Bohra Library

Imams

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Nabi-ullah Muhammad al-Mustafa

  • Birth: 12 Rabi al-Awwal, Year of the Elephant (53BH)/4 May 570 — Mecca
  • Tenure: Prophethood from 610 CE; Prophetic mission and leadership until 11 AH / 632 CE
  • Death: 12 Rabi al-Awwal 11/ 6 June 632 (aged 63)
  • Burial Place: Sacred Chamber (Hujra Mubarak), adjacent to Masjid al-Nabawi, Medina
  • Wives:
    1. Khadija bint Khuwaylid (his first and most loved wife as well as the first, or second, muslim),
    2. Sawdah bint Zam’ah,
    3. Aisha bint Abu Bakr (his youngest wife aged 6 at marriage and 9 at consummation),
    4. Hafsa bint Umar,
    5. Zaynab binit Khuzayma,
    6. Umm Salama,
    7. Zaynab bint Jahsh (She was the daughter of Umaymah bint ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib, the full sister of Abu Talib and Abdullah),
    8. Juwayriya bint al-Harith (She was taken after her husband was killed in the Battle with Banu Mustaliq),
    9. Umm Habiba (also known as Ramla, the half sister of Muawiyah),
    10. Safiyya bint Huyayy (she was taken after her father and husband were killed in the Battle of Khaybar),
    11. Maymunah bint al-Harith (a half sister of Asma bint Umays),
    12. Rayhana bint Zayd (taken as a concubine after the Siege of Banu Qurayza),
    13. Maria al-Qibtiyya (possibly a wife or concubine, mother of Ibrahim)
  • Kids:
    • Al-Qasim, from Khadija, died aged 3
    • Abdullah, from Khadija, died aged 4
    • Ibrahim, from Maria, died aged 2
    • Zaynab (claimed by Sunnis)
    • Ruqayyah (claimed by Sunnis)
    • Umm Kulthum (claimed by Sunnis)
    • Fatimah al-Zahra (b. 10BH, d. 11AH)
  • **12 Hujjahs: **They are listed as:
    • Abū Bakr
    • ʿUmar
    • ʿUthmān
    • Salmān al Farsi
    • Miqdād
    • Abū Dharr (Abizer)
    • ʿAmmār ibn Yasir
    • Abdullah Ibn Masʿūd
    • Zayd ibn Thābit
    • Ubayy ibn Kaʿb
    • Zayd ibn Ḥāritha, the adopted son of Muhammed
    • Ḥudhayfa
    • Among them: three deviated, nine remained steadfast
  • Baab: Khadija and Ali are both describes as the Baab of Muhammad
  • Other Names: Rasulullah; Rasul Allah; al-Mustafa; Ahmad; Habibullah; Nabi Allah; Khatam al-Anbiya; Rahmat al-lil-Alamin

Waliullah Ali ul Murtaza ibn Abu Talib

  • Birth: 13 Rajab 23BH/9 October 600 — Mecca
  • Tenure: 11–40 AH / 632–661 CE
  • Death: 21 Ramadan 40/ 28 January 661 (aged 63)
  • Burial Place: Imam Ali Shrine, Najaf, Iraq
  • Wives: Ali had 9 wives and several concubines. After his death, he left 4 wives and 19 concubines.
  • Kids: He is said to have had 27 to 33 kids.
  • 12 Hujjahs:
    • ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās
    • Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr
    • Ḥujr ibn ʿAdī
    • Abū al-Ṭufayl ʿĀmir ibn Wāʾil
    • Mālik ibn al-Ḥārith al-Ashtar
    • ʿUmar ibn al-Ḥumq al-Khuzāʿī
    • ʿAdī ibn Ḥātim al-Ṭāʾī
    • al-Aḥnaf ibn Qays
    • Ḥāritha ibn Qudāma al-Saʿdī
    • Muslim ibn ʿAwsaja
    • Ṣaʿṣaʿa ibn Ṣūḥān
    • Sharīk ibn Aʿwar
  • Baab: Fatima is usually described as the Baab of Ali
  • Other Names: Amir al-Mu’minin; al-Murtada; Haydar; Asadullah; Abu Turab; Waliullah

