#7779;), and the other one is the existence of distinguished Shī‘ah ṣaḥābah such as ‘Abd Allāh ibn Mas‘ūd and ‘Ammār Yāsir. ‘Ammār was sent by ‘Umar there as governor and Ibn Mas‘ūd as Qur’an teacher. For many years, Ibn Mas‘ūd was busy teaching jurisprudence [fiqh] and the Qur’an to the people there.
We can observe the impact of the teachings of these distinguished men at the beginning of the caliphate of ‘Alī (‘a). The sermon of Mālik al-Ashtar when the people pledged their allegiance to the Imām shows the spirit of Shī‘ism among the people, when Mālik says: O people! This successor of the successors and heir to the knowledge of the prophets… is a person to whose faith the Book of Allah gives testimony and the Prophet to his being a dweller of paradise. He is the one the virtues about whom are perfected; with regard to his precedence in knowledge and merit, the latter ones and the pioneering ones have not cast doubt.
When ‘Alī (‘a) dispatched his son Ḥasan (‘a) and ‘Ammar to ask the assistance of the people of Kūfah in the battle against the Nākithūn [those who broke their allegiance] (in the Battle of Jamāl [Camel]), nine thousand men joined the ranks of the Imām even despite a person like Abū Mūsā al-Ash‘arī, the ruler there, who prevented people from assisting the Commander of the Faithful (‘a).
With ‘Alī’s (‘a) migration to Kūfah, this city had become the most important Shī‘ah-populated city up to the end of the third century AH. Dr. Sayyid Ḥusayn Ja‘farī thus says in this regard: Since the time when ‘Alī (‘a) transferred to Kūfah in 36 AH and even earlier than that, this city had become the main center of the movements, inspirations, hopes, and at times, coordinated struggles of the Shī‘ah. Inside and around Kūfah, tumultuous events that construct the early history of Shī‘ism took place. The events such as the preparation of the forces of ‘Alī (‘a) for the battles of Jamal and Ṣiffīn; the appointment and stepping down from caliphate of Ḥasan ibn ‘Alī (‘a); the uprising of Ḥujr ibn ‘Uday al-Kindī; the killing of Ḥusayn (‘a) and his votaries; and the Tawwābūn movement and the uprising of Mukhtār are among these events. Given this, Kūfah is the place of hopelessness, deprivations, and even treachery and failure in the attainment of goals of the Shī‘ah on the part of those who do not want to seen the descendants of ‘Alī in the stewardship of the Muslim society.
Although the killers of Imām al-Ḥusayn were Kūfans, the distinguished Shī‘ah at the time were languishing in the prison of Ibn Ziyād. Besides, with the martyrdom of Muslim and Hānī, the Shī‘ah were left without commander against a tough enemy such as Ibn Ziyād and had no match for his power. After the martyrdom of Imām al-Ḥusayn (‘a), however, the Shī‘ah came to their senses and launched the Tawwābūn movement and the uprising of Mukhtār.
Kūfah had been known for friendship and love of the Ahl al-Bayt (‘a) and enmity toward the Umayyads. Even Muṣ‘ab ibn az-Zubayr feigned love for the descendants of the Holy Prophet (S)in order to win the hearts of the Kūfans. As such, he married a daughter of Imām al-Ḥusayn (‘a). By the end of the first century AH, although there were then new Shī‘ah-populated centers, Kūfah was still considered the most important Shī‘ah-populated city. While advising his supporters during the initial stage of the uprising against the Umayyads, for example, Muḥammad ibn ‘Alī ibn ‘Abd Allāh ibn al-‘Abbās, the leader of the ‘Abbāsid uprising, said: “But (the people of) Kūfah and its districts are Shī‘ah of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib.”
During the second and third centuries AH, the uprisings of some Ṭālibīs also took place in Kūfah. Notwithstanding the existence of an important city such as Baghdad during the ‘Abbāsid period, Kūfah did not lose its political importance and the most noted uprising of the ‘Alawīs during the second half of the second century AH, i.e. the uprising of Ibn Ṭabāṭabā under the military commandership of Abū’s-Sarāyā was staged in the same city. As such, the Umayyads monitored Kūfah closely and bloodthirsty individuals such as Ziyād, Ibn Ziyād and Ḥajjāj would be designated to rule there. The rulers there were always supposed to be inimical to the ‘Alawīs, and in the event that a ruler like Khālid ibn ‘Abd Allāh al-Qasrī had little compassion for the Shī‘ah, he would immediately be dismissed and even be imprisoned.
Apart from its political aspect, Kūfah was also regarded as the most important Shī‘ah-populated city in terms of knowledge and the Shī‘ah culture was dominant there. The majority of students of the pure Imāms (‘a) were Shī‘ah of this city. Great Shī‘ah clans were living in Kūfah. They offered remarkable services to the Shī‘ah culture. For example, from the time of Imām as-Sajjād (‘a) up to the minor occultation [ghaybah aṣ-ṣughrā] men of the House of A‘yan were among the companions of the pure Imāms (‘a). Sixty prominent scholars of ḥadīth [muḥaddithūn] emerged from this clan. It had stalwarts such as Zurārah ibn A‘yan, Ḥamrān ibn A‘yan, Bakīr ibn A‘yan, Ḥamzah ibn Ḥamrān, Muḥammad ibn Ḥamrān, and ‘Ubayd ibn Zurārah—the same ‘Ubayd who went to Medina as the representative of the people of Kūfah after the demise of Imām aṣ-Ṣādiq (‘a) to dispel any skepticism regarding the matter of Imamate, before going back to Kūfah.
The House of Abī Shu‘bah was another great Shī‘ah clan in Kūfah whose forefather, Abū Shu‘bah, had narrated ḥadīth from Imām al-Ḥasan and Imām al-Ḥusayn (‘a). Najāshī claims that all of those narrations are reliable.
Similarly, the House of Nahīk is also one of the great Shī‘ah clans in Kūfah from which ‘Abd Allāh ibn Muḥammad and ‘Abd ar-Raḥmān Samarī belong.
In the mosques of Kūfah, particularly in its central mosque, ḥadīths of the pure Imāms (‘a) used to be taught there. Ḥasan ibn ‘Alī Washshā’, a companion of Imām ar-Riḍā (‘a), says: “I saw in Masjid Kūfah nine hundred people who were transmitting ḥadīths from Imām aṣ-Ṣādiq (‘a).”

