An Analysis of the Tradition of Twelve Caliphs as Proof of the Birth of the Living Imam (a.t.f)

Belief in a promised savior from the progeny of the Final Prophet (s), who is also named after the latter, is a common tenet between all the Islamic sects, albeit with differences pertaining to some of the details regarding him. One of these details include the question of whether the Imam of the Age (a.t.f.) has been born or not. Of the proofs presented by the Shiʿa regarding the birth of the Imam of the Age, one is the tradition of ‘the twelve caliphs’. This tradition, in its various forms, appears in early reliable Shiʿi sources and the phrase ‘twelve caliphs’ has also been reported in early Sunni sources. All these reports indicate that the Noble Prophet (s) intended to introduce twelve individuals, one after the other, as his successors and the future leaders of the Muslim community, and the narrators have relayed the purport of his message in their traditions. In reality, the true message of the narrations regarding the twelve caliphs points to the continuity of the imamate of the twelve Imams as the successors of the Noble Prophet (s) until the Day of Resurrection. These traditions can also be used prove the birth of Imam al-Mahdi (a.t.f.) in two ways, both of which are discussed in the following article.