The Pillars of Islam: Da'a'im al-Islam of al-Qadi al-Nu'man, vol. 1. Translated by ASAF A. A. FYZEE, revised and annotated by ISMAIL KURBAN HUSEIN POONAWALA. New Delhi: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2002. Pp. xxxiii + 558.
At the summit of his career in service to the Fatimid caliphs, Qadi al-Nu'man composed at the request of al-Mu'izz a handbook of Ismaili law, the famous Da'a'im al-Islam. Dating therefore from the mid-fourth/midtenth century, this one work quickly became the standard authority on the subject. Oddly, however, it features solely legal material (hadith, akhbar) related from 'Alid imams that are accepted equally by Imami and Ismaili Shi'a alike, that is, from Ja'far al-Sadiq and those who preceded him. It contains no examples of specific legal rulings by any of the Fatimids, for example. Its essential character is thus not sectarian but is rather an attempt to mold a law quite purposely designed for public use in a mixed legal community of both Sunnis and a variety of Shi'is. In that role it continued to define Ismaili law for the entire Fatimid period, and so it remained among later heirs of the Fatimid tradition, principally the Tayyibis of the Yemen and later the Indian subcontinent.
The Arabic text of the Da'a'im was first edited and published in Cairo in 1951 by the distinguished jurist and legal scholar A. A. A. Fyzee. Realizing that the text holds not only great scholarly interest but retains its value as a legal work among modern Ismailis, Fyzee himself conceived the plan for this English translation. In fact, prior to his death in October of 1981, he had completed a draft of the whole translation. Most fortuitously Fyzee had also realized the immense difficulty of his task and had already asked Ismail Poonawala, professor of Arabic at UCLA, to collaborate on the project. Poonawala's considerable background made him the obvious person to finish what Fyzee had begun. It was, as it turns out, an ideal solution to a daunting problem. Fyzee's edition of the Arabic contained for the most part textual notes but no annotations of sources and other comparative material. Subsequently, Poonawala was able to revise the translation thoroughly and to annotate the text throughout. The degree and depth of annotation is, moreover, quite remarkable, with full reference to a wide range of sources, both Shi'i and non-Shi'i.
Volume one on religious duties ('ibadat) (to be followed shortly by the second, on worldly affairs [mu 'amalat]) comprises the legal material al-Nu'man had collected, arranged in sections covering, respectively, faith, walaya, ritual purity, prayer(s), funerals, alms tax, fasting, pilgrimage, and jihad (the last of these contains the famous 'ahd of 'Ali). For any one of these subjects individually, or topics that might be subsumed under them, this translation is now a prime reference work. Note that this judgment applies not merely to the area of Ismaili law but to Shi'i law in general and, because of Poonawala's copious annotation of the text, to many other kinds of Islamic legal doctrine as well. Although it has taken half a century from publication of the Arabic text to the issuing of this translation, the wait was well worth it. The result is a splendid achievement; the best kind of collaboration by two of the most accomplished of modern authorities.
UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
COPYRIGHT 2003 American Oriental Society
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.