1.
Islam
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Islam is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion which professes that there is only one and incomparable God and that Muhammad is the last messenger of God. It is the worlds second-largest religion and the major religion in the world, with over 1.7 billion followers or 23% of the global population. Islam teaches that God is merciful, all-powerful, and unique, and He has guided mankind through revealed scriptures, natural signs, and a line of prophets sealed by Muhammad. The primary scriptures of Islam are the Quran, viewed by Muslims as the word of God. Muslims believe that Islam is the original, complete and universal version of a faith that was revealed many times before through prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses. As for the Quran, Muslims consider it to be the unaltered, certain religious rites and customs are observed by the Muslims in their family and social life, while social responsibilities to parents, relatives, and neighbors have also been defined. Besides, the Quran and the sunnah of Muhammad prescribe a comprehensive body of moral guidelines for Muslims to be followed in their personal, social, political, Islam began in the early 7th century. Originating in Mecca, it spread in the Arabian Peninsula. The expansion of the Muslim world involved various caliphates and empires, traders, most Muslims are of one of two denominations, Sunni or Shia. Islam is the dominant religion in the Middle East, North Africa, sizable Muslim communities are also found in Horn of Africa, Europe, China, Russia, Mainland Southeast Asia, Philippines, Northern Borneo, Caucasus and the Americas. Converts and immigrant communities are found in almost every part of the world, Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m which forms a large class of words mostly relating to concepts of wholeness, submission, safeness and peace. In a religious context it means voluntary submission to God, Islām is the verbal noun of Form IV of the root, and means submission or surrender. Muslim, the word for an adherent of Islam, is the active participle of the verb form. The word sometimes has connotations in its various occurrences in the Quran. In some verses, there is stress on the quality of Islam as a state, Whomsoever God desires to guide. Other verses connect Islām and dīn, Today, I have perfected your religion for you, I have completed My blessing upon you, still others describe Islam as an action of returning to God—more than just a verbal affirmation of faith. In the Hadith of Gabriel, islām is presented as one part of a triad that also includes imān, Islam was historically called Muhammadanism in Anglophone societies. This term has fallen out of use and is said to be offensive because it suggests that a human being rather than God is central to Muslims religion
2.
Islamic calendar
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The Islamic, Muslim, or Hijri calendar is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 months in a year of 354 or 355 days. It is used to date events in many Muslim countries and it is also used by Muslims to determine the proper days of Islamic holidays and rituals, such as the annual period of fasting and the proper time for the pilgrimage to Mecca. The Islamic calendar employs the Hijri era whose epoch was retrospectively established as the Islamic New Year of AD622, during that year, Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Yathrib and established the first Muslim community, an event commemorated as the Hijra. In the West, dates in this era are usually denoted AH in parallel with the Christian, in Muslim countries, it is also sometimes denoted as H from its Arabic form. In English, years prior to the Hijra are reckoned as BH, the current Islamic year is 1438 AH. In the Gregorian calendar,1438 AH runs from approximately 3 October 2016 to 21 September 2017, four of the twelve Hijri months are considered sacred, Rajab, and the three consecutive months of Dhū al-Qa‘dah, Dhu al-Ḥijjah and Muḥarram. As the lunar calendar lags behind the solar calendar by about ten days every gregorian year, the cycle repeats every 33 lunar years. Each month of the Islamic calendar commences on the birth of the new lunar cycle, traditionally this is based on actual observation of the crescent marking the end of the previous lunar cycle and hence the previous month, thereby beginning the new month. Consequently, each month can have 29 or 30 days depending on the visibility of the moon, astronomical positioning of the earth and weather conditions. However, certain sects and groups, most notably Dawoodi Bohra Muslims and Shia Ismaili Muslims, use a tabular Islamic calendar in which odd-numbered months have thirty days, in Arabic, the first day of the week corresponds with Sunday of the planetary week. The Islamic weekdays, like those in the Hebrew and Baháí calendars, the Christian liturgical day, kept in monasteries, begins with vespers, which is evening, in line with the other Abrahamic traditions. Christian and planetary weekdays begin at the following midnight, Muslims gather for worship at a mosque at noon on gathering day which corresponds with Friday. Thus gathering day is regarded as the weekly day of rest. A few others have adopted the Saturday-Sunday weekend while making Friday a working day with a midday break to allow time off for worship. Inscriptions of the ancient South Arabian calendars reveal the use of a number of local calendars, at least some of these calendars followed the lunisolar system. For Central Arabia, especially Mecca, there is a lack of epigraphical evidence, both al-Biruni and al-Masudi suggest that the Ancient Arabs used the same month names as the Muslims, though they also record other month names used by the pre-Islamic Arabs. Nevertheless, the Islamic position equating Nisan with Dhū al-Ḥijja has prevailed, for a comparison between the Islamic and pre-Islamic months, see Islamic and Jahili months. The Islamic tradition is unanimous in stating that Arabs of Tihamah, Hejaz, the forbidden months were four months during which fighting is forbidden, listed as Rajab and the three months around the pilgrimage season, Dhu al-Qa‘dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram
3.
Medina
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Medina, also transliterated as Madīnah, is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia that is also the capital of the Al Madinah Region. The city contains al-Masjid an-Nabawi, which is the place of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It served as the base of Islam in its first century where the early Muslim community developed. Medina is home to the three oldest mosques, namely the Quba Mosque, al-Masjid an-Nabawi, and Masjid al-Qiblatayn, Muslims believe that the chronologically final surahs of the Quran were revealed to Muhammad in Medina, and are called Medinan surahs in contrast to the earlier Meccan surahs. Similar to Mecca, non-Muslims are forbidden from entering the core of Medina or the city centre by the national government. The Arabic word al-Madīnah simply means the city, before the advent of Islam, the city was known as Yathrib. The word Yathrib has been recorded in Surat al-Ahzab of the Quran, an alternative name is al-Madīnah an-Nabawīyah or al-Madīna-tu an-Nabī. As of 2010, the city of Medina has a population of 1,183,205, in addition to its Arab inhabitants, during the pre-Islamic era Yathrib was inhabited by Jewish tribes. Later the citys name was changed to al-Madīna-tu n-Nabī or al-Madīnatu l-Munawwarah, Medina is celebrated for containing al-Masjid an-Nabawi and also as the city which gave refuge to him and his followers, and so ranks as the second holiest city of Islam, after Mecca. Muhammad was buried in Medina, under the Green Dome, as were the first two Rashidun caliphs, Abu Bakr and Umar, who were buried next to him in what used to be Muhammads house. Medina is 210 miles north of Mecca and about 120 miles from the Red Sea coast and it is situated in the most fertile part of all the Hejaz territory, the streams of the vicinity tending to converge in this locality. An immense plain extends to the south, in every direction the view is bounded by hills and mountains. The historic city formed an oval, surrounded by a wall,30 to 40 feet high, dating from the 12th century CE. Of its four gates, the Bab-al-Salam, or Egyptian gate, was remarkable for its beauty, beyond the walls of the city, west and south were suburbs consisting of low houses, yards, gardens and plantations. These suburbs also had walls and gates, almost all of the historic city has been demolished in the Saudi era. The rebuilt city is centred on the vastly expanded al-Masjid an-Nabawi, the graves of Fatimah and Hasan, across from the mosque at Jannat al-Baqi, and Abu Bakr, and of Umar, the second caliph, are also here. The mosque dates back to the time of Muhammad, but has been twice reconstructed, because of the Saudi governments religious policy and concern that historic sites could become the focus for idolatry, much of Medinas Islamic physical heritage has been altered. Medinas importance as a religious site derives from the presence of al-Masjid an-Nabawi, the mosque was expanded by the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid I
4.
Salamiyah
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Salamiyah is a city and district in western Syria, in the Hama Governorate. It is located 33 km southeast of Hama,45 km northeast of Homs, the city is an important center of the Shiite Nizari Ismaili and Taiyabi Ismaili Muslim sects and also the birthplace of poet Muhammad al-Maghut. The population of the city is 66,724, Salamiyah is an ancient city which was first known during Babylonian times in 3500 BC. It was the dwelled in by Sumerians at around 3000 BC, the Amorites around 2400 BC, the Aramaeans around 1500 BC, the city was destroyed for the first time by the Assyrians in the year 720 BC. According to Ismaili Muslims, their Imam, Ismail ibn Jafar died and was buried in the city after going into hiding during the eighth century. It was from Salamiyah, that the Ismaili Imams secretly guided the activities of their followers from North Africa to Persia, Azerbaijan, thereafter, a schism split the movement, provoked by Abdullahs claims on the imamate for himself and his descendants. Hamdan Qarmat and Abdan, who may have previously drifted slightly away from the doctrine propagated by the leadership, in 903, Salamiyah was destroyed for the third time by an invasion from the rebel Qarmatians under Yahya ibn Zikrawayh. The final major Ismaili immigration to Salamiyah occurred in 1919, Salamiyah is currently the largest population center of Ismaili Muslims in the Arab world. The remains of Prince Aly Khan, the father of the current Nizari Ismaili Imam Aga Khan IV, are buried in the city, the headquarters of the Ismaili Shia Higher Council of Syria are in the city, as are dozens of Jamaat Khana. Currently, a more than half of the citys residents are Ismaili. In 1934, Muhammad al-Maghut, the credit for being the father of free verse Arab poetry, was born in Salamiyah. In 1991, visitors from the Dawoodi Bohra sect of Ismaili Shia Islam in Yemen built the Mosque of Imam Ismail adjacent to the grave of the Ismaili Imam Ismail. The mosque was built by order of their leader the Dai al-Mutlaq Mohammed Burhanuddin according to an inscription on the mosques wall, although currently used for worship by Sunni Muslims, the mosque and mausoleum are visited in religious pilgrimages by Dawoodi Bohra worldwide. The towns citizens have participated in protests during the Syrian Civil War. The government has avoided using direct violence against the protesters. Since 2013, the town has been bombed by Jabhat al-Nusra. They told him there was a Hashimite merchant from Basra who was desirous of settling in the town. He readily accepted and pointed out to them a site along the street in the market
5.
