A Symposium on Druze Heritage at the Library of Congress in Washington

Mary Jane Deeb.

After these inspiring words, I don't know what to say.

I am the Chief of the Middle East and Africa Division at the library, and I am happy to have you all here today. It is a very special program, and we have tried our best to make it a success.

I want to thank Dr. Melhem Salman for his dynamic and unreasonable efforts in this program. I also want to thank Dr. Caroline Brown who always supported us and pushed us forward.

I want to say a few words about the Middle East and Africa Division at the library. It is a division that does a lot of work and covers 75 countries and more than 35 indigenous languages in the region. Many of you already know some of the team members who have been on the library staff for many years.

This division is divided into three sections: the Middle East section, overseen by Dr. Chris Murphy, the Africa section, overseen by Dr. Peggy Burtstein, and the Hebraic Studies section, overseen by Dr. Levon Avdoyan.

I want to thank in particular Dr. Levon Avdoyan who prepared this wonderful program. He worked hard on this program and is very dedicated.

Again, I want to welcome you all and start the program. I will start by introducing Dr. Barbara Stowasser, who is a professor of Arabic and Islamic studies at the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies at Georgetown University. She will moderate the first session.

Thank you very much.

First lecture:

Dr. Barbara Stowasser: Introduces Dr. Sami Makarem

Good morning.

I am pleased to moderate the first session, which includes a wonderful group of experts in philosophy and theology. It is an honor to be with them on the same platform.

We will hear three research papers lasting 20 minutes each, and this will leave us some time for questions.

The first speaker is Professor Sami Makarem from the Department of Arabic and Near Eastern Languages at the American University of Beirut. He was the chairman of that department for a long time, and he was also the director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the American University of Beirut. He has taught literature, Islamic thought, and Sufism. He has many books in Islamic thought, Sufism, Arabic literature, history, Islamic art, and the thought of the Druze. He is the director of the research department at the Druze Heritage Foundation. He is also a poet and has three poetry collections. He is also a great calligrapher who has many exhibitions around the world for Arabic calligraphy.

Dr. Makarem will talk about Sufism in the Druze doctrine, or rather as stated in the program, Sufism in the heritage of Druze Monotheism.

We welcome you all.

First lecture: Dr. Sami Makarem

I wish I could, ladies and gentlemen, talk about Sufism or Islamic mysticism, but the actual goal is to talk about the faith of the Druze in general. The Druze faith is an Islamic branch that originated from Ismaili Shia Islam during the reign of the sixth Fatimid Caliph Imam Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah. About three months after Al-Hakim took power on the 29th of Ramadan 386 AH (October 996), he appointed missionaries to spread the Monotheism movement, which was supposed to begin about 21 years later, specifically on the first of Muharram 408 AH (May 30, 1017), under his sponsorship and the leadership of Hamza ibn Ali, who was appointed the Imam of the movement. When Hamza ibn Ali was appointed Imam of this movement, the Unitarians (Muwahhidun) considered it an important turning point in their history, i.e., the seal of the Imams in the age of the wheel, a period of interpreting the divine word esoterically, which was revealed in its outer form to the Prophet Muhammad.

The followers of Monotheism were incorrectly named "Druze," based on the name of Nashtakin, who was recently expelled from the movement. They are known for following the path of Monotheism, which can be described as spiritual awareness. In the Islamic context, the term "Monotheism" expresses the quest for the oneness of God. This is due to the belief of Islam that it includes three stages, where the first stage leads to the second, and the second leads to the third. The first stage is the method of Islam and includes submission to God's commands and acting according to the pillars of religion in accordance with Islamic Sharia, which is why it is emphasized to call it Sharia. After compliance with Sharia, the second stage leads some Muslims to the third stage, which is known as faith, which is the internal or spiritual stage. This stage includes interpreting divine revelation esoterically, and this is done by following the teachings of the Imams who take charge of this matter, such as Ali ibn Abi Talib and his descendants. This stage represents a step further than Sharia where knowledge is added to basic submission. This faith gives man the opportunity to reach the truth, which is the third stage, which can be called Ihsan (Benevolence) or Monotheism.

