1.
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
2.
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
3.
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
4.
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
5.
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
6.
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
7.
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
8.
Assassins
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Assassins is a name used to refer to the medieval Nizari Ismailis. Sabbah is typically regarded as the founder of the Assassins, founding the so-called Nizari Ismaili state with Alamut Castle as its headquarters. Asymmetric warfare, psychological warfare, and surgical strikes were often an employed tactic of the hashashin, while Assassins typically refers to the entire medieval Nizari sect, in fact only a class of acolytes known as the fidai actually engaged in assassination work. Under leadership of Imam Rukn-ud-Din Khurshah, the Nizari state declined internally, sources on the history and thought of the Ismailis in this period are therefore lacking and the majority extant are written by their detractors. The Nizari were feared by the Crusaders, who referred to collectively as Assassins. The Crusader stories of the Assassins were further embellished by Marco Polo, the origins of the Assassins can be traced back to just before the First Crusade, around 1080 in Persia, modern Iran. There has been great difficulty finding out information about the origins of the Assassins because most early sources are written by enemies of the order, are based on legends. Most sources dealing with the inner workings were destroyed with the capture of Alamut. However, it is possible to trace the beginnings of the back to its first Grandmaster. A passionate devotee of Ismaili beliefs, Hassan-i Sabbah was well-liked throughout Cairo, Syria and most of the Middle East by other Ismaili, using his fame and popularity, Sabbah founded the Order of the Assassins. While his motives for founding this order are unknown, it was said to be all for his own political and personal gain. Because of the unrest in the Holy Land caused by the Crusades, Hassan-i Sabbah found himself not only fighting for power with other Muslims, but also with the invading Christian forces. After creating the Order, Sabbah searched for a location that would be fit for a sturdy headquarters and it is still disputed whether Sabbah built the fortress himself or if it was already built at the time of his arrival. In either case, Sabbah adapted the fortress to suit his needs not only for defense from hostile forces, spending most of his days at Alamut producing religious works and developing doctrines for his Order, Sabbah would never leave his fortress again in his lifetime. He had established a society of deadly assassins, which was built on a hierarchical structure. Below Sabbah, the Grand Headmaster of the Order, were known as Greater Propagandists, followed by the normal Propagandists, the Rafiqs. It was the Lasiqs who were trained to some of the most feared assassins, or as they were called, Fidai. It is, however, unknown how Hassan-i-Sabbah was able to get his Fidain to perform with such fervent loyalty, one theory, possibly the best known but also the most criticized, comes from the reports of Marco Polo during his travels to the Orient
9.
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
10.
Nabi Shu'ayb
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The identity of Shuayb with the Jethro, however, is a Muslim and Druze tradition rather than historical fact. Prophet shuayb is the 14th prophet, Nabi Shuayb was an object of traditional veneration by Druze and Sunni Muslims through Palestine. The shrine figured down to Israeli-Arab war of 1948 as a place where both Sunni Muslims and Druze took vows and made ziyarat, after the 1948 war, Israel placed the maqam or shrine under exclusive Druze care. A central figure in the Druze religion, the tomb of Nabi Shuaib, has been a site of pilgrimage for the Druze for centuries. Shrines dedicated to Nabi Shuaib are common throughout the Greater Syria region, in the final years of the British Mandate in Palestine, a dispute had raged over the shrine between Sunni and Druze communities. Sole custodianship of the tomb was transferred to the Druze community by the Israeli authorities, in Islamic and Druze tradition, it is believed that towards the end of his life, Shuayb took refuge in a cave outside Hittin, where he eventually died of old age. His followers buried him at the site and placed a tombstone at his grave, the tradition holds that when Saladins dream was realized, the Druze built a shrine for Shuayb at the site. Nabi Shuayb has been expanded and renovated over time, the older section of the existing structure was built in the 1880s, under the direction of Sheikh Muhanna Tarif, the shaykh al-aql of Julis. Sheikh Muhanna summoned an assembly of leaders in the community to discuss. When Palestine came under British Mandate rule, a dispute broke out between the Druze and the Higher Islamic Council over who exercised custodianship over the site of Nabi Shuayb. Under the leadership of Sheikh Amin Tarif, the shrine was then renovated, the Israeli government also paved the road leading to Nabi Shuayb and provided electricity and water infrastructure services there. The first mention of the dates back to the 12th century CE. According to Druze tradition, the imprint of Shuaibs left foot can be seen on the grave, pilgrims visiting the site pour oil into the imprint, and then rub the oil over their body in order to be blessed with good fortune. The Druze customarily had no fixed date for their annual pilgrimage, during the festivities, mass celebrations are held at Nabi Shuaib, and Druze religious leaders gather there for ritual purposes and to discuss religious questions. Prior to Israels establishment, Druze from Syria and Lebanon also used to participate in the festival, Israeli Druze Amin Tarif Ziyarat al-Nabi Shuayb
11.
Lambsar Castle
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Lambsar, Lambasar, or Lambesar was probably the largest and the most fortified castles of the Nizari Ismaili state. The fortress is located in the central Alburz mountains, south of the Caspian Sea, Lambesar is to the northeast of Razmian village. Kiya Buzurg Ummid captured the castle from Rasamuj and rebuilt it into a major stronghold using local labour and he was appointed by Hasan Sabbah as its governor. Only ruins remain of this magnificent fortress today, very deep valleys surrounding the fortress make it impossible to access from the East and West sides. The North and South fronts are the possible ways to get into the fortress. Although the slope of the mountain with a difference of 150m on both levels is stretched from north to south with a length of 480m, the castle is more than 190m in width. The huge two-layered parapets made up of very large 10m high stones, in the North side of the fortress a huge building with 4 smaller extensions remain which face to the East. The Ismailis’ forts were the last line of defense against Mongol aggression in Persia, the Mongols had a hard time conquering Ismailians forts. Hulaku Khan was disappointed with his commanders therefore he took over an army of 10000 soldiers, in 1256 AD after a couple months the Meymoon-Dej fort surrendered to Hulaku’s army, and Imam Rukn-ud-Din Khurshah was captured. Hulaku Khan asked Rukn-ud-Din Khurshah to order his followers to surrender, finally after a year of resisting, a cholera epidemic in 1257 AD took many lives in Lambesar and allowed the Mongols to succeed. Hulaku ordered the ruined and beheaded whoever had survived the deadly disease. In 1275 AD and again in 1389 AD, small groups of Ismailis who had survived the Mongol invasions attempted to recapture Alamut, Ismaili Iranian architecture Alamut Pictures of Lambesar Fortress
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Carmathians". Encyclopædia Britannica. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 357.
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "