Event Category: Prophet Muhammad's Birthday

Join Zainab and Furvah as they explore the key similarities and differences between the Shia and Sunni branches of Islam. Through a conversational format, they discuss these denominations and their shared foundations and distinctive practices, offering insights into the historical, theological, and cultural factors that shape Muslim faith and identity.

The film highlights the differences in leadership succession after the Prophet Muhammad and the role of the Caliphs and Imams. Then it delves into such topics as the interpretation of scripture, beliefs, and core practices like daily prayer and fasting.

The film reveals both the common ground and the rich diversity within Islam, and is perfect for students and anyone interested in the history and practices of Islam.

Transcript

Understanding Denominations: Islam

Zainab: Hi, I'm a Muslim.

Furvah: And so am I.

Zainab: But we come from different denominations of Islam.

Furvah: A denomination is a group or a branch within a religion.

Zainab: I'm Sunni.

Furvah: And I am Shia.

Zainab: And we both believe in one God called Allah.

Furvah: And that Muhammad, peace be upon him, was the final prophet of Allah.

Zainab: Most of the world's Muslims are Sunni. Between 85 and 90%.

Furvah: And 10 to 15% are Shia.

Zainab: The name Sunni comes from the Arabic word Sunnah, which means 'clear path' because we follow Muhammad, peace be upon him's example. Like following in his footsteps.

Furvah: We do that too. But our name comes from Shiat Ali, which means 'the Party of Ali'.

Zainab: A party?

Furvah: Not that kind of party, more like a political party. Because to begin with, it was politics that divided us.

Zainab: It all started when the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, died - and the Muslims had to pick a new leader.

Furvah: Should he be blood related to Muhammad?

Zainab: Or should they elect the right man, whether he was blood related or not? Eventually, Muhammad's best friend Abu Bakr was elected and took the job.

Furvah: They called him Caliph or Khalifa, which means 'deputy' or 'steward'.

Zainab: And that means someone who looks after something for someone else, to make it clear that Abu Bakr wasn't a Prophet like Muhammad, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. Umar was next, followed by Uthman and then Ali. Sunnis call them 'The Rightly Guided Caliphs'.

Furvah: But some people thought that Ali should have been the leader from the start, because he was Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law - so his closest male relative - and they believed, Shias still believe, that Muhammad chose him.

Zainab: Is this about the Incident at Ghadir?

Furvah: Yes. What do you think happened?

Zainab: At a place called Ghadir Khumm, Muhammad, peace be upon him, told a large crowd that Ali was a great friend.

Furvah: Yes, but we believe that Muhammad also named Ali the next leader. When Abu Bakr was elected, Muhammad's family were still in mourning, so Ali didn't get a fair chance.

Zainab: Ali was the fourth Caliph anyway.

Furvah: But then a man called Muawiyah decided that he wanted to be Caliph, and he used his power as the governor of Syria to raise an army against Ali.

Zainab: When Ali was assassinated, Muawiyah began his own caliphate, which became known as the Umayyad Dynasty, and it was run like a monarchy. So when Muawiyah died, his son Yazid took over.

Furvah: Yazid was a tyrant. That's when Ali's son Husayn decided it was time to reclaim the leadership. But before he could gather enough support, he was met by Yazid's forces at a town called Karbala in what is now Iraq. Husayn and most of his family and followers were slaughtered.

Zainab: This sent shockwaves throughout Muslim society. Husayn, after all, was the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him's grandson.

Furvah: Yes, but this didn't finish off the Shias, as Husayn's death inspired many to come to Karbala to join his cause. And today, most Muslims in Iraq are still Shia.

Zainab: The split between Sunnis and Shias remained ever since.

Furvah: Every year Shias remember Husayn's death during Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. On the 10th, it's Ashura, which means 'remembrance'. And in Shia communities there'll be processions which re-enact Husayn's funeral. Different cultures grieve in different ways, and not all of it is healthy. And some people might cut or beat themselves to share in Husayn's suffering and to mourn his death. But harming your body isn't allowed in Islam, whether you're Sunni or Shia. The point is that Husayn's martyrdom, his death for the cause he believed in, is an important symbol for Shias.

Zainab: Sunni Islam continued under the leadership of the Caliphs, although they became less and less important. There hasn't been an official Caliph since the Ottoman Empire fell in the 1920s.

Furvah: So Shias call our leaders Imams.

Zainab: Which is confusing because that's what we call someone who leads prayers in the mosque.

Furvah: Same here. But the word 'imam' just means someone who leads.

Zainab: Good point.

Furvah: Most Shias believe there were 12 Imams, beginning with Ali and then his son Hasan, and then Husayn.

Zainab: Who died at Karbala.

Furvah: Then Husayn's son Zayn, and so on.

Zainab: You said, 'most Shias'.

Furvah: Yeah, it gets a bit complicated after that because there are lots of groups within Shia Islam. I'm a Twelver because I follow the 12 Imams, but there are also Severners or 'Ismailis' because they chose a different seventh Imam called...

Zainab: Isma'il?

Furvah: Yes. And we also have Fivers or 'Zaydis' because...

Zainab: They chose a different fifth Imam called Zayd.

Furvah: Yes, you're catching on! And Nizari Ismailis still have an Imam.

Zainab: I think this is probably the biggest difference between Sunnis and Shias. We believe that Muhammad, peace be upon him, was the Seal of the Prophets, which means that he was the last Prophet. There were no more revelations or divine messages.

Furvah: We believe that our Imams were amongst the Ahl al-Bayt or 'People of the House', which means that they were descended from the Prophet and were not just political leaders, but spiritual guides too. They were inspired by Allah to explain and reinterpret the Qur'an.

Zainab: Sunnis believe in the Qur'an and the Hadith - the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, reported by his followers.

Furvah: Same. Only we have different collections of Hadith. They depend on which follower reported the saying and whether or not we trust them. We also follow the teachings of our Imams.

Zainab: Sunnis observed the Five Pillars of Islam.

Furvah: So do we.

Zainab: This includes Shahadah - saying that we believe in one God and that Prophet Muhammad was his final messenger. We also have Salah - praying five times a day; Zakah - giving to charity; Sawm - fasting; and Hajj - taking a pilgrimage to Makkah.

