Shia Islam

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Shia Islam, is the second largest denomination of Islam, after Sunni Islam. Shi'a Muslims, though a minority in the Muslim world, constitute the majority in Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Azerbaidjan and Bahrain. Most scholars and polymaths of the Islamic Golden Age were Shi'a Muslims, including Avicenna, Geber, al-Farabi, Alhacen and Al Tusi.

Shias adhere to the teachings of Islamic prophet Muhammad, but unlike Sunnis, they follow the religious guidance of his family (the Ahl al-Bayt) or his descendants known as Shi'a Imams, whom they consider the keepers and instructors of Qur'an and Sunnah.[1] Unlike Sunnis, Shias believe Ali ibn Abi Talib (Muhammad's cousin and husband of Fatimah) was the true successor to Muhammad who was appointed by God and his prophet and thus reject the legitimacy of the first three caliphs of Islamic history.[2]

Shia also represents more than a school of Islamic thought. There are various Shia theologies, systems of jurisprudence, philosophies and mysticisms. Shia embodies a completely independent system of religious and political authority and religious interpretation. Thus it makes a minority in the Muslim history that has made a considerable contribution to Islamic civilization. Shia identity emerged in the first Islamic century, Shia theology and Fiqh were formulated in the second century[3] and the first Shia governments and societies were established by the end of the third century. There are an estimated 130 to 190 million Shi'ites, 10-15% of the world's Muslims.[4]

Shia Islam is divided into theological branches. The largest and best known is the Twelvers which forms a majority of the population in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan and Bahrain, as well as a plurality in Lebanon. Other branches include the Ismaili and Zaidiyyah.[5] Many groups, including the Alawi sect, deify Imam Ali, which is considered heresy among mainstream Shias.[6].

[edit] Note

  1. ^ Corbin (1993), pp. 45 - 51
  2. ^ Tabatabae (1979), pp. 41-44
  3. ^ Dakake (2008), pp.1 and 2
  4. ^ pewforum.org
  5. ^ Tabatabae (1979), p. 76
  6. ^ Syria’s Alawis and Shi‘ism


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