أَقَلَّ لِبَقَائِنَا وَ بَقَائِكُمْ قَالَ فَقُلْتُ لِأَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام شِيعَتُكُمْ لَوْ حَمَلْتُمُوهُمْ عَلَى الْأَسِنَّةِ أَوْ عَلَى النَّارِ لَمَضَوْا وَ هُمْ يَخْرُجُونَ مِنْ عِنْدِكُمْ مُخْتَلِفِينَ قَالَ فَسَكَتَ فَأَعَدْتُ عَلَيْهِ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ فَأَجَابَنِي بِمِثْلِ جَوَابِ أَبِيهِ.
Zurara says: The Imam, peace be upon him, gave me no answer; I had no choice but to repeat the question three times, and at last he gave me the same answer his father had given.
«25»- ع، علل الشرائع أَبِي عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ إِدْرِيسَ عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ الْأَرَّجَائِيِّ رَفَعَهُ قَالَ: قَالَ لِي أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام أَ تَدْرِی لِمَ أُمِرْتُمْ بِالْأَخْذِ بِخِلَافِ مَا تَقُولُ الْعَامَّةُ فَقُلْتُ لَا نَدْرِي فَقَالَ إِنَّ عَلِيّاً عليه السلام لَمْ يَكُنْ يَدِينُ اللَّهَ بِدِينٍ إِلَّا خَالَفَ عَلَيْهِ الْأُمَّةُ إِلَى غَيْرِهِ إِرَادَةً لِإِبْطَالِ أَمْرِهِ وَ كَانُوا يَسْأَلُونَ أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ عليه السلام عَنِ الشَّيْ ءِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَهُ فَإِذَا أَفْتَاهُمْ جَعَلُوا لَهُ ضِدّاً مِنْ عِنْدِهِمْ لِيَلْبِسُوا عَلَى النَّاسِ.
'Ilal al-Shara'i': My father, may God have mercy on him, from Ahmad b. Idris, from Abu Ishaq al-Arrajani, who related the hadith in raised form; he says: Al-Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said: Do you know why we commanded you to take the opposite of what the Sunnis say? I said: We do not know. He said: Whatever the Commander of the Faithful, peace be upon him, believed and held as his religion, the community (the Sunnis) said the opposite of it and made other than it their religion; and their purpose in that was to nullify his imamate and his guardianship. And it often happened that they did not know something and would ask him, and when he gave them the answer they would fabricate its opposite out of their own heads, so as in this way to make the matter doubtful for people.
«26»- ع، علل الشرائع جَعْفَرُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عَنْ مُعَاذٍ ١ قَالَ: قُلْتُ لِأَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام إِنِّي أَجْلِسُ فِي الْمَجْلِسِ فَيَأْتِينِي الرَّجُلُ فَإِذَا عَرَفْتُ أَنَّهُ يُخَالِفُكُمْ أَخْبَرْتُهُ بِقَوْلِ غَيْرِكُمْ وَ إِنْ كَانَ مِمَّنْ يَقُولُ بِقَوْلِكُمْ أُخْبِرُهُ بِقَوْلِكُمْ فَإِنْ كَانَ مِمَّنْ لَا أَدْرِي أَخْبَرْتُهُ بِقَوْلِكُمْ وَ قَوْلِ غَيْرِكُمْ فَيَخْتَارُ لِنَفْسِهِ قَالَ رَحِمَكَ اللَّهُ هَكَذَا فَاصْنَعْ.
'Ilal al-Shara'i': Ja'far b. 'Ali related from 'Ali b. 'Abdallah, from Mu'adh, that he said: I said in the blessed presence of Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him: I sit in a gathering and an assembly, and a man comes in; if I know that he is one of your opponents I set forth and express the opinion and view of your opponents, and if he is one of those who hold your opinion and view, I too set forth your opinion; and if I do not know him, I set forth both your view and the opinion of your opponents, so that he may choose for himself whichever of them he holds. He said: May God have mercy on you — do just so.
«27»- ع، علل الشرائع أَبِي عَنْ سَعْدٍ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ أَبِي الْمِقْدَامِ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ الْحُسَيْنِ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام قَالَ: إِذَا كُنْتُمْ فِي أَئِمَّةِ الْجَوْرِ فَامْضُوا فِي أَحْكَامِهِمْ وَ لَا تَشْهَرُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ فَتُقْتَلُوا وَ إِنْ تَعَامَلْتُمْ بِأَحْكَامِهِمْ كَانَ خَيْراً لَكُمْ.
'Ilal al-Shara'i': My father, may God have mercy on him, from Sa'd b. 'Abdallah, from 'Amr b. Abi al-Miqdam, from 'Ali b. al-Husayn, from Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, has brought it that he said: Whenever you are under the sway of tyrannical leaders and oppressive rulers, conduct yourselves according to their rulings, and beware of making yourselves distinct and conspicuous, for you will be killed; and whenever you deal according to their rulings, it is certainly better for you.
«28»- ير، بصائر الدرجات ابْنُ يَزِيدَ عَنِ الْوَشَّاءِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ حُمْرَانَ عَنْ زُرَارَةَ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ عليه السلام حَدِّثْ عَنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ يَا زُرَارَةُ لَا حَرَجَ فَقُلْتُ جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ فِي حَدِيثِ الشِّيعَةِ مَا هُوَ أَعْجَبُ مِنْ أَحَادِيثِهِمْ قَالَ فَأَيُّ شَيْ ءٍ هُوَ يَا زُرَارَةُ قَالَ فَاخْتَلَسَ مِنْ قَلْبِي فَمَكَثْتُ سَاعَةً لَا أَذْكُرُ مَا أُرِيدُ قَالَ لَعَلَّكَ تُرِيدُ التَّقِيَّةَ قُلْتُ نَعَمْ قَالَ صَدِّقْ بِهَا فَإِنَّهَا حَقٌّ ٢
Basa'ir al-Darajat: Zurara related from Imam Muhammad al-Baqir, peace be upon him, that he said: O Zurara, there is no harm in relating hadith from the Children of Israel. I said: May I be your ransom! In the hadith of the Shi'a there is something more astonishing than the hadiths of the Children of Israel. He said: The hadith of the Children of Israel is nothing, O Zurara! Then what was in my heart slipped my mind and I paused a moment; what I meant to say did not come back to me. He said: Perhaps you mean dissimulation? I said: Yes. He said: Hold dissimulation to be true; it is the truth.
«29»- كِتَابُ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ شُرَيْحٍ، عَنْ حُمَيْدِ بْنِ شُعَيْبٍ عَنْ جَابِرٍ الْجُعْفِيِ
The book of Ja'far b. Muhammad b. Shurayh: