¶ Door Number Nine
¶ Reincarnation
¶ “Whoever does not believe in our Return is not from us.”
Imam Ja’far Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) said:
“Whoever does not believe in our Return is not from us.”
The Return or the ‘Raj’a’ is a concept mentioned in the narrations of the Family of Mohammed (From Them is Peace) which describes the return or reincarnation of the souls of people back to the world. The Imams (From Them is Peace) have stated on many occasions that when the Qaim/Riser appears:
“The believer in his grave will be told “O so and so, your companion has appeared, if you want you may join him and if you wish to remain here in the honor of your lord then you may remain. ”
So here, the dead are given the chance to return to the world in the time of the Qaim/Riser, and how else could the dead return to the living without being born again? Imam Al-Ridha (From Him is Peace) was asked by Al-Ma’moon about the Raj’a. He replied:
“Verily it is truth, and it also existed in the previous nations, and the Qur’an spoke about it and the Prophet of Allah (PBUH & His Family) said: ‘There shall be in this nation everything that was in the previous nations.’ ”
Imam Al-Baqir (From Him is Peace) said:
“ ‘It has been ordained against every town that We ever destroyed that they shall not return (to enjoy a new lease of life)’ [Surah 21:95] Every town which God destroys by bringing upon it a punishment shall not return, and this verse is one of the greatest proofs for the Raj’a/Return because no one from the people of Islam denies that all people return on the Day of Judgment/Qiyama, including all those who were destroyed by a punishment and those who weren’t. So when God says: ‘Shall not return’ it means in the Raj’a, but as for the Qiyama they shall return in order to enter hellfire.”
Imam Al-Baqir (From Him is Peace) said:
“Verily, the Prophet of Allah and Ali (PBUT) shall return.”
Imam Zainul Abideen (From Him is Peace) said:
“ ‘Verily, He Who has given you the Qur’an will surely bring you back at an appointed time.’ [Surah 28:85] “Your Prophet and the Prince of the Believers and the Imams shall return to you.”
And Imam Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) said:
“The first to emerge from the earth and return to the world is Al-Hussein ibn Ali (PBUT).”
The Ahlul-Bayt (From Them is Peace) have mentioned some of the Prophets and Messengers and companions by name in various traditions as ones who will return in the time of the Qaim/Riser. From those names are the Seven Sleepers, Joshua son of Nun, Al-Miqdad, Malik Al-Ashtar, Salman Al-Farsi, Abu Dajanah Al-Ansari, Al-Mufaddel ibn Omar and many others. These are just a few from a plethora of narrations from Mohammed and the Family of Mohammed (PBUH & His Family) mentioning the concept of the Return or the Raj’a.
There is a manuscript called Al-Haft Al-Shareef written by Al-Mufaddel ibn Omar who recorded conversations between him and Imam Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace). In this Book Imam Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) explains in detail the concept of reincarnation in Islam, and how Raj’a is equivalent to the reincarnation of souls. Imam Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) maps out and explains how many incarnations a soul has and explains how a soul can reincarnate into human, animal, plant, or inanimate forms such as rocks and stones. The book was first translated into English by us and is available for anyone to read. Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) has stated that Al-Haft Al-Shareef is one of the greatest books to have ever been written. It is one of the most authentic and reliable books in Muslim history. It has been largely preserved in its original form with minor distortions and additions throughout time.
Ali Al-Ghoraifi asked Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace), “When is the world of the Raj’a? Is it in this world or another? And what is the interpretation of the tradition that states that the Prince of the Believers (From Him is Peace) will rule for forty-four thousand years and that there shall be born for each of his Shia a thousand males?”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “The Prince of the Believers means all of the Proofs of God, and as far as a thousand being born from every Shia, the Shia are you, for whoever is guided through you, you are the ones who gave birth to them.”
So Ali Al-Ghoraifi asked, “Do you mean by ‘all of the Proofs of God’ the Mahdis?”
So he (From Him is Peace) replied, “Yes, the Mahdis.”
