Shi'ite Studies

Shi'ite Studies

The Dual Heritage of the Shi‘i Century: Convergence and Divergence Of the Islamic Denomination under Āl Buya Dynasty

Document Type : Original Article

Author
rasoul zarchini
Lecturer in the University of Islamic Denominations
10.22034/shistu.2024.2017931.2403
Abstract
The period of Al Buya’s dominance in Baghdad (334-447 AH), known as the “Shiite Century”, is often considered as the era of cultural and scientific revival in the Islamic world. This study uses a historical-analytical approach to explore the heritage of that period and its effect on the relationship between the followers of the Islamic denominations. The results show that in the first half of the Shiite Century, the Buya emirs relied on the military power and employed non-religious policies and could mange to create an equilibrium among the political, military and religious heads inside and outside their territory. This equilibrium of power prepared the ground for promoting religious tolerance and more convergence among the denominations, which led to scientific and intellectual growth and development. In that relatively open milieu, the Imamiyya scholars could make use of the existing opportunities and employ a proximity approach to prepare the ground for the growth in the identity, jurisprudence and theology of the Shi’a school for matching with the Sunnite denominations. However, in the second half of that century, with a change in the arrangements of power and an increase in tensions, the conditions altered. The Sunnite community of Baghdad, led by the Abbasid caliph, reinforced Sunnism and revived the Sunnite school, challenging the legitimacy of the non-Sunnite theories of caliphate as well as the Shiite and Mu’tazelite orthodoxy. Therefore, we may assume a dual heritage and a composite of convergence and divergence among the Islamic denominations in the Shiite Century, an era that simultaneously prepared the ground for cooperation and common growth as well as conflict and schism among denomination.
Keywords
Islamic Rapprochement
Caliphate/Imamate Theory
Shia School of Baghdad
Buyid Dynasty
Sectarian Disputes
Tolerance

Subjects

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Shi'ite Studies
Volume 21, Issue 82
Spring 2023
Pages 127-158