Al-Kāfi
Hadith 631 4ـ عِدَّةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي نَصْرٍ عَنْ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ الرِّضَا (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) إِنَّمَا مَثَلُ السِّلاحِ فِينَا كَمَثَلِ التَّابُوتِ فِي بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَيْنَمَا دَارَ التَّابُوتُ دَارَ الْمُلْكُ وَأَيْنَمَا دَارَ السِّلاحُ فِينَا دَارَ الْعِلْمُ.
4. A number of our people has narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from ibn abu Nasr from abu al-Hassan al-Rida (a.s.) who has said the following. “Abu Ja‘far (a.s.) would say, ‘The case of the Armaments with us is as the Ark with the Israelites. Wherever the Ark would go kingdom would also follow. Wherever the Armaments among us would go knowledge would also follow.”