Iconic Books and Gestures: Aḥādīth al-Ṣifāt in the Public Sphere

This chapter examines the ubiquitous presence of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt in the public sphere by focusing on four iconic texts: the caliphal Qadiri Creed, Ibn Khuzayma’s (d. 924) Kitāb al-Tawḥid, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi’s (d. 1210) Asās al-Taqdīs and Ibn Taymiyya’s (d. 1328) al-Ḥamawiyya al-Kubrā. These iconic texts, which offer various discussions of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt, stood at the centre of public attention, and were revered as objects of political power. This chapter fully unfolds the connection between these four texts, and the role that they played in political events that took place in different venues from tenth century Nishapur to fourteenth century Damascus. Both the extremely popular Asās al-Taqdīs and al-Ḥamawiyya al-Kubrā ignited a public controversy about the performance of two iconic gestures that were linked to the recitations of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt: pointing the index finger heavenward and raising both hands in prayer. The chapter highlights al-Ḥamawiyya al-Kubrā’s iconicity by addressing the derogative name ḥashwiyya (vulgar anthropomorphists) which was central to this public controversy. The iconic books and gestures that are discussed in this chapter underscore the interface between theology and politics, and reveal a layer as yet unknown of the controversy between the ultra-traditionalists (Hanbalites) and the rational-traditionalists (the later Ashʿarites).

The Diversified Solution to the Challenge of Islamic Traditionalism: Aḥādīth al-Ṣifāt and Bi-Lā Kayfa

This chapter examines the challenges that aḥādīth al-ṣifāt posed to the traditionalists, and the way the traditionalists met these challenges through the implementation of the bi-lā kayfa formula. According to the traditionalists, this formula meant ‘without asking further questions’. The Ashʿarites used this formula to dissociate any improper description from God. They named this concept tanzīh. The chapter presents the traditionalistic understanding of bi-lā kayfa through the work of Ibn Qutayba (d. 889). The Ashʿarite understanding of bi-lā kayfa is presented through the work of Ibn Furak (d. 1015). The lion’s share of this chapter presents the case-study of what is undoubtedly the most extreme text in the repertoire of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt, namely ḥadīth ḥaqw al-raḥmān, ‘the ḥadīth about the loin of the Merciful’. The chapter examines the transmission process of this text and focuses on several techniques that enabled the acceptance of this text in the Islamic canon. The chapter in particular considers the creative three-stage hermeneutical solution to ḥadīth ḥaqw al-raḥmān in the writings of Ibn Hajar al-ʿAsqalani (d. 1449), Badr al-Din al-ʿAyni (d. 1451), and Shihab al-Din al-Qastallani (d. 1517). Their hermeneutical solution added a new dimension to the Ashʿarite tanzīh and was inspired by Muʿtazilite thinkers.

Gestures and Aḥādīth al-Ṣifāt

This chapter spotlights the gestures (ishāra pl. ishārāt) which the teachers of Hadith (muḥaddithūn) performed while transmitting aḥādīth al-ṣifāt. The use of gestures in the context of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt entailed doctrinal and theological implications, and was in itself a matter of dispute. The performers of gestures among the muḥaddithūn of the seventh and eighth centuries, like Thabit al-Bunani (d. 740) and Harmala ibn ʿImran (d. 777) attributed the gestures to the Prophet and the ṣaḥāba. These muḥaddithūn perceived the gestures as iconic, namely gestures that display a concrete scene. The muḥaddith who in particular promoted the trend of performing gestures was Hammad ibn Salama (d. 784), and this chapter elaborates on his scholarly activity and public performances. Finally, this chapter evaluates the hermeneutical solutions to the gestures that accompanied the recitation of the anthropomorphic verses in the Quran and aḥādīth al-ṣifāt. These solutions were offered by the Hadith scholars who were active between the eleventh and the thirteenth centuries. These scholars, who were mostly Ashʿarites, tended to interpret the gestures as metaphoric, namely gestures representing abstract concepts. The chapter concludes with the unique discussion of the Hanbalite Ibn al-Jawzi (d. 1201) on the topic of gestures and aḥādīth al-ṣifāt.

