Imam Askari (AS) martyred in the prime of youth

Salaam, and heartfelt condolences to you all on a day of profound grief. Today is that doleful day on which the Lord of our Age, became an orphan at the young age of 5 years.

It is the day his 28-year old father, Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS), after having entrusted to him the divine trust of Imamate, left for his heavenly abode, after a week of writhing in pain from the fatal dose of poison given to him by agents of the usurper Abbasid regime on the orders of the self-styled caliph, al-Mu’tamid. Imagine the plight of the boy-Imam, whose birth was kept secret and who was being brought up in the cellar of the house, because of the murderous intentions of the Abbasids who had tried every trick in vain to prevent the birth of an heir to the 11th Infallible Successor of Prophet Mouhammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny). Stay with us for a special feature in this regard.

Born in Medina in 232 AH – corresponding to 846 AD – the 11^th Imam was a toddler when his father Imam Ali an-Naqi al-Hadi (AS) was forced to leave his hometown and come to Samarra in Iraq by the Abbasid tyrant al-Mutawakkil. While his father was alive and under the constant surveillance of the regime, he avoided public limelight, and the first time that many people saw him was in the state of grief as a 20-year old youth, beside his grieving father, at the funeral of his elder brother, Mohammad (peace upon him). At the age of 22, following the martyrdom of Imam Hadi (AS) through poisoning, the divine trust of Imamate came to rest on his young shoulders, and with it the pressures were increased upon him by the fearful regime, which greatly dreaded the prospect of the birth of the 12^th and final Imam, as foretold by the Prophet of Islam, who had also said that the   Last Imam will rise as Qa’em al-Mahdi to end tyranny and corruption on the earth. The Abbasid resorted to constant ploys to imprison Imam Hasan Askari (AS), or to keep him under house arrest, and if possible to arrange his killing and make it look accidental, since they were scared of antagonizing the public against them by openly killing the Prophet’s righteous descendant. Nonetheless, during his period of Imamate of six years and some months, the 11^th Imam continued his enlightening task in grooming scholars and promoting the genuine teaching of Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny).

The reason that the 11^th Imam is called al-Askari, which in Arabic means a soldier, is that once Muhtadi, the self-styled caliph, called him to his palace and ordered the army to stage a march past. The cowardly caliph wanted to boast or to impress the Imam of his military power in order to dissuade the Imam from any thoughts of revolution against the Abbasid usurpers. When the march past was over, the Imam lifted his hand and asked the caliph to gaze between two of his fingers. What the Caliph saw was a huge army of lancers and swordsmen spreading from the earth till the horizon of the sky – a much bigger force than the caliph’s army. It was the army of angels, and on seeing the miracle, he called the 11^th Imam al-Askari, i.e. the man of the huge army.

Imam Hasan Askari (AS), despite the restrictions on his movements, continued to inculcate in the minds of all those who came into contact with him, the rationality of Islam. He debated with agnostics and atheists on the Omnipresence and Omnipotence of the Almighty Creator Who is far too glorious to be encompassed by the eye of creatures. He provided reasons for the sending of Prophets and Imams by God the All-Merciful. As a result many atheists changed their minds and converted to Islam. One such person was the Arab philosopher Ishaq al-Kindi who was writing a book on what he assumed to be contradictions in God’s Revealed Word, the holy Qur’an. Imam Hasan Askari (AS) invited some of his students and taught them lessons from the holy Qur’an. One of these students posed a question to al-Kindi on the dynamics of the holy Qur’an, which the philosopher’s mind had been unable to comprehend. Kindi was astonished on being posed such a question and asked his student as to who had taught him. When the student finally said that the 11^th Imam had taught him, the philosopher realized the fallacy of what he had been writing about the assumed contradictions in the holy Qur’an. He tore the book he was writing and burned it in fire, saying that if not for the guidance that he has indirectly received from the Prophet of Islam’s righteous heir, he would have gone astray and become an apostate. Kindi now became a disciple of Imam Hasan Askari (AS).

Ahmad bin Obaydollah bin Khaqan, whose father was a minister of Abbasids and known to be an opponent of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt, once discussed about the beliefs of the Ahl al-Bayt, the presence in Samarra of the Alawids or descendants of Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS), and their position before the Abbasid caliph. Ahmad said:

“I had not seen an Alawi in Samarra like Hasan al-Askari (AS), who is known for his dignity, modesty, intelligence, and honour among the Hashemites, and was even regarded as superior to the elderly and even the Abbasid ministers, commanders, and secretaries. Once I was standing beside my father when he sat to meet with people. One of the doorkeepers came and said, Imam Askari (AS) has come. My father loudly said, 'Let him in!' When he entered and my father saw him, he quickly got up to his feet and went forth to humbly meet him – which I had not seen he would ever do even for commanders and princes. When my father reached him, he kissed the Imam's neck, face and forehead; then, took his hand and placed him in his own seat. My father sat in front of him and began speaking with him in a humble manner. In his speech, he addressed the Imam in a manner which implied respect. He frequently said, "My father and mother be sacrificed for you…"

Ahmad bin Khaqan continues: “At night, I went to my father and asked him, 'O father! Who was that man you respected and venerated him so much and even said you would sacrifice your father and mother for him?' He said, He was Imam of the Shi’ites. Then, he became silent. After a moment, he continued: “My son! If one day the caliphate goes out of the hands of the Abbasids, and is placed among the Banu Hashem, there is no one competent to take it except him. He deserves to have the position of caliphate due to his merits, dignity, piety, worship, and good manner.  If you saw his father, that is, Imam Hadi (AS), he was also very noble, wise, benevolent, and meritorious… Since then, he became more important in my mind because friends and enemies of him admired him well.”

Because of the 11^th Imam’s God-given dignity, the Abbasid caliphs hated him, and moreover tried to prevent the birth of any heir to him. Like the Egyptian Pharaoh who slaughtered newborn males in a vain bid to prevent the birth of Prophet Moses (AS), Mu’tamid the self-styled caliph, fearful of the Prophet of Islam’s famous saying of "Twelve Infallible Imams” of whom the Last will rise as Qa’em al-Mahdi (AS) to end the rule of all oppressors, resorted to every stratagem to try to deprive Imam Hasan Askari (AS) of a son. As a result, the 11th Imam was subjected to frequent bouts of imprisonment, and during the periods of stay in his home, he was kept under virtual house arrest, with midwives sent by the regime frequently checking the Imam’s wives for any sign of pregnancy. However, the All-Wise Creator, Whose Power is Infinite, decreed that just like the mothers of the Prophets Abraham and Moses (peace upon them), no sign of pregnancy would be visible on the Byzantine princess, Narjis, who married Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS) and in secrecy gave birth to the 12th Imam in the city of Samarra in Iraq. Thus, except for only a few highly trustworthy confidants of the 11th Imam, no one was aware of the birth of the Promised Mahdi (AS).

Alas, on the 8^th of the month of Rabi al-Awwal in 260 AH, these retarded minds martyred Imam Hasan Askari (AS) at the young age of 28, by mixing poison in an assortment of fruits sent to his house, and then launched a manhunt for his possible heir, but to their disappointment, the 12^th Imam had been born five years earlier, and was safely out of their reach in the period called Ghaybat as-Sughra or Minor Occultation.

We can visualize the grief of the 5-year old orphan, whose mother had also died sometime earlier. But the All-Merciful Lord decreed that the 12th Imam will grow in safety till a certain period of time, during which he would be in touch with the devoted followers of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt, before going into the state of ghaybat al-kubra (major occultation). As promised by the Prophet, he will appear in the end times as "Qa’em al-Mahdi” (AS) to rid the world of all vestiges of corruption and oppression by establishing the global government of peace, prosperity and justice. Amen

Imam Hasan Askari (AS) was laid to eternal rest beside his illustrious father, Imam Hadi  (AS), with the people of Samarra closing their business and flocking to the funeral to pay homage to the Prophet’s 11th Infallible Heir. His assassin, the self-styled caliph, Mu’tamid, is definitely roasting in the fires of hell, while the shrine of the 11^th Imam in Samarra, Iraq, despite the treacherous plots of the Takfiri terrorists to destroy it, has been rebuilt on a grander scale, for pilgrims to benefit from the blessings that God Almighty showers on the resting places of the Infallible Heirs of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).

To end this brief radio programme, here is a gem of a statement from Imam Hasan Askari (AS).

“Let piety be your provision, patience be your garment, and buy hardship in the path of Allah. Be true in your speech, trustworthy in performing your deeds, prolong your sajdah (prostration), deal with others with best behavior, and treat your neighbor amicably. Perform your prayers even with those whom you think to be your opposition; attend their funeral ceremonies, visit their sick, and give them their rights. Verily I tell you that whosoever is honest and has good behavior in the eyes of others, he is the pious Shi’a whom I will be proud of. Therefore, fear Allah, be as adornment on behalf of us and be not as shame that defames our name. This is the only way by which others shall be attracted toward us (the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet).”

AS/SS