鸟大大影院

Abstract

Niz膩r墨 Ismailis belong to a branch of Shi士i Islam who believe in the continuity of the succession to the Prophet Muhammad through, Ism膩士墨l, the second eldest son of Ja士far al-峁⒛乨iq (d. 765). The early Ismailis went through several stages of evolution in their beliefs and political achievements, including a period of concealment (satr) (during which the Ismaili Imams operate clandestinely), leading to the establishment of the Fatimid state (in 909). The apogee of the Shi士i Ismaili Imams鈥� power was reached during the reign of the Fatimid Imam-Caliphs.

Originally published in Vol 65, Spring-Fall 2023, Numbers 1-2. Published online with permission.

The history of the Niz膩r墨 Ismailis practically starts with the dispute over the succession of the eighth Fatimid Imam-Caliph, al-Mustan峁r bi鈥檒l膩h (d. 1094). At the centre of the dispute is 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� (d. 1124), the senior Persian 诲腻士墨 who had arrived in Cairo at the suggestion of 士Abd al-Malik-i 士Att膩sh, the chief of the Persian Ismaili mission (诲补士飞补) who owed their allegiance to the Fatimid Imam-Caliphs. A few decades before the demise of al-Mustan峁r, N膩峁r-i Khusraw (d. after 1070), another Persian figure, had arrived in Cairo and was despatched as the most senior chief of the territory of Khur膩s膩n (岣箩箩补t-i jaz墨ra-yi khur膩s膩n). N膩峁r-i Khusraw was the link that later on connected the Fatimid 诲补士飞补 to its Persian followers; he wrote almost entirely in a very Persian with a refined style that remains one of the pillars of Persian poetry and prose. 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� is the continuity of the same tradition which became the centre of one of the most prominent remaining branches of the Ismailis: it is with these people that the Persian language 鈥� as opposed to Arabic 鈥� becomes the dominant language of the Niz膩r墨 Ismailis for many centuries until contemporary times. 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� arrived in Cairo at a time of crisis. The Fatimid state had gone through a famine and the breakdown of law and order. Under these circumstances Badr al-Jam膩l墨 (d. 1094), an Armenian general in Syria, helped the Fatimids restore peace and order. Badr al-Jam膩l墨鈥檚 son, al-Af岣峚l, became the powerful vizier of al-Mustan峁r after the death of his father. According to Nizari sources, Nizar, born in 1054, the eldest son of al-Mustan峁r, was designated by his father to succeed him as the next Imam-Caliph. Al-Af岣嵞乴, who favoured the youngest son of al-Mustan峁r, Abu al-Q膩sim A岣ad (al-Musta士l墨), who was married to his sister. Following the death of al-Mustan峁r, al-Af岣峚l鈥檚 swift action to obtain the allegiance of the Fatimid nobles and the Ismaili 诲补士飞补 in Cairo, led to the rise of al-Musta士l墨 to the throne of the Fatimid empire.

Fatimid Ismaili Imam-Caliphs

The oral traditions of Niz膩r墨s speak about a son of Niz膩r taken secretly to Persia to live in the vicinity of Alam奴t. This son is the one to whom 岣san 士ala dhikrihi鈥檒 salam traces his lineage to. The official genealogy of Niz膩r墨 Imams mentions three names: al-Had墨, al-Muhtdad墨 and al-Q膩hir.

From the time of 岣san-i 峁bb膩h until 岣san 士ala dhikrihi鈥檒 salam comes forward first as the deputy of the concealed Imam and then as his successor and son, there are a number of key developments in Ismaili thought which are of great importance.

The first one starts with 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� himself who is generally known as a military strategist and political leader, eclipsing his more important role as a chief 诲腻士墨 titled 岣箩箩腻迟 (literally meaning 鈥榩roof鈥� indicating the highest rank immediately after the Imam). 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣モ�檚 major contribution to Ismaili thought can best be summarised in the introduction of the doctrine of 迟补士濒墨尘 (literally meaning 鈥榠nstruction鈥�). The doctrine or principle of 迟补士濒墨尘 deals specifically with the subject of knowledge of God which is a critical element in Ismaili thought.

