"He it is Who has sent down to thee the Book: In it are verses Basic or fundamental (of established meaning): They are the foundation. Of the book: others are allegorical. But those in whose hearts is perversity follow the part that is allegorical seeking discord, and searching for its hidden meanings but no one knows its hidden meanings except Allah. And those who are firmly grounded in knowledge say :"we believe in the Book; the whole of it is from our Lord:" and none Will grasp the Message except men of understanding."
Quran 3:7
Fatimids when they ruled Egypt and Syria propogated such ideas. The Fatimids, the Shia group from which the Isma'ilis originate, or to which they claim they are affiliated, held beliefs which were alter by the scholars under their rule and were spread with the help of the power which they held.
While the Fatimids were in power their version of Shi'ism was widespread throughout their provinces, though it was more prevalent in Syria than Egypt or the Maghrib. However, when the Fatimids went into decline, and were replaced by the Ayyubids, the Isma'ili communities shrank but they continued to exist in certain areas such as the mountains along the northern Syrian coast and in Yemen, as well as in Iran.
The exact origin of the Isma'ilis is not certain. This is due to the fact that they started off as a secret movement. This movement appears to have been based in Iraq and Khuzistan, an area in the south west of Iran, followed by Syria. The next in line to the so called shia imamate after Jafar al-Saddiq, the so called sixth imam of the Shias, was his son Ismail. However unfortunately Ismail died five years before his father. His brother Musa Al-Kazim was allegedly appointed as the so-called imam, this is the tale as told by the majority of shia. However, the Isma'ilis believed that Ismail's appointment as Imam was not reversible and that his son Muhammed had been appointed imam after him. They said that Muhammed would return sooner or later as the mahdi, and would reveal the hidden meanings of the quran and rule the world justly. |
