Government Islamic Community Establish Death Muhammad? How

¶ … government Islamic community establish death Muhammad? How Muslim lands governed 900-1400? Reference Book: A History World Societies, Eighth Edition, Vol1 by: McKay, Hill, Buckler, Ebrey,

Even with the fact that Muhammad had managed to create a powerful religious ideology, he did not provide his followers with a clear understanding of who he wanted to succeed him in ruling the Arab world. As a consequence, many of his companions started disputes with regard to who was the rightful heir to Muhammad's Empire. Sunni and Shia Muslims represent the two main groups in Islam and they have been arguing with regard to which of them should represent the principal branch of the religion ever since Muhammad's death. In spite of the fact that Muhammad managed to bring together all the tribes of Arabia, the power that he left behind made it difficult for his followers to simply continue to respect his teachings without expressing interest in the vast Arab Empire that he created.

One of the most important concepts succeeding Muhammad's death relates to how the prophet's companions nominated different individuals to follow him. While the majority of Muslims (Sunnis) considered that it was only natural for Abu Bakr to succeed him as an Islamic leader, others (Shias) believed that Ali ibn Abi Talib was actually named as his successor. Whereas Abu Bakr and his followers promoted the belief that the Islamic world belonged to Muslims in general, Ali and his followers considered that they were supposed to rule over the Islamic material and spiritual world as a result of the fact that Muhammad himself had appointed him as his divine successor.

In spite of the fact that many Muslims were unsatisfied with the development of Islam consequent to the death of Muhammad, they gradually came to accept that it was essential for them to support any leader (regardless of his background) with the purpose of assisting Islam in experiencing progress. As a consequence, the Muslim world started to spread and conquered a great deal of lands in its vicinity, thus making it possible for society as a whole to acknowledge the successful leadership behind it. Conditions were relatively stable within Islam up until the ninth century, when differences between Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims became more pronounced and when it became obvious that this would lead to serious problems in Islam. This led to the disintegration of the political unity present in Islam and the community was divided into several smaller dynasties that expressed different understandings of the religion.