from Him and ascending to Him; rather, he inwardly held the beliefs of these esoteric sects, but could not disclose them to the common people. For, if these beliefs were made known, their minds and hearts would not accept them; instead, they would reject them and recoil from them. He therefore presented them with imagery and similitudes that would benefit them in their religion, even though this involved misleading them, keeping them ignorant, and causing them to believe things contrary to their actual reality, because of the benefit this would bring them.
They take as imams the leaders of the esoteric sects, such as the descendants of Ubayd ibn Maymūn al-Qaddāh, who claimed descent from Muhammad ibn Ismā‘īl ibn Ja‘far. They were not his descendants; rather, their ancestor was a Jew who was the stepson of a Magian, and they professed Shiism outwardly. In reality, they did not adhere to the creed of any Shia group: neither the Imāmīs nor the Zaydīs, nor even the extremists who believe in Alī’s divinity or prophethood. Rather, they were worse than all these groups. Hence Muslim scholars wrote numerous works exposing their secrets and tearing away their veils, and Muslims undertook many military campaigns against them. Their history is well known. Ibn Sīnā and his household were followers of these people during the reign of their Egyptian ruler. This was why Ibn Sīnā embraced philosophy.
These people regard Muhammad ibn Ismā‘īl as the concealed imam and maintain that he abrogated the religious law of Muhammad ibn Abd Allāh ibn Abd al-Muttalib. They say that these Ismā‘īlīs were infallible imams. Indeed, they may say that they are superior to the prophets, and they may say that they are gods to be worshipped. This was why al-Hākim sent his servant, “Hashtakīr” al-Durzī, to Wādī Taym Allāh ibn Tha‘laba