Product Description

The critical struggle between Shia and Sunni for the future of the Middle East.

To most Western eyes, all Islamic movements look alike, and the central conflict in the Middle East is one between religion and secularism. Shockingly little has been written about the bitter divide between Shia and Sunni. Yet without understanding their ancient conflict—and its modern embodiment in the power struggle between Iran and Saudi Arabia for political and spiritual leadership of the Muslim world—it is impossible to comprehend events across the so-called Shia Crescent, from East Africa through Iraq and Pakistan to India.

The provocative rise of the Ayatollah Khomeini, the Saudi pressure on the United States not to unseat Saddam Hussein in 1991, the critical role of the Ayatollah Sistani and the religious establishment in Najaf (Iraq), the volatility of Pakistan today, and the consequences of the shift toward Shia power through American intervention—all this and more is explained in the light of the Shia/Sunni divide.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #147494 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 304 pages

From Publishers Weekly
One of the least remarked upon aspects of the war in Iraq, at least in the American press, has been how conflict and instability in that country have shaken the delicate balance of power between Sunni and Shia throughout the wider region. Nasr, professor of Middle East and South Asia politics at the Naval Postgraduate School, tackles this question head-on for a Western audience. His account begins with a cogent, engrossing introduction to the history and theology of Shia Islam, encapsulating the intellectual and political trends that have shaped the faith and its relations with the dominant Sunni strain. Nasr argues that the Shia Crescent—stretching from Lebanon and Syria through the Gulf to Iraq and Iran, finally terminating in Pakistan and India—is gathering strength in the aftermath of Saddam's fall, cementing linkages that transcend political and linguistic borders and could lead to a new map of the Middle East. While Nasr's enthusiasm for Iraq's Shiite leader Ayatollah Sistani sometimes borders on the hagiographic, and he makes a number of uncharacteristic errors, such as conflating the Syrian Alawi community with the Turkish Alevis, his book is worthwhile reading for those seeking a primer on the second-largest Muslim sect. (Aug.)
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From Booklist
*Starred Review* About 15 percent of Muslims worldwide are Shia. In Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Bahrain, Shia constitute a majority or plurality of the populace, and areas of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia (in the latter, the oil fields) host Shia majorities. Iran's Islamic Revolution under Ayatollah Khomeini, which rushed Islam to the forefront of non-Islamic consciousness internationally, was a Shia phenomenon. Iranian Middle East researcher Nasr, who teaches, consults, and writes in the U.S., says that Khomeini was rather a maverick who discountenanced the quietism, ritualism, and celebratoriness of mainstream Shia. If that is a revelation to Westerners, so, probably, are Nasr's arguments that the Shia have been persecuted and oppressed by the Sunni majority ever since the divergence of the two Islamic strains more than 1,300 years ago, and that Islamic terrorism from well before 9/11 to the current insurgency in post-Saddam Iraq is a tactic of intransigent Sunnism. Nasr never pontificates or accuses, always choosing to show both sides' reasons for even the most heinous actions. He never so much as hints at what many readers must infer from his presentation--that the U.S. should think again and again and again before attacking Iran. So enlightening and perspective altering that no one concerned about the Middle East should miss reading it. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
An eminently readable and informative book that should be read by both policymakers and informed Western readers. -- Library Journal

Much blood has been spilled over the doctrinal dispute between [Sunnis and Shias]….a helpful footnote to the headlines. -- Kirkus Reviews

This is indispensable reading for anybody who is trying to make sense of the tragic conflict in the Middle East. -- Karen Armstrong

Customer Reviews

Great Deal
This was a special from Amazon during a no shipping promotion. I paid less than my classmates, and mine was hardcover while theirs was paperback. Great deal. Thanks.

Almost perfect
The author's historical, religious and socio-political dissection and study of the fabric of Shia and its development in the Islamic world is absolutely magnificent.
If you need to understand what Shia is, its dogma, philosophy and importance on major political events, read this book.
I enjoyed this book and I recommend it in a heart beat!

A Must Read for Anyone Who Wants to Understand Islam
"The Shia Revival" is, in fact, a history of Islam and its divisions. In this short, concise, readable volume, the reader learns how Sunni, Shia and Wahabi Islam emerged from the same teachings of Mohammed. Most important, it reviews the conflicts between the various approaches to Islam from their historical, economic, political and social aspects. This book should be read by everyone who wants to fully understand the consequences of this religion in today's world.