ali47

Yes in theory and I would hope so, but the problem seems to be that the many manifestations of Salafism tends towards takfirism which are the modern-day Khawarij. It seems that the root of the Salafi idealogy is promoting that the non-Salafi's are somehow "less Muslim". This is the fatal error in their aqeedah where they confuse Islam and Iman. It is ultimately why the Khawarij [ibn Muljam] assasinated Imam 'Ali and used a dagger against Imam Hasan. They could not get it into their brains that the two Imams gave allegience to Mu'awiyah out of compulsion/taqiyyah and for this deed they declared

Verbal testimony of the faith is all that is required.

Then they are lukewarm Shi'is - aka Sufis =]

food for thought chaps, but don't you think Umar would of removed the third testimony instead/as well as 'haya 'ala khayril amal' if it existed? However, 'Ali ('a) only complained about haya 'ala khayril 'amal being removed ;)

Salaam, What does everyone think about how Azadari will develop in the West? I am a revert myself and find some forms absolutely unacceptable (zani zanjeer - idiots uploading these videos on youtube etc), in the sense that they will put people off the ahl al-bayt nevermind Islam as a religion. One of my main reasons for never researching Shi'ism was because of these ridiculous rituals that quite frankly make a mockery of Imam Husayn (s).. At the same time I appreciate those with certain cultural backgrounds will want to retain certain Aza practices which are close to their heart and are m

Abu Bakr is a kunya many people would be called Abu Bakr - just means father of the camels generally the person who would look after the animals. Many Shia hadith narrators are called Umar, Yazid and Muawiyah - it didn't mean that much at the time - these were common names For the question on why they claimed Abu Bakr should be the leader: They thought Abu Bakr should be the leader because of certain claims made by Abu Bakr, Umar and three other companions. They said the leadership and prophethood would not come together and Prophet's do not leave inheritence etc. The vast majority of p

Believing that the ahl al-bayt were the most knowledgable and worthy of the leadership after the demise of Prophet Muhammad (s). Also believing that nass (verbal/textual declaration) was made to 'Ali - Ghadir Khumm etc

If one is truthful and honest then you will know the the third shahada has never been part of the azan or iqama since the early days of Shi'ism. Read the paper by Liyakat Takim http://www.ltakim.com/Adhan.pdf Unfortunately we Shi'is have now become known for ashadu ala Ali waliulah instead of hayya 'ala khayril 'amal. I personally do not understand why the Ulema don't just say it as it is, but then again I imagine it's not top priority. I hear Grand Ayatollah Allama Shaikh Muhammad Hussain Najafi has a similar view and it not afraid to call out the cultural practices - he sounds like a go

It is the largest group and some of them give da'wah. Shi'I resources are also harder to get hold off although this is changing slowly.

Salaam Bilal, I have purchased this book and found it a great resource - thank you for this contribution. I am currently working on a paper on Sulaym ibn Qays identifying him as an authentic Sunni narrator known as Abbad ibn Qays. Would you be interesting in taking a look I would highly appreciate your feedback.

Indeed what choice did he have? The narrations are clear that he refused allegience and that 'Umar made a threat to burn the house. Does that make the 3 caliphs legitimate? Of course the Umayyads created the hadiths to say that 'Ali later pledged allegience willingly because he "thought he had a right" but decided he no longer had. This is to avoid narrating the embarassing event of Umar's threats which can be found in other Sunni and Shia sources. If you consult the sources you will see he gave allegience unwillingly and that it was most likely the threats to burn the house which made hi

His presence surely as a moderate Shi'a alim who gives advice on the social and political plane is enough. So many scholars at this level can easily become corrupted and cause chaos given their position. His fiqh books guide Shia Muslims across the world to help follow their Imams..

He should of shown Muhammad Hijab hadith of Rubah where 'Ali in Kufa gives a sermon asking people if they remember the event of Ghadir? This is narrated many times in Ahmad ibn Hanbal's Musnad (Sunni book) along with the Ghadir narrations themselves that are described as Sahih. Look for yourself and ask - why would 'Ali stand up in Kufa 25 years later to mention this event? 'Ali was declared to have awla (closeness) to everybody else so how could they be an Imam over him? Why would he refuse to pledge allegience? Why would Umar threaten to burn his house down (Tabari, ibn Abi Shay

'Ali became a lot more outspoken towards his caliphate when he had his base in Kufa. He would openly ask people about Ghadir (hadith of Ruhba) which can be found in Musnad Ahmed ibn Hanbal which is a Sunni book! After all 'Ali refused to pledge allegience to Abu Bakr and only did after Umar's idea of threatening to burn down the house (narrated by both schools). Caliphate was an innovation in this sense because the senior companions chose to override the Amir which the Prophet (s) had chosen. The uprising of Hussain was about imamate after all the letters from the Kufans say explicitly "c

It's a sweeping statement which I'm surprised by given his mixed ancestary. The mirror isn't actually the source of all knowledge either.. The Muslims started out well and there are so many scientific loan words in English with Arabic origin. The Muslims developed some of the first hospitals in Baghdad and learned to read and write very early on. They contributed to Mathemetics and were some of the first to use the scientific method. Their hygiene too and still is to this day impeccable if practised properly. Unfortunately it went downhill for different reasons which I am not knowledgable enou