I.B.Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies Of the few surviving Nizari Ismaili texts from the Alamut period, the Haft bab (Seven Chapters), which outlines the basic tenets of Ismaili philosophical theology, has proved to be the most popular. One of its many attractive features is its simple recounting of the most complicated Ismaili theological narratives, including the doctrine of the Resurrection (qiyamat). Produced around the year 1203, this small treatise was probably intended as an introduction to the Diwan-i Qa'imiyyat compiled by Hasan-i Mahmud-i Katib (d. after 1242). For many years, the Haft bab was misattributed to Baba Sayyidna (Hasan-i Sabbah), but the true author has finally been identified as Hasan-i Mahmud-i Katib, whose works continue to shape our understanding of this important period.The current text of the Haft bab, edited and translated into English by S. J. Badakhchani, is based on Badakhchani's analysis of a great number of manuscripts available, including a complete and unaltered version. The concepts found in the text derive largely from the intellectual heritage of the Fatimids.These include the idea of tanzih (the absolute transcendence of God beyond human understanding and knowledge); a cyclical conception of prophetic history, consisting of seven eras (dawr); the Ismaili Imamate as the most important pillar of Ismaili Islam; and the Qiyamat as the completion and perfection of the religious law (shari'at). The Ismaili interpretation of the Qiyamat is radically different from Qur'anic eschatology in its esoteric formation, spiritual aspiration and imaginative scope. The Haft bab explains this key doctrine of Nizari Ismailism, shedding light on a fundamental period in the history of Shi'i Islam.

One of the most prominent Muslim scholars and scientists of the medieval era, the Persian polymath Nasir al-Din Tusi (1201-1274) joined the Shi'a Nizari Ismaili community at a young age, as the armies of Genghis Khan poured across his homeland. In the course of a long and eminent career, first under the patronage of the Ismailis at the fortress of Alamut, and later with the conquering Mongols, he produced over 150 works on diverse subjects from theology and philosophy to mathematics and astronomy. His principal works on Ismaili doctrine, the Rawda-yi taslim (The Paradise of Submission) and the autobiographical Sayr wa suluk (Contemplation and Action), are already available in English translation by S J Badakhchani. In this volume, he offers new critical editions and translations of three shorter Ismaili works by Tusi, namely Aghaz wa anjam (The Beginning and the End), Tawalla wa tabarra (Solidarity and Dissociation), and Matlub al-mu'minin (Desideratum of the Faithful). In these three treatises, Tusi provides concise interpretations of key motifs in Ismaili doctrine, with special reference to the primordial nature of man, his earthly existence in relation to the imam, and his destiny in the hereafter.