Imam Muhammad Taqi (AS) Great Debate
Mamoon continued to admire the learning and excellence of the Imam. He would say that though Imam Muhammad Taqi was still young, yet he was a true successor to his father in all his virtues and that the profoundest scholars of the Islamic world could not compete with him.
When the `Abbasides noticed that Mamoon attributed the Imam's superiority to his learning they chose Yahya ibn Aktham, the greatest scholar and jurist of Baghdad, to contend with him.
Mamoon issued a proclamation and organized a grand meeting for the contest which resulted in huge gathering of people from all parts of the kingdom. Apart from noble and high officials, there were as many as 900 chairs reserved for scholars and learned men only.
The world wondered how a young child could contest with the veteran judge in religious laws (Qazi-ul-Quzat) and the greatest scholar of Iraq.
Imam Muhammad Taqi was seated beside Mamoon on his throne face to face with Yahya ibn Aktham, who addressed the Imam thus:
"Do you permit me to ask you a Question?"
"Ask me whatever you wish ," said the Imam in the typical tone of his ancestors.
Yahya then asked the Imam, O what is your verdict about a man who indulges in hunting while he is in the state of Ehram." (In the code of religious law hunting is supposed to be forbidden for a pilgrim.)
The Imam at once replied ,
“ Your question is vague and misleading.
You should have definitely mentioned
whether he hunted within the jurisdiction of the Ka`bah or outside,
whether he was literate of illiterate,
whether he was a slave of a free citizen, whether he was a minor or a major,
whether it was for the first time of he
had done it previously, also
whether, that victim was a bird or some other creature, whether the prey was small or big, whether he hunted in the day or at night, whether the hunter repented for his
action of persisted in it,
whether he hunted secretly of openly, whether the Ehram was for Umrah of for Hajj.
Unless all these points are explained no specific answer can be given to this question.
Qadi Yahya was staggered in listening to these word of the Imam and the entire gathering was dumbfounded.
There was no limit to Mamoon's pleasure, he expressed his sentiments of joy and admiration thus,
"Bravo! well done! O Abu Jafar!, your learning and attainments are beyond all praises."
As Mamoon wanted that the Imam's opponent be fully exposed, he said to the Imam,
"You may also put some question to Yahya ibn Aktham."
Then Yahya also reluctantly said to the Imam, "Yes, you may ask me some questions. If I know the answer, I will tell it, otherwise, I shall request you to give its answer."
Thereupon, the Imam asked a Question to which Yahya could not reply. Eventually, the Imam answered his question.
Then Mamoon addressed the audience thus:
"Did I not say that the Imam comes of a family which has been chosen by Allah as the repository of knowledge and learning? Is there any one in the world who can match even the children of this family?"
All of them shouted, "Undoubtedly there in no one parallel to Muhammad Taqi a.s
Then Ma’mun proposed that now the Imam should ask a question to Yahya bin Aktham. The latter replied, “If I know the answer, I will reply; otherwise, I will learn from you.”
Imam Muhammad at-Taqi (a.s.) asked: “Can you describe the situation in which a man looked at a woman at dawn while it was forbidden (harâm) for him to do so; but then at sunrise, it was permissible (halâl) for him to look at her?
Then at noon hour, it became harâm for him to look at that woman; but in the afternoon, it became permissible for him to look at her?
Then at sunset, it became harâm for him to look at that woman; but at night, it became halâl for him to look at her?
Then at midnight, it became harâm for him to look at her; but at dawn, it became halâl for him to do so?”
Yahya bin Aktham said, “By Allâh! I do not know the answer to this question. We would, however, benefit from your answer.”
The Imam explained the answer as follows: “At dawn, the woman was the slave of someone else; however, by sunrise, the man had already bought her for himself and so it became halâl for him to look at her.
“At noon, he made her free, and so she became harâm for him; but by afternoon, he had married her, so she became halâl for him.
“At sunset, he did zihâr by which one’s wife becomes harâm for a person; but by night time he paid the penalty for zihar, and so she became halâl for him again.
“At midnight, he divorced her; but by next morning, he revoked his divorce, and so she became halâl for him.”
Thus the ten year old Imam, from the descendants of ‘Ali and Fâtimah, proved to the caliph and his entourage that God had endowed them with the knowledge to guide the Muslim ummah as the Prophet had truly said,
“Do not try to teach them, because they are not in need of your teaching.”
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ
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