The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (696 page)

, often regarded as founder of the faith; and
Al-Juz’al-Awwal
(Essence of the First) by al-Muqt
na Bah
’uddin (d. 1031 CE), its main propagator. The main dogmas of the Druze faith are: confession in the unity of God; belief in successive manifestations of the deity (or of the Universal Intelligence, al-‘Aql al-Kulli) in human form; acceptance of al-
kim as the last and greatest of these divine incarnations; recognition of five ministers who manifest aspects of the Divine Essence,
amza b. ‘Al
being the supreme saint (
wali-al-zaman
); belief in
metempsychosis
and in predestination; and observance of the seven precepts of
amza who, on behalf of al-
kim, absolved his followers from the obligations of Islam.
amza's seven precepts are: veracity in speech; protection and mutual aid to the Druze community; renunciation of all forms of former worship and false belief; repudiation of Ibl
s (the devil) and all forces of evil; confession of the divine unity in humanity, concentrated in ‘Our Lord’,
kim, who is not dead but hidden; acquiesence in all al-