Twelfth Imam
Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi (a)
al-Qa’im, al-Hujjah — the Awaited (may God hasten his return)
Livedb. c. 255 AH (869 CE) — living in occultation
Resting placeLiving in occultation (ghayba)
FatherImam Hasan al-Askari
MotherLady Narjis
PassingLiving — in occultation (no death)
Birth & Lineage
Born in Samarra around 255 AH, the son of Imam al-Askari, Muhammad al-Mahdi became Imam as a small child upon his father’s martyrdom.
Life & Virtues
For about seventy years he guided his followers through four trusted deputies — the Minor Occultation. Since then he has remained in the Major Occultation, alive by God’s will but hidden from view, as the living proof (hujjah) of God upon the earth.
The Awaited Return
Muslims await his reappearance, when he will rise to fill the earth with justice and equity as it has been filled with injustice and oppression. Until then, his followers pray for his return and strive to be ready to support him.