There are numerous mathematical calculations of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, which we can find in our books. These are proud moments, especially for students who love mathematics that he is a follower of such a great Imam (a.s)!! ❤️
Hence the Prophet said: “ I am the city of knowledge and Ali is the gate,” and Imam Ali is quoted as saying “ The Prophet of God taught me a thousand doors of knowledge, each one opening a thousand other doors (for every door he taught) and I learnt everything…”.
Dividing 17 Camels:
A person was near death, and before passing away, he wrote his Will as follows: “I have 17 Camels, and I have three sons. Divide my Camels in such a way that my eldest son gets half of them, the second one gets 1/3rd of the total, and my youngest son gets 1/9th of the total number of Camels.”
After his death, when the relatives read his will, they were extremely perplexed and wondered how they could divide 17 camels in this manner.
After much thought, they decided that there was only one man in Arabia who could help them: “Imam Ali (AS).”
They all went to Imam Ali (AS) and presented their problem.
Imam Ali (AS) said, “Okay, I will divide the camels as per the man’s will.”
Imam Ali (AS) continued, “I will lend one of my camels to make it 18 (17 + 1 = 18), and now let’s divide according to his will.”
The eldest son received 1/2 of 18 = 9 camels, The second son received 1/3 of 18 = 6 camels, The youngest son received 1/9 of 18 = 2 camels.
Now, the total number of camels distributed was 17 (9 + 6 + 2 = 17).
Imam Ali (AS) then said, “Now I will take my camel back.”
Whole Number and not a Fraction:
One Day a Jewish person came to Imam Ali (AS), thinking that since Imam Ali thinks he is too smart, I’ll ask him such a tough question that he won’t be able to answer it and I’ll have the chance to embarrass him in front of all the Arabs.
He asked “Imam Ali, tell me a number, that if we divide it by any number from 1-10 the answer will always come in the form of a whole number and not as a fraction.”
Imam Ali (AS) looked back at him and said, “Take the number of days in a year and multiply it with the number of days in a week and you will have your answer.”
The Jewish person got astonished but as he was a polytheist (Mushrik), he still didn’t believe Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (AS) He calculated the answer Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib (AS) gave him.
To his amazement he came across the following results: The number of Days in a Year = 360 (in Arab) The Number of Days in a Week = 7 The product of the two numbers = 2520
Now…
2520 ÷ 1 = 2520
2520 ÷ 2 = 1260
2520 ÷ 3 = 840
2520 ÷ 4 = 630
2520 ÷ 5 = 504
2520 ÷ 6 = 420
2520 ÷ 7 = 360
2520 ÷ 8 = 315
2520 ÷ 9 = 280
2520 ÷ 10= 252
Reference:
See Al-Suyuti’s History of the Caliphs, p. 179, edited by Muhammad Muhyi al-Din Abd al-Hamid. The Judgment of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali Muhammad Taqi al-Tastari, p. 125 – 10th edition, Dar Al-Shamali, Beirut; The clear truth in the judgment of the Commander of the Faithful, prepared by Hussein Ali Al-Shifa’i, p. 47, printed by Dar Karam in Damascus in 1962 AD.
Reference:
قضاء أمير المؤمنين للتستري، ص ١٢٦ طبع دار الشمالي ؛ والحق المبين في قضاء أمير المؤمنين ص ۹۷ طبع دار کرم.
