Why do the Zaydis call Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq “Imam” ?
The question
Why do the Zaydis apply the title Imam to al-Ṣādiq while Zayd is also an Imam?
What are the grounds for our calling Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq an Imam, while Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq is an Imam and Imam Zayd ibn ʿAlī is also an Imam? How can there be two Imams at the same time—especially in light of the statement attributed to Imam Zayd to the Rāfiḍa: “An Imam who practices dissimulation… Go to him; if he says ‘I am the Imam,’ then he is the Imam,” as reported in the well-known narration among the Zaydis and others?
The answer
Imamate (imāmah) in the Arabic language means leadership or being a model to be followed. Ibn Fāris said: “Imam: anyone who is followed and put forward in matters. The Prophet is the Imam of the Imams; the caliph is the Imam of the subjects; and the Qurʾān is the Imam of the Muslims.” Thus, imāmah is a term whose meaning varies according to how it is used. When we say “the imam of prayer,” we do not mean the Imam of the Muslims; and when we say “an imam of misguidance,” we do not mean the just Imam of the Muslims. God, exalted is He, says:
{So fight the leaders of disbelief} [Qurʾān 9:12].
Likewise, when we say of Sībawayh that he is an imam of the Arabic language, this does not mean that he is the Imam of the Muslims.
Accordingly, when we apply the title Imam to scholars from the family of Muḥammad who are not the reigning, established Imams, it is used because they are followed for their knowledge, piety, and asceticism—an imam in knowledge, one whose example is followed in that regard—not because he is a legitimate, standing Imam with binding authority. For this reason, you will find that the Zaydis apply the title Imam to figures other than the reigning Imams, such as when we say: Imam al-Bāqir and Imam al-Ṣādiq. Be mindful of this.
As for the statement of Imam Zayd ibn ʿAlī—“an Imam who practices dissimulation”—addressed to those Rāfiḍa, it was meant as a reproach to them for lying about Imam al-Ṣādiq, speaking in his name, and claiming that he practiced dissimulation and said that Zayd was the legitimate Imam because he was his uncle. Imam Zayd ibn ʿAlī was astonished by this claim and said, in effect: you allege that he is an Imam, and you allege that an Imam practices dissimulation—meaning he conceals the truth and says the opposite of it out of deference to his uncle. Then by saying, “Go to him; if he says ‘I am the Imam,’ then he is the Imam,” he was forcing the liar into a position that would bind him and end the dispute—because he knew with absolute certainty that his nephew Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad would never say such a thing. How could he say it when he had already pledged allegiance to his uncle for the supreme imamate and had intended to go out with him to fight? Indeed, Imam Zayd said to him: “Our one who rises stands for our one who remains seated, and our one who remains seated stands for our one who rises. If you and I both go out, who will look after our households?” At that time, Zayd and Jaʿfar were the eldest members of their family among the descendants of Zayn al-ʿĀbidīn.
May God grant you success
al-Kāẓim al-Zaydī
Translation of Ustadh Kadhim Al Zaydi (May Allah reward him)