From the early Fatimid period, Ismailis consistently refused to treat the subject of God under prevalent theological categories of other Muslims or typical narratives of philosophers. God beyond being, beyond any attributes, became a category which was central to Neoplatonic Fatimid thought (see Madelung in Nasr, 1977:53-65; see also: Walker, 2008). Until the time of 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣�, this principle was primarily referring to the central theme of establishing the legitimacy of the line of succession of Shi士i Ismaili Imams in terms of leadership among other cosmological considerations in terms of the status of the Imam. The Alam奴t period represents a major shift in the sense that the Niz膩r墨 cosmology had now woven into the belief in Imamat, elements of 迟补飞岣ツ玠, and the perfection of ritual laws by emphasising their inner ethical contents. This emphasis was embodied in the declaration of 辩颈测腻尘补迟 (resurrection) as a marker of the specific Niz膩r墨 identity. The declaration of resurrection meant that for those people who have reached the higher stages of spiritual perfection (ahl-i wa岣at), and not for categorically everyone, adherence to ritual laws was not necessary, even though conditions for reaching that stage were quite strict (see: 峁玸墨, 2010:42-43; and 2005:115; for a detailed discussion of spiritual resurrection, see Shahrast膩n墨, 2021:24-27).

As mentioned earlier, 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� was the founding figure of this shift in thinking and can be compared with the earlier pillars of Ismaili thought like al-Sijist膩n墨, al-Kirm膩n墨 and N膩峁r-i Khusraw. He not only represented a political break from the Fatimid empire, but he also introduced a shift from the densely Neoplatonic system of thought to a much more benign and diluted version which was now restructured around a basic idea of knowledge of God through an individual man. It is an error to reduce this new articulation to a mere belief in the authority of the 鈥榠nfallible Imam鈥� 鈥� as al-Ghaz膩l墨 had summarised it in his polemical works against Niz膩r墨s (for a detailed study of al-Ghaz膩l墨鈥檚 work, see Mitha, 2001). One of the key figures in the formulation and rearticulation of the principle of Imamat for Niz膩r墨 Ismailis is Mu岣mmad al-Shahrast膩n墨 whose impact and massive influence on all later Niz膩r墨 works is now very well established. Al-Shahrast膩n墨 lived during the later years of the life of 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� until the early years of the life of 岣san 士ala dhikrihi鈥檒 salam. Among his works, there are at least three which contribute significantly to this shift: 1. His magnum opus, the al-Milal wa al-ni岣l, which is the earliest source that offers a summarised Arabic version of 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣モ�檚 Chah膩r fa峁 on 迟补士濒墨尘; 2. His Maf膩t墨岣� al-asr膩r wa ma峁Ｄ乥墨岣� al-abr膩r which contains the key elements and methodology of the esoteric exegesis vastly used by Niz膩r墨 Ismailis; and 3. The Majlis-i makt奴b (now published under the title of Command and Creation; for a detailed discussion of these books, see Shahrast膩n墨, 2021) which is delivered in Persian.

The continuum of Ismaili thought from the time of 岣san-i 峁bb膩岣� until the final years of the Alamut state with the contributions of Na峁Ｄ玶 al-D墨n al-峁玸墨 crystalises a very distinct identity for Niz膩r墨 Ismailis from their sister Ismaili communities. The works attributed to al-峁玸墨 played a significant part in shaping the Nizari Ismaili thought and also articulating in further depth principles of 迟补飞岣ツ玠, 颈尘腻尘补迟, 辩颈测腻尘补迟 and 迟补士濒墨尘, which were central to Nizari Ismaili thought. The most prominent works of al-峁玸墨 on Nizari Ismaili thought are: 1. Raw岣峚-yi tasl墨m; 2. Sayr wa suluk; 3. 膧gh膩z wa anj膩m; 4. Ma峁璴奴b al-mu示min墨n; 5. Akhl膩q-i Mu岣asham墨; and 6. Tawall膩 wa tabarr膩. Except for the Akhl膩q-i Mu岣asham墨, all these works are edited, translated into English and published by the Institute of Ismaili Studies.

