Matti Moosa's
A Comparative Perspective*
*Published on the Internet, October, 2011. Dr. Moosa read this paper at the Second International Conference of the Druze Heritage Foundation held in collaboration with the Middle East Centre at Saint Antony’s College Oxford, October 1-3, 2004.
Footnotes
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[Page 1]
The Druze, like the other Ghulat sects, have their origins in Shiite Islam. Although these sects deviated from the mainstream of Islam, the Druze appear from their own books to have developed, outside the sphere of Shi'ism, their own characteristic faith of Tawhid (Unitarianism). While other Ghulat sects deify the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (d. 661) and ascribe divine attributes to him and to his successors the Twelve Imams, beginning with Ali and ending with Muhammad al-Mahdi, who they claim disappeared in 874 in a cellar at the city of Samarra, Iraq, the factor which most clearly sets the Druze apart is that they deify only the Isma'ili-Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim bi Amr Allah (996-1021). They also accord Hamza ibn Ali al-Zawzani al-Khurasani, a contemporary of al-Hakim, a prominent position in their religious system.
Vladimir Minorsky challenges the idea that the Ahl-i Haqq, or Ali Ilahis, deify Ali. He asserts that since Ali is not given a dominant role in their sacred books, the name Ali Ilahis (defenders of Ali) is not warranted. But as I have stated in my treatment of the religious system of the Ahl-i Haqq, they considered Ali one of the theophanies of the deity and believed that he was himself divine. He existed before Adam, to whom the angel Gabriel foretold his coming. Moreover, the Ahl-i Haqq believe in the divine preexistence of Ali. Although they assert that God manifested himself in many forms, they also maintain that Ali is the direct incarnation of God, and for this reason they call him Ali Allah (Ali the God). To them Ali is the essence of God and coexists with God. Although some Ali Ilahis say that Ali is not exactly God, they still assert that he is not separate either (1). Another major concept the Druze share with other extremist Shiite sects is tajjali, the manifestation of the Deity in human form in different ages and cycles.
[2] Like all extremist Shiites, the Druze are very secretive and resort to taqiyya (dissimulation) to protect the tenets of their religion, which no one knows except those who are entrusted with its secrets. For this reason they divide their community into two categories. First is the Uqqal or Ajawid, the initiates who have achieved the ultimate knowledge of their faith and have become its patrons. The other category is the Juhhal, the ignorant or uninitiated (common people and women) who have no knowledge of their religion and depend on the Uqqal for religious instruction. It is possible for some of these Juhhal to be initiated into the secrets of the religion after long instruction and extremely difficult examination. Also, like other extremist Shiites, the Druze do not have the mosques and masjids usually associated with Islam. Instead they have khalawat, majalis, or maqamat, religious centers where they worship and meditate, and where scribes copy books of wisdom. The Druze also have Mashyakhat al-Aql, a historical extension of the Shiite Imamate which has in fact replaced it.
The dogmas that distinguish the Druze from other extremist Shiites pertain to reincarnation, eschatology, reward and punishment on the day of judgment, the nature of paradise, the hudud or divine ministers, the periodic manifestations of the deity, and the abrogation of all existing religions and religious systems. Druze writings, both ancient and contemporary, show that their religious system is a conglomeration of Isma'ili Shiism, Manicheanism, Zoroastrianism, Sufism, the teachings of the Ikhwan al-Safa (Brethren of Purity), and Greek philosophy, especially Neo-Platonism. One gets the impression by reading some contemporary Druze writers like the late Kamal Junblat and Sami Nasib Makarem that the Druze faith is a philosophical rather than religious movement. Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato, and the god Hermes, the son and messenger of Zeus, occupy a prominent place in their religious system. Makarem says that the god Hermes is so revered for his protection of the mysteries that the Druze profess his sanctity and elevate him to the ranks of the prophets (2). Without doubt, the whole religious system of the Druze is more complex than that of any other esoteric sect. Unlike many extremist Shiites, particularly the Isma'ilis, the Druze have produced a host of highly polished writers such as Hamza ibn Ali, who had a vast knowledge of the religions in his time. One must become familiar with his writings to understand the religious precepts of the Druze.
[3] The main religious precepts of the Druze are those of the Fatimid Shiites, which in turn are based on the religious system of the Isma'ilis. Unlike the Ithna'asharis or Twelver Shiites, the Isma'ilis uphold the divine authority of only seven Imams, ending with Isma'il, son of the sixth Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (d. 765); thus, they are known as Seveners. While the Twelvers assert that Ja'far al-Sadiq bestowed the Imamate on his son Musa al-Kazim even though an older son, Isma'il, was still living, the Seveners maintain that Ja'far, regardless of his motives, had no right to bypass Isma'il and transfer that office to Musa. The Twelvers claim that Ja'far did so because Isma'il was a drunkard and unfit to occupy the divine office of the Imamate. But some moderate Isma'ilis did not object to the Imamate of Musa al-Kazim while his brother Isma'il was still living and called him Imam Mustawda, (acting or trustee Imam), and that Isma'il was an Imam Mustaqarr, (a permanent or necessary Imam). Hence, we have two divisions of Shi'ism, the Twelvers and the Seveners, also called Isma'ilis. The controversy between the two groups over who is the rightful successor to Ja'far al-Sadiq continues to this day.
The Druze, whose history and religious beliefs are linked with those of the Fatimids, are the rightful heirs to the Isma'ilis, albeit with some modifications. The offspring of Isma'il were so persecuted by the Sunnite Umayyads and Abbasids that they went underground and propagated their beliefs in total secrecy. They had a highly organized propaganda apparatus and competent propagandists called the Da'is. The most important of these was AbMatti Moosa's
The Druze and Other Shiite Ghulat Sects:
A Comparative Perspective*
Download in .zip format
*Published on the Internet, October, 2011. Dr. Moosa read this paper at the Second International Conference of the Druze Heritage Foundation held in collaboration with the Middle East Centre at Saint Antony’s College Oxford, October 1-3, 2004.
Footnotes
Page opens in separate window.
[Page 1]
The Druze, like the other Ghulat sects, have their origins in Shiite Islam. Although these sects deviated from the mainstream of Islam, the Druze appear from their own books to have developed, outside the sphere of Shi'ism, their own characteristic faith of Tawhid (Unitarianism). While other Ghulat sects deify the Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (d. 661) and ascribe divine attributes to him and to his successors the Twelve Imams, beginning with Ali and ending with Muhammad al-Mahdi, who they claim disappeared in 874 in a cellar at the city of Samarra, Iraq, the factor which most clearly sets the Druze apart is that they deify only the Isma'ili-Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim bi Amr Allah (996-1021). They also accord Hamza ibn Ali al-Zawzani al-Khurasani, a contemporary of al-Hakim, a prominent position in their religious system.
Vladimir Minorsky challenges the idea that the Ahl-i Haqq, or Ali Ilahis, deify Ali. He asserts that since Ali is not given a dominant role in their sacred books, the name Ali Ilahis (defenders of Ali) is not warranted. But as I have stated in my treatment of the religious system of the Ahl-i Haqq, they considered Ali one of the theophanies of the deity and believed that he was himself divine. He existed before Adam, to whom the angel Gabriel foretold his coming. Moreover, the Ahl-i Haqq believe in the divine preexistence of Ali. Although they assert that God manifested himself in many forms, they also maintain that Ali is the direct incarnation of God, and for this reason they call him Ali Allah (Ali the God). To them Ali is the essence of God and coexists with God. Although some Ali Ilahis say that Ali is not exactly God, they still assert that he is not separate either (1). Another major concept the Druze share with other extremist Shiite sects is tajjali, the manifestation of the Deity in human form in different ages and cycles.
