The sunni activities based the poli̇ti̇cs during the reign of Great Seljuks and Ayyubids

The 5th Hijri century coincides with an era where politicies were founded on sectarian basis. The Sunni politics of the Great Seljuks, who were active in this era, and Ayyubids, who entered the stage of history a century later, were quite similar in several respects. Great Seljuks fought against Shiite sects, primarily with Ismaili Fatimid state that was a threat for the Abbasid caliphate. The struggle that the Seljuks had initiated reached its summit when Ayyubids overthrown the Fatimid caliphate. On the other hand, they supported Ashʿarism with the madrasahs they founded, established this approach at the center of Sunnism. In this troubled process, the Ashʿaris mostly struggled with the Hanbalis. Although there were certain conflicts between Ashʿaris and their opponents in both periods, these conflicts increased during the Seljuk and resulted in bloody wars. The Seljuks and Ayyubids have pursued a similar policy in the struggle against Shiism and in support of Ash'arism, however there are certain differences between them. During the Ayyubid dynasty, Ash'arism was a sect not only supported by the Shafi'ites, but also by Malikis, Hanafis and a certain part of Hanbalis. On the other hand, Ayyubids atempted to bring Sunni sects together; established institutes where all Islamic sects could perform relevant scientific activities, and allowed different sects to instruct under the same roof. The results of the anti-philosophical establishment and strengthening of Sufism in the Sunni world during the Seljuk period became prevalent during the Ayyubid period. Due to the Neo-Platonist philosophy on which esoteric ideology of Fatimids was rooted, a serious anti-philosophical movement developed during the Ayyubid period, which also had profound effects on the course of Ash'arism . On the other hand, during the Ayyubid period, Sufism became fully accessible by the public. Furthermore, it was controlled by the state, which facilitated its impact on common people and enforced the struggle against Shiism.