However...

However, there are differences regarding the person who martyred him and the date of his martyrdom. What is certain is that Imam al-Baqir (PBUH) did not die a natural death. Rather, some sinful persons, who did not believe in Allah, the Prophet and the Hereafter, gave him poison to drink. The Imam announced his own Death Imam al-Baqir (PBUH) felt the approach of his certain death. So, he hurried to his aunt, Fatimah the daughter of Imam al-Husain.

He announced his death to her, saying: “I have completed fifty-eight years [10] .” His aunt understood what he meant; her heart melted with sorrow for her nephew. For he was like the rest of the members of his family, who were killed by the swords of aggression and error. The Imam completed fifty-eight years full of misfortunes. Those years filled his heart with sorrow and sadness. His father, Imam Sajjad and his grandfather, Imam Hasan (peace be on them) departed life at the same age.

Thus, the Imam felt that he was about to die. The Murder of the Imam The historians differed over the sinful person who martyred Imam al-Baqir (PBUH). The following are some of the views: 1. Hishām ibn al-Hakam: The most acceptable view is that Hishām ibn al-Hakam was the sinful person who gave the Imam poison to drink. This is because Hishām was the most spiteful person towards the family of the Prophet. His soul was full of malice and hatred towards them.

It was he who forced the Zayd ibn Ali to revolt against him [11] . 2. Ibrahim ibn al-Walid: Some scholars such as Sayyid ibn Ṭāwus believed that Ibrahim ibn al-Walid took part in murdering the Imam (PBUH). This means that Ibrahim helped other persons to murder the Imam [12] . However, some other references have ignored the name of the person who murdered the Imam, but they have only mentioned that the Imam died of poisoning [13] .

Reasons for the Murder of the Imam The Umayyads murdered the Imam (PBUH). The reasons given by the historians for that are as follows: 1. The high character of the Imam: Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (PBUH) had the highest character in the Islamic world at his time. Muslims have unanimously agreed on his high character. They have admitted his outstanding merits. All Muslim religious scholars from all Muslim countries came to him to learn his sciences and his morals.

The Imam (PBUH) possessed the sentiments of the people. Thus, they admired and respected him.