Name: Ali bin Musa.
Titles: Al-Rida, Zamin-e-Thamin, Gharibul Ghuraba, Alim e Ale Muhammad.
Kuniyya: Abul Hasan.
Birth: 11th Dhu Qida.
Mother: Bibi Suttana (or Najma or Ummulbanin).
Father: Imam Musa Al-Kadhim (a.s.)
Death: 29th Safar 203 a.h. (Poisoned by Mamun Rashid).
Buried: Mashhad,Iran.
His Parents & Birth
Mother
She was a slave of Umme Hamida (6th Imam’s wife). When the 7th Imam had gone to buy her from the slave trader he was told that when he was coming to Medina from Marrakesh a pious Christian lady had told him that Bibi Suttana was a very special slave who would bear a son who would spread the true word from the East to the West.
Umme Hamida saw the Prophet (peace be upon him and his household) in her dream telling her to give Bibi Suttana to Imam Musa Al-Kadhim (a.s.) which she did. The 6th Imam used to tell his companions to await the birth of his grandson who he addressed as Alim e Ale Muhammad. He was one of the three Imams who did Jihad with their knowledge. (The other two were the 5th and 6th Imams). Imam Ali Ar-Rida (a.s.) was born one month after the martyrdom of his grandfather Imam Ja”fer As-Sadiq (a.s.) He was born during the reign of the Harun Al-Rashid who poisoned his father.
Father
Imam Musa Al-Kadhim (a.s.)
His Titles
Ar-Rida – Angels, Prophets, Aimma, believers and even the enemies of Ahlul-Bayt accepted him. So much so that Mamun Rashid had to offer him to be the heir apparent (to be the leader after him). Imam Zamin-e-Thamin means eight. Zamin means safety and security. One of the incidents attributed to this title is that one day Imam was going through the market place with a few followers when he saw a hunter about to kill a (struggling) female deer. Imam told the hunter to let the deer go as she wanted to feed her two young ones who were in the forest and that she would return to the hunter who could then kill her. The hunter thought that Imam was making a fool out of him. Imam stood in surety and the hunter allowed the deer to go. A little while later the deer returned with her young ones and asked Imam to look after them. We believe that if anyone who is going on a journey goes under the security of Imam he/she will return safely.
Gharibul-Ghurabaa (One who is a stranger i.e. he is away from his hometown). Imam was far away from his home and family and he is the only Imam who is buried out of Iraq and Hejaz (Saudi Arabia). Alim e Aali Mohammed (The learned one from Aale Muhammad). This name was given to him by his grandfather (Imam Ja”fer As-Sadiq (a.s.).
Life and Works
Imam played a significant role in the educating of Muslims. Setting examples of education through one’s own conduct.
He saw a short period of the rule of Harun Rashid who had murdered his father. Harun Rashid also attempted to kill Imam Ali Ridha (a.s.) but was unsuccessful. After Harun’s death his sons, Amin and Mamun fought for power. Mamun won with Amin being killed.
Immediately after becoming the Khalifa Mamun, according to the tradition started by Muawiya, had to name a successor (heir apparent). Mamun summoned Imam to come to his capital Marw sending a messenger to Medina to bring the Imam to him and specifying a certain route and sending a security force. The route he chose was not the normal route where, a lot of Shia”s lived. On the way they entered a town called Nishapur. There the scholars and people requested Imam to tell them a hadith. Imam related the following hadith which is known as the hadith of the golden chain.
“My father Musa Al-Kadhim narrated to me from his father Ja”fer As-Sadiq from his father Mohammed Al-Baqir from his father Ali Zaynul Abedeen from his father, the martyr of Kerbala from his father Ali ibn Abu Talib saying: “My loved one, and the pleasure of my eyes, the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his household) told me once, that Jibrail told him from the Lord “The kalima of LA ILAHA ILLALLAH is my fort; whoever said it would enter my fort; and whoever entered my fort was safe from my punishment”.
Those who wrote down the hadith numbered twenty thousand. People started reciting the Kalima when Imam put his hand up and continued: “Yes, the kalima is Allah’s fort. It will provide you with excellent safety but on one condition only and that is that you obey and follow us – the holy Imams in the progeny of the holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his household). On reaching Marw Mamun forced Imam to accept the heir apparency (To be the leader after him). Imam accepted unwillingly.
Why did Mamun want Imam to be the heir apparent?
1- To please the Shia public opinion in Khurasan and the surrounding areas that would make it easier for Mamun to be accepted by the people there and a victory over his brother Amin.
2- To avoid clashes with those like the Alawids who had always threatened the Abbasids with various uprisings.
