Although ImÄmÄ« or Twelver ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s have always proclaimed that they are faithful to the person and the message of the Prophet Muḥammad, they have faced constant accusations from SunnÄ« heresiographers that they neglect the Prophet in favour of the ImÄm. They themselves hold that the SunnÄ« perception of the Prophet is lacking an essential dimension: his relationships with the âPeople of [his] Familyâ (ahl al-bayt). These are Muḥammadâs cousin and son-in-law Ê¿AlÄ« Ibn AbÄ« ṬÄlib (d. 40/661), the first ImÄm; his daughter FÄá¹ima (d. 11/632); his two grandsons, the children of Ê¿AlÄ« and FÄá¹ima, called al-Ḥasan (d. 49/669) and al-Ḥusayn (d. 61/680), respectively the second and third ImÄm; and nine male descendants of the latter up to Muḥammad al-MahdÄ«, the twelfth ImÄm, in occultation since 329/940â1. In the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« credo (shahada), mention of God and His Prophet Muḥammad is followed by the name of Ê¿AlÄ«, âGodâs close allyâ (walÄ« allÄh).
In ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« as in SunnÄ« Islam, the representation and veneration of the Prophet Muḥammad are founded less on the QurʾÄn than on the ḥadÄ«th, the set of Prophetic traditions as relayed by witnesses or reliable reporters. ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s, however, reject most of the traditions recounted by the Prophetâs companions (á¹£aḥÄba), whom they consider to be traitors; for them the only true traditions are those established by the âPeople of the Familyâ, the ImÄms and their followers. As a result, from the very beginning the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« corpus of ḥadÄ«ths is very different from that of the SunnÄ« majority.1 Here the figure of the Prophet is omnipresent, but inseparable from those of the ahl al-bayt, particularly Ê¿AlÄ«. The Prophet shares with them the Ê¿iá¹£ma, the virtue of impeccability and infallibility conferred directly by God. Together they make up the pleroma of the fourteen âImpeccable Onesâ (maʿṣūmÅ«n), without whom the person and function of the Prophet are incomprehensible. According to these traditions, Prophecy (nubuwwa) does not exist without the Alliance or Divine Friendship (walÄya), which makes up the nature and sacred mission of the ImÄm;2 each Law-bearing prophet (nabÄ« rasÅ«l) is accompanied by a close ally (walÄ«) who is also his heir (waṣī) and his lieutenant (khalÄ«fa), and will himself be at the origin of a succession of allies and heirs. Ê¿AlÄ«âs mission was to be Muḥammadâs walÄ«, and the ImÄms descended from them also share this mission.
In order to shed light on the ImÄmÄ« figure of the Prophet, we will draw on sources belonging to four phases in the history of ShÄ«Ê¿ism:3
The formation of ImÄmism under the historic ImÄms until the Occultation; from this period we find the first collections of ḥadÄ«ths and TafsÄ«rs on the QurʾÄn, the latter equally composed of ḥadÄ«ths attributed to the ImÄms.4
The establishment of Twelver ShÄ«Ê¿ism during the Buyid period (334â447/ 945â1055); this period includes the work of the traditionalist Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, who began to prune away the elements of the corpus of ḥadÄ«ths considered to be too irrational and âexaggeratedâ (ghÄlÄ«).5
The preservation of ImÄmism under SunnÄ« hegemony from the fifth/eleventh century to the seventh/thirteenth, during which time many large-scale works on the lives of the fourteen Impeccable Ones were composed.6
Finally, the pre-Modern and Modern periods, marked by the revivification of ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿ism after the Mongol invasion, and then by its institutionalisation as a state religion in Safavid Iran (907â1134/1501â1722); this period saw the emergence of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« gnosis (Ê¿irfÄn or ḥikma), which drew on the philosophy of Ibn SÄ«nÄ (d. 428/1037) and the Sufism of Ibn Ê¿ArabÄ« (d. 638/1240),7 as well as the rebirth of ImÄmÄ« studies of ḥadÄ«th.8
According to an axial vision of ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿ism, every sacred thing resembles God himself in possessing both an apparent, exoteric aspect (áºÄhir) and one that is hidden and esoteric (bÄá¹in).9 The biological and physical relationship of the Prophet with his family, especially Ê¿AlÄ«, thus becomes the reverse side of an ontological and metaphysical relationship, and has theological implications. The biographies of the Prophet, his family, friends and descendants are swallowed up in a historiosophy, i.e. a teleological philosophy of history, that embraces the entire temporal arc of Creation from pre-eternity to the final Resurrection.10 The oldest texts (A and B, above) adopt both perspectives equally. During the medieval period (C), the historical figure of the Prophet came to the fore, doubtless as a result of the dialectical conflict with Sunnism. During the latter period (D) the Prophetâs metaphysical dimension developed again, thanks to the influence of external mystical and philosophical ideas, as well as to a return to scriptural sources. Although these two contrasting and complementary perspectives are inseparable within the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« consciousness, the following pages, for greater clarity, will present first the ImÄmÄ« account of the Prophetâs history followed by the metaphysical concepts that underlie it.
1 The History of the Prophet in Shīʿī Traditions
In the same way as there is no established ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« QurʾÄn other than the shared Vulgate, there is no specifically ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« version of the Prophetâs sÄ«ra. The main episodes recounted in Ibn HishÄmâs sÄ«ra are recognised by ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s, too, but as with the QurʾÄn they have their own particular interpretations of these. The oldest texts (A) contain disconnected snatches of information on the circumstances of the Revelation, the birth, and the death of the Prophet. In later monographs on the fourteen Impeccable Ones (C), the life of the Prophet is recounted in its entirety, but this takes up only the first part of a series of biographies, relatively modest in extent in comparison with that devoted to the ImÄm Ê¿AlÄ«. In all of this historiography, the centre of gravity of the Prophetâs life is his close relationships with his Holy Family, especially with Ê¿AlÄ«.
