Bohra Library

Fatimid Writings

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Resources

Abu Tammams Kitab al Shajara - The Bab Al Shaytan.pdf

  • Description: The “Chapter of Satan” from Abu Tammam’s Kitab al-Shajara, an early Ismaili heresiographical and theological work discussing opposing religious doctrines and the Ismaili understanding of belief, revelation, and the Imamate.
  • Author: Abu Tammam — an important 4th/10th-century Ismaili dāʿī and theologian whose work preserves early Ismaili doctrines, particularly the conception of the Qāʾim and his successors.
  • Time Period: early Ismaili–Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, probably Khurasan. Abu Tammam’s work reflects the Iranian Ismaili thought of the period before the later Fatimid doctrinal developments.

Avicenna’s Allegory.pdf

  • Description: An Ismaili interpretation of Ibn Sina’s allegorical account of the human soul, examining the spiritual and philosophical meanings behind Avicenna’s famous allegory.
  • Author: Ibn Sina (Avicenna) is one of the most important philosophers in Islamic intellectual history; Wilferd Madelung and Toby Mayer present and interpret the text from an Ismaili perspective.
  • Time Period: Fatimid-era intellectual context; Ibn Sina, d. 1037 CE. The Ismaili interpretation connects Avicennian philosophy with contemporary Ismaili thought.

Book of Keys to the Kindgom.pdf

  • Description: A theological and cosmological work attributed to Abu Yaʿqub al-Sijistani, explaining creation, divine knowledge, the spiritual hierarchy, and the role of the Imamate.
  • Author: Abu Yaʿqub al-Sijistani — one of the most important early Ismaili philosophers and dāʿīs, especially influential for introducing and developing Neoplatonic concepts within Ismaili theology.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, dāʿī of the Iranian Ismaili daʿwa. Active during the period of Imams al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz; later accepted the Fatimid Imams.

Khusraw Between Reason and Revelation.pdf

  • Description: Nāṣir-i Khusraw’s final known philosophical work, addressing the relationship between reason, revelation, creation, the soul, knowledge, and salvation from an Ismaili perspective.
  • Author: Nāṣir-i Khusraw — one of the greatest Ismaili philosopher-poets and a major Fatimid dāʿī who became the ḥujjat of Khurasan and had enormous influence on later Ismaili thought.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; 11th century. Nāṣir-i Khusraw served the Fatimid Imam al-Mustanṣir as a dāʿī and ḥujjat in Khurasan.

Khusraw Six Chapters of Shish Fasl.pdf

  • Description: A concise Persian theological treatise explaining divine unity, the Word of God, the Universal Soul, the human soul, the necessity of the Prophet, Asās and Imam, and reward and punishment.
  • Author: Nāṣir-i Khusraw — a central Ismaili philosopher, poet, and missionary whose writings became foundational for Ismaili intellectual traditions in Iran and Central Asia.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; 11th century.

Lakhani Faith and Ethics The Vision of the Ismaili Imamat.pdf

  • Description: A modern study of Ismaili faith and ethics focusing on the living Imamat, ethical principles, pluralism, modernity, Islam and the West, and the contemporary Ismaili understanding of religious life.
  • Author: M. Ali Lakhani — a prominent contemporary Ismaili writer and thinker whose work explores the ethical, philosophical, and spiritual dimensions of the Ismaili tradition in the modern world.
  • Time Period: Modern period / contemporary Ismaili thought; 21st century.

Madelung Rational Theology in Interfaith Communication.pdf

  • Description: A scholarly study of Muʿtazili rational theology and its transmission into Jewish Karaite intellectual circles during the Fatimid period, highlighting theological exchange between religious communities.
  • Author: Wilferd Madelung, with Sabine Schmidtke — major modern historians of Islamic theology, Shiʿism, and medieval Muslim intellectual history.
  • Time Period: Modern scholarship on the Fatimid period; the historical subject is the Fatimid age, especially the 10th–11th centuries. This is a modern academic study, not a primary Ismaili text.

Mansur al Yaman - The Master and the Disciple.pdf

  • Description: An early Ismaili spiritual dialogue in which a dāʿī guides a young seeker from outward religious understanding toward knowledge of the inner, esoteric dimensions of Islam and the Imamate.
  • Author: Jaʿfar b. Manṣūr al-Yaman — one of the earliest major Ismaili theological writers and an important court intellectual of the early Fatimid Imams. His works are major sources for pre-Fatimid and early Fatimid Ismaili thought.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, especially the reigns of Imams al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz.

Mansur al Yaman Kitab al Kashf.pdf

  • Description: One of the earliest surviving Ismaili texts, consisting of six treatises dealing with Qurʾanic taʾwīl, cosmology, prophecy, and the Ismaili conception of the Imamate.
  • Author: Jaʿfar b. Manṣūr al-Yaman — a major early Ismaili dāʿī and theologian whose writings preserve important doctrines from the formative period of Ismailism.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, associated with the early Fatimid Imams and particularly al-Muʿizz. The attribution of parts of the text has been discussed by modern scholarship.