Mamun celebrated the occasion of Imam”s acceptance of heir apparency. Imam only gave a short sermon saying after he had praised Allah “We have over you a right appointed by the Prophet, and you have a right over us as well; so if you fulfill your duty towards us, we will be bound to perform our duty towards you”.
Mamun ordered a new coin to be minted with Imam Ar-Ridha”s name on it. Imam however knew that this would not last long.
Soon Mamun put Imam under constant watch. Imam used the position to spread the true word of Islam. Mamun’s court was visited by thousands and Imam made an impact on their minds. His ahadith were widely recorded. Mamun who was fond of scholarly discussions would arrange for intellectuals from Greece, Italy, India etc. to come to his court and hold discussions with the Imam.
One day a Jewish scholar was brought by Mamun to debate with Imam. The scholar asked: “How can you accept Muhammad to be the prophet of God when he showed no miracles?” Imam replied: “The greatest of miracles of Allah is the human mind. It allows ideas to be thought through and reasoned out. Islam appeals to human reason. Man must accept God through reason and not through miracles”.
The scholar did not have much to say after that answer.
Imam also encouraged greatly the remembrance of Imam Husayn (a.s.)
Mamun was never sincere in his behaviour towards Imam. Seeing the Imam’s popularity increase disturbed him immensely especially after the occasion when he requested Imam to lead Eid prayers as he was not well. He saw that even before Imam had reached the mosque the people had lined the streets and were reciting takbir and it seemed that even the walls of Marw were doing the same. He had to ask Imam to go back that day.
There are various accounts of how Imam Ali Ar-Ridha (a.s.) was killed by Mamun. One of them is that Imam used to like grapes and Mamun offered Imam poisoned grapes. Imam was ill and died after two days on the 29th Safar 203 a.h.
Imam Ali Al-Rida (a.s.) died in Toos in a village called Sanabad. He had only one son, Imam Muhammad At-Taqi (a.s.), who succeeded him as the 9th Imam.
Al-Mamoon Plans for Imam’s martyrdom
It was not politically feasible for al-Mamoon to reach Baghdad accompanied by Imam al-Rida (A.S.), for that would stir the winds of dissension against him and he might not be strong enough to withstand them. From this standpoint, our belief that al-Mamoon was the one who plotted to end the life of the Imam (A.S.) by giving him poisoned grapes is strengthened, and the historical environment at the time helps us confirm this belief even when Ibn al-Athir, in his Tarikh, thinks that that was not possible. Prominent scholars and historians such as Shaikh al-Mufid and others have also doubted it, while others such as Sayyid ibn Tawoos, Sibt ibn al-Jawzi, and al-Arbili in Kashf al-Ghumma, have all dismissed it outright. The latter strongly defended his view, but it was nevertheless no more than a simplistic and superficial defense. Al-Mamoon’s letter to the Abbasides and the residents of Baghdad, which he wrote after the demise of Imam al-Rida (A.S.), gives such an impression.
“He wrote the Abbasides and their supporters and to the people of Baghdad informing them of the death of Ali ibn Mousa and that they had resented his nomination of him as his successor, asking them now to go back to their loyalty to him.
This may be understood as a clear admission that the death of the Imam (A.S.) was not natural during those circumstances, and the text Ibn Khaldun provides in expressing the contents of this letter provides even clearer clues to accusing al-Mamoon of murdering him; he says in his Tarikh:
“… And al-Mamoon sent messages to al-Hassan ibn Sahl, to the people of Baghdad, and to his supporters apologizing for naming him his regent and inviting them to go back to his loyalty.”
What can be understood regarding al-Mamoon’s regret and realization of his mistake regarding the regency arrangement is that such regret is meaningless if it had happened after the Imam’s death; rather, it must have occurred prior to that, so he paved the way to correct it by assassinating the Imam (A.S.) in order to please the Abbasides, their supporters, and the people of Baghdad. If we are to stay alone with just the political circumstances through which al-Mamoon was living during that shaky period of his reign, overlooking the historical texts whose contexts lead us to such a conclusion, we would still be able to point the finger to al-Mamoon regarding the crime of assassinating Imam al-Rida (A.S.) without being biased to any group or prejudiced against the accused.
Al-Saduq narrates saying, “While al-Rida (A.S.) was breathing his last, al-Mamoon said to him, `By God! I do not know which of the two calamities is greater: losing you and parting from you, or people’s accusation that I assassinated you…””
In another narrative by Abul-Faraj al-Asbahani, al-Mamoon said to him, “It is very hard for me to live to see you die, and there was some hope hinging upon your stay, yet even harder for me than that is that people say I have made you drink poison and God knows that I am innocent of that.”