Syria
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Syrias capital and largest city is Damascus. Religious groups include Sunnis, Christians, Alawites, Druze, Mandeans, Shiites, Salafis, Sunni Arabs make up the largest religious group in Syria. Its capital Damascus and largest city Aleppo are among the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, in the Islamic era, Damascus was the seat of the Umayyad Caliphate and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Sultanate in Egypt. The post-independence period was tumultuous, and a number of military coups. In 1958, Syria entered a union with Egypt called the United Arab Republic. Syria was under Emergency Law from 1963 to 2011, effectively suspending most constitutional protections for citizens, Bashar al-Assad has been president since 2000 and was preceded by his father Hafez al-Assad, who was in office from 1970 to 2000. Mainstream modern academic opinion strongly favours the argument that the Greek word is related to the cognate Ἀσσυρία, Assyria, in the past, others believed that it was derived from Siryon, the name that the Sidonians gave to Mount Hermon. However, the discovery of the inscription in 2000 seems to support the theory that the term Syria derives from Assyria. The area designated by the word has changed over time, since approximately 10,000 BC, Syria was one of centers of Neolithic culture where agriculture and cattle breeding appeared for the first time in the world. The following Neolithic period is represented by houses of Mureybet culture. At the time of the pre-pottery Neolithic, people used vessels made of stone, gyps, finds of obsidian tools from Anatolia are evidences of early trade relations. Cities of Hamoukar and Emar played an important role during the late Neolithic, archaeologists have demonstrated that civilization in Syria was one of the most ancient on earth, perhaps preceded by only those of Mesopotamia. The earliest recorded indigenous civilisation in the region was the Kingdom of Ebla near present-day Idlib, gifts from Pharaohs, found during excavations, confirm Eblas contact with Egypt. One of the earliest written texts from Syria is an agreement between Vizier Ibrium of Ebla and an ambiguous kingdom called Abarsal c.2300 BC. The Northwest Semitic language of the Amorites is the earliest attested of the Canaanite languages, Mari reemerged during this period, and saw renewed prosperity until conquered by Hammurabi of Babylon. Ugarit also arose during this time, circa 1800 BC, close to modern Latakia, Ugaritic was a Semitic language loosely related to the Canaanite languages, and developed the Ugaritic alphabet. The Ugarites kingdom survived until its destruction at the hands of the marauding Indo-European Sea Peoples in the 12th century BC, Yamhad was described in the tablets of Mari as the mightiest state in the near east and as having more vassals than Hammurabi of Babylon. Yamhad imposed its authority over Alalakh, Qatna, the Hurrians states, the army of Yamhad campaigned as far away as Dēr on the border of Elam
6.
Muhammad at-Taqi (Ahmed ibn Abadullah)
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Muhammad at-Taqi is the ninth Ismāʿīlī Imam. As the Imam, he was the spiritual leader of the Ismāʿīlī community from his appointment until his death. The Nizari and Mustaali trace their Imamate lines from him and his descendants who founded the Fatimid Empire and he was succeeded by his son, Ḥusayn ibn Aḥmad /Raḍī ʿAbd Allāh. The 8th to 10th Ismāʿīlī Imams were hidden from the public, because of threats from the Abbasid caliphate, and were known by their nicknames
7.
Muhammad ibn Isma'il
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Muhammad ibn Ismāʿīl was the son of Ismail ibn Jafar and an Ismāʿīlī Imam. The majority of Ismāʿīlī follow his descendants through his son Wafi Ahmad and his descedants further founded the Fatimid Empire, also called the Nizari and Mustaali. Muhammad was born on 12 th Rabi al-Awwal 128 AH/746 AD and his early childhood was spent under the protection of his grandfather Imam Jafar as-Sadiq in Medina. Throughout his time in Medina he wore a disguise to protect his identity, with only selected missionaries, the Abbasid caliph of the time, Harun al-Rashid, was investigating Muhammads whereabouts and had forces deployed throughout Medina in search for him. Due to Harun al-Rashids wife, Rabaida, and her loyalty to Muhammad ibn Ismāʿīl, Muhammad was able to evade enemy forces and he remained in Kufa for an extended period of time and completed his Imamate, which lasted 45 years. He died on 11 th Shawwal 193 AH/27 July 809 AD in the region of Farghana and his father Imam Ismāʿīl died during the lifetime of Imam Jafar as-Sadiq. He was succeeded by his son Abdullah ibn Mohammad, who became the 8th Ismāʿīlī Imam, the 8th, 9th and 10th Ismāʿīlī Imams are believed to have gone into seclusion because of the constant threat of death from the Abbasid dynasty. MUHAMMAD BIN ISMAIL Maymūn’āl-Qaddāh Encyclopaedia Iranica, ʿABDALLĀH B
8.
Imamah (Ismaili doctrine)
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The doctrine of the Imamate in Ismailism differs from that of the Twelvers because the Ismailis had living Imams for centuries after the last Twelver Imam went into concealment. They followed Ismail ibn Jafar, elder brother of Musa al-Kadhim, as the rightful Imam after his father, Jafar al-Sadiq. The Ismailis believe that whether Imam Ismail did or did not die before Imam Jafar, according to some early Ismailis, the Seveners, as well as the Qarmatians, a splinter group, the number of imams was fixed, with seven Imams preordained by God. These groups considers Muhammad ibn Ismail, the foundation Imam of the Ismaili branch of Shia Islam, to be the Mahdi and to be preserved in hiding, the Twelver Shia also believe their final Imam is the Mahdi and in the Occultation. According to the early Seveners and Qarmatians, God sent seven great prophets, known as nātiq speakers, in order to disseminate, all of these great prophets has an assistant, the Sāmad Imam. After six silent imams, a nātiq was sent to reinvigorate Islam, after Adam and his son Seth, and after six “Nātıq” – “Sāmad” silsila, the silsila of “Nātıqs and Sāmads have been completed with. Ahmad al-Wafi Muhammad at-Taqi Radi Abdullah
9.
Arabic
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Arabic is a Central Semitic language that was first spoken in Iron Age northwestern Arabia and is now the lingua franca of the Arab world. Arabic is also the language of 1.7 billion Muslims. It is one of six languages of the United Nations. The modern written language is derived from the language of the Quran and it is widely taught in schools and universities, and is used to varying degrees in workplaces, government, and the media. The two formal varieties are grouped together as Literary Arabic, which is the language of 26 states. Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the standards of Quranic Arabic. Much of the new vocabulary is used to denote concepts that have arisen in the post-Quranic era, Arabic has influenced many languages around the globe throughout its history. During the Middle Ages, Literary Arabic was a vehicle of culture in Europe, especially in science, mathematics. As a result, many European languages have borrowed many words from it. Many words of Arabic origin are found in ancient languages like Latin. Balkan languages, including Greek, have acquired a significant number of Arabic words through contact with Ottoman Turkish. Arabic has also borrowed words from languages including Greek and Persian in medieval times. Arabic is a Central Semitic language, closely related to the Northwest Semitic languages, the Ancient South Arabian languages, the Semitic languages changed a great deal between Proto-Semitic and the establishment of the Central Semitic languages, particularly in grammar. Innovations of the Central Semitic languages—all maintained in Arabic—include, The conversion of the suffix-conjugated stative formation into a past tense, the conversion of the prefix-conjugated preterite-tense formation into a present tense. The elimination of other prefix-conjugated mood/aspect forms in favor of new moods formed by endings attached to the prefix-conjugation forms, the development of an internal passive. These features are evidence of descent from a hypothetical ancestor. In the southwest, various Central Semitic languages both belonging to and outside of the Ancient South Arabian family were spoken and it is also believed that the ancestors of the Modern South Arabian languages were also spoken in southern Arabia at this time. To the north, in the oases of northern Hijaz, Dadanitic and Taymanitic held some prestige as inscriptional languages, in Najd and parts of western Arabia, a language known to scholars as Thamudic C is attested
10.
Fatimid Caliphate
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The Fatimid Caliphate was an Ismaili Shia Islamic caliphate that spanned a large area of North Africa, from the Red Sea in the east to the Atlantic Ocean in the west. The dynasty ruled across the Mediterranean coast of Africa and ultimately made Egypt the centre of the caliphate, at its height the caliphate included in addition to Egypt varying areas of the Maghreb, Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz. The Fatimids claimed descent from Fatima bint Muhammad, the daughter of Islamic prophet Muhammad, in 921 the Fatimids established the Tunisian city of Mahdia as their new capital. In 948 they shifted their capital to Al-Mansuriya, near Kairouan in Tunisia, in 969 they conquered Egypt and established Cairo as the capital of their caliphate, Egypt became the political, cultural, and religious centre of their empire. The ruling class belonged to the Ismaili branch of Shiism, as did the leaders of the dynasty, the existence of the caliphate marked the only time the descendants of Ali through Fatimah were united to any degree and the name Fatimid refers to Fatimah. The different term Fatimite is sometimes used to refer to the caliphates subjects, after the initial conquests, the caliphate often allowed a degree of religious tolerance towards non-Ismaili sects of Islam, as well as to Jews, Maltese Christians, and Egyptian Coptic Christians. The Fatimid caliphate was also distinguished by the role of Berbers in its initial establishment and in helping its development, especially on the military. During the late eleventh and twelfth centuries the Fatimid caliphate declined rapidly and he founded the Ayyubid dynasty and incorporated the Fatimid state into the Abbasid Caliphate. The Fatimid regime lasted until the twelfth century, though its leaders made little headway in persuading the Egyptian population. The Fatimid Caliphates religious ideology originated in an Ismaili Shia movement launched in the 9th century in Salamiyah, Syria by their eighth Imam and he claimed descent through Ismail, the seventh Ismaili Imam, from Fatimah and her husband ʻAlī ibn-Abī-Tālib, the first Shīʻa Imām. Thus his name was al-Fātimiyyūn Fatimid, the eighth to tenth Imams, remained hidden and worked for the movement against the periods times rulers. According to legend, Abdullah and his son were fulfilling a prophecy that the mahdi would come from Mesopotamia to Sijilmasa. They hid among the population of Sijilmasa, then an independent emirate, for four years under the countenance of the Midrar rulers, al-Mahdi was supported by dedicated Shiite Abu Abdullah al-Shii, and al-Shii started his preaching after he encountered a group of Muslim North African during his hajj. These men bragged about the country of the Kutama in western Ifriqiya, and the hostility of the Kutama towards, and their independence from. This triggered al-Shii to travel to the region, where he started to preach the Ismaili doctrine, the Berber peasants, who had been oppressed for decades by the corrupt Aghlabid rule, would prove themselves to be a perfect basis for sedition. Instantly, al-Shii began conquering cities in the region, first Mila, then Sétif, Kairouan, and eventually Raqqada, in 909 Al-Shii sent a large expedition force to rescue the Mahdi, conquering the Khariji state of Tahert on its way there. After gaining his freedom, Abdullah al-Mahdi Billah became the leader of the state and assumed the position of imam. The Fatimids existed during the Islamic Golden Age, the dynasty was founded in 909 by the eleventh Imam ʻAbdullāh al-Mahdī Billah
11.
