What about his mother? Provided that Shia is right in their assertion that Imam al-Mahdi’s mother was a slave or bondwoman, isn’t it shameful that the Imam should be born to a slave-girl?
Answer:
The answer would be in the form of the following questions: Wasn’t Hājar (PBUH), the Prophet Abraham’s wife, a bondwoman?
Did she not bear Isma’il (Ishmael) (PBUH), whom the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is a direct descendant of?
If it is acceptable for the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH&HF), the Seal of Prophethood, to be a descendant of Isma’il (PBUH) who was born to a bondwoman, then why not Imam al-Mahdi (PBUH)?
I need to mention to two important points:
Not only Imam Al-Mahdi’ Mother was not a slave but also was the granddaughter of emperor of Rome (She was a princess).
Her real name was Malika (Also: Narjes, Soosan and Seighal) daughter of Joshua. Her ancestry is to Simon, one of the disciples of Jesus (PBUH).
She dreamed Holy Prophet Muhammad marrying her to (his grandson) Imam Hassan Askari.
She in a very wonderful event came from Rome to Iraq with a cloth of slaves and changed her real name to Narjis which was one of slaves names not to be known by people and captured.
Sheikh Sadough has narrated her whole adventure in the book “Kamal Oddin wa Tamamo neemah”: Vol: 2, chapter 41”.
that the birth of al-Mahdi (PBUH) was an event surrounded with secrecy, because the authorities (The Abbasids) knew that the Mahdi who is to bring about a revolution is going to be the son of Imam Askari, and were awaiting his coming, to capture him for execution.
Owing to that, Imam Hasan Askari (PBUH), the Mahdi’s father, could not behave conspicuously by revealing who the mother of the Mahdi (PBUH) was. The Imam Mahdi’s mother married to Imam al-Askari (PBUH).
Notwithstanding, what has created the confusion among the critics of Shia is the fact that Imam al-Askari (PBUH) did not refer to her (PBUH) with one name. A variety of names were used in an effort to fool the authorities, and to prevent them from recognizing who she was. That was part and parcel of the plan to protect the Mahdi (PBUH).
If had the father (PBUH) been slightly negligent in protecting his son, it is clear that Imam al-Mahdi (PBUH) would not have survived. The story of birth of Imam Mahdi is like that of the Moses. All the women were being regularly inspected by female specialists of Abbasids to find out if anybody is pregnant.
The Imam Mahdi’s mother did not have any sign of pregnancy to the last hours, similar to Moses’s mother. But no doubt that what Allah wishes will certainly take place.
Given these adverse conditions and hardships, the birth of the Imam (PBUH) was kept in utmost secrecy, that even the closest people to Imam Hassan Askari (PBUH), the father of the Mahdi (PBUH), did not know of the time of his (PBUH) birth.
Only VERY FEW close associates were notified. The obvious contention is that the birth of Imam al-Mahdi (PBUH) constitutes a direct threat to the continuance of the corrupt government to rule.
This situation is best understood when we refer back to the first few days of Islam when the Prophet (PBUH) preached the religion in utmost secrecy among a few loyal followers.
The Prophet (PBUH) feared for the lives of these believers, and, as such, forbade them from revealing any information that might jeopardize the entire mission.
Source: https://en.al-shia.org/
