Ibn Taymiyyah
full name: Taqi al-Din Abu al-Abbas Ahmad bin Abd al-Halim bin Abd al-Salam al-Numairi al-Harrani (661 AH - 728 AH / 1263 AD - 1328 AD), known as Ibn Taymiyyah. A prominent Islamic scholar, jurist, jurist and Hanbali jurist. He played an important role in the intellectual scene in the late seventh and early eighth centuries AH.
Early life and education:
Ibn Taymiyyah was born in 661 AH in Harran, and grew up in Damascus, where his father and grandfather were prominent Hanbali scholars. He received a comprehensive education in various Islamic sciences, including jurisprudence, theology, hadith, and the Arabic language. His scientific pursuits began at the age of seventeen, and he quickly gained a reputation as a skilled scholar and jurist.
Scientific contributions:
Ibn Taymiyyah was a staunch supporter of the Hanbali school of thought, and contributed greatly to its jurisprudential and doctrinal aspects. He engaged in scholarly debates, and often disagreed with prevailing Hanbali views when he believed them to conflict with the principles of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
Facing adversity:
Throughout his life, Ibn Taymiyyah faced imprisonment and persecution due to his firm stance on various theological issues. His clashes with political authorities and other theological schools, especially Sufism, led to multiple arrests.
The role of Ibn Taymiyyah in historical events:
Ibn Taymiyyah lived during the turbulent times of the Mongol invasions, and actively advocated resistance to these invasions. He met with Mongol leaders, such as Mahmud Ghazan, in an attempt to protect Muslim lands. He also participated in battles against various groups considered unconventional, stressing the importance of defending Islam.
Intellectual heritage:
Ibn Taymiyyah's influence extended far beyond his lifetime. His teachings and ideas resonated with later movements and thinkers, including the Wahhabi movement in the Arabian Peninsula, the works of Muhammad Rashid Rida in Egypt, and the scholars of the Indian subcontinent.
Influence on contemporary movements:
Ibn Taymiyyah's works have become fundamental to some contemporary Islamic movements, especially Salafi jihadist ideology. Figures such as Sayyid Qutb and Osama bin Laden have relied on his writings to support their ideologies, emphasizing the need for defensive jihad against perceived threats to Islam.
Birth and lineage
He was born in the city of Harran in the fertile Euphrates region. Taqi al-Din Abu al-Abbas Ahmad bin Shihab al-Din Abu al-Mahasin Abdul Halim bin Majd al-Din Abu al-Barakat Abdul Salam bin Abu Muhammad Abdullah bin. Abu Al-Qasim Al-Khader bin Muhammad bin Al-Khader