Ma`rifat Kalami

During the Middle Ages different intellectual trends took form among the Jews. Among these trends is a theological trend with two Karaite and rabbinical orientations, which tried under the influence of Mu'tazilah school of Basra, to justify and explain Jewish doctrines. Despite common language and source of revelation of the two, the main difference between Karaites and rabbis is that Karaites ignore tradition. Karaites merely believe in the authority of the Bible and consider that tradition or the spoken form of Torah as invalid and it is something framed by rabbis, who consider it to be as valid and holy as the written Torah. Although Karaites are more associated with theology than their rival, only few of their works have been found. Since no independent research has been conducted on the issue, the main aim of the present paper is to provoke further discussions by providing a brief account on the views and thoughts of some important personalities of Karaite sect (such as Ya'qub Qirqisani, Yafeth b. Ali, and Yusuf Al-Basir) and citing some cases which show how much they indebted to Mu'tazilah school