Imam al-Baqir (as) and his son, Imam al-Sadiq (as), departed Yathrib towards Damascus due to summons of Husham ibn Abd al-Malik. The reason originated from the event that when Imam al-Sadiq (as) was performing the ritual Hajj with his father, Husham ibn Abd al-Malik was performing the Hajj, too. Imam al-Sadiq (as) stated the following in the presence of some people among whom Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik, Husham’s brother, was attendant:
“All praise be to Allah (SwT) who sent Muhammad (S) as a Prophet and honoured us with him. We are the choice of Allah (SwT) over His creatures and the best among His slaves. Therefore, a true happy will be him who follows us, but the unhappy will be him who dissents and contradicts us.”
Maslamah became very angry when he heard that speech of the Imam (as). So, he hurried to his brother, Husham, and informed him about the case. Husham kept that confidential and did not have bad words with the Imams (as) in Hijaz until he returned to Damascus. Then, he ordered his representative to summon the Imam (as) and his father.
When they arrived in Damascus, Husham prevented them from meeting him for three days, as a kind of mockery. In the fourth day, he allowed them to meet him. When they presented themselves before him, he did not pay them due respect. The session was crowded with individuals from the Umayyad dynasty as well as the ruler’s viziers and retinue. The ruler’s companions had set up a dartboard, which was targeted by the celebrities of Umayyah.
Imam al-Sadiq (as) said that Husham said, “O Muhammad (as)! Participate with the great people of your tribe in this game.”
“I am too old to aim! May you exclude me from this game,” my father answered.
“I swear by Him Who granted us dignity through His religion and through His Prophet Muhammad (S), I will not exclude you,” Husham shouted.
This tyrant had thought that the Imam (as) would fail in shooting and this would be a reason for degrade the Imam’s (as) great personality in front of the masses of Sham. He made a sign to one of the Umayyad celebrities to give the bow to the Imam (as). The Imam (as) took the bow and the arrow at the same time. Then, he put an arrow on the bow and hurled towards the target and it reached the center of the dartboard. The second arrow was placed on the back of the first one and divided it into two pieces. The Imam (as) went on hurling nine arrows each of which hit the back of the previous. This does not happen even with the best hurler in the world.
Husham was left in an extremely anxious mode as a result of his event. He could not control himself and shouted: “O Abu Jafar (as), you are the best hurler of all the Arabs and non-Arabs; yet you pretended that you were too old!”
Afterwards, he became regretful for insulting the Imam (as); he thus bowed his head down, while the Imam (as) was on his feet. When this took long, the Imam (as) became angry as his holy face showed this. He used to look at the sky whenever he would be angry. When Husham noticed so, he stood up, hugged and seated him to his right side.
Then he said: “Muhammad (as)! As long as Quraysh has someone like you, it remains the greatest of all the Arabs and non-Arabs. How great your hurling was! Who taught you such hurling? How long did it take you to learn this? Does Jafar (as) have the same competence in hurling?”
“We inherit perfection,” Abu Jafar (as) replied.
The tyrant ruler aroused; his colour turned into red and he bowed his head down looking for something to answer to what he had just heard from the Imam (as). After a moment, he raised his head and started saying: “Are we and you not of the same lineage; that is the ancestors of Abd Manaf?”
“We are,” the Imam (as) said refuting this claim, “But Allah (SwT) has characterized us by His profound secret and gave His knowledge to us other than anyone else.”
Husham asked again, “Allah (SwT) sent Muhammad (S), who is from the Abd Manaf, to all peoples including the white, the black and the redskins. How have you then obtained what others have not; while the Messenger of Allah (S) was sent to the entire humankind? This is confirmed by Allah’s (SwT) saying, ‘To Allah (SwT) belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth.’ So, from where did you inherit this knowledge while there is no other prophet to come after Muhammad (S) and you are not prophets?”
The Imam (as) retorted with reasonable causes, saying, “Almighty Allah said to his Prophet (S): ‘Move not thy tongue concerning the Quran to make haste therewith.’ So, he who did not move his tongue to other than us was commanded by Allah (SwT) to give this knowledge exclusively to us. Therefore, he (i.e. the Prophet (S)) used to hold confidential talks with Ali (as), his brother, other than any one of his companions. A verse of the Quran was revealed confirming this meaning. Hence, Allah (SwT) says, ‘The retaining ear might retain it.’ After that, the Prophet (S) said, ‘I had asked Allah (SwT) to make Ali (as) this retaining ear.’
Therefore, Ali used to say: ‘The Messenger of Allah (S) taught me one thousand horizons of knowledge; each horizon opens before me one thousand doors to knowledge.’
This means that the Holy Prophet (S) gave Ali (as) exclusively areas of the hidden secret of Allah (SwT) that none else of his people was given. This knowledge reached us and we, exclusively, inherited it through generations.”
Husham was awfully annoyed; he angrily said: “Did Ali (as) know the Unseen Knowledge? How come he said so while Allah (SwT) does not allow anyone to be aware of His unseen secrets?”
The Imam (as) responded with the shining truth of the life of Imam Ali (as), the leader of wisdom on the earth, “Allah (SwT) sent to his Prophet (S) a Book containing what happened and what will happen until the coming of the Resurrection Day. Allah (SwT) said:
‘We have sent down to thee the Book explaining all things’ (16:89)
He also stated:
‘And of all things have We taken account in a clear Book of evidence.’ (36:12)
His Majesty also said:
‘Nothing have we omitted from the Book.’ (27:75)
He also mentioned:
‘Nor is there aught of the unseen, in heaven or earth, but is (recorded) in a clear record.’(27:75)
Allah (SwT) inspired his Prophet (S) not to hide any of his secrets from Ali (as). Afterwards, the Prophet (S) ordered Ali (as) to write down the Holy Quran after his passing away and to accept the washing and embalmment of his body without his tribe. He has also stated the following to his companions: ‘It is a sin for my tribe and companions to look at my genital organs except my brother and son-in-law, Ali (as). He is from me and I am from him. What I have is his and what he has is mine. He will settle my debts and fulfil my promises.’
Then he said to his companions: ‘Ali ibn Abi-Talib (as) will fight for the sake of true interpretation of the Quran as I fought for the sake of its revelation.’ No one had a perfect and all-comprehensive interpretation of the Quran that Ali (as) had. The Holy Prophet (S) also stated: ‘The most versed of you all in judgment is Ali (as).’ Umar ibn Khattab said, ‘Had it not been for Ali (as), Umar would have certainly exposed perdition.’ Umar witnesses this and others are denying’”
Husham bowed his head after listening to these undeniable reasons that allowed no more debate. Then he said: “You may now say your need?”
The Imam (as) did not ask for anything, but he said: “I left my wife and family anxious about my departure.”
This tradition shows the status of his grandfather, Imam Ali (as), in the view of the Holy Prophet (S). Imam Ali (as) was the inheritor of the Prophet’s (S) sciences, the fulfiller of his promises, and the one who undertook the mission of preparing for his funeral ceremony. However, this appreciation was hard-to-accept for Husham, the most malicious enemy of the Imam (as), and for those who did not want any respect and sedateness for him.
THE LIFE OF IMAM JA’FAR AL SADIQ (AS) – BAQAR SHARIF AL QARASHI