History of Shia Islam

Part of a series on Shia Islam
Beliefs and practices Monotheism Holy Books Prophethood Succession to Muhammad Imamate Ismaili Twelver Zaydi Angels Judgment Day Mourning of Muharram Intercession Clergy The Four Companions Arbaʽeen Pilgrimage
Days of remembrance Ashura Arba'een Mawlid Eid al-Fitr Eid al-Adha Eid al-Ghadir Mourning of Muharram Omar Koshan
History Verse of purification Two things Mubahala Khumm Fatimah's house First Fitna Second Fitna Battle of Karbala Origin Persecution
Branches and sects Twelvers Ja'fari Akhbari Usuli Shaykhi Alawites Zaydi Shi'a Isma'ili Musta'li Tayyibi Alavi Dawoodi Sulaymani Hafizi Nizari Khoja Satpanth Batini Alevism Bektashi Bektashism and folk religion Qizilbash Alians Hurufism Extinct Shi'a sects
Ahl al-Kisa Muhammad Ali Fatima Hasan Husayn
Holy women Fatima Khadija bint Khuwaylid Umm Salama Zaynab bint Ali Umm Kulthum bint Ali Umm ul-Banin Fatimah bint Hasan Sukayna bint Husayn Rubab Shahrbanu Fatimah bint Musa Hakimah Khātūn Narjis Fatimah bint Asad Umm Farwah bint al-Qasim Sayyida Ruqayya bint Ali Sayyida Nafisa
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Shi‘a Islam, also known as Shi‘ite Islam or Shia, is the second largest branch of

The succession to Muhammad is an extremely contentious issue. Muslims ultimately divided into two branches based on their political attitude towards this issue, which forms the primary theological barrier between the two major divisions of Muslims: Sunni and Shi'a, with the latter following Ali as the successor to Muhammad. The two groups also disagree on Ali's attitude towards Abu Bakr, and the two caliphs who succeeded him: Umar (or `Umar ibn al-Khattāb) and Uthman or (‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān). Sunnis tend to stress Ali's acceptance and support of their rule, while the Shi'a claims that he distanced himself from them, and that he was being kept from fulfilling the religious duty that Muhammad had appointed to him. The Sunni Muslims say that if Ali was the rightful successor as ordained by God Himself, then it would have been his duty as the leader of the Muslim nation to make war with these people (Abu Bakr, Umar, and Uthman) until Ali established the decree. Shia claim, however, that Ali did not fight Abu Bakr, Umar or Uthman, because firstly he did not have the military strength and if he decided to, it would have caused a civil war amongst the Muslims, which was still a nascent community throughout the Arab world.^[9]

The event of Dhul Asheera

During the revelation of Ash-Shu'ara, the twenty-sixth Surah of the Quran, in c. 617 CE,^[10] Muhammad is said to have received instructions to warn his family members against adhering to their pre-Islamic religious practices. There are differing accounts of Muhammad's attempt to do this, with one version stating that he had invited his relatives to a meal (later termed the Feast of Dhul Asheera), during which he gave the pronouncement.^[11] According to Ibn Ishaq, it consisted of the following speech:

Abdul Muttalib, no one ever came to you before with anything better than what I have brought to you. By accepting it, your welfare will be assured in this world and in the Hereafter. Who among you will support me in carrying out this momentous duty? Who will share the burden of this work with me? Who will respond to my call? Who will become my vicegerent, my deputy and my wazir?^[12]

Among those gathered, only ʿAlī offered his consent. Some sources, such as the Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, do not record Muhammad's reaction to this, though Ibn Ishaq continues that he then declared ʿAlī to be his brother, heir and successor.^[13] In another narration, when Muhammad accepted ʿAlī's offer, he "threw up his arms around the generous youth, and pressed him to his bosom" and said, "Behold my brother, my vizir, my vicegerent ... let all listen to his words, and obey him".^[14] The direct appointment of ʿAlī as heir in this version is notable in that it alleges that his right to succession was established at the very beginning of Muhammad's prophetic activity. The association with the revelation of a Quranic verse also serves the purpose of providing the nomination with authenticity as well as a divine authorization.^[15]

