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Prophet Muhammad has prophesied that 71 sects willbe created in his religion. So far, the numebr is quite less than this. It stands at about 20-25. Some of the main sects are sunni, shia, hanafi, shaafi, deobandi, maalki etc.

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15y ago
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12y ago

The sects of Islam are Sunni and Shia

The best definition of sect I know of is thoroughly modern Western, and does not exactly confirm to the relations in Islam. It defines graduations of cults, sects, and denominations based on their relation to the larger society

By this definition, Western religions start as cults, and always retain cults at their core. Cults are not concerned with a flawed world, but are concerned with ritual and purity, however they define them.

When a cult increases to a size where it impinges on the larger society, its focus turns to reforming that society. Sects become oppositional to aspects of the larger society, and "sectarian."

When a sect grows to the point where it is a significant fraction of the society, and as more members enter the sect thru the birth canal than adult conversion, the sect becomes a Denomination. A Denomination is supportive of the larger society, with which it is in basic agreement as to the "Foundational Myth" of the society.

The only stage beyond that is theocracy (or, to be more accurate, rule by religious authorities of the State.)

Note, religions contain denominations, denominations contain sects, all have cults.

These categories by no means correspond to Islamic practice, which still has two outright theocracies.

Sunni is not a denomination or a sect, but a foundational myth almost equivalent to Islam. Many states approach theocracy through Sharia, at least to Western viewers. Shia, with its own state and history, represents a deeper division within Islam than the difference between Catholics and Protestants does, in general, yet, in Syria, Turkey, India, America, both Shia and Sunni resemble Western denominations in that they are equally part of the larger society, rather it is Islamic or not. In the Sunni monarchies, tho, Shia is an oppositional sect.

I will ignore the differences between Seveners, Twelvers, Ismailis etc, due to my ignorance.

Within the Sunni consensus, the closest analog to Western Denominations are the Four schools of jurisprudence, but these are not separate denominations in the way Methodist and Baptists are.

Sufism is primarily a cult concerned with helping an individual approach the divine. It can become an oppositional sect, as it did with the Sinussi of Libya. It can also perform many of the functions of denominations thru its institutions of charity, but, as I understand it, one can be simultaneously a Sufi and a member of any legal school, or even a Nazarene or a Jew, according to some Sufi orders.

It is my understanding that the Wahhabis consider Sufism unIslamic for that reason, among others. But Wahhabism appears to me to be the closest thing to a "sect" in modern Islam, as it is dedicated to imposing its own interpretation of Islam on a broader society that is resistant, for many reasons.

That is my answer, based on an attempt to parse Islam by a Western standards. I apologize for any error, and beg correction.

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13y ago

There are many sects but the most common division is into three: Mahayana (which includes Zen), Theravada, and Vajrayana. Each of these traditions has many smaller groupings by lineage within them. More recently, some new forms of Buddhism are evolving as the ancient traditions meet Western culture. Loosely called "Western Buddhism" these include Engaged Buddhism, Secular Buddhism, and Skeptical Buddhism, and more.

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13y ago

The two major religious sects of Islam are Sunni Islam (88%) and Shi'a Islam (12%). Within Sunni Islam, there are four madh'habs, or schools of thought or religious jurisprudence. These aren't sects, but people who are associated with them usually follow that madh'hab's interpretation of the Qur'an and Sunnah.

The Four major madh'habs are:

  1. Hanafi
  2. Maliki
  3. Shafi'i
  4. Hanbali

In Shi'a Islam, there are many different sects, not schools of thought. The most followed one is Twelver Shi'a Islam. They believe in the Twelve Imams in the common lineage. The other sects, the Zaidi and Ismaili, all follow a different line of Imamate at the Sixth Imam, Ja'far As-Sadiq.

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12y ago

The two major sects of Islam are Sunni Islam and Shia Islam. Within each of these sects are a group of mystics known as Sufis, who focus less on doctrine and law and more on spirituality and getting closer to God.

Within Shi'ism are three major divisions, each believing in a different amount of rightful Imams after Ali ibn Abi Talib (RA). Isma'ili Shias believe that there were only seven Imams, with the last being Isma'il, the eldest son of Ja'far (the sixth Imam). The Ja'fari Shi'as, the most common group, believe that there are Twelve Imams (often called Twelvers), and the last one, Mohammad Al-Mehdi, went into hiding and will return with Jesus marking the end of the world. Zaidi Shi'as believe there were five Imams, with Zayd bin Ali (Ali ibn Abi Talib's great-grandson) being the fifth.

