The Samaritan Community: Religious Beliefs, Legal Traditions, Historical Development and a Comparative Analysis with Judaism
سامری برادری: مذہبی عقائد، قانونی روایات، تاریخی ارتقاء اور یہودیت کے ساتھ تقابلی جائزہ
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.67101/alamir.v6i04.303Keywords:
Samaritans, Judaism, Religious Beliefs, Comparative Religion, Samaritan Torah, Mount Gerizim, Religious Identity, Abrahamic TraditionsAbstract
The Samaritan community represents one of the oldest surviving religious traditions within the broader framework of ancient Israelite heritage, maintaining a distinct identity separate from mainstream Judaism. This study offers a comprehensive examination of the Samaritan community by analyzing its core religious beliefs, legal traditions, and historical development.
The paper explores key theological concepts, including monotheism, the status of Prophet Moses, the sanctity of Mount Gerizim, and eschatological beliefs related to the Day of Judgment. It further examines the practical dimensions of Samaritan religious life, such as the Ten Commandments, Sabbath observance, Passover rituals, and other religious practices.
A central focus of this study is the analysis of the Samaritan Torah and its textual and interpretive distinctions from the Jewish (Masoretic) tradition. The research also highlights the historical evolution of the Samaritan community, including socio-political challenges, issues of identity, and interactions with other religious traditions, particularly Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
By adopting a comparative and analytical approach, this paper underscores the uniqueness of the Samaritan tradition while situating it within the broader discourse of Abrahamic religions. It also sheds light on the contemporary condition of the Samaritan community as a small yet resilient religious minority striving to preserve its heritage.
Views & Downloads Stats:
References
ʿAbd al-Wahhāb Muḥammad al-Masīrī, Mawsūʿat al-Yahūd wa al-Yahūdiyya wa al-Ṣahyūniyya, (al-Qāhirah: Dār al-Shurūq, 1999), 5:319.
Abū al-Fatḥ ibn Abī al-Ḥasan al-Sāmirī, Kitāb al-Tārīkh mimmā taqaddama ʿan al-Ābāʾ, (n.p.: n.d.), 53.
فینحس حضر ت ہارون ؑ کا پوتا اور البعزر کا صاحبزادہ تھا ۔ ( خروج 6: 25 ) اس کی طرف نسبت کرنے کے سبب اپنے آپ کو سامری اٰل فینحس کہتے ہیں۔
F. S. Khayrullāh, Qāmūs al-Kitāb, (Lahore: Masīḥī Ishaʿat Khānah, 2008), 495.
al-Kitāb al-Muqaddas, (Lahore: Bible Society, 2010), 648.
Urdu Dāʾirah Maʿārif-i Islāmiyyah, (Lahore: Dānishgāh-i Panjāb, 2012), 10:230–231.
The Holy Bible Deuteronomy, 13:6–9.
El-Messiri, Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism and Zionism, 5:320.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWbxhbun4XE&t=84s
Abu al-Fath ibn Abi al-Hasan al-Samiri, Kitab al-Tarikh Mimma Taqaddama ‘an al-Aba’, 99; Abdel Wahab El-Messiri, Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism and Zionism, 5:330.
al-Saqqa, Ahmad Hijazi. Muqaddimat al-Tawrah al-Samiriyyah. Cairo: Dar al-Ansar, 1398H / 1978.
El-Messiri, Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism and Zionism, 5:320.
ا Deuteronomy, 11:29; 27:11–13; Joshua, 8:33–35.
El-Messiri, Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism and Zionism, 5:321; Khairullah, Qamoos al-Kitab, 830.
Deuteronomy 35:32
Al-Saqqa, A. H. (n.d.). Muqaddamah al-Tawrah al-Samariyyah, p. 14.,Urdu Daira-e-Ma'arif-e-Islamia. (n.d.). Vol. 10, p. 630.
/2 Traditison of islam guillauneاوکسفورڈ 1924، ص 89 ببعد
Ziaei, A. (2017). Tareekh-e-Ahd-e-Atiq (Part 2). Lahore: Masihi Ashaat Khana, Ferozepur Road, pp. 137–138
Guillaume. (1924). The Tradition of Islam. Oxford, p. 89 ff.
Urdu Daira-e-Ma'arif-e-Islamia. (n.d.). Vol. 10, p. 631.
Mawsu‘at al-Yahud (Encyclopedia of the Jews), Vol. 5, p. 330.
Mawsu‘at al-Yahud (Encyclopedia of the Jews), Vol. 5, p. 330.
Abu al-Fath ibn Abi al-Hasan al-Samiri, Kitab al-Tarikh Mimma Taqaddama ‘an al-Aba’35
Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqqa, Muqaddimat al-Tawrah al-Samiriyyah, 17.
Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqqa, Muqaddimat al-Tawrah al-Samiriyyah, 17.
Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqqa, Muqaddimat al-Tawrah al-Samiriyyah, 17.
