ISMA'ILIYYA, a major branch of the Shi'a with numerous subdivisions. It branched off from the Imamiyya [see ithna 'ashariyya] by tracing the imamate through Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq's son Isma'il, after whom it is named.

History:

Pre-Fatimid and Fatimid times.

After the death of Ja'far al-Sadiq in 148/765 a group of his followers held fast to the imamate of his son Isma'il, who had been named by him as his successor but had predeceased him. Some of them maintained that Isma'il had not died and would reappear as the qa'im or Mahdi. Others recognized Isma'il's son Muhammad as their imam. Nothing is known about the history of the Isma'ili movement developing out of this nucleus until after the middle of the 3rd/9th century, when it appeared as a secret revolutionary organization carrying on intensive missionary efforts in many regions of the Muslim world. In the area of al-Kufa its propaganda was spread from about the year 264/877-8 by Hamdan qarmat [q.v.], who was later aided by his brother-in-law 'Abdan [q.v.]. Hamdan's followers were named after him qarmati, a name which came to be applied derogatorily also to other sections of the movement. In the area of al-Rayy the mission was started about the same time by Khalaf, whose followers became known as the Khalafiyya. In Fars a brother of 'Abdan was active. In Khurasan Nishapur and later Marw al-Rudh became centres of Isma'ili activity (see S. M. Stern, The early Isma'ili missionaries in North-West Persia and in Khurasan and Transoxania, in BSOAS, xxiii (1960), 56-90). A convert of al-Nasafi [q.v.], one of the da'is of Khurasan and Transoxania, was the first to carry the propaganda to Sidjistan, probably in the early decades of the 4th/10th century. Presumably in the first half of the 4th/10th century, the qufs tribe in Kirman was converted by da'is from Khurasan. In the Yemen two missionaries, 'Ali b. al-Fadl and Ibn Hawshab, known as Mansur al-Yaman [q.v.], in 268/881 established themselves in the area of the Jabal Maswar and succeeded in gaining strong tribal support. In 270/883 Ibn Hawshab sent his nephew al-Haytham as a missionary to Sind. Later he sent Abu 'Abd Allah al-Shi'i [q.v.] to the Maghrib, where he arrived in 280/893 and won the support of the Kutama Berber tribe in western Algeria, thus laying the foundation for Fatimid rule. In 286/899 Abu Sa'id al-Jannabi [q.v.], a follower of Hamdan qarmat and 'Abdan, founded a qarmati state in al-Bahrayn, from where he later conquered al-qatif, 'Uman and al-Yamama. The whole movement was centrally directed, at first probably from al-Ahwaz and al-Basra and later from Salamiyya in Syria. Muhammad b. Isma'il was acknowledged as the imam, who had disappeared and was about to reappear as the qa'im and to rule the world. The leaders of the movement in the absence of the imam claimed the rank of hudjdjas [q.v.].

In the year 286/899, after the succession of the future Fatimid Caliph 'Ubayd Allah al-Mahdi to the leadership in Salamiyya, a schism split the movement, provoked by the claim of 'Ubayd Allah to theqimamate for himself and his ancestors. Hamdan qarmat and 'Abdan, who may have previously drifted slightly away from the doctrine propagated by the leadership, broke off their support. 'Abdan consequently was murdered by a subordinate da'i, Zikrawayh b. Mihrawayh [q.v.], who at first pretended to be loyal to the leadership. Zikrawayh and his sons organized the 'qarmati" revolts among Syrian bedouin tribes from the year 289/902 until his capture and execution in 294/907. Doubts concerning Zikrawayh's loyalty, which soon turned out to be justified, induced 'Ubayd Allah to leave Salamiyya for the journey which ended with his establishment as caliph in Raqqada in 297/910.

Though information concerning the attitude of the various Isma'ili groups following the split of the movement is scanty, the results can be summarized with some degree of probability as follows: The community in the Yemen at first remained faithful to 'Ubayd Allah. 'Ali b. al-Fadl, however, in 299/913 renounced his allegiance to him and made war on Ibn Hawshab, who remained loyal. After 'Ali's death in 303/915 his party disintegrated rapidly. The da'is in the Maghrib and probably in Sind, having been sent by Ibn Hawshab, also remained loyal. There are indications that the da'wa in Khurasan generally maintained its allegiance to 'Ubayd Allah, who was able to appoint some da'is there, but there were probably also counter-currents. The communities in 'Iraq, al-Bahrayn, and western Persia refused to recognize the Fatimid claim to the imamate. Among the qarmatis of 'Iraq 'Isa b. Musa, a nephew of 'Abdan, continued the latter's work propagating the imamate of Muhammad b. Isma'il, who would return as the qa'im. After 320/932 he was active in Baghdad. He and other da'is in 'Iraq ascribed their writings to 'Abdan, thus stressing the doctrinal continuity. The da'is of al-Rayy were in close contact with those in 'Iraq and with the qarmatis of al-Bahrayn and like them were expecting the reappearance of the Mahdi-imam for the year 316/928. At least in the twenties of the 4th century (1030-9) they controlled the missions in Mosul and Baghdad. They worked successfully among the Daylamis and won at least the temporary allegiance of Daylami leaders like Asfar, Mardawidj and later of some rulers of the Musafirid dynasty. The qarmatis of al-Bahrayn, led by Abu Tahir al-Jannabi, were predicting the appearance of the Mahdi-imam for the year 316/928. In 319/931 they accepted a Persian prisoner of war as the Expected One, and Abu Tahir turned the rule over to him. The early disastrous end of the affair weakened the ideological vigour of the qarmatis of al-Bahrayn and their influence among the da'is in 'Iraq and Persia, but did not generally lead to an expansion of Fatimid influence. Soon afterwards the great revolt of the Kharidji Abu Yazid [q.v.] under the Fatimid Caliphs al-qa'im and al-Mansur stifled any Fatimid activity among the eastern Isma'ili communities. Only the fourth Fatimid, al-Mu'izz (341/953-365/975), was in a position to lead an intensive campaign to regain the allegiance of the schismatic Isma'ilis. His efforts were partially successful, but failed in regard to the qarmatis of al-Bahrayn, whose hostility erupted, after the Fatimid conquest of Egypt in 358/969, in open warfare against the Fatimid armies. After concluding a peace with the Fatimid al-'Aziz in 369/979-80 and a severe defeat by a bedouin tribe in 378/988, the qarmatis of al-Bahrayn were reduced to a local power unable to exert any ideological influence beyond its boundaries. The movement still supporting the doctrine of the return of Muhammadqb. Isma'il rapidly disintegrated about the same time. The qarmati state in al-Bahrayn survived until 470/1077-8. (See M. J. de Goeje, Memoire sur les Carmathes du Bahraien2, Leiden 1886; idem, La fin de l'empire des Carmathes, in JA 9th ser. v (1895), 5-30; W. Madelung, Fatimiden und Bahrainqarmaten, in Isl. xxxiv (1959), 34-88; S. M. Stern, Isma'ilis and Qarmatians, in l'Elaboration de l'Islam, Paris 1961, 99-108).

In the time of al-Mu'izz a Fatimid vassal state was established in Multan in Sind. The Isma'ili da'i there succeeded before 348/959 in converting a local ruler. Multan became an Isma'ili stronghold where the ¦hutba was read in the name of the Fatimid caliph. This success probably strengthened the Fatimid cause also in the neighbouring regions, for in Mukran the ¦hutba was also read for the Fatimids about the year 378/988. The da'i Abu Ya'qub al-Sidjistani [q.v.], who supported the Fatimid doctrine at least from the time of al-Mu'izz on, probably was active in Sidjistan before his death in the second half of the 4th/10th century. In Jiruft in Kirman a Fatimid da'i was residing toward the end of the 4th/10th century. The Isma'ili state in Multan lasted until 401/1010-1, when Mahmud of óhazna annexed the town, took its ruler prisoner and massacred many Isma'ilis (see S. M. Stern, Isma'ili propaganda and Fatimid rule in Sind, in IC, xxiii (1949), 298-307).

During the last years of the reign of al-Hakim (386/996-411/1021) extremist Isma'ilis in Cairo began to proclaim the divinity of this Fatimid caliph. Their leadership soon passed to Hamza b. 'Ali [q.v.], who became the founder of the Druze religious doctrine. The official Fatimid da'wa organization remained adamantly opposed to this movement, although al-Hakim at times showed it favour. After al-Hakim's death it was persecuted by the Fatimid government and wiped out in Cairo, but succeeded in solidifying its hold over the mountainous regions in Syria which, with some modifications, became the permanent home of the Druze community. The Druze religion [see duruz], though derived from Isma'ili doctrine, transformed its basic ideas to such a degree as to be usually considered as falling outside the range of Isma'ilism.

In Ifriqiya the Isma'ili communities were practically exterminated by popular riots after the accession of al-Mu'izz b. Badis, Zirid vassal of the Fatimids, in 407/1016. The missionary efforts of the Fatimids during their residence in Ifriqiyya had achieved the conversion of only small groups of the urban population, while the masses, led by the Maliki 'ulama', were solidly opposed to Fatimid rule and Shi'ism. Large numbers of Kutama tribesmen, who traditionally furnished the main body of the Fatimid army, left for Egypt with the Fatimid al-Mu'izz. Most of the leading da'is also departed at that time. The Sanhadja tribe, which supported Zirid rule, only superficially adhered to Isma'ilism. During the year 407/1016-7 the Isma'ilis in al-qayrawan, al-Mansuriyya, al-Mahdiyya, Tunis, Tripoli, and other towns were attacked and massacred by the populace with the countenance of the government. Sporadic massacres took place also during the following years. The Isma'ili communities were thus extinguished long before al-Mu'izz in 440/1049 renounced his allegiance to the Fatimids and recognized 'Abbasid suzereignty (see H. R. Idris, La Berberie orientale sous les Zirides, Paris 1962, 143-9).

