Name : MOAMAR M. H.

MOHAMMAD
Subject : ML 295 (Seminar on Islamic Reform Movement)
Submitted to : Dr. Jawad Salic
Topic : Autobiography

9. Ibn Taymiyyah (January 22, 1263 – September 26, 1328; Arabic: ‫)تيمية ابن‬, birth
name Taqī ad-Dīn ʾAḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm ibn ʿAbd al-Salām al-Numayrī al-
Ḥarrānī (Arabic: ‫)الحراني النميري الالم عبد بن الحليم عبد بن أحمد الدين تقي‬, was a controversia
lSunni Muslim ʿālim, muhaddith, judge, Traditionalist theologian, ascetic, and
iconoclastic theorist. He is known for his diplomatic involvement with the Ilkhanid
ruler Ghazan Khan and for his involvement at the Battle of Marj al-Saffar which
ended the Mongol invasions of the Levant. A legal authority within the Hanbali
school, Ibn Taymiyyah's condemnation of numerous folk practices associated with
saint veneration, perceived worship of tomb-shrines and alleged anthropomorphism
made him a contentious figure with rulers of the time, and he was imprisoned several
times as a result.

One of the most famous scholars to have lived since the revival of Islam by the
Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam 1400 years ago, was Imam Ibn
Taymiyyah. No student of Islam can be ignorant about him. Like all famous people,
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah had a controversial standing in the society of his time. Some
people supported him, but those who opposed him were infinitely larger in number.
Following is a brief biography of his life and the legacy of his work.

Ibn Taymiyyah’s Childhood

Imam Ibn Taymiyyah’s complete name is ‘Taqi ud-Din Abu’l-Abbas Ahmad ibn al-
Halim ibn Abd-as-Salaam Ibn Taymiyyah al-Hanbali’ (Ibn Taymiyyah, 2018). He
was born in 661 AH in Harran, which is now a part of eastern Turkey. His family fled
to Damascus when he was 7 years old.

Ibn Taymiyyah came from a family of learned men. Abu al-Barkat Majd ad-Din ibn
Taymiyyah al-Hanbali, his grandfather and his Fakhr al-Din, his uncle were both
scholars of the Hanbali School of Law. His father, Shihab al-Deen Abd al-Halim ibn
Taymiyyah, served as the director of the Sukkariya madrasa and was later a chair of
the Great Mosque of Damascus (Wikipedia, 2018). Ibn Taymiyyah’s three brothers
were also known for their knowledge and excellence.

Ibn Taymiyyah’s Education

Ibn Taymiyyah received all his early education and schooling in the Sukkariya
Madrasa, Damascus. He became a Hafidh of the Quran in his early teens. He learned
Fiqh and Usool-ul-Fiqh from his father. He studied the works of Imam Hanbal, Al-
Khallal, Ibn Qudamah and his grandfather. (Wikipedia, 2018)

He studied under more than 200 scholars (al-Bazzar, 2009). He memorized the Hadith
with strict adherence to narration and athar. He had all the greatest books of
knowledge at that time recited to him numerous times, such as

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 The ‘Musnad’ of Ahmad
 The ‘Sahihs’ of al-Bukhari and Muslim
 The ‘Jami’ of at-Tirmidhi
 The ‘Sunan’ of Abu Dawood, an-Nasai, Ibn Majah and ad-Daraqtuni
 Ibn Taymiyyah studied the Arabic language and grammar under at-Tuft and
mastered the book of Arabic Grammar by Sibawayh.

“There was rarely a book in the sciences of Islam except that he would come across it,
and Allah had blessed him with an ability to quickly memorize and rarely forget. He
would hardly come across or hear something except that it would remain in his
memory, either in wording or meaning. It was as if knowledge had become infused in
his flesh, blood, and entire body.” (Al-Bazzar, 2009)

Ibn Taymiyyah even studied Math, Algebra, calligraphy, theology, philosophy, and
history. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala blessed him with such a bright mind that his
whole education was complete at 20 years of age.

Ibn Taymiyyah’s Works

Ibn Taymiyyah’s knowledge and memory were astounding. He could narrate and
quote innumerable verses, hadith, Sunnah, and incidences verbally. His works amount
to 350 according to Ibn Qayyim and 500 according to Ad-Dhahabi. (Wikipedia, 2018)

All of his works have not survived, and his work of 35 volumes is incomplete.

