چکیده:
In the second half of the second century AH, the Ismaili sect, which believed in the Imamate of Ismail, son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq (AS), was formed. Ismailis presented specific views regarding the Imamate. From their perspective, existence cannot remain for a single moment without the presence of an Imam, and humans always need a teacher, guide, and infallible leader. Ismailis made many efforts to trace the history of the Imamate back to the beginning of creation. To this end, they provided specific theories and interpretations of history and prophethood. According to this theory, sacred human history consists of seven cycles, and through these seven cycles, humanity reaches perfection. Each cycle is accompanied by the emergence of a prophet, also called the 'Natiq' (Speaker), and his successor, who was also called the 'Samit' (Silent) or 'Asas' (Foundation); after them, seven Imams come, each succeeding the other in the Imamate. Undoubtedly, Neoplatonic ideas have influenced the formation of this belief. The 'Natiq' holds the position of the revelation (tanzil) of laws from God to the people, the 'Asas' holds the position of the interpretation (ta'wil) of laws, and the Imam explains both the exoteric (zahir) and esoteric (batin) aspects of the Sharia. In the first six cycles, Adam (AS), Noah (AS), Abraham (AS), Moses (AS), Jesus (AS), and Muhammad (PBUH) are the holders of the Sharia, and with the coming of each new Natiq, the previous Sharia is abrogated. Of course, differences of opinion can be seen in ancient Ismaili sources regarding this matter. To better explain this subject, Ismailis have employed specific esoteric interpretations of the issue of Imamate and the prominence of the number seven and the position of the Natiq. This time period considered for each Natiq may be the cycle of discovery (kashf) or the cycle of concealment (satr), and it may also be the major cycle (kabir) or the minor cycle (saghir), each of which is explained in detail in the original article. In this article, an attempt has been made to examine this belief using ancient Ismaili theological and historical sources.
خلاصه ماشینی:
In the interpretation of the verse " " (Mu'minun / 12-14), it has been said: these verses express the perfection of man in terms of natural creation, but the perfection of man in terms of religious and spiritual creation is: the lineage like Adam (AS), the nutfah (drop) like Noah (AS), the mudghah (clot) like Moses (AS), the 'alaqah (clinging clot) like Jesus (AS), the flesh like Muhammad (PBUH), and in his time, the perfection of creation and the complete form takes shape, and another creation which is the seventh, and he is the Qa'im bi-Amr Allah Ta'ala (Hamidi, 240/268; Ar Katub Ismailiyya, 167; Khwaja Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, Rawd al-Taslim, 130 and 131; Razi, 216; Three Ismaili Treatises, "Risalat al-Mabda wa al-Ma'ad", 121 and 122; Uthman, Hashim, 124).
Nasir Khusraw in Jami' al-Hikmatayn (111 and 112) addresses the relationship between the number seven and the seven Natiqs in a detailed discussion and writes: "And just as there are seven famous lights in the sky of the world, there are also seven famous lights in the sky of religion, from Adam (AS), Noah (AS), Abraham (AS), Moses (AS), Jesus (AS), Muhammad (PBUH), and God on the Day of Resurrection, may Islam remember him" (111-112).
In the sixth cycle, which is the cycle of Islam, the seventh Imam, Muhammad ibn Ismail Ja'far al-Sadiq (AS), was first introduced by the Ismailis as the Qa'im al-Qiyama and the Mahdi (Jamal al-Din, 32; Defteri, History and Ismaili Beliefs, 163-164; ibid, Rational Traditions in Islam, 103- 104; Madelung, Islamic Sects, 150-151).
(
, 
, 
)
