ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books A Shi'ite Creed Introduction While it cannot be denied that within recent years there has been a considerable increase in our general knowledge regarding Islam, it must also be admitted that not any appreciable advance has been made in our knowledge of Shi’ite history, philosophy and law. Curiously enough researches of considerable significance have been made regarding Ismailism (a small fraction of the Shia) and the works of L. Massignon, W.

Ivanow and P. Kraus, in particular, have opened up new vistas and indicated new lines of advance. But with regard to the most important and numerous group of the Shia, the Ithna Ashariya, the position has remained more or less stationary. Isr. Friedlaender[^1], writing in 1907, complains of the paucity of our knowledge in this respect, and he says that Shi'ism is known to us in the roughest outline[^2], and the religious tendencies are not known at all.

One of the difficulties according to him is its heterogeneous character; for it is not easy to analyze its peculiar component parts, drawn as they are from such widely divergent sources as Babylonian, Persian, Jewish and Muslim.[^3] Professor E. G.

Browne, writing in 1924, deplores the lack of our knowledge, particularly in regard to the Shi’ite creed, and he advocates a comparative study.[^4] Later, discussing the Haqqu1-Yaqin of Muhammad Baqir Majlisi, a very important theological work, composed in 1109/1698 and printed in Tehran in 1241/1825, he regrets the lack of leisure which prevented him from completing its French rendering begun by the late M. A.

de Biberstein Kazimirslci; and he further adds that the importance of it would be great “since we still possess no comprehensive and authoritative statement of Shi'a doctrine in any European language”.[^5] Still later, in 1934, R. Strothmann, writing in the Encyclopedia of Islam, while giving a brief account of the Shi'a[^6], laconically remarks that “there is no thorough account of the Shi'a”.

The position during the last seven years has not improved, despite the appearance of works which throw light on certain aspects of Shi'ism.[^7] The publication of the late Professor A. J.