Ismaili Heresiography

Presents the 'Chapter on Satan'(Bab al-shaytan) from a long unrecognized Ismaili work called the Kitab al-shajara by the 4th/10th century Khurasani da'i, Abu Tammam.The satans of Abu Tammam's 'Chapter' are the founders and instigators of the seventy-two heretical sects of Islam. Each sect has been accorded a relatively lengthy description as perceived from a generally Shi'i and Mu'tazili point of view. Most entries offer new information about these sects and, in several cases, the account given is for a sect almost completely unknown in the existing Islamic heresiographical literature.The volume contains both a critical edition of the 'Bab al-shaytan', and a complete English translation of it.