Salih ibn TarifSālih ibn Tarīf was the second king of the Berghouata, and proclaimed himself a prophet of a new religion. He appeared during the caliphate of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik, in 744 AD (127 AH.) According to Ibn Khaldun's sources, he claimed to have received a new revelation from God, portions of which were called "Chapter of the Duck", "Chapter of the Camel", "Chapter of the Elephant", "Chapter of Adam", "Chapter of Noah", "Chapter of the Prophets", "Chapter of Harut and Marut and Iblis", and "Chapter of the Wonders of the World"; they read these chapters in their prayers. He established laws for his people, and was called by them "Salih al-Mu'minin" (Restorer of the Believers.) This claimed revelation was written in the Berber language. He is also said to have claimed to be the final Mahdi, and that Isa (Jesus) would be his companion and pray behind him. He proclaimed that his name in Arabic was Sālih, and in Syriac Mālik, and in "Ajami" `Ālim, and in Hebrew Rūbyā, and in Berber Werba, and that after him would be no other prophet. After reaching the age of 47 years old, he headed east out of the kingdom, and promised to return in the reign of their seventh king. He told his son Ilyas to support the Umayyads of Andalus and publicly profess Islam, but to reveal his religion when he became powerful enough; the latter was done by his grandson Yunus. According to some sources, Salih ibn Tarif regarded himself as a successor to Muhammad, had 10 Sahaba (disciples) and many wives, and claimed to be able to speak with the dead and heal the sick. In Islamic literature, his belief is considered heretical; politically, its motivation was presumably to establish their independence from the Umayyads (in a manner analogous to Kharijism, and earlier Donatism), establishing an independent ideology lending legitimacy to the state. Some modern Berber activists regard him as a hero for his resistance to Arab conquest and his foundation of the Berghouata state. See also: BerghouataExternal linksCategory:Berber\nCategory:Moroccan people |
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