Glossary of Islamic & Arabic Terms

This glossary explains terms used throughout this vault that may be unfamiliar to non-Muslim or non-specialist English readers. Terms are organized alphabetically.

A'lam / A'lamiyyah (أعلم / أعلمية): "Most learned." The condition that a marja' should be the most knowledgeable jurist of his time. Taqlid of a non-a'lam is generally considered invalid.

'Adl (عدل): Divine justice — one of the five faith fundamentals of Shi'a Islam (Usul al-Din). The belief that God is just and does not act arbitrarily.

Ahl al-Bayt (أهل البيت): "People of the Household." Refers to the family of the Prophet Muhammad, especially Fatima, Ali, Hasan, Husayn, and the nine Imams descended from Husayn. They are revered as sinless and authoritative in Shi'a Islam.

Akhdh (أخذ): "Taking" — used in hadiths about taking religious knowledge or teachings from someone, distinct from taqlid.

'Aql (عقل): Intellect, reason. In Shi'a jurisprudence, reason is one of the four sources of law alongside the Qur'an, hadith, and consensus (ijma').

Ayah (آية, pl. Ayat): A verse of the Qur'an. Literally means "sign" or "miracle."

Bid'ah (بدعة): Innovation in religious matters — introducing new practices or beliefs not found in the original sources. Generally considered forbidden.

Faqih (فقيه, pl. Fuqaha'): A jurist; one who possesses deep understanding (fiqh) of Islamic law and can derive rulings from the sources.

Fatwa (فتوى, pl. Fatawa): A formal legal opinion or ruling in Islamic law issued by a qualified scholar (mujtahid or marja').

Fiqh (فقه): Islamic jurisprudence; the human effort to understand and derive God's rulings from the Qur'an, hadith, reason, and consensus.

Furu' al-Din (فروع الدين): "Faith derivations" — the practical rulings and acts of worship in Islam (prayer, fasting, khums, hajj, jihad, etc.), as opposed to the faith fundamentals (Usul al-Din). Also widely translated as "branches of religion" or "ancillaries of the faith."

Ghadir (غدير): Refers to the event of Ghadir Khumm, where the Prophet Muhammad is believed by Shi'a to have appointed Ali as his successor shortly before his death.

Hadith (حديث): A recorded saying, action, or approval of the Prophet Muhammad or the twelve Infallible Imams (in Shi'a). Together with the Qur'an, it is a primary source of Islamic guidance.

Hajj (حج): The annual pilgrimage to Mecca, one of the pillars of Islam, obligatory once in a lifetime for those who can afford it.

Halal (حلال): Permissible, lawful according to Islamic law.

Haram (حرام): Forbidden, unlawful according to Islamic law.

Hawzah (حوزة): An Islamic seminary, particularly in Shi'a Islam, where students study jurisprudence, theology, and other Islamic sciences.

Ihtiyat (احتياط): Precaution. In the context of taqlid, one of the three options for a Muslim: either be a mujtahid, practice precaution (ihtiyat), or imitate (taqlid). Often used in rulings as "obligatory precaution" (ihtiyat wajib).

Ijma' (إجماع): Consensus of scholars — considered one of the four sources of Shi'a jurisprudence.

Ijtihad (اجتهاد): The process of independent legal reasoning by a qualified scholar (mujtahid) to derive rulings from the Islamic sources.

Imam (إمام): In Shi'a Islam, one of the twelve divinely appointed, infallible successors of the Prophet Muhammad, beginning with Ali and ending with Imam al-Mahdi. Also used generically for a prayer leader.

Imamate (إمامة): The institution of the Imams; the belief that the Prophet Muhammad appointed twelve Imams to lead the Muslim community after him. One of the five faith fundamentals of Shi'a Islam.

Indhar (إنذار): Warning — used in the context of the Verse of Nafr (9:122), where those who have studied religion are to warn their community upon return.

Infallible (Ma'sum, معصوم): A person protected from sin and error. In Shi'a Islam, the Prophet Muhammad, his daughter Fatima, and the twelve Imams are considered infallible.

Isnad (إسناد): The chain of narrators who transmitted a hadith from its original source. Authenticity of a hadith is judged partly by the reliability of its isnad.

Istifta' (استفتاء, pl. Istifta'at): A query asking a marja' for a ruling on a specific issue, and the collected published answers of a marja'.

Jihad (جهاد): "Struggle" or "striving" in the way of God. Includes both the inner struggle against one's own lower desires and external efforts to establish justice.

Kafir (كافر, pl. Kuffar): One who commits kufr (unbelief) — rejection or denial of God's guidance. In the Qur'anic context, it can also mean one who conceals the truth.

Khawarij (خوارج): An early Islamic sect that rebelled against Imam Ali, known for their extreme literalism and willingness to excommunicate other Muslims.

Khums (خمس): "One-fifth" — an Islamic religious tax on certain types of income and wealth, paid to the marja' in Shi'a Islam for religious and charitable purposes.

Ma'ad (معاد): The Resurrection, the Hereafter. One of the five faith fundamentals of Shi'a Islam — belief in the Day of Judgment.

Ma'alim al-Din (معالم الدين): "Teachings of religion" — a phrase used in hadiths where people ask the Imams from whom to take the teachings of their religion.

Marja' (مرجع, pl. Maraji'): "Source of emulation" — the highest-ranking Shi'a jurist whose rulings are followed by those who practice taqlid. Short for Marja' al-Taqlid.

Marja'iyyah (مرجعية): The institution or status of being a marja'; the system of religious authority where the most learned jurist is followed by laypeople.

Mu'min (مؤمن): A believer — one who has faith (iman) in God and His guidance.

Mujtahid (مجتهد): A scholar qualified to perform ijtihad — to derive Islamic rulings directly from the original sources.

Muqallid (مقلد): One who practices taqlid — a person who follows a marja' without independently seeking evidence for rulings.

Murji'ah (مرجئة): An early Islamic sect that held that faith alone (without works) was sufficient for salvation, and deferred judgment of believers to God.

Nabi (نبي): A prophet — one who receives divine revelation, though not necessarily a law-bearing messenger.

Nubuwwah (نبوه): Prophethood. One of the five faith fundamentals of Shi'a Islam — belief in the prophets sent by God.

Qur'an (القرآن): The central religious text of Islam, believed to be the literal word of God revealed to the Prophet Muhammad.

Rahbaniyyah (رهبانية): Monasticism — the practice of withdrawing from worldly life for religious devotion, which the Qur'an says was invented by Christians, not prescribed by God.

Rasul (رسول): A messenger prophet who brought a new law or scripture (e.g., Moses, Jesus, Muhammad).

Rijal (رجال): "Men" — the science of evaluating the trustworthiness and reliability of hadith narrators, also called 'ilm al-rijal.

Risalah (رسالة, pl. Rasa'il): A treatise or manual; in the context of taqlid, a book published by a marja' containing his rulings on practical matters of worship and daily life.

Sahih (صحيح): "Sound, authentic" — the highest grade of hadith authenticity, indicating a reliable chain of transmission and text.

Shi'a (شيعة): "Followers" — the second-largest branch of Islam, believing that the Prophet Muhammad appointed Ali and eleven descendants as his successors (Imams).

Shirk (شرك): Polytheism — associating partners with God, considered the gravest sin in Islam. The collection argues that taqlid constitutes a form of shirk.

Sunnah (سنة): The tradition and practice of the Prophet Muhammad, recorded in hadiths, serving as a model for Muslims.

Sunni (سني): The largest branch of Islam, differing from Shi'a primarily on the question of leadership after the Prophet Muhammad.

Surah (سورة): A chapter of the Qur'an. There are 114 surahs of varying length.

Tafaqquh (تفقه): Deep understanding of religion — the process of striving to know and comprehend God's guidance from the sources. The collection argues this is obligatory for every Muslim, not just scholars.

Tafsir (تفسير): Exegesis, commentary on the Qur'an. A work of tafsir explains the meaning, context, and implications of Qur'anic verses.

Taghut (طاغوت): A tyrant, false deity, or anyone who transgresses God's boundaries and is obeyed without God's permission. Includes anyone who demands blind following.

Tahadhdhur (تحذر): Being on guard, showing caution — the response expected from people when a scholar warns them (see indhar).

Taqlid (تقليد): Literally "placing a collar around the neck" (from qaladah, necklace). In Islamic context, it means following a religious scholar (marja') without demanding evidence or attaining knowledge of the reasoning behind rulings.

Taqwa (تقوى): God-consciousness, mindfulness of God, piety. A state of being aware of God's presence and careful about one's actions.

Tawhid (توحيد): The oneness of God — the foundational principle of Islam that God is one, unique, and without partner.

Tawqi' (توقيع): A written reply or decree, specifically from Imam al-Mahdi during the period of occultation, responding to questions from his followers.

Thiqah (ثقة): "Trustworthy" — a term used in hadith evaluation to describe a reliable narrator whose transmissions are accepted.

Usul al-Din (أصول الدين): "Faith fundamentals" — the foundational beliefs of Islam. In Shi'a, these are Tawhid (oneness of God), 'Adl (divine justice), Nubuwwah (prophethood), Imamate (leadership of the Imams), and Ma'ad (resurrection). Also widely translated as "principles of religion," "roots of religion," or "foundations of faith." Taqlid in these is generally considered forbidden.

Usul al-Kafi (الكافي): One of the four main Shi'a hadith collections, compiled by Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni (d. 941 CE). It contains thousands of narrations from the Imams.

Wasa'il al-Shi'a (وسائل الشيعة): A major Shi'a hadith collection compiled by Shaykh Hurr al-'Amili (d. 1693 CE), organizing narrations by topic.

Wilayat al-Faqih (ولاية الفقيه): "Guardianship of the jurist" — a doctrine in Shi'a Islam that a just, qualified jurist may assume governance and political authority during the occultation of Imam al-Mahdi.

Zakat (زكاة): Mandatory alms-giving, one of the pillars of Islam. A fixed percentage of certain types of wealth given to specified categories of recipients.

Note: This glossary is specific to the context of this vault and the issues discussed within it, particularly the critique of taqlid from a Shi'a perspective.