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When this book was first published in 1984, it was the first extensive study of the Druzes to appear for many years. A small community native only in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine, the Druzes have exercised an influence around them greater than their numerical strength. Living for the most part in mountainous territories they have maintained an independent existence for a thousand years. -- This book places the beliefs of the Druzes in the context of the history of Shī'ism in its Ismā'īlī form, from which their faith developed. It also describes the role of the Druze community in the history of Lebanon and Syria. In the preparation of this book, the author, a Druze herself, has made use not only of the readily available Arabic and European sources but also of documents and manuscripts that are less easily accessible.
Following the war of 1948 Palestine's Druzes became part of the state of Israel. Overwhelmingly rural, they sought to safeguard their community's age-old ethnic independence by holding on to their traditional ethno-religious particularism. Ethnicity and ethnic issues, however, were ready tools for the Zionists in the pursuit of their policy aims vis-à-vis the state's Arab population. Central among these was the cooptation of part of the Druze elite in an obvious effort to alienate the Druzes from the other Arabs - creating "good" Arabs and "bad" Arabs served the Jewish state as a foil for its ongoing policy of dispossession and control. The author painstakingly documents the political, social and economic factors that ensured the "success" of these Zionist policies, but concludes that the fissured identity of Israel's Druzes today bespeaks a feeling of musiba, tragedy, within the community itself.
When this book was first published in 1984, it was the first extensive study of the Druzes to appear for many years. A small community native only in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine, the Druzes have exercised an influence around them greater than their numerical strength. Living for the most part in mountainous territories they have maintained an independent existence for a thousand years. This book places the beliefs of the Druzes in the context of the history of Sh?'ism in its Ism?'?l? form, from which their faith developed. It also describes the role of the Druze community in the history of Lebanon and Syria. In the preparation of this book, the author, a Druze herself, has made use not only of the readily available Arabic and European sources but also of documents and manuscripts that are less easily accessible.
"A very readable & important work on the history & religion of the Druze community."-Majid Khadduri in The Middle East Journal. This history-making book, published with the approval of the Shaykh al-Akl, spiritual leader of the world's Druze community of one million for the first time lifts the official veil of secrecy surrounding this esoteric branch of Isma'ili Shi'ite Islam. Professor Makarim, himself a Druze, used medieval manuscript sources still under the seal of secrecy, to trace the history, beliefs, & customs of this faith from its origins early in Islam & its founding in the 11th century A.D. under the Fatimid caliphs of Egypt. The book contains translations of numerous quotations from the sacred Druze scriptures, the Six Books of Wisdom, set forth in 111 Epistles by the imam Hamza ibn 'Ali & his disciples; commentaries by leading Druze scholars over the centuries, & several appendixes, including a list of Shi'ite imams & stations, Druze prayers, a description of the Druze domestic law, & important dates in the history of the Druzes.
Attempts to solve the riddle of the unique and secret sect of the Druzes. From who they are, to why and where they are from their beginnings to their religious beliefs.
An array of scholars from different parts of the world join in a multidisciplinary effort to study and integrate available knowledge and perceptions regarding the Druze as a religious community and historical society. The scholars whose work appears in this volume will undoubtedly be helpful to those who seek to know more about the Druze-their faith, identity and society, and the role that they have played in the history of the Middle East. In the planning of the first international academic conference of the Druze Heritage Foundation (DHF), held in collaboration with the Middle East Centre at St. Antony's College, Oxford, in July 2002, it was thought best not to concentrate on any single aspect of the Druze legacy, but to attempt to cover the widest possible range of themes, the better to bring out the Druze ethos as understood by the Druze themselves and as perceived by others. Thus, of the fifteen papers presented in this volume, which were the ones ultimately received in publishable form, the first four relate to religious issues. An explanation of the Druze faith by Sami Makarem (American University of Beirut) is followed by a critical assessment of the pioneering work of the French Orientalist, Sylvestre de Sacy, on the subject, contributed by Tony P. Nawfal (independent scholar). Next, David R. W. Bryer (former head of OXFAM) presents a survey of Druze religious texts, while Naila Kaidbey (American University of Beirut) describes the career of the fifteenth-century Druze reformer, al-Sayyid Jamal al-Din al-Tanukhi, commonly regarded as the founder of what one may call normative Druzism....
The Druze - a much-misunderstood Muslim sect primarily inhabiting the Levant - have endured centuries of persecution by orthodox elements hostile to Islam's rich sectarian diversity on account of their esoteric divergence from mainstream Islam. As a result, they have become a 'fighting minority, ' as described by one of their most illustrious leaders. Druze religious belief branched out from 10th- and 11th-century Shi'ism, and includes elements derived from Islamic mysticism. It enshrines all religious schools, but posits itself as the sole path to mystical knowledge. Druze teachings are kept secret, so libel and slander by their opponents have been generally left uncorrected. The Druze have preferred taqiyya (dissimulation) when independence or freedom of belief proved unattainable, which has exacerbated ignorance of their faith. Such mystification makes any enquiry into Druze doctrine or history a delicate endeavor. In this valuable study, author Abbas Halabi (himself from a prominent Druze family and closely involved in Lebanese Druze policy) elucidates misconceptions about Druze origins. In a clear style, rich in chronology and analysis, Halabi elaborates on the political role played by the Druze in the history of the region and evaluates their chances of survival in an era when religious tolerance and political democracy are still nascent.
