Buried : Madina, Saudi Arabia.

The Holy Imam (A) was the eldest child of Imam Ali (A) and Bibi Fatima Zahra (A). When the Holy Prophet (S) received the happy news of the birth of his grandson, he came at once to his beloved daughter's house. He took the newly born baby in his arms and recited the Adhaan in its right ear and the Iqamah in its left ear. Then, in accordance with the command of Allah, he named the child Hasan.

The Holy Imam (A) spent the first seven years of his life under the care and guidance of his grandfather, the Holy Prophet (S). This early training made the Holy Imam (A) outstanding in his knowledge, piety, tolerance, intelligence and courage.

The Holy Imam (A) and his brother Imam Husain (A) were very dear to the Holy Prophet (S). He used to carry them on his shoulders and once told the people, "Hasan and Husain are the leaders of the youth of Paradise."

Bibi Fatima (A) once brought her two sons to her father and said, "O Apostle of Allah, these are your two grandsons. Give them something as an inheritance." The Holy Prophet (S) replied, "Hasan shall have my form and my nobility and Husain shall have my generosity and bravery."

As a child, the Holy Imam (A) used to listen attentively to the verses of the Holy Qur'an as they were revealed. To the surprise of the Holy Prophet (S), his daughter Bibi Fatima (A) would often recite the exact text of a newly revealed verse before he personally told her about it. When he asked her how she knew, she informed him that the Holy Imam (A) had already taught her the verse when he heard the Holy Prophet (S) recite it in the mosque in front of the people.

He was quite wealthy and could have lived in luxury if he desired, but he preferred to spend his money to help the poor and needy. Twice in his life he gave away his entire wealth in charity and began all over again.

Once a stranger arrived in Kufa and asked a man working in a garden for directions. The man showed him the way and then invited him to share his meal. The stranger was touched by this offer and accepted. But when he was handed some flat bread to eat, he found that it was so hard that he could not even break it on his knee, let alone with his teeth. He tried dipping it into some water but that did not help. The gardener saw the stranger's discomfort and pointed him towards a guest house where free meals were given to all.

The guest house belonged to Imam Hasan (A), who himself welcomed the stranger and arranged a hot meal for him. After a while, the Holy Imam (A) saw that the stranger was eating one morsel and putting one morsel in a bag on his side. The Holy Imam (A) told him to eat peacefully, and if he needed extra food for his family, it would be provided before he left. The stranger said that he had no family but was putting some food aside for the kind gardener down the road who had only hard bread to eat. When he heard this, the Holy Imam (A) smiled and informed him, "That is my father Ali, the Caliph of the Muslims. He lives on simple food so that no needy subject may be embarrassed in front of him."

The Holy Imam (A) helped his father throughout his life until Imam Ali (A) died when the Holy Imam (A) was 37 years old. At this age he inherited his father and became the guardian of the Ahlul Bayt and the Shia. In his well-known will Imam Ali (A) appointed him as the next Imam.