Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad
al-Ṣādiq
Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq was a prominent 8th-century Muslim scholar, jurist, and the sixth Shia Imam, renowned for founding the Ja'fari school of Islamic jurisprudence and his teachings on imamate and taqiya.
Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq was born around 702 CE in Medina into the Banu Hashim clan of the Quraysh tribe during the Umayyad Caliphate. He was the eldest son of Muhammad al-Baqir and a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad through Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatima. Living through the transition from Umayyad to Abbasid rule, he maintained a policy of political quietism, focusing on religious scholarship and teaching. He is credited with significant theological contributions, including doctrines of nass, isma, and taqiya, and was a teacher to prominent Sunni scholars such as Abu Hanifa and Malik ibn Anas. His imamate lasted about twenty-eight years until his death in 765 CE, after which his followers split into Twelvers and Isma'ilis. He died in Medina, reportedly poisoned by order of the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur.
Significance
Reputation in tradition
- sahih muslim: 0
He is significant as a major transmitter and teacher in early Islamic scholarship, influencing many later scholars.