Page 122 - Arabian Studies (V)

112 Arabian Studies V
and his collaborators have grafted their notions onto the views of
al-Amlr—Qasim Ghalib’s biography has a validity only in reveal­
ing only the political propaganda of the opponents of the Hamid
al-Din Imams.
Al-Amlr was born in Kuhlan in 1099/1687-8 and died in San‘a’ on
the 3 Sha‘ban 1182/11 December, 1768. In 1107/1695-6 or a few
years later, he moved to San‘a’ with his father, and, as his biogra­
pher126 states, ‘made open display of independent judgement, took
his stand on proof, shunning taqlld127 and the spuriousness of those
jurisprudent opinions for which no proof exists [a$har al-ijtihad
\va- ’l-wuquf ma (a 'l-adillah, wa-nafara min al-taqlid wa-zayf ma la
dalil ‘alay-hi min al-ara' al-fiqhiyyah]1. Al-Amlr taught in San‘a’
and is recognised as an outstanding mujtahid.128 Throughout his
life he played an important political role, particularly in his earlier
phase as a conciliator between various notables of the Imamic
House. In 1151/1738-9 the Imam al-Mansur put him in charge of
the (Friday) address (khutbah) in the San‘a’ Jami‘ Mosque, but in
1154/1741-2 slanderers told the Imam, after an address of his in the
Mosque, that he wished to contradict/violate the doctrine of the
Family (mukhalafat madhhab al-Al),129 i.e. the Zaydi ‘Alawls. He
managed however to satisfy al-Mansur—false representations
about him had previously been made to the Imam al-Mutawakkil.
The incident cited by Zubayrl (p. 106) is most fully reported in
the Diwan.m On the First Friday of Jumada I, 1166/10 March,
1753 he delivered an address in the Jami‘ Mosque of San‘a’. ‘We
have a rule (qa'idah) that if the first exhortatory address is
prolonged we abbreviate the second address and bless the five Ahl
al-Kisa’131 in detail, then we bless the Family (Al) in general (jumlat-
an)—the fashion has gone on for many years’, says Muh. b. Muh.
Zabarah. This was what al-Amlr did. That the preacher (khatlb)
should have omitted the name of their ancestor al-Qasim and the
blessing upon him annoyed the ignorant persons of the House of
the Imam al-Qasim So they collected and went to the notables and
chiefs of the Imam’s house, such as the Lord, the very learned
Muhammad b. Ishaq,132 who told them that what al-Amlr had
omitted was not obligatory and did not invalidate the address or the
prayer.
They eventually persuaded a senior member of the Imam’s
house, Muhammad b. ‘All b. Husayn b. al-Mahdl, who laid the
matter before the Khalifah (the Imam). The Imam told him it was a
simple matter which he knew the preacher would not repeat, but
this did not satisfy him and he threatened to kill al-Amlr if he were
not put in prison. The common folk (*ammah) became excited and
there was much outcry. The Imam brought both parties together in

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