Following the international outrage at the
killing of a Shia cleric by Sunni majority
Saudi Arabia, this piece elaborates on the
differences between both Islamic sects. From Nigeria, to Iran, Saudi Arabia and other
world countries, there have been several
uproars among Islamic followers and leaders
believed to be sectarian disputes in the
world. The recent cases was the Shiite/Military
attacks in Nigeria, ad the execution of Shiite
cleric in Saudi Arabia, a country believed to
be Sunni Nation. Who are the Sunni and Shia (Shi’ites) in
Islam? Sunni and Shia Islam are the two major
denominations of Islam. The demographic
breakdown between the two denominations
is difficult to assess and varies by source,
but a good approximation is that 85-90% of
the world’s Muslims are Sunni and 10-15% are Shia, with most Shias belonging to the
Twelver tradition and the rest divided
between many other groups. The historic background of the Sunni–Shia
split lies in the schism that occurred when
the Islamic prophet Muhammad died in the
year 632, leading to a dispute over
succession to Muhammad as a caliph of the
Islamic community spread across various parts of the world, which led to the Battle of
Siffin. The dispute intensified greatly after
the Battle of Karbala, in which Hussein ibn
Ali and his household were killed by the
ruling Umayyad Caliph Yazid I, and the
outcry for revenge divided the early Islamic community. Today, there are differences in
religious practice, traditions, and customs,
often related to jurisprudence. Although all
Muslim groups consider the Quran to be
divine, Sunni and Shia have different
opinions on hadith. These are 5 major distinctions between
Sunnis and Shiaīs which can be seen
through observation: 1. Names Shia are sometimes recognizable by their
names, which are often derived from the
names of Ahl al-Bayt. In particular, the
names Fatima, Zaynab, Ali, Abbas, Hussein,
and Hassan are disproportionately common
among Shias, though they may also be used by Sunnis. Umar, Uthman, Abu Bakr, Aisha,
Muawiya, Yazid being the names of figures
recognized by Sunnis but not Shias, are
commonly used as names for Sunnis but are
very rare, if not virtually absent, for Shias. 2. Composition and Location Sunnis are a majority in most Muslim
communities: in Southeast Asia, China,
South Asia, Africa, and most of the Arab
world.
While Shia make up the majority of the
citizen population in Iraq, Iran, Azerbaijan, and Bahrain, as well as being a politically
significant minority in Lebanon. Azerbaijan
is predominantly Shia; however, practicing
adherents are much fewer. Indonesia has the largest number of Sunni
Muslims, while Iran has the largest number
of Shia Muslims (Twelver) in the world.
Pakistan has the second-largest Sunni as
well as the second-largest Shia Muslim
(Twelver) population in the world. 3. Salat When prostrating during ritual prayer
(salat), Shias place their forehead onto a
piece of naturally occurring material, most
often a clay tablet (mohr), soil (turbah) at
times fromKarbala, the place where Hussein
ibn Ali was martyred, instead of directly onto a prayer rug. There is precedence for
this in Sunni thought too, as it is
recommended to prostrate on earth, or
upon something that grows from the earth. 4. Mut’ah and Misyar Twelver Shia permit Nikah mut‘ah—fixed-
term temporary marriage— which is not
acceptable within the Sunni community, the
Ismaili Shia or the Zaidi Shia and is believed
a planned and agreed fornication. Twelvers
believe that Mutah was permitted until Umar forbade it during his rule. Mutah is not
the same as Misyar marriage or ‘Arfi
marriage, which has no date of expiration
and is permitted by some Sunnis 5. Hijab and dress Both Sunni and Shia women wear the hijab.
Devout women of the Shia traditionally wear
black and yellow as do some Sunni women
in the Gulf. Some Shia religious leaders also
wear a black robe. Mainstream Shia and
Sunni women wear the hijab differently. Some Sunni scholars emphasize covering of
all body including the face in public whereas
some scholars exclude the face from hijab.
Shias believe that the hijab must cover
around the perimeter of the face and up to
the chin.[40] Like Sunnis, some Shia women, such as those in Iran and Iraq, use
their hand to hold the black chador, in order
to cover their faces when in public. http://howng.com/5-major-differences-between-sunni-and-shia-muslims/?utm_source=&utm_medium=facebook

Nice piece of work up there, thanks for educating us. I 've got a question -

1. Who permitted the temporary marriage (mutah), why was it permitted & under what conditions was it permitted?

2. What informed Umar's decision to later forbid the practice?

10x

One thing they have in common is terrorism.

The Shia Muslims are often persecuted.