After categorizing Shí'ism as a heretical sect of Islam, it became "innocently neutral" for Western scholars to absorb the Sunni scepticism concerning the early Shí'a literature.
Kwa hakika kuzitoa kama dalili na uthibitsho nassi hizo kunapingana na yale Ahli sunna walio wengi wanayo yaitakidi ya kuwa Mtume (s.a.w.w) hakuacha wala kumteua khalifa, na kwamba hakutoa dalili yoyote kuhusiana na yeyote kuhusu suala la ukhalifa. Kwa msingi huo: