POLITICAL CONDITIONS AT
THE TIME OF IMAM AL-SADIQ (A.S.)

Political conditions, at any historical phase, appear
to be the most dominant phenomenon of social life of
human beings. That is because political conditions, the
relations between the ruler and the ruled, the nature of
the ruling power, the policies it adopts, are all closely
connected to the security of the people, their living
standards, the level of their faith, lifestyle,
education, scientific progress and their inner stability.
Political conditions become of high importance and their
impact deepens especially when a given community holds
onto a civilized mission, and to the political values and
principles they believe in, but which are being pushed
aside by the rulers who seized power by force.

Through the study of the history of the Muslim ummah,
throughout the first six centuries, during the Umayyad
and Abbasid hegemony, the driving factors working at the
depth of the Islamic culture attended by struggles,
activities, revolutions and reforms, one can clearly
detect three key factors:

1. Islam's ability to renovate, create and give, at
the levels of culture, originality of religious beliefs,
political militancy, and protection of man's freedom and
dignity against injustice and tyranny.

2. Rulers. deviation from Islam. There is a wide gap
between Islam's principles and the ruling authorities.
But there was an interval in which Umar bin Abdul-Aziz,
an Umayyad caliph, tried to come to grips with the
tragical condition of the ummah by detecting the causes
of decay. Unfortunately, he failed to achieve lasting
change.

3. During these two distinguished eras, we discover
how energetic the Muslim ummah was in facing the rulers
deviating from Islam. In this long, drawn out struggle,
the role of the noble Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) appears as an in
disputable historical fact. Ahul-Bait (a.s.) were
themselves the leaders who guided the opposition. That is
why they were persecuted, killed, tortured and made
homeless at the hands of the Umayyad and Abbasid rulers.

Imam Ja'far bin Muhammad al-Sadiq (a.s.) lived with
these three factors. He witnessed the oppression,
terrorism and injustices directed at Muslims in general,
and the Alawites, who descended from Imam Ali (a.s.), and
Fatimah al-Zahra', (a.s.) in particular, for the last
forty years of the Umayyad rule.

Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was born in the days of the
Umayyad caliph Abdul-Malik bin Marwan bin al-Hakam. He
lived through the reigns of al-Walid bin Abdul-Malik,
Sulaiman bin Abdul-Malik, Umar bin Abdul-Aziz, al-Walid
bin Yazid, Yazid bin al-Walid, Ibrahim bin al-Walid,
Marwan al-Himar, until the collapse of the Umayyad
caliphate in 132 A. H. He lived under the reign of
Abul-Abbas al-Saffah, the first Abbaside caliph, and
nearly ten years under the reign of Abu-Ja'far
al-Mansoor. The Imam (a.s.) lived through hard times,
witnessed the tribulations of Ahlul-Bait (a.s.), felt the
pains of the ummah, and heard its complaints and cries,
but was unable to move to their defence. He could not
openly challenge the Umayyads or the Abbasids because of
the following reasons:

1. He was at the top ideological and social structure,
the chief of Ahlul-Bait (a.s.), and the man to whom the
ummah resorted at times of adversity. Therefore he was
under constant surveillance by the Umayyads and Abbasids.
Spies followed him, reporting to the authorities the
slightest of his activities. That weakened his ability to
indulge in political actions that aimed at destroying the
successive rulers at the time.

2. Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) had a painfully bitter experience
with the masses. All the uprisings and revolts led by
Imam Ali (a.s.), his sons, Imam Hassan (a.s.), and Imam
Hussein (a.s.), had been crushed due to the ineptitude of
the ummah and its reluctance to respond to Ahlul-Bait's
calls. Moreover, Ahlul-Bait would not even consider of
using such base ways to seize power as treachery,
hypocrisy, bribery, etc. But, their foes, on the
contrary, would not leave a stone unturned to achieve
their mean goals. Such wide gaps in political awareness
and disharmony between Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) and their
followers had the greatest harmful effect on the battles
and uprisings led by them.

For these reasons Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) renounced open
political struggle with the rulers and embarked,
clandestinely, on building the resistance ideologically
and morally in a way that would make it the embodiment of
revolution. The revolution would have to be cared for
away from the rulers' eyes so as to send its roots deep
in the conscientiousness of the ummah.