Ali Al-Ghoraifi asked the Imam (From Him is Peace), “The qur’anic verse which says ‘Verily, it is but one of the greatest (signs)’ Are the great signs the Day of the Raj’a and the Day of the Qaim/Riser and the Day of the Qiyama?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) replied, “This verse has nothing to do with all that.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked, “There is a tradition which states that Al-Hussein (From Him is Peace) returns in the time of the Mahdi who does not have any children. Is this a true tradition?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) answered, “Yes, it is true, the one who does not have any children from his loins, from his water.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked the Imam (From Him is Peace), “Do the Prophets and Messengers return in a chronological order?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) replied, “No, not necessarily, the return of the Prophets and Messengers in this incarnation is not chronological and not one after the other, and not in a certain order. Perhaps Adam (PBUH) is from the loins of Joseph or Jesus (PBUT) in this time.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “So I can understand from this that biological relationships are only for physical bodies and the soul has nothing to do with these biological relations. So is it possible that Joseph, for example, can be from the loins of a normal man, or that Al-Hussein (From Him is Peace) could be from the loins of a normal man, or do they have to come from the loins of a Prophet or an Imam?”
So Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) replied and said, “Physically they can be descendants of a normal man or a non-infallible.”
So Ali Al-Ghoraifi said, “We know that the rank of Al-Hussein (From Him is Peace) and the Imams (From Them is Peace) is according to my knowledge, higher than the Mahdis (PBUT), so if my understanding is correct, then Al-Hussein (From Him is Peace) would have to return in this day and age at a higher rank than to just be a supporter or believer in the Call.”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) answered and said, “Your understanding is correct my son, Al-Hussein (PBUH) is Al-Hussein (PBUH). My son, you want to reach a certain answer and I shall deliver it to you and put you at ease, I am Al-Hussein, I am Al-Hussein the carrier of my grandfather’s sword Ali ibn Abi Talib (PBUH), Thol-Fiqar (double-edged sword), and the one who is victorious with the sword, and the avenger of the Family of Mohammed (PBUT) and the Imams and the Prophets and the Messengers (peace be upon them all), I am the one who is requesting vengeance for the blood of the Prophets and Preferred ones and the Messengers and all praises due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, that honored us and you with it, no one obtains this (to be a part of this belief and Call) except he who has great luck.”
We all got goosebumps and we cried and I said, “And Allah is a witness that I used to believe in that since many years ago, that Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) is Imam Al-Hussein (From Him is Peace).”
And so Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) said to me, “My son, you were like your grandmother, Khadijah (peace be upon her and her sons), you funded this Call, you and your pure brothers, so you have the great preference and verily God does not waste the reward of the good-doers. May God grant you goodness, it is my honor to have you as my son, I am honored by you and by your purified descendants, upon you is peace from me forever and always, may God do you good.”
Ali Al-Ghoraifi then asked, “Is the world of the Raj’a different than the physical world or are they one and the same or are they interconnected?”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “The world of the Raj’a is the same world as this one, we are right now in the Raj’a and in every time and age there was a Raj’a or Return and the Returning to this world has not stopped but in this particular age it will be special and it shall never repeat again. In this age, the Prophets and Messengers, Vicegerents, and purified ones have all gathered in it. It is the promised age that God promised to us.”
Ali Al-Ghoraifi asked, “My Master, did you return throughout the past one thousand and two hundred years?”
So he (From Him is Peace) responded, “This question I shall not answer, I apologize, my son.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked, “Is the Day of Judgment after the time of the Twelfth Mahdi?”
So he (From Him is Peace) asked, “Which Day of Judgment do you mean exactly? If you mean the greater Judgment Day which people understand to be a day when God wipes out this universe or this Earth, then it will never be and not even a million men descended from your loins will ever see it.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “So then what is the meaning of the greater Day of Judgment and Day of Reckoning, and is this Day of Judgment always happening?”
So Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) said, “The Day of Judgment is in the afterlife, meaning after your final incarnation. We are right now in judgment.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “I understand now that I am in my final incarnation.”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “Then when your body dies, you shall go to judgment or Judgment Day, but life shall never end in this universe.”
Al-Ghoraifi asked, “Am I in my final incarnation?”
Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) replied, “If you look within yourself well, you would know the answer to that.”
Al-Ghoraifi said, “My Master, I am fed up with my self and I have despaired from it, I am tired of my self.”
Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) said, “Despair always comes from the devil, may God curse him.”
Al-Ghoraifi said, “I mean I have despaired from my self, but I, all praises due to God, have not despaired from the mercy of God. And how great is His mercy, even right now I am amazed from Him.”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “When you are searching for your self, be patient and wait, and search for your self humbly, and do not look nor search for your self above, rather look for it in the field of range of your sight.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked once again, “Do I have another incarnation?”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “You shall not return again to this Earth.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “I understand from this that there are other returns and incarnations in worlds other than this one.”
So he (From Him is Peace) said, “If God wills.”
Al-Ghoraifi asked, “Is faith in reincarnation a pillar from the pillars of religion?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “No.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked, “Is Iblis killed in this incarnation, and will Iblis have more incarnations?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) replied, “If God wills, Iblis (May God curse him) shall not return, his end shall be here.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “There is a narration which states that the companions of the Mahdi (PBUH & His Family) shall vanish from their beds…is this going to happen physically in this age of ours?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “The bed here means wife and children and family.”
So Ali Al-Ghoraifi said, “So shall this matter happen suddenly to the family and people?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “This is not the case with everyone, not all the believers. This is a special mission which shall be for some of the believers and not all of them.”
So Al-Ghoraifi asked, “So shall it be that they vanish instantly into thin air, or do you mean by vanishing that they travel?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Traveling in addition to perhaps it being instantly, meaning, it shall be traveling but suddenly.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “If the incarnations of a certain person are over, does that mean that it is his last chance to be tested and to elevate?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Yes, it is as such.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “And after that is his Judgment Day?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “His personal judgment.”
So Al-Ghoraifi said, “So does death occur here, and what was before it of incarnations is just ‘Wafat’?”
The Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Yes, it is here.”
Al-Ghoraifi then said, “So is it possible to say that what is in the book Al-Haft Al-Shareef by Imam Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace) regarding the human being entering into the world many times and a precise number of times for each person so that the total amount of years lived in all incarnations for every person is equal to the total amount of years lived by every other person, [is true]?”
Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) responded and said, “I have said that the book Al-Haft Al-Shareef is one of the greatest books of all time but it also has in it a small amount of corruption.”
Al-Ghoraifi then asked, “What about what is written in Buddhist texts about reincarnation and Samsara, do they also have truth in them? And can a human being end his incarnations by elevating to become an angel, that is if he continued to elevate?”
So the Imam (From Him is Peace) said, “Angels can become human, but humans cannot become angels.”
Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) clarified that reincarnation is a reality that exists and is part of our religion. And he clarified that people have been reincarnating from the beginning of time until now. He clarified that the concept of the Raj’a or Return is the same as reincarnation and incarnations. He validated the Gnostic mystical book, Al-Haft Al-Shareef which covers Imam Al-Sadiq’s teachings on reincarnation, and called it one of the greatest books of all time. Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan (From Him is Peace) also revealed his own incarnation, and that is that he is Al-Hussein son of Ali (From Them is Peace) and he also demonstrated that he has knowledge of people’s incarnations.
¶ Sources
- Al-Muhtadir, Al-Hassan Ibn Sulayman Al-Hilli, p. 33
- Mizan Al-Hikmah (Scale of Wisdom), Mohammed Al-Reyshahri, Vol. 2, p. 1036
- Uyūn ʾAkhbār ar-Riḍā (AS), Al-Shaikh Al-Saduq, Vol. 1, p. 218
- Bihar Al-Anwar, Al-Allamah Al-Majlisi, Vol. 53, p. 52
- Mizan Al-Hikmah (Scale of Wisdom), Mohammed Al-Reyshahri, Vol. 2, p. 1037
- Tafsir Al-Qummi, Ali ibn Ibrahim Al-Qummi, Vol. 2, p. 147
- Mizan Al-Hikmah (Scale of Wisdom), Mohammed Al-Reyshahri, Vol. 2, p. 1037
- Ali Al-Ghoraifi is one of the believers who is close to Aba Al-Sadiq (From Him is Peace).
- The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 74 (Al-Muddaththir), Verse 35
- Wafat is an Arabic term that refers to “minor death.”