The Source of Traditions on Imam al-Riḍā (Vol 1) · Hadith 113 (#Ḥadīth #5)

5 - حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الحَسَن بْنِ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ الوَلِيد رَضِىَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الحَسَنِ الصَفَّارُ، قالَ: حَدَّثَنا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ خالِدٍ، عَنْ بَعْضِ أَصْحابُنا قالَ: مَرَّ أَبُو الحَسَنِ الرِّضا a.sُ بِقَبرٍ مِن قُبُورِ أَهْل بَيْتِهِ فَوَضَعَ يَدِهِ عَلَيْهِ، ثُمَّ قالَ: «إِلهي بَدَت قُدْرَتُكَ وَلَمْ تَبدُ واهِيَةً فَجَهَلُوكَ وَقَدَّرُوكَ، وَالتَّقدِيرُ عَلَى غَيْرِ ما بِهِ وَصَفُوكَ، وَإِنّي بَريءٌ يا إِلهي مِنَ الَّذِينَ بِالتَّشبِيهِ طَلَبُوكَ، لَيْسَ كَمِثلِكَ شَيءٌ، إِلهي وَلَنْ يُدرِكُوكَ، وَظاهِرٌ ما بِهِمْ مِن نِعَمِكَ دَلِيلُهُم عَلَيْكَ لَوْ عَرَفُوكَ وَخَلْقِكَ يا إِلهي مَندُوحَةٌ أَن يَتَناوَلُوكَ بَل سَوُّوكَ بِخَلقِكَ، فَمَنْ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَعرِفُوكَ، وَاتَّخَذُوا بَعْضَ آياتِكَ رَبّاً فَبِذلِكَ وَصَفُوكَ فَتَعالَيتَ رَبِّي عَمَّا بِهِ المُشَبِّهُونَ نَعَتُوكَ».

11-5 Muhammad ibn Al-Hassan ibn Ahmad ibn al-Waleed - may God be pleased with him - narrated that Muhammad ibn Al-Hassan al-Saffar quoted on the authority of Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Khalid, on the authority of some companions that one day when Abul Hassan Al-Ridha (s) was passing by the grave of one of the members of his Holy Household, he (s) placed his hand on the grave and said, “O my God! Your Might is apparent, but the people are ignorant of Thee. They try to use measures to recognize Thee. Such a form of describing Thee is in contradiction with the belief in Thy Lordship. O my Lord! I am not of those who seek Thee through striking similitude. Nothing is similar to Thee. My Lord! They do not understand Thee. If they wanted to recognize Thee, Thy apparent Blessings were the Best Proofs for them of Thee. O my God! It suffices for them to ponder over Thy creatures, and not to try to go deeply into Thy nature. However, they consider Thee and Thy creatures to be the same. That is why they did not really recognize Thee, and considered some of Thy Signs to be their Lords. Thus they described Thee as such. My Lord! Thee are Higher than what those who compare Thee (with others) describe Thee to be.”

Gradings are classical jarḥ-wa-taʿdīl, name-matched to a rijāl index (not individually re-verified).