According to Islamic traditions, Islam is the testimony that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the messenger of God, performing prayer, giving charity, fasting the month of Ramadan, and performing the Hajj pilgrimage for those who are able to do so. When Prophet Muhammad was asked about faith, he answered that there should be faith in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and in divine decree. Then he was asked about Ihsan, so he answered that man should worship God as if he sees Him, and if he does not see Him, he is watching Him. This third method is "Ihsan" according to the truth, and it makes man see his eternal reality where he shows the relative as an expression of the absolute.

For the Druze, Monotheism means that man seeks the true knowledge of his self and his own existence, and thus feels that everything else is in the one divine existence. This is understood in that they see all things and beings as part of one divine existence.

When the Unitarians adopt this concept, they turn into a state of oneness and unity with God. The individual blends into the divine existence such that the separation from the personal self and submission to the divine flow occurs. Divine existence is the highest expression of the divine and is free from the human ego.

When the Unitarian reaches the state of Sufi annihilation (fana), a complete erasure of the personal ego occurs, and only the existence of the deity remains in his existence. This state is known as a state where human qualities are completely erased, and only the existence of the deity remains.

In this context, man can reach the state of "Monotheism" through love only, where he directs his love toward the divine existence instead of ignoring it for worldly matters. This means that true love is built on giving up the personal self and turning toward God, and this is what the Druze mean in their concept of Monotheism.

For the Druze, Monotheism means the essential unity of man's existence with the existence of God, and this is what is meant by self-realization. It is as if it were a compass point, where the point returns to where it started from the circle, and the circle is observed as a projection of the center onto the circle. The Unitarian reaches the state of annihilation where his personal identity is erased and reaches the state of permanence (baqa) where God represents his identity. Thanks to this state, human love transitions to the divine unity of God and thus divine compassion is achieved (it means that the Unitarian feels mercy and deep sympathy for others and the entire universe. He becomes deeply aware of God's presence in everything and everyone). This is because God reveals Himself in the world as a whole as if He is present everywhere.

This is the cosmic manifestation, which is what the Quran refers to in its phrase: "In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful." In the view of the Druze, God reveals Himself from complete divinity (Lahut) to the divine form of man (Nasut). This manifestation appears to man in the form of an essential core inside the cosmic circle, where this core represents the divine center, and thus it is known as the flow of the divine God, which is the basic existence of the cosmic circle. The cosmic circle can be considered an embodiment of the divine center and its embodiment and manifestation.

For this reason, for the Druze, the world, i.e., the cosmic circle, is not just an independent creation from God, but is basically the manifestation of God and His expression of Himself. And this is the essence of the idea of Sufism, where it is believed that God is present in everything and every place and is manifested in the world through that cosmic circle.

Likewise, Sufis and Druze consider that the world is nothing but a manifestation of God. It appears in different material forms, which cannot exist without the presence of God. They also see that God is present in every place and time. God is the comprehensive being and existing in the universe, and therefore, the world is known as God's presence. This is what Sufis and Druze call "Hadra" (Presence), where they consider that God is present in every place and time.

For the Druze, true love is manifested when man relinquishes his self and turns toward the unity of God. Directing his love toward the divine unity instead of differentiation and plurality makes his love for worldly things a result of his love for God. This is what the Druze mean by asceticism, which is the relinquishing of the ego and directing man toward the One. With this orientation, man can be freed from immersion in the world and be immersed in God. And human love is thus homogenized with the grace of God, and thus divine compassion is achieved. This is because God's grace is consumed in the existence of man and his love for his divine origin.

In short, the Druze faith teaches that true love is based on relinquishing the self, and when this relinquishing occurs, man turns toward the unity of God and God becomes present in his existence. Man becomes freed from selfishness to reach the freedom of immersion in the compassion of God.

Second lecture:

Introduction of Professor Majid Fakhry

Our second lecturer is Professor Majid Fakhry, who taught for many decades at the American University of Beirut (AUB). He also taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and Kuwait University. He has research participations at Oxford and Princeton universities.

His many publications include "A History of Islamic Philosophy" which has been published, republished, and edited repeatedly. You won't believe how many translations it has into different languages such as Persian, French, Turkish, Indonesian, Arabic, and Chinese, and it is currently being translated into Portuguese and Hungarian.

