Shi'a Blasphemy: "Ali is the Beast"

 

بِسۡمِ اللّٰہِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ الرَّحِیۡمِ

In the Name of Allah, the Rahman, the Merciful

الصلاة والسلام عليك يا سيدي يا رسول الله

وعلى آلك واصحابك يا سيدي يا نور الله

Allah, Holy and Exalted is He, says concerning the Beast that shall emerge in the End Times:

وَاِذَا وَقَعَ الۡقَوۡلُ عَلَیۡہِمۡ اَخۡرَجۡنَا لَہُمۡ دَآبَّۃً مِّنَ الۡاَرۡضِ تُکَلِّمُہُمۡ ۙ اَنَّ النَّاسَ کَانُوۡا بِاٰیٰتِنَا لَا یُوۡقِنُوۡنَ

And when the word is fulfilled against them We shall bring forth for them a Beast from the Earth, speaking to them, because the people, of our Signs, were not certain

(Surah 27, Ayah 82)

I argue that the Beast spoken of here is an evil king that shall blaspheme against the Lord God, and has been mentioned in Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 13:11-17.

Incidentally, the Twelver Shi’a also acknowledge that the Beast is a speaking human, but they have identified him as none other than Amir ul-Mu’minin Ali bin Abi Talib!

Hence, the Shi’ite jurist and commentator of the Quran, Ali bin Ibrahim al-Qummi, relates the following “Hadith” (falsely) attributed to Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq and the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him:

أما قوله وإذا وقع القول عليهم أخرجنا لهم  دابة إلى قوله بآياتنا لا يوقنون فإنه حدثني أبي عن ابن أبي عمير عن أبي بصير عن أبي عبد الله عليه السلام قال انتهى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله إلى أمير المؤمنين عليه السلام وهو نائم في المسجد قد جمع رملاً ووضع رأسه عليه فحركه برجله ثم قال له قم يا دابة الله فقال رجل من أصحابه يا رسول الله أيسمى بعضنا بعضاً بهذا الاسم فقال لا والله ما هو إلا له خاصة وهو الدابة التي ذكر الله في كتابه وإذا وقع القول عليهم أخرجنا لهم دابة من الأرض تكلمهم أن الناس كانوا بآياتنا لا يوقنون

As for His (Allah’s) saying, “And when the word is fulfilled against them We shall bring forth for them a Beast” until His (Allah’s) saying, “for they did not have certainty in Our Signs”, then verily my father related to me, from Ibn Abi Umair, from Abu Basir, from Abu Abdullah (Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq) peace be upon him, he said, reaching the Messenger of Allah, blessings upon him and his family, that he (the Prophet) went to Amir ul-Mu’minin (Ali), peace be upon him, while he was sleeping in the Mosque, having placed his head upon a mound of sand, moved it with his foot then said, “Get up, O Beast of Allah!” So a man from his Companions said, “O Messenger of Allah, can some name others with this name (beast)?” So he (the Prophet) said, “No, by Allah, it is none but for him (Ali) specifically, he is the Beast that is mentioned by Allah in His Book, “And when the word is fulfilled against them We shall bring forth a Beast from the Earth, speaking to them, for mankind was, of Our Signs, not certain.” (Tafsir al-Qummi, pp.746-747)

It is problematic for the Twelver Shi’a to believe that Mawla Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, is the Beast for the term beast or animal is derisive when employed to describe a human, especially one so noble and elevated as Ali bin Abi Talib, may Allah honor his face. Furthermore, the Beast is surely an evil king, who is called a beast by God in the Old Testament, New Testament and Final Testament (Quran) to emphasize that king’s wickedness.