The Unity of Yamani and the First Mahdi

Dar al-Hedayah | In examining the claim of the Ahmad al-Basri movement regarding the unity of the personalities of the Yamani and the First Mahdi, this group argues that if these two personalities are different, then the First Mahdi, as one of the twelve Mahdiyeen, must be the authority (hujjah) over the Yamani. According to this view, the First Mahdi would then play the role of the main leader in the process of the appearance (zuhur), and the Yamani would act as a helper. However, Shi’a narrative sources present different descriptions of the role and position of the Yamani. This article will examine this claim in detail, analyze the documentation of both views, and compare them with authentic narrations to enable a scientific evaluation of this issue.

 The Claim of Unity Between the Yamani and the First Mahdi

The claim of Ahmad al-Basri’s followers about the unity of the personalities of the Yamani and the First Mahdi is as follows: If the First Mahdi and the Yamani are not one, then necessarily one of them must be the authority (hujjah) over the other. They also say that since the Twelve Imams and Mahdiyeen (of which the First Mahdi is one) are the authorities of Allah over all creation, if these two individuals are not one personality, then the First Mahdi will also be the authority over the Yamani, and he will be the leader who paves the way for the appearance of the Imam (as). Consequently, the Yamani would be the helper of that paving-the-way leader, and such a statement is not correct; because the Yamani is the primary paving-the-way agent and the commander of the sacred movement of the appearance (zuhur). Therefore, the First Mahdi must be the same as the Yamani, and the Yamani must be the same as the First Mahdi.

Response to the Claim

In response, we say that these statements are very weak and worthless. This is because from the time of the Infallible Imams (as) until today, Shi’a have never said that after the Imams, twelve Mahdis from the children of Imam al-Mahdi (aj) will come. Moreover, this statement contradicts authentic and mass-transmitted (mutawatir) hadiths that state the number of Imams (as) is only twelve, the first of whom is Amir al-Mu’minin, Ali bin Abi Talib (as), and the last of whom is the Awaited Mahdi. Consequently, the First Mahdi—whether at the time of the appearance or otherwise—will never exist for there to be doubt about whether he is the same as the Yamani or a different person.

Even if we disregard all the narrations that the Imams (as) have transmitted about the Twelve Imams, and for the sake of argument, accept that after Imam al-Mahdi (aj), twelve Mahdis will undertake the affair of the Imamate, it must be said that such a statement does not necessitate the existence of the First Mahdi during the era of the appearance (zuhur). This is because it is possible that he may be born ten or twenty years after the appearance.

The fact that Ahmad Ismail considers himself the First Mahdi is also worthless, because it is not only a mere and baseless claim, but there is strong evidence against it. Regardless of the fact that Ahmad Ismail has no genealogical connection to Imam al-Zaman (as), the First Mahdi—even if he has external existence—is the direct child of Imam al-Mahdi (as), not from his distant descendants, as Ahmad Ismail claims and imagines that Imam al-Zaman (as) is his great-great-grandfather. This individual does not even possess the qualification to lead congregational prayer (imamat al-salat) and is merely a common person (‘ammi). His errors in reciting Quranic verses are also numerous and glaring; even many Muslim children do not make such mistakes. So how is following him obligatory?

 The First Mahdi or the Yamani?

Even if we disregard all these discussions and say that the First Mahdi will exist at the time of the appearance (zuhur), we have no reason to consider him the same as the Yamani. There is no problem with these two individuals being two distinct personalities. The First Mahdi could be one of the children of Imam al-Mahdi (as), and the Yamani could be one of the leaders who rise to aid Imam al-Zaman (as). These two are not mutually exclusive.

The claim by Ahmad Ismail’s followers that if these two individuals are not one personality, it necessarily means the First Mahdi must be the leader of the paving-the-way revolution and the Yamani would hold the second rank and be his helper—this understanding is not correct, because the Yamani is that paving-the-way agent and the commander of the sacred movement of the appearance.

This argument is a glaring error on the part of the Ahmad al-Basri faction because the leader of the movement of the appearance is Imam al-Zaman (as) himself, not a First Mahdi who exists only in the imagination of Ahmad Ismail and his followers, nor a Yamani whom Ahmad Ismail and his companions have introduced without any evidence as the primary paving-the-way agent and leader of the movement of the appearance.

Furthermore, even if we accept that the First Mahdi will exist at the time of the appearance (zuhur), there is no obstacle to him being a personality other than the Yamani; in such a way that the First Mahdi remains silent during the appearance, but the Yamani is from the signs of the appearance of the Imam (as) and one of those who call to him.