He also advised his followers to: “Mix with the people (ie.

He also advised his followers to: “Mix with the people (ie., enemies) outwardly, but oppose them inwardly so long as the Amirate is a matter of opinion” (Sadūq). The Imām always avoided controversy and conflict, saying: “Verily, when I hear a man abusing me in the mosque, I hide myself behind a pillar so that he may not see me” (Sadūq). On one occasion, Zakarīya ibn Sābiq was enumerating the Imāms in the presence of Imām Ja'far al-Sādiq.

When the Companion reached the name of Muhammad al-Bāqir, he was interrupted by the Imām who said: “That is enough for you. Allāh has affirmed your tongue and has guided your heart” (Kulaynī). The Imām also said that “Verily, diplomacy ( al-ri'ā' ) with a true believer is a form of shirk (polytheism); but with a hypocrite in his own house, it is worship” (Sadūq). These traditions are not saying that Shī'ite Muslims should not be sincere, and that they form some sort of secret esoteric sect.

They are simply saying that they should not be stupid and that they should only share their beliefs with a receptive audience so as to avoid provocation and enmity. Rather than promote division and conflict, Imām Ja'far al-Sādiq urged Shī'ites to pray with Sunnis: “He who prays with them standing in the front row, it is as though he prayed with the Prophet in the first row” (Sadūq).

The Imām also encouraged Shī'ites to treat Sunnis as their brethren: “Visit their sick, attend their funerals, and pray in their mosques” (Sadūq). Since the improper behavior of followers reflects poorly on their leader, the Imām told his followers to “Become an ornament for us, and not a disgrace” (Sadūq).

He also called upon his Shī'ites to encourage good-will among all Muslims, saying: “May Allāh have mercy on a person who inculcates friendship towards us among men, and does not provoke ill-will among them” (Sadūq). This Shī'ite spirit of Islāmic unity was shown by 'Allāmah Sharīf al-Dīn al-Musawī who ruled that the Shī'ites of Lebanon should celebrate the birth of the Prophet on the same day as the Sunnis.

Imām Khumaynī took this one step further, declaring the entire week, from the Monday to the Friday, as Islāmic Unity week. In twenty years of Islāmic activism, we have observed that works like al-Muraja'āt by 'Allāmah al-Mūsawī, which are calm, courteous, gentle, and convincing, are far more effective than caustic criticism.