Abu Tahir Sulayman al-Jannabi (, Persian: ابوطاهر بهرام گناوه‌ای, romanized: ''Abū-Tāher Bahrām Ganāveh'ī'') was a Persian warlord and the ruler of the Qarmatian state in Bahrayn. He became the leader of the state in 923, after ousting his older brother Abu'l-Qasim Sa'id and immediately began an expansionist phase, raiding

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

that year. He raided

Kufa Kufa ( ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates, Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Along with Samarra, Karbala, Kadhimiya ...

in 927, defeating an

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 C ...

army in the process, and threatened the Abbasid capital

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

in 928 before pillaging much of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

when he could not gain entry to the city. In 930, he led the Qarmatians' most notorious attack when he attacked and pillaged

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

and desecrated

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

's most sacred sites. Unable to gain entry to the city initially, Abu Tahir called upon the right of all Muslims to enter the city and gave his oath that he came in peace. Once inside the city walls the Qarmatian army set about massacring the pilgrims, taunting them with verses of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

as they did so. The bodies of the pilgrims were left to rot in the streets.

Early life

Abu Tahir Suleyman al-Jannabi was a Persian, born in June-July 906 in Ganaveh, in coastal Fars (modern-day

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

).. His family was claimed to be of

Sasanian The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign ...

descent. Abu Tahir's father Abu Sa'id was a tribal leader who had initiated the militarization of the Qarmatians. Abu Sa'id began preaching against Sunni Islam around 890 after being taught by his mentor Hamdan Qarmat, a native of Kufa, from whose name the Qarmatian sect is derived. Abu Sa'id started off plundering caravans, traders and Persian

hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

pilgrims en route to Mecca before gathering a large following. The Qarmatians soon mobilized an army and set out to lay siege to Basra. However, the governor of Basra learned of their preparations and informed the

Caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

al-Muktafi Abū Muḥammad ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn Ṭalḥa ibn Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad ibn Hārūn al-Muktafī bi'Llāh (; 877/78 – 13 August 908), better known by his regnal name al-Muktafī bi-Llāh (), was the caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate f ...

, in

. The Caliph sent the general Abbas bin Umar to save Basra, but Abbas was defeated and his men executed and the Qarmatian siege was successful in capturing the city.

Rise to power

Most Arabic sources agree that Abu Sa'id appointed his oldest son, Abu'l-Qasim Sa'id, as his heir, and that Abu Tahir led a revolt against him and usurped his power. Another tradition, by the Kufan anti-Isma'ili polemicist Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ali ibn Rizam al-Ta'i, on the other hand reports that Abu Sa'id always intended for Abu Tahir to succeed him, and had named Sa'id only as regent. According to this view, Sa'id handed over power to his younger brother (who was then barely ten years old) in 917/918. This report chimes with the story in

Ibn Hawqal Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal (), also known as Abū al-Qāsim b. ʻAlī Ibn Ḥawqal al-Naṣībī, born in Nisibis, Al-Jazira (caliphal province), Upper Mesopotamia; was a 10th-century Arab Muslim writer, geographer, and chronic ...

that Abu Sa'id had instructed his other sons to obey the youngest. Indeed, it is likely that power was nominally invested among all of Abu Sa'id's sons, with Abu Tahir being the dominant among them. Whatever the true events, Abu'l-Qasim was not executed, but lived until his death in 972.

Early reign

Soon after succeeding al-Muktafi, Caliph

al-Muqtadir Abū’l-Faḍl Jaʿfar ibn Al-Mu'tadid, Aḥmad ibn Al-Muwaffaq, Ṭalḥa ibn Al-Mutawakkil, Jaʿfar ibn al-Mu'tasim, Muḥammad ibn Harun al-Rashid, Hārūn Al-Muqtadir bi'Llāh () (895 – 31 October 932 AD), better known by his regnal name a ...

recaptured Basra and ordered the re-fortification of the city. Abu Tahir successfully laid siege to the city once more, defeating the Abbasid army. After capturing Basra the Qarmatians proceeded to loot it and then withdrew. Abu Tahir returned again and ravaged it totally, destroying the grand mosque and reducing the marketplace to ashes. He ruled Bahrayn successfully during this time and corresponded with local and foreign rulers as far as north Africa, but continued successfully fighting off assaults from the Persians, who were allied with the Caliph in Baghdad.

Conquests

Abu Tahir began to frequently raid Muslim pilgrims, reaching as far as the Hijaz region. On one of his raids he succeeded in capturing the Abbasid commander Abu'l-Haija ibn Hamdun. In 926 he led his army deep into Abbasid Iraq, reaching as far north as Kufa, forcing the Abbasids to pay large sums of money for him to leave the city in peace. On his way home he ravaged the outskirts of Kufa anyway. On his return, Abu Tahir began building palaces in the city of Ahsa, not only for himself but for his fellows, and declared the city his permanent capital. In 928 Caliph al-Muqtadir felt confident enough to once again confront Abu Tahir, calling in his generals

Yusuf ibn Abi'l-Saj Yusuf ibn Abi'l Saj (died, d. 928) was the Sajids, Sajid Emir of Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan from 901 until his death. He was the son of Abi'l-Saj Devdad. War with Armenians and Georgians Yusuf came to power in 901 by overthrowing his nephew, ...

from Azerbaijan,

Mu'nis al-Muzaffar Abū'l-Ḥasan Mu'nis al-Qushuri (; 845/6–933), also commonly known by the surnames al-Muẓaffar (; ) and al-Khadim (; 'the Eunuch'), was the commander-in-chief of the Abbasid army from 908 to his death in 933 CE, and virtual dictator and king ...

and Harun. After a heavy battle all were beaten and driven back to Baghdad. Abu Tahir destroyed Jazirah Province as a final warning to the Abbasids and returned to Ahsa. Abu Tahir thought that he had identified the

Mahdi The Mahdi () is a figure in Islamic eschatology who is believed to appear at the Eschatology, End of Times to rid the world of evil and injustice. He is said to be a descendant of Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad, and will appear shortly before Jesu ...

as a young Persian prisoner from

Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...

by the name of Abu'l-Fadl al-Isfahani, who claimed to be a descendant of the

Sassanid Persia The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

n kings.The Other God: Dualist Religions from Antiquity to the Cathar Heresy by Yuri Stoyanov Al-Isfahani had been brought back to Bahrayn from the Qarmatians' raid into Iraq in 928. In 931, Abu Tahir turned over the state to this Mahdi-Caliph, said to in fact be a

Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster ( ). Among the wo ...

revivalist with anti-Arab sentiments. He reinstituted the veneration of fire and engaged in burning of religious books during an eighty-day rule. Isfahani also is thought to have some links with established Zoroastrian orthodoxy as the high priest of the Zoroastrians, Esfandiar Adarbad was executed by the Abbasid Caliph after being accused of complicity with Abu Tahir. His reign culminated in the execution of members of Bahrayn's notable families, including members of Abu Tahir's family. Abu Tahir's mother conspired to get rid of Abu'l-Fadl; she faked her death and sent a messenger to call the

to resurrect her. When he refused, he was exposed as being a normal human, and Abu Tahir's brother Sa'id killed Abu'l-Fadl after the Mahdi had reigned for only eight days. Other accounts say fearing for his own life, Abu Tahir announced that he had been wrong and denounced the al-Isfahani as a false Mahdi. Begging forgiveness from the other notables, Abu Tahir had him executed.

Sack of Mecca

Before Abu Tahir's rule, the Qarmatians had launched several raids along the

pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

routes crossing Arabia. In 906, Qarmatians ambushed the pilgrim caravan returning from Mecca and massacred 20,000 pilgrims. During the Hajj of 930 CE, Abu Tahir led the Qarmatians' most infamous attack when he pillaged

and desecrated Islam's most sacred sites. Unable to gain entry to the city initially, he called upon the right of all Muslims to enter the city and gave his oath that he came in peace. Once inside the city walls the Qarmatian army set about massacring the pilgrims, riding their horses into

Masjid al-Haram Masjid al-Haram (), also known as the Sacred Mosque or the Great Mosque of Mecca, is considered to be the most significant mosque in Islam. It encloses the vicinity of the Kaaba in Mecca, in the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia. It is among the ...

and charging the praying pilgrims, they set the

Kaaba The Kaaba (), also spelled Kaba, Kabah or Kabah, sometimes referred to as al-Kaba al-Musharrafa (), is a stone building at the center of Islam's most important mosque and Holiest sites in Islam, holiest site, the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Sa ...

on fire and smeared it with the blood of dead pilgrims. While killing pilgrims, he taunted them with verses of the Quran and verses of poetry: "I am by God, and by God I am ... he creates creation, and I destroy them". The attack on Mecca symbolized the Qarmatians' break with the Islamic world; it was believed to have been aimed to prompt the appearance of the Mahdi who would bring about the final cycle of the world and end the era of Islam. Black Stone front and side

The

Qarmatians The Qarmatians (; ) were a militant Isma'ili Shia movement centred in Al-Ahsa in Eastern Arabia, where they established a religious state in 899 CE. Its members were part of a movement that adhered to a syncretic branch of Sevener Ismaili ...

defiled the Zamzam Well with the bodies of pilgrims and the black stone was stolen and taken to the oasis in Eastern Arabia known as al-Aḥsāʾ, where it remained until the

Abbasids The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes i ...

ransomed it in 952 CE. According to historian al-Juwayni, the stone was returned 22 years later in 951 under mysterious circumstances. Wrapped in a sack, it was thrown into the

Great Mosque of Kufa The Great Mosque of Kufa (), or Masjid al-Kufa, is located in Kufa, Iraq and is one of the earliest surviving mosques in the world. The mosque, built in the 7th century, was home to Ali ibn Abi Talib, the 4th Rashidun caliph; and contains the s ...

in Iraq, accompanied by a note saying "By command we took it, and by command we have brought it back." The theft and removal of the Black Stone caused it to break into seven pieces. The basic shape and structure of the ''Kaaba'' have not changed since then. The sack of Mecca followed

millenarian Millenarianism or millenarism () is the belief by a religious organization, religious, social, or political party, political group or Social movement, movement in a coming fundamental Social transformation, transformation of society, after which ...

excitement among the Qarmatians (and in Persia) over the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter in 928. Bahrain became the seat of the Qarmatian Mahdi-Caliph from

who abolished Sharīa law. The new Mahdi also changed the

qibla The qibla () is the direction towards the Kaaba in the Great Mosque of Mecca, Sacred Mosque in Mecca, which is used by Muslims in various religious contexts, particularly the direction of prayer for the salah. In Islam, the Kaaba is believed to ...

of prayer from Mecca to that of fire, a specifically

practice. Some scholars take the view that "they may not have been Ismailis at all at the outset, and their conduct and customs gave plausibility to the belief that they were not merely heretics but bitter enemies of Islam."John Joseph Saunders, ''A History of Medieval Islam'', Routledge 1978 p. 130

Final years and death

Abu Tahir resumed the reins of the Qarmatian state and again began attacks on pilgrims crossing Arabia. Attempts by the Abbasids and

Fatimids The Fatimid Caliphate (; ), also known as the Fatimid Empire, was a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries CE under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty, Fatimids, an Isma'ili Shi'a dynasty. Spanning a large area of North Africa ...

to persuade him to return the Black Stone were rejected. He died in 944 around the age of 38, due to

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

. Carra de Vaux, B. & Hodgson, M. G. S. (1965)
"al-D̲j̲annābī, Abū Saʿīd Ḥasan b. Bahrām"
In Lewis, B.; Pellat, Ch. & Schacht, J. (eds.). ''The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume II: C–G''. Leiden: E. J. Brill. p. 453. . He was succeeded by his three surviving sons and nephews.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abu Tahir Al-Jannabi 900s births 944 deaths Year of birth uncertain 10th-century Iranian people 10th century in the Abbasid Caliphate Bahraini monarchs Qarmatians Al-Jannabi family