Question

Explain the political and religious causes of the development of sects in Islam

Answer 1

Answer:

Though the two main sects within Islam, Sunni and Shia, agree on most of the fundamental beliefs and practices of Islam, a bitter split between the two goes back some 14 centuries.

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Answer 2

Overview

• Towards the end of the Abbasid caliphate, the formerly vast and united Islamic empire became fragmented and decentralized.

• Many different groups ruled areas previously held by the Abbasids.

• Religious institutions became more defined during this period as state power waned.

• Trade contributed to the spread of Islamic culture and led to a growing feeling of internationalism.

From the ninth century to the twelfth century, Islamic culture flourished and crystallized into what we now recognize as Islam. The military expansions of the earlier period spread Islam in name only; it was later that Islamic culture truly spread, with people converting to Islam in large numbers.

This spread of Islamic culture was facilitated by trade, missionaries, and changes in the political structure of Islamic society. As a result, we encounter multiple different interpretations of Islam across many different Islamic societies.

Political decentralization and fragmentation

The Abbasids’ massive empire—spanning over four thousand miles—was impressive, but very difficult to maintain. As people converted to Islam, tax revenue collected from non-Muslim subjects dwindled, and the Abbasid court could no longer sustain its expenditures. Abbasid religious authority was also wavering as a more powerful class of religious scholars at the helm of new religious institutions challenged the legitimacy of the system of caliphate.

Ultimately, the highly centralized Abbasid caliphate fragmented into multiple smaller, independent political structures. These new political structures diminished Abbasid power.

It was perhaps this political decentralization and destabilization that led to the spread of Islam beyond the massive Abbasid empire’s borders. Regional rulers, who did not have to manage such vast territories, were able to expand more fruitfully in single directions. For example, the Fatimids and Berber dynasties in North Africa were able to expand into Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Ghaznavids stretched farther into India.