ABSTRACT
Although the Shi'ites and the Kharijites were at opposite poles theologically for most of the Umayyad period, and were in the way complementary, their history was altogether different. Among the Shi'ites there were none of the intellectual debates that took place in Kharijite circles in Basra. In the Persian Empire under the Sasanian dynasty Iraq had been persianized somewhat, while Aramaean culture had spread in Persia proper. There were many Persians among the Shi'ites during the Umayyad period, but it must be borne in mind that the close identification of Shf ism with Persia only dates from the sixteenth century. Nevertheless the rising of al-Mukhtar is an important stage in the development of Islam as a religion, because from the time onwards Shi'ism was linked with the political grievances and aspirations of non-Arab Muslims. The imam of whom the Shi'ites dreamed is precisely what is meant by a charismatic leader.