1.1 The Prophetâs Birth and Childhood
As in the SunnÄ« sÄ«ra, the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« account of the Prophetâs life associates numerous miracles with the historical moment of his birth.11 However, here the miracles are already prefiguring the equally miraculous birth of Ê¿AlÄ«. According to one tradition, when Muḥammadâs mother AmÄ«na spoke of the apparition of the angel Gabriel and of the light emanating from the new-born babyâs head, AbÅ« ṬÄlib told his own wife, FÄá¹ima bint Asad, that in thirty yearsâ time she would give birth to a son who would resemble this infant, except that he would not be a prophet.12
According to the commonly agreed version, Muḥammad was six years old when he became an orphan and was adopted by his uncle AbÅ« ṬÄlib.13 What little information there is on his childhood imbues his grandfather âAbd al-Muá¹á¹alib, and his adoptive father AbÅ« ṬÄlib â who, according to the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« sources, eventually converted to Islam â with a sacred character.14
1.2 Muḥammad and ʿAlī
Muḥammad was thirty years old when Ê¿AlÄ« was born. ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« traditions have it that the Prophet was the first living being that the newborn infant saw when he opened his eyes;15 on one occasion when FÄá¹ima bint Asad was ill, he allowed Ê¿AlÄ« to feed by sucking his (Muḥammadâs) tongue.16 Here we encounter an initiatic practice called taḥnÄ«k, âthe giving of salivaâ, that the Prophet is said to have used, as we shall see, with all of the ahl al-bayt during his lifetime.17 When Ê¿AlÄ« was six years old, a few years before the Prophet began his mission (risÄla), Muḥammad adopted him.18 For ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s, Ê¿AlÄ«âs proximity (qarÄba) to the Prophet is an important argument in support of Ê¿AlÄ«âs right to succeed Muḥammad; but above all, as far as we are concerned, this proximity is an essential characteristic of the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« figure of the Prophet. This extremely intimate relationship had an esoteric, initiatic dimension, as expressed in this declaration attributed to Ê¿AlÄ«:
You know how close I was to Godâs Messenger. He welcomed me into his bosom when I was a child. He held me against his heart, wrapped me in his bed, had me touch his body and breathe his smell, chewed things up and had me swallow them [â¦] I followed him as a child follows its mother. Each day he showed me a sign among his habits, and commanded me to imitate him.19
ʿAlī was ten years old when Muḥammad received the first revelations. He is said to have been the first male person to convert to Islam; moreover, to have been the first receiver of the revelation. According to numerous traditions, ʿAlī had privileged access to the Prophet, visiting him for an hour each night, as no one else was allowed to do.20 As one account attributed to him has it:
When I asked the Prophet questions he replied, and when my questions dried up, then he started [speaking]. Not one verse [of the QurʾÄn] came down to the Prophet, by day or by night [â¦], that he didnât give it to me to recite, that he didnât dictate to me so that I could write it out in my own hand. He taught me its spiritual interpretation as well as its literal explanations (taâwÄ«lahÄ wa-tafsÄ«rahÄ).21
The exclusive closeness of the Prophet to Ê¿AlÄ« is again demonstrated in an episode that was also known to SunnÄ« historians: the âpact of chosen brotherhoodâ (muʾÄkhÄt), probably accompanied by the exchange of blood, practised by the Prophet among the Muslims of Mecca before the Hijra, or between MuhÄjirun and Aná¹£Är upon his arrival in Medina.22 In both versions, Muḥammad chose Ê¿AlÄ« as his brother, declaring: âYou are my brother in this life and the Hereafter.â23
1.3 The Prophet and His Direct Descendants
ImÄmÄ« sources report that the Prophet had two sons with KhadÄ«ja, who apparently both died in infancy, and also four daughters. ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« biographers only mention in passing Muḥammadâs son with Maria the Copt, IbrÄhÄ«m, whose premature death is emphasised in the SunnÄ« sources;24 they concentrate all of their attention on FÄá¹ima, although this does not prevent her reported date of birth from varying wildly. According to one frequently upheld tradition, she was conceived after the Prophetâs âcelestial ascentâ (miÊ¿rÄj), commonly held to have occurred two years before the Hijra, an account difficult to reconcile with the fact that FÄá¹ima bore two of the Prophetâs grandsons while he was still alive. Nevertheless, this tradition, which is attributed to the sixth ImÄm, is important for ImÄmÄ« representations of the Prophet. It recounts that the Prophet was in the habit of kissing FÄá¹ima on the mouth, and that when âÄʾisha reproached him for doing this, the Prophet said:
When I was elevated into the heavens, Gabriel admitted me to paradise, led me to the tree ṬūbÄ, and gave me one of its fruits, an apple. I ate it, and it was transformed into a drop of semen in my loins. When I descended to the earth again, I coupled with KhadÄ«ja, and she fell pregnant with FÄá¹ima. Each time I desire to rediscover paradise, I kiss her and put my tongue in her mouth; there I taste the scent of paradise and of the tree ṬūbÄ.25
The Prophet makes Ê¿AlÄ« his son-in-law (khatan) when he gives his daughter FÄá¹ima to him in marriage.26 In numerous ḥadÄ«ths, he declares that Ê¿AlÄ« and FÄá¹ima are the two beings he loves the most.27 Consequently, the births of his two grandsons are major events in the Prophetâs life. According to ancient traditions, it is he who, at Godâs command, baptises them al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, translations of the names of Aaronâs sons, Shabar and Shubayr; the angel Gabriel is said to have told the Prophet: ââAlÄ« is to you what Aaron was to Moses.â28 The Prophet always calls al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn his sons, perhaps because they are his only surviving male descendants.29 Thus, in a paradoxical anthropological situation, the Prophet considers Ê¿AlÄ« to be by turns his son, his brother, and the second father of his sons.
The Prophetâs relationship with his two (grand-)sons is inscribed within the hagiographies of the second and third ImÄms.30 His love for them is at once the proof that for him they were his spiritual and temporal heirs, and the vector transmitting that inheritance. Like the love he felt for Ê¿AlÄ« and FÄá¹ima, his emotion for his grandsons is inseparable from his person and his prophetic mission, which is why every Muslim is under an obligation towards them. The Prophet is said to have declared, indicating the two boys, âWho loves me loves these two.â31 In ImÄmÄ« doctrine, love (tawallÄ«) for the ahl al-bayt is a fundamental pillar of faith, with the Prophet himself providing the first example of this love.32
These relationships were as physical and initiatic as those that preceded them. One day, when the Muslims were thirsty, FÄá¹ima brought al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn to see the Prophet. He offered his tongue first to al-Ḥasan and then to al-Ḥusayn, who sucked it until their thirst was quenched.33 It is even said about al-Ḥusayn, through whose descendants the Imamate was to be transmitted, that âhe was not breast-fed by FÄá¹ima, nor by any woman. The Prophet would go to him and put his thumb in his mouth; by sucking it al-Ḥusayn could get enough nourishment for two or three days. Thus al-Ḥusayn was formed from the flesh and blood of the Prophet.â34
The fusional and sacred relationships of the Prophet with his close family are synthesised in a famous tradition: one day, in Umm Salamaâs house, Muḥammad called Ê¿AlÄ«, FÄá¹ima, al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, put a cloak over them, and himself joined them underneath it. Then he said: âO God! These are the people of my house [â¦] keep them away from what is unclean, and purify them completely!â And then verse 33:33 was revealed: âRemain in your houses; and display not your finery, as did the pagans of old. And perform the prayer, and pay the alms, and obey God and his Messenger. People of the House (ahl al-bayt), God only desires to put away from you abomination, and to cleanse you.â35 Consequently, these five members of the âHoly Familyâ (ahl al-bayt), including Muḥammad, would be designated âThe People of the Cloakâ (ahl al-kisÄʾ).36
1.4 Muḥammadâs Premonitions
Another of Muḥammadâs essential personality traits is his prescience and his tragic sense of what was to come throughout history. In spite of their fatalism, ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« historians and theologians count his predictions among his âmiracles of speechâ (muâjizÄt aqwÄlihi).37 For example, in a tradition said to be passed down from the fourth Imam, while Ê¿AlÄ« and his family were visiting him, the Prophet broke down and wept, saying to the little al-Ḥusayn, âMy son! For you I have rejoiced with an unmatched joy. But Gabriel has come to tell me that you will be killed, and suffer many cruel twists of destinyâ.38 So the Prophet was particularly haunted by his prediction of the murder of al-Ḥusayn in KarbalÄʾ (which occurred in 61/680). A tradition attributed to the sixth ImÄm holds that the angel Gabriel announced both al-Ḥusaynâs birth and his violent end (at the hands of his own community, after the Prophetâs death) to Muḥammad at the same time. At first the Prophet was devastated, but when the angel told him that God had established that the Imamate, and thus the divine Alliance (walÄya) and the Prophetic heritage (waá¹£iyya), would be passed down through the line of this childâs descendants, he was reassured, then communicated the angelâs message to FÄá¹ima, who also accepted it.39 According to another tradition, it was after al-Ḥusaynâs birth that the Prophet had a dream-vision of his murder, waking up terrified and holding a handful of bloody soil from KarbalÄʾ.40
The Prophetâs life was haunted by other premonitions, such as the one in which he saw monkeys climbing on his mosqueâs minbar, which announced the ill-omened reign of the Umayyads; after this vision, the Prophet was never again heard to laugh.41 His prophetic prescience about his familyâs destiny and that of Islam as a whole must have been painfully affecting for a man as sensitive as Muḥammad. This confirms what the ḥadÄ«th says: âNo prophet has suffered as I have sufferedâ.42
1.5 The Prophetâs Battles
The Prophetâs belligerent actions and gestures interest ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« historians insofar as, on the one hand, they attest to Ê¿AlÄ«âs bravery, and on the other, they foreshadow the final battle of the MahdÄ«; the battle of Badr (2/624) is one example of both these concerns. Sources report that during the battle of Uḥud (3/625) Muḥammad fell to the ground. The Muslims were in disarray when, all alone, Ê¿AlÄ« rebuffed the infidels with his sabre. On this occasion the angel Gabriel is said to have uttered the phrase, now liturgical for ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s, âThere is no brave youth (fatÄ) but Ê¿AlÄ« and there is no sword but DhÅ« al-FaqÄrâ.43 At the battle of Khaybar in 7/628, the Muslims were defeated twice, first when led by AbÅ« Bakr and then by âUmar. The Prophet then chose Ê¿AlÄ« as his standard-bearer, curing his conjunctivitis by spitting in his eyes, and the Muslims won the battle. This episode demonstrates the Prophetâs magic powers, but also that he could appear indecisive.44
In ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« historiography, the Prophet is not presented as an invincible being. His vulnerability is even theorised as a way of justifying Ê¿AlÄ«âs quietism when faced by the first three Caliphs. Temporary powerlessness (Ê¿ujz) is the destiny both of prophets and of ImÄms, and it does not detract from their impeccability (Ê¿iá¹£ma); the QurʾÄn says that all the prophets were powerless at times, and Muḥammad too was constrained by fear (khawf) when he sought refuge in the cave of Thawr (v. 9, 40).45
According to these sources, the Prophetâs biggest triumph after Badr was not military; it was the trial by ordeal (mubÄhala) to which the Prophet invited the Christians of NajrÄn in 10/631, as evoked in QurʾÄn 3:61: âAnd whoso disputes with thee concerning him, after the knowledge that has come to thee, say: âCome now, let us call our sons and your sons, our wives and your wives, our selves and your selves, then let us humbly pray and so lay Godâs curse upon the ones who lieâ.â According to ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« TafsÄ«rs, âour selvesâ refers to Muḥammad and Ê¿AlÄ«, âour wivesâ to FÄá¹ima, âprincess of this world and of the final lifeâ, and âour sonsâ to al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn â together making up âthe Five of the Cloakâ.46
Finally, the meaning of the Prophetic wars becomes at once exalted and relativised in a tradition reported by Ê¿AlÄ« at the Battle of á¹¢iffÄ«n (37/657), according to which the Prophet told him long before, âYou will fight for the spiritual interpretation (taʾwÄ«l) [of the QurʾÄn] as I fought for its literal revelation (tanzÄ«l).â47 From the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« perspective, the wars of the Prophet and those of the ImÄm are two halves of a single history, and both the apparent success of the earlier battles and the evident failure of the later ones should be looked at in a nuanced way. Historyâs tragedy will finally be understood only with the coming of the twelfth ImÄm, who will bear Muḥammadâs name and features, and fulfil his mission.
1.6 The Prophetâs End
The end of the Prophetâs life is taught in the most ancient ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« sources; it is at the heart of an account that is essential to the definition of ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿ism. On his return from his farewell pilgrimage (10/631), in a place called GhadÄ«r Khumm, the angel Gabriel ordered the Prophet to designate Ê¿AlÄ« as the leader (imÄm) who would succeed him. As the Prophet hesitated, fearing that the community would oppose this, Gabriel spoke: âO Messenger, deliver that which has been sent down to you from your Lord; for if you do not, thou wilt not have delivered His Message.â (5:67). So Muḥammad had Ê¿AlÄ« come to him, and convened a meeting of the Muslims, declaring to them: âI leave you two precious objects (thaqalayn); if you take good care of them, you will not go astray. These objects are the Book of God and my descendants, the people of my family (Ê¿itratÄ« ahl baytÄ«).â48 He added, âLet he who considers me to be his master, take Ê¿AlÄ« here to be his Master (man kuntu mawlÄhu fa-hÄdhÄ Ê¿AlÄ« mawlÄhu). O my God, love the one who loves him [Ê¿AlÄ«] and be the enemy of whosoever is hostile towards himâ.49 Then verse 5:3 was revealed to Muḥammad: âToday I have perfected your religion for you, and I have completed My blessing upon you, and I have approved Islam for your religionâ. These declarations and verses are considered by ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s to be incontestable scriptural proofs of the truth.
With regard to Muḥammadâs mysterious and fatal illness, the poisoning thesis is generally retained among ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s,50 since the Prophet had predicted it, as well as foreseeing the martyrdom of his four family members.51 Some sources relay the information, known also to SunnÄ«s, that a Jewish woman was supposed to have served a poisoned meal to the Prophet after the conquest of Khaybar; the shoulder of mutton (shÄt) spoke to warn Muḥammad that it was poisoned, but the few mouthfuls he had already eaten were enough to kill him. In spite of this fatal result, the episode is counted among the miracles attesting to Muḥammadâs status as a prophet.52 According to other sources, the poisoners were none other than two of the Prophetâs wives, Ḥafsa and âÄâisha, with their respective fathers âUmar and AbÅ« Bakr, after the Prophet had imprudently confided the details of a premonitory dream to Ḥafá¹£a.53 Although this very serious accusation disappears from later sources, the betrayal of Muḥammad by his closest companions and wives is a central theme in the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« representation of the Prophet. This opposition among those who surround him, between the impeccable people of his family and his felonious companions, is evidence of an outlook that is fundamentally dualistic.
It is to Ê¿AlÄ« that the Prophet confided his premonition of approaching death, telling him that he alone should wash the cadaver, since any other man who saw the Prophetâs nudity would be blinded by it.54 Weakened, he tried in vain to distance AbÅ« Bakr and Ê¿Umar from himself in his final days.55 Then, according to a well-known tradition, he called for pen and paper, saying to the Muslims, âI will write something for you, after which you will never go astrayâ. However, âUmar did not allow this to happen.56 ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s believe that at this time the Prophet wanted to designate Ê¿AlÄ« as his rightful successor, in a final attempt to prevent the ineluctable fate of his family and his community.57
Ê¿AlÄ« is said to have been with the Prophet during the last moments of the latterâs life; and according to the sources, these final moments of intimacy present a gnoseological aspect, as well as a dimension of reported sensory experience. Thus, âthe Prophet never stopped embracing Ê¿AlÄ« until the moment when his soul departedâ; âhe was on Ê¿AlÄ«âs knees when his soul departedâ; âhis soul [â¦] poured out into the palm of Ê¿AlÄ«âs hand, and Ê¿AlÄ« put it back in [the Prophetâs] mouthâ.58 When he was asked what the Prophet had said to him, Ê¿AlÄ« replied, âHe taught me the keys to a thousand doors into Knowledge [or to a thousand chapters of Knowledge], each of which leads to another thousand doors [or chapters].â59 In one tradition, FÄá¹ima was present, and the Prophet in his death throes consoled her by telling her she would soon become the first of his familyâs people to join him.60
The events that followed the Prophetâs death no longer belong to the story of his life, but put a tragic seal upon it nevertheless. Before he was even buried his last wishes had been betrayed by his former companions, during the SaqÄ«fa event.61 Three months later FÄá¹ima died as a result of an attack ordered by AbÅ« Bakr and Ê¿Umar.62 And, according to the epilogue of a source cited above, the murder of al-Ḥusayn brought about the reappearance, or even the resurrection, of the Prophet: the night after the KarbalÄʾ massacre, the Prophet, stricken, appeared to Umm Salama in a dream, announcing that his son al-Ḥusayn had been killed with the people of his family, and that he [the Prophet] had just buried them with his own hands.63
2 The Metaphysical Prophet, from Early Shīʿī Tradition to Pre-modern Thought
Let us now examine the metaphysical ideas that underlie these historical accounts and extend them into a metahistorical âtimeâ. These ideas were already present in the oldest sources (A and B) and were developed in ways that were both more rational and more mystical by later thinkers (C and D), who imported philosophical and mystical ideas from outside the early ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« tradition.
2.1 The Pre-eternity of Muḥammad and of ʿAlī
According to early ImÄmÄ« doctrine, the historic birth of the Prophet on earth, and that of Imam Ê¿AlÄ«, were signs of an event that occurred in pre-eternity, before the creation of the world. Numerous traditions attributed to the Prophet report that the first thing God created was a column of light, which He placed in the loins of Adam; this divine Light was transmitted, in its purest state, to âAbd al-Muá¹á¹alib, at which point God divided it in two, sending one half to the loins of âAbd AllÄh and the other to those of AbÅ« ṬÄlib. From the first was born the Prophet and from the second Ê¿AlÄ«; these two halves were re-united in al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn, the children of Ê¿AlÄ« and FÄá¹ima.64 In other versions the singular original Light contained âthe Five of the Cloakâ or all fourteen of the Impeccable Ones.65 All the variants of this tradition express the idea that the first Entity to be created was of a spiritual nature, and contained within it the essences of Muḥammad and Ê¿AlÄ«. It is notable that this common origin is always affirmed by the Prophet himself, as in the synthetic tradition: âÊ¿AlÄ« is part of me and I am part of himâ (Ê¿AlÄ« minnÄ« wa-anÄ minhu).66 Muḥammad and Ê¿AlÄ« are therefore pre-eternal twins, in spite of the thirty years that separate their historic, earthly, births.
This ancient ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« concept may be at the roots of the mystical SunnÄ« concept of the âLight of Muḥammadâ in Sahl al-TustarÄ« (d. 273/886), then of the âMuḥammadan Realityâ (al-ḥaqÄ«qa al-muḥammadiyya) in the works of Ibn âArabÄ«.67 In a reciprocity of histories, this doctrine was then taken up and adapted by ImÄmÄ« thinkers such as Sayyid Haydar al-ÄmulÄ« (d. after 782/1385â6), ḤÄfiẠRajab al-BursÄ« (d. after 813/1410â1), and numerous later philosophers, who integrated the essence of Ê¿AlÄ« into the Muḥammadan Reality.
Thus the words of the Prophet, âWhat God created first was my Lightâ,68 are also associated with âWhat God created first was the Intellect (al-Ê¿aql)â,69 and in addition with âÊ¿AlÄ« and I come from one and the same Light.â When God established the pre-existential pact with the prophets (mÄ«thÄq al-nabÄ«yÄ«n) and asked âAm I not your Lord?â, Muḥammad was the first to reply âYes, I testify!â (see QurʾÄn, v. 7:172).70 This is why he says âI am the first of the prophets to have been created, and the last to have been sent [to men].â71 In conceptual terms, âGodâs Messenger (Muḥammad) preceded all the other prophets in true reality (min ḥayth al-ḥaqÄ«qa), and he succeeded them in formal existence (min ḥayth al-ṣūra).â72 But the Prophet is also reported to have said: âÊ¿AlÄ« was commissioned with all of the prophets secretly, and with me openly.â73 Moreover, the well-known ḥadÄ«th of Muḥammad, âI was a Prophet when Adam was still between water and clayâ is echoed in the ḥadÄ«th of Ê¿AlÄ«, âI was an Ally [of God] (walÄ«) [variant: heir (waṣī)] when Adam was still between water and clay.â74
From the metaphysical viewpoint, Ê¿AlÄ« necessarily accompanies Muḥammad, as divine Alliance or Friendship (walÄya) necessarily accompanies Prophecy (nubuwwa). By virtue of this consubstantiality, the successive Imams are also considered to be emanations of the Prophet. Numerous traditions have the Prophet announcing that twelve ImÄms will descend from him, leading to the eschatological Saviour (al-qÄʾim) who will bear his name: Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan al-MahdÄ«.75
2.2 The Seal of Prophecy and the Seal of the Alliance
Ancient ImÄmÄ« tradition affirms that Muḥammad is the last of the five messengers âwith firm resolutionâ (ulÅ« l-Ê¿azm), after Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus; he is the Seal of prophets as the QurʾÄn is the Seal of holy books.76 The parallel statement that Ê¿AlÄ« is âthe Seal of the allies (or friends) of Godâ (khÄtam al-awliyÄʾ) appears later. Ḥaydar al-ÄmulÄ« borrows from Ibn âArabÄ« the idea of a distinction between an absolute and universal Prophecy (nubuwwa muá¹laqa) and a determined one (muqayyada); and between an absolute divine Friendship or Alliance (walÄya muá¹laqa) and a determined one. According to a formula borrowed from Neo-Platonism, the absolute Prophet (Muḥammad) is to the determined prophets as the primary Intellect is to the partial intellects of men in the world; in the same way, the absolute Ally [of God], i.e. Ê¿AlÄ«, is to the determined allies as the universal Soul is to the partial souls of men in the world.77 Correcting Ibn Ê¿ArabÄ«, al-ÄmulÄ« identifies the absolute Seal of the divine Alliance (walÄya) as Ê¿AlÄ« and the determined Seal of the divine Alliance as the MahdÄ«, using two of the above-mentioned traditions to justify the symmetry between the absolute seals of the Prophecy and the Alliance: âI [Muḥammad] was a Prophet when Adam was still between water and clay,â and, âI [Ê¿AlÄ«] was an Ally [of God] when Adam was still between water and clay.â78
In line with this doctrine, Prophecy is the exoteric aspect of divine Alliance (walÄya), and divine Alliance the esoteric aspect of Prophecy. Prophecy is a mediation between God and His followers; Alliance is an unmediated relationship with God, through which the Prophet receives his prophecies and the Law. Every prophet is therefore first â not chronologically but ontologically â an ally of God, but every ally is not necessarily a prophet, and Muḥammad cannot take on the role of both Seals at once:
Thus did Muḥammad receive his prophecy from his absolute Alliance. But as the Seal of the prophets, the manifestation of absolute Prophecy, it was not possible for him to manifest his Alliance in its fullest measure at every time [â¦]. He had therefore to designate a deputy for this Alliance, and for his own succession (khilÄfa), in the person of the man who was closest to him in form and in spirit, and that was [â¦] Ê¿AlÄ«.79
This concept of the double Seal underwent major elaborations during the Safavid period while being linked to ancient philosophical ideas. In the following passage, by MÄ«r DÄmÄd (d. 1041/1630), we can observe that the attempt to establish a hierarchy between the Prophet and the ImÄm always leads back to their fundamental identities:
The primal Intellect is the light of the soul of the Seal of Prophecy [â¦] [The Prophet] says, in a ḥadÄ«th: âThat which God created first was the Intellectâ, and in another â⦠my Lightâ. The proofs of the necessity of the Prophetâs mission [â¦], by virtue of Heavenly providence, bring about an analogous judgement on the necessity for the Prophet to have an heir [â¦] who is his lieutenant (khalÄ«fa) and like his soul, so that the divine Emanation (al-fayḠal-ilÄhÄ«) might be propagated through him [â¦], in the same way as the Soul is the lieutenant of the Intellect in the conjunction of the divine Emanation with the worlds of Existence. [â¦] The Prophet sent to men is like the heart of the worldâs body; his heir and lieutenant [Ê¿AlÄ«] is like its brain and spinal cord [â¦] The primal Intellect is therefore the Light of the Seal of the prophets, and the second Intellect is the light of the Seal of the heirs. Or, to put it better, the first Intellect is the Light of both of them together, for they are as a single soul. [The Prophet] says: âÊ¿AlÄ« and I come from one and a single light.â80
The Seal of the prophets is also conceptualised as the end, or the goal (Greek telos), of creation. For Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, in Avicennian terms, the Prophet is the final cause of the existence of the created beings designated by the ḥadÄ«th qudsÄ«: âWithout you, I would not have created the [celestial] spheresâ; he is the goal of eternal Providence (al-Ê¿inÄya al-azaliyya), which pushes everything to realise its own perfection and contribute to the perfection of the whole.81 For al-FayḠal-KÄshÄnÄ«, in Akbarian terms, the Muḥammadian Reality or Aḥmadian Light is the origin and the end of all realities. The perfecting of all the sons of Adam depends on his perfection and tends towards it, as indicated in the ḥadÄ«th, âI am the Prince of the children of Adam.â82 The Prophet is the goal of all of Godâs acts, according to the same ḥadÄ«th qudsÄ«: âWithout you, I would not have created the spheres.â83
