سورة الشعراء

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abu Basir said: I heard Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) say, regarding the statement of Allah the Exalted: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعِینَ [If We willed, We could send down upon them from the sky a sign so that their necks would remain humbled to it]: "Soon Allah will send this sign upon them." I said: "Upon whom?" He said: "Upon Banu Umayya and their followers." I said: "What is the sign?" He said: "The standing still of the sun from midday until the time of Asr, and the emerging of the chest and face of a man whose lineage and ancestry are recognised, in the disc of the sun. This will be in the time of the Sufyani, and at that moment will be the destruction of the Sufyani and his people."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Abu Basir said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about the verse: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعِینَ [If We willed, We could send down upon them from the sky a sign so that their necks would remain humbled to it]. He said: "The necks of Banu Umayya will be humbled before that sound, and this will be at the time of the sun's zawal (midday), and Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) will appear at the time of the sun's zawal above the heads of the people for an hour, so that his face is fully seen, and the people recognise his lineage, ancestry and virtues." Then he said: "At that time, the state of Banu Umayya will be such that a man of them will hide behind a tree, and the tree will say: 'A man from Banu Umayya is hiding behind me — kill him!'"

Ibn Abbas: This verse was revealed about us and about the Banu Umayyah. After much hardship, a government will be granted to us that will make their necks bow before us, and will humble them after [their] honor.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): If Allah, when He sent forth His prophets, had wished to open for them the treasures of gold, the mines of the cities and lush gardens, and to gather the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth to accompany them, He would have done so. But had He done so, there would have been no room left for trial, and reward would have become meaningless; the news from the heavens (the divine glad tidings and warnings) would have vanished; and for those who accepted the call of the prophets, the reward of the afflicted [with hardship and trouble] would not have been due; nor would the people of faith have received the reward of the righteous; nor would names [such as the Allah-fearing, the believer, the sinner] have kept their clear meanings. For this reason, had Allah sent down a sign from the sky, فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعین [before which their necks would stay bowed down]; and had He done so, the trial and test would have been lifted from all people.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعین [If We willed, We could send down upon them a sign from the heaven before which their necks would stay bowed down] — it is a call from the sky, with the name of a man and the name of his father.

Ibn Abbas: Regarding the statement of Allah the Exalted: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعِینَ [If We willed, We could send down upon them from the sky a sign so that their necks would remain humbled to it] — it was said to Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family): "Send this sign that Allah mentions in this verse down upon us, that we may believe in it." And the Muslims also said: "O Prophet! Send down this sign upon them, that they may believe." Thereupon Allah sent down: "With the utmost insistence, they swore by Allah that if a sign [a miracle] came to them they would surely believe in it. Say: 'Signs are only with Allah [and it is not in my power to bring you a miracle at your whim], and what will make you realise that when a sign comes they will [believe? No,] they will not believe.' And We shall overturn their hearts and their sights [yes, they will not believe] just as they did not believe in it the first time, and We shall leave them wandering in their transgression, bewildered." (al-An'am / 109–110)

