Second: In the book Al-KharÄʾij, Qutb RÄwandÄ« has narrated from Hasan Mustariq, that he said, ‘Once, we were in the assembly of Hasan ibn ‘Abdallah ibn Hamdan Nasir al-Dawla. There, they were talking about His Majesty Sahib al- Amr [ImÄm ZamÄn (mgehr)] and His Majesty’s [Major] occultation. But I mocked their words. At that time, my uncle Husayn entered the assembly, while I was still saying those words.
He said, ‘O’ son! I used to believe like you, about that matter too. It was until the time; they gave me the governorship of Qom. At those time, the people of Qom would rebel against the caliph, wouldn’t obey and kill every ruler who went there. So, they gave me an army and sent me to Qom.
When I reached the Tarz area, I went hunting. [But] it ran away and I chased it. The chasing took a long way, until I reached a stream. I walked through the stream, but its width increased as I went ahead. Meanwhile, a rider appeared who was riding an Ash’habi1 horse and wearing a green fur turban. Nothing appeared under it but his eyes, and also he was wearing two red boots.
He called me, ‘O’ Husayn’!’ He did not call me Amir2, and didn’t use my nickname. But he called my fist name, to humiliate me. He stated, ‘Why do you backbite about us, and underrate us?! And why don’t you pay Khums3 of your property to our companions and deputies?’
Although I was too noble and brave to be afraid of something [or someone], I trembled by hearing his words and reacted, ‘O, Sayyid! I will do whatever you stated!’
He continued, ‘When you reach to your destination and easily get whatever you want with no fighting and argument, pay the Khums to the deserved.’
I replied, ‘I heard and obeyed!’ Then he prayed, ‘May you progress and be well- being’, then he grabbed the harness, rode the horse and disappeared from my view and I couldn’t find out where he went! I looked for him on my right and left side, but I didn’t succeed in.
I felt fear and horror a lot, and I returned to my army. But, I didn’t tell someone about it, so that I forgot it too. When I reached Qom, I expected to fight with them.
But, Qomi people got out and came toward me. They said, ‘Whoever comes to us and they are against our religion, we will fight with them! But, you are like one of us, who came forward! There is no disagreement among you and us. Arrive the city, and rule it in whatever way you like!’
[Anyhow,] I stayed in Qom for a while, and I could gather the property more than what I expected to. Hence, The AmÄ«rs of the caliph envied my properties and condemned me to the caliph, so that he dismissed me. I returned BaqdÄd and first went to the caliph’s house, greeted him and I went back to my home. Then, the people started coming to see me.
There came Muḥammad ibn ‘Uthman, past all the people there, sat on my seat and leaned on my backrest. I got very furious by his behavior. The people were commuting there, while he was just sitting and didn’t move. Well, I was getting more furious, hour by hour.
When the meeting was over, he came near and said to me, ‘Listen, there is a mystery among me and you!’ I told him, ‘Tell me!’ He said, ‘The owner of Ash’habi horse and raceway tells, we kept our our promise!’ There I remembered that story; I trembled and said, ‘I hear and obey, and I respect you with all my heart.
Then, I stood up, hold his hand in mine and took him inside. I opened my treasure box and granted him all Khums. He also reminded me some properties which I had forgotten about. He took their Khums. Since then, I would never doubt in Sahib al- Amr (mgehr)’s command.
Anyway, Haṣan Nasir al- Dawla said, ‘As soon as I learned it from my Uncle, all doubts disappeared from my heart and I just believed in The Excellency’s command.’
1- Ash’hab in Arabic means lion. Here probably it refers to the feature of the horse.
2-Amir; can refer to a king or an aristocratic or noble and military title of high office used in a variety of places in the Arab countries.
3- Khums, literally ‘one fifth’, refers to the required religious obligation of any Muslims to pay one-fifth of their acquired wealth from certain sources toward specified causes. [not all the people are expected to pay Khums. It has some provisions] It is treated differently in Shia and Sunni IslÄm. This tax is paid to the ImÄm, caliph, or sultan, representing the state of IslÄm, for distribution between the orphans, the needy, and the [stranded] traveler.