The original linguistic meaning of the Arabic word ‘Shariah’ means the 'sea-shore.' It also means ‘road’. These two meanings continue to leave their connotations on the word when it is used in Islamic context. In such a case it refers to Islamic law, which is clear as things can be seen clearly on the seashore where there is nothing to interfere with our vision. It also provides a road for Muslims to follow in order to achieve their goal of winning God's pleasure.

It is often the case that a word acquires a specific meaning when it is used in a particular context, or when it becomes a special term in a certain field. If it is frequently used in that situation, then the specific meaning becomes the one which is readily apparent, and the one immediately understood by all people when they hear or come across it. This applies to the words 'Shariah' and 'deen'.

In an Islamic context, Shariah means the set of commands God has communicated to His servants in His final message to mankind, i.e. Islam. All that a Muslim is required to do and avoid or refrain from doing constitute Shariah, which has come to denote Islamic law. Nowadays, when we hear of groups and movements demanding the implementation of Islamic law, we realize that they are asking that the Shariah is put into effect.

Dana is the root from which we derive the term deen. It means, ‘to submit, to position in a humble place, put to account, determine a reward or punishment, obey, cause a person to do what he dislikes, etc.’ In its Islamic usage, the word has all these connotations: submission to God, humility before Him, accountability, obedience even when it means doing what we dislike, etc. Its basic sense, however, is ‘submission to God and accepting the message He has sent to mankind through the final Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him.’

This means that the word deen has a wider meaning than the word Shariah. While the latter denotes basically the law that Islam lays down, the former, deen, goes further than that in order to include accepting the basic concepts of faith and bringing one's life in line with those concepts, implementing the Shariah as an act of submission to God.

Can the two be separated? The short answer is that they cannot exist separately. It is inconceivable that a community which does not believe in Islam as a message vouchsafed by God to His last messenger would ever adopt Islamic law and try to implement it through the regular law enforcing procedures and authorities. For one thing, Islamic law relies heavily on the fact that individuals and communities have a deep-rooted incentive which motivates them to implement it so that they would earn God's pleasure and be rewarded by heaven.

When that incentive is absent, Islamic law would not function properly. There would be as much law evasion as we see in other communities which enforce man-made laws.

On the other hand, it just cannot happen that a community which truly believes in Islam should decide to shelve Islamic law and adopt instead some other type of law. How can such a community give credence to what it professes of believing in Islam? How could a person say that he believes in God, but when it comes to law, he prefers some sort of man-made law to that made by God? Such an attitude means that he finds the other law better or more suitable or superior to God's law. Or it may be that he thinks God's law too restrictive and he wants to be free. Does that prove his submission, which is the central issue in faith and religion? Certainly not. Then how can the two be separated?

Nor is it possible to change God's law. Let us consider what happens in any country when a law is changed. You look first at the authority which enacted the original law. The new law, or even the amendment to the existing law, needs to be adopted by the same authority. In a democratic country where the parliament is the only authority to enact laws, you need a new act of parliament to repeal, amend or substitute the existing laws. In a country where laws come into effect on the basis of royal or presidential decrees, you need the same sort of decree for that purpose. Islamic law is devised by God, so only God may change or amend it.

Linguistically speaking, the term Shi’a means followers or supporters. In a historical context, it means the supporters of Ali ibn Abu Talib, the Prophet's cousin, who became the fourth ruler of the Muslim state. When he took over, there was a split between him and other groups of Muslims over the question of dealing with those who mounted the rebellion against his predecessor, Uthman ibn Affan. At this time, there was no such sect as Shi’a. However, after he was assassinated, his supporters wanted his son, Al Hassan, to take over. They maintained that succession should remain among his descendants. The Shi’as continued to oppose the Ummayyid and Abbasid governments for a very long time. This lead to the provision of a religious backing to the political opposition. Hence, the rise of the Shiite school of thought which institutionalizes the role of the imam. Thus, we have the Jaafari or the Imami school of thought which lists 12 imams whom the Shi’a venerate. The Zaidi school of thought, which is largely concentrated in Yemen, lists only 7 imams. The question of the role of the imam is the basic issue of difference between Shi’as and Sunnis.

The Term "Sunni" on the other hand, means from linguistic point of view a follower of a method. In an Islamic sense, the term Sunnah means the method shown by the Prophet. Within our context, it refers to the majority of Muslims who gave allegiance to the Muslim state, starting with Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali and going through the Umayyids, the Abbasids, etc. They do not recognize the Shiite claim that Ali had a stronger claim to succeed the Prophet as the ruler of the Muslim state. They maintain that anyone has an equal claim provided that he meets the qualifications required for the post.

In our day and age, it is more important to stress points of agreement rather than points of disagreement, because what unites Muslims is much greater than what disunites them. With the enemies of Islam trying hard to sow the seeds of discord among us, we should try our best to render their attempts futile.