He also wrote "Ethical Theories in Islam" and a book called "Philosophy, Dogma and the Impact of Greek Thought in Islam." He wrote an interpretation of the meanings of the Quran in modern English, and it was also published as a bilingual edition recently.

He has many titles in Arabic, the latest of which was issued recently titled "Studies in Arab Thought," and he will speak today about the origins of rationalism in Islamic thought and the Druze and Monotheism.”

Second lecture: Professor Majid Fakhry

I hope you can hear me. I am accused of speaking in a low voice by most of my friends and relatives. Well, this committee was appointed as the mental roots of the Druze, which centers some of the content of my philosophical research. Therefore, I would like to call it a new description, which includes both the theological and philosophical aspects.

And I will try in my presentation to give an experimental answer to two questions:

a) What is the rationalism that reasonable people participate in regarding Islamic thought in general and Druze faith in particular?

b) What is the nature of reason (Aql), which forms the basic element in our perception of rationalism?

In this process, I will highlight two different aspects of the question of the nature of reason, and I will call them the titles "Ontological" and "Epistemological." The ontological aspect relates to the basic characteristics of reason and its essence, while the epistemological aspect deals with the function of reason and how it is used. I will focus particularly on the origins of rationalism in Islamic thinking and how Al-Murtada scholars (Nuri theologians) and philosophers played an important role in defending rationalism against attacks by conservatives or traditionalists like Malik ibn Anas and his followers, and Ahmad ibn Hanbal and his followers.

Then I will provide a brief look at the nature and function of reason as seen by Jewish scholars, and I will conclude with a brief reference to the contribution of the prominent Druze scholar, Shakib Arslan, whom many of you might have known personally.

Any student of the history of Islamic culture will not ignore the role that rationalism as a method and reason as an objective entity or tool played in the development of Islamic theology, philosophy, and cultural thought in general.

Although the term "Reason" in its objective form does not appear in the Quran, the verb forms "Ya'qil" (understand/reason) and "Ta'qil" (you understand/reason) appear in the Quran no less than 49 times. These verb forms, which can be translated as "reason" or "think," allowed philosophers like Ibn Rushd to participate in the most intense debate between those who supported rational discussion or speeches and those who did not, who I called fundamentalists or rationalists.

Apart from the Quran, a reference to the high role of reason is embodied in a prophetic tradition (Hadith) known as "Qudsi" or sacred, which says its content as follows (I will read it in English given my consideration that some of you may not know much Arabic): "This Hadith: The first thing God created was Reason. He said to it: 'Advance,' and it advanced. Then He said to it: 'Retreat,' and it retreated. Then God said: 'By My might and majesty, I have not created anything dearer to Me than you, O Reason! By you I take and by you I give, by you I reward and by you I punish.'"

Philosophers, led by Al-Farabi who died in the tenth century, the founder of Islamic Aristotelianism, followed this thinking which gave reason the highest rank in the cosmic sequence. For him and other Neoplatonists (a philosophical school that believes in spiritual unity), the First Reason originated from the First Being or God, since eternity, and produced a sequence of nine reasons, ending in the Active Reason, also known as the Agent Reason (the Divine Reason), which is the storehouse of all knowledge. Al-Farabi and Ibn Sina, the great Neoplatonist, also advocated that through communicating with this Active Reason, man can participate in the highest levels of perception.

For both Al-Farabi and Ibn Sina, they considered reason of utmost value and placed it in a very high position in the cosmic sequence, by following the example also presented by Plotinus, who died in 270 AD. On the other hand, Muslim thinkers who followed the method of Aristotle instead of Plato or Plotinus emphasized more on the function of reason in the field of knowledge or perception. They portrayed reason as a tool or means to acquire knowledge in a gradual manner, without any mystical or spiritual claims of the kind suggested by Ibn Sina.

His main rival, Ibn Rushd, considered that the alleged conflict between philosophy and religion, which fundamentalists and rationalists hold on to, can be solved through resorting to logical reasoning. Ibn Rushd says that regarding philosophy as the study of existing beings as considered to be created, we are not only required to study it but we find ourselves obligated to do so. The Quran itself uses verbs like "thinking" and "contemplation" to clarify this point in many verses. Through "thinking" and "contemplation," those verses point to the rational process of philosophical or logical discussion.