Furvah: Ah, okay. So we do all of that. But our Five Pillars are different. Yours are things you do, ours are things we believe. We have Tawhid - believing in the oneness of God; Adl - believing in God's justice; Nubuwwah - prophethood; Mi'ad - the Day of Judgment and resurrection, and Imamah - the Imams' succession from the Prophet.

Zainab: We don't believe in Imamah, obviously, but we do believe in the rest of it. We have what we call the Six Articles of Faith, which include Tawhid and Nubuwwah. We also have Akhirah, which is the belief in the afterlife - similar to your Adl. Then we have Malaika - the belief in the Angels; Kutub - the belief in the holy book; and Al-Qadr - the belief in predestination, that everything follows Allah's plan.

Furvah: We believe all of that too. As well as doing the things in your Five Pillars, we do things that make up the Ten Obligatory Acts. So as well as Salah, Sawm, Zakah and Hajj, we also have Jihad, which doesn't mean holy war. It means...

Zainab: To struggle or strive. We do that. It's the struggle to be a good Muslim, isn't it? What else?

Furvah: Khums, which is a bit like Zakah, only the money goes to education and the descendants of Muhammad. Air-bil-Maroof, which means encouraging people to do good; Nahi Anril Munkar, which is discouraging people from doing bad; Tawalia - showing love for Allah and his people; and Tabarra, which means 'disassociation' - not getting involved with people who do bad stuff.

Zainab: Hang on, rewind a bit. You said that you do Salah?

Furvah: For us, that means praying five times a day. Sunrise, midday, afternoon, sunset and at night.

Zainab: I thought you only prayed three times a day?

Furvah: We say five prayers just like you. But we might say the midday and afternoon prayers together, and sunset and night prayers together. So three prayer times - and the prayer positions are slightly different, but only slightly.

Zainab: But what's with the stone?

Furvah: It's a clay tile. It's called a 'mohr' or a 'turbah', and when we pray, we touch it with our foreheads. It symbolises the earth because we believe Muhammad prayed on the ground, not a carpet.

Zainab: And I think the adhan, the call to prayer we do at the mosque, is different too. Ours mentions Allah and Muhammad, peace be upon him.

Furvah: And ours adds Ali, otherwise are the same. And we pay our prayer leaders, the local imams. They might be called a 'shaykh' or a 'maulana', depending on where in the world you are. But I think these days, you do that as well, don't you?

Zainab: Yeah. Back in the day, people took turns at being the imam and leading the prayers. But it's become a full time job in most mosques. We don't think of them as clergy in the same way as you though. If I'm right, you do Sawm, fasting during Ramadan, differently too.

Furvah: Fasting is fasting. We do it the same way as you. We don't eat between sunrise and sunset, but we do fast about half an hour longer than you every day, just to make sure the sun is definitely below the horizon before we start eating.

Zainab: Oh, okay! Controversial question coming up. Do you have temporary marriages?

Furvah: Not really. Not any more. But all Muslims sign a contract before they get married, right?

Zainab: A nikah!

Furvah: Well, in some circumstances, Shias are allowed to put a time limit in their contracts. So a man and a woman could agree to be married for, let's say, a year or six months. And that would be the end of it. No divorce, no arguments.

Zainab: Well, when you put it like that.

Furvah: It was often misunderstood or misused. So although it isn't forbidden, I don't think it happens much these days. Society's moved forward.

Zainab: Okay, so as far as I can see, it's mainly the history of our denominations that separates us.

Furvah: And our beliefs about Ali and the Mahdi.

Zainab: Yes, we believe that the Mahdi is a hero who will appear in the far future to defeat evil before the Day of Judgment. We don't know who the Mahdi will be. Some Sunnis believe it will be an ordinary person who will rise up and lead us. Others believe it will be Prophet Isa (Jesus). Who knows?

Furvah: We believe it will be one of our Imams. Which Imam depends on which type of Shia you are. Usually it's the last Imam. He's hidden from us until his time comes. For Twelvers like me, it'll be the 12th Imam. His name is Muhammad al-Mahdi.

Zainab: Okay, but on the whole, the teachings don't seem massively different.

Furvah: Yeah. I think most of our beliefs, and most things we do are the same.

Zainab & Furvah: What do you think?

Understanding Denominations: Islam

Video length - 09.13

Published date - Feb 2026

Keystage(s) - 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

Azeen welcomes TrueTube to the East London Mosque and we’re given the full tour. Azeen talks about the features of a traditional mosque and shows us how Muslims pray.

Curriculum Mapping

Component 1: The study of religions: beliefs, teaching and practices – Beliefs and teachings - Islam - Salah and its significance: how and why Muslims pray including times, directions, ablution (wudu), movements (rak’ahs) and recitations; salah in the home and mosque and elsewhere; Friday prayer: Jummah; key differences in the practice of salah in Sunni and Shi’a Islam, and different Muslim views about the importance of prayer. Hajj: the role and significance of the pilgrimage to Makkah including origins, including the Ka’aba at Makkah,

Area of Study 3 – Islam - Section 1: Muslim Beliefs -Salah as one of the Five Pillars, including reference to Surah 15: 98–99 and 29:45: the nature, history, significance and purpose of Salah for Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, including different ways of understanding them; how Salah is performed including ablution, times, directions, movements and recitations, in the home and mosque and Jummah prayer.