Thus, he made the scholars, preachers and the masses
boycott and oppose the unjust rulers through raising the
religious and political awareness of the ummah, guiding
them to learn Islam's beliefs and concepts, and
enlightening them concerning their relations with the
rulers. He is reported to have said:

"Whoever condemnes the injustice of an oppressor,
Allah shall certainly place someone above him, who will
persecute him. If he prays to Allah, Allah shall neither
accept his prayer, nor shall He reward him in
compensation for the injustices done to him."[11]

"The one does injustices to others, the one who
assists him in doing so, and the one who approves of
that, are three accomplices."[12]

During the lifetime of Imam Ja'far bin Muhammad (a.s.)
three momentous events took place which had an
extraordinary effect on the life of the ummah:

1. Uprising of Zaid (121 A.H.):

Zaid bin Ali bin Hussein bin Ali bin Abi-Talib
(a.s.), is the paternal uncle of Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.).
Zaid was a leading man from the household of the Prophet
(s.a.w.), and a famous faqih from Ahlul-Bait (a.s.). He
was unbearably distressed by the continuing dilemma of
the ummah, the terror, oppression and deviation practiced
by the Umayyad rulers. Thus, he rushed along with the
courage of the revolutionary who saw no alternative to
the sword and force in dealing with the rulers. He
declared war on the Umayyad authorities. In 121 A.H. He
decided to lead the oppressed and downtrodden in a revolt
against the Umayyad caliph, Hisham bin Abdul-Malik. That
took place during the Imamate of Imam al-Baqir (a.s.),
Zaid's brother. Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was 38 years old at
time. Deteriorating conditions, injustices, poverty
corruption and the extravagances of the rulers were so
widespread that they were no longer endurable.

Historians present a good description of the
deteriorating conditions. Abul-Hassan al-Mas'ood, the
well-known historian, depicts Hisham in following word:

"He was cross-eyed, rough, rude, stiff-necked. He
was busy amassing wealth..."[13]

Then he adds: "In his days silk and silken
garments were made. All of the people in his days
followed his example and became stingy. Helpfulness to
the needy decreased, and charities were stopped. No hard
time were ever seen like those of his."[14]

Quoting al-Jahshiyari, Sayyid Hashim Ma'roof
al-Hassani writes:

"The Umayyads imposed extra taxes such as those
lived on industries and handicrafts and in the people who
wanted to marry or write contracts and documents. They
restored the Sassanid taxes known as Nowrooz gifts. The
first man who imposed them was Mu'awiyah. He levied them
on the people of Iraq. The chief of the people of Harat
met Asad bin Abdullah al-Qisri, the governor of Harat
under Hisham bin Abdu l-Malik, and presented to him the
gifts of the great festival.

They amounted to 1000,000, according to Ibn al-Athir, in
the fifth volume of his book Al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh (The
complete Accounts of History)..."

He also says, "Abdul-Malik ordered his governor
on al-Jazirah to make a general census of the people, and
consider all the people workers devoid of the right to
have property. He also instructed him to make everyone
collect his whole product during one year, set aside a
portion for his maintenance. The governor did so and
considered them workers at certain wages. From their
annual income, he put aside a sum of money for their
daily expenses and clothing for one year. He found that
for each one of them remained four Dinars. He obliged
them to pay it."

He further says:

"Usamah bin Zaid called on Sulaiman bin Abdul-Malik
carrying with him the land tax revenues. Usamah, the
governor of Egypt, said:

'O commander of the faithful! I have not come to you
until after (I have seen). If you think it better to
treat them kindly, comfort them and lessen the amount of
land tax which they pay, in order to build and renovate
their country, and improve their living, then do it. That
would be made up for next year.' 'May your mother be
bereaved of you! Milk the milk. If it stop, then milk the
blood, was his reply.' "Sometimes, the caliphs would
allow their governors to keep all the money. It might
amount to millions of Dirhams. The governor of Khurasan
gathered 20 million Dirhams. The caliph let him keep them
similar offers of money were presented to him."[15]

Such was the economic life. The distribution of
wealth, which was contrary to Islam's economic principles
and fair laws, was further aggravated by the policy of
terror, hunting down and killing the political apponents
of the rulers. Imam al-Sadiq, like his father and
grandfathers, witnessed all this under the Umayyad rule.

