The Nusayri- Alawi Religion AN ENQUIRY INTO ITS THEOLOGY AND LITURGY by MEIR M.BAR-ASHER @ ARYEH KOFSKY REG, ee aA s cw % ¢, hres Brill “168s” LEIDEN - BOSTON - KOLNThe JSRC honk series aime to publinh the best of schelarship 00 rrlagin, on teecrnacnl level Jermalem i map conte ix the toy of oneabe nt Le beth reagen l d en”™ The eat oa rater Br the Sey o Chany Rem 2 grubs ant erp on Chitsanity. Oxber selon, the Zorcastianine, Hinge Bochtuam, nel Chane refgue, are waded bere wo, 26 we a8 anthropedoey ay ont of rehagious phenomena, This book series will publeh dasertarions, re-written, and lad into Englah, various monographs and books Emerging from conterences, Te sere’ sor wes dened by Stabs Cure Poem My Orta Arter The symbols rpecsent he underworld, the ro! srorld, and the heavens wth rd mans, ty, (beni eared ons Thee shave hom wand from te Mikado We he Nee Babrlnnen Pret Library of Congress Cataloging-ia Publication data Bar-Asher, Meat Mikhael and Aryeh Kotsky The Nayar Alas rely! an enquiry into is theology and liturgy / Bar-Asher & Aryeh Kulaky an Jorvaleen nudes ia elynen and culture, ISSN 1370078 ; hucal references and ie, 0 'p Ilamic sects. Kobiky, Anich. IL Title, IIL Series, BP}WONTBS7 2002 297. 83-de2l 2002022543 Die Deutsche Bibliothek ~ CIP-Finheitsaufnahme Meir M. & Aryeh Kofskyt "Alawf religion * an enquiry into its theology and liturgy: / her & Aryeh Kofiky. ~ Leiden ; Boston; Koln: Bril, 2002 © Copyright 2002 by Kirke Beall NV, Leiden, Tha Netherlands A gh rere. No part of is publ ai mayb eprodoed, ated, ved in arctica stam, ie bonsai ay fore by er mes, deine, mechanical, ploooping,rcrding or others, thea pron wien persion fram De publisher to Ruth and Batina --+CONTENTS ‘Abbreviations and Notes on Dates and Cit Introduction ..-- ‘Trinitarian Theology According to a 7th/13th Century I, NusaytT ‘Treatise 7 1. Introduction. 7 2. Bibliographic Description of the Treatise and Some Notes on Its Language ... 8 3, Background and Content of the Treatise 10 4, The Debate over the Nature of ‘AIT... 14 5, Internal Polemics Regarding the Nature of ‘Ali. 15 6. The Manifestation of the Deity in Historical Cycles 28 7. The Manifestation of the Deity in the Imams 30 g. The Trinitarian Doctrine .. 33 9, Relationship between the Persons of the Trinity . 35 10. Apologetics on the Trinitarian Crees 38 11, Conclusion 40 IL, The Theology of Kiab al-usis: An Early Pseudepigraphic Nusayr? Work 3 45 1. Gosmogony and Cosmology 2. The Mystery of Divinity... 3, Angelology 4, Prophecy .. 5, Theodicy, Divine Retribution and Transmigration .. 6. Restoration, Gnosis and Antinomianism.. 7. Heretics and Believers .. 8. Christian and Jewish Issue 9. Conclusion ... II. The Heavenly Ascent of the Nusayri Gnostic .. 73 1, The Myth of the Fall 75 77 2. The Gnostic’s ReturnCONTENTS vil osis and Mystical Union sve Theology versus G0 of the sirat Night Journey 4, Negat 4. The Mystery © 5, Muhammad's 8% ihe Duty to Know the Mystery of asayet Treatise on t WV.A Divinit 1. Ineroductio vo % 2: The Content and Language of the Treatise . 3, The Translation f the Treatise i 4. The Arabic Test of re on the Relation between the Ma‘na V. A Nuyayrt Dialog and the Ism 1. Anroduction 2. The Content of the Treatise 3. The Translation 4. The Arabic Test of the Treatise Vi The Nusayrf Calendar: Allegorical and Antinomian Interpretation of Muslim Festivals. 1. Introduction 2. Nusayri Holy Days of General Muslim Origin 2.1. The Month of Ramadan 2.2. The Festival of Breakit 2.4. The Sacrificial Festival (id al-adl 3. Nusayrt Holy Days of Shit Origia . 3.1. The Day of Gahdir Kini ¢ 3.2. The Day of ‘Ashira’ (id ‘di) 3.3. The Day of ‘Umar's Death {magtal dulam) 3.4, Hd al-mabihala. ios act) 3.5, ‘The Festival of the Bed (id al finds ions 142: 3.6, ‘The Night of Mid-Sha'bin (laylat al nigf min sha'ban) 143 4. Conclusion 150 VILA Druze-Nusavet Debate in the “Episth i i pai he “Epistles of Winder 5 1. Invuduction era is 5 1 159 2. Antinomian Stance toward Musim Religion f aw 3. Theulogival Issuer contests 4.‘Transmigration 160 5, Conclusion 16d VIII. A Catechism of the Nusayst Religion . 163 1, Introduction .. 163 2. Form and Content of the Catechivin 16 3, ‘Translation of the Catechism. 108 200 echism, 4. The Arabic Text of the C: Sources Bibliography .. Index of Names and Subject Index of Biblical and Qur’anic Verses..ABBREVIATIONS AND NOTES ON DATES AND CITATION ABBREVIATIONS Bakira = Sulayman al-Adhani, Aitab al-bakira al-sulayméniyya fi kashf asrar al-diyana al- nusayriyya, Beirut, n. “Buch der Schatten” = H. Halm, “Das «Buch der Schatten»: Die Mufaddal-Tradi- tion der Gulat und die Ursprunge des Nusairiertums,” Der Islam 55 (1978), pp- 219-266 — part 1, ibid., 58 (1981), pp. 15-86—part 2. Catechism = Kitab ta'lim diydnat al-Nusayriyya—a catechism of the Nusayri Religion, in ‘Ms, Paris (Bibliothéque Nationale), fonds arabe 6182, pp. 1a-20b (= Chap. 8, pp. 200-220, below). Esotcrische Sonderthemen = R. Strothmann, “Esoterische Sonderthemen bei den Nusairi: Geschichten und Traditionen von den heiligen Meistern aus dem Prophetenhaus,” Abhandlungen der deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Berlin, 1958, pp. 5-23 + 36 pp. of the Arabic text of Ms. Hamburg 303 (= Risalat al- shaykh Mahmid Ba‘amra ibn al-Husayn al-Nusayri). Kiel = Akhbar wa-riwayat ‘an mawalind ahl al-bayt ‘alayhim al-salam, edited by R. ‘Strothmann, in “Morgenkindische Geheimsekten in abendlandischer Forschung und Handschrift Kiel arab. 19,” Abhandlungen der deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften ‘zu Berlin, Berlin, 1953, pp 7-45 + 7 pp. (the Arabic text of the manuscript). KM = Kitab al-Majmit, in R. Dussaud, Histoire et religion des Nosairis, pp. 181-198 (the Arabic text); pp. 161-179 (French translation by Dussaud). (MA = Aba Said Maymin b. Qasim al-Tabarani, Kitab sabil rahat al-anedh wa-dalil ‘al-surir wa-L-aftah ila faliq al-asbak al-ma'rif bi-majmital-a'yad, edited by R. Stroth- mann, Der Islam 27 (1944-1946) (German Title: Festhalender der Nusairier grundlegendes Lehrbuch im syrischen Alawitenstaal). Mundzara = Munazarat al-shaykh Yusuf ibn al-‘Ajiiz al-Nashshabi tatadammanu akhassa ‘agd'idikim bi-t-tawkid, in Ms. Paris (Bibliotheque Nationale), fonds arabe 1450, pp. 67-155. RT = Risalat al-tawhid by Aba ‘Abd Allah al-Husayn b. Hamdan al-Khasibi, in: Ms, Paris (Bibliotheque Nationale), fonds arabe 1450, pp. 42-48. Salisbury = E. Salisbury, “The Book of Sulaiman’s First Ripe Fruit Disclosing the ‘Mysteries of the Nusairian Religion” by Sulaiman Effendi of Adhanah,” Journal of the American Oriental Society 8 (1864), pp. 227-308. NOTES ON DATES AND CITATION (1) Dates are given according to the Aji calendar, followed by the Western (i.e. CE) equivalent. (2) When citing from the Qur'an, the entire verse under discussion is presented in English followed by the Arabic transliteration of the verse. The English translation is taken from A. Arberry, The Qur'an Interpreted (Oxford, 1983, 2nd edition), with ‘occasional modifications. Verses are cited according to the numbering of the com- mon Egyptian edition.INTRODUCTION I ‘The Nusayris—also known as ‘Alawis—have been in power in Syria for the past three decades. Little is known of their origins or their long history, while their religious creeds and thought are somewhat better known. The main reason for our fragmentary knowledge of the Nusayry religion is that, since its beginnings, it has always been the secret faith of a self-conscious elite that zealously guarded its sectarian literature. The Nusayri faith is a clear example of a syncretistic religion. It combines and fuses elements of cults and creeds of very disparate, and remote, origins. Among these are various pagan beliefs (residues of ancient Mesopotamian and Syrian cults), as well as Persian, Chris- tian, Gnostic, and Muslim—both Sunni and Shi‘i—religious precepts and practices. All these components have been brought together in a syncretistic religious system that has assumed a heterodox Shi‘ garb. This syncretistic complex has led to various hypotheses regarding the origins of the Nusayri religion. René Dussaud, one of its pioneering scholars, saw its roots in the pagan circles of Late Antiquity.! Henri Lammens, on the other hand, regarded the Nusayri religion as a pe- culiar offshoot of ancient Syrian Christianity.? Other scholars, among them Samuel Lyde, Heinz Halm, and Matti Moosa, view the Nusayri religion as having developed from a radical Shi‘i group. Our own investigation of Nusayri sources has led us to espouse the latter view. According to both Nusayri and non-Nusayri writings the begin- nings of the Nusayri religion are connected with the figure of Muhammad b. Nusayr, a devotee of the tenth and eleventh Shit Imams, ‘Ali al-Hadi (d. 254/868) and Hasan al-‘Askari (d. 260/873/ 4). The term “Nusayriyya”, the most common appellation of the new religion, apparently goes back to Ibn Nusayr. Other names by which ' See R. Dussaud, Histoire et religion des Nosairis (Paris, 1900), pp. 17-40. 2? See H. Lammens, “Les Nosairis furent-ils chrétiens? A propos d’un livre récent,” Revue de UOrient Chrétien 6 (1901), pp. 33-50.aye Khas 1g their affinity with ‘At, 7 groups. Also worthy of nog ‘mucaida—that thee part, have genet the Mustim fold? devoted to the Nusayt esoteric and sacred writings ‘ew have been published and stad- teen reeach int the Nostrrebgon began in the middle ofthe 19th century when European id mise ic Syria made contact with the Nusayr people, became aware eligin, and managed to obtain some of thelr mane ers was Joseph Catan, who served during lor and dragoman of the : has $0 far been reached European libraries, af of the earlier studi pearance as to scholars to Dussaud, as wi al Sulyménivya ft hashfasrir Jn 1840, this workis a moder de religion written by Sulayman al-Adhant, a Nusayz¥ apostate. This book, predecesors, supplied Dussaud with most of the trated primarily on the Yet our study of the fe that Sulayman’s book testifies to the persistence of early Nusa ws practices over the Following Dussaud, a textual study was undertaken by Rudolph hed a few conclude a large manus as Kitab majmit al-dyd) and al cific doctrinal issues. con the early roots and ground, His major contributions to the neglected field of Nusayrt studies have been his detailed and well-documented study on the proto- [Nusayrt text Aid al-haft wa ‘monograph Die islamishe Guosiss die extrame Schia und die ‘Alaaciten ( ‘The Ghuldt Sects (New York, 1988), a mainly descr { secondary sources. Finally, a few books in ArabicINTRODUCTION 4 5 and 7)° and our more recent work, Our previous studies have been substantially revised and ac book Form, Together ae chaps ae a mosaic of fundamen, cology and liturgy. ogy. Chapter 1, consisting mainly of a det i ss of th ates of trinity and incarnation, focuses on a 13th-century fal treatise, demonstrating the comp me al Chapter 2 con é main theological issues of Blab al-usis, a medieval pscudepigraphic Nusayri work thay i a kaleidoscopic treasure of theological issues. hn adlton 10 the major theological doctrines, it covers such subjects as angclology, proph, fe, theodicy, wansmigration, and the Nusayrl attitude toward her. cis and believers-—all with a breadth unequalled in other known Nugayti texts This lengthy treatise is also marked by its preoccupa. tion with Christian motifs, exemplifying the significance of the Chris. tian element in Nusayri theolo : ‘Chapter 3 is devoted to a discussion of the mystical quest of the Nusayrt Gnostic for unification with the divine realm of emanation, Such unification is achieved by heavenly ascent through the degrees of gnosis of the mystery