3. SHEIKH MUFEED

Name: Mohamed bin Mohammed   bin Noman Baghdadi  

Born: 336, Wasit, Iraq                 Died: 413, H, Baghdad   Buried: Baghdad in Kazmain Shrine
                                                                              
 
Sheik Mufeed was born during the most critical and important period of history of the Shias. He was an unchallenged leader of the people of the Faith because of his exemplary brilliance and his sterling qualities of head and heart. Even the eminent Sunni scholars have said that there wasn’t any Shia in the world who was not indebted to Sheik Mufeed in one way or another. It is a fact that his period was the most critical phase of the Abbasid rule. In such times he assumed the responsibilities of the Marja (Pontiff) of the Shias. It was the time when all the sects of Islam were absorbed in debate with one another. On the one hand he was giving fitting replies to all the objections of the debaters of the other sects, and on the other he busied himself in the establishment of the Hauza e Ilmia (the Seminary) of Najaf through his disciple. Unlike other clerics, Sheik Mufeed entered the field of debate and gave convincing replies to all the objections that came up regarding the Shia Faith to ensure that the beliefs of its followers remained firm. The main topic for discussion during these debates was the concept of Imamat. On the one hand he countered the arguments of the opposite party and on the other he presented the Fiqh in such light that in the very capital of the Abbasids, Baghdad, Shiite Faith progressed that in the court of the Abbasid Caliph a special chair was placed for the Shia Cleric that was on par with that of the prime minister.
 
The given name of Sheik Mufeed too is Muhammed—Muhammed ibne Muhammed ibne Noman. His appellation is Mufeed that was given to him by the Imam e Zamana (a.s) himself. Another narration is that certain Motazali and Sunni clerics of the time chose to call him Sheik Mufeed. More about this later..Sheik Mufeed’s genealogy is recorded for 32 generations. The names of his ancestors are there in several books. This tree reaches up to the person who is said to be the first person who was the inventor of the Arabic language. Another appellation of Sheik Mufeed was Ibne Molim because his father was called Molim.
 
Sheik Mufeed was born on 11 Zeeqad 336 H. Some record his year of birth as 338 H. But most historians agree that he was born in 336 H. He was born in a small hamlet about 30 to 35 miles from Baghdad. Sheik Mufeed lived for 76 years He passed away on the eve of a Friday in 412 or 413 H. He was interred at Kazimain near Baghdad. It is recorded that on his death in 412 H the funeral prayer was conducted at a ground near Baghdad that is known as Asnaan and his most prominent disciple, Sayed Murtada, led the prayer. Considering the population of those days, a large gathering of about 70,000 attended the prayer.
 
Among the mentors of Sheik Mufeed there are 61 prominent names. The most eminent of the mentors was Mohammed ibne jafar ibne Kulaini Qummi. There is also a long list of Sheik Mufeed’s disciples. The most notable disciples have been Sayed Murtada, Sayed Razi, Sheik Toosi and Najashi. On the one hand he left behind a formidable number of disciples and on the other he is credited with writing 200 books that constitute a treasure trove of knowledge.
 
Here I would like to reiterate the opinion of both the Sunni and Shia men of learning, of his time, that there wasn’t any Shia who was not indebted to him. It is recorded by the historians that the leading Sunni cleric of Baghdad took a sigh of relief when Sheik Mufeed passed away. He had no match in debate and very eminent scholars in the opposite camp used to be vanquished by him. Although he was of a very weak physical constitution, he was dexterous in learning, a person of great piety and very charitable. His own son-in-law said that except for some moments, he didn’t sleep in the nights. The nights he used to spend in prayer and perusing the Holy Quran and other books. His entire life was spent in this manner. The eminence of Sheik Mufeed can well be imagined that the Imam e Zamana (a.s) wrote to him at least 3 letters.
 
After his expiry, on the grave of Sheik Mufeed, a letter written by the Imam (a.s) was found that contained three couplets as an obituary on his demise. This is ample proof of the Sheik’s greatness. Let us now have a look at the words that the Imam (a.s) used in his letter to Sheik Mufeed. The Imam (a.s) addressed him as true brother and a very sagacious friend. On 23 Zilhijja 412 H, when Sheik Mufeed’s age was 74 years, he received the second letter from the Imam (a.s). These letters are a part of the books of history. In the second letter the Imam (a.s) addresses Sheik Mufeed as one who invites people with the Word of Truth towards Allah. The third communication that came to the Sheik from the Imam (a.s) was during Ramadan 412 H also in a similar tone. The Imam (a.s) writes, “O truthful and virtuous friend and helper! O supporter of Allah’s Faith and one who is perfect in love and affection for us!” These words of the Imam (a.s) indicate the high status of Sheik Mufeed. History records that on the first night of Ramadan 412 H the letter from the Imam (a.s) was received by the Sheik. Then on the eve of 30 Ramadan, 412 or 413 H, after the demise of the Sheik, the personal missive of the Imam (a.s) addressed to the Sheik was found near his grave.
 
Sheik Mufeed hailed from the town of Wasef, but his father migrated with his family to a hamlet situated about 35 miles from Baghdad. He was a Mu’allim or a teacher. On 11 Zeeqaad 336 Sheik Mufeed was born there. His father had a desire that his son attained great heights as a scholar. The small hamlet didn’t have the right environment for the scholastic pursuits. Therefore, Sheik Mufeed’s father decided to move to Baghdad. In Baghdad Sheik Mufeed pursued his education with several mentors. The names of 61 mentors who tutored the Sheik are recorded in the history.
 
On arriving in Baghdad, Sheik Mufeed started acquiring knowledge in the Islamic discipline. Very soon people started getting glimpses of his genius. Besides receiving instruction in Fiqh from his mentor, Mohammed ibne Jafar ibne Kulaini Qummi, he also pursued studies about Tauheed (unity of Allah), Adl (Allah’s Justice), Nabuwat (the Prophethood), Imamat (the Vicegerency) and Qiyamat (the Day of Judgement). The Sheik went to two erudite scholars, Ibne Abd Allah and Ibne Abi Jafar, who were impressed with his knowledge that they sometimes felt that they themselves were unable to reply to the queries of the young student. It is narrated that once Ibne Jafar expressed his inability to reply to his queries and asked Sheik Mufeed to rather meet Ali ibne Eesa and seek his guidance. Ali ibne Eesa Rumani was the authority on Ilm e Kalam in Baghdad those days. One day Sheik Mufeed agreed to go and meet Ali Rumani but told to his mentor that he didn’t know where the scholar ran his classes. The teacher sent some of his students, who were residents of Baghdad, to guide Sheik Mufeed to the place of Ali Ibne Eesa. Those days Sheik Mufeed was known only as Mohammed ibne Mohammed ibne Noman and he wasn’t known with the appellation of Sheik Mufeed. Mohammed’s guides took him along to the place where Ali ibne Eesa was conducting his class. Mohammed saw that there were a large number of students attending to the teaching of the mentor. Therefore he got some place to sit at the entrance of the room where the footwear was kept. As the class progressed some students checked out and some new arrivals would join. Therefore Mohammed slowly advanced towards the place from where Ali ibne Eesa was giving his talk. At that time he saw the slave of Ali ibne Eesa came and informed that a person from Basra was waiting outside to be admitted.. His master asked him if the person looked like a scholar. The slave wasn’t able to make a guess. His master asked the slave to call the person to his presence. When the visitor came, in deference to the guest from outside, Ali ibne Eesa stood up to receive him and asked the visitor to sit close to him. They discussed various topics when suddenly the visitor asked a question about Hadit e Ghaar (the tradition of the Cave) and Hadith e Ghadeer (the tradition of Ghadeer). Hadeet e Ghadeer is the tradition when the Prophet (s.a) declared to a large gathering of Muslims—‘Mun kunto maula fa haada Ali Maula’—‘Ali is the master of those of whom I am the master’. The Hadeet e Ghaar is about the cave in which the Prophet (s.a) was stranded along with one of his companions. Ali ibne Eesa replied that Hadit e Ghaar was a Dirayat and Hadeet e Ghadeer was a Riwayat and a Riwayat cannot be given ascendancy over a Dirayat. Dirayat and Riwayat are the two most intricate aspects of Ilm e Hadit. I shall briefly explain about them. Riwayat in common parlance is merely hearsay while Dirayat is supported by positive proof or evidence of the happening. Therefore Ali ibne Eesa said that Hadeet e Ghaar has ascendancy over Hadeet e Ghadeer. The man from Basra kept quiet over this. But Sheik Mufeed couldn’t control himself. Although raw in age, he took courage in his hands and asked the master if he had permission to ask a question. Ali ibne Eesa looked at the youth in surprise and gave him permission to ask the question. He asked if someone fought a battle against the Imam e Adil (the Just and legitimate Ruler) what would be his ruling. Ali ibne Eesa replied that such a person would be termed a Kaafir (an infidel}. He thought for a while and said that the person may not be termed an infidel but he will be termed a Faasiq (a transgressor) and Faajir (a Sinner). Now Sheik Mufeed asked Ali ibne Eesa his opinion about Ali (a.s). He replied that Ali (a.s) was Imam e Adil and the Muslims had pledged their allegiance to him. Sheik Mufeed now asked Ali ibne Eesa his opinion about those who arraigned themselves against him in the battle field. Ali ibne Eesa replied that those persons were repentant of their act and they are pardoned. Now Sheik Mufeed told Ali ibne Eesa, “You say that those persons were repentant. Now according to your definition their coming to the battlefield against Ali (a.s) would be termed a Dirayat and their expression of repentance would at best be a Riwayat. You yourself have said earlier that Dirayat has preference over Riwayat!” Ali ibne Eesa was nonplussed for sometime. Then he asked Sheik Mufeed, “Tell me who is your mentor?” He replied, “I am a student of Ali ibne Abd Allah and Ibne Abi Jafar.” Ali ibne Eesa went inside his house and returned after a short while and gave to Sheik Mufeed a letter addressed to his mentors. He went back to his mentor and gave the letter to him. The teacher opened the letter, read it, smiled and asked his young charge, “Tell me what transpired at the place of Ali ibne Eesa?” He said, “Why are you asking this question?” He said, “Ali ibne Eesa, who is the leading scholar of Baghdad has highly praised you in the letter and said that you are certainly ‘Mufeed’ (useful) for Deen e Islam! He has given to you the appellation of Mufeed. Tell me now what has transpired there?”  Sheik Mufeed narrated to his mentor the entire event. The mentor now affirmed that his young ward was truly Mufeed!
 
One day Sheik Mufeed reached the venue of his lessons when someone asked a question about Hadeet e Ghaar and Hadeet e Ghadeer. Abd al Jabbar, who was a learned debater of high repute, said that Hadit e Ghaar was a dirayat—that is—an event that was witnessed and Hadit e Ghadeer was a Riwayat—that is hearsay. One shouldn’t give credence to hearsay over what was seen and witnessed!” Sheik Mufeed says that he asked a question, “What do you say about Mun kunto Maula?” Abd al Jabbar said that this Riwayat is there!.The Sheik asked, “What is the meaning of Maula?” Abd al Jabbar replied, “Maula is one who is superior to all Muslims, all persons!” Now Sheik Mufeed asked him, “Do you accept the Hadit of the Prophet (s.a) where he said, ‘Ya Ali (a.s)! Harbak harbi, Salmak salmi—that is---your battle is my battle and your truce is my truce!’” Abd al Jabbar said, “All Muslims accept this tradition.” Sheik Mufeed now said, “Now tell me, one who arraigns himself against Ali (a.s) had arraigned himself against the Prophet (s.a)!” Abd al Jabbar meekly replied that a Riwayat had reached them that those persons had repented over their act! Sheik Mufeed asserted, “Expressing repentance by those persons is just a Riwayat and not acceptable over the Dirayat of the battle that the persons fought against Ali (a.s). An intelligent person doesn’t give ascendance to a hearsay (Riwayat) over a positive happening (a Dirayat)!”Hearing this Abdul Jabbar stood up, called Sheik Mufeed close to himself and hugged him and said, “Anta Mufeed al-haq! Certainly you are Mufeed!” When Abd al jabber hugged the youth and made him sit close to him, the assembly got upset. They thought that this child who was a new arrival to Baghdad has been seated next to the most erudite scholar of the city—Abd al Jabbar Matfali! Abd al jabber, seeing their demeanor, told them, “You are upset over my seating the youth near me! Can anyone of you give a befitting reply to the question he has asked here!! Certainly, in that event, I shall send him away from where I have seated him! The entire assembly remained quiet. The vizier of the Abbasid Caliph of the time got wind of the event. His name was Sultan Az Dawla. He was himself a friend of the Ahl al Bayt (a.s). When he heard of the arrival of this new scholar in Baghdad who had defeated the erudite scholars in debate, he was very pleased. He sent a very expensive gift to Sheik Mufeed and requested him to establish a seminary in Baghdad where instruction in the Shii Fiqh should be imparted to the youth. He also sent a valuable steed to Sheik Mufeed the reins of which were made of threads of gold and also sent to him 100 Royal Dinars. Each Royal Dinar was 10 times weightier than the ordinary Dinar. He also gifted a slave for the service of Sheik Mufeed. He told Sheik Mufeed that there was no center for Shii learning in Baghdad, the capital of the Abbasid realm and the only center was at Qum that was far away from Baghdad. The vizier promised that he would daily send an allowance of 10 Maunds of bread and 5 Maunds of meat for the students of the seminary. This first seminary was established in the Mosque at Kharq where Sheik Mufeed started educating the seekers of knowledge. Kharq was the neighborhood where the majority of inhabitants were the friends of the Ahl al Bayt.
 