Maqrīzī Towards a Shii Mediterranean Empire.pdf

  • Description: A historical account of the Fatimid conquest of Egypt and the reign of Imam-caliph al-Muʿizz, including the founding of Cairo and the transformation of the Fatimid state into a major Mediterranean empire.
  • Author: Taqī al-Dīn Aḥmad al-Maqrīzī — the foremost medieval historian of the Fatimids and an exceptionally important source for Fatimid political and religious history.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Muʿizz li-Dīn Allāh (r. 953–975). Al-Maqrīzī himself lived in the 8th–9th/14th–15th centuries, but the work concerns the Fatimid period.

Muuyad Shirazi Life and Lectures .pdf

  • Description: A biographical and theological collection presenting the life and selected lectures of al-Muʾayyad fī’l-Dīn al-Shīrāzī, covering Ismaili doctrine, the Imamate, spiritual knowledge, and Qurʾanic interpretation.
  • Author: Jawad Muscati — a modern Ismaili scholar who compiled and presented the life and teachings of al-Muʾayyad. The historical figure at the centre is al-Muʾayyad fī’l-Dīn al-Shīrāzī, one of the greatest Fatimid dāʿīs.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; 11th century. Al-Muʾayyad served as chief dāʿī during al-Mustanṣir’s Imamat.

Muuyad Shirazi The Sphere of Walayah Ismaili Ta_wil in Practice.pdf

  • Description: A modern academic study of al-Muʾayyad’s understanding of walāyah and his practical use of Ismaili taʾwīl in Qurʾanic interpretation and religious instruction.
  • Author: Elizabeth R. Alexandrin — a modern scholar of Ismaili studies whose research examines al-Muʾayyad’s conception of the Imam, walāyah, and taʾwīl.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; historical subject is al-Muʾayyad fī’l-Dīn al-Shīrāzī (d. c. 1078).

The Mustansiri Sessions.pdf

  • Description: 35 Majlisis by Imam Mustansir
  • Author: Badr ul Jamali
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; 11th century.

Nasir Hunazi Chain of the Light of Imamat.pdf

  • Description: A modern Ismaili exposition of the continuity of the Imamat, presenting the Imam as the bearer and transmitter of the spiritual light and connecting this doctrine with the teachings of Nāṣir-i Khusraw.
  • Author: Nāṣir al-Dīn Hunzai — an influential 20th-century Ismaili scholar, poet, philosopher, and teacher who produced extensive writings on Ismaili theology, cosmology, and the Imamat.
  • Time Period: Modern Nizari Ismaili period; 20th century. The book explains the doctrine through the teachings of Nāṣir-i Khusraw rather than belonging to Nāṣir-i Khusraw’s own historical period.

Nasir-i Khusraw - Knowledge and Liberation.pdf

  • Description: A collection of thirty questions and answers covering creation, ontology, the soul, cosmology, theology, free will, responsibility, and the liberation of the soul.
  • Author: Nāṣir-i Khusraw — one of the leading Ismaili philosopher-theologians of the Fatimid period and one of the most influential Persian Ismaili thinkers.
  • Time Period: Imam al-Mustanṣir bi’llāh; 11th century.

Qadi al-Nu’man Daaim al Islam Volume 1.pdf

  • Description: The first volume of the Daʿāʾim al-Islām, the foundational Ismaili legal and religious compendium covering worship, ritual, ethics, social conduct, and religious law.
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — the most important Ismaili jurist of the early Fatimid period and chief judicial and intellectual authority under several Fatimid Imams.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid Imams; especially al-Mahdī, al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz. al-Nuʿmān served four Fatimid Imams.

Qadi al-Nu’man Daaim al Islam Volume 2.pdf

  • Description: The second volume of the Daʿāʾim al-Islām, continuing al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān’s systematic presentation of Ismaili law, religious practice, ethics, and the authority of the Imam.
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — the principal Ismaili jurist of the early Fatimid state and a foundational authority for later Ismaili legal tradition.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid Imams; al-Mahdī, al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz; 4th/10th century.

Qadi al-Nu’man Iftitāḥ al-daʿwa.pdf

  • Description: A modern historical study of the emergence of the Fatimid state, explaining the origins of Fatimid political power and the establishment of an early Islamic empire.
  • Author: The PDF is a modern historical study associated with scholarship on the Fatimid state rather than a primary text by al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān. It should therefore be treated as secondary scholarship.
  • Time Period: Modern scholarship concerning the 3rd–4th/9th–10th centuries and the first Fatimid Imams, especially Imam al-Mahdī and the foundation of the Fatimid state.

Qadi al-Nu’man Kitab ul Himmah.pdf

  • Description: outlines the proper conduct, duties, and etiquette expected of the followers, dāʿīs, and officials serving the Imams during the Fatimid period.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, particularly the Imams al-Mahdī, al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz.

