Then up to the age of 31 he passed his time under the...

Then up to the age of 31 he passed his time under the guidance of his father Imam Baqir (as) It was the time when Ummayad politics was tottering and Muslims were approaching Imam Baqir (as) in thousands. Their need for knowledge was fulfilled by the Imams of the Ahlul Bayt. In 114 Hijri(732 AD) Imam Baqir (as) died, and the responsibilities of Imamate devolved on the shoulders of Imam Ja’far Sadiq. Hisham Ibn Abdul Malik was still ruling in Damascus and political disturbances were afoot.

The passion of taking revenge on Bani Ummaya was strong and several descendants of Imam ‘Ali (as) were preparing themselves to overthrow the regime. Most prominent among them was Zaid, the respected son of Imam Zainul Abedeen (as) His religious zeal and piety were known throughout Arabia. He was Hafiz of the Qur’an and he had taken upon himself the stand of removing the tyranny of the Ummayads.

This was a very precarious juncture for Imam As-Sadiq (as) in regards to the tyranny of the Ummayads, he agreed with his uncle Zaid for whom he had a great deal of respect. But due to his far sighted judgement Imam could clearly see that Zaid’s rising against the well-organized Ummayad forces will be of no avail. He therefore advised him not to start this venture. But Zaid was too far out in his zeal and he would not stop.

Many thousands of Iraqis had sworn their allegiance to Zaid and he was quite optimistic about his success. He took his forces to Kufa, gave a great battle but was killed in the end. The Ummayads were as brutal as ever. They hung the body of Zaid on the gates of the city of Kufa which remained there as a reminder for several years. One year after Zaid’s death, his son Yahya gained the same path and received the same fate.

Imam As-Sadiq (as) was aware of all this but realized that this was not the time to take any such active part. His main occupation was to spread the religious sciences of Ahlul Bayt as much as possible while time was on their side. Revolution The last days of the Ummayads were ruffled by political disturbances. Changes in Governors were many and Imam As-Sadiq (as) witnessed the rise and fall of many kings.

After Hisham, Walid, then his son Yazid, then Ibrahim, then Marwan al-Himar came to the throne. The capture of the latter terminated the monarchy of the tyrannical Ummayads. During the last phase of the tottering Ummayad rule, the Abbasids were actively engaged in their anti Ummayad activities.