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Congratulation on the Occasion of
Auspicious Birth Anniversary of
Imam al-Jawad (PBUH)
Today is the 10th
of the month of Rajab, the birth anniversary of the
Prophet’s 9th infallible successor, Imam Mohammad Taqi (SA). On this auspicious occasion we have prepared for
you an article on the life and times of the 9th
Imam.
It was on in the
year 195 AH that Imam Mohammad Taqi (AS) was born in Medina.
His epithet Taqi means Godfearing. He is also known by
another title, that is, al-Jawad, which means the Generous. He
was eight years old when God entrusted him with the mantle
of Imamate following the martyrdom of his father Imam Reza
(AS) in distant Khorasan. The
crafty Abbasid Caliph Mamoun entertained doubts in the
boy-Imam, but the very first encounter demonstrated to the
world what divine authority means, as Jesus had spoken from
the cradle on the innocence of his virgin-mother Mary.
Imam al-Jawad stood boldly when other children the same age fled as
the caparisoned horses and the caliph’s entourage
approached. The entourage had to halt before him, and the
bewildered Mamoun questioned him who he was. When he
discovered the identity he wanted to put him to test and
brought him to the court to debate with the Mu’tazalite
ideologue Yahya bin Aksam.
Despite his young age, Imam al-Jawad (AS) proved more
meritorious than the Prophets, John the Baptist (AS) and
Jesus (AS), whom the Holy Qur’an says were given wisdom and
divine missions at a tender age. To the surprise of the
courtiers the young Imam not only gave the correct answers
to complicated questions but also explained everything in
minute detail. And when it was the turn of the Imam to pose
the question the silver-bearded Scholar Yahya bin Aksam was
speechless and began stuttering for words. The young Imam
smiled, put him at ease and himself provided the answer with
convincing explanation. The whole gathering began to applaud
the knowledge of the 9-year descendant of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA).
The caliph had no other choice but to honour the Imam.
During the 17 years of his divine mission, Imam al-Jawad (AS)
spread the pure and pristine teachings of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA)
far and wide and trained a generation of scholars in
different branches of sciences. Some of these are Hussein
bin Sa’eed, the Author of 30 books, Khaled al-Burqi, the
Writer of over a hundred books and treatises and Ahmad bin
Muhammad Bizanti, who was of Greek Byzantine origin and who
compiled the encyclopedic work Jame’ Bizanti. To the
surprise of the courtiers the young Imam not only gave the
correct answers to complicated questions but also explained
everything in minute detail. And when it was the turn of the
Imam to pose the question the silver-bearded Scholar Yahya
bin Aksam was speechless and began stuttering for words. The
young Imam smiled, put him at ease and himself provided the
answer with convincing explanation. The whole gathering
began to applaud the knowledge of the 9-year descendant of
Prophet Muhammad (SAWA). The caliph had no other choice but
to honour the Imam.
Imam al-Jawad (AS)
was very modest in his behaviour but decisively resisted the
oppressors. He used to say:
"The Will of God has
preference over the will of people."
The
extraordinary generosity of the 9th Imam was a
byword in those days. Mohammad bin Sahl Qomi says: "I went
to Medina to meet Imam al-Jawad (AS). When I came to the
Imam I
felt a strange feeling of spiritual joy. I was so engrossed
in spiritual joy that I did not want to leave him. It
thought of requesting him for some garments as souvenir. But
I hesitated to express my wish. I said nothing and said
farewell to the Imam and went to the Prophet’s Mosque in
Medina. I said to my self that it is better to write down my
demand. I wrote it down but I changed my mind again and went
to Mecca with a caravan. I was in the caravan when I saw a
man with a package in his hand looking for me. I was
surprised. He was sent by Imam al-Jawad (AS) and he told me: “O
Mohammad bin Sahl, my master Imam al-Jawad (AS) had sent these
garments for you as a memento."
The
Imam was
summoned several times to Baghdad by the Abbasid caliph. But Mamoun dare not do bodily harm although he had intention of
doing it. He tried in vain to implicate in the frequent
uprisings against Abbasid tyranny from Khorasan in the east
to North Africa in the west. The last two years of Imam al-Jawad’s life worth more pondering. When the Mo’tasem became
caliph he was concerned of the influence and intellectual
power of the 9th Imam and had him summoned to
Baghdad. But despite these restrictions, the Imam promoted
the truth of Islam and took basic measures in religious,
intellectual, cultural and political fields. He used to say
boldly to the rulers: The oppressor and whoever bows before
oppression all share the same sin. Imam al-Jawad (AS) was
poisoned at the young age of 25 and left the world a martyr.
But his short life was full of blessings and lessons for
humanity. The Imam left behind a lasting legacy that is very
much alive today. Once again we offer our congratulation on
the auspicious birth anniversary of Imam Mohammad Taqi (AS)
and in conclusion bring you a selection from his
enlightening words.
Imam al-Jawad (AS)
says: “Whoever benefits a man for the sake of Allah,
will build a house for himself in Paradise.”
He also said:
“Do not doubt a friend whose friendship is based on faith
and certainty, and whoever admonishes his brother in
private, has honored him and whoever admonishes his brother
in public, has dishonored him.”
“Trust in
Allah is the price of everything that is precious and the
ladder to every goal which is high and sublime.”
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