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    Courage of Hallaj

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    John-abouna D'Alton
    1. Hallaj was a 9th century Persian Sufi mystic who taught oneness with God and desired martyrdom. His provocative teachings threatened Islamic authorities. 2. Hallaj persistently demanded martyrdom through his dangerous preaching and claims, like saying "I am the Truth." He was eventually executed in 922 CE. 3. Hallaj shares similarities with late Roman "holy men" in his role mediating between people and authorities, in some teachings like divine incarnation, and in his ascetic practices. Viewing Hallaj as a "holy man" provides important context for understanding his actions.

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    Courage of Hallaj

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    John-abouna D'Alton
    97 views23 pages
    1. Hallaj was a 9th century Persian Sufi mystic who taught oneness with God and desired martyrdom. His provocative teachings threatened Islamic authorities. 2. Hallaj persistently demanded martyrdom through his dangerous preaching and claims, like saying "I am the Truth." He was eventually executed in 922 CE. 3. Hallaj shares similarities with late Roman "holy men" in his role mediating between people and authorities, in some teachings like divine incarnation, and in his ascetic practices. Viewing Hallaj as a "holy man" provides important context for understanding his actions.

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    Hallaj as a kind of holy man as per Peter Brown's theory.

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    1. Hallaj was a 9th century Persian Sufi mystic who taught oneness with God and desired martyrdom. His provocative teachings threatened Islamic authorities. 2. Hallaj persistently demanded martyrdom through his dangerous preaching and claims, like saying "I am the Truth." He was eventually executed in 922 CE. 3. Hallaj shares similarities with late Roman "holy men" in his role mediating between people and authorities, in some teachings like divine incarnation, and in his ascetic practices. Viewing Hallaj as a "holy man" provides important context for understanding his actions.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    97 views23 pages

    Courage of Hallaj

    Uploaded by

    John-abouna D'Alton
    1. Hallaj was a 9th century Persian Sufi mystic who taught oneness with God and desired martyrdom. His provocative teachings threatened Islamic authorities. 2. Hallaj persistently demanded martyrdom through his dangerous preaching and claims, like saying "I am the Truth." He was eventually executed in 922 CE. 3. Hallaj shares similarities with late Roman "holy men" in his role mediating between people and authorities, in some teachings like divine incarnation, and in his ascetic practices. Viewing Hallaj as a "holy man" provides important context for understanding his actions.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as ppt, pdf, or txt
    of 23

    The Courage of Hallaj

    Fr. John DAlton Antiochian Orthodox priest, Monash Uni.

    The martyrdom of Mansur al-Hallaj in Baghdad


    in 922CE was the culmination of a spiritual
    journey involving frequent courageous
    provocation of the Islamic state authority. Hallaj
    persistently demanded martyrdom, but was only
    killed when his presence became too
    destabilizing. In many ways Hallaj is a variant of
    Peter Browns holy man, occupying a unique
    space between the community and the divine,
    often at odds with official religion.

    Hallaj
    Ab al-Mughth Husayn Mansr al-Hallj
    (c. 858 26 March 922 CE)
    Persian mystic/Sufi teacher, missionary.
    Born in Fars, Persia. Son of a cottoncarder, grandson of a Zoroastrian.
    Trained by Sahl al-Tustari, and followed
    Junayds teaching in many ways.
    Imprisoned in 913 for 8 years.

    Known as the great carder of


    souls (Arabic hallaj)

    Actions of Hallaj that are usually


    seen as enigmatic
    He openly espoused tawhid as unity of
    everything in God, (almost pantheism).
    He referred to the martyrdom of Christ,
    saying that he also wanted to die in the
    supreme confession of the cross.
    He provoked the rulers, insisting that they
    must kill him!
    Is this courage or madness?

    Peter Browns Holy Man as a lens


    There was an increasing sense of distance
    from God in the late Roman empire which
    meant the role of living and dead saints
    became very important.
    Compare Hallaj. While Sunnis taught a
    vast separation between God and humans,
    Hallaj emphasised hulul (Arabic means
    descending and incarnation).
    This was more a Christian, Shia or Ismaili
    teaching.

    1. Courageous preaching
    Hallaj taught the desire for oneness with
    God, and thus many Muslims criticized
    him as a "'crypto-Christian' for distorting
    the monotheistic revelation in a Christian
    way." (Mason, p. 25).

    Hallaj claimed to teach people how to


    unite directly with God and taught that the
    spiritual Hajj (pilgrimage) was more
    important than the physical!
    Compare- Christian ascetics and their
    clashes with bishops.

