Ghulat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ghulat (Arabic: غلاة) Exaggerators is the adjectival form of Ghuluww (Arabic: غلو) Exaggeration, a technical term mainstream Muslims use to describe the beliefs of minority Muslim groups who ascribe divine characteristics to a member of Muhammad's family, generally Ali) or the early companions of the Prophet such as Salman al-Farisi. The assumption is that the groups thus described have gone too far and have come to associate them with God (shirk).
Scholars have come to use these terms as well, perhaps for lack of alternatives. The terms are no reflection upon the political tendencies of such groups, which are typically liberal by Middle Eastern standards.
[edit] Groups commonly alleged to be ghulāt
- Alawites (an-Nusayriyyah)
- Alevis (sometimes called Kizilbash or Ahl-i Hakk)
- Druzes
- Qizilbash (a historical group)

