the Sunn kings. He moreover counter-attacks, once again on the two fronts of historyand theology of the imamate. Historically, it is for him beyond doubt that the victories ofthe Muslims on the battlefield had all been achieved by Sunn armies. Theologically, theSunn rulers might have been sinning, unjust, far from perfect, but such leaders are stillbetter, in respect of the objectives of the imamate, than the putatively perfect andinfallible, but generally powerless, imams in whom the Twelvers believe, and than theone whose return they wait for, an inexistent imam, who has no reality.

As for the value of the Sunn religious scholarship denigrated by al-H ill, IbnTaymiyyas certainty that it is superior is based on his trust in a collective qualitycontrol of knowledge. All Muslims earnestly desire to know everything about theProphet and his Message. But in by far greater numbers more people prefer to follow,for example, the teachings of Malik, al-Shafi and Ibn H anbal rather than those of theseventh, the eighth and the ninth Sh imams. Why is this so, Ibn Taymiyya asks,except because the people learn more from, and have more confidence in, thoseSunn scholars than the Sh imams? Indeed, the numbers speak for themselves, andthe Damascene theologian obviously relishes contrasting the multitude of Sunnscholars with the very limited number of Sh shaykhs of some fame. More than sixtySunn ulema of different periods are mentioned by name in these three sections,against five Sh ones other than the imams. For Ibn Taymiyya, the discrepancybetween Sunn and Sh religious scholarships is thus enormous and the variousSunn subgroups are all more knowledgeable, more just, and further from ignoranceand injustice. Even more important, Sunns are ready to learn from Sh scholars,whereas Shs reject Sunn scholarship.

Ibn Taymiyya expresses various other views in the text introduced here but they areless central to our project of archaeological excavation of the ideological sources, orexpressions, of the sectarian divide between Sunns and Shs. To evaluate the validityof Ibn Taymiyyas Islamic historiography is a task for the historians of Muslim societies.Whatever that evaluation may be, at this point what is more important is to underlinethe constant Taymiyyan concern to refute al-H ill, not only as a Sunn faqh, but as anhistorian. The divide between these two authors and, inasmuch as they are championsof their respective communities, the divide between Sunns and Shs reflects theprofound divide between a concern for historical events and realities, and an indul-gence of myth, legend, and fable. Moreover, we cannot fail to remark, in theimamologies of Ibn Taymiyya and al-H ill, the realism, pragmatism, populism of theformer and the idealism, absolutism, elitism of the latter. If such traits also characterizetheir respective communities, their mutual otherness is a meta-theological reality theyhad better learned again to live with, lest they unite in a mutually assisted destructionof each other.

I leave to the disciples of Edward Said to decide whether these conclusions are, orare not, too orientalistically essentialist wa la ubal . . . As for whether the majority ofMuslims being Sunns and the Shs being a minority is a cause or effect of thecharacteristics just mentioned, Allahu alam . . .

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him. Likewise, when he attends with people the Friday prayer, a collective prayer,sessions of knowledge (majlis al-ilm), and makes a raid with them, the fact that one ofthose associated with him in such [activities] has sins that are peculiar to him does notharm him. The authorities in charge of the [public] affairs (wulat al-umur ) are in thesame position (manzila) as others: one shall associate himself with them in what they doin the matter of obedience to God and not associate himself in what they do in the matterof disobedience to God. This was the way (sra) the imams of the people of the Housebehaved with others. Whoever follows them in this is thus the one who takes them asmodels, not someone who disassociates (tabarraa) himself from the early vanguard [ofIslam], the mass of the people of knowledge and religion, and assists the unbelievers andthe hypocrites in their enmity against them, as is done by those of the erring Rafid s whodo it.

9) The ninth viewpoint will consist in saying [this]: Better than an inexistent imam, who has no reality, is a capable imam by whom

the commandment over people131 is organized concerning most of what is advantageousfor them. By him the roads are thus made secure; by him is implemented what isimplemented of the penalties; by him is repelled what is repelled of injustice; by himobtains what obtains as to waging jihad against the enemy; by him is obtained what isobtained as full acknowledgement of ones rights. [115] The Rafid s lay claim to aninfallible (masum) imam although they have nothing, inwardly, except an inexistent(madum) imam and, outwardly, except someone highly unbelieving (kafur ) or highlyunjust (zalum). The imams of the people of the Sunna, even if one postulates what waspostulated about them in the matter of injustice and sins, are better than the imamshaving appeared in whom the Rafid s believe, and better than an inexistent imam, whohas no reality. As for the rest of the imams, who were existent, the people of the Sunnafollow the example (itamma bi-) of these as they follow the example of their like. Theyand their like are indeed imams. Someone following the example of these [Sh imams]together with [the example of] their like among the rest of the Muslims is better thansomeone following their example exclusively. Knowledge is indeed [both] reporting(riwaya) and comprehending (diraya). The more numerous ulema are in [someknowledge] and the more in agreement they are thereon, the stronger [this knowledge]is and the more deserving it is to be followed. Among the Shs there is no good aboutwhich the people of the Sunna do not associate themselves with them. As for the goodwhich is particular to the people of the Sunna, the Shs do not associate themselves withthem about it.

10) The tenth viewpoint will consist in saying [this]: For everyone among the people of the Sunna it is possible to counter what this

Imam said by means of something which will be stronger than what [he said]. About thelike of Sad b. al-Musayyab, Alqama, al-Aswad [b. Yazd], al-H asan al-Basr, Ata b. Ab

131 Amr al-nas. Another possible meaning: the affairs of people.

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just as the religion of Muh ammad, God bless him and grant him peace, is triumphingover the rest of the religions.

The religion of Muh ammad, God bless him and grant him peace, never triumphedover the other religions except through the people of the Sunna. For instance, during thecaliphate ofAbuBakr, Umar and Uthman,140Godbepleasedwith them, itwas triumphantin a manner unprecedented in any of the religions. As for Al, God be pleased with him,though he is among the rightly-guided caliphs and the masters of the early vanguard [ofMuslims], the religion of Islamwas not triumphant during his caliphate. Rather, dissension(fitna) took place between its people, and their enemy the unbelievers, the Nazarenes,and the Magians hoped to defeat (tama a f ) them [118] in Syria and the Orient.

After Al, one knows of neither people of knowledge and religion, nor of people ofhand and sword, bymeans of whomGod rendered Islam victorious, except the people ofthe Sunna. As for the Rafid s, either they cooperated with the enemies of Islam, or theyabstained from helping the two groups141 to victory. Now, there is no doubt that God,Exalted is He, will judge on the Day of resurrection between the early vanguard of the

139 From Ibn Taj al-Dn ASTARABADI, Tuh fat, p. 190.140 Under the three first rightly-guided caliphs, i.e. between 11/632 and 35/656, the realm of Islamexpanded as far as Tunisia, Armenia, Abyssinia and Eastern Iran.141 I.e. the Muslims and their enemies.

The sixth imam, Ja far al-S adiq, entering paradise139

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