Any attempt to link the origins of Shiism to him must be...

Any attempt to link the origins of Shiism to him must be regarded as a sign of pure ignorance.” (6) In contrast to all the opinions reviewed so far, one group of scholars believe Shiism to have been first expounded by none other than the Prophet himself, (PBUHH), and that it was established in conformity with his command. Hasan b. Musa al-Nawbakhti and Sa’d b.

Abdullah write: “The party of Imam Ali (PBUH), was the first to emerge in the time of the Prophet, (PBUHH), and it became known as the Shi’ah (partisans) of Imam Ali. It was known that they favoured, Imam Ali for the leadership of the community and that they were his devoted companions. Al-Miqdad, Salman, Abu Dharr and ‘Ammar belonged to this group, and they were the first to be called Shi’i.

The use of the word Shi’ah was not new; it had been applied in the past to the followers of some prophets such as Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, and ‘Isa.” (7) This view is confirmed by numerous Shi’i scholars, and there are many traditions to the effect that the Prophet, (PBUHH), applied the name Shi’ah to the companions and followers of Imam Ali, (PBUH).

When discussing the occasion for the revelation of this verse, “Certainly those who believe in the One God and who do good deeds are in truth the best people in the world.” ,(8) the Sunni exegeses (mufassirin) and traditionists (muhaddithin) report Jabir b. ‘Abdullah to have said: “One day I came to the presence of the Prophet (PBUH&HP), Imam Ali entered the room, causing the Prophet to remark, ‘My brother has come.

I swear by God that this man and his Shi’ah (supporters) will be among the saved on the Day of Resurrection.” (9) al-Tabari, the well-known Sunni exegete and historian, also remarks in connection with the same verse that the Prophet used the word Shi’ah when referring to the supporters of Imam Ali. There is then prophetic authority for designating the followers of Imam Ali, those who were particularly devoted to him, as Shi’ah.

We thus see that the term Shi’ah is essentially coterminous with Islam itself, for the Prophet himself used it. If we sometimes use the designation Ja’fari Shiism, this is on account of the exertions made by Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq to disseminate the culture of Islam and Shiism. The struggles for power that were taking place in his lifetime afforded him a suitable opportunity to confront the political conditions of his environment.