The Essentials of Ibadi Islam

Reviewed by Resources Reviewer on February 26, 2013

Valerie Hoffman’s The Essentials of Ibāḍī Islam is the first English-language book to present the main subjects of Ibāḍī theology in a way that is accessible to a broad audience. Among its many strengths are its readability, making it appropriate as a textbook for undergraduate courses, but also as a general introduction to Ibāḍī thought. Who are the Ibāḍīs? Simply put, Ibāḍī Islam “is a distinct sect of Islam that is neither Sunni nor Shiʿite” (p. 3). Emerging from the moderate strains of the Basran Khārijites, the Ibāḍīs survived into the ‘Abbāsid era to form polities in North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. They continue to exist up to the present day, and can be found in larger numbers in Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Zanzibar and Oman. 1300 years of history across such diverse geographical areas has given the Ibāḍiyya a rich cultural and literary heritage, and an introductory work is considerably overdue. And although Hoffman’s text is not a general overview (a la Ernst’s Shambala Guide to Sufism), her opening chapter does the work of a general introduction to Ibāḍism while the rest of the book consists of a complete translation of Nāṣir b. Sālim b. ‘Udayyam al-Rawāḥī’s (d. 1339/1920) al-‘Aqīda al-Wahbiyya (“Creed”) as well as a translation of the section pertaining to God’s power and human acts from ‘Abd al-‘Azīz al-Thamīnī’s (d. 1220/1808) Kitāb Maʿālim al-Dīn (“The Characteristics of Religion”). It is therefore a particular kind of introductory work, one that allows the voices of important Ibāḍī scholars to introduce and summarize the fundamentals of Ibāḍī belief and praxis. For those with an interest in the Ibāḍiyya, or non-Sunnī/non-Shiʿite perspectives on Islam, her accessible translations give non-Arabic speaking audiences contact with otherwise unknown Ibāḍī primary texts. This alone is a great achievement and something to be celebrated. And it is hoped that the work’s success will open the door so that more of the interesting and important Ibāḍī corpus can be edited, published and translated.

Review by Adam Gaiser, Florida State University