Event of Ghadir Khumm

The hadith report of Ghadir Khumm has many different variations and is transmitted by both Sunnī and Shīʿa sources. The narrations generally state that in March 632, Muhammad, while returning from his Farewell Pilgrimage alongside a large number of followers and companions, stopped at the oasis of Ghadir Khumm. There, he took ʿAlī's hand and addressed the gathering. The point of contention between different sects arises when Muhammad, whilst giving his speech, gave the proclamation "Anyone who has me as his mawla, has ʿAlī as his mawla".^{[16][17][18][19]} Some versions add the additional sentence "O God, befriend the friend of ʿAlī and be the enemy of his enemy".^[20]

Mawla has a number of meanings in Arabic, with interpretations of Muhammad's use here being split along sectarian lines between the Sunnī and Shīʿa Muslims. Among the former group, the word is translated as "friend" or "one who is loyal/close" and that Muhammad was advocating that ʿAlī was deserving of friendship and respect. Conversely, Shīʿa Muslims tend to view the meaning as being "master" or "ruler",^{[citation needed]} and that the statement was a clear designation of ʿAlī being Muhammad's appointed successor.^{[16][21][22][23]} Shīʿa sources also record further details of the event, such as stating that those present congratulated ʿAlī and acclaimed him as Amir al-Mu'minin ("commander of the believers").^[20]

Caliphate of ʿAlī

When Muhammad died in 632 CE,

It was not until the murder of the third

The connection between the

Sindh region and Shīʿas or proto-Shīʿas can be traced to Hakim ibn Jabalah al-Abdi, a companion of Muhammad, who traveled across the Sindh to Makran in the year 649 CE, and presented a report on the area to the caliph. He supported ʿAlī, and died in the Battle of the Camel alongside Sindhi Jats.^[38] He was also a poet and few couplets of his poem in praise of ʿAlī have survived, as reported in Chachnama:^[39]

"Oh Ali, owing to your alliance (with the prophet) you are truly of high birth, and your example is great, and you are wise and excellent, and your advent has made your age an age of generosity and kindness and brotherly love".[40]

During the caliphate of ʿAlī, many Jats came under the influence of Shīʿa Islam.

Hujr ibn Adi al-Kindi^[43] in 660 CE, near Damascus

.

Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī

Main article: Hasan ibn Ali

Upon the death of ʿAlī, his elder son Ḥasan became leader of the Muslims of Kufa, and after a series of skirmishes between the Kufa Muslims and the army of Muawiyah, Ḥasan agreed to cede the caliphate to Muawiyah and maintain peace among Muslims upon certain conditions:^[44][45]

1. The enforced public cursing of ʿAlī, e.g. during prayers, should be abandoned
2. Muawiyah should not use tax money for his own private needs
3. There should be peace, and followers of Ḥasan should be given security and their rights
4. Muawiyah will never adopt the title of Amir al-Mu'minin ("commander of the believers")
5. Muawiyah will not nominate any successor

Ḥasan then retired to

Yazid and saw Ḥasan as an obstacle.^[46]

Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī

Main article: Husayn ibn Ali

Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī, ʿAlī's younger son and brother to Ḥasan, initially resisted calls to lead the Muslims against Muawiyah and reclaim the caliphate. In 680 CE, Muawiyah died and passed the caliphate to his son Yazid, and breaking the treaty with Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī. Yazid asked Husayn to swear allegiance (bay'ah) to him. ʿAlī's faction, having expected the caliphate to return to ʿAlī's line upon Muawiyah's death, saw this as a betrayal of the peace treaty and so Ḥusayn rejected this request for allegiance. There was a groundswell of support in Kufa for Ḥusayn to return there and take his position as caliph and Imam, so Ḥusayn collected his family and followers in Medina and set off for Kufa. En route to Kufa, he was blocked by an army of Yazid's men, which included people from Kufa, near Karbala (modern Iraq); Ḥusayn and approximately 72 of his family members and followers were killed in the Battle of Karbala.

Arba'een

Shīʿa Muslims regard Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī as a martyr (

Day of Ashura

.

Differentiation and distinction

Shia Islam and Sunnism split in the aftermath of the death of Muhammad based on the politics of the early caliphs. Due to the Shi'a belief that Ali should have been the first caliph, the three caliphs that preceded him, Abu Bakr, Umar, and Usman, were considered illegitimate usurpers. Because of this, any hadith that were narrated by these three caliphs (or any of their supporters) were not accepted by Shi'a hadith collectors.

