المعنى الاصطلاحي :

A deviant Shia sect whose members outspokenly believe in the leadership of ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him. They limit the leadership to twelve Imams who are infallible and immune to mistake, forgetfulness, and minor and major sins. They also believe in the doctrines of "raj‘ah" (the Return), "ghaybah" (the Occultation), and "taqiyyah" (precautionary dissimulation), along with others.

الشرح المختصر :

"Al-Imāmiyyah" (the Twelvers/Imamiyyah), also known as "Shia Imāmiyyah Ithnay ‘Ashariyyah", outspokenly claim that there was an explicit text indicating that ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, was the rightful leader and that he was worthier of the caliphate than Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Uthmān, may Allah be pleased with them. They were named "Al-Imāmiyyah" because they were mainly concerned with the issue of the imamate. Their title "Ithnay ‘Ashariyyah" is derived from their belief that twelve Imams were infallible, free from errors, forgetfulness, and minor and major sins. According to them, the last of these twelve is Al-Hasan al-‘Askari, who entered into a cave in Samarra. This group claims to love the family of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him. Other beliefs: 1. Divinely-inspired knowledge: They claim that everyone of their Imams received knowledge from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, which completes the Shariah, and that there is no difference between this Imam and the Prophet except that the Imam does not receive revelation. They say that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, entrusted those Imams with certain secrets of the Shariah so that they would be able to teach the people what fits their times. 2. The Occultation: They claim that there can be no time period in which Allah does not have a proof living on this earth, and that this is proven logically and textually. As a result, their twelfth Imam went into a cave and disappeared in there. They claim that he has a minor and a major disappearance, which is an absolute myth. 3. The Return: They believe that Al-Hasan al-‘Askari will return at the end of time, when Allah permits him to return. When he returns, he will fill the earth with justice, after it had been filled with injustice and oppression. 4. Precautionary dissimulation: They believe that it is a main pillar of the religion. He who leaves it is like a person who is negligent of prayer. It is an obligation until the Mahdi returns. A person who abandons it before he returns has left Allah’s religion and the religion of the Twelvers. 5. They believe in a bound copy of the Qur’an called the "Mus'haf of Fātimah". 6. They dissociate themselves from the three Caliphs: Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, and ‘Uthmān, may Allah be pleased with them. They describe them with the worst of attributes and curse many of the Messenger's Companions. They do not leave an opportunity without speaking ill of the Mother of the Believers, ‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her.

التعريف اللغوي المختصر :

"Al-Imāmiyyah": derived from "imām" (leader) or "imāmah" (leadership). It is an extremist Shia sect. They claim that ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, and his sons were the only rightful leaders.