a life in preparation
to take one sip
from 14 oceans
drunk on God
soul struggling to be freed from body
willing to trade life away
drink again
and again
and again
each satiation
follows into a new thirst
which is again satiated
from 14 oceans
upon whose shores i wander
unable to fathom
the depths of what they contain
“Truly, the Prophet (S) cannot be described, and how could a servant be described whom God, the Almighty and the Glorious, has concealed with seven veils and made obedience to him in the earth like obedience to God in the heavens, declaring, ‘And whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it. And whatsoever he forbids, abstain from it.’ And ‘Whoever obeys him assuredly obeys Me, and whoever disobeys him disobeys Me.’ Hence, God has delegated authority to him. And we cannot be described…” -Imām al-Bāqir عليه السلام
A Mercy Case 
Salaam Alaikum,
I dont consider myself Ithna Ashariyyah Shia, though I’ve been Muslim 23 years and went through a 5 year time period after my 1st 7 years as a Muslim when I was really on the verge of being Shia, then out of the blue just last night I had the most vivid dream of the 9th Imam Muhammad al Jawwad….Allahu Alim why Allah showed me this Dream or how it is that Dreams actually work, but He was Black & in my Dream he was descendant from the 25th Nubian Dynasty of Sudan through his Mother who was a Black African Slave of the 8th Imam Ali Ridha….I drop by your Mercy Case blog a few times a year & I appreciate your writing and contribution, May Allah Give You the Best of this World & the Hereafter and Safeguard you from the Hell Fire….I’m interested, what do you make of such a Dream as I’ve just described? I only slept for 2 hours, from 2am to 4am last night & it was a Dream that woke me up for Tahajjud and Fajr Salat……It was hard for me to accept the 9th, 10th, 11th & 12th Imams, I think it’s because I realize that the 4th Imam Ali Ibn Hussein and the 5th Imam Muhammad al Baqir each had soooooo many children, as did Imam Hassan too, I always felt an intuition that Imam Mahdi might come from any of a number of branches from either the 2nd, 4th or 5th Imam….though the Imam I’ve always felt most intimate with has been the 8th Imam Ali Ridha and Allahu Alim why this is so for me. I hope and wish only that I learn more about his Son, Imam Muhammad al Jawwad and that I witness him in a Dream again, I pray that Allah increases me in clarity and certitude & that I am a witness to Imam Mahdi in my lifetime. May Allah always Bless you akhi.
wa ‘alaykum al-salam. Shahr Ramadan Mubarak! Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about dream interpretation. Allah bless you as well!
Asalaam Alaikum,
I am very interested in your path that led you to 12ver Shia Islam. I have a lot of unanswered questions. I’ve had dialogue in the past with Shia Scholars ( who were born & raised Shia) but havent met anyone who is an American convert like myself who has made the transition from Sunni to Shia Islam. I know many brothers in America who’ve studied Islam for 8 to 10 years in places like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Pakistan and India and who can access the Classical Texts in Arabic, but I dont know of any American brothers who have studied in Najaf or Qom. From what I understand, you have a PhD in Islamic Studies from Princeton University. What do you attribute to lack of Shia Scholarship from North America and the lack of Indigenous Shia Scholars, teaching and calling to the Way of Ahlul Bayt (as)
Wa Salaam
Mustafa