Due to this, the number of hadith accepted by Shi'a is far less than the hadith accepted by Sunnis, with many of the non-accepted hadith being ones that had to deal with integral aspects of Islam, such as prayer and marriage. In the absence of a clear hadith for a situation, the Shi'a prefer the sayings and actions of the Imams (Muhammad's family members) on a similar level as the hadith of Muhammad himself over other ways, which in turn led to the theological elevation of the Imams as being infallible.^[48][49]

Division into branches

Ancestors and the family tree

Quraysh tribe

Abd Manaf ibn Qusai

Ātikah bint Murrah

Hashim

‘Abd al-Muttalib

Harb

Al-‘Abbas

ʿAbd Allâh

Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah

ʿAli bin ʿAbd Allâh

Uthman ibn Abu-al-Aas

Hasan al-Mûjtabâ

Abbasids )

Twelvers history

Main article:

Twelvers

Imams era

Occultation era

Ismaili history

Main articles:

Druzes

Seveners are already counted as the extinct Ismā'īlī sects.^[51][52]

See also:

Atba-i-Malak Vakil

Old Da'vat

See also:

Fatimid Empire

New Da'vat

See also:

Hashashin

Zaidiyya history

Main article:

Zaidiyyah

See also:

Rassids

Other sects

Alevis

Main article:

Alevi

Alawism

Main article:

Alawism

Shia empires

The following pictures are examples of some of the Shia Islamic empires through history:

Shia Rule

• 
  Buyid

  empire in 970
• 
  Extent of Shia rule under the Fatimids
• 
  Extent of Shia rule under the

  Uqaylids
• 
  Extent of Shia rule under the Safavid dynasty

Notes

1. ISBN 9781108423076
   , Shah Ismail pursued a relentless campaign of forced conversion of the majority Sunni population in Iran to (Twelver) Shia Islam...
2. ISBN 9781317159780
3. ^ Islam: Art and Architecture, Könemann, 2004, p. 501, Shah persecuted the philosophers, mystics, and Sufis who had been promoted by his grandfather, and unleashed fanatical campaigns of forcible conversion on Sunnis, Jews, Christians and other religious minorities
4. ISBN 9780452289598
   , Forced conversion in the Safavid Empire made Persia for the first time dominantly Shia and left a lasting mark: Persia, now Iran, has been dominantly Shia ever since, and for centuries the only country to have a ruling Shia majority.
5. ^ Chirri, Mohammad (1982). The Brother of the Prophet Mohammad. Islamic Center of America, Detroit, MI. Alibris ID 8126171834.
6. ^ Ali, Abbas, ed. (12 November 2013). "Respecting the Righteous Companions". A Shi'ite Encyclopedia. Ahlul Bayt Digital Islamic Library Project. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020 – via al-islam.org.
7. ISBN 978-1-312-54108-5. Abu Hatin al-Razi says, "It is the appellation of those who were attached to Ali during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah, such as Salman, Abu Dharr Ghifari, Miqdad ibn al-Aswad and Ammar ibn Yasir and others. Concerning these four, the Messenger of Allah had declared, 'The paradise is eager for four men: Salman, Abu Dharr, Miqdad, and Ammar.'"^{[permanent dead link}
   ]
   • Rasul Ja'fariyan (1996). "Shi'ism and Its Types During the Early Centuries". Al Seraj. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
8. ^ See:
   • Holt (1977a), p.57
   • Lapidus (2002), p.32
   • Madelung (1996), p.43
   • Tabatabaei (1979), p.30–50
9. ^ Sahih Bukhari
10. ISBN 0-8014-9568-7
    .
11. ISBN 978-0-87850-110-6
    .
12. ^ Razwy, Sayed Ali Asgher. A Restatement of the History of Islam & Muslims. pp. 54–55.
13. ^ Rubin (1995, p. 137)
14. ^ Irving, Washington (1868), Mahomet and His Successors, vol. I, New York: G. P. Putnam and Son, p. 71
15. ^ Rubin (1995, pp. 136–137)
16. ^
    the Imams, divinely guided leaders of the Shiʿi communities, sinless, and granted special insight into the Qurʾanic text. The theology of the Imams that developed over the next several centuries made little distinction between the authority of the Imams to politically lead the Muslim community and their spiritual prowess; quite to the contrary, their right to political leadership was grounded in their special spiritual insight. While in theory, the only just ruler of the Muslim community was the Imam, the Imams were politically marginal after the first generation. In practice, Shiʿi Muslims negotiated varied approaches to both interpretative authority over Islamic texts and governance of the community, both during the lifetimes of the Imams themselves and even more so following the disappearance of the twelfth and final Imam
    in the ninth century.
17. ^ Newman, Andrew J. Shiʿi. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
18. ISBN 978-0-19-515713-0
    . p. 40
19. ^ "From the article on Shii Islam in Oxford Islamic Studies Online". Oxfordislamicstudies.com. Archived from the original on 28 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
20. ^
    doi:10.1163/1573-3912_ei3_COM_27419
    .
21. ISBN 978-1-4928-5884-3. Archived
    from the original on 22 April 2016.
22. ^ "The Shura Principle in Islam – by Sadek Sulaiman". www.alhewar.com. Archived from the original on 27 July 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
23. ^ "Sunnis and Shia: Islam's ancient schism". BBC News. 2016-01-04. Retrieved 2021-08-14.
24. ^ "After the death of Allah 's Apostle Fatima the daughter of Allah's Apostle asked Abu Bakr As-Siddiq to give her, her share of inheritance from what Allah's Apostle had (p. 1) – Sunnah.com – Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". Archived from the original on 10 October 2017.
25. ^ "Lesson 8: The Shiʻah among the Companions {sahabah}". Al-Islam.org. February 2013. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017.
26. ^ "Chapter 3: State of Affairs in Saqifah after the Death of the Prophet". Al-Islam.org. 21 April 2016. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017.
27. ^ "Did Imam Ali Give Allegiance to Abu Bakr?". Islamic Insights. 8 December 2009. Archived from the original on 28 June 2017.
28. ISBN 0-920675-07-7
    pp. 35–36
29. ^ "The Succession to Muhammad" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
30. ^ Shaikh, Asif. Sahaba: The Companion. n.p., n.d. Print. pp. 42–45
31. ^ Peshawar Nights
32. ^ A list composed of sources such as Ibn Hajar Asqalani and Baladhuri, each in his Ta'rikh, Muhammad Bin Khawind Shah in his Rauzatu's-Safa, Ibn Abdu'l-Birr in his Isti'ab
33. ^ Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari, vol. 3, p. 208; Ayoub, 2003, 21
34. ^
    ISBN 0-87779-044-2
    , LoC: BL31.M47 1999, p. 525
35. ^
    ISBN 978-0-19-515713-0
    . p. 46
36. ISBN 0-85229-663-0
    , Vol. 10, p. 738
37. ISBN 0-85229-663-0
    , Vol. 10, p. tid738
38. ^ M. Ishaq, "Hakim Bin Jabala – An Heroic Personality of Early Islam", Journal of the Pakistan Historical Society, pp. 145–150, (April 1955).
39. ISBN 90-04-08551-3
    .
40. ^ Mirza Kalichbeg Fredunbeg, "The Chachnama", p. 43, The Commissioner's Press, Karachi (1900).
41. ^ Ibn Athir, Vol. 3, pp. 45–46, 381, as cited in: S. A. N. Rezavi, "The Shia Muslims", in History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian Civilization, Vol. 2, Part. 2: "Religious Movements and Institutions in Medieval India", Chapter 13, Oxford University Press (2006).
42. ISBN 90-04-08551-3
    .
43. ISBN 90-04-08551-3
    .
44. ^ ""Solhe Emam Hassan"-Imam Hassan Sets Peace". Archived from the original on 11 March 2013.
45. ^ تهذیب التهذیب. p. 271.
46. ^ Madelung, Wilfred (2003). "Ḥasan b. ʿAli b. Abi Ṭāleb". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
47. ^ Discovering Islam: making sense of Muslim history and society (2002) Akbar S. Ahmed
48. ISBN 9781849043977
    .
49. ISBN 0072442336
    .
50. ^ "Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population". Pew Research Center. October 7, 2009. Retrieved 2010-08-24. Of the total Muslim population, 11-12% are Shia Muslims and 87-88% are Sunni Muslims.
51. CIA World Factbook. Archived from the original
    on June 13, 2007.
52. ^ "Mapping the Global Muslim Population". Pew Research Center. 7 October 2009.

See also

• Event of Ghadir Khumm
• Shia–Sunni relations
• Battle of Karbala
• WikiShia

References

• Holt, P. M.;
  ISBN 0521291364
  .
• Lapidus, Ira (2002). A History of Islamic Societies (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  ISBN 978-0521779333
  .
• ISBN 0521646960
  .
• ISBN 0-87395-272-3
  .

External links

• Four Centuries of Influence of Iraqî Shî‘ism on Pre-Safavid Iran

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