Is there any truth to the claim that Druze are ancient followers of Pythagoras and neo-Platonists?
>>306479
no. They originate from Ismaili heretics that were devoted to the Mad Caliph Al-Hakim. Now they like to pretend that they are a legitimate faith separate from Islam but in reality function like a closed ethnic community.
>>306479
Maybe, but they're going extinct quickly, just like all other religious minorities in the middle east.
>>306686
>source cited
As far as I know they are doing okay for themselves as many are in Lebanon and a fair number are keked in Israel
>>306697
The majority of them lived in Syria and a bunch fled to Lebanon. They are recognized by Israel but exist in insignificant numbers.
ISIS and Al Nusra is trying to exterminate them.
No idea. All these muslim sects confuse the hell out of me.
>>306731
not sure they are Muslim
>>306731
They aren't Muslim, they just had to accept the pedophile warlord as a prophet (just like Alevis, Alawites etc)
>>306783
> Alawites adopting Mohammed as their prophet
lol no. Ali is their prophet and basically the equivalent of Jesus (God-man).
Alawites probably have a deep disdain for Sunnis, which is more than likely mutual.
>>307001
Plato literally studied Pythagoreanism so all forms of Platonism reflect Pythagoreanism in some way. That being said a Druze is a Druze, and analyzing any religion purely as an offshoot of a other system of thought is usually less helpful than an analysis based on the religion's own internal traditions. If the Druze were Neoplatonists they'd refer to themselves as such.
>>307008
So they reject the notion of Muhammad being a prophet?
>>306686
>>306714
Seems pretty even. Far from going extinct.
>>307035
Plato didn't know shit about math
he was just about durr everything is a form xD
>>307039
No, they just believe Ali should have been the first King of Islam after Muhammed instead of Abu.
Shiites think Ali was the rightful first Caliph, Sunni think Abu was. That is the basis of the Sunni v.s. Shia split. Ibadi think the discussion is irrelevant, but then they're also a minority.
>>307080
So that means they adopted the pedophile warlord as a prophet
>>307114
No, Muhammed was the pedophile warlord prophet. After Muhammed died, a dispute arose over who got to take up the title of Caliph.
For them to adopt Muhammed as a prophet would mean there would have to be some religion there beforehand, but there was none. Shiites and Sunnis (and all the sects of them) by definition came about after Muhammed's death.
>>307154
they are crypto-someone who adopted the pedophile warlord as their prophet (and also parts of the Islamic doctrine) so that the would be able to pose as mooselimbs in a majority mooselibm region
same way as Paulicians were just crypto-Zoroastrians
>>307154
The Sunni-Shia schism was used by many groups to set up their own heterodox syncretic cults
>>307066
What does that ha e to do with my post? Pythagoreanism was only partially related to mathematics. Also Pythagoreans were afraid of some numbers because they didn't know how they worked and even killed each other over math problems, shows how good they were at math.
>>306686
Israel should open the doors for such minorities. The Druze that already live there are loyal to the Jewish state, if they got the other ones, plus the Yazidis, Mandeans, Circassians etc and mobilized them against Islamism (not hard considering how they are oppressed by Muslims) they would able to stall the demographic bomb threat.
>>308465
Isreal is literally the cause of our persectuon. Shut the fuck up you fucking American. Everything was okay until you killed our protector
>>308629
proofs, Abu?
>>307008
You literally need Muhammad to follow Ali. There's literally no reason to side with Ali while rejecting Muhammad, it's like a Christian saying "yeah, fuck jesus, Peter is the son of god".
>>308842
I think the idea is that Muhammad was John the Baptist to Ali's Jesus.
>>306479
All religions, sects or groups with a mystic tradition have a lot to agree with the neo-platonists. On could argue some of this comes directly or indirectly from neoplatonism, but it's kinda pointless to determine if that's true or not. The shared ideas are there.
>>308866
Not in most shia denominations, and alawites insist on being shia muslims. They literally can't do that while negating Muhammad is the prophet, other muslims would not allow them to keep the facade. I'm sure they don't do that, no matter how in high regard they put Ali.
>>308891
Well sure, but who shittalks John the Baptist in Christianity?
What I'd like to know is how there are all these weird pseudo-Muslim sects running around in the first place. Shouldn't there just be the big two, Sunni and Shia, like how Europe eventually made everyone either Catholic, Protestant, or Orthodox?
>>308907
Protestant is a wide umbrella. I'm sure that's not what Luther wanted, but (some) protestants are actually those "pseudo-christian sects running around". Not to mention egyptian copts, the assyrians, the armenians, etc. all those have different churches, they're not orthodox in the sense greeks or some slavs are.
And remember, islam has no priests nor hierarchic structure (well some shias like the twelvers in Iran and Iraq do but they're the exception).
>>306479
No. They are followers of lunatic Fatimid Imam Al-Hakim, who declared himself to be the incarnation of God.
Well, the Fatimids were particularly prolific with these insanities.
For exemple, the Assassins, who are another heretical sect, from the same lineage, have similar beliefs, but to the heir to the Imam Nizar al Mustafa, also a Fatimid. They are rather inclined to Neoplatonism, but not nearly "ancient followers of Pythagoras". Their Imam is now a "locus of manifestation" of God (an interesting adaptation, at a time when living gods are no longer popular).
