THIS IS AL-MAHDI
Muslims in general in the past and the present believe in the Savior who shall bring hack to them their glory and honor and repair what tyrants and oppressors have corrupted and destroyed, and restore to them their religion. This savior and reformer is Imam al-Mahdi (a.s.), about whom the Prophet (a.s.) gave good news when saying, "If nothing remains in this life except one day, Allah will prolong that day until al-Mandi, who is from my progeny and whose name is like mine, shall appear to fill the earth with justice and fairness after it shall have been filled with injustice and oppression."
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This savior of humankind, who will complete the course of the prophets and messengers in the earth so that the Light of Allah be perfected at his hands, is the center of the attention of all three major religions; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The Jews, Christians, and Muslims all are waiting for him and claim him to be from them according to their many traditions about him.
Since we believe definitely that Islam is the last of religions and that there shall be no prophet after Muhammad (a.s.), so we are certain with no any bit of doubt that al-Mandi is from the progeny of the Prophet Muhammad (a.s.) and he is the last of the twelve infallible imams, behind whom Jesus Christ (a.s.) will offer prayer as a kind of honoring and glorifying.
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1 Refer to Al-Jam' bayna as-Sihah as-Sittah (gathering between the six sahihs), chapt. signs of the Day of Resurrection, and al-Aqa'id al-Islamiyyah (Islamic beliefs), by Sayyid Sabiq.
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In this quick discussion, we do not want to study every thing about al-Mandi, as to the history and the Prophetic traditions, for we have already talked about that in our book To Be With the Truthful, besides that many books, theses, and encyclopedias have been written on al-Mandi (a.s.). We only want to show the belief of the AhIul Bayt (a.s.) where they stand alone away from the rest of Muslims in rulings and beliefs that comply with the challenges of the world, and in fact, they may precede challenges sometimes.
The Jews, Christians, and Muslims have been overcome by materialism to an extent that they have gone away from religion and been liable to atheistic, materialistic, and secularist doctrines, where spiritualities have become too weak in them. Therefore, they are looking for solutions, which they do not find except in the divine good news.
Moreover, the violent wars that have exhausted humankind, especially the poor and the weak everywhere in the world, who die of hunger in millions, while tyrants and oppressors compete with each other to possess the most fatal weapons and to occupy nations by all means; culturally, economically, and technologically. Were it not for the hope of a better future with justice, peace, and noble life that man looks forward to, there would be no meaning or sense in this life. And were it not for the belief of Muslims in Allah, Who has promised to support His religion to prevail over all religions when saying :
He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, that He might cause it to prevail over all religions, though the polytheists may be averse. 1
Were it not for this faith, despair would fill their souls and they would be losers! It is this faith that fills souls with energy, vitality, the love of life, expectation of a better future, and the waiting for deliverance, because after hardship there shall come easiness.
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1 Qur'an, 9:33.
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This is al-Mandi, who is the hope of Muslims, or in fact the hope of all humankind. The belief in al-Mandi is not a matter of mocking. Allah the Almighty says :
Say: 0 my servants! who have acted extravagantly against their own souls, do not despair of the mercy of Allah; surely Allah forgives the faults altogether; surely He is the Forgiving, the Merciful. And return to your Lord time after time and submit to Him before there comes to you the punishment, then you shall not be helped. And follow the best that has been revealed to you from your Lord before there comes to you the punishment all of a sudden while you do not even perceive. Lest a soul should say: 0 woe to me, for what I fell short of my duty to Allah, and most surely I was among scoffers. 1
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1 Qur'an, 39:53-56.
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"THEN I WAS GUIDED" IS THE
AHLUL BAYT'S BOOK
The Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) have had well known charismata even in these days. How often that we hear from here and there that sonic charismata have happened to some of the Shia, or that they have seen some charismata somewhere by the virtue of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.). It is not something strange, for the Ahlul Bavt (a.s.) are the infallible imams of guidance, leaders of people, and suns in darkness.
Even if Umar ibn al-Khattab did not know the actual significance of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) at his time, he himself led us to their great position to Allah when he prayed Allah by means of al-Abbas, the Prophet's uncle, who was not from those whom Allah had kept uncleanness away from and purified thorough purifying,
1 and who was not from those whom Allah had ordained blessings on as He had ordained on His prophet, and who was not from those whom Allah had imposed their love on all Muslims, and who was not from those whom Allah had bequeathed the knowledge of the Book to, and who was not from those whom Allah had greeted in His Book when saying, "Peace be on Aal Yasin,"
2 and who was -not from the infallible imams whom the messenger of Allah had imposed on the nation to follow them and ride in their ship, and who was not from those who had inherited the knowledge of the Prophet (a.s.). Nevertheless, Allah responded to Umar, because
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1 The Prophet (a.s.) and his progeny who have been meant by the Qur'anic verse of Purification.
2 Qur'an, 37:130.
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he beseeched Allah by means of a relative to the Prophet (a.s.). If he had beseeched Allah by means of Ali, Fatima, al-Hasan, and alHusayn, he would have seen great wonders, and the blessings of the heaven and the earth would have come down to them, and they would have eaten from above their heads and from under their feet.
What is important is that Umar revealed to us something very important and he uncovered to us what was concealed. This fact is that the kinship to the Prophet (a.s.) has charismata which can be ignored by no one. The relatives of the Prophet (a.s.) arc those people who if ask Allah, He will respond to them immediately in everything. Therefore, when Umar saw rainlessness and felt that there might be famine to threaten Muslims of destruction, he resorted to the kinship of the messenger of Allah, and then it rained by the will of Allah to honor the kinship of the Prophet (a.s.).
Where are the Wahabis to see these irrefutable proofs and where are Muslims who have kept themselves away from knowing the truth?
Sheikh Jallool al-Jaziri (may Allah have mercy on him) was one of the ulama of Zaytoona (University) in Tunisia. By the favor of Allah, he arrived at the truth and turned to be Shia. He wrote his last book in which he discussed the event of al-Ghadir and the homage to Ameerul Mo'minin Imam Ali (a.s.), the virtues of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.), and their charismata. He told me that once Tunis faced rainlessness and famine until all people were about to die. Despite that the people of Tunis offered the prayer for rain many times, but the sky abstained from giving them even one drop. When the lands became too dry, people went complaining to one of the righteous, who was Allama Sheikh Ibrahim ar-Riyahi, and asking him to pray Allah that He might respond to him. The Sheikh said to them, "Gather to me one hundred men from the Ashraf,
1 so that I will offer the prayer for rain with
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1 Ashraf in Tunisia are the sharifs or sayyids who are the descendants of the
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them." One hundred Sharifs came to him, and before finishing the prayer, and though it was very hot, the sky rained heavily. It rained for three days and all valleys overflowed until people were afraid of drowning.
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When I was guided to the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.), thanks be to Allah, and wrote my first book "Then I was Guided", I did not imagine that it would receive all this reception and fame.
By the way, it would be not useless to mention here an anecdote that my dear friend and great scholar Dr. As'ad Ali, who was a great man of letters, told me once when I visited him in his house in Mazza in Damascus. As we were talking, among a group of his disciples and friends, he reminded me of something that delighted me too much. He said, "I read your book Then I was Guided and knew its secret."
I asked astonishedly, "What is the secret of the book?"
He said, "When you came in to visit our master (Imam) Musa al Kadhim (a.s.) and said, '0 Allah, have mercy on him if he is from the righteous', he did according to the saving of Allah "And when you are greeted with a greeting, greet with a better (greeting) than it or return it"
2 and greeted you better than your greeting to him. When you greeted him, saving, '0 Allah have mercy on him', he greeted you with better than your greeting, saying, '0 Allah, guide him (to the right path)!' So Allah responded to him and guided you, and after that came this book, and this was the secret of its success."
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Prophet Muhammad (a.s.) via Ali and Fatima (peace be on them).
