Ibadis state that their school predates mainstream Islamic schools and some western non-Muslim writers agree. In particular,
Donald Hawley's view was that Ibadism should be considered an early and highly orthodox interpretation of Islam. In the Omani tradition, an imam who is learned in the Islamic legal sciences is considered "strong" (), and an imam whose primary skills are military without scholarly qualifications is considered "weak" (). Unlike a strong imam, a weak imam is obliged to consult the
ulamāʾ, or community of scholars, before passing any judgement. The notions of
walayah ("affiliation") and ''
bara'a'' ("disassociation") are central to the theology of Ibadi relations with non-Ibadi people. Only righteous Ibadis are considered worthy of friendship and association, whereas sinners and non-Ibadi Muslims are subject to dissociation, sometimes to the point of ostracism. Modern Ibadi scholars suggest that the duty of dissociation does not require rudeness or social avoidance, and that an Ibadi may have genuine affection for a non-Ibadi; nonetheless, "an inner awareness of separation" between upright Ibadis and non-Ibadis must be maintained. In practice, however, Ibadi Muslims have generally been very tolerant of non-Ibadi religious practice. During the period of , the duties of affiliation and disassociation are no longer valid. Some have characterised the works of some Ibadi scholars as being particularly
anti-Shi'ite in nature, Ibadi beliefs remain understudied by outsiders, both non-Muslim and other Muslim. Ibadis have stated that whilst they read the works of both Sunnis and Shias, the learned scholars of those two sects never read Ibadi works and often repeat myths and false information when they address the topic of Ibadism without performing proper research.
Theological viewpoints The development of
Ibadi theology happened thanks to the works of scholars and imams of the community, whose histories, lives, and personalities are part of the
Islamic history. Ibāḍī theology can be understood on the basis of the works of Ibn Ibāḍ,
Jābir bin Zayd, Abū ‘Ubaida, Rabī‘ b. Ḥabīb and Abū Sufyān among others.
Basra is the foundation of the Ibāḍī community. Various Ibāḍī communities were established in
southern Arabia, with bases in
Oman,
North Africa, and
East Africa. • Like
Sunni and
Shia Muslims, they interpret
anthropomorphic references to God in the Quran symbolically rather than literally. Therefore, God does not actually have hands, a face, a throne, or other physical attributes, as he cannot be perceived by human senses and is not physical. They thus believe that Muslims will not see God on the
Day of Resurrection, a belief shared with the Shi'a but not the Sunni. Similarly, Ibadis hold that the Scale on which God judges human deeds is metaphoric, as actions cannot be weighed. But unlike the Mu'tazila, Ibadis follow the
Ash'ari position of
occasionalism, which holds that all events are caused directly by God and that what appear to be laws of
causation, such as that a fire produces smoke, is only because God chooses to create fire, and then to create smoke. One Ibadi scholar has even stated that this single difference means that the Muʿtazila are more misguided than the Sunni.
Ibadi jurisprudence The
fiqh or jurisprudence of Ibadis is based on the same fundamental principles as Sunni and Shi'a juristic traditions, but the Ibadis reject
taqlid or deference and stress the importance of
ijtihad, or independent reasoning. Contemporary Ibadis hold that believers are allowed to follow incorrect opinions derived through
ijtihad as long as they believe it to be true after having made an effort to arrive at the correct opinion; certain now-extinct Ibadi sects once held that those with incorrect opinions were disbelievers. Many early Ibadis rejected
qiyas or
deductive analogical reasoning as a basis for jurisprudence, but the importance of analogies is now widely accepted by Ibadi jurists. Ibadis believe that the stage of the corresponds to Muhammad's life in Mecca before the
Hijrah, when no independent Muslim community existed that could enforce Islamic laws. Therefore,
ḥudūd punishments are suspended under an , except the punishments for apostasy, blasphemy, and murder. Ibadis also do not hold
Friday prayers in the absence of a legitimate ruling imam. Like the Shi'a but not the Sunni, they do not allow a couple who has committed
zināʾ(unlawful sex) to marry each other. During the
Ramadan fast, Ibadis require
ghusl or full-body ablution to be undertaken prior to the beginning of the fast on that day if it is necessitated, otherwise the fast for that day is invalid. They hold that committing grave sins is a form of breaking the fast. When making up for missed days of fasting after Ramadan has ended, the Ibadis believe that the atonement fast must be consecutive, whereas both Sunnis and Shi'as believe that Muslims may atone for missed days by fasting for the required amount at any time, whether consecutive or nonconsecutive. Like the Shi'a and some
Maliki Sunnis, the Ibadis keep their arms at their sides rather than clasping the hands during
prayer. During the
noon and
afternoon prayers, Ibadis recite solely
al-Fātiḥah, the first
chapter of the Quran, whereas other Muslims may recite other Quranic verses in addition. They also do not say
ʾāmīn after the recitation of
al-Fātiḥah. Ibadis shorten prayers when staying in foreign territory—even if they do so on a permanent basis—unless they choose to adopt the country as their new homeland; Sunnis generally hold that believers should return to the full prayer after a given number of days outside of home.
Ibadi hadith The primary Ibadi collection of hadiths, or traditions and sayings attributed to Muhammad, is the twelfth-century
Tartīb al-Musnad, comprising 1,005 hadiths. The
Tartīb is divided into four books. The first two books are
muttaṣil narrations by
Jabir ibn Zayd, a student of Muhammad's widow
Aisha. The third book includes hadith transmitted by the eighth-century Kharijite scholar al-Rabi' bin Habib Al-Farahidi as preserved in the
Jami Sahih collection, generally also from Jabir ibn Zayd. The fourth book consists of an appendix of saying and stories from later Ibadi scholars and imams. and reject the veneration of
saints. Historically, the views of Sufis were not well regarded in Ibadi literature, However, mystical devotional practices reminiscent of Sunni Sufism were traditionally practiced by some other Ibadi scholars, to whom miracles were sometimes ascribed as with Sunni Sufis. Modern Ibadis disagree on the appropriateness of these practices within the Ibadi creed, with some considering them an undesirable non-Ibadi influence on the faith while others continue to practice and teach them.
Views on early Islamic history Ibadis agree with
Sunnis, regarding
Abu Bakr and
Umar ibn al-Khattab as rightly-guided caliphs. They regard the first half of
Uthman ibn Affan's rule as righteous and the second half as corrupt and affected by both nepotism and heresy. They approve of the first part of
Ali's caliphate and (like Shī'a) disapprove of
Aisha's
rebellion and
Muawiyah I's revolt. However, they regard Ali's acceptance of arbitration at the
Battle of Ṣiffīn as rendering him unfit for leadership, and condemn him for killing the
Khawarij of
an-Nahr in the
Battle of Nahrawan. Modern Ibadi theologians defend the early Kharijite opposition to Uthman, Ali and Muawiyah. In their belief, the next legitimate caliph and first Ibadi imam was
Abdullah ibn Wahb al-Rasibi, the leader of the Kharijites who turned against Ali for his acceptance of arbitration with Muawiyah and was killed by Ali at
Nahrawan. Ibadis believe that the "
genealogy of Islam" () was transmitted by other individuals at Nahrawan, such as
Ḥurḳūṣ ibn Zuhayr al-Saʿdī, and developed into Ibadi Islam, the true form of the faith. ==Wahbi school==