Sunni Islam is one sect, but within it, there are different madh'habs, or schools of jurisprudence. The only differences between them is the way they interpret certain doctrine and laws, but the beliefs of all madh'habs are the same, and they are not considered different sects, as people don't have to associate with a certain madh'hab.

There is also another group, called the Khawarij, or Ibadis, present mainly in present-day Oman. This group approves of the first two Caliphs of Islam, Abu Bakr and Omar, referring to them as the "Two Rightly Guided Caliphs" (vs. the four for Sunnis). They originate after Hasan ibn Ali made an agreement with Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, complaining that the Imam (leader) must be spiritually pure, and the agreement was a compromise of his spiritual purity, therefore a compromise of his legitimacy as Caliph.

Refer to the link to the image below, which is a diagram detailing all the branches of the Islamic religion.

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11y ago

A long list. Among them: the idolaters during the First Temple period, the Sadducees, the Baitusim (Boethusians), the Nesinim, the apikursim and minim, the Karaites, the followers of Shabbetai Zevi and others of that type, Jewish communists (Yevsektsia), Yiddishists, Bundists, assimilationists, and more.

The Samaritans may or may not have ever been Jewish in the past.

Most of these breakaway groups were lost to history, while others (such as the Karaites) are moribund and remain only a shadow of their former selves.

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13y ago

Mainly Shiites and Sunnis. refer to question below.

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Q: What are the sects within islam?
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Who are Opposing group of Muslims to the Sunni's?

There is many Sects in Islam, there is also diffrent types of Sunnis with different beliefs, sub sects within.


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Mainly Islam, but within Islam there are several sects (Shi'ah (minority) and Sunni (majority)). there are also jews/christains etc, but Islam is dominent.


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Islam is a religion it does not have religions within it. Islam is a complete code of life. It should be accepted as a whole. It may have certain SECTS as the Christians and Jews have among them.


What versions of Islam exists?

There is only one version of Islam . If you means sects , than there are many sects but basic two are Sunni and Shia .


How many divisions will there be in Islam till doom's day?

i believe there will be 73 different divisions within Islam till the day of ressurection, however these sects will all establish the same beliefs.


What is Islamic Orthodoxy?

Muslim or Islamic Orthodoxy refers to those Muslims who follow the teachings of the three recognized sects of Islam: Sunni, Shiite, or Ibadi and stick to the Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) as determined nearly 1000 years ago. Divergent sects or movements within Islam are not considered orthodox, such as the Kharijites, Ahmadis, Liberal Islam, and several others. There are also schools within the recognized sects that are considered divergent to a significant degree that their being considered orthodox is debated, such as Isma'ilis, Wahhabis, and Sufis.


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Sunni:Follows the Sunnah and Teachings of Islam Shia: Does New Ideas that Sunni Muslims believe are not in Islam Sufi: they also bring new ideas in Islam that are Not Allowed in Sunni Islam


What is another name for a major division of a religion particularly of that of Islam?

Sects of Islam


What are the two major sects of the Islamic religion?

Sunni Islam and Shia Islam


What are some branches of islam?

Answer 1Technically speaking, Islam has no branch. There are different sects among the Muslims, as you find among the Jews and the Christians. The basic beliefs are the same, but there may be a slight difference in interpretation of rules.Answer 2Islam has several major sects. The two most important (representing 99% of all Muslims) are Sunni Islam and Shiite Islam. The major difference between these two sects initially was the right to leadership (should it be vested in those most capable or those closest to Mohammed's bloodline). Eventually, they became more distinct, especially as concerns eschatology. Additionally, within the sects of Sunni and Shiite Islam are individual schools which have much more minor differences.The minor sects of Islam include the Ibadi sect, the extinct Mu'atazilite and Khawarijite sects, and the controversial/heretical (depending on your opinion) Ahmadi Sect.


What are the two branches of the Islam?

it is more accurate in religious sciences if we apply sect instead of branches.therefore we have to say in Islam religion we have two sects,shiite as minority and Sunni as majority.Sunni and shiism are two main sects of islam religion.


What religions are practiced in Islam?

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