The Qarmatians (from Arabic qaramita قرامطة, also spelled "Carmathians", "Qarmathians", "Karmathians" etc.) were an extreme Ismaili Islamic sect, based in northeastern Arabia, who raised a revolt against the Abbasid Caliphate in the last few years of the 9th century which caused major disruptions and turmoil (including stealing the Black Stone from Mecca). Arabic (; , less formally, ) is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. ... The Ismaili (Arabic الإسماعيليون, Persian: اسماعیلیان Esmâiliyân) branch of Islam is the second largest Shia community, after the Twelvers who are dominant in Iran. ... Islam (Arabic: ; ( (help· info)), submission (to the will of God)) is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions, and the worlds second-largest religion. ... Abbasid provinces during the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid Abbasid was the dynastic name generally given to the caliphs of Baghdad, the second of the two great Sunni dynasties of the Muslim empire, that overthrew the Umayyid caliphs. ... As a means of recording the passage of time the 9th century was that century that lasted from 801 to 900. ... The Black Stone The Black Stone (called الحجر الأسود al-Hajar-ul-Aswad in Arabic) is a holy relic in Islam. ...

History

The Qarmatians were named after Hamdan Qarmat, who accepted the teaching of the Ismailites from Hosain al-Ahwaz, a missionary of Ahmed, son of the Persian Abdallah ibn Maimtin, toward the close of the 9th century. An expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable source of knowledge, technique, or skill whose judgment is accorded authority and status by the public or their peers. ... The Ismaili (Arabic الإسماعيليون, Persian: اسماعیلیان Esmâiliyân) branch of Islam is the second largest Shia community, after the Twelvers who are dominant in Iran. ... As a means of recording the passage of time the 9th century was that century that lasted from 801 to 900. ...

This was in the Sawgd of Iraq, which was inhabited by a people little attached to Islam. The object of Abdallah ibn Maimon had been to undermine Islam and the Arabian power by a secret society with various degrees, which offered inducements to all classes and creeds and led men on from an interpretation of Islam to a total rejection of its teaching and a strict personal submission to the head of the society.

In their religious teaching they claimed to be Shiites; i.e. they asserted that the imamate belonged by right to the descendants of Ali. Further, they were of the Ismailite branch of these, i.e. they acknowledged the claim to the imamate of Ismail the eldest son of the sixth Imam. Shiʻa Islam (Arabic شيعى follower; English has traditionally used Shiite) makes up the second largest sect of believers in Islam, constituting about 30%–35% of all Muslim. ... For other uses, see Ali (disambiguation). ... Imam (Arabic: إمام , Persian: امام ) is an Arabic word meaning Leader. The ruler of a country might be called the Imam, for example. ...

Ismail was the last known; a new one was to be looked for. But while the imam was hidden, his doctrines were to be taught by his missionaries. Hamdan Qarmat was one of these, Ahmed ibn Abdallah being nominally the chief. The adherents of this party were initiated by degrees into the secrets of its doctrines and were divided into seven (afterwards nine) classes. In the first stage the convert was taught the existence of mystery in the Qur'an and made to feel the necessity of a teacher who could explain it. He took an oath of complete submission and paid a sum of money. In the second stage the earlier teachers of Islam were shown to be wrong in doctrine and the imams alone were proved to be infallible. In the third it was taught that there were only seven imams and that the other sects of the Shiites were in error. In the fourth the disciple learnt that each of the seven imams had a prophet, who was to be obeyed in all things. The prophet of the last imam was Abdallah. The doctrine of Islam was that Muhammad was the last of the prophets. In the fifth stage the uselessness of tradition and the temporary nature of the precepts and practices of Muhammad were taught, while in the sixth the believer was induced to give up these practices (prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, etc). At this point the Carmathian had completely ceased to be a Moslem. In the remaining degrees there was more liberty of opinion allowed and much variety of belief and teaching existed. The Quran (Arabic , literally the recitation; also called or The Noble Quran; also transliterated Quran, Koran, and less commonly Alcoran) is the holy book of Islam. ... For other people named Muhammad, see Muhammad (disambiguation). ...

The last contemporary mention of the Carmathians is that of Nasir ibn Khosrau, who visited them in 1050. In Arabia they ceased to exercise influence. In Persia and Syria their work was taken up by the Assassins. Their doctrines are said, however, to exist still in parts of Syria, Persia, Arabia and India, and to be still propagated in Zanzibar. Events Leofric becomes Bishop of Exeter Births Margrave Leopold II of Austria (d. ... The Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula is a mainly desert peninsula in Southwest Asia at the junction of Africa and Asia and an important part of the greater Middle East. ... The term Persian Empire refers to a series of historical empires that ruled over the Iranian plateau. ... Assassin may refer to: Hashshashin, the historical Muslim sect of Alamut An assassin, a murderer who is politically motivated Sometimes a hitman, a murderer who is motivated by money, is called an assassin Assassin (rap crew), a French rap crew. ... Map of Zanzibars main island Zanzibar, Tanzania, comprises a pair of islands off the east coast of Africa called Zanzibar (Unguja) (1994 est. ...

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.