The Book of Unveiling

The Book of Unveiling PDF Author: Fârès Gillon
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0755653866
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 537

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Book Description
I.B. Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies. The Kitab al-Kashf is one of the earliest Ismaili texts to have reached the present day. Transmitted by the Tayybi Ismaili tradition, it is composed of six treatises, most of which, as this open access study and first English translation argues, go back to the early years of the Fatimid rule. The importance of this work is predicated upon the unique insight it offers on the early stages of the elaboration of Ismaili doctrine. A number of parallels with Twelver Shi'i, as well as ghulat and Nusayri sources, are highlighted throughout this study, which, by contrast, allow for the identification of specifically Ismaili themes and doctrines, before and after the rise to power of the Fatimids. The Kashf is thus an essential witness to the way early Ismailism, while drawing from a pool of themes common to several Shi'i trends, nevertheless formed its own distinctive identity. Since it was edited by Rudolf Strothmann for the first time in 1952, the Kashf has attracted the attention of several generations of scholars, but did not benefit from a full annotated translation and extensive study highlighting its structure and aims until now. The eBook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by The Institute of Ismaili Studies.

The Book of Unveiling

The Book of Unveiling PDF Author: Fârès Gillon
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0755653866
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 537

Get Book Here

Book Description
I.B. Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies. The Kitab al-Kashf is one of the earliest Ismaili texts to have reached the present day. Transmitted by the Tayybi Ismaili tradition, it is composed of six treatises, most of which, as this open access study and first English translation argues, go back to the early years of the Fatimid rule. The importance of this work is predicated upon the unique insight it offers on the early stages of the elaboration of Ismaili doctrine. A number of parallels with Twelver Shi'i, as well as ghulat and Nusayri sources, are highlighted throughout this study, which, by contrast, allow for the identification of specifically Ismaili themes and doctrines, before and after the rise to power of the Fatimids. The Kashf is thus an essential witness to the way early Ismailism, while drawing from a pool of themes common to several Shi'i trends, nevertheless formed its own distinctive identity. Since it was edited by Rudolf Strothmann for the first time in 1952, the Kashf has attracted the attention of several generations of scholars, but did not benefit from a full annotated translation and extensive study highlighting its structure and aims until now. The eBook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by The Institute of Ismaili Studies.

Affirming the Imamate: Early Fatimid Teachings in the Islamic West

Affirming the Imamate: Early Fatimid Teachings in the Islamic West PDF Author: Wilferd Madelung
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 075563733X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
The two sermons edited and translated here for the first time are primary material from the years before the establishment of the Fatimid caliphate in 297/909. The authors have been identified as Abu 'Abd Allah al-Shi'i and Abu'l-'Abbas Muhammad, two brothers who were central to the success of the Ismaili da'wa in North Africa. Da'wa, a term used to describe how Muslims teach others about the beliefs and practices of their Islamic faith, therefore provide a unique view of the nature and development of Islam throughout history. In this case, the primary texts shed light on the development of Islam among the Berbers of the Maghreb. The first text by Abu 'Abd Allah al-Shi'i shows how the arguments for belief in the 'imamate' of the family of the Prophet, that is, the Shi'a belief that all imams should be spiritual descendants of the Prophet Muhammad and his household, were developed and presented to bring new adherents to the cause. The Book of the Keys to Grace by his elder brother Abu'l-'Abbas, too, concerns not only the centrality of the imam in the faith but also sheds light on the hierarchy of the da'wa in this early period and its organisational sophistication. Both texts also reveal the contemporary theology propagated by the Ismaili da'wa, including for instance, the powerful analogy of Moses/Aaron and Muhammad/'Ali, the awareness of a variety of religious traditions and the use of detailed Qur'anic quotations and a wide range of hadith. As such they constitute primary source material of interest not only for Ismaili history but for this early period of Islam in general.

