One of the prominent qualities of Imam al-Askari (peace be upon him) during his 29 years of life was his attention and concern for the problems and difficulties of the people, especially the Shi’a. In this regard, historians have narrated the following:
“Muhammad, the son of Ali ibn Ibrahim, says:
Our hands were empty, and our circumstances had become difficult. My father said to me, ‘Take us to this man – Imam Hasan al-Askari (peace be upon him) – about whom we have heard descriptions of generosity and charity.’ I asked him, ‘Do you know him?’ He replied, ‘I do not know him, and I have never seen him before.’ So we set out to meet the Imam. On the way, my father said, ‘How wonderful it would be if he gave us five hundred dirhams; two hundred for clothing, two hundred for food (flour), and one hundred for other expenses.’ I thought to myself, ‘I wish he would give me three hundred dirhams; with one hundred, I could buy an animal, with another hundred, I would cover my expenses, and the last one hundred would be for clothing. Then I would head to the ‘Jabal’ region.’
When we reached the Imam’s house, his servant came toward us and said, ‘Ali ibn Ibrahim and his son Muhammad may enter.’ As soon as we entered and greeted the Imam, he said to my father, ‘O Ali! Why have you not come to us before?’ I replied, ‘My master! I felt ashamed to meet you in such a state.’ We paused for a moment and then left. The Imam’s servant followed us, gave my father a purse of money, and said, ‘This is five hundred dirhams; two hundred for clothing, two hundred for food (flour), and one hundred for other expenses.’ Then he gave me another purse and said, ‘This is three hundred dirhams; spend one hundred for buying an animal, one hundred for clothing, and one hundred for other expenses.’
… Muhammad went on his way and, by the blessings of the Imam’s generosity, his financial situation improved, and he became prosperous.”[1]
Another example of the Imam’s care for the problems of the Shi’a is narrated by Abu Hashim al-Ja’fari:
“I wrote a letter to Imam Hasan al-Askari (peace be upon him) complaining about the hardships of prison life. The Imam wrote back to me, saying, ‘You will pray your noon prayer at home today.’ At noon, I was released from prison, and, as he had said, I prayed the noon prayer at my house. However, I was still poor. So, I wrote him another letter asking for help. As soon as I returned home, he sent me one hundred dinars and wrote in a letter to me that if I needed anything and had a request, I should ask without embarrassment or fear, for, God willing, I would receive it.”[2]
What is especially noteworthy in both of these stories is that, despite the fact that the Imam spent three years of his six-year Imamate in prison and was under the surveillance of the Abbasid regime for another three years, he encouraged his Shi’a to seek assistance and present their problems to him [3]. This reflects the Imam’s extraordinary generosity, determination, and effort to alleviate the hardships of his contemporaries, especially the Shi’a.
(Taken from “The Life of Imam Hasan al-Askari (peace be upon him)” by the late Hujjat al-Islam Sheikh Baqir Sharif Qarashi, with some additions [4] )
Footnotes:
[1] Al-Irshad by Sheikh Mufid, Vol. 2, p. 326
[2] Al-Irshad by Sheikh Mufid, Vol. 2, p. 330
[3] It is important to note that the Imam’s recommendation to present requests to him applies to the infallible Imams (peace be upon them) and not to ordinary people, as asking others for help is not recommended and is considered disapproved according to religious teachings.
[4] This text is taken from the Persian translation of the author’s work, translated by Mr. Hassan Islami.