After the martyrdom of Imam Reza\n(PBUH) in the province of Khorasan by the Abbasid Caliph, the period of Imam\nJawad\u2019s (PBUH) Imamate began. A wave of\npublic anger towards the martyrdom of Imam Reza (PBUH) by the order of Ma\u2019mun\ntook place. Ma\u2019mun of the Abbasid\nDynasty thereafter travelled from Khorasan towards Baghdad, and moved the\ncapital of the empire to Baghdad once again. \nIn order to cover his betrayal to Imam Reza (PBUH), and in order to face\nthe elites of the Abbasid Dynasty, and to win the hearts of the general public,\nhe sent a messenger to Medina to formally invite Imam Jawad(PBUH) from Medina\nto Baghdad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On a day of his stay in Baghdad, Imam\nJawad (PBUH) was crossing the street, and people had gathered in the Imam\u2019s\npath, trying to get a better look at the Imam. \nOne of the people by the name of Qasem ibn Abdol Rahman(a Zeidi1), who\nwas among the crowd narrates the following incident:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI began my\ntravel to Baghdad, and when I arrived I saw people anxiously on the move, some\nwere running, others were finding a spot on the tops of buildings, and some\nwere standing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I asked them what is going on? They\nsaid, \u2018The son of Reza! The son of Reza! (Referring to Imam Jawad (PBUH), the\nson of Imam Reza (PBUH)) I began thinking that I too will stand here to see him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Moments later, I saw a man on a horse\nappear. I found myself uttering, \u2018May Allah keep the Shiites away from his\nblessings, for they believe that obeying this man is an obligatory act\ncommanded on them by Allah (SWT)!\u20192 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As these thoughts passed my mind, the\nImam (PBUH) turned towards me and said, \u2018O Qasem ibn Abdul Rahman! The clan of\nThamud said, \u2018shall we obey a man (Prophet Saleh (PBUH)) from among ourselves!\nTruly should we then be straying in mind, and mad!\u20193<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My thoughts again wandered as I\nthought to myself, \u2018truly he is a magician.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And again the Imam turned to me and\ncontinued with the next verse, \u2018Is it that the Message is sent to him, of all\npeople amongst us? Nay, he is a liar, an insolent one!\u20194<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And with that, the Imam left. It was\nthen that I refuted my false beliefs and found faith in the Imamate of the son\nof Imam Reza (PBUH), where I pledged that he is the representative of Allah on\nthe people.\u201d5<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the recitation of these verses,\nImam Jawad (PBUH) indirectly reminded the man of his ill judgment. The Imam had compared Qasem\u2019s judgment to the\nwrong judgment of the clan of Thamud in which Allah (SWT) had appointed them a\nprophet from among themselves. For the\nThamud clan it was difficult to accept that a man from among themselves, had\nbeen chosen as a prophet, and they were required to obey him. Even though he who is appointed by Allah\n(SWT) to carry out a divine responsibility will be equipped with certain\nabilities and characteristics by Allah (SWT). \nThe same can be said about the position of Imamat. The Imam is chosen by\nAllah (SWT), and age is not a barrier in the will of Allah. When Qasem saw how\nthe Imam had read his mind for having called him a magician, the Imam responded\nwith another verse. The mentioned verse\n25 of the Surah al-Qamar illustrates that prophets and other divine leaders are\nblessed with inspiration and divine knowledge, and can be aware of what goes on\nin the hearts of people. Their knowledge\nis not comparable with the limited and false work of gypsies and sorcerers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Selection taken from the book The\nGuiders to the Path of Light, Life of Imam Mohammad Taqi (PBUH) by Ayatullah\nSayyed Mohammad Taqi Modarrasi (with minor changes)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Roshd Website offers condolences\nto all Muslims, especially you dear friend, upon the<\/p>\n\n\n\n
last day of Dhi al-Qa\u2019da, the\nanniversary of the martyrdom of<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the leader of the pious, the ninth\nImam,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam Muhammad ibn Ali al-Jawad (PBUH).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. \n1. Zeidieh is a branch of the Shia sect. It was\nfounded in year 2 A.H. The sect believes that after Imam Hussein (PBUH), Zayd\nthe son of Imam Sajjad (PBUH) became the Imam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. \n2. The incident took place in the year 211 A.H., in\na time when Imam Jawad (PBUH) was only 16 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. \n3. The Holy Quran 54:24<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. \n4. The Holy Quran 54:25<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. \n5. Kashf al-Qammah, vol. 2, p. 363<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Keywords: Imam\u2019s knowledge of the unseen, the guidance\nof a Sunni by Imam Jawad (PBUH), Quranic proof, The knowledge of the Imam on\nthe hearts of the people<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After the martyrdom of Imam Reza (PBUH) in the province of Khorasan by the Abbasid Caliph, the period of Imam Jawad\u2019s (PBUH) Imamate began. A wave of public anger towards the martyrdom of Imam Reza (PBUH) by the order of Ma\u2019mun took place. Ma\u2019mun of the Abbasid Dynasty thereafter travelled from Khorasan towards Baghdad, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28248],"tags":[22828,22827,22831,22663,22829,18418,19699,17955,22830,22832],"class_list":["post-4605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-occasional-letters","tag-2014-09-25","tag-a-divine-leader","tag-baghdad","tag-imam-jawad","tag-khorasan","tag-occasion-letters","tag-order","tag-people","tag-public","tag-qasem"],"yoast_head":"\n