Judah Judghan, the Persian

Judah Judghan, The Persian one of the most celebrated of the Karaites, afterwards himself the founder of an independent Jewish sect, flourished probably about the first half of the 9th century, in the city Hamadan, in Persia. His opponents say of him that he was of low descent, and that his early years were spent as a tender of camels, but the learning he displayed and his intimate knowledge of Mohammedanism make this report doubtful. We know nothing definitely of him until he appeared before his countrymen with the declaration that he was the forerunner of the Messiah, and preached the doctrine of free will, and non intervention of God in mundane affairs. He also argued that Sabbaths and festivals were no longer to be kept, as they had been done away with by the dispersion of the chosen people, enjoining, however, at the same time, a life of strict asceticism. Preaching, as he did, under the very shadow of Mohammedanism, doctrines very much akin to it. SEE MUTAZILITES, he found ready converts, and his followers increased rapidly. They continued faithful even after his decease, believing (like the Shiites of Ali) that he did not die a natural death and that he was to reappear and give to Judaism a new law. The Mushkhanites (q.v.) may be considered as a branch of this sect. For further details, see Fürst,

Geschichte d. Karäerthums, p. 26 sq.; Grätz, Gesch. der Juden, 5, 227 sq., 516 sq. (J.H.W.)