Parable and Politics in Early Islamic History - The Rashidun Caliphs

Erscheinungsjahr 2010
ISBN: 978-0-231-15082-8
Verlag: Columbia University Press

Buch, Englisch, 488 Seiten, Format (B × H): 159 mm x 236 mm, Gewicht: 793 g

The story of the succession to the Prophet Muhammad and the rise of the Rashidun Caliphate (632-661 AD) is familiar to historians from the political histories of medieval Islam, which treat it as a factual account. The story also informs the competing perspectives of Sunni and Shi'i Islam, which read into it the legitimacy of their claims. Yet while descriptive and varied, these approaches have long excluded a third reading, which views the conflict over the succession to the Prophet as a parable. From this vantage point, the motives, sayings, and actions of the protagonists reveal profound links to previous texts, not to mention a surprising irony regarding political and religious issues.

In a controversial break from previous historiography, Tayeb El-Hibri privileges the literary and artistic triumphs of the medieval Islamic chronicles and maps the origins of Islamic political and religious orthodoxy. Considering the patterns and themes of these unified narratives, including the problem of measuring personal qualification according to religious merit, nobility, and skills in government, El-Hibri offers an insightful critique of both early and contemporary Islam and the concerns of legitimacy shadowing various rulers. In building an argument for reading the texts as parabolic commentary, he also highlights the Islamic reinterpretation of biblical traditions, both by Qur'anic exegesis and historical composition.

Autoren/Hrsg.

El-Hibri, Tayeb

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtswissenschaft Allgemein Historiographie
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Naher & Mittlerer Osten
• Geisteswissenschaften Islam & Islamische Studien Geschichte des Islam

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface1. Introduction2. Abu Bakr: The Moment of Confirmation3. 'Umar b. al-Khattab: A Saga of Law and Conquest4. 'Uthman: The Challenge of Innovation5. The Road to Civil War: Issues and Boundaries6. 'Ali: In the Image of the Prophets7. From Caliphate to Kingship: 'Umar's Reign and Future Changes8. ConclusionAppendix 1. Abu Mikhnaf's Account of the Saqifa of Banu Sa'idaAppendix 2. The Succession to 'UmarAppendix 3. Manushihr's DeclarationNotesGlossaryBibliographyIndex

Leseproben

Read an >excerpt from Parable and Politics in Early Islamic History. (pdf)

Über Autor(innen)

Tayeb El-Hibri is associate professor of Near Eastern studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and the author of Reinterpreting Islamic Historiography: Harun al-Rashid and the Narrative of the 'Abbasid Caliphate. He received his BA in history from Stanford University and his PhD in Islamic history from Columbia University.