Sunni View Of Ali This article covers the Sunni view of Ali. Sunni Muslims hold Ali ibn Abi Talib in high respect as one of the Ahl al-Bayt, a foremost authority on the Qur’an and Islamic law, and as one of the four Rightly Guided Caliphs. Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final...
Husayn ibn Ali Husayn ibn Ali or Abū ʿAbd Allāh al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib (أبو عبد الله الحسين بن علي بن أبي طالب, 10 January 626 – 10 October 680), also known as Husayn ibn Ali or Imam Husayn, was a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a son of Ali ibn Abi...
Hasan ibn Ali Hasan ibn Ali (حسن ابن علي, Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī; c. 625 – 2 April 670) was a prominent early Islamic figure. He was the eldest son of Ali and Fatima and a grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He briefly ruled as caliph from January 661 until August 661. He is considered the second Shia Imam, succeeding Ali and...
Origin Of Shia Islam The article covers the origin of Shia Islam. Shia Islam originated as a response to questions of Islamic religious leadership which became manifest as early as the death of Muhammad in 632 CE. The issues involved not only whom to appoint as the successor to Muhammad, but also what attributes a true successor...
History Of Shia Islam This article covers the History of Shia Islam. Shi‘a Islam, also known as Shi‘ite Islam or Shi‘ism, is the second largest branch of Islam after Sunni Islam. Shias adhere to the teachings of Muhammad and the religious guidance of his family (who are referred to as the Ahl al-Bayt) or his descendants known as Shia...
What Is Shi’a Islam? Shi’a Islam or Shi`ism (Arabic شيعة, Persian: شیعه) is the second largest school within Islam. Shi’a Muslims adhere to the teachings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his Ahlul Bayt (family). Shi’as believe that the Imam – their preferred title for the political and religious leader of the Muslim community must belong to...
Second Fitna The Second Fitna or the Second Islamic Civil War was a period of general political and military disorder and conflicts in the Islamic community during the early Umayyad caliphate. It followed the death of the first Umayyad caliph Mu’awiya I in 680 and lasted for about twelve years. The war involved the suppression of two challenges...
First Fitna The First Fitna (فتنة مقتل عثمان fitnat maqtal ʻUthmān “strife/sedition of the killing of Uthman”) was a civil war within the Rashidun Caliphate which resulted in the overthrowing of the Rashidun caliphs and the establishment of the Umayyad dynasty. It began when the caliph Uthman was assassinated by rebels in 656 and continued through the four-year reign...
Ahl al-Bayt Ahl al-Bayt (أَهْلُ ٱلْبَيْتِ, اهلِ بیت) is a phrase meaning “People of the House” , “People of the Household” or “Family of the House“. Within the Islamic tradition, the term mainly refers to the family of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad, and to a lesser extent (according to Muslims), his...
Alevism Alevism (Alevîlik or Turkish: Anadolu Alevîliği/Alevileri, also called Qizilbash, or Shī‘ahImāmī-Tasawwufī Ṭarīqah, or Shīʿah-ī Bāṭen’īyyah) is a syncretic, heterodox, and local Islamic tradition, whose adherents follow the mystical (bāṭenī) teachings of Ali, the Twelve Imams and a descendant—the 13th century Alevi saint Haji Bektash Veli. Alevis are found primarily in Turkey among ethnic Turks and Kurds, and make up between 11-12% of...
Ali ibn Abi Talib Ali ibn Abi Talib (عَلِيّ ٱبْن أَبِي طَالِب, ʿAlī ibn ʾAbī Ṭālib; 13 September 601 – 29 January 661) was a cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, who ruled as the fourth caliph from 656 to 661. He is one of the central figures in Shia Islam and...
Shia Islam Shia Islam or Shi’ism is one of the two main branches of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor and the Imam (leader) after him, most notably at the event of Ghadir Khumm, but was prevented from the caliphate as a result...
Rashidun The Rashidun Caliphs (Rightly Guided Caliphs; الخلفاء الراشدون al-Khulafāʾu ar-Rāshidūn), often simply called, collectively, “the Rashidun“, is a term used in Sunni Islam to refer to the 30-year reign of the first four caliphs (successors) following the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammadﷺ, namely: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman ibn Affan, and Ali of the Rashidun Caliphate, the first caliphate. The concept of “Rightly...
Succession To Muhammad The succession to Muhammad is the central issue that split the Muslim community into several divisions in the first century of Islamic history, with the most prominent among these sects being the Shia and Sunni branches of Islam. Sunni Islam maintains that Abu Bakr was the legitimate successor to Muhammad on the basis of election. Shia Islam holds that Ali ibn Abi...