Al-Muqanna

Hashim (Arabic/Persian: هاشم), better known as al-Muqanna‘ (Arabic: المقنع‎‎ "The Veiled", died ca. 783.) was a Persian who claimed to be a prophet, and founded a religion which was a mix of Zoroastrianism and Islam. He was a chemist, and one of his experiments caused an explosion in which a part of his face was burnt. For the rest of his life he used a veil and thus was known as "Almughanna" ("the veiled one"). Nafisi and Aryanpoor have elaborated on Khorram dinan. He is viewed as a heretic by mainstream Muslims.

Before he came to be known by the nickname of "al-Muqanna", he was called by his birth name, Hashim. Early scholars believed that he was born in Sogdia. However, it is now agreed that his birthplace was in Balkh, a city close to Sogdia.

Al-Muqanna‘ was an ethnic Persian from Merv named Hashim ibn Hakim, originally a clothes pleater. Zarrinkoob states that al-Muqanna was originally a goldsmith, who later studied material sciences. He also learned magic, spells, and trickery. He became a commander for Abu Muslim of Khurasan. After Abu Muslim's murder in 755 AD, al-Muqanna‘ claimed to be an incarnation of God, a role, he insisted, passed to him from Abū Muslim, who received it via ‘Alī from the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Al-Muqanna‘ was reputed to wear a veil in order to cover up his beauty; however, the Abbasid Caliphate claimed that he wore it to hide his ugliness, being one-eyed and bald. His followers wore white clothes in opposition to Abbasid black. He is reputed to have engaged in magic to impress his followers as a maker of miracles.

Al-Muqanna‘ was instrumental in the formation of the Khurramiyya, a sect that claimed Abū Muslim to be the Mahdi and denied his death. When al-Muqanna‘'s followers started raiding towns and mosques of other Muslims and looting their possessions, the Abbasids sent several commanders to crush the rebellion. Al-Muqanna‘ poisoned himself rather than surrender to the Abbasids, who had set fire to his house. Al-Muqanna‘ died in a fort near Kesh. After his death, the sect continued to exist until the 12th century, waiting for al-Muqanna‘ to return again.

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