Ja'far al-Sadiq
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Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Ṣādiq, commonly known as Jaʿfar al-Sadiq or simply al-Sadiq, is the sixth Shia Imam and major figure in the Hanafi and Maliki schools of Sunni jurisprudence. He was a descendant of Ali on the side of his father, Muhammad al-Baqir, Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr was raised by Ali, but was not his son. Ali used to say, Muhammad Ibn Abu Bakr is my son, Al-Sadiq is the last individual to be recognized by all Shia sects as an Imam, and is revered in traditional Sunnism as a transmitter of Hadith, prominent jurist, and mystic. Al-Sadiq was born in either 700 or 702 CE and he inherited the position of imam from his father in his mid-thirties. As imam, al-Sadiq stayed out of the conflicts that embroiled the region. He was the victim of harassment by the Abbasid caliphs. He was a significant figure in the formulation of Shia doctrine, the traditions recorded from al-Sadiq are said to be more numerous than all hadiths recorded from all other Shia imams combined. As the founder of Jafari jurisprudence, al-Sadiq also elaborated the doctrine of Nass, the first group became known as the Ismailis and the second, larger, group was named Jafari or the Twelvers. Jafar al-Sadiq was born in Medina either in 80/699–700 or 83/703–704, on his fathers side he was a great-great grandson of Ali, the first Shia imam. His mother, Farwah bint al-Qasim was a great-granddaughter of Abu Bakr, Al-Sadiq was the first of the Shia imams to be descended from both Abu Bakr the first ruler of the Rashidun Caliphate, and Ali, the first Shia imam. Also about Osman, He was convinced that he had weaseled out of Gods commandments, during the first fourteen years of his life he lived alongside his grandfather Zayn al-Abedin, and witnessed the latters withdrawal from politics. He also noted the respect that the famous jurists of Medina held toward Zayn al-Abedin in spite of his few followers, in his mothers house al-Sadiq also interacted with his grandfather Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr, who was respected by the people of Medina as a famous traditionalist. Al-Sadiq was thirty four or thirty seven when he inherited the position of Imamah or imamate from his father Muhammad al-Baqir and he held the imamate for 28 years, longer than any other Shia imam. His Imamate was a period in Islamic history for both political and doctrinal areas. Prior to al-Sadiq, the majority of Shias had preferred the revolutionary politics of Zaid to the mystical quietism of al-Sadiqs father and grandfather, Zaid had claimed that the position of an imam was conditional on his appearing publicly to claim his rights. This knowledge was passed down from the prophet Muhammad through the line of Alis immediate descendants, the doctrine of Nass or divinely inspired designation of each imam by the previous imam, therefore, was completed by al-Sadiq. In spite of being designated as the imam, al-Sadiq would hold, Al-Sadiq maintained his predecessors policy of quietism, and played no part in the numerous rebellions. He stayed out of the uprising of Zaydits who gathered around al-Sadiqs uncle, Zayd, who had the support Mutazilites, Al-Sadiq also did not support the rebellion led by his cousin, Muhammad al-Nafs al-Zakiyya who was inspired by Kaysanites
12.
Ghaybah
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Some Shiis, such as the Nizari Ismaili, do not believe in the idea of the Occultation. The groups that do believe in it differ on the succession of the Imamate, the Hidden Imam is still considered to be the Imam of the Time, to hold authority over the community, and to guide and protect individuals and the Shii community. In Twelver Shia Islam, the largest branch of the Shia faith, twelfth imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Occultation is split into the Minor Occultation and the Major Occultation. According to Shia, there are reasons for the Occultation, Imam being afraid of his being killed, not to be under the oath of tyrant rulers, the Minor Occultation refers to the period when the Twelver Shia believe the Imam still maintained contact with his followers via deputies. During this period, from 874-941, the deputies represented him, Shia believe that in 873, after the death of his father al-Askari, the eleventh Imam, the 12th Imam was hidden from the authorities of the Abbasid caliphate as a precaution. His whereabouts were disclosed only to a select few, four close associates of his father became mediators known as Saf’ir, or between the Imam and his followers, until the year 941. This period is considered by Twelvers to be the first, or Minor Occultation, when believers faced difficulty, they would write their concerns and send them to his deputy. The deputy would receive the decision of the Imam, endorse it with his seal and signature, the deputies also collected zakat and khums on his behalf. For the Shia, the idea of consulting a hidden Imam was not something new, according to Twelvers, under the critical situation caused by Abbasides, Jaafar al-Sadiq was the first to base the underground system of communication in the Shia community. By the time of al-Javad, the agents took the tactic of al-Taqiyya to take part in government, from the time of al-Reza, the Imams were under the direct control of the authorities and the direct contact between the Imam and the community was disconnected. The situation led to the increase in the role of deputies, the deputies undertook the tasks of Imams to release them from the pressure of the Abbasids. The fourth deputy died six days later, and twelvers continue to await the reappearance of the Mahdi, in the same year, many notable Shia scholars such as Ali ibn Babwayh Qummi and Muhammad ibn Yaqub Kulayni, the learned compiler of al-Kafi also died. The Major Occultation denotes the second, longer portion of the Occultation, Shia believe, based on the last Saf’irs deathbed message, that the Twelfth Imam had decided not to appoint another deputy. Thus, al-Samarris death marked the beginning of the second or Major Occultation, according to the last letter of Muhammad al-Mahdi to Ali ibn Muhammad al-Samarri, from the day of your death the period of my major occultation will begin. Henceforth, no one will see me, unless and until Allah makes me appear and my reappearance will take place after a very long time when people will have grown tired of waiting and those who are weak in their faith will say, What. Rest assured, no one has a relationship with God. Whoever denies me is not from my, the appearance of the Relief depends solely upon God. Therefore, those who propose a certain time for it are liars, as to the benefit of my existence in occultation, it is like the benefit of the sun behind the clouds where the eyes do not see it
13.
Abbasid Caliphate
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The Abbasid Caliphate was the third of the Islamic caliphates to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The Abbasid dynasty descended from Muhammads youngest uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib and they ruled as caliphs, for most of their period from their capital in Baghdad in modern-day Iraq, after assuming authority over the Muslim empire from the Umayyads in 750 CE. The Abbasid caliphate first centered its government in Kufa, but in 762 the caliph Al-Mansur founded the city of Baghdad, the political power of the caliphs largely ended with the rise of the Buyids and the Seljuq Turks. Although Abbasid leadership over the vast Islamic empire was reduced to a ceremonial religious function. The capital city of Baghdad became a center of science, culture, philosophy and this period of cultural fruition ended in 1258 with the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan. The Abbasid line of rulers, and Muslim culture in general, though lacking in political power, the dynasty continued to claim authority in religious matters until after the Ottoman conquest of Egypt. The Abbasid caliphs were Arabs descended from Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib, one of the youngest uncles of Muhammad, the Abbasids claimed to be the true successors of Prophet Muhammad in replacing the Umayyad descendants of Banu Umayya by virtue of their closer bloodline to Muhammad. The Abbasids also distinguished themselves from the Umayyads by attacking their moral character, according to Ira Lapidus, The Abbasid revolt was supported largely by Arabs, mainly the aggrieved settlers of Marw with the addition of the Yemeni faction and their Mawali. The Abbasids also appealed to non-Arab Muslims, known as mawali, Muhammad ibn Ali, a great-grandson of Abbas, began to campaign for the return of power to the family of Prophet Muhammad, the Hashimites, in Persia during the reign of Umar II. During the reign of Marwan II, this culminated in the rebellion of Ibrahim the Imam. On 9 June 747, Abu Muslim successfully initiated a revolt against Umayyad rule. Close to 10,000 soldiers were under Abu Muslims command when the hostilities began in Merv. General Qahtaba followed the fleeing governor Nasr ibn Sayyar west defeating the Umayyads at the Battle of Nishapur, the Battle of Gorgan, after this loss, Marwan fled to Egypt, where he was subsequently assassinated. The remainder of his family, barring one male, were also eliminated, immediately after their victory, As-Saffah sent his forces to Central Asia, where his forces fought against Tang expansion during the Battle of Talas. Barmakids, who were instrumental in building Baghdad, introduced the worlds first recorded paper mill in Baghdad, As-Saffah focused on putting down numerous rebellions in Syria and Mesopotamia. The Byzantines conducted raids during these early distractions, the first change the Abbasids, under Al-Mansur, made was to move the empires capital from Damascus, in Syria, to Baghdad in Iraq. Baghdad was established on the Tigris River in 762, a new position, that of the vizier, was also established to delegate central authority, and even greater authority was delegated to local emirs. During Al-Mansurs time control of Al-Andalus was lost, and the Shiites revolted and were defeated a year later at the Battle of Bakhamra, the Abbasids had depended heavily on the support of Persians in their overthrow of the Umayyads
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Dawoodi Bohra