That was one reason that prompted Zaid bin Ali to
revolt against the Umayyads. He chose Kufah as the base
for his uprising and "stayed there nearly a year and
sent his messengers to different towns..."[16]

"... the Shi'ites, along with other people, began
to contact him and give their pledge of allegiance to
him. His office counted fifteen thousand men from Kufah,
not to mention those who came from the cities of Mada'in,
Basrah, Wasit, Mosul, Khurasan, Ray and Gorgan."[17]

This historical document reflects the fury of the
ummah at the Umayyads, and the widespread discontent in
the majority of the main Muslim cities. One can only have
a glimpse at the conduct of the Umayyad rulers, about
which we have written elsewhere, and the nature of the
uprisings and the men who led them so as to prove the
unIslamic, brutal nature of the Umayyad rulers. Zaid, the
revolutionary, for example, is described by Abul-Jarood
in these words:

"I arrived in Madinah and whenever I asked about
Zaid bin Ali it was said to me: 'That is the ally of
the Qur'an.'"[18]

Al-Tabari described him as being:

"A worshipper, pious, generous and brave,"[19]

Zaid was supported by Abu-Hanifah al-Nu'man bin
Thabit, the founder of the Hanafi school of thought.
Abu-Hanifah leaned toward him and issued a religious
decree allowing people to give the tax of poot-rates
(zakat) in the cause of Zaid. As a result he stood trial
and greatly harmed. Many historians and writers
emphasized this point. Mr. Muhammad Isma'il Ibrahim, for
example, who wrote about the political role and thc view
of the faqih of the Hanafi school in the Umayyad rule,
Zaid's uprising, and Ahlul-Bait's right to the caliphate,
says:

"He (Abu-Hanifah) disapproved of the Umayyads'
illegal seizure of the office of caliphate, and their
power-taking with the force of the sword and shrewdness.
So, deep in his heart, he was leaning to Ali bin
Abi-Talib and his sons who fell victim to thc Umayyads'
injustice and oppression. Most painful for was thc
murdering of Zaid bin Ali Zain al-Abideen, who was, in
his view, a just Imam qualified for caliphate for his
outstanding merits. Abu-Hanifah remained loyal to
Ahlul-Bait and hostile to the Umayyads to the point that
he rejected every offer to occupy a post in their
government. Occasionally he would make public his leaning
towards the Alawites in his lectures, which infuriated
Ibn Hubairah, the governor of Kufah. He kept a watchful
eye on Abu-Hanifah and tried to find fault with any of
his activities so as to punish him. The opportunity arose
when he appointed him a judge.

When Abu-Hanifah refused, Ibn Hubairah considered that a
sign of disloyality to the state and beat him and threw
him in prison. With the help of thc jailer, Abu-Hanifah
escaped and took refuge in Mecca, where he settled. He
remained there until the foundation of the Abbasid state.
When the new rule asserted itself, he returned to
Kufah."[20] In these harsh conditions. Zaid decided
to declare war on the rulers and hurry to Kufah. All the
people attached their hopes to thc uprising of Zaid,
urging him to listen to their call and start the revolt.

Zaid did not want to install himself as the caliph and
Imam of the people. He merely called for the restoration
of power to Ahlul-Bait (a.s.). Zaid knew that his
brother, Imam al-Baqir (a.s.) was the legitimate Imam of
that era. He talked about thc matter with him and sought
his advice. He intended to surrender power to him once
the uprising succeeded. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (a.s.)
told him that traditions coming down from his
forefathers, quoted from the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.),
specified the duration of the Umayyad rule, and that he
would surely be killed if he rose up against Hisham bin
Abdul-Malik.

Al-Mas'oodi, writes:

"Zaid bin Ali had consulted his brother, Abu-Ja'far
(al-Baqir) bin Ali bin Hussein (a.s.). He advised him not
to trust the people of Kufah, as they were deceitful and
treacherous: 'In Kufah your grandfather, Ali bin
Abi-Talib, was murdered', al-Baqir (a.s.) said to him.
'And in it your uncle Hassan was stabbed, and your father
Hussein was slain. In it and its villages we, Ahlul-Bait,
were reviled. He told him about the duration of the reign
of the sons of Marwan and the foundation of the Abbasid
state. Zaid, however, was not convinced and insisted on
seeking to restore Ahlul-Bait's right to the caliphate.
Finally al-Baqir said to him: 'I fear, brother, that you,
yourself, will be crucified tomorrow in the square of
Kufah. , Abu-Ja'far took farewell of him, telling him
that they would never see each other again."[21]

How truthful the words of Imam al-Baqir (a.a.) were!
Zaid revolted, was killed in Kufah, and secretly buried
by his followers. Hisham bin Abdul-Malik ordered the body
of Zaid be taken out of the grave and crucified after
being stripped of its clothes. That order was instantly
carried out. The murder and crucifixion of Zaid, the
Martyr, was a horrible event which shook the conscience
of the Muslim ummah, inflamed the sentiments, kindled the
spark of the Umayyads remained only 11 years after the
killing of Zaid. That period witnessed many uprisings and
revolts led by men from the noble Prophet's household.

That tragedy and the likes of it, which deeply
saddened Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) and the Muslim ummah did not
pass without leaving their marks on the Imam (a.s.) and
affecting his political and social activities. He turned
his attention to promoting knowledge, protecting the
Shari'ah and raising a generation of scholars,
well-educated in Islamic sciences, jurisprudence (fiqh)
and Prophetic traditions (Hadiths). As his freedom was
extremely restricted, he threw his full weight behind
those activities.

In spite of all that, Hisham bin Abdul-Malik remained
fearful of Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) and his father Imam
al-Baqir and the sympathy they received from the
Alawites. He called them to Syria and cross-examined
them. Finding no evidence to harm them, he was forced to
let them return to the city of Madinah unscathed.

2. Collapse of the Umayyad State (132 AH):

The second momentous event which took place du ring
the Imamate of Ja'far bin Muhammad al-Sadiq (a.s.) was
the fall of the Umayyads and the establishment of the
Abbasid rule. The revolution against the Umayyads raised
under the slogan of supporting Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) and
furthering their cause. But, the Abbasids were actually
working to monopolize the caliphate. First, they called
for the leadership of Ibrahim bin Muhammad al-Abbasi.
Before his assassination, he had called the people to
give their pledge of allegiance to his brother,
Abul-Abbas Abdullah bin Muhammad al-Abbasi. When
Abu-Salamah al-Khallal heard of the assassination of
Ibrahim and the emergence of Abul-Abbas as the new
leader, he feared the turn of events and wrote a letter
in two copies. The first copy he sent to Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.) and the second to Abdullah bin al-Hassan,'[22] one
of the well-known chiefs and leading men among the
Alawites. In his letter to Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) he urged
him to go to Kufah to receive the pledge of allegiance
from the people. He also ordered the messenger to demand
clear answer from Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.). If the answer was
positive, he should seek no other man, because he was the
Imam and the qualified man for leadership. Otherwise, he
(the messenger) should go to Abdullah bin al-Hassan. The
messenger took the letter and rushed to Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.). He explained his mission to him. Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.) said nothing to him, but took the letter and
burned it in front of the messenger. "Tell your
master of what you have seen," said the Imam. Then
he recited a line of poetry quoted from al-Kumayt bin
Zaid al-Asadi:

"O you who builds a fire, its light benefits
other than you! O you who gathers firewood, you would
only till it with someone else's rope"[23]

The messenger left him and went to see Abdullah bin
al-Hassan. He gave the copy of the letter to him.
Abdullah was greatly pleased by it. But he could not make
up his mind. He was unable to make such a critical
decision without the Imam (a.s.). He thought that the
Imam (a.s.) would welcome and approve of the offer. Much
to his disappointment, the Imam (a.s.) told him about the
letter he had received and how he had set it on fire. He
forbade Abdullah to accept the offer and warned him of
the grave consequences.

Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) knew the turn of events and had
no doubt about what would follow. His father al-Baqir
(a.s.), had told him, depending on the traditions reports
from the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.), all about it. It is
reported that the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) once said to the
members of his family:

"We are a family for whom Allah preferred the
hereafter over this life. Indeed the members of my family
shall certainly be tribulated, made homeless and
dismissed out of their homeland. That shall go on until
some people come from the East raising black standards.
They shall ask the right but shall be denied it. They
shall fight helped by others, and shall be given what
they seek They shall not accept it until they give it
(the leadership) over to a man from my family who shall
fill the earth with justice after being filled with
injustice. Whoever is lucky to live at that time. Let him
join them even if it is hard for him to do so, as hard as
crawling over a snowy land."[24]

Abdullah bin al-Hassan did not want to listen to Imam
al-Sadiq's (a.s.) advice, "The people want my son,
Muhammad, to be their leader as he is the Mahdi of this
ummah," Abdullah protested, "'By Allah,"
replied the Imam (a.s.),"he is not the Mahdi of this
ummah. And if he draws his sword he will be surely
killed." Abdullah, by this time, was furious,
"By Allah," he said angrily "It is the
envy that makes you deny this. "'The Imam (a.s.)
confirmed his good will by saying," I By Allah. I am
only offering you m. y advice..."[25]

Imam al-Sadiq's words came true. Abul-Abbas al-Saffah
was given the pledge of allegiance even before the
messenger had returned to Abu-Salamah al-Khallal.

