Imam Ismail and The Commencement of The Dawr-al-Satar (Ismaili Period of Concealment)
The second group of the Shia recognized Ismail as the legitimate Imam, who they belive had not pre-deceased his father Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq. With regard to the Shia Twelver claims that Imam Ismail had pre-deceased Musa al-Kazim, the Ismailis believe that Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq observed taqiyya (dissimulation) and gave a chance to his real successor to go underground so that their enemy, the Abbasids, did not pursue Ismail, and that his Imamat and his activities went un-noticed. Thus Musa al-Kazim who was believed to be poisoned by the Abbasid Caliph Harun was in fact a veil (hijab) for his elder brother Ismail. Ismailis believe that Musa al-Kazim gave his own life as a sacrifice for the sake of his brother Ismail, the true Imam.
The Ismailis further argued that the Imam being masum (infallible) could not make an error of Judgement and therefore the first nass (designation) of Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq was the correct one. Thus, this group accepted Hazrat Ismail as their Imam and are known as Ismailia or Ismailis.
Strong Abbasid persecution had put the entire Shia movement on guard and had indeed driven the general run of the Shias, particularly the Ismailis, underground. The Abbasid authorities considered the Ismaili Imams as their arch political rivals and enemies, but in spite of their organised intelligence service, could not catch up with the Ismaili Imams, and their whereabouts remained unknown to them for a very long time. The secrecy maintained by the Ismaili dawa, as well as the Imams’ location away from Baghdad, the Abbasid capital, helped the Ismaili underground movement considerably.
Maqam al Imam is one of the two mausoleums in the city of Salamiyya that are of special significance to the Ismailis living there. The locals mentioned that this shrine holds the tombs of Imam Taki Muhammed and Radi Abdallah. Some also believe that Imam Ismaili is buried here. The building is built on top of tunnels. During the Dawr al-Satr (period of concealment), the Imams resided in Salamiyya and its environs to avoid arrest by the Abbasids.On occasions when the soldiers threatened, the Imams were whisked up via underground tunnels.There is a famous story of Ismaili fidais claiming to be the Imam and risking arrest in order to confuse and delay the soldiers, giving the Imam time to flee.
During this period, the Imams settled in Salamiyya, near Hamma in Syria, but their identity and whereabouts were known only to a few completely trusted disciples. The four Imams who had succeeded Imam Ismail – Muhammd ibn Ismail, Wafi Ahmad, Taqi Muhammad, and Radi Abdullah – while maintaining anonymity, were engaged in the creation of a remarkable network of mission centers equipped with a very well-developed and organized religious philosophy which came to be known as dawa . The term dawa - although used by some non-Ismaili circles – was the skillful organization and a highly elaborate and sophisticated network of communication within the community and unique to the Ismailis. . The Ismaili faith retained its vitality in this period, during which the identities of the Imams remained protected, living as they were in hazardous circumstances. This period has been described as dawr- al-satar (period of concealment).
The Ismaili Imams carried out their mission from the secret hideouts from the year 148AH/765 CE until the time Imam al-Mahdi (the 5th generation of Imam Ismail) emerged as the rightful Imam in Sijilmasa, and established the Fatimid Caliphate in North Africa in the year 297 AH/909 CE.
The Ismaili Caliphate, first in North Africa and then in Egypt, lasted for 285 years with their purpose-built capital al-Qahira (Cairo) with a majestic Mosque Jami’ al-Azhar and the very first University of the world, long before Oxford or Cambridge were planned. The Imam of the present age of the Ismaili community is Shah Karim al-Hussaini, His Highness the Aga Khan 4th, who is the 49th Imam in the direct unbroken chain from the progeny of Imam Hussain and Imam Ismail.
Read more about this topic: Isma'il Ibn Jafar
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