ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Through a Glass Darkly Ii. Examples of Successful Sunni Mahdist States Despite the higher profile that Mahdism has acquired in recent years, many Western commenatators and analysts-even scholars of the Islamic world, who should know better-are still unaware that belief in the Mahdi exists not just in Shi`i but also in Sunni Islam. It is not my place to ascertain, or argue, which view of the Mahdi is correct.

As a historian of Islamic societies, however, it is my place to observe, and comment upon, Mahdism as a historical phenomenon-of which there are numerous examples. In my book I discuss eight Mahdist movements over the last millennium of Islamic history, all of them Sunni. (These represent but the tip of the Mahdist iceberg; some scholars, in fact, think that over the last fourteen centures of Islamic history there have been thousands of such movements.

) That analysis reveals that while Sunni Mahdism shares with Shi`ism the general delineation of the Imam Mahdi, that he will be God's instrument for Islamizing the world, it differs in a number of way, primarily in that: *Global Islamization will occur via jihad and conquest, rather than more peacefully, as in most of Shi`i thought * The Mahdi will emerge onto the historical stage for the first time, rather than returning as the final Imam who has already been here *Lacking any institutional apparatus to verify Mahdist claims, Mahdism is much more likely to occur, and as the province of freelancers in Sunnism-and this is exactly what history demonstrates.

Mahdist movements within Sunnism have tended to move through three stages: Dissemination of revivalist propaganda aimed at undermining a Muslim government Formation of a renegade military theocracy and attempts to seize power Conquest of formation of a territorial state that eventually wanes in religio-ideological fervor.

Since generally only a Mahdist movement which has taken power can indulge aspirations of universality and engage in even marginally realistic attempts to influence the international order, the focus herein will be on Mahdisms that have reached level three-although some groups that have reached levels analogous to number two will also be examined. The most successful Sunni Mahdist movement in history was that of Abu`Abd Allah Muhammad b. Tumart al-Susi (d.