Encyclopedia of Islam

Further reading: Yohanan Friedmann, Prophecy Con-

tinuous: Aspects of Ahmadi Religious Thought and Its 

Medieval Background (Berkeley: University of California 

Press, 1989); Muhammad Zafrullah Khan, Ahmadiyyat: 

The Renaissance of Islam (London: Tabshir Publications, 

1978).

ghulat

 

(Arabic “to exaggerate,” “to exceed 

the proper bounds”)

The ghulat were early radical Shii groups known 

for their exaggerated beliefs about God, a

li

 

ibn

a

bi

 t

alib

 (d. 661), and other Shii Imams. Ali was 

the cousin and son-in-law of m

Uhammad

, whom 

the Shia consider to have been the rightful heir 

to the leadership of Islam after the Prophet’s 

death. The ghulat deified Ali and believed that 

he was a superhuman being with miraculous 

powers. The term ghali  (pl.  ghulat) was used 

disparagingly by mainstream Muslims to refer to 

supporters of these beliefs. Such doctrines were 

considered heretical to Sunni and later moderate 

Shii authorities, who consider God to be one and 

not incarnate in human beings.

When these extremist doctrines about Ali 

spread to newly Islamized areas such as i

raq

, 

i

ran

, Anatolia, and Central Asia during the eighth 

century, they were mixed with pre-Islamic and 

Christian beliefs, such as reincarnation, resurrec-

tion, and the Christian Trinity (God, J

esUs

, and the 

Holy Spirit). A variety of sects that applied such 

views to the veneration of Ali and the 12 Imams 

arose, many of which survive today, such as the 

Alawis (Nusayris) in s

yria

, the Ahl-i Haqq (People 

of the Divine Truth) in Iran, the Alevis in t

Urkey

,

and the Shabak in northern Iraq. While some 

believers within these groups may equate Ali with 

God, it is more common for them to place Ali in a 

spiritual trinity along with a

llah

 and Muhammad 

or to see Ali as a manifestation of God. These sects 

have been influenced by s

UFism

 in their beliefs 

and ritual practices, and most require members to 

undergo an initiation ceremony.

Since these sects are considered heretical by 

orthodox Muslim authorities, they have often 

been persecuted. They therefore practice in secret 

and often resort to concealing or even denying 

their true beliefs from outsiders, employing the 

Shii tactic of taqiyya (dissimulation).

See also a

laWi

; 

batin

; 

imam

; s

hiism

.

Mark Soileau