Hazrat Sayyiduna Imam
Jafar Saadiq
(radi Allaho anhu)
HIS POSITION IN THE SILSILA
: Hazrat Sayyiduna Imam Jafar Saadiq
(radi Allaho anhu) is the sixth Imam and Sheikh of the Silsila Aaliyah
Qaaderiyah Barakaatiyah Razviyah Nooriyah. Much has been said in his praise by
many great scholars.
BIRTH : He was born on a Monday, the 7th of Rabi
ul Awwal in either 80 or 83 Hijri in Madinah Munawwarah. [Masaalikus Saalikeen vol.1 pg 217]
HIS NAME : His name was Jafar bin Muhammad, and he was also
known as Abu Abdullah and Abu Ismaeel. His titles were Saadiq, Faadil and
Taahir.
HIS MOTHER : His mother’s name was Umme Fardah who was the
daughter of Hazrat Qasim (radi Allaho anhu), the grandson of Hazrat Abu Bakr
Siddique (radi Allaho anhu) and Hazrat Qasim’s (radi Allaho anhu) mother,
A’asma (radi Allaho anhu) is the daughter of Hazrat Abdur Rahmaan, the son of
Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (radi Allaho anhu).
HIS FEATURES : He was very handsome and had a radiant appearance. He
had the perfect height, and was tan in complexion. He encompassed the exemplary
qualities his forefathers. Haafiz Abu Naeem Isfahani narrates in Khalifatul
Abraar on the authority of Umar bin Midqaam, “When I used to look at Hazrat Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho
anhu) then I used to immediately feel
that he was from amongst the descendants of the Prophets”
EXCELLENCE : He was without doubt the true successor to the Muslim
empire and one of the greatest Imams of his era. Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho
anhu) was a great Aabid and Sufi. Various secrets of Tasawwuf were explained by
him.
It is in Tabqaatul Abraar, that he received the
authority of Hadith from his blessed father, from Imam Zuhri and Naaf’i and ibn
Munkadir etc. and Sufyaan Sawri, Ibn Ainiyyah, Shu’ba, Yahya Al Qataan, Imam
Maalik and his son Imam Moosa Kaazim (ridwaanullahi
ta aala alaihim ajmaeen) attained this authority of Hadith from him.
Allama Ibn Hajar Makki (radi Allaho anhu) writes in Sawaa’iq Muhariqa . “The exalted Imams such as Yahya Bin Saeed,
Ibn Jareeh, Imam Maalik ibn Anas, Imam Sufyaan Sawri, Sufyan bin Ainiyyah, Imam
Abu Hanifa and Abu Ayoob Sajistani (ridwaanullahi ta aala alaihim ajmaeen) took
Hadith from him.” [masaalikus saalikeen]
HIS CHARACTER : He was a very exalted and pious personality. His inner
and outer appearance exuded brightness and radiance. He addressed the poor and
the downtrodden with great love. Once he called all his servants and said, “Let us give our hands in the hands of one
another and promise, that whichever one of us first receives salvation on the
day of Qiyaamah, he will intercede for the rest of us.” On hearing
this, they said, “O Ibn Rasool (Sall
Allaho alaihi wasallam)! For what reason do you need our intercession, when
your beloved forefather Rasoolullah (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam) will
intercede for the entire creation?” He then said, “I am ashamed to take my deeds and stand
before my forefather the Holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam).”
Once Hazrat Dawood Taa’ee (radi Allaho anhu) came to
Hazrat Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu) and said, “Beloved descendant of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam) please
give some advice, as my heart had become dark.” Hazrat Jafar (radi
Allaho anhu) said, “O Abu Sulaiman!
