Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Ibrahim Abu Ishaq al-Laythi said: ... Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said: "Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, has always been Knowing and Eternal. He created things from nothing. Those who believe that Allah created things from something have disbelieved in Him, because that thing from which He created things would have to be eternal and pre-existent along with Allah the Exalted from all eternity — and that is not so. Rather, Allah the Exalted created things from nothing. Among the things Allah created is the earth, which He created pure and clean. Then He split it open and brought out from within it a clear, pure, sweet water, and He presented upon it our wilayah — [the wilayah of] us, the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). The water accepted it. Then Allah the Exalted caused that water to flow over the earth for seven days until it covered it entirely. Then He drew the water away, and after that He took a portion of the clay on the surface of that earth and made it the clay of the Imams (peace be upon them). Then He took the settled sediment of that clay and from it created our Shia. And had He, O Ibrahim, left your clay as it was — as He left our clay as it was — you and we would have been one single thing." I said: "O son of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)! What then did Allah do with our clay?" He (peace be upon him) said: "Allah the Exalted, after that, created a salty, foul, stinking earth. He split it open and brought out from it a bitter, brackish, foul water. Then He presented our wilayah upon it, and it did not accept it. He caused that water to flow over that earth for seven days until it covered it entirely. Then He drew the water away, and after that He took a portion of the clay on the surface of that earth and from it created the tyrants and their leaders. Then He mixed it with the sediment of your clay. And had He left their clay as it was and not mixed it with your clay, they would never have uttered the two testimonies of faith, nor prayed, nor fasted, nor given zakat, nor performed the Hajj, nor returned trusts to their owners, and in appearance they would have borne no resemblance to you at all. And there is nothing heavier or harder upon a believer than to see his enemy in a form like his own." I said: "O son of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)! What was then done with these two clays?" He said: "The two were mixed together with the first water (the sweet, pleasant water) and the second (the bitter, brackish, foul water). Then that clay was kneaded, as leather is kneaded. Then He took a handful of it," and He said: "'This is toward Paradise and I do not care.' Then He took another handful, and said: 'This is toward the Fire and Hell, and I do not care.' Then He mixed the two, so from the essence of the believer some fell upon [the essence of the disbeliever] ... Shall I not bring you a witness from the Qur'an regarding the matter of the mixing and the two clays — of the believer and the opposer?" I said: "Yes, O son of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)." He (peace be upon him) said: "O Ibrahim, recite: الَّذِینَ یَجْتَنِبُونَ کَبائِرَ الْإِثْمِ وَ الْفَواحِشَ إِلَّا اللَّمَمَ إِنَّ رَبَّکَ واسِعُ الْمَغْفِرَةِ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِکُمْ إِذْ أَنْشَأَکُمْ مِنَ الْأَرْضِ [Those who avoid the major sins and shameful deeds, except lesser lapses (which they sometimes fall into) — indeed your Lord is vast in forgiveness; He knows you best from the time He brought you forth from the earth] (Najm/32). Shall I say more to you, O Ibrahim?" I said: "Yes, O son of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)." He (peace be upon him) said: "That is, just as He originated you at first, so you will return to Him. فَرِیقاً هَدی وَ فَرِیقاً حَقَّ عَلَیْهِمُ الضَّلالَةُ إِنَّهُمُ اتَّخَذُوا الشَّیاطِینَ أَوْلِیاءَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ [A group He guided, and a group upon whom error is justly due — they took the satans as guardians besides Allah]. What is meant are the imams of tyranny, not the imams of truth and justice; وَ یَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ [and they think they are rightly guided]. Take this, O Abu Ishaq, and grasp it well. By Allah, these are among our precious and noble narrations, the inner core of our secrets, and among the hidden treasures of our storehouses. Return, and do not inform anyone of our secret except a believer who possesses insight, for if you divulge our secret, you will be tried in your own self, your wealth, your family, and your children."