[2] Like all extremist Shiites, the Druze are very secretive and resort to taqiyya (dissimulation) to protect the tenets of their religion, which no one knows except those who are entrusted with its secrets. For this reason they divide their community into two categories. First is the Uqqal or Ajawid, the initiates who have achieved the ultimate knowledge of their faith and have become its patrons. The other category is the Juhhal, the ignorant or uninitiated (common people and women) who have no knowledge of their religion and depend on the Uqqal for religious instruction. It is possible for some of these Juhhal to be initiated into the secrets of the religion after long instruction and extremely difficult examination. Also, like other extremist Shiites, the Druze do not have the mosques and masjids usually associated with Islam. Instead they have khalawat, majalis, or maqamat, religious centers where they worship and meditate, and where scribes copy books of wisdom. The Druze also have Mashyakhat al-Aql, a historical extension of the Shiite Imamate which has in fact replaced it.
The dogmas that distinguish the Druze from other extremist Shiites pertain to reincarnation, eschatology, reward and punishment on the day of judgment, the nature of paradise, the hudud or divine ministers, the periodic manifestations of the deity, and the abrogation of all existing religions and religious systems. Druze writings, both ancient and contemporary, show that their religious system is a conglomeration of Isma'ili Shiism, Manicheanism, Zoroastrianism, Sufism, the teachings of the Ikhwan al-Safa (Brethren of Purity), and Greek philosophy, especially Neo-Platonism. One gets the impression by reading some contemporary Druze writers like the late Kamal Junblat and Sami Nasib Makarem that the Druze faith is a philosophical rather than religious movement. Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato, and the god Hermes, the son and messenger of Zeus, occupy a prominent place in their religious system. Makarem says that the god Hermes is so revered for his protection of the mysteries that the Druze profess his sanctity and elevate him to the ranks of the prophets (2). Without doubt, the whole religious system of the Druze is more complex than that of any other esoteric sect. Unlike many extremist Shiites, particularly the Isma'ilis, the Druze have produced a host of highly polished writers such as Hamza ibn Ali, who had a vast knowledge of the religions in his time. One must become familiar with his writings to understand the religious precepts of the Druze.
[3] The main religious precepts of the Druze are those of the Fatimid Shiites, which in turn are based on the religious system of the Isma'ilis. Unlike the Ithna'asharis or Twelver Shiites, the Isma'ilis uphold the divine authority of only seven Imams, ending with Isma'il, son of the sixth Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (d. 765); thus, they are known as Seveners. While the Twelvers assert that Ja'far al-Sadiq bestowed the Imamate on his son Musa al-Kazim even though an older son, Isma'il, was still living, the Seveners maintain that Ja'far, regardless of his motives, had no right to bypass Isma'il and transfer that office to Musa. The Twelvers claim that Ja'far did so because Isma'il was a drunkard and unfit to occupy the divine office of the Imamate. But some moderate Isma'ilis did not object to the Imamate of Musa al-Kazim while his brother Isma'il was still living and called him Imam Mustawda, (acting or trustee Imam), and that Isma'il was an Imam Mustaqarr, (a permanent or necessary Imam). Hence, we have two divisions of Shi'ism, the Twelvers and the Seveners, also called Isma'ilis. The controversy between the two groups over who is the rightful successor to Ja'far al-Sadiq continues to this day.
The Druze, whose history and religious beliefs are linked with those of the Fatimids, are the rightful heirs to the Isma'ilis, albeit with some modifications. The offspring of Isma'il were so persecuted by the Sunnite Umayyads and Abbasids that they went underground and propagated their beliefs in total secrecy. They had a highly organized propaganda apparatus and competent propagandists called the Da'is. The most important of these was Abd Allah ibn Maymum al-Qaddah. Because of persecution he moved from place to place until he settled in Salamya, Syria, where he died between 883 and 887. The Abbasids, who had come to power in 750, intensified their oppression of the Isma'ilis, because they were challenging them for authority. Persecution forced the sons of al-Qaddah to leave Salamya and settle in North Africa, which was relatively peaceful and more fertile for their propaganda.
Between 901 and 908, the active and shrewd propagandist Abu Abd Allah the Shiite, also known as al-San'ani, was instrumental in establishing the Isma'ili Da'wa in North Africa. In 903 he captured several towns from the Aghlabids and extended his authority to other parts of North Africa, as far as Qayrawan. He abolished the Khutba for the Abbasid caliphs in the Friday prayers, thus ending the Abbasids' authority in North Africa. Most important, he proclaimed the imminent appearance of the expected Mahdi—in this case Ubayd Allah, called al-Mahdi, whom Abu Abd Allah invited to North Africa. Al-Mahdi left Salamya and went to North Africa. Within a few years, he succeeded in establishing the Fatimid state and became its first caliph in 909. One of his successors, al-Mu'iz, sent an army to occupy Egypt in 968-969. Al-Mu'iz subsequently moved to the new country, which became both the center of the Fatimid state and of Shi'ism in the East. In 996 al-Hakim bi Amr Allah became caliph at the age of eleven, following the death of his father al-Aziz, and with him began the history and religious system of the Druze.
Al-Hakim has long been known for his eccentric and irrational behavior. An ardent Fatimid Shiite, he persecuted not only the Christians but the Sunnites as well. Despite his eccentricities, he founded Dar al-Hikma (the House of Wisdom), where Fatimid scholars taught their own form of Shi'ism. Attached to it was Dar al-Ilm (the House of Learning), a library which housed a great number of manuscripts. In both of these institutions, highly trained Da'is taught and promulgated the Isma'ili faith. To Dar al-Ilm was assigned a highly qualified man titled Da'i al-Du'at (chief propagandist) whose function was to teach the people of all social classes the faith of the Isma'ilis.
[4] What is important to our subject is that, like his predecessors, al-Hakim was inclined to accept his own deification. Da'is who hailed from Persia encouraged this tendency. Chief among them were Hamza ibn Ali al-Zawzani of Khurasan, al-Hasan ibn Haydara al-Farghani known as al-Akhram, and Muhammad ibn Isma'il Anushtikin (or Nashtakin) al-Darazi of Bukhara, who may have been of Turkish origin. These men were well-versed not only in Isma'ilism but in Zoroastrianism, the Mazdakism of the Persians with its belief in the duality of two cosmic principles representing good and evil, and most importantly in the deification of Persian kings. They also had knowledge of Greek philosophy, elements of which appear in their teachings, and even exalted some Greek philosophers to the point of deification. These Da'is propagated the faith that came to be known as Druzism. No other extremist sect known to us today, including the Nusayris and Ahl-i Haqq, could claim such a host of intellectuals capable of speculative reasoning.
Hamza ibn Ali came in 1014 to Egypt, where he became a courtier of al-Hakim and lived in his palace. He preached the deification of al-Hakim in Masjid Raydan and attracted a number of Isma'ili ghulat who responded to his message. He called himself Hadi al-Mustajibin (the guide to those who accepted his call, i.e., for the deification of al-Hakim). He also called one of his disciples Safir al-Qudra (messenger of divine power) and began secretly to promote the apotheosis of al-Hakim. Muslim leaders who did not accept Hamza's message had to acquiesce for fear of punishment (3). Al-Hakim welcomed Hamza's dissemination of the concept of his deification and even encouraged him to spread it among the people. It is said that when al-Hakim passed by his masjid, Hamza came out to meet him and talked to him in private.
In 1017, Hamza finally declared the apotheosis of al-Hakim in public. But in his letter of 1019, entitled al-Ghaya wa al-Nasiha, Hamza clearly says that it was Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Darazi who declared the apotheosis of al-Hakim. He says the arrogant Darazi hastened to proclaim al-Hakim's deification without true understanding. He says al-Darazi was one of the mustajibin (those who responded to Hamza's call to the divine oneness of al-Hakim), but out of envy and through deception by Satan he made public the deification of al-Hakim and called himself Sayf al-Islam (the sword of Islam). Hamza states that he wanted to stop al-Darazi, but he disobeyed and went further, calling himself the Lord of those are rightly guided and better than Hamza himself. Because he was in charge of the state treasury, al-Darazi even counterfeited money. In this letter Hamza mentions that some former followers of his, like Abu Mansur al-Bardha'i and Abu Ja'far al-Habbal, deceived him and supported al-Darazi. Hamza reiterates his charge of arrogance against al-Darazi and hastens to declare the apotheosis of al-Hakim in other letters, especially al-Kitab al-Ma'ruf bi al-Naqd al-Khafi, Risalat al-Balagh wa al-Nihaya fi al-Tawhid, Risalat al-Subha al-Ka'ina, and all of which are found in Rasa'il al-Hikma (Diyar Aql: Lebanon, 1986), pp. 49-63, 73-82, and 202-205 consecutively.
[5] Following in Hamza's footsteps, Hasan ibn Haydara al-Farghani known as al-Akhram also preached the apotheosis of al-Hakim, who therefore lavished him with gifts and made him one of his retinue. But many citizens of Cairo did not like the report of al-Hakim's apotheosis and began a revolt. Some Sunnites retaliated and killed al-Akhram. Angered, al-Hakim took revenge on his murderers and gave him a royal burial. It is said that al-Darazi was killed in 1019 at the instigation of Hamza, but more likely he took refuge in al-Hakim's palace after the revolt until he could flee the country. With al-Hakim's support, al-Darazi went to Wadi al-Taym in Lebanon and other parts of Syria, where he attracted many with his message of al-Hakim's divinity. He also preached metempsychosis, declaring that the divine spirit which originally existed in Adam dwelt after Adam's death in Ali ibn Abi Talib and finally in al-Hakim. Those who accepted al-Darazi's beliefs have been known since then as Druze.
But we should note that the Druze reject this name and call themselves al-Muwahiddun (Unitarians), and that although al-Darazi gave his name to the Druze, the true founder of Druzism is Hamza ibn Ali, not al-Darazi. It is reported that Hamza also went into hiding after the revolt; probably he went to Syria, as did al-Darazi. Yet another account maintains that Hamza disappeared at the end of 1021 like the Shiite al-Mahdi, but will appear at the end of time in great power and glory to destroy those who rejected the apotheosis of al-Hakim. After him the hudud (ministers) also disappeared, except for Baha al-Din al-Muqtana, who took charge of administering the Druze community. The last word we have of Hamza is his Risalat al-Ghayba, which he sent to Syria with the Fatimid Abu Ya'la Hamza ibn Abi al-Abbas al-Husayni, shortly after the disappearance of al-Hakim. As for the fate of al-Hakim, it is said that he was killed by his own sister Sitt al-Mulk.
Of all the extremist Shiite sects known to us, the Nusayris are the closest to the Druze in some aspects of their religious system. According to Ta'lim al-Din al-Durzi (the Druze Catechism), the Nusayris were once a part of the Druze sect but then split from it. The Druze catechism speaks of the Nusayris as having been one with the Unitarian Druze before separating themselves through the effort of a certain rector called al-Nusayri. Question 44 or 45 of the catechism (depending on the manuscript followed) asks, “How did the Nusayris separate themselves from the Muwahhidun (Unitarian Druze) and abandon the unitarian religion?” Answer: “They separated when al-Nusayri called them to do so (4). Al-Nusayri claimed to be the worshipful servant of our Lord, the commander of the faithful, but denied the divinity of our Lord al-Hakim and professed the divinity of Ali. He said that the Deity had manifested himself successively in the Twelve Imams of the family of the Prophet, and that he had disappeared after having manifested himself in Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Qa'im (the Twelfth Imam) (5).
[6] From this statement, we learn that the name of the Druze sect dates back to the late ninth century, when Muhammad ibn Nusayr proclaimed the deity of the eleventh Imam al-Hasan al-Askari (d. 873). In his letter al-Risala al-Damigha li al-Fasiq: al-Radd ala al-Nusayri La'anahu al-Mawla fi Kill Kawr wa Dawr, Hamza ibn Ali refutes the allegations of a certain Nusayri who vilified the religion of Tawhid and accused the Druze of permitting incest and sodomy. He also refutes this Nusayri's allegation that the Druze maintain that the souls of nawasib (Sunnite Muslims) and addad (adversaries, antagonists) pass after death into animals like dogs, pigs and monkeys. Hamza especially enjoins Druze women not to believe in the false allegations of this irreligious Nusayri and bids them to adhere to the honorable Druze code of ethics (6).
The most fundamental dogma that separates the Druze from other extremist Shiite sects is their belief in al-Hakim as the one and only deity, whereas most extremist Shiites maintain that Imam Ali is the only deity. In his refutation of a certain Nusayri who claimed that Ali and al-Hakim are one and the same entity, Hamza contends that Ali, the Imams who succeeded him, indeed all the natiqs (prophets, or proclaimers of the message) and all the wasis or usus (those entrusted with the explanation of the message of the natiqs) are no more than slaves to “Our Lord al-Hakim, may his memory be glorified in every time and age. Our Lord is the one who confirms their authority and positions. Glory is to him alone who has no partner” (7). Thus, when the Druze call themselves al-Muwahhidun (Unitarians) and emphasize the dogma of Tawhid (the oneness of the deity), they mean the divinity and oneness of al-Hakim. Almost every Druze source known to us emphasizes the apotheosis of this caliph. The Rasa'il al-Hikma (The Epistles of Wisdom), some written by Hamza ibn Ali and others by his contemporaries, and Mushaf al-Munfarid bi Dhatih, written by Hamza, are filled with references to al-Hakim's divinity.
To Hamza and other Druze writers, the divinity of al-Hakim is a reality that cannot be comprehended by human reason. Thus, man's effort to probe it will inevitably fail, because it is not subject to time and space. Al-Hakim is omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent. He is neither zahir (outward, visible to the eye) nor batin (inward, hidden), and no name can be ascribed to him because he transcends human appellations. He has no attributes and cannot be described with human language; he is a person, but not a body or an avatar. He is the cause of causes, the creator of everything in existence. He is unique and beyond compare with heavenly hosts or earthly beings; he is incomprehensible. The essence of his divinity cannot be discerned by the human eye or by human reason. He transcends the whole creation (8). Because he is unique in his divine essence al-Hakim has no human attributes or actions. He does not eat, drink, or sleep, and he does not urinate or defecate. These natural functions would negate his divinity. He has no father and mother, and these terms can only be understood metaphorically to distinguish him from his worshipers (9). Most Druze books refer to al-Hakim by the formula, “Glory be to him who is so unique that nothing is like unto him.” They believe that he is the originator who has no origin, the one who alone exists and has no adversary who can overcome him (10).
[7] While other extremist Shiites maintain the transcendence of Ali over the Prophet Muhammad, the Druze profess the transcendence of al-Hakim over Ali. For this reason Hamza rationalized al-Hakim's eccentric and irrational behavior by using spiritual metaphors which are in some ways similar to the extremist Shiites' making the human actions of Ali appear as divine miracles. For example, the idea that Ali ordered the setting sun to move back to the east and it obeyed, or that he stretched out his hand, caught the moon, and placed it in his bosom, became evidence of his miraculous attributes. Hamza warns followers of the Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq to abstain from blaspheming the Deity (al-Hakim) and to remove doubt from their hearts about his erratic actions. He tells them not to denounce these actions, even though they might have seen him ride a reed and knot his garment behind his back, or play with children with polished animal heel-bones (ki'ab), since he had done these things symbolically to separate the rational from the irrational. The fact that al-Hakim also rode a donkey, wore woolen garments, and let his hair and nails grow symbolizes his rejection of the outward practices of tanzil (the Shari'a of Islam) and ta'wil (the Shiites' interpretation of religious dogmas, especially the apotheosis of Ali). Riding a donkey was his means of exposing the truth about the natiqs. Likewise, the saddles (unadorned with gold or silver) that he used symbolize the abolition of the laws of both the natiqs and the asas, i.e., the tanzil and ta'wil. The saddles particularly are proof that the religion of the Druze is the sword that will subdue all those people who hold different religious beliefs. Even the daily strolls al-Hakim took through the orchards of his palace have a spiritual meaning. The beautiful things he passed by are a sign of the perfect religion of Tawhid, while the ugly ones point to the religion of the Prophet of Islam. Hamza ibn Ali goes so far as to defend the ribald actions ascribed to al-Hakim as symbols of his divinity. He warns that those who do not believe these actions are divine symbols are infidels, and their reward is eternal punishment (11).
Another essential dogma of the Druze is tajalli (theophany), the revelation of the Deity in human form. This dogma is so fundamental that the Druze call themselves Banu Ma'ruf, meaning those who arafu (attained to) the knowledge of the divine in human form (12). It is worth noting that in al-Sira al-Mustaqima, Hamza ibn Ali praises Abu Sa'id al-Jannabi and his young son Sulayman Abu Tahir, two pioneers of the ghulat Qaramita (Carmathians) Shiites of Bahrayn, for explicating the dogma of kashf (tajalli), which no other da'is (propagandists) had done so well (13). For this and perhaps other reasons, some assert that the Druze are remnants of the Qaramita, but the Druze reject this claim (14). The appearance of God is like that in the Old and New Testaments, where He spoke to the people of Israel through the prophets and His Son (Jesus), who is His own essence [Hebrews, 1: 1].
[8] Since the Deity is transcendent and incomprehensible, the Druze believed that he should make himself known to his creation through time, so that they might follow and obey him. But let no one think when he sees the theophany of the Deity that he has really seen him, because the divine essence of God is impossible to see or comprehend. Nevertheless, the deity willed to appear to the Druze in a corporeal form as a gesture of his grace, to allow them to know him (15). Thus al-Hakim, the final theophany of God, has by his appearance established the faith of Tawhid and revealed what was mysterious. In fact, to the Druze the secret thus revealed is the belief in the oneness of the lord al-Hakim, whose promises will never fail (16). But if man can see this theophany, i.e., the Deity in human form, then the Deity becomes limited by space and time. Such an assumption causes a tremendous theological problem which militates against the belief in the transcendence of the Deity and the idea that he is beyond human comprehension. In order to solve this problem, al-Da'i Isma'il ibn Muhammad al-Tamimi, in his Kitab fihi Taqsim al-Ulum wa Ithbat al-Haqq wa Kashf al-Maknun (written at the behest of Hamza), says that when one sees this outward image of the theophany, he thinks that it is a human image like his. But when one looks at it with the eye of knowledge, that is with a spiritual approach, he sees not an image but God himself (17). One prominent Druze leader, the late Kamal Junblat, asserts that the eternal one, the unchangeable in his nature, cannot be incarnated in human form, which is mortal, ephemeral, changeable, and subject to extinction (18).d Allah ibn Maymum al-Qaddah. Because of persecution he moved from place to place until he settled in Salamya, Syria, where he died between 883 and 887. The Abbasids, who had come to power in 750, intensified their oppression of the Isma'ilis, because they were challenging them for authority. Persecution forced the sons of al-Qaddah to leave Salamya and settle in North Africa, which was relatively peaceful and more fertile for their propaganda.
Between 901 and 908, the active and shrewd propagandist Abu Abd Allah the Shiite, also known as al-San'ani, was instrumental in establishing the Isma'ili Da'wa in North Africa. In 903 he captured several towns from the Aghlabids and extended his authority to other parts of North Africa, as far as Qayrawan. He abolished the Khutba for the Abbasid caliphs in the Friday prayers, thus ending the Abbasids' authority in North Africa. Most important, he proclaimed the imminent appearance of the expected Mahdi—in this case Ubayd Allah, called al-Mahdi, whom Abu Abd Allah invited to North Africa. Al-Mahdi left Salamya and went to North Africa. Within a few years, he succeeded in establishing the Fatimid state and became its first caliph in 909. One of his successors, al-Mu'iz, sent an army to occupy Egypt in 968-969. Al-Mu'iz subsequently moved to the new country, which became both the center of the Fatimid state and of Shi'ism in the East. In 996 al-Hakim bi Amr Allah became caliph at the age of eleven, following the death of his father al-Aziz, and with him began the history and religious system of the Druze.
Al-Hakim has long been known for his eccentric and irrational behavior. An ardent Fatimid Shiite, he persecuted not only the Christians but the Sunnites as well. Despite his eccentricities, he founded Dar al-Hikma (the House of Wisdom), where Fatimid scholars taught their own form of Shi'ism. Attached to it was Dar al-Ilm (the House of Learning), a library which housed a great number of manuscripts. In both of these institutions, highly trained Da'is taught and promulgated the Isma'ili faith. To Dar al-Ilm was assigned a highly qualified man titled Da'i al-Du'at (chief propagandist) whose function was to teach the people of all social classes the faith of the Isma'ilis.
[4] What is important to our subject is that, like his predecessors, al-Hakim was inclined to accept his own deification. Da'is who hailed from Persia encouraged this tendency. Chief among them were Hamza ibn Ali al-Zawzani of Khurasan, al-Hasan ibn Haydara al-Farghani known as al-Akhram, and Muhammad ibn Isma'il Anushtikin (or Nashtakin) al-Darazi of Bukhara, who may have been of Turkish origin. These men were well-versed not only in Isma'ilism but in Zoroastrianism, the Mazdakism of the Persians with its belief in the duality of two cosmic principles representing good and evil, and most importantly in the deification of Persian kings. They also had knowledge of Greek philosophy, elements of which appear in their teachings, and even exalted some Greek philosophers to the point of deification. TheseDa'is propagated the faith that came to be known as Druzism. No other extremist sect known to us today, including the Nusayris and Ahl-i Haqq, could claim such a host of intellectuals capable of speculative reasoning.
Hamza ibn Ali came in 1014 to Egypt, where he became a courtier of al-Hakim and lived in his palace. He preached the deification of al-Hakim in Masjid Raydan and attracted a number of Isma'ili ghulatwho responded to his message. He called himself Hadi al-Mustajibin (the guide to those who accepted his call, i.e., for the deification of al-Hakim). He also called one of his disciples Safir al-Qudra (messenger of divine power) and began secretly to promote the apotheosis of al-Hakim. Muslim leaders who did not accept Hamza's message had to acquiesce for fear of punishment (3). Al-Hakim welcomed Hamza's dissemination of the concept of his deification and even encouraged him to spread it among the people. It is said that when al-Hakim passed by his masjid, Hamza came out to meet him and talked to him in private.
