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بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the name of God the Most Gracious,
the Dispenser of Grace We are before an Imam of the Ahlul
Bayt (peace be upon them) who filled the world with their virtues and sciences,
devoted their lives to Allah, and were loyal to the truth in the full sense of
loyalty. He is the tenth Imam; Ali al-Hadi (a.s.) whose name is the same as his
grandfather’s: Amir ul-Mu’mineen (a.s.), the pioneer of wisdom and social
justice in the earth. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was similar to his grandfather in
asceticism and in renouncing material pleasures. It was never said about him
that he had followed any fancy or submitted to any desire that was away from
the truth. He had preferred the obedience of Allah to everything else. He was
so fond of his Lord that he spent his nights worshipping, supplicating, and
invoking Allah the Almighty. His faith in Allah permeated his
innermost essence until it was one of his most prominent qualities and
constituents. Many exalted supplications, wise invocations, and wonderful
maxims of monotheism were related from him, showing that he was one of the
first leaders who raised the torch of guidance and faith on Earth. Allah had endowed the Imams of the
Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) with knowledge, wisdom, and virtues to an extent which He
never endowed anyone else of His creation. The great knowledge and sciences
that were transmitted from them are a source of pride. The young and old of the
infallible Imams (a.s.) have been distinguished with this phenomenon. Imam
al-Jawad (a.s.) assumed the religious leadership and the general authority of the
nation since his early years. He was just seven years and some months old. He
was asked about the most complicated philosophical, theological, and
jurisprudential questions and he answered them all as if he was an expert
scholar though he was a child yet. Of course, there is no explanation for this
except that which the Twelver Shia believe, that Allah has endowed the
infallible Imams (a.s.) with extraordinary powers of knowledge and sciences,
just as He had endowed His Arch-Prophets. As Imam al-Jawad (a.s.) was the
wonder of the world with his talents and intellectual abilities, and so was his
son Imam Ali al-Hadi (a.s.). Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was yet too young when he was
afflicted with the death of his father. The ulama’ (scholars) and jurisprudents
of the Shia, who were so cautious in the matter of Imamate, referred to him and
researched as far as they could and with utmost accuracy on the matter of
Imamate. When they found the definite proofs on his Imamate, they believed in
him. They did not let themselves be carried away by passions or fancies in
that, but they saw that they were responsible for that before Allah since
Imamate for them is one of the foundations (or “usul”) of religion. Anyhow, the ulama’ and jurisprudents
of the Shia asked Imam al-Hadi (a.s.), while he was yet very young, about
different branches of knowledge and he answered them with answers of an expert,
which made them believe in his Imamate. This made them more faithful and
certain of what they believed that an Imam must be the most knowledgeable one
of his time regardless of whether he is young or old. The knowledge, virtue, and delving
into the sciences of the Qur’an and the Sunna of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) astonished
the minds and sparked meetings and gatherings in all parts of the Muslim
world as they were busy discussing his unlimited scientific treasures. A great number of Muslims believed
in the Imamate of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) and found it obligatory on them to follow
and obey him. Great monies of legal dues that must be given to the Imam were
carried to him, besides the presents and donations which Muslims offered to
him. Investigators and policemen reported this influx in detail to
al-Mutawakkil, the Abbasid caliph, who was the most bitter enemy of the Alawis
and their followers-the Shia. The caliph became very angry at this special
respect and begrudged it. He ordered Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) to be relocated to
“Surra Man Ra’a”.[1] He imposed house-arrest on him there
to monitor all his activities, pinpoint his followers, and prevent monies from
coming to him. He prevented scholars and narrators from associating with him.
Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) suffered alot during the reign of al-Mutawakkil who ordered
his men from time to time to search the house of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) and bring
the Imam (a.s.) to him, however he may be. Once, Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was
brought to the meeting of al-Mutawakkil while glasses of wine were scattered
about, songsters and songstresses sang with their musical instruments and
al-Mutawakkil, the caliph, was drunken and surrounded by groups of singers and
dalliers. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) neither respected him nor feared his authority
but began advising and reminding him of the afterlife and criticizing the state
of dalliance, amusement, and pleasure he was in. We shall discuss this in
detail later on, insha’Allah. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was the only
representative of the front of opposition to the Abbasid rule, and one of the
prominent leaders of the nation who struggled against tyranny and oppression.
He took a brave and unwavering position against the kings of his age. He did
not associate with any one of them; rather he preferred to stay away from them.
Therefore, they held grudges and enmity against him and inflicted him with
severity and violence. If Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) had humored
or flattered the kings of his age, they would not have imposed house-arrest on
him in Surra Men Ra’a, or the economical blockade that had led him to critical
insolvency, or prevented him from meeting his followers. Imam al-Hadi (a.s.)
preferred the content (Ridha) of Allah and the best interest of the nation to
everything else; therefore he turned away from those kings who imposed their
authorities by force and oppression. In this book, we shall draw a clear
picture on their policies and lives, as quoted by the most reliable sources of
history. Not only was Imam al-Hadi (a.s.)
afflicted with the Abbasid kings of his time, in fact all Muslims were
afflicted with them. The Abbasids played with the principles of religion to the
point that not even a shadow of Islam remained as it used to be during their
reigns. They exploited the economy of the nation to satisfy their pleasures.
They spent the wealth of Muslims wastefully on singers and dalliers. Their red
nights in Baghdad and Samarra’ were full of all that which Allah had
prohibited. They absolutely turned their backs to the Islamic principles and
indulged in pleasures and lusts. The study of an age is one of the
systematic researches in studying the life of one who lives in that age,
because it uncovers the important sides of the intellectual, social, and
political life of that age. In light of this fact, we have to study the age and
time of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) and cover all its aspects because it had influence
on the life of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.). The age of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) was
rife with terrible events, the most prominent one of which was the dominance of
the Turks over all the affairs of the state and their possession of the general
economy to a degree that the Abbasid kings had no influence and were away from
all the interior and foreign affairs of the state. When the Turks were pleased
with the Abbasid caliph, they kept him in his position and when they were not,
they deposed or killed him. Because of that, the nation faced dangerous crisis
as the Turks were not well-qualified to rule and run the political affairs of
the state since they were nomads with no civilization or administration. The book mentions the companions of
Imam al-Hadi (a.s.), his disciples, and the narrators of his traditions. I
think I am the only one who has studied the lives of the infallible Imams
(a.s.) in this way, because the modern studies have paid no attention to this
aspect at all or simply ignored it. I believe that studying this aspect
completes the study of the life of the Imam because it shows the aspects of his
intellectual and cultural life and the extent of his relation with people and
the people’s relationship with him. At the same time, there is important
information about the Imam that has not been mentioned in the books of
biographies that have analyzed his life, but is mentioned in the biographies of
his companions. This book is not the first that has
been written on the life of Imam al-Hadi (a.s.). Allama Sheikh Dhabeehullah has
written about him in detail. He has assigned the third volume of his
encyclopedia “Ma’athir al-Kubara” on Imam al-Hadi (a.s.) when talking about the
city of I find it my duty, at the end of
this introduction, to acknowledge the favor and record my great appreciation to
His Eminence, my brother, grand Allama Sheikh Hadi Sharif al-Qurashi (may Allah
bless him) for his sincere help in writing this book. He reviewed many sources
including some encyclopedias such as “Wassa’il ash-Shia” and others, and
offered me much information on the life of Imam Abul Hasan al-Hadi az-Zakiy
(a.s.). I pray Allah to reward him with the best as a sincere prayer from a
brother for his brother. Holy Najaf Notes: [1] |
