Disagreement and Independent Reasoning Among the Imamiyyah’s Twelve Imams
Examining the Imamiyyah’s own sources
Disagreement and Independent Reasoning Among the Imamiyyah’s Twelve Imams
Ten documented cases, drawn from the Imamiyyah’s own canonical collections, in which one Imam’s ruling contradicts another’s — and what this means for the doctrine that the Imams inherited the Prophet’s complete knowledge.
A central claim of the Imamiyyah tradition is that each Imam, in succession, inherited the complete knowledge and understanding of the Prophet ﷺ — knowledge said to be free of error and immune to the disagreements that arise from ordinary human reasoning (ijtihad). Yet a careful reading of the Imamiyyah’s own most trusted sources — above all al-Shaykh al-Tusi’s Tahdhib al-Ahkam and al-Shaykh al-Saduq’s Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih — turns up numerous instances in which one Imam ruled one way on a matter of fiqh, and another Imam, transmitting through equally sound chains, ruled the opposite way.
Below are ten such cases, presented with their chains and references exactly as recorded. They range from the mundane (how many buckets must be drawn from a well that an animal has died in) to the foundational (whether mixed water removes ritual impurity, whether the Friday ghusl is obligatory). Taken together, they pose a direct question to the Imamiyyah’s own theological premise.
Ten cases of disagreement
Case 1 of 10 — Purification
The well in which a cat has died: how much water must be drawn?
Imam al-Baqir
Seven buckets should be drawn. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from ‘Amr ibn Yazid, who said that ‘Amr ibn Sa’id ibn Hilal told him: he asked Abu Ja’far about what falls into the well — a mouse, a cat, up to a sheep — and he said seven buckets for all of that, until reaching the donkey and the camel, for which he said a kurr of water.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/235
Imam al-Sadiq
Twenty, thirty, or forty buckets should be drawn. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from al-Qasim, from ‘Ali, who asked Abu ‘Abdillah about a mouse falling into a well — he said seven buckets; about a bird or chicken — seven buckets; but for a cat, twenty, thirty, or forty buckets, and likewise for a dog.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/235
Case 2 of 10 — Purification
The well in which a gecko has died: must water be drawn at all?
Imam al-Baqir
Nothing need be drawn; the water need only be stirred with the bucket. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi: Jabir ibn Yazid al-Ju’fi asked Abu Ja’far about a gecko (sam abras) in water, and he said it is nothing — stir the water with the bucket.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/245
Imam al-Sadiq
Three buckets should be drawn from it. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Mu’awiya ibn ‘Ammar, who asked Abu ‘Abdillah about a mouse and a gecko falling into a well — he said three buckets should be drawn from it.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/245
Case 3 of 10 — Purification
Does mixed (non-pure) water remove ritual impurity?
Imam al-Sadiq
Mixed water does not remove ritual impurity. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Abu Basir, from Abu ‘Abdillah: regarding a man who has milk with him, should he perform ablution with it for prayer? He said no — it is only water or earth that may be used.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/188
Imam al-Rida
Mixed water does remove ritual impurity. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Yunus, from Abu al-Hasan: he was asked whether a man who washes with rosewater may perform ablution with it for prayer — he said there is no harm in that. The author notes that al-Shaykh al-Saduq adopted this view, ruling that there is no harm in ablution, the ritual bath after janaba, or using a toothstick, with rosewater.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/218; Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, 1/6
Case 4 of 10 — Ablution (wudu’)
Does wiping with the fingers alone suffice for the feet, without the palm?
Imam al-Baqir
The fingers suffice. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Zurara and Bukayr, the sons of A’yan, from Abu Ja’far: in wiping, one wipes over the sandals without putting a hand under the strap, and wiping with something from the head or from the feet — between the two ankles to the tips of the toes — suffices.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/90
Imam al-Rida
The fingers do not suffice. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Abi Nasr, from Abu al-Hasan al-Rida: asked how the wiping of the two feet is done, he placed his palm on the toes and wiped up to the ankles on the top of the foot. Asked whether two fingers alone would do, he said no — only with the whole palm.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/91
Case 5 of 10 — Ablution (wudu’)
Must fresh water be taken anew to wipe the head and feet?
Imam al-Baqir
He does not take fresh water. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Abu ‘Ubayda al-Hadhdha’, who performed ablution for Abu Ja’far at Muzdalifa: a palmful washed the face, a palmful the right forearm, a palmful the left forearm, and then he wiped his head and feet with the remaining moisture.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/58
Imam al-Rida
It does not suffice unless fresh water is taken. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Mu’ammar ibn Khallad, who asked Abu al-Hasan whether wiping the feet with the remaining moisture from the head suffices — he gestured no. Asked whether fresh water was then required, he gestured yes.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/59
Case 6 of 10 — Ritual bath (ghusl)
Is the Friday ghusl obligatory or merely recommended?
Imam al-Kazim
The Friday ghusl is a recommended practice (sunna), not obligatory. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from ‘Ali ibn Yaqtin, who asked Abu al-Hasan about the ghusl for Friday and for the two Eid festivals — he said it is sunna, not obligation.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/112
Imam al-Rida
The Friday ghusl is obligatory. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, from ‘Abdullah ibn al-Mughira, from Abu al-Hasan al-Rida: asked about the Friday ghusl, he said it is obligatory upon every male and female, whether slave or free.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/111
Case 7 of 10 — Menstruation and prayer
Must a menstruating woman perform ablution before every prayer time?
