ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Islamic Answer Meaning of Shi'a? the word "shia" in arabic means "follower". therefore, the followers of imam ali (a.), as an imam after the prophet (p.), were called "shia". shi'a consider the life of imam ali (a.) in total accordance with islamic teachings; he implemented the holy qur'an in his life. he was very close to the prophet (p.). he was fully aware of the holy qur'an and the teachings of the prophet (p.).

on one occasion he said, "i used to follow the prophet (p.) as a child who follows the parents". therefore, all muslims historians report that he was the most knowledgeable person on the holy qur'an and the prophet (p.). when ata, a companion of the prophet (p.) was asked who was the most knowledgeable person beside ali (a.) among the companions, he said, "i swear by god, i do not know anybody beside ali". see isabe vol :3 p 1104.

for these and other reasons, shi'a took imam ali (a.) as their leader for interpretation of the holy qur'an and prophet muhammad's (p.) tradition. wa assalam alaykum shi'a basic beliefs shi'a believe in five principles : tawheed (unity of god): the holy qur'an says, "indeed your lord is one. the lord of heaven and earth and what is in between ". (37:4-5) nabuwwa (prophethood) : the god has sent prophets to guide humans to the right path.

first of them was adam (a.) and the last one is muhammad (p.). the holy qur'an says, "o' prophet ! we have sent you as a witness who brings good news and warn evil and calls to allah's order". (33 :45) qiyamma (resurrection): the god resurrects people after death and rewards good people and punishes the bad doers. the holy qur'an says, " he is the one who created people and he will resurrect them. it is easier for him ".

( 30 : 27) whoever denies one of these principles would not be considered a member of muslim community. however, the following two principles distinguish the shi'a. whoever denies them would not be a shi'a, though he is a muslim. 4)' adl ( justice): the god is not in need of anything. so he does not treat anybody unjustly. only a needy person can be unjust. the holy qur'an says, "god does not treat people unjustly, but people treat themselves unjustly".

(10:44) imama (leadership) : the prophet (p.) always looked after the interest of islam and muslims. he could not leave his people without an appointed successor for leadership of the islamic society. the leader cannot be unjust.