In 1017, Hamza finally declared the apotheosis of al-Hakim in public. But in his letter of 1019, entitled al-Ghaya wa al-Nasiha, Hamza clearly says that it was Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-Darazi who declared the apotheosis of al-Hakim. He says the arrogant Darazi hastened to proclaim al-Hakim's deification without true understanding. He says al-Darazi was one of the mustajibin (those who responded to Hamza's call to the divine oneness of al-Hakim), but out of envy and through deception by Satan he made public the deification of al-Hakim and called himself Sayf al-Islam (the sword of Islam). Hamza states that he wanted to stop al-Darazi, but he disobeyed and went further, calling himself the Lord of those are rightly guided and better than Hamza himself. Because he was in charge of the state treasury, al-Darazi even counterfeited money. In this letter Hamza mentions that some former followers of his, like Abu Mansur al-Bardha'i and Abu Ja'far al-Habbal, deceived him and supported al-Darazi. Hamza reiterates his charge of arrogance against al-Darazi and hastens to declare the apotheosis of al-Hakim in other letters, especially al-Kitab al-Ma'ruf bi al-Naqd al-Khafi, Risalat al-Balagh wa al-Nihaya fi al-Tawhid, Risalat al-Subha al-Ka'ina, and all of which are found in Rasa'il al-Hikma (Diyar Aql: Lebanon, 1986), pp. 49-63, 73-82, and 202-205 consecutively.
[5] Following in Hamza's footsteps, Hasan ibn Haydara al-Farghani known as al-Akhram also preached the apotheosis of al-Hakim, who therefore lavished him with gifts and made him one of his retinue. But many citizens of Cairo did not like the report of al-Hakim's apotheosis and began a revolt. Some Sunnites retaliated and killed al-Akhram. Angered, al-Hakim took revenge on his murderers and gave him a royal burial. It is said that al-Darazi was killed in 1019 at the instigation of Hamza, but more likely he took refuge in al-Hakim's palace after the revolt until he could flee the country. With al-Hakim's support, al-Darazi went to Wadi al-Taym in Lebanon and other parts of Syria, where he attracted many with his message of al-Hakim's divinity. He also preached metempsychosis, declaring that the divine spirit which originally existed in Adam dwelt after Adam's death in Ali ibn Abi Talib and finally in al-Hakim. Those who accepted al-Darazi's beliefs have been known since then as Druze.
But we should note that the Druze reject this name and call themselves al-Muwahiddun (Unitarians), and that although al-Darazi gave his name to the Druze, the true founder of Druzism is Hamza ibn Ali, not al-Darazi. It is reported that Hamza also went into hiding after the revolt; probably he went to Syria, as did al-Darazi. Yet another account maintains that Hamza disappeared at the end of 1021 like the Shiite al-Mahdi, but will appear at the end of time in great power and glory to destroy those who rejected the apotheosis of al-Hakim. After him the hudud (ministers) also disappeared, except for Baha al-Din al-Muqtana, who took charge of administering the Druze community. The last word we have of Hamza is his Risalat al-Ghayba, which he sent to Syria with the Fatimid Abu Ya'la Hamza ibn Abi al-Abbas al-Husayni, shortly after the disappearance of al-Hakim. As for the fate of al-Hakim, it is said that he was killed by his own sister Sitt al-Mulk.
Of all the extremist Shiite sects known to us, the Nusayris are the closest to the Druze in some aspects of their religious system. According to Ta'lim al-Din al-Durzi (the Druze Catechism), the Nusayris were once a part of the Druze sect but then split from it. The Druze catechism speaks of the Nusayris as having been one with the Unitarian Druze before separating themselves through the effort of a certain rector called al-Nusayri. Question 44 or 45 of the catechism (depending on the manuscript followed) asks, “How did the Nusayris separate themselves from the Muwahhidun (Unitarian Druze) and abandon the unitarian religion?” Answer: “They separated when al-Nusayri called them to do so (4). Al-Nusayri claimed to be the worshipful servant of our Lord, the commander of the faithful, but denied the divinity of our Lord al-Hakim and professed the divinity of Ali. He said that the Deity had manifested himself successively in the Twelve Imams of the family of the Prophet, and that he had disappeared after having manifested himself in Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Qa'im (the Twelfth Imam) (5).
[6] From this statement, we learn that the name of the Druze sect dates back to the late ninth century, when Muhammad ibn Nusayr proclaimed the deity of the eleventh Imam al-Hasan al-Askari (d. 873). In his letter al-Risala al-Damigha li al-Fasiq: al-Radd ala al-Nusayri La'anahu al-Mawla fi Kill Kawr wa Dawr, Hamza ibn Ali refutes the allegations of a certain Nusayri who vilified the religion of Tawhidand accused the Druze of permitting incest and sodomy. He also refutes this Nusayri's allegation that the Druze maintain that the souls of nawasib (Sunnite Muslims) and addad (adversaries, antagonists) pass after death into animals like dogs, pigs and monkeys. Hamza especially enjoins Druze women not to believe in the false allegations of this irreligious Nusayri and bids them to adhere to the honorable Druze code of ethics (6).
The most fundamental dogma that separates the Druze from other extremist Shiite sects is their belief in al-Hakim as the one and only deity, whereas most extremist Shiites maintain that Imam Ali is the only deity. In his refutation of a certain Nusayri who claimed that Ali and al-Hakim are one and the same entity, Hamza contends that Ali, the Imams who succeeded him, indeed all the natiqs (prophets, or proclaimers of the message) and all the wasis or usus (those entrusted with the explanation of the message of the natiqs) are no more than slaves to “Our Lord al-Hakim, may his memory be glorified in every time and age. Our Lord is the one who confirms their authority and positions. Glory is to him alone who has no partner” (7). Thus, when the Druze call themselves al-Muwahhidun (Unitarians) and emphasize the dogma of Tawhid (the oneness of the deity), they mean the divinity and oneness of al-Hakim. Almost every Druze source known to us emphasizes the apotheosis of this caliph. The Rasa'il al-Hikma (The Epistles of Wisdom), some written by Hamza ibn Ali and others by his contemporaries, and Mushaf al-Munfarid bi Dhatih, written by Hamza, are filled with references to al-Hakim's divinity.
To Hamza and other Druze writers, the divinity of al-Hakim is a reality that cannot be comprehended by human reason. Thus, man's effort to probe it will inevitably fail, because it is not subject to time and space. Al-Hakim is omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent. He is neither zahir (outward, visible to the eye) nor batin (inward, hidden), and no name can be ascribed to him because he transcends human appellations. He has no attributes and cannot be described with human language; he is a person, but not a body or an avatar. He is the cause of causes, the creator of everything in existence. He is unique and beyond compare with heavenly hosts or earthly beings; he is incomprehensible. The essence of his divinity cannot be discerned by the human eye or by human reason. He transcends the whole creation (8). Because he is unique in his divine essence al-Hakim has no human attributes or actions. He does not eat, drink, or sleep, and he does not urinate or defecate. These natural functions would negate his divinity. He has no father and mother, and these terms can only be understood metaphorically to distinguish him from his worshipers (9). Most Druze books refer to al-Hakim by the formula, “Glory be to him who is so unique that nothing is like unto him.” They believe that he is the originator who has no origin, the one who alone exists and has no adversary who can overcome him (10).