Component Group 1–Practices - Islam - Public acts of worship - Salah as direct communication with Allah. The importance of practices - Islam as a way of life, lived in total submission to Allah • The importance of the Five Pillars of Islam to Sunni Muslims • The meaning of the Five Pillars: •• Shahadah: sincerely reciting the Muslim profession of faith •• Salat: performing ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day •• Zakat/Zakah: paying an alms (or charity) tax to benefit the poor and the needy •• Sawm: fasting during the month of Ramadan •• Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca • The analogy of the house and pillars

2.1 Unit 1 PART A - Part A Islam - Core beliefs, teachings and practices - Practices - The Five Pillars of Sunni Islam -Prayer/ Salat  Adhan call to prayer, praying at mosque and Friday Jummah prayer (Qur'an 15:9899, 29:45)  Praying at home, private prayer (Du'ah)  The preparations and intention for prayer: wudu and niyyah  The significance and symbolism of the different prayer positions that make a rakat (sequence of prayer) Obligatory Acts  Shahadah: the Muslim profession of faith in Allah and the prophet Muhammad; occasions when the Shahadah is recited, e.g. aqiqah ceremony, conversion to Islam  Zakat: paying an alms (or charity) tax to benefit others, what zakat tax may be used for, and additional charity (saddaqah)  Sawm: Fasting during the month of Ramadan. How and why Muslims fast during Ramadan and rules about halal and haram diet (Qur'an 2:183)

2.3 Component 3 (Route A) - Option 3: Islam - The Five Pillars of Sunni Islam: practices in Britain and elsewhere - Salah: the practices of prayer in Islam in the mosque and at home, including Jummah prayer: Qur'an 15:98-99, Qur'an 29:45

Transcript

Holy Cribs – Mosque

Azeen: Welcome to the East London Mosque. My name is Azeen. I'm a Muslim. My religion is called Islam. This is where I come to worship Allah, which is what we call God. Come on in. I'll show you around. The inside of the building is always kept clean as a sign of respect to Allah. So the first thing I do is take off my shoes and leave them in these racks here. Girls and women should also cover their heads with a scarf called a hijab inside the mosque. A lot of boys and men like to wear a little cap like this, called a topi. As well as keeping the building clean, we like to keep ourselves clean too. So before I pray, I come in here to do a special wash called wudu. So I sit in front of one of these taps and I wash my hands, face and feet three times. Now I'm ready to go into the main prayer hall. The first thing you notice, there isn't much in here. This building is called a mosque or masjid, which both mean a place of prostration. Prostration is when someone bows down with their forehead right on the floor. And all Muslims do this when we pray, as a sign of complete obedience to Allah. So a prayer hall just needs to be a big open space where lots of people can sit on the floor to say their prayers.

There's nice thick carpet so we're comfortable when praying and there's these lines across it, which we stand on in rows. This gives us enough space to prostrate so we don't bump into the people in front. Wherever we are in the world, all Muslims face the city of Makkah in Saudi Arabia when we pray. That's because the first ever building used to worship Allah, called the Ka'bah, is in Makkah. It's a symbol of togetherness that all Muslims everywhere are concentrating on the same holy place and praying to Allah. The direction of the Ka'bah in Makkah is called the qibla and you can work out using the compass. But here in the mosque there's an easier way. This archway is called the mihrab and it's always in the wall facing the qibla. The person who leads the prayers in a mosque is called an imam, and he'll stand in front of the mihrab to say the prayers out loud. The mihrab reflects his voice back into the room so that everyone can hear him, because, of course, he'll be facing Makkah too. Muslims pray five times a day just before sunrise, just after midday, mid-afternoon, just after sunset and at night before going to bed. I could do that anywhere, as long as I'm in a clean place or have somewhere to lay down a prayer mat. But lots of people like to come here to pray with other people. About quarter of an hour before the prayer is due to start, a man called a muezzin will call people to prayer by reciting the adhan.

In Muslim countries, this could be heard from loudspeakers outside so the local people know to stop what they're doing and get over to the mosque. Traditionally, and it's still done in some places, the muezzin will climb the stairs to the top of a tower called a minaret to give the call. Minarets are still a common feature of mosques, even though the muezzin often uses a microphone these days. In the UK, you usually only hear the adhan inside the building. But here at East London Mosque, the daytime calls are broadcasted outside as well. Just before the prayer starts, there's another call which is called the iqamah. On Fridays, people make a special effort to come to the midday prayers because the imam does a special talk called a khutbah, and he'll do it from this platform here, which is called a minbar. Above the prayer hall, traditional mosques have a dome. This helps the imam's voice carry to all parts of the room and in hot countries allows the hot air to rise to keep everyone else cool. And some say that the dome is a reminder of heaven above us, and they are often most beautifully decorated. You won't see any pictures of people or animals inside the mosque, because when Islam started in Arabia hundreds of years ago, most people worshipped statues and pictures. So Muslims wanted to show they were different because they worshipped Allah who couldn't be seen. So instead, mosques are often decorated with passages from the Qur'an, which is a holy book, is written in a very old form of Arabic, which looks beautiful when written out like this. The art of beautiful writing is called calligraphy, and some of the oldest and most beautiful calligraphy in the world is in Arabic. You might also see geometrical patterns like geometry in maths. These are amazingly complicated designs made up of different shapes, and they are often symmetrical. Or there are sometimes patterns that look like leaves and branches twining around each other and over the building. That sort of design is called arabesque. Men and women pray separately in the mosque, so they are concentrating on Allah and not on each other. Sometimes the women will have an area at the back of the main prayer hall or a gallery, or like we've got here: the women have their own separate room. Education and learning are very important to Muslims. So we have a classroom here where I come to a madrassah, that's school in Arabic. I'm learning Arabic so that I can read the Qur'an in its original form and not just a translation. And that's my mosque, out here you can see the dome and minaret standing proudly as part of our community. Thanks for coming, bye.

Holy Cribs: The Mosque

Video length - 07.33

Published date - Mar 2023

Keystage(s) - 2, 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

Watch Azeen practise and describe a rak’ah – the positions that Muslims perform during prayer.

Curriculum Mapping

Area of Study 3 – Islam Section 1: Muslim Beliefs - Salah as one of the Five Pillars, including reference to Surah 15: 98–99 and 29: 45: the nature, history, significance and purpose of Salah for Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, including different ways of understanding them; how Salah is performed including ablution, times, directions, movements and recitations, in the home and mosque and Jummah prayer."

