Abū Ḥanīfah has said the following in regards to Imam al-Sadiq (‘a): I have not seen a more knowledgeable jurisprudent than Jaʿfar ibn Muhammad.

Abū Ḥanīfah, ‘Abdullah ibn Abī Shubrumah, and Ibn Abī Laylā all went to meet with Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (‘a).

The Late Sayyid ibn Ṭāwūs has written: They brought the family of Imam Husayn (‘a) in to the court of Yazīd while they were tied up with ropes. According to the narration of Muqarram, ropes were placed around the necks of Imam Sajjad (‘a), Zaynab, and the rest of the daughters of the Prophet (saww); they were taken towards Yazīd’s court and whenever any one of them would stop, the guards would beat them until they continued walking again.

When the captives were taken in to Syria, it has been narrated that an old man came close to the caravan and said: I thank God that he destroyed and killed you, and he made the cities safe from your men and he gave Yazīd victory over you! Imam ‘Ali ibn al-Husayn (‘a) said to the old man: Oh old man, have you read the Quran?

Unfortunately, some people who are unaware of history, view the 4th Infallible (‘a) as the ‘Sick Imam’. They have a mental image of him as being physically pale and sickly, while psychologically they think of him as being depressed and forever gloomy.

Ali bin Yaqtin who acted as Imam Musa al-Kazim’s secret agent in the palace of Harun, would secretly send the Imam his Khums, and occasionally, although extremely dangerous and risky, he would send the Imam financial aid.

Musa was son to the sixth Shiite Imam, Jafar al-Sadiq, and Hamidah. He was born in Abuwa, a small city on the outskirts of Medina.

After the tragedy of Karbala, Yazīd’s agents began to use the Jabrīyah ideology, and publicized his apparent victory against Imam Husayn (‘a) as being the will of God. To these ends, ‘Ubaydullah ibn Zīyād gathered the people at Kūfah’s main mosque, so that there, they could be told of what had taken place. He gave himself an aura of religiosity and began to say to the people: ‘I praise God who made the truth victorious and aided Amīr al-Mu’minīn (Yazīd) and his companions, and killed the liar, the son of the liar!’

At this point in time, Zaynab (‘a) had lost six or seven of her brothers; her son had been killed, ten of her nephews had been killed, and she and what was left of her family had been taken captive by the forces of Yazīd. In spite of all of this, she was put in a position where she had to defend herself and fight against what had happened to her and her family.

The Ninth Imam (‘a) was named Muhammad, his Kunyah was Abū Ja’far, and his titles were Taqī and Jawad; he was born in the holy month of Ramaḍān/Rajab in the year 195 Hijrī in the city of Medina.

The Ghulāt were one of the deviant and misguided groups, which were active during the Imamate of Imam Hadi (‘a). While the Ghullāt considered themselves as being Shia, their ideology and beliefs were utterly deviant and outside the fold of the Shia creed. They had certain exaggerated beliefs in regards to the Imam (‘a) and considered him as a divine being.

Before Imam Baqir (‘a) left the city of Damascus, a particularly amazing opportunity presented itself to awaken the minds of the masses. Through this opportunity, the people were also allowed to see a manifestation of the Imam’s (‘a) learning and knowledge.

Hishām ordered the governor of Medina to send for Imam Baqir (‘a) and his son, Ja’far ibn Muhammad (‘a) and to tell them to come to Syria. Without having a choice, the Imam (‘a) and his son (‘a) left for Damascus and they soon arrived there. Hishām had decided to set up an archery competition in order to embarrass the Imam (‘a). Hishām assumed that with the defeat of the Imam (‘a) in such a competition, he would be lowered in the view of the people. In addition, even though the Imam (‘a) had arrived in Damascus, he postponed their meeting for three days.
 

Imam Baqir (‘a) was born in the year 57 Hijrī, in the city of Medina. He was 39 years old at the time of the death of his father, Imam Zayn al-’Abidīn (‘a) (who passed away in 94 Hijrī). His name was Muhammad, while his kunya was Abū Ja’far, and his agnomens were Baqir and Baqir al-’Ūlūm.