The ideas of theghulat have at times been compared to those of the late antique gnostics,[4] but the extent of this similarity has also been questioned.[5] Someghulat ideas, such as the notion of theOccultation (ghayba) and return (raj'a) of the Imam, have been influential in the development ofTwelver Shi'ism.[6] LaterIsma'ili Shi'i authors such asJa'far ibn Mansur al-Yaman (diedc. 957) andAbu Ya'qub al-Sijistani (died after 971) also adaptedghulat ideas to reformulate their own doctrines.[7] The onlyghulat sect still in existence today are theAlawites, historically known asNusayris after their founderIbn Nusayr (died after 868).[8]
A relatively large number ofghulat writings have survived to this day. Previously, only some works preserved in Isma'ilism were available to scholars such as theUmm al-Kitab (Mother of the Book, 8th–11th centuries), which was published in 1936,[9] theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla (Book of the Seven and the Shadows, 8th–11th centuries) published in 1960,[10] and theKitab al-Siraṭ (Book of the Path,c. 874–941) published in 1995.[11] However, between 2006 and 2013 numerousghulat texts that have been preserved in the Alawite tradition were published in theAlawite Heritage Series.[12]
A bilingual fragment of surahal-Nisa, which discusses diviners.
Like Shi'i Islam itself, the origins of theghulat lie in thepro-Alid movements of the late 7th century that fought against theUmayyad Caliphate (661–750) to bring one ofAli's descendants to power. The earliest use of the termghulat is found in several reports about the followers ofMukhtar al-Thaqafi, leader of a revolt against the Umayyads on behalf of Ali's sonMuhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya, which was part of theSecond Fitna, 680–692. According to these reports, some of al-Thaqafi's followers organized regular meetings in the houses of various Kufan women to listen todiviners prophesying about future events.[13]
The followers who attended these meetings were denounced asghulat by other followers of al-Thaqafi.[14] The Arabic verbghala 'to exaggerate; to transgress the proper bounds', was in broader use at the time to denounce perceived 'un-Islamic' activities,[15] which may includesoothsaying (kahana). But the use of the term here could hardly have been in reference this, since al-Thaqafi himself often practiced soothsaying, and was respected for this by all of his followers.[16]
Rather, the reason for the use of the termghulat for this subgroup of al-Thaqafi's followers may be more specifically related to theQuranic use of the wordghala ('exaggerate').[17] It occurs in the Quran twice, in thesurahsan-Nisa (4:171) andal-Ma'idah (5:77), as follows (occurrence of the wordghala underlined):
4:171. O People of the Book! Do notexaggerate in your religion, nor utter anything concerning God save the truth. Verily the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of God, and His Word, which He committed to Mary, and a Spirit from Him. So believe in God and His messengers, and say not “Three.” Refrain! It is better for you. God is only one God; Glory be to Him that He should have a child. Unto Him belongs whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is on the earth, and God suffices as a Guardian.[18]
5:72. They certainly disbelieve, those who say, “Truly God is the Messiah, son of Mary.” [...] 73. They certainly disbelieve, those who say, “Truly God is the third of three,” while there is no god save the one God. [...] 5:75. The Messiah, son of Mary, was naught but a messenger—messengers have passed away before him. And his mother was truthful. Both of them ate food. [...] 76. Say, “Do you worship, apart from God, that which has no power to benefit or harm you, when it is God Who is the Hearing, the Knowing?” 77. Say, “O People of the Book! Do notexaggerate in your religion beyond the truth, and follow not the caprices of a people who went astray before, and led many astray, and strayed from the right way.”[19]
The "People of the Book" mentioned here refers to Christians, who are castigated for ascribing a divine status tothe prophet Jesus. He was not a "child" of God, but "only a messenger" who like all normal human beings "ate food".[20] The Christian claim that "God is theMessiah, son of Mary" is characterized in 5:72 and other verses as 'disbelief', as is the claim that "God is the third of three", a reference to theTrinity, in which Jesus is believed to beconsubstantial with the Godhead.[21] The Quranic concept of 'exaggeration' in both cases refers to 'exaggerating' the status of a prophet as being more-than-human.[22]
It seems probable that the followers of al-Thaqafi who gathered in the Kufan houses were likewise denounced by their colleagues for having exaggerated the status not of Jesus, but of Ali.[23] There had been an earlier movement in Kufa called theSaba'iyya, named after theSouth Arabian Jewish convertAbd Allah ibn Saba', who according to some reports had insisted that Ali was not dead and would return (raj'a) to seek revenge upon those that opposed him.[24]