This exciting situation of al-Mamoon discloses the fact that the accusation of his own murder of the Imam (A.S.) was the subject of argument, maybe even of conviction, even then, for al-Mamoon asserts people’s accusation of him and he tries to extract an admission from the Imam (A.S.) clearing him of it, as Abul-Faraj mentions.
Simplistic Justification of al-Mamoon’s Situation
It is interesting how some people find it hard to believe that al-Mamoon would assassinate the Imam (A.S.) simply because of all the grief, crying, abstention from eating and drinking, which he feigned to show his distress at the Imam’s death, as if they expected al-Mamoon to show his happiness and excitement at his death in order to give credibility to the accusation others concealed. But the excuse of these folks is their superficiality in understanding history, and their shortsightedness.
How the Imam Was Murdered
Stories regarding the method al-Mamoon employed to kill Imam al-Rida (A.S.) are abundant. Abul-Faraj and al-Mufid say that he killed him by poisoned pomegranate juice and poisoned grape juice. In his Al-Irshad, al-Mufid quotes Abdullah ibn Bashir saying: “Al-Mamoon ordered me to let my nails grow as long as they could without letting anyone notice that; so I did, then he ordered to see me and he gave me something which looked like tamarind and said, `Squeeze this with both your hands,” and I did. Then he stood up, left me and went to see al-Rida (A.S.) and said to him, `How are you?” He answered, `I hope I am alright.” He said, `I, too, by the Grace of God, am alright; did any well-wisher visit you today?” He answered in the negative, so al-Mamoon became angry and called upon his servants to come, then he ordered one of them to immediately take the pomegranate juice to him, adding, `… for he cannot do without it.” Then he called me to him and said: `Squeeze it with your own hands,” and so I did. Then al-Mamoon handed the juice to al-Rida (A.S.) in person, and that was the reason for his death for he stayed only two days before he (A.S.) died.””
Abul-Salt al-Harawi is quoted saying, “I entered the house of al-Rida (A.S.) after al-Mamoon had already left and he said to me, `O Abul-Salt! They have done it…!” and he kept unifying and praising God.” Muhammad ibn al-Jahm is quoted saying, “Al-Rida (A.S.) used to love grapes. Some grapes were said to be prepared for him; needles were pierced inside them at their very tips and were kept like that for several days. Then the needles were taken out, and they were brought to him and he ate some of them and fell into the sickness we have mentioned about him. The grapes killed him, and it was said that that was one of the most effective methods of poisoning.”
Regardless of the method of assassination, what seems to be acceptable, having examined all texts and the historical background of the political circumstances at that time, al-Mamoon was indeed the one who killed Imam al-Rida (A.S.), and we do not have the slightest doubt or hesitation about that.
“His death occurred at Toos in a village called Sanabad, of the Nooqan area, and he was buried at the house of Hameed ibn Tahtaba under the dome where Haroun al-Rashid had been buried, and he was buried beside him facing the qibla.”
“When al-Rida (A.S.) died, al-Mamoon did not disclose it when it happened, leaving him dead for one day and one night, then he called for Muhammad ibn Ja”fer ibn Muhammad and a group of descendants of Abu Talib. When they were present, he showed him to them; his corpse looked alright; then he started weeping and addressed the corpse saying, `O Brother! It is indeed very hard for me to see you in such a condition, and I was hoping to go before you, but God insisted on carrying out His decree,” and he showed a great deal of agony and grief and went out carrying the coffin with others till he reached the place where it is now buried…”
“… So al-Mamoon was present there before the grave was dug, and he ordered his grave to be dug beside that of his father, then he approached us and said, `The person inside this coffin told me that when his grave is dug, water and fish will appear underneath; so, dig…” They dug. When they finished digging, a spring of water appeared, and fish appeared in it, then the water dissipated, and al-Rida (A.S.), peace be upon him, was then buried.”
* Source: Taken from: Imam al-Rida – A Historical and Biographical Research By: Muhammad Jawad Fadlallah, Translated from the Arabic by: Yasin T. al-Jibouri.
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Notes:
1- Tabari, Vol. 8, p. 558, “Events of the Year 203 A.H.”
2- Ibn Khaldun, Vol. 3, p. 250
3- Uyoon Akhbar al-Rida, Vol. 2, p. 242
4- Maqatil al-Talibiyyin, p. 380
5- Al-Irshad, p. 297. A similar narrative is mentioned in Maqatil al-Talibiyyin, pp. 377-378
6- Uyoon Akhbar al-Rida, Vol. 1, p. 18
7- Maqatil al-Talibiyyin, p. 378
8- Ibid., p. 380
9- Maqatil al-Talibiyyin, pp. 378-380
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