The great companion Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) reported:

“While I was sitting with the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and his family, he put al-Husayn (peace be upon him) on his lap and played with him, and then he, may Allah bless him and his family, said, ‘Jabir, a son will be born for him, and the son will be called ‘Ali. A caller will call out on the Day of Judgment: ‘Let Sayyid al-’Abidin (the chief of worshippers) stand up.’ So, his son will stand up. Then a son will be born for him, and the son will be named Muhammad. When you meet him, recite my greetings to him.’”(Wasilat al-Mal fi ‘Abd Manaqib al-Al, p. 7).

“Jabir proclaimed this tradition, and he also met Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (peace be upon him), and recited those greetings to him, and the latter was delighted about it.

“The historians have mentioned the Imam’s physical features and qualities as follows: “‘Ali ibn al-Husayn was brown, short, thin, and gentle. (Nur al-Abbsar, p. 36, Akbar al-Diwal, p. 109, Al-Sirat al-Sawi fi Manaqib Al al-Nabi, p. 192). When he became old, he became thin and weak. This is because he worshipped Allah constantly. Moreover, the tragedy of Karbala drowned him in sorrow and pain, for its terrors accompanied him until he met the Highest Comrade (i.e. Allah).”

Abu Ja’far Muhammad al-Baqir (peace be upon him) said of his father, “When ‘Ali ibn al-Husayn mentioned Allah’s favor towards him, he prostrated himself in prayer. (When he) read a verse with the prostration of the Book of Allah, the Great and Almighty, he prostrated himself in prayer. When Allah drove away from him a misfortune which he was afraid of, he prostrated himself in prayer. The marks of prostration were prominent on the parts on which he prostrated, so he was called al-Sajjad.” (Wasa’il al-Shi’a, vol 4, p. 977)

Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (peace be upon him) said, “One day I happened to see my father, I saw him (completely) immersed and (thoroughly preoccupied) in the prayers and with all the attention towards God. His color was faded and his eyes were sore and red due to weeping, his feet were swollen by (prostration) and legs, and knees had developed corns. I said humbly “Oh father, why do you loose your self control during the prayers and put yourself in such an inconvenience and discomfort. My father wept and said, “Oh son however and whatsoever amount of prayers I perform even then it is meager and very little as compared to the prayers of your grandfather, ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib.”

Imam Zain-ul-Abidin (A.S.), like his grandfather, was busy in cultivating land and palm date orchards. He offered two Rakat of prayer near each palm date tree. During the prayers he would get himself so absorbed that he did not have any attention towards anything except God. He traveled to Mecca, on foot, twenty times. And continuously guided and conducted people through the attractive melody of the Qur’anic verses.

Excerpts from The Life of Imam Zayn al-’Abidin by Baqir Sharif al-Qarashi.

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