History of Himaya

The history of Himaya concerns the development of Himaya, the dominant faith in South Abaria and portions of North Hylasia.

Originating in the 700s CE from the teachings of the prophet Al-Hakam in the contemporary Ruchanid Empire, Himaya first appears in the historical record as an eclectic, messianic movement comprised of Abbasian and Palmerist groups opposed to the Ruchanid order who awaited the coming of the Palmerist Revealer. With the defeat of the Ruchanids and the rise of the Shiraqic Qal'adesh in the 800s CE, Himaya underwent a period of consolidation and institutionalization, with the compilation of much of the Hamin canon and the establishment of hagiographic accounts of Al-Hakam. With the eclipse of the post-Hernician Calesian world following the Principal invasions, the Qal'adesh turned into a center of the arts, sciences, and commerce. While the Qal'adesh separated into the Four Emirates in the 1100s, the Hamin faith maintained a substantial degree of orthodoxy, with the standardization of many aspects of Hamin practice under the Translators. During the first five centuries of its existence, Himaya spread across much of South Abaria, coming into conflict and interaction with the Adorationalists and Watani faiths, and later Gregorianism.

The Catabole and ensuing Catabolic crisis caused the collapse of the Abbasian-led order and the Great Fitna, during which sectarian divisions led to the emergence of the divergent Mutatariff sects and the division of the Shiraq under various radical sects and orders. While the Shiraq fell under disarray, the Abbasian Mustasaadi hosts conquered much of North Hylasia, causing the spread of Himaya there and the establishment of a parallel center of Hamin faith. The Mutatariff-led order ended when the Artuchid conquests led to the movement of many Berkic and !Iranian tribes, leading to the establishment of the Saqlaganids, Hamimids, and !Ottomans, along with the ensuing consolidation of the normative and Mutatariff sects under the the Taqlidi and He'ara paradigms, respectively.

The downfall of many of the great gunpowder empires of Abaria following the Great War, along with the triple threat of Razanite reversionism, Adorationalist migration, and Calesian interests led to many conflicts in the Hamin world that continue this day. Regardless, interaction with Calesian customs has led to the rise of new developments in Hamin thought, including the rise of modernist Mithali ideology.

Antecedents

• Palmerist gnosticism and the development of !Manicheans
• Monotheistic influence through Adorationalism
• Dualistic influence through the Kurdish-Aramaic Ruchanids

Origins (8th century)

• Al-Hakam, probably a jurist in the Ruchanids
• Presumably writes the Awamir and several other texts and gains a small following, but probably dies before much can be done
• Note, however, that there were probably multiple versions of the Awamir originally

9th - 11th centuries: growth and establishment

Hamimid miniature depicting Abbasian soldiers advance in the campaigns against the Ruchanids

• Eclectic Palmero-Abbasian movement that arises in the western territories opposed to the Ruchanid establishment
• They conquer the Palmeric holy land in Ifrah, but advance onwards and induce the fall of the Ruchanids, then establish the Shiraqic Qal'adesh
• The Adorationalist population, which was mostly associated with the Ruchanid elite, are first tolerated, but then expelled after a rebellion; Palmerist and Watani faiths are tolerated, however
• The Abbasian elite of the Qal'adesh begins to consolidate much of Hamin thought; a standardized Awamir is established and the other four Hamin texts are written down.
• Divorce from Palmerist and mysticist origins arises, leading to the legalistic thought infamous in Taqlidi Himaya.

14th - 16th centuries: the Great Fitna and Hamin division

• The Catabolic Crisis basically causes the collapse of the entire Abbasian-led order
• Mysticist undercurrents explode into the development of the Mutatariff sects, many of which center on the coming of a messianic figure known as the Masih, which was previously only an incidental figure in Hamin eschatology; many historians recognize the Masih as originating from remnants of Palmerist Revealer thought in popular Hamin practice along with influence from intellectual Palmerism and Gregorianism
• Equivalents to the Qarmatians