Since remnants of theSaba'iyya still existed in the time of al-Thaqafi, and since one of the Kufan women at whose house the group denounced asghulat gathered belonged to theSaba'iyya, it may well be that this group also belonged to theSaba'iyya.[25]After Mukhtar al-Thaqafi died in 687, his movement sometimes came to be referred to as theSaba'iyya, and when Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya, the Alid whom al-Thaqafi's movement had supported, also died in 700, his followers, theKaysaniyya, claimed that ibn al-Hanafiyya had gone into hiding (ghayba), and that he would return before theDay of Judgment as theMahdi to establish a state of righteousness and justice.[26]
It appears that in its earliest usage, the termghulat referred to those Shi'a who taught the dual doctrine of the Occultation (ghayba) and return (raj'a) of the Imam, which other Muslims perceived as an 'exaggerated' view of the Imam's status.[27] Later sources attributed to these earliestghulat some of the ideas for which the laterghulat would become known, most notably the outright divinization of Ali, but there is no good evidence that this was the case.[28] Rather, the 8th-/9th-century need to attribute these ideas to the earliestghulat probably arose from the fact that, while groups like theSaba'iyya had traditionally been known asghulāt, their actual core ideas of occultation and return had become standard tenets of Twelver and Isma'ili Shi'ism, and so other ideas needed to be ascribed to them to justify theghulat label.[29]
Nevertheless, the laterghulat did probably originate from these early groups,[30] and some glimpses of later ideas may sometimes be found, for example the belief in metempsychosis, which was attributed to early 7th-centuryghulat leaders such as the women Hind bint al-Mutakallifa or Layla bint Qumama al-Muzaniyya.
One important difference with the later groups is the prominent role played by women, who organized the earlyghulat meetings in their houses and who often acted as teachers, upholding a circle of disciples.[31] This stands in stark contrast to the ideas of the laterghulat, who ranked women between the status of animals and men in their spiritual hierarchy.[32]
Al-Mufaddal ibn Umar al-Ju'fi (died before 799) was a close confidant of Ja'far al-Sadiq and his sonMusa al-Kazim (died 799) who for some time was a follower of Abu al-Khattab. Imamiheresiographers regarded him as the leader of aghulat sect called theMufaddaliyya, but it not certain whether this sect ever existed. A number of importantghulat writings were attributed to him by later authors (see below).[38]
Ibn Nusayr (died after 868) and al-Khasibi (died 969) were the two most important figures in the founding of Nusayrism (calledAlawism in the contemporary context), the onlyghulat sect that still exists today.[40]
TheUmm al-kitab (Arabic:أمّ الکتاب,lit. 'Mother of the Book') is a syncretic Shi'i work originating in theghulat milieus of 8th-century Kufa. It was later transplanted to Syria by the 10th-centuryNusayris, whose final redaction of the work was preserved in aPersian translation produced by theNizari Isma'ilis ofCentral Asia.[41] The work survives only in Persian.[42] It contains no notable elements ofIsma'ili doctrine,[43] but given the fact that Isma'ili authors starting from the 10th century were influenced by earlyghulat ideas such as those found in theUmm al-kitab,[44] and especially given the influence of these ideas on laterTayyibi Isma'ilism,[45] some Isma'ilis do regard the work as one of the most important works in their tradition.[41]
The work presents itself as a revelation of secret knowledge by the Shi'i ImamMuhammad al-Baqir (677–732) to his discipleJabir ibn Yazid al-Ju'fi (diedc. 745–750).[46] Its doctrinal contents correspond to a large degree to what 9th/10th-centuryheresiographers ascribed to variousghulat sects,[46] with a particular resemblance to the ideas of theMukhammisa.[41][b] It contains a lengthy exposition of the typicalghulat myth of the pre-existent shadows (Arabic:azilla) who created the world by their fall from grace, as is also found in theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla attributed toal-Mufaddal ibn Umar al-Ju'fi (died before 799).[46]
Book of the Seven and the Shadows (Kitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla)
The last paragraph of theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla, from a manuscript of unknown provenance:[47]"Thus is finished the concealed book called theBook of the Seven, which was a gift of grace from our master Ja'far al-Sadiq, peace be upon us from him. It is called theNoble Book of the Seven because it reports about the beginning of creation and its origin, about its ending and conclusion, and about the translocation of souls from state to state in accordance with divine guidance and limitation. Peace, the end."
TheKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla (Book of the Seven and the Shadows), also known asKitab al-Haft al-Sharif (Book of the Noble Seven/Noble Book of the Seven) or simply asKitab al-Haft (Book of the Seven),[c] written in the 8th–11th century, is an importantghulat text that was falsely attributed toal-Mufaddal ibn Umar al-Ju'fi (died before 799).[46]
It sets out in great detail theghulat myth of pre-existent 'shadows' (azilla) who created the world by their fall from grace, and who were imprisoned in material human bodies as punishment for their hubris.[46] This theme of pre-existent shadows,[d] which also appears in other importantghulat works such as theUmm al-kitab, seems to have been typical of the early Kufanghulat.[46]
Great emphasis is placed upon the need to keep the knowledge received fromJa'far al-Sadiq, who is referred to in the work asmawlana 'our master', from falling into the wrong hands. This secret knowledge is entrusted by Ja'far to al-Mufaddal but is reserved only for true believers (mu'minun).[48]
It involves such notions as the transmigration of souls (tanasukh ormetempsychosis) and the idea that sevenAdams exist in theseven heavens, each one of them presiding over one of the seven historical world cycles (adwar).[49] This latter idea may reflect an influence fromIsma'ilism,[48] where the appearance of each newprophet (Adam,Noah,Abraham,Moses,Jesus,Muhammad,Muhammad ibn Isma'il) is likewise thought to initiate a new world cycle.[50]
The work consists of at least eleven different textual layers which were added over time, each of them containing slightly different versions ofghulat concepts and ideas.[51] The earliest layers were written in 8th-/9th-century Kufa, perhaps partly by al-Mufaddal himself, or by his close associates Yunus ibn Zabyan and Muhammad ibn Sinan (died 835).[52]
A possible indication for this is the fact that Muhammad ibn Sinan also wrote two works dealing with the theme of pre-existent, world-creating 'shadows': theKitab al-Azilla ('Book of the Shadows') and theKitab al-Anwar wa-hujub (Book of the Lights and the Veils).[53] Biographical sources also list several other 8th-/9th-century Kufan authors who wrote aKitab al-Azilla.[54] In total, at least three works closely related to al-Mufaddal'sKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla are extant, all likely dating to the 8th or 9th century:[55]
Muhammad ibn Sinan'sKitab al-Anwar wa-hujub
an anonymous work called theKitab al-Ashbah wa-l-azilla (Book of the Apparitions and the Shadows)[e]
another anonymous work also called theKitab al-Azilla ('Book of the Shadows').[f]
Though originating in the milieus of the early Kufanghulat, theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla was considerably expanded by members of a laterghulat sect called theNusayris, who were active in 10th-centurySyria.[56] The Nusayris were probably also responsible for the work's final 11th-century form.[38] Unlike most otherghulat works, theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla was not preserved by the Nusayris, but by the SyrianNizari Isma'ilis.[38] Like theUmm al-kitab, which was transmitted by the Nizari Isma'ilis ofCentral Asia, it contains ideas that are largely unrelated to Isma'ili doctrine,[57] but influenced various later Isma'ili authors starting from the 10th century.[58]
TheKitab al-Sirat (Book of the Path) is another purported dialogue between al-Mufaddal ibn Umar al-Ju'fi and Ja'far al-Sadiq, likely composed in the period between theMinor and theMajor Occultation (874–941).[38][g] This work deals with the concept of aninitiatory 'path' (sirat) leading the adept on aheavenly ascent towards God, with each of theseven heavens corresponding to one of seven degrees of spiritual perfection. It also contains references to such typicallyghulat ideas astajallin (the manifestation of God in human form),tanasukh (metempsychosis or transmigration of the soul),maskh/raskh (metamorphosis or reincarnation into non-human forms), and the concept of creation through the fall of pre-existent beings (as in theKitab al-Haft wa-l-azilla, see above).[38]
