The eleventh is, the story of a pomegranate and the NÄá¹£ibÄ« vizier in Bahrain. It has also been narrated in the blessed book that, a group of trustworthy people have mentioned that it was a time when the province of Bahrain was under the sovereignty of Europe. And Europeans had assigned a man from Muslims as the sovereign of Bahrain, so the province may be rehabilitated under the sovereignty of Muslims, and it may be more advisable to the land. But, the sovereign was a NÄá¹£ibÄ«, and he had a vizier who was stricter in installation and enmity than him. He was always expressing enmity and hostility towards the people of Bahrain, since the people of that land had a friendship with Ahl al Bayt (pbu th).
So the damned vizier was constantly planning and cunning to harm or kill the people of that land. One day, the evil vizier entered before the sovereign with a pomegranate and handed it to him. The sovereign had a look at it, it was written on it, “There is no God but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and Abubakr, Ummer, Ê»Uthman, and Ali are the successors of the Messenger of Allahâ€.
The sovereign was surprised to see it, because the written was of the pomegranate, and was not made by human beings. So he told the vizier, ‘ It is a clear sign and a strong proof to void the RÄfiá¸Ä«yya [Shieism]’s beliefs. What is your idea regarding the people of Bahrain?’ The vizier said, ‘They are bigot who deny the proofs and reasons, so it is good to call for them and show them this pomegranate. If they accept it and convert from their religion, you will have a great reward.
But if they avoid and remainin their own misguidance, then let them have one of these three choices; to pay compensation humiliatingly, to bring an answer for this proof while they do not have any, or their men will be killed, their wives and children will be captive, and their property be seized by you.
The sovereign praised the devil vizier’s idea and sent for their (Shiite’s) scholars and learned men, brought them to his present, showed them the pomegranate and warned them, ‘If you fail to find a clear answer for that matter, I will kill your men, capture your women and children, and plunder your property. Otherwise, you have to pay Jizya1 abjectly, like disbelievers’.
When they heard these, they became astonished and couldn’t give an answer. So, their faces got pale, and their bodies started to tremble. Then, their elders begged, ‘O’ Amir2! Give us three days, so we may find an answer which satisfies you. If not, do whatever you want.’
So he gave them three days. They left him with fear and astonishment and gathered in an assembly. There, they expressed their opinions until they finally agreed to choose ten individuals from pious and devout men of Bahrain. They did so. Again, they chose three out of those ten men.
Then, they ordered to one of those three, ‘Go out toward the desert tonight! There, pray to God, and call ImÄm ZamÄn, SÄhib al- Amr (mgehr) for help, as he is ImÄm of our time, and the Almighty God’s Ḥujjat to us. Maybe he will tell you the way to get out of this great calamity.’
Muḥammad b. ʿĪsÄ said, ‘If you are SÄhib al-Amr (mgehr), then you know my story and you don’t need me to tell it’. He stated, ‘Yes, you are right! You have come out, because of the calamity that has come upon you about that pomegranate. Also, it was because of the threat and fear that the sovereign has prevailed over you’.
Muḥammad b. ʿĪsÄ said, ‘When I heard these miraculous words, I noticed the side where the voice was coming from. Then I said, ‘Yes my MawlÄ! You know what has happened to us, you are our ImÄm, our safeguard, our guard, and you are able to remove that calamity from us’.
Then His Majesty stated, ‘O’ Muḥammad b. ʿĪsÄ! Verily, the damned vizier has a pomegranate tree in his house. When the tree bore fruit, he made a pomegranate out of the mud and cut it in half. Then, he inscribed some of those writings inside each of the halves. While the pomegranate was still small and on the tree, he put it inside that mud mold and fastened it. After the pomegranate grew inside the mold, the mark of those writings remained on its surface and it turned like this!
So in the morning, when you go to the sovereign, tell him that you have the answer for that proof, but you won’t reveal it, unless in the house of vizier. So, when you enter his house, you will see a booth on your right side.
then, tell the sovereign, ‘I won’t speak, unless we go to that chamber. The vizier will prohibit you to enter that chamber, very soon. But you should insist that, you want to go up that chamber. Watch out the vizier not to enter the chamber alone and before you. So, you should enter first.
Anyhow, you will see a ledge on which, there is a white sack. Pick the sack which includes the mud mold, that the damned one cheated on it. There, put the pomegranate inside the mold in the presence of the sovereign, so that the trick revealed.
O, Muḥammad ibn Isa! Another sign is that; you must reveal the sovereign our [me like other ImÄms] another miracle. That is, when they open the pomegranate, they won’t see anything but smoke and ash! Also tell them, ‘If you want to know the truth, command the vizier to cut the pomegranate in public. And then, the smoke and ash will splash on the vizier’s face and beard.’’
As Muḥammad ibn Isa heard those miraculous words from the glorious ImÄm; Ḥujjat [the Proof of God] (mGehr), he got very happy. He kissed the ground against the Excellency, and came back to his family.
In the morning, he went to the sovereign and explained the things, which the ImÄm stated.
So the sovereign turned to Muḥammad b. ʿĪsa and asked,‘ Who has informed you of these matters?’ He returned, ‘ImÄm ZamÄn (mgehr); the proof of God to us. The sovereign asked, ‘Who is your ImÄm?’. Then in reply, he named the ImÄms (pbu th), one after the other, until he reached SÄhib al- Amr (mgehr).
There, the sovereign said, ‘Extend your hand so that I can swear allegiance to that religion. So I bear witness that there is no God but only Allah, and I bear witness that Prophet Muḥammad (pbuh&h) is the servant and the Messenger of God (pbuh&h), and I also bear witness that the immediate caliph after him, is Amir al-Mu’minin (pbuh)’.
Then he confessed that he believe in each one of the ImÄms (phu th) one after the other, to the end. So he got a firm belief, he ordered to kill the vizier, and apologized to the people of Bahrain. This story is well-known among the people of Bahrain. The grave of Muḥammad b. ʿĪsa is famous among them, and people visit it.
1.     Jizya is a per head yearly taxation historically levied in the form of financial charge on dhimmis, that is, permanent non-Muslim subjects of a state governed by Islamic law.
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.     Ḥojjat of God is a designation of the Shi’ite Imams (pbu th) or their most essential spiritual function as “Proofs of Godâ€; an epithet specifically applied to the Twelfth Imam (mgehr).