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Umar ibn Hanzala said: I heard Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) say: "Before the rising of the Qa'im (peace be upon him) there are five signs: the Cry, the Sufyani, the sinking [of the earth], the killing of the Pure Soul (al-Nafs al-Zakiyya), and the Yamani." I said: "May I be your ransom, if before these signs anyone from your household rises up, shall we accompany him?" He said: "No." The next day I recited the verse: إِن نَّشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِم مِّن السَّمَاء آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْنَاقُهُمْ لَهَا خَاضِعِینَ [If We willed, We could send down upon them from the sky a sign so that their necks would remain humbled to it] and said to him: "Is this the Cry?" He (peace be upon him) said: "If it were, it would humble the necks of the enemies of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Hisham narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: "Their necks — that is, Banu Umayya — will be humbled, and this is the Cry from the sky in the name of the Master of the Affair (may Allah hasten his relief)."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Imam Ali (peace be upon him) was asked about فَاخْتَلَفَ الْأَحْزَابُ مِن بَیْنِهِمْ [But the parties from among them differed]. He said: "Various factions among them fell into disagreement." He was asked, and he said: "Await the relief through three signs." It was asked: "What are those three signs, O Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him)?" He said: "The disagreement of the people of Sham among themselves, the black banners from Khurasan, and the terror in the month of Ramadan." It was asked: "What is the terror in the month of Ramadan?" He said: "Have you not heard that Allah the Mighty and Majestic says in the Qur'an: إِن نَّشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِم مِّن السَّمَاء آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْنَاقُهُمْ لَهَا خَاضِعِینَ [If We please, We will send down upon them a sign from the heaven so that their necks shall stoop to it]; it is a sign which will bring the young girl out from behind the veil, awaken the sleeper, and strike fear into the alert one."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Hanan ibn Sadir said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about the verse: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً [If We please, We will send down upon them a sign from the heaven]. He said: "This verse was revealed concerning the Qa'im of the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family), whom Allah will call by name from the heaven."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Our Qa'im will not rise until a caller calls out from the sky, and young maidens behind their curtains and the whole of the east and the west hear it; and it is about that day that this verse was revealed: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعِینَ [If We willed, We could send down upon them a sign from the heaven before which their necks would stay bowed down].

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Husayn ibn Khalid said: Imam Rida (peace be upon him) said: "He who has no piety has no religion, and he who has no taqiyyah (dissimulation) has no faith; indeed the most honoured of you before Allah is the one who practises taqiyyah the most." It was said: "Until when?" He said: "Until a specified time, which is the day of the rising of our Qa'im; whoever abandons taqiyyah before the rising of our Qa'im is not one of us." It was said: "O son of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family)! Who is the Qa'im from among you, the Ahl al-Bayt?" He said: "The fourth of my descendants, the son of the mistress of the handmaidens! Allah, through him, will purify the earth from every wrong and sanctify it from every oppression. He is the one about whose birth people will be in doubt, and he is the one who will have an occultation before his rising. When he rises, the earth will shine with his light, and he will place the scale of justice among the people, and no one will oppress another. He is the one for whom the earth is folded up and who has no shadow. He is the one for whom a caller from the heaven will call out his name, such that all the people of the earth will hear the summons to him, saying: 'Behold! Truly the Proof of Allah has appeared at the House of Allah, so follow him, for the truth is with him and in him.' And this is the interpretation of the word of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: إِنْ نَشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِمْ مِنَ السَّماءِ آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْناقُهُمْ لَها خاضِعِینَ [If We please, We will send down upon them a sign from the heaven so that their necks shall stoop to it]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Fudayl ibn Muhammad narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said: "The heavenly call in the name of the Qa'im of the family of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) is clear and manifest in the Qur'an." I asked: "May Allah set your affairs right, where is it in the Qur'an?" He said: طسم* تِلْکَ آیَاتُ الْکِتَابِ المُبِینِ* إِن نَّشَأْ نُنَزِّلْ عَلَیْهِم مِّن السَّمَاء آیَةً فَظَلَّتْ أَعْنَاقُهُمْ لَهَا خَاضِعِینَ [Ta Sin Mim. These are the verses of the clear Book. If We please, We will send down upon them a sign from the heaven so that their necks shall stoop to it]. When they hear the sound, they will feel as though a bird is on top of their heads."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When Allah sent Musa (peace be upon him) to Pharaoh, he came to the gate of his palace and asked permission to enter, but Pharaoh did not grant it. Musa (peace be upon him) struck the door with his staff, and the doors clashed together and opened. Then he entered upon Pharaoh and informed him that he was the messenger of the Lord of the worlds, and asked him to send the Children of Israel with him. Pharaoh, as Allah relates, said: أَ لَمْ نُرَبِّکَ فِینا وَلِیداً وَ لَبِثْتَ فِینا مِنْ عُمُرِکَ سِنِینَ [Did we not bring you up as a child among us, and did you not tarry among us for years of your life?] (Ash-Shu'ara/18).