Imam Muhammad b. Ali al-Baqir (a): Difference between revisions

Imam al-Baqir (a) was born on Friday [[Rajab 1]], 57/[[May 13]], 677 in [[Medina]]. Some have reported his birth to have been on [[Safar 3]]/[[December 19]] of the same year(57/676)<ref>al-Majlisi, ''Bihar al-anwar'', Vol.46, P.212</ref>. He was a small child and present in the [[Event of Karbala]]<ref>al-Ya'qubi, ''Tarikh al-Ya'qubi'', Vol.2, P. 289</ref>.

Tens of years before Imam al-Baqir (a) was born, the [[Prophet (s)]] named him Muhammad and titled him as Baqir. A narration from [[Jabir b. 'Abd Allah al-Ansari|Jabir]] and others corroborates with this<ref>al-Qumi al-Razi, ''Kifayat al-athar'', PP.144-5</ref>.

[[File:Al-Baqi' before being demolished.jpg|300px|thumb|The historical dome of [[Imams of al-Baqi']] which was destroyed by [[Wahhabism|Wahhabi's]] in 1925. Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (a) is one of the four Shi'a Imams buried here.]]

There are different narrations and historical opinions regarding the person who martyred the Imam (a). Some sources have mentioned [[Hisham b. Abd al-Malik]] as the one who martyred him<ref>al-Kaf'ami, ''al-Misbah'', P.691</ref>. Some have accused [[Ibrahim b. Walid b. 'Abd al-Malik|Ibrahim b. Walid]] as the person who poisoned the Imam (a)<ref>al-Tabari, ''Dala'il al-imama'', P.216; Ibn Shahr Ashub, ''al-Manaqib'', Vol.4, P.228</ref>. Some narrations have considered Zayd b. Hasan who had strong hatred towards Imam al-Baqir (a) as the person who made the plot of martyring him. In any case, Imam al-Baqir (a) was martyred during the caliphate of Hisham b. Abd al-Malik<ref>al-Ya'qubi, ''Tarikh al-Ya'qubi'', Vol.2, P.289</ref>, because his caliphate was from 108 until 125 AH (726 until 743) and the last year ever mentioned for the martyrdom of Imam al-Baqir (a) is 118 AH/736.

Although the reports are seemingly different, it is not impossible that they could all be correct to a certain degree. There lies a possibility that several people cooperated in the martyrdom of Imam al-Baqir (a), each report refers to one of them. Regarding the violent behavior of Hisham towards Imam al-Baqir (a) and the undeniable enmity of [[Umayyads]] with Imam Ali's (a) descendants, there is no doubt that Hisham had strong motivation to play a role in the martyrdom of Imam al-Baqir (a) even if it were indirectly.

Clearly, to have made his plot materialize, Hisham would have used trustworthy people. Therefore, he employed Ibrahim b. Walid who was an Umayyad and an enemy of the [[Ahl al-bayt (a)]], who could easily enter the home of Imam al-Baqir (a). Through him, the dirty plot of Hisham was carried out and Imam (a) was martyred.