During the reign of the Caliph al-Mustansir (427/1036-487/1094) the Isma'ili cause achieved new successes in the Yemen and India. In the Yemen theqda'wa after the death of Ibn Hawshab had suffered major setbacks and survived only precariously, though in the period 379/989-387/997 it had gained the allegiance and support of the Ya'furid amir 'Abd Allah b. qahtan, ruler of San'a' and conqueror of Zabid from the Ziyadids. In 429/1038 'Ali b. Muhammad al-Sulayhi, Fatimid da'i and founder of the Sulayhid dynasty, rose in Masar in the Haraz region. Through the activity of the Sulayhids [q.v.] Fatimid sovereignty came to extend over all of the Yemen and temporarily over other parts of Arabia like 'Uman and al-Bahrayn (see H. F. al-Hamdani, al-Sulayhiyyun, Cairo 1955). The Sulayhids also furthered renewed efforts at spreading Isma'ilism on the Indian subcontinent. Although parts of the Isma'ili community in Sind evidently had survived the persecution under Mahmud of óhazna and Isma'ilism seems to have been espoused by the Sumra dynasty of local Hindu origin (see A. H. al-Hamdani, The Beginnings of the Isma'ili Da'wa in Northern India, Cairo 1956), contacts with the Fatimid da'wa faded. The Isma'ilis in Sind may have drifted partially back to Hindu practices and beliefs. A new Isma'ili community was now founded by Yemenite da'is in the area of Cambay, Gudjarat, which had close commercial ties with the Yemen. According to the traditional account an Arab da'i, 'Abd Allah, arrived with two Indian assistants in Gudjarat in 460/1068, sent by the Yemenite chief da'i Lamak b. Malik. Less than a decade later the existence of a flourishing Isma'ili community is confirmed by official letters of the Fatimid chancery. This new Isma'ili community remained closely tied to, and controlled by, the Yemenite da'wa and was the nucleus of the modern Bohora [q.v.] community.

After the middle of the 5th/11th century the Persian poet and philosopher Nasir-i Khusraw [q.v.] was active as a Fatimid da'i in Yumgan in the Upper Oxus area for over 15 years. Expelled from Bal¦h because of Isma'ili activity, he came to Yumgan before 453/1061 and remained there until his death. Several of his extant philosophical and religious works were composed there. He became the founder and patron-saint of the Isma'ili community of Bada¦hshan in the wider sense, though it may have been changed in composition by later Isma'ili refugees (see W. Ivanow, Problems in Nasir-i Khosraw's Biography, Bombay 1956; A. E. Bertel's, Nasir-i Khosrov i Ismailizm, Moscow 1959).

