Examination and Content Analysis of Mahdavi Narrations in Ghurba al-Asnad of Abdullah ibn Ja'far Hemyarie

The necessity for thorough, comprehensive, and coherent research on earlier Shia sources is of great importance, and has precedence over merely a descriptive presentment of earlier Hadith writings. The book "Qurb al-Asnad," authored by Abdullah ibn Jafar al- Homayrie is one of the oldest surviving sources from the time of the Minor Occultation which can be investigated with a focus on the concept of Mahdism. The following writing using a "descriptive-analytical" method aims to analyze the personality and attribution of this work to Abdullah ibn Jafar al- Homayrie, as well as to assess the status of Mahdism teachings in "Qurb al-Asnad." From the remaining narrations in the book of "Qurb al-Asnad," there are thirteen narrations related to Mahdism. Homayrie usually transmitted these narrations from trustworthy figures in Kufa, Qom, and Baghdad, which itself indicates his contact and relations with various hadith communities. Although the content of his narrations is less reported in his contemporary and later sources until the 5th century of the Hijra, most of them align with the core principles of Mahdism teachings and Shia thought. The diversity of his narrations, particularly regarding the signs of the reappearance (of Imam) and the Waqifite movement, is a notable aspect of this work.