47 Facts About Ali al-Hadi

Ali al-Hadi was born on 16 Dhu al-Hijjah 212 AH in Sorayya, a village near Medina founded by his great-grandfather, Musa al-Kazim.

Ali al-Hadi was the son of Muhammad al-Jawad, the ninth of the Twelve Imams, and his mother was Samana, a freed slave of Maghrebi origin.

The historian Teresa Bernheimer considers it possible that Ali al-Hadi was instead born to Umm al-Fadl, a daughter of the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun, though this marriage is often considered without an issue.

Ali al-Hadi was about seven years old when his father died.

Ali al-Hadi emerged from isolation with the accession of the less hostile caliph al-Wathiq in 842, who had earlier led the funeral prayer for al-Jawad.

An Alid himself, Ali al-Hadi was less restricted in this period.

Ali al-Hadi engaged in teaching in Medina after reaching adulthood, possibly attracting a large number of students from Iraq, Persia, and Egypt, where the House of Muhammad traditionally found the most support.

Ali al-Hadi correctly predicts the accession of the caliph's brother Ja'far al-Mutawakkil.

Ali al-Hadi openly cursed Ali ibn Abi Talib and ordered a clown to ridicule Ali in his banquets, writes the Twelver scholar Muhammad Husayn Tabatabai.

Ali al-Hadi implemented these policies with the help of his officials, particularly Ahmad ibn al-Khasib al-Jarjara'i and al-Fath ibn Khaqan.

The Islamicist Wilferd Madelung suggests that the letter is authentic, while Wardrop views the reverential and conciliatory tone of the letter as an indication that the caliph was cautious not to provoke an Alid rebellion in Medina, even though there is no evidence that al-Hadi actually intended to revolt.

The Muslim academic Jassim M Hussain suggests that al-Hadi was summoned to Samarra and held there because the investigations of caliph's officials, including Abd Allah, had linked the Shia Imam to the underground activities of the Imamites in Baghdad, al-Mada'in, and Kufa.

Ali al-Hadi calmed the public disorder by ensuring the locals that al-Hadi would not be harmed.

Still, there is a report that Ali al-Hadi was temporarily placed under house arrest after his arrival in Samarra.

Ali al-Hadi lived in Samarra under constant surveillance until his death, some twenty years later.

The reports about this period depict a persecuted Ali al-Hadi, who suffered frequent attempts by al-Mutawakkil and others at the court to belittle and dishonor him.

Tabatabai and the Muslim academic Abdulaziz Sachedina go further, writing that the caliph on multiple occasions was intent on killing al-Hadi and had his house searched.

Sachedina believes that fear of public unrest prevented al-Mutawakkil from killing Ali al-Hadi, who was recognized by this time as a pious and learned figure.

In contrast, Madelung quotes Ali al-Hadi as saying that he had not come to Samarra voluntarily but would never leave the city, as he liked its good water and air.

Ali al-Hadi's view is that al-Hadi was allowed to move freely within the city, and continued to send instructions for his representatives across the Abbasid empire and receive through them the donations of Shias.

Sachedina views this freedom of movement as an indication that Ali al-Hadi did not pose a serious threat, while Wardrop suggests that the passive spiritual excellence of the Shia Imams was probably considered a more serious threat than an armed rebellion which could be easily crushed.

That al-Hadi remained in contact with his followers is the opinion of the Islamicists Farhad Daftary, Sachedina, and Hussain, but the last author believes that al-Hadi sent and received his messages with secrecy, under the watchful eyes of the caliph.

Wardrop notes that most reports about Ali al-Hadi are attributed to this period, perhaps because Ali al-Hadi was more "newsworthy" in Samarra, being close both to the center of power and to the large Shia population of Iraq.

Also dated 861, the biographical by the Twelver scholar Qutb al-Din al-Rawandi similarly reports a house arrest of Ali al-Hadi under Sa'id al-Hajib, who was allegedly ordered to kill the Imam.

The offer was taken up by an Indian knowledgeable of various sleights of hand, the report continues, who arranged for the loaves of bread to move away when Ali al-Hadi reached for them, bringing the crowd to laughter.

Ali al-Hadi continued to live in Samarra after the assassination of al-Mutawakkil in 861, through the short reign of al-Muntasir, followed by four years of al-Musta'in, and until his death in 868 during the caliphate of al-Mu'tazz.

In particular, al-Muntasir and al-Musta'in somewhat relaxed the anti-Alid policies of al-Mutawakkil, and al-Hadi thus lived more freely in those years.

Elsewhere, some supporters of Ali al-Hadi were arrested in Samarra, while his main agent in Kufa, Ayyub ibn Nuh, was prosecuted by the local judge.

Later under al-Mu'tazz, the Abbasids discovered connections between some rebels in Tabaristan and Rayy and certain Imamite figures close to Ali al-Hadi, who were thus arrested in Baghdad and deported to Samarra.

In contrast, Momen says that the "real power" was in the hands of the Turkish generals by the time al-Hadi died and that the murder of al-Hadi would have had no political benefit for the caliph.

Thanks to the precedent of al-Jawad the imamate of Ali al-Hadi was widely accepted without much demur, even though in both cases the inner circle of their predecessors must have played a visible role in consolidating their imamate.

Ali al-Hadi continued to do so without forwarding them to al-Hadi, who excommunicated Faris in 864 for embezzling religious dues.

In Twelver Shia, Ali al-Hadi is considered knowledgeable in the languages of the Persians, Slavs, Indians, and Nabataeans.

Similarly, al-Tabarsi writes that Ali al-Hadi was articulate in seventy-three languages, probably in reference to the hadith, attributed to Muhammad, that his community would be split to seventy-three groups.

Ali al-Hadi is credited in Twelver sources with predicting the death of al-Mutawakkil, who had either imprisoned or humiliated al-Hadi.

Ali al-Hadi's precognition is highlighted in another account, appearing in for instance, according to which al-Hadi already knew the religious question of his visitors.

On one occasion, describes that the soldiers tasked with killing Ali al-Hadi did not dare to harm him because of "his awe-inspiring presence," seeing around him a hundred raised swords.

Ali al-Hadi reputedly did so by descending into the caliph's den of lions to prove that they do not harm true descendants of Ali ibn Abi Talib.

When he set out for Samarra, despite clear skies, al-Hadi prepared for heavy rain which indeed materialized within a few hours to the amazement of his escort.

Ali al-Hadi was survived by two sons, namely, Ja'far ibn Ali al-Hadi and his older brother Hasan al-Askari.

Imamite sources report that Ali al-Hadi designated Hasan as his successor a month before his death in 868.

Ali al-Hadi was unknown to many Imamites, as suggested by, and the representatives of al-Hadi must have played an important role in consolidating the imamate of Hasan.

Still, some considered Ali al-Hadi to be the last Imam and Hasan is said to have written to Imamite figures across the Abbasid empire to dispel their doubts about his imamate.

Probably related to this group was Ibn Nusayr, who considered Ali al-Hadi to be divine and claimed to be his prophet.

Ali al-Hadi is considered the founder of the Nusayris, a now-extinct Ghali sect of Shia.

Those who accepted the imamate of Ja'far, the youngest son of Ali al-Hadi, are known as Ja'farites.

Mavani quotes another hadith, ascribed to Ali al-Hadi and transmitted by al-Tabarsi, as follows:.