Sunnis vs. Shi’as
1. What does it mean to be Shi’a?
Shi’as are basically people who say they are “Shi’atu ‘Alee”, or “The Party of ‘Ali”. ‘Ali was the paternal cousin of the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him. He was also his son-in-law and was basically the link to the only living male heirs of the Prophet (his own sons died while still infants). ‘Ali’s sons were Al Hasan and Al Hussain - these were the grandsons of the Prophet (through his very beloved daughter Fatima).
There are many speculations about where Shi’as “came from”, meaning some say it was a conspiracy by outsiders to split the Muslims, etc. but I will leave those aside as they simply go into disputed territory.
2. What does it mean to be a Sunni Muslim?
In the history of Islam, obviously, no one said they were “Sunni” Muslims. After the Shi’a emerged, it was necessary to differentiate that you were not a Shi’a - that you were “Sunni”, which simply meant you followed the “Sunnah” or practice of the Prophet - basically default Islam.
3. What are the differences between Shia & Sunni Muslims?
In general, you should know that the Shi’a are a wide range of people - some merely felt that ‘Ali had some precedence in the political authority given due to Islam’s emphasis on revering “Ahl ul Bayt”, or the “Family of the Prophet”. For this, they contend with the fact that the first Caliphs of Islam were in order, the best friend of the Prophet - Abu Bakr, then one of the most powerful aids to Islam, ‘Umar, then ‘Uthman, the Prophet’s other son-in-law, and then finally ‘Ali. Other Shi’as are so extreme as to say that Gabriel made a mistake and delivered the revelation to Muhammad when it should have been ‘Ali. They are considered outside of the fold of Islam.
As for the Shi’a as a modern demographic, they cover about 10% of the Muslim population and are largely located in Iran and Iraq, although there are some strongholds in Pakistan and other locations. They have some of their own ceremonies regarding prayer, but mostly it is their devotion to “Ahl ul Bayt”, especially ‘Ali, Imam Hussain and Imam Hasan, Fatima herself, etc. Some of them have intense commemorations of the death of Imam Hussain, flagellating themselves to relive his pain. They also tend to believe in the Imamate - the spiritual leader who they hold as the infallible authority on earth. In jurisprudence, or “fiqh”, or Islamic Law, they follow the Ja’fari madhab.
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May 20th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
I think this is really an over simplification of what it means to be shia or what shia Islam is, sister. There is “Usul al Deen” and “Furual Deen”. Imamate is just one aspect of belief. (Imamate refers to the entire concept of divinely appointed leaders not just the belief in a Mahdi.) The fundamental belief is in Tawheed and Adl. Tawheed for Shia Muslims is more like the belief of Tawheed amongst traditional Sunni Groups. That is to say Tawheed for Shias means Allah exists without confinement to time, space, matter and that any mention of Allah having a “yaad” for example is not literal.
The vast majority of Shias are all Jaffari Shias. The other Shias don’t even call themselves Shias as much as they say we are Ismailis (less in number and spllit in two groups) or Alawis (much fewer). Calling an Alawi a Shia or a Muslim is more like calling the 5% nation of Islam as Muslims. There’s very little similarity there in terms of the belief of Allah and the Prophet as the final last messenger. I can assure you no Shia believes Allah is dependent on anything/anyone or that he can make a mistake or the angels he command make mistake. 10% is a bit low in terms of the number of Shias as compared to the over all number of Muslims too. I wonder where you got this number sister.
Furthermore, while Shias are the vast majority in Iran and Iraq. Shias are everywhere. They’re the majority in Bahrain. They have a huge numbers in Kuwait and India (especially in Hyderbad). There’s a huge number in Kenya and the surrounding African nations. There’s a good number in Dubai as well. Likewise there are growing numbers in Nigeria, all of west Africa and other places like Egypt. Obviously through immigration, conversion, and so forth they’re all over the USA, Canada, Europe, etc. There also Shia centres through out Latin America including Seminaries in Argentina and Chile.
Anyway I encourage further study (for myself included) and I’m happy to see that you’ve taken it upon yourself to study this. If you have any questions or would like a referral to a particular book, you can contact me any time.
With duahs!
May 20th, 2008 at 9:39 pm
Also, real quick just to share with you.
The largest masjid in America is a Shia centre. http://www.icofa.com/
The oldest masjid in Canada is a Shia centre as well http://www.jaffari.org (they’re building a giant masjid that will open late this year and be finished next year inshAaLLAH. That one will also be the largest in Canada).
I’m sorry to be nit-picky but the title of this post bothers me. Sunni VS Shia. I don’t think we need VS but rather “and”. There’s no need for a battle, just understanding and acceptance.
May 20th, 2008 at 9:43 pm
yes, sister, it is most certainly a simplified version - perhaps you do not realize as you are new to my blog, but i am on a dawah list and i get asked questions - and i reprint some answers here - they are not meant to be extensive but general (mostly for non-muslims)
so obviously my goal was not to call to shi’ism or give as detailed an explanation as you have - i only gave brief, factual information about it without getting into internal controversies (between sunnis/shi’as)
i did mention the “range” of shi’as simply because many muslims/non-muslims ask about shi’ism due to exposure to that range (no matter how small)
as for the number of shi’as - i have seen figures that range from below 10% to as high as 15% so i gave an average answer - i have not verified any of those for myself obviously, so i chose a medium number to be fair
i think many of your clarifications fit under the general scope of my original answer and i feel i gave a balanced answer, but i thank you for adding additional information from your viewpoint as a shi’a for anyone interested
assalaamu ‘alaikum wa rahmatullaah
(btw as for the title, i agree with you - and it wasn’t my intention to make it “combative” - but it is a comparison as the questioner was asking and that’s pretty standard usage, like “standard vs. metric” if it’s a comparative view)
May 21st, 2008 at 8:33 am
To put it pithily, shi`ism is the belief that Muhammad- sal Allahu `alayhi wa sallam- could pick neither his friends, or his wives.