Download Both Sunni and Shia Muslims share the fundamental

Islam in Iran
SUNNI’S VS. SHI’A
• Sect:
– A subdivision of a
larger religious
group
• Sectarian
– of or relating to or
characteristic of a
sect or sects;
"sectarian
differences"
– a member of a sect;
Word Worm!
Socialization through practice
(Rogoff, 2002)
•
•
•
Both Sunni and Shia Muslims share the fundamental Islamic beliefs and articles of faith.
The schism between the two initially stemmed not from spiritual differences but from political
ones. After the death of the Prophet Muhammad, a debate ensued over who should take his
place as leader of the faith. Most of the prominent Muslims of Medina claimed that
Muhammad had named no successor and elected Abu Bakr, the Prophet’s closest advisor
and companion, as the first caliph (successor). This was an extremely controversial
appointment, as other Muslims argued that Muhammad had designated Ali ibn Abi Talib
as his successor. Ali was the Prophet’s son-in-law and closest male relative, and those who
supported him felt not only that his succession had been the intention of the Prophet but also
that his blood tie to Muhammad was a sacred bond.
Ali’s supporters, who believed that direct descendants of Muhammad were the only
rightful leaders of the faith, would become known as the Shia (from “Shi’at Ali,” or “the
party of Ali”). Those who became the Sunni believed instead that their leaders should be
elected from among those most capable of worldly as well as spiritual leadership. Both
sides occasionally gained control in the fractious early Caliphate, and although Ali eventually
became the fourth caliph, his reign was short and ended in assassination. He was followed
by Muawiyah of the prominent Umayyad family, but when Muawiyah was succeeded by his son,
Yazid I, the Shia revolted, demanding that Ali’s son, Hussein, be named caliph. Hussein set out
from Mecca to meet his supporters, but he and his family were massacred by Umayyad troops
at the Battle of Karbala. While political power would occasionally still shift after this, the Shia
were to remain an often-persecuted minority throughout the era of the Caliphate.
Shia doctrine is based on an esoteric interpretation of Islam established by the “imams,”
religious leaders who were descendants of Muhammad and whom the Shia consider to be the
sole interpreters of Islamic theology. In Shiism, the Qur’an contains layers of meaning beneath
the literal meanings that were revealed by the imams. The Shia also have their own versions of
the “hadith,” the collected sayings and deeds of the Prophet, and thus have a distinct
interpretation of Islamic law and culture. The Shia tradition adds to Islam a significant passion
element, the observance of the murders of Ali and Hussein, and an occult and messianic
element, the belief that Muhammad al-Mahdi, the twelfth and “hidden” imam who
disappeared in 874 A.D., is alive but hidden from the world by God and will return in the
final days to restore the world to justice. Politically, generations spent as a persecuted
minority have made the Shia quicker to resent authority than the Sunni and to view spiritual
life as a struggle for social justice and against oppression.
Approximately 85-90% of Muslims
today are Sunni
Caliph: The successor of Muhammad
1) Abu Bakr:
4) Ali: (Muhammad’s son-in-law)
Killed by saber!
(early convert and trusted advisor)
2) Umar
Ali’s Sons…
3) Utman
•
Poisoned
Beheaded at Karbala
Sunnis back Abu Bakr
Shi’a back Ali
Ali is killed as 5 year civil war (true split of Islam begins)
Sunni’s WIN and Caliphate becomes monarchy:
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–
–
•
6) Hussein:
After Muhammad’s death, there is no direct line to become Caliph
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–
–
•
5) Hassan:
@ Battle of Karbala
Supporters of Ali vs Umayyad Caliphate
All men killed, Hussein martyred
BEGINNING OF SHI’A OPPRESSION:
–
Shi’a flee to present day Iran
Shi’a = oppression
• Now, instead of Caliph, Shi’a believe in the…
• 12 Imams (cult of martyrdom)
– 1) Ali
– 2) Hassan
– 3) Hussein
– 12) Muhammad al-Mahdi : The Awaited One
• Did not die!
• In a cave under a Mosque in Sumarra, Iraq
• Apocalypse
Sumarra, Iraq
Muhammad established no church or institutional structure for Islam; indeed, the
faith's basic notion that all believers were equal before God seemed to rule out the
notion of a priesthood. But Islam was a social and political movement as well as a
religious one, and as it developed, a complex set of institutions grew with it,
which over time took on an increasingly religious significance. And as the Arab
empire expanded, Islam incorporated elements of the cultures it encountered,
giving rise to varying schools of interpretation of the texts of Islamic belief: the
Qur'an, the "sunnah" (the exemplary words and deeds of Muhammad) and the
"hadith" (the records kept by Muhammad's companions).
With the rise of religious institutions and the expansion of Islamic scholarship,
doctrinal arguments developed, which led to the development of a number of
sects and schools of thought. But the most important schism in Islam -- the event
that split the faith into the majority Sunni and minority Shia branches that persist
to the present day -- took place at the religion's very beginnings.
Pilgrimage to Karbala
3/2007
In the summer of 2006, as the Iranian-backed Hezbollah
fought off Israelis in Lebanon and President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad faced down President George Bush, a bus full
of Iranian pilgrims left Tehran on a journey to the holy city of
Karbala, deep inside a shattered Iraq.
Pilgrimage to Karbala follows this intense journey into the
heartlands of Shia Islam, revealing how two ancient crimes –
the murder of Muhammad’s grandson and the disappearance
of a six-year-old imam – became the founding legends of
Shiism and still shape events in the Middle East today. The
film is followed by Daljit Dhaliwal’s interview with Professor
Vali Nasr, author of The Shia Revival: How Conflicts Within
Islam Will Shape the Future.