Walāya in the Formative Period of Shi'ism and Sufism: A Comparative Analysis

Focused on Shi'ism and Sufism in the formative period of Islam, this book examines the development of the concept of walā
ya, a complex term that has, over time, acquired a wide range of relationships with other theological ideas, chiefly in relation to the notion of authority.

The book offers a textual and comparative analysis of walā
ya based on primary sources in the ninth and tenth centuries, from both Shi'i and Sufi circles. The starting point is one of the oldest surviving Shi'i sources, Kitā
b Sulaym. Alongside this, the author analyses al-Ī
ḍ
ā
ḥ
of Faḍ
l Shā
dhā
n al-Nishā
bū
rī
, Kitā
b al-Maḥ
ā
sin of al-Barqī
and Kitā
b al-Kā
fī
of al-Kulaynī
. Three major texts in Sufism are considered: Kitā
b al-Ṣ
idq by Abū
Saʿ
ī
d al-Kharrā
z, Tafsī
r al-Qurʾ
an al-ʿ
Aẓ
ī
m by Sahl al-Tustarī
, and Al-Tirmidhī
's Kitā
b Sī
rat al-Awliyā
ʾ
. Together, these sources highlight the doctrinal aspects of walā
ya, exploring the identity, function, appointment, and description of those considered 'walī
'. The author ultimately argues that walā
ya is a cluster of rich, deep-rooted responses to the question of authority, developed within both Shi'ism and Sufism after the death of the Prophet.

The book is much-needed reading for students and scholars interested in Shi'i and Sufi studies and Islamic philosophy.