The original split between Sunnis and Shiites occurred soon after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, in the year 632. According to Augustus Norton, author of Hezbollah: A Short History, There was a dispute in the community of Muslims in present-day Saudi Arabia over the question of succession that is to say, who is the rightful successor to the prophet? The majority of Prophet Muhammad 's followers encouraged the large community of Muslims to determine who would become his successor. Accordingly to Gregory Gause a group of Shia Muslims believed that someone from Muhammad’s family should become the new Prophet. In the early years of Islamic history, the Shia had been just a movement known as the Shiat Ali or the Party of Ali. They claimed that …show more content…
Abu Bakr was chosen as the first caliph, and successor to the Prophet Mohammad. The minority group who was in favor of Ali later becomes known as Shiat Ali, or the partisans of Ali finally got their way. Ali finally became the fourth caliph, only after the murders of the earlier caliphs Abu Bakr the father of Muhammad 's wife A 'isha, Omar another father-in-law of Muhammad, and Othman a son-in-law of Muhammad, The Sunni were not happy and as a result a violent conflict broke out. In the year 661 the outbreak turned into all out war, resulting in Ali being killed during the fighting near the town of Kufa, now in present-day Iraq. As a result of Ali being assassinated after a five-year caliphate during the time of the civil war. His sons, Hassan and Hussein, believed that they were entitled to become their fathers successor, but were eventually denied what they thought was their legitimate right of accession to the caliphate. Hassan, and Hussein eventually fell as a result of the ongoing aggression, many believed Hassan to have been poisoned by the first caliph of the Sunni Umayyad dynasty, while Hussein was eventually killed on the battlefield during his up rise and rejection of the presiding Caliph of that time. It was these leading events that also gave rise to what is known today as martyrdom. The fighting between the two groups caused the Muslims community to …show more content…
The mapping of the global Muslim community estimates suggest the figure is somewhere between eighty-five and ninety percent, and that Sunnis make up ninety percent or more of the populations of Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. Sunnis believe themselves to be the orthodox branch of Islam, and the name Sunni is derived from the phrase Ahl al-Sunnah, or People of the Tradition. In this case the tradition was based on the practices of Prophet Muhammad to include things he said, did, agreed to or condemned. The Sunnah guides all Muslims, the Sunnis stress its primacy, while the Shia on the other hand continued to live by the wisdom of Ali the son-in-law and cousin and descendant of
In 1961 James Baldwin met Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam movement at the time. Baldwin’s experience within the Christian Church prior to his meeting with Elijah helped him analyze the Nation of Islam. This also allowed him to draw parallels between the Nation of Islam movement and the Christian Church. How James Baldwin understood the way the Christian Church worked, and a close look at the Nation of Islam, brings to light the credibility of organized religions.
The first man, named Abu Bakr, many people believed he was a good candidate because he was an old friend and was one of the first ones to convert to Islam. Yet others believed that Ali Talib was the best choice because he was a cousin and a son-in-law to the prophet. The disputes between the two groups of people would lead to a split; the followers of Abu Bark became the Sunnis and the followers of Ali became the Shia. In the end, the majority of people decided to choose Abu Bark and he became Islam’s first caliph. Abu Bark was Muhammad’s caliph for only two years until he died; even though it was a short period of time, he accomplished big things.
At that point Shia and Sunni Muslims were separated in different directions. Sunni believed that the legitimate leaders of Islam are the leaders who ruled after Mohammed’s death (Abu Bakr- Umar- Othman- Ali). On the other hand Shia believed that Ali should’ve been the first leader of Islam after Mohammed’s death and the first three leaders just illegitimately took over Ali’s leadership. Ali had his leadership of Islamic world after Othman’s murder. Umayyah family were against Ali’s leadership and involved Ali of murdering Othman. Therefore, Ali had to fight his enemies over the first five years of his leadership.
Have you ever wondered about other religions that are out there and why they are out there? I have and that is why I chose to write my paper on the Sunnis and Shiites. Read on to learn more about a brief history and then I will break each of them into separate religions.
Conflict has also been a significant part of Iraqi history since the Akkadian wars of 2340 BC. The rise of the Babylonian dynasty in 1700 BC gave way to the Assyrian dynasty in 1340 BC. The Assyrians were eventually overthrown in the seventh century BC by the Persian Empire of Alexander the Great. (2) The Arabs conquered the region in the early expansion of Islam in the eighth century AD, followed by the Mongol invasion in 1258. The last of the great dynasties to rule th...
Nation of Islam Movement “God is black”. All black men belong to Islam; they have been chosen. And Islam shall rule the world” (Baldwin 319). This is the principal message of the Nation of Islam movement. Although the movement has existed since the early 20th century, it gained a lot of momentum in America in the 1960’s, according to African-American essayist and novelist James Baldwin.
A Muslim does not have any relation to an Arab, yet people do confuse the two. Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. Allah is not the God for Muslims; he is the creator of all creatures including mankind. Islam means to surrender freely to the Commandments and will of their God. This compliance comes from within, from belief in and conviction to Allah. It should also come from love, trust, and affection. Muhammad meditated in a cave on Mount Hira, when he had a revelation. He believed that he was called by God to be a teacher of new faith. Muhammad wrote the Koran, and it is what the people lived by. The scriptures are based on how to avoid punishment from Allah. It emphasizes if you follow the right path, Allah will reward you in the end. The 5 pillars of Islam are the basic fundamentals of Muhammad’s teachings. The 5 Pillars consist of; Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, and Hajj. The Salat is the most exaggerated, where prayer is done five times a day. The 5 pillars are taken very seriously every day. Islam is one of the most popular religions to this
Huda. "Shia and Sunni Muslims: What's the Difference?" Religion and Spirituality. Ask.com, n.d. Web. 01 May 2014. .
rompt: List and explore in depth the factors that contributed to the rapid and widespread adoption of the Islamic Faith and the creation of an empire that extended from Spain to the farthest borders of the Persian Empire.
The Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam have been feuding for hundreds of years dating back to the beginning of the Islamic religion. The deity or god of the Sunnis is Allah. The Sunni branch of Islam is the larger of the two branches with over 80% of the Muslim population. The Sunni are the majority in most of the countries that have Islamic followers. There are a few different translations of what Sunna stands for, one of which is “Habitual Practice.” The differences between the two branches can be traced all the back to the 7th century CE when the disagreements as to who should succeed Muhammad. Sunnis believe that the Muslim community should maintain the right to select who the successor to Muhammad is going to be. The Shiite branch maintains the belief that Muhammad has selected his son-in-law to be the successor. Even though the two branches agree on most matters, the Sunni put more power behind god and his determination of fate, and are more inclusive about their definition of being Muslim. The Sunni place heavy belief in the role of religion in some aspects of life and a lot of weight is put on the Islamic law known as Shariah as the standard for a vast range of social issues including marriage and divorce. (Patheos.com)
Islam is a monotheistic religion which is originated from the Middle East or more specifically in the Arabian Peninsula early in the 7th century. This religion was founded on the teachings of the Prophet Mohammed who named this religion after the Arabic word acceptance. Islam has 2 major sects the Sunni and Shi’a. This split occurred when Mohammed died. The Sunni believed that the new leader of Islam should be determined through election but the Shi’a thought that the new leader should be Imam Ali a cousin and son in law of Mohammed. Another branch of Islam is Druze but only a small minority of Muslims who live in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine are followers of this sect (3 Faiths with One God - Islam, Arab American National Museum).
The second heir of Rome was the Islamic civilization. Unlike Byzantium, the Islamic civilization was not formed by political forces or bound by a shared cultural past. Instead Islam was one of the first civilizations that was formed around by religion. The religion Islam was founded by Muhammad and rapidly grew through the 7th century transforming into a strong imperial power. Muhammad’s death in 632 CE created a rift in the Islamic world as he died without a clear heir. Thus the two primary factions within Islam formed, the Shias and the Sunnis. For the next eight centuries, the Islamic empire continued to grow and expand despite internal conflicts. The Islamic empire encompassed portions of the Mediterranean, North Africa, the Indian
The division between Shia and Sunni dates back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad, and the question of who was to take over the leadership of the Muslim nation. Sunni Muslims agree with the position taken by many of the Prophet's companions, that the new leader should be elected from among those capable of the job. This is what was done, and the Prophet Muhammad's close friend and advisor, Abu Bakr, bec...
Growing up Saddam Hussein was always trying to gain power and rule. Even before his presidency he was always fighting his way up. In 1958 after the monarchy was overthrown Hussein and others tried to assassinate the Prime Minister Qasim (Butt). The Prime Minister was soon aware of the fact and consequently Hussein had to flee Iraq. In 1963, Qasim was murdered, and Hussein returned to Iraq. Thus Hussein began his rise to power once more. He soon found a position in the Ba’ath party and was named assistant secretary general. Within a few months the Ba’ath party was overthrown, and Hussein was sent to prison. He was released two years later in 1968 after the Ba’ath party regained power in a coup that Hussein helped lead. Hussein was named the vice chairman of the ruling Revolutionary Command Council and vice president under General Ahmed Hassan Bakr. In 1979 Hussein became president. As the President he began doing many more harsh things, he executed hundreds of high ranking party members and army officers who he thought were disloyal. As a result of his cruel and brutal ways some refer to Hussein as the moniker, Butcher of Baghdad. (Andrews).
On the 6th of Dhil Qa’da, the Prophet and his companions made a pilgrimage to Makkah. But, to do so they had to come up with a plan. It was Abu Bakr who suggested to tell the Quraish, that the pilgrimage was strictly for religious purposes, and that there was no intention of fighting. He also helped come up with some of the terms on the Treaty of Hudaibiya, and signed it, and this was the first real victory for the Muslims. It was after this treaty that Islam could be spread more peacefully. The number of new converts after the treaty, was larger than the number of converts in the nineteen years that precede it. When the Prophet (S) and the companions went to Tabuk, Hazrat Abu Bakr was the Imamat and carried the banner of Islam. Abu Bakr was also the first Amirul-Hajj in the history of Islam. He led the caravan of Muslims to Makkah.