Qadi al-Nu’man The Book of Assemblies and Journeys.pdf

  • Description: A collection of accounts concerning religious assemblies, journeys, debates, teachings, and encounters associated with the Fatimid Ismaili community. (Not an Official Translation). Covers the first 4 parts.
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — the great Fatimid jurist and historian whose writings became central to the preservation and transmission of Fatimid Ismaili doctrine.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, particularly the Imams al-Mahdī, al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz.

Qadi al-Nu’man The Complete Book of Assemblies and Journeys.pdf

  • Description: A fuller collection of al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān’s accounts of Fatimid religious assemblies and journeys, providing insight into early Fatimid teaching, ritual, community organization, and the relationship between the Imam and his followers. (Not an Official Translation)
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — one of the foundational authorities of Fatimid Ismaili law, theology, history, and religious practice.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; Imams al-Mahdī, al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr and al-Muʿizz; 4th/10th century.

Qadi al-Nu’man The Epistle of the Eloquent Clarification Concerning the Refutation of Ibn Qutayba.pdf

  • Description: A theological polemic defending Ismaili teachings against criticisms associated with Ibn Qutayba, dealing with questions of authority, religious interpretation, and the legitimacy of the Imamate.
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — the leading Fatimid jurist and theologian whose writings helped formulate and institutionalize early Fatimid Ismaili doctrine.
  • Time Period: early Fatimid period; 4th/10th century, under the early Fatimid Imams.

Qadi Al-Nu’man Iqtisar Vol 2

  • Description: The Second Volume of the Book of Iqtisār is a comprehensive guide to Islamic law based on traditions attributed to the Prophet Muhammad and the People of the Household. It covers practical matters including commerce, marriage, inheritance, criminal punishments, blood-money, property, testimony, judicial procedure, and the conduct of judges.
  • Author: al-Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān — the leading Fatimid jurist and theologian whose writings helped formulate and institutionalize early Fatimid Ismaili doctrine.

Orations of the Fatimid Caliphs.pdf

  • Description: A collection and study of surviving Fatimid festival sermons (khuṭbas), presenting the religious and political rhetoric of the Ismaili Imam-caliphs.
  • Author: Paul E. Walker — a leading modern historian of Fatimid and Ismaili history whose work has made important primary Fatimid sources accessible to modern readers.
  • Time Period: Modern scholarship on the Fatimid Imams; sermons of al-Qāʾim, al-Manṣūr, al-Muʿizz and later Fatimid rulers are included.

Shahrastani Command and Creation.pdf

  • Description: A theological and philosophical work discussing divine command, creation, prophecy, the intellect, and the spiritual hierarchy. The work reflects Shahrastānī’s engagement with Ismaili philosophical and theological ideas.
  • Author: Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Shahrastānī (1086–1153) — a major 12th-century theologian, philosopher, and historian of religions. He is particularly important for Ismaili studies because his later writings contain substantial engagement with Ismaili theology and philosophy.
  • Time Period: Post-Fatimid; 12th century, c. 1143–1153 CE. Written after the end of the Fatimid period (909–1171).

Shahrastani Kitåb al Musaraa Struggling With the Philosopher.pdf

  • Description: A philosophical critique of Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna), particularly addressing the nature of God, existence, causation, and the Necessary Being. Shahrastānī challenges Avicennian philosophy while drawing on theological ideas associated with the Ismaili tradition.
  • Author: Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Shahrastānī (1086–1153) — an influential 12th-century theologian and historian whose philosophical works are especially important for studying the interaction between Islamic philosophy and Ismaili theology.
  • Time Period: Post-Fatimid; 12th century, c. 1130s–1153 CE.

Two Nativities - Cosmology.pdf

  • Description: A modern scholarly study of Ibn Ṭufayl’s philosophical allegory Ḥayy ibn Yaqẓān, examining its themes of cosmology, spiritual development, and Ismāʿīlī taʾwīl. The article focuses on the symbolism of “two nativities” and the soul’s movement from natural existence toward intellectual and spiritual realization.
  • Author: Daniel Watling — a modern scholar of Islamic philosophy and Ismāʿīlī thought whose study explores the relationship between Ibn Ṭufayl’s allegory and Ismāʿīlī interpretive traditions.
  • Time Period: Modern scholarship on a 6th/12th-century work. Ibn Ṭufayl lived c. 1105–1185 CE, during the later Fatimid and early post-Fatimid period, while Daniel Watling’s study is a contemporary academic interpretation.

Anthology of Ismaili Literature A Shii Vision of Islam

  • Description: An anthology presenting selections from Ismaili literature across different historical periods, including theological, philosophical, mystical, and devotional writings. It gives an overview of the Ismaili understanding of Islam and the Imamate.
  • Author: Hermann Landolt (b. 1935) and other contributors — Landolt is a major modern scholar of Islamic mysticism, Persian intellectual history, and Ismaili studies. The anthology is important because it brings together primary Ismaili texts from different periods rather than representing one historical author.

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