Chapter on al-Bida
H 364, Ch. 24, h 1
It is narrated from Muhammad ibn Yahya from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn
Isa from al-Hajjal from abu Ishaq Thalaba from Zurara ibn Ayun from one
of the two Imams who has said the following.
"Allah is best worshipped with belief in al-Bada. In another Hadith from
ibn abu Umayr from Hisham ibn Salim from abu Abdallah (a.s.) who has said,
"Allahs Greatness is not realized as good as it is realized with belief in al-Bad."
H 365, Ch. 24, h 2
It is narrated from Ali ibn Ibrahim from his father from ibn abu
Umayr from Hisham ibn Salim and Hafs ibn al-Bakhtari and others from abu
Abdallah (a.s.) whos has said the following about the words of Allah.
"God establishes or effaces whatever He wants . . ." (13:39) The Imam (a.s.)
said, "Can anything be affaced without being established? Can anything be esblished
unless it is out of nothing?"
H 366, Ch. 24, h 3
It is narrated from Ali from his father from ibn abu Umayr from
Hisham ibn Salim from Muhammad ibn Muslim from abu Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the
following.
"Allah did not send any messenger without three conditions. (a) Acknowledgement of
being His servant and worshipper (b) To acknowledge that there is nothing like Him and (c)
that Allah may bring forwards whatever He would so will and takes backwards whatever He
would so will."
H 367, Ch. 24, h 4
It is narrated from Muhammad ibn Yahya from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from ibn
Faddal from ibn Bukayr from Zurara from humran from abu Jafar (a.s.) who has said
the following.
"I asked the Imam about the words of Allah, "It is He who has created you from
clay to live for a life-time and the span of your life is only known to Him. . . ."
(6:2)
The Imam said, "There are two appointed times. One is is a definit time and the other
is the conditional one."
H 368, Ch. 24, h 5
It is narrated from Ahmad ibn Mahran from Abdal Azim ibn
Abdallah al-Hassani from Ali ibn Asbat from Khalaf ibn Hammad from ibn Maskan from
Malik al-Juhanni who has said the following.
"I asked Imam abu Abdallah (a.s.) about the words of Allah "Does he not
remember that We created him when he did not exist?" (19:67)
The Imam (a.s.) said, "It means that he did not exist in a definit or in the form of
a being."
I asked the Imam about the words of Allah, "There was certainly a
time when there was no mention of the human being" (76:1)
The Imam said, " It was definit but not mentioned."
H 369, Ch. 24, h 6
It is narrated from Muhammad ibn Ismail from al-Fadl ibn Shadhan
from Hammad ibn Isa from Rabi ibn Abdallah from al-fudayl ibn Yasar who
has said the following.
"I heard abu Jafar (a.s.) saying, "There are two kinds of knolwedge. One
kind is hidden with Allah of which no one of his creatures has any information. The other
kind of knowledge is the knowledge of His angels and His messengers. Whatever knowledge He
has given to His angels and messengers it will come to pass. He will not speak a lie not
will He let His angels or messengers to do so. The knowledge that is hidden with Him of
this He brings forwards whatever He would will and takes back whatever would He will so
and establishes whatever would He will so."
H 371, Ch. 24, h 8
It is narrated from a number of our people from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn
Isa from ibn abu Umayr from Jafar ibn Uthman from Sumaa from
abu Basir and Wahab ibn Hafs from abu Basir from abu Abdallah (a.s.) who has said
the following.
"Allah has two kinds of knowledge. There is the hidden, treasured knowledge of which
one has any information except Allah. From this knowledge comes al-Bada.
There is the knowledge that Allah has given to His angels, His messengers and His prophets
and we know this knowledge."
H 372, Ch. 24, h 9
It is narrated from Muhammad ibn Yahya from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from
al-Husayn ibn said from al-Hassan ibn Mahbub from Abdallah ibn Sinan from abu
Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following.
"Nothing appeared to Allah in a thing except that He knew it before al-Bada
would take place."
