Finally, in 1979, the Islamic Revolution in Iran produced a radical brand of Shia Islam that would clash violently with Sunni conservatives in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the decades to follow. “Neither of them are representative of the vast majority of Sunni Muslims or the vast majority of Shia Muslims around the world,” says Hazleton of the fundamentalist regimes governing both Saudi Arabia and Iran. “It was obviously intended by the Ummayads to put the definitive end to all claims to leadership of the ummah as a matter of direct descendence from Muhammad,” says Hazleton of Hussein’s death, and the death of all the surviving members of Muhammad’s family, at Karbala. In 681, Ali’s son Hussein led a group of 72 followers and family members from Mecca to Karbala (present-day Iraq) to confront the corrupt caliph Yazid of the Ummayad dynasty. “But of course it’s not what happened.” Instead, Hussein’s martyrdom at Karbala became the central story of Shia tradition, and is commemorated yearly as Ashoura, the most solemn date on the Shia calendar. A common thread in most of these conflicts is the ongoing battle between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shia Iran for influence in the oil-rich Middle East and surrounding regions.

First came the rise of the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century, which transformed Iran (through force) from a Sunni center into the Shia stronghold of the Middle East. This group became known as the followers of Ali; in Arabic the Shiat Ali, or simply Shia. 632. While most of Muhammad’s followers thought that the other elite members of the Islamic community should choose his successor, a smaller group believed only someone from Muhammad’s family-namely his cousin and son-in-law, Ali-should succeed him. Eventually the Sunni majority (named for sunna, or tradition) won out, and chose Muhammad’s close friend Abu Bakr to become the first caliph, or leader, of the Islamic community. Islamization of the world began in Mecca and spread first to the Middle East and South Asia. Within the century after Muhammad’s death, his followers had built an empire that stretched from Central Asia to Spain. Finally, his ambition to make England and France the satellites of Spain weakened his ability to suppress Protestantism in both countries. Finally, the tears that Frigg cried for her dead son changed the red mistletoe berries to white, raising Balder from the dead. In many ways, modern Zionism was a response to the ‘Jewish question,'” says Daniel Kotzin, a history professor at Medaille College in upstate New York, who has conducted extensive research on the Zionist movement and teaches a course on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “What is the place of Jews in Europe in a post-Enlightenment age?

“The essence of the problem is that Muhammad died without a male heir, and he never clearly stated who he would want to be his successor,” says Lesley Hazleton, author of After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Sunni-Shia Split in Islam. Who is the schoolyard bully who appears with Junior in the series? Doctor Who. Series 7. Episode – 2011 Christmas Special. The amount of power that Ghost Rider has depends on the imagination of the person who serves as the host of the Spirit of Vengeance. Ali, himself, was killed in 661, as the bitter power struggle between Sunni and Shia continued. A massive Sunni army waited for them, and by the end of a 10-day standoff with various smaller struggles, Hussein was killed and decapitated, and his head brought to Damascus as a tribute to the Sunni caliph. Despite their differences, Sunni and Shia have lived alongside each other in relative peace for most of history. But starting in the late 20th century, the schism deepened, exploding into violence in many parts of the Middle East as extreme brands of Sunni and Shia Islam battle for both religious and political supremacy.

Shia Muslims reject these traditions and do not base any of their religious practices on the testimony of these individuals. While Shia represent the majority of the population in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain and Azerbaijan and a plurality in Lebanon, Sunnis are the majority in more than 40 other countries, from Morocco to Indonesia. Sunni-Shia divisions would fuel a long-running civil war in Syria, fighting in Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere, and terrorist violence on both sides. In addition to Karbala, the NPR podcast Throughline identified three key milestones that would sharpen Sunni-Shia divisions by the end of the 20th century. These three collections form the foundation for Muslim’s religious practices and culture known as Sharia, the entire body of Islamic law. He recorded them into what is now known as the Koran, Islam’s Constitution and supreme law. If you hear that Islam’s goal is NOT to take over America-DO NOT BELIEVE IT.