among the Descendants of the Prophet |
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1: Uninterrupted Transmission (tawatur) of the Traditions |
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2: Weak Transmission Is Not an Issue in All Places |
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3: Unreliable Simply |
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4: Difference of Creed |
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5: Unfounded Prejudice |
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6: Sahih Muslim and Sahih Bukhari and Traditions about the Mahdi |
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The Existence of the Mahdi is Certain |
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The Discussion among the Companions and the Subsequent Generations : |
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People Awaited the Appearance of the Mahdi |
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(1) Muhammad b. Hanafiyya : |
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(2) Muhammad b. 'Abd Allah b. Hasan : |
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The Jurists of Medina and the Mahdi Traditions : |
Chapter 2 |
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The Pseudo-Mahdis |
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Manipulation of the Beliefs of the People |
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Fabrication of the Traditions |
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The Family of the Prophet and the Eleven Imams' Predictions about the Mahdi |
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Are these Traditions about the Mahdi Authentic? |
Chapter 3 |
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Mahdiism, the Jews, and the Iranians |
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The Reasons for the Emergence of Belief in the Mahdiism |
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Does it Really Need Explication? |
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The Legend of 'Abd Allah b. Saba |
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The Messianic Leader, Mahdi, in Other Religions |
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The Qur'an and Mahdiism |
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The General Prophethood and the Imamate |
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What System Can Make Human Beings Prosperous? |
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The Other-worldly Prosperity |
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The Path of Perfection |
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The Infallibility of the Prophets |
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Rational Proof in Support of the Imamate |
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Textual Proof for the Necessity of the Imamate |
Chapter 4 |
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The Unseen World and the Imam of the Age |
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Will the Imam Be Born at the End of the Time? |
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Descriptions Identifying the Mahdi |
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Mahdi Is Among the Descendants of Husayn b. 'Ali |
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What If the Mahdi Was Well-known? |
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The Traditions from the ahl al-bayt Are Proofs for All Muslims |
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`Ali b. Abi Talib, the Paragon of the Prophetic Knowledge |
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The Book of 'Ali b. Abi Talib |
Chapter 5 |
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Who Was the Imam after Hasan `Askari? |
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Those Who Saw the Imam of the Age When He Was Small |
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Why Was the Twelfth Imam Not Mentioned in the Will of Imam Hasan 'Askari? |
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Why Did Others Not Know about the Twelfth Imam's Birth? |
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The Mother of the Twelfth Imam |
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The Sunni 'Ulama' and the Birth of the Mahdi |
Chapter 6 |
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Can a Five Year Old Boy Become an Imam? |
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The Gifted Children |
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Rising of the People when Naming the Qa'im |
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When Did the Story about the Occultation Begin? |
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The Books on the Subject of the Occultation before the Birth of the Twelfth Imam |
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The Short and Complete Occultation |
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The Short Occultation and the Contacts with the Shi'a |
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Were these Letters from the Imam in His Own Handwriting? |
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The Number of Deputies |
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'Uthman b. Sa'id, the First Deputy |
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His Miraculous Acts |
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Muhammad b. 'Uthman, the Second Deputy |
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His Miraculous Acts |
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Husayn b. Ruh, the Third Deputy |
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'Ali b. Muhammad Samarri, the Fourth Deputy |
Chapter 7 |
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Why Did Not the Occultation Become Complete from the Beginning? |
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Is There Any Time Limit to the Complete Occultation? |
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The Philosophy of Occultation |
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What Danger Faced the Imam If He Were Visibly Present? |
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Why Is the Mahdi Afraid of Being Killed? |
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Does Not God Have the Power to Protect the Imam? |
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Is It Not Likely That the Unjust Rulers Would Have Submitted to Him? |
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He Should Remain Silent So That He Would Be Safe |
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He Could Have Negotiated a Treaty of Non-interference with the Rulers |
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Why Did He Not Appoint Special Deputies During the Complete Occultation? |
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What Is the Benefit of Having the Imam in Occultation? |
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The Twelfth Imam Endeavors to Defend Islam during the Occultation |
Chapter 8 |
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The Sunni Books on the Characteristics of the Mahdi |
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The Occultation of the 'Alawid Leaders |