The Abbasids seized power and trampled on the promises
they had given to Ahlul-Bait (a.s.) and the people. After
alluring the people, by pretending to be loyal to
Ahlul-Bait (a.s.), fighting to restore their right to the
caliphate, they showed their true colours. The Alawites,
as well as other people, suffered terribly at the hands
of the Abbasids. The first Abbasid ealiph, Abul-Abbas,
earned the niekname "'al-Saffah" (bloodshedder)
because of the countless number of people he had put to
the sword. Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) bore the burnt of
Abbasid's brutalities.

As a precautionary measure Abul-Abbas al-Saffah sent
for Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) and forced him to live in
al-Hirah under his watchful eye. That was only for a
short time. The Imam (a.s.) returned to Madinah and
resumed his educational activities.

After the ascension to power of Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor,
his fears of the Imam (a.s.) deepened, his envy
intensified due to the fact that the Imam (a.s.) was held
in high esteem by the people. Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was
known everywhere across the Islamic homeland, and his
name, as a religious and political leader, eclipsed all
the known intellectuals and politicians of the time. Such
considerations made Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor call Imam
al-Sadiq (a.s.) several times to Iraq to interro him, so
as to know if the Imam (a.s.) was leading an anti-Abbasid
underground organization. It was an undeniable fact that
the ummah was rallying around the Imam. Imam's strong
character and high qualifications were widely
acknowledged. But, above all, al-Mansoor knew that the
Alawites were working to put an end to the Abbasid
hegemony, and restore the leadership of the ummah
toAhlul-Bait (a.s.).

Many times Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor tried to woo Imam
al-Sadiq (a.s.) to his side but to no avail. The Imam
(a.s.) actually boycotted the Abbaside rule, knowing that
his attitude represented the right legal one that should
be adopted by the people, and exposed the regime's
deviation. As a result the image of the authorities
gradually tarnished in the minds of the people, the
"'legitimacy" of the rule was stripped, and the
way paved for its overthrow.

Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor wrote a letter to Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.) asking his eloseness. He wrote: "Why do
you not visit us as others do?". In response, Imam
al-Sadiq (a.s.) wrote back: "We have nothing for
which we may fear you, nor do you have anything to do
with the hereafter for which we may seek your
companionship. You have not acquired a new favour for
which we should congratulate you, nor a tribulation has
befallen you so that we should console you"

"Keep us company so as to offer us your
advice," wrote al-Mansoor insisting. ""The
one who seeks this life would not counsel you,"
replied al-Sadiq (a.s.).'" And the one who desires
the hereafter would not associate with you."[26]

Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor was boiling with anger, envying
Imam's social position and uprightness. Al-Mansoor was
even helplessly hesitant as what attitude he should to
have once said,"' This is the sorrow that stocks in
the throats of the caliphs. He cannot be exiled, and it
is haram to kill him. If I and him were not of the same
tree, whose roots were good, branches high, fruits
delicious, and whose offspring were blessed and hallowed
in the divine books, I would have dealt with him cruelly,
for his harsh criticism, and his bad judgements of
us."[27]

3. Uprising of Muhammad bin Abdullah bin al-Hassan
(al-Nafs al-Zakiyyah) ( 145 A.H.):

The third important event which took place during the
Imamate of Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was the uprising of
Muhammad Dhil-Nafs al-Zakiyyah against Abu-Ja'far
al-Mansoor, who assumed power in 136 A.H. succeeding his
brother, Abul-Abbas al-Saffah. He was more hostile to and
spiteful of Ahlul-Bait (a.s.).

Muslims, in general, suffered from his repression, a
fact which urged Muhammad bin Abdullah bin al-Hassan, a
cousin of Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) to revolt against
al-Mansoor. We have explained Imam's attitude toward the
attempt of Abdullah bin al-Hassan and his son to assume
the caliphate Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was sure that any of
the Alawite attempts to seize power would fail. Thirteen
years earlier, he met Abdullah bin al-Hassan and told him
that the Abbasids would seize power, and his son,
Muhammad, would be killed by al-Mansoor.

