Ali, The Well-Guarded Secret: Figures of the First Master in Shi‘i Spirituality

Based on a detailed analysis of several categories of sources, this book demonstrates that Shi‘ism is the religion of the Imam, of the Master of Wisdom, just like Christianity is that of Christ, and that ‘Alī is the first Master and Imam par excellence.

‘Alī, son of Abī Ṭālib, Muhammad’s son-in-law and cousin, is the only Companion of the Prophet who has remained to this day the object of fervent devotion of hundreds of millions of followers in the lands of Islam, especially in the East. Based on a detailed analysis of several categories of sources, this book demonstrates that Shi‘ism is the religion of the Imam, of the Master of Wisdom, just like Christianity is that of Christ, and that ‘Alī is the first Master and Imam par excellence. Shi‘ism can therefore be defined, in its most specific religious aspects, as the absolute faith in ‘Alī: the divine Man, the most perfect manifestation of God’s attributes, simultaneously spiritual refuge, model and horizon.

About the Author

Mohammad Ali Amir Moezzi, Ph.D. (1990) is professor of classical Islamic studies at the École Pratique des Hautes Études (Sorbonne). A specialist of Shi‘ism, he is the author of a large number of monographs and articles, including (with Etan Kohlberg) Revelation and Falsification (Brill).

Table of Contetns

Chapter 1 ʿ⁠Alī and the Quran

Chapter 2 Muḥammad the Paraclete and ʿ⁠Alī the Messiah

Chapter 3 Reflections on the Expression dīn ʿ⁠Alī: The Origins of the Shiʿi Faith

Chapter 4 Some Remarks on the Divinity of the Imam

Chapter 5 The Five Spirits of the Divine Man

Chapter 6 “The Night of Qadr” (Quran, Surah 97) in Early Shiʿism

Chapter 7 Tactical Dissimulation and Sealing of Prophecy

Chapter 8 The Precious Pearl Attributed to Rajab al-Bursī: 500 Quranic Verses about ʿAlī

Chapter 9 Icon and Contemplation: ʿAlī as the Face of God and Medium of Meditation

Bibliographic Information

Title: Ali, The Well-Guarded Secret: Figures of the First Master in Shi‘i Spirituality

Author (s): Mohammad Ali Amir Moezzi

Contributers:  Orkhan Mir-Kasimov & Mathieu Terrier

Translated from French by: Francisco José Luis and Anthony Gledhill

Publisher: ‎ ‎ ‎ BRILL

Length: 400 pages

ISBN:‎ 978-90-04-52242-8

Pub. Date: 10 Nov 2022

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