According to rahyafte (the missionaries and converts website):
Author: Allamah Sayyid Muhammad Husayn at-Tabataba\’i
A consideration on the circumstances during that time makes it clear for every clear-sighted person that no matter how much the contemporary khulafa\’ and opponents of the Ahl al-Bayt (as) tried to torture and tyrannize the Imams (as) of Guidance and made the life difficult for their Shi\’ahs, the number of the followers of Islam increased day by day and their faith in Islam became stauncher. The Institution of khilafah was a wicked and filthy system in their views.
And this matter was an internal conviction which constantly kept the khulafa\’ contemporary with the Imams (as), in agony; and in fact rendered those khulafa\’ helpless and despicable.
After killing his brother al-Amin and becoming the khalifah, al-Ma\’mun, the 7th \’Abbasid caliph, who was also the contemporary of al-\’Imam al-Ridha’ (as), decided to relieve himself of this internal distress and constant anxiety and put an end to Shi\’ah faith by some means other than coercion and oppression.
The policy which al-Ma\’mun adopted in order to carry out this plan was to offer his succession to al-\’Imam al-Ridha’ (as) in order to defame the Imam (as) in the eyes of the Shi\’ahs by accusing him of entering the corrupt system of khilafah and to wash away people\’s minds the faith in the eminence and the immaculateness of the Imam (as). In this way, he thought, no distinction would be left out for the position of Imamah which is the basis of Shi\’i faith and the very foundation of this religion would be automatically collapsed.
The implementation of this policy would also bring another success, that is, it would stop the successive movements of Banu Fatimah which were pursued to overthrow the khilafah of the Abbasids; because when the Banu Fatimah would see the transfer of khilafah to themselves, they would naturally refrain from carrying out bloody uprisings. Certainly, after this plan was implemented, the killing of al-\’Imam al-Ridha’ (as) would not be a difficult task for al-Ma\’mun.
Al-Ma\’mun, primarily, invited the Imam (as) to take over the khilafah and after that he invited him to accept the succession. After al-Ma\’mun\’s accentuation, insistence, and finally threat, the Imam (as) accepted the succession conditionally, provided that he would have nothing to do with dismissals, appointments, and interference in high positions and matters.
In such a situation, the Imam (as) embarked on guiding the people and held discussions with men of different faiths and religions as far as he could. He also gave valuable statements and explanations concerning the Islamic sciences and the facts of religion (al-Ma\’mun was also excessively interested in religious discussions.)
The speeches delivered by al-\’Imam al-Ridha’ (as) on the principles of Islamic knowledge and sciences are equal in number to those delivered by the Amir al-Mu\’minin \’Ali (as) and exceed the number of speeches delivered by all the other Imams (as) in these fields.
One of the blessings of the Imam (as) was that he was presented with a large number of ahadith by Shi\’ahs, which had reached them through the Imam\’s reverend fathers (as), and among these under the direction of the Imam (as) some of the \”ahadith\” which were forged and fabricated by wicked people, were identified and eliminated.
When the Imam (as) travelled from Madinah to Marw as the \”successor of the khalifah\” he aroused an amazing enthusiasm among the people all through his journey, particularly in Iran. The people rushed from everywhere to meet him, eagerly surrounded him, and learned the teachings and precepts of Islam.
By the unprecedented and surprising attention that the people paid to the Imam (as), al-Ma\’mun found out that his policy was erroneous. In order to make reparation for his political failure, al-Ma\’mun poisoned and martyred al-\’Imam al-Ridha’ (as). Afterwards, the old policy of the khulafa\’ towards the Ahl al-Bayt (as) and their Shi\’ah followers was again pursued.
Source: www.imamreza.net
DUA: Allah please accept this from us. You are All-Hearing and All-Knowing. You are The Most Forgiving. You are The Most Relenting and repeatedly Merciful. Allah grant us The Taufiq to read all the 5 prayers with sincerity.
(Taken from: To Be Earnest In Prayers By Amina Elahi)
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