[7] While other extremist Shiites maintain the transcendence of Ali over the Prophet Muhammad, the Druze profess the transcendence of al-Hakim over Ali. For this reason Hamza rationalized al-Hakim's eccentric and irrational behavior by using spiritual metaphors which are in some ways similar to the extremist Shiites' making the human actions of Ali appear as divine miracles. For example, the idea that Ali ordered the setting sun to move back to the east and it obeyed, or that he stretched out his hand, caught the moon, and placed it in his bosom, became evidence of his miraculous attributes. Hamza warns followers of the Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq to abstain from blaspheming the Deity (al-Hakim) and to remove doubt from their hearts about his erratic actions. He tells them not to denounce these actions, even though they might have seen him ride a reed and knot his garment behind his back, or play with children with polished animal heel-bones (ki'ab), since he had done these things symbolically to separate the rational from the irrational. The fact that al-Hakim also rode a donkey, wore woolen garments, and let his hair and nails grow symbolizes his rejection of the outward practices of tanzil (the Shari'a of Islam) and ta'wil (the Shiites' interpretation of religious dogmas, especially the apotheosis of Ali). Riding a donkey was his means of exposing the truth about the natiqs. Likewise, the saddles (unadorned with gold or silver) that he used symbolize the abolition of the laws of both the natiqs and the asas, i.e., the tanzil and ta'wil. The saddles particularly are proof that the religion of the Druze is the sword that will subdue all those people who hold different religious beliefs. Even the daily strolls al-Hakim took through the orchards of his palace have a spiritual meaning. The beautiful things he passed by are a sign of the perfect religion of Tawhid, while the ugly ones point to the religion of the Prophet of Islam. Hamza ibn Ali goes so far as to defend the ribald actions ascribed to al-Hakim as symbols of his divinity. He warns that those who do not believe these actions are divine symbols are infidels, and their reward is eternal punishment (11).
Another essential dogma of the Druze is tajalli (theophany), the revelation of the Deity in human form. This dogma is so fundamental that the Druze call themselves Banu Ma'ruf, meaning those who arafu(attained to) the knowledge of the divine in human form (12). It is worth noting that in al-Sira al-Mustaqima, Hamza ibn Ali praises Abu Sa'id al-Jannabi and his young son Sulayman Abu Tahir, two pioneers of the ghulat Qaramita (Carmathians) Shiites of Bahrayn, for explicating the dogma of kashf (tajalli), which no other da'is (propagandists) had done so well (13). For this and perhaps other reasons, some assert that the Druze are remnants of the Qaramita, but the Druze reject this claim (14). The appearance of God is like that in the Old and New Testaments, where He spoke to the people of Israel through the prophets and His Son (Jesus), who is His own essence [Hebrews, 1: 1].
[8] Since the Deity is transcendent and incomprehensible, the Druze believed that he should make himself known to his creation through time, so that they might follow and obey him. But let no one think when he sees the theophany of the Deity that he has really seen him, because the divine essence of God is impossible to see or comprehend. Nevertheless, the deity willed to appear to the Druze in a corporeal form as a gesture of his grace, to allow them to know him (15). Thus al-Hakim, the final theophany of God, has by his appearance established the faith of Tawhid and revealed what was mysterious. In fact, to the Druze the secret thus revealed is the belief in the oneness of the lord al-Hakim, whose promises will never fail (16). But if man can see this theophany, i.e., the Deity in human form, then the Deity becomes limited by space and time. Such an assumption causes a tremendous theological problem which militates against the belief in the transcendence of the Deity and the idea that he is beyond human comprehension. In order to solve this problem, al-Da'i Isma'il ibn Muhammad al-Tamimi, in his Kitab fihi Taqsim al-Ulum wa Ithbat al-Haqq wa Kashf al-Maknun (written at the behest of Hamza), says that when one sees this outward image of the theophany, he thinks that it is a human image like his. But when one looks at it with the eye of knowledge, that is with a spiritual approach, he sees not an image but God himself (17). One prominent Druze leader, the late Kamal Junblat, asserts that the eternal one, the unchangeable in his nature, cannot be incarnated in human form, which is mortal, ephemeral, changeable, and subject to extinction (18).
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But to the Druze the theophany occurred over many cycles and ages and in different forms, all of which were meant to guide ephemeral, changeable and dying humanity to the Tawhid of the deity, al-Hakim. This idea is derived from the Isma'ilis and other extremist Shiites, especially the Nusayris. It is also found in the system of Ahl-i Haqq (Ali Ilahis) with some differences. As was stated earlier, the Ahl-i Haqq maintain that Ali was one of the seven theophanies of the deity and was himself divine. He existed from the beginning of time, and his coming to this world was proclaimed by the angel Gabriel to Adam (19). While some extremist Shiites maintain that the God Ali appeared in seven forms and cycles (adwar), the Druze say that their deity, al-Hakim, appeared in seventy-two cycles which lasted for millions of years, but the time and place of only a few such appearances are known. Significantly, the Deity first appeared to humankind under the name Ali al-A'la ("the most high"), the same term the Nusayris use in referring to Ali ibn Abi Talib. The Arabic word Ali means "high", but for many Arabs it is also the name of their God. The Druze view of the cycles is that the deity appeared in many forms until it finally appeared in the Fatimid caliphs, of whom al-Hakim was the last and ultimate manifestation. In other words, he became the Messiah. Similarly, Baha al-Din Muqtana, in al-Risala al-Masihiyya, identifies Hamza with the Messiah. He is the one and only God. But al-Hakim is now in concealment until he appears on the last day. This period is called Zaman al-Sitr (the period of concealment). The period of Ali al-A'la was the longest, lasting 343 million years, and was followed by other cycles. From the appearance of Adam there were seventy weeks, which may recall the seventy weeks of Daniel. The period between each pair of cycles is seventy weeks, and the period between each pair of weeks is a thousand years (20 ).[9] In this period of Ali al-A'la, created men were called al-Timm, al-Rimm, al-Hinn and al-Jinn, who had no written laws and no book. In the Nusayris' religious system, the God Ali appeared in sevenqibabs (tabernacles) or periods, inhabited by the beings named above, except that the Yunan (Greeks) are considered among them. He was one and the same god in each of these manifestations. The term al-Rimm (perhaps al-Rum) appears to mean Greeks (21).
Along with Ali al-A'la came his hudud (ministers), and all the world came into existence, for Ali al-A'la (none other than al-Hakim) existed in his essence alone, without his creation. But he willed to make a cause and effect for his creation. So he made his Will emanate from his radiant light and command him to be, and he was. This Will thus became his perfect image, endowed with light and power. The creator called this Will "the Cause of Causes", and by the power of the creator it became al-Aql al-Kulli (The Universal Mind) and Nuqtat al-Bikar, that is, the point in which the compass begins and ends the circle. In this sense Nuqtat al-Bikar means that al-Aql al-Kulli is the beginning and the end (22). Then, as we shall see, the other hudud were created in succession. But al-Aql al-Kulli is none other than Hamza ibn Ali himself, whom the God al-Hakim caused to appear in seventy ages in different forms and under different names (23).
Question 24 of the Druze catechism is, “How many times did Hamza appear, and under what names?” Answer: “He appeared seven times, from Adam to the Prophet Muhammad.” Question 25 of the same catechism asks, “What was his name in each of these appearances?” Answer: “In the period of Adam his name was Shatnil, in Noah's period he was called Pythagoras, in the time of Abraham he was David, in the time of Moses he was Shu'ayb, in the time Isa (Jesus) he was the true al-Masih (Christ), in the time of Muhammad he was Salman al-Farisi, and in the time of Sa'id (Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi) he was Salih” (24). Thus, Hamza ibn Ali carved out for himself a position of divinity in the Druze religious system (25).
