The Split
with the definition of the third kind of Imam in mind, it is easy to see that the ‘election’ of Ali as successor of the Prophet (pbuh) had nothing to do with politics. For the Shia, there could be no election of an Imam, because an Imam is divinely appointed, just as prophets are.
However, after the death of the Prophet (pbuh) there was a clear difference amongst the people. A group of men hastily gathered at a place outside of Madinah called Saqifa, where they began to debate on who should take over leadership over the Muslim territories. By this time, Islam had spread over a large area and power over this would be a great achievement.
While they were doing this, Ali and a handful of his followers were preparing the body of the Prophet (pbuh) for burial and mourning his loss. By the time the body was ready, Abu Bakr son of Abu Quhafa had already been chosen as the caliph. A majority of Muslims accepted him in the confusion that ensued as each tribe tried to maintain some influence in the new regime.
A small amount did not. This included Ali. In the early days, Abu Bakr and Umar bin Affan – who was instrumental in bringing the former to power – tried to force Ali to pledge allegiance to the new ruler, but he refused adamantly.
Again, this was not from a political motive, but because for an Imam to submit to an ordinary flawed human being would be a contradiction of the Will of God.
The people accepted Abu Bakr based on the claim that a caliph should be elected by the general public. However, when he died 13 years later, he personally named Umar as his successor and no elections were held for the second caliph who came to power.
Many people credit Umar with expanding the Muslim Empire, but a study of history shows that he was also responsible for much of the ‘Islam was spread by the sword’ reputation that Muslims have had to repudiate over the ages. His caliphate was dependent on Ali in many ways, because by his own admission he did not have a command of the laws of Islam and was unable to dispense justice without consulting Ali. He has been famously quoted as saying: “If it were not for Ali, Umar would have been destroyed.”
| Here's the follow-up discussion on this article: | View all related messages |
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Fatima Aly Jaffer's Shi'ite Islam topic, please visit the Discussions page.