The Wayback Machine - https://web.archive.org/web/20121215070956/http://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/essays/shi-a
Berkley Center Knowledge Resources Home Berkley Center Home Berkley Center on iTunes U Berkley Center's YouTube Channel Berkley Center's Vimeo Channel Berkley Center's YouTube Channel Berkley Center's iTunes Page Berkley Center's Twitter Page Berkley Center's Facebook Page Berkley Center's Vimeo Channel Berkley Center's YouTube Channel Berkley Center's iTunes Page WFDD's Twitter Page WFDD's Facebook Page Doyle Undergraduate Initiatives Undergraduate Learning and Interreligious Understanding Survey Junior Year Abroad Network Undergraduate Fellows Knowledge Resources KR Classroom Resources KR Countries KR Traditions KR Topics Berkley Center Home Berkley Center Knowledge Resources Back to the Berkley Center World Faiths Development Dialogue Back to the Berkley Center Religious Freedom Project
December 15, 2012  |  About the Berkley Center  |  Directions to the Center  |  Subscribe
 
Programs People Publications Events For Students Resources Religious Freedom Project WFDD

KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES

Islam
Islam is a religious tradition stressing submission to God according to the revelations from God to the prophet Muhammad (570/571-632 CE), whom Muslims hold to be the last in a line of prophets including Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Muhammad's revelations are recorded in the Qur'an, the sacred scri...
read more >>

Iran
The tight link between politics and Shi'a Islam that characterizes contemporary Iran is the product of a long and often contentious history. Islam came to Iran, the historical stronghold of Zoroastrianism, with the Arab conquest of the 7th century and became the dominant religion by the late 11th...
read more >>

Iraq
Over its long history, Iraq has been both a center of cosmopolitan civilization and a site of sectarian conflict. Baghdad was the intellectual capital of the Muslim world during the Islamic Golden Age between the 8th and 13th centuries. During much of its history, it hosted a vibrant and religiou...
read more >>



Shi'a

Shi’a Islam is the second largest branch of the tradition, with up to 200 million followers who comprise around 15% of all Muslims worldwide, including approximately 90% of the Iranian population. Shi’ism differs from Sunni Islam in holding that rightful religious and political leadership of the Muslim community belongs to Muhammad’s family and descendants, who are properly able to interpret Sharia (Islamic law) and decipher the Qur’an’s esoteric teachings. The origins of Shi'ism go back to the years after Muhammad’s death in 633 CE when his cousin and son-in-law, Ali, was initially passed over for leadership of the community. Ali eventually became Caliph but was assassinated in 661 CE and much of his family--including his son, Husayn--was killed during the power struggle that ensued. For all Shi’ites Ali was the first imam - the divinely chosen and infallible leader of the Muslim community - most Shi'ites (known as Twelvers) believe he was followed by another eleven imams. The last of these imams, Muhammad al-Mahdi, is believed to be in a state of hiding - known as the Occultation - until his triumphant return at the end of time.
Shi’a Islam is the predominant religion in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Bahrain, with large populations also found in Lebanon, Yemen, and Kuwait. It is distinct from Sunni Islam in several respects. Its clerical structure is more formal and hierarchical and it has a rich tradition of esoteric interpretation of the Qur'an that goes beyond scripture’s apparent surface meanings. Throughout history, the considerable authority afforded to leading religious leaders within Shi'ism has translated into clerical political influence and, in some cases, theocracy. Today's Iran is a prominent example. The model set by its founding figures, Ali and Husayn, has given Shi’a Islam a special reverence for martyrdom. Since the early days of Islam, the Sunni majority have often viewed the Shi’a as a splinter group and a threat, spurring persecution that continue to this day in many countries.


什叶派

什叶派是伊斯兰教的第二大支派,拥有大约2亿信徒,大约占世界穆斯林人口的15%。其中,伊朗人口的90%为什叶派。与逊尼派不同,什叶派认为穆斯林社会的正统宗教和政治领导权属于穆罕默德的家族及其后裔,惟有他们才能合理地解释伊斯兰教法(沙里亚),并且破解《古兰经》的微言大义。什叶派的起源可以追溯到公元633年。在穆罕默德死后,他的侄子和女婿阿里最初没能获得穆斯林社会的领导权。阿里最终成为了哈里发,但于661年遇刺身亡。他的儿子侯赛因也在随后的政治斗争中殉道。什叶派认为,阿里是第一位伊玛目,即穆斯林社会被圣立且真正无误的领袖,在他之后有另外十一位伊玛目。最后一位被认为是处于“隐匿状态”,直到他的全胜归来。
什叶派在伊朗、伊拉克、阿塞拜疆和巴林占主导地位,在黎巴嫩、也门和科威特也有大量信徒。它与逊尼派有几个方面的不同。什叶派的神职体系更正式化、等级化,对《古兰经》有很多超出其字面意思的深奥解释。贯穿历史,什叶派宗教领袖被赋予相当的权威,并转化为神职人员的政治影响,有时甚至是神权统治。今日的伊朗就是一个突出的例子。因其创立者阿里和侯赛因所树立的典范,什叶派特别尊重殉道。从伊斯兰早期历史开始,逊尼派就将什叶派看作一个分裂团体和威胁,并极力对其进行迫害。直到如今,这在很多国家仍是如此。