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XLVII.—THE SHI′AʾHS.
THe Shíaʾhs (lit. "followers") are the followers of ʾAli, the husband of Fatimah, the daughter of Muhammad. They maintain that ʾAli was the first legitimate Khalífa, or successor to Muhammad, and therefore reject Abu Bakr, Omar, and Osmán, the first three Khalifs, as usurpers. According to the Shíʾahs the Muslim religion consists of a knowledge of the true Imám, or leader, and the differences amongst themselves with reference to this question have given rise to endless divisions. Of the proverbial seventy-three sects of Islam, not fewer than thirty-two are assigned to the Shíaʾhs.
The twelve Imáms, according to the Shíaʾhs, are as follows:—
1. Hazrat ʾAli.
2. Hasan.
3. Husain.
4. Zain-ul-ʾAbid-dín.
5. Muhammad Báqr.
