Shabana Karim IWS 295 Paper 2 5/16/2013 "Discourses on Islamic sects tend to be limited to Khawarij and Shi`a.

Are there specific aspects to these groups that could warrant the term sect? Are there similarities between these groups that set them apart from the numerically dominant Sunnis? " Muslims were divided into two groups right after the death of the Prophet. It is the oldest division in the history of Islam. They share the religion itself and the holy book, Quran, but they have their political and social differences as well. After the death of the Prophet there was the question of who was to lead the group of followers that he left behind. The Sunnis believed it to be Abu Bakr, who should lead as the Prophets successor. For the Sunnis, Abu Bakr, was known to be the first caliph. For the Shias, on the other hand, they believed that the only leader should be Ali, because he was the Prophets cousin and son-in-law. Sunni has come about to mean the followers of the Sunnah. Sunnah meant those who follow what the Prophet did and said. Shia were the followers and supporters of Ali (Esposito). To reiterate some of the events that occurred that also helped to feed this division between the Muslim community was the Battle of the Camel. Although Ali was considered the first and only caliph for the Shia, he was still a caliph for the Sunnis as well, but he was the fourth caliph in their views. Ali was chosen as the fourth caliph and Aisha, the Prophets wife, opposed to his ruling. This was because she believed he was delaying the justice of Usmans killers. This led to the Battle of the Camel. After losing the Battle, it was too late for Aisha to fix

the divide that had been created and this led to the followers and supporters of Ali becoming the Shia group (Jafri). After the Battle of the Camel there was the Battle of Siffin. This next Battle was between Ali and the governor or Syria, Muawaiya. This Battle was also won by Ali through negotiation, which led to arbitration. This displeased some of Alis followers. Because of this another group broke off from the Shias, which then became the Kharajities. They found arbitration unacceptable and believed that it was only for Allah to be the judge. Ali was soon murdered by one of the Kharijites. Throughout the years, the Kharijites were a part of many battles. They were defeated in most of these battles. Their defeats led to a lessened community of Kharijities, which left them to be a small group or sect of Islam ("Kharijis/Kharijites"). Shias had many different groups within their sect. One of those groups were the Twelvers, where there was believed to be twelve Imams of the Shia community. There were also the Seveners and Fivers, which followed the same beliefs, that there were seven Imams and five Imams, respectively. The third imam of the Shia community was Hussein, he was Alis youngest son. He is known to have fought the Battle of Karbala with such bravery to keep the Shia community alive. To this day, the memory of his sacrifice is observed (Scruggs). The Sunnis eventually broke up into four schools of knowledge Hanbali, Hanafi, Shafi, Maliki. All these schools helped to find ways to implement Islamic solutions in society, politics, and morality, so they can be a part of everyday life. Even with these schools they only believed in the first four caliphs known as the Rashidun. But, throughout time there were leaders appointed, but only on a temporary and needed basis (Marmura).

The Shia, on the other hand, believed in Imams providing leadership to their followers. As aforementioned, there were the Twelvers, who believed in their being twelve Imams, the Seveners, who believed in seven Imams, and the Fivers, who believed in five Imams. Even with all the different separated thoughts of the Shia, they believed that the last Imam, Muhammad al-Muntazar al-Mahdi, was in hiding and would come near the end of time to bring justice back into the world. His disappearance was to mark the end of the Imam leaderships. This concept of Mahdi is believed by some Sunni Muslims as well. That someone will come during the end of time ("Sunni and Shi'a"). Through this you can see that the reason for Sunnis b eing mainstream is because that is where the Muslim community started out. Sunnis are where the majority of the Muslim group lies. Then from there Shias broke away, which make them the next group. The Shias have many groups within them as well, but there are still less followers when compared to Sunnis, that is why they are less of the mainstream group. Then from there as explained above the Kharijties broke off, which make them even less of a mainstream group in Islam. After the battles that they fought, there arent that many left anyways. Sunnis and Shias and the small group of Kharijities have their differences in society and leadership, but they all still believe in the main five pillars of Islam. They just seem to have some differences in their beliefs and the way that they go about things (Esposito).

Works Cited Esposito, John L. . "Faith." In What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 10-May-2013. Jafri, Syed Husain M. , Joseph A. Kchichian, Hamid Dabashi and Ahmad Moussalli. "Sh Islam." In The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 10-May2013. "Kharijis/Kharijites." In The Oxford Dictionary of Islam. Ed. John L. Esposito. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 10-May-2013. Marmura, Michael E. and Jacques Waardenburg. "Sunn Islam." In The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World. Ed. John L. Esposito. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 10-May2013. Scruggs, Afi-Odelia. "What Is the Difference Between Sunni, Shiite and Sufi Muslims?" The Root. Washington Post, 8 Sept. 2010. Web. 10 May 2013. "Sunni and Shi'a." BBC News. BBC, 19 Aug. 2009. Web. 10 May 2013.