Twelvers
Twelvers
Zayd ibn Ali
Category="Shi'a Islam" Twelvers or the "Ithna Asharia" (Arabic اثنا عشرية) are members of the group of Shi'as who believe in twelve Imams. The Twelvers are the largest Shi'a school of thought, predominant in Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon and Bahrain.Alternate names
The Twelvers are also known by other names, each connoting some aspect of the faith.- Shi'a, when this term is used it is usually in reference to the Twelvers since they are the "orthodox" variant of Shi'ism. Though in extended usage, it can be taken to refer to other groups as well.
- Jafari is always taken to refer to "the Twelvers" to the exclusion of the Ismailis, and the Zaidis ("the Fivers"). The term Jafari is used as the Jafari school of thought (madhab) and deduction of jurisprudence (Fiqh) was attributed to Jafar Sadiq who the Shi'a consider to be their 6th Imam. The founders of the Sunni Hanafi and Maliki schools of thought narrated Hadith from Imam Jafar Sadiq.
- Imami is a reference to the Twelver belief in holy and infallible Imams after the time of the prophet Muhammad. Though the Seveners and the Ismailis also accept the concept of Imams, this term is also used exclusively for the Twelvers.
Theology
Religious law, the Sharia
The Jafari derive their Sharia, or religious law, from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The difference between Sunni and Shi'a Sharia results from a Shi'a belief that Muhammad assigned Imam Ali to be the first ruler and the leader after him (the Khalifa). Moreover, this designation (according to Shi'a) was dictated by Allah (God). This difference resulted in Shi'a Muslims:- Following the Hadith from Muhammad and the 12 Imams.
- Not accepting the "examples", verdicts, and Hadith of Abu Bakr, Omar and Uthman, considered by Sunni Muslims to be the first three Caliphs.
- Attributing the concept of the Infallibility (masuum) to the Twelve Imams, or the Fourteen Infallibles (including Muhammad and his daughter Fatima Zahra), and accepting the examples and verdicts of this special group.
The concept of Imams and the Mahdi
The Shi'a Imams, the first of which is Ali ibn Abu Talib are viewed to be infallible. It is an important aspect of Shi'a theology that they are, however, not prophets (nabi) nor messengers (rasul) but instead carry out Muhammad's message. They are considered as superior as all prophets and messengers including the last one. Shia Muslims view all religions and groups that accept prophets or messengers after Muhammad to be heathen or heretical. They believe the last current Imam (12th Imam), Mahdi, is in hiding by the order of Allah (God) and will reappear by the command of Allah.Hussein's martyrdom
Hussein ibn Ali's martyrdom on the 10th of Muharram - known as the Aashurah - plays a significant role in Twelver theology. This day is annually commemorated with grief and sorrow; some participate in ritualised beating of their chests. This is known as Mätam. In most nations with significant Shi'a populations one can observe large crowds in processions grieving over Hussein's martyrdom.Some examples of Jafari jurisprudence differing from Sunni
(This list is not exhaustive nor representative of the Sunni/Shi'a dispute on religious jurisprudence)Declaration of faith
Both Shi'a and Sunni believe that anyone who declares in public; "There is no god but God (Allah), and Muhammad is his messenger" and believes in it is to be considered a Muslim. Though some Shi'ites add: "...and Ali is the servant of God, and the heir of the messenger (wali) of God."Accepting a scholar's verdict
The Jafari school of thought accepts and encourages the concept of taqleed or "imitation" e.g. that unlearned muslims choose a scholar of known virtue and knowledge and follow ("imitate") his rulings and verdicts in their daily life. The Muqlad is a person who spends years of studies of the holy Quran and the sunna's and the Imams sayings and deeds to come up with certain opinion based on those sources of knowledge. However, his verdicts are not to be taken as the only main of source of religious information and he can be always corrected by other muqaldeens - muqaldeen is the plural- of muqaled other muqaldeen which comes after him, that takes years or decades time gap- as the idea in talqeed is that verdicts are issued based on the latest researches and how to implement these researches into the current day today life aspects. Sunnis have no such practices like Jafaris.Prayer
There are minor differences in how the prayer ritual is performed among Sunnis and Shi'ites. During the purfication ritual in preparation of prayer (which consists of washing the face, arms, feet etc and saying of some prayers), the Shi'a view wiping the feet with wet hands as sufficient as opposed to some of the sunnis who consider complete washing of the feet necessary. During prayer, it is Jafari view that it is preferable to prostrate on earth. Hence many Shi'a use a small tablet of soil (often taken from a holy site) or wood during their daily prayers upon which they prostrate. In Jafari view the hands are to be held straight down during the standing position of the prayer, while the Sunni schools of thought (except for the some of the Malikis) hold that they should be folded. Similar to the Sunni view, the Jafari consider the five daily prayers to be compulsory, though the Jafari consider it acceptable to pray the second and third prayer and the fourth and fifth one after the other during the parts of the day where they believe the timings for these prayers to overlap.One-fifth tax
(Khums) There are differences in this regard between Shi'a Fiqh and the Sunni interpretation.Marriage
The concept of mut'a or "temporary marriage" is endorsed by the Jafari school of thought. The Sunni schools of thought reject it. Besides the mut'a issue, the Sunni and Jafari have similar rulings regarding the different aspects of marriage.It has many conditions that can be considered as pre-requisite, similar to that of permanent marriage.
Schools of thought within the Twelvers
There are three main schools of thought among the Shi'a Twelvers: Today, the Usooli school is overwhemingly the most predominant school among the Twelvers.
See also