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The Dawoodi Bohras are a sect within the Ismāīlī branch of Shia Islam. Bohras mainly reside in the cities of India and also in Pakistan, Yemen. The main language of the community is Lisan ud-Dawat, a dialect of Gujarati with inclusions from Arabic, Urdu, a Bohra woman wears a two piece dress called a rida. The Dawoodi Bohra follow a sort of Shia Islam as propagated by the Fatimid Imamate in medieval Egypt. They pray 5 times a day joining both afternoon prayers Zuhr & Asr and both evening prayers Maghreb and Isha, fast in the month of Ramadan, perform Haj and Umrah, the Dawoodi Bohras, being Ismailis and thus Jafaris, were included as Muslims in the Amman Message. There are some criticisms of the Amman message, the word Bohra comes from the Gujarati word vehru, in reference to their traditional profession. The term Dawoodi comes from the given to Dawood Bin Qutubshah during a schism that the community faced in 1592 when there was a leadership dispute. The Dawoodi Bohra sect is a Shia sect also referred to as the Tayyabī Mustalī Ismāīlī sect, the Ismailis were split from the now mainstream Ithna Ashari Shias over the succession issue of Imam Jafar Al-Sadiq. The Ismailis took Ismail bin Jafar as their Imam whereas the Twelvers took Musa Kazim bin Jafar Al-Sadiq as their Imam, the Ismailis split into Druze and mainstream Ismailis due to a succession issue and further down the line they again split into Nizari and Mustaali branches. The Mustaali branch to which Dawoodi Bohra trace their legacy continues until the 21st Imam Al-Tayyab and his direct descendent is considered as the current Imam and remains in seclusion. While the Imam is in seclusion, the governance of the sect has been entrusted to the Dai al-Mutlaq, splinter groups of the Bohras have subsequently emerged over the succession dispute of the preceding Dai. The role of Dai was created by Queen Arwa bint Ahmed of Yemen and it should not be confused with other offices that exist in the Imamate such as Dai-ad-Duat and Dai al-Balagh. Zoeb bin Moosa is the first Dai-al-Mutlaq and they believe that Muhammad chose Ali as his successor and publicly declared this while he was returning from his first and last Haj in 632 CE. Dawoodi Bohras, in keeping with all Shia believe that after Muhammad, Ali had been the rightful wasi, Imam and caliph, Ali was the final Rashidun Caliph from 656-661 CE, the Imamate and caliphate were united in this period. After Hasan, Husain and his family and companions were killed at the Battle of Karbala, Dawoodi Bohras believe that Husains head was buried first, in the courtyard of Yazid, then transferred from Damascus to Ashkelon, and then to Cairo. The first through the fifth Ismāʿīlī Imams - until Jafar al-Sadiq - are commonly accepted by all the Shia, Bohras and Nizari Ismāʿīlīs treat Ali as Vasi and Imam Hasan as first Imam whereas Twelvers number Ali as the first. The followers of Jafars son, Ismail ibn Jafar, became Ismailis, Twelvers believe that Musa al-Kadhim was heir to Jafar instead, their Imams diverged at that point. During the period of Jafar, the Abbasid Caliphate replaced the Umayyads, due to strong suppression by the Abbasids, the seventh Ismāʿīlī Imam, Muhammad ibn Ismail, went into a period of Occultation
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Shia Islam
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Shia is a branch of Islam which holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor. Shia Islam primarily contrasts with Sunni Islam, whose adherents believe that Muhammad did not appoint a successor, instead they consider Abu Bakr to be the correct Caliph. Adherents of Shia Islam are called Shias of Ali, Shias or the Shia as a collective or Shii individually, Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam, in 2009, Shia Muslims constituted 10–13% of the worlds Muslim population. Twelver Shia is the largest branch of Shia Islam, in 2012 it was estimated that perhaps 85 percent of Shias were Twelvers. Shia Islam is based on the Quran and the message of Muhammad attested in hadith, Shia consider Ali to have been divinely appointed as the successor to Muhammad, and as the first Imam. The word Shia means follower and is the form of the historic phrase shīʻatu ʻAlī, meaning followers of Ali, faction of Ali. Shia and Shiism are forms used in English, while Shiite or Shiite, as well as Shia, the term for the first time was used at the time of Muhammad. At present, the word refers to the Muslims who believe that the leadership of the community after Muhammad belongs to Ali, nawbakhti states that the term Shia refers to a group of Muslims that at the time of Muhammad and after him regarded Ali as the Imam and Caliph. Al-Shahrastani expresses that the term Shia refers to those who believe that Ali is designated as the Heir, Imam and caliph by Muhammad, for the Shia, this conviction is implicit in the Quran and history of Islam. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing, Shia search for the true meaning of the revelation to get the purpose of the life blood and the human destiny. Shia Muslims believe that just as a prophet is appointed by God alone and they believe God chose Ali to be Muhammads successor, infallible, the first caliph of Islam. The Shias believe that Muhammad designated Ali as his successor by Gods command, Ali was Muhammads first cousin and closest living male relative as well as his son-in-law, having married Muhammads daughter Fatimah. Ali would eventually become the fourth Muslim caliph, after the Farewell Pilgrimage, Muhammad ordered the gathering of Muslims at the pond of Khumm and it was there that Shia Muslims believe Muhammad nominated Ali to be his successor. The hadith of the pond of Khumm was narrated on 18th of Dhu al-Hijjah of 10 AH in the Islamic calendar at a place called Ghadir Khumm, located near the city of al-Juhfah, Saudi Arabia. Muhammad there stated, Shia Muslims believe this to be Muhammads appointment of Ali as his successor, when Muhammad died in 632 CE, Ali and Muhammads closest relatives made the funeral arrangements. While they were preparing his body, Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali and his family accepted the appointment for the sake of unity in the early Muslim community. Alis rule over the early Muslim community was often contested, as a result, he had to struggle to maintain his power against the groups who betrayed him after giving allegiance to his succession, or those who wished to take his position. This dispute eventually led to the First Fitna, which was the first major civil war within the Islamic Caliphate, the Fitna began as a series of revolts fought against Ali ibn Abi Talib, caused by the assassination of his political predecessor, Uthman ibn Affan
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Isma'ilism
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Ismāʿīlism is a branch of Shia Islam. Ismailis believe in the oneness of God, as well as the closing of divine revelation with Muhammad, the Ismāʿīlī and the Twelvers both accept the same initial Imams from the descendants of Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah and therefore share much of their early history. Both groups see the family of Muhammad as divinely chosen, infallible, and guided by God to lead the Islamic community, Ismaili thought is heavily influenced by neoplatonism. There are also a significant number of Ismāʿīlīs in Central Asia, Ismailism shares its beginnings with other early Shi‘i sects that emerged during the succession crisis that spread throughout the early Muslim community. From the beginning, the Shia asserted the right of Ali, cousin of Muhammad and this also included his two sons, who were the grandsons of Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah. Soon after his ascendancy, Aisha, the third of the Prophets wives, claimed along with Usmans tribe, the Ummayads, ‘Ali voted against it as he believed that situation at that time demanded a peaceful resolution of the matter. Both parties could rightfully defend their claims, but due to escalated misunderstandings, following this battle, Muawiya, the Umayyad governor of Syria, also staged a revolt under the same pretences. ‘Ali led his forces against Muawiya until the side of Muawiya held copies of the Quran against their spears, ‘Ali accepted this, and an arbitration was done which ended in his favor. A group among Alis army believed that subjecting his legitimate authority to arbitration was tantamount to apostasy and this group was known as the Khawarij and ‘Ali wished to defeat their forces before they reached the cities where they would be able to blend in with the rest of the population. While he was unable to do this, he defeated their forces in subsequent battles. Regardless of these defeats, the Kharijites survived and became a problematic group in Islamic history. The Entrusted Imam is an Imam in the full sense except that the lineage of the Imamate must continue through the Permanent Imam. However, the caliphate was soon taken over by Muawiya. Even some of Ali’s early followers regarded him as “an absolute and divinely guided leader who could demand of them the kind of loyalty that would have been expected for the Prophet. ”For example, one of Ali’s supporters who also was devoted to the Prophet said to him, “our opinion is your opinion. The early followers of ‘Ali seem to have taken his guidance as “right guidance” deriving from Divine support, in other words, ‘Ali’s guidance was seen to be the expression of God’s will and the Qur’anic message. This spiritual and absolute authority of ‘Ali was known as walayah and it was inherited by his successors, the Imams. In the first century after the Prophet, the sunnah was not specifically defined as “Sunnah of the Prophet” but was used in connection to Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, Uthman. The idea of “Hadith” or traditions ascribed to the Prophet was not mainstream nor was Hadith criticism, even the earliest legal texts by Malik b
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Esoteric interpretation of the Quran
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Esoteric interpretation of the Quran, also known as Sufi interpretation and taʾwīl, is the allegorical interpretation of the Quran or the quest for its hidden, inner meanings. It was a synonym of conventional interpretation in its earliest use, esoteric interpretations do not usually contradict the conventional interpretations, instead, they discuss the inner levels of meaning of the Quran. The term batin refers to the inner or esoteric meaning of a sacred text, esoteric interpretations are found in Sufi, Shia, Sunni, and Bahai interpretations of the Quran. A hadith which states that the Quran has a meaning, and that this inner meaning conceals a yet deeper inner meaning. The exoteric aspect is the word, the law. Esoteric interpretations are more suggestive than declarative, they are rather than explanations. However the Quran says about doing this, As for those in whose hearts is deviation, they follow that of it which is unspecific, seeking discord. And no one knows its interpretation except Allah, but those firm in knowledge say, We believe in it. And no one will be reminded except those of understanding, only a few examples are given here. In 7,172 the Quran states, And when Your Lord summoned the descendants of Adam, thus you cannot say on the Day of Resurrection we were unaware of this. According to the above mentioned verse, before creation, God called the future humanity out of the loins of the not-yet-created Adam and addressed them with the words, and they answered, Yes, we witness it. In Islam, this primordial covenant is the foundation between God and humankind. Along the way, this esoteric being damages a boat belonging to poor people, moses is so disturbed that he couldnt stop protesting despite his agreement to keep silent. And in 56,79 the Quran describes itself, This is an honorable Quran, in a book hidden, in the exoteric sense, the Quran requires Muslims to perform ritual cleansing of their hands before touching it. Esoteric interpreters were of the opinion that it implies that individuals with spiritual purity are able to grasp the meaning of the Quran. Attar of Nishapur, the 12th-century mystical poet, gives an interpretation of the Quranic story of the descent of Adam. According to Attar, the man whose mind and vision are ensnared by heavens grace must forfeit that same grace, occasionally a verse may be interpreted in a sense very different from its conventional meaning. For example, Hamadani in his book Tamheedat interprets 104, 6–7 which conventionally refers to the punishment in hell, Hamadani interprets 14,48, which conventionally describes the day of judgment as a description of the moment of spiritual awakening or enlightenment
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Batin (Islam)
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Batin literally means inner, inward, hidden, etc. The Quran, for instance, has a meaning in contrast to its exterior or apparent meaning. Sufis believe that likewise, every individual has a batin which is the world of souls and this is the inward self of the individual which when cleansed with the light of ones spiritual guide, elevates a person spiritually. This notion is connected to Allahs attribute of Al-Batin i. e. the Hidden One who cannot be seen, muslim groups believe that the bāṭen can only be fully understood and interpreted by a figure with esoteric knowledge, who for Shia Muslims is the Imam of the Time. In a wider sense, bāṭen can refer to the meaning or reality behind all existence. Sufism Esotericism Esoteric interpretation of the Quran Batiniyya Alevism Bektashi Order, another group focusing just like Alevis on Batin and Zahir Ismailism Nizari Alawites Qarmatians Sufi Live
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Pir (Sufism)
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Pir or Peer orFakir /Shah is a title for a Sufi master or spiritual guide equally used in the nath tradition. They are also referred to as a Hazrat or Shaikh, which is Arabic for Old Man, the title is often translated into English as saint and could be interpreted as Elder. In Sufism a Pirs role is to guide and instruct his disciples on the Sufi path and this is often done by general lessons and individual guidance. Other words that refer to a Pir include, Murshid, Sheikh, in Alevism, Pirs are considered a direct descendant of Ali. The title Peer Baba or Shah Baba is common in Hindi used to give a salutation to Sufi masters or similarly honored persons, after their death people visit their tombs. The path of Sufism starts when a student takes an oath of allegiance with a teacher called Baiath or Bayah where he swears allegiance at the hands of his Pir, after that, the student is called a Murid. From here, his batin journey starts, a Pir usually has authorizations to be a teacher for one Tariqahs. A Tariqah may have more than one Pir at a time, a Pir is accorded that status by his Shaikh by way of Khilafat or Khilafah. Khilafat is the process in which a Shaikh identifies one of his disciples as his successor, a Pir can have more than one khalifah so called Fakir. Chapter on Sui Ideology in SUFISM by R. M. Chopra,2016, Anuradha Prakashan, New Delhi
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Ginans
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Ginans are devotional hymns or poems recited by Shia Ismaili Muslims. It was originally an oral rendition mostly by Pirs, first among whom to come to South Asia was Pir Satgurnoor in the 12th century, Ginans are composed in many languages of South Asia, especially Gujarati, Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi and many more. They are based on Verses from the Quran, like Ginans, Qaseedas are recited in Arabic, Persian or Tajik by Ismailis in Central Asia, Iran and Syria. Ismailis from the subcontinent recite these as well as Arabic and Persian qusidas which are recited before or after the prayer in the Jamatkhana, Ginan Central is a web portal developed at the University of Saskatchewan Library to safeguard ginans and promote research and education. Example Translation of a Ginan, Sahebaji tun more man bhave, Verses I-VIII My lord and my lord, My heart is fond of you. So readily, my lord, You give me Whatever I ask of you and you indulge me In so many ways, My lord. In all four ages, I went about, Looking hard, I found none To match you, my lord. My lord, my heart Is fond of you, come, come, My maiden friends, Let us go To view the groom. Hes the one, the beloved Ive attained and he comes to my home, The beloved, He but for whom A minute is hard to pass. How should we call him Unhappy - He whose lord Is one such as this, how should we find fault With the merciful. Whats written In our karma Is what we shall have, ram and Raheman Are but one Deity. Of this mystery, The fool is quite unaware, says Saiyad Mohamadshah, I am bonded to you, My lord. Leaving you, At what other door Am I to knock and my lord, My heart is fond of you. My lord, My heart is fond of you, retrieved from the Institute of Ismaili Studies Website, Originally Published in, Esmail, Aziz. A Scent of Sandalwood, Indo-Ismaili Religious Lyrics, khursheed Nurali Aziz Tejpar Alidina Jamal Shamshuddin Bandali Haji Dr
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'Aql
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‘Aql, is an Arabic language term used in Islamic philosophy or theology for the intellect or the rational faculty of the soul or mind. It is the translation of the Greek term nous. In jurisprudence, it is associated with using reason as a source for sharia law and has been translated as dialectical reasoning. While predominantly expounded by Shī‘ī and Sufi thinkers, some Sunni Muslims such as Barelvis share similar beliefs, in Shī‘ī jurisprudence, ‘aql is the process of using intellect or logic to deduce law. Legal scholars in both Sunni and Shī‘ī Islamic traditions share Quranic interpretation, the Sunnah, and Ijma‘ consensus as sources of Islamic law, however, Twelvers of the Ja‘farī school of law utilize ‘aql whereas Sunnis use qiyas analogical reasoning as the fourth source of law. Among Twelvers, Akhbārīs and Usulis were contending subschools, the former reject ijtihād outright, the possessor of ‘aql, or al-‘āqīl realises a deep connection with God. Jaʿfar aṣ-Ṣādiq described this connection as a realisation that God loves some, that God is truth and he further noted that where the Aimmah are the ḥujjatu ż-żāhira External proof, ‘aql is the ḥujjatu l-Bāṭina Secret proof. While in early Islam, ‘aql was opposed to jahl ignorance, under the influence of Mu‘tazilī thought, ‘aql came to mean dialectical reasoning. A Philosophical Discourse by Dr Syedi Yusuf Najmuddin
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Hujja
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A term used in Shii terminology, hujja means proof. It is usually used to refer to an individual in any given human era who represents Gods proof to humanity. The hujja is a prophet or an Imam who possess a relationship with God that is greater than anyone else, the Imam who is the hujja of his time functions as the ultimate mediator between God and humanity, giving the Imam the greatest precedence for interpretation of the Quran. As the mediator between God and humanity, the Imam is the one who can properly resolve conflicting interpretations of the Qurans words. The word Imam and hujja do not necessarily refer to the person because an Imam may not be hujja. The Imam that is hujja is hujja for several different logical proofs that are supported by Shii Quran interpretation, the first proof of an Imam who is hujja is presented by the Imams role as mediator between God and humanity. Therefore, it is only those who are members of the Prophets family line that possess the knowledge from God. The second proof an Imam is hujja is shown by the guidance the Imam provides for mankind for he is a channel of divine grace which comes to him inwardly from the suprasensible realm. The Imams divine guidance from God gives him the ability to lead and influence, the third proof an Imam is hujja is based on the Imams immunity from the pollution of human sin. The Imam is such a spiritual figure he is free from committing human error or misinterpreting the Quran. For a man who does commit sin is not fit to lead for he can spread sin and is denied the rank of Imam. Only those who are free from error can be considered divinely touched and therefore are hujja, the fourth proof that the Imam is hujja is deducted by reason. Gods grace keeps his creatures towards obedience and keeps away from disobedience. However, if God orders man to do something He knows man cannot do or will have difficulty doing, therefore, God gives humanity hujja to help lead man toward God and His spiritual greatness. The hujja sent here is filled with spiritual guidance and helps direct man towards God, which is also what the Imam does, the last justification of the hujja comes from the idea that without the hujja the world would not exist. The world cannot exist even for a moment without the imam who is the hujja of God, if the imam were to be taken away from the earth even for an hour, the earth would swallow up its inhabitants just as the sea swallows its people. The idea that the Imam, who is hujja, is always present helps support the fact that God is always present to mankind and it supports the fact that it is only through the Imam that God can be known
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Taqiya
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Taqiya is an Islamic term referring to precautionary dissimulation or denial of religious belief and practice in the face of persecution. Another term for this concept, kitmān, has a specific meaning of dissimulation by silence or omission. This practice is emphasized in Shia Islam whereby adherents are permitted to conceal their religion when under threat of persecution or compulsion, however, it is also permitted in Sunni Islam under certain circumstances. Taqiyya was initially practiced under duress by some of Muhammads Companions, later, it became particularly important for Shias due to their experience as a persecuted religious minority. According to Shia doctrine, taqiyya is permissible in situations where there is overwhelming danger of loss of life or property, Taqiyya has also been politically legitimised, particularly among Twelver Shias, in order to maintain unity among Muslims and fraternity among the Shia clerics. Yarden Mariuma writes, Taqiyya is an Islamic juridical term whose shifting meaning relates to when a Muslim is allowed, under Sharia law, to lie. A concept whose meaning has varied significantly among Islamic sects, scholars, countries, the term taqiyya is derived from the Arabic triliteral root wāw-qāf-yā, denoting fear, or prudence, guarding against. In the sense of prudence, fear it can be used synonymously with the terms tuqa, tuqāt, taqwā and ittiqāʾ and these terms also have other meanings. For example, the term taqwa can mean piety, an alternative term for religious dissimulation is kitmān action of covering, dissimulation. Regarding 3,28, Ibn Kathir writes, meaning, except those believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers, in this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly. He quotes Muhammads companion, Abu Ad-Darda, who said we smile in the face of people although our hearts curse them. A similar instance of the Quran permitting dissimulation under compulsion is found in Sura 16,106, Sunni and Shia commentators alike observe that verse 16,106 refers to the case of Ammar b. Yasir, who was forced to renounce his beliefs under physical duress, the doctrine of taqiyya was developed at the time of Jafar al-Sadiq, the sixth Imamiya Imam. It served to protect Shias when Al-Mansur, the Abbasid caliph, conducted a brutal and oppressive campaign against Alids, shiis lived mostly as a minority among a frequently-hostile Sunni majority until the rise of Safavid dynasty. This condition made taqiyya doctrine important to Shias, Taqiyya holds a central place in Twelver Shia Islam. This is sometimes explained by the minority position Shias had under the dominance of Sunni Muslims, requiring them to protect themselves through concealment. In Shia legal literature, there is a range of situations in which taqiyya may be used or even required, for Shia Muslims, taqiyya is to conceal their association with their faith when revealing it would result in danger. Taqiyya is done for reasons of safety, for example, a person may fear that he might be killed or harmed if he does not observe taqiyya
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Numerology (Ismailism)
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Numerology is an element of Ismailis belief, the idea that numbers have religious meanings. The Natiq and Wasi are in turn succeeded by a line of seven Imams, the seventh and last Imam in any period would then be the Natiq of the next period. This would be without cult or law but would consist in all creatures praising the creator and this final stage was called Qiyamah
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Reincarnation
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Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different physical body or form after each biological death. It is also called rebirth or transmigration, and is a part of the Saṃsāra doctrine of cyclic existence and it is a central tenet of all major Indian religions, namely Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. The idea of reincarnation is found in ancient cultures, and a belief in rebirth/metempsychosis was held by Greek historic figures, such as Pythagoras, Socrates. Unity Church and its founder Charles Fillmore teach reincarnation, in recent decades, many Europeans and North Americans have developed an interest in reincarnation, and many contemporary works mention it. The word reincarnation derives from Latin, literally meaning, entering the flesh again, the Greek equivalent metempsychosis derives from meta and empsykhoun, a term attributed to Pythagoras. An alternate term is transmigration implying migration from one life to another, the term has been used by modern philosophers such as Kurt Gödel and has entered the English language. Another Greek term sometimes used synonymously is palingenesis, being born again, Rebirth is a key concept found in major Indian religions, and discussed with various terms. These religions believe that this reincarnation is cyclic and an endless Saṃsāra and they consider the release from the cycle of reincarnations as the ultimate spiritual goal, and call the liberation by terms such as moksha, nirvana, mukti and kaivalya. Gilgul, Gilgul neshamot or Gilgulei Ha Neshamot refers to the concept of reincarnation in Kabbalistic Judaism, Gilgul means cycle and neshamot is souls. Kabbalistic reincarnation says that humans only to humans and to the same sex only. The origins of the notion of reincarnation are obscure, discussion of the subject appears in the philosophical traditions of India. The Greek Pre-Socratics discussed reincarnation, and the Celtic Druids are also reported to have taught a doctrine of reincarnation, the ideas associated with reincarnation may have arisen independently in different regions, or they might have spread as a result of cultural contact. In ancient European, Iranian and Indian agricultural cultures, the cycles of birth, death. The idea of reincarnation has early roots in the Vedic period, predating the Buddha, the concepts of the cycle of birth and death, samsara, and liberation partly derive from ascetic traditions that arose in India around the middle of the first millennium BCE. Though no direct evidence of this has found, the tribes of the Ganges valley or the Dravidian traditions of South India have been proposed as another early source of reincarnation beliefs. Hinduisms Rigveda makes references to reincarnation in the Brahmanas layer, though these early textual layers of the Vedas, from 2nd millennium BCE, mention and anticipate the doctrine of Karma and rebirth, the idea is not fully developed. It is in the early Upanishads, which are pre-Buddha and pre-Mahavira, the texts of ancient Jainism that have survived into the modern era are post-Mahavira, likely from the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE, and extensively mention rebirth and karma doctrines. The Jaina philosophy assumes that the soul exists and is eternal, passing through cycles of transmigration, after death, reincarnation into a new body is asserted to be instantaneous in early Jaina texts
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Holy Du'a
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Holy Duā is the mandatory Nizari Ismaili prayer recited three times a day, Fajr prayer at dawn, Maghrib prayer at sundown and Isha prayer in the evening. Each Holy Dua consists of 6 rakat, totaling 18 per day, as opposed to the 17 of Sunni and Twelver salat. Only Nizaris are permitted to enter the house, the Jamaat Khana, during the recitation the Holy Dua, however. Jamaat Khanas are usually built with a qibla facing Mecca although Ismāʿīlīs believe that to God belongs the East, the Dua contains two positions of prayer, quud sitting and sajada prostration, the latter done at the end of each rakah. In Khoja tradition, Ubhi Tasbih is recited during tahajjud, Tasbih are used at various points during the Dua. At the end of prayers one turns to ones neighbour and offers peace, the Holy Dua is recited in Arabic. Historically, approximately prior to the establishment of Pakistan, Nizaris from India, the Holy Dua starts with Surah al-Fatiha and then various verses from Surat an-Nisa, al-Maida, al-Fath and al-Anfal are recited and the last part of the rakah contains Surah al-Ikhlas. Towards the end of the Dua, a list of all the Imāms is read, beginning with Ali, Jamaat Khana Nizari Ismaili state Ismā‘īlī Constitution List of Ismaili imams Imamate History of Nizari Ismailism Khan IV, Aga. Holy Dua English text with translation, HH Prince Aga Khan Shia Imami Ismailia Association for Canada
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Seven pillars of Ismailism
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The Ismāīlī Shia – the Nizari, Druze and Mustaali – have more Pillars than those of the Sunni. The Shahadah, is not considered a Pillar and is seen as the foundation upon which they are built. Walayah Guardianship denotes love and devotion to God, the prophets, the scripture, the imams, in Ismāīlī doctrine, God is one and the true desire of every soul, creator of everything. The appointed duāt lead believers to the right path, the Druze refer to this pillar as Taslīm Submission, An informative article on the Seven Pillars and Walayah. An informative article on the relationship between Salah and Dua. These three times have been related with the three times that have mentioned in the Quran, sunrise, before sunset, and after sunset. In contrast, the Mustalī maintain five prayers and their style is closely related to that of the Twelvers. The Druze believe that the meaning of prayer is sidqu l-lisān speaking Truth and they do sometimes attend prayers, which is the practice of the uninitiated and historically was also done for reasons of taqiyya. The Ismāīlīs donate 10% to 12 and these institutions are run by the Aga Khan Development Network, which is one of the biggest welfare networks in the world. Thus, Ismāīlīs believe that as Muhammad was designated to take zakāt from the believers in the past, the Druze practice hifzu l-Ikhwān Protection of Ones Brothers instead of paying a fee, a culturally complex practice of interdependence. Sawm Fasting, Nizari and Mustalī believe in both a metaphorical and literal meaning of fasting, in particular, Ismāīlīs believe the real and esoteric meaning of fasting is avoiding devilish acts and doing the good deeds. Not eating during the month of Ramadan in conjunction with an implementation of fasting. The Druze emphasise the esoteric meaning, which they call tark ibādat al-awthān deserting idol-worship, hajj Pilgrimage, For Ismāīlīs, visiting the imām or his representative is one of the most aspired pilgrimages. There are two pilgrimages, Hajj-i-Zahiri and Hajj-i-Batini - the first is the visit to Mecca, the second, the Mustalī maintain also the practice of going to Mecca. The Druze interpret this completely metaphorically as fleeing from devils and oppressors, in addition, the Uqqāl Wise Ones, the religious cadre of the Druze, are pacifists. The ordering of the pillars as understood by Druze is as follows, Taslīm Submission denotes love and devotion to God, the prophets, the Imām and the du‘āt missionaries. In Ismā‘īlī doctrine, God is the desire of every soul, and he manifests himself in the forms of prophets and imāms. The Druze never mention ‘Alī, unlike most Ismā‘īlīs, as they believe al-Hakīm supersedes his authority, sidqu l-Lisān speaking Truth, The Druze believe that the meaning of prayer is sidqu l-lisān and do not believe in five daily prayers
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Walayah
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Welayah or Welaya, is a word which empower gives authority/guardianship to a person, community, or country that is under the direction and rule on behalf of another. Wali is someone who has Walayah over somebody else, for example, in fiqh, a father is wali of his children. Two verbal noun are derived from the Arabic root of the word w-l-y ولي, Walayah and Wilayah which means to be near to something, to be a friend of someone, the term welayah also has similarity with AWLIA. The term Wali derives from Quran. It occurs also in a number of aḥādīṯ qodsīya or Hadith Qudsi, such as “whoever harms a friend of Mine, I declare war against him and others. There are several kinds of Walayah, Wila of love or nearness which implies that the household of the prophet are his near relatives, Awliya Allah means the friends of Allah or the beloved of Allah. Wila of socio-political leadership Spiritual Wila which concerns changing the potentials to the action and making the people to get to the divine nearness, the Wali has a kind of creative power over the world and the men. Corbin states that Walayah is the foundation of the prophecy and the mission of the messenger, and it concerns to the esoteric dimension of the prophetic reality. Abu al-Hasan Sharif Isfahani, a student of Muhammad Baqir Majlisi, by many hadith argues that the walayah is the inner, mulla Sadra states that the genealogical descendents of Muhammad and his spiritual heirs are Awliya. Dakake describes Walayah as an inheritance, esoteric knowledge, that Imams inherit from the prophets. Which expresses the spiritual and political authority of ahl al-Bayt, tabatabaei regards that Walayah is the esoteric dimension of the Imamah and it is not just guiding the man, but it is conveying the man to the Truth. By verse 42,23 and hadith of Ghadir, the called the Muslims to love his pure. Al-Tabari, Az-Zamakhshari and Fakhrud-Din ar-Razi state that verse 5,55 is revealed about Ali, the verse implies that Allah and His prophet is the Wali and the holders of the authority of the Muslims and the believers must accept their Wila. This bond of love further causes that the Muslims follow their speeches, deeds, in Quran, the term walayah is used in conjunction with nusrah and it is not only used in relation to God but also is used for those who have perfect devotion to God. Some traditions state that the verse 7,172 deals with the pact that God has taken for His Lordship and the Walayah to the prophet. In the Quran, the term showes a link between faithfulness to God and devotion to the members of the community, tabatabaei claims that wherever Quran ascribes the guardianship for the prophet, it means authority and devotion. Whosoever dies in enmity to the family of Muhammad, dies an nbeliever, whosoever dies in enmity of the family of Muhammad, will not smell the scent of Paradise. A hadith al-Baqir narrates that Islam is built upon five, prayer, alms-giving, fasting, pilgrimageand walayah, and not one of them was proclaimed, the way walayah was proclaimed. Hasan ibn Ali narrates that after professing tawhid and the mission of the prophets, jafar al-Sadiq told that Imam separates the people of the Heaven from the Hell, without any judgement, because their love for the Imam is their Heaven or Hell respectively
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Salah
