ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Islamic Correspondence Course (book 4) Lesson 45 : the Eighth Imam(‘ali Ibn Musa) 1. Birth Imam ‘Ali ar-Rida was the son of the seventh Imam and according to well-known accounts was born in 148/765 and died in 203/817. 2. Political Circumstances of His Imamate Imam ar-Rida (a.s.) became the Imam at the age of thirtyflve, through Divine Command and the decree of his forefathers.

The period of his imamate coincided with the caliphate of Harun and then his sons Amin and Ma’mun. Harun had appointed Amin as his successor with the condition that the latter would name his brother, Ma’mun, as his successor. But after the death of Harun in 194, Amin named his own son, Musa, as his successor. This became a cause of conflict between the brothers which led to bloody wars and finally the assasination of Amin in 198, after which Ma’mun became caliph.

Imam ar-Rida took advantage of this chaotic situation and continued the tradition of his forefathers in educating and teaching his companions and followers. Until that day the policy of the.’Abbasid caliphate toward the Shi’ites had been increasingly harsh and cruel. Every once in a while one of the supporters of ‘Ali would revolt, causing bloody wars and rebellions which were of great difficulty and consequence for the caliphate.

The Shiite Imams would not cooperate with those who carried out these rebellions and would not interfere with their affairs. The Shi’ites of that day, who comprised a considerable population, continued to consider the Imams as their religious leaders to whom obedience was obligatory and believed in them as the real caliphs of the Holy Prophet.

They considered the caliphate to be far from the sacred authority of their Imams, for the caliphate had come to seem more like the courts of the Persian kings and Roman emperors, and was being run by a group of people more interested in worldly rule than in the strict application of religious principles. The continuation of such a situation was dangerous for the structure of the caliphate and was a serious threat to it.

Ma’mun thought of finding a new solution for these difficulties which the seventy-year old policy of his ‘Abbasid predecessors had not been able to solve. To accomplish this end he adopted some pro-Shi’ite policies: • he openly used to say that Imam ‘Ali bin Abi Talib was better suited for caliphate than Abu Bakr or ‘Umar ibn Khattab. • he openly used to curse Mu’awiya bin Abi Sufyan.