He said to me...

He said to me: ‘O my little son, beware of wronging him who finds no helper against you except Allah.’[^6]” He commanded him to wash and shroud him[^7] and to undertake all his other affairs until he buried him in his final resting place. To the Shelter Garden The state of the Imam became worse. His illness became intense. The Imam suffered exhausting pain, for the poison reacted on all the parts of his body. He told his family that he would move to Paradise at night. He fainted three times.

When he came to consciousness, he recited Surat al-Fatiha, and Surat Inna Fatahna. Then he, peace be on him, said: “Praise belongs to Allah, Who has made good to us His promise and made us inherit the land; we may abide in the garden where we please; so goodly is the reward of the workers.[^8]” Then the Imam’s great soul went to its Creator, as the souls of the prophets and the messengers did. Allah’s angels, favors and greetings surrounded it with magnification and admiration.

This great soul met its Creator after it had illuminated the horizons of this world with knowledge, worship, and freedom from all inclinations of caprice. His Preparation for Burial Imam Abu’ Ja‘far al-Baqir undertook the preparation of the corpse of his father. He washed his pure body. The people saw the places of his prostration, which were like the knees of camels, out of his abundant prostration (in prayer) for Allah, the Exalted.

They also saw his shoulders, which were like the knees of camels. Then they asked al-Baqir about this, and he replied: “He would put food into his bag, carried it on his shoulders, and divided the food among the poor and the deprived.[^9] When al-Baqir had finished washing the corpse of his body, he shrouded it, and prayed over it with the written prayers. Escorting him to his Final Resting Place Great escorting was held for the Imam. Medina (Yathrib) had never witness such escorting before.

This is because the righteous and the sinful escorted him. The masses surrounded the great coffin. They wept and lamented for the Imam in humbleness. They felt a heavy loss, for they lost immense good, and unique spirituality. When the Imam died, the tongues kept silent, and the intellects became perplexed. Hence the people of Medina crowded all around the Holy Corpse. Blessed was he who carried it. It is worth mentioning that Sa‘id b.

al-Musayyab, one of the seven jurists in Medina, did not succeed in escorting the Imam and praying over him.