Twelve Imams after the Prophet: After the Prophet (SAW), Shia Muslims believe that leadership of the community was given to twelve Imams, from the Ahlul Bayt (as). The first was Imam Ali (as). The last is Imam Muhammad al-Mahdi (ajtf), who is alive and in occultation — hidden from us by Allah's will — and who will return, with the permission of Allah, to fill the world with justice.
The twelve names: The twelve are:
- Ali ibn Abi Talib (as)
- Hasan ibn Ali (as)
- Husayn ibn Ali (as)
- Ali Zayn al-Abidin (as), known as Sajjad
- Muhammad al-Baqir (as)
- Ja'far al-Sadiq (as)
- Musa al-Kadhim (as)
- Ali al-Rida (as)
- Muhammad al-Jawad (as)
- Ali al-Hadi (as)
- Hasan al-Askari (as)
- Muhammad al-Mahdi (ajtf)
Known by heart from childhood: Every Shia Muslim knows this list by heart, often from childhood. Each Imam was a guide in knowledge, worship, and character.
Example
- Think of twelve lamps in a row, each lighting the next. The light is the same — it is the light of the Prophet (SAW).
- When a beginner asks, "Who should I follow after the Prophet?", the Shia answer is simple: the Ahlul Bayt (as), and the Twelve Imams.
Key Terms
- Imam (إمام) — a divinely guided leader from the Ahlul Bayt (as)
- Ithna Ashari (اثنا عشرية) — Twelver, one who follows the Twelve Imams
- Ghayba (غيبة) — occultation, the hidden life of the last Imam
- Mahdi (المهدي) — the Guided One, the awaited Imam
Quran or Hadith
Hadith al-Thaqalayn: "I leave among you two weighty things: the Book of Allah and my Ahlul Bayt (as). If you hold to them, you will never go astray." — to be checked.
Fresh diagram to be drawn: A family tree of the Twelve Imams, father to son, in Project Desk colours, with each name in English and Urdu.
- After the Prophet (SAW), Shia Muslims follow twelve Imams from the Ahlul Bayt (as).
- The first is Imam Ali (as). The last is Imam al-Mahdi (ajtf), who is alive and in occultation.
- The light is the same in each Imam — it is the light of the Prophet (SAW).