Question:
Assalamualaikum wrm.wbt.,
Can you explain to us who is Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq?
Answer:
Waalaikumussalam wrm. wbt.
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his wives, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
He is Imam Abu Abdillah Ja’far al-Sadiq bin Muhammad al-Baqir bin Ali Zainal ‘Abidin ibn al-Husin ibn Ali ibn Abi Talib R.A. His mother is Ummu Farwah bin al-Qasim bin Muhammad bin Abi Bakar. And his maternal grandmother is Asma’ bint Abd al-Rahman bint Abi Bakr. His mother’s ancestors are connected to Abu Bakar al-Siddiq.
He was born in Medina on the year 80 Hijrah and got the chance to meet several Companions. Imam al-Zahabi said: I recounted that he has met Anas bin Malik and Sahl bin S’ad R.Anhuma. (See Siyar A’lam al-Nubala’, 6/255-270)
He was blessed with several children; Ismail, Abdullah, Musa (known as al-Kazhim), Ishaq, Muhammad, Ali, and Fatimah.
His Teachers
He studied under renown tabi’in scholars among them is his own father Abi Ja’far al-Baqir, Atha` bin Abi Rabah, Muhammad bin Syihab al-Zuhri, Urwah bin al-Zubair, Muhammad bin al-Munkadir, and Abdullah bin Abi Rafi’ maulana of Ibn Abbas, al-Qasim bin Muhammad bin Abi Bakr, Nafi’ al-‘Umari, Muslim bin Abi Maryam and others. (See Siyar A’lam al-Nubala’, 6/255-270)
His Students
Among his students are: Yahya bin Sa’id al-Ansari, Aban bin Taghlib, Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani, Ibnu Juraij, and Abu Amr bin al-Ala`, Malik bin Anas, Sufyan al-Thauri, Syu’bah bin al-Hajjaj, Sufyan bin Uyainah, Muhammad bin Tsabit al-Bunani, Abu Hanifah, Mu’awiyah bin ‘Ammar al-Duhani, Ibn Ishaq, al-Hasan bin Soleh, al-Hasan bin ‘Ayyash, Zuhair bin Muhammad, Hafs bin Ghiyath, Zaid bin Hasan al-Anmati, Sa’id bin Sufyan al-Aslami, Abdullah bin Maimun, Abd al-Aziz bin Imran al-Zuhri, Abd al-Aziz al-Darawardi, Abd al-Wahhab al-Thaqafi, Uthman bin Farqad, Muhammad bin Maimun al-Za’farani, Muslim al-Zanji, Yahya al-Qattan and others. (See Siyar A’lam al-Nubala’, 6/255-270)
Praises of Scholars for Him
Numerous scholars praised him, among them are:
- Imam Abu Hanifah said: “None is more faqih than Ja’far bin Muhammad.” (See Siyar A'lam al-Nubala', 11/319)
- Abu Hatim al-Razi said: “(He is) thiqah, a man of his stature shouldn’t be doubted.” (See al-Jarh wa at-Ta’dil,2/487)
- Ibn Hibban said: “He is among the scholars from among the Ahli Bait, an ‘abid from among atba’ al-tabi’in and the scholars of Medina.”
- Ibnu Taimiyyah praises him saying: “Indeed, Ja’far bin Muhammad is considered an imam according to the agreed opinion of Ahli Sunnah.” (See Minhaj al-Sunnah, 2/245)
He passes away in Medina in the year 148 Hijrah at the age of 68 years.