You are great zaahid of your era. What need do you have for my advice?” Hazrat
Dawood Taa’ee (radi Allaho anhu) said, “O descendant of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam), You have been
blessed with excellence of the people and to advise everyone is compulsory upon
you.” He then said, “O
Abu Sulaiman! I fear that on the day of Qiyaamah, my forefather Muhammadur
Rasoolullah (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam) will hold me by my collar and ask,
‘Why were you slow in fulfilling your right to submission?’ What will I say
then? Thus, this deed (of advise) does not depend on ones stature or family
connections, but it deals with good deeds which are done in the Court of
Allah.” Hazrat Dawood (radi Allaho anhu) heard this and began to
weep. He then said, “O Allah! When
such a great personality, who is the descendant of a Prophet (Sall Allaho
alaihi wasallam), and whose reality is filled with light and wisdom, and whose
great grandmother is Bibi Fathima, is so afraid of his future and condition,
then what right does Dawood Taa’ee have do be proud of his deeds?” [masaalikus
saalikeen]
HIS IBAADAT : He was well known for his ibaadat, and his striving
in the Court of Allah. Hazrat Imam Malik (radi Allaho anhu) says, “I spent a very long time serving him, and I
always found him in one of three Ibaadats. Either he was in namaaz, or engrossed
in recitation of the Quran, or he would be fasting.” He never
narrated any Hadith Shareef without wudhu. [Tazkiratul Awliyah]
HIS DUA : He was without doubt a faithful servant of Allah, and
he always attained everything that he asked for from the Court of Allah. Abul
Qasim Tibri narrates from Wahab, that he heard Laith bin Sa’ad (radi Allaho
anhu) saying, “I was on my way to
Hajj by foot, in 113 Hijri and I reached Makkah Muazammah. At around the time
of Asr, I reached Jabl Abu Qais, and I saw a pious man sitting there making
dua. He was saying ‘Ya Rabbi Ya Rabbi’ so many times, that breathing became
difficult. Then in the same way, he said ‘Ya Hayy Ya Hayy’ then ‘Ya Rab’bahu Ya
Rab’bahu, then in the same say, he said ‘Ya Allah Ya Allah’ in one breath continuously.
He then said ‘Ya Rahmaanu Ya Rahmaanu, Ya Raheemu Ya Raheemu’ and then he went
on to say ‘Ya Arhamar Raahimeen’. He then said, “O Allah I desire to eat
grapes. Please bless me with some, and My clothes have become old and tattered
Please give me new ones.”
Hazrat Laith says, “By Allah, he was still comlpeting his dua, when I saw a basket of grapes
kept before him, whereas it was not even the grape season and I did not see an
grapes near him before his dua. I also saw that there were two pieces of cloth
kept near the grapes. I have never seen such beautiful material before. He then
sat down to eat the grapes. I went up to him and said, Huzoor! May I also have
a part in this?, and he asked how this was so, so I said, I was saying Aameen as you made the dua. He
said, ‘Well then, step forward and join me.’ I also began to partake in the
grapes. They were so tasty, that never have I eaten such delicious grapes. I ate until I was satisfied, but the basket
still remained as it was before, full of grapes. He then offered on piece of
cloth to me, and I said that I had no need for it, so he tied one around his
waist, and he draped the other over his shoulder. He then descended from the
mountain and I followed him. As he drew close to Saffa and Marwa, a beggar
called out to him and said, ‘O Descendant of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi
wasallam)! Give these clothes to me and Allah will dress you in the clothes of
Jannat.” He immediately gave the two pieces of cloth to the beggar. I enquired
from the beggar about the identity of this pious man and he informed me that he
was Hazrat Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu). I then looked for him so that I may
listen to some words of wisdom from him and attain his blessings, but he had
disappeared from my sight.” [Tazkiratul Awliyah pg 12]
Once some people saw that Hazrat Jafar (radi Allaho
anhu) was wearing a very expensive robe. One of them walked up to him and said,
“Huzoor! It is not good for the Ahle
Bait to wear such expensive clothing.” He caught hold of the man’s
hand and thrust it into his sleeves. The man was amazed when he found that a
Hazrat was wearing clothes make from sacks under his robe. Hazrat Jafar (radi
Allaho anhu) then said, “The one
inside is for my Creator and the one on top is for the creation.”
A man once lost his money pouch which contained one
thousand dinaars. Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) was walking close to him, so he
held the hand of the Imam and accused him of stealing his money. Hazrat Imam
Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) asked how much he had in his money bag, and the man
said that he had one thousand dinaars. Hazrat took him home and gave him one
thousand dinaars from his wealth. The next day, the man found his money bag,
and came rushing to Hazrat Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu) to return the
money he had taken from him. Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) said, “We do not take back what we have already
given.” The man then asked some people who this person was, and he
was told that it was Hazrat Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu). When he heard
this, he became very sad and regretted his behavior. [Tazkiratul Awliyah]
DEBATE WITH AN ATHEIST : Hazrat Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) spent a lot of his
time spreading the word of Allah and His Rasool (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam).
He always spoke against those who did not believe in Allah. An atheist from Egypt, came to
Hazrat Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu) whilst he was in Makkah. Hazrat Jafar
Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu) asked him name and he said that his name was Abdul
Malik and he was also known as Abdullah. On hearing this Hazrat said, “Malik, whose servant you are, is he from the
Kingdom of the Skies or the Kingdom of the earth, the Lord that is the Lord of
your son, is he the Lord of the skies or the Lord of the Earths?” The
atheist could not answer this question. Hazrat then said, “Did you ever journey under the earth? Do you
know what is beyond it?” He replied in the negative and said, “I think there is nothing beyond it.”
