Bada and Its Role in the Debates over Shi`i Doctrine

Abstract

This article examines the sense and significance of bada. I investigate when and who devised this concept, discuss its use as a proof in debates among the Shi`ahs concerning the Imamate after going through several transformations, and analyze the Shi`i theologians’ efforts to interpret it in line with the doctrine of naskh (abrogation) in order to demonstrate that bada is not one of the bases upon which Shi`i belief is grounded.