Who Are The Shia

The Shia base their faith on the Qur’an, the Sunnah and the teachings of the Household of the Prophet (Ahlul Bait). The distinctive institution of Shia Islam is the Imamate and they believe that Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) religious leadership was passed on to his descendants, in the same spirit as the Quranic legacy where “Allah chose Adam and Noah and the family of Abraham and the family of ‘Imran over all people” (Q3:33).

The term Shia originated linguistically as Shīʻatu ʻAlī which means the party of Ali (RA). They have their historical roots in those who followed Ali, (SA) the Cousin and Son-in-law of Muhammad(PBUH) as his successor

There are three main branches of Shiis today: the Zaydis, (Fivers) the Ismailis (Seveners), and the Ithnā‘ashariyyah; (Twelvers). The Ithnā‘ashariyyah; are the largest group. They believe in twelve imams, beginning with Ali (SA) and ending with Muhammad al-Mahdi (SA), who went into occultation and is expected to return at the end of time to restore justice and equity on earth. The Ithnā’ashariyyah follow the Ja‘fari school of law codified by Imam Ja‘far ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq the sixth of the twelve imams.