Ma’mun immediately sent an emissary with the message to the...

Ma’mun immediately sent an emissary with the message to the Imam that by insisting that you lead the prayer, we have put you in difficulty so please return to your residence and the ‘idd prayer will be led by the regular imam. The Imam ordered that his shoes and horse be brought, he got on it and returned home. This episode made it clear for the people that Ma’mun was not sincere in his show of respect towards Imam ar-Ridha: he would respect him as long as that did not endanger his own caliphate.

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-Ridha also participated in these assemblies and joined in the discussions with scholars of other religions. Many of these…