In our present era, it is most disturbing for many Muslims and non-Muslims alike to witness the escalating rise in sectarian violence between the Shia and Sunni followers of Islam, particularly in places such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

Some people, including Muslims, ask why the Shia and Sunni are violently murdering each other? is there something in the history of the Muslims that continues to spark such hatred and violence today? why does one sect accuse the other of heresy? and why is one sect of the Muslims considered as“mainstream,” while the other wing is branded unconventional and literally pacified?