They are the same angels who had been in the company of...

They are the same angels who had been in the company of Hadrat ‘Isa ( ‘a ) when God brought him to heaven.”[^9] Imam ‘Ali ( ‘a ) said: “Hadrat al-Mahdi ( ‘a ) will be assisted with three thousand angels; they will strike the faces and backs of the enemies.”[^10] On the commentary of the noble Qur’anic verse ( ayah ): ﴿ ** ** أَتَى أَمْرُ اللّهِ فَلاَ تَسْتَعْجِلُوهُ ﴾ “Allah’s edict is coming!

So do not seek to hasten it,” [^11] Imam as-Sadiq ( ‘a ) said: “This commandment and affair of Allah ( amrullah ) is our commandment and affair.

That is, God has commanded that we should not be in haste for the uprising of al-Mahdi because He will support the master of our affair ( ‘atfs ) with the three armies of angels, believers and dread, and we will obtain our rights.”[^12] Hadrat ar-Rida ( ‘a ) said: “At the time of the uprising of Hadrat al-Qa’im ( ‘atfs ), God will command the angels to convey peace ( salam ) to the believers and participate in their gatherings.

If one of the believers has an appointment with him, the Imam (‘ atfs ) will command some of the angels to take that person on their shoulders and bring him to the Imam. Once his appointment is finished, they will return him to his previous location. “Some of the believers will travel above the clouds while others will fly along with the angels in the sky. Yet others will walk with the angels while others will overtake them.

Some of the believers will be placed by the angels as judges, and the believer in the sight of God is loftier than an angel to such an extent that some of the believers will be appointed as judges by the Imam over a hundred thousand angels.”[^13] Probably, the judgment of these believers among the angels is meant to resolve their differences over intellectual issues and subjects, and these types of differences have no contradiction with the infallibility ( ‘ismat ) of the angels.

Angels of the Earth Muhammad ibn Muslim said that he asked Imam as-Sadiq ( ‘a ) regarding the legacy of knowledge and its extent. The Imam said in reply: “God has two cities; one in the east and another in the west. In those two cities, there is a group residing there that is aware neither of Iblis nor of his creation. I visit them from time to time; they ask us questions about things important to themselves and about how to supplicate and we teach them.

They also ask about the time of the advent of Hadrat al-Qa’im ( ‘atfs ). They worship God much and are striving hard in matters related to devotion.

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