Additionally, Ibn Rushd continues an argument that in response to the fierce opposition shown by fundamentalist and traditionalist groups toward philosophy and rational thinking. He points out that our duty is to examine carefully and accurately the methods of philosophical proof. And if it turns out to us that it agrees with the conditions of correct thinking, then we must accept it, cheer for it, and thank the ancient thinkers (i.e., the Greek thinkers) kindly and gratefully. And if it is otherwise, we should highlight it and warn against it, and excuse the supporters of these ideas, those who tried without success to present them.

It should be noted that theologians and Maturidis (a Muslim sect that originated in the third century AH and is attributed to its founder Abu Mansur al-Maturidi), who were in Ibn Rushd's mind, divided since the early times into two distinct groups: rationalists and opponents of reason. The former represent members of the Maturidi school, which was established in the eighth century by Wasil ibn Ata. They believed that the principles of dogmas, such as God's justice and His oneness, can be known through reason and therefore are not subject to doubt in their validity.

Historically, these moral or theological principles were supported by concrete arguments from the beginning, but they were widely spread by fundamentalists and traditionalists. Ahmad ibn Hanbal strongly rejected the use of methods of debate or proof entirely. He was arrested and humiliated by order of the Caliph. The rest were specifically prepared to support the Maturidi movement but he did not surrender. A moderate and sustained-intention person visited him in prison and tried to convince him about the creation of the Quran. He suggested that although the meanings of the verses of the Quran are eternal and uncreated, the letters and sounds related to these verses when read or recited by humans are temporal or created in time, i.e., their states. Ahmad refused to proceed in any discussion about this question and continued to declare that the Quran is the word of God, eternal and uncreated.

Regarding the Druze, the importance of reason is often emphasized in the Holy Book known as "Al-Hikmah" (Wisdom). In episode 13, it is written that God created, through His emanation, Will, a pure and perfect image, which He called Reason. This reason consists of understanding what comes to it from revelation from God, managing the universe, rewarding the deeds of all creatures, and it never performs any action that contradicts the will of God. According to Al-Hikmah also, the creative power of God did not stop at reason, but led to the formation of the second cosmic reality, the Universal Cosmic Soul, which forms the spiritual essence of the universe and is considered a source for all created beings, including animals and humans. In certain stages, conflict arose between reason and the soul due to the excessive extremism of the former in itself, which led to the formation of the fourth cosmic principle called "the Self," which is fundamentally similar to the teachings of Plotinus and Ibn Sina.

In addition to Plato and Plotinus, Pythagoras in the sixth century BC was the first to introduce the idea of reincarnation, which was likely derived from Indian sources as stated in the Upanishads (a collection of ancient texts in ancient Indian literature). A distinctive feature of the Druze doctrine of reincarnation is that it is limited to the soul that exists in human bodies only and cannot acquire a non-human or animal form as in the case of Plotinus and Pythagoras, or the Upanishads. If the soul attempts to bypass the body entirely, it fails to achieve its ultimate goal in wisdom and virtue, and through the body, the soul achieves self-awareness.

In conclusion, I will finish with a brief presentation of the views of a prominent Lebanese scholar, Emir Shakib Arslan, about the importance of knowledge and rational dialogue in addressing the current problems facing Muslims. In his book titled "Why Did Muslims Retreat While Others Advanced?", Shakib argues that the main reason for the retreat of Muslim peoples today is the double ignorance of incomplete knowledge, which is worse than total ignorance. And it makes the state of total ignorance worse, the Muslims' clinging to the past and their refusal of progress. Furthermore, Muslims opposed to progress waged war against Western physical, mathematical, and philosophical sciences on the basis that they are sciences of the infidels. Therefore, they continued to cling to religious sciences that deal with otherworldly blessings, and the result was a decrease in their strength. Shakib concludes with the observation that the failure of Muslim peoples to achieve progress has caused them suffering and decline, mainly because of the disregard for reason and the exchange between rationalism and tradition. Thank you.