However, if Muḥammad is the goal of creation and his prophecy is the final aim of all prophecy, Muḥammad and his prophecy are not a goal or final aim for themselves. According to several ancient Imami traditions, the ultimate aim of Muḥammadâs own mission is none other than Ê¿AlÄ« himself: âThe angel Gabriel came to me and said: âMuḥammad! Your Lord had designated for you the love of Ê¿AlÄ« and the proclamation of his Alliance [with God].ââ84 Al-BursÄ« takes up this version as follows:
All prophets sent to men called to Him [God], announced the good news of the coming of Muḥammad [â¦], and were attached to the Alliance of Ê¿AlÄ« [â¦]. God sent His Prophet Muḥammad, thus sealing the existing (al-mawjÅ«d), as He had also, through him, initiated being (al-wujÅ«d) [â¦]. God ordered him to ask his community to be guided by the love of Ê¿AlÄ«, for this love is âthe straight pathâ (al-á¹£irÄá¹ al-mustaqÄ«m).85
In the ancient eschatological traditions on which later thinkers reflected, Ê¿AlÄ« and the ImÄms play the principal roles, and the Prophet almost disappears from the image of the End of Times, of which he was the annunciator.86 This corroborates M. A. Amir-Moezziâs recent hypothesis according to which, at least for early ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s, Muḥammad came to announce the End of Times and the coming of Ê¿AlÄ« as the Messiah; however, the death of Ê¿AlÄ« and the postponement of the End of Times led them finally to assign the messianic function to the twelfth ImÄm, or MahdÄ«.87
2.3 The Knowledge of the Prophet and of the ImÄm
In al-KulaynÄ«âs Book of Proof, the Prophet Muḥammad is designated as the âProof of God [for His creatures]â (ḥujjat allÄh).88 However, this function, which is ontological as much as it is pedagogical, is not exclusive to the Prophet, because the ImÄms, as theophanic men, are also âproofs of Godâ, since the world is never without a Proof.89 It is true that a distinction is made between the Prophet Messenger (nabÄ« rasÅ«l) and the one of whom the angels speak (muḥaddath), the ImÄm. The Messenger sees the angel in dreams and with his own eyes, and he hears the angelâs voice; the ImÄm hears the angelâs words but sees it neither with his own eyes nor in a dream.90 But one prophetic tradition (among many) still calls into question this subtle distinction while maintaining the exclusivity of prophecy: âO Ê¿AlÄ«, you hear what I hear and you see what I see, except that you are not a prophet.â91 Later in al-KulaynÄ« it is stated that Prophets and ImÄms are the only human beings to possess the âholy spiritâ (rūḥ al-qudus), through which they know all things.92
One of the prophetic traditions most frequently quoted by ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s is âI am the city of Knowledge (madÄ«nat al-Ê¿ilm) and Ê¿AlÄ« is its gate (bÄb); whoever wishes to enter the city must pass through its gate.â In other words, knowledge of the Prophet comes only through the ImÄm. This ḥadÄ«th is then associated with one already cited and attributed to Ê¿AlÄ«: âHe [Godâs Messenger] taught me the keys to a thousand doors into Knowledge [or to a thousand chapters of Knowledge], each of which leads to another thousand doors [or chapters].â93 It suggests that, if all of the ImÄmâs knowledge comes from that of the Prophet, then the ImÄm develops, extends, and perhaps even surpasses the Prophetâs knowledge. From the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« viewpoint, the Prophet brought only the literal revelation (tanzÄ«l) of the QurʾÄn ; it was the ImÄms who provided its spiritual interpretation (taâwÄ«l), and they were specifically assigned this task by verse 3:7: ânone knows its [the Bookâs] interpretation, save only God and those rooted in knowledge.â94 Without doubt, as we have seen above, it was Muḥammad who taught Ê¿AlÄ« the taʾwÄ«l, but it was the ImÄms who dispensed the taʾwÄ«l in their ḥadÄ«ths.95
The Prophet is also reported to have said: âWe, the prophets, have been commanded to speak to men according to the measure of their intelligence,â96 whereas the ImÄms declare: âOur teaching is arduous; the only ones who can withstand it are a prophet sent to men, an angel of Proximity, or an initiated one whose heart has been tested by God for faith.â97 They also say: âOur teaching is arduous; neither a prophet sent to men nor an angel of Proximity can withstand it.â98 Some traditions have it that if the ImÄm must observe the keeping of secret (taqiyya) when teaching his knowledge, this is precisely to avoid being identified with a prophet.99 And if there are numerous traditions attributing omniscience or divine Knowledge to the ImÄms, by contrast, in the following quotation the Prophet recognises the limits of his own knowledge: âIf you knew God with a true knowledge, solid mountains would crumble from the effects of your prayer. No one attains the essential foundations of knowledge of Him.â Muḥammad was then asked, âNot even you, O Messenger of God?â He replied, âNot even I! God is too high and too great for anyone to embrace the foundations of knowledge of Him.â100 The omniscience of the ImÄm, and the possibility that he may possess knowledge superior to that of the Prophet, appear as sacred and taboo beliefs in ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿ism; beliefs whose open expression would be considered to partake of âexaggerationâ (ghulÅ«w).
2.4 The Celestial Ascent of the Prophet and Its Esoteric Meaning
The account of the celestial ascent (miÊ¿rÄj or isrÄʾ) is incontestably important in Prophetic hiero-history, marking the superiority of Muḥammad over the other prophets. In ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« versions of the story, it is also an attestation of the pre-eminence of Ê¿AlÄ« over even the Prophet himself. According to one of these accounts, when the Prophet was raised by God to the ultimate degree, âtwo bowsâ- lengths away â or nearerâ (Q 53:9), God spoke to him in Ê¿AlÄ«âs language. Then God had Muḥammad pass through the worlds of the Mulk, of the MalakÅ«t, and of the JabarÅ«t â respectively the worlds of Nature, Soul and Intellect â before arriving in the world of the divine entity (al-lÄhÅ«t), where Ê¿AlÄ« was set on his shoulders.101 In another version, reported by al-QÄá¸Ä« SaÊ¿Ä«d al-QummÄ« (d. 1103/1691), Muḥammad, having gone beyond the limits of the world of composition and then contemplated and left behind the ranks of the intellective Soul, saw in the highest level of the divine Soul a luminous and divine man (insÄn ilÄhÄ«) penetrating the veil of Light, and within it the Prophet recognised Ê¿AlÄ«âs back.102
For Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, important declarations about the Knowledge of the Prophet and of the ImÄm originate in the Prophetâs celestial ascent: âAbout the knowledge that the Prophet had of the [original] point of existence, on the night of his celestial ascent, he said, âI hold the knowledge of the beginnings and the ends [â¦].ââ103 And about the knowledge that Ê¿AlÄ« had of these things, Ê¿AlÄ« said, âI am the point beneath the bÄâ [of the bismillÄh, the opening formula of the QurʾÄn],â and, âAsk me what is to be found beneath the throne.â104 This suggests that it was nothing less than the principality of Ê¿AlÄ« that was revealed to the Prophet on the night of his ascension, and that the ImÄm, though he was initiated by the Prophet, at that point gained knowledge only of himself.
