Prayers and Charms [IO Islamic 1531]

Prayers and Charms. This manuscript is now IO Islamic 1531 in the India Office collections. [metadata: Otto Loth, A Catalogue of the Arabic Manuscripts in the Library of the India Office, (volume 1), no. 336 here with further notations and hyperlinks]. 336. 1531. Size 101/2 in. by 61/2 in.; foll. 236. Fourteen lines in a page. A Shî’ah book on the religious duties, especially prayer, imperfect at the beginning. It appears from quotations of other works1 that the author is ABU JA’FAR ṬÛSÎ (Muḥammad b. al-Ḥasan, d. A.H. 460). It is very probably his کتاب الحلّ و العقد فی العبادات, mentioned in his own Fihrist, p. ۲۸۶, 1. 18. Begins: مُنّته فرایت ان اختصر ذلک اجمع منه جملاً لا یستثقلها العامل بها الخ. The first paragraph, which is inscribed فصل فی عبادات الشرع, gives an outline of the present work. The five principal duties of the Shî’ites are prayer, almsgiving, fasting, pilgrimage, and holy war. The author begins with prayer, as that duty which is to be performed every day, and treats of it circumstantially in a separate part, عبادات الیوم و اللیلة. This part is introduced by a treatise on ablution and other preparations for prayer. The second part (fol. 100v.) سیاقة عبادات السنة, treats briefly of the remaining duties, according to their occurrence in the course of the year. It begins with Ramaḍan, the time for fasting, and concludes with Rajab. The rites of the pilgrimage are mentioned under Dhû-alḥijjah. Then follow those duties which are not connected with a particular time (fol. 209v.), فصل فی ذکر ما لا یختصّ بوقتٍ بعینه من العبادات. They are either personal, as الجهاد and الامر بالمعروف, or pecuniary, as الزکاة. They are only rapidly surveyed, and reference is made for the former to the author’s النهایة and المبسوط 1, and for the latter, to his المصباح.2 The work concludes (fol. 213v.) with three sets of prayers, recommended for special times, viz. morning and evening prayers, prayers for each day of the week, and such for the twelve hours of the day. For particulars the author refers to his المصباح. There are added (fol. 231) a charm, rules for the Naurûz, and a prayer. According to the colophon (fol. 232v.), this copy was transcribed from that of Muḥammad b. Manṣûr b. Aḥmad b. Idrîs…’Ijlî, which had been written in A.H. 570, and had been collated with the author’s own copy. It is well written and emended. It has also been collated with the copy of one ابن السکون. At the end is a prayer, styled مفتاح الکنوز, and ascribed to ‘Alî. It is in a different hand, and is dated A.H. 1013. Fol. 234 should be placed after 228. Worm-eaten. [Johnson.] 1 See below. 1 See his Fihrist, p. ۲۸۶. 2 i.e. مصباح المتهجّد, ib. ۲۸۸, 1. 6.