Anthology of Ismaili Literature: A Shi'i Vision of IslamOne of the richest and most rewarding, yet at the same time least familiar, traditions of Muslim literature is that of the Shi'i Imami Ismailis. Although many great literary treasures of the Islamic world are already available in English translation, those of the Ismailis are only slowly being made accessible to scholars and readers at large. This substantial Anthology makes a vital and welcome contribution to that process of wider dissemination. It brings together for the first time extracts from a range of significant Ismaili texts in both poetry and prose, here translated into English by some of the foremost scholars in the field. The texts included belong to a long span of Ismaili history, which extends from the Fatimid era to the beginning of the twentieth century. The translations in question have been rendered from their originals in Arabic, Persian and the different languages of Badakhshan and South Asia. With substantial sections devoted to such broad topics as faith and thought, history and biography, ethics, the Imamate, Ta'wil (or esoteric exegesis and textual interpretation), the Anthology offers continuously enriching glimpses into the depths, diversity and distinctiveness of one of the great traditions of Islamic thought and creativity, which still remains relatively undiscovered by the West. |
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Contents
Ismaili History and Literary Traditions | 1 |
History and Memoir | 31 |
Faith and Thought | 83 |
Poetry | 251 |
Glossary | 322 |
328 | |
339 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Abū Mālik Abū Yaʿqūb Abū ʿAbd Allāh Aga Khan III Aghlabid ahl al-bayt al-Dīn al-Mahdī al-Mu’ayyad al-Muʿizz al-Nuʿmān al-Qāḍī al-Qadi al-Nu‘man al-Sijistānī al-Ṭūsī Alamūt Allah animals Arabic asked become believers bi’llah blessings body Cairo caliph Central Asia command da‘i da‘wa dāʿī divine doctrine esoteric exalted existence faith gināns God’s ḥadīth Ḥasan heart human Hunzai Ia‘far Ibn al-Haytham imam imam’s īmān Institute of Ismaili intellect islām Ismaili Ismaili literature Ismaili Studies Ismaili thought Jaʿfar Kitāb knowledge Lord Mahdī master meaning mercy Messenger Muḥammad Muslim Nāṣir-i Khusraw Nizārī Nizārī Ismailis obedience ofthe one’s originated peace perfection Persian person Pīr poet poetry praise proof Prophet prophethood qiyama Qurʾan rank religion religious Ṣāliḥ Satpanth seeking sense Shāh sharīʿa Shaykh Shi‘i Shiʿi someone soul spiritual submission Sufi Sufism ta’wil taqiyya tawalla tawḥīd taʾwīl Tehran things tradition Translated truth Twelver understanding verse Virani wisdom words ʿAlī