    2. Courageous Death
    Attar calls his death an heroic action.
    Hallaj said that his execution would have
    redemptive significance, (cf. Christ),
    believing that his death "was uniting his
    beloved God and His community of
    Muslims against himself and thereby bore
    witness in extremis to the tawhid (the
    oneness) of both." (Mason, p. 25)

    Martyred like
    a Christian
    on a Cross
    (Arabic salib)
    Note the
    changed
    imagery due
    to scandal.

    The authorities tried to keep Hallajs


    execution a quiet affair which shows their
    concern for possible popular reaction. Just
    as in late Roman cities, civic unrest was a
    constant worry for the authorities.
    Christian asceticism unsettled ancient
    Roman status markers (Elizabeth Clark)
    and created a new form of elite. Hallaj did
    the same.

    3. Courageous Provocation
    Browns holy men often mediated
    between locals and the emperor and his
    officers, sometimes provoking them.
    The authorities had an ambivalent
    sensitivity to the power of holy men.
    Cf. Hallajs easy access to the court, and
    yet preaching from Hanbals tomb. (d.
    855CE). Hanbal was almost martyred
    because of his challenge to Abassid rule.

    Abassid rule in decline


    Peak in 850CE; by 922 serious decline.

    By 950CE

    Hallaj said Kill me my trustworthy friends, for in


    my killing is my life. God has given you my
    lawful blood, quick, kill me; Then you will be
    soldiers in the jihad and I a martyr.
    His statement I am the Truth was bound to
    incite the condemnation of heretic, and has an
    obvious Christian pre-cursor.
    Hallaj fasted for 12 months at Kaaba, where the
    pure soul (Nafs Zakiya) was supposed to be
    sacrificed.

    Other similarities with Christian


    holy men
    Miracle of fire from Hallajs fingertips in
    Jerusalem church cf. Abba Joseph (4th
    century) who advised become like flame.
    Browns holy man was a patron who was
    especially powerful in prayer for others
    because of his special relationship with
    God. Cf. Hallaj seen as friend of God.
    Power over demons. Hallaj was accused
    of pact with the jinn (demons).

    Other similarities with Christian


    holy men (cont.)
    Hallajjian doctrine that the Uncreated
    Divine Spirit which proceeds from God can
    be united to the spirit of the ascetic
    (OLeary). Cf Maximos etc.
    Radical asceticism eg hair shirt and 400
    rakaah a day (cf Simon Stylites).
    According to Hanbal, the radically ascetic
    Muslims will be close to Jesus at the
    judgement.

    How much Christian-Muslim


    interaction?

    Which is the
    Muslim
    and which the
    Christian?
    13th century CE image of late 700s
    CE meeting.

    Other similarities with Christian


    holy men (cont.)- Apocalyptic
    Brown notes the displacement in late-antiquity of
    the notion of an everlasting universe by the
    Christian conception of creation and a sooncoming judgement day.
    This was heightened in Islam by the frequent
    emphasis on the Day of Judgement in the
    Quran and hadith.
    Brown says that people lived in a perpetual
    twilight before the coming of the Final Day,
    where it was unclear whether blessings came
    from God or the jinn. Only the holy man could
    discern.

    Other similarities with Christian


    holy men (cont.)- Apocalyptic
    Hallaj even focussed his later preaching
    on the Turks, their conversion being
    understood as an apocalyptic sign.
    Like the Shia, Hallaj viewed the year 290
    AH (902 CE) as a prophetic date and
    possible judgement day, and he journeyed
    to Mt Ararat seeking annihilation in God.
    Apocalyptic very important in Syriac
    Christian areas.

    Other similarities with Christian


    holy men (cont.)- Asceticism
    Arabic and Syriac words are almost identical- note identical triliteral roots

    Meaning

    Arabic

    Syriac

    prayer

    salat

    selota

    remembrance

    dhikr

    dukhrana

    abstinence

    sawm

    sawm

    renunciation

    zuhd

    zuhd

    soul

    nafs

    nafs

    repentance

    tawba

    tethuba

    spirit

    ruh

    ruh

    Significance
    Hallaj has become a symbol of the
    intoxicated saint and martyr (Ernst).
    Hallajs martyrdom has been defining for
    Sufi martyrology and contrasts with eg
    Wahhabi view.
    Hallaj is a link to Christianity. He calls on
    Jesus as Intercessor, teaches that Jesus
    is the coming Mahdi, and he even says
    that he wants to return to Baghdad to die
    there in the confession of the Cross.

    Significance
    Hallajs extremely influential marginality
    defines the limits of acceptable Sufism.
    Hallajs peculiar position exemplifies the
    quest for authentic individual spirituality in
    the face of growing institutionalisation.
    His courageous martyrdom provides a
    significant alternative exemplar to the
    current stereotypical violent Muslim martyr.

    A new lens for understanding


    Interpreting Hallaj through the lens of
    Peter Browns holy man makes Hallajs
    courage and actions much more
    understandable.

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