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Newsletter for October 2016
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The Fifth
Imam: Muhammad ibne Ali (AS)
Name Muhammad
Title al-Baqir
Epithet Abu
Ja'far
Father Ali
bin Husain
Mother Fatima
daughter of Imam Hasan
Date of Birth: Rajab
1, 57 AH (December 16, 676 AD)
Place of Birth: Madinah
Progeny from Umm Farwa binte
Qassim bin Muhammad bin Abu Bakr:
Two sons: Ja'far, Abd Allah
He had other children from other
wives
Date of Death: Zilhaj
7, 114 AH (January 28, 733 AD)
He live to an age of 57 years
Place of Death: Madinah
Place of Burial: Jannatul-Baqi
THE LIFE AND THE TIMES OF
IMAM MUHAMMAD BAQIR
Imam Muhammad (Baqir) had the
blessings and the nurture of his
grandfather, Imam Husain. He
witnessed the tragedy of Karbala
at the tender age of about three
and a half years. He
had sustained the thirst of
three days when the Umayyad army
had cut off the water supply to
the camp of Imam Husain in
Karbala. He
was among the survivors of the
massacre, and had endured the
toil some journey from Karbala
to Damascus, followed by the
year of captivation in the
Umayyad prison along with his
father and other members of the
Able Bait.
In Madinah he lived a life of
peace and piety, and remained
under the patronage of his
father Imam Ali Zain al-Abideen
for thirty-four years. Imam
Baqir grew under the care of his
father and was appointed Imam by
him before his martyrdom by
poisoning in 95 AH by the Caliph
Walid bin Abd al-Malik.
The reign of the Umayyad
Caliph Walid bin Abd al-Malik
ended at his death in 96 AH, and
was succeeded by his brother
Salaaming bin Abd alMalik. However,
the rule of Sulayman lasted for
only three years until 99 AH.
Umar bin Abd al-Aziz
became the next ruler of the
Muslim world. He
was the only just ruler the
people saw in a long chain of
Umayyad tyrants. He
is popularly known as Umar, the
pious. It
was during his reign that the
long standing claim of the
fertile groves of Faddak,
originally launched by Fatima
binte Muhammad was finally
recognized by a ruler of the
land, and was returned to the
family of the rightful
claimants. It
was also by his orders that the
ignoble tradition of throwing
abuses on Imam Ali during the
congregational prayers (started
by Muawiyah bin Abu Sufyan) was
finally discontinued.
The rule of Umar bin Abd
al-Aziz was also short- lived
and lasted for only two years. He
was succeeded by Yazid bin Abd
al-Malik who ruled the land
between the years 1O1 AH and 105
AH. After him, a relatively
longer reign of Hisham bin Abd
al-Malik followed from the year
105 AH to 125 AH. The
Umayyad rulers came and went,
and did what pleased them, but
the Imam
continued his services to the
believers and to the faith of
Islam. He
gathered a sizeable galaxy of
students and learned disciples
who took his message to the far
comers of the Muslim world.
The jurist Abu Hanifa
attended the school of leaming
under the Imam in Madinah before
returning to Iraq. Abu
Hanifa left Madinah with a
tremendous respect and acclaim
to the Imads knowledge of the
Wan and the Sunnah. The
Imam disagreed with Abu Hanifa
on his method of resolving
issues of Shatiyah (canonic
law) by Raai (individual
personal logic) or Qiyas (speculative
derivation).
Hishain bin Abd al-Malik
could not see the growing
popularity of the Imam and had
him martyred with poison in the
year 114 AH. The Imam appointed his son
Ja'far to take charge of the
duties of the hnarnate to serve
the faith and the faithful.
By the time of his
martyrdom, he had spent twenty
years of his life as the Imam of
his time. A wealth of quotes and
interpretations were collected
by his followers.
REFLECTIONS ON THE LIFE OF IMAM
MUHAMMAD BAQIR
Imam Baqir was a complete
reflection of the life of his
father in sincerity, piety,
knowledge and worship. His
superlative conduct is
considered to be the criterion
for these fine qualities in the
human being.
The greatest of the
learned are dwarfed by the
grandeur of his wisdom and
knowledge. He
earned the title of al-Baqir as
a result of the depth of his
knowledge.
He is well known for his depth
of knowledge and for the
vastness of his quotes and
interpretations of the Qur'an
and the Sunnah. This
material was collected by his
students and companions and is
available for guidance today.
Abu Hanifa, a famous jurist of
his time and an Imam to a large
sector of the Sunni Muslims, was
a student of Imam Baqir. He
acknowledged the superior
knowledge of the Imam on the
Qur'an and the Sunna.
THE INSTITUTION OF MAJALIS
The majalis (religious
gatherings specifically intended
to educate masses about the
mission of Imam Husain) are the
tradition of Zainab binte Ali
who held her first majalis while
the captives were still in
Damasus. Although
they were continued by Imam Ali
Zain al-Abideen during his
times, Imam Muhammad Baqir
formalized them into an
institution of learning. Since
then they have served as a
unique method of propagating the
Truth to the masses throughout
the ages.
As the followers and the
devotees of Ahle Bait visited
the Imam they enquired about the
tragedy which the members of
Ahle Bait had to sustain. The
Imam took the opportunity to
retell the causes of the
conflict, the events of the
suffering, and in the process,
was able to teach and preach
Islam to them. Since
the people came already
receptive to listen and to learn
the Imam was able to spread the
Message of Islam with case and
continuity. This
institution of majalis has
evolved with time, and has
continued to be an effective
vehicle for the dissemination of
the teachings of the school of
the Ahle Bait.
Selected Sayings
1. The
best combination is knowledge
with forbearance.
2. Three
things are counted the best of
deeds in the world and
hereafter:
(i) forgiveness
over someone's cruel behavior;
(ii) kindness
to someone who has broken
relations with you;
(iii) tolerance
to someone's foolish behavior.
3. One
who does listen to the call of
his conscience cannot benefit from
advice from others.
4. There
are many who say, "may Allah see
the down fall of your enemies,"
although Allah may Himself be
that person's enemy!
5. To
seek help from the newly made
rich is like retrieving a coin
from the snake's mouth: that
there is need for it but not
without danger!
6. There
is vast wealth in four things:
(i) keeping
your deprivation a secret to
yourself,
(ii) giving
charity without announcing it;
(iii) not
making your pain apparent to
others;
(iv) not
making your troubles public.
7. The
best of public behavior is to
sit at a lower level than your
status, wish well to one you see
ahead of you, and not indulge in
wasteful arguments even when you
know you are right.
8. Modesty
and Faith are two intertwined
jewels. If
you lose one, the other goes
with it.
9. Keep
away from laziness and in
patience. A
lazy person cannot deliver the
dues of others, and the
impatient person lacks the
elements of forbearance.
IO.
To give sadaqa (a
form of charity) in the morning
is to protect you from the
mischief of shaitan
(devil). |
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