Shi'a Islam
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Shi'a Islam, also Shi`ite Islam or Shi`ism (Template:ArB Template:ArTranslit Template:PerB) is the second largest denomination of the religion of Islam. Shi'a Muslims adhere to the teachings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his Ahlul Bayt (family). Thus, Shi'as reject the rule of the initial three Sunni Caliphs as Sunnis reject the Imamate of the Shi'a Imams. The singular/adjective form is Shī`ī (Arabic: شيعي.) and refers to a follower of the Ahlul Bayt and of Ali ibn Abi Talib (Imam Ali) in particular.
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Etymology
The term Shi'a comes from the Arabic word شيعة Shī`ah. The singular/adjective form of this name is Arabic Shī`ī شيعي.
"Shi'a" is the short form of the historic phrase Shi`at `Ali شيعة علي, meaning "the followers of Ali". Sunni and Shi`ah sources trace the term to Muhammad. The phrase Shi'a of Ali was historically a title given by Muhammad and later by his descendants in praise of `Ali's followers and that of the Ahlul Bayt.
Overview
Shi'a Muslims believe that Muhammad's family (the Imams) were the best source of knowledge about the Qur'an, Islam, and Emulation (the best-qualified teachers of Islam after Muhammad), and the most trusted carriers and protectors of Muhammad's Sunnah (traditions) due to many emphasized sayings by him. Ali was Muhammad's cousin, son-in-law, father of his only descendants and the male head of the Ahlul Bayt (people of the house). After Muhammad's passing, Ali claimed succession in religious and political authority, supported by his family and followers. Shi`ahs believe that by Muhammad's direct order he appointed him successor on many occasions, that he was the rightful leader of the Muslims after Muhammad's passing, and that to follow Muhammad's true Sunnah one must support Ali's successorship.
Shi'as refuse to accept the rule of the initial three Sunni caliphs who proclaimed leadership after Muhammad's passing, believing them illegitimate and inferior to Muhammad's family in all respects. The caliphs are followed by Sunni Muslims, who believe Muhammad did not choose a successor, and that the caliphs were elected according to what they consider Muhammad's instruction of consultation (Shura). Thus they reject what they called dynastic rights to religious authority that Shi`ahs attribute to Muhammad's family. The first caliph, Abu Bakr was chosen after Muhammad's passing at a meeting he had at the saqifah with Umar, another companion of Muhammad. This claim to succession was disputed by `Ali, the Banu Hashim whom he headed, and many other supporters.
This difference between following the Ahlul Bayt (Muhammad's family) and Sahaba (Muhammad's companions) has shaped Shi`ah and Sunni views on some of the Qur'an, the hadith, personalities in Islamic history, and more. Hadith which the Shi'a accept have a high proportion of narrators from the Ahl al-Bayt whereas those accepted by the Sunnis have many narrators who were not of the Ahlul Bayt (eg. Abu Huraira).
Regardless of the dispute about the Caliphate, Shi'as regard highly the concept of Imamate, also called Khalifa Ilahi (divinely chosen successorship to Muhammad in terms of teaching the Qur'an, its meaning, the Shariah and the guides to the right practice of the Qur'anic faith).
Demographics
Image:Iran ethnoreligious distribution 2004.jpg See Demographics of Islam. According to most sources, including the US Library of Congress, present estimates indicate that approximately 85% of the world's Muslims are Sunni and approximately 15% are Shi`ah Template:Mn. Some Sunni sources present an estimate of 7.5% of the world's Muslim population being Shi'a Template:Mn.
One of the lingering problems, according to Shi'a, in estimating the Shi'a population is that unless the Shi`ah form a significant minority in a Muslim country, the entire population is often listed as Sunni. The reverse, however, has not been held true, which may contribute to imprecise estimates of the size of each sect.
A large portion of the world's Shi'a live in the Middle East. They constitute a majority or a plurality in countries such as in Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Lebanon and Bahrain.
Some of the petroleum deposits in the Middle East are located under Shi'a-inhabited lands (including Iran, parts of Iraq and Azerbaijan). A substantial part of the populations of Persian Gulf countries (including Iran and Iraq) is also Shi'a.
The 1926 rise of the House of Saud in Arabia brought official discrimination against Shi'a Template:Mn. The Shi'a-majority provinces of Hasa, Qatif and Hufuf on the Persian Gulf, and western Arabia provinces of Jazan, Asir and Hijaz, that had large Shi'a minorities, have officially been completely stripped of their religious identities. Shi'a claim that they endure much bigotry and other indignities from Walmens authorities daily and that Shi'a pilgrims from other countries are often singled out for harassment (see Status of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia).
Turkey, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and India, also hold significant Shi`ah minorities. Among smaller Persian Gulf states, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have significant Shi'a minorities, as do the Eastern Province and other regions of Saudi Arabia. Shi'as are also found, but not limited to, in some numbers in southeast Asia, from Vietnam (the Cham people) to Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
Doctrines
Main doctrines
Image:Saleh2.jpgShi'a believe in doctrines included in the Sunni five pillars of Islam but categorize them differently. Shi'a beliefs include the following:
Roots of Religion (Usūl al-Dīn)
- Tawhīd (Oneness): The Oneness of God
- Adalah (Justice): The Justice of God
- Nubuwwah (Prophethood): God has appointed perfect and infallible prophets and messengers to teach mankind the religion (that is, a perfect system of how to live in "peace"(("submission to God")).)
- Imamah (Leadership): God has appointed specific leaders to lead and guide mankind — a prophet appoints a custodian of the religion before his demise.
- Qiyamah (The Day of Judgment): God will raise mankind for Judgment
Branches of Religion (Furū al-Dīn)
- Shahadah (Declaration) – the declaration that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger.
- Salat—called "Namaaz" in Persian (Prayer) – performing the five daily prayers
- Sawm (Fast) – fasting during the holy month of Ramadhan
- Hajj (Pilgrimage) – performing the pilgrimage to Mecca
- Zakat (Poor-rate) – paying the poor-tax
- Khums (One-fifth) – paying tax
- Jihad (Struggle) – struggling to please God. The greater, or internal Jihad is the struggle against the evil within one's soul in every aspect of life. The lesser, or external, Jihad is the struggle against the evil of one's environment in every aspect of life.
- Amr-Bil-Ma'rūf – commanding what is good
- Nahi-Anil-Munkar – forbidding what is evil
- Tawalla – loving the Ahlul Bayt and their followers
- Tabarra – dissociating oneself from the enemies of the Ahlul Bayt
Additional doctrines
Template:Main Shi'a have many other doctrines that are shared with other Muslims, like wearing of the Hijab. However, some are seen as more predominantly used by Shi'as, like "Dissimulation" (Arabic: Taqiyya), which is the dissimulation of one’s religious beliefs when one fears for one's life, the lives of one's family members, or for the preservation of the faith, and "Fixed time marriages" (Arabic Nikah Mut'ah). The latter two sometimes are seen as controversial practices..
Misconceptions
Template:Main There are seemingly widespread misconceptions about the Shi`ah doctrines, regarding how and why Shi'as uphold them.
Denominations
The Shi'a of the present day are divided into denominations based on their beliefs regarding the sequence and recognized number of the imams.
- Most Shi'a are Twelvers — they recognize twelve imams.
