Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah

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Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah bigraphy, stories - Caliph

Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah : biography

985 – 1021

Abu ‘Ali Mansur Tāriqu l-Ḥākim, called Al-Hakim bi Amr al-Lāh ( literally "Ruler by God’s Command"), was the third Fatimid caliph and 16th Ismaili imam (996–1021). Al-Hakim is an important figure in a number of Shia Ismaili religions, such as the world’s 15 million Nizaris and in particular the 2 million Druze of the Levant whose eponymous founder Ad-Darazi proclaimed him as the incarnation of God in 1018. In Western literature he has been referred to as the "Mad Caliph", primarily as a result of the Fatimid desecration of Jerusalem in 1009, though this title is disputed as stemming from partisan writings by some historians (such as Willi Frischauer and Heinz Halm). (Which page?)

Histories of Al Hakim can prove controversial, as diverse views of his life and legacy exist. Historian Paul Walker writes: “Ultimately, both views of him, the mad and despotic tyrant irrationally given to killing those around him on a whim, and the ideal supreme ruler, divinely ordained and chosen, whose every action was just and righteous, were to persist, the one among his enemies and those who rebelled against him, and the other in the hearts of true believers, who, while perhaps perplexed by events, nonetheless remained avidly loyal to him to the end."

In literature

The story of Hakim’s life inspired (presumably through Silvestre de Sacy) the French author Gérard de Nerval who recounted his version of it (“Histoire du Calife Hakem”: History of the Caliph Hakem) as an appendix to his Voyage en Orient.

Spouses and children

The mother of al-Ḥākim’s heir ‘Alī az-Zāhir was the umm al-walad Amīna Ruqayya, daughter to the late prince ‘Abdu l-Lāh, son of al-Mu‘īzz. Some see her as the same as the woman in the prediction reported by al-Hamidi which held "that in 390/100 al-Ḥākim would choose an orphan girl of good stock brough up his father al-Aziz and that she would become the mother of his successor." While the chronicler al-Maqrizi claims that al-Ḥākim’s stepsister Sitt al-Mulk was hostile to Amīna, other sources say she gave her and her child refuge when they were fleeing al-Ḥākim’s persecution. Some sources say al-Ḥākim married the jariya (young female servant) known by the title as-Sayyidah but historians are unsure if this is just another name for Amīna.

Besides his son, al-Ḥākim had a daughter named Sitt Misr (d. 455/1063) who was said to be a generous patroness and of noble and good character.

Interreligious relationships

According to the religious scholar Nissim Dana, al-Ḥākim’s relationship with other monotheistic religions can be divided into three separate stages.

First period

From 996 to 1006 when most of the executive functions of the Khalif were performed by his advisors, the Shiite al-Ḥākim "behaved like the Shiite khalifs, who he succeeded, exhibiting a hostile attitude with respect to Sunni Muslims, whereas the attitude toward ‘People of the Book’ – Jews and Christians – was one of relative tolerance, in exchange for the jizya tax."

In 1005, al-Ḥākim ordered a public posting of curses against the first three Caliphs (Abū Bakr, ‘Umār and ‘Uthmān ibn ‘Affān) and against ‘Ā’isha (wife of Muhammad) for denying caliphate to Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law ‘Alī, who according to Shia belifs, was the rightful prophetic successor.

According to historian Nissîm Dānā, al-Ḥākim ordered that "curses were registered against the warrior Mu‘awiyah I, founder of the Umayyad caliphate, and against others in the inner cicrcle of Muhammad from the Ṣaḥābah – the compatriots of Muhammad in the way of Islam." This was in accordance with Shia practice, as laid out by Muslim scholar Ayatollah Haydari "the followers of Ahl al-Bayt [Shias] say ‘O Allah curse all of the Banu Umayya’." The Shia maintain that out of hatred for ‘Alī, Mu‘awiyah ordered the Talbiyah not be said (as it was promoted by ‘Alī) and ordered people to curse him (Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas refused to do so). The Shia hold that Mu‘awiyah and all of the Umayyid caliphs (with the possible exception of Umar II) were Nasibi who "are the hypocrites for whom hatred of ‘Alī is their religion…They don’t just hate ‘Alī, but they worship Allah and seek closeness to Him by hating ‘Alī."