Abu 'Abdullah Al-Husayn Al-Shi'i
Encyclopedia
Abu 'Abdullah al-Husayn ibn Ahmad ibn Zakariyya al-Shi'i (Arabic: ابو عبد الله الشيعي, Abū 'Abd Allāh ash-Shi'ī) (died February 28, 911) was a Da'i for the Isma'ilis in Yemen
and North Africa
mainly among the Kutama
Berbers
, whose teachings influenced the rise of the Fatimid
dynasty.
He was born in Kufa
in Iraq
(or Sanaa
, according to some accounts) and was active in the administration of the Abbasid
Caliphate
, before he began to associate with Ismaili
teachers. At first he proselytised under the guidance of Ibn Hawshab in Yemen
and Mecca
.
During a pilgrimage to Mecca
in 279 A.H.
/892 CE
, he met some Kutama
Berbers
that boasted of their independence and autonomy from the Aghlabids. Abu 'Abdullah sensed a chance and decided to follow their invitation to the Maghrib
where he arrived in 280/893. After successfully preaching the Ismaili doctrine among the Sanhaja
, he was able to form a powerful army consisting of Berber peasants. He began conquering the cities of Ifriqiya
up to the point where he finally took over ar-Raqqada, the palace city of the Aghlabids near Kairuan in 909.
All this had been done by him to prepare for the appearance of Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi Billah
, the imam-caliph of the Fatimids. Al-Mahdi was rescued from a prison in Sijilmasa
(present-day Morocco
) and proclaimed as caliph
, ruling from the former residence of the Aghlabids.
Al-Shi'i had hoped that al-Mahdi would be a spiritual leader, and leave the administration of secular affairs to him, but he was soon disappointed. After being suspected of complicity in a revolt of Kutama leaders, he was put to death in 911.
Abu Abd Allah al-Husain b. Ahmad Muhammad b. Zakariya was a Yemenite of Kufa. He was also known as al Muhtasib.
He was a dedicated Shi'ite and highly versed in esoteric. Realizing his promise and potential, the Imam sent him to Yemen for apprenticeship at the hands of Abu'l Qasim b. Hawshab, the Ismaili da'i, who had succeeded in establishing a foot-hold in that country, Abu Abd Allah stayed in Yemen for a year, in close association with Abul Qasim and participated in missionary, administrative and military activities.
The Imam had earmarked Abu Abd Allah for conducting missionary work in the Maghrib. At the end of his term of apprenticeship, which coincided with the Pilgrimage season, Abu Abd Allah accompanied by a Yemenite assistant, left 'Adan-La'a, Abu'l Qasim's headquarters, for Mecca.
During the Pilgrimage, he contacted the Kitama pilgrims at Muna and he impressed them with his thorough knowledge of the attributes of the Ahl Al Bayt. Accompanying the Kitama caravan to Egypt, he captured the admiration of his fellow-travellers, with the unmistakable skill and craft of an Ismaili da'i. When he revealed that he intended to stay in Egypt in order to undertake teaching for a living, he was conveniently prevailed upon by the Kitama to accompany them to their country. Abu Abd Allah avoided Ifriqiya (Tunisia) by taking a route to the south and he arrived in the Kitama country in the middle of 893.
He chose as headquarters lkdjan near Satif, a mountain stronghold that dominated the Pilgrimage route. He started to teach the attributes of 'Ali b. Abi Talib and his descendants, the Imams, and tribesmen began to trek to lkdjan. It was during this period that Abu Zaki Tammahi b. Mu'arik, a member of the Kitama clan of Idjana, arrived at Abu Abd Allah's headquarters. From that moment he was to become the Da'i's right-hand.
Abu Abd Allah set about organizing his followers whom he called lkhwan i.e. brothers. To the Berbers he was known as al-Mashiriqi, i.e. the Easterner, and his followers as the Mashariqa.
Abu Abd Allah organized classes - Majalis and collected a fee from students - this was probably the fore-runner of the Najwa.
The activities of the Da'i alarmed the neighbouring governor of Mila. In vain he urged the Kitama to hand him over. The autonomous governor, wary of Aghlabid intervention, belittled Abu Abd Allah when lbrahim b. Ahmad, the Aghlabid ruler of lfriqiya, enquired about the Da'i's, activities. Eventually Ibrahim entered into correspondence with Abu Abd Allah, courting his friendship at first and ending with threats. Recognizing his vulnerable position at lkdjan, the Da'i retired to Tazrut under the protection of al-Hasan b. Harun, the powerful leader of the Ghashman clan.
A number of Kitama sheikhs wary of Aghlabid inroads into their country, sought to banish the Da'i, and in the ensuing battle, Abu Abd Allah gained the upper hand. After his resounding victory, the Da'i built himself a palace in Tazrut and his followers built living quarters around it. He embarked on a career of conquests that brought the Kitama country under his control. Immediately, he set on laying the foundations of administration for his principality. He divided the Kitama into seven units, each with its own army, commanders and sheikhs whom he
gave wide powers, a measure that sowed the seeds of a power struggle under the Mahdi and in which the Da'i lost his life. Closely following the activities of his Da'i from his retreat in Salmiya, the Imam 'Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi, decided to leave for the Maghrib in 289/902. Failing to join Abu Abd Allah the Imam took refuge in Sidjilmassa where he was detained by its ruler lbn Midrar. The Da'i's brother, Abu'l 'Abbas Muhammad, who accompanied the Imam in his journey, fell into the hands of the Aghlabids.
After consolidating his position in the Kitama country, Abu Abd Allah embarked on his second phase of conquests. After a short siege he took Mila. The new Aghlabid ruler, Abu'l 'Abbas b. lbrahim, promptly sent his son Abu Hawwal with a strong army against the Da'i. Abu Hawwal defeated Abu 'Abd Allah in the country of the Matusa, advanced on Tazrut which he took and burnt the Da'i's palace. He took Mila and Abu Abd Alla fell back on lkdjan. Regrouping his troops the Da'i inflicted a heavy defeat on Abu Hawwal. A counter-attack by the Aghlabid general was repulsed. The Da'i then marched on Satif and took it. He inflicted a series of defeats on the Aghlabdis, notably those at Kabuna, Darmalul and Darmadyan.
On March 19, 909, Abu Abd Allah decisively defeated the Aghlabid near Larybus. Six days later he entered the Aghlabid capital, Raqadda.
After establishing a new fabric of administration in Ifriquiya, he left for Sidjilmassa in order to liberate al Mahdi, leaving Abu Zaki as his deputy. After a short siege, the Da'i took the town by storm and liberated al Mahdi and his son.
Back in Ifriqiya Abu Abd Allah fell under the influence of his brother Abul Abbas who, exploiting the discontent of the Kitama Sheiks who were losing power under the Mahdi's set-up, urged rebellion. When the plot became known he was put to death on Monday 15, Jumada al-Ukhra 298\18 February 911. Wrote Ibn Khalikan, "He was one of those sagacious men who knew what they were doing."
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
and North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
mainly among the Kutama
Kutama
The Kutama were a powerful Berber tribe, in the region of Jijel , a member of the great Sanhaja confederation of the Maghrib and the armed body of the Fatimid Caliphate.-Origins of the Kutama:...
Berbers
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
, whose teachings influenced the rise of the Fatimid
Fatimid
The Fatimid Islamic Caliphate or al-Fāṭimiyyūn was a Berber Shia Muslim caliphate first centered in Tunisia and later in Egypt that ruled over varying areas of the Maghreb, Sudan, Sicily, the Levant, and Hijaz from 5 January 909 to 1171.The caliphate was ruled by the Fatimids, who established the...
dynasty.
He was born in Kufa
Kufa
Kufa is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000....
in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
(or Sanaa
Sana'a
-Districts:*Al Wahdah District*As Sabain District*Assafi'yah District*At Tahrir District*Ath'thaorah District*Az'zal District*Bani Al Harith District*Ma'ain District*Old City District*Shu'aub District-Old City:...
, according to some accounts) and was active in the administration of the Abbasid
Abbasid
The Abbasid Caliphate or, more simply, the Abbasids , was the third of the Islamic caliphates. It was ruled by the Abbasid dynasty of caliphs, who built their capital in Baghdad after overthrowing the Umayyad caliphate from all but the al-Andalus region....
Caliphate
Caliphate
The term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...
, before he began to associate with Ismaili
Ismaili
' is a branch of Shia Islam. It is the second largest branch of Shia Islam, after the Twelvers...
teachers. At first he proselytised under the guidance of Ibn Hawshab in Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
and Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
.
During a pilgrimage to Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
in 279 A.H.
Hijri year
The Hijri year is year numbering system used in the Islamic calendar. It commemorates the Hijra , or emigration of Muhammad and his followers to the city of Medina in 622 CE. In Arabic, AH is symbolized by the letter هـ...
/892 CE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
, he met some Kutama
Kutama
The Kutama were a powerful Berber tribe, in the region of Jijel , a member of the great Sanhaja confederation of the Maghrib and the armed body of the Fatimid Caliphate.-Origins of the Kutama:...
Berbers
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
that boasted of their independence and autonomy from the Aghlabids. Abu 'Abdullah sensed a chance and decided to follow their invitation to the Maghrib
Maghrib
The Maghrib prayer , prayed just after sunset, is the fourth of five formal daily prayers performed by practicing Muslims.The formal daily prayers of Islam comprise different numbers of units, called rak'at. The Maghrib prayer has three obligatory rak'at. The first two fard rak'at are prayed...
where he arrived in 280/893. After successfully preaching the Ismaili doctrine among the Sanhaja
Sanhaja
The Sanhaja or Senhaja were once one of the largest Berber tribal confederations of the Maghreb, along with the Zanata and Masmuda...
, he was able to form a powerful army consisting of Berber peasants. He began conquering the cities of Ifriqiya
Ifriqiya
In medieval history, Ifriqiya or Ifriqiyah was the area comprising the coastal regions of what are today western Libya, Tunisia, and eastern Algeria. This area included what had been the Roman province of Africa, whose name it inherited....
up to the point where he finally took over ar-Raqqada, the palace city of the Aghlabids near Kairuan in 909.
All this had been done by him to prepare for the appearance of Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi Billah
Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi Billah
Abdullah al-Mahdi Billah , often referred to as Ubayd Allah, is the founder of the Fatimid dynasty, the only major Shi'a caliphate in Islam, and established Fatimid rule throughout much of North Africa.- History :...
, the imam-caliph of the Fatimids. Al-Mahdi was rescued from a prison in Sijilmasa
Sijilmasa
Sijilmasa was a medieval trade entrepôt at the northern edge of the Sahara Desert in Morocco. The ruins of the town lie along the River Ziz in the Tafilalt oasis near the town of Rissani...
(present-day Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
) and proclaimed as caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
, ruling from the former residence of the Aghlabids.
Al-Shi'i had hoped that al-Mahdi would be a spiritual leader, and leave the administration of secular affairs to him, but he was soon disappointed. After being suspected of complicity in a revolt of Kutama leaders, he was put to death in 911.
Abu Abd Allah Al-Shi'i
By Dr. B. I. Beshir. Khartoum (Sudan)Abu Abd Allah al-Husain b. Ahmad Muhammad b. Zakariya was a Yemenite of Kufa. He was also known as al Muhtasib.
He was a dedicated Shi'ite and highly versed in esoteric. Realizing his promise and potential, the Imam sent him to Yemen for apprenticeship at the hands of Abu'l Qasim b. Hawshab, the Ismaili da'i, who had succeeded in establishing a foot-hold in that country, Abu Abd Allah stayed in Yemen for a year, in close association with Abul Qasim and participated in missionary, administrative and military activities.
The Imam had earmarked Abu Abd Allah for conducting missionary work in the Maghrib. At the end of his term of apprenticeship, which coincided with the Pilgrimage season, Abu Abd Allah accompanied by a Yemenite assistant, left 'Adan-La'a, Abu'l Qasim's headquarters, for Mecca.
During the Pilgrimage, he contacted the Kitama pilgrims at Muna and he impressed them with his thorough knowledge of the attributes of the Ahl Al Bayt. Accompanying the Kitama caravan to Egypt, he captured the admiration of his fellow-travellers, with the unmistakable skill and craft of an Ismaili da'i. When he revealed that he intended to stay in Egypt in order to undertake teaching for a living, he was conveniently prevailed upon by the Kitama to accompany them to their country. Abu Abd Allah avoided Ifriqiya (Tunisia) by taking a route to the south and he arrived in the Kitama country in the middle of 893.
He chose as headquarters lkdjan near Satif, a mountain stronghold that dominated the Pilgrimage route. He started to teach the attributes of 'Ali b. Abi Talib and his descendants, the Imams, and tribesmen began to trek to lkdjan. It was during this period that Abu Zaki Tammahi b. Mu'arik, a member of the Kitama clan of Idjana, arrived at Abu Abd Allah's headquarters. From that moment he was to become the Da'i's right-hand.
Abu Abd Allah set about organizing his followers whom he called lkhwan i.e. brothers. To the Berbers he was known as al-Mashiriqi, i.e. the Easterner, and his followers as the Mashariqa.
Abu Abd Allah organized classes - Majalis and collected a fee from students - this was probably the fore-runner of the Najwa.
The activities of the Da'i alarmed the neighbouring governor of Mila. In vain he urged the Kitama to hand him over. The autonomous governor, wary of Aghlabid intervention, belittled Abu Abd Allah when lbrahim b. Ahmad, the Aghlabid ruler of lfriqiya, enquired about the Da'i's, activities. Eventually Ibrahim entered into correspondence with Abu Abd Allah, courting his friendship at first and ending with threats. Recognizing his vulnerable position at lkdjan, the Da'i retired to Tazrut under the protection of al-Hasan b. Harun, the powerful leader of the Ghashman clan.
A number of Kitama sheikhs wary of Aghlabid inroads into their country, sought to banish the Da'i, and in the ensuing battle, Abu Abd Allah gained the upper hand. After his resounding victory, the Da'i built himself a palace in Tazrut and his followers built living quarters around it. He embarked on a career of conquests that brought the Kitama country under his control. Immediately, he set on laying the foundations of administration for his principality. He divided the Kitama into seven units, each with its own army, commanders and sheikhs whom he
gave wide powers, a measure that sowed the seeds of a power struggle under the Mahdi and in which the Da'i lost his life. Closely following the activities of his Da'i from his retreat in Salmiya, the Imam 'Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi, decided to leave for the Maghrib in 289/902. Failing to join Abu Abd Allah the Imam took refuge in Sidjilmassa where he was detained by its ruler lbn Midrar. The Da'i's brother, Abu'l 'Abbas Muhammad, who accompanied the Imam in his journey, fell into the hands of the Aghlabids.
After consolidating his position in the Kitama country, Abu Abd Allah embarked on his second phase of conquests. After a short siege he took Mila. The new Aghlabid ruler, Abu'l 'Abbas b. lbrahim, promptly sent his son Abu Hawwal with a strong army against the Da'i. Abu Hawwal defeated Abu 'Abd Allah in the country of the Matusa, advanced on Tazrut which he took and burnt the Da'i's palace. He took Mila and Abu Abd Alla fell back on lkdjan. Regrouping his troops the Da'i inflicted a heavy defeat on Abu Hawwal. A counter-attack by the Aghlabid general was repulsed. The Da'i then marched on Satif and took it. He inflicted a series of defeats on the Aghlabdis, notably those at Kabuna, Darmalul and Darmadyan.
On March 19, 909, Abu Abd Allah decisively defeated the Aghlabid near Larybus. Six days later he entered the Aghlabid capital, Raqadda.
After establishing a new fabric of administration in Ifriquiya, he left for Sidjilmassa in order to liberate al Mahdi, leaving Abu Zaki as his deputy. After a short siege, the Da'i took the town by storm and liberated al Mahdi and his son.
Back in Ifriqiya Abu Abd Allah fell under the influence of his brother Abul Abbas who, exploiting the discontent of the Kitama Sheiks who were losing power under the Mahdi's set-up, urged rebellion. When the plot became known he was put to death on Monday 15, Jumada al-Ukhra 298\18 February 911. Wrote Ibn Khalikan, "He was one of those sagacious men who knew what they were doing."