In the name of ALLAH, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All praise belongs to ALLAH, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and blessings be upon the noblest of prophets and messengers “Muhammad PBUH”and his pure and immaculate family.
There is no doubt that discussing the mothers of the Imams (peace be upon them) is among the important topics that are deeply connected to the lives of the Imams (peace be upon them). Just as the enemies of the Ahl al-Bayt (the Prophet’s family) have attempted to distort the biographies of the Ahl al-Bayt with their venomous pens, similarly, the esteemed lives of the mothers of the Imams were not spared from the meddling of these vile individuals. They openly engaged in alterations and changes, and made a thankless effort to twist and misrepresent the true facts.
Lady Narjis (peace be upon her), the mother of the Imam of the Time (may ALLAH hasten his reappearance), is among those revered women about whose life many matters remain hidden, and no one has access to them as they truly are. This is because there is disagreement about everything concerning her, even regarding her actual name. There is debate among scholars about what her real name was. Using this as an excuse, some opponents do not acknowledge her reality and consider her to be among the fictitious personalities (we seek refuge with ALLAH from this). Some imprudent individuals even cross the boundaries of respect and make such statements about her dignity that a believer does not even dare to utter. The reason for this is those certain disputed matters that have reached us regarding her life.
In view of these very points, I have tried in this short book to gather in one place the narrations about this “lady” wherever they occur in the books of Hadith, history, and biography so that I can clarify some aspects of her personality. So that the reader of this book can gain a true understanding of her personality. And most importantly, to bring before the believers the role she played during the Minor Occultation of the Imam of the Time (may ALLAH hasten his appearance).
Ahmad Salman (1st Jamadi al-Awwal 1442 AH)