Whatz the matter with this Sunny Shia sects
I mean seriosly...I am born as a muslim and in the place where I grew up (south India), we never heard about this divide (except reading about the sectarion violence in baghdad).
When people here ask me the question whether I am Sunny or Shia..all I do is "Blink".
Whatz the matter with this?? Above all, what is the enemity between these 2 sects so that they kill themselves?? It sounds crazy & Stupid to me that people who believe in Allah, pray in the same mosque and carry the same cultural values fight within themselves.
I used tell my Hindu friends back in India (a religion in whihch people are grouped and ranked in various scales of "very high" to "very low" in a caste system) produly that Islam is all about brotherhood.
May be I am wrong..or Islam had fundementally failed in taking the basic principle to its followers..
Enlighten me!!!
Whilst in Albania i spoke to a few Muslims...and they were very helpful in answering my questions.
religion had been banned under communism so i was quite interested in what was going on now.
They didn't differentiate between Sunni and Shia really.
I was surprised..... they were just happy to be allowed to follow their religion without fear.
So maybe that is the solution if people can't practice in peace ban them from doing it and see how they like it then.
The cast system is only within Hindus.
Chect this out..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divide_and_rule
I agree with you that this divide has been there for very long time and nothing to do with the west.
But, I referred them here because, we, Indians, had learnt about it from the west, I mean British. Their idea to control India was to "Divide and Rule". They divided the nation by religious sentiments, Muslim and Hindu and then, when we were busy fighting ourselves..the Brits were doing whatever they wanted to do. The effect was so bad that we couldn't continue as one country even after independance and we split into 2 (India and Pakistan) and we are still fighting each other.
Alright, I agree with you that this reference is out of context here..My appoligies.
I am not at all worried about myself. Like I said, I don't even know which sect I belong to..so it doesn't really matter to me...
I am worried about all those innocent people killed in the sectarian violence...I am worried about the Muslim community falling victim for the "divide and rule" trick of the west. I just imagine what political power and influence will the arab world have over the rest of the world if they forget this stupid differences and unite...
amnesia...there is nothing wrong for everyone having their beleifs..it only becomes an issue when they start hating others with different belief...
Why worry about it. As long as you yourself are comfortable with what you are and "convey" that to those around you, then there is no problem.
Its more about US & Iran nuclear stand off then a religious division.
Poverty is not for the sake of hardship. No, it is there because nothing exists but God. Poverty unlocks the door -- what a blessed key!
- Jalaluddin al-Rumi
because different people have different beliefs.
__________________________
Mr. Q's Blog - A Qatari's view on Qatar.
Sunni Muslims agree with the position taken by many of the Prophet's companions, that the new leader should be elected from among those capable of the job. This is what was done, and the Prophet Muhammad's close friend and advisor, Abu Bakr, became the first Caliph of the Islamic nation.Shia Muslims believe that following the Prophet Muhammad's death, leadership should have passed directly to his cousin/son-in-law, Ali.
Shia Muslims also feel animosity towards some of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad, based on their positions and actions during the early years of discord about leadership in the community. Many of these companions (Abu Bakr, Umar, Aisha, etc.) have narrated traditions about the Prophet's life and spiritual practice. Shia Muslims reject these traditions (hadith) and do not base any of their religious practices on the testimony of these individuals. This naturally gives rise to some differences in religious practice between the two groups. These differences touch all detailed aspects of religious life: prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, etc.
There are many sects of Islam but these are the 2 pre-dominate ones. You could compare it to Catholics and Protestans, there are many different beliefs in each of these sects.
I cannot really speak much about Shia's as I am a Sunni muslim (I follow the sunna of the Prophet Mohammed PBUH).
Wikipedia has a great deal on this...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shi'a
"Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock - Will Rogers"
Is it anything like the difference between Catholics and Protestants?
Did you Google it first?
i asked my local friend but i was not able to understand him that much so i just googled it... seems the divide is more of political than religious... well that's how i understand it...
just wait and see, a lot of QL people will enlighten us through this thread...