One night the Sheik was fast asleep when he saw in his dream that Janab e Syeda (a.s) was coming towards him and Imam Hassan (a.s) and Imam Hussain (a.s) followed behind her. She came near him in the hall of the mosque where he was giving lessons to the youths gathered there. She sat in front of him and sent forward her two sons and said, “O Sheik! Give these two sons of mine lessons in the Fiqh!” At that moment the Sheik awoke from his dream. The scene was fresh in his mind and he cried the rest of the night. He was wondering if he had committed any misdemeanor that Janab e Syeda (a.s) came in his dream. It is said that even if one Masoom (Infallible) comes in the dream of a person, the dream cannot be wrong and, in this instance, Sheik Mufeed had seen three Masooms in his dream. He was wondering how he could give instructions to Hasnain (a.s). He was wondering if the lady wanted to warn him that he was becoming proud of his learning! Despite being listless, the next morning he went to the mosque that the students would have assembled there for taking their lessons. He went there and started the day’s lessons. In a short while he saw a highly respectable lady coming towards him. Her name was Fatima binte Hussain and she had in tow two small children and sat exactly at the spot where he had seen Janab e Syeda (a.s) sitting in his dream of the previous night. She too advanced the children forward and said, “My wish is that you instruct these two sons of mine in the discipline of Fiqh.” The Sheik understood those were the two children about whose education Janab e Syeda (a.s) instructed him in his dream. Those two children were from a family of Syeds. One of them was Sayed Murtada to whom Maula gave the title of Ilm al Huda and his brother was Sayed Razi who collected and compiled the Sermons of Hazrat Ali (a.s) under the name and title of Nahj al Balagha—The Peak of Eloquence! It was the greatness of the seminary of Sheik Mufeed that Janab e Syeda (a.s.) came in his dream and asked him to impart learning to the two children.
 
There is a very interesting incident of a disciple giving an edict (Fatwa) contrary to that of his mentor! It is said that on the saddle of the steed of Sayed Murtada a dog had passed urine. Sheik Mufeed, who had witnessed the scene, informed Sayed Murtada that the saddle was rendered impure (Najis) with the dog’s urine. Sayed Murtada replied that whatever Sheik Murtada said must be true, but his own Fatwa (Verdict) was that there must be at least two witnesses giving evidence to agree about the event happening. Since the Sheik was the only witness, his evidence wasn’t sufficient. The argument prolonged and in the end it was decided to seek a solution to the problem from Hazrat Amir al Momineen (a.s). Hence both the persons proceeded to Najaf e Ashraf. There are three different narrations regarding this event. They wrote their problem on a piece of paper and left it in the Zarih (Sarcophagus) of Amir al Momineen (a.s). One narration is that when the mentor and the disciple reached the mausoleum next morning, they heard the voice of Hazrat Amir al Momineen (a.s) saying “Ya Sheik anta motamadi wal haq maa waladi ( O Sheik! You are the secretary, but the truth is with the son!). The second narration was that the paper was recovered on which was written the same verdict. The third narration was that both, the mentor and the disciple, dreamed in their sleep when Hazrat Ameer al Momineen (a.s) came and said that the truth was with his son and also that he (a.s) had total faith in his secretary (Sheik Mufeed).
 