Urdu Da’irah Ma‘arif-e-Islamia, vol. 10 (Lahore: University of the Punjab, 2012), 631
D.E.Gowan, bridge between the testaments, P.176 and the LLL Ustrated Bible Dictionary part 3, P 1379
Ziai, Aslam. Tarikh ‘Ahd al-‘Atiq. Part 2. Lahore: Masihi Isha‘at Khana, 2017.
Al-Qur’an, 5:26.
Deuteronomy, 10:6; 34:5.
Deuteronomy, 31:8; Joshua, 13:21
Isaiah, 9:9; Jeremiah, 23:13; Ezekiel, 23:1–10; Micah, 1:6.
Samuel, 2:1–4.
Samuel, 2:8–11.
Samuel, 13:1–6.
Samuel, 5:3.
Kings, 11:14.
Kings, 15:16, 32.
Kings, 13:1–13.
Jeremiah, 3:6, 21; Ezekiel, 37:15–28
Jeremiah, 61:5.
Kings, chap. 17.
Ezra, chap. 3–5.
Nehemiah, 13:23–31.
Ziai, Aslam. Tarikh ‘Ahd al-‘Atiq. Part 2. Lahore: Masihi Isha‘at Khana, 2017.
Atashin Kalam-e-Muqaddas, “Mutal‘ati Isha‘at,” Life Publisher International, Springer, MO 65803, USA, 2015, 672, 674
F. S. Khairullah, Qamus al-Kitab, 493; Sirach 50:27–28.
Matthew Henry, Tafsir al-Kitab (Urdu), 3rd ed. (Lahore: Church Foundation Seminars, St. Thomas Center, Raiwind Road, 2005), 3:700
John, 8:48.
MacDonald, William. Tafsir al-Kitab. Urdu trans. Jacob Abad Samuel. Lahore: Masihi Isha‘at Khana, 2018), 2:289
Acts, 8:4–25.
al-Samiri, Abu al-Fath ibn Abi al-Hasan. Kitab al-Tarikh Mimma Taqaddama ‘an al-Aba 172–174.
Urdu Da’irah Ma‘arif-e-Islamia, vol. 10 (Lahore: University of the Punjab, 2012), 629
Urdu Da’irah Ma‘arif-e-Islamia, vol. 10 (Lahore: University of the Punjab, 2012), 632–633.
Arabic Wikipedia, “al-Samariyyun (Samaritans),” accessed March 29, 2026, https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/سامريون
YouTube, “Video Title,” YouTube video, accessed March 29, 2026, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_eQScT-rsQ
http://www.thesamaritanupdate.com/ The Samaritan Update, accessed March 29, 2026
El-Messiri, Encyclopedia of Jews, Judaism and Zionism, 5:320.
Kairanvi, Rahmatullah. Izhar al-Haq. Urdu trans. Akbar Ali. Karachi: Maktaba Dar al-Uloom, 2010), 1:313–314
Khairullah, Qamoos al-Kitab, 622.
Barkatullah, Archdeacon. Sehat-e-Muqaddasa. Lahore: MIK Publications, 2010. 62
al-Samiri, Kitab al-Tarikh, 35.
Barkatullah, Sehat-e-Muqaddasa, 62.
Shahada, Haseeb. al-Tarjamah al-‘Arabiyyah li al-Tawrah al-Samiriyyin. Vol. 1. Jerusalem: Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, 1989.
دورا ن ترجمہ میں نے دونوں کا بسا اوقات تقابل کیا ہے معنی و مفہوم کے لحاظ سے تو کوئی فرق نہیں نظر آیا البتہ الفاظ کی تسہیل و غموض میں بہر حال فرق ہے
مصر کے بادشاہ فرعون ٹولیمی ثانی فیلڈ یلفس (از 285 ق م۔ 246 ق م ) کے حکم سے بہتر (72) یہودی علماء نے توراہ اور یگر کتب مقدسہ کا یونانی زبان میں ترجمہ کیا، اسے ترجمہ سبعینیہ بھی کہا جاتا ہے۔ Barkatullah, Sehat-e-Muqaddasa, 93
Barkatullah, Sehat-e-Muqaddasa, 63
Genesis, 1:2.
Genesis, 5:21.
Deuteronomy, 27:4–5.
پیدائش 1: 27؛5: 1؛9: 6
Deuteronomy, 18:15.
Acts, 3:21–22.
Deuteronomy, 34:10.
Genesis, 20:14
Genesis, 42:16
Genesis, 42:16
Exodus, 6:9
Exodus, 6:9
Exodus, 6:20
Exodus, 6:20
Exodus, 7:17–18
Exodus, 7:17–18
Deuteronomy, 10:6–7
Deuteronomy, 10:6–7
Genesis, 8:4
F. S. Khairullah, Qamoos al-Kitab (Bible Dictionary) (Lahore: Masihi Isha‘at Khana, Ferozepur Road, 2008), 40.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dr. Hafiz Ruvaifa Khan, Khawar Rasheed, Abdul Rehman
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
