This article is an analysis of the story of the killing of Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī at Karbala in 61/680, as it is presented by al-Ṭabarī. The main argument is that the notion of the divine covenant, which permeates the Qur'an, constitutes a framework through which al-Ṭabarī views this event. The Qur'anic idea of the covenant is read in structural/thematic continuity with the Hebrew Bible account of the covenant between Yahweh and the Hebrew people, which has, in turn, been traced back in its basic form to Late Bronze Era treaties between rulers and their vassals. The present study focuses on four speeches ascribed to Ḥusayn during the encounter he and his group had with the vanguard of the Kufan army led by al-Ḥurr. These are analysed in accordance with their use of Qur'anic covenant vocabulary. They are also categorised within the broader framework of the eight standard characteristics of Ancient West Asian and Biblical covenants, as presented by Mendenhall and Herion, which have recently been developed in a Qur'anic context by Rosalind Ward Gwynne. This article argues that al-Ṭabarī’s Karbala narrative presents the pact of loyalty to Ḥusayn as a clear extension of the divine covenant.
In this study the author examines some aspects of authority in the movement of the Shiʿite leader al-Mukhtār (d. 67/687). The notion of religious aesthetics as developed by Birgit Meyer is used as an analytical tool. It is argued that al-Mukhtār accomplished his political endeavour partly by introducing and controlling three “aesthetic forms” which functioned as “media” between the people and the deceased ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib: his claim to act on behalf of ʿAlī’s son Ibn al-Ḥanafiyya, whom he called al-mahdī, “the rightly guided”; his call to revenge for the killing of ʿAlī’s son Ḥusayn; and his exhibiting of a chair that he claimed had belonged to ʿAlī. The accounts of these three media, the author furthermore argues, have an historical foundation. Finally he holds that through these media al-Mukhtār was able to channel the needs and aspirations of many of the Shiites of Kufa into political action.
The developing myth about the events at Karbala, as well as the image of al-Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī and the cult connected with him, were important factors in the shaping of early Shiite identity. In this article, I argue that some of the earliest traces of this process are found in the account of the Tawwābūn, or Penitents, events which took place in the years immediately following the death of al-Ḥusayn at Karbala in 60/680. Important elements of this story originate at least as early as the late first/early eighth century. In the story we see the image of al-Ḥusayn in process of transformation from that of someone merely human to someone ascribed traits that transcend the human. In the same course of events, the story of his death at Karbala is in process of being elevated from a tragic story to a myth with its associated rituals.
The movement of the Tawwābūn (“Penitents”) emerged after the killing of Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī at Karbalāʾ in 61/680. Although several scholars have held that the story of the Tawwābūn is indeed old, it has been little studied. In this article an analysis is made of a central section of the story: the account about the Tawwābūn’s visit at Ḥusayn’s grave. The three versions of this account is analysed by means of tradition- and content critical methods. It is concluded that behind the three versions lie two earlier reports that date back at least to the end of the 1st century AH/the beginning of the 8th century CE. This story is, hence, of importance for the study of the early development of Shīʿite ideas and rituals.Hämnd eller martyrium! Berättelsen om Botgörarna som en länk till Shi`ismens tidiga utveckling
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