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The Sabi'ans As One of the Religious Groups in Pre ARAM, 22 (2010) 243-261. doi: 10.2143/ARAM.22.0.2131040 THE SABI’ANS AS ONE OF THE RELIGIOUS GROUPS IN PRE-ISLAMIC ARABIA AND THEIR DEFINITION THROUGH THE QUR’AN AND MEDIEVAL ARABIC SOURCES Prof. AIDA SHAHLAR GASIMOVA (Baku State University) Abstract The goal of this paper is to give an account of the Sabians: one of the ancient religious groups that seems to have originated in Harran and penetrated to pre-Islamic Arabia circulating among the Jews, Christians and Hanifs. The focus of our prime interest is the etymology of the term “Sabians” and the definition given to this group by the Qur’an (al-Baqara 62, al-Maida 69, al-Hajj 17) and also by tradition, especially the influence of the Sabians upon the cultural-religious life of Jahiliyya Arabs. From the testimonies of al-Tabari, ibn Kathir, al-Baydawi, al-Zamakhshari and other commentators on the Qur’an it became clear that this obscure religious-mystical group named “those who believe” by the Qur’an had passed through several stages in its history from blatant idolatry to a monotheistic religious movement. They had sacred books, temples and religious rites such as prayer and fasting. The Sabians exerted an influence on the for- mation of various religious sects, particularly those of a mystical character. The Sabians’ faith and tenets were not alien to Jahiliyya Arabs. Besides the above- mentioned Quranic ayats, this follows, in particular, from the references to this group in Jahiliyya poetry and later on in Muslim hagiography. Some authors find the influence of the Sabians on the religious thought of Jahiliyya Arabs to be the reason for the widespread worship of astral gods in pre-Islamic Arabia. This is especially the case with the cult of the Sun, which was much influenced by the Sabians’ faith. The Sabians paid great atten- tion to geometrical figures, referring each figure to a special planet, and built sanctuaries of the heavenly bodies in the form of respective geometrical figures. It is quite possible that the sanctuary of Kabah had a quadrangular form due its being the Sabian temple of the Sun. There is evidence in Muslim hagiography that at the very beginning of Islam Muhammad and some of his followers (Abu Dhar al-Ghaffar and others) were called “Sabians” by the Meccans. Focusing on the meaning of “sabi,” which was originally derived from the Arabic root ‘saba’a (“those who reject one religion in favor of another”), some scholars were inclined to proceed from the literal meaning of such an appellation, although the similarities between the Sabian faith and Islam have always been obvious. Of particular interest for us is the comparison between the Sabians and the Hanifs given through “Al-Milal wa al-Nihal” of Shahristani as a form of a discussion between the adherents of these two sects. This discussion reveals the main difference between them which appears in the method of union with God. Although Sabians rejected the idea of union between God and human beings, thus denying prophecy and developing the worship of angels – the only mediators between human beings and God – in to a special cult, it is paradoxical enough that they had their venerated prophets such as Enoch and John the Baptist. On the other hand, medieval Arabic sources depicted the Sabians as a sect closely related to Christianity. Some authors claim that the three star-led Magi who brought the gifts to the Divine Child were Sabians from Arabia. 993793_Aram_22_12_Gasimova.indd3793_Aram_22_12_Gasimova.indd 224343 118/10/118/10/11 115:175:17 244 THE SABI’ANS AS ONE OF THE RELIGIOUS GROUPS IN PRE-ISLAMIC ARABIA In pre-Islamic Arabia there were some incoherent monotheistic groups which shaped a certain side of the religious life of the so-called Jahiliyya ‘Arabs, but belonged neither to Judaism nor to Christianity. These groups, namely Îunafa’ (sing. Ìanif) and ∑abi’un or ∑ubat, ∑abi’a (sing. Òabi’ or Òabi), were not only an important part of the spiritual life of that period, but exerted some influence over Islam as well. They were groups of hermits or pious men who differed greatly from pagan people in their monotheistic beliefs and ascetic lifestyle. Their practices and outlooks lay at the basis of many Islamic rites and doctrines. Although Muslim tradition abounds with records (khabars) of the Hanifs such as Waraqa ibn Naufal, ’Umayya ibn ’Abi al- ∑alt, ‘Uthman ibn Îuwayrith and others and depicts Hanifism as a proto-religion of Islam, there are no clear accounts of Sabiism and its adherents. Being a mystic sect, the Sabi’ans kept their doctrines and practices secret. Therefore the relevant sources attribute obscure and vague characteristics to this creed, which might supposedly have influenced popular Islam and Sufism. The main difficulty of this investigation dedicated to the role of the Sabi’ans in pre-Islamic society is the scarcity and intricacy of information. Even this scanty information depicts Sabiism as a creed with sweeping and wide-ranging temporal and spatial borders, with complicated and miscellaneous characteris- tics which leave no space to illustrate it as a solitary religious sect. Moreover, the etymology of the term Èabi’, which might shed light on the problem, is also tangled and intricate. There are several definitions of Èabi’. The first traces it to the Arabian root Èaba’a which means “to abandon one religion for another.” According to ’Isma‘i l al-Jawhari, Èaba’a is a synonym of †ala’a which means “rise” in relation to celestial bodies, or the eruption of teeth of a child or a camel. ∑aba’a al-rajulu means “a man who abandoned one religion for another, likewise the star which abandons its place when rises.” According to ’Isma‘i l al-Jawhari Èaba’a also means "to be Èabi’”, which refers to some groups of the people of the Book (ahlu al-kitab).1 By the testimony of Ibn Manzur, at the beginning of the mission of the prophet Muhammad, if someone adopted Islam, he was called Èabi’, i.e. “he who abandoned one religion for another.” The prophet Muhammad was called Èabi, because he gave up the religion of the Quraysh for Islam.2 According to the second definition, Èabi’ is of Hebrew origin and refers to “he who baptizes.”3 Some scholars have noted that Arabs called the Sabi’ans mughtasila, thus emphasizing that Èabi’ as a term was derived not from the Arabic root Èaba’a, but rather traces from a Mandaean origin that means 1 Isma‘il al-Jawhari, Al-∑iÌaÌ, I, (Beirut, 1998), pp. 99-100. 2 Ibn Manzur, Lisanu al-‘Arab, I, (Beirut, without date of publishing), pp. 107-108. See: Fahruddin ar-Razi. Tefsiri-i-Kebir, Mefatihul-Gayb, III, (terc. Prof. Dr. Suat Yildirim), (Ankara, 1988), p. 56. (In Turkish). 3 Islam Ansiklopedisi, X, (Istanbul, 1980), p. 9. (In Turkish). 993793_Aram_22_12_Gasimova.indd3793_Aram_22_12_Gasimova.indd 224444 118/10/118/10/11 115:175:17 A.S. GASIMOVA 245 “he who baptizes.”4 T. Hughes assumes that the term originated from the Hebrew tsaba, “a host” and meant “those who worship the hosts of heaven.”5 THE SABI’ANS’ DEFINITION IN THE QUR’AN It is hardly possible to understand this religious trend fully without a thorough analysis of the corresponding Qur‘anic ’ayats. The Sabi’ans are mentioned in the following verses of the Qur’an: Those who believe (in the Qur’an), and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabi’ans, – any who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. (al-Baqara 62)6 Those who believe (in the Qur’an), those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Sabi’ans and the Christians, – any who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work righteousness, – on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. (al-Ma’ida 69) Those who believe (in the Qur’an), those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Sabi’ans, Christians, Magians, and Polytheists, – Allah will judge between them on the Day of Judgment: for Allah is witness of all things. (al- Îajj 17) Muslim exegetical explanations of the above-mentioned verses are miscel- laneous and also contradictory. These sources represent the Sabi’ans as a sect of a variegated geographical and ideological diapason. If we remove all isnads from the interpretations of Ibn Jarir al-Êabari and Abu al-Fida ibn Kathir the definition given to the Sabi’ans appears as follows: • The Sabi’ans are a religious group among the Magi, Jews and Christians; they do not have their own religion;7 • The Sabi’ans are a special sect among the people of the Book (ahlu al-kitab), and they read psalms (Zabur);8 • The Sabi’ans are a religious group similar to the Christians. Their qibla is towards the South. They claim descendance from the prophet Noah;9 • They sacrifice animals and enter into matrimony;10 • The Sabi’ans are a sect like the Magi. The Sabi’ans are worshippers of angels;11 4 Shinasi Gunduz, Sabiler, Son Gnostikler, (Inanc esaslari ve ibadetleri), (Ankara, 1998), p. 29, (In Turkish); Ibn Nadim MuÌammad ibn Ishaq, Kitabu al-Fihrist, (Beirut, without date of publishing), p. 340. 5 T.P.Hughes, Dictionary of Islam, (London, 1885), p. 551 6 The Qur’anic verses have been given in the translation by Yusuf ‘Ali (internet version) 7 Ibn Kathir, Tafsiru al-Qur’an al-‘Azim, I, (Beirut, 1987), p. 107; II, p. 83. 8 Ibn Kathir, Tafsir, I, p.
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