Component Group 1–Practices - Islam - Public acts of worship - Salah as direct communication with Allah - Component Group 1–Practices - Islam - Public acts of worship - Salah as direct communication with Allah. The importance of practices - Islam as a way of life, lived in total submission to Allah • The importance of the Five Pillars of Islam to Sunni Muslims • The meaning of the Five Pillars: •• Shahadah: sincerely reciting the Muslim profession of faith •• Salat: performing ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day •• Zakat/Zakah: paying an alms (or charity) tax to benefit the poor and the needy •• Sawm: fasting during the month of Ramadan •• Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca • The analogy of the house and pillars

Transcript

Holy Cribs – Prayer Positions

Azeen: Salah the duty to pray five times a day. We could do it anywhere as long as we've done a wudu and the place we're in is clean and we've got the space to do the movements I'm about to show you. In the prayer hall of a mosque. The carpet is often marked with rectangles for people to stand in or lines across a floor, so everyone has enough space to pray and do the movements without bumping into the people around them. At home I just use a prayer mat. When we pray, we must face the direction of the Ka'bah, which is a cube shaped holy building in the center Makkah in Saudi Arabia. This direction is called the qibla and in a mosque you could tell the qibla by facing the mihrab, which is an archway in the wall at the front of the prayer hall. We pray five times a day. And as well as saying the words in Arabic, we also show our devotion to Allah. First, I should have the intention to pray, which is called the niyyah. So I focus and get myself into the right frame of mind. Then I say Bismillah and the prayer begins. I raised my hands and then lowered them while I say Allahu Akbar. This is called takbir. I'll stand and this is called qiyam. Then I bow from the waist. This is called ruku. Then comes sujud or sajdah, when I kneel down and put my forehead on the floor. This is called prostration in English. I return to the kneeling position called jalsa. Then I prostrate again. And finish in the kneeling position. And that series of movements is called a raka'ah. I'll stand and do more rak'ah's and the number depends on which prayer I'm saying. Each of the positions goes a bit further in showing total submission to Allah. When the prayer is finished and I'm kneeling at the end of the final rak'ah I turn to my right and then my left to say, salam. Peace be with you. After the prayer in Arabic. I can also say my personal prayers in English. And this is called du'a.

Islam: Prayer Positions

Video length - 02.55

Published date - Mar 2023

Keystage(s) - 2, 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

Before Muslims pray, they should always perform a special wash called wudu. Watch Azeen as he demonstrates and describes how he does it.

Curriculum Mapping

Area of Study 3 – Islam - Section 1: Muslim Beliefs - Salah as one of the Five Pillars, including reference to Surah 15: 98–99 and 29:45: the nature, history, significance and purpose of Salah for Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, including different ways of understanding them; how Salah is performed including ablution, times, directions, movements and recitations, in the home and mosque and Jummah prayer."

Transcript

Holy Cribs - Wudu

Azeen: When Muslims pray, we do a special wash called wudu as a symbol that we are pure and ready to speak to Allah. We wash our hands, face and feet three times, but it's done in a particular way, in a particular order. We sit here in front of one of these taps because if possible, we prefer to do our wudu using running water so we're not washing ourselves in water that someone else might have washed in. First I say Bismillah, which is a short prayer in Arabic. In English it goes in the name of Allah, the compassionate, the merciful. I'll wash my hands thoroughly. First, the right three times. Then the left three times. I rinse out my mouth three times. I rinse my nose by snuffing water into my nostrils and blowing out three times. I wash my face three times, all of it from the bottom of my chin to my hairline. Starting with my right arm. I wash from the wrist to the elbow three times. And then I'll do the same with my left arm. I run my wet hands over my hair. Then wipe my ears inside and out. And then the back of my neck. Then I wash my right foot three times up to the ankle. And my left foot three times. Finally, I say the Shahadah, which is another short prayer in Arabic. In English it goes. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. And now I'm ready to pray.

Islam: Preparing to Pray

Video length - 02.49

Published date - Mar 2023

Keystage(s) - 2, 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

Shia // Sunni – What are the differences between Shia and Sunni Muslims? When Fatimah (a Shia Muslim) stops to help Abubakr (a Sunni Muslim) recover from his asthma attack, they get talking. Then the argument begins.

Curriculum Mapping

TrueTube films are designed for use in a number of ways. Some ideas of where this film could link to your curriculum are below:

AQA

Component 1: The study of religions: beliefs, teaching and practices –Key beliefs - Islam - Sunni and Shi’a core beliefs - The six articles of faith in Sunni Islam and five roots of Usul ad-Din in Shi’a Islam, including key similarities and differences.

Edexcel

Section 1: Muslim Beliefs - Islam -The six Beliefs of Islam: their nature, history and purpose including Kitab al-iman 1: 4; how they are understood and expressed in Sunni and Shi’a Muslim
communities today; the importance of these principles for Muslims.

OCR

Component Group 1 - Islam - The importance of practices • Islam as a way of life, lived in total submission to Allah • The importance of the Five Pillars of Islam to Sunni Muslims • The meaning of the Five Pillars: •• Shahadah: sincerely reciting the Muslim profession of faith •• Salat: performing ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day •• Zakat/Zakah: paying an alms (or charity) tax to be nefit the poor and the needy •• Sawm: fasting during the month of Ramadan •• Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca • The analogy of the house and pillars • The importance of the Ten Obligatory Acts to Shi’a Muslims • The meaning of the Ten Obligatory Acts: •• Salat Prayer •• Sawm: Fast •• Zakat/Zakah: similar to Sunni Islam, it applies to money •• Khums: an annual taxation of one-fifth of gains in a year •• Hajj: Pilgrimage •• Jihad: Struggle •• Amr-bil-Maroof: commanding what is good •• Nahi Anil: Munkar forbid what is evil •• Tawalla: expressing love towards good •• Tabarra: expressing disassociation from evil

Eduqas

Component 1 (Route A) Religious, Philosophical and Ethical Studies in the Modern World - Theme 2: Issues of Life and Death - Beliefs about death and the afterlife - Diversity of views between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims regarding worship at graves. Theme 1: Issues of Relationships -Relationships - Diversity of beliefs between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims regarding temporary unannounced marriage Component 3 (Route A) Option 3: Islam -Beliefs and teachings - Angels (Malaikah) ➢ The significance of angels in Islam: Qur’an 2:97-98,Qur’an 2:285 ➢ Diversity in belief between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims regarding angels and free will

Transcript

Shia // Sunni

Fatimah You need to sit up straight.

Abubakr Salaam alaikum.

Fatimah Alaikum salaam.

Abubakr Forgot mine. Thanks.

Fatimah No problem.