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Violations of Free Expression under the Caliphs |
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The Implications of the Situation |
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Concluding Remarks |
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How Long Will the Hidden Imam Live? |
Chapter 9 |
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The Research about Longevity |
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Is There Any Fixed Term for Human Age? |
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The Reasons for Longevity |
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Senility and Its Causes |
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The Long Life of the Twelfth Imam |
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The Article by Justin Glace |
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Research into the Matter of Longevity |
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Further Research on Longevity |
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New Research on Longevity |
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Longevity |
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A Summary of a Russian Study on the Subject of Old Age |
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A Little Known Theory about the Cause of Death |
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Conclusion |
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Those Who Lived a Long Life in History |
Chapter 10 |
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The Residence of the Twelfth Imam |
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The Story about the Countries that Belong to the Sons of the Imam |
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Jazira Khadra' (The Evergreen Island) |
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When Will He Appear? |
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The Signs of His Appearance |
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The Story of Sufyani |
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The Story of Dajjal |
Chapter 11 |
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The Minds of the People Prepare for the Advent of the Mahdi |
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The Final Victory of the Downtrodden (mustad'afin) |
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Why Does the Mahdi Not Appear? |
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Another Reason for the Delay in the Appearance of the Mahdi |
Chapter 12 |
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How Will the Imam Know That the Time for the Appearance (Zuhur) Has Come? |
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The Preparation for the Emergence Will Take Place Overnight |
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Awaiting Deliverance through the Appearance of the Imam |
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Investigation into the Traditions against the Rise (qiyam) |
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Governance within Religion |
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The Obligation to Command the Good and Forbid the Evil |
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Concluding Remarks |
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The Prophet as the Leader of the Muslims |
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Islamic Governance after the Prophet |
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'Ali b. Abi Talib, the Designated Caliph of the Prophet of God |
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Islamic Governance during the Period of Occultation |
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The Obligations of Muslims during the Occultation |
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Two Evidences |
Chapter 13 |
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Further Investigation in the Hadith-Reports |
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First Group of Traditions |
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Meaning and Implications of the hadith |
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Second Group of Traditions |
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Investigation into the Meanings and Implications of these hadith-Reports |
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Third Group of Traditions |
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Investigation into the Meanings and Implications of these hadith-Reports |
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Fourth Group of Traditions |
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Third hadith: Imam 'Ali b. Abi Talib says: |
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Investigation into the Meanings and Implications of these hadith-Reports |
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Fifth Group of Traditions |
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Investigation into the Meanings and Implications of these hadith-Reports |
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Conclusions of the Discussion |
Chapter 14 |
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The Signs of the Appearance (Zuhur) of the Mahdi |
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The Destiny of the Unbelievers |
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The Destiny of Jews and Christians |
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Will the Majority of the Peoples on the Earth Be Killed? |
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The Teachings of Islam Will Be Proclaimed to the World from Qumm |
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"Your Enemies Will Destroy Each Other" |
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War Is Inevitable |
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The Mahdi's Defense |
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The World under the Mahdi |
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The Victory of the Prophets |
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The Mahdi and the New Constitution |
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The Conduct of the Mahdi |
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The Freshness of the Explanations Offered by the Mahdi |
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The Mahdi and Abrogation of the Ordinances |
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Is It Not Possible that the Mahdi Has Already Appeared? |
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Sayyid 'Ali Muhammad Shirazi, "the Bab" |
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Sayyid 'Ali Muhammad's Acknowledgement of the Hidden Imam's Existence |
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Sayyid 'Ali Muhammad and the Traditions about Fixing of the Time |
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What Do the Sayyid's Followers Say? |
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The Sayyid Repudiated Any Attribution of Prophethood and Babism |
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The Bayan and Messianic Claim |
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False Claims and the Existence of a Followership |