1 Sheikh Jallool al-Jaziri mentioned in his book "al-Fawa'id al-Fakhira Lezad ad-Dunya wel Aakhira-the excellent benefits for the provision of this life and the afterlife", p. 78, quoting Tarikh (history of) ibn Dhayyaf that once when the epidemic (plague) spread in Tunisia, the ulama met in the Zeytoonah Mosque and decided to gather forty sharifs who all had the name Muhammad and to pray Allah to save them from that plague. They gathered the forty men by whose means Allah saved people and the plague vanished.
2 Qur'an, 4:86.
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This is a fact that I have believed in and it has entered into the deep of my heart. I have believed that the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) were the secret behind the success of the book with no doubt. I met no one except that he showed me his admiration of the book. The book has been published more than twenty times and translated into seventeen languages in the world. Thousands of Muslims everywhere in the world were guided to the truth by this book, especially in Africa where there were no Shia there and Muslims lived there naturally with no sectarian backgrounds.
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1 In Iraq and Iran, people narrate many true stories about the charismata of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) that have actually taken place. The visitors, students, and scholars from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other places, who have visited or come to study and live near the shrines of the Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) and been blessed by their holy tombs, also narrate such stories.
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"THEN I WAS GUIDED" IN THE COURT
Believing that "people are on the religion of their rulers" and taking the messenger of Allah (a.s.) as my exemplar when he sent many letters to the kings of his time, inviting them to Islam, an idea came to my mind.
In his somehow similar letters to the kings of his time, the messenger of Allah (a.s.) said, "Be Muslim and you shall be safe and Allah will reward you twice, but if you turn your back, the sin of the magi shall be on you."
This is an evidence that "people are on the religion of their kings" that if the kings believe, people believe, if they disbelieve, people disbelieve, and if they become polytheists, people become polytheists too.
The idea that preoccupied my mind was to send copies of my book "Then I was Guided' to the Arab kings and presidents accompanied with friendly letters fitting their positions that they might remember (Allah), for surely reminding would benefit the believers! Since they arc at the head of the countries of this nation, so they are the men of power and authority, and their responsibility for the fate of people and the fate of the Muslim nation is a very great responsibility. "Every one of you is a shepherd (responsible) and every one of you is responsible for his herd (subjects)" as the Prophet (a.s.) said.
Believing that the successful ones in this life and the afterlife are the true believers who do good, enjoin on each other the truth, and enjoin on each other patience, and that "No one of you is a true believer until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself', and "if Allah guides by you one man, it is better to you
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than the world and all what there is in it"...for all that, I sent copies of "Then I was Guided' to King Hasan the Second of Morocco, President ash-Shathli bin Jadid of Algeria, President Zaynol Aabidin bin Ali of Tunisia, President Mu'ammar al-Qadhdhafi of Libya, King Husayn bin Talal of Jordan and his brother (heir apparent) Hasan bin Talal, and to King Fahad ibn Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia.
I sent each book with a special dedication and a letter of highly reverence by registered mail. The copies of the book were already received by all consignees. I knew that from the receipts I received from the post office that had the signatures of the secretaries of all the kings and presidents I sent the book to. I waited too long for the replies, but I received non except one reply from Zaynol Aabidin bin Ali the president of the Republic of Tunisia, who expressed to me his sincere thanks.
Once in a press conference in India when I mentioned this story, I was asked, "Do you think that President Zaynol Aabidin has read your book?"
I replied, "The president is so busy that he has no time to read a book, but if he has read it, he is thanked for that, and if not, he is excused. The important thing is that he was the only one, from among the kings and presidents to whom I sent the book, who replied to my letter."
While waiting for the replies and before receiving the reply of President Zaynol Aabidin, I traveled to Tunisia and there were two hundred copies of "Then I was Guided' with me in my car. In the port, the officials of the customhouse hesitated to distrain the copies of the book. They sent for their boss, who said when he saw the book, "Is this the Green Book?"
I said, "Its color is green, but it is not the Green Book of al-Qadhdhafi."
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He said to me, "Do you not know that letting books pass in this quantity is forbidden and it requires a permit of import?"
I said, "0 brother, this is my book and I am its author. I have offered a copy as present to his Excellency the President."