of divinity, perceived as an antinomi toration of the pristine spiritual existence of the Nusayri believer before his mythical fall from the divine world of light. This ideal quest is presented as the true meaning of Mubammad’s night journey and heavenly ascent. In contrast o chapters 1-3, which highlight major theological topics, chapters 4 and 5 contain two brief 10th-century theological treatises by Aba ‘Abd Allah al Husayn b. Haran al-Sa'igh, given here in their original Arabic and accompanied by an annotated translation, The rcatise in chapter 4 focuses on the believer's duty to know the mys- tery of divinity legorical interpretation of ‘Muhammad's night journey and heavenly ascent discussed in the pre- fers, and the pu ‘of the book, INTRODUCTION ofthe soul through these deyrees The treatise in chapter 5 basal pursues the same theme but focuses on the relationship between the two supreme persons of the trinity, the ma’nd and she inns . Chapter 6 the Nusayet ‘i al-fabarant's Hthecentury Maind! add. The vere y ‘vad. The variety of festivals — deriving from Persian origins, from Christianity, and f Sunnt and Shi) ~is a mirror refle acinar Nusayet religion, Nusaytt allegorical and antinomian tenley recurrent feature of heterodox scets, are clearly atested i endar, demonstrating the means employed by Nusayr!thevle : ns in their endeavour to fuse their eclectic calendar into a new thee, logical and liturgical system, This chapter focuses on the Muslin component—which forms the major part of the Nusaytt calendar tation to the Nuyayri system, ned in the Druze canon is the subject of chapter 7. This polemic focuses on cardinal questions of both religions, such as the antinomian stance toward Muslim religious commandments and concepts of divinity, and transmigration, An non theme of this polemic is the religious significance of the physical union between man and woman, The chapter examines Nusayri doctrine and praxis as reflected in the polemic, and further suggests a degree of social and religious contact between Nusaytis and Druzes in the formative phase of the Druze religi ‘The eighth and final chapter comprises the Arabic text and an- notated translation of the only Nusayri catechism known outside Nusayei circles: Aitab ta'tim diyanat al-masayriyya {litcrally: Book of in- struction in the Nusayt? religion). As with other esoteric religious groups, initiation into the mysteries of the religion seems to have played an important role in the process of shaping and maintaining the particular Nusayri identity. This is evident from various works deal- ing with aspects of initiation as well as from contemporary Nuyaytt practices, Nusayr¥ catechisms are reported to have been transcribed by sheikhs in preparation for initiation ‘The catechism format suggests Western influence; for Christian catechisms circulated in 19th-century Syria. Yet notwithstanding its manifestly Christian literary form, the Nusayrl catechism indi bly contains doctrines and formulas found in early Nusayti literature, Despite some one hundred and fifty years of research into the Nusaytt religion, Nusayr¥ studies are still limited, since there are very few printed editions even of the manuscripts that are currently avail able, Additional manuscripts may yet be found outside of the NusayrtINTRODUCTION munity, The Nuyayts themsches stil zealously protect thi com eritage, but there is hope that, like the gradual Opening . pea taking place in Druze edu ted, ney the Nusayrig a so eventually become less hemctially sale! the outside won I ges witha saying tata more complete brary of Nise egy rar broaden ours far imited and fragmented grasp ofthe Nusa religion and history, ending support to some of our currently heig rrotions and no doubt refuting others. v In conclusion, itis a great pleasure for us to acknowledge the help vue have received from friends, colleagues, and institutions. We are innmensely grateful to Etan Kohlberg and Sarah Stroumsa, who read ‘draft of this study and made insightful suggestions. Thanks are due dike to Mohammad Ali Amit-Moezzi, Simon Hopkins, and Tayi Langerman for their sound comments on sections of the work. In addition, we wish to express our heartfelt appreciation to Tarik Abu Rajab for his invaluable assistance in preparing the Nusay13 catechism for publication. A special debt of gratitucle is owed to Evelyn Katrak for her rigorous editing of the manuscript. We would also like to thank David Shulman and Guy Stroumsa, the editors of the series Jerusalem Studies in Religion and Culture, for accepting our book for publication in this series. It is a special pleas- ure to thank the staff at Brill Publishers, particulary Mrs. Annick Meinder-Durkyz and Mr. Ivo Romein, for their professional work, as well as their patience and unfailing good humour. We are grat staff of the following institutions for their assistance in acquiring microfilms of Nusayri manuscripts: The John Rylands Library Hamburg Carl von Ossietzky (Hamburg {wo insitutions helped to make the completion of this study pos- uupport: the Maurice J. and Fay Karpf Truman Research Institute for the Ad- vancement of Peace (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem); and the sand Diplomacy (Ben- y of the Negev, Be , cal 1 least, special thanks are due to our spouses, Ruth and ir ¢ and encouragement th out years of CHAPERONE NUSAYRI TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY CCORDING TO A 7TH/13TH CENTURY 7 TREATISE 1. Introduction yn, radical Shit elements constitute a central com- othe most important of thes is the deification of ‘AI, Abt ‘Nocturne typical of radical SHIT groups. Its chiefly due to that those groups are known as Ghulat (Cextremists") this tenet een of ‘Al's divine/uman character in the Nuyaytt re- ee been discussed in previous studies. A number of scholars, inning with Lyde and Dussaud and including others to whom we nae have discussed the Nusayt winity in varying degrees a 4 nd depth, ) attempting to trace the sources of this doctrine of exams centrality in the Nusayr religion and ritual. Moosa and te dealt with this subject in an exhaustive study ofthe Ghult eee about half of which deals with the Nusayri religion,? An ex- see chapter deals with the NusayrT trinity. However, it appears fat al the scholars who have until now expounded on this ques- that Spare a tendency to present the NusayiT theology on the divine weture of “AR, the essence of the Nusayri trinity, and other issues as saiitn from the same cloth, Although these scholars are aware of the existence of sub-sects and other groupings among the Nusayris, tind have in fact described them in their studies,” they have not paid attention to the considerable doctrinal differences existing among the Nosprisdhemselves regarding the isues under discussion, This cannot Always be attributed to a meagreness of sources. In certain eases, such as the topics discussed in the present study, this lack of differentia~ tion fs in fact due to an insufficiently careful reading of the sources which they had at their disposal. T See eg Dussauch Histoire religion des Noses, pp. 40-72. 2 See Moosa, Extromist Ski's: The Ghul Secs, pp. 50 56, 342 35 5 See Dursaud, Hstare et eign des Noyautt, pp. 77-103, Moos ibid. pp. 337 3H.CHAPTER ONE. S Various, 8 Posi an disputes concerning es ofa collective manuscript of Nusayri writings (codex arabe 1450) in the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, The manuscript comprises 179 ios and includes a number of NusaytT treatises, catalogued cone sly by G. Vajda and Y. Sauvan.* they -130a as a mundzara and Dussaud, without p ized that be Sia NuSAYRI TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY 9 Jace names, attest 10.4 single tractate.® To Dussaud’s obser- Pacey ad thatthe issues discussed jn the “two treatises” ideas also attest to their being a single tractate: ements of 130b const ‘our opinion, a clear ion of ‘om the previous page (1303), ‘of a new one as suggested by Vajda and ‘one ma yuence of sc he treatises included in the collective manuscript pages (67-155) as one unit. His perti- i attest to fen in the hand of the 5) ofthe , from which i tran ‘ewed the complete sequence of the entitled Mundzarat al mnder discussion as one work, w tatadammanu alsa ‘ag cluding fundamentals ofth that fullows, sharh al- layhi( institution of] the Imam ime ke obligations imposed on him), refer already 10 the treatise following the Mundzar (pp. 155M} i : ‘The description of Vajda and Sauvan® indicates that the entire coleation was copied by a umber of copys, ass evident felophon atthe end of each treatise therein? The copying of the wth which we are concerned was completed on the fist of vremonth of Safar 121141 (7 August, 1796) This collection, along 1+ (Paris, arabe 1449) also cont i Syrian) handvriting, reached the Bi 66,1" © See Dussaud, Hise ot eign des Nests, introdu 7 See the handwritten preface to the codex Par Si line 4 There mo pagination ofthe handwriten pe sven bere 8008 See Catal des arabes, vol. 3, p. 314 tb, ines 1-2, See also Vala and Sauvan, Calli des manus pe 3. See Vayla and Sauvan,ee 10 [NUSAYRI TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY, known tous, isM idle Ars matical deviations from oprove and a kind of with =, WI opposite, les frequent replacement fect tense ional comme teatise,? convey suce iead of 2’, b)'*—is also document, cript."° Morphologically, the classica cd athough here and there slips into th ‘vernacular occur, such as the doubling of the g afier the definite art . 2a phenomenon familiar from spoken dia. ects, including the Sy n dialects. ‘As regards syntax, particularly noteworthy is the misuse of case endings and even subsequent hyper-corrections;" the disappearance of modes of the imperfect, which is one of the salient characteris. tics of middle Arabic, can also be observed. ted forms are generally preserve 3, Background and Content of the Treatise of this place as that some places yem as being located ied wi lar place names appearing epoeraphie hslrigue de la Sprie antique et médiévale (Paris, ‘obscure, que je n'ai pu le suvte dans le dedale nes 24-26).to corrupt matters and Wo! wagg wea-gauclal-sidg wa-mali ila -asbab al. Later Se mention who, in his ees, exemg, 1 with Rabi'a al-Suwayda and ‘who is mentioned several times in “ie place iin thine ae tre planes: Sat Jer ae Tere flows deed account fe omg the ag and the establishment of his rule over 7 ashhabi mentions te names of sever stati the villages Bid al-dhimam, Bild abn an inde, p. 7, tne Wwthoe cl weveral places named al Sua) ed in the Syran Arabic d [NuSAVRY TRINITARIAN TH B ys and material pleasures, and also because ‘won support for his views fr tous rom ol thers are presets “ides; tempers lare and the polemic causes a i friends. AlNashshabi blames Rab for denour mote recent times, expec religious education there is quite deta hundred years, about whi are in fact (wo aspects poe over the nature of ‘AT and the 1, therefore, to focus on tl(CHAPTER ONE “ 4, The Debate oe the Nate of Ae «And question of the “imma “palndt" and I rejected [ tween v0 pared pre course of the treat is an abstr of the treat iropomoxphic terms, although here a crude anth God's body thand, head, foot as and reveals himself in the his- ism), a aetretat coud impart to him qualities of flesh a val concey doctrine of incarn cous Nugaytt concepts bor of the desir to resemble, to a large degree, Ci “AIT the God took on a . alep aoa om Ast in which he is described as undertaking huran “light of essence” (era hit, mentioned in several pasages ofthe hate quoted here, sigs a mediating power jucusion 0n the rnity below Je about ‘AIL Tsar that the mont subline aoc ofthe tty ncealy idee with sae incarnated in the historical Imam This concep is fac ented “ie” a-mdna. This question as wel athe ality a he Nuts ‘Shim is dacused below, ithe did have an image both in by- coh ae the sect ofthe Bayannya. See ‘Abd al Qh ae ied by P, Hii Cairo, 1928), p45R ONE 1 Mu‘awiya at Sita (in 377657). yyy, rity eis primary cof his own helt wy and the vie ews of apostates ws jes which the author lists are some that ay heresies which the a re aoe A AF knot and some that are as yet completely unknown p fig other sources majority are internal Nugaye oy, transpires from the reat that t Vigiyya occupy a conspicuous pi pool a fees The treatise describes the fist as a Nusays amor faction; we have been wu Ane the views which aba’ i on crstnding, the three divine lights of the winity, “4 a ent and Salmtn, emanated (inhgiaf fom the “abeeys i wby Al in his hiorical appearance is, according to them: ere Mhesvand Mood gue is Bashar mekhlig) that reflec i human aspect ofthe deity. Between the divine aspect of ‘Aland di. itself there is an intermediate entity, the ° ‘Ais therefor, in their understanding, the manifestation of God in created human form.? In another place al-Nashshabt even aterbutes en both Sunni and Sh sources, in Muhammad Baqir a Majlis, Bir al aned Bein, 1403/1983), vol 21, pp. 15E Aesop. 