According to another account, the Prophet, having reached paradise, entered a sumptuous palace in the centre of which was a coffer made of light, which Gabriel opened. Inside it he discovered poverty (faqr) and a patched cloak (muraqqaÊ¿a). The Lord said to him, âO Muḥammad, these are the things I chose for you and your community from the moment I had created them, and I give them only to those whom I love.â Facing God, the Prophet put the garments on, and then, while coming back from his celestial ascent, clothed Ê¿AlÄ« in them, on Godâs command. The patched cloak, commonly called khirqa, was to be transmitted from ImÄm to ImÄm until the MahdÄ«, along with the other legacies of the prophets.105 During the pre-modern period (D) such traditions are adopted by the defenders of a reconciliation between Sufism and ShÄ«Ê¿ism, upholding as they do an Imami genealogy for Sufism.106 For supporters of this view, the transmission of this archetypical khirqa gave rise to three Sufi initiatic paths, via three khirqa that were transmitted by the ImÄms to their disciples: by the sixth ImÄm, JaÊ¿far al-á¹¢Ädiq (d. 148/765) to AbÅ« YazÄ«d al-Bisá¹ÄmÄ« (d. 234/848 or 261/874); by the seventh, MÅ«sÄ al-KÄáºim (d. 183/799), to ShaqÄ«q al-BalkhÄ« (d. 194/809â10); and by the eighth, Ê¿AlÄ« al-Riá¸Ä (d. 203/818), to MaÊ¿rÅ«f al-KarkhÄ« (d. 200/815).107
The same thinkers also referred to words attributed to the Prophet by a tradition that appears not to be of ImÄmÄ« origin: âThe Law (sharÄ«Ê¿a) is my words; the Path (á¹arÄ«qa) is my acts; and Reality (ḥaqÄ«qa) is my [spiritual] states.â This citation offered them a scriptural proof of the reconciliation of exoteric religion, identified with the Law, with Sufism, identified with the Path, and with philosophical gnosis, identified with Reality. In the longer version the list continues, and concludes with âPoverty is my glory (al-faqr fakhrÄ«), and I am proud of it among all the prophets sent to men [before me].â108 This tradition is particularly prominent among dervish ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« orders such as the modern-period KhÄksÄrs, who lay claim to the spiritual and material poverty of the Prophet.109 Thus the account of the Prophetâs celestial ascent plays a determining role in ImÄmÄ« ShÄ«Ê¿ism in general, and in ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Sufism in particular.
2.5 The Prophet, the ImÄm and the Divine Names
ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« thinkers influenced by Ibn Ê¿ArabÄ« also conceive of the Prophet and the ImÄm as manifestations of the Divine Names.110 According to them, each of the prophets makes manifest a particular Divine Name, and Muḥammadan Reality is the manifestation of the synthetic name AllÄh. At the level just below, the Prophet Muḥammad and the ImÄm Ê¿AlÄ« are manifestations, respectively, of the Names al-RaḥmÄn and al-Raḥīm, which are based on the same root. So, according to al-ÄmulÄ«, ââthe Mercifulâ (al-RaḥmÄn) is none other than Muḥammad and his essential universal reality, [he is] designated as âthe Seal of the Prophetsâ, just as âthe Compassionateâ (al-Raḥīm) is formally none other than âthe Seal of the friends of Godâ [Ê¿AlÄ«] [â¦]. The Merciful occupies the rank of the first Intellect, the Compassionate that of the universal Soul.â111
Al-Bursī writes:
The prophets are manifestations of the Names of God. For the one among them who is the manifestation of a universal name, his Law is universal, too. As we know, all the Names can be reduced to the synthetic name, AllÄh. [In the same way,] all the prophets and messengers can be reduced to the seven names that are Adam, Idris, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and Jesus [â¦]; all of these seven can be reduced to the single synthetic name Muḥammad.112
However, later in the same work, a citation from the Prophet himself is used to accord precedence to the name and person of ʿAlī, and al-Bursī comments audaciously:
The Prophet declared: âThe one who wants to contemplate Seraphiel (IsrÄfÄ«l) in his elevation, Michael in his rank, Gabriel in his grandeur, Adam in his gravity, Noah in his patience and supplication, Abraham in his generosity, Moses in his courage, Jesus in his goodwill has only to look at Ê¿AlÄ« b. AbÄ« ṬÄlib.â This indicates that [Ê¿AlÄ«] is the supreme Name that runs through all things, that everything created by God has Ê¿AlÄ« as its master and meaning, for he is the Word of the necessary Being, the shining Light in the sky of existence and of what exists.113
Here again, it is Muḥammad himself who recognises the superiority and divinity of Ê¿AlÄ«. We are here at the core of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« esotericism, the expression of which is often considered as âexaggerationâ (ghulÅ«w), even among ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« scholars, since these are the most sacred and secret beliefs of ImÄmi ShÄ«Ê¿Ä«s.
2.6 The Prophet, the ImÄm and the Perfect Man
This line of thinking leads to the identification of the Prophet and the ImÄm combined into the perfect Man (al-insÄn al-kÄmil), another concept inherited from Ibn Ê¿ArabÄ«. For Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, the Prophet is the most perfect of the created beings in that he contains a synthesis of the perfections possessed by each of the prophets and allies of God. Unlike al-ÄmulÄ«, Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r even calls Muḥammad the âSeal of Law-giving prophecy and of the divine Allianceâ.114 But in his explanation of the Prophetâs doubleness, both human and divine, historical and metaphysical, the figures of the Prophet and of the ImÄm are mixed together anew, resulting in a paradoxical representation of the perfect Man:
Know that the lieutenant of Muḥammadan Reality is the Pole of poles [â¦]. His status as Lord of the world comes from the divine attributes that his rank accords him. As for his impotence, his quietism (quâÅ«d) and any of the defects that could be ascribed to him, they are a function of his humanity, a humanity that came about through [his] determination and descent to the inferior world, in order to envelop the peculiarities of the apparent world with his own apparent dimension and the peculiarities of the hidden world with his own hidden dimension. Thus he is at the confluence of two seas, and in him are made manifest the two worlds. His abasement is also his perfection, just as his elevation to his original station is his perfection.115
This concept of the perfect Man allows the Prophet and the ImÄm to be embraced together and kept distinct at the same time, as in this passage by Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r:
The Prophet is the first Intellect in which are made manifest the properties of His Name that is specified for him, âthe Merciful.â This is because He makes himself manifest, from the esoteric point of view (maÊ¿nÄ), within the perfect Man exercising governing control (al-mutaá¹£arrif), in a manifest manner and in a hidden manner, in the Unseen and in the visible world, designated as the Caliph, whereas from the apparent point of view the place in which He makes himself manifest is the Throne. The perfect Man is the first locus of manifestation [of God] for the spiritual world, as the Throne is for the physical world. [â¦] Among the horizons [the macrocosm] there are two Caliphs: the primary Intellect and the universal Soul, who are loci of manifestation for the Merciful and for the Compassionate [â¦]. Among souls [the microcosm] there are also two Caliphs: the Prophet and the Ally [of God], in whom are made manifest the Merciful and the Compassionate. [â¦] Humankind as a whole is a locus of manifestation of God in potentiality, but his nobility and grandeur appear only in His [Godâs] actual locus of manifestation, which is our Prophet among all the prophets, and Ê¿AlÄ« among all the allies [of God].116
For al-KÄshÄnÄ«:
The perfect Man is either a prophet or an ally [of God] [â¦]. Absolute Prophecy is true prophecy that has arrived through eternity past and subsisting, for eternity yet to come [â¦]. The holder of this position is called supreme Caliph, the Pole of poles, great Man, true Adam, supreme Calamus, primary Intellect, and supreme Spirit. This is what these words of his mean: âWhat God created first was my Lightâ; âI was a Prophet when Adam was still between water and clayâ. [â¦] The esoteric aspect of this prophecy is the absolute Alliance [with God]. [â¦] This is what these words of the Prophet mean: âÊ¿AlÄ« and I are from a one and single Lightâ; âGod created my spirit and that of Ê¿AlÄ« b. AbÄ« ṬÄlib two thousand years before the rest of creationâ; âÊ¿AlÄ« was commissioned with all of the prophets secretly, and with me openlyâ; along with this ḥadÄ«th of ImÄm Ê¿AlÄ«: âI was an Ally [of God] when Adam was still between water and clayâ117
Finally, let us reiterate that Muḥammad and ʿAlī always appear as impossible to dissociate from each other, and functionally equal, but that it is always for the Prophet to say so. In the order of discourse, if not in the order of reasons, Muḥammad remains the primary source and the ultimate reference.