The Commander of the Faithful, peace be on him, had twenty-seven children, male and female:

  1.  Al-Hasan

  2. Al-Husayn

  3. Zaynab the elder

  4. Zaynab the younger, who was given the kunya Umm Kulthum. 5 Their mother was Fāṭima, the blessed, mistress of the women of the worlds, daughter of the master of those sent by Allāh and the seal of the prophets, the Prophet Muhammad. Among the Shi’a, there are those who mention that Fāṭima, the blessing of Allāh be on her, after the Prophet had a miscarriage with a son, whom the Prophet, may Allāh bless Him and His Family, had (already) named during her pregnancy as Muhsin.

  5.  Muhammad, who was given the kunya Abū al-Qāsim.

His mother was Khawla, daughter of Ja‘far b. Qays al-Hanafi.

  1.  ‘Umar
  2.  Ruqayya They were twins.

Their mother was Umm Habib, daughter of Rabī‘a.

  1. Al-‘Abbas
  2. Ja‘far
  3. ‘Uthmān
  4. ‘Abd Allāh
  5. Ruqaya, who is buried in Misr.

The four brothers were martyrs with Husayn on the plain of Karbala’. Their mother was Umm al-Banin, daughter of Hizam b. Khalid b. Dārim.

  1. Muhammad, the younger, who was given the kunya Abū Bakr.
  2. ‘Ubayd Allāh

Muhammad was martyred along Husayn on the plains of Karbala. Their mother was Layla, daughter of Mas’ood al-Dārimī.

  1. Yahya

His mother was Asma ̓, daughter of ‘Umays al-Khath‘amī, may Allāh be pleased with her. She was also the mother to Mohammad bin Abu Bakr

  1. Umm al-Hasan
  2. Ramla

The mother of these two was Umm Sa‘īd, daughter of ‘Urwa b. Mas’ood al-Thaqafī.

  1. Nafīsa
  2. Zaynab, the youngest
  3. Umm Hānī ̓
  4. Umm al-Kirām
  5. Jumana, who was given the kunya Umm Ja‘far.
  6. Umana
  7. Umm Salama
  8. Maymūna
  9. Khadija
  10. Fāṭima

These, the blessings of Allāh be on them, had different mothers. According to this group there were twenty-seven children of the Commander of the Faithful, the blessing and peace of Allāh be on him. Allāh knows and judges best.

1st Imam: Hasan ibn Ali

  • Birth: 15 Ramadan, 3 AH / 1 March 625 CE — Medina
  • Tenure: 40–50 AH / 661–670 CE
  • Death: 28 Safarul Muzaffar 51/18 March 671 (aged 46)
  • Burial Place: Jannat al-Baqi, Medina
  • Wives: Jaʿdah bint al-Ashʿath; Umm Bashir bint Abi Masud; Khawlah bint Manzur. He had 60 - 90 wives, and 300-400 concubines.
  • Kids: He is typically said to have 15 kids.
  • **12 Hujjah:
    • Aṣbagh ibn Nubāta
    • Jābir ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Anṣārī
    • Saʿīd ibn al-Musayyib
    • al-Qāsim ibn Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr
    • Ḥabīb ibn Muḥammad
    • Yaḥyā ibn Umm al-Ṭawīl
    • Yaḥyā ibn ʿUqba
    • Kumayl ibn Ziyād
    • ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sinān
    • Muḥammad ibn Ḥudhayfa al-Yamānī
    • ʿUtba ibn Rabīʿa
    • Yūnān al-Aslamī
  • Other Names: al-Mujtaba; Abu Muhammad; Sayyid Shabab Ahl al-Jannah

Al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī, Peace be on him, had fifteen children, both male and female:

  1. Zayd b. al-Ḥasan
  2. Umm al-Ḥasan
  3. Umm al-Ḥusayn

Their mother was Umm Bashīr daughter of Abū Mas‘ūd ‘Uqba ‘Amr b. Tha‘laba al-Khazrajī

  1. Al-Ḥasan b. al-Ḥasan

His mother was Khawla daughter of Manẓūr al-Faẓārī.

