قال حذيفة...

قال حذيفة: فقمت من عند أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام وقلت في نفسي: لو لم أدرك من أفعال الخير ما أرجو به الثواب إلا حب هذا اليوم، لكان مناي.

قال محمد بن أبي العلا الهمداني ويحيى بن جريح: فقام كل واحد منا نقبل رأس أحمد بن إسحاق وقلنا: الحمد لله الذي ما قبضنا حتى شرفنا بفضل هذا اليوم المبارك، وانصرفنا من عنده، وعيدنا فيه، فهو عيد الشيعة تم الخبر [1] Syed Ibn Tawoos has written in his book ‘Zawaaid Al Fawaaid’, narrating from Ibn Abi Al A’la Al Hamadani Al Wasti and Yahya Ibn Muhammad Bin Huwayja Al Baghdadi who said: ‘We were discussing about Ibn Al Khattab -la and this matter confused us.

We all decided to go to Ahmad Bin Is’haq Al Qummi, a companion of Abi Hassan Al Askari -asws , in the city of Qum. We knocked on his door and an Iraqi girl came out (to greet us). We asked her about him. She replied, ‘He was busy in celebrating the day of Eid. We replied to her: ‘Glory be to Allah!

Surely there are four Eids for the Shiites – Al Fitr, and Al Azha, and Al Ghadeer and Al Jum’a.’ She answered: ‘Surely Ahmad Bin Is’haq has narrated from his master Abi Al Hassan Bin Muhammad Al Askari -asws , indeed, this day is the day of Eid, and this is better than all the Eids near Ahl Ul Bayt -asws and their slaves.’ We asked her: ‘Seek permission for us to enter and inform him (Ahmad) about us’. She went inside and informed him.

He came out looking happy, scented with musk, wiping his face with an apron. We asked him about this. He said, ‘Don’t you know it? I have bathed for this Eid.’ We asked him to first (tell us) if it was a day of Eid? He replied, ‘Yes!

This is the ninth day of Rabbi Ul Awwal.’ He invited us inside and asked us to sit down and then he said, ‘I requested the slave of Abi Al Hassan Al Askari -asws secretly to seek permission which was given and I went to him -asws on a day like this one, the ninth day of the month of Rabbi-ul-Awwal and I saw that our Master -asws had instructed each of his servants to dress up in new clothes, and Imam -asws had a ‘Bachur’ [2] burner in his hand.

I said to him -asws , ‘May our fathers and our mothers be in your service, O son of the Messenger of Allah -azwj ! Is this a new day of happiness for the Ahlul Bayt -asws ?’ Imam -asws replied: ‘Which day is more sanctimonious with the Ahlul Bayt -asws than this ninth day of the month of Rabbi-ul-Awwal? My father -asws had narrated to me that Huzayfa al-Yamani went to my ancestor the Holy Prophet -saww on a day like this.