[10] While Ali al-A'la and al-Bari (al-Barr) may seem to represent two different theophanies, to this writer they appear to be one and the same primeval creator. In al-Sira al-Mustaqima, Hamza reasons that because the deity who first appeared in human form was called al-Qa'im (self-existent) and not Qa'im al-Zaman (Lord of Time), as the Fatimids call him, the deity is limited by time, while as God al-Hakim is outside time. Hamza asserts that with his appearance as Nuqtat al-Bikar, who proclaimed the oneness of the divinity of al-Hakim, there is no need for more theophanies because Hamza has now fulfilled them all. Thus, the God al-Hakim has blessed him (Hamza) and the mustajibin (those who respond to the faith of Tawhid) by appearing in human form, that they might comprehend him. Therefore, Hamza says, despite his human form al-Hakim is not the son of al-Aziz bi Allah (his earthly father), nor he is the father of his son al-Zahir, because he transcends these human limitations. But why al-Hakim appeared in different cycles and in different forms, and why he made himself known to people in some of these cycles and concealed it in others, are questions Hamza does not address. To him, these phenomena are mysteries beyond the comprehension of the human mind.
It is most peculiar, however, that in al-Sira al-Mustaqima, Hamza relates an anecdote that thoroughly confuses students of history. To my knowledge, it is not found in the religious systems of extremist Shiites. He says that in our own cycle, i.e., the known cycle of creation, there existed three men, all of them called Adam. One was Adam al-Safa (the Pure, the Choicest, or perhaps the Rock, as Jesus called Peter "Cepha", rock), who was none other than Hamza himself as he existed in an earlier cycle. This Adam, also called Shatnil, was born in Adminiyya in India; his father's name was Daniel. Adam al-Safa left India and came to the city of Surna ("miracle") in Yemen, and from there he sent twelve da'is to preach the message of Tawhid. For this he became known as Abu al-Bashar (Father of Men), because men in this sense were those to whom Adam al-Safa preached the message of Tawhid and who accepted it. Thus, Adam became their spiritual father. Then Iblis (Satan), an adversary of al-Barr, appeared in the person of Harith (or Harat) ibn Tarmah, from Isfahan. Al-Barr asked the angels to worship Shatnil. All of them obeyed except Harith, who said that he was better than Shatnil and would never genuflect before him. Because of his disobedience, Harith was expelled from the Janna (paradise) and no longer regarded as one of the hudud (26). This episode is plainly of Qur'anic origin. But what is the origin of the name Shatnil? Muhammad Kamil Husayn conjectures that Shatnil is Shanti, the name by which the Chinese called the Christian saints. Probably Hamza heard this name and distorted it into Shatnil (27). Interestingly, in one of his letters Baha al-Din al-Muqtana says he is the slave to Qa'im al-Haqq (the Lord of Truth) Shatnil, who may be his lord Hamza (28).
The second Adam is al-Nafs (Universal Soul), who appeared in the form of Enoch, or the second Adam who according to the Qur'an (Sura of Taha, 20: 121) disobeyed God and was called Adam al-Asi (rebellious, disobedient) or Adam the human being. His wife was called Hawwa (Eve), because she encompassed (ihtawat) all the believers. She was not only his wife but his proof (hujja), his slave (abd), and one of his da'is (29). Then the Kalima appeared in the form of Sharkh. The third Adam, was Adam al-Nasi (the forgetful) because he forgot God his lord according to the Qur'an (Sura of Taha, 20: 115.)
[11] These three Adams were born from a man and a woman, not from the dust of the earth, as the ignorant (non-Druze) claim. It seems strange that Kamal Junblat speculates that the theophany of the deity will occur around the year 2000 A.D., and that with this theophany a new path will be opened for believers all over the world to follow (30). After al-Barr, the deity appeared in other forms. He appeared during the era of Abu Zakariyya, who is actually Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ismail (also called al-Rida), who was persecuted by the Abbasid Caliph al-Ma'mun (d. 833). He later appeared as al-Ali, al-Mu'ill, al-Qa'im bi Amr Allah, al-Mansur bi Allah, al-Aziz bi Allah (the father of al-Hakim), and finally as al-Hakim himself. Thus, al-Hakim became the final theophany and is himself the Deity.
Nevertheless, following Isma'ili reasoning, the Druze maintain that the Will of the primeval God was not to live in total obscurity but to reveal himself through the process of fayd (emanations). He created al-Aql al-Kulli, the first emanation of the divine nature. Here we may note the influence of the Isma'ili concept of God and creation (31). According to the Isma'ili writer al-Kirmani (d. 947), the first intellect includes the whole Existence; in him it becomes one (32). The Isma'ilis appear to have adopted the Neo-Platonic doctrine of emanations, stripping it of mysticism. Like the Isma'ilis, the Druze and otherghulat, especially the Nusayris, maintain that God has no qualities. He is only an abstraction without attributes. He becomes so obscure that no one can communicate with him. This idea contradicts Neo-Platonism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, which all maintain that God has divine attributes and is the primary source of existence (33).
To the Druze, the Universal Mind is Hamza himself, who became the ruler of the universe. He is a kind of a demigod, but sufficiently powerful that on the day of judgment he will act on behalf of al-Hakim to judge whether men believe in al-Hakim or deny him. In this respect, says Makarem, according to the doctrine of Tawhid the immanent Universal Mind is the source of the emanation of all creation and the very proof of its outward existence. He adds that the Universal Mind made all creation and they cannot be separated from each other; the Universal Mind is the Cause, and the creation is its Effect. Thus, the highest mind is the means of revelation and knowledge implanted in every believing (that is, Druze) soul (34).
Meanwhile, another demigod was created as an adversary (didd), whose function was to nullify the work of the Universal Mind. The emanation of the didd made it necessary for the primeval God to create ministers who emanated from the Universal Mind. These are the Nafs (Universal Soul), al-Asas (the Foundation), al-Kalima (the Word), al-Sabiq (the Preceder), and finally al-Tali (The Successor). These emanations are the Hudud. More importantly, they are al-Hakim's ministers, whose basic function is to serve him and reveal him as the lord of the universe. These emanations personify Druze divine men. Hamza personified al-Aql al-Kulli, Isma'il al-Tamimi personified al-Nafs, Muhammad ibn Wahab al-Qurashi personified al-Kalima, Abu al-Khayr Salama al-Samiri personified, al-Sabiq or al-Janah al-Ayman (the Right Wing), and Ali ibn Ahmad al-Samuqi, also known as Baha al-Din al-Muqtana personified al-Tali or al-Janah al-Aysar (the Left Wing). These hudud are the Sham'a (candle) of Tawhid(35). They are the ones who revealed the religion of Tawhid and call on humanity to embrace it. The duty of every Druze is to know them and their positions and functions, in order to understand the Tawhid, the Oneness of the Lord al-Hakim. These emanations are the only means of salvation, according to the connotation of this term by the Druze (36).