1b, ines 1s ote 194) where ‘AI i depicted as descending fr appears in alShaheastin's ac are des rigs et des sees (Lee of a cert Murizera, p. 137a, line 3. See also p. 82b, hi fatm and where heretic views are ascribe ob essence,” see Mundzara, pp. 82a-b, 23, NUJAYRE INITARIAN THEOLOGY 0 on that this created form in fact . In other words, God created The autho people in a created them the somewhat vague noti the ‘Alr’s human form for peopl tention here seems (o be t 1 form due to mankind's inability to grasp His exalted nature ‘Al is of flesh and blood, just like the “leader of the community” (ind aljand'a) in every generation, is also atributed to the Hatimiyya.” A double claim may be implied here: Firs for the complete incarnation of ‘AIK and second, for the belie that “Aly is embodied anew not only in the historical Imams but also in de Jeaders of the Nusayrt communities in every generation,®® ‘The Isbiqiyya are the other important group whose views al-Nash- shabt portrays as reflecting the heretical views with which he takes issue in his treatise. In a number of places in the treatise the author notes that those who hold these deviant opinions are the followers of Aba Duhayba. Although the author does not mention this per er appellation, he is apparently referring to Ismail b, bak, known by his surname of Aba Duhayba, a dis. ciple of Isbq (b. Muhammad al-Nakha’ al-Abmar), one of the found, crs of the Isbaqiyya sect. In origin and outlook this sect was close to the Nusayriyya, and it seems that al-Nashshabi's polemic against therm wo or view reflects some historical reality and does not belong merely in the lit rary domain, in modern times of the belief that ‘AIF was trothmann, “Die Nusayrt im heutigen Syrien,” ingen (Gottingen, 1950), p. 35. See also itch der Death Morgenlnischen he history of the Ishaqiyya in Syria is Ghalib, Te'slh Alain pp. 262-264), according wo which the Syria centre othe sect in Alege rmoved under the leaderhip of Aba Duhayba wo the region of the Nosayrt ne, fain and from there to the coast of Ladhigiyya, where Abd Duhayba sod he tot lowers became rival ofthe Nusayt sect. At the beginning ofthe [3th century the this region by the activities of Hasan al-Makram al. 8 great poet of the Nusayrivya ally eliminated the pres followers ofthe sect ig the Nusayrs; at any rate the micmory ive. The Nusayris also retained in their possesion tq and the Isbaqiyya, see Halm, “Das «Buch der Schatten» 5-247, 250-253; MA, pp. 130, 195, 205, For a French translation of iyva, see Dussaud, Histre a religom ds No ae des religions et des sects, pp. 542-345, pp. 57ff; Gimaret and MCHAPTER ONE NUSAYRI TRINTTARIAN THEOLOGY 19 Paragraph, names of past rivals, Ishq and his viant .demn the deviant doc: Jr which the author describes events that occurred after God’, _ carnation in the Imam Hasan (al-Askari): " ied, doubt has intru Pa : h as those of shaq ay eet, Jowers are worthy of red as unitarians (muwahhide of com. rhe author mentions two other groups apparently ase Nc yet ects—the Mu'tazila and the Zaydliyya; but it should be noted le views have appeared suc 1d others from among those who the Ai and ‘ween them and the groups known to “people of ran referred to : 1 Shi sub- ‘Mas‘di. The view that is the sun which encompasses the sky” is advocate the incarnati ‘such as those held by Ishaq and his followers Tee the view that the divine manifested form from which the mand speals isthe universal end aly amare al-ghiya at-taliyya al-zdhira a-ahitivya a-ndtiqa icLmanaciya)” ra system this forn the entire peaks through the historical human figures in wl arnated.”? Regarding the name Zaydiyya, it should first be noted that the 1 inclucles several groups u ies 12-13, identified fa. In Catchurm, question 99, al- ‘usayiT religion. On the life and works 10us editor of al-Khasi's al Hudiye - forall the persons of the in the French wanslation,;cd them asians i proven by these word that he fa the mistaken concep- ty regarding the of tse wellknown Ast oa of Maimonides, Tie Guide of th Pap {sp 163 Se abo ou discuss below of theCHAPTER ONE of this verse, as resting : fA eaches its apex in his complete igen hi achieved through exegesis and ey cy wmifeation ofthe Quranic verse that ope 2 He ym yalidwa-lam yilad” and has not been begotten) 1° : canon version ofthe Que’, the Wong at ean (Commander ofthe Fatal) appear here--ay ee renin at in Nosayfiteratare, as well a in Shi literature ing various subdivisions, refers 10 on the one hand, refute more vigorously th accu, 13 who hold similar views and, onthe ace his own approach, which exalts ‘AK as Gog te nites es of sayings ofthe Imam Jafar al iaig Muharnmad b, Sinan and God that are proper to Hi ures?” ae fi wa-kallin ) yardhu bina awa min jinihi avkaya ysl bik mec min, jini Kg pretation of another statem a summary of an ere is no change in ifsuch a change is perceived by human ed understanding, In summarizing his opinion ofthe correct conception concerning the deity of ‘AIR jor makes the following declaration of sights (mugalib al But He is exalted above and is superior to who deny the pos ing Him (ahl al-tabi wa-Linkr) The unitarian, whi 1c existence of the Creator, is indiflerent to clear expressions of absteas, aah itha (gaa baud al-Bat ma pasrahu min however, acknowledge [His] appearance and abe and from a described m from two exte (o His creatures and from time, a t would read more coherent i tanzib where replaced by tis perhaps meaningful even a it stands. Readi ; asthe txt has it, leads us to understand that inhiCHAPTER ONE y whose remarks are cited as corroborar; niception is, as noted earlier, Muhaminag b ms that only the hums. Nashshabi’s cor ‘A statement attributed to him pro Of Airis manifested because of the peop! dl knowledge of God. However, when the believer undersian the revealed form of God, when seen, is not a concrete only a figment of the imagination, ate abstraction of God.” wation of Ibn Sindn’ ’s words, and as an extensive g om. [Nashshabi proffers three different wa cei only one of which (the last) can bring mene to the proper absraction of God: (a) Those who believe that hee ed form of God is flesh and blood err, because there is np se ity to the flesh and blood form (fa-in ®tagada ahadan (2) annaha ye = Jfertbashariyya lam yakum lata bagiqa). (b) Those who believe that iy sce a form of light also err, since itis impossible to observe a fy. of light (vea-in gala strat nir fa-gad ablala nazarahu idhé kang azarae dam ra (2) ir [) wa-ianama ra’abashar ]). That leaves the thing his seeing a form of flesh and blood andl denyin in his words, believing “in a form ae see” (dilaf ma ra’athu al-‘ayn). Those who do so come closer to un. tract essence of God, since the correct existence To sum up: According to al-Nashshabi, the wad Rabi‘a (and likewise the treatise, i correct per- y early Nusayr? authoriti * Munda, p. 10tb, me also held by alist: see RZ, pp. 42b. and 46h, Mandzera, p. Wb, lines 24 coincide with al-N: WS as expressed at various place tise and in some of his stat led to eater the dis ble form, beyond the « God, the mand, who is the object of wore ception of the Eiip of al-Khasiy, ing or restricted («a-la yajtzu anna I-ma'nd ‘azza wa-jalla mahjth bi-shay’ wa:lé mahytr fiannahe “al-azal al-qadim)."° Later, the author presents an even more far-reaching view: the ma'nd actually has no attribute; because as he was alone, there was no one to call him by name or by attribute, neither among the crea, tures of the world of light, nor from among the earthly, those of flesh and blood (min al kaxnayn al nrdnt wa-t-trdbial-bashar) God's atiributes were introduced solely for the need of humans (or, more accurately, the gnosties [al-“rifin).%* However, even the gnostics cannot know ough His external manifest G-hidayatih In concludi is worth men guishes between represents an € this review of the possible perceptions of the mai dito al s of the walt and to the ma{nd is on cas the mand is alCHAPTER ONE he ma'nd is not known Dy any attribute i oe te maintained, is the ultimate of what the be 2% From the context it transpires that the i ' fa of the mae eh wal fa om tbat oF aby of the mand. I mast further be sant a sort Moot ofthis nig esincton Between tea and ag thet that . Ties a hierarchic conception, one that ereates a correlation betgege the three levels of faith and the three degrees of attaining enlighas er cay ment: AVSid stam is knowledge of the zal; ind is knowledge tnd th nce of what Hes bey nd fey saated to converse on whatever he wishes Hea a bend) He [aki ai further a ia taken tha re sept through its ence UPON Us ay aoe ani “latin frig al af a cotati finay.9? 1M ‘To conlude, the author’ conception of the mandi one of extreme socom the supreme axpet ofthe city cannot be deserved in aoc The only devgnationofwhich temas worthy is iy aye atghndy, Ths appellation is the apex of the concept of ree expreses the absolute inability to know the mag in a direct and complete way. : sent hc extreme abstractionst conception advocated bya. Seba paradoxically he slaves an opening For attaining noe aaanpnlee ofthe ma'nd but even a sort of mystical union wi oer other words, we have here an example ofthe contrast betwe ae al rational conception of negative theology (theloga negating at ihe mastcal impulse of the gnostic. Against this background i is possible to comprehend the contradictory statements appearing in various places regarding the posiblity of attaining the ma'na "The guthor claims that itis indeed possible to negate only human aspect of the mand; nevertheless, one can neither describe nor enol the esoteric side, which is shrouded from human com Be tice of an estorie aspect is established s by “the hear’ conscience and by meditation” (Id yumkinu f-ahadin 1) minal ase egg ys eal yah enna ptt "Ibid. p. 19a, tines 3-8. ® thi, p. 150) hhe ses the term View (Municara eee [NUSAVRI-TRINITARIAN THEOLO 27 rgd damit al-qalb rea-tadby al flr? That is to say, the negation of God's attributes is valid only with regard to His external aspect, and cer cannot progress beyond that. He ced " ted in his capaci fo grasp the human quality ofthe revealed form of the de 0 Never theless, the extent and quality of the gnostic’s knowledge of God is proportionate tothe degree ofthe purity of his esence and spirituality (cea-inammd al-ndzir ila bichasab al-taga wa-kull ‘ag ‘ald migdtr safe () jeucharihi twa-isrdf itr bastralihi wa-lalifat rakaniyyauiti),!. It is therefore possible, as we saw earlier, t advance to a knowl edge of the ma'nd by means of the powers emanating from it, which Fepresent stages in the believer’s progress toward complete knowl. fcdge: the ism, the bab, and below them the yatins: Realize that he who knows the mefnd through the min [=Mulamun Rep nh wh ine hh hn sha. the yafins, and derives one thing out of another, and [knows] how thine were separated one from another —has attained perfe In another passage, which includes a Nusayri interpretation (in th rune of al-Sidiq) of the Basmala formula, this ides, dese ving te gradual progress of the believer in attaining the secret of the deity, is phrased in a similar manner. Whoever understands the min (=Mu, hammad=isn) can comprehend the ma'nd, al-ralman al-rakim (the Merciful, the Compassionate). 199 When the believer has achieved the uppermost degrce of slftpu: ification, he is cut off from his corporeal existence and becomes 2 il being. He thereby ascends to the level of faith characte ed by a unique shakada, distinct from that of common believers: “I bear witness that You are my goal, and You are my ma'nd .. . and You are I and Lam You” (asbladu annaka ghayafl wa-ma'naya .. wa- anta and wa-and anta).!* at “The true shahdda therefore includes a declaration of the believer's spiritual identity and perhaps even his mystical union with the mand In another tradition, knowledge of the ma'xd (='Ali=Allah) and sub- n to Him are identified with paradise. ‘Those who know the 155. Se al below chap. 8p 172 es BG serie eT EE PER |CHAPTER ONE 30 not necessanly reveal hi ican is that the ma‘nd reveals himse wo say through his ism an i! may m¢ the ma‘nd emer ges from remarks al-Husayn Muhammad 6 Alt all mand is revealed in t 7. The Me sation of the Deity in the Tmams in historical triads, the most recen wishes 10 TeV a so a reveals h con nerson. Hence his ap; concept of incamation where the ma'nd : , re that the author never inama Rabi'a, as we have seen, adheres to an anthro, tion of God, whereby the rical person that appears to humans. ki he author's of the imma is ismt rather than ma'ndict. That is to say, the ma‘nd is revealed in the Imams hewhere al Nash ans fhe hat se ve tha Gu ncaa ine ea they hold that for the on earth al with the mind. Further al the aon ned group: ibn Askarf, as the twelf Aart athe we th leading to the Absence (ghar, They cording to them, God can speak speech (mui). Speech passes on from, sway" (Mundzara, p.150a, Tine 12 —p, ine incarnation in the Imam,2 OUPIR ONE Ashart, the MUNWRE TRIN ARIAN is portraved as the incal sits remarks 33 the supreme ” On the Nusayrt trinitatian doctrine, see Lace, The Asan Mbstey. pp. 18 a = é references to the stuxhes of Dussaudl and Moo in notes ¢and 3: Moos, fenioor. 1:27, ‘i (pp. 50-64) abo deals with trinitarian doctrines among Ine Ghsldt ee who upbulds the th) (pp. 30 64) on ‘is z groups, Aniong these doctrines is one adhering to a relanvely moderate version, iar RE: Ze PP. 1220-1234, The autboe adds bere that the person who claims sccording wo wlhch the thie persons ofthe trinity are Allah, Mubarnmad, and Sadan (han the m'atis part ofthe mama line is Aba Dubantos had. p50)CHAPTER ONE u absence” and the fist person of the ting. Papa cee and itis dented, among other Spear mae of Go em aon Tyg iy 8 se to he Hata, i car Ra Concern eg ur and fica, which demote qe eS otal by placing aboxe him the “absence”— identifi wig 22 Sresoureof he enanaton fhe ty: In opposing, 5tSsch rae ison conception, Wich prom e date identification beoscen the “absence” and ‘Alt. Ira 2a author atives fora moderate conception of unity of the tty, not even the light of essence (lysa baynahe [i Banal fe. te ism) fag wad iil). The existence of the mediating between Allah (='AHt as ma'nd) and Muhammad (xy in is ths precladed: eshould be noted thatthe author does nots pletely reject the term “light of essence,” and he actually use Tight a, explain the creation ofthe dim from the me'na. However, he phases thatthe us ofthe term “light of essence” is meant anh fe the sake of clarity and should not be viewed asa sont of entity rating the ma‘nd from the #m,'” In contrast, of essenc termns as spirit,” and “the buffer” arg or fa n supporting the are val the affinity between the second person (the im) and t third (the dad). In other words: the relation between the bab and the in substance from the connection between the iim t the same time, the author docs not rej ine light when he details ct the existe in the world of divine emanation, Furthermore, stages of creation and emanation of the upper "Afr, p. 82%, fines 1-4 1 Align. 83, nes 1-13. Fora intermediate concept, sce Mp. 18, Beeb 12 pp. 167-168 in the French translation; Salisbury, pp, 24-21 endive rates de um by ancany of the light ofesence, andthe ogi ‘pany te to him and separate Grom him. Or in the auth {ih an is either truly tied to him aor truly separate ona hy Seg eh eat mt kb pg a ts cd maf Minicoa. p. 84a, lines 5-6, "Tbid. p84, Hines 5-12, NUSAVEE TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY 3 their ereation precedes the creation of the ism and the babe ott first creates the upper worlds, of which the sathen says The mé fer them, the divine lights are created. Only then do the i the bab emanate, followed by the wer ene. the tne Jatin nd iso wats, which belong to the world of di noth imand 0 }¢ emanation and U zh their place is below the trinity." For each of the nine lat. althowtties (ic. the tim, the bib, the five rata, and the wy wali, ter enti exists a counter figure belonging to the world of evil. In other tie there is an allusion here to a concept, known also from Jew: wore baltic sources for example, of a paral is : 1s that exist in the demonic world, si and imp er Sie) of the Zohar, which paralle ate ye author does not develop this concept and on deit ssing. Each person in the trinity has bot ermal and an a Ps I side. Thus the ranks of the divine sphere emanate « that exierretnal side of the highest rank constitutes the internal side of i. rank below.!? 9, Relationship between the Persons ofthe Trinity : atedly mentions the bierarchy within the trinity and Ee ses the cONCeye of ihe hues ‘persons” (agai) 134 in ne lor regards the im and the bab as created enti Hlelaer oes his aversion and views them af eces of the nnd le oher ne tually created rather, the relationship between Them and the ma'nd is that of cause and effect (f'il/ munfail,"® The futhor ascribes to Salman the statement: “Only out of honour and feepect for Mubammad do I refrain from siathig that he was creat a hideel od the ent doors bn fail Mabarnad malig illan wast aman bal AUah al-ma‘na feurgahy 7 But in order to pre- serve the hierarchical subordination in the ma'ad-ism relationship, the wvertheless strives to maintain the principle thatthe fam was author 82 Tbid.. p. 87a Asian doctrine in early ilo. See ee. the36 a ree | USMY TRITARUAS oxo 37 \ ed ny essenq iam is the internal side of the ba! q fnd, The author corroborates this concept with g ge°%%Ce iam is the in ln. the author 80es on to Sete of aha the eames Alt, Mubammad, and Salonen erated to Mubarnmad: “Tam fom ‘A and “Ay from speci ta os external aide of wer Persons. Therefore the ra sin ‘AG wca‘AB mina’); “T am ‘Ali and ‘Att is P (ard At wang (oy ply on ad refers to the external aspect F the iim, whereas the in- Thee statements donot serve him bere to expres gr Ming rene Sere A, wh ate rhe yand unity, a8 if‘AMT and Muhammad wie ene term’ ermal aspect of the ma ran fr he plete eq his view he vis J Ere one the exter Tapani as we have sen, this is a view he vigorously oppons Sp Fe = son; as W that Muhammad, the isn, Rath Gone hierarchy also fds expression in the ing cee the these statements aim to prove that Mubammad, the jpn Was crea “Te eives in the deity: rab (Lord), malik king, ral mesure. from the very essence of AI —the ma'nd, tog I Rabbis the “absence,” which eannea be comprehen In this context itis worth mentioning an instructive Nusaye, and in stn the inca EPS thea into tbl ha ete tation vherin Mumm nl om ‘Athis successor at Ghadir Khumm. In contrast tothe ge @PP ae ar Penis theme is further portrayed by the use of fami se and madier wom toe eee may be added. In thi st; Mubammad is identified asthe father and Sancta the according to which Muha ° ia conten, This identification creates a model that eaabna the rela- ing in the Nusayr tradition attributes to Muhammad the ee tjonship between saci cout aan, he father none Pita man bits mal foA8 mevna (econ : ing tio upper level is equated with the father and the ene hay word Fal fun _ 4 vom Tam the pg wort iin the eather" "The modl &a become a tron, of him iad whenever wi tiqdad, the Gist yatim, appears in the emanation ine role of akMiqdad, peu he author does not sate here to the issue of the creation in fee ofthe persons of the trinity, an issue known 10 us from the tian Arian polemic. In other words, the question does not srg whether Muhammad, the ism, was created at a certa oF before the existence of time, or whether perhaps he always ex! ised with God the ma'nd and was never actually created ( of the problematies in Muslim theology conce ication or preexstence of the Quan}. In any case, the belief are the dsm was ercated from the essenice of the ma‘nd recalls the ortho. dox Christian view which maintains that the Father and the Son are ‘0 persons of the same essenice (homocusias) The hierar the winity is depicted in various ways. One ‘ons of this hicrarchy emphasizes the ‘een the persons. As we have seen, cach nn ossesses two sides, internal and external. ‘The external ae pect of the ma‘nd is the inter ial side of the nd the external facet ierarchy of the emanation of the trinity is also deline i .d through symbolic letters denoting the components of the trin. { fo. This conception is expounded in an imerpretation ofthe basmala | ity. Th to al-Sadiq, an interpretation mentioned already +8 of this formula contain the Nusayrt c ba, says al-Sadig, refers to the greatest satin, ak Mila to attribute a femi- change of Fatima’ “holy famiby,® ayo. See MA, p. Yan ehewhere; TER RSSRRAR Ep Weiner: mrp reper aenanm nner ap ereeemr Ibid. p. 97a, lines 8 9, Murdzara, 139, Nearer Bi os \ ; ;® owe abe arte the Ak the mae the an he rae NL oy ‘ NN Ueno th Peon Cg Mh abou tb ar Ke hon jee oa AS Nat ab ake ape he aa coher is remarks tbl) stem i round edliati with thee oppo engi the Nag dine ini with dive phy and wienve that can confirm the truth of The aude draws a conparizon betwee the phen annd chow ofthe Negayt sages, The that the: ee faze. Dening Gain he es ‘al saan “a ix aswel ona, the Arhctein defton common wo ke ry hops fe Me Aes The aor rear the the ‘seid we mel asa concept that corroborates the Nee wesar bbc of ie uty of eta andthe tila Ore” aati a ish wa ta DL al aid. In ccher he draws 22 aay beworn the pldoupicl int and dhe Nusa &, without addressing the issue of how exactly this analogy can be sesaind. The phssphicalwiy proves tha the philowphen, ton, seppen the idea arity. Thin of analogy samira bore, Chica tec Tee infact dierenc berwen the i. nen i © Meatrore.p. Bia, ie 4, bd Dh is tip Wako? Seep Vabys ‘NA, Pett pti; d Vly bn AeA, Pies SuSAV RE ERISTEARIWY Hn L Oa * comespond to different trinity." On the other wi is Ar the same time, if we cons “Tie dierences betwen the two by ain ai, Ein Pi a Ter, 1%, p Bin the reach anie ity, without at-40 (CHAPTER ONE, tempting reconcle them by exegetical means, thege ali onstrate