Musta'li Ismailism

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Musta'li Isma'ilism (Arabic : المستعلية, romanized: al-Mustaʿliyya) is a branch of Isma'ilism named for their acceptance of al-Musta'li as the legitimate ninth Fatimid caliph and legitimate successor to his father, al-Mustansir Billah (r.1036–1094/1095). In contrast, the Nizari—the other living branch of Ismailism, presently led by Aga Khan IV—believe the ninth caliph was al-Musta'li's elder brother, Nizar.

Contents

The Musta'li originated in Fatimid-ruled Egypt, later moved its religious center to Yemen, and gained a foothold in 11th-century Western India through missionaries.

The Tayyibi and the Hafizi

Historically, there was a distinction between the Tayyibi and the Hafizi Musta'lis, the former recognizing at-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim as the legitimate heir of the Imamate after al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah and the latter following al-Hafiz, who was enthroned as caliph. The Hafizi view lost all support following the downfall of the Fatimid Caliphate: current-day Musta'lis are all Tayyibi.

Most Musta'li are Bohras, and the largest Bohra group is the Dawoodi Bohra, who are primarily found in India. The name Bohra is a reinterpretation of the Gujarati word vahaurau "to trade".

Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin was the 52nd Da'i al-Mutlaq of the Dawoodi Bohra community. After his passing in 2014, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin succeeded him and is serving as the 53rd Da'i al-Mutlaq of The Dawoodi Bohra community.

History

According to Musta'lī tradition, after the death of al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah, his infant son, At-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim, about two years old, was protected by Arwa al-Sulayhi who died in 1138, wife of the chief Fatimid Da'i of Yemen. 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 At-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim. During her leadership At-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim went into occultation so she instituted the office of Da'i al-Mutlaq. Zoeb bin Moosa was first to be instituted to this office and the line of Tayyibi Da'is that began in 1132 has passed from one Da'i to another up to the present day. Arwa al-Sulayhi was the Hujjah in Yemen from the time of Imam Al-Mustansir Billah. She appointed the Da'i in Yemen to run religious affairs. Isma'ili missionaries Ahmed and Abdullah (in about 1067 AD (460 AH)) [1] [2] were also sent to India in that time. They sent Syedi Nuruddin to Dongaon to look after southern part and Syedi Fakhruddin to East Rajasthan, India. [3] [4]

Branches

Note: Kaysani's Imam Hanafiyyah is descendant of Ali from Ali's wife Khawlah Branch of Shi'a Islam.png
Note: Kaysani's Imam Hanafiyyah is descendant of Ali from Ali's wife Khawlah

Musta'li Imams

According to Musta'li belief, the line of Imams, descendants of Ali and hereditary successors to Muhammad in his role of legitimate leader of the community of Muslim believers, follows:[ citation needed ]

  1. Hasan ibn Ali 625–670 (imam 660–670)
  2. Husayn ibn Ali 626–680 (imam 670–680 )
  3. Ali al-Sajjad 659–712 (imam 680–712)
  4. Muhammad al-Baqir 676–743 (imam 712–743)
  5. Ja'far al-Sadiq 702–765 (imam 743–765)
  6. Isma'il al-Mubarak 719/722–775 (imam 765–775)
  7. Muhammad ibn Isma'il 740–813 (imam 775–813)
  8. Abadullah ibn Muhammad (Ahmad al-Wafi) 766–829 (imam 813–829)
  9. Ahmad ibn Abadullah (Muhammad at-Taqi) 790–840 (imam 829–840)
  10. Husayn ibn Ahmad (Radi Abdullah) (imam 840–909)
  11. Abdallah al-Mahdi Billah (909–934)
  12. al-Qa'im bi-Amr Allah (934–946)
  13. al-Mansur bi-Nasr Allah (946–953)
  14. al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah (953–975)
  15. al-Aziz Billah (975–996)
  16. al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah (996–1021)
  17. al-Zahir li-i'zaz Din Allah (1021–1036)
  18. al-Mustansir Billah (1036–1094)
  19. al-Musta'li Billah (1094–1101)
  20. al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah (1101–1130)
  21. at-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim (1130–1132)

Imams 11–21 were caliphs who ruled the Fatimid Caliphate.[ citation needed ]

The imams from Muhammad ibn Isma'il onward were occulted by the Musta'li; their names as listed by Dawoodi Bohra religious books are listed above. [5]

