The Heirs
of the Prophet: Charisma and Religious Authority
in Shi‘ite Islam. ISBN: 0791467384
By: Dr. Liyakat Takim
Book is available from:
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Summary
2007 CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title
Looks at how various factions used the tradition that scholars were
the “heirs of the Prophet” during the classical period of Islam
(570–1258 CE).
After the death of the Prophet Muhammad, different religious
factions within the Muslim community laid claim to the Prophet’s
legacy. Drawing on research from Sunni and Shiite literature,
Liyakat N. Takim explores how these various groups, including the
caliphs, scholars, Sufi holy men, and the Shiite imams and their
disciples, competed to be the Prophetic heirs. The book also
illustrates how the tradition of the “heirs of the Prophet” was
often a polemical tool used by its bearers to demand obedience and
loyalty from the Muslim community by imposing an authoritative
rendition of texts, beliefs, and religious practices. Those who did
not obey were marginalized and demonized. While examining the
competition for Muhammad’s charismatic authority, Takim investigates
the Shiite self-understanding of authority and argues that this was
an important factor in the formation of a distinct Shiite
leadership. The Heirs of the Prophet also provides a new
understanding of textual authority in Islam by examining authority
construction and the struggle for legitimacy evidenced in Islamic
biographical dictionaries.
“This book is very well written and demonstrates a vast knowledge
and intimate familiarity with both primary and secondary sources on
the topic of the Shiite imams and their deputies. Takim’s
exploration of how authority was constructed and made legitimate in
early Shiite biographies, exegeses, legal theories, kalam, and the
like, forges new ground in the field.” — Kathryn Kueny, author of
The Rhetoric of Sobriety: Wine in Early Islam
Liyakat N. Takim is Associate Professor of Islamic Studies at the
University of Denver.
“Outline of Heirs
of the Prophet" |