Hazrat then said, “To think is not
good enough. However, have you ever flown into the skies and journeyed beyond
the skies?” Again he replied in the negative. Hazrat said, “Did you ever travel the entire East and
West and did you realise anything about the future from this?” Again
he answered in the negative. Hazrat said, “I am amazed, that you are not aware of the earth and what is beneath it,
and the sky and what is beyond it, and in this state of ignorance, you still
have the arrogance to reject the existence of Allah. O Ignorant man! There is
no argument for one who is naive about that which is a reality. The sun, the
moon, the night and day, are all in a specific pattern. Verily they are within
some divine control. It they were free, then they would move as they willed and
would sometimes go to an appointed spot and not return. Why is it that the
night does not take the place of day and the day does not take the place of
night. Do you not ponder upon the reality of the skies and the earth? Why does
the sky not come to the earth and why is it that the earth is not flattened by
the sky? There is definitely One, who
has all this in His control. It is He (Allah) who is All Powerful. It is He,
who is our and their Lord.” When the atheist heard this, he
immediately accepted Islam and had faith in the existence of Allah.
HAZRAT BAYAZEED BUSTAAMI
(radi Allaho anhu) : Hazrat Ba Yazeed
Bustaami (radi Allaho anhu) used to distribute water in the Darbaar of Hazrat
Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu). Hazrat placed his saintly sight on Hazrat
Bayazeed Bustaami (radi Allaho anhu) once, and he became one of the greatest
mystics of his time. He then served in the Court of Hazrat Jafar (radi Allaho
anhu) and became one of the greatest Awliyah.
HAZRAT IMAM AZAM ABU HANIFA
(radi Allaho anhu) : Hazrat Imam Azam Abu
Hanifa (radi Allaho anhu) attained great blessings from Hazrat Imam Jafar
Saadiq (radi Allaho anhu). It is narrated that once he asked Imam Abu Hanifa
(radi Allaho anhu) concerning who is an intelligent person. Hazrat Imam Abu
Hanifa (radi Allaho anhu) said, “He
who can differentiate between good and evil is an intelligent man.”
Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) said, “Even animals have the ability to differentiate. It can differentiate
between those who love them, beat them or instill fear in them?”
Imam Abu Hanifa (radi Allaho anhu) then said, “O Hazrat! Would you please explain who is truly intelligent?”Hazrat
Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) said, “An
intelligent person, is one who can differentiate between two good things and
two evils, so that he may choose the better of two good things and that he may
be able to repel the worse of two evils.”
SHEIKH-E-TARIQAT : He was the mureed and Khalifa of Hazrat Sayyiduna Imam
Baaqir (radi Allaho anhu) and attained great blessings from his beloved father.
GEMS OF WISDOM : * He would often make the following
dua : "O Allah bless me with
respect which is in your obedience and do not disgrace me due to my
shortcomings. O Allah let me assist him through your grace and Mercy, whose
sustenance you have decreased, for you have blessed me in abundance."
There is no provision greater than
piety. There is nothing better than silence, and there is no enemy more
dangerous than ones ignorance and there is no disease worse than lies. * He who
has attained the closeness to Allah divorces himself from everything in the
world. * There is no ibaadat without repentance, since Allah has caused
repentance to be above ibaadat. * He who sits in the companionship of all types
of people will not be safe. *One who walks on the wrong path will always arouse
suspicion. * One who cannot keep his tongue in control will always be
disgraced. *Stay away from five kinds of people, 1. A liar, as he will also betray you, 2. A witless person, as he will
try to benefit you, but will always cause you harm, 3. A miser, for he will cause you intense loss in order to
gain even the slightest benefit, 4.
A coward who will leave you in distress during a difficult situation. 5. A man who does bad actions, for he will sell you for one morsel
and will still be hopeful of even less than that. [Masaalikus Saalikeen vol.1 pg 224]
BOOKS AND
TREATIES: Hazrat had
written various books on numerous topics, as stated by scholars like Imam
Kamaaludeen etc.
KARAAMATS: Hazrat Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi
Allaho anhu) is an example for Muslims in every way. His greatest Karaamat was
his firmness on the Shariat. His every step was in accordance with the Sunnat
of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam). A few of his Karaamats are being
quoted below.