H 373, Ch. 24, h 10
It is narrated from him from Ahmad from al-Hassan ibn Ali ibn Faddal
from Dawud ibn Farqad from Amr ibn Uthman al-Juhanni from abu Abdallah
(a.s.) who has said the following.
"Al-Bada does not takke place to Allah out of ignorance."
H 374, Ch. 24, h 11
It is narrated from Ali ibn Ibrahim from Muhammad ibn ibn Isa
from Yunus from Mansur ibn Hazim who has said the following.
I asked abu Abdallah (a.s.), "Can anything happen today that was not in the
knowledge of Allah the day before? The Imam (a.s.) said, "No, this does not
happen. Whoever would say so Allah will make him to suffer a great deal." I then
said, "Do you consider that all that were there and all that will take place up to
the Day of Judgment are all in the knowledge of Allah?" The Imam said, "Yes, it
was so before He created the creatures."
H 375, Ch. 24, h 12
It is narrated from Ali ibn Muhammad from Yunus from Malik al-Juhanni
who has said the following.
"I heard Imam abu Abdallah (a.s.) saying, Had the people known of the
reward in the belief in al-Bada there would have been no weakness in their
words about it."
H 376, Ch. 24, h 13
It is narrated from a number of our peole from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn
Khalid fro some of our people from Muhammad ibn Amr al-Kufi brother of Yahya from
Murazim ibn Hakimwhos has said the following.
I heard abu Abdallah (a.s.) saying, "No prophet has ever proclaimed prophethood
before acknowledging before Allah about five things. Acknowledgement of al-Bada, of
the wish of Allah, the prostration, affirmation of worshipping and obedience."
H 377, Ch. 24, h 14
With the same chain of narrators it is narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad
from Jafar ibn Muhammad from Yunus from Jahm ibn abu Jahma from whom he narrated
from abu Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following.
"Allah, the Most Holy, the Most High, inform Prophet Muhammad about all that was
there from the beginning of the world and that will be there to the end of the world. He
informed him about is definit in them and made an except about what is otherwise."
H 378, Ch. 24, h 15
It is narrated from Ali ibn Ibrahim from his father from al-Rayyan ibn
al-Salt who has said the following.
"I heard Imam al-Rida (a.s.) saying, "Allah never sent a prophet without the law
that prohibits the use of wine and without belief in al-Bada."
H 379, Ch. 24, h 16
It is narrated from al-Husayn ibn Muhammad from Mualla ibn
Muhammad who has said the following.
"The Alim (scholar) was asked, How is the knowledge of Allah?" He
replied, "He knew, He wanted, He willed, He measured, He decreed and He allowed it to
happen. He let happen what He had decreed and decreed what he had measured and measured
what He had willed. From His knowledge was His wish. From His wish was His will and from
His will was His measuring. From His measuring was His decree and from His decree was His
letting it to happen. Knowledge is before the wish. The wish is the second and the will is
the third. Measuring happens up on the decree to let it happen. For Allah, the Most Holy,
the Most High, there is al-Bada in whatever He knows when He wants and in the will
to measure things. When the decree is issued to let it happen then there is no
al-Bada. Thus, the knowledge of the object of knowledge is before it comes into
existence. The wish for the object of wish is before its substance. The will in what iis
willed iis before it is established. The measuring of these objects of knowledge is before
their details and before their reaching the stage of being manifested in their substance
and time. The decree to let it happen is decisive in the acts with body and what is
perceived with the senses of the colored having smells and weight and measurement and
things walking, crawling and creeping on earth of man, Jinn, birds, beasts and others that
are comprehended with the senses.
Al-Bada happens with Allah in the matters that have no substance. When substance and meaning would appear then there is no al-Bada. Allah does whatever He wants. With knowledge He has the knowledge of the things before their coming into existence. With the wish He has the knowledge their qualities and their limits. He invented them before they became manifest. With the will He distinguished them in their colors and qualities. With measurement He measured their sustenance and and made their beginning and end. With the decree Ahe made public for people theiir places and guided them thereto. With the letting them to happen He explained the reaasons and made the affairs public. This how is the planing of the Most Majestic, the All-knowing."