The greatness of the Sheik may well be gauged from this incident. In the same mosque at Baghdad, where he used to conduct his classes, he was seated when a villager arrived and posed a question to him. He said that a woman had, just then, died in the village and she had a live fetus in her stomach. There was a dispute amongst the villagers as to whether they should bury the fetus along with the dead mother or extricate the baby live and then intern the woman. Some people say that saving the life of the baby was important and others say that conducting any such operation would be disrespect to the dead person. The Sheik, of course, was a fallible being, and at that moment somehow it came to his mind, he told to the villager to go and bury the dead woman in the same condition that she was. The man immediately set forth for the village. When he reached near the village he heard someone calling him from a distance. He stopped. One person, riding on a horse, came near him and said that the Sheikh’s Fatwa was changed and he had asked to deliver the fetus live from the mother’s womb and then the dead body may be buried. He acted on the fresh edict. After some days the villager again visited Baghdad and called on the Sheik. He told him that they had acted according to the instruction conveyed through the rider and had delivered the baby live before interning the mother. Sheik Mufeed understood who it was who corrected his error! The Sheik told to himself, “O Sheik! Your mind has stopped functioning that you should stop giving Fatwa. Your error would have been the cause of the death of a Muslim” From that day he stopped giving Fatwa. After some time he received a letter from the Imam (a.s) asking him to continue giving Fatwa. He wrote that it was the Sheik’s duty to give Fatwa and if he made any errors, the Imam (a.s) would correct them. Such a great personality was the Sheik that he was guided from time to time by Janab e Syeda (a.s) and the Imams (a.s).
 
It is a well known incident of Baghdad. A person arrived there who was a non-believer in God. He had no proof of his belief nor was he willing to listen to any argument regarding the existence of God. He said that the universe came into existence by itself and continues to exist. Any argument based on the Quran and Hadit too wouldn’t convince him. People went to the extent of telling him that there must be someone who created the universe and runs it. He boasted saying that the entire city was unable to convince him about the existence of Allah. The Vizier of Baghdad asked Sheik Mufeed to handle the situation. The vizier said that the person was visiting the court everyday and he posed his question to the gathering in the presence of the ambassadors from the non-Muslim countries. The inability to give him a convincing reply was causing a lot of embarrassment. Sheik Mufeed thus agreed to attend the court for a debate with the person. The person was very cunning that he wouldn’t utter any word when arguments about the existence of Allah were advanced to him. Sheik Mufeed attended the court and told to the person, “You have claimed that you have contested the claim of all the courtiers about the existence of Allah and that they were unable to convince you. Allah willing, I shall come tomorrow and give a convincing reply to your question! But you must report at the court promptly at the appointed time. I am wondering if you will absent yourself fearing to face my debate on the subject!!” The man replied with lot of confidence,  “There is no chance of my running away from the debate. In fact, I have the fear that you might try to escape since none of your compatriots has been able to convince me and you may meet the same fate!” The appointed time arrived the next day but there wasn’t any sign of Sheik Mufeed in the court. Since Sheik Mufeed had ridiculed the person by saying that he might try to elude the debate by absconding from the court, the man looked around the court and smiled sarcastically. All the courtiers felt belittled that the Sheik had made tall claims but had absented himself from the proceedings. The Sheik purposely arrived at the court very late. When he arrived in front of the man, he asked, “Where were you hiding yourself?!” The Sheik replied,
“ I would have reached the court on schedule, but as I reached the riverside, I saw a peculiar scene there. It was so astonishing that my feet wouldn’t advance towards my destination! I saw a boat in the river that was floating on the water without any sailor. It was coming ashore on one side, picking up passengers and disembarking them on the other side. From that side it picked up passengers and dropped them on this side! When I saw the boat had no sailor I was very astonished!” The man had a hearty laugh and said, “How is it that the boat was making the up and down trips without any sailor?” The Sheik now said, “When you think that a small boat cannot fend for itself without someone to row it, then how do you imaging that such a big universe will function without the One who controls it!” The man said that none else had debated with him in this manner! I now bear witness that there is no god but Allah!”
 
