[4] * The books of narrations reliable to the Ja’faris.
I saw that it would be beneficial to quickly mention some of the books of traditions that the Ja’faris depend on, before speaking about the Aahaad traditions and the conditions for it [according to them].
## We will ignore the books that are not considered dependable by all of them, although it might be seen as dependable by some of them …
That; In spite of the fact that some of these books [that are seen dependable by some] are clear in Kufr (apostasy), that not even a layperson would doubt that it is a deviation from (the Path) of Allah (SWT) and his Messenger (Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam) …
Also despite the fact that they mention the authors of these Kufri and Shirki books, that contains the greatest blasphemy and apostasy, with the most beautiful of praise but (they also) say: their books had some excessiveness and deviation.
“Some Excessiveness and Deviation”!!
[What they call ‘some excessiveness and deviation’] is in reality something all the people of the Qiblah agreed that it is a clear Apostasy!
## However; if we ignore this, the Ja’faris have Four books that all of them see as dependable …
The perished [writer] Abdul-Husien (!) Sharaf al-Musawi said in his book Al-Muraaja’at about these four books:
“It is ‘Al-Kaafi’, ‘Al-Tahzeeb’, ‘Al-Istibsaar’, and ‘Man La Yahduruhu Al-Faqeeh’, and they are Mutawaatirah and their contents are known for a fact to be true, and [of them] Al-Kaafi is the earliest, greatest, and the best”.
(Al-Muraja’a 110 p. 311).
The Shi’ah Imamis agree upon these four books, I will not go in detail quoting what they said.
## Shaykh Khaled Alazhari [May Allah (SWT) assist him] says:
(Al-Kaafi), written by Al-Kulaini (who died 329 H), and they call him Hujat Al-Islam (The authority of Islam) and its Reliable one, and there is consensus on his reliability between them.
(Faqeeh man la Yahduruhu Al-Faqeeh), by Ibn Babawaih al-Qumi (died 381 H), they call him Al-Sadooq (The Truthful one), and we will mention – In Sha Allah – some startling things about this man!
(Tahzeeb Al-Ahkaam), by al-Tusi (died 460 H), and they call him Shaykh Al-Taaifah (The Scholar of the group), and I had already mentioned him before.
And (Al-Istibsaar) which is also by him.
## The commentator of Al-Kaafi says: “… and these traditions which came in Al-Kaafi; the author (i.e. Al-Kulaini) took them (i.e. believed them) all as authentic, which is why he indicated its authenticity” (p.
.
He also says: “All the people of Imamah, as well as the majority of the Shi’ah agreed to favor this book, and take from it, and trust what is in it, and hold its rulings as sufficient …” (p. 20 same book).
Shaykh Khaled Alazhari [May Allah forgive him] says:
If the Ja’faris themselves declare that the Science of Hadith (i.e. the rules by which the hadith/tradition is known to be authentic or not) was not developed for them until 726 H by the earliest of their dates; then what is this authenticity that al-Kulaini believed in?!!!
The answer: Haashim Ma’ruf al-Husieni, a Ja’fari, says in his book (Dirasaat fee al-Kaafi by al-Kulaini p.43): “Verily (something being) authentic according to the earlier [Ja’fari] scholars is when a tradition is seen as correct to act and depend upon (!!!) Even if its chains did not fulfill the conditions that we mentioned” …
I say: Soon we will mention their strange criterions.
But, what rationale is this?
By Allah, I stand in confusion!
The authentic is what it is correct to act upon!!
How did they know it was correct to act upon?!
And when did they authenticate it? Before acting upon it, or after??
That was the first and most important of their books, Al-Kaafi by Al-Kulaini …
## As for their book (Faqeeh man La Yahduruhu Al-Faqeeh) by their Sadooq ibn Babaweih al-Qumi …….
But: Who is ibn Babaweih who is called the Sadooq (The Truthful one)
He is a man who some Ja’fari Rafidhah [scholars] accuse him of being a Liar, you will not find anyone who ranked him as reliable, and yet his book is one of their fundamental books!!!
Al-Khonasaari said in ‘Rawdhaat Al-Janaat’: “… and the strange thing is that some incapable people would refrain from stating the reliability of Al-Shaykh Al-Sadooq, and would [even] say that he is unreliable since no one from the scholars who studied the reliability of men mentioned that he was reliable. That is the clearest of all mistakes, and the worst of all statements, since he [Al-Sadooq] is far greater than the need for anyone to state his reliability (!!!) as is clear to those who specialized in inspecting and investigating [the reliability of men], and just who attested to the reliability of the first one ever to investigate the reliability of men, and who made him an authority over the religion …” (6/137)
It is apparent that al-Khonasaari was blinded by his enthusiasm to defend ibn Babaweih [May Allah disgrace them both], which made him decide to destroy ‘Ilm Al-Rijaal (the science of knowing the reliability of men) according to them in two lines!
He says: “and just who attested to the reliability of the first one ever to investigate the reliability of men, and who made him an authority over the religion …”!!!
I said: The issue is not just that no one attested to the reliability of Al-Sadooq, rather in the introduction of the same book “Faqeeh man la Yahduruhu al-Faqeeh” p.70, Ahmad al-Ihsaaei said: “Al-Sadooq (The Truthful one) in this issue/matter is a Liar”!
In any case we can say:
E – The authentic tradition according to early Ja’fari scholars is; anything that was acceptable to act on, even if it did not fulfill the criterions of authenticity (and there is nothing strange in that, since the early scholars did not even have the criterions and conditions for authenticating a tradition).
F – It is not known for some of the authors of their reliable books, as to who attested to their reliability, while other Ja’fari scholars have stopped from declaring [some of the authors] as reliable and others accused them of being Liars.