He took a copy of the book and compared the name of the author to the name in my passport. When he became certain, he said to me, "I too want you to give me a copy as gift."
I said, "With great pleasure! What is your noble name?"
As I was writing a dedication to him, he was signing the permit.
I arrived in Tunis the capital and gave some copies as present to some of my friends there. Then I traveled to my birthplace the city of Qafsah, where I met my relatives and old students. After two or three days, a half of the copies were distributed.
I thought of my traditional opponents, too, and gifted each one a copy of the book with a dedication by name and with some nice words of courtesy, out of my belief in the saying of Allah :
And not alike are the good and the evil. Repel (evil) with what is best, when lo! he between whom and you was enmity would be as if he were a warm friend. 1
I said to myself that they might be guided to the truth and leave fanaticism, or at least they might refrain from troubling me.
Then, I traveled to some neighboring towns and villages and distributed the rest of the copies. Nothing remained with me in my car except three or four copies that I kept for what would be later on.
President Zaynol Aabidin returned the glory of the Zeytoonah University and it was reopened after it had been closed for thirty years. He sent government delegations to each district to appoint the director, whom the people of the district chose to manage the branch of the Zeytoonah University there. Unfortunately, the one, who was chosen in Qafsah and it was celebrated for his
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1 Qur'an, 41:34.
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appointment, was the most spiteful one to me and to the Shia.
This man seized that opportunity and gave the copy that I had sent to him to the commissioner of the district, accusing me of dangerous accusations. The commissioner of the district gave permission to the governor to arrest me, take back all the copies of the book that I had gifted, and to send for the people, who would be found to have the book, in order to be questioned and a report to be written on the case.
The agents of police and security forces began carrying out the orders and looking for me everywhere. At that time, I was a guest of one of my friends, who was a manager of a big department. My son-in-law came to me there in a hurry and told me about the matter. He suggested that I should go immediately to the borders and leave the country. I thanked him for his feelings towards me and said to him, "If I do that, I shall give them an excuse against myself. I will wait for them with all courage, for I have nothing to fear of, nor have I done anything that I may regret."
The agents of the security forces came and took me with them to the police station. There, questioning and argumentation began with the chief of the chief inspector with some of politeness and respect until the governor arrived. As soon as the governor saw me, he shouted at me, "Do you want to make a revolution in this peaceful country? Do you think that we are in Iran here?"
He turned to inspector and said to him, "This master has brought three thousand copies of a hook full of blasphemy, and brought one hundred millions of money to distribute them among people, inciting them to revolt and rebel."
I said to him with challenge, "Firstly, my book is not a book of blasphemy nor does it call for revolt. If it was so, I would not present a copy of it to his Excellency President Zaynol Aabidin, nor would I come to Tunisia at all. Secondly, if I have brought three thousand copies, I had to come with a big truck to carry them, but the car, which I have come with, is now distrained with you. You can fill it yourselves to see how many copies it may
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contain. Thirdly, you say that I have distributed one hundred millions of money among people. I gainsay and insist on you to bring even one man, saying that I have given him even one fits. After all, I did not come to the country stealthily or by force. I came in a lawful way and was searched like the rest of people. If I had one hundred millions, they would not let pass without a permit. Surely, you are more aware of these affairs than I am."
Finding my speech reasonable, he asked me, "How many copies of the book have you brought?"
"Twenty copies", I replied.
He said, "Give me two hundred names of the persons whom you have given copies of your book."
I said, "This is not possible, not because I refuse to give you the names, but I really do not know them. For example, from among them there are some of my students, whom I have not seen for ten years or more; I know them by the face and do not remember their names."
After consultation, they decided to set me free that night, but to come back to them the next morning. Early in the morning, I came to them at the appointment. They made me ride in a car accompanied with two men from their agents. We went to the neighboring villages in order to take back the copies of the book from the houses that I knew. On the way, I discovered that my two companions were mustabsir
1 (Shia). One of them said to me, "Professor, have you forgotten me? Do you not remember me? I was one of your students in the seventies in the Preparatory School of Teachers. Last night I did not sleep, for I took your book from the (police) station and read it all. I swear by Allah that I am like you (Shia)." The second said, "I, too, read your book two days ago when one of my friends brought it to me. It opened my heart to many things that I doubted before and could not find convincing answers to them except in your book. Now, I
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1 Mustabsir is a term used to refer to a Sunni who willingly turns Shia.