诲腻士墨s and 岣箩箩补s

Imams

Niz膩r墨 esotericism had now moved closer to a version of Sufism that contained both rational elements and an emphasis on allegorical interpretations of faith. They had also slowly moved away from the densely philosophical Neoplatonism of earlier periods (see Mohammad Poor, in Mir-Kasimov, 2020: 219-245).

With the collapse of the Alamut state at the hand of the Mongols, another period of concealment began which lasted until a period which is known as the Anjud膩n revival period. After Rukn al-D墨n Khursh膩h (d. 1257), the 27^th Niz膩r墨 Ismaili Imam, the oral traditions of the community mention four Imams who lived in concealment following the tragic massacre of Ismailis and the destruction of their intellectual heritage. The names are Shams al-D墨n Mu岣mmad, Q膩sim Shah, Isl膩m Shah and Mu岣mmad b. Islam Shah. This concealment period also witnessed another schism among Niz膩r墨 Ismailis over the succession of Shams al-D墨n Mu岣mmad (see Daftary, 2020). Those who adhered to the succession of Q膩sim Shah are now the Ismailis who acknowledge the authority of their 49^th Imam, Karim Aga Khan IV. Therefore, the precise name of this branch can be recorded as Niz膩r墨 Q膩sim Shah墨 Shi士i Ismaili Muslims. The other branch of Niz膩r墨s is the Mu岣mmad Shah墨 branch. The most prominent figure of this line of Imamat was Shah Tahir al-Husayni (d. 1594) who propagated a form of Ismailism under the guise of Twelver Shi士ism. The line of the Mu岣mmad Shah墨 Imams discontinued in the final decades of the 18^th century and the the Muhammad Shah墨 Ismailis either merged with the Q膩sim Shah墨 line or assimilated into Twelver Shi士ism (Daftary, 2011:405).

From the time of Mustan峁r bi鈥檒lah II (d. 1480) who was the first Imam of the Anjudan revival period, Niz膩r墨 Ismailis slowly emerged from concealment cautiously asserting more visible roles in society. By this time, Twelver Shi士ism had become the official state religion in Iran under the Safavids. Niz膩r墨 Ismailis had also started a closer relationship with various Sufi groups including the Ni士matull膩h墨 order. This stage of Niz膩r墨 Ismailism lasts for about four centuries until the departure of the 46^th Ismaili Imam, Aga Khan I, to India (in 1840). During this period, Ismaili thought closely intermingled with both Sufism and Twelver Shi士ism to the extent that until the time of the 48^th Ismaili Imam, Aga Khan III (d. 1957), it would be difficult to distinguish Ismaili identity from that of Sufis or Twelvers.

By the time of the first Aga Khan (d. 1881), the Niz膩r墨 Ismailis who accepted this line of Imamat were spread in Iran, Syria, Central Asia, China and India with some early communities who had moved to East Africa, with Zanzibar being an important entry point for Niz膩r墨 Ismailis of the Indian Subcontinent known as the Khojas (see Hirji, Zulfikar, in Daftary, 2011:129-159). In his memoirs, the Aga Khan refers to 鈥業ndia, Khur膩san, Turkist膩n and Badakhsh膩n鈥� as centres where Ismailis had sent aid to their Imam during the process of his fleeing Persia (see, The First Aga Khan, p. 93). Settlements of Niz膩r墨 Ismailis from the subcontinent are reported to have started during the time of the 45^th Ismaili Imam, Shah Khalil Allah (d. 1817). The devastating Mongol invasion, their massacre of Ismailis and the destruction of their intellectual and literary heritage did not uproot Niz膩r墨 Ismailis. They were scattered all around the globe while always maintaining close contacts with their Imams and the continued line of succession. The movement of Ismailis to East Africa during the Imamat of the first three Aga Khans was accompanied by major changes and developments in the social structure of the community and a shift in the way Ismaili Imamat exercises its authority over the vastly diverse community it had. The Uganda crisis during the rule of Idi Amin led to a migration of Ismailis to Europe and North America in larger numbers mainly among the Niz膩r墨 Ismailis from the subcontinent. Ismailis from Northern Areas of Pakistan, China, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Iran and Syria had linguistic and cultural differences with Ismailis from the subcontinent while sharing their allegiance to the line of Niz膩r墨 Q膩sim Shah墨 Imams.

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