Ibrahim ibn al-Husayn ibn Abi'l-Su'ud al-Hamidi () was the second Tayyibi Isma'ili '' Dāʿī al-Muṭlaq'' in

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

from 1151 to his death in 1162.

Life

Ibrahim was a member of the Hamidi branch of the

Banu Hamdan Banu Hamdan (; Ancient South Arabian script, Musnad: 𐩠𐩣𐩵𐩬) is an ancient, large, and prominent Arab tribe in northern Yemen. Origins and location The Hamdan stemmed from the eponymous progenitor Awsala (nickname Hamdan) whose descent ...

. According to the 12th-century Yemeni historian

Umara al-Yamani Najm al-Dīn Umāra al-Ḥakamī al-Yamanī () was a Sunni historian, jurist and poet of Yemen of great repute who was closely associated with the late Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. He was executed by order of Saladin at Cairo on April 6, 1174 for hi ...

, he was chosen as chief '' dāʿī'' by Queen

Arwa al-Sulayhi Arwa al-Sulayhi (), () was a long-reigning ruler of Yemen, firstly as the co-ruler of her first two husbands and then as sole ruler, from 1067 until her death in 1138. She was the last of the rulers of the Sulayhid dynasty, Sulayhid Dynasty and ...

already in 1132, but he was then replaced by the ruler of

Aden Aden () is a port city located in Yemen in the southern part of the Arabian peninsula, on the north coast of the Gulf of Aden, positioned near the eastern approach to the Red Sea. It is situated approximately 170 km (110 mi) east of ...

, Saba ibn Abi'l-Su'ud ibn Zuray, possibly because Ibrahim espoused the

Tayyibi Tayyibi Isma'ilism () is the only surviving sect of the Musta'li branch of Isma'ilism, the other being the extinct Hafizi branch. Followers of Tayyibi Isma'ilism are found in various Bohra communities: Dawoodi, Sulaymani, and Alavi. The Tay ...

sect in the schism with the

Hafizi Hafizi Isma'ilism (), also known as Majidi Isma'ilism (), was a branch of Musta'li Isma'ilism that emerged as a result of a split in 1132. The Hafizis accepted the Fatimid caliph Abd al-Majid al-Hafiz li-Din Allah () and his successors as imams ...

s. Tayyibi sources mention none of this, however. In 1138 he was chosen as chief assistant (''maʾdhūn'') by the first Tayyibi ''Dāʿī al-Muṭlaq'',

Dhu'ayb ibn Musa Dhu'ayb ibn Musa al-Wadi'i al-Hamdani (Also Zoeb, Zoaib & Zuayb; ; died 29 April 1151) was the first '' dāʿī al-muṭlaq'', a position of spiritual authority in Tayyibi Isma'ili Islam. He was appointed to the position by Queen Arwa al-Sulayhi ...

, and succeeded him upon his death in 1151, becoming thus the head of the Tayyibi community. He resided in

Sana'a Sanaa, officially the Sanaa Municipality, is the ''de jure'' capital and largest city of Yemen. The city is the capital of the Sanaa Governorate, but is not part of the governorate, as it forms a separate administrative unit. At an elevation ...

, under the protection of the city's ruler Hatim ibn Ahmad, who, although espousing the Hafizi sect, did not interfere with the Tayyibi missionary work. He chose Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn al-Walid (died 1159) and then his own son Hatim as ''maʾdhūn'' and designated successor. On his death in July 1162, Hatim succeeded him; his descendants monopolized the office of ''Dāʿī al-Muṭlaq'' until 1209.

Theological works

As leader of the Tayyibi community, he introduced the ''Rasāʿil Ikhwān al-Safāʾ'' into Tayyibi literature, and in his own works incorporated many of the teachings of

Hamid al-Din al-Kirmani Hamid al-Din Abu'l-Hasan Ahmad ibn Abdallah al-Kirmani (; CE) was an Isma'ili scholar. He was of Persian origin and was probably born in the province of Kirman. He seems to have spent the greater part of his life as a Fatimid ''da'i'' (missionar ...

. The resulting synthesis combined al-Kirmani's

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...

with mythical elements, and formed the foundation of the peculiar Tayyibi system of

esoteric Western esotericism, also known as the Western mystery tradition, is a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas and currents are united since they are largely distinct both from orthod ...

exegesis ('' haqā'iq''). His major work was the ''Kitāb kanz al-walad'' ("Book of the Child’s Treasure"), which provided the basis for many future Tayyibi ''haqā'iq'' authors.

Grave

The burial site of Ibrahim was unknown for a long time. His grave located in Ghail Bani Hamid at the outskirt of Sana'a, Yemen was successfully identified by

Mohammed Burhanuddin Mohammed Burhanuddin (6 March 1915 – 17 January 2014) was the 52nd Da'i al-Mutlaq of Dawoodi Bohras from 1965 to 2014. He led the community for 49 years in a period of social, economic, and educational prosperity; strengthened and re-institu ...

on his visit to Yemen in 1961. His mausoleum was built in the year 2007.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ibrahim ibn al-Husayn al-Hamidi Tayyibi da'is Yemeni Ismailis 1162 deaths Year of birth unknown Banu Hamdan 12th-century Arab people Ismaili theologians 12th century in Yemen 12th-century Ismailis 12th-century Islamic religious leaders