Ahlan Wa Sahlan                                                                      أهلا وسهلا

This is an attempt by one Druze, assisted by family members and academic friends, to reach a factual historical expression, that is in harmony with the real DRUZE HISTORY AND CULTURE.  As a young Druze, I was exposed to all our religious practices (including Hikma readings), when my older brother used to take me with him to Thursday nights worship meetings in the Mejlis.   Out of this experience, a Thirst to know our History and Spirituality became more urgent, as I observed reactions of my fellow Arabs to my being a DRUZE, which lead me to see clearly the great GAP between the values I was raised with, as a Druze, and the tainted conception of us (as Druze) that has prevailed in most of the Islamic World for a long time 

My reactions to this great GAP was a greater determination not to let any one define who I am anymore, and decided to find out on my own the historical evolution that brought about what we are today 

After my graduation as civil Engineer in 1967 , I returned to college to study history and continued to do so up till present time 

I read most of what has been written about the Druze, and talked with several college professors who researched the Fatimids period with special focus on al-Imam al-Hakim bi-Amrillah .  I was not convinced of the contradictions that were  portrayed in this First Egyptian Caliph's personality.  Finally, I had access to two books on al-Imam al-Hakim. The first book was by a great and courageous Egyptian scholar, the late Dr. Abdul Mun'im Majid, a professor of Arabic literature at Ain Shams University in Cairo, where he was, for the first time since Ibn Khaldoon, to use logic, in his portrayal of al-Hakim, that was consistent with reality, and showed that the good values that al-Hakim espoused are still living with us today manifested in the Druze daily behavior 

The second book was by Mohammed Anan, who does not tell who he is anywhere in his book and quotes some unknown writer who does not see any thing good about the Druze. Luckily Dr. Majid in his book denounced Mr. Anan's scholarship 

Because al-Imam al-Hakim occupies a very high and honorable place in our tradition, I focused my research on the fourth and fifth Hijra centuries (tenth and eleventh AD). What I have found so far is a monumental distortion of historical facts on a grand scale, that made me feel the painful injustices that were brought upon our people all these centuries. I have also felt that because I am a part of this Arabic/Islamic history and culture, something has to be done to counter the destruction from within to this great culture 

Documentary Introduction 

The Druze people have a rich, culturally diverse and complex history spanning over one thousand years in Syria, Lebanon and Palestine. In an effort to record their history, which until this point, has largely been ignored by historians, we propose a documentary film that covers the history of the Druze from its early roots in Islam to the present day Druze societies living in the Middle East.  In documenting the evolution of the Druze, we will not only be able to preserve for the first time the history of this important sect of Islam on film but also provide an educational forum and learning tool for the Druze community, both young and old.    

The following documentary will serve the three following general purposes:  

1. Detail the unique and glorious Druze community from its founding in the early 11^th Century AD to the present day and its impact on the history of the Middle East.
2. Establish the factual historical process leading to the creation of the Druze sect as derived from its Islamic roots.
3. Expose the untruths introduced into Druze doctrine by non-Druze, or renegade Druze.