Their ancestors and descendants according to Ismā'īlī-Mustā'lī Imāmah doctrine

Jāʿfar al-Sādiq
(Imamāh‘Shi'ā)
Fatima bint al-Hussain'l-Athram
bin al-Ḥasan bin Ali
Al-Aftāh
(Aftāhīyyah)
Ismā‘il
(Ismā‘il’īyyah)
Muhammad Muhammed
Al-Wafi
At-Tāqī
Ar-Rāḍī
Mahdi Billāh
Fatimids (Ismailism)
Al-Qā'im
Al-Mansur
Al-Mu'izz
Al-Aziz
Al-Hakim
Al-Zahir
Al-Mustansir
Nizār al-Muṣṭafá (Nizārīyyah)Muhammad Al-Mustā‘lī (Mustā‘līyyah)
Al-Āmīr
Al-Sabbah (Hassasin) Al-Hāfiz (Ḥāfīzīyyah) Aṭ-Ṭāyyīb (Ṭāyyībīyyah)
Al-Zāfīr Yūssuf
Nizārī Imāmah Al-Fā'īz Tayyibi Dā'ĩs
Al-'Āḍīd
Nizārī Ismāilism Dawoodi Dā'ĩs

Da'is

Arwa al-Sulayhi was the Hujjah from the time of Imam Mustansir. She appointed Dai in Yemen to run religious affair. Ismaili missionaries Ahmed and Abdullah (in about 1067 AD (460 AH)) [1] [2] were sent to India in that time. According to Fatimid tradition, after the death of Al-Amir bi-Ahkami'l-Lah, Arwa al-Sulayhi instituted the Da'i al-Mutlaq in place of Dai to run the independent dawah from Yemen in the name of Imam Taiyab. The Dais are appointed one after other in the same philosophy of nass (nomination by predecessor) as done by earlier imams. It is believed that God's representative cannot die before appointing his true successor. This is being followed from the time of 3rd Imam Ali al-Sajjad, the strong army of Yazid also could not think of killing him, although they did not spare even a child of six months, Ali al-Asghar ibn Husayn.

On the similar belief, the Musta'li think and their Da'i claim, that one day their Imam Tayyib's heir will again reappear as Imam (as happened with the eleventh Imam, Abdallah al-Mahdi Billah, who appeared after period of 150 years since the sixth Imam).

Under the fifteenth Imam, Al-Aziz Billah, the fifth Fatimid caliph, religious tolerance was given great importance. As a small Shi'i group ruling over a majority Sunni population with a Christian minority also, the Fatimid caliphs were careful to respect the sentiments of people. One of the viziers of Imam Aziz was Christian, and high offices were held by both Shia and Sunnis. Fatimid advancement in state offices was based more on merit than on heredity. [6]

Al-Aziz Billah rebuilt the Saint Mercurius Church in Coptic Cairo near Fustat and encouraged public theological debate between the chief Fatimid qadi and the bishops of Oriental Orthodoxy in the interest of ecumenism. [6]

Profession of faith

As is the case with the majority of the Shia, Ismailis conclude the Shahada with ʿAliyun waliyu l-Lah ("Ali is the successor of God"). Musta'lis recite the following shahada:

ʾašhadu ʾan lā ʾilāha ʾillā l-Lāh,
waʾašhadu ʾan Muḥammadun ʿabduhun warasūlu l-Lāh;
ʾanna mawlāna ʿAliyun waṣiyuhu wawazīruhu;
I bear witness that there is no god but God,
and I bear witness that Mohammad is God's servant and His Messenger
and Ali is his successor and minister.[ citation needed ]

The first part of this shahada is common to all Muslims and is the fundamental declaration of tawhid. The wording of the last phrase is specific to the Musta'li.

The second phrase describes the principle of Prophecy in Shia Islam.

The third phrase describes the Musta'li theological position of the role of Ali.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isma'ilism</span> Branch of Shia Islam

Isma'ilism is a branch or sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sadiq, wherein they differ from the Twelver Shia, who accept Musa al-Kazim, the younger brother of Isma'il, as the true Imām.

