التَّأوِيلُ الإِسمَاعِيلِيُّ لِلبَاب — البَابُ فِي التَّأوِيل: كَيفَ تُقرَأُ [وَادخُلُوا البَابَ سُجَّداً وَقُولُوا حِطَّة] فِي 2:58 فِي التَّأوِيلِ الإِسمَاعِيلِيِّ
In Ismaili ta'wil, al-Bab (البَاب — The Door/Gate; *bab*: from *b-w-b*: the door, gate, chapter, section; bab [pl. abwab] = door, gate, entry point, chapter; the same word is used for: a physical door; a chapter in a book; a section of a topic; a 'gate' in the sense of an authorized intermediary; the Quranic verses on the bab: [1] 2:58: 'wa-idh qulna udkhulu hadhihi al-qaryata fa-kulu minha haythu shi'tum raghadan wa-udkhulu al-baba sujjadan wa-qulu hittatun naghfir lakum khatayakum wa-sana-zidu al-muhsinina' [And when We said: Enter this town and eat from it wherever you will, in ease — and enter the gate prostrating and say: Forgiveness — We will forgive you your sins and increase the doers of good in goodness]; [2] 4:154 [parallel]: the same command given to the Israelites; [3] 7:40-41: 'inna alladhina kadhdhabu bi-ayatina wa-stakbaru 'anha la tufattahu lahum abwabu al-sama'i' [Indeed those who deny Our signs and are arrogant about them — the gates of heaven shall not be opened for them]; [4] 39:71-73: the gates of Hell and of Paradise — both have abwab [gates] that open for their inhabitants; [5] 54:11: 'fa-fatahhna abwaba al-sama'i bi-ma'in munhamir' [and We opened the gates of heaven with torrential water]; the Prophetic hadith 'I am the city of knowledge': the famous hadith 'ana madinatu al-'ilmi wa-Ali babaha' [I am the city of knowledge and Ali is its gate] appears in several versions in hadith literature; it is considered weak [da'if] by most Sunni hadith scholars [not in Bukhari or Muslim] but is considered authentic in Shi'i hadith tradition; the hadith is central to Shi'i and Ismaili understanding of 'Ali's authority; the technical use of 'Bab' in the da'wa: in the Ismaili da'wa, 'Bab' is a technical title for a senior da'wa officer; the 'Bab' [literally: the Gate] is the Imam's primary representative and the gateway through which the highest level of ta'wil reaches the da'wa; in the Fatimid da'wa organization: the Bab was the highest-ranking officer below the Imam himself; the Bab's function: the authorized channel without whom entry into the Imam's ta'wil is impossible; Ismaili ta'wil of al-Bab: [1] 2:58 — entry through the bab as bay'ah: the command 'enter the gate prostrating' [udkhulu al-baba sujjadan] = the requirement to approach the Imam's ta'wil with humility [sujud = prostration] through the authorized gateway [the da'i or Bab]; 'prostrating' = the posture of bay'ah — submission and humility, not proud entry; the 'town' [al-qarya] whose gate is to be entered = the realm of the Imam's ta'wil; entry into this realm is only possible through the authorized bab; [2] the forgiveness at the gate: 'say: forgiveness [hittatun] — We will forgive you your sins': hittatun [from hatt = to lay down a burden] means 'relief from our burdens/sins'; in Ismaili ta'wil: the burden of batin-ignorance is 'laid down' at the moment of entering the Imam's bab; the ta'wil received through the Bab forgives — releases from — the burden of zahiri-only existence; [3] 7:40 — heaven's gates closed to the arrogant: the gates of heaven [abwab al-sama'] shall not open for those who deny God's signs arrogantly; in Ismaili ta'wil: the gates of the da'wa hierarchy [which correspond to the heavenly gates] do not open to those who approach with arrogance rather than humility; [4] the hadith and 'Ali as the original Bab: 'Ali is the gate of the Prophet's 'city of knowledge'; this establishes the Bab-function at the foundation of the da'wa; in each era, the Imam's designated Bab serves this function; the Ismaili da'wa hierarchicalized this into a technical rank; [5] 'increase the doers of good' [nazidu al-muhsinin]: entering through the bab prostrating and sincerely = becoming a muhsin [doer of good]; the ta'wil confirms that genuine bay'ah through the authorized bab initiates an increase — the spiritual development of the mu'min does not plateau at bay'ah but increases thereafter) is the da'wa's most literally named officer.
The Gate You Cannot Enter Alone
2:58’s command to the Children of Israel — “Enter the gate prostrating and say: Forgiveness” — is notable for what it specifies: not just that they should enter but how and what to say. The gate is to be entered in a specific posture (prostrating) with a specific utterance (hittatun — forgiveness/relief). The combination indicates that entry into this gate is not a matter of simply walking through; it requires the right posture, the right words, and presumably the right authorization.
Ismaili ta’wil reads this as the prototype of bay’ah with the authorized Bab — the da’wa’s gateway officer. The “town” (al-qarya) whose gate is commanded = the realm of the Imam’s ta’wil. Entry into this realm requires approaching through the authorized channel (the Bab/da’i) with humility (prostration) and recognition of one’s need for release from batin-ignorance (hittatun — the laying down of burdens).
Ali as the Original Bab
The Prophetic hadith “I am the city of knowledge and Ali is its gate” establishes the Bab-function at the da’wa’s foundation. The Prophet is the “city” — the containing structure of knowledge. ‘Ali is the “gate” — the authorized intermediary without whom entry into the city is impossible. This hadith, which Shi’i and Ismaili hadith tradition considers authentic even if Sunni critics dispute its chain, is the prototype for the Ismaili da’wa’s technical use of “Bab” as a rank title: in each era, the Imam’s designated Bab serves this function of authorized gateway.
Gates of Heaven Closed to the Arrogant
7:40 — “The gates of heaven shall not be opened for those who deny Our signs and are arrogant about them” — states the failure condition for bab-entry. The arrogant person approaches the gate expecting admission on their own terms, without the prostration and the hittatun. The gate remains closed. In the da’wa’s ta’wil: the gates of the hierarchical levels (the heavens of the da’wa) do not open to those who approach with arrogance — with the assumption that their zahiri accomplishments entitle them to batin access.
See also: Bayah And Walayah, Tawil Esoteric Interpretation, Ismaili Cosmology Hudud Al Din, Ismaili Tawil Of Al Alam, Ismaili Tawil Of Al Nass