‘Allamah Majlisi who has narrated this story explains...

‘Allamah Majlisi who has narrated this story explains, “Since I did not find this story in any of the reliable books, I have brought it in a separate chapter.”[^6] Shaykh Aqa Buzurg Tehrani asserts that this tale is a fabrication.[^7] Hence, although it is possible that Imam Zaman (ع) has a family, it is not verifiable, as there are no authentic hadiths to the point. On the other hand, there does not seem to be any good reason why Imam Zaman (ع) would abandon the religious practice of marriage.

Where does the Imam reside? There are three groups of hadith in this regard that at first glance might seem contradictory. The first group do not specify a location but rather say that the Imam is itinerant in mountains and deserts—such as the hadith narrated by Ibn Mahziar and which Shaykh al-Tusi has recorded in his Ghaybah .[^8] The second group are those that point to a specific location as to where the Imam resides.

These hadiths are divergent however in regard to where that location exactly is. Some of these hadiths mention the city of Medina or more specifically Mount Razawi which is located on the outskirts of the city.[^9] In reference to such ahadith ‘Allamah Shushtari writes, It has been ascertained in authentic hadiths that the Imam’s residence in both the major and minor occultations is Mount Razawi.

And the fact that the Kisaniyyah claim it as the headquarters of Muhammad Hanafiyyah does not negate its being where the Imam resides. For, the Kisaniyyah had based their belief on the numerous accounts in which the Prophet (ص) had prophesied the coming of the Al-Mahdi, his occultation, etc., but had erroneously accepted Muhammad Hanafiyyah as the promised Al-Mahdi.

And generally, all deviations and aberrations stem from a truth which has been wrongfully understood or manipulated.[^10] A number of these hadiths however point to an area around Mecca—namely, Zu Tuwa—as the residence of the Imam and where he will begin his revolution alongside his companions.[^11] The third group of hadiths also lacks any allusion to a specific location but points out that the Imam does in fact interact with other people normally but without being identified.[^12] On examining the three groups more carefully it becomes clear that there is no discrepancy between them.

The Imam leads a normal life without arising any suspicion. This mode is the most convenient for the Imam.