Hadith 54-3

حَدَّثَنا أَحْمَدِ بْنِ زِيادِ بْنِ جَعْفَر الهَمْدانِيَّ رَضِىَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قالَ حَدَّثَنا عَلِىِّ بْنِ إِبراهِيمِ بْنِ هاشِم عَنْ أَبي الصَّلْتِ الهَرَوِيِّ قالَ كَانَ الرِّضَا عَلَيْهِ السَّلامُ يُكَلِّمُ النَّاسَ بِلُغَاتِهِمْ وَكَانَ وَاللَّهِ أَفْصَحَ النَّاسِ وَأَعْلَمَهُمْ بِكُلِّ لِسَانٍ وَلُغَةٍ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ يَوْماً يَا ابْنَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ إِنِّي لاعْجَبُ مِنْ مَعْرِفَتِكَ بِهَذِهِ اللُّغَاتِ عَلَى اخْتِلافِهَا فَقَالَ يَا أَبَا الصَّلْتِ أَنَا حُجَّةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى خَلْقِهِ وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيَتَّخِذَ حُجَّةً عَلَى قَوْمٍ وَهُوَ لا يَعْرِفُ لُغَاتِهِمْ أَوَمَا بَلَغَكَ قَوْلُ أَمِيرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ‏ عَلَيْهِ السَّلامُ أُوتِينَا فَصْلَ الْخِطَابِ فَهَلْ فَصْلُ الْخِطَابِ إِلا مَعْرِفَةُ اللُّغَاتِ. عَنِ المَسائِلِ‏ الَّتِي أَرادَ أَن يَسْأَلُهُ عَنْها قَبل السُّؤالِ‏

Ahmad ibn Ziyad al-Hamadani - may God be pleased with him - narrated that Ali ibn Ibrahim ibn Hashem quoted on the authority of his father, on the authority of Aba Salt al-Harawi, “Ar-Ridha’ (a.s.) spoke with people in their own languages. By God, he was the most eloquent and the most knowledgeable person in any language. One day I told him, ‘O son of the Prophet of God! I am amazed at your mastery over all these various languages.’ Ar-Ridha’ (a.s.) said, ‘O Aba Salt! I am the Proof of God for His creatures. God would not designate a Proof for Himself to any nation who does not know their language. Have you not heard that Ali - the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.) said?, ‘We have been granted elaborate speech.’ Then how can this be without mastery of all the languages?’”