Rashid al-Din Sinan, the greatest of the medieval Nizari Ismaili da’is in Syria, was born into a Twelver Shi’i family in Basra, Iraq, around 1133. He worked as a schoolmaster, eventually converting to Nizari Ismailism in his youth. Sinan subsequently went to Alamut, the central headquarters of the Ismaili da’wa, to further study Ismaili doctrines; he was well-versed in the religious sciences and philosophy, astronomy, and alchemy, which he mastered while at Alamut, where he met Imam Hasan ala dhikrihi’l-salam.
Shortly after his succession to the Imamat in 1162, the twenty-third Imam Hasan, whom the Ismailis called ‘ala dhikrihi’l-salam‘ (on his name be peace) sent Sinan, “one of the most powerful and energetic da’is to be his deputy in Syria” (Mirza, Syrian Ismailism p 22). At the time, the Syrian Ismailis were facing a variety of issues. The areas in which the community was residing was not fertile for agriculture and for their cattle, causing many to migrate to Hama, Hims, and Aleppo in order to earn a living. Furthermore, the invasions by the Templars (a Catholic military) on Ismaili territories forcing them to pay tributes, along with the disputes within the community added to the complexity of issues. Virani states that Rashid al-Din Sinan “brought with him a letter from the Imam urging the Syrians to set aside their differences and unite behind him:
“May God preserve you all, brethren, from conflicts of opinion and from following your passions, for that is the temptation of the first generation and the doom of the last, and in this is a lesson for those who heed…. Be united in following the teaching of a person appointed by the designation of God and his friend [the Imam], and [unify] your passions in obeying him. Accept willingly whatever commands and prohibitions he vouchsafes to you…” (The Ismailis in the Middle Ages p 105).
A skilled strategist and a master of the art of diplomacy, Sinan promptly ended the internal dissensions that had been festering in the community and re-organised the da’wa. He played a prominent role in the regional politics of his time resorting to diplomacy in order to safeguard the security and independence of the Nizari Ismailis through negotiations with the Crusaders, the Zanghids (local rulers of Mosul), and Salah al-Din, founder of the Ayyubid dynasty.
Willey states that “the relations between the Syrian Ismailis and the Crusader military orders were far more extensive and complex than has been acknowledged. According to James Wasserman, there is ‘a rich tradition of historical suppositions’ that maintains that the Knights Templar were greatly influenced by the sophisticated religious doctrines and organisations of the Ismailis. The returning Crusaders brought these ideas to Europe, where they are believed to have become the basis for the revival of certain esoteric traditions in the late medieval era and which have survived to the present day” [Rosicrucianism and Masonry] (Mirza, Syrian Ismailism p 50).
The cordial relations Sinan established with Saladin continued long after their deaths. The well-known Sunni author Sibt ibn al-Jawzi (d. 1256) described Sinan as “a man of knowledge, statecraft and skill in winning men’s hearts.” The Syrian Ismaili da’i Nur al-Din Ahmad described Sinan as “eloquent in expression, powerful in argument, sharp of vision, swift in improvisation, and unmatched in the principles of allegorical interpretation, poetry and astronomy (Ibid p 41).
In the three decades that he was chief da’i, Sinan led the Syrian Nizari Ismailis to the peak of power and fame until his death in 1193. He is believed to have been buried at Kahf, his chief residence.
“Sinan died leaving his people with ample memories of his greatness, wisdom and heroism” (Mirza, Syrian Ismailism p 41). The echoes of Sinan’s achievements still reverberate among the Syrian Ismailis of today.
Contributed by Nimira Dewji, who also has her own blog – Nimirasblog – where she writes short articles on Ismaili history and Muslim civilisations.
Sources:
Farhad Daftary, Historical Dictionary of the Ismailis, Scarecrow Press, Plymouth, 2012
Nasseh Ahmad Mirza, Syrian Ismailism, The Ever Living Line of Imamate, Curzon Press, Surrey, 1997
Peter Willey, Eagle’s Nest, Ismaili Castles in Iran and Syria, I.B. Tauris Publishers in association with The Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2005
Shafique N. Virani, The Ismailis in the Middle Ages, Oxford university Press, 2007
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