the erorin the Christan tiniarian batt te A the tath and correctness ofthe Nusayet trinitai ef, I. Conclusion Al-Nashshabi's treatise attests to an atinosphere of Polem logical ferment among 13th century Nusayrs, ‘The! Cheol hy, bates refet the problematic inherent in the Nusaya esa ge cerning the divinity of ‘AM and the incarnation of thy deg tn, historical figure and in other human figures. Some of ink groups mentioned in the treatise uphold a concept thar din ‘Alf divine status, places the hidden aspect of the de above him, and advocates the incarnation of the divine at Thisisa somewhat compromising postion, one that atten? AL the tension created by the incarnation doctrine by proporney ‘AIT is indeed a deity although not in its most that he may therefore appear as human in the station nthe mag while atthe same time upholding the concept of the ineart 2% the ma'nd himself, In contrast to these views, al-Nas! his mainstream po the author to an extremely abstract conception, toa rejection of the incarnation in its Fundamental meaning, and to the developmen ot a complicated decetc conception. From a broad perspective hehe retical opinions disputed in the treatise may be viewed as some ShTi outlook, which con. Siders ‘AI (o be only human, and the orthodox Nusayrt concey ion, "epresented bythe author, which identifies ‘AI with the supreme sop and denies him any human aspect. These principal rom. 8 also surface vs ig with other questions under dis. the incarnation of the deity in ind its manifestation in the twe ec Nusayrt leaders in different generations. ‘The di the author and. sually evolve from their basic posi and the incarnation, The weatise attests o the author's sound knowledge of of Shi traditions (particularly ‘on the question of At's Quran, heterodox ones) and of internal sec- NUSAYRI TRINITARIAN THEOLOGY 4 y with Christian thee literature. It further be. ya nal theological speculation as well as involved and pre ole BY aes reconcile the difficulties produced by Nusayri found ae ays. Acquaintance with alNashshib's teaine doe 1 dg Teg to a more variegated picture of early Nusayr theology, pute cout :CHAPTER TWO. ¢ THEOLOGY OF A7T:iB 41, AN UDEPIGRAPHIC NUSAyRT WORK 0 : i cal of other Nusayt? compositions found in the Nusayri codex, Paris, fonds arabe 145( is unknown, However, a reference to ¢ foundation (asa) of al jowledge of this book,” hence the ie peculiarities of these Nusaye works, ee above, ine 4 8 (=ed, Dandasht, p. 156), The same scribe abo cop- catve af the codex. See L. Capezzone’s inter al-sritattibuito a Mufaddal iba 295. TPRereeeeenaee iCUTER Two, # his book, hs to i = Arabic version identifies eg, sees mascer and diciple as Seth (son of Adam] and lang fra regectch.” The bood is said to be a translation from the Gn*, a mock written by King Solomon by divine onder. eek og Sata, he odhce Nusast text in the Paris codices fd sa 9 characterised by its ungstematc naruns sy be doe wis dake format. The connections teeth ferent stages of the discussion are associat the author doce the svematials develop views on any one point. In thi any sm work we bane atepted to pe tgethr the pices ofthe me et to reconsnaxt a comprehensive picture of the author's main Fink. See ofthe bas concep ueated inthis work ae familar ne ae Nowurl texts, However, Ai al ass - cxpesand terms uncommon in other Nuststfw trines and terminology, for example, occupy place and the author frequently advances analogies ben al-asis is also remarkable, tics an impressive knowledge ofthe al-wsits sholar of Nusavri keaming who is ako versed in Dad Peeasepigraph authorship by Scth i very comin: Lnphanne, Pesce, edied by K. Holl Leipeg, Ge Nese rachitins asrbing religious wring faa eT line 6 Sed. Dandashi. p. 156, re THE THEOLOGY OF KITAB AL-1sey 6 pes oF oF Sacer of seven ruling the c yumiber ol aataces the whole various di Perit word far seven. See al Feast in those parts adaprable te his Peculiar the. 1. Gosmogony and Cosmology ‘This como al symbulian seems the number seven plays a central ok fash al hot wa-tacla, where haf is the Madelung’s review of A. Tamer’ edition ofJ. and similarly, Ath and see belo, note 68. vporal 1 substitute wan or wun, ot Neb a mit | ire oan of Danan, 0, was placed in the bonage ofthe ema ofthe (sy eed. Danas 9p. 115-16, On th Nina checks 1p. 35-37 and Kib wip. 20 1 See a cap. 3, blr, pp. 1577 aH ied. Dandas, p. 1 once of cab ee Abi bah, Fay abt, died by Riese‘THE THEOLOGY OF KITKR atest se-adda ox sacaejaly wag f badarhfe'a lu Te fasaknat dh tat site i ftann’ lghasshdhé banal hanon Kahn ‘i lame fan i nin oi ald srala wath laa hamlun; Lagu han ht a ha t im, shit Simitahd folannd rat Hause mg ‘Mary mae rabbaku wa-lujubahu wa-magdmatihi wa-abwabaky a-2)tam, 2 ays, sana‘al Karaja min al“ubidiyya wa-sdra il manzilat al-ahvig wa-ryf'g ig ed rc abt alm ina meh)? The divine go 1 ery—thus becomes jded into seven vied ae to seven ca rng the burial of Abe Midrashic wurces Adar or Alead rival See eg Pd de lated and annotated with an 1965), chap, 2 ‘on Ilan, translated from tw bury A The Chaps of Rabbi Elie po.2 CRATER Te, omcegt ok twelve ow alter of Neat he ‘Sed. Devdas p. 141) he Sabian at Patra dex tes in acy the Father ate the Som ate ee peruon Sort 8 ' A. Kemymann, Crp Snptorum Eats ort evalemt over Aull ism wa qahara kulla halika anna al Monat ca kul adi “bi qudvatihd wa amr). fea aeeibed oes His ig idhd ra al Khaliga muiluhu bi: f mab) cate his tra on the name All bnerally meaning supreme— is twsewerthy. The arly hn Geepurnt Qs anic dine encibaar t'AN occurs moder Neoeel wot Tn, be exept, the verse ofthe Throne” ( 2255), whch cade vale eds ne have abel ol ‘acim (Hein the supreme aed eorsous, refering wo God, eee ‘AW, See the Nusayet ficargieal text Bly at thathe af dir me. Manche aecHLUTER TWO day’ is esential for unde c iene the creatures. In his ¢ : , id beard (bi-sial al-shayh al-abya Mercy and rev- second appearance ape of a young man ird appearance, ne form of a child (ft saat al-sabi al. Himself to His creatures te God nci the discourse creates peculiar complexities for any ip between God and humans.” Must deals with this issue in various places without jon. A quest “Rita :22) A similar concept See eg. G.G. ty is referred to by the interpretation-—the three states of iar (the moon in its wa you have revealed, that you may manifest it yd bg, Bi-dhat azhartcha lpia ka insin bayna ‘itudaks for the apparently erroneous printed incarnation among early Nusayrt circles, see above,CHWPTER TWO b uM sanding the esence of the deity st dalectcal approach —0 wh particular, does the di created onet, oF buath options, ! - Ira sae this would cm \ ' a known Verse rrse is interpreted His crea God made {allo the terrestrial world nary beings surrounding tant is recorded. However ure of ‘Ali, who is refered {TUE THEOLOGY OF KITAR AL-Uses fal riba ft hy ap id Ja-noflnd min viking ih ea-nal min al gin’ roduces two substantial modifica: ig of this Qur’anic verse, First, the verse the jing calagad‘almat alia end at-bat a-aila, pp. 32-35; and covenant, see R. Gramich, “Der 173," Der lem 60 (1983), pp. 205. and also devotes some space wo early Imam vine Cid in arty SB. The Soares of York, 3 ‘ed. Dandashi, pp. 145-116, For i doctrine of incarnation, se Kitab Ia ee» parce eee re originally referring to va fish of fous from the Ray THEE THEOLOGY OF KITAB AL-tsey . \ is interpreted as being the ine \ - ee ae oa Second in tte toe asegrie conins hie pren a eg the “ Fs Bi tue he wor owe comm he a oN Fo coment Geren tty gan eae as ata ha ate \ + thereby inserting s eine verse, Quation between eres PT les designed to Prelude any woes in Bev th pee God ang Creature “ Ft iberiow Bilsophical docu plaaly depicted After completing the creation, Goa ® Mere othe functioning ofthe boy ‘ His creatures in human form, He rules them O Walks fir allt fallow.” He does not, however, commen directly but only’ via the prophets and apostles," ful t avoid an unequivocal statement ofa doctrine nation by preferring instead a somewh. sat Separation ofthe sul from the bady ther simile God is likened to the sun, which verse, and humanity to the vegetation growing on i breathing wind? eat 27% nin point the dstiple raises the two cardinal questions: ee oes eos thes Mata Panicd does humanity ex- what does (akkbirnt ma yuri lah min Lhalyihi wa-mé yuridy al-thalg 1¢ master’s answer epitomi sparen where he adopts an extreme fn ct dexetan that, God indeed revealed Himsel'ina form ince é that of His creatures, namely, ina human form.” However ncn i they once Bebold te manifestation of His abiliy, they need the ultimate Nusayrt Ot Wine fadvalahy marratan wihidaton jaca : this concept the divine prey en is ‘whirak min axccal al Kha ila dlbini yenft sto the elect, which ‘varlaunaha gabla Lihaly wa-karnahu boda Lalg wa-tascnahy nae b sly. The author further emphasizes that a clear the source fora further development of this peculiar com- * OL Kisb ace, p. a, line 10, sebere the incarnation is described as an act ee cant Sce Mune, pp. Ia-b. CE aho abe te ‘acin sucia 0 n Dandashi, p. 82 7-9 77a line 2 (Sed. Dandashi, pp. 82,153, asrdaski. p. $6), 5 line 2-5 (ed. Dandash, pp. 4 line 6 (=ed. Dandath, pp. 134-135) +b (ed. Dandashi. pp. 109-110, Sed, Dandas 7 Eth prem of te expericace wil peer leave them. : ” Kish asp Sha. lines +3 ed. Dandashi, p. 110,Ss CHUTE Two, con the purwit of divine gnosis and the wor. oe Gal out of eat & conceit a yf Gd ie. The athe apps the Faniar concep of ug Moat imal be audrd that is the external form of re OF the. . acterize rebgious Law. Religious laws follow Sith burg ea ta fai. Relios lw & defied asthe ith of ep a fied most amply by Judaism, which represents, accus” Pens thor, a npical example of an external form of righ 8 Bete, aiscent ofthe Christian Pauline concept of Judai g, remy, of the fesh. the rig Angelology occupies a greater place in N rk known to us. sical and have their root uli . vssible Arabic Sources of the Dist tion berws ‘Duties of ‘of the Limbs,” T¢ada ‘Studies in He brew and Arabic) 6 (198%, PP,I79 208 Hebrew). htt ets, p. 77, tines 18-13 (xe Dandashi, p. 154). Other references to Sedaiso in Aisa af wis are treated later. © Did. 680, tines 5-6 eed Dandashi, p. 146), For the main features of Muslin J1ei0be and the roles of these four angels, see ¢g. Zakariva’ b. Mubammad b. aint Quoi email we fad d ecccas ee ‘Wastenfeld EAE 8p 5650 Sceako DB Macdonald and W. Madelung, “Mali ia” EP vol. 6, PP. 216-219, THE THEOLOGY OF KITKE AL-Uses ee he more common view that angels in ‘hy. Furthermore, as in rious forms whose common den power 9 that the seniger id single them out, as He singled out that angel by mn i cal rabb fiki aw ardida an yachara bi-dhalaal-nabi wa-dhdliha carcalal [th wlayha fa rugharvin™ siratahu ila sira wld toma lj hay'e adhd sh’ hat yf anna dali al malaka hana shana fli qudratahu.. hyatma'a dhdliba al nai wa dhathe ge ee enat thassa dhalihe af malaka min al soled ingels serves as a model that the true believer ‘gree of angel (wa-kadhalka jn Muslin eschatology, see al Quewink, “$id Wensinck, “Leal” i EF, vol 4, p 211. CL where the power of ese © Kid ab sds, p. B14 zed Did, p. 61b, fine 11 (=ed. Dancasttruth is depende edge. The savants (lana) s giv i of the divine power postyy of their companions, re “The divine character and target for the forces of of humanity ase wat heya) fis However, the au ofthe prophets makes them a prime Lpho are engaged in a bate forthe souls | These forces—namely, devils, demone er id heretics —wish for the death P| of 4 Manicharan | pp. 61.74 gion, see -g. PK. Hii, The Onis 1928), pp. 37-39, al eles, 3 4. KT, pp. 44, Catch, also Lye, The