Abū l-Khaṭṭāb Muḥammad ibn Abī Zaynab Miqlāṣ al-Asadī (Arabic: اَبُوالخَطّاب مُحَمَّد بن أبی زَینَب المِقلاص الأَسَدی), nicknamed ''al-Barrād al-Ajda'' (Arabic: البَرّاد الأَجدَع), was the founder of the

Ghulat The () were a branch of history of Shia Islam, early Shi'a Islam. The term mainly refers to a wide variety of List of extinct Shia sects, extinct Shi'i sects active in 8th- and 9th-century Kufa in Lower Mesopotamia, and who, despite their somet ...

sect of the

Khattabiyya Khaṭṭābiyya was the name of a Ghali sect founded by Abu l-Khattab in Kufa. Abu l-Khattab claimed that Ja'far al-Sadiq, the 6th Imam of Shias, chose him as deputy and legatee (''waṣī'') and taught him the Greatest Name of God ('' Al-Ism al ...

. Cursed by

Ja'far al-Sadiq Ja'far al-Sadiq (; –765) was a Muslim hadith transmitter and the last agreed-upon Shia Imam between the Twelvers and Isma'ilis. Known by the title al-Sadiq ("The Truthful"), Ja'far was the eponymous founder of the Ja'fari school of Isla ...

for his extreme beliefs, he is also considered among the revolutionaries of the beginning of the

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 C ...

era (c. 138/755).

Name

In various sources, Abu al-Khattab is also referred to as Abu Ismail and Abu al-Taibat (or Abu al-Dhabiyat and Abu al-Dhabian). In some sources, the word Zarrad is used. However, it seems that Barrad nickname is more famous.

Beliefs

According to Sa'ad al-Ash'ari, whose account is confirmed by other sources including various narrations by Kashshi, Abu al-Khattab initially claimed that the Shi'i Imam

made him his guardian and taught him (the great divine name). Some time later, he claimed to be a "prophet" and after that he claimed to be a "messenger". Then he said that he is one of the angels and the messenger of God to the people of the earth. The report of Sa'ad al-Ash'ari tells that the earlier Khattabiyya considered al-Sadiq as a God and Abu al-Khattab as a messenger sent by al-Sadiq who ordered to obey him.

In Imamiyya belief

Shia sources mention him well after the disagreement between him and Ja'far al-Sadiq due to the distortion of

Imami Twelver Shi'ism (), also known as Imamism () or Ithna Ashari, is the largest branch of Shi'a Islam, comprising about 90% of all Shi'a Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers to its adherents' belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as th ...

teachings. It has been stated in various narrations that Abu al-Khattab called his followers to worship Ja'far al-Sadiq and considered himself one of his prophets. In other narrations attributed to various

Imams Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, and provide relig ...

, it is stated that Abu al-Khattab attributed false words to al-Sadiq and distorted his statements. According to these narrations, al-Sadiq made his companions aware of Abu al-Khattab's misguidance by cursing him. Also, in various narrations, Abu al-Khattab has been interpreted as a transgressor, an infidel, a polytheist and an enemy of God. In a narration given by

Ibn Babawayh Abu Ja'far Muhammad ibn 'Ali ibn Babawayh al-Qummi ( Persian: ; –991), commonly referred to as Ibn Babawayh (Persian: ) or al-Shaykh al-Saduq (Persian: ), was a Persian Shia Islamic scholar whose work, entitled '' Man La Yahduruhu al-Faq ...

in his work , citing al-Sadiq's interpretation of verses 221 and 222 of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

chapter , Abu al-Khattab is considered one of those Satan descends upon them. There are reports about Abu al-Khattab's relationship with al-Sadiq, before he became a Ghali: in a narration quoted by al-Kulayni from Ali ibn Uqbah, Abu al-Khattab used to present the questions of the Companions of al-Sadiq to him and send the answers to the Companions. Ghazi Noman has also stated that he was close to al-Sadiq before his defection. In Imamiyyah hadith books, there are hadiths narrated by Abu al-Khattab from al-Sadiq, and in some of them it is stated that these hadiths are related to the time when Abu al-Khattab had not deviated. The time of Abu al-Khattab's deviation is estimated around 135 Hijri (753 AD).

