Islam

Islam is an Abrahamic Monotheistic Religion formed in 610 by Muhammad. The religion centres itself around the teachings of the Prophet and the words of the Qur'an. Muslims can be found generally in the Middle East and North Africa, but they are around the world. Islam is the second biggest religion on Earth besides Christianity. However, it, along with Christianity and Buddhism are rising in numbers among peasants on Equus, mostly due to missionaries being sent.
== Main beliefs ==
Muslims believe that Muhammad heard the word of Allah (The Muslim God) on top of a hill. Afterwhich, he begun preaching to people in Medina about it. The people were convinced of it, and so Muhammad went around Arabia spreading it. Many different local rulers around the Arabian peninsula pledged allegiance to Muhammad. The turning point for early Islam was the conquest of Mecca, Muhammad's birth city.
Now, the splinter off between the two main sects, Sunnism and Shiism is who is Muhammad's legitimate successor. Abu Bakr, the Sunni's Caliph, succeeded Muhammad after his death and proceeded to conquer most of the Middle East, including Jerusalem, some of North Africa, and Persia. The Rashidun Caliphate was proceeded by the Umayyad Caliphate, which is the first of the hereditary Caliphates, in which Morocco, Afghanistan, and Iberia was conquered, along with parts of India as well, than the Abbasids, who were conquered by Mongols, than the Mamluks attempted to bring back the Caliphate until the current Caliphate, the Ottoman Empire, conquered it.
Muslims follow the Qur'an, but most also follow the Hadith, which is similar in tone to the Christian Gospel. Islamic Law is referred to as Shariah Law, which is principle to an Islamic Theocracy. They refer to sin as Haram, and to heretics as Kufr. (With "Virtue" essentially being Halal)
"Jihad" is a term used often either for a universal Islamic Struggle, or for a Holy War. Only the Caliph (Or main head of the sect) can call for a Jihad.
== Sects ==
=== Sunnism ===
Sunni Islam is the main form of Islam, and the most followed. Sunnis believe the successor to Muhammad was Abu Bakr, the first Caliph of Islam after Muhammad. Sunnis are generally more liberal than Shi'ites.
=== Shi'ism ===
Shia Islam is the contrast to Sunni Islam, Shi'ites believe that Muhammad appointed his son-in-law and cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib as his true successor and that Abu Bakr was Kufr and illegitimate. While the Sunni's main hub of Islam is Turkey and Arabia, the Shia's main hub is Iran, which is nominally a Secular State, but the people are still very much Shia.
=== Ibadism ===
Ibadi Islam has been called by some the third branch of Islam, along with Sunni Islam and Shia Islam. The followers of Ibadism are known as the Ibadis. Ibadism emerged around 60 years after the Islamic prophet Muhammad's death in 632 AD as a moderate school of the Khawarij movemental though contemporary Ibāḍīs strongly object to being classified as Kharijites. It is a majority only in Oman.
=== Quranism ===
Quranists are Muslims who follow only the Qur'an and Muhammad's teachings, not the Hadith or the Caliphs.
=== Salafism ===
Nominally an offshoot of Sunnism, Salafism is condemned by the other sects for being extremist in nature, calling for worldwide Shariah and glorifying martyrdom and suicide attacks. It is outright banned in most nations, even Muslim ones.
Category:Religion