made unlawful for them (1). Allah has clarified this in Surat al-An‘ām, al-A‘rāf, Bara’ah, and other surahs. Hence it has become a hallmark (2) of the people of innovation that they introduce (3) some statement or practice, obligate the people to adopt it, coerce them into it, or (4) make loyalty hinge upon it and hostility upon abandoning it. Thus the Khawārij forged their doctrine, compelled the people to accept it, and allied or opposed others on its basis (5). The Rāfidah did the same, inventing their doctrine, compelling the people to accept it, and allying or opposing on its basis; and the Jahmiyyah likewise invented their doctrine, compelled the people to accept it, and allying or opposing on its basis—at a time when they possessed power during the rule of the three caliphs under whom the leading scholars were put to trial (6).
(1) In the ṭ edition: "yahrimū" (they forbid). This is a copying error.
(2) The original reads "ish‘ār" (notification). This reading appears in both the S and ṭ editions and is likely correct.
(3) The original reads "min iḥdāth" (from innovations). The text is coherent with the readings found in the S and ṭ editions.
(4) The ṭ edition adds "wal-mawāla" (and allegiance).
(5) The term khārijī (plural khawarij) designates anyone who revolted against the legitimately recognized imam—whether during the era of the Companions against the Rightly Guided Caliphs or later against their righteous successors (tābiʿūn)—and, by extension, applies to imams of every age. However, the name became specific to the first group that opposed the Commander of the Faithful ʿAli ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) at the Battle of Siffin. They comprised twenty factions united in declaring ʿAli, ʿUthman, the partisans of the Battle of the Camel, the adherents of arbitration, and anyone from the Muslim ummah who commits a sin to be unbelievers—condemning them in this world and consigning them to eternal punishment in the hereafter. The only exception were the Najdat, who held that a fāsiq (open sinner) is a disbeliever only insofar as he rejects his Lord’s grace. All these groups justified rebelling against a tyrannical imam, which led to numerous wars, as is well known. For further reading on this deviant sect, see:
• Maqālāt al-Islāmiyyīn by al-Ashʿarī, pp. 167–168
• al-Farq bayna al-Firaq by al-Baghdādī, pp. 72–73
• al-Tabsīr fī al-Dīn by al-Isfarāʾīnī, p. 45
• al-Milal wa al-Nihal by al-Shahrastānī, vol. 1, pp. 114–115
• al-Bidaya wa al-Nihāya by Ibn Kathīr, vol. 7, p. 304
Also see the author’s discussion of the Ḥarūriyya, p. 151.
(6) In the S and ṭ editions: "kāna" (it was).