Abubakr Oh, sorry.

Abubakr Are you on your way to the mosque.

Fatimah Yeah. We're gonna be late.

Abubakr Oh, yeah. Oh.

Fatimah It's okay, just wait.

Abubakr I don't know you. What's your name?

Fatimah Fatimah. You?

Abubakr Abubakr.

Fatimah Oh.

Abubakr Wait. Are you Shia? You're Shia, innit? I'll see you later.

Fatimah What?

Abubakr I'm only messing with you, man.

Fatimah What's your problem?

Abubakr No, no, there's no problem. Hey.

Fatimah If you've got something to say, then, then say it.

Abubakr No, I mean, well, it's like you've all got chips on your shoulders.

Fatimah What?

Fatimah No, it's a chip on your shoulder, and I haven't.

Abubakr You have.

Fatimah I haven't.

Abubakr So why are you all up in my face then?

Fatimah You're always making out you're better than us.

Abubakr Who?

Fatimah Sunnis. You're always making out that Sunnis are better than Shias.

Abubakr That's because we are better than you.

Fatimah We're all Muslim. Just because there's more of you doesn't mean you're more right.

Abubakr Well..

Fatimah We do everything you do. We believe the Qur'an is Allah's words, we believe in the same prophets, we eat Halal, we give to charity, we fast during Ramadan, we say the five prayers every day.

Abubakr Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, that is just so wrong that I can't even begin to explain.

Fatimah What?

Abubakr First of all- Man, I don't even know where to begin. First of all, Shias only pray three times a day. That's just wrong.

Fatimah No we don't.

Abubakr Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that we should be praying five times a day.

Fatimah We say the five prayers, we just pair them up. We do dhuhr and 'asr together in the middle of the day and maghrib and isha in the evening. Sunnis are allowed to do that too.

Abubakr Yeah, but that's totally different.

Fatimah How is that totally different?

Abubakr Because we don't do that all the time. We only do it when we miss one. And you do that thing with a brick.

Fatimah What brick?

Abubakr You know, the brick, the brick. The brick that you pray on. When we pray, we put our heads to the floor. You put your heads on a brick.

Fatimah It's not a brick, it's a-

Abubakr What?

Fatimah Okay. Okay. It's a brick. But it's because Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam prayed on the ground and not on a carpet.

Abubakr Yeah, okay.

Fatimah Other than that, we pray exactly the same.

Abubakr No you don't. We cross our arms whilst we pray. You guys just put your hands by your sides.

Fatimah Right? Apart from that.

Abubakr You fast wrong in Ramadan.

Fatimah We fast wrong?

Abubakr Yeah. Why do you always start a day after us?

Fatimah Why do you always start a day before us?

Abubakr The month of Ramadan starts, yeah, when we see the new moon in the sky, so it should be the same for every single Muslim.

Fatimah Sunnis don't all start on the same day, some of you start when Pakistan says so, some of you start when Saudi Arabia says so. We always start when Iran says so.

Abubakr Yeah, but what about at sunset? You know, when you're allowed to eat, you lot just take it a little bit further. What are you trying to prove, that you can fast longer than us?

Fatimah No. We just want to make sure the sun is definitely set. We don't want to cheat.

Abubakr Cheat? So I'm a cheat now am I? Getting a little bit personal? Are we? Why? Because you're losing the argument.

Fatimah Oh, you're such a man. Not everything has to be a competition.

Abubakr Okay, sister, whatever you say, yeah.

Fatimah Don't sister me. I'm not your sister. And we're not children. I told you my name, so use it.

Abubakr Okay, sister.

Fatimah Stop it. Stop picking on me.

Abubakr I'm not picking on you. It's just a bit of banter. Don't be a martyr about it.

Fatimah That's not funny.

Abubakr What? Woah!

Fatimah I'm so sorry. Are you okay?

Abubakr Do I look okay?

Fatimah Come on. Don't just stand there.

Abubakr Okay, where were we?

Fatimah What? You need to go get dry.

Abubakr If I go now, you've won. I can't let you win by pushing me into the pond.

Fatimah I saved your life. No. Before with the inhaler.

Abubakr How did you clock me as a Sunni, anyway?

Fatimah Your name?

Abubakr Oh, yeah.

Fatimah You wouldn't be Shia with that name.

Abubakr Oh, you want to go there, do you? Abubakr, Muhammad's best friend. Right.

Fatimah Well...

Abubakr No, no, no, no, no, we're sorting this out. Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam was the last and greatest prophet of Allah, right?

Fatimah Yeah.

Abubakr Yes, so when he died, the first Muslims had to decide on a new leader, right?

Fatimah Yeah. But they-

Abubakr No, no, no, hear me out. You pushed me into the pond, yeah? Now hear what I got to say, the first Muslims had to decide on a new leader, and they had to choose somebody who was good at it, somebody who was there from the very start with Muhammad. Abubakr, who ended up becoming caliph, the successor.

S1 But that's not what Muhammad wanted. He said that Ali should be the new leader after he died. Ali, what?

Fatimah But that's not what Muhammad wanted. He said that Ali should be the new leader after he died.

Abubakr Ali.

Fatimah What?

Abubakr You lot are all so obsessed with Ali. Like he's important, yeah, but he's not that important. He's quite important. But he's not the most important. He's important yeah but-

Fatimah What are you talking about?

Abubakr You think he was a prophet? That's just wrong.

Fatimah No we don't.

Abubakr Yes, you do.

Fatimah Don't tell me what I believe.

Abubakr You add his name to the call to prayer. It should be (says call to prayer in Arabic). What do you say?

Fatimah The same.

Abubakr And

Fatimah (speaks in Arabic)

Abubakr Exactly. That's just wrong.

Fatimah It's not. Wrong. It's just different. Ali wasn't a prophet, but he was married to Fatimah, Muhammad's daughter. He was a son in law and his cousin, his closest relative. That's why Mohammed chose him to be the new leader. Abubakr took over, while Ali and the rest of the family were still at the funeral.

S1 Wrong. It's just different. Ali wasn't a prophet, but he was married to Fatimah, Muhammad's daughter. He was a son in law and his cousin, his closest relative. That's why Mohammed chose him to be the new leader. Abu Bakr took over, while Ali and the rest of the family were still at the funeral.