Ibn Taymiyyah wrote his first book at age 29, after completing Hajj, called ‘Manasik
al-Hajj’ (Rites of the Pilgrimage). It contained criticism about all the innovations he
noticed during his pilgrimage.

He wrote his second book in prison. He had been imprisoned for protesting against
Assaf al-Nasrani, a Christian cleric, who had insulted the Prophet Sallallahu Alayhi
Wasallam (Wikipedia, 2018). There, he wrote his second book, ‘as-Sarim al-Maslul
‘ala Shatim ar-Rasul’ (The Drawn Sword against those who insult the Messenger).

Ibn Taymiyyah wrote his next books in 1298. One book was about the Ayat al-
Mutashabihat. Another was ‘al-Aqeedah Al-Hamawiyyah’ (The Creed to the People
of Hama, Syria). This was in response to a question posed to him by the people of
Hama.

He wrote a similar book on request from a judge from Wasit, Iraq, called ‘al-Aqeedah
al-Waasitiyyah’ (The Creed to the People of Wasit).

During his stay in Cairo, Egypt, he was a consultant to the Sultan Al-Nasir
Muhammad regarding religious and political affairs. That’s when he wrote his next
book ‘al-Siyasa al-Sharia’ (The book of governance according to sharia).

In 1316, Ibn Taymiyyah wrote his famous work, ‘Minhaj as-Sunnah an-Nabawiyyah’
(The way of the Prophet’s Sunnah): 4 volumes. This was in retaliation for increasing
Shi’ism in Persia and Al-Hilli’s book, Minhaj al-Karamah (The way of Charisma).

Ten years later, he was declared a kaafir and imprisoned for issuing a fatwa claiming
that anyone who made a special pilgrimage to the Prophet’s mosque has innovated in

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Islam. It was his longest prison sentence. His student, Ibn Al-Qayyim, was imprisoned
with him.

During his imprisonment, he wrote three extant works

 Ar-Radd ‘ala l-Ikhna’i

 Kitab Ma’arif al-Wusul
 Raf al-Malaam
Some of his other works include:

 ‘Majmu al-Fatwa al-Kubra’ (A Great Compilation of Fatwa): 36 volumes. This

was collected centuries after his death.
 ‘Dar Ta’aruḍ al-Aql wal-Naql’ (Averting the Conflict between Reason and
Tradition):10 volumes.
 ‘Al-Asma was-Sifaat’ (Allah’s Names and Attributes): 2 volumes.
 Tafseer of Surah Ikhlas
 Commentary on the verse “The Beneficent ascended the ”
 ‘Kitaab ul-Iman’ (Book of Faith)
 ‘Naqd at-Ta’sis’ (Criticism of Incorporation)
 ‘Iqtida as-Sirat al-Mustaqim’ (Following The Straight Path)
 ‘Sharh Futuh al-Ghayb’ (Commentary on ‘Revelations of the Unseen’by Abdul-
Qadir Gilani)
 ‘Al-Furqan Bayn Awliya ar-Rahman wa Awliya ash-Shaytan’ (The Friends of
Allah and the Friends of Shaytan)
The number of his books is too huge to mention all of them.

Ibn Taymiyyah’s Life and Death

Ibn Taymiyyah lived a very simple and decent life. He was devoted to Allah in his
worship and didn’t let anything distract him from it. He made Dhikr from Fajr until
the sun rose, every day. He used to attend every Muslim funeral. His classes were
open to one and all with no discrimination.

He reacted swiftly to eradicate evil wherever he noticed it. He pioneered so

stringently for true Islam and eradication of innovations that he was imprisoned many
times by leaders of his time. They didn’t want to change their ways and felt threatened
by him.

He did not own any material wealth. His only wealth and legacy for further
generations was knowledge. Even with his controversial fame, knowledge and faithful
students, he was the most humble man to come across. He gave everyone he came
across equal respect. He never married or had a family. He had the best of manners
and never dressed extravagantly.

He was one of the bravest men to live at that time. No one was more forthcoming than
him to participate in Jihad. He was steadfast in Deen and held firm to the truth of
Islam until his last breath.

Upon his death, in prison, the whole city of Damascus had shut down, and the crowd
of people who came to attend his funeral exceeded 500,000 in number. He was
honored with one of the largest funeral prayers in history.