  1. ‘Umar b. al-Ḥasan possibly the same as Abu Bakr b. al-Hasan
  2. Al-Qāsim
  3. ‘Abd Allāh

Their mother was a slave-wife (umm walad). These three were martyred alongside Hussain.

  1. Abd al-Raḥmān b. al-Ḥasan

His mother was a slave-wife (umm walad).

  1. Al-Ḥusayn b al-Ḥasan, who was nicknamed the one with the broken tooth (al-athram)
  2. Talḥa b. al-Ḥasan
  3. Fāṭima daughter of al-Ḥasan

Their mother was Umm Isḥāq daughter of Ṭalḥa b. ‘Ubayd Allāh al-Taymī

  1. Umm ‘Abd Allāh
  2. Fāṭima
  3. Umm Salama
  4. Ruqayya

These were daughters of al-Ḥasan, peace be on him, by various mothers.

2nd Imam: Husayn ibn Ali

  • Birth: 3 Shaʿban, 4 AH /8 January 626 CE — Medina
  • Tenure: 50–61 AH / 670–680 CE
  • Death : 10 Muharram, 61 AH / 10 October 680 CE — aged 56
  • Burial Place: Imam Husayn Shrine, Karbala, Iraq
  • Wives: Shahr Banu; Layla bint Abi Murrah; Umm Ishaq bint Talhah; Rubab bint Imra al-Qays
  • Kids
    • Ali Zain ulAbideen and Sakina (Possibly the same person as FatimaKubra), from Sherebanu
    • Ali Akber, from Laylā bint Abī Murrah ibn ʿUrwah ibn Masʿūd al-Thaqafī, the maternal neice of Mu’awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan
    • Ali Asghaar and Ruqiayah, from Rubāb bint Imraʾ al-Qays
    • Fatima Sughra, from Umm Ishāq, daughter of Talḥa b. ‘Ubayd Allāh of Taym.
  • **12 Hujjahs:
    • Ṣudayr ibn Ṣayrafī
    • Muḥammad ibn Abī Zaynab
    • Jābir al-Kindī
    • Rasīl al-Fakhrī
    • Khālid ibn Muṭʿim
    • ʿAṭiyya ibn Bishr
    • ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUqba
    • Hānī ibn ʿUrwa
    • Ibrāhīm ibn al-ʿAlāʾ
    • Abū Ibrāhīm al-Hamdān
  • Other Names: Sayyid al-Shuhada; Abu Abdullah; al-Tayyib

3rd Imam: Ali Zayn al-Abidin ibn Husayn

  • Birth: 16 Shaaban 38 AH / 4 January 658 CE — Medina
  • Tenure: 61–94 AH / 680–713 CE
  • Death : 94 AH / 713 CE — aged 55
  • Burial Place: Jannat al-Baqi, Medina
  • Wives: Fatimah bint al-Hasan; Umm Abdullah
  • Other Names: Zayn al-Abidin; Zayn al-Sajidin; al-Sajjad; al-Zaki; Abu Muhammad

Fifteen children were born to ‘Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them.

  1. Muḥammad.

His kunya was Abū Ja‘far al-Bāqir and his mother was Umm ‘Abd Allāh, the daughter of al-Ḥasan b. ‘Alī b. Abī Ṭālib, peace be on him.

  1. ‘Abd Allāh
  2. Al-Ḥasan
  3. Al-Ḥusayn

Their mother was a slave-wife (umm walad).

  1. Zayd
  2. ‘Umar

(Both were born) from a slave-wife.

  1. Al-Ḥusayn the younger (al-aṣghar)
  2. ‘Abd al-Raḥmān
  3. Sulaymān

Their mother was a slave-wife (umm walad).

  1. ‘Ali - He was the youngest of the children of ‘Alī b. al-Ḥusayn, peace be on them.

  2. Khadīja

The mother of both of these was a slave-wife.

  1. Muḥammad the younger

His mother was a slave-wife.

  1. Fāṭima
  2. ‘Alīyya
  3. Umm Kulthūm

Their mother was a slave-wife.

4th Imam: Muhammad al-Baqir

  • Birth: 3 Safar, 57 AH / 18 December 676 CE — Medina
  • Tenure: 94–114 AH / 713–733 CE
  • Death: 10 ZhilHajj 114 AH / 12 February 732 CE — aged 57
  • Burial Place: Jannat al-Baqi, Medina
  • Wives: Umm Farwah bint al-Qasim ibn Muhammad; Umm Hakim bint Usayd
  • Other Names: Abu Jaʿfar; al-Baqir; Baqir al-Ulum

Abū Ja‘far, peace be on him, had seven children.

  1. Abū ‘Abd Allāh Ja‘far b. Muḥammad, peace be on them.
  2. Abd Allāh al Fatah b. Muḥammad, peace be on him.

Their mother was Umm Farwa, daughter of al-Qāsim b. Muḥammad b. Abī Bakr.

  1. Ibrāhīm
  2. ‘Ubayd Allāh

Both died young. Their mother was Umm Hakīm, daughter of Asīd b. al-Mughīra al-Thaqafī.

  1. ‘Alī
  2. Zaynab

Both were born of a slave-wife named Layla.

  1. Umm Salama

She was born of a slave-wife.

5th Imam: Jaʿfar al-Sadiq

  • Birth: 17 Rabi al-Awwal, 83 AH / 23 April 702 CE — Medina
  • Tenure: 114–148 AH / 733–765 CE
  • Death : 25 Shawwal, 148 AH / 17 December 765 CE — aged 65
  • Burial Place: Jannat al-Baqi, Medina
  • Wives: Fatimah; Hamidah al-Barbariyyah
  • Dais: Abu Sufyan; Halwani
  • Other Names: Abu Abdullah; al-Sadiq; al-Fadil; al-Tahir; al-Sabir

Abū ‘Abd Allāh, peace be on him, had ten children. They were

  1. Ismā‘īl
  2. ‘Abd Allāh al Aftah
  3. Umm Farwa

The mother of these (three) was Fāṭima, daughter of al-Ḥusayn b. ‘Alī b. al-Ḥusayn or Fatimāh bint al-Hussain’l-Athram ibn al-Ḥasan ibn Ali. Her mother was Asma, daughter of Aqil ibn Abi Talib.

  1. Mūsā al-Kazim
  2. Isḥāq
  3. Muḥammad

(all of these three were born) to a berber slave-wife, Hamidah

  1. Al-‘Abbās
  2. ‘Alī
  3. Asmā’
  4. Fāṭima

They had different mothers.

6th Imam: Ismail ibn Jaʿfar

  • Birth: Between 100 AH /719 CE, Medina
  • Tenure: 148–158 AH / 765–775 CE
  • Death : 158 AH / 775 CE — aged 48
  • Burial Place: Salamia, Syria or Jannat al-Baqi, Medina
  • Wives: Fatimah bint al-Husayn ibn al-Hasan
  • Kids: Muhammad ibn Ismail; Ali; Fatimah
  • Dais:
  • Other Names: Abu Muhammad; Ismail al-Wafi; Al-Mubarak, absolute Lord (az-azbab-i itlaq)

Most information on him is based on speculation until further texts have been translated

7th Imam: Muhammad ibn Ismail

  • Birth: Medina
  • Tenure: 158–197 AH / 775–813 CE
  • Death : 197 AH / 813 CE
  • Burial Place: Salamia, Syria
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Abdullah al-Wafi; descendants of the concealed Imam line
  • Other Names: Muhammad al-Maymun; al-Maymun; Muhammad ibn Ismail
  • Places of Interest: Masjid al-Nabawi, Medina; Salamia; Damascus; Kufa Mosque

8th Imam: Abdullah al-Wafi Ahmad

  • Birth: Salamia region
  • Tenure: 197–212 AH / 813–828 CE
  • Death : 212 AH / 828 CE
  • Burial Place: Salamia, Syria
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Ahmad/Taqi Muhammad; Ibrahim
  • Other Names: Abdullah al-Wafi; Wafi Ahmad; Abdullah ibn Muhammad
  • Places of Interest: Salamia; Damascus; Ahwaz; Samarra

9th Imam: Ahmad al-Taqi Muhammad

  • Birth: 174 AH / 790 CE
  • Tenure: 212–225 AH / 828–840 CE
  • Death : 225 AH / 840 CE
  • Burial Place: Salamia, Syria
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Husayn ibn Ahmad;
  • Other Names: Taqi Muhammad; Ahmad ibn Abdullah; Muhammad al-Habib; Abu al-Husayn
  • Places of Interest: Salamia; Damascus; Aleppo; Syrian Daʿwat centres

10th Imam: Husayn ibn Ahmad al-Radi

  • Birth: Syria
  • Tenure: 225–268 AH / 840–882 CE
  • Death : 268 AH / 882 CE
  • Burial Place: Salamia, Syria
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Abdullah al-Mahdi
  • Other Names: Radi al-Din Abdullah; Husayn ibn Ahmad
  • Places of Interest: Salamia; Damascus; Aleppo; Syrian Daʿwat centres

11th Imam: Abdullah al-Mahdi Billah

  • Birth: 260 AH / 874 CE
  • Tenure: 297–322 AH / 909–934 CE
  • Death : 15 Rabi al-Awwal, 322 AH / 934 CE — aged 61
  • Burial Place: Imam al-Mahdi Mausoleum, Mahdia, Tunisia
  • Wives: Several
  • Kids: Muhammad al-Qa’im; Abu’l-Qasim Muhammad; others
  • Other Names: Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi; al-Mahdi Billah; Abu Muhammad
  • Places of Interest: Raqqada Royal Palace; Great Mosque of Kairouan; Mahdia Great Mosque; Mahdia Palace; Ribat of Monastir; Sijilmasa; Ibn Hawshab’s Daʿwat centres in Yemen

12th Imam: Muhammad al-Qa’im bi-Amrillah

  • Birth: 280 AH / 893 CE — Salamia
  • Tenure: 322–334 AH / 934–946 CE
  • Death : 14 Shawwal, 334 AH / 946 CE — aged 59
  • Burial Place: Mahdia, Tunisia
  • Wives: Umm Habiba
  • Kids: Ismail al-Mansur; others
  • Other Names: Muhammad Nizar; al-Qa’im bi-Amrillah
  • Places of Interest: Mahdia Palace; Mahdia Great Mosque; Alexandria; Barqa; Susa; Mediterranean naval battle sites

13th Imam: Ismail al-Mansur bi-Amrillah

  • Birth: 302 AH / 914 CE — Kairouan
  • Tenure: 334–341 AH / 946–952 CE
  • Death : 341 AH / 952 CE — aged 37
  • Burial Place: Mahdia, Tunisia
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Maʿadd al-Muʿizz
  • Other Names: Ismail; Abu Tahir; al-Mansur bi-Amrillah
  • Places of Interest: Great Mosque of Kairouan; Susa; Mahdia Palace; Mahdia Great Mosque; Sijilmasa; Susa siege sites

14th Imam: Maʿadd al-Muʿizz li-Din Allah

  • Birth: 319 AH / 931 CE — Mahdia
  • Tenure: 341–365 AH / 952–975 CE
  • Death : 365 AH / 975 CE — aged 44
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives: Durzan; other royal wives
  • Kids: Nizar al-Aziz; Abd al-Qahir; Abd al-Rahman; Rashida; others
  • Other Names: Maʿadd; Abu Tamim; al-Muʿizz li-Din Allah
  • Places of Interest: Mahdia Palace; Kairouan Great Mosque; Giza; Fustat; Al-Azhar Mosque; Fatimid Palace complex; Bab Zuwayla; Cairo