I shall now present a few instances of the Sheikh’s erudition. Generally our scholars have mastery over all the Fiqhs of the sects. They answer the queries of the person on the basis of the Fiqh he follows. Some persons, who didn’t follow the Jafari Fiqh, put the Sheik’s knowledge to test. They put a question and the Sheik felt that, perhaps, while giving them the reply, he himself might not be able to elucidate his reply. Before we deal with the query of the group, it must be clarified that there are certain norms in our Fiqh that when a man expires, and he doesn’t have his own off-springs, the first in the order of inheritance will be the parents; if the parents are not living the inheritance would go to the grand parents (paternal and maternal) and to the siblings. Even if these relations aren’t alive, the inheritance will go to paternal and maternal aunts and uncles. But for Muslims of other sects, the rule of inheritance is different. For them, if the deceased didn’t have living parents and off springs, the inheritance will be shared by the grand parents, siblings, aunts and uncles.
 
One person from such a sect of Muslims came to Sheik Mufeed and posed the question that while a person was on his death bed, another person in sound health visited him and said, “Your time for departure is nigh! You must make a will and testament.” The man replied, “What will could I make that in my inheritance, your two sisters would get a share. Your two spouses, two maternal aunts, two paternal aunts, your paternal and maternal grand mothers would get a share of my assets!” Now the person asked Sheik Mufeed, “Please elucidate to me on what basis the grand mothers and other kin were eligible for a share in the inheritance? What relationship the deceased had with these relatives of the person who came asking him to make his will?”
 
The Sheik instantaneously gave his reply. At this point we remember all those instances when the Infallibles (a.s) were posed with such questions and they gave the reply while one foot was in one stirrup of their steed and the other hadn’t reached the second stirrup while mounting the horse! Amir al Momineen (a.s) used to reply such questions while tarrying for a moment on his journeys. The Sheik too came with an immediate reply, “Listen! The assets would have been allotted in the following manner.  The sick person would have married the maternal and paternal grand mothers of the person who had asked him to make his will. From his first spouse he would have had two daughters and two from the other spouse. Then he must have married the mother of the person as well. From this spouse too he had two daughters.” While the Sheik is giving his reply, it is difficult for us to comprehend the solution expounded by him. The Sheik continued, “The solution to the problem posed by you is that the deceased had married the maternal and paternal grand mothers of the person and both gave birth to two daughters each. The person who called on the sick person had married his maternal and paternal grand mothers and the patient’s father had married the visitor’s mother and had two daughters from this marriage. Therefore the patient’s saying is correct that when he expired, his inheritance would go to the visitor’s two wives, two sisters, two maternal aunts, two paternal aunts and his paternal and maternal grand mothers. How this disposition of his assets would come about? The patient said, “When I expire, my maternal and paternal grand mothers have a share in my assets. Both these women are your wives. Thus your two wives would get a share of my property. My father had married your widowed mother and two daughters were born of the wedlock. They are my sisters and they have a share in the inheritance left by me. But they are your sisters as well, because they are your mother’s daughters. Your maternal grand mother too would get a share of my property because I had married her and the spouse of a deceased has a right over a share of his estate. Your paternal grand mother too will get a share from my assets because she is my wedded wife. From your maternal grand mother I had two daughters, they are your aunts and they too have a share in my assets. Your maternal grand mother’s one daughter is your own mother and the other two are your step aunts and my daughters. I married your widowed paternal grand mother and had two daughters from this marriage. They are my daughters but your step paternal aunts. Your paternal grand mother has one son from her first husband, your grand father, and my two daughters are his sisters. So these sisters of his would get a share of my inheritance. Therefore his sisters, his maternal grand mother, his paternal grand mother would get the share of the assets. But what did he say? He said that the share of the inheritance will not be received by his relatives and that it would go to your two wives who are his maternal and paternal grand mothers!” The person who posed the question agreed that Sheik Mufeed had rightly resolved their query. They said that this query was posed to hundreds of scholars, but they weren’t able to resolve it. They were also astonished that the Sheik had given them the reply in such a short time. This is the superiority of the followers of Ali (a.s) and the people of the Baab e Madinat al Ilm!
 
When the fame of Sheik Mufeed spread, our own people thought that they too would try to test his skills. This test was not with any rancor or enmity but was just to gauge his learning and erudition. Therefore many scholars got together and formulated a question for him after much deliberation. This question too was about the institution of inheritance in Islam. They posed the question that a woman married four times She married the first husband and became a widow. She married the second time, her spouse expired, and she was widowed again. The second husband too died. She married a third time, and as luck would have it, the third husband too passed away. She married a fourth time and, unfortunately this spouse too died. When the fourth husband died, she realized that half of the total assets of her four deceased husbands had come into her possession. And the other half was distributed to the kin of the four men. You must be aware that the share of a wife is a fourth of the assets of a deceased husband, if he had died issueless. Let us assume that one of her late husbands had Rupees 50,000, the second 100,000, the third 200,000, and the fourth husband 1,000,000. When all the assets of the four husbands was added, and distributed according to the prescribed schedule, she was in possession of half of the total holdings of all the four men. This despite the fact that she should have inherited only a fourth of their wealth! What is the solution for this riddle? Sheik Mufeed gave an instantaneous solution to the problem. He said that all the four husbands must have been blood brothers whom the woman married one after another as they deceased. She went on receiving the inheritance of her husbands as they died and in the end she owned half their wealth. How? For example, all the four brothers had a total of 18 Dinars. The eldest brother had 8 Dinars, the second brother had 6 Dinars, the third had 3 Dinars and the fourth 1 Dinar. When the fourth brother died, she would have come in possession of half their collective assets, that is, 9 Dinars! How? She married the first brother who died issueless. Out of his 8 Dinars, she received a fourth, that was, 2 Dinars. Since he had no issues, the remaining 6 Dinars were distributed equally to his three surviving brothers. The one who had 6 Dinars earlier, now had 8 Dinars, the brother who had 3 Dinars, now had 5 Dinars and the last sibling who had 1 Dinar now had 3 Dinars. The woman married the second brother, he expired issueless, leaving an asset of 8 Dinars, and she got 2 Dinars from it. The remaining 6 Dinars were equally distributed to the surviving two brothers. Now one who had 5 Dinars earlier, possessed 8 Dinars and the last brother who had 3 Dinars now had 6 Dinars. She now married the brother who was having 8 Dinars. He too died issueless and she inherited 2 Dinars from him. The last of the brothers who had 6 Dinars, now possessed 12 Dinars. The woman married this last of the brothers. He too died issueless and she inherited a fourth of his assets, that is, 3 Dinars and the remaining 9 Dinars went to the paternal aunt of the deceased. Now the woman had 2 Dinars from the first husband, 2 Dinars from the second husband, 2 Dinars from the third husband 3 Dinars as legacy from the fourth spouse. When all these four amounts are added, the sum total is 9 Dinars, that is exactly half of the total possessions of the four brothers, 18 Dinars, her late husbands! The persons who had posed the question were pleasantly surprised that the Sheik solved the problem in such a short time and they had to deliberate a full year to frame the question!
 