[12] Next in importance to the hudud are the natiqs (prophets). According to the Druze classification, these include Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus (called Isa son of Joseph), Muhammad (the Prophet of Islam), and Muhammad ibn Isma'il, who gave his name to the Isma'ilis. Each of these natiqs has a deputy or minor prophet called samits or asas, whose function is to interpret the faith of the natiq. They include Ishma'il, Abraham's son (by his bondwoman) Hagar, Enoch, Aaron, Daniel, Simon, Plato, and other Greek and Biblical characters. Both the natiqs and the samits appear in irregular cycles. The natiqis the legislative prophet, and the samit is his substitute. Between each natiq and the next stand seven Imams who are the deputies or Samits. Each of the legislating prophets abrogates the law of his predecessor. Jesus abrogated the laws of Moses, and Muhammad abrogated the laws of both Judaism and Christianity. In the last cycle, the religion of Tawhid abrogated all former religions and thus became the only true religion on earth. To the Druze the number seven is sacred; there are seven Imams (representing seven heavens), seven seas, seven earths, seven zodiacs. This is strikingly close to the seven cycles of the Nusayris, in which God appeared in seven different human forms (37). But in the main, it is the same doctrine of hudud held by the Isma'ilis, although with some differences. The Isma'ilis say that men cannot comprehend the Tawhid of God without knowing the spiritual and the corporeal hudud and having faith in them and obeying them. These spiritual hudud are the Mind, the Souls, the Jadd, al-Fath and al-Khayal. They prefigure the corporeal hudud—the Natiqs, the Awsiya or Samits, the Imamas, the Hujaj (Proofs, Authorities), and the Du'at (Propagandists). The Isma'ilis maintain that God created the Universal Mind who created the Univeral Soul, whereby all creation came into existence. Hamza debated this doctrine in al-Risala al-Mawsuma bi Kashf al-Haqa'iq and produced what he thought was more appropriate doctrine of the hudud. (Rasa'il al-Hikma, pp 130-145)
Another doctrine shared by the Druze, the Nusayris, and Ahl-i Haqq is that of metempsychosis (reincarnation). The Nusayris call metempsychosis musukhiyya or tanasukh, while the Druze call it taqammus. According to the Nusayris, the soul after death is reborn into another human body, or into an animal, a plant, dirt, dry straw, or insects like flies and ants, depending on its state in life and the degree of its good or bad deeds. For instance, the soul of a good Nusayri will pass into the body of a good human being, while the soul of a sinful Nusayri will enter the body of an unclean beast. But in the Druze doctrine oftaqammus, derived from qamis (shirt, tunic), good and bad souls enter the bodies of good or evil people.
[13] Hamza ibn Ali makes this distinction clear in al-Risala al-Damigha, written to refute a Nusayri book that had come into his hands. Hamza says the Nusayris assert that the souls of the Nawasib (Sunnites) and addad (adversaries) will pass into dogs and other unclean beasts such as pigs, monkeys, and fowl, until they enter fire to be burned and beaten under the hammer. He rejects as preposterous and utterly false the belief that human souls enter the bodies of animals, and warns that anyone believing in this musukhiyya will suffer the loss of both this world and the next (38). Hamza explains that taqammus means the successive alternation of souls in human bodies for the sake of testing them and purifying them. As soon as a soul leaves one body, God has prepared for it to be reborn in another. God does this with great wisdom because each soul needs a body and cannot exist without it. He does this also to keep the population of the world in constant balance (39).
The Druze also maintain that taqammus is a process that only Druze souls experience. Thus, according to some Druze writers the soul of a good Druze at the time of death enters the body of another good Druze, while the soul of a sinful Druze may enter the body of a Jew or a Christian. In this case, it passes from one such body to another until finally it is sufficiently purified to enter the body of a good Druze and becomes part of the eternal community of believers, the Druze. But the soul of a sinful Druze seldom enters the body of a Muslim.40 Also, the soul of a righteous male Druze enters only the body of a male Druze, while the soul of a female Druze enters the body of a female Druze.
Metempsychosis is important in the religious system of the Ahl-i Haqq because it is associated with the worship and decorum of the Jam' (religious assembly) and with the haqq (Truth), that is, the oneness of God which is the essence of their worship. According to the Ahl-i Haqq the righteous—those who adhere faithfully to the rules of the haqiqat (Truth), i.e., their religious beliefs, and worship at the Jam', and partake of the sacrificial meal—will be reincarnated so that they may come to know the haqq (Truth). The wicked, those who act wrongly at the Jam' or do not adhere faithfully to the principle of haqiqat (the knowledge that God is the ultimate reality) will be excommunicated from the Ahl-i Haqq community and reborn in the form of filthy animals, ultimately going to hell. In this regard the Ahl-i Haqq are closer to the Nusayris' doctrine of metempsychosis. But unlike the Nusayris and Druze, the Ahl-i Haqq hold the pantheistic belief that all humankind emanated from God and will at the end be unified with God, who initially created it. They connect this belief with their doctrine of metempsychosis. In other words, to Ahl-i Haqq the righteous will be united with the haqiqat (truth of God). The rebirth of the wicked as base and dirty animals symbolizes their unchaste and immoral nature; they will be eternally separated from the haqiqat. Finally, they will go to hell, because the righteous and the wicked cannot coexist. The Thoumaris, a subgroup of the Ahl-i Haqq, maintain that the reincarnation of a sinner's soul in animal form may go on for a million cycles, during which he gradually attains purification, until finally he is reborn in perfect human form and approaches God. Some Ali-Ilahis believe that dogs are not dirty animals and souls would transmigrate to them. A certain Ali Ilahi, Khan Guran, loved his dog, who he believed was the reincarnation of his grandfather (41).
[14] The Druze believe that on the last day, when the world comes to an end, the god al-Hakim will appear with Hamza ibn Ali, most likely in Mecca, accompanied by great cavalry hosts, with thunder and lightning shaking the earth. On that day, Hamza will take revenge on those who have shed the blood of the Muwahhidun (Druze) and will terminate all laws and religions on earth. He will then proclaim theTawhid and the Muwahhidun, and the Druze will inherit the earth forever. All infidels will be subject to them. Unlike the Janna (paradise) of Islam, where people marry and give themselves over to the sensual pleasures of eating, drinking, and intercourse, Janna for the Muwahhidun (Druze) is a spiritual place where they alone enjoy happiness because they have known and embraced the true religion ofTawhid. This final triumph and reward is based on their belief that they are the best of God's creation, the chosen people of God (42).
Hamza ibn Ali lists seven articles of faith peculiar to the Druze. They are:
1. Truth of the TongueThese articles have substituted the religious duties held sacred by Muslims: the Islamic profession of faith, prayer, zakat (alms), fasting, the Hajj, and Jihad (43).
2. The Perseverance of Friendship between Brothers
3. Renunciation of all other Religions
4. Disbelief in Evil Spirits and Deceivers
5. The Worship of the Lord al-Hakim in every age and generation
6. Acquiescence in the actions of al-Hakim, whatever they are
7. Absolute acceptance of al-Hakim's orders
A cursory reading of these articles suggests they are of Druze origin. But Dr. Muhammad Kamil Husayn writes that they are found in the book al-Himma fi Adab Itiba' al-A'imma, by the Fatimid writer al-Qadi al-Nu'man ibn Muhammad ibn Hayyun al-Maghribi (d. 973). Husayn cites one caveat; since al-Qadi Nu'man lived before al-Hakim's time, he cannot refer to the oneness of al-Hakim in every generation but says that the Imam and Qa'im al-Zaman (the Lord of Time) in every age and generation must be obeyed (44). He goes on to say that the Druze Shari'a replaced the Islamic religious duties. But in his epilogue, he iterates the ideas of Druze writers like the Amir Shakib Arslan and Arif al-Nakadi, who contend that the Druze are Muslims and have never abandoned Islam. Surely, this particular subject is thorny and remains controversial. Very recently a Druze writer, retired Major Jamil Dhubyan, published a book entitled Islamiyyat al-Muwahiddin al-Duruz (Islamism of the Muwahiddin the Druze: al-Shouf, Lebanon, 1991) to show that the Druze are genuine Muslims. But it is apparent from the Druze books that the religion of Tawhid stands alone independent of other religions. It is, as the Druze maintain, the only true spiritual path.