Unlike other caliphs...

Unlike other caliphs, Ma’mun displayed great interest in having works on the intellectual sciences translated into Arabic. He organised gatherings in which scholars of different religions and sects assembled and carried out scientific and scholarly debates. Imam ‘Ali ar-Rida also participated in these assemblies and joined in the discussions with scholars of other religions. Many of these debates are recorded in the collections of Shi’ite hadiths.

These debates also gave a high profile to the Imam’s status in knowledge to the extent that people started making comments that ‘Ali ar-Rida is more deserving of…