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A. DIFFERENCES IN RELIGION

Introduction

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 A. DIFFERENCES IN RELIGION


A faith in the beginning is always simple and uncomplicated. As time goes on, people start elaborating those simple beliefs and that is the point when disputes arise and different sects are estab­lished. It had happened in all previous religions and Islam was not an exception. Islam in the beginning was a call to believe in the Oneness of God, in the Messengership of Prophet Muhammad and in the Day of Judgement. These basic principles are beyond any dispute. Also, there is no shadow of doubt that the religion of God is Islam, that the only way to know Islam is through the Book of God and the sunnah of the Prophet, and that the Book of God is what is known as the Qur'an without any addition or subtraction.

 The differences occur in interpretation of some of the verses of the Qur'an, and the authenticity or otherwise of some ahadith of the Prophet, and in their interpretation and implication. These differen­ces have given rise to many questions which have divided the Muslim world apart. There are many differences about the person of God and His at­tributes: Does God have a body? Will He be seen? Is God just? Is man compelled by God in his actions or is he free?

 As far as the existence, the person and Oneness of God is concerned, it comes under the first root of religion (usulu 'd‑din) known as tawhid, and has been discussed in our previous book ‘God of Islam.' [1] As for the actions of God, they come under the second root of religion known as ‘adl‑justice. According to the Shi'ah Ithna‑'Ashari faith, ‘adl is one of the most important attributes of God; and that is why it is dealt with separately. The reason why the second root of religion dealing with the actions of God has been named ‘adl is because the differences amongst the Muslims concerning the justice of God are vast and manifold.

 Since some of the differences amongst the various Muslim sects are of very fine theological points, it is essential to study the following chapters very carefully. Remember that every term and phrase in these chapters has a significance, and if the reader tries to change any terminology or any phrase, he would put himself in a mess of contradic­tions and irrelevancies.

 A Note on the Meaning of ‘adl:

The word ‘adl was originally coined to convey the idea of making two things equal, and distribut­ing equally. The same is the case with insaf which literally means dividing in two halves. The idea of equal distribution naturally leads to equity and jus­tice. And, as a result, ‘adl came to denote justice, equity, to be on straight path, straight :forwardness, to be of exact standard neither less nor more, and to keep everything in its proper place.

 The opposite words are jawr and zulm. Jawr means to be inclined to one side, which consequent­ly means not to be impartial in justice, to be biased for or against one party. Zulm means to put a thing in a wrong place. As an unjust judge misplaces. his judgement by not giving the aggrieved party its due, he is called zalim.

 The Muslim Sects Frequently Mentioned in this Book:

The reader will come across the following sects again and again:

 Shi ah Ithna‑'Ashari: Those Muslims who believe in the imamat of twelve Imams beginning with Imam 'Ali bin Abi Talib, Imam Hasan, Imam Husayn and his nine descendents. The twelfth Imam is Muhammad al‑Mahdi, the awaited saviour.  This group is also known as Imamiyyah.

 Asha'irah: All the Sunni Muslims of the present time are Asha'irah in their beliefs. They follow Abu l‑Hasan al‑Ash'ari (d. 324 A.H./936 C.E.).

 Mu'tazilah: Before Abu 'l‑Hasan al‑Ash'ari, many Sunnis were Mu'tazilah in their beliefs. They followed the beliefs of Wasil bin 'Ata' (d. 131 A.H. /748 O.E.).However, the Mu'tazilah sect became almost extinct in the fourth hijrah century.

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