Reddit reply in r/AcademicQuran: what is sunnism exactly — January 2, 2026 | Ali Shukri Amin

What Sunni Islam is today is a different question than what it was when people first began identifying as Sunnis, or how Sunnism was constructed.

Today, people who adhere to Sunnism can be identified as:

1. Agreeing that the Quran as is today written in the masahif and compiled in the ten Qira'at (from Shatibi & Jazari) comprises the exact Revelation of Allah to prophet Muhammad.

Anyone that suggested the Quran was not entirely preserved could not be a Sunni.

2. The prophet was given a secondary Revelation known as the Sunnah which was accurately preserved in various schools of fiqh and the books of hadith broadly. The primary Sunni books of hadith are: Muwatta, Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, ibn Majah.

Anyone that did not broadly accept these hadith compilations could not be a Sunni.

3. The six articles of faith:

Allah is an immaterial God with 99 Names and Attributes that are real and not merely descriptive. All-Knowing, All-Powerful, All-Seeing, All-Hearing, Ever-Living, Willfull, and who Speaks.

This differs from Mutazilite, 12'er Shia, and Karrami conceptualizations of God.

He gave the Quran to the angel Jibril to give to prophet Muhammad. The Prophet Muhammad is the final prophet & messenger.

This differs from Ahmadis & other groups that allow for the possibility of more Prophets or Messengers.

Islam is the only way of life that Allah accepts. Adherants to Islam enter Paradise eternally while those who disbelieve in it enter Hellfire eternally. Sinful believers may be punished but ultimately enter Paradise.

This differs from Perennialist interpretations that some Sufis have held historically and until today. Additionally some groups held that Paradise & Hellfire are not eternal.

There is a forthcoming Day of Reckoning during which all people will be judged according to their righteousness and faith.

Allah has Divinely pre-ordained everything and written it in the Preserved Tablet (the meaning of Qadr is disputed among Sunnis but the concept of Qadr is accepted by all Sunnis).

This differs from the Qadiris & Mutazilites.

Sunnis also believe that all of the Prophetic companions (sahabah) are saved. Anyone who rejected some of the companions, such as any of the wives of the Prophet, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, or even figures like Muawiyyah could not be a Sunni. Historically, some Sunnis have preferred some sahabah over the others (some preferring Ali over Uthman or even proto-Sunnis over Abu Bakr).

However, modern Sunnis hold Ali to be the 4th best sahabi based on some hadith, although this could be validly disputed over Uthman.

Sunnis also hold that the rebellion of Hussayn was justified and that Yazid was either sinful or an apostate for his actions against the Prophetic family. This differs from the Umayyads and is a different view than some of the proto-Sunnis.

Sunnis believe the first three generations of Muslims to be the best (unlike the imami Shi'a who hold the imams in greater regard than the Sunni Salaf).

Sunnis can only be Athari, Ashari, or Maturidi. Anyone else is not considered a Sunni today.

4. Shari'ah or islam, i.e. fiqh. The four schools of fiqh and comparative (Salafi) fiqh. The use of Quran, hadith, ijma, and other methods of deriving rulings pertaining to worship and the permissibility of worldly transactions (business, marriage, war, etc.)

Someone who thought we cannot use the Quran and/or Sunnah for rulings/fiqh could not be a Sunni.

It is possible to be a Sunni and reject adherance to the four schools as being mandatory but it is not possible to be a Sunni and reject the teachings of the four schools as being broadly valid.

Whether it is required to respect and revere Abu Hanifa in order to remain a Sunni was a settled issue for about 1000 years but in the last 30 years or so has begun to be debated in Salafi circles quite hotly. There are self-descrived Sunnis that view Abu Hanifa as heretical now.

Sunnis agree on the obligation of Islamic governance in Muslim lands and some implementation of Shariah in the public sphere.

5. Spirituality - all Sunnis acknowledge the necessity of a spiritual dimension to Islam (ihsan or tasawuff) although what kind of spirituality is legitimate is hotly debated. Generally speaking, all Sunnis believe in a spiritual dimension to the religion. However, whether this manifests in formal Sufi turuq, Sufi literature, or whether these are seen as heretical advancements is a point of disagreement between neo-traditionalists & Salafis. All Sunnis accept the early Sunni mystics such as al-Junayd al-Baghdadi, Hasan al-Basri, and Dhu al-Nun al-Misri.