31 Facts About Ali al-Sajjad

Ali al-Sajjad was known for his piety and virtuous character.

Ali al-Sajjad is seen by the Shia community as an example of patience and perseverance when numerical odds are against one.

Ali al-Sajjad was born in Medina, or perhaps in Kufa, in the year 38 AH.

However, the claim that Ali al-Sajjad's mother was a Sasanian princess is specific to Shia sources.

Ali al-Sajjad was then allowed to choose her husband, Husayn, and died shortly after giving birth to her only son, Ali al-Sajjad.

Ali al-Sajjad was present there, in the Battle of Karbala, but was too ill to fight.

Ali al-Sajjad led a quiet and scholarly life after returning to Medina, confining himself to a small circle of followers and disciples.

Ali al-Sajjad kept aloof from politics and dedicated his time to prayer, which earned him his honorifics.

Personally, Ali al-Sajjad was deeply affected by the Karbala massacre, to the point that for many years he frequently wept over it.

Ali al-Sajjad justified his prolonged grief with a reference to the Quranic verse 12:84, which describes the immense grief of Jacob during the absence of his son Joseph.

Ali al-Sajjad remained neutral towards Ibn Zubayr, even leaving town during the unrest in Medina, and never pledging allegiance to Ibn Zubayr, but being left unmolested by him.

Ali al-Sajjad was not harmed by Yazid's forces, who later pillaged Medina after their victory at the Battle of al-Harra in 683.

Such sources even allege that Ali al-Sajjad borrowed from Marwan to buy a concubine or that he was consulted by him about a message from the Byzantine emperor.

In contrast, Shia sources contend that Ali al-Sajjad interacted with authorities under the principle of religious dissimulation to avoid persecution.

When Mukhtar was himself killed by Ibn Zubayr's forces in 687, they did not harm Ali al-Sajjad, which suggests that Ali al-Sajjad had only weak ties to Mukhtar.

Sources are contradictory as to what Ali al-Sajjad thought of Mukhtar, although Shia sources are largely unsympathetic towards Mukhtar, in part because he championed Ibn al-Hanafiyya rather than Ali al-Sajjad.

Ali al-Sajjad died in 94 or 95 AH and was buried next to his uncle Hasan in the al-Baqi cemetery in Medina.

The latter thus initially diverted much support away from Ali al-Sajjad, who led a secluded, pious life after Karbala.

Indeed, even though al-Sajjad was widely respected, he had few followers until the collapse of the Zubayrid counter-caliphate in 692.

Indeed, popular Shia sources report that, before his death, Ali al-Sajjad designated al-Baqir as his successor.

Shia sources attribute some miracles to Ali al-Sajjad: He spoke to a gazelle in the desert, restored youth to an old woman, and the sacred Black Stone in Mecca attested to his imamate in the presence of Ibn al-Hanafiyya.

Ali al-Sajjad's teknonym is reported variously as Abu al-Hasan, Abu al-Husayn, Abu Muhammad, Abu Bakr, and Abu Abd Allah.

Ali al-Sajjad was known as Dhu al-Thafenat, meaning "he who has calluses" from frequent prostration in worship.

Ali al-Sajjad was thin and resembled his grandfather, Ali ibn Abi Talib, both in appearance and demeanor.

Ali al-Sajjad spent much of his time in worship and learning, to the point that his face was bruised and his legs were swollen from lengthy prayers, according to his Shia biographer.

Ali al-Sajjad was a leading authority on Islamic tradition and law, and was well known for his virtuous character and piety.

Ali al-Sajjad bought and freed dozens of slaves in his lifetime, and secretly provided for destitute Medinans, who discovered, after his death, that al-Sajjad was the benefactor who regularly brought them food at night, while covering his face to preserve his anonymity.

Ali al-Sajjad prevented ill-treatment of Hisham ibn Isma'il al-Makhzumi when the latter was dismissed as the governor of Medina, even though Hisham had regularly insulted al-Sajjad.

Ali al-Sajjad is seen by the Shia community as an example of patience and perseverance against numerically superior odds.

Ali al-Sajjad had between eight and fifteen children, perhaps eleven boys and four girls.

Transmitters of hadith from al-Sajjad include Aban ibn Taghlib, Abu Hamza al-Thumali, Thabit ibn Hormuz Haddad, Amru ibn Thabit, and Salim ibn Abi Hafsa.