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am a Shia."
We all laughed for that chance and did not feel the distance. In three days and from many villages, we collected copies of the book as possible as we could. According to the orders, the Security Force agents delivered a summons to everyone who was found to have a copy of the book.
I met the commissioner and after a short talk, he said to me, "They frightened me of you and said that you arc an extreme Shia and are financed by al-Khomeini. They said that you say it is permissible to marry one's sister."
I laughed saving to myself, "Now, I know my friend!" I told him that the matter was the matter of suckling and it was mentioned in the same book. He smiled and took out a copy of the book from his drawer, saying to me, "What you said is true, but I blame you, because you have not offered me a copy of the book. If you did since the day of your coming to Qafsah, nothing would happen. However now, the case is out of our hands. It is in the court that shall decide on the matter. After that, you come to us to give you hack your passport to travel with peace."
I understood from this man's speech that they, after having been certain about my innocence of all rumors and having known, through the distrained documents, that the president had received my book from Paris, moved the case to the court to only see the contents of the book whether or not they were dangerous to the regime or religion.
I went to the court after having known from the Shia agents that all the persons, who were questioned, did not say about me except good. The questions that they were asked are as the following :
1. What is your relation with at-Teejani?
The answer was either "my teacher" or "my friend".
2. Did he give you money?
The answer was "No, I have never seen even one fils from him."
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3. Did he ask you for money?
The answer was "No at all! He did never ask me for anything".
In the court, I requested to meet the vice-president. After his permission, I went in to him. I saw a copy of my book on his table with a piece of paper inside it. I said, "Sir, I am the author of the book. I have come to Tunisia for one week, but now I am detained since a month without any guilt. I am very worried about my wife and daughters who are alone in Paris."
He interrupted me, saying, "The book must be read and then to announce the judgment. I have read about one third of it, and inshallah I shall finish it tonight. Tomorrow, the judgment is given on it."
I said, "Sir, I do not ask from you anything, but to act quickly." He said, "Come to us tomorrow afternoon!"
The next day, I went there and was surprised by the vice-president who received me at the door and embraced me very warmly, saying, "I believe in every thing in this book, 0 doctor!"
My eyes were filled with tears and I did not believe what my ears heard. He said to me, "Please, come in! We will write down the judgment for you. If you had spent millions to make public your book, it would not have been made public, as it has become now. Some of my friends called me from Tunis asking me for your book, which has been called "Salman Rushdi al-Qafsi (of Qafsa)"
I sat down, praising Allah and thanking Him too much for His favors and assistance to me in the same court in the case of suckling, and then in the case of the book where they intended evil against it, but it changed into good.
Mr. Vice-president wrote down the judgment and gave it to the clerk to type it with a typewriter. He ordered his clerk to release the distrained copies of the book, and then said to me, "I would ask Your Honor for ten copies of the book to offer them to my friends. If you like, we can give the rest of copies back to their owners from whom they were taken."
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I said, "I myself will do that after receiving the judgment."
Some officials came to me asking for the book. I gave the Vice-president what he wanted and distributed more than ten copies in the court.
Mr. Vice-president gave me the judgment after having signed it himself. He ordered his clerk to carry the rest of copies to my car. Then, he gave me my passport, and took leave of me.
I left, being so delighted and happy. I gave back the copies of the book to their owners, putting in every book a copy of the judgment. Thus, the book was circulated even in coffee-houses with no fear or embarrassment.
Since forbidden fruit is sweet, this temporary distrainment made the book so famous and caused an intellectual revolution to some people. Because of this, many people turned to be Shia.
And Allah turned back the unbelievers in their rage; they did not obtain any advantage, and Allah sufficed the believers in fighting; and Allah is Strong, Mighty. 1
When I went back to Paris, I found among the letters that had come to me the letter of Mr. Zaynol Aabidin bin Ali, the president of the Tunisian Republic.