The Fatimids

The Fatimids PDF Author: Shainool Jiwa
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1786731746
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
I.B.Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies Emerging from a period of long seclusion, the leader of the burgeoning community of Ismaili Shi'i Muslims was declared the first Fatimid Imam-caliph in the year 909. Abd Allah al-Mahdi founded the only sustained Shi'i dynasty (909-1171) to rule over substantial parts of the medieval Muslim world, rivalling both the Umayyads of Spain and the Abbasids. At its peak, the Fatimid Empire extended from the Atlantic shores of North Africa, across the southern Mediterranean and down both sides of the Red Sea, covering also Mecca and Medina. This accessible history, the first of two volumes, tells the story of the birth and expansion of the Fatimid Empire in the 10th century. Drawing upon eyewitness accounts, Shainool Jiwa introduces the first four generations of Fatimid Imam-caliphs -- al-Mahdi, al-Qa'im, al-Mansur, and al-Mu'izz -- as well as the people who served them and those they struggled against. Readers are taken on a journey through the Fatimid capitals of Qayrawan, Mahdiyya, and Mansuriyya and on to the founding of Cairo. In this lively and comprehensive introduction, readers will discover various milestones in Fatimid history and the political and cultural achievements that continue to resonate today.

Affirming the Imamate

Affirming the Imamate PDF Author: Wilferd Madelung
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780755637355
Category : Electronic books
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
"The two sermons edited and translated here for the first time are primary material from the years before the establishment of the Fatimid caliphate in 297/909. The authors have been identified as Abu ' Abd Allah al-Shi ' i and Abu'l- ' Abbas Muhammad, two brothers who were central to the success of the Ismaili da' wa in North Africa. Da'wa , a term used to describe how Muslims teach others about the beliefs and practices of their Islamic faith, therefore provide a unique view of the nature and development of Islam throughout history. In this case, the primary texts shed light on the development of Islam among the Berbers of the Maghreb. The first text by Abu ' Abd Allah al-Shi ' i shows how the arguments for belief in the 'imamate' of the family of the Prophet, that is, the Shi'a belief that all imams should be spiritual descendants of the Prophet Muhammad and his household, were developed and presented to bring new adherents to the cause. The Book of the Keys to Grace by his elder brother Abu'l- ' Abbas, too, concerns not only the centrality of the imam in the faith but also sheds light on the hierarchy of the da ' wa in this early period and its organisational sophistication. Both texts also reveal the contemporary theology propagated by the Ismaili da ' wa , including for instance, the powerful analogy of Moses/Aaron and Muhammad/ ' Ali, the awareness of a variety of religious traditions and the use of detailed Qur'anic quotations and a wide range of hadith. As such they constitute primary source material of interest not only for Ismaili history but for this early period of Islam in general."--

Founding the Fatimid State

Founding the Fatimid State PDF Author: Hamid Haji
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0857712721
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
I.B. Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies Covering a major work of one of the most important thinkers of early Islam, this is a fresh translation of a text of inestimable importance to our understanding of Fatimid rule that will appeal to all serious students of early Islamic history and culture. This book, the "Iftitah al-Da'wa", is the most important primary source for the emergence of the Fatimid state in the early years of the tenth century. Its author, Qadi al-Nu'man, was an official historian of the Fatimids and an eminent exponent of Ismaili jurisprudence - as well as being perhaps the most distinguished and creative of all the Fatimid thinkers. The "Iftitah" is al-Nu'man's major historical work, and records in detail the background to the establishment of the Fatimid state, first in Yemen and then in north Africa. It is based on official archival and biographical documents that were accessible to the author at the time, and which have not survived. It is thus a highly significant resource for understanding the social and political conditions which prevailed when the Fatimids began to consolidate their rule.

