# Islam and Sunni Islam: a Diptych comparison Schema version 1.0. The Diptych displays; it does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ## 1. In its own words ### Islam Islam began with the Prophet Muhammad's preaching in Mecca and Medina and divided within a generation over the succession to his leadership. That first division, and the schools of law and theology that grew from it, structure the tradition to this day, and this tree models them as first-class entities rather than as notes under a single heading. - [Islam](/tree/muslim) ### Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the tradition of roughly nine in ten of the world's Muslims. It carries no single head and no central magisterium; its unity stands in the shared scripture, the Prophet's example, the four schools of law, and the theological schools that defended them. - [Sunni Islam](/tree/sunni-islam) ## 2. Scale and spread ### Islam Islam counts about 1.9 billion adherents, roughly a quarter of the world's people, and is the majority faith in 49 countries. The largest national population is Indonesia's; the Asia-Pacific region holds the most Muslims, ahead of the Middle East and North Africa. - [Islam](/tree/muslim) ### Sunni Islam Sunni Islam counts roughly 1.6 billion adherents, about 87 to 90 percent of all Muslims, and is the majority form of Islam in most Muslim-majority countries, from Indonesia and South Asia to North Africa and Turkey. - [Sunni Islam](/tree/sunni-islam) ## 3. Historical timeline ### Islam - [The muslim timeline](/history/islam) - [Birth of Muhammad](/history/events/birth-of-muhammad) - [First revelation](/history/events/first-revelation) - [Hijra to Medina](/history/events/hijra-to-medina) - [Battle of Badr](/history/events/battle-of-badr) - [Conquest of Mecca](/history/events/conquest-of-mecca) - [Death of Muhammad](/history/events/death-of-muhammad) ### Sunni Islam - [The muslim timeline](/history/islam) - [Birth of Muhammad](/history/events/birth-of-muhammad) - [First revelation](/history/events/first-revelation) - [Hijra to Medina](/history/events/hijra-to-medina) - [Battle of Badr](/history/events/battle-of-badr) - [Conquest of Mecca](/history/events/conquest-of-mecca) - [Death of Muhammad](/history/events/death-of-muhammad) ## 4. Sources of authority ### Islam - [Shahada](/prayers-and-creeds/shahada) - [Al-Fatiha](/prayers-and-creeds/al-fatiha) - [Salah](/prayers-and-creeds/salah) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 5. Ultimate reality ### Islam - [Islam](/world-views/islam) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 6. The human person ### Islam - [Islam](/world-views/islam) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 7. Problem and solution ### Islam - [Islam](/world-views/islam) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 8. Ethics and hard cases ### Islam - [Islam](/world-views/islam) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 9. Practice and devotion ### Islam - [Ṣalāh; The Five Daily Prayers](/devotion/salah) - [Jumuʿah; The Friday Prayer](/devotion/friday-prayer) - [Dhikr; The Remembrance of God](/devotion/dhikr) - [The Hajj](/traditions/the-hajj) - [The Ramadan Fast](/traditions/the-ramadan-fast) - [Salah, the Daily Prayers](/traditions/salah) - [Shahada](/prayers-and-creeds/shahada) - [Al-Fatiha](/prayers-and-creeds/al-fatiha) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 10. Community and governance ### Islam - [Muslim](/church/muslim) ### Sunni Islam - [Sunni Islam](/church/sunni-islam) ## 11. Art and material culture ### Islam - [A Kufic Qur'an Folio](/art/entries/kufic-quran-folio) - [The Dome of the Rock](/art/entries/dome-of-the-rock) - [The Mughal Court Miniature](/art/entries/mughal-miniature) - [Islam](/art/profiles/islam) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 12. Science and technology posture ### Islam - [Islamic Golden Age](/science/eras/islamic-golden-age) - [Contemporary](/science/eras/contemporary) - [Islamic](/science/traditions/islamic) - [The telescope](/science/technologies/telescope) - [Evolution by natural selection](/science/technologies/evolution-by-natural-selection) - [Vaccination](/science/technologies/vaccination) - [Gene editing and the germline](/science/flashpoints/gene-editing-and-the-germline) - [Climate and creation](/science/flashpoints/climate-and-creation) ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Coverage record created at intake; content not yet documented. ## 13. Internal diversity ### Islam - [Sunni Islam](/tree/sunni-islam) - [Shia Islam](/tree/shia-islam) - [Ibadi Islam](/tree/ibadi-islam) - [Ahmadiyya](/tree/ahmadiyya) ### Sunni Islam - [Ash'ari Theology](/tree/ashari) - [Hanafi School](/tree/hanafi) - [Hanbali School](/tree/hanbali) - [Maliki School](/tree/maliki) - [Shafi'i School](/tree/shafii) - [Sufism](/tree/sufi-orders) - [Maturidi Theology](/tree/maturidi) - [Mu'tazila Theology](/tree/mutazila) ## 14. Contributions ### Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 15. Internal critique ### Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 16. External critique and reply ### Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. Evaluative coverage is scheduled; this slot populates through sourced, reviewed records. ## 17. Contested history ### Islam - [Sunni-Shia Split](/tree/schisms/sunni-shia-split) - [Kharijite Secession](/tree/schisms/kharijite-secession) ### Sunni Islam - [Sunni-Shia Split](/tree/schisms/sunni-shia-split) ## 18. What each says about the other ### Islam Coverage: not documented. This slot renders only when both directions stand populated and reviewed. ### Sunni Islam Coverage: not documented. This slot renders only when both directions stand populated and reviewed. ## 19. What this comparison cannot settle ### Islam This comparison sets two self-descriptions side by side; it does not decide between them. A tradition is a living range of positions, and each panel renders the range this site has documented, which is not the whole of the tradition. Where a cell is marked not yet documented, the gap belongs to this site's documentation, not to the tradition. Questions of truth between the panels turn on premises the reader brings: what counts as evidence, what authority is recognized, and what a human life is for. The instrument does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ### Sunni Islam This comparison sets two self-descriptions side by side; it does not decide between them. A tradition is a living range of positions, and each panel renders the range this site has documented, which is not the whole of the tradition. Where a cell is marked not yet documented, the gap belongs to this site's documentation, not to the tradition. Questions of truth between the panels turn on premises the reader brings: what counts as evidence, what authority is recognized, and what a human life is for. The instrument does not score, rank, or adjudicate. ## 20. Sources ### Islam - [Islam](/tree/muslim) ### Sunni Islam - [Sunni Islam](/tree/sunni-islam) ## Sources - Islam: The Qur'an. - Islam: Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Islam: Religion, History, and Civilization (2003). - Sunni Islam: The Qur'an; the Hadith collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim. - Sunni Islam: Jonathan A. C. Brown, Hadith: Muhammad's Legacy in the Medieval and Modern World (2018).