Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiyya wa Tawjihiyya li Kitab Dirasa an al-Firaq fi Tarikh al-Muslimin al-Khawarij wa al-Shia

Ard wa Naqd: Dirasa Naqdiyya wa Tawjihiyya li Kitab Dirasa 'an al-Firaq fi Tarikh al-Muslimin al-Khawarij wa al-Shia (Presentation and Critique: A Critical and Directive Study of the Book "A Study of Sects in the History of Muslims: The Kharijites and the Shia") is a critical scholarly treatise written by Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Nasir al-Faqihi (d. 1446 AH / 2024 CE) Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1. The work provides a section-by-section evaluation and critique of the book Dirasa 'an al-Firaq fi Tarikh al-Muslimin: al-Khawarij wa al-Shia authored by Ahmad Muhammad Ahmad Jali Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1.

Background and Purpose

The impetus for writing the study arose from a comparison between the first edition (1406 AH) and the second edition (1408 AH) of Jali's book, both published by the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1. While al-Faqihi appreciated the first edition, he expressed concern over additions Jali introduced in the second edition—particularly in the fourth chapter on Twelver Shiite (Imamiyya) doctrines and a newly added section on the Nusayris Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1. Al-Faqihi composed the treatise as an advisory critique (nasiha) for Sunni readers, aiming to acknowledge Jali's rigorous documentation while refuting his ecumenical conclusions (taqrib) and calls for doctrinal compromises Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1. The critique was also published in the journal of the Islamic University of Madinah Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1.

Contents and Critical Method

Al-Faqihi follows the arrangement of Jali's book, reviewing its chapters sequentially:

• The Kharijites and Modern Takfir Groups: Al-Faqihi commends Jali's coverage of early Kharijite origins and dogmas, particularly his method of connecting classical Kharijite hermeneutics and the Ibadiyya with contemporary extremist trends such as Jama'at al-Takfir wa al-Hijra Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…+1.
• The Twelver Shia (Imamiyya): Al-Faqihi praises Jali's thorough documentation of classical and contemporary Shiite sources on core beliefs, including the divine designation of the Imamate, the infallibility (ismah) of the Imams, the return (raj'a), dissimulation (taqiyya), guardianship of the jurist (wilayat al-faqih), and Shiite stances regarding the Quran, Sunnah, and the Companions Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…+1. However, he sharply criticizes Jali's newly appended analysis (pages 242–244 of the second edition), in which Jali proposed bridging sectarian divides by setting aside historical controversies concerning the Companions, praised Khomeini's theory of wilayat al-faqih, and asserted a near-consensus among modern Shia against the corruption of the Quran—a claim al-Faqihi demonstrates is contradicted by the very Shiite texts Jali cited earlier Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…+1.
• The Zaydiyya: Al-Faqihi approves of Jali's fifth chapter (pages 245–264), highlighting his demonstration of Zaydi theological overlap with the Mu'tazilah and his recognition of traditionalist Sunni-leaning Yemeni scholars such as Ibn al-Wazir, Muhammad ibn Isma'il al-San'ani, and Muhammad ibn Ali al-Shawkani Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy….
• The Batini Isma'ilis: Al-Faqihi endorses the sixth chapter (pages 265–310), in which Jali established that Batini esoteric doctrines sought to undermine Islamic ritual and legal obligations Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy….
• The Nusayri Alawis: Reviewing the seventh chapter (pages 311–333), al-Faqihi notes that Jali documented extreme Batini beliefs such as incarnationism (hulul) Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…. He critiques Jali's second-edition addition regarding a 1970s declaration in which Alawi figures affiliated with Twelver Ja'fari Shiism under Hasan Mahdi al-Shirazi, arguing that Jali was mistaken in celebrating this alignment as a valid correction of their creed Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…+1.
• The Druze: Al-Faqihi commends the eighth chapter (pages 335–354) for substantiating the deification of al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah and demonstrating the continuity of classical Druze doctrines into modern times Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy….

In his conclusion, al-Faqihi affirms the quality of Jali's historical exposition and his defense of Uthman ibn Affan, while warning readers against Jali's ecumenical premise that doctrinal unity can be achieved without the Shia relinquishing their fundamental theological positions regarding the Quran, the Sunnah, and the Companions Ard wa Naqd Dirasa Naqdiy…+1.