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Salah, called namāz in some languages, is one of the Five Pillars in the faith of Islam and an obligatory religious duty for every Muslim. It is a physical, mental, and spiritual act of worship that is observed five times every day at prescribed times, in this ritual, the worshiper starts standing, bows, prostrates themself, and concludes while sitting on the ground. During each posture, the worshiper recites or reads certain verses, phrases, the word salah is commonly translated as prayer but this definition might be confusing. Muslims use the words dua or supplication when referring to the definition of prayers which is reverent petitions made to God. Salah is preceded by ritual ablution, Salah consists of the repetition of a unit called a rakʿah consisting of prescribed actions and words. The number of obligatory rakaʿāt varies from two to four according to the time of day or other circumstances, prayer is obligatory for all Muslims except those who are prepubescent, are menstruating, or are experiencing bleeding in the 40 days after childbirth. Every movement in the salat is accompanied by the takbir except the standing between the ruku and sujud, and the ending which has a derivation of the Muslim greeting As-salamu alaykum, Salah is an Arabic word whose basic meaning is bowing, homage, worship, prayer. In its English usage, the reference of the word is almost always confined to the Muslim formal, Muslims themselves use several terms to refer to salah depending on their language or culture. In many parts of the world, including many non-Arab countries such as Indonesia, the other major term is the Persian word namāz, used by speakers of the Indo-Iranian languages, as well as Turkish, Russian, Chinese, Bosnian and Albanian. In North Caucasian languages, the term is lamaz in Chechen and this is a book, there is no doubt in it, a guidance for righteous. Those who believe in unseen and offer Salah and spend from what we have given to them, and those who believe in what We have revealed to thee and what We revealed before thee, and on hereafter they believe. They are on guidance from their lord and they are successful, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and bow along those who bow. Guard your Salah and middle Salah, and stand before God devoutly obedient, then if you fear on foot or riding, then when you become secure remember God as he has taught you that which you did not know previously. And offer Salah at the two ends of day and at the approach of night, indeed good deeds remove bad deeds, offer Salah at the decline of the day until the darkness of night, and Quran at dawn, indeed Quran at dawn ever is a witness. And at night pray Tahajjud an extra for thee, it is expected that your lord raise you to praised station. ) Say call God or call Merciful, by whomever you call, He has good names, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and obey Messenger so that you may receive mercy. And recite that is revealed to you as a book and offer Salah, indeed Salah prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and remembrance of God is great, ) The chief purpose of salah is to act as a persons communication with and remembrance of God. By reciting The Opening, the first sura of the Quran, as required in daily worship, the worshiper can stand before God, thank and praise Him, under the Hanbali School of thought, a person who doesnt pray five times a day is an unbeliever
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Fasting in Islam
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Fasting in Islam, known as Sawm or siyam صيام, the Arabic words for fasting, is abstaining from eating and drinking. In the terminology of Islamic law, sawm means to abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours, the observance of sawm during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, but is not confined to that month. Sawm is a cognate to Syriac, ܨܘܡܐ ṣawmā. Literally, it means to abstain, cognates to Hebrew tsom, fasting is not unique to the Muslims. It has been practiced for centuries in connection with religious ceremonies by Christians, Jews, Confucianists, Hindus, Taoists, for example, the Muslims of Central Asia, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Turkey use the words roza/rozha/roja/oruç, which comes from Farsi. While the Malay community in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore call it puasa, Muslims are prohibited from eating, drinking and engaging in conjugal sexual relationships from dawn to sunset. Fasting helps Muslims develop self-control, gain an understanding of God’s gifts. Fasting in Islam involves abstaining from all bodily pleasures between dawn and sunset, not only is food forbidden, but also any sexual activity. All things which are regarded as prohibited is even more so in this month, each and every moment during the fast, a person suppresses their passions and desires in loving obedience to God. This consciousness of duty and the spirit of patience helps in strengthening ones faith, fasting helps a person gain self-control. A person who abstains from permissible things like food and drink is likely to feel conscious of his sins, a heightened sense of spirituality helps break the habits of lying, staring with lust at the opposite sex, gossiping, and wasting time. Fasting is also viewed as a means of controlling ones desires, Sawm also carries a significant spiritual meaning. It teaches one the principle of God Consciousness, because when one observes fasting, it is out of deep love for God. Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, the month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of the guidance, and the Criterion. And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, number of other days. God desireth for you ease, he desireth not hardship for you, and that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify God for having guided you, the intention means resolving to fast. It is essential to have the intention the night before, night by night, throughout the duration of the fast itself, Muslims will abstain from certain provisions that the Quran has otherwise allowed, namely eating, drinking and sexual intercourse. This is in addition to the standard obligation already observed by Muslims of avoiding that which is not permissible under Quranic or sharia law, without observing this standard obligation, sawm is rendered useless and is seen simply as an act of starvation
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Hajj
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It is one of the five pillars of Islam, alongside Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, and Sawm. The Hajj is the largest annual gathering of people in the world, the state of being physically and financially capable of performing the Hajj is called istitaah, and a Muslim who fulfills this condition is called a mustati. The Hajj is a demonstration of the solidarity of the Muslim people, the word Hajj means to intend a journey, which connotes both the outward act of a journey and the inward act of intentions. The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to 12th of Dhu al-Hijjah, because the Islamic calendar is lunar and the Islamic year is about eleven days shorter than the Gregorian year, the Gregorian date of Hajj changes from year to year. Ihram is the given to the special spiritual state in which pilgrims wear two white sheets of seamless cloth and abstain from certain actions. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal sacrifice, Pilgrims can also go to Mecca to perform the rituals at other times of the year. This is sometimes called the lesser pilgrimage, or Umrah, the present pattern of Hajj was established by Muhammad. However, according to the Quran, elements of Hajj trace back to the time of Abraham, according to Islamic tradition, Abraham was ordered by God to leave his wife Hagar and his son Ishmael alone in the desert of ancient Mecca. In search of water, Hagar desperately ran seven times between the two hills of Safa and Marwah but found none, returning in despair to Ishmael, she saw the baby scratching the ground with his leg and a water fountain sprang forth underneath his foot. Later, Abraham was commanded to build the Kaaba and to people to perform pilgrimage there. The Quran refers to incidents in verses 2, 124-127 and 22. It is said that the archangel Gabriel brought the Black Stone from Heaven to be attached to the Kaaba, in pre-Islamic Arabia, a time known as jahiliyyah, the Kaaba became surrounded by pagan idols. In 630 CE, Muhammad led his followers from Medina to Mecca, cleansed the Kaaba by destroying all the pagan idols, in 632 CE, Muhammad performed his only and last pilgrimage with a large number of followers, and instructed them on the rites of Hajj. It was from this point that Hajj became one of the five pillars of Islam. During the medieval times, pilgrims would gather in big cities of Syria, Egypt and this was done in order to protect the caravan from Bedouin robbers or natural hazards, and to ensure that the pilgrims were supplied with the necessary provisions. Muslim travelers like Ibn Jubayr and Ibn Battuta have recorded detailed accounts of Hajj-travels of medieval time, the caravans followed well-established routes called in Arabic darb al-hajj, lit. Pilgrimage road, which usually followed ancient routes such as the Kings Highway, the date of Hajj is determined by the Islamic calendar, which is based on the lunar year. Every year, the events of Hajj take place in a period, starting on 8 and ending on 12 Dhu al-Hijjah
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Jihad
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Jihad is an Arabic word which literally means striving or struggling, especially with a praiseworthy aim. It can have many shades of meaning in an Islamic context, such as struggle against ones evil inclinations, in classical Islamic law, the term refers to armed struggle against unbelievers, while modernist Islamic scholars generally equate military jihad with defensive warfare. In Sufi and pious circles, spiritual and moral jihad has been traditionally emphasized under the name of greater jihad, the term has gained additional attention in recent decades through its use by terrorist groups. The word jihad appears frequently in the Quran with and without military connotations, Islamic jurists and other ulema of the classical era understood the obligation of jihad predominantly in a military sense. They developed a set of rules pertaining to jihad, including prohibitions on harming those who are not engaged in combat. In the modern era, the notion of jihad has lost its jurisprudential relevance, while modernist Islamic scholars have emphasized defensive and non-military aspects of jihad, some Islamists have advanced aggressive interpretations that go beyond the classical theory. Jihad is classified into inner jihad, which involves a struggle against ones own impulses, and external jihad. Most Western writers consider external jihad to have primacy over inner jihad in the Islamic tradition, gallup analysis of a large survey reveals considerable nuance in the conceptions of jihad held by Muslims around the world. Jihad is sometimes referred to as the pillar of Islam. In Twelver Shia Islam jihad is one of the ten Practices of the Religion, a person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid. The term jihad is often rendered in English as Holy War, in Modern Standard Arabic, the term jihad is used for a struggle for causes, both religious and secular. The Hans Wehr Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic defines the term as fight, battle, jihad, nonetheless, it is usually used in the religious sense and its beginnings are traced back to the Quran and words and actions of Muhammad. In the Quran and in later Muslim usage, jihad is commonly followed by the expression fi sabil illah, in the path of God. Muhammad Abdel-Haleem states that it indicates the way of truth and justice, including all the teachings it gives on the justifications and it is sometimes used without religious connotation, with a meaning similar to the English word crusade. The context of the Quran is elucidated by Hadith, of the 199 references to jihad in perhaps the most standard collection of hadith—Bukhari—all assume that jihad means warfare. He said, The best jihad is the one in which your horse is slain, Ibn Nuhaas also cited a hadith from Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, where Muhammad states that the highest kind of jihad is The person who is killed whilst spilling the last of his blood. According to another hadith, supporting one’s parents is also an example of jihad and it has also been reported that Muhammad considered well-performing hajj to be the best jihad for Muslim women. The practice of raids by Bedouin against enemy tribes and settlements to collect spoils predates the revelations of the Quran
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Musta'li
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The Musta‘lī are a sect of Ismailism named for their acceptance of al-Mustali as the legitimate nineteenth Fatimid caliph and legitimate successor to his father, al-Mustansir Billah. In contrast, the Nizari—the other living branch of Ismailism, presently led by the Aga Khan IV—believe the nineteenth caliph was al-Mustalis elder brother, Ismailism is a branch of Shia Islam. The Mustali originated in Fatimid-ruled Egypt, later moved its religious center to Yemen, the Hafizi view lost all support following the downfall of the Caliphate, current-day Mustalis are all Taiyabi. Most Mustali are Bohras, and the largest Bohra group is the Dawoodi Bohra, the name Bohra is a reinterpretation of the Gujarati word vahaurau to trade. The Bohra comprise two groups, a chiefly merchant class Shii majority and a Sunni Bohra minority who are mainly peasant farmers. Mohammed Burhanuddin was the 52nd Dai al-Mutlaq of the Dawoodi Bohra community, after his death, there was a dispute regarding succession with both Mufaddal Saifuddin and Khuzaima Qutbuddin claiming to be the 53rd Dai al-Mutlaq. According to Mustalī tradition, after the death of al-Amir bi-Ahkamil-Lah, his infant son, Tayyib and she had been promoted to the post of Hujjat al-Islam long before by al-Mustansir Billah when her husband died and ran the Fatimid dawah from Yemen in the name of Imam Tayyib. During her leadership Tayyib went into occultation so she instituted the office of Dai al-Mutlaq, zoeb bin Moosa was first to be instituted to this office and the line of Taiyibi Dais that began in 1132 has passed from one Dai to another up to the present day. Arwa al-Sulayhi was the Hujjah in Yemen from the time of Imam al Mustansir and she appointed the Dai in Yemen to run religious affairs. Ismaili missionaries Ahmed and Abadullah were also sent to India in that time and they sent Syedi Nuruddin to Dongaon to look after southern part and Syedi Fakhruddin to East Rajasthan, India. In 1592, a leadership struggle caused the Ṭayyibi to split into, Sulaymani, named after Sulayman ibn Hassan and mainly located in Yemen, Dawoodi Bohra, found mostly in the Indian subcontinent. There is also a community of Sunni Bohra in India, in the fifteenth century, there was schism in the Bohra community of Patan in Gujarat as a large number converted from Mustali Ismaili Shia Islam to mainstream Hanafi Sunni Islam. The leader of this movement to Sunni was Syed Jafar Ahmad Shirazi who also had the support of Mughal governor of Gujarat. Thus this new group is known as Jafari Bohras, Patani Bohras or Sunni Bohras, in 1538, Syed Jafar Ahmad Shirazi convinced the Patani Bohras to cease social relations with Ismaili Bohras. The cumulative results of these resulted in large number of Bohras converting from Ismaili Shia fiqh to Sunni Hanafi fiqh. A split in 1637 from the Dawoodi resulted in the Alavi Bohra, the Hebtiahs Bohra are a branch of Mustali Ismaili Shia Islam that broke off from the mainstream Dawoodi Bohra after the death of the 39th Dai al-Mutlaq in 1754. They have further split into two branches, Atba-e-Malak Badar Atba-i-Malak Vakil The Progressive Dawoodi Bohra is a reformist sect within Mustali Ismaili Shia Islam that broke off circa 1977. They disagree with mainstream Dawoodi Bohra, as led by the Dai al-Mutlaq, on doctrinal, economic, in 2014 following the death of Mohammed Burhanuddin, there was a succession dispute over who became the 53rd Dai al-Mutlaq
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History of Nizari Ismailism
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The History of Nizari Ismailism from the founding of Islam covers a period of over 1400 years. A few months before his death, Muhammad who resided in the city of Medina made his first and final pilgrimage to Mecca, there, atop Mount Arafat, he addressed the Muslim masses in what came to be known as the Farewell Sermon. After completion of the Hajj pilgrimage, Muhammad journeyed back toward his home in Medina with the other pilgrims, O God, befriend whosoever befriends him and be the enemy of whosoever is hostile to him. This is known as the event of Ghadir Khumm, which is remembered in the hadith of the pond of Khumm, following Muhammads death the Shia or Party of Ali believed he had been designated not merely as the political successor to Muhammad but also his spiritual successor. And looked toward Ali and his most trusted supporters for political and spiritual guidance. Alis descendants were also the descendants of Muhammad as Ali had married Muhammads only surviving progeny. Through the generations, the mantle of leadership of the Shia passed through the progeny of Ali and Fatimah, the Ahl al-Bayt, embodied in the head of the family, the Imam. Both Ismaʿili and Twelver Shia accept the same initial Imams from the descendants of Muhammad through his daughter Fatimah and therefore much of their early history. The modern Nizari faith refers to itself as a tariqa or path, Jafar al-Sadiq was acknowledged leader of the Shia and head of the Ahl al-Bayt. During a period of change, when Muslims no longer threatened were beginning to concern themselves with questions like what does it mean to be a Muslim. His answer was Jafari jurisprudence, a school of jurisprudence distinct to the Shia. This period marks the founding of the religious views of both the Shia and the Sunni. Jafar al-Sadiq was married to Faṭimah, herself a member of the Ahl al-Bayt, together they had two sons, Ismāīl al-Mubarak and his elder brother, Abdullah al-Aftah. Following Fatimahs death, Jafar al-Sadiq was said to be so devastated he refused to ever remarry, however, it is controversially believed that Ismāīl predeceased his father. However, the sources report Ismāīl being seen three days after in Basra. His closest supporters believed Ismail had gone into hiding to protect his life and he claimed a second designation following Ismāīls disappearance. While some had already accepted him as the Imam following the death of Jafar as-Sadiq, Ismailis argue that since a defining quality of an Imam is his infallibility, Jafar as-Sadiq could not have mistakenly passed his nass on to someone who would be either unfit or predecease him. Therefore, the Imam after Ismāīl was his eldest son Muhammad ibn Ismāīl, muhmmad al-Maktūm was himself several years the senior of his half-uncle, Musa al-Kadhim
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Hafizi
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The Hafizi sect disappeared completely after the collapse of the Fatimid Caliphate in 567 AH/1171 CE as they joined the Taiyabi sect. Al-Hafiz is the son of Abul Qasim Muhammad a son of Al Mustansirbillah, died imprisoned in the Fatimid palace in Cairo under Salahuddin. Abu Sulayman Daud Al-Hamid-lil-lah, d.1207 AD, died in prison under the Ayyubid dynasty. Sulayman Badruddin, d.1248 AD without issue, died in prison under the Ayyubid dynasty. The Hafizi sect lived on into the 14th century AD with adherents in Northern Egypt, List of extinct Shia sects Hafizi-Ismaili family tree List of rulers of Egypt Barber, Malcolm. The New Knighthood, A History of the Order of the Temple, a Short History of the Ismāīlīs
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Alavi Bohras
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The Alavi Bohras علوي بھرۃ are a Taiyebi Mustaalavi Ismaili Shii Muslim طیبي مستعلوي اسماعیلي شیعۃ مسلم community from Gujarat, India. Two major splits during this period resulted in the formation of three groups of Bohras, Alavis, Dawoodis and Sulaymanis. e. From 1st Dai Saiyedna Zoeb bin Saiyedi Moosa till 23rd Dai Saiyedna Mohammad Izzuddin, in Sindh and India too Wali-ul-Hind ولي الھند were appointed by these Duaat دعاۃ one after another until Wali-ul-Hind Maulaai Jafar, Maulaai Abd ul Wahab and Maulaai Qaasim Khan bin Hasan. The last three wali were of help in the era of the 21st to 24th Dai i. e. Saiyedna Husaamuddin, Saiyedna Shamsuddin, Saiyedna Izzuddin. Following the death of the 26th Dai Saiyedna Dawoodji Burhaanuddin bin Saiyedi Ajabshah in 997 AH/1591 AD in Ahmedabad, Sulayman bin Hasan, the grandson of 24th Dai, was wali in Yemen and claimed the succession, supported by the other Yemeni Bohra. However, the Indian Bohra denied his claim of nass, declaring supporting documentation to be forged, the two factions separated, with the followers of Sulayman becoming the Sulaymanis, and the followers of 27th Dai Saiyedna Dawoodji Burhaanuddin bin Saiyedi Qutubshah becoming the Dawoodi Bohra. Saiyedna Ali, the 29th Alavi Dai was born in the city of Vadodara in Fakhri Mohalla. His father Saiyedi Ibrahim died during his childhood and he was born on 8th Rabi ul-Awwal 1379 AH/10-9-1959 AD, Thursday in Vadodara. He is the actual Dai of Alavi Bohras. After this Hierarchy comes the Status of 24 Hudood, Vadodara City is the Headquarters of Alavi Bohras where Saiyedna saheb stays along with the family members at Devdi Mubaarak. It is the place right from 32nd Dai stayed and imparted knowledge to their subjects in their respective periods. It has now become the hub of Ismaili-Taiyebi branch of Learning, as it houses the Islamic Personal Library of Rare Books and the Unique Personal Collection of MSS pertaining to Ismaili Taiyebi Literature. Under strict supervision and permission Saiyedna saheb himself manages the Library affairs, during the seclusion of Imam, his deputy-Da’i performs this act of succession whom he finds eligible for the status of Da’i. He might not be from his sons, unlike the succession of Imam where an Imam always appoints his successor from one of his sons, after Mohammad this rank is on the 6th position and after this comes Mazoon-مأذون and Mukaasir-مکاسر. In Yemen, after the seclusion, Da’i was given Itlaaq-إطلاق or a free conduct and absolute religious and social authority and his command is regarded as a final decree guided by the divine support of Imam and this is the reason he is called Da’i al-Mutlaq. Saiyedna Haatim Zakiyuddin is the 45th Da’i al-Mutlaq of Alavi Bohras in the line of succession of these Da’is in which 24 are in Yemen,7 are in Ahmedabad,1 is in Surat and 12 are in Vadodara. At any cost he always assists and obeys his superior and his Master and his prime responsibility is to conduct teaching sessions and make them understand the basic things of Isma’ili Taiyebi faith. In the absence of Da’i he acts as his legatee, Da’i may appoint his Mazoon as his successor. And if not Da’i can appoint someone more learned and efficient for the post of Da’i after him, as the respectable post of Mazoon is necessary for the completeness of Spiritual Hierarchy
