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An imam (Arabic: إمام, (Persian: امام)) is an Islamic leader, often the leader of a mosque.

The ruler of a country might be called the imam, for example. However, the capitalized term or The Imam (Arabic: الإمام) has important origins in the Islamic tradition for, especially in Shi'a beliefs. In first few centuries of Islam, it was used to refer to the Caliph in both Sunni and Shia religious text. It is also an honorific title; for example "Imam Abu Hanifa" could arguably be translated as "the honorable leader father of Hanifa."

Contents 1 Clerical "Imams" 1.1 Shi'a "Imams" 1.2 Sunni "Imams" 2 Zaidi Imams as rulers of Yemen 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

Main article: Imamah (Shi'a doctrine)

In the Shi'a context, Imam has a meaning more central to belief. The Shi'a believe that an Imam is someone who is able to lead mankind in all aspects of life. In addition, Shi'a believe that an Imam is a perfect example in everything. According to the Shi'a, an Imam is a leader who must be followed since he is appointed by Allah (God). Muhammad informed that the number of Imams after him would be twelve, as the compilers of Sahih Hadith have narrated it.

In Sahih Muslim it is related that Muhammad said: "The Islamic religion will continue until the Hour (day of resurrection), having twelve Imams for you, all of them will be from Quraysh." and also "He who does not know the Imam of his time dies the death of an un-believer."

Here follows a list of the Shi'a Imams:

1. Ali ibn Abi Talib (600–661), also known as Ali, Amir al-Mu'minin
2. Hasan ibn Ali (625–669), also known as Hasan al-Mujtaba
3. Husayn ibn Ali (626–680), also known as Husayn al-Shahid, also known as Sah Hüseyin
4. Ali ibn Husayn (658–713), also known as Ali Zayn al-Abidin
5. Muhammad ibn Ali (676–743), also known as Muhammad al-Baqir
6. Jafar ibn Muhammad (703–765), also known as Jafar al-Sadiq
7. Musa ibn Jafar (745–799), also known as Musa al-Kazim
8. Ali ibn Musa (765–818), also known as Ali al-Raza
9. Muhammad ibn Ali (810–835), also known as Muhammad al-Jawad (Muhammad at-Taqi), also known as Taki
10. Ali ibn Muhamad (827–868), also known as Ali al-Hadi, also known as Naki
11. Hasan ibn Ali (846–874), also known as Hasan al-Askari
12. Muhammad ibn Hasan (868- ), also known as al-Hujjat ibn al-Hasan, also known as Mahdi; believed to be hidden by Allah (Occultation).

Fatimah also Fatimah al-Zahraa daughter of Muhammed (615–632), she is infallible but not a leader.

See Imamah (Shi'a Ismaili doctrine) for Ismaili list of Imams

Part of a series on the Usul al-fiqh

Fiqh

Qur'an and Sunnah Taqlid (imitation) Ijtihad (interpretation) madh'hab (school of law) Minhaj (method) Qiyas (analogical reasoning) Urf (society custom) Islamic jurisprudence Ijma (consensus) Bid‘ah (innovation) Madrasah (school/seminary) Ijazah (authorisation) Istihlal Istihsan Risalah

Ahkam

Halaal — legal Wajib/Fard — obligatory, duty Mustahab — favored Mubah — neutral Makruh — disliked, abominable Haraam — illegal, prohibited Baatil — void, incorrect Fasiq — corrupt

Scholarly titles

Marja — ... Ulema Khalifa Mufti Qadi Faqih Muhaddith Mullah Imam Mawlawi Sheikh Punjabi Shaikh Ayatollah Mujaddid Maulana This box: view • talk • edit

The term is also used for a recognized religious leader or teacher in Islam, often for the founding scholars of the four Sunni madhhabs, or schools of religious jurisprudence (fiqh). It may also refer to the imams of the sciences related to Hadith or to the heads of the Prophet's descendants in their times. In other words, Imam Ali is a phrase used by both Shi'a and Sunni Muslims, though with different connotations^[1].

The Sunni sect does not have imams in the same sense as the Shi'a sect. The imam in the Sunni sect of Islam is the leader of prayers; the sermon is most often given by the Sheikh.

However, there are some people whom Sunnis call "Imams" who are not prayer leaders. They are not Imams in the Shi'a sense of the word, but they are those who started the four Sunni Madhabs. List:

Madhhab	Aqidah	Science of hadith	Ahl al-Bayt
Imam Abu Hanifa	Imam al-Ashari	Imam Bukhari	Imam Hasan al-Mujtaba
Imam Malik	Imam Abu Mansur al-Maturidi	Imam Abu Dawood	Imam Husayn
Imam Shafi'i		Imam Fakhr al-Razi	Imam Zayn al-Ābidīn
Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal		Imam Abu Dawood	Imam Jafar al-Sadiq
			Imam Zayd al-Shahid

an-Nasaf writes:

“

The Muslims cannot do without an Imam who shall occupy himself with the enforcing of their decisions, and in implementing their hudud (penal code) and guarding their frontiers, and equipping their armies, and receiving their alms, and putting down robberies and thieving and highwayman, and maintaining the Friday and 'id prayers, and removing quarrels that fall between people, and receiving evidence bearing on legal claims, and marrying minors who have no guardians and dividing booty[2].

”

In the Zaidi Shiite sect, Imams were temporal as well as spiritual leaders, who held power in Yemen for more than a thousand years. In 897, a Zaidi ruler, Yahya al-Hadi ila'l Haqq, founded a line of such Imams, a theocratic form of government which survived until the second half of the 20th century. (See details under Zaidi, History of Yemen.)

• Shia Imam
• Women as imams

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ Imamate: The Vicegerency of the Prophet referencing at-Taftazani: Sharh 'Aqa'idi'n-Nasafi, p.185.

• Shia Islam - Ask Imam
• www.ShiaCode.com
• Detailed description of the Shiite belief
• Graphical illustration of the Shia sects
• List of Sunni Imams
• The Imam Movie