As for the Shī‘ah, the reports transmitted by any of their shaykhs can scarcely be trusted, so prevalent is lying among them. For this reason, the compilers of authentic hadith collections avoided them. Al-Bukhārī and Muslim therefore transmit ‘Alī’s hadiths only through members of his household—such as his sons al-Hasan, al-Husayn, and Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, and his scribe ‘Ubayd Allāh ibn Abī Rāfi‘—or through the companions of Ibn Mas‘ūd and others, such as ‘Abīdah al-Salmānī, al-Hārith al-Taymī, Qays ibn ‘Abbād, and their like. These men were truthful in what they narrated from ‘Alī, which is why the compilers of authentic hadith collections included their reports.

These two groups—the Khawārij and the Shī‘ah—emerged after the killing of ‘Uthmān. During the caliphates of Abū Bakr and ‘Umar, and the early part of ‘Uthmān’s caliphate, in the first year of his rule, the Muslims were united, with no disputes among them. Then, towards the end of ‘Uthmān’s caliphate, events occurred that brought about a measure of division. A group of troublemakers and wrongdoers rose up and killed ‘Uthmān, and the Muslims became divided after his killing.

When the Muslims fought one another at Siffīn and agreed to appoint two arbitrators, the Khawārij rebelled against the Commander of the Faithful, ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib. They broke away from him and the Muslim community, withdrawing to a place called Harūrā’. The Commander of the Faithful left them alone, saying: “You are entitled to this from us: we will not withhold your rightful share of the public revenues, nor will we bar you from the mosques.” He continued to leave them alone until they deemed the Muslims’ blood and property lawful: they killed ‘Abd Allāh ibn Khabbāb and raided the Muslims’ grazing herds. ‘Alī then knew that they were the group mentioned by the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace