paper by Abdulhadi Alajmi
The complex relationship between early caliphs and Muslim scholars has been the subject of intens... more The complex relationship between early caliphs and Muslim scholars has been the subject of intense scholarship for a century now.l Various scholars have attempted to uncover the mystery characterizing this relationship. Although the majority of scholars have relied on the historical picture depicted by Islamic sources in forming their arguments, other scholars have de-emphasized the traditional sources in favor of theoretical models of this relationship. The most significant research of the latter type is Patricia Crone and Martin Hinds' God's Caliph (1986). This highly controversial work exemplifies the shift in focus from source-driven to theory-driven scholarship; the authors of this book undermine the importance of the sources describing how scholars dealt with political authority in the early Islamic period. The purpose of this article is to refute the central arguments presented in God's Caliph, namely the that the title n'God's Caliph" indicates a break with the prophetic past, that the title confers exclusive authority in the hands of the caliph, and that the caliph-scholar relationship was marked by struggle. It will be shown that the authors' arguments about this purportedly strife-ridden relationship are unsuccessful, not only because they adopt unfounded theories, but also because they fail to provide accurate definitions of key terms used throughout their work.
The depiction of the personality of Abu Al-Awar al-Sulami in our sources is clear example of the ... more The depiction of the personality of Abu Al-Awar al-Sulami in our sources is clear example of the affect of ideology and religion-political tendencies on the writing of history. Even though some sources do depict Abu Al-Awar al-Sulami in what one might call as 'positive' most of the sources depict him in a very negative manner. This stems from this personality's association with Mu'awiya b. AbiSufyan (41 A.H./661C.E. -60 A.H./680 C.E.) and the latter's dispute with Ali (35A.H./656 C.E.-40 A.H./660 C.E.).
The question dealing with the reliability of early Islamic sources has been a source of discomfor... more The question dealing with the reliability of early Islamic sources has been a source of discomfort for scholars as well as students of early Islamic history. The work of Josef Schacht first published in the fifties of the past century has created an overall attitude of skepticism toward early tradition and made it difficult to study early Islam without justifying the use of early sources and determining their authenticity. This made the whole field part away from the picture painted by the early sources about early Islam, giving rise to unfounded theories and speculations about this historical period. The purpose of this paper is to show that the work of Schacht is unfounded and to present an alternative method for studying Islamic history. Our efforts will not be just theoretical but we will build on the work of Harald Motzki and Gregor Schoeler by bringing a case study from this early period and show how analyzing early isnads, the chain of authority narrating a particular event, impacts matns, the narration attached to the isnad. This will show that scholars of Islamic history may rely on early historical narration for understanding early Islamic history given that they pay particular attention to who is narrating what to whom. RESUMEN La cuestión sobre la fiabilidad de las fuentes islámicas tempranas ha sido siempre un motivo de turbación tanto para los expertos como para los estudiantes de la historia antigua del Islam. El trabajo de Josef Schacht, publicado por primera vez a principios de los años cincuenta del pasado siglo, ha creado una actitud general de escepticismo hacia la tradición temprana y ha hecho difícil estudiar el primer Islam sin tener que justificar el uso de las fuentes tempranas y determinar su autenticidad. Esto provocó que la especialidad al completo se apartara de la imagen mostrada por las fuentes tempranas sobre el primer Islam, haciendo surgir teorías infundadas y especulaciones sobre este periodo histórico. El propósito de este artículo es mostrar que el trabajo de Schacht no tiene fundamento y presentar un método alternativo para el estudio de la historia islámica. Nuestro esfuerzo no será sólo teórico, si no que también nos basaremos en el trabajo de Harald Motzki y Gregor Schoeler, aportando un caso de estudio de este periodo temprano, y mostraremos como analizar la isnad temprana, la cadena de autoridad que narra un hecho particular, la repercusión de la matns, la narración unida a la isnad. Esto mostrará que los expertos en historia del Islam podrían confiar en los relatos históricos de los primeros años para comprender la historia islámica antigua, dando por hecho que deben prestar una especial atención a quién está narrando qué y a quién.
This paper looks at the reign of ʿUmar b. ʿAbd al-Azīz (ʿUmar II) as the beginning of the end of ... more This paper looks at the reign of ʿUmar b. ʿAbd al-Azīz (ʿUmar II) as the beginning of the end of the Umayyad power. Here we are referring to the so-called 'reforms' of ʿUmar II, which directly impacted Umayyad propaganda tools; such as history, poetry, and polemics, were severally damaged. The paper shows that it was these reforms and none other, which outlasted the Umayyads by severally hampering their efforts at maintaining their hegemony on legitimacy.
Books by Abdulhadi Alajmi
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by Adam Walker آدم وا(ل)كر, Isabel Toral-Niehoff, Ahmad Khan, Beatrice Gruendler, Massimo Campanini, Abdulhadi Alajmi, Godefroid de Callatay, Konrad Hirschler, Gabriel Said Reynolds, Marcus Milwright, Delfina Serrano, and Manolis Ulbricht Gorgias Press is delighted to announce the launch of its new inter-disciplinary book series Islam... more Gorgias Press is delighted to announce the launch of its new inter-disciplinary book series Islamic History and Thought. The series will provide a platform for scholarly research on any geographic area within the expansive Islamic world, stretching from the Mediterranean to China, and dated to any period from the eve of Islam until the early modern era.
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paper by Abdulhadi Alajmi
Books by Abdulhadi Alajmi
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