15th Imam: Nizar al-Aziz Billah

  • Birth: 14 Muharram, 344 AH / 955 CE — Mahdia
  • Tenure: 365–386 AH / 975–996 CE
  • Death : 28 Ramadan, 386 AH / 996 CE — aged 42
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives: Durzan Umm al-Mustansir; other wives
  • Kids: al-Hakim bi-Amrillah; others
  • Other Names: Nizar; Abu Mansur; al-Aziz Billah
  • Places of Interest: Al-Azhar Mosque; Fatimid Palace; Bilbays; Damascus; Ramla; Acre; Fustat

16th Imam: al-Hakim bi-Amrillah

  • Birth: 23 Rabi al-Awwal, 375 AH / 985 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 386–411 AH / 996–1021 CE
  • Death : 411 AH / 1021 CE — aged 36
  • Burial Place:
  • Wives: Umm al-Walad; other wives
  • Kids: Ali al-Zahir; al-Harith; Sit al-Mulk
  • Other Names: Abu Ali al-Mansur; al-Hakim bi-Amrillah
  • Places of Interest: Al-Azhar Mosque; Dar al-Hikma; Fatimid Palace; Bab al-Nasr; Bab al-Futuh; al-Muqattam Hills; Cairo Observatory; Medina

17th Imam: Ali al-Zahir li-Izaz Din Allah

  • Birth: 20 Ramadan, 395 AH / 1005 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 411–427 AH / 1021–1036 CE
  • Death : 15 Shaʿban, 427 AH / 1036 CE — aged 31
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives: Several royal wives
  • Kids: Maʿadd al-Mustansir Billah
  • Other Names: Abu’l-Hasan Ali; al-Zahir li-Izaz Din Allah
  • Places of Interest: Al-Aqsa Mosque; Dome of the Rock; Jerusalem city walls; Al-Azhar Mosque; Fatimid Palace; Cairo

18th Imam: Maʿadd al-Mustansir Billah

  • Birth: 16 Jumada II, 420 AH / 1029 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 427–487 AH / 1036–1094 CE
  • Death : 18 Dhu al-Hijjah, 487 AH / 1094 CE — aged 67
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives: Rasad; other royal wives
  • Kids: Nizar; al-Mustaʿli; Abdullah; Muhammad; others
  • Other Names: Maʿadd; Abu Tamim; al-Mustansir Billah
  • Places of Interest: Al-Azhar Mosque; Fatimid Palace; Bab al-Futuh; Bab al-Nasr; Bab Zuwayla; Alexandria; Acre; Jerusalem; Haraz, Yemen; Dhu Jibla; Saʿdah

19th Imam: Ahmad al-Mustaʿli Billah

  • Birth: 467 AH / 1074–1075 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 487–495 AH / 1094–1101 CE
  • Death : 495 AH / 1101 CE — aged 26
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives: Several
  • Kids: al-Amir bi-Ahkamillah
  • Other Names: Abu’l-Qasim Ahmad; al-Mustaʿli Billah
  • Places of Interest: Al-Azhar Mosque; Fatimid Palace; Bab al-Nasr; Bab al-Futuh; Dhu Jibla; Sulayhid fortresses in Yemen

20th Imam: Abu Ali al-Amir bi-Ahkamillah

  • Birth: 16 Ramadan, 490 AH / 1097 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 495–524 AH / 1101–1130 CE
  • Death : 3 Dhu al-Qadah, 524 AH / 1130 CE — aged 33
  • Burial Place: Cairo
  • Wives:
  • Kids: Abu’l-Qasim al-Tayyib
  • Other Names: al-Amir bi-Ahkamillah; Abu Ali Mansur

21st Imam: Abu’l-Qasim al-Tayyib

  • Birth: 4 Rabi al-Thani, 524 AH / 1130 CE — Cairo
  • Tenure: 524 AH / 1130 CE onward
  • Other Names: al-Tayyib; Abu’l-Qasim Tayyib; Tayyeb

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