Third lecture:

Introduction of Professor Abbas Hamdani

The third lecturer is Professor Abbas Hamdani, who is of Yemeni origin but was born in India. He obtained two degrees in India, the first in law from the University of Bombay, and then he obtained his PhD in Islamic studies from the University of London. He worked as a university professor at the University of Karachi and then at the American University in Cairo (AUC) before moving to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where he taught for several years before retiring.

His research and teaching focus on the field of Middle Eastern history and Islamic civilization. He has many publications on the history and thought of the Brethren of Purity and their encyclopedia. He also worked on studying the Islamic background and its contributions to voyages of discovery and the conflict between the Abbasid and Fatimid Caliphates.

He had a large collection of Arabic manuscripts that were collected over generations and he recently donated them to the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London, which played and plays a leading role in establishing the field of Ismaili studies since 1930.

Professor Abbas Hamdani will present a lecture on the subject of Monotheism (Divine Unity) and the Millennium letters and how they are interpreted in the context of the writings of the Brethren of Purity, in the context of the composition of their composite works.

Third lecture: Professor Abbas Hamdani:

Ladies and gentlemen, I must start by thanking Dr. Melhem Salman for giving me the opportunity to meet this special gathering of leaders of the Jewish community and the community of the Jews. Although the Jewish community, like many other minorities such as the Parsis or Ismailis, represents a minority in numerical terms, it has played a large role in the world in terms of philanthropy, social work, modernization, and music. Congratulations must be offered to them for their contributions.

My subject today focuses on the "Epistles of Wisdom," which is popularly translated as "Epistles of the Brethren of Purity." This famous early Islamic encyclopedia has been studied for nearly one hundred and fifty years, specifically regarding its origin and authors. Scholars of religion have made differing claims about the relationship between it and various Islamic groups, such as the Mu'tazila or Shia from various sects.

According to a historical anecdote, it indicates that copies of the "Epistles of Wisdom" were transferred to Spain by a Spanish mathematician named Omar ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Kirmani in the eleventh century. However, there is debate among scholars about the true author of the epistles. There are those who attribute it to the Ismailis, while others have suggested its influence by Sufism or Sunnism.

In my own studies, I suggested that the "Epistles of Wisdom" were considered a charter for a secret society preparing to establish the Fatimid Caliphate in 909 AD. I reject Abu Hayyan al-Tawhidi's theory regarding its authorship and argue that the time and context were different.

Other theories have also been presented, indicating its influence by Sufism, or Sunni Sufis, or Qarmatians, and finally a theory that considers it Neoplatonic and produced by a multi-religious religious society. But these theories often do not address the time in which the epistles were composed.

The "Epistles of Wisdom" cover a wide range of topics, including theology, philosophy, music, science, theories of politics, and more. They reflect a diverse composition of different religious and philosophical traditions, and point to a Shia, specifically Ismaili or Fatimid affiliation. The "Brethren of Purity" possess deep knowledge of diverse religious traditions, including the Torah, the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Proverbs, the Talmud, and the Quran.

They emphasize religious tolerance and the recognition of faith in different religions, and promote compatibility between people. They also promote the unity of the nation and promote the spread of the will of Prophet Abraham and the declaration of the call of Isaac. This aligns with the Ismaili literature of a later time.

Regarding the theological aspect, the "Epistles of Wisdom" deal with the nature of the knowledge of God and the question of free will.

They reject extremism and fanaticism and criticize misguided groups within their own community, and emphasize the importance of religious tolerance.

The "Epistles of Wisdom" also discuss cosmology and the emanation of reasons from the Creator, which aligns with later Ismaili thought. This hierarchy resembles the initial Ismaili philosophy and indicates a link between the "Epistles of Wisdom" and Ismaili philosophy.

In conclusion, the time and context for composing the "Epistles of Wisdom" are essential for understanding its ideas. Although there is debate about its author and the influences on it, the content and style of the "Epistles of Wisdom" indicate that they date back to the period before Al-Farabi and Al-Kirmani, and were most likely written between the years 260 and 909 AD. Its revolutionary ideas found greater acceptance in later Ismaili movements, especially during the rise of the Nizari and Tayyibi call (Da'wa).

Thank you for your attention.