Political factions in early Islam metamorphosed into religious sects

Evidence

In its origins the Shi a of Ali was thus primarily political—the supporters of a candidate for office, or of a family with claims to dynastic legitimacy. But in a religion as political as Islam, in a polity as religious as the early caliphate, a political party quickly and easily becomes a religious sect. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1427

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The Sunni-Shi’a split originated from political succession struggles — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 317