d. Basrah
Baṣrah is a city founded by the Muslims in 17 AH simultaneous with the founding of Kūfah. Although the people of Baṣrah were known for inclination toward ‘Uthmān for supporting Ā’ishah, Ṭalḥah and Zubayr, at the same time that the Jamal [Camel] Army was in Baṣrah, the Shī‘ah there fought against it and a large number of them attained martyrdom. As narrated by Shaykh al-Mufīd, from (the tribe of) ‘Abd al-Qays alone, five hundred of the Shī‘ah of ‘Alī (‘a) were martyred. According to Balādhurī, three thousand men from among the Shī‘ah of the tribe of Rabī‘ah joined the ranks of the Imām at Dhīqār. After the Battle of Jamal, notwithstanding the atmosphere of inclination to ‘Uthmān in Baṣrah, many Shī‘ah were still living there. As such, when Mu‘āwiyah dispatched Ibn Ḥaḍramī to create unrest there, he informed him that some people in Baṣrah are Shī‘ah and advised him to avoid some tribes such as that of Rabī‘ah notwithstanding the great number of the ‘Uthmānīs, and if ‘Alī (‘a) would not send off any force from Kūfah, by means of unrests he would take control of Baṣrah through the ‘Uthmānīs.
During the event of Karbalā’, Imām al-Ḥusayn (‘a) also wrote a letter to some distinguished men of Baṣrah. Among them, Yazīd ibn Mas‘ūd Nahshalī accepted the invitation of the Imām, responded positively to him, gathered the tribes of Banū Tamīm, Banū Sa‘ad and Banū Ḥanzalah, and called on them to assist Imām al-Ḥusayn (‘a). He then wrote a letter to the Imām, informing him of these tribes’ readiness. But when they were already to join the ranks of the Imām, they heard the news of his martyrdom.
During the uprising of the Tawwābūn, as narrated by Mas‘ūdī, a number of the Shī‘ah of Baṣrah together with the Shī‘ah of Madā’in had also joined the army of the Tawwābūn. Of course, when they arrived at the scene, the battle was over.
During the Umayyad period, the Shī‘ah of Baṣrah experienced sufferings at the hands of cruel and bloodthirsty rulers such as Ziyād and Samarah ibn Jundab. Ziyād came to Baṣrah in 45 AH and delivered the Baṭrā’ Sermon saying: I swear to God that I shall call to account the guardian for the fault of the guarded one; the resident for the crime of the traveler; and the healthy one for the sin of the sick one to such as extent that when one of you would see another, he will say that his own Sa‘ad is the proof that Sa‘īd is guilty. From then on, beware lest somebody went out at night as I will shed his blood… Keep your tongues and hands away from me so as for you to remain safe from my tongue and hands.
Later on, Kūfah also became under the governorship and administration of Ziyād, and he would stay for six months in Kūfah and the next six months in Baṣrah. Every time he was in Kūfah, he would designate Samarah ibn Jundab to administer Baṣrah on his behalf. Samarah was an atrocious man and never desisted from shedding blood. During the absence of Ziyād, he butchered eight thousand people.
With the passage of time, the spirit of Shī‘ism in Baṣrah became stronger so much so that during the beginning of the ‘Abbāsid rule, the second ‘Alawī uprising—the uprising of Ibrāhīm, brother of Muḥammad Nafs az-Zakiyyah—took place there.

