Imam al-Hasan b. Ali al-Mujtaba (a): Difference between revisions

According to [[al-Ya'qubi]] (d. 292/904), al-Hasan b. Ali (a) was the most similar person to the Prophet (s) in his appearance and behavior. He was of medium height and had a thick beard, which he would dye black.

There are many reports about the Prophet’s love for his grandson al-Hasan (a). It is reported that while the [[Prophet (s)]] would carry al-Hasan (a) on his shoulders, he would say, “O God! I love him, so You also love him!” Sometimes when the Prophet (s) was [[prostrating]] himself in [[congregational prayer]], al-Hasan (a) would go on the Prophet’s back, and the Prophet (s) would prolong his prostration so that al-Hasan himself comes down.

The Prophet (s) is also reported to have said about al-Hasan (a), “He is the master of the youth of [[Paradise]] and the Proof of God upon the ummah … He who follows him is of me and he who disobeys him is not of me.”

Imam al-Hasan (a) is one of [[Ahl al-Bayt (a)]], about whom several verses of the [[Qur'an]] were revealed, such as [[Qur'an 76:8]] (“They give food, for the love of Him, to the needy, the orphan and the prisoner”). [[Qur'an 42:23]] (“Say, ‘I do not ask you any reward for it except love of [my] relatives.’”) is also said to have been revealed about Ahl al-Bayt (a). According to this verse, the [[reward]] that Muslims should pay the Prophet (s) is loving his relatives. In [[Quran 3:61]] (“Come! Let us call our sons and your sons, our women and your women, our souls and your souls, then let us pray earnestly and call down Allah's curse upon the liars.”), “our sons” refer to al-Hasan (a) and al-Husayn (a).

Moreover, [[Qur'an 33:33]] (“Indeed Allah desires to repel all impurity from you, O People of the Household, and purify you with a thorough purification”) was revealed about the [[People of the Cloak]], one of whom was Imam al-Hasan (a). This verse has been adduced as evidence for the [[infallibility]] of Ahl al-Bayt (a).

Imam al-Hasan (a) went on multiple [[pilgrimages]] to [[hajj]]. It is reported that he would say, “I would be embarrassed to meet my Lord without having walked toward His house.” It is said that he made fifteen, twenty, or twenty-five pilgrimages barefoot, while best camels were walking behind him.

There are several accounts of Imam al-Hasan's (a) forbearance, which was so great that earned him the epithet “al-Halim” (the Forbearing One). It is reported, for instance, that a Syrian man saw Imam al-Hasan (a) and started cursing him. When he finished his insults, the Imam (a) smiled, greeted him, and said, “It looks like you are a stranger in this city … If you needed anything, we will fulfill your needs.” The man was deeply impressed by the Imam’s (a) noble reaction; he started crying and recited the following verse: “God knows best with whom to place His message” ([[Quran 6]]:124), indicating that the Imam (a) deserved to be a descendant of the Prophet (s).

Imam al-Hasan (a) was immensely generous, and because of that he was called “Karim” “Sakhi” and “Jawad” (three Arabic words meaning a generous person). It is reported that he donated all his properties and wealth to charity twice in his life and donated half of all he had three times to the poor and needy. [[Ibn Shahrashub]] reports that during Imam al-Hasan’s travel to [[Syria]], [[Mu'awiya]] gifted a considerable amount of wealth to the Imam (a). When the Imam (a) was leaving, he saw a servant fixing his shoes, so Imam al-Hasan (a) granted all that wealth to the servant. One day, he heard a man praying to God for ten-thousand [[dirham]]s. The Imam (a) went home and sent the man the amount. Because of his vast generosity, the Imam (a) has been called by the [[Shia]] “the Generous One.”

It is also reported that he was greatly attentive to people who needed his help such that he would even leave his [[i'tikaf]] and [[tawaf]] to help those who asked him for help and he would refer to a hadith of the Prophet (s) according to which he who fulfills a need of a believer is like one who [[worship]]s [God]] for years.

One day, he passed by a group of poor people who were eating pieces of bread. When they saw him, they invited him to eat with them. The Imam (a) accepted their invitation and sat and ate with them and then invited all of them to his house and offered them food and clothes.

In another occasion, his servant made a mistake, for which he deserved punishment. In order to escape punishment, the servant recited the following part of [[Qur'an 3]]:134: “[Those who] excuse [the faults of] the people.” The Imam (a) told him, “I forgave you.” The servant recited another part of the same verse: “Allah loves the doers of good.” So the Imam (a) said, “You are free for the sake of God, and I will grant you twice as much money I used to give you for your work.”

===Legacy===

The number of Imam al-Hasan’s (a) hadiths in the available sources is said to be about 250. Some of these hadiths are the Imam’s own words, and the others are what he quoted from the Prophet (s), [[Imam Ali (a)]], and [[Fatima (a)]].

Imam al-Hasan’s sayings and letters are collected, with their chains of transmitters, in the book ''[[Musnad al-Imam al-Mujtaba (a)]]'', including the Imam’s sermons, lectures, conversations, prayers and debates and encompassing theological and legal topics. These sayings and letters together with the poems attributed to the Imam (a) are also collected in the book ''[[Balaghat al-Hasan (a)]]''.

In his book ''[[Makatib al-A'imma]]'', [[Ahmadi Miyanaji]] has counted fifteen letters by Imam al-Hasan (a), six of which were written to Mu'awiya, three to [[Ziyad b. Abih]], one to the people of Kufa, and one to [[al-Hasan al-Basri]]. Miyanaji also collected seven testaments from al-Hasan (a) to [[al-Husayn (a)]], [[Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya]], [[Qasim b. al-Hasan]], and [[Junada b. Abi Umayya]].

[['Aziz Allah 'Atarudi]] has gathered the names of 137 people who quoted hadiths from Imam al-Hasan (a). [[Al-Shaykh al-Tusi]] also named forty-one individuals as the companions of Imam al-Hasan (a).