Transcript Quran Sunna (of Prophet and imams)

Shiite Islam –
The Partisans of the
Ahl al-Bayt
Important Family of the
Prophet
Prophet
Hanafi woman
‘Ali
Muhammad b. alHanafiyya
Fatema
Hasan
(2)
Husayn (3)
‘Ali Zayn al-’Abidin (4)
Zayd b. ‘Ali
Muhammad al-Baqir (5)
Ja’far al-Sadiq (6)
Zaydi /
Fivers
back
Isma’il ?
Musa al-Kazim (7)
‘Ali al-Rida (8)
Isma’ili /
Sevener
Shiites
Muhammad al-Taqi (9)
‘Ali al-Naqi (10)
Hasan ‘Askari (11)
Muhammad al-Mahdi (12)
Early ‘Shiism’ – Moderates
vs. Extremists
Moderates…
From 632 – about 765 ‘Shiite’ means…
• Belief that ‘Ali was the best and most
knowledgeable of the Companions
• Or… that he have been the first caliph (but
not necessarily that the first three were
illegitimate).
• That in general the family of the Prophet had
a prominent role in leadership of the umma
 revolt!
• Political Conscience: Kerbela Passion in 680
Early Extremists
Mukhtar b. Abi ‘Ubayd and the Kaysaniyya
• During the first civil war Mukhtar leads of
group of Kufans, mostly non-Arab mawali,
to support Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya (‘Ali’s
son by a second wife, not Fatema), whom
they believed was the mahdi (messianic
figure)
• Rebellion starts in 685 CE, and it is crushed
(and Mukhtar killed) in 687 by Ibn al-Zubayr
• When Muhammad b. al-Hanafiyya died in
701, the remaining Kaysaniyya believed that
he had merely gone into occultation and
would return as the Mahdi
Legacy of the Extremists
• Notion of living figure from the
family of the Prophet as Mahdi
• Notion that an imam disappears, not
dead but also not with us fully in this
world, to reappear at some
undetermined time as the Mahdi
 Reoccurring themes in Shiite and
even Sunni Islam
Political Failure –
Doctrinal Formation
Rebellion of Zayd b. ‘Ali 740 CE vs.
Umayyads… fails (‘ata’ and campaigns)
Shiite Hopes for the ‘Abbasid Revolution
750 CE … crushed.
• Muhammad the Pure Soul rebels in 762
• Fakhkh Massacre in 786

Most of the Kaysaniyya and Rebellious
Alids join as followers of the 6th Imam
Ja’far al-Sadiq (d. 765) in Medina
The Formation of Doctrinal
Twelver or Imami Shiism
874 or 878, 11th Imam dies with no known
heir… almost…
Prominent Shiites close to the family say
he had a son who was hidden away by the
‘Abbasids in Samarra… But, fed up with
the world, he went into a cave and
disappeared, to return as the Mahdi and
fill the world with justice as it was full of
injustice
Until 941, a series of 4 ‘Ambassadors’
communicate with the 12th imam.
Twelver/Imami Shiism
By 950 CE Imami Shiite doctrine had
formed:
Pending the imam’s return, the Shiite ulama
are responsible for guiding the religious
lives of his followers: collect tithes etc.
– The sources for law and doctrine are:
1. The Quran: as interpreted by the imams
2. The Sunna of the Prophet (as understood
by Shiites
3. The Sunna of the Imams = infallible
4. In the absence of evidence from these
sources, ulama can use analogical
reasoning
–
Usuli vs. Akhbari Schools of 12er Shiism
Interpretation
Sunna of Prophet and Imams
Principles
applied in
reasoning
Texts to be
followed
literally
Quran
Usuli School:
Akhbari School:
1. Quran
1. Quran
2. WellEstablished
Sunna (Prophet
and imams)
2. Sunna (of Prophet
and imams) – total
reliance on the
Shiite hadith
collections
3. Analogical
Reasoning
Shiite Rituals
• Ashura: first ten days of Muharram… the
period of the massacre at Karbala
• Taziya: majlis, flagellation, passion plays
(10:00 and 50:00)
Ismaili/Sevener Shiism
Originally those who believed that the 6th
imam’s son, Ismail, his chosen successor
who died before his father, was in
occultation and would return as the Mahdi.
They set up armed camps for their followers
in Syria, Southern Iraq and Algeria. All
swore allegiance to the awaited imam.
Prophets only gave the external part of the
religion - each one had an ‘Inheritor’ who
told the inner meaning of the faith (Jesus’
was Peter). Then each was followed by 7
imams. Ismail went into occultation and will
return to remove the Shariah so that
mankind can follow the original religion of
Adam: pure worship of the Creator.
Major Development – Rise of
the Fatimids
In 899 CE the head of the movement in Syria
declared he was the Mahdi… he was only
accepted by the Algerian Ismailis  he flees
there and in 909 they declare a
caliphal/mahdi state. In 969 they take Egypt
and found the city of Cairo.
But the apocalyptic endtime state (with no
Shariah!) is “postponed indefinitely”
His family rules Egypt, Syria the Hejaz until
1171 as the Fatimid Caliphate… “The State
of Truth (Dawlat al-Haqq)”
The Nizarli Ismaili
‘Assassins’
In 1094 there is dispute over who
should be the next imam/caliph…
The Fatimids choose one, but the
Ismailis in Syria and Iran believe
another one should rule.
These Ismailis take control of
mountain castles in Syria and Iran
and battle their Sunni enemies by
assassinating rulers (and also
Crusaders!)
Modern Ismailis
Dawud Bhoras: generally Indian, followers of Fatimid imams
who moved to Yemen, practice close to 12er Shiism
Agha Khanid/Khojas:
• Persian Shah recognizes an imam from the city of
Kirman, he flees to Bombay in 1845 after an attempted
rebellion.
• The Indian Khojas were formed when the Hindu trader
caste of Lohanas converted en masse to Ismailism.
• Almost no link to the medieval tradition and doctrine of
Ismailism. They rely on Indian legends, Tantric ideas,
such as the idea that the imam is the reincarnation of
Vishnu.
• Prayers have little connection with ‘Muslim’ prayer.
• The High Court of Bombay’s British judge recognized the
Agha Khan’s claim to dispose of his community’s assets
in 1866.
• There are about 20 million Khojas.