A Consideration of Sources and Contents of Imam al-Sadiq’s Letter to al-Najjashi

58 letters from Imam al-Ṣādiq has been identified in sources, including his long letter to al-Najjāshī, al-Mansur al-‘Abbasi’s (d. 775/158 AH) agent in Ahvaz. Categorized as an essay of politics, the letter is concerned with how the ruler should interact with his subjects. It might serve as a model for the regulation of relations between rulers and their underlings. The present paper seeks to consider and analyze the letter as far as its sources and text are concerned. The full text of the essay has first appeared in the book, al-Arba‘un Hadith fi Huquq al-Ikhwan by Ibn Zuhra al-Ḥalabī (d. 1236/634 AH), a 13th century scholar, then it appeared in other sources, particularly those of the Safavid Era, and was referred to as Risalat al-Ahwaziyya. As to its content, the letter has two different sections with separate discourses: one focusing on people’s rights and the other on the believer’s rights. I conclude that since the letter is ignored in older texts and it is just cited in a later source, and since its text involves two different discourses, part of the letter is inauthentic, apparently added to the original letter. One such addendum is the part in which Khūzīs are reproached, which seems to be added to letter in consequence of rivalries among active groups of the society in 8th century (2nd AH).