Introduction

This chapter introduces the corpus of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt and its role in shaping the traditionalistic definition of anthropomorphism through the case-study of an anthropomorphic tradition attributed to Mujahid, one of the earliest Quran exegetes. According to this tradition, the ‘honourable station’ (maqām maḥmūd) which is mentioned in Quran 17:79, denotes that the Prophet Muhammad will sit on the heavenly throne with God. This marginal tradition which was rejected by the majority of the traditionalists became an iconic text due the relentless efforts of the Baghdadian Hanbalites of the ninth and tenth centuries. The Hanbalites toiled to prove the antiquity and the authenticity of the text, while using an array of rhetorical devices to promote this text and sanctify it. Thus, Abu Bakr al-Marwazi (d. 888), who was Ahmad ibn Hanbal’s (d. 855) foremost disciple, used to illustrate Muhammad’s sitting on the throne by standing up and sitting down. This gesture conveyed the Hanbalite creed that Muhammad’s sitting on the throne was actual rather than metaphoric. The political events that accompanied this anthropomorphic text are also surveyed in this chapter.

Final Remarks and Conclusions

Anthropomorphism in Islam presents a range of issues that encompass the problematics of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt. The book focuses on aḥādīth al-ṣifāt as popular oral literature; the use of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt in the traditionalistic discourse; and aḥādīth al-ṣifāt as iconic texts in the public sphere. These issues form the demarcation lines between ultra-traditionalism, middle-of-the-road traditionalism, and traditional-rationalism. The major findings of Anthropomorphism in Islam are as follows: first, the ultra-traditionalists were more receptive to aḥādīth al-ṣifāt than other middle-of-the-road muḥaddithūn. Second, the ultra-traditionalists were more attentive to the social function that aḥādīth al-ṣifāt served in offering the masses an Islamic religiosity which provided a direct way to perceive God without the interference of mediators. Third, the ultra-traditionalists structured the iconicity of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt by perfecting their skills as performers. Accordingly, Anthropomorphism in Islam offered the first large-scale examination of gestures that were part of the process of transmitting aḥādīth al-ṣifāṭ. These gestures symbolised the main features of the long-term debate between the flexible Hanbalites and the rigid Ashʿarites. Aḥādīth al-ṣifāt and the gestures that accompanied their recitation were among the most powerful icons of Islamic traditionalism.

The Narrator and the Narrative: A Literary Analysis of Aḥādīth al-Ṣifāt

Based on the work of Daniel Beaumont and Sebastian Günther on Hadith and narratology, this chapter analyses three proto-types of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt while focusing on the basic building-blocks of these texts, namely the ‘framing narrative’, the ‘embedded narrative’, and the narrator. The texts reviewed in this chapter are several versions of ‘the ḥadīth of the beatific vision’, ‘the ḥadīth of the sacrifice in favour of the believer’, and ‘the ḥadīth of the divine fingers’. The chapter combines literary analysis with a thorough reading in the biographical sources. This combined methodology uncovers the personal motivations of the narrators of the aḥādīth in question, while demonstrating the effect of these motivations on the shaping of the narrative. This chapter presents the typical features of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt and reveals hidden meanings in the texts while considering two styles of narration: mimesis and diegesis, or showing (performing) and telling (recounting). Among the narrators under review are Abu Burda (d. c. 721-3), son of the ṣaḥābī Abu Musa al-Ashʿari (d. c. 663), and ʿAlqama (d. between 681 and 692) and ʿAbida (d. between 691 and 693), the disciples of the ṣaḥābī ʿAbd Allah ibn Masʿud (d. 652-3).

A Tale of Two Narrators: Some Historical, Geographical and Cultural Considerations

This chapter offers a combined literary-historical approach to ḥadīth al-ruʾya (‘the ḥadīth of the beatific vision’). The chapter examines the alleged origins of this ḥadīth in seventh century Medina, and follows the circulation of this text until it became one of the foremost iconic texts of Islamic traditionalism. The chapter examines two versions of ḥadīth al-ruʾya attributed to the Prophet’s companions, Jarir al-Bajali and Abu Razin al-ʿUqayli, and highlights the role of Abu Razin and Jarir’s family members and tribesmen in shaping the two narratives of ḥadīth al-ruʼya. Although the two narratives were almost identical, Jarir’s narrative was admitted into the traditionalistic canon, while Abu Razin’s narrative was cherished only by a few traditionalists. This chapter considers the various factors that led to the iconisation of Jarir’s narrative, and identifies the miḥna, the formative event of Islamic traditionalism that occurred in ninth century Baghdad, as the turning point in the history of this text. During the miḥna, Ahmad ibn Hanbal (d. 855) was harshly interrogated by the caliph’s vizier about his belief in the beatific vision. By citing Jarir’s narrative as the ultimate textual evidence of his belief, Ibn Hanbal contributed to this text’s iconisation.