Imam Baqir continued his father, Imam Sajjad’s efforts, to interpret the true Islamic teachings. The Imam was known as Baqir, which means the splitter of knowledge, and was given this title by the Prophet. The Prophet knew that the Imam would reveal and expand the secrets of the Islamic sciences and had great respect for him. Today, the Imam is also known as the founder of Fiqh, or “Islamic jurisprudence” in the Shia school of thought. Fiqh is the knowledge about Islamic laws according to the Quran and the teachings and practices of the Prophet. The Imam not only responded to the thousands of Fiqh questions raised by Muslims during his life, but also established the principles that are used in Fiqh to derive the Islamic laws, known as the Usul al-Fiqh. These principles are still used by scholars to interpret Islamic laws for newly emerged questions. Furthermore, there are many narrations available from the Imam on other Islamic sciences, such as the interpretation of the Quran, traditions of the Prophet, ethics, history, judicial affairs, medicine, and Ilm al-Kalam, which is about defending the principles of the Islamic faith against skeptics.
The Imam established an Islamic university to benefit hundreds of students who were interested in learning Islamic studies. The names of more than 460 of the Imam’s students are recorded in history. No one would visit Medina without attending the Imam’s lectures to benefit from his knowledge. Many of the Islamic scholars would sit by the Imam humbly to learn from his knowledge, similar to a child sitting in the presence of an honorable teacher. Many of the people who had benefited from the Imam’s knowledge were non-Shias, such as Abu-Hanifa, the founder of the Hanafi school of thought.
Many students came from all over the Islamic territory to Medina to benefit from the Imam’s knowledge, especially from Kufa, in Iraq, and Khorasan, in Iran. These students then travelled all over the Islamic territory. They played a key role in propagating the Islamic teachings and familiarizing the Muslims with the Imam. As a result, Khorasan provided the grounds for the followers of the Ahlul-Bayt after Kufa. It became the center for the emergence of the Abbasid uprising and the destruction of the Umayyads in the upcoming years.
Imam Baqir also had a few notable companions who greatly contributed in recording and spreading the Imam’s knowledge. Muhammad ibn Muslim is one of those who recorded 30,000 narrations from the Imam, and was known as one of the most knowledgeable scholars among the Shias. Zurarah ibn A'ayan was another notable companion and more than 1,200 narrations from Imam Baqir are narrated by him in the Fiqh books. Aban ibn Taqlib was a scholar whom the Imam had asked to sit in the Mosque of the Prophet in Medina and answer the people’s questions regarding Islamic laws. With this, the Imam began to connect with people through his representatives. This strategy was further developed by the next Imams and bec
