Being such an undeniably relevant topic at the moment, this book provides an un-biased and academic study of the development of Shi'a Islam. In this way, it would be well received by anyone wanting an in-depth academic study of the topic, from keen enthusiasts to academics.

The Sunni-Shi'a schism is often framed as a dispute over the identity of the successor to Muhammad. In reality, however, this fracture only materialized a century later in the important southern Iraqi city of Kufa (present-day Najaf). This book explores the birth and development of Shi'i identity. Through a critical analysis of legal texts, whose provenance has only recently been confirmed, the study shows how the early Shi'a carved out independent religious and social identities through specific ritual practices and within separate sacred spaces. In this way, the book addresses two seminal controversies in the study of early Islam, namely the dating of Kufan Shi'i identity and the means by which the Shi'a differentiated themselves from mainstream Kufan society. This is an important, original and path-breaking book that marks a significant development in the study of early Islamic society.

This book examines the development of Shi'i Islam through the lenses of belief, narrative, and memory.

Attempts to explain the bewildering events in the Middle East.

This book argues that ever since Iran’s Islamic Revolution in 1979, which established a Shia Islamic government in Iran, that country’s religious and political leaders have used Shia Islam as a crucial way of expanding Iran’s objectives in the Middle East and beyond. Since 1979, Iran’s religious and political leaders have been concerned about Iran’s security in the face of the hostility and expansionism of the United States and other western countries, and the threats from powerful neighboring Sunni leaders and countries. While Iran’s government has attempted to align itself with Shia Muslims in various countries, such as Iraq and Lebanon, against American and Sunni expansionism, the Iranian government has attempted to religiously nourish and politically mobilize those Shias as a matter of principle, not only because of the Iranian government’s desires to protect Iran from external threats. The book analyzes Shia Islam and politics in Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon which have among the largest proportional Shia populations in the Middle East and are vibrant centers of Shia intellectual life. The book's clear and jargon-free approach make it especially accessible for students and general readers who would like an introduction to the book's topics.

Shí‘ism or Shí‘a Islam is the second largest sect of the Muslim world. The central theme of Shí‘a theology is the position, rights, and qualities that the Imams of Ahlul Bayt possess. Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi starts with a brief discussion on the origin of the Shí‘a Islamic faith, and whether it was political in nature or religious. In Chapter II, he surveys the seIf-censorship exercised by Muslim historians at early as well as modern eras, and how events related to Shí‘ism were suppressed in order to appease the rulers. Chapter III expounds on how the Orientalists have dealt with the Ghadír Khumm event: either it is ignored or if quoted, then interpreted to safeguard the interest of the majority Muslims. S.M. Rizvi also discusses the literal and contextual meaning of “mawla" which has great bearing on the issue of Imãmat and khilãfat of ‘Ali bin Abí Tãlib. Chapter IV, he surveys the current dispute on the explicitness versus implicitness of ‘Ali’s appointment to the position of imãmate and Khãlifat. This is followed by a chapter on the concept of ‘Ahlul Bayt’ in the Qur’ãn and the sunnah. Chapter VI deals with the wilãyat, the position and authority of the Imam, and its scope from the Qur’ãnic point of view. The treatise ends with a discussion on the esoteric knowledge that the Prophets and the Imams possess and its relevance to their personal life.

The Charismatic Community examines the rise and development of Shiite religious identity in early Islamic history, analyzing the complex historical and intellectual processes that shaped the sense of individual and communal religious vocation. The book reveals the profound and continually evolving connection between the spiritual ideals of the Shiite movement and the practical processes of community formation. Author Maria Massi Dakake traces the Quranic origins and early religious connotations of the concept of walayah and the role it played in shaping the sense of communal solidarity among followers of the first Shiite Imam, Ali b. Abi Talib. Dakake argues that walayah pertains not only to the charisma of the Shiite leadership and devotion to them, but also to solidarity and loyalty among the members of the community itself. She also looks at the ways in which doctrinal developments reflected and served the practical needs of the Shiite community, the establishment of identifiable boundaries and minimum requirements of communal membership, the meaning of women's affiliation and identification with the Shiite movement, and Shiite efforts to engender a more normative and less confrontational attitude toward the non-Shiite Muslim community.