Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Muhammad al-Hadi, known as Imam Hadi, was the son of Imam al-Jawad (AS) and he was the tenth of the twelve Shia Imams. He is also known as al-Naqi. He was the Imam (leader) of Shia Muslims between 220/835 and 254/868 for a period of thirty-four years.
Many years of the imamate (leadership) of Imam Hadi (AS) took place in Samarra under direct surveillance of the rulers of his time. His imamate was contemporary with the rule of some Abbasid caliphs including al-Mutawakkil al-Abbasi.
Different hadiths are narrated from Imam Hadi (AS) about ideological issues, interpretation of the Quran, fiqh, and ethics. Al-Ziyarah al-Jami’a al-Kabira which includes Shia ideological concepts about the Imams, is narrated from Imam Hadi (AS).
Imam Hadi (AS) was in contact with Shia Muslims and managed their affairs through the System of Wikala. Some of his students and companions are as follows: Abd al-Azim al-Hasani, Uthman ibn Sa’id, Ayyub ibn Nuh, al-Hasan ibn Rashid and al-Hasan al-Utrush.
His shrine is in Samarra. The dome and some minarets of his shrine were destroyed by terrorist attacks in 2006; and again, in 2008 other minarets of the shrine were also destroyed by another bombing. The shrine has been reconstructed from 2010 to 2015 by Iran.
Source: wikishia.net