- Ali ibn Abu Talib (600–661), also known as Ali Amir al Mo'mineen
- Hasan ibn Ali (625–669), also known as Hasan al Mujtaba
- Husayn ibn Ali (626–680), also known as Husayn al Shaheed
- Ali ibn Husayn (658–713), also known as Ali Zainul Abideen
- Muhammad ibn Ali (676–743), also known as Muhammad al Baqir
- Jafar ibn Muhammad (703–765), also known as Jafar as Sadiq
- Musa ibn Jafar (745–799), also known as Musa al Kazim
- Ali ibn Musa (765–818), also known as Ali ar Ridha
- Muhammad ibn Ali (810–835), also known as Muhammad al Jawad (Muhammad at Taqi)
- Ali ibn Muhamad (827–868), also known as Ali al-Hadi
- Hasan ibn Ali (846–874), also known as Hasan al Askari
- Muhammad ibn Hasan (868—), also known as Muhammad al Mahdi
- There are several groups of Ismaili Shi'a, which include Seveners, Dawoodi Bohras, Alavi Bohras, and the Nizari Ismailis. Seveners are the second largest group of Shi`ah. They accept Jafar as Sadiq's eldest son Ismail as the next Imam. Since Ismail was rejected by the Shi'a majority at the time, Seveners do not recognize any further of the Twelvers' Imams beyond Jafar.
- Ali ibn Abi Talib
- Hasan ibn Ali
- Husayn ibn Ali
- Ali ibn Husayn
- Zayd ibn Ali rather than Muhammad al Baqir
Status of a Shi'a Imam
Shi'a Islam holds that the Imamate is one of the fundamentals of Islam (A part of the Usul-Ad-din) and that one should follow the Imams of Ahlul Bayt, in order to correctly follow the Prophet Muhammad and his Sunnah. The Shi'a believe that the Imams of Ahlul Bayt are infallible, they are the perfect example for mankind, and like the prophets, they should be emulated in acts and deeds. Shi'as believe that the Imams of Ahlul Bayt carry the divinely appointed responsibility of protecting Islam and enacting the example of the pure Sunnah of Muhammad. The Imams of Ahlul Bayt have guided Muslims throughout history, in many cases under the most horrible circumstances and under the most severe forms of discrimination due to the cruel policies of the reigning governments' of the time. They are seen as incorruptible and infallible role models for Muslims that have shown the way of goodness and prosperity in this world and the next in the best way until their martyrdom or occultation.
Role of religious scholars
Template:Main Shi'a Muslims believe that the study of Islamic literature is a continual process, and is necessary for identifying all of God's laws. Unlike Sunni Muslims, Shi'a Muslims believe that they can interpret the Qur'an and the Shi`ah traditions with the same authority as their predecessors: that the door to ijtihad was never closed.
Shi'a and Sunni traditions
While Shi'a and Sunni accept the same sacred text, the Qur'an (Some Shi'ah dispute the current version of the text), they differ somewhat in their approach to recorded oral tradition, or hadith. Shi`ah believe that the split between the Shi'a and Sunni began with Muhammad's death, when a small number of Muslims supported the successorship of Ali and the rest accepted Abu Bakr, then Umar and Uthman. They believe that the successorship was given to Ali at Ghadir Khum (a hadith accepted by both Sunni and Shi`ah scholars), and that the testimony that can be traced back to reliable sources is to be trusted, while traditions that cannot be fully verified are suspect. Sunni generally accept the hadith collections of Bukhari and Sahih Muslim as sahih (trustworthy), and only accept hadiths from these books if they are consistent with their own collections or that can be reliably verified through ijtihad (independent interpretation of legal sources).
Because Islamic law is based on the hadith, Shi'a rejection of some Sunni hadith and Sunni rejection of some Shia hadith means that the versions of the law differ somewhat. For example, while both Shi'a and Sunni pray Friday (Jum'a) prayers, the prayer times differ. Shi'a believe that there is no set time for Asr and Ishaa prayers (disputed amongst some Sunni schools of thought as well). Some Shi'a also practice temporary marriages, or mut'a which can be contracted for months or even days (Mut'a was practiced by Sunni until outlawed by Muhammad according to Sunni, while Shi'a believe it was outlawed in later time by Umar, the Second Caliph), and follow different inheritance laws.
