Ali bin Hussain bin Ali bin Abi Talib (as), who is famous by the names Imam Sajjad (as) and Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (as), is the fourth Imam of the Shias. According to the famous statement, (he) was born in the year 38 Hijri1. You (as) received the opportunity to spend life with your grandfather Imam Ali (as), your uncle Imam Hassan Mujtaba (as), and (your) father Imam Hussain (as)2.
Sheikh Mufid has stated the name and lineage of his (as) mother as Shahrbano or Shah-zanan, daughter of Yazdegerd, son of Shahryar, son of Kisra3.
Your (as) Kuniyat is Abul Hassan, and among (your) titles, Zain-ul-Abideen, Sayyid-ul-Sajideen, Sajjad, and Zul-Thafnat are famous4.
The Imamate of Imam Sajjad (as) began in 61 Hijri with the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (as) and continued until the year 94 Hijri, thus your (his) duration of Imamate totals 34 years5.
According to historians, Imam Sajjad (as) was 23 years old during the incident of Karbala. Since you (he) were severely ill on the day of Ashura, due to which whoever intended to kill (him), seeing the intensity of the illness, would say that this illness is sufficient for his death. Thus, the Sustainer protected the Proof of God (Hujjat-e-Khuda) on earth6.
After Karbala, Imam Sajjad (as) delivered sermons in the court of Kufa and the mosque of Sham, in which he introduced himself, his father, and his grandfather to the people, and told them that what Yazid and his agents had propagated among the people is false, so that it becomes known that your (his) father was no Kharijite (rebel), nor did he want to spread discord among Muslims; rather, he traveled for the sake of truth and at the invitation of the Muslims. He wanted to uproot the innovations spread in the religion7...
Through the sermons of Hazrat Sajjad (as) and Zainab Kubra (sa), the people awakened, and signs of restlessness and rebellion began to appear in Sham, due to which Yazid ordered the release of the captives
When the captives of Karbala reached near Madina, Imam Sajjad (as) ordered Bashir bin Jadhlam to inform the people of the arrival of the looted caravan through his poetry, due to which Bashir came into the Prophet's Mosque and raised this cry:
يا أَهْلَ يَثْرِبَ لا مُقامَ لَكُمْ بِها
قُتِلَ الْحُسَيْنُ فَأَدْمُعي مِدْرارُ
اَلْجِسْمُ مِنْهُ بِكَرْبَلاءَ مُضَرَّجٌ
وَالرَّأسُ مِنْهُ عَلَى الْقَناةِ يُدارُ
O people of Madina! Now Madina is no longer worthy of your living, because Hussain (as) has been killed... So shed tears continuously; his holy body was without burial and shroud in Karbala, and your (his) holy head was paraded on the tip of a spear.
The people, in a state of lamentation and mourning, reached the caravan of Ahlul-Bayt (as), where Imam Sajjad (as) addressed the people8:
After the incident of Karbala, Imam Sajjad (as) lived for 34 years, during which he always tried to keep the memory of the martyrs of Karbala alive. Whenever cold water came, he would remember Imam Hussain (as) and weep9.
Worship
It is narrated from Malik bin Anas that Ali bin Hussain (as) used to perform one thousand rak'ats of prayer daily until he passed away from this world; for this reason, he is called Zain-ul-Abideen10.
Helping the poor
It is narrated from Abu Hamza Al-Sumali that Ali bin Hussain (as) would secretly carry sacks of food on his shoulder at night and deliver them to the poor, and would say: "Charity that is given in the darkness of the night cools the wrath of God." The marks of these sacks were visible on his back during the ghusl (ritual washing) of his dead body 11.
Knowledge
Sahifa-e-Sajjadiyya is a collection of the prayers of Imam Sajjad (as), which is also known as the Zabur (Psalms) of the Progeny of Muhammad (saww). In it, the expression of disavowal from Taghut (tyrants/idols), the worship of God, and the secrets of servitude are prominent12.
Martyrdom
The martyrdom of Imam Sajjad (as) occurred on the 25th of Muharram due to poison given under the orders of Walid bin Abdul Malik. His (as) shrine is located in the Baqi cemetery alongside the graves of Imam Hassan Mujtaba (as), Imam Muhammad Baqir (as), and Imam Jafar Sadiq (as). The age of the Imam (as) at the time of martyrdom was 57 years13.
In the end, this is the prayer: May He grant us the ability to keep the memory of Karbala alive like Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (as) and to observe the mourning of the Ahlul-Bayt (as) in the best possible manner. Amen.
1Al-Irshad, 1413 AH, Vol. 2, p. 137
2Manaqib Al Abi Talib, 1379 AH, Vol. 4, p. 175
3Sheikh Mufid, Al-Irshad, 1413 AH, Vol. 2, p. 137
4A'lam al-Wara, 1390 AH, p. 256
5Al-Irshad, Vol. 2, p. 138
6Al-Irshad, Vol. 2, p. 113
7Zindagani Ali bin Al-Hussain (as), p. 75
8Al-Irshad, Vol. 2, p. 122
9Bihar al-Anwar, Vol. 45, p. 149
10Al-Iqd al-Farid, Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah, Vol. 3, p. 114
11Zindagani Ali bin Al-Hussain (as), pp. 147-148
12Zindagani Ali bin Al-Hussain (as), p. 105
13Al-Ithaf bi-Hubb al-Ashraf, pp. 276 and 277