Really, I cannot hide my interest and pride in the charismata that I have seen and am still seeing by the virtue of the Ahlul Bayt (peace be on them).
The last of our prayer is that praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, and blessings and peace be on the noblest of prophets and messengers, our master and guardian Muhammad and on his pure, immaculate progeny.
Muhammad at-Teejani as-Sammawi the Tunisian
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1 Qur'an, 33:25.
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REFERENCE BOOKS
1. Fear Allah, by Dr. Muhammad at-Teejani
2. Islam and the Arabic Civilization, by Muhammad Ahmed Ali
3. Know the Truth, by Dr. Muhammad at-Teejani
4. Imam as-Sadiq as known by the West, translated by Dr. Nooruddeen Aal Ali
5. Imam as-Sadiq, the Inspirer of Chemistry, by Dr. Muhammad Yahya al-Hashimi
6. Al-Bidayah wen Nihayah, by ibnul Atheer
7. The History of the Arabs, by Philip Hatti
8. Tabyeen al-Haqa'iq (showing the facts), by az-Zuray'ee
9. Tafsir of ibn Katheer
10. The present Time of the Muslim World
11. The Crusades, by Borgia
12. The Lives of the Companions
13. School Journey, by Sheikh Muhammad Jawad al-Balaghi
14. The Wonders of our Civilization, by Dr. Mustafa as-Siba'iy
15. Ar-Rawdh an-Nadheer
16. Temporary Marriage, by Sayyid Muhammad Taqi al-Hakeem
17. Temporary Marriage in Islam, by Sayyid Ja'far Murtadha al-Aamili
18. Sa'd as-Sa'ud
19. Sunan Abi Dawud
20. Sunan Ahmed ibn Hanbal
21. Sunan al-Bayhaqi
22. The Historical norms in the Holy Qur'an, by Sayyid Muhammad Baqir as-Sadr
23. Sunan ad-Darqutni
24. As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, by al-Halabi ash-Shafi'iy
25. As-Seera an-Nabawiyya, by ibn Hisham
26. Conditions of Ijtihad, by Dr. Abdul Aziz al-Khayyat
27. The Shia in Islam, by Allama Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Tabataba'iy
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28. Sahih al-Bukhari
29. Sahih at-Termithi
30. Sahih Muslim
31. As-Sawa'iq al-Muhriqah, by ibn Hajar ash-Shafi'iy
32. Al-Ghadeer, by Allama al-Amini
33. The Dawn of Islam, by Ahmed Amin
34. Al-Fusool al-Muhimmah (important chapters), by Sayyid Abdul Husayn Sharafuddeen
35. Al-Fawa'id al-Fakhirah lezad ad-Dunya wel Aakhira, by Sheikh Jallool al-Jazeeri
36. The Book of Mut'ah (temporary marriage), by Sheikh Abdullah al-Fakiki
37. Kanzol Ummal, by al-Muttaqi al-Hindi
38. Lisan al-Arab, ibn Mandhoor
39. Lisan al-Mizan, by Ibn Hajar
40. What the World has lost by the Declination of Muslims, by an-Nawawi
41. Mut'ah (temporary marriage) in Islam, Sayyid Husayn Mekki
42. Al-Bilad Magazine
43. Introduction to the Islamic Economy, by Dr. Abdul Aziz Fahmi
44. Mustadrak al-Ahkam
45. To be with the Truthful, by Dr. Muhammad at-Teejani
46. Muqadimat ibn Khaldun
47. Multaqa al-Abhur
48. Al-Manaqib, by al-Khawarizmi
49. Al-Mawahib al-Ladumiyyah
50. Mizan al-I'tidal, by ath-Thahabai
51. An-Nasaa'ih al-Kafiyyah leman Yatawalla Mu'awiyah
52. Nay! al-Awtar, by ash-Shawkani
53. Al-Huda ila Deen al-Mustafa, by Sheikh Muhammad Jawad al-Balaghi
54. Al-Hidayah fee Sharh al-Bidayah, by Imam Malik