At Mey, a, ‘Sit, Miah hae al mab, edited by A. Tasnee al sb, pp. 62 63,ourna two a the prcbematic question of the existeneg Ce ang fhe Prophets by the forens wk neg pr be regarded 28 an integral part of the hie hey Da Tatucansen de orton som id mo. Tee wll sata tuned othe wl og ts Gal who willed the death of the prophets i order topeth tomplte thei reward, and in order to confound ie cgptte ic use them to doubs the divine character of the prophere mm cade with a warning against those who FP the “toot Me prophets” in a whimsical manner scoring nt a a Ham telah frat gg apy, aul lial mbt we -badihrala g ae Therion emphasizes that even Moses erred when he bela hie had received snes fom God when God spe vei ‘The dvips fuher warned aginst denying the sayings enka cts, which may be manifested in various ways, Prop, 5. Theoic, Divine Retribution and Transmigratigg a [THE THEOLOGY OF KITAB AL-csts “6 sphisticated discourse on some aspects of tha colfers a” “be aulfering of the righteous as against the well autho Cguch as tbe te dilfercnces in the lfeai oF the believer he deserts ofeach in this world and in the hen pein be is noe enquires cone ts resus, vl, vine Predlewination and Human Hoge: A Suc, ofaurnn wo . Tue THE: OF KITAB AL-Uspy 65 time. tain meastt Here again the key re of reward already i to reward is gnosis. ied power wat waned of longevity from the ignorant to the perfec 18S is offered as ‘ain foods, since ion of cert al-bayda mukhtalifa wa-mithl al fim [pokun] loki fuls wa-mithl al-areab wea-thingiy cera ith ala)!” While all these animals are proscribed by Jenga fo tnes—and pigs anc! monkeys are conceived of as transmigratory: etl i bodies into whi larly the Nusayri believer has sev ncept of Bada’ Lmdrat Shit Tradit 1986), pp. 623-632. Kish alesis, pp. 59a-b = Jeena ofthe Ameria Ort Sug 4, Dandasht, pp. pal cea the Bible oF 10 some pp. 137-138 ransmigration in Kita al sr, p ernest 13 il ala p. 48a, lines 3-15 (ed, Bid. p.61b, line 12-62, line 10eayrter Two % suk THEOLOGY OF FIZ Atte Charitians and Jews respectively, based i on for the inclusion of certain eggs in thi 6, Restoration, Gnosis ond Antinorianism dh ‘alayhin rea-balagha bikim al daraja wa ora hat balagha min sha'n al-hawryyina {allan tea-balaghd mia al uhd nohh Kitab al-usis advoc heology of 1] min hddbihi al-mitad shukran wa-bu wher lan ind ae ‘am dhe possi C0 return his og Di oe non Ea wg tion. aa i ir pare This roids the oh forthe bet ates the antinomia the Nusaysf gnostic may a He has the di Fen porto bis prim acterized 2s one of ide the burden of rel js restored to the pris : ‘4 feign commandments and is rewarded for his deeds is made pos by the compa vealed Himsel Nepous commandments CO i Jesus, the incarnate di oa 1¢ bonds and at : is in no need of if you wish do, sedif you wish do not do, for you understand the sweetness of freed” (inna Waka mastaghnin ‘an d mlikum; in shi'tum Pali vain shiton (fold dma ih Jahimtm falanat al-urriyy). comparison between Mox ‘me going back to the roots Christian motif is grafted an antinomian stance monks as paragons of perfect gnosis o “The apinties represent for him the perfe tik ideal: 1 yon net eve degre of gronis, Va Acai: sein Thos em tefieca the Saf heal of mytha namely, aw re Fie fin 0H the Nenaytirya see ey (hail, Ta' th al ala 2,32) ae te Tarde nafs fa fat bar ttn abhi al than, io AN Pim EM ea Mob bn bin Yorvst, W912, wh. 2, p32). We urwe the lat tea fu pabiahen rece wnt Send Sarg Nina Kajal 1A iS Leip, INS, 236| a canrene wo va 7. Merties and Ualivery heresy lal ks al mah ‘pes of a nah 8, Christian and Jewish Issues siderable preoccupa sss inmate by acoder ish motif Infact ew levels of dic ppears that here, more than in anyother Nusayt work, al issues are firmly integrated The is sometimes referred to as the Holy Spirit ich also serves as a mediator between divinity Phe various heavenly luminary veils (jb) belong to of the Son and the Holy Spirit (hijab al-ibm wal ih), 1a wa: ai dinan (ki i, it seems that the author counts such a the predestined gnostic eleet. The teal division among believers and heretics aceon sree of gnosis is reflected by the elements of nature and ‘rere ate seven ranks of ith among believers on the ascending lay bodies and seven heavesh luminary baie with thei astral afliations."® These seven rane mmetrically opposed by seven descending degrees of herey--a- and human the bib Metre wc ge 12 (ed. Dandsht, p. 150), ed Dana» a 7a lise | (ed . 1 fd ees 0b, Foes 12-14. =e Dundas, p. 128), “Dad pala, ine 14 ‘ed Dandi pp Toe me cao tom Pad. Sla, kines 1-8 (ed. Dandasbi, pp. 128 1 at gqulas ee eg thd p. 425, ine 7 [=ed. Dasdashi, p.119)). For another iden- (Sat. p 5% ed. Dantas, 134-155, aoe ls as.a degree of emanation below the hb > sd 3b, oe 15° Yu kn? ‘aed Data, pp. 1 Sieve met kad dace p He we eke Bd p Sth ers 34 med. Dana p 136, wa the Caner Sol bed pth ed Dan, pp 139 1 aye Tek pba 624 sed. Dandy 139 140, ae» GurmR TW 1p THEOLOGY OF KITHB ALS 1 0 polytheiss] have setup a kinship beeen ‘alt bamahu wa-boynaljinna nasaban). He John the Baptist and his father, Zecharia, between Jesus andthe demons. Flowing cosmic apostles," (a it of his view on certain poi udes further that the Jews erroneously nt eer eth arabe ena iia. ercate through God's persion, “asa gah ci rin i ths cited as prt that the demons knew where he cts Genesis 1:26-~eroneon eee eo cone ts” Testament “Letus rate man in : fe vt discusses Christology—namely, the natures of "pe eat Metaning of his mesianic role Here the author troces a series of ques- of all figures who were ase sind one 1 oa tn wheter sch aprons tbe persed as persecuted (by men) when he was oi rot led ap eon Lrg Ione vas persecuted one mus conclude that he was ace ae evened. anne, Tn weg ent vn be pardoned—presumably because he acted acord- ‘will’? The answer states that Christ dg) was pescvted not because he was a created being r ae hie chose to be persecuted.” The sage concludes his bat 139, The Adame nature seems the human creatures who preceded das, . 19), regard to AI murder can be found in heterodox Dundas, p. 85, i, id), asin the bi ™ Ki ess, p. 25h ines dat, p. 95,2 CHAPTER TWo answer with slatement ofthe paradox of fay cannot be apprehended by a man of reason pee Responuingo another question the au revelation of Christ, arguing that his Fevelation ees ie humanity" This is followed by a discussion ® 3 sot crucifixion ancl the roe of the Jews in Jesuy ‘he mea cuses on the issue of the compatibility or incompating Ube ae and intentions ofthe Jews and of Christ, The itilty Cran the Jews acted according to Chris’ wish that yoo ag My then they hae, at least outwardly, obeyed him pei contrary to his externally manifested will, the; evidence against them." The master an, his death to be an offering to God; kill him) was contrary to Christ’: LL It is Cont ankerite Jews) are in harmony. 2 Re both mr is actualy SPeak. sider Christ as disobedient because he did not obey theyre ag Christ did not order them to kill him but actually forbade ny fi, the Jews were determined to execute fr ae Bi im, he appeared Butsng he were dead and confounded them in Kage peated to thy nowledge, abjtin Me™ ait God exalted Christ, the spirit and word (of God) froma” and being, andl he returned to the divine luminescence and on tee glory (wanazzaka allah al-mastha rithahw wa-kalimataha ‘an tn wa-“éda ila L-niraniyya L-ilahiyya wa-l-jalal al-jabaritiyyalty v9 dann, Finally, the incarnation of Christ de1 ‘monstrates that may be revealed indifferent forms. A semi-apocryphal is adduced to substantiate this concep divin 18 OL Jesus “If T come to you h feed me, and if | come to you naked, dress me, Namely. 1 . ae to you in this form, do not deny that T am your Lord fe po PP la whatever form I wish" (idtd jitukum ja’ Peet “upiinan facksint ay idhd tasaurvart inn rabbutum facie gad tasaucwarte om jaan facashbint was lakum bi-hadhiti Usira bicha kayfa shi’ty).% ida jitalan Sela abou, Christians pol see The Pr led by DJ. Lasker id S. Strourmsa Jerusalem, Io 1). Jesus’ first words here reet imi B 74, lines 13 (ed. Dandast, p 2 P. 6a, lines 6-9 (=ed. Dandashi, pe 7 his words in Mat, 25:35. 36. a quik THEOLOGY OF KITAB AL-Us0s 3 iaian motifs play an important role in Aid abs, vitian moradkcally to Jews; usually in the context of jews are characterized as the model of wrehchen ce Quranic verses 4:160, 2:217, the author notes ta ind with aoxaits teavletony, Whar C notewor- were Puli ation for their specific punishment: their was is the e*P incarnation of the deity in prophets and {their} sahey Sn gulila al-lahit f-L-anbiya? wa-l-ausiya™®) 9 The ren) kr hment— that is their reincarnation as animals— Follow for theit Pat in the Quran: the practi f usury and turn- som ose a the holy mosque." The conclusion of Kab ale Fag ace ea admonition not to follow the way of Judaism, for ag jpeludes ingle perfect man to be found among the Jews and there BE ec in their midst (wa-wasiyyatt iyaka an U8 tamshi bic God te apm Fe-llah fia Khélis wa-la li-llah fila najib)* sdiyy | paid 9. Conclusion tic and enigmatic nature of Kitab al-usts does not de- asim significance as a very valuable source for the study of tract FOr i ts formative stages. Alongside concepts and ideas Nosatt doer ther Nusayti works, our treatise is marked by ideas and prevalent it © found in—or at least, not developed in—other sources cerminoley We estions debated by scholars of the Nusaytt religion snes One of ht Ste modern research is the weight to be assigned to the Fhe ppneesn natin. the complex: Nias Ryseretamn, Ay io Chain penain scholars such as Henri Larmmens held that Cha ae upon the Nusay#i religion—mainly on its trinitarian ‘The Wi pab alwsis, p. 39a, lines 1-2 (=ed. Dandashi, p. 114), ‘eOutie concep cosine erally “wl oF “etamen) and eat ph upd — on stamentary exceutor[s}") see R. Pevers, “I vol berg, “Wasi” EP, vol. 11, pp. 161-162, 46a, lines 3-4 (ed, Dandashi p13) ‘46a, lines 4-5 (=ed. Dandasbt, ibid), Other references to Jews in a mest were noted earlier—namely, the comparison of Moses to Jou i ae 1g an antinomian theology, the forbidden incarnated foods, fied Jesus, their mistaking the divine essence formW CHAPTER Two Pe CHAPTER TI EE, sAVENLY ASCENT OF THE NUsayy HE HEAV®S"" GNOSTIC a ‘mission is (0 set his soul on the path leading id from which it was banished. 18 of i world after the sin (masiye) of eett against the divine wi to pride Be coe ture of these faults is that they derive from an imperfect knowl edge of Goel? Thenceforth God created a veil Ajab in order to wepa {fil rom the luminous 7 We would like to thank Jennie Feldman for transating this chapter om ihe engin French. VO tis myth, see Aiba aft sa: Fecilla, pp. 33-37; Mibal-sef,p. 24h abe 59-61. For a short anahais of the coumeigny of Kish a. ‘30 Pezile of paradise and of the origin of Nusay souls in the world of lhe » See Buliva, p. 60, which indicates veveral manifestations ofthis fae of pre, | such as the arrogance of the Nusayrts, who declared that God created no creeeares swore perfect than they (father bi-dhexdthim axnaha Lom pang thaigan sont moncd,th CONT Thy b 7 om AVENLY ASC Ee n “At gives MELD exten in cone c pede, ed 0 Es God save he who proceeds fom Hines from it NOME rif Waka ila man ina min 1g mn nis ab Shayy 3 atin ght” (a9? i iso Id, The esence a 2. The Gnostic's Return pak epeat al fra ‘ald ghayr a nfa). believer is thus to recover the gnostic or amon aad Become o again ine world of cans al edge mlman, fe Tth/13th-century Nusayrt accord Mubammad is already in ‘gree by degree in the spir- ified and to follow the existence His Ie Ladin) and ult conn ana ledge comes firstly from the knowledge o Moreover, one of the fundam so .pesonmeat a che bods.