Mu'tamid and Imam Askari (AS)

Like his predecessors, Mu’tamid was concerned about the Imam for his government for two main reasons. First, Imam Askari was the leader of the Shias, who did not accept the legitimacy of the Abbasid government. By this time, the Shias were large in number and were widespread in the Abbasid territory. Second, the Abbasids had received the news about the last Shia Imam, Imam Mahdi, who would establish justice on the earth. They feared Imam Mahdi for their unjust government. Thus, Mu’tamid, who wanted to closely monitor the Imam, ordered to imprison him. While in prison, the Imam’s condition and interaction with some Shia elders imprisoned with him remained under surveillance by the government through spy prisoners. The Imam once identified a spy prisoner to the Shia elders, and they confiscated the spy’s report to the Caliph.
A while into the Imam’s imprisonment, Mu’tamid released the Imam because he had to refer to him. A severe drought had hit Samarra, and Mu’tamid ordered the people to pray for rain. The Muslims prayed for three consecutive days, but it did not rain. On the fourth day, the Christians, including their leaders and monks, went outside the city to pray for rain, and it rained. Large drops of rain would fall from the sky every time one of the monks among the Christians raised his hands towards the sky. To the surprise of the Muslims, the Christians repeated their prayer the next day and it rained again. As a result of the Christian prayers, the need for water was fulfilled. This incident caused serious doubt among the Muslims about their faith, and some were even attracted towards Christianity. This unpleasant news forced Mu’tamid, the Muslims’ Caliph, to act. He ordered the release of Imam Askari from prison and brought him to his presence. He talked to the Imam about what had happened, and asked the Imam to save the faith of the nation of his forefather, the Prophet. The Imam told Mu’tamid to ask the people to leave the city for the prayer the following day. Mu’tamid responded that the people no longer needed water. The Imam replied that his intention was to remove doubts from the hearts of the people. The following day, the Imam and the people went outside the city. The Christians prayed for rain, and when a particular monk raised his hands towards the sky again, it began to rain. The Imam then asked to hold the hands and reveal what he was hiding in his hand. A small bone was found between the monk’s fingers and brought to the Imam. The Imam then wrapped the bone around a piece of cloth and asked the Christians to pray again for rain. This time when they prayed, it did not rain; instead, the clouds dispersed and the sky became sunny. The Caliph asked the Imam about the bone. The Imam responded that the bone belonged to a prophet, and that whenever the bone of a prophet is exposed to the sky, rain would fall. The Caliph was delighted by the Imam’s guidance and freed him with high regards. The Imam then asked for the release of hi