Relation with Shia sects

It seems that Abu al-Khattabb formed the

Ismaili Ismailism () is a branch of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor ( imām) to Ja'far al-Sadiq, wherein they differ from the Twelver Shia, who accept ...

teaching about transference of spiritual authority and the

Nusayri Alawites () are an Arab ethnoreligious group who live primarily in the Levant region in West Asia and follow Alawism, a sect of Islam that splintered from early Shia as a ''ghulat'' branch during the ninth century. Alawites venerate Ali ibn ...

s' belief in the manifestation of divinity in man (Arabic: ). he stated that Imam Ja’far has delegated his authority by appointing him as his (deputy or executor of his will) and entrusting him with the 'Greatest Name' of God (), which was supposed "to empower its possessor with extraordinary strength in conceiving hidden matters". In

Fatimid The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

era Ismaili works, he is condemned as a heretic who taught radical ideas unacceptable to the Fatimids. The latter, like the

Twelvers Twelver Shi'ism (), also known as Imamism () or Ithna Ashari, is the largest branch of Shi'a Islam, comprising about 90% of all Shi'a Muslims. The term ''Twelver'' refers to its adherents' belief in twelve divinely ordained leaders, known as t ...

, rejected his teachings as his personal interpretations attributed to al-Sadiq. The

Nusayriyya Alawites () are an Arab ethnoreligious group who live primarily in the Levant region in West Asia and follow Alawism, a sect of Islam that splintered from early Shia as a ''ghulat'' branch during the ninth century. Alawites venerate Ali ibn ...

highly respected Abu al-Khattab and always compared his character to that of

Salman al-Farisi Salman Farsi (; ) was a Persian religious scholar and one of the companions of Muhammad. As a practicing Zoroastrian, he dedicated much of his early life to studying to become a magus, after which he began travelling extensively throughout Wester ...

. They consider al-Sadiq's curse to be an act of

Taqiyya In Islam, ''taqiyya'' ()R. STROTHMANN, MOKTAR DJEBLI. Encyclopedia of Islam, 2nd ed, Brill. "TAKIYYA", vol. 10, p. 134. Quote: "TAKIYYA "prudence, fear" ... denotes dispensing with the ordinances of religion in cases of constraint of preaching ...

and have narrated many hadiths by quoting al-Sadiq and other Imams about Abu al-Khattab's virtues. Also, in some ancient sources, it has been mentioned that Abu al-Khattab and the Khattabiya were connected with the

s, although there is no mention of such connections in the official Ismaili sources.

Death

Abu al-Khattab along with his followers in

Kufa Kufa ( ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates, Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Along with Samarra, Karbala, Kadhimiya ...

—during the governorship of

Isa ibn Musa ʿĪsā ibn Mūsā ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿal-ʿAbbās (; –783/4) was a nephew of the first two Abbasid caliphs, al-Saffah () and al-Mansur (). He served as governor of Kufa in Iraq for fifteen years and led the suppress ...

(132-147 AH) on behalf of the Abbasid caliph

al-Mansur Abū Jaʿfar ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad al-Manṣūr (; ‎; 714 – 6 October 775) usually known simply as by his laqab al-Manṣūr () was the second Abbasid caliph, reigning from 754 to 775 succeeding his brother al-Saffah (). He is known ...

—rebelled against the caliphate system, while calling al-Sadiq divine. This caused their killing to be legalized by the government. Not much is known about how the followers of Abu al-Khattab functioned in this uprising. Some people have said that Abu al-Khattab and his companions in Kufa, while wearing

Ihram clothing Ihram clothing (Ahram clothing) includes men's and women's garments worn by Muslim people while in a state of '' Iḥrām'', during either of the Islamic pilgrimages, '' Ḥajj'' and/or ''ʿUmrah''. The main objective is to avoid attracting at ...

, chanted the name of Ja'far al-Sadiq and testified to his divinity, which caused their murder to be accepted by the government. Others have also mentioned that Abu al-Khattab set up a tent in the Kanasa area of Kufa and called upon his followers to worship al-Sadiq there.

References

* * * {{ghulat, state=expanded Ghulat Ghulat leaders People from Kufa 8th-century Muslim theologians Islamic scholars Muslim writers