“ “kcording to a tradition ascribed to M, ne of a believer, Ged created an opening in hie Aber, cootemplate his place in paradise” (cong Bike wr take te sua § yabris biban fa-yard mace aks fl jana a Et iy terpretation of this wradicion, “the tomb is none other alesrey ofthe devorce, ito mich wil enter the light and wit oe the folgbe hsca baan alt padi lsh nina fH Pe x these mo entitis that the believer will be see place hat wil be is in parase, and will hus be ayy 2 me ths place or return to ity according to the degree tpt has been penetrated by the holy spirit. The interpretarn describe the evol ression through different sta, 3 BCS Of thy the brightness of the spri ga” { prophecy (nir at-mibuxsva, and 8 : i ig his ascent is fe-acccale nd sunawara min al-insin galbuha),® so that th can subsequently attach itself to his eye.?! Satan woul able to enter it except by indirect means from afer lam saul pe podthala minku f shay’ ill bi-Ltamayyul wa-t-tayit ze cent ofthe soul through the degrees of spi ened by Satan and his wiles; but loses all his powers of dominion, and man i enh po ed from his traps. Moreover, according to the same text, if Sey dares to approach be consumed.?> in terms of asce seven rungs of ‘onto the gnostic’s paradise.2# his bean siomary spirit” (al nih al mural), For an ovenion this theme obi. p. 1334, lines 91]. hid, p. 133, line 7. 2 Ih Fed. Dandasht, p. 139 THE HEAVENLY AwcENT at be noted that Nusay7i gnosis is hated on the dualagm is cam theological thought. Moreover, in contrast to the Tons te of par tern cent through degrees of faith, there is a Path of fal chara th rosie PAM hrough all the degrees of heresy, to absolute heresy 2 descend tod to the bonds that form between the gnontc and the To a a ccal evation of tie semoane begins from the ine ines himself to the lower degrees, and it is confirmed when be ate mse to the level of hab, the place of the universal nal te ras ine Logos (al-nafial-tullirrawa-kalima a-ilthing, Whee and the oo" ded from there to the level of the higher his, the place he as Pre intellect (al-aq! al-kull, he can be regarded as having ofthe are level ofthe gnostic bound to God and ean comempan® re ached the a ‘of His power (al-arif al-mattaslbi-llah tml ele she plene fact the threshold of superior knowl. jabarit al he divine trinity and for this reason is of edge of fe he 's understanding. This is implied in the fol- ioe tributed to ‘AN: “There is no entrance other then age he ba6), and all knowledge is thanks to him” (li through hirn ae ‘lla bik). f i ill mink real ma’ ss emt wet described also in philoso} universal soul (a-naf a as the form of the ing itself ercated from of God.* In these philos through union with the active intellectual act.29 The gn f a mitror that the mystic must polis progress in knowledge of the divine is 100, is regarded a al-“agl al-faa, this form be- lect, which cali B27 BD See abo Q 2 vere is interpreted in «nt degrees ofthe ema id, p12 Bil nd Quran: The Chuldren of Israel and the Ilamic Self-Image Princeton, 198), pp. 83-99, 7p. 15a, lines $5, lines 3-5. ‘passage, it seems that the primary intellect and» heandecien, 6 heryaee with a we beeen wey, Homeever, cxtrmad tocrwledae A te Arve oace qr m by #4 Y0TY hatte Napa Tatvng tom betaren these tweed A koveage rp cnrl ces tt SAI I: eee kere yg cog, ae ewartic baer dae he that h the tye igorms, Von eect ind oh heared, temeard so serwat conga hewmen, aba end edgy, whereas eunerions dos 0h inshide es * Ii, pp, tab * Thi, p. 12a, line I Ie tay, gemuens mm _ tn eodv even tat ta cnet, the "Mogg p00 A on adie tt We om mae Mabe yey Lees ten tat ee Son Be wl Aida re ie ah that ttt lr the bh wig pri te the eorntil Wf that exnatats frm the md Se war Vit yh te pt heme on is that emanated from 8. She deine oe aie’ ae a ate thereat, ie serrate pl Wi cen ch gered, the vn may we on ets epee ce asthe bat fees the wi” fo ty een dd a fh mo wie He ga corp the holy world (dlam quduhi atid bee 0 wn the divine world Of intimacy Calan anh,” The oe He ox ialy regarded 38a goontic “who in one with,2 CHAPTER THREE Py “THE HEAVENLY ascisct reaches the world of the divinity, #0 longer 83 Need, ; crial world and can conten Bog : ee with the material world andl can contemplage pt Cong ion posed by the disciple 0th sage in kha, rectly. The myst’ success in teaching eg get itn Pig 15 station regarding the posiiy ef ot eaty redcems him and brings him ctemalhappingss BS oft Howe is it that the believer can reach Ie Aa vel that allows sublime degree where the gnostic is beyond , i Soe : Mode! am the constraint of precepts, x6 thar nea the level of angels.” From this moment, he 7 sy 0 ve fs en to him?” And the sage respond a ae called upon by other goostics to guide them on ine a hing ches the highest stage of knowledge of the divine emana- leads to the world of light” He who has the yoy Paha bell iinty he is delivered from all bondage a! thn here, such a degree enjoys great privileges, but also hay nore to cont he 58 tn other words, the ideal state atiained by the Nusayrt ts, He may sll ris tothe level at which he ea * Fe aly snnomian fd to him the mysteries ofthe universe. Indced, he ha sj oe goo the level af those who know the mystery of the wing ere Thas the gost’ victory consis ea pereer Be ofthe universe and of the divine winity. Hin ic does not end there, since, ay. 4, Negative Theology versus Gnosis and Mystical Union edge o vey He stemical work of al-Nashshabi ‘be in favour of philosoy sme aspect of the divinity. reacki nthe Po nsell 10 ye supre tical union work of al-Nashshabi the mn of a morte of thought that is reso a negative theology, while time accepting id gnostic impulse.” This intrinsic tension may explate ents found throughout his work, especially ie possibility of a direct knowledge of the mrnd, AL wi nega to he tn the one hand, that by q is only denying the anthropomorphic aspects ofthe mands cd, the esoteric face of the mand transcends even the principle 7 ewhere he also declares, paradoxically, that no one vr even apply negative theology to the esoteric apect i la junkinu l-ahadan () min al-bashar an saga yasifaha wa At the same time, belief in the existence of an eve. i divinity is based on “the knowledge of the heart bi-‘agd damit al-galb wa-tadbir al. fils) ‘Therefore the i God through the negation of attributes concerns only f divinity and does not allow the devotee to 10 in this manner move beyond the the poss in paradise." However, state does not depend solely on his spirit vine grace (al-minna).®* The primordial state is characterized by total freedom wit P.139. See aly Ait ot met Ser al Mi Capecaone. p81 Xt ms ate ested a Perfect knowledge. while the apostles are and mystwal ideal Aitdh a! ass, p, St, ines "Hhid. p. #¥b ed. Dandashi, p. 147 ltd. p. Bla, line 6 «ed, Dandashi, p. 139; 2 ibd. p. 5la Zed Dandashi, pp (On Nwswt antnormanim, see abe. chap. 2. pp, 687 ab Ritdh al-srdt, 1a,WAVENEY AMAT ws 4, The ery of the af the seventh is @ dilikap) al‘aqaba at swa-s6ra burran muharriran). «apogee only when he manages t reach the +, he can go to the East or the West, be] on ‘an know the dwelling place of his mas 2b, I he desires, he can appear [to men] o r= ye may choose. If he wants to bein hae knows them and sees them, but they point where he may be among them a prak jr accustomed language, ten abrupdly ave them withe vsacing [his disappearance] or knowing how be lef. 93a (=ed. Capezzone, pp. 324 (ced, Capezaone, p. 326, lines ed. Capezzone,p. $27 lines 1-12, Thi teaching i he Quranic verses, 0:1 -12in whic the word ‘abe snd a= rab aah Mandar, 2 Sods. 157, es 8 9, i" id, p. 132a, ines 11-12. See abo abo, chap. 1, pp. 27-28 fasla fh we-datala | maballa LU. wo sft “anda dha yazhare lau [sm wah Ub fa ae86 CHAPTER THREE b “THE HEAVENLY ASCENT 87 the a the yon and that ofthe bad Thine oe Mosque (al-masid alban) to oxque (al-masida-aid}. Once abMigdd has attained ‘ab and is d with it, he reaches the outward that overlooks the the im or tis way he acquires the attributes ofthe ménd the highest person in the trinity. This dynamic proces this principle that canbe applied wo all the degrees ofthe 0 aon when these ar considered in ration tthe lee re eyabove them In this way the night joumey can be imei journey of Slmn (he fi) an Muhammad prced ag regaded asthe ascent of Salnin the 6 othe higher Trejo uhanrad, thei, and his mystical ion wi ee same way, the journey could also bean allusion tothe he second person in the supreme mysti wing fying the Pera res 3 i - I dynamic of the i cal com, The ma'nd can aso cause the The jo g { = Te sb eat saree os ! ae degree immediately below i the im, and can unl nation. Thy | aif rough the image of the ion, which isthe bid, Salman, This "reveals another principle in the dynamic of mutual r- veen the different levels ofthe divine emanation: an equivae ind'n, between al-Miqdad and the ion, th yahdara wai shi yal shag x lhe webu why js h is identical to the bab. This triad is that of srt doctrine, see above, chap. Ie PP Le, Al Mig b, Aswad al-Kin 1, p. 18, note 66, Iow CHAPTER THREE CHAPTER FOUR USAYRI TREATISE ON THE Duty To A xOW THE MYSTERY OF Divintry 1, Introduction abe 1450 of fame fini ves a.concse account of some fundamental doctrine of ery gw ology. The literary framework of this text is a report ofa held before the Nusayri sage Abii Muhammad ‘At In the treatise the date of these sessions 340/February 952, and the treatise itself oven nt lng teteer. a articipants in these sessions is AbG ‘Abd Allzh al- One {iasan abSiigh, the author both of and of another te included in the same collective manuscript The other a earing in the treatise as a companion of the author, a relates some of the teachings of asi. iges just mentioned (the author al-S: members of the ism bi-Lhayiga fa-ged ‘abada l-ma'nd),?? in the divine real ly to have Another person ings is Yabya b. Matin, Catalogue des manuscrits arabes, deasiome partie, manvcrits rere sens Prenton ene NO~ eLUTER FOUR, ort treatise contains three leaves (176-179, oe codex, which includes a series of Nae be! ings Iris Anowa to us so far only from this manuysit Stuvan, who described this codex, gave the origin al the the tke Wigid maf a mwa lmand (On the fy ited yt ing the sm an the wn oly artally reflecting th co composition. Ina list lex appen ig copyist, our treatise is € AULA B. HHayag BY be-t-tactid Epistle of. al-Sa'igh on the Unity of God), Ny tea Vaya 2. The Content and Language of the Treatise translation; Salisbury, p. 2355 Seo 5 the Arabic text; Halim, “Das «Buch der Schat ? Catalog ds manaserts arabes, vol. 3, p. 314 “No wparating entities fal or anda) exit within the ranks of the dsine emane pH. 1p. 4, lars 13-14. The handwritten preface isnot pagr ‘oven here is oun, jache Sonderthemen,” p. 7 uf * p. 254 yy IME MYSTERY OF Drvevtry ‘a ofthe treats is Mille Arabi. Lie the cero std in the Codex, ‘ate is characterized by gran syntactical phenomena of the kind discussed eee in phe ne changes of the have been adapted to las. 3, The Translation he Compassionate. Aba | Twas with my master nth of Ramadan, in set forth [certain] issues, and evolved to the point where he said (17a): “He who ipsthe ism indeed [also] worships the man” Twas gd. response to the question I had put to him. Then Aba. e: O Aba ‘Abd God, may accepts an act [of devo hieved) know! In the name of God, the 1h al Husayn re \ sd al om of this statermenst by al-S4 igh, we 0 bredone,yy ” CHAPTER FOUR. THe MYSTERY OF DIVDaEry pce to its attribute and tothe branch of tbe tes oe CN pian (a Miqilid} with the atiitntes of the me 2 cots bab and with the ranks