Abubakr You make it sound like it was some sort of conspiracy theory, like it was our plan to cut Ali out, Abubakr was chosen. Yeah, because he was the best man for the job, end of.

Fatimah Ali should have been the new leader. Mohammed chose him, end of.

Abubakr No, he didn't.

Fatimah Yes, he did.

Abubakr He didn't.

Fatimah He did.

Abubakr He didn't!

Fatimah Did!

Abubakr But, Ali got to be caliph later anyway. So, what's your problem?

Fatimah You murdered Hussein.

Abubakr Oh, I haven't murdered anyone.

Fatimah Hussein? Ali's son, Muhammad Alaihi Wasallam's grandson. He was murdered at Gobela by Sunnis.

Abubakr That had nothing to do with us. The guy who killed him wasn't even Muslim. But you guys won't ever let that go. And every year on the day that Hussein died, you do that wailing and that grieving, whipping your own backs, cutting yourselves with razors. That's just crazy, man.

Fatimah We don't all do that. I don't do that. Does it look like I do that? That's just.

Abubakr That's what I'm saying.

Fatimah Yeah. What? I'm not disagreeing with you.

Abubakr Oh.

Fatimah Aren't you cold?

Abubakr No.

Abubakr My granddad says when he first came to the UK, Sunnis and Shias used to live on the same streets and go to the same mosques. You don't call it a mosque, though, do you? What do you call it again?

Fatimah Imambara.

Abubakr Even though you're wrong-

Fatimah I'm not.

Abubakr You are. This has been good, right? I haven't had a proper discussion like this, like, ever. Never got this at Koran school. Man, them days were long. Coming home from school, running over to the mosque.

Fatimah Learning the prayers, learning the Arabic, reading the Qur'an.

Abubakr Over and over and over again.

Fatimah I liked it. I thought it was pretty easy.

Abubakr Yeah, you would, wouldn't you? Uh, okay. Uh, I should go.

Fatimah Yeah. You're gonna get ill.

Abubakr Yeah. My mate lives just there so I can get some clothes off him.

Fatimah Good.

Abubakr It was nice meeting you.

Fatimah You too.

Abubakr Thanks for saving my life. Yeah.

Fatimah No problem. You have to sit together. Asthma sufferers.

Abubakr Salaam alaikum.

Fatimah Alaikum salaam.

Abubakr I gave you your inhaler, didn't I?

Fatimah Yeah, yeah. Thank you. I better head off to mosque. I'm gonna be late.

Abubakr Which way are you going?

Fatimah That way.

Abubakr Oh, I'm going that way.

Fatimah Right then.

Abubakr Yeah.

Shia // Sunni

Video length - 9.30

Published date - Sep 2016

Keystage(s) - 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

How Islam began in under ten minutes? Not a problem. The turbulent tale is told against the clock, with all the names, dates and events on a timeline. Animation by Ceiren Bell.

Curriculum Mapping

TrueTube films are designed for use in a number of ways. Some ideas of where this film could link to your curriculum are below:

AQA

Component 1: The study of religions: beliefs, teachings and practices- Islam - Practices, Duties and Festivals. Tawhid - (the Oneness of God), Qur’an Surah 112 Hajj: the role and significance of the pilgrimage to Makkah including origins, how Hajj is performed, the actions pilgrims perform at sites including the Ka’aba at Makkah, Mina, Arafat, Muzdalifah and their significance.

Edexcel

Area of Study 1- Islam - Section 1: Muslim Beliefs - Islam - The nature of Allah: how the characteristics of Allah are shown in the Qur’an and why they are important: Tawhid (oneness), including Surah 16: 35–36, immanence, transcendence, omnipotence, beneficence, mercy, fairness and justice, Adalat in Shi’a Islam.

Section 3: Living the Muslim Life - Islam Hajj as one of the Five Pillars: the nature, role, origins and significance of Hajj, including Surah 2: 124–130; 22: 25–30; how Hajj is performed and why Hajj is important for Muslims; benefits and challenges from attending Hajj for Muslims."

OCR

Componet Group 2–Religion, philosophy and ethics in the modern world from a religious perspective - the existence of God, gods and ultimate reality, and ways in which God, gods or ultimate reality might be understood; through revelation, visions, miracles or enlightenment. Component Group 1–Practices - Islam - Public acts of worship - Salah as direct communication with Allah. The importance of practices - Islam as a way of life, lived in total submission to Allah • The importance of the Five Pillars of Islam to Sunni Muslims • The meaning of the Five Pillars: •• Shahadah: sincerely reciting the Muslim profession of faith •• Salat: performing ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day •• Zakat/Zakah: paying an alms (or charity) tax to benefit the poor and the needy •• Sawm: fasting during the month of Ramadan •• Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca • The analogy of the house and pillars

WJEC

2.1 Unit 1 PART A - Part A - Islam - Core beliefs, teachings and practices - Beliefs - The Nature of God  Allah as one God: Tawhid (Qur'an 3:18)  The qualities of Allah in the Qur'an; e.g. immanence, transcendence, omnipotence, beneficence, merciful (Qur'an 46:33), the 99 names of Allah  The meaning of Islam as 'submission' to Allah and how Muslims live a life in submission to the will of Allah, including the importance of Greater Jihad  Shahadah as a statement of faith in Allah, shirk as sin against Allah  Reasons for the prohibition of images of Allah or any human figure