 
A person came to Sheik Mufeed and asked him that a man wanted to perform Ghusl (Bath) and wished to get the felicity of maximum number of Ghusls. At one time, he said, a person can perform 20 Ghusls for various reasons. Some of these Ghusls are mandatory and others optional. He asked then how is it possible that one can perform several Ghusls simultaneously. When a person had a night discharge, Ghusl e Janabat (Purification) is mandatory. Then he copulated with his spouse and the Ghusl became obligatory for him. Then the person had touched a dead body that hadn’t yet been given the last Ghusl and it became obligatory for him to personally perform the Ghusl Muss e Mayyat. This is the third Ghusl that became mandatory for him. Then, he touches a dead body which had already been bathed. In this event the Ghusl e Muss e Mayyat is Mustaheb (Desirable) for him. This was the fourth Ghusl that he had to perform. Now that he was entering the precincts of Madina and it is Mustaheb (Desirable) that he performed a Ghusl. This will be the fifth Ghusl for him. On entering Madina, he wanted to visit Jannat al Baqi and again a Ghusl is Mustaheb. When one visits the mausoleum of an Infallible (a.s) a Ghusl is Mustaheb; for visiting the grave of the Prophet (s.a) he will have to perform a Ghusl which will be his seventh on the day. This event is happening on Idd al Adha and he has to perform a Ghusl in the morning for the Idd. If the Idd is falling on a Friday, the person will have to perform Ghusl for the Friday Prayer. The 10th of Zil Hijja is the day of Arafa, on which day Hazrat Muslim ibne Aqeel was martyred and if one cannot perform the Ghusl on that day, he must perform the missed Ghusl the next day. This was the tenth Ghusl. The day on which he wanted to perform the Ghusl, there is total eclipse of the sun and it is Mustaheb for him to perform a Ghusl for it.. If during the Solar or Lunar eclipse the person hadn’t offered the Namaz e Ayaat, he is required to perform a Ghusl before offering the missed Namaz e Ayaat. After offering the Namaz e Ayaat, the person wishes to offer prayer for seeking Allah’s Felicity, for this too a Ghusl is Mustaheb. After this prayer the person wishes to do the Istekhara and it is Mustaheb that he performed Ghusl before this. The person is also aware that it had not rained for a long time and he wishes to offer a prayer for seeking copious rainfall. For offering the Namaz e Baarish the person should perform the Ghusl prior to the prayer. For visiting the graves of the Prophet (s.a) and the Imams (a.s) the person wishes to offer the Namaz e Tauba (The Prayer of Repentance) and for this he must perform a Ghusl. When the person was on the way to Madina his eyes fell on a person who was being hanged. When a person witnesses such a scene, it is Mustaheb that he performs a Ghusl. On the way he came across a large wild chameleon and killed it. When one kills such an animal, a Ghusl is Mustaheb for him. Now, entering Madina he waanted to do Mubahila (Imprecation) or seeking Allah’s Curse on the liar, with his enemy. For this it is Mustaheb for him to perform Ghusl. He had slept in the night in a state of intoxication, it is Mustaheb for him to perform Ghusl. Thus he has to perform 20 Ghusls by making the Niyat (Intent) for all the 20, and he would get the felicity for all the 20 Ghusls by performing the Ghusl once.
 
 
SHEIK MUFEED DEPARTS TOWARDS ETERNAL LIFE
 
 
When Sheik Mufeed died, the Imam e Zamana (a.s) himself said, “Today is the day of Calamity for the Progeny of the Prophet (s.a)” that such a great Faqih had departed from the world. It was the eve of Friday, the 3rd of Ramadan, 412 H when this great person died. He had vanquished all the opponents in debate; in the Realm of Baghdad that there was none to challenge the followers of Aal e Mohammed (s.a) for a debate. On the other hand he had given proof of his erudition in the school of Fiqh that for the first time people realized the importance of Ijtehaad. He established a school which had in its alumni such stalwarts as Sheik Toosi. This school was the precursor of the Hauza e Ilmia of Najaf e Ashraf. He left behind a disciple like Sayed Murtada who truly and well established the foundation of the Ilm e Fiqh. Sheik Mufeed had completed his mission. On the night of 3rd Ramadan, at the age of 73 years, the Sheik passed away. His cortege was taken by a huge procession of 70,000 to Asnaan, an open ground in Baghdad. Syed Murtada led the Namaz e Janaza. All of 70,000 persons took part in this Namaz. Later on Sheik Toosi had said that in the history of Baghdad no Namaz e Janaza was so well attended and the people lamented his demise considering the size of the population of the city those days. Followers of all schools of thought attended in large numbers. He was interred in the compound of his own house and an elegy written by the Imam (a.s) was found near Sheik Mufeed’s grave there. After some time his remains were moved to Kazimain. His grave is even today visited by large numbers of Momineen to recite al Fateha there!

 

 Source Urdu Lectures of Moulana Sadiq Hassan Book