The Ziyārah of Ĥusain ibn ‘Ali (a.s.) by the Angels

I heard Abā ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)) say: There is no angel in the heavens or on earth who does not ask Allāh for permission to go to the Ziyārah of the grave of Ḥusain (a.s.). (There is always) a crowd descending (to go to the Ziyārah of Ḥusain (a.s.)) and a crowd ascending (back to the heavens).

I heard Abā ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)) say: Allāh has not created any creation greater in number than the angels. Every evening, seventy thousand angels descend from the heavens. They perform Ťawāf around Bayt Al-Ḥarām (Ka’bah) until dawn, after which they proceed to the grave of the Prophet (s.a.a.w.) and say Salām to him. Then they go to the grave of the Commander of the Believers (a.s.) to say Salām to him, after which they go to the grave of Ḥusain (a.s.) and say Salām to him; and then they ascend back to the heavens before sunrise. Then seventy thousand angels from among the angels of the day descend from the heavens. They (too) perform Ťawāf around Bayt Al-Ḥarām (Ka’bah) until sunset, after which they proceed to the grave of the Messenger of Allāh (s.a.a.w.) and say Salām to him. Then they go to the grave of the Commander of the Believers (a.s.) to say Salām to him, after which they go to the grave of Ḥusain (a.s.) and say Salām to him; and then they ascend back to the heavens before nightfall.

Abū ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)) said: The space between the grave of Ḥusain (a.s.) and the heavens is (always) filled with angels who are descending and ascending (back and forth from the Ziyārah).

I heard Abā ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)) say: The boundaries of the grave (the Ḥaram) of Ḥusain (a.s.) are twenty ells by twenty ells and this location is a garden from the gardens of Paradise. The ascent toward the heavens begins from here. Every high-ranked angel and prophet, who was chosen as a messenger, asks Allāh, the Exalted, (at all times) for permission to go to the Ziyārah of Ḥusain (a.s.). (There is always) a crowd descending (from the heavens to go to the Ziyārah of Ḥusain (a.s.)) and a crowd ascending (back).

I said to Abī ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)): May I sacrifice myself for you, O son of the Messenger of Allāh! On the night of ‘Arafah, I was in Ḥīrah (Ḥā`ir) and I saw three to four thousand handsome men who smelled beautiful and whose clothing was pure white, who were praying all night. I wanted to go to the grave of Ḥusain (a.s.) and kiss it and pray there. However, I could not reach it because of how crowded it was. It was after dawn that I prostrated and when I raised my head, I could not see any of them. Abū ‘Abdillāh (a.s.) asked me, “Do you know who they were?” I replied, “May I sacrifice myself for you! I do not.” Imam (a.s.) replied: My father (a.s.) narrated to me from his father (a.s.), who said: Four thousand angels passed by Ḥusain (a.s.) while he was being killed so they ascended to the heavens. Allāh revealed to them, “O crowd of angels! You passed by the son of My love and My choice from My creation, Muḥammad (s.a.a.w.), and he was being killed and oppressed but you did not help him. Descend to earth and cry by his grave while you are disheveled and covered with dust until the Day of Judgment.” Imam (a.s.) continued, “So now they remain by his grave (and will continue to do so) until the rising of the Hour.”

I said to Abī ‘Abdillāh (Imam Sādiq (a.s.)): On the night of ‘Arafah, I was in Ḥā`ir praying. I saw close to fifty thousand handsome men who smelled beautiful and who were praying Salāt all night. It was after dawn that I prostrated and when I raised my head, I could not see any of them. Abū ‘Abdillāh (a.s.) said to me: Fifty thousand angels passed by Ḥusain (a.s.) while he was being killed so they ascended to the heavens. Allāh, the Exalted, revealed to them, “You passed by the son of My love and he was being killed but you did not help him. Descend to the earth and dwell near his grave while you are disheveled and covered with dust until the rising of the Hour.”