The Sunni View of The Succession
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Sunni Muslims relate various hadith, or oral traditions, in which Muhammad is said to have recommended shura, elections or consultation, as the best method for making community decisions. In this view of the succession, he did not nominate a successor because he expected that the community themselves would choose the new leader — as was the custom in Arabia at the time. Some Sunnis argue that Muhammad had indicated his reliance upon Abu Bakr as second in command in many ways; he had called upon Abu Bakr to lead prayers and to make rulings in his (Muhammad's) absence. There are some hadiths asserting that Muhammad said that some would be desirous of power but he knew that God (and the Muslims) would make Abu Bakr the next leader (see Hadith of the succession of Abu Bakr). Sunnis point to the fact that the majority of the people accepted Abu-Bakr as their leader as proof that his selection was wise and just.
A narration by Mousa Ibn 'Aoqbah in the book Siyar a`lam al-nubala (Arabic: سير أعلام النبلاء) by Al-Dhahabi:
...Then Ali and Al-Zobair said: we see that Abu Bakr is more worthier to be the rightful successor of the prophet than anyone else...Shi'ites maintain that any narrations stating Ali agreed to Abu Bakr's selection are fabricated.
Read more about this topic: Succession To Muhammad
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