[43] On the authority of Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Abd al-Malik al-Basri, from Abd Allah ibn al-Ala, from Idris, from Zayd, from Talha ibn al-Hakam, from Jabir ibn Yazid al-Ju'fi—peace be upon him—who said: I said to my Master Abu Ja'far Muhammad al-Baqir—may His Might be exalted: "O my Master, what is the state before you of one who does not possess [deep] Gnosis (Ma'rifah) of you, yet he follows those who follow you, opposes those who oppose you, loves those who love you, and detests those who detest you?"

He said: "He is cycled (Yukarrar), O Jabir, until he becomes pure." I said: "My Master, [cycled] within the metamorphosis (Masukhiyyah)?" He looked at me angrily and then said: "The believer does not enter metamorphosis, unless he divulges a secret of yours or aids an enemy against you; [in that case] Allah returns him to the lowest of the low.

[44] And on the authority of Muhammad ibn Sinan, from Isma'il ibn Jabir, from Abu Hamzah al-Thumali, who said: I was with my Master Abu Ja'far—may His Might be exalted—in a certain place, when I looked and saw two gazelles running until they reached him and stood before him. They fell prostrate to him, prolonging their prostration; then Abu Ja'far—may His Might be exalted—gave them permission and said: "Raise your heads."