In Shia Islam, the Imamah is a doctrine which asserts that certain individuals from the lineage of the Islamic prophet Muhammad are to be accepted as leaders and guides of the ummah after the death of Muhammad. Imamah further says that Imams possess divine knowledge and authority (Ismah) as well as being part of the Ahl al-Bayt, the family of Muhammad. These Imams have the role of providing commentary and interpretation of the Quran as well as guidance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawoodi Bohra</span> Sect of Ismaili Shia Islam

The Dawoodi Bohras are a religious denomination within the Ismā'īlī branch of Shia Islam. They number approximately one million worldwide and have settled in over 40 countries around the world. The majority of the Dawoodi Bohra community resides in India, with sizable congregations in Pakistan, Yemen, East Africa, and the Middle East. They also have a growing presence in Europe, North America, and Australia. The present leader is the 53rd al-Dai al-Mutlaq, Mufaddal Saifuddin who assumed office in January 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Da'i al-Mutlaq</span> Islamic religious leader

Da'i al-Mutlaq is the most senior spiritual rank and office in Tayyibi Isma'ilism. The Da'i al-Mutlaq has headed the Tayyibi community since the seclusion of the 21st Tayyibi Imam, at-Tayyib Abu'l-Qasim, traditionally placed in 528 AH/1134 AD.

Abūʾl-Qāsim al-Ṭayyib ibn al-Āmir was, according to the Tayyibi sect of Isma'ilism, the twenty-first imam. The only son of Caliph al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah, al-Tayyib was an infant when his father was murdered. Amidst the ensuing power struggle, al-Tayyib disappeared; modern historians suggest that he died or was secretly killed by one of the rival strongmen. By 1132, his uncle al-Hafiz declared himself as the caliph and imam in succession to al-Amir. This was not accepted by the Yemeni Isma'ilis, who upheld the rights of al-Tayyib.

Tayyibi Isma'ilism is the only surviving sect of the Musta'li branch of Isma'ilism, the other being the extinct Hafizi branch. Followers of Tayyibi Isma'ilism are found in various Bohra communities: Dawoodi, Sulaymani, and Alavi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arwa al-Sulayhi</span> Yemeni queen and ruler (c. 1048–1138)

Arwa al-Sulayhi, was a long-reigning ruler of Yemen, firstly as the co-ruler of her first two husbands and then as sole ruler, from 1067 until her death in 1138. She was the last of the rulers of the Sulayhid Dynasty and was also the first woman to be accorded the prestigious title of Hujjah in the Isma'ili branch of Shia Islam, signifying her as the closest living image of God's will in her lifetime, in the Ismaili doctrine. She is popularly referred to as As-Sayyidah Al-Ḥurrah, Al-Malikah Al-Ḥurrah (Arabic: ٱلْمَلِكَة ٱلْحُرَّة or Al-Ḥurratul-Malikah, and Malikat Sabaʾ Aṣ-Ṣaghīrah.

Hafizi Isma'ilism, also known as Majidi Isma'ilism, was a branch of Musta'li Isma'ilism that emerged as a result of a split in 1132. The Hafizis accepted the Fatimid caliph Abd al-Majid al-Hafiz li-Din Allah and his successors as imams, while the rival Tayyibi branch rejected them as usurpers, favouring the succession of the imamate along the line of al-Hafiz's nephew, al-Tayyib.

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Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Ja'far ibn Ibrahim ibn Abi Salama ibn al-Walid al-Abshami al-Qurashi was the 5th Tayyibi Isma'ili Da'i al-Mutlaq in Yemen from 1209 to his death in 1215. Descended from a noble lineage of the Quraysh, he was a noted scholar and Tayyibi theologian, and an author of several influential works on Tayyibi doctrine. Before becoming himself Da'i al-Mutlaq, he served as senior deputy to the third and fourth holders of the office. His rise to the office inaugurated a period of two and a half centuries where it would be almost monopolized by members of his own family.

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References

  1. 1 2 Enthoven, R. E. (1922). The Tribes and Castes of Bombay. Vol. 1. Asian Educational Services. p. 199. ISBN   81-206-0630-2.
  2. 1 2 The Bohras, By: Asgharali Engineer, Vikas Pub. House, p.109,101
  3. , Mullahs on the Mainframe.., By Jonah Blank, p.139
  4. The Isma'ilis: Their History and Doctrines By Farhad Daftary; p.299
  5. http://www.ismaili.net/Source/0910.ht%5B‍%5D Quarterly Journal of the AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF BEIRUT Vol. XXI. Nos. 1 2 Edited by MAHMUD GHUL HIDDEN IMAMS OF THE ISMAILIS
  6. 1 2 Mullahs on the mainframe: Islam and modernity among the Daudi Bohras, page 29, By Jonah Blank

Further reading