How Not to Write Muslim Characters Part 3

Muslims, like Christians, have formed various denominations and splits. This post will give you a lightspeed understanding of what they mean and how that may relate to your character.

One Ummah

Muslims have a lot of similarities to each other, and there is this over-riding concept of One Ummah (roughly translates to nation). The Ummah can mean two different things. One meaning of Ummah is all of humanity that was alive at the time the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was given his first revelation, to the last person on the face of the Earth. The other meaning is every Muslim since the time of the Prophet Muhammad. The former ties in with the idea that our natural state at birth is belief in God, but later socialisation and attachments draw us away from this pure state. The latter definition is the one most Muslims think of in relation to the word Ummah.

Schism

The only real schism in Islam happened after the death of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), when some Muslims felt that the Prophet’s son-in-law, Ali ibn Abu Talib, should lead the Muslims, but the majority voted for Abu Bakr, the first amongst his companions, to be the best candidate from amongst a pool of potential leaders. Those that continued to campaign for Ali ibn Abu Talib to rule the Muslims came to be known as Shia Muslims, from the word Shi’ah, which translates roughly to ‘partisans’. Those who chose to follow Abu Bakr as the elected leader and all of his successors came to be known as Sunni Muslims (adherents of Sunnah).

In terms of characterisation, Sunni and Shia Muslims still believe in One God and His Messenger, pray 5 times a day, fast during Ramadan, give Zakah (compulsory charity) and perform Hajj. However, there are some additional traditions that are unique to each branch. For example, Sunni Muslims perform Taraweeh prayers during Ramadan, an hour long of prayers made up of twenty rak’ats (each rakat involves standing, bowing and prostrating twice) after the night prayer. This congregational practice was revived during the time of Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Caliph of Islam.

Yahya related to me from Malik that Yazid ibn Ruman said, “The people used to watch the night in prayer during Ramadan for twenty-three rakats in the time of Umar ibn al-Khattab.” (Muwatta Imam Malik)

Shia’s mark the martyrdom of Imam Hussein ibn Ali ibn Talib, the honourable grandson of the Prophet during the first Islamic calendar month of Muharram with a mourning rituals that vary from denomination to denomination, which include marching through the streets and self-flagellation. However, there is much more to the Shia community than this, though I am no expert.

Over the centuries each of these two branches have developed various schools of thought, denominations, cults and sects. As I said earlier, I’m no expert on the Shia community so will leave that to someone else to provide a more detailed breakdown. What I can do is shed some light on the Sunni traditions.

The Four Schools of Thought

Sunni Islam has four major schools of thought (madhabs). These are not denominations or schisms, rather they are schools of jurisprudence. These came about during the first two centuries of Islamic History. The Islamic calendar began with the Hijri, when the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companion, Abu Bakr Siddiq, finally left Makkah and travelled to Madinah. These schools are:

• The Hanafi School: headed by Imam al-Nu’man ibn Thabit (known as Abu Hanifa), who lived from 80 AH – 150 AH
• The Maliki School: headed by Imam Malik Ibn Anas al-Asbahi, who lived from 93 AH – 179 AH
• The Shafi’i School: headed by Imam Muhammad Idris al-Shafi’I, who lived from 150 AH – 198 AH
• The Hanbali School: headed by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, who lived 164 AH – 241 AH

Sunni Muslims believe that these four schools offer correct guidance for Muslims to live their lives according to Islam. There is not much difference in terms of beliefs, rather the focus is on finer points of jurisprudence, methodologies in interpretation of primary sources. The most obvious differences can be seen in how prayers are done by each school, though they are similar enough that people of different schools will often pray together in one congregation. Therefore, identifying your character as belonging to one of these schools of thought isn’t essential but can add depth without needing to add much detail. Of these, Hanafi’s are the majority, with the madhab spread across Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Kazakhstan, and pretty much all of South Asia. The Hanbali following covers most of the Arabian peninsula, with parts of  Yemen, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, South India and Indonesia following the Shafi madhab. Other parts of Africa, including Mali, Niger and Chad also have Shafi’I followers, but also tend to have followers of the Maliki school. Morroco, Algeria, Libya and Mauritania are also Maliki. The majority of those who migrated to Western Europe and North America are either Hanafi or Shafi’I (mainly from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh), though in the recent decade a number of Hanbali’s have also made their way across (mainly from the Arabian Peninsula). There is also another tradition that does not follow any one of these four schools, but rather rely on their own discretion to choose between different opinions. This tradition is referred to as the Salaf (the pious predecessors), with followers calling themselves Salafi. This is a relatively modern movement that is said to have begun in the 19^th century. The Salaf primarily base their jurisprudence on the works of Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (Hanbali School) and Sheikh Ibn Taymiyyah (661 AH – 728 AH). Salafis tend to be quite brusque and reserved. They tend to dress either in western clothing or a traditional thaub. The men tend to have big beards and go about either bare-headed or wearing a keffiyeh (Arabian headscarf). Salafi’s come across as being stern and outspoken, often challenging other Muslims on their views.

Reverts

Revert Muslims, those who have become Muslims out of choice after having followed another belief, tend to follow the madhab of whichever mosque they take their shahadah in (articulating their belief in one God and His Messenger, the Prophet Muhammad). They are called reverts as opposed to converts because it is believed that the natural condition of a human at birth (fitrah) is that they were born believers but were then socialised into their parents faith. Famous reverts include Abdullah (William Henry) Quilliam (1887), Lady Zainab (Evelyn) Cobbold (1890s), Robert Stanley (1890s), Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Dave Chappelle and even the late Michael Jackson was confirmed by his brother, Jermaine Jackson (also a Muslim). Some reverts have even become eminent scholars of Islam, such as Abdul Hakim Murad, Hamza Yusuf, Martin Lings and Marmaduke Pickthall.

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