of the atom. Ths Muha eg ala ras the perwon carried on the bu question] before [ALG Sh , the babiyya. (178) The re- ‘nd and the revealed Salman is the last, na 4 “T am the city of knowl: 1¢ form and the gate is the noeninal suffix in this word seems to refer tthe letters and. Saal namely, the historical appearance ofthe person ab Mii Torte ane ones oo beetles the ine peop ee pe See below, acte "Abi Shu ayb is a common appellation of Mubmmad b. Nusa ofthe Nusa origin, °° This wdiom (im Arabic: miahy af sain) in peculiar to Nusayet texts as a varunt these wets This quotation adhcrrs wo the canonical ext of the Qur'an except fra singe Seaton: out text mbvttutes aalim (All-knowing! for a-samt (All hearong ‘This patron is apparently Salman, above, chap 1p. 29, widh note a rer fo the grote use of lees rprewning Fi Te is apparently equivalent to dima, deriving fram the first te variows degrees of the drvine realm. However, the exact details ofthe wb SBeope ere i apparcarty equivalent to ima, deriving fu the firm min of ti sane Mabammad. A vonnevting phrase arcs tebe mcg Ine i Sst ar tet sas indy ear Petr be pp thn poscben ote heen Ste Metamad ronectng toe musing bere bite the fx nate Msbammad. For sindar symbulial one of letters applied to the hen on of che improbable, ty wo di, fubammad. of disciple and master 1t seems the previous discustion between fa Mata be applied to Abad- Hasan and a Jue the epoeym On thi hah ser Abi Jafar M. al Klint, a Oslin forma we abene chap. I, p. 27 and ef R Strothmann, “De Nusa nach Me ao : . by AN Albar ai-Ghifae 1), val. 2, pp. 238-239, wip Bertin 4291," Decmate bemace fade Berlin, 1952, p. 177 Le sao P 4 Mona, Exbemis Sues, p 46.2 be perc) MB RET NL ReSAO Rm om men Lm{THE MYSTERY OF DiviNtry. Abts Hasan smiled : . Know this, © Ab enriched. Praise belongs to God, the Lord 4, The Arabic Text of the Treatise J gueeall Ulae gil JG poe ll poe tI UI aus (176b) SO rl gle same (0) sel gen he 8 2 3 La Fat 3s BL B08 ce) ae Sl at pa pal 7! + ‘Abd J 6a, Aba DI tad the ma‘nd. Because when Sah revealed as ma'nd his tom transferred deed always a station, And ‘Uthman Qanbar is the bab and he is also Ti aan appar de dine hicrarchy is 3 wel Te about the aspect of “ABs lle on The potion othe hail a xnown feature of the Nusayrf system, fe human expacy to aan te lone dine dee cement athe beioning of he eae uhor means here ihe abovementioned peony of the 5m a * Neve the inversion of the respective pesitions of Mubammad and ‘AR, > Ths sentence eludes our undersanding Tho rendering teers ovr reading ofthe problematir LL 1. The later migte ? does not help to lary so be rad as Ua it caning “the way.” However be sentence > Ths it ancther alusion to an unspecibed letter 3 >» The fine ofthese two well-known ceachatological Q 919 30d 847 * Radu sone of the angels guarding paradise. In the Nupuyr sytem he cer place under te five yam. See Dussaud, Muti ef wiguon des Novas, pp. 1 tile Que Bnic. See eg Sperry centenree: ut (referring w his name Jundab). in blah is not unambiguous. The ba’ should perhaps be which case the translation might RLM ! Ne_ CHAPTER FoR Y ‘THE MYSTERY OF DiVvixrty CGS 3 JG ILS WI gi ergia seat HH plat aed 5 ". 1 pala <3} renee Beast ; ern cc BP REE OVE: I STW EERE RIEMEERET NA RARONTIN Tse(CHAPTER FIVE _ayRi DIALOGUE ON THE RELATION A SES WEEN THE MANA AND THE IS\f 1, Introduction 50) and wit) Nusayrt sage al-Khasibi and his ‘n b. Hardin al-$a'igh, the author of hor of another short treatise published : as well as of a festive ode.! The date of composi- poe specified in the treatise, However, it must have been writ soa OD Khastbl was stil alive or shortly after his death— that conte Te second half of the 10th century. 7 sebum be refers 35 | The the ether treatise bac ions between the 10 higher persons of the Nusaye trinity, Ge ming and the im “The language of the treatise is Middle Arabic. As the other com- in the codex, the dialogue here is characterized by icnomena of the kind discussed ear- 1¢ translation the recur~ rajaQLUTER HVE spite MA'NA AND THK Isat 2. The Content of the Treating epistle he had ulated the dis difficulties pertain primarily to the co and the im, Underlying this relation is ted on several levels, verse 17:110: “Call frozen form, The paradoxical relation between these two persons of Uinity, as wel as the relation between the ism jcc above chap I, and f Dusaud. Mit gin des Nos pp. 4105 Moa thtoraed upon expe Extremist Stiies, pp. 50-65 and 342-351. te har (OrCHAPTER Pry, Funher on the answer is developed on from the perspective of the believer hime argent deve that the unification of various aspeets in yh Stay ct their separation, iin the hands of the bei them in his mystical perception —that is 4 tr the mystery of their union—then they pins SCs in i 10 unify them, but rather separates then they are indeed separate. ALKhastbi defend 2 of tradition that may be paraphrased as fol the am without the mand de to an abstracting we nda a heretic; but he who, emphasizing ime or d two of them together, introduces mukiplcity im the Worship, sho worhips the mend alone through the tue vo i im can be counted a true monotheist (mucabhid Te 8 OF he therefore required t@ beware of both extremes that of Pleven S 'y between the two persons and that of degrading ting an the level of the realm of creation, A008 the ian yn Ys or Ver himserp tem, 3. The Translation (48b) In the name of God the merciful the compassionare down the questions of Aba ‘Abd Allah b. Hartin at secon te> We Abii ‘Abd Allah al-Husayn b. Hamdan al-Khasit came to my master, Aba. ‘Abd A al-Khastbi. As I was entering an ¢ the people present at (49a) his sewion 1 said to him: O my master, J wish to ask you conce in your epistle that troubled me. And he suid: Ask, O Ibn Harti, for questioning i the key to course. 1 said: © my master, I ask you about those words of yours w troubled me and about what you described in your epise art beseech Him (Godl that He may bless His glorious in by which ad is addressed. O my master, should the ma'nd be adlrewed by the cs Which is the teil and the place?” 6 Something The term “veil” (hb) is a common term referri here apparently designates an external aspect of the md'nd. In two employs the word makdn in a similar sense to maya. It is not clear howene wien Sexe Iwo terms are interchangeable in our text. We therefore maintain 2 aight distinction in rendering place for magém and “place” for makdn, ‘THE MA'NA AND THE Isat 103 other [hi nate from somethin Ibn Ee why do you deny that itis its [the ma'nd's} iim? vg comes out of another, then itis its ism. There ig Mediator between thern,® for every essence implies ra an ion and an attribute, Moreover, even if the ise off a ht of the ma'nd, the relation between them [the aed bo Fat of connection and not of separation. And id the ma itis from its [the ma js one, hing e i ono wom ‘nd’s] light, and it is revealed from : in Haran, don’t you sce that we apply the ndnd’s High Ook and its disk although (49) in speech foe Ss owen fight and disk is clear-cut even though they ailferenct ame “sun.” This similarly applies to the im and the Sree ame «ancl diel yu aetualiv-any-doat Allen ce ee “An yond (and its] maga. For the magim is the one (al-withid, forthe tom the monad (al-ahad). It is the light from the illu. n {ror "from the revealer, the power from the omnipo- revittom the creator, the name from the giver of names created Eero the sender. It begins from i [the ma‘na} and messenife read [the verse from the Qur'an, 18:86]: “When, Ard ating of thé aun, he found it getting in a muddy he reached he said: O Ibn Haran, when the 6a arrived at the wn of the ism and its setting, it (the 6¢8) found it [the is nt of the ma'nd. And the ma'nd indeed conceals it occultation? where it originated, and it sets in it. This He is its root and origin, 1 and its sage. gh] said: O my master, ifthe light is a single light, why dle in the revelation two separate lights with two ibutes? : Hardin, so that it [the ma‘nd] may address itself from Laid: O my master, do you mean [to say] that it addresses its es- tence from its essence through its essence? ence of any buffer between the various divine emanax p. $4 persons of the trin- he ism is also called Imam as part of the belie? inthe dine nature of the historical Imams, see above, pp. 30-33. Sr BL Ticeknown and if we behold an ism and in an O my mast I refer 10 fe proof for the dom is linked to the ma'nd? ai You not agree with me of the mana? , would you obey T said: Certaii ly my master, He said: Why [would you do} iv? Reais sow came about and was formed from w er and lly returns to water 0 {Tur MA'NK AND THE 18M 105 ee ore .e ism from the ma'nd is separation the ma‘nd] reveal um of the on) Gon to the observer—t ‘and vision by the ow and understand Hise tie dad, andi its ma‘nd encompasses cr (from here on} I will say “brought into being” O my mas he verbs haewane creation In other places he seems uses also the verbs dada'e and abdatha to ORREEE ROTTER IREEY Torn eS ae~ a 106 ete NK AND THE ISM 107 nue Ma’ be SOI ly gamed: > wr SE Ms o ww ctemal, everlastingness and giver of names, mes Now you say that it {the and Veil when it He said: If, 4 Me Arabic Tet of the Treating BO 9th oe Ul ane OL test Sas tH wir 3d oe Uae ONies Se Sat 3 Jlia on hs ts $451 IS I GIB Soe Lea gta Gla pales pal ala See ang i eas Ja oa es Call aslnlly agen ota ial aul ay au Sa | gael ey 112 (504) jae Oe ee rade Edy ono Bays dacs Dene wal bi is playing here ewhwere the ms, trad: Lae and the spectic te| ee ON APTER Fy yt Rees mul ate “rae Gi ga osu gest gy de fea eer (qi MA'NK AND THE ISM. 109 OG ey a at Sl tS ss ag OS UG § 19 seg? - fr *thee iy S ape sau dy le we se JUS 50s ¥ ee aN ig eign al Fpl ot Jak cathy a EA a ty ° 1 oe erakantactoeed wee eet Ota ole cell os 3 : JE Ys ssle oe G ua SOS pine Ld ipa Ls sels aire bla Ss te bene ee SI Si Jus - sous Uaglae BUST Ys OSs Usat cae G tele SEE EE: Z tI (50b) sae OF te sells te Chip ce; he , : ba a a 2s! S50 AN I Se eT SI te aed i 34 PE egail Jil asl 15 gpa alls CS aay etal Eres ASS Ty re Go Yas oe : VO :Jsity 925 Gay Was Ja a 82H M8) tt ata sy ta Sree & Vela Cass aa 22S ee nny elle le is tay ayeg SU SS CoN a alls ta sa ES ao Gy OPE oe SG Jest Gay ates Se est! pls yas) waa rT s oot BRIS SU oe edly ye, ey petty OU Jey 2a donee SLU Sa Glace Sots on83 85, 86 Divinity - J. Introduction 2, The Content @ 3, The Translation «~ 4 The Arabic Text of the Treatise ind Lan} Vy. A Nusayrt Dialogue ” the Relation bet . and the Ism : 1. Introduction - 2, The Content of the Treatise 3, The Translation 4. The Arabic Text 100 102 of the Treatise 106 1 and Antinomian ar: Allegorical 1 The Nusayri Calend: VI. The Nusayri Pedivals x Interpretation of Muslim 1, Introduction 7 9. Nugyrt Holy Days of General Muslim Origin . 2.1. The Month of Ramadan Soe eee a 32 The Festival of Breaking the Fast (14 a,ftt) wororswowe VT 23, The Sacrificial Festival (id al-adba) 3, Nusayri Holy Days of Shit Origin . 3.1, The Day of Gahdir Khumm (id al-ghadir) 3.2, The Day of ‘Ashara? (id ‘ashir) i 33. The Day of ‘Umar’s Death (magtal dulam) 34. ‘Id al-mubahala.. 3.5. The Festival of the Bed (‘id al-firds) 36. The Night of Mid-Sh 4. Conclusion weccvernce LAE VIL. A Druze-Nusayri Debate in the “Epistles of Wisdom” 1. Introduction. 158 2. Antinomian Stance toward Muslim Religious Law i 3. Theological Issues... seve 159) CONTENTS, 4, Transmigration ... VIII. A Catechism of the : is e Ni T 1. Introduction tre 2. Form and Content of the Cae th 3. Teanstion ofthe Catehine 4, The Arabic Text of the Catechiog, Religion Sources ... Bibliography Index of Names and Subjects Index of Biblical and Quranic Verse: 8.