Imam Al-Mahdi Muhammad Ibn Abdullah (D. 145AH)
Imam al-Mahdī Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh
Al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah — The Pure Soul — Peace Be Upon Him
Imam al-Mahdī is: Imam Abu al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn Abī al-A’immah ‘Abdullāh al-Kāmil al-Maḥḍ1 ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan al-Sibt (may God be pleased with them). His epithet was al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah — the Pure Soul — and he was given the title al-Mahdī on account of the ḥadīth: “The Mahdī’s name is my name, and his father’s name is my father’s name.”2
Imam Abu Ṭālib (peace be upon him) said in Al-Ifādah: He (peace be upon him) was dark in complexion, deeply dark-skinned, with grey that had mixed into his temples.
Imam al-Hādī ilā al-Ḥaqq Yaḥyā ibn al-Ḥusayn (peace be upon him) said, in the context of the Imams, that the narration from the Messenger of God ﷺ has come:
“Know that a man from my progeny shall be killed at this very spot — his name is as my name, and his father’s name is as my father’s name; his blood shall flow from here to the Stones of Oil. He is al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah — upon his killer shall fall one third of the punishment of the people of Hellfire.”3
Between his shoulders was a seal resembling the Seal of Prophethood on the Messenger of God ﷺ. Concerning this, a poet said:
What the narrators transmit is plain to see,
when the son of ‘Abdullāh stands bare among them:
a seal that God gave to none but him,
bearing the marks of righteousness and guidance.
And some of the poets of Khurāsān said of him:
When al-Mahdī rises for us and stands among us,
good shall come to us and affliction shall be severed.
The pillar of religion shall in truth be raised by him,
oppression shall depart and the veil shall be lifted.
My soul be the ransom of Yathrib — the abode of a guide —
upon it shines the radiance of his testimonies.
— Poets of Khurāsān
His rising took place in Jumādā al-Ākhirah of the year 145 AH, when two nights remained of the month — and it is also narrated: on the first night of Rajab. Allegiance was pledged to him by the Mu’tazilah alongside the Zaydiyyah and the distinguished Imams. He went out (peace be upon him) with his sword at his side, saying to his companions: “Do not kill! Do not kill!”
He entered the mosque before dawn and delivered a sermon to the people. When the time of prayer came he descended, led the prayer, and the people pledged allegiance to him willingly — save a small remnant. The Zaydiyyah, the Mu’tazilah, and the scholars of jurisprudence and religious knowledge rallied to him, having come to know his call to justice and Divine Unity and his establishment of the pillar of Islam.
Ja’far ibn Muḥammad (peace be upon him) pledged allegiance to him, went out with him, then bent over his head and kissed it, and sought his permission to return to his home on account of his age and weakness — and he gave him leave. His two sons ‘Abdullāh and Muḥammad — the sons of Ja’far — went out with him and fought with him throughout all his jihad until he was killed. They were the ones who jointly killed the first of the black-bannered wretches slain before him (peace be upon him). ‘Īsā and al-Ḥusayn, the sons of Zayd, were also with him. His banner was carried by al-Afṭas al-Ḥasan ibn ‘Ali ibn ‘Ali ibn al-Ḥusayn.
Al-Ḥusayn ibn Zayd ibn ‘Ali (may God be pleased with them) said: “Four from the sons of al-Ḥusayn were present alongside Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh: myself, my brother ‘Īsā, and Mūsā and ‘Abdullāh the sons of Ja’far.”
Among those who also went out with him were: al-Mundhir ibn Muḥammad ibn al-Mundhir ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Zubayr; Ibn Abī Dhī’b; Ibn ‘Ajlān; Muṣ’ab ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Zubayr and his son ‘Abdullāh; Abu Bakr ibn Abī Sabrah the jurist; and ‘Amr ibn ‘Ubayd and a number of the foremost theologians of the Mu’tazilah of Baṣra — who tested him, found the depth of his knowledge, and heard his call to the doctrine of divine justice — and pledged their allegiance to him.
Abu Ja’far al-Manṣūr pledged allegiance to him twice — one of which was at Mecca in the Sacred Mosque, after which he held his stirrup until he mounted and then straightened his garments on the saddle. He was witnessed doing this on another occasion during the time of the Umayyads, as narrated by ‘Umayr ibn al-Faḍl al-Khath’amī:
“I once saw Abu Ja’far — who was later given the epithet al-Manṣūr — and Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh had come out of his father’s house, with a horse standing at the door. When he came out, Abu Ja’far leapt up and took his stirrup until he mounted, then straightened his garments on the saddle. I said to him: ‘Who is this man whom you have honoured with such honour?’ He said: ‘This is Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan — our Mahdī of the People of the House.'”
