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Imam Muhammad al-Jawad (or at-Taqi) is the 9th Apostolic Imam. His epithet was Abu Ja’far and his famous titles were al-Jawad and at-Taqi. Since Imam Muhammad al-Baqir, the fifth Imam was called Abu Jafar, historians have mentioned this Imam as Abu Ja’far the Second.
CHILDHOOD:
Imam Muhammad al-Jawad was brought by his father Imam Ali ar-Rida for four years.Under the force of circumstances Imam Ali ar-Rida had to migrate from Madina to Khurasan (Iran), leaving his young son behind him. The Imam was fully aware of the treacherous character of the ruling king and was sure that he would return to Madina no more. So before his departure from Medina he declared his son Mohammad al-Jawad as his successor, and imparted to him all his stores of Divine knowledge and spiritual genius. A brief History of 14 Infallible, Ansarian Publications Qum. P.P. 145-46
IMAMAT:
Imam Ali ar-Rida was poisoned on 17th Safar 203 A.H. and with effect from the same date Imam Muhammad al-Jawad was commissioned by Allah to hold the responsibility of Imamat. At the age of eight years there was no apparent chance or means of the young Imam reaching great heights of knowledge and practical achievements. But after a few days he is known not only to have debated with his contemporary scholars on subjects pertaining to fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence), hadith (traditions), tafsir (Quranic exegesis) etc.. and outwitted them, but also to extort their admiration. Ibid. p. 146.
Among those who report the nomination for the Imamat by Abu al-Hasan al-Rida,peace be on him, of his son Abu Ja’far (Al Jawad), peace be on him are : ALI b.. Ja’far b. Muhammad al-Sadiq, peace be on them, Safwan b. Yahya, Mu’ammar b. Khallad, al- Husayn b. Bashar etc.[Abu al-Qasim Ja’far b. Mohammad informed me on the authority of Muhammad b. Yaqub, on the authority of Muhammad b. Yahya on the authority of Ahmad b. Muhammad, on the authority of Safwan b. Yahya who said: ]
I (i.e. Safwan b. Yahya) said to al-Rida, peace be on him: “ We used to ask you before God gave you Abu Ja’far ( about your son ) and you would say: “God will give me a son. کNow God has given him to you and we are delighted with him. We ask God never to show us the day (of your death) but if something happened, to whom (will the Imamat belong)?”
He pointed to Abu Ja’ far with his hand while he was standing in front of him. I said: “May I be your ransom, this is a child of three year old.”
“This does not harm him,” he replied. “Jesus gave evidence (of his mission) when he was less than three year old.“
[Abu al-Qasim Ja’far b. Muhammad informed me on the authority of Muhammad b. Ya’qub on the authority of Muhammad b. Yahya, on the authority of Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Isa, on the authority of Mu’ ammar b. Khallad, who said:]
I (i.e. Mu’ammar b. Khallad) heard al-Rida, peace be on him, say when I mentioned something: “What need have you for that? Here is Abu Ja’far, whom I have brought into my meetings and whom I have made to be my successor.” Then he added: “We are the family of the House. Our young inherit from our old, like one feather (on a wing) followed by the next.” Kitab-al Irshad, Shaikh Mufid. pp.481-82.
REPORTS ABOUT THE IMAM:
Al-Ma’mun, the then caliph, had a great affection for Abu Ja’far (al-Jawad), peace be on him, because of the great merit he saw in him despite his age, because of his attainment in philosophy and literature and because of his intellectual maturity which none of the scholars of the time equaled. Al-Ma’mun married his daughter (Umm al-Fadl) to the Holy Imam. About the Holy Imam he held this opinion: “ I know the young man, in (comparison with) you. He is from the family of the House whose knowledge is from God, of those who love Him and are inspired by Him. His ancestors were always rich in knowledge of religion and literature far (beyond) the populace which lacked the range of (their) perfection.” Ibid p. 485.
At another occasion Al-Ma’mun held that : “Shame on you. This House has been singled out among creatures for the outstanding merit which you have seen. Even youthfulness in years does not prevent them from attaining perfection (of intellect). Don’t you realize that the Apostle of God, may God bless him and his family, began his mission by calling on the Commander of the faithful, کAli b. Abi Talib, to follow him when he was only a boy of ten years? And the latter accepted Islam from him and judged his (actions) by it? He did not call any one of his age (to accept Islam). (Again) al-Hasan and al-Hussain, peace be on them, gave the pledge of allegiance when they were only boys of less than six. He did not require the pledge of allegiance from any boy except these two. Do you not realize now the special way of God has singled out these people? They are offspring who follow one another so that the last of them carries out what first of them did.” Ibid p. 489.
In the context of his (Imam’s) test of knowledge he was asked to pose a question from Yahya b. Aktham, his question was “Tell me about man who looked at a woman at the beginning of the day, and his looking at her was forbidden to him. Yet as the morning continued, she was allowed to him. At the noon she became forbidden to him yet in the afternoon she was permitted to him. At the sunset she was forbidden to him but when the night came she was allowed to him. In the middle of the night she was forbidden to him but at the dawn she was permitted to him. What was the state of this woman and why she was permitted and forbidden to him at different times.” Yahya expressed his inability and requested for the reply from the Imam, who gave the following explanation: “This woman is a slave girl of a man among the people, said Abu Ja’far (al-Jawad), peace be on him. “A foreigner looked at her at the beginning of the day and then looking at her was forbidden to him. As the morning continued he bought her from her owner and she became permitted to him. At noon he freed her and then she was forbidden to him. In the afternoon he married her and then she was permitted to him. At the sun set he parted from her according to the disapproved formula (zihar)- You are to me like my mother’s flesh (zahr)- and then she was forbidden to him. At night he made atonement for the (zihar) and she was permitted for him. Halfway through the night, he divorced her with first declaration of the three-fold divorce and she was forbidden for him. At dawn he renounced it and she was permitted for him”. Ibid. p. 488-89
DEMISE OF THE IMAM:
After the death of al-Ma’mun, al-Mu’tasim ascended the throne, he got an opportunity to prosecute Imam and to ventilate spite and malice against him. He summoned the Imam to Baghdad. The Imam arrived at Baghdad on 9th of Muharram 220 A.H and al-Mua’tasim got him poisoned in the same year. He died on 29th Dhi’l qui’dah 220 A.H. and is buried beside his grandfather, Imam Musa al-Kazim, in Kazimiya, a suburb of Baghdad, Iraq
He left among his children Ali his son, the Imam after him, and Musa, and his two daughters Fatima and Imama. Ibid. p. 495