Eduqas

Component 3 (Route A): Study of a World Faith: Option 3: Islam:The Nature of Allah ➢ The teaching about the nature of Allah: the belief in the oneness of Allah (Tawhid): Qur'an 3:18 ➢ Nature of Allah: immanence, transcendence, omnipotence, beneficence, mercy, fairness and justice: Qur'an 46:33 ➢ Adalat in Shi'a Islam Prophet hood (Risalah) ➢ The nature of prophet hood; why are prophets important? Qur'an 2:136 ➢ The importance of Adam as the first prophet ➢ Ibrahim as father of Isaac and Ishma'il and his significance for the Muslim religion ➢ Isa as a prophet for Muslims: Qur'an 2:87 ➢ Muhammad as the seal of the Prophets Angels (Malaikah) ➢ The significance of angels in Islam: Qur’an 2:97-98,Qur’an 2:285 ➢ Diversity in belief between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims regarding angels and free will ➢ The significance of Jibril's revelation of the Qur'an to Muhammad: Qur’an 2:97-98 ➢ The significance of Mika'il placed in charge of plants and rain ➢ The significance of Israfil to announce the Day of Resurrection Akhirah (Afterlife) ➢ Al-Qadr (Predestination):Implications for human freedom ➢ Akhirah: Human responsibility and accountability; Muslim beliefs and teachings about the afterlife ➢ Human Freedom and its relationship to Day of Judgement ➢ Heaven; Muslim beliefs about the nature, stages and purpose of heaven ➢ Hell; Muslim beliefs about the nature and purpose of hell. Festivals and commemorations: practices in Britain and elsewhere ➢ Id-ul-Adha: The festival of sacrifice. How Muslims celebrate IdulAdha in Britain and worldwide ➢ Id-ul-Fitr: The festival of fast-breaking following Ramadan. How Muslims celebrate Id-ul-Fitr in Britain and worldwide ➢ Ashura: The Day of Remembrance (Shi'a). How Shi'a Muslims celebrate Ashura in Britain and worldwide ➢ The Night of Power: the importance of the revelation of the Qur'an and how it is viewed and treated in Islam

Transcript

How Islam Began – In Ten Minutes

How Islam began in under ten minutes. Not a problem. We've started. Okay, so travel back in time with me to a land far, far away. And long, long ago. Mecca and Arabia, but the year 570. Makkah is important for two reasons. One, the Kaaba is there, an ancient temple built to worship God, and two, Muhammad, peace be upon him, was born in Makkah. Now, problem, I can't show you Muhammad because it wouldn't be right. I'll tell you why in a bit, but in the meantime, here's his name in Arabic. Nice.

Back in the day, Makkah was a lawless place. The only way to be safe was to have backup. Lots of rich big brothers who'd beat up anyone who got in your way. So the place was ruled by the most powerful families who could do pretty much what they wanted. And religion didn't help. By this time, the Kaaba had been filled to overflowing, with 360 idols that did nothing to help anyone. So it was a tough place to grow up if, like Muhammad, you were a poor orphan and believed in just one God you couldn't see, like the Jews and the Christians. He called him Allah, the God, in Arabic there.

Muhammad's dad died before he was even born, and his mom died when he was just six. So he was brought up by his grandfather, Abdul Muttalib. And then when he died too, by his uncle Abu Talib, who had the respect of the city's ruling families, so Muhammad was safe, for the time being. Muhammed started out as a shepherd and then became a businessman, travelling about, buying and selling stuff for rich clients. When he did some work for a rich widow called Khadijah, she was so impressed by his honesty and skill that they ended up getting married, and for a while it looked like Mohammed was going places, well he was, but not how you think.

Every year in the month of Ramadan, different calendar, different names for the months, there was a big party around the Kaaba. When people made sacrifices to the idols, Mohammed hated it, so he'd get out of town and sleep in a cave he'd found on top of a nearby mountain. One night, Mohammed's praying to Allah when, wham, there's the angel Jibril, you might say Gabriel, standing right in front of him. 'Read' says the angel, but Mohammed couldn't read, no schools, you see, Jibreel keeps on at him. Three times he says 'read'. Then he grabs hold of Muhammad and wham! Again, it's like Muhammad's learnt the words off by heart. So he recites the message out loud, read in the name of your Lord, who created man from a drop of blood. Read, for your Lord is most generous. He who taught by the pen taught man what he did not know. It was a message from Allah. God was speaking to him just like he'd spoken to the prophets in the Jewish and Christian holy books, which meant he was a prophet too.

The messages continue for the rest of Muhammad's life. Allah gave him the words to say and the prophet recited them. The words were written down by his friends, and years later they were collected together and became the Muslim holy book, the Qur'an, which means recitation because Muhammad recited it, you see. Anyway, that was much later, so back to the night of power. Muhammad tells his family, then his friends, and eventually everyone about Allah that he's a one and only God, that he wants everyone to be treated fairly, and long story short, it didn't go down well with the ruling families of Makkah, who liked things just the way they were, thank you very much. You see, Islam means obedience to Allah and Muslim means someone who obeys Allah. And the ruling families didn't want anyone obeying anyone else but them. So the people who believed in Muhammad's message, the Muslims, were given a hard time. Some were even tortured and killed. A few of them managed to escape to Abyssinia, Ethiopia, but most were stuck in Makkah.

Muhammad also had to cope with the death of his wife, and then just a few weeks later, his uncle too. Feeling very down, he went to the carpet to pray to Allah one night. Then the weirdest thing happened. Jibril turns up, sits him on a winged horse called Al-buraq and flies him all the way from Makkah to Jerusalem. He prays with all the prophets who have ever lived. Then he's taken up to the heavens to chat with some of the prophets, and then into Paradise itself, where Allah tells Muhammad to pray five times a day and to stay strong. He's returned to Jerusalem, and then flies back to the Kaaba in Makkah. We call it the night journey, and Muslims still argue whether it was a real experience or a vision, but whatever. It gave Muhammad a much needed boost, and just as well, because there were more tough times ahead. So there was this other city called Yathrib. The people there heard about Muhammad and his message and invited him and his followers to join them. A few at a time, the Muslims left Makkah and made a dangerous journey across the desert to Yathrib. It's known as the Hijra, which means migration, you know, like birds do.

Muhammad and a few of his friends stayed in Makkah until everyone had got away, and then made plans for their own escape. But, the ruling families wanted to kill Muhammad while they still could, so seven sons, one from each family, was sent in the middle of the night to stab the prophet while he slept. But he was way ahead of them, and when they burst into the house, Muhammad was gone. Trackers were sent out to hunt him down. Muhammad and his best friend Abu Bakr took a roundabout route to try and shake off the pursuit, but the trackers were too good and slowly gained on them, so Muhammad and Abu Bakr hid in a cave and pray that no one found them. The trackers found the cave all right, but they didn't bother going in to search. There was no way Muhammad could be inside they thought. There was a spider's web over the mouth of the cave, and a nesting bird at the entrance. He must have given them the slip, so off they went, leaving Muhammad and Abu Bakr protected by a spider and a bird.