A HOUSE IN
HEAVEN : Once, a man
came to Hazrat Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) before journeying for Hajj. He gave
Hazrat 10 000 dirhams, and asked him to purchase a mansion for him before he
returned. Instead of purchasing a mansion, Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu)
distributed the entire 10 000 dirhams in the way of Allah. After the man
returned from Hajj, he went to meet Hazrat Imam Jafar Saadiq (radi Allaho
anhu). Hazrat Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) told him that he had purchased his
mansion and then handed the title deed over to him. The title deed read as
follows : “One wall of the house is
adjoined to the house of the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihi wasallam), the other
wall is adjoined to the house of Hazrat Ali (radi Allaho anhu), the third wall
is adjoined to the house of Imam Hassan (radi Allaho anhu) and the fourth wall
is adjoined to the house of Imam Hussain (radi Allaho anhu).” The
man took this title deed, and asked his family members to place it in his grave
when he passed away. After his demise, his family members found the title deed
on the top of his grave and on the rear of the title deed the following words
were written, “Hazrat Imam Jafar
(radi Allaho anhu) was honest and loyal in what he said.” [Masaalikus saalikeen
vol.1 pg.220]
AMAZING
INCIDENT: Once, he was
on his way to Hajj, when he stopped to rest under a date tree which was
completely dried out. At the time of Chasht, he asked the tree to present him
with some dates. Immediately, the tree became green and lush and full of dates.
Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) then ate from it. A villager was passing
by and saw this. He saw this great karaamat and said that it was magic. Hazrat
Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) said, "This
is not magic. Almighty Allah has blessed me with such a quality, that he
accepts all my duas. If I make dua, then you can be even turned into a
dog."Hazrat had not yet completed what he was saying, when the
villager began to resemble a dog. He quickly repented and asked Hazrat Imam
Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) to forgive him. Hazrat made dua for him, and he was
transformed to his normal self.
[Masaalikus Saalikeen vol.1 pg 223]
KHALIFA
MANSOOR : Khalifa
Mansoor once sent one of his ministers to summon Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu)
to his Court. He informed his servants that when Imam Jafar arrived, they
should wait for him (Mansoor) to remove his crown. The moment he did this, they
should martyr Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu). When the minister heard
this, he was not pleased and thus tried to explain to Mansoor, how wrong it was
to kill a pious person, who is also a Sayyid. The Khalifa did not take heed and
had Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu) summoned. When Hazrat Imam Jafar (radi
Allaho anhu) arrived, the servants waited for their cue, so that they may
martyr Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu). Instead, Mansoor woke up from his throne
and rushed towards the Imam. He brought him towards his throne and allowed him
to sit on it with great respect, whilst he sat on the ground in front of the
great Imam. The servants and ministers were surprised to see this sudden change
in plan. Mansoor then asked the Imam if he had any requests. Imam Jafar (radi
Allaho anhu) said,"In future
you should not summon me to your court, as I wish to remain engrossed in
Ibaadat." When he heard these words, his body began to tremble
and he allowed the Imam to leave with respect. When the Imam left, the minister
asked about the sudden change in plan and Mansoor said, "When Imam Jafar (radi Allaho anhu)
entered my court, I saw a huge python with him. The python had its one lip over
my throne and one under my throne, and it spoke to me and said that if I tried
to ever harm the Imam, then he would consume me with my throne, and
that is why I behaved in the manner which I did." [Tazkiratul Awliyah]
HIS
CHILDREN : He was
blessed with six sons and one daughter. Their names are :1. Hazrat Ismaeel 2. Hazrat Muhammad 3. Hazrat Ali 4.Hazrat Abdullah 5.
Hazrat Ishaaq 6. Hazrat Moosa
Kaazim 7. Bibi Umme Fardah(ridwaanullahi ta aala alaihim ajmaeen)
HIS KHULAFA
: If one studies the
books of history, then one will learn about his Khulafa, about how exalted each
one of them was and how they had attained his blessings. Some of them are:1. Hazrat Imam Moosa Kaazim 2.
Hazrat Imam Azam Abu Hanifa 3.
Hazrat Sultaan Bayazeed Bustaami (ridwaanullahi
ta aala alaihim ajmaeen).
WISAAL : He passed away during the rule of the
second Abbasi Khalifa Abu Jafar Mansoor bin bin Abul Abbas As Safah on a
Friday, the 15th of Rajab or 24 Shawwal 148 Hijri at the age of 68
in Madinatul Munawwarah. [Masaalikus
Saalikeen vol.1 pg 217]
MAZAAR SHAREEF : His Mazaar shareef is in Jannatul
Baqi in Madinatul Munawwarah