Fatimid History and Ismaili Doctrine

Fatimid History and Ismaili Doctrine PDF Author: Paul Ernest Walker
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780754659525
Category : Fatimiler
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Table of Contents Fatimid History and Ismaili Doctrine by Walker, Paul E. Terms of Use Introduction Fatimid institutions of learning Succession to rule in the Shiite caliphate The Ismaili da'wa in the reign of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim Another family of Fatimid chief Qadis: the al-Fariqis A Byzantine victory over the Fatimids at Alexandretta (971) The 'crusade' of John Tzimisces in the light of new Arabic evidence Al-Maqrizi and the Fatimids Purloined symbols of the past: the theft of souvenirs and sacred relics in the rivalry between the Abbasids and Fatimids 'In praise of al-Hakim': Greek elements in Ismaili writings on the Imamate Abu Tammam and his Kitab al-Shajara: an new Ismaili treatise from 10th-century Khurasan An Isma'ili version of the heresiography of the 72 erring sects Eternal cosmos and the womb of history: time in early Ismaili thought The doctrine of metempsychosis in Islam Index Descriptive content provided by Syndetics"! a Bowker service. Summary Fatimid History and Ismaili Doctrine by Walker, Paul E. Terms of use The thirteen studies in this volume explore critical problems in Fatimid history and historiography, many specifically focused on the content of doctrinal writings produced by the Ismaili supporters and agents of this caliphate who worked on behalf of the dynasty both within the empire and outside. Several concern issues in disputes that separated the various factions of Medieval Islam and served to distinguish the Ismailis from the rest, often branding the Fatimids with the charge of heterodoxy. Others deal with the consequence of Shiite rule over a largely non-Shiite populace. Yet others involve the relationship between religious ideology and the administration of government. Descriptive content provided by Syndetics"! a Bowker service.

Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam (2 vols.)

Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam (2 vols.) PDF Author: Sebastian Günther
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004333150
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 1549

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Book Description
Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam offers a multi-disciplinary study of Muslim thinking about paradise, death, apocalypse, and the hereafter. It focuses on eschatological concepts in the Quran and its exegesis, Sunni and Shi‘i traditions, Islamic theology, philosophy, mysticism, and other scholarly disciplines reflecting Islamicate pluralism and cosmopolitanism. Gathering material from all parts of the Muslim world, ranging from Islamic Spain to Indonesia, and the entirety of Islamic history, this publication in two volumes also integrates research from comparative religion, art history, sociology, anthropology and literary studies. Unparalleled and unprecedented in its scope and comprehensiveness, Roads to Paradise promises to become the definitive reference work on Islamic eschatology for the years to come.

Ismaili Tradition Concerning the Rise of the Fatimids

Ismaili Tradition Concerning the Rise of the Fatimids PDF Author: Wladimir Ivanow
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : ar
Pages : 488

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Book Description


Ismaili Tradition Concerning the Rise of the Fatimids

Ismaili Tradition Concerning the Rise of the Fatimids PDF Author: Vladimir A. Ivanov
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : ar
Pages : 337

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Book Description


Apocalyptic History of the Early Fatimid Empire

Apocalyptic History of the Early Fatimid Empire PDF Author: Jamel Velji
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 0748690891
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 184

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Book Description
Explores the role of apocalyptic symbolism in the formation and maintenance of a medieval Islamic empireHow can religion transform a society? This book investigates the ways in which a medieval Islamic movement harnessed Quranic visions of utopia to construct one of the most brilliant and lasting empires in Islamic history (979-1171). The Fatimids apocalyptic vision of their central place in an imminent utopia played a critical role in transfiguring the intellectual and political terrains of North Africa in the early tenth century. Yet the realities that they faced on the ground often challenged their status as the custodians of a pristine Islam at the end of time.Through a detailed examination of some of the structural features of the Fatimid revolution, as well as early works of ta'wil, or symbolic interpretation, Jamel Velji illustrates how the Fatimids conceived of their mission as one that would bring about an imminent utopia. He then examines how the Fatimids reinterpreted their place in history when the expected end never materialised. The book ends with an extensive discussion of another apocalyptic event linked to a Fatimid lineage: the Nizari Ismaili declaration of the end of time on August 8, 1164.Key featuresIntroduces selected themes, texts and theoretical problems in early Fatimid history and thought to those unfamiliar with Islam or the Shia tradition Explores the nature of apocalyptic rhetoric, what constitutes an apocalypse and how apocalyptic prophecies can be reinterpretedUses techniques from religious studies and rhetorical analysis on data from the Fatimid tradition, showing how Islam can contribute to broader discussions in the history of religionsContains extensive translations from two Fatimid texts, including: the Kitab al-Kashf (Book of unveiling), and Qadi l-Nu'mans Ta'wil al-da'a'im (Symbolic interpretation of his Pillars of Islam)