Muhammad made it safely to Yathrib, which was renamed Medinat-ul-Nabi, the city of the prophet, but most people just call it Medinah, but Muhammad's worries weren't over yet. There were three big battles between the Muslims and the Meccans. First, the Battle of Badr, when Muhammad and just 313 men faced 1000 Meccan soldiers. Miraculously, the Muslims won. Then, there was a battle of Uhud, which didn't go so well. Some of Muhammad's men disobeyed his orders, and ran off during the battle to evade the Meccans camp, and so the Muslims were outmanoeuvred. Then, there was the battle of the trench. Medinah was protected on three sides by mountains, so when the Meccan forces advanced in the city, the Muslims just dug a deep trench. The Meccans made camp, but the weather was terrible. Pouring rain put out their fires and howling winds blew down their tents. Eventually they gave up, and went back to Mecca. It was all a bit embarrassing. They were losing the respect of the local tribes who were flocking to join the Muslims. So a peace treaty was signed at Hudaibiya, but it wasn't long before the Meccans broke it. Muhammad decided that enough was enough. By now he had over 10,000 men, so he led them across the desert to Makkah. The ruling families realised they'd made a huge mistake, but it was too late. All they could do was surrender and hope that the Muslim army killed them quickly. But Muhammad said there should be no more fighting. He rode into Makkah and went straight to the Kaaba. He circled it seven times anti-clockwise and smashed all the idols, rededicating the Kaaba to Allah, and that's why I'm not going to show you Muhammad. The Muslims wanted to make it totally clear that they only worship the one unseen God, so they didn't have any pictures of Muhammad in case anyone thought he was an idol and they didn't have any pictures of Allah because he's like nothing on earth, so it would be impossible to draw him anyway. So there you go, how Islam began in under ten minutes. How did I do?

How Islam Began – In Ten Minutes

Video length - 8.04

Published date - Sep 2013

Keystage(s) - 2, 3 and 4

Downloadable resources

Muslim Prayer

How do Muslims pray? A young Muslim woman explains how she prepares for worship and demonstrates the movements she performs during prayer.

Curriculum Mapping

TrueTube films are designed for use in a number of ways. Some ideas of where this film could link to your curriculum are below:

AQA

Component 1: The study of religions: beliefs, teachings and practices- Islam -Practices and Duties - Five Pillars of Sunni Islam and the Ten Obligatory Acts of Shi’a Islam
Salah and its significance: how and why Muslims pray including times, directions, ablution (wudu), movements (rak’ahs) and recitations; salah in the home and mosque and elsewhere; Friday prayer: Jummah; key differences in the practice of salah in Sunni and Shi’a Islam, and different Muslim views about the importance of prayer.

Edexcel

Area of Study 3 - Section 3: Living the Muslim Life- Islam - Salah as one of the Five Pillars, including reference to Surah 15: 98–99 and 29: 45: the nature, history, significance and purpose of Salah for Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, including different ways of understanding them; how Salah is performed including ablution, times, directions, movements and recitations, in the home and mosque and Jummah prayer.

OCR

Component Group 1–Practices - Islam - Public acts of worship - Salah as direct communication with Allah - The importance of practices - The importance of the Ten Obligatory Acts to Shi’a Muslims • The meaning of the Ten Obligatory Acts: •• Salat Prayer •• Sawm: Fast •• Zakat/Zakah: similar to Sunni Islam, it applies to money •• Khums:an annual taxation of one-fifth of gains in a year •• Hajj: Pilgrimage •• Jihad: Struggle •• Amr-bil-Maroof: commanding what is good •• Nahi Anil: Munkar forbid what is evil •• Tawalla: expressing love towards good •• Tabarra:expressing disassociation from evil •Different interpretations and emphases given to sources of wisdom and authority by different Muslim groups

WJEC

2.1 Unit 1 PART A - Part A Islam - Core beliefs, teachings and practices - Practices - The Five Pillars of Sunni Islam -Prayer/ Salat  Adhan call to prayer, praying at mosque and Friday Jummah prayer (Qur'an 15:9899, 29:45)  Praying at home, private prayer (Du'ah)  The preparations and intention for prayer: wudu and niyyah  The significance and symbolism of the different prayer positions that make a rakat (sequence of prayer) Obligatory Acts  Shahadah: the Muslim profession of faith in Allah and the prophet Muhammad; occasions when the Shahadah is recited, e.g. aqiqah ceremony, conversion to Islam  Zakat: paying an alms (or charity) tax to benefit others, what zakat tax may be used for, and additional charity (saddaqah)  Sawm: Fasting during the month of Ramadan. How and why Muslims fast during Ramadan and rules about halal and haram diet (Qur'an 2:183)

Eduqas

Component 3 (Route A): Study of a World Faith: Option 3: Islam:Practices: The Five Pillars of Sunni Islam: practices in Britain and elsewhere:Salah: the practices of prayer in Islam in the mosque and at home, including Jummah prayer: Qur'an 15:98-99, Qur'an 29:45

Transcript

Muslim Prayer

S1 Muslims have five duties in life. They are called the Five Pillars of Islam. The second pillar is Salah, the duty to pray five times a day. Muslims say these prayers in Arabic and go through a series of movements called Rak'ah. The number of rak'ahs will depend on which prayer is being performed. Before Muslims pray, they must remove their shoes and perform a special wash called wudhu. Then they must make sure that their body is fully covered. Women should wear a headscarf. Finally, they need to find a clean space in which to pray. A prayer mat will do and must face in the right direction, the direction of the Kaaba in Makkah. This is called the qibla. Now let's see how the prayers are performed.

S1 (Prayer is said in Arabic)

S1 This series of movements is known as one rak'ah, and is repeated a number of times depending on the prayer. Then, the rest of the prayer is continued.

S1 (Prayer is said in Arabic)

S1 After the prayer is complete, it is common for Muslims to make Du'a to God, asking for forgiveness and blessings. The prayer is said in Arabic, but the Du'a be said in any language. And that's how Muslims perform their Salah.