Sunnis, Shias, and Others in Muslim History

Hartford Seminary Spring 2020

Course #: HI-538 Time: Mondays 16:00-18:45 [Place: TBD]

Hossein Kamaly, Imam Ali Chair 104 Budd Building Office Hours: Mondays 10:00-12:00 and 14:00-15:30PM; Thursdays 14:00-15:30PM Email: [email protected]

Syllabus: First Draft October 1st 2019 (Subject to change)

Course Outline:

This seminar explores historical formations of religiously-defined identities in the history of Islam. The most commonly known such religiously-defined identities are those of Sunnis and Shias (for the sake of convenience, the word Shia is used consistently throughout this course instead of Shīʿī, Shīʿite, Shiite, etc.). Besides Sunni and Shia, many other religiously-defined identity labels have been and continue to be used in the history of Muslim societies. Sufis, for instance, may identify themselves as either Sunni or Shia, even though sometimes they are shunned by both Sunnis and Shias. Tens of different Sufi group affiliations, also known as Sufi Brotherhoods, or ṭarīqas, are known. Still, there have existed many other identity labels that mostly are forgotten, deemed irrelevant or sometimes subsumed other labels: Salafis, Ismailis, Ahmedis, Azalis, Nuṣayrīs, and Alewis are but few examples of such religiously-defined identities. Covered themes include theology, politics, jurisprudence. Thematic material is presented chronologically, from the 7th century to the present, with examples drawn from the Middle East, South Asia, East Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and elsewhere. Historical processes of making, unmaking, and remaking of various forms of “orthodoxy” are linked with the ways in which various religiously-defined identities may come under a unifying rubric. Sunnis, Shias, and Others in Muslim History

The effect of ritual practice, rites of passage, geographical localization, etc is discussed, drawing on primary sources and contemporary studies, mostly in history and anthropology. Schools (maẕ’habs) of law and theology are linked with local dynasties, elite families, community & neighborhood dynamics, etc.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will have acquired familiarity with the evolution of multiple religious-defined identities in Muslim history.

Pedagogy:

This seminar is based on reading and in-depth discussion: Primary sources are read and discussed in light of contemporary theories of identity. Contemporary studies of religiously-defined identities in Islam are in turn assessed in light of primary source readings. The combination of primary sources with contemporary studies makes the material relevant and engaging to the students.

Prerequisites: General background at the level of material presented in courses such as Islam, History of Islamic Societies, Classical Islamic Civilization, etc is highly desirable but not absolutely necessary. Background material will be reviewed in class. Working knowledge of any language other than English would be welcome.

Outcome:

Upon successful completion of this seminar, students shall be able to identify and comment on a vast range of religiously defined identity groups in Muslim history. They shall be able to engage questions about the origins and evolution of identities; the interaction of historical forces that condition the emergence, transfer and transformation of identities; and the reflection of identity in various genres.

Required Work & Evaluation:

On the average, 80-120 pages of readings are assigned per week.

Students should prepare for class by reading all assigned texts for each session.

Students are expected to respond to assigned readings online, before each class session.

In-class participation & Attendance:

Attendance, keeping up with assigned readings and active participations are important in this class.

Note: More than two unexcused absences result in a failing grade.

Book Presentation:

Sunnis, Shias, and Others in Muslim History

As of the third week of the semester, students (one or two together) will present a book to the class. Students are expected to meet with the instructor prior to making their presentation.

Writing assignments: 1) A written book report, ca. 1000 words, due after in-class presentation of the book. 2) A final research paper, ca. 5000 words: specific topic to be decided in conference with the instructor. Topics will be assigned in class. (Progress to be assessed beginning the fifth week of the semester). Note: Late submissions are not accepted.

Attendance and participation in class discussion is strictly required and enforced. Students are expected to post on the discussion thread on CANVAS, commenting on assigned readings.

There will be a final examination (date to be determined).

Grading: The following formula will be used to calculate the final grade for each student: Regular Attendance, In-class Participation (15%) + Oral Presentation & Book Report (15%) + Take-home Mid-term Exam (15%) + Final Exam (20%) + Final Paper (30%)

Note: This syllabus is subject to revision. For updates, visit CANVAS. Sunnis, Shias, and Others in Muslim History

Week I: General Introduction to the Course

Week II: 7th Century. Succession to the Prophet; Caliphate (Rāšidūn caliphs); Collection of the Qurʾān; The Enigma of the Qurrāʾ; Party of ʿAlī; Party of ʿUthmān; Kharijites; ʿĀšūrā; Repentance Movement; Kaysānīs.

Selected Readings: Madelung 1997; Lewinstein 1991, 1992; Hinds 1971, 1972; Juynboll 1973 + Powers 2011; Primary source passages.

Week III: 8th Century. The concept of Sunna; The Prophet’s Household; Faith (imān); Belief/practice; Murjiites; Early jurists; Advocates of Sunna & Community (ahl al-sunna wa ʾl-jamāʿa); Ḥadīth-folk; Ḥasan al-Baṣrī; Imāmīs vs. Caliphs; Imāmī, Zaydī, and Ismaili Shias; Ghulāt; Knowledge of the Imām.

Selected Readings: Wasserstrom 1985; Madelung 1982; Blankinship 1988; Brenheimer 2006; Haider 2007; Judd 2011; Pessagno 1975; Stroumsa 1990; Van Ess 2001; Primary source passages.

Week IV: 9th Century. Debate about the Word of God; the miḥna and the consolidation of Sunni identity; Hellenistic philosophy; the Muʿtazila between Basra and Baghdad; The Shuʿūbī phenomenon; Early Sufis and other pietists; Karrāmīs; Malāmatīs; Sober vs. Intoxicated mysticis; the emergence of Ashʿarī kalām; Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal; Sunni Ḥadīth collections; Ṭabaqāt; Occultation.

Selected Readings: Stewart 2013; Makdidi 1993; Hinds 1996; Melchert 1992; Melchert 1999; Melchert 2001a, Melchert 2002; Melchert 2004; Melchert 2005; Lucas 2016.

Week V: 10th Century. Local dynasties; Sunni and Shia legal maẕhabs; Ḥanafīs in Baghdad and Greater Khurasan; Ḥabalīs in Isfahan and Baghdad; Imāmī and Zaydi Shias in Baghdad; Imāmī Shias in Qom and Ray; Ismaili Shias in Yemen; The Fatimid caliphate based in Cairo; The Maliki Caliphate in Cordova; The consolidation of Imāmī identity; …

Week VI: 11th Century. The rise and spread of madrasas; The Ghazali brothers and the consolidation of Sufism; Sunni Revival under the Saljuqs; Philosophy and theology redefined …

Week VII: 12th Century The Muwaḥḥidūn (Almohads) in Al-Andalus; Sufi codes of conduct;

Week 8: 13th Century. The formation and spread of Sufi brotherhoods (ṭuruq), from Baghdad to India; Islam after the Mongols; migrant ʿulamāʾ; Sufis in India; Islam in continental Africa; The teachings of Ibn Arabi: philosophical analysis and esotericism. Sunnis, Shias, and Others in Muslim History

Week IX: 14th-15th Centuries. Islamic learning in continental Africa, the case of Timbuktu; Ibn Taymiyya vs. al-Ḥillī; The Age of Ibn Khaldun and Timur; Mamlūk orthodoxies; Heterodox movements (ḥurūfīs, and others); early Ottoman Islam; Lebanon & Iraq.

Weeks X & XI: 16th to early 17th Centuries. Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal formulations of Islam; migrants from Jabal ʿĀmil; Sectarian policies; the Qizilbāsh and the Janisssaries as Sufis; Sunni and Shia law; Sunni and Shia anti-Sufi polemics; the breakdown of Sufi orders; Suleiman the magnificent; Shah Abbas the Great; Christian Missions and Islamic identity; Indian Syncretism; Sirhindi against Ibn Arabi in India.

Week XII: mid-17th to 18th Century. Shah Walī-Allāh of Delhi and his legacy; Qazizadalis and Akhbaris as cases in Sunni and Shia literalism; From the fall of the Safavids in Isfahan to the rise of the Qajars in Tehran; the (re-)birth of the Uṣūlī School.

Week XIII: 19th Century-Early 20th Century. Colonial encounters; Anglo-Muhammadan law in India; Missionary polemic; Islam and reform; Islamic reform; reason, science, nature reformulated; Ottoman Tanzīmāt; Sir Syed Ahmad Khan Muslim modernist; Qajar reforms.

Week XIV: mid-20th-Early 21st Century The rise of the nation-state and the question of official religion; the Organization of Islamic Conference and rise and fall of the ideal of denominational harmony; Revolutionary Shiism and Salafi movements on the eve of the millennium.