Summary of the Commission “The Era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.)” in the International Conference “Tradition and Era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.)”

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Thursday, 03 November 2022

The session of the commission “The Era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.)”, was in the Islamic Sciences and Culture Academy in Pardisan, Qom.

ABWA Official Website - The session of the commission “The Era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.)”, under the international conference “Tradition and Era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.)”, was held on Thursday afternoon, November 3, 2022, in the Imam Hassan (a.s.) Hall of the Islamic Sciences and Culture Academy in Pardisan, Qom.

Nahid Tayebi, in presenting her article entitled “Confrontation of the mother of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with the political activities of Jafar bin Ali”, while referring to the challenges faced by the Shiites after Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), stated, “Believing in the invisible Imam was one of the basic challenges of the Shiite community after Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.). Even some of the close companions of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) had doubts about this. Because Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) had not introduced Imam Mahdi (a.s.) to all his companions.”

“Another opportunity that Jafar bin Ali found was that the companions of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) were obliged not to ask the name and place of Imam Mahdi (a.s.). The Jafariyah sect, which believed in the Imamate of Jafar bin Ali, was supported by some groups,” she continued.

“When Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was martyred, the mother of this Infallible Imam (a.s.) did not leave the arena. She was one of the close companions of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), and as soon as her son was martyred, she went to Madinah and thwarted the activities of Jafar bin Ali to assume the position of Imamate,” the researcher added.

Referring to the actions of Jafar bin Ali to take over the position of Imamate, Tayebi stated, “After the martyrdom of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), Jafar bin Ali expected others to express their condolences, and asked for help from the government of the time to achieve his goal. The mother of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) confronted Jafar bin Ali, and in this regard this noble lady raised the issue of inheritance.”

“The mother of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was successful in confronting Jafar bin Ali and did not allow his claim of Imamate to come to fruition,” she mentioned.

Next, Bahman Zeinali presented his article entitled “Confrontation of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with the Abbasid caliphs and the movements who cast doubts”.

“The Abbasids tried to maintain the facade of Islam. But they were strict against the Infallible Imams (a.s.). Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) tried to expand the organization of representatives and expand Shia to confront the Abbasid government,” he said, referring to the policy of Abbasid government.

“In many cases, Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) observed Taqiyah (ostensible denial of religious belief) in the face of the behavior of the Abbasids. He tried to keep and protect people who believe in Shiism in the Abbasid system and in this regard, he was more cautious towards this system,” Zeinali continued.

“In the era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), there were many movements that cast doubts, and many of them were hostile to this Infallible Imam (a.s.). They had a clear opposition to the Imamate, and for this reason, the approach of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was different in confronting them,” the researcher added.

Referring to the approach of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) against the movements that cast doubts, Zeinali stated, “Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) regularly trained forces so that he could confront the movements that cast doubts.”

“Many Alawites who rose in the era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) had good intentions. But due to the lack of proper knowledge of their time, they caused more pressure to be applied by the Abbasids against the Shiites. Therefore, Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) tried to warn the Alawites from the armed uprising. In that era, the policy of Imamate was not the armed uprising,” he continued.

“Taqiyah, silent struggle, strengthening the organization of representation and declaring open opinion and public struggle against Ghulat were among the characteristics of the approach of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) in that era” Zainali noted.

In the continuation of the conference, Masoumeh Taghavi, presenting her article entitled “The intellectual interaction of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with the people of Samarra” stated, “In the study of life and tradition, we should pay attention to real and fundamental issues. In this article, we paid attention to the constructive interaction of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with the people, and in this regard, we presented a clear picture of the life context of the people of Samarra.”

“The main role of Infallible Imam (a.s.) is the guidance. Therefore, the interaction of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with the people is very important,” she continued.

“At that time the city of Samarra was the capital of Abbasid dynasty. Ninety thousand soldiers resided in the city, and many of the residents of Samarra were either soldiers or affiliated with the Abbasids. In addition, Turks and Abyssinian slaves and different ethnic groups were also present in the city. Followers of different religions were also resided in the city of Samarra, and they even reached the position of minister. Another stratum of Samarra was the merchants who came to the city from other cities,” the researcher added.

