Al-Imama wa al-Siyasa

rdf:langString Al-Imama wa al-Siyasa

rdf:langString Al-Imāma wa al-siyāsa (Arabic: الإمامة والسياسة, lit. 'Imamate and Rule') is a work about the history of Islam written before the fifth century AH (twelfth century CE). This book is sometimes attributed to the Sunni Muslim Ibn Qutayba (d. 276/889), although this attribution is disputed. The work might have been authored by another Sunni author, either in the Umayyad Spain or after the Abbasid rulers adopted Sunni orthodoxy as the basis of their authority. The ongoing debate about the authorship of this book remains relevant in view of its controversial content: while the book has an evident pro-Sunni tone, it also corroborates Shia reports about a violent attack on the house of Fatima, the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Shia sources, the death (and miscarriage) of the young Fatima within six months of Muhammad's death in 632 are attributed to the injuries she suffered during this alleged attack. Most Sunni sources, on the other hand, categorically deny any such violence. The book is traditionally known as Taʾrīkh al-khulafāʾ (History of the Caliphs), and its edition by Zini Taha was published in 1967 in Cairo.