3 Conclusion
Thus, throughout its evolution and in its different currents, Imami ShÄ«Ê¿ism has never neglected the figure of the Prophet â far from it, as he has been essentially linked with the Holy Family and coupled with ImÄm Ê¿AlÄ«. In ShÄ«Ê¿ism from its origins to the present, and for scholars as for simple believers, Islam is not a religion that was revealed to and by a single man, a historic figure and messenger prophet, but one revealed to and by two men who share the same spiritual and eternal substance, the Prophet and the ImÄm, Muḥammad and Ê¿AlÄ«. To bring together the historical and metaphysical, the exoteric and esoteric, one can say that the position of the Prophet is that of origin, foundation or principle of Revelation, but that the ImÄm is its final aim, completion or télos. In philosophical terms, the Prophet is the potentiality of the ImÄms, and the ImÄms are the full actualisation of the Prophet. The veneration of the Prophet, inseparable from that of the ImÄms, is thus at the very core of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam.
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Kohlberg, E. âShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Views of the Death of the Prophet Muhammadâ, in R. Hansberger, M. Afifi al-Akiti and Ch. Burnett, eds. Medieval Arabic Thought: essays in honour of Fritz Zimmermann, London, Warburg Institute, 2012, 77â86.
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Terrier, M. âDefence of Sufism among Twelver Shiâi Thinkers of the pre-modern and modern Era: Topics and Argumentsâ, in D. Hermann and M. Terrier, ed. ShiÊ¿i Islam and Sufism: Classical Views and Modern Perspectives, London, I.B.Tauris, The Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2020, 27â63.
âTwo KhÄksÄr treatises of the XIXth century (translated from Persian). The Booklet of Poverty (trans. M. Arabestani)â, in D. Hermann and M. Terrier, ed. ShiÊ¿i Islam and Sufism: Classical Views and Modern Perspectives, London, I.B. Tauris, The Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2020, 333â338.
See Kohlberg, âShîâî Hadîthâ 299-307; Amir-Moezzi, Le Guide divin dans le shîâisme originel, 48â70 [Eng. Transl. The Divine Guide in Early Shi âism, 19â28].
On the meaning and place of walÄya in ShÄ«Ê¿ism, see Amir-Moezzi, La preuve de Dieu, 45â52.
For more on this evolution of Imami sources, see Amir-Moezzi, Guide divin, Introduction, 13â71 [Divine Guide, 5â28].
From this period we can date most of the book attributed to Sulaym b. Qays al-KÅ«fÄ« (d. ca 76/695â6), KitÄb Sulaym b. Qays; see also al-á¹¢affÄr al-QummÄ« (d. 290/902â3), Baá¹£Äâir al-darajÄt; Ê¿AlÄ« b. IbrÄhÄ«m al-QummÄ« (d. ca 307/919), TafsÄ«r al-QummÄ«; and Muḥammad b. YaâqÅ«b al-KulaynÄ« (d. 328/940), Uṣūl al-KÄfÄ«. For more on these texts, see Amir-Moezzi, Le Coran silencieux et le Coran parlant.
Al-Shaykh al-á¹¢adÅ«q (Ibn BÄbÅ«ya) (d. 381/991), al-AmÄlÄ«, Ê¿Ilal al-sharÄʾiÊ¿, and KamÄl al-dÄ«n wa tamÄm al-niÊ¿ma. From the same period, al-Shaykh al-MufÄ«d (d. 413/1022), al-IrshÄd.
Al-Shaykh al-ṬabrisÄ« (d. 548/1154), IÊ¿lÄm al-warÄ bi-aÊ¿lÄm al-hudÄ; Muḥammad b. Ê¿AlÄ« Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b (d. 588/1192), ManÄqib Äl AbÄ« ṬÄlib; Ê¿AlÄ« b. ʿĪsÄ al-IrbilÄ« (d. 693/1293), Kashf al-ghumma fÄ« maÊ¿rifat al-aʾimma.
Sayyid Ḥaydar ÄmulÄ« (d. after 782/1381), JÄmiÊ¿ al-asrÄr wa manbaÊ¿ al-anwÄr; Naṣṣ al-nuṣūṣ fÄ« sharḥ al-fuṣūṣ; TafsÄ«r al-MuḥīṠal-aÊ¿áºam. Also al-ḤÄfiẠRajab al-BursÄ« (d. after 813/1410â1), MashÄriq anwÄr al-yaqÄ«n fÄ« ḥaqÄʾiq asrÄr amÄ«r al-muʾminÄ«n; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r al-AḥsÄâÄ« (d. ca 906/1501), MujlÄ« mirʾÄt al-munjÄ« fÄ« l-kalÄm wa l-ḥikmatayn wa l-taá¹£awwuf; Muḥsin al-FayḠal-KÄshÄnÄ« (d. 1090/1679), KalimÄt maknÅ«na.
Among many others, Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r al-AḥsÄʾī (d. ca 906/1501), Ê¿AwÄlÄ« l-laʾÄlÄ« fÄ« l-aḥÄdÄ«th al-dÄ«niyya; Muḥammad BÄqir al-MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr al-anwÄr.
Amir-Moezzi and Jambet, Quâest-ce que le shîâisme?, 27â40.
For more on the pre-existence and super-existence of the ImÄm, see Amir-Moezzi, Guide divin, Parts II and IV [Divine Guide, id.]; and La religion discrète, 109â133 [Eng. Transl. The Spirituality of Shi âi Islam, 133â168].
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, II, 175â176.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 271, § 1; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, I, 116.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 82â83.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 268, §§ 28â29; Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, KamÄl, 172, § 30. SunnÄ« tradition has it that AbÅ« ṬÄlib died an infidel.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 82.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 55â56.
Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 41â43 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 37â39].
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 83â84, underlines the parallels between the two childhoods.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 84.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 206â207.
QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äʾir, I, 710, § 740.
Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 39â40 [Spirituality of Shi âi Islam, 32â33].
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 100.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, II, 133; ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 139â141.
ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 150; MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr, VIII, 120, § 10; XVIII, 364, § 68 and XLVIII, 6, § 6; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, VIII, 62.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 57.
IrbilÄ«, Kashf, I, 95; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, VIII, 51â52; ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 149â150.
ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm al-warÄ, 210â211 and 218.
See, for example, ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 218â219; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 49, 56; IrbilÄ«, Kashf, I, 525.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, IX, 43â58.
Ibid. IX, 46.
Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 198â203 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 262â270].
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, IX, 53.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 278â279.
QummÄ«, TafsÄ«r, III, 829â830; MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr, XXXV, 206â207, § 1; al-Shaykh al-ṬabrisÄ«, MajmaÊ¿ al-bayÄn fÄ« tafsÄ«r al-QurʾÄn, IV, 356â357.
See Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 44â45 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 40â42].
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, I, 327â328; ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 33â34.
ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 34; Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, ÄmÄlÄ«, 105.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 278, §§ 3â4.
ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 32. See below for the epilogue of this tradition.
Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ, III, 424, exegesis of v. 17, 60.
Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, III, 43; KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 195.
ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 81â82; Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 72â79, §§ 3â4 and 6â8.
ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 99.
Sayyid Ḥaydar ÄmulÄ«, Rafâ al-munÄzaâa wa l-khilÄf, 79â80.
QummÄ«, TafsÄ«r, I, 156; Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 151â154; ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 158; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, IX, 12â20.
See Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 238 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 317â318].
On this tradition, see Bar-Asher, Scripture and Exegesis in Early ImÄmÄ« Shiism, 93â98.
See Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 202â203 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 269â270].
See Kohlberg, âShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Views of the Death of the Prophet Muhammadâ, 77â86; Ouardi, Les derniers jours de Muhammad, 164â178.
QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äʾir, II, 804, § 5; KitÄb Sulaym, 233; MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr, XXII, 516, § 21 and XXXIII, 266â267, § 534.
QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äʾir, II, 804â805, §§ 5â6; ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 25â26; MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr, XXII, 516, § 22. For more on this subject, see Kohlberg, âShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Viewsâ 79.
QummÄ«, TafsÄ«r, III, 1082â1083; MajlisÄ«, BiḥÄr, XXII, 239, § 4 and 516, § 23; Ibid. XXVIII, 20â21, § 28; Aḥmad b. Muḥammad al-SayyÄrÄ« (third/fourth/ninth/tenth centuries), Revelation and Falsification: the KitÄb al-qirÄʾÄt of Aḥmad b. Muḥammad al-SayyÄrÄ«, 36 and 103, n. 128; Kohlberg, âShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Viewsâ 82â83; Ouardi, Derniers jours, 329, n. 51.
ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 134.
Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 169â170; Ouardi, Derniers jours, 70â73.
KitÄb Sulaym, 210; ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 135; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, II, 344â345. See Ouardi, Derniers jours, 130â146.
On this tradition, see Miskinzoda, âThe story of âPen and Paperâ and its interpretation in Muslim literary and historical traditionâ 231â249.
Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 172â173; ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 136; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, II, 347â348.
KitÄb Sulaym, 213; QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äâir, II, 146, § 2, 149, ḥ. 8 and 153, ḥ. 13; Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 33; ṬabrisÄ«, IâlÄm, 136; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, V, 107.
Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 173; ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 136.
This is the central topic of the KitÄb Sulaym b. Qays, possibly the earliest book of the ShiÊ¿Ä«s. See Amir-Moezzi, Coran silencieux, part I, 27â61.
KitÄb Sulaym, 78â93.
ṬūsÄ«, ÄmÄlÄ«, 278, § 635; Ibn ShahrÄshÅ«b, ManÄqib, X, 37.
Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, Ê¿Ilal, I, bÄb 159, ḥ. 11, 562.
IrbilÄ«, Kashf, I, 458; KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 192. For more on these traditions, see Amir-Moezzi, Guide divin, 101â110 [Divine Guide, 40â43].
Shaykh MufÄ«d, IrshÄd, 77, § 4; ṬabrisÄ«, IÊ¿lÄm, 158.
Lory, La dignité de lâhomme face aux anges, aux animaux et aux djinns, 218.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 99; BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 60, 62, 121, 214.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 99.
Kulaynī, Uṣūl, 335, § 1.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 122; KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 86.
ÄmulÄ«, Muḥīá¹, III, 248â249.
ÄmulÄ«, JÄmiÊ¿, 386, 401.
ÄmulÄ«, JÄmiÊ¿, 401, 460; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 121, 124; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, MujlÄ«, 1341â1342.
Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, KamÄl, 248â249; KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 192.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 98â100, §§ 3â4.
ÄmulÄ«, Naṣṣ, III, 1298.
ÄmulÄ«, Naṣṣ, I, 226â395 et III, 1942â1943.
ÄmulÄ«, Naṣṣ, III, 1264â1268.
Muḥammad b. âUmar al-KashshÄ«, RijÄl al-KashshÄ« â IkhtiyÄr maÊ¿rifat al-rijÄl, maÊ¿a taÊ¿lÄ«qÄt MÄ«r DÄmÄd, I, 232. The parallel between man as microcosm (Ê¿Älam á¹£aghÄ«r) and the world as Great Man or macranthropos (insÄn kabÄ«r) is an idea with Pythagorean and neo-Platonic origins, diffused into Islam by the IkhwÄn al-á¹£afÄʾ and then taken up by Ibn Ê¿ArabÄ«.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, MujlÄ«, 177â178.
In one of the most ancient versions: âI am the Prince of the children of Adam, Ê¿AlÄ« is the Prince of the Arabs, FÄá¹ima is the Princess of women, al-Ḥasan and al-Ḥusayn are the Princes of the young people of paradise.â KitÄb Sulaym, 116, 209; Shaykh ṬūsÄ«, AmÄlÄ«, 528, § 1240.
KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 190â191.
QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äʾir, I, 297â298; Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 148 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 188]; Amir-Moezzi, Preuve de Dieu, 218â219.
BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 215â216.
For more on this, see Terrier, âAnthropogonie et eschatologie dans lâÅuvre de Muḥsin FayḠKâshânî: lâésotérisme shîâite entre tradition et syncrétismeâ 743â780.
Amir-Moezzi, âMuḥammad le Paraclet et Ê¿AlÄ« le Messie. Nouvelles remarques sur les origines de lâislam et de lâimamologie shiâiteâ 19â54 [now in Id., Ali, le secret bien gardé, ch. 2].
Kulaynī, Uṣūl, 95, § 2.
Amir-Moezzi, Preuve de Dieu, in particular 159â166.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 99, §§ 1â2.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 122â123.
KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 84â85; KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 156, §§ 1â3; Amir-Moezzi, âLes Cinq Esprits de lâhomme divin. Aspects de lâimamologie duodécimaine XIII.â 297â320; Preuve de Dieu, 226â227.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, âAwÄlÄ«, IV, 123.
Arberryâs translation, modified in accordance with the ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« interpretation of this verse. On this, see Bar-Asher, Scripture and Exegesis, 100.
On this conception, see Amir-Moezzi, Coran silencieux, especially 101â168.
KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 17, ḥ. 15; Shaykh á¹¢adÅ«q, AmÄlÄ«, 305, ḥ. 6; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 125â126.
QummÄ«, Baá¹£Äʾir, I, 131â142; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 129; KÄshÄnÄ«, KalimÄt, 229; translated in Amir-Moezzi, Divine guide, 5.
BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 351 and 418; see also KulaynÄ«, Uṣūl, 239, §4, and Amir-Moezzi, Preuve de Dieu, 263.
BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 127â128.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 132.
BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 217.
Al-QÄá¸Ä« SaÊ¿Ä«d al-QummÄ«, Al-ṬalÄʾiÊ¿ wa l-bawÄriq, 281; Jambet, ââLâHomme parfait. Métaphysique de lââme et eschatologie selon QÄáºÄ« SaÊ¿Ä«d QummÄ«â, 417. For more on similar traditions, see Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi, Religion discrète, 136â140 [Spirituality of ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Islam, 171â176].
Amir-Moezzi, Guide divin, 193 [Divine guide, 76].
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, MujlÄ«, IV, 1338â1339.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, IV, 130.
For more on this thesis, see Terrier, âThe Defense of Sufism among Twelver ShÄ«Ê¿Ä« Scholars of Early Modern and Modern Times: Topics and Argumentsâ 27â63. On the history of this tradition, see Gril, âDe la khirqa à la á¹arÄ«qa. Continuité et évolution dans lâidentification et la classification des voiesâ 57â81, especially 65â66.
ÄmulÄ«, JÄmiÊ¿, 225, 431 and 614â615; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, MujlÄ«, 1245â1246.
ÄmulÄ«, JÄmiÊ¿, 346; Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, Ê¿AwÄlÄ«, I, 39 and IV, 125â126; Id. MujlÄ«, 1073.
See âTwo KhÄksÄr treatises of the 19th century. The Booklet of Povertyâ, transl. M. Arabestani, 333â338.
See Terrier, âNoms divins et hommes divins dans la gnose shîâite imâmite (VIIIe/XIVeâXIe/XVIIe siècles)â 335â356.
ÄmulÄ«, Naṣṣ, 1307.
BursÄ«, MashÄriq, 66â67.
Ibid. 196â197.
Ibn AbÄ« JumhÅ«r, MujlÄ«, III, 1047â8.
Ibid. III, 1049â1051.
Ibid. III, 1051â1052.
KÄshÄnÄ«, 188â189.