fitnah

listen to the pronunciation of fitnah
English - English
antagonism towards early Muslims
any threat to the health of an Islamic state
(Arabic; "trial" or "test") In the Islamic tradition, trials or temptations that test the unity of the Muslim community. The term may be used to describe insurrection or civil warfare or, more specifically, to define a tribunal over doctrinal issues, broadly similar to the Christian Inquisition. There were four fitnahs in the early history of Islam. The first (656-661) followed the murder of the third caliph, Uthmn ibn Affn. It brought up the question of Al's right to rule and prompted a military conflict that eventually resulted in the schism between the Sunnite and the Shite branches. The second coincided with the caliphate of Yazd I (680-683); it was a continuation of the struggle between claimants to the caliphate and led to the death of al-Husayn ibn Al at the Battle of Karbal another formative event in the Sunnite-Shite split. The third fitnah (744-750) resulted in the ascendancy of the Abbsid dynasty. The fourth evolved from the caliphate's support for the Mutazilite theological school and successfully challenged the caliph's authority to enforce doctrinal rigour. Scholastic Aptitude Test impact test test tube conception patch test Test Act Turing test Nuclear Test Ban Treaty hypothesis testing psychological testing testing machine field trial trial jury Scopes Trial Nürnberg trials purge trials Salem witch trials