In the last years of the reign of al-Mustansir the Isma'ili cause in Persia was reinvigorated by the activity of Hasan-i Sabbah [q.v.]. After travelling widely and carrying on propaganda in various regions of the country, he seized the fortress of Alamut [q.v.] in the mountains of Daylam in 483/1090, thus opening a new phase in the Isma'ili activity in Persia. The clandestine missionary work to which the da'wa in Persia had mostly been restricted was replaced by a policy of open revolt which, in the face of the overwhelming military strength of the Saldjuq government, was based on the seizure of impregnable mountain fortresses and spectacular political murder aimed at intimidating the enemy's leadership. In the following years other rock fortresses were occupied in the Elburz range. In 484 or 485/1091-2 Hasan-i Sabbah sent the da'i Husayn qa'ini to quhistan to raise the revolt there. In short order the Isma'ilis seized control of several towns in eastern quhistan, Tabas, qa'in, Zuzan, Tun, and others. Another da'i, Abu Hamza, captured two castles near Arradjan in the border region between Fars and Khuzistan. After the death of al-Mus-qtansir in 487/1094, a major split occurred in the Isma'ili movement concerning the succession to the imamate. Al-Mustansir had originally designated his eldest son, Nizar [q.v.], as his heir. Later his youngest son, Ahmad, found the support of the vizier al-Afdal [q.v.], who after the death of al-Mustansir placed him on the throne with the title al-Musta'li [q.v.]. Nizar fled to Alexandria, where he rose in revolt, was defeated, seized and immured. Hasan-i Sabbah and the Persian Isma'ilis upheld the right of Nizar to the succession and refused to recognize al-Musta'li. In the absence of the imam, Hasan-i Sabbah became the supreme chief claiming the rank of hudjdja. After his death the leadership continued with the rulers of Alamut. Beginning with the fourth ruler, Hasan 'ala dhikrihi 'l-salam (557/1162-561/1166), they came to be recognized as imams. Against numerous Saldjuq attacks the Nizaris were able to hold and expand their territories in the Elburz mountains and quhistan. The fortress Shahdiz near Isfahan, which they seized about the year 494/1100, was lost again in 500/1107. Some time afterwards the Nizari fortresses near Arradjan were overcome. Among the Isma'ilis in Egypt and Syria there were also partisans of Nizar. In Egypt they were gradually suppressed. In Syria, which fell largely outside the Fatimid territory, they were soon organized by emissaries from Alamut and and seriously rivalled the supporters of the Fatimid caliphate, especially in Damascus and Aleppo. The Jabal al-Summaq and surrounding area north of Hamat soon became a stronghold of the Nizaris. As in Persia they aimed at acquiring fortresses, but failed in their first attempts, and practised political murder. In 520/1126 Tughtagin, ruler of Damascus, ceded to them the fortress of Banyas on the frontier with the Franks and gave them official recognition in Damascus. His son Buri in 523/1139 encouraged anti-Isma'ili rioting in Damascus in which the Nizari community was virtually wiped out. The fortress of Banyas was consequently surrendered by the Nizaris to the Franks. Soon afterwards they achieved lasting success in the Jabal Bahra' area west of Hamat. In 527/1132-3 they acquired the fortress of qadmus, and other fortresses came into their possession during the following decade. Masyaf, the most important stronghold, was seized in 535/1140-1. The Syrian Nizaris continued to be ruled by agents sent by the lords of Alamut. The most famous one, Rashid al-Din Sinan [q.v.] (557/1162-588/1192), showed signs of independence, and there are reports that agents were repeatedly sent from Alamut to kill him. A complete break was avoided.

The imamate of al-Musta'li was recognized by most Isma'ilis in Egypt, many in Syria, and by the whole community in the Yemen and that in India dependent on it. A new schism developed, however, among the Musta'lian Isma'ilis after the assassination of al-Musta'li's son and successor al-Amir [q.v.] in 524/1130. Eight months before al-Amir's death a son, al-Tayyib, had been born to him and had immediately been proclaimed as his heir. After al-Amir's death his cousin 'Abd al-Madjid was put on the throne in Cairo as regent, officially in expectation of the delivery of a pregnant wife of the late caliph Mention of the infant al-Tayyib was suppressed, and nothing is known about his fate. Four days later 'Abd al-Madjid was overthrown and imprisoned by al-Afdal Kutayfat [q.v.], who declared the Fatimid dynasty deposed and proclaimed the sovereignty of the Twelfth Imam of the Imamiyya. Kutayfat was overthrown and killed in Muh. 526/Dec. 1131, and 'Abd al-Madjid returned to the throne as regent. In Rabi' IIq526/Feb. 1132 he was proclaimed imam with the caliphal title al-Hafiz [q.v.]. The succession of al-Hafiz, though in violation of the accepted rule that the imamate could be inherited only by a direct descendant, was supported by the official da'wa organization in Egypt and accepted by the majority of the Musta'lian Isma'ilis in Egypt and Syria. They were known as the Hafiziyya or Madjidiyya. There were, however, some Musta'lian communities in Egypt and Syria which continued to support the rights of al-Tayyib and were known as Amiriyya. In the Yemen most of the leaders of the established da'wa organization upheld the rights of al-Tayyib. Encouraged by the Sulayhid queen al-Sayyida they founded the independent Tayyibi da'wa in the Yemen headed by a da'imutlaq. The first of these was al-Dhu'ayb b. Musa, who was succeeded in 546/1151 by Ibrahim al-Hamidi [q.v.]. The Tayyibi da'is worked successfully despite the fact that after the death of the Sulayhid queen in 532/1138 they did not have the support of any of the rulers in the Yemen. The Hafizi da'wa was supported by the Zuray'ids of 'Adan, who, beginning with Muhammad b. Saba', were officially appointed Fatimid da'is in the Yemen, and by at least some of the Hamdanid rulers of San'a' (see S. M. Stern, The succession to the Fatimid Imam al-Amir the claims of the later Fatimids to the Imamate, and the rise of Tayyibi Ismailism, in Oriens, iv (1951), 193-255). There are no reports as to whether the Hafizi da'wa ever had adherents in India. In any case the community in India, which continued to be closely tied to the Yemenite da'wa, soon was solidly Tayyibi.