Shii Studies Review (volume 1)

From the Executive Editors: Unlike other, “mainstream” fields of Islamic studies, the scholarly exploration of Shiism began late and evolved slowly, an observation that applies, with some variations, to all three major subdivisions of Shiism—Zaydism, Ismailism and Twelver Shiism.1 One reason for the late and reluctant evolvement of Shii Studies was that the pioneers of Islamic studies in Europe were confined to a limited—and biased—range of sources when it came to the study of Shiism. Most of the works they were able to access came from places such as Istanbul and Cairo—important intellectual centers of Sunnism, where Shii texts were the exception—while the rich holdings of the libraries of Persia, the main repository for the religious-intellectual traditions of Twelver Shiism and Ismailism, were for a long time out of reach for Western scholarship, as was the case with the libraries of Yemen with their collections of Zaydi works. Unable to consult works by Shii authors first hand, Western scholars were exposed to the biased image of Shiism as presented in Sunni sources which they took at face value. The resulting overall negative image of Shiism prompted scholars to exclude this important branch of Islam from their scholarly endeavours, even when a lack of sources was no longer an issue. Moreover, although an ever growing number of scholars are nowadays engaged in the study of Shiism, there is up until now next to no institutional support for Shii Studies within the academic landscape of North America or Europe—be it in the form of a chair or university position or a research institution specifically devoted to Shii Studies. It is in an attempt to remedy this imbalance and to make a distinctive contribution to current scholarship on Shiism and its integration into the broader field of Islamic studies that Shii Studies Review was established, an international scholarly forum for research on Shiism with the goal of contributing to the discovery and examination of different intellectual traditions throughout the history of Shiism.2 Shiism as a field of academic inquiry is to be understood in the broadest sense here—the journal is dedicated to the study of Imami, Ismaili, Zaydi, and other trends related to Shii thought throughout history, up until the contemporary period. Taking an expansive view of the richly variegated Shii traditions in both thought and practice and their cultural and social contexts, it aims to serve as outlet for original studies, critical editions of classical and pre-modern texts, and book reviews on Shii law, ḥadīth, Qurʾānic exegesis, philosophy, kalām, ritual and practices, classical and contemporary literature, and other aspects of the history of Shiism. Moreover, Shii Studies Review will also serve as a forum to inform about ongoing initiatives to advance the scholarly inquiry of Shiism, and the rubric “Shii Treasures in North American and European Libraries” will showcase relevant manuscripts and manuscript collections. This first volume is dedicated to Professor Hossein Modarressi in recognition of his seminal contributions to the study of Shiism.3 1 Cf. the surveys by Etan Kohlberg, “Western Studies of Shiʿa Islam,” Shīʿism, Resistance, and Revolution, ed. Martin Kramer, Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1987, pp. 31-46; Stefanie Brinkmann, “Ein Mangel an Quellen und fehlendes Interesse? Zum späten Einstieg der deutschen Schia-Forschung,” Orient: Deutsche Zeitschrift für Politik, Wirtschaft und Kultur des Orients 4 (2009), pp. 25-43; Sabine Schmidtke, “The History of Zaydī Studies: An Introduction,” The neglected Šīʿites: Studies in the legal and intellectual history of the Zaydīs = Arabica. Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies 59 iii-iv (2012), pp. 185-199; Khalil Andani, “A Survey of Ismaili Studies Part 1: Early Ismailism and Fatimid Ismailism,” Religion Compass 10 viii (August 2016), pp. 191-206 <doi: 10.1111/rec3.12205>; idem, “A Survey of Ismaili Studies Part 2: Post-Fatimid and Modern Ismailism,” Religion Compass 10 xi (2016), pp. 269-282 <doi: 10.1111/rec3.12222>. 2 In addition to this, three book series specifically devoted to the study of Shiism have recently been launched by Brill, Leiden, namely “The Classical Shīʿah Library” <https://goo.gl/CdPNWI> and “The Modern Shīʿah Library” <https://goo.gl/Kwmtyo>, both of which feature English translations of key Shii texts, as well as “Shii Islam: Texts and Studies”, which publishes original studies on all aspects of the history of Shiism, critical editions of classical and pre-modern texts, as well as collective volumes on Shii themes. 3 See Law and Tradition in Classical Islamic Thought: Studies in Honor of Professor Hossein Modarressi, ed. Michael Cook, Najam Haider, Intisar Rabb, and Asma Sayeed, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, “Part IV: The Scholarly Output of Professor Hossein Modarressi”. 1 Cf. the surveys by Etan Kohlberg“Western Studies of Shiʿa Islam,” Shīʿism Resistance and Revolutioned. Martin Kramer Boulder Colorado: Westview Press 1987 pp. 31-46; Stefanie Brinkmann “Ein Mangel an Quellen und fehlendes Interesse? Zum späten Einstieg der deutschen Schia-Forschung” Orient: Deutsche Zeitschrift für Politik Wirtschaft und Kultur des Orients 4 (2009) pp. 25-43; Sabine Schmidtke “The History of Zaydī Studies: An Introduction” The neglected Šīʿites: Studies in the legal and intellectual history of the Zaydīs = Arabica. Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies 59 iii-iv (2012) pp. 185-199; Khalil Andani “A Survey of Ismaili Studies Part 1: Early Ismailism and Fatimid Ismailism” Religion Compass 10 viii (August 2016) pp. 191-206 <doi: 10.1111/rec3.12205>; idem “A Survey of Ismaili Studies Part 2: Post-Fatimid and Modern Ismailism” Religion Compass 10 xi (2016) pp. 269-282 <doi: 10.1111/rec3.12222>.