The philosophical background of the work is given by thelate antique concept of agreat chain of being linking all things together in one great cosmic hierarchy. This hierarchical system extends from the upper world of spirit and light (populated by angels and other pure souls) to the lower of world of matter and darkness (populated by humans, and below them animals, plants and minerals). Humanity is perceived as taking a middle position in this hierarchy, being located at the top of the world of darkness and at the bottom of the world of light.[59]
Those human beings who lack the proper religious knowledge and belief are reborn into other human bodies, which are likened to 'shirts' (qumsan, sing.qamis) that a soul can put on and off again. This is calledtanasukh ornaskh. Grave sinners are reborn instead into animal bodies (maskh), and the worst offenders are reborn into the bodies of plants or minerals (raskh).[60][h]
Believers who perform good works and advance in knowledge travel upwards on the ladder, putting on ever more pure and luminous 'shirts' or bodies, ultimately reaching the realm of the divine.[61] This upwards path is represented as consisting of seven stages above that of humanity, each located in one of theseven heavens:[62]
al-Mumtaha: the Tested, first heaven
al-Mukhlis: the Devout, second heaven
al-Mukhtass: the Elect, third heaven
al-Najib: the Noble, fourth heaven
al-Naqib: the Chief, fifth heaven
al-Yatim: the Unique, sixth heaven
al-Bab: the Gate, seventh heaven
At every degree the initiate receives the chance to gain a new level of 'hidden' or 'occult' (batin) knowledge. If the initiate succeeds at internalizing this knowledge, they may ascend to the next degree. If they lose interest or start to doubt the knowledge already acquired, they may lose their pure and luminous 'shirt', receiving instead a heavier and darker one, and descend down the scale of being again.[63]
Those who reach the seventh degree (that ofBab or 'Gate')[i] are granted wondrous powers such as making themselves invisible, or seeing and hearing all things –including abeatific vision of God– without having to look or listen. Most notably, they are able to manifest themselves to ordinary beings in the world of matter, by taking on the form of a human and appearing to anyone at will.[64] This ability to manifest in human form the 'Gates' in the seventh heaven share with God.[59]
The theme of a heavenly ascent through seven degrees of spiritual perfection is also explored in otherghulat works, including the anonymousKitab al-Maratib wa-l-daraj (Book of Degrees and Stages), as well as various works attributed to Muhammad ibn Sinan (died 835),Ibn Nusayr (died after 868), and others.[65]
^This is also a common theme in otherghulāt texts. TheKitāb al-Haft wa-l-aẓilla goes a little bit further than theKitāb al-Ṣirāṭ, also describing other forms of hierarchy within one class: among humans, female bodies rank below male ones, and among animals inedible species rank below edible ones; seeAsatryan 2017, pp. 152–153.
^De Smet 2020, pp. 303–304, 307–308. Theghulāt influences on Ja'far ibn Mansur al-Yaman'sKitāb al-Kashf are discussed byAsatryan 2020. The influence of these ideas was pervasive inTayyibi Isma'ilism (see De Smet 2020, pp. 320–321).
^al-Qāḍī 1976, p. 300.Anthony 2012, p. 316 describes the earliestghulāt's (theSabāʾiyya's) view of Ali as a type ofmessianism that was certainly tendentious from a religious point of view, but that stopped short of regarding him as divine.
^Asatryan 2017, p. 63.Halm 1981, p. 67 proposed Muhammad ibn Sinan, who was a disciple of al-Mufaddal, as the author of the entireKitāb al-Haft wa-l-aẓilla (repeated inHalm 2001–2012), but this was rejected byAsatryan 2017, pp. 64–65.
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