Collections of Hadiths from Shi'a sources include
The Ja'ffari Shi'a consider Sunnah to be the oral traditions of Muhammad and the Imams. Al-Kafi by Kolayni, in Tabatabai's words is "the most trustworthy and celebrated work of hadith in the Shi'a world, and it has near to 4000 authentic hadith from a total of 16000 hadith according to Ayatollah Sayed Ali al-Sistani.
Religious calendar
All Muslims, Sunni or Shi'a, celebrate the following annual holidays:
- Eid ul-Fitr (عيد الفطر), which marks the end of fasting during the month of Ramadan and falls on the first day of Shawwal.
- Eid ul-Adha, which marks the end of the Hajj or pilgrimage to Makkah, starts on the 10th day of Dhul Hijja.
The following days are celebrated by Shi'a only, unless otherwise noted:
- The Festival of Muharram and Ashurah (عاشوراء) for Shi'a commemorates Imam Husayn bin Ali's martyrdom. It is a day of deep mourning. Sunnis do not ascribe religious significance to Hussayn's martyrdom, but for them this is a day of voluntary fasting with a day either preceding it or following it, in remembrance of the salvation of Moses and his followers (the Jewish people) from the Pharaoh and his army. Ashurah occurs on the 10th of Muharram.
- Arba'een commemorates the suffering of the women and children of Imam Husayn's household. After Husayn was killed, they were marched over the desert, from Karbala (central Iraq) to Shaam (Damascus, Syria). Many children died of thirst and exposure along the route. Arba'een occurs on the 20th of Safar, 40 days after Ashurah.
- Milad al-Nabi, Muhammad's birth date, is celebrated by Shi'a on the 17th of Rabbi al-Awwal, which coincides with the birth date of the sixth imam, Ja'far al-Sadiq. Sunnis consider Muhammad's birth date to be the 12th of Rabbi al-Awwal but many Sunnis do not consider this day religiously significant.
- Mid of Shaban is the birth date of the 12th and final imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi. It is celebrated by Twelvers on the 15th of Shaban. Many Shi'a fast on this day to show gratitude.
- Eid al-Ghadeer celebrates Ghadir Khum, the occasion when Shi'a believe Muhammad announced Ali's imamate before a multitude of Muslims. Eid al-Ghadeer is held on the 18th of Dhil-Hijjah.
- Al-Mubahila celebrates a meeting between the household of Muhammad and a Christian deputation from Najran. Al-Mubahila is held on the 24th of Dhil-Hijjah.
History of the Shi`ah
History of Shi'a-Sunni relations
See main article: Historical Shi'a-Sunni relations
Shi'a and Sunni historians record that many Shi`ahs have been persecuted, intimidated, and killed, through what Shi'a consider a coup d'état against Ali's caliphate. Some Sunni scholars are known to have openly considered the Shi'a as "Kafir" (disbelievers). This was mainly fueled by the Shi'a point of view regarding Ali, Umar, and other companions and possible misunderstandings about Shiah concepts such as Taqiyya and Muta.
However, many Sunni scholars of recent history have become more tolerant towards Shi'a Muslims and some have promoted unity, while others have not. Shi'as claim that within Shiism, it has always been stressed to seek unity among the majority. Organizations such as the Shi'a Lebanese Hezbollah have increased popularity of Shi'a among Sunnis and are seen as a credible organization and in many cases praised by both ideological parties.
Modern mainstream Sunni have also become less confrontational. The renowned al-Azhar Theological school in Egypt, for example, one of the main centers of Sunni scholarship in the world, announced the al-Azhar Shia Fatwa on July 6, 1959:
- "The Shi'a is a school of thought that is religiously correct to follow in worship as are other Sunni schools of thought."
Today, both Shi'a and Sunni students graduate and study at the Al-Azhar university.
References
- Template:MnbIndependent News source mentioning Sunni-Shia demographic statistics
- Template:MnbDiscrimination towards Shi'a in Saudi Arabia
- Template:MnbSunni-Shia demographic statistics
Major centers of Shi'a scholarship