At the gathering of the Banū Hāshim at al-Abwāʾ, al-Manṣūr himself said: “By God, you know well that no one has necks more inclined toward, nor are people more swift in answering, than they are toward this young man” — meaning Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh. They all pledged allegiance to Muḥammad and wiped their hands over his. After pledging a second time, al-Manṣūr said to him: “Know that if authority comes to you two, I shall not be forgotten for this stance of mine.”
Yet it was al-Manṣūr — ‘Abdullāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ‘Ali ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-‘Abbās — who dispatched the armies that confronted the Imam in battle, having broken his pledge and claimed sovereignty for himself.
Imam Mālik ibn Anas al-Aṣbaḥī — who died in the year one hundred and seventy-nine — issued a legal ruling that it was obligatory to rise in support of Imam Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh and his brother Imam Ibrāhīm ibn ‘Abdullāh, and he pledged allegiance to him. He had also studied under Imam Ja’far ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq (may God be pleased with them). It was for this ruling that al-Manṣūr became hostile toward him, and it is said that he had his shoulders dislocated.
Abu Dāwūd, al-Tirmidhī, and al-Nasā’ī transmitted narrations from him — and al-Nasā’ī declared him trustworthy. As for al-Bukhārī, he said: “His ḥadīth lacks corroboration.” The author remarks: if this is what is said of an Imam from the Imams of the People of the House, agreed upon in his greatness and his piety, then what do you think of those who fall beneath him?
Abu al-Dawānīq had intended to kill Ja’far al-Ṣādiq, but God protected him. As narrated in the Amālī of Imam Abu Ṭālib, with his chain going back to ‘Ali ibn Mūsā ibn Ja’far on the authority of his father:
Abu Ja’far al-Manṣūr sent for Ja’far ibn Muḥammad (peace be upon him) intending to kill him. He laid out a sword and an execution mat, and said: “O Rabī’, when I have spoken to him and then strike one hand against the other, strike off his head.”
When Ja’far ibn Muḥammad (peace be upon him) entered and al-Manṣūr looked at him from a distance, al-Manṣūr trembled upon his couch and said: “Welcome and well met, O Abu ‘Abdullāh — we sent for you only in the hope of fulfilling our obligation to you and settling your debt.” He then asked him a subtle question about his household, settled his debt, and sent him away with a gift. He said to al-Rabī’: “Do not let the third time I said this pass before Ja’far ibn Muḥammad has returned to his family.”
When he and al-Rabī’ went out, al-Rabī’ said: “O Abu ‘Abdullāh, did you see the sword and the mat? They had been laid out for you — so what was it I saw you moving your lips with?” He said: “Yes, O Rabī’ — when I saw the evil in his face I said: ‘Sufficient for me is the Lord over all those who are lorded over; sufficient for me is the Creator over all those who are created; sufficient for me is the Sustainer over all those who are sustained; sufficient for me is God, Lord of all worlds; sufficient for me is He who is my sufficiency; sufficient for me is He who has always been my sufficiency; sufficient for me is God — there is no god but He; in Him I place my trust, and He is the Lord of the mighty Throne.'”
He said to his household before the battle:
“I am set upon fighting these people. If the sun declines and the sky rains, then I shall be killed. If the sun declines but the sky does not rain and the wind blows, then I shall prevail against them.”
He then commanded them — when the sign from God indicating his death came — to burn certain books which he feared might fall into the hands of the enemies of God.
Abu Khālid al-Wāsiṭī narrated:
“I met Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan (may God be pleased with them) before his emergence, and said: ‘O my master, when will this matter come to pass?’ He said: ‘What of it pleases you, O Abu Khālid?’ I said: ‘O my master, how could I not be pleased at a matter by which God will disgrace His enemies and give victory to His allies?’ He said: ‘O Abu Khālid, I shall rise — and by God I shall be killed. By God, it would not please me if the entire world were offered to me in exchange for abandoning my jihad against them. O Abu Khālid, a believing man who does not wake in the morning sorrowful and go to sleep in the evening sorrowful at what he witnesses of their deeds — he is truly deluded and beguiled.’
I said: ‘O my master, by God, the believer is indeed as you say — but what of us, when we are subjugated and weakened and cannot bring about any change against them?’ He said: ‘O Abu Khālid, if you are in such a state, then do not be a support to them, and remove yourselves from their land.'”
Ibrāhīm ibn ‘Abdullāh ibn al-Ḥasan ibn al-Ḥasan was asked whether his brother Muḥammad (peace be upon him) was the Mahdī who is mentioned. He said:
“Al-Mahdī is a promise from God to His Prophet ﷺ — a promise that He would bring forth from his household a Mahdī, without specifying him by name or fixing the time. My brother rose to fulfil his obligation of commanding what is right and forbidding what is wrong. If God wills to make him the Mahdī who is mentioned, then the grace of God is bestowed by Him upon whomever He wills of His servants. Otherwise, my brother did not abandon the obligation of God upon him out of waiting for an appointed time he was not commanded to wait for.”
In his charges he most closely resembled Ḥamzah ibn ‘Abd al-Muṭṭalib, and he possessed the sword of the Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him), Dhū al-Faqār. Imam al-Manṣūr Billāh ‘Abdullāh ibn Ḥamzah (peace be upon him) reports: “When he charged against the enemy, a crashing sound was heard among them like the roar of fire in a thicket of reeds.”4 He was likened in eloquence to his grandfather ‘Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib (peace be upon him).5
He fought with the sword, striking as his grandfather ‘Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib — upon whom be the finest prayers and peace — used to strike. On the day he was killed, he slew seventeen men of the devils among mankind. Ḥumayd ibn Qaḥṭabah veered away from him more than once though he had challenged him to single combat.
When his army (peace be upon him) was routed by the stratagem of the Hāshimī ‘Abbāsid woman in Medina — who ordered a black banner raised on the minaret of the Mosque of the Messenger of God ﷺ and had servants shout in the army: “Flight! Flight! The black-bannered forces have come upon you from behind and entered Medina!” — the people saw the black banner on the minaret, had no doubt about it, and fled.
When his companions had all fled, he said:
“O God, they were unable to bear the weight of Your command and to wage jihad alongside the son of Your Prophet. Release them from their pledge to me.”
He then turned against the enemy with the few of his companions who remained — those of firm conviction in particular, and his household — and fought until he was killed at the very spot at which his grandfather the Messenger ﷺ had foretold he would be killed: in the noble sanctuary of the purified city of Medina.6
‘Īsā ibn Zayd said: “Had God informed us in His Book that a prophet would come after Muḥammad ﷺ, we would have said it was Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh.”
- ‘Abdullāh al-Ashtar martyred at Kābul; left descendants
- ‘Ali martyred at Fakhkh
- Al-Ḥasan martyred at Fakhkh
- Al-Ḥusayn mentioned by those outside the Ṭālibiyyah
✦ Martyred in battle
- Kitāb al-Siyar — The well-known book on campaigns and conduct of war; Imam Abu Ṭālib noted that Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybānī drew the greater part of the questions of the siyar from this work7
Scholarly References & Annotations
He was called al-Maḥḍ (the Pure) because none of his mothers were slave-mothers; he is also called Ṣarīḥ Quraysh (the Unalloyed of Quraysh) for this reason.
For further detail see Lawāmi’ al-Anwār fī Jawāmi’ al-‘Ulūm wa al-Āthār by our father Imam al-Ḥujjah Imam Majd al-Dīn ibn Muḥammad al-Mu’ayyidī (peace be upon him), vol. 1, p. 58 (1st ed.); vol. 1, p. 91 (2nd ed.); vol. 1, p. 120 (3rd ed.).
Kitāb al-Shāfī (1/616), edition of Maktabat Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them).
Al-Ajamah (with vowelling on the middle letter): dense, tangled trees and undergrowth.
Kitāb al-Shāfī by Imam al-A’ẓam al-Manṣūr Billāh ‘Abdullāh ibn Ḥamzah (peace be upon him) (1/618), edition of Maktabat Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them).
Kitāb al-Shāfī by Imam al-A’ẓam al-Manṣūr Billāh ‘Abdullāh ibn Ḥamzah (peace be upon him) (1/617), edition of Maktabat Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). His noble body was buried beside al-Ḥasan al-Sibt (peace be upon them), according to a narration in Maqātil al-Ṭālibiyyīn and the Maṣābīḥ of Abu al-‘Abbās; the more widely known view is that his grave is at the gate of Medina, where he was killed — noted by the Author (peace be upon him).
Our father, Imam al-Ḥujjah Imam Majd al-Dīn ibn Muḥammad al-Mu’ayyidī (peace be upon him) noted in Lawāmi’ al-Anwār (vol. 1, p. 356, 1st ed.; vol. 1, p. 450, 2nd ed.; vol. 1, p. 654, 3rd ed.) that Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥasan al-Shaybānī — who died in the year one hundred and eighty-nine, who narrated from Imam Muḥammad ibn ‘Abdullāh al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah (peace be upon him) and others, and who proclaimed the word of truth before the unjust ruler Hārūn al-Ghawī when he sought to break the pledge of safety given to Imam Yaḥyā ibn ‘Abdullāh (peace be upon him) — also studied under Abu Ḥanīfah. The story is well known.