Zindīq

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Zindīq (Arabic: زنديق) refers to those, who Muslims believe, have strayed so far from mainstream Islamic beliefs to have left Islam altogether. The term is sometimes used by Muslims to refer to members of the Druze and Bahá'í Faith — religions which originated in a Muslim society but are considered independent faiths. Some Muslims consider members of the Ahmadiyyah movement to fit this description as well, although the Ahmadiyyah faithful still consider themselves to be Muslims and follow most of the teachings of Orthodox Islam.

The etymology of the word is still disputed. One account states that it is from the Persian zed-din meaning "against religion". Another account has it being derived from zand, "explanation", a reference to the explanation of the texts of Zoroastrianism, a religion significantly predating Islam, and in fact Judaism as well, but still prominent in the Persian Empires in the 7th century.