al-Shia wa al-Tashayyu - Firaq wa Tarikh
- Author died
- 1407 AH
- Editions
- Idarat Turjuman al-Sunnah
al-Shia wa al-Tashayyu: Firaq wa Tarikh (The Shia and Shi'ism: Sects and History) is a polemical and heresiographical treatise on the historical development, doctrines, and sectarian divisions of Shi'ism by the Pakistani scholar Ihsan Ilahi Zaheer (d. 1407 AH / 1987 CE) .
Background and Purpose
After finishing his work on the Barelvi movement, al-Baraylawiyya: Aqa'id wa Tarikh, Zaheer initially gathered material to compose a study on the Isma'ilis . While drafting that work, he traveled to the United States on an invitation to lecture at Muslim student centers and gatherings, where discussions frequently turned to historical schisms in Islam and the origins of Shi'ism . Having already authored three earlier works on the subject—al-Shia wa al-Sunna, al-Shia wa Ahl al-Bayt, and al-Shia wa al-Qur'an—he decided to write this fourth book to provide a detailed, chronologically ordered history tracing the evolution of early political Shi'ism into a theological sect and documenting its internal schisms . Zaheer completed the text in Lahore on 30 Muharram 1404 AH / 6 November 1983 CE .
Structure and Contents
The book is organized into seven thematic chapters (abwab):
- Chapter One: Defines early Shi'ism (al-Tashayyu al-Awwal) and the initial Shia (al-Shia al-Ula), explaining the term's linguistic and historical origin as political support rather than a distinct creed, and framing the political disputes between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan following the assassination of Uthman ibn Affan .
- Chapter Two: Examines the Saba'iyya sect, its founder Abdullah ibn Saba', and his teachings and plots aimed at stirring internal conflict among Muslims .
- Chapter Three: Chronicles the infiltration of Saba'i elements into the camp of Ali, Ali's repudiation of their ideas, and an account of the Battle of the Camel (Waq'at al-Jamal) and the Battle of Siffin (Waq'at Siffin) .
- Chapter Four: Discusses the transformation of early political alignment into a distinct theological doctrine, al-Hasan ibn Ali's resistance to radical factions, the emergence of extremist branches, the martyrdom of al-Husayn ibn Ali, and the transition of Shi'ism from a political faction to a religious movement .
- Chapter Five: Summarizes the major historical Shia sects that arose across successive eras and during the lifetimes of ten descendants of Ali ibn Abi Talib, outlining their core beliefs .
- Chapter Six: Focuses on Twelver Shi'ism (al-Ithna Ashariyya or al-Imamiyya), addressing their doctrine of the Imamate, the qualifications demanded of the Imam, discussions surrounding the Twelfth Imam's existence and occultation, and the various sub-groups that branched out of Twelver circles .
- Chapter Seven: Traces the theological parallels and conceptual links connecting Twelver Shia doctrines to ideas attributed to the Saba'iyya and earlier Jewish traditions .
Method and Sources
Zaheer adopted the method of documenting Shia groups and doctrines exclusively from Shia primary sources, asserting that he did not ascribe any belief or sect to them unless it was explicitly recorded in their own literature . To avoid redundancy with his previous three books on Shi'ism, he omitted biographical notices for authors and figures he had previously profiled and avoided repeating earlier arguments, introducing fresh citations and historical evidence instead . In addition to cataloging sects, the work contains defenses of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ, specifically Uthman and Mu'awiya, against criticisms .
Editions
The work was issued in a single volume (416 pages) by Idarat Tarjuman al-Sunna in Lahore, Pakistan, which published its first and second editions in 1404 AH / 1984 CE .
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