e. Madā’in
In contrast to Kūfah and Baṣrah, Madā’in is a city which has been existing even prior to the advent of Islam and conquered by Sa‘d ibn Abī Waqqāṣ in 16 AH during the caliphate of ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb. It is said that Anūshīrawān founded this city and its Persian name was Tīsfūn which was considered one of the capitals of the Sassanid Empire. Ṭāq-e Kisrā was also located there. For the reason that it was composed of seven large places each of which was as large as a city, the Arabs called it “Madā’in” which is the plural form of “madīnah” [city] (its other plural form being “mudun”). Of course, by founding new cities such as Kūfah, Baṣrah, Wāsiṭ, Baghdad, and Sāmarrā, this city was gradually abandoned. Madā’in had been one of the Shī‘ah-populated cities during the first, second and third centuries AH, and the reason behind it was the rule of distinguished Shī‘ah ṣaḥābah such as Salmān al-Fārsi and Ḥudhayfah ibn Yamān there. And as such, the people of Madā’in, from the beginning, had accepted Islam through the hands of Shī‘ah ṣaḥābah. In the uprising of the Tawwābūn, names of Shī‘ah from Madā’in can be noticed. Mas‘ūdī says: After the martyrdom of Sulaymān ibn Ṣard Khazā‘ī and Musayyab ibn Najbah Fazārī ‘Abd Allāh ibn Sa‘d ibn Nufayl assumed the commandership of the Tawwābūn. Given this, the Shī‘ah of Baṣrah and Madā’in, who were approximately five hundred people and whose commanders were Muthannā ibn Mukharramah and Sa‘d ibn Ḥudhayfah, quickly came to the front and personally tried to join the Tawwābūn but they failed.
Shī‘ism had always been dominant in this city. In this regard,Yāqūt Ḥamawī says, “Most of the people of Madā’in are Shī‘ah Imāmiyyah.”

f. Jabal ‘Āmil
Jabal ‘Āmil was another Shī‘ah-populated region during the first century AH. Shī‘ism of the people of this place started when Abū Dharr was exiled by ‘Uthmān ibn al-‘Affān to Shām. The late Sayyid Muḥsin Amīn says, Mu‘āwiyah also banished Abū Dharr to the villages of Jabal ‘Āmil. Abū Dharr engaged in guiding the people. Thus, the people there became Shī‘ah. In the villages of Ṣarfand and Mays of Jabal ‘Āmil, there are two mosques named “Abū Dharr Masjid”. Even during the time of the Commander of the Faithful (‘a), [the inhabitants of] a certain village called “As‘ār” were Shī‘ah.
With regard to Shī‘ism there, the late Muẓaffar had also said: “The origin of Shī‘ism in Jabal ‘Āmil is traceable to the call of the mujāhid [struggler] in the path of Allah, Abū Dharr al-Ghiffārī.” Kird-‘Alī also says that the record of Shī‘ism in Damascus, Jabal ‘Āmil and north of Lebanon can be traced back to the first century AH.

Summary
The root of Shī‘ism in Kūfah is traceable even prior to the transfer of ‘Alī (‘a) because most of the residents there belonged to Yemenī tribes most of whom were Shī‘ah. Besides, distinguished Shī‘ah ṣaḥābah lived there.
With the transfer of ‘Alī (‘a) to this city toward the end of the third century AH, Kūfah became the most important Shī‘ah-dominated city. As such, during the second and third centuries AH, the uprisings of a number of Ṭālibīs were launched there, and the Shī‘ah culture was always dominant there.
Notwithstanding the spirit of inclination toward ‘Uthmān in the city of Baṣrah, there were also Shī‘ah of the Commander of the Faithful (‘a) such as the tribe of Rabī‘ah living there and they fought against the Companions of the Camel (forces of Ṭalhāh, Zubayr and ‘Ā’ishah). With the passage of time, the influence of Shī‘ism in the city of Baṣrah became stronger.
On account of the rule there of great Shī‘ah ṣaḥābah such as Salmān al-Fārsī and Ḥudhayfah ibn al-Yamān, Madā’in was considered one of the Shī‘ah-populated cities.
With the banishment of Abū Dharr to Shām, the seed of Shī‘ism was planted in the region of Jabal ‘Āmil.

Questions
1. How did Kūfah become a Shī‘ah-dominated city?
2. Were there Shī‘ah living in Baṣrah?
3. The root of Shī‘ism in Jabal ‘Āmil can be traced back to which period?