Religion

Most Somalis are Sunni Muslims. Islam is the principal faith and is vitally important to the Somali sense of national identity, although traces of pre-Islamic traditional religions exist in Somali folk spirituality.

Among Somalis, there is a strong tradition of tariqa, religious orders associated with Sufism, a mystical current in Islam. Tariqas are social and religious brotherhoods that serve as centers of learning and religious leadership. Leaders of tariqas are said to have baraka, a state of blessedness, suggesting a spiritual power that may be invoked at the tomb of a leader.

In recent years, Islamic fundamentalism has gained support, with Somalis seeking comfort in a faith that offers an explanation for their national disaster. According to traditional Islamic belief, social turmoil is God's punishment for straying from the correct path; the way to regain God's favor is to repent collectively and redirect society to Islamic precepts. Thus, fundamentalism has served as a rallying point for Somalis exhausted from the factionalism and anarchy that has destroyed their country; it attracts Somalis who are intellectually adrift and seek the reassurance of a rigid code of conduct.

The fundamentalists view tariqas as superstitious and oppose their reverence for saints. They oppose secular government and advocate the introduction of sharia law and strict Islamic dress for women. Traditional religious men, clan leaders, and elders, however, still have a larger following than the fundamentalists, although the influence of the latter is on the rise.

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