Referring to the presence of Shiites in Samarra, Taghavi stated, “Shiites also had a prominent presence in Samarra. Although the Shiites in the city were under pressure and had to observe Taqiyah (ostensible denial of religious belief), Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) paid attention to the details of the life of the Shiites in the city.”

“In Samarra, Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) expressed the position of the Infallible Imam on various occasions and strengthened the belief of the Shiites of the city in the Imamate. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) showed his superhuman abilities to the Shiites of Samarra,” he continued.

“The Shiites of Samarra used to come to Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) and learn about the interpretation of the Quranic verses. The moral education of Shiites by Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was not limited to individual ethics, and the Imam spoke about different dimensions of social ethics too. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) sought to introduce his companions as role models in the Samarra,” the researcher added.

Referring to the tradition of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), Taghavi said, “This Infallible Imam tried to correct the misconception of his companions and prevent deviations among them. In addition to Shiites, among Sunnis also Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was known for his virtues. Even Nasibis admitted the virtues of Imam, and even prison guards have reached the level of piety under the influence of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.).”

“If the non-Shiites of Samarra were faced with economic problems, they would turn to Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) because of his generosity. This Infallible Imam offered his knowledge of unseen to non-Shiites too. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) used different methods against different groups, and these methods can be modeled,” he mentioned.

Further in the conference, Hojat al-Islam Hamed Qaraati presented his article titled “Confrontation of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with Intellectual and Knowledge Problems in Samarra”.

Referring to the history and tradition of AhlulBayt (a.s.), Qaraati said, “Some people portray the AhlulBayt (a.s.) like robots in charge of delivering Sharia, and they did not pay attention to the situation around them, which is not correct. Infallible Imam (a.s.) lived as a thinking person in the society, and along with the great responsibilities they had that determined the future of humanity, they were not indifferent to their duties towards the people of their city and neighborhood.”

“Even if we have great responsibilities, we cannot be indifferent to our society. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) was not indifferent to problems such as the role of non-Islamic ideas in Samarra, and he considered this even in his interactions,” he continued.

“The excess and exaggeration were among the problems in Samara. Even Ghulat (exaggerators) appointed a representative to talk with Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) to acquaint him with the conditions of Imamate!” added the vice president of the association of history scholars of seminaries.

Referring to the presence of followers of different religions and sects in Samarra, Qaraati said, “In the era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.), internal deviant movements emerged. In order to confront them, the Imam (a.s.) stressed that no one has the right to visit the patients of the Waqefiyah sect or participate in their funerals. This shows the level of danger of this sect.”

“Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) emphasized on moderation and avoiding exaggeration. Throughout history, there have been many people who abused the love of AhlulBayt (a.s.) to attack the Shiite community. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) defined the boundaries of guidance and misguidance,” he continued.

“Tolerance and patience in the face of the ignorant were among the characteristics of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.). He used to teach people what to observe when talking to opponents. Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) made the Islamic community aware of the propaganda tricks of non-Muslims,” the researcher stated.

Following in the conference, Yadullah Hajizadeh, presenting his article entitled “Confrontation of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) with Ghulat” said, “The activities of some of Ghulat in the era of Imam Hadi (a.s.) continued during the era of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.). Ghulat considered the Infallible Imams (a.s.) to be higher than servants of God and believed that some matters such as creation were entrusted to the Infallible Imams (a.s.)!”

“Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) refuted the Ghulat and damned them. Because the Ghuat questioned the Shiite culture, the confrontation of Imam Hassan Askari (a.s.) against Ghulat was a harsh and violent. The confrontation that the Infallible Imams (a.s.) had with Ghulat cannot be compared to their confrontation against any other group,” he mentioned.

AhlulBayt (a_s_) World Assembly Imam Hassan Askari (a_s_) Shiites