"This one (Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor)." the
حmam (a.s.) said to him," will murder him on the
oily stones. Then he will kill his brother after him at
al-Tufoof whole his horse is wading through the water.

The Imam angrily rose to his feet. dragging his clock.
Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor who was present, followed him and
asked: .'Do you know what have you said, O
Abu-Abdullah?" "Certainly, I know, it."
"By Allah. This shall certainly be"[28]

"When Abu-.Ja'far al-Mansoor assumed the
caliphate he nicknamed Ja'far al-Sadiq" (The
Truthful). Whenever he mentioned him afterwards, he would
say: 'Al-Sadiq Ja'far bin Muhammad said to me such and
such.' He became to be known by this name."[29]

When Muhammad Dhul-Nafs al-Zakiy Tyah revolted against
the injustices and oppression of Abu-Ja'far al-Mansoor,
Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) had the same feeling and the very
desire for change which Muhammad bin Abdullah bin
al-Hassan had. Rut there was a difference. Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.) clearly saw the future. He knew full the failure
to overthrow the regime, while his cousin, Muhammad, was
ignorant of it. Because of the failure of the attempt and
the grave consequences it would entail regarding
Ahlul-Bait, the Imam disapproved of the revolt.

Muhammad Dhul-Nafs al-Zakiyyah called the people to
support him in his bid to seize power. For some time he
went in to hiding. No sooner were his father, his family
and the sons of his uncle arrested, then he revolted in
the city of Madinah. The uprising failed and Muhammad was
killed. Later, his son, Ali, was murdered in Egypt. So
was his son Abdullah in al-Sind. His son al-Hassan was
arrested in Yemen and thrown into prison where he died.
Poisoned, Idris, his brother, died in Morocco. Yahya,
another brother declared war on the regime in Basrah.
Heading a small army of his followers, he moved toward
Kufah, but was slain before entering it. And thus ended
the Alawite revolution, which brought so much woes and
disasters on Ahlul-Bait (a.s.). Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) was
not spared. Al-Mansoor, the Abbasid caliph, who was
haunted by fear and doubts about Imam's activities,
thinking him to be the driving force behind every hostile
anti-Abbasid act, sent for Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.), when the
movement of Muhammad Dhul-Nafs al-Zakiyyah gained ground.
He accused the Imam (a.s.) of supporting Dhul-Nafs
al-Zakiyyah. Al-Mansoor harassed the Imam (a.s.), and put
him on trial. After hearing the answers of Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.) al-Mansoor became sure that the reports and
complaints about Imam's alleged hostile activities were
false. He eventually released him. Once more, after
Muhammad Dhul-Nafs al-Zakiyyah's death, al-Mansoor sent
for him. He accused him of collecting money and weapons,
and gathering followers in preparation for a revolt.
Al-Mansoor brought the spy who had made up these false
reports about Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) so as to repeat his
allegations in the Imam's face. When the man came, Imam
al-Sadiq (a.s.) asked him to swear that what he had told
al-Mansoor about him was true. "By Allah.'"
said the man," who there is no god but Him, the All-
Powerful, the Living and the Eternal one...'"

"Do not hasten in your oath, I adjure you.."

Interrupted the Imam (a.s.), "What wrong do you
see in this oath?"', al-Mansoor asked Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.):

"Allah is so merciful and bountiful, that when a
servant of Him praises Him, He dose not hasten him with
punishment," replied the Imam (a.s.), "but, O
man, say, I renounce Allah's power and authority and
resort to my own power and authority and what I have said
is true..."

'Take the oath which Abu-Abdullah has just asked you
to take," al-Mansoor ordered the man. No sooner did
the man swear the oath than he dropped dead. Al-Mansoor,
witnessing all that, trembled and fear gripped him.

"O Abu-Abdullah." he said to Imam al-Sadiq
(a.s.), "you can take your departure from me and go
to the sanctuary of your grandfather, if you choose so.
But if you like to stay with us, we will not hesitate to
be generous and kind to you. By Allah, I will never
believe anything said about you by anybody
henceforth."[30]

In such an atmosphere filled with animosity, terror,
spying and persecution, the Imam (a.s.) lived, But,
turbulent, though the political scene was, he succeeded
in carrying out his great task of spreading knowledge and
teaching, and graduating a whole generation of scholars,
jurisprudents, and preachers.