Construction of Sunni-Shia Thought and Its Manifestation Towards Geopolitics in Indonesia

Abstract

This article aims to discover the construction of Shia thought and geopolitics in Indonesia. Today, it is undeniable that Shia is a sect that is considered heretical and rejected by Indonesian society. This is not necessarily substantive, considering that the contradiction between Sunni and Shia has occurred since long ago. The rejection of Shia in Indonesia could be due to the truth claim over Sunni, which is the sect embraced by Indonesian society. This work applied a qualitative methodology with a social approach. This approach aims to construct research results using social phenomena in the field. The primary data in this research comprised of books and scientific articles that were accessed for analysis in the literature review method. The raw data was analyzed using content analysis techniques. The results showed that Shia thought in Indonesia became contradictory due to different interpretations. Generally, most Indonesian people who follow the Sunni sect reject Shia as a legitimate sect. On the other hand, the geopolitics of Shia in Indonesia still needs to run because its existence has not been recognized. Public rejection of Shia makes the position of Shia in Indonesia relatively stagnant and makes it challenging to experience growth.