Imam al-Baqir
It is obligatory upon her. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Zurara, from Abu Ja’far: a menstruating woman may not pray, but she must perform ablution at the time of each prayer, then sit in a pure place to remember, glorify, and praise God for the duration of her [usual] prayer, before attending to her affairs.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/159
Imam al-Sadiq
It is merely recommended for her. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, from Zayd al-Shahham, who heard Abu ‘Abdillah say it is fitting for a menstruating woman to perform ablution at each prayer time, then face the qibla and remember God for the duration she would have prayed.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/159
Case 8 of 10 — Preparation of the deceased
Is ablution (wudu’) performed for the deceased before the ritual bath?
Imam al-Baqir
Ablution is not performed for the deceased. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Muhammad ibn Muslim, from Abu Ja’far: the washing of the deceased is like the washing for major ritual impurity (janaba), and if the deceased had abundant hair, water is added and the wash repeated three times.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/447
Imam al-Sadiq
Ablution is performed for the deceased. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, from Hammad ibn ‘Uthman or another, from Abu ‘Abdillah: in every ritual bath there is an ablution, except for the bath after major ritual impurity.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/143
Case 9 of 10 — Preparation of the deceased
Is the deceased to be perfumed before burial?
Amir al-Mu’minin ‘Ali
The deceased is not to be perfumed. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Muhammad ibn Muslim, from Abu ‘Abdillah, who reported that Amir al-Mu’minin said: do not fumigate the burial shrouds with incense, and do not touch the dead with perfume except with camphor, for the deceased is in the state of one in pilgrim consecration (ihram).
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/295
Imam al-Baqir
The deceased is to be perfumed. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi: Ghiyath ibn Ibrahim reported from Abu ‘Abdillah, from his father, that he used to fumigate the deceased with aloeswood containing musk, sometimes placed fragrant embalming substances on the bier, and disliked that the censer be carried behind the deceased in the funeral procession.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/295
Imam al-Hadi
The deceased is to be perfumed. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Saduq: Abu al-Hasan al-Thalith was asked whether musk and incense may be brought near the deceased — he said yes.
Man La Yahduruhu al-Faqih, 1/153
Case 10 of 10 — Tayammum and prayer
One who finds water after praying with dry ablution, within the prayer time: must he repeat the prayer?
Imam al-Baqir
He does not repeat the prayer. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Hariz, from Zurara, who asked Abu Ja’far what if water is found after praying by tayammum, while still within the time — he said the prayer is complete, and no repetition is required.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/194
Imam al-Rida
He must repeat the prayer. Narrated by al-Shaykh al-Tusi, with his chain, from Ya’qub ibn Yaqtin, who asked Abu al-Hasan about a man who prayed by tayammum and then found water — should he perform ablution and repeat the prayer? He said: if the water is found before the time has elapsed, he performs ablution and repeats the prayer; if the time has elapsed, no repetition is required.
Tahdhib al-Ahkam, 1/193
“Did their Imams possess the knowledge of the Prophet, while disagreeing with one another — despite the claim that they were given his knowledge and his understanding?” — from the author’s closing reflection
What these disagreements mean
The question these ten cases raise is not whether scholars may differ — that is the ordinary condition of fiqh in every school. The question is whether it is coherent to hold, as the Imamiyyah do, that each Imam inherited the Prophet’s own knowledge and understanding in full, immune to the disagreements that arise from independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), while their own most trusted books record one Imam ruling one way and another ruling the opposite way on the same question, each through a sound chain of transmission. Does Amir al-Mu’minin’s reported statement that the family of the Prophet does not oppose the truth, nor disagree concerning it, sit easily beside this record? Only a little has been gathered here, out of much more available, for the sake of brevity.
Within the Imamiyyah tradition itself, two broad responses to this difficulty have emerged. The Mufidiyyah faction explains the disagreements through taqiyya — precautionary dissimulation — holding that one ruling is the Imam’s true position and the other was stated only out of necessity or caution. Yet in most of these ten cases, no hidden Mahdi has come forth to confirm which ruling is which, leaving the matter unresolved by their own admission. The Junaydiyyah and Qummiyyah factions take the opposite path: they affirm that these are genuine disagreements arising from ijtihad and differing opinions among the Imams, and they criticize the Mufidiyyah for having concealed reports that permit such reasoning, arguing that the doctrine of taqiyya itself is a departure from the teaching of the Prophet’s family.
Either way, the Imamiyyah’s own jurists have been unable to fully reconcile these cases, finding no way out except to suppose that their Imams misguided the community through contradictory rulings — yet is there any rightly-guided Imam who would misguide his community with false rulings? These are, in the end, disagreements drawn from within the Imamiyyah’s own tradition, and it is this that has left their scholars at a loss. The question of the Imams’ own stated ignorance on these points confronts the tradition directly: how can Imams said to oppose the truth, or to disagree concerning it, also be counted among those given the Prophet’s complete knowledge and understanding? On the Imamiyyah’s own foundational premise, then, the question stands open: do their Imams, so understood, truly deserve to be followed on this basis?
May God grant you success.
O God, send blessings and peace upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.