but Abū Rakwah gained the upper hand, seized command, and a train of grave events ensued. He was later captured and nearly seventy thousand of his troops were slain. He was brought before al-Ḥākim in 397 AH, whereupon al-Ḥākim had him put to death by slow slaughter (1).

In his later years al-Ḥākim developed a fondness for seclusion. He would ride alone through the markets on a donkey, personally overseeing the ḥisbah. A huge, dissolute slave walked in front of him; whenever anyone required discipline, al-Ḥākim ordered the slave to violate him, and the victim would howl (2).

It is also reported that he contemplated claiming divinity and even began to do so, but the leading dignitaries spoke with him, warning that the people would rise up, so he refrained (3).

In 401 AH Qirwāsh ibn Muqallad inaugurated the public proclamation (daʿwah) for al-Ḥākim in Mosul, handing the preacher a written text with the words he was to recite:

“Praise be to Allah, whose light has dispelled the gloom of usurpation and whose power has shattered the pillars of idolatry. By His command the sun of truth has risen in the West; by His justice the tyranny of darkness has been erased, so that truth has returned to its rightful place. He is manifest in His essence, unique in His attributes: no form resembles Him such that places could contain Him, nor have eyes beheld Him such that they might describe Him.

Blessings, then, upon the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—upon ʿAlī, Commander of the Believers, master of the legatees, pillar of knowledge, and upon his lofty branches.

O Allah, bless the Imām al-Mahdī under Your care, the one who came by Your command; bless the Qāʾim who acts according to Your order, the Manṣūr whom You aided, the Muʿizz of Your religion who strove in Your path, and bless al-ʿAzīz through Your might. Shower the unfailing flow of Your blessings upon our master, the Imām of the age, the fortress…"