What's What in Islam - a Guide

Keep this for future reference. Send it on to your congressmen, so they'll
know what everyone's talking about. Inspired by Little Green
Footballs' "Clueless in Washington" post

Sunni		Shi`ia
Al Qaeda, Taliban		Iran
Arab		Persian
Libya		Hezbullah, Lebanon (Iranian funded)
Iraq, Tikrit (Ba`ath)		Iraq (anti-Sadam)
Sudan (Darfur, Black Hawk Down)
Bosnia/Kosovo (Iranian funded)
9/11		Threat of nuclear holocaust
		Attempted takeover of the Kaaba in Mecca on Islamic New Year (1980)
Kurds - Majority (mostly of the Shafi school, others of the Hanafi school)		Kurds -Minority ("Al-Fayliah" Kurds)
Caliphate (leadership is by merit)		Sultanate (leadership is hereditary)
Immams - anyone whose faith is strong enough can be Immam		Only descendants of Mohammed can speak "for the faith")
Pashtun (Tribal group living in Eastern Afghanistan & Pakistan) primary ethnic group of the Taliban		Hazara (Iranian speaking ethnic group of Mongolian origin who reside mainly in the central Afghanistan mountain region
Founded by Abu Bakr, father of Muhammad's wife Aisha; first of the "Four Caliphs"		Founded by Muhammad's cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib husband of Muhammed's daughter Fatima Zahra
Ali ibn Abi Talib is 4th Caliph		Ali ibn Abi Talib is first Immam
Generally feel superior to other Muslims which can be seen in the Wahabbi (Salafi) perspective that they are holier than other Islamic believers.		Messianic believers who feel that their founder was wrongly displaced and will be redeemed mystically on"judgment day"

The four schools (madhabi) of Sunni Islamic jurisprudance:

All schools base their legal opinions on the traditional four sources,
the Usul al-fiqh:

• Qur'an - the primary source
  
• The sunnah of the prophet Muhammad transmitted as hadith (sayings)
  
• Ijma (consensus of the People)
  
• Qiyas (analogy)
  

There is little or no animosity between the four schools of religious
law within Sunni Islam. Instead there is a cross-pollination of
ideas and debate that serves to refine each school's understanding
of Islam. It is not uncommon, or disallowed, for an individual to
follow one school but take the point of view of another school for
a certain issue.

The schools:

Hanafi - largest of the four schools (~45% of Muslims world-wide); most
open to modern ideas, but have strict interpretation of Muslim law.
The Constitution of Afghanistan allows Afghan judges to use Hanafi
jurisprudence in situations where the Constitution lacks provisions.

Maliki - 25% of Muslims, mostly in North Africa and West Africas. Adds
the practice of the people of Medina (amal ahl al-medina) as a
source for jurisprudance in addition to the Usul al-fiqh

Shafi'i - 15% of Muslims - refers to the opinions of the Prophet's
companions in addition to the Usul al-fiqh. Places emphasis on
proper derivation of law, through systematic reasoning without
relying on personal deduction. The official madhab of Brunei
Darussalam and Malaysia.

Hanbali - most conservative, "Textualists" - do not add any other
sources; - 5% of Muslims. Saudi Arabia.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Salafi - (Arabic: "predecessors" or "early generations"), adherents of a
contemporary movement in Sunni Islam ascribing understanding and
practice of Islam to the 'Salaf', the first three generations after
Muhammed. Salafism is derogatorily named by outsiders as Wahhabism.
Salafis insist that their beliefs are simply pure Islam and not a
sect. Ultra-conservative in practice, many see violent Jihad as the
only valid path. The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Osama bin-Laden,
and the leadership of Saudi Arabia are well-known Salafis.

Sufi - a mystic tradition of Islam encompassing a diverse range of
beliefs and practices dedicated to the love and service of one's
fellow men and Allah/God. Sort of Zen Islam. Believe that love
is a projection of the essence of God to the universe. Practices
include meditation, music, dance. Tariqas (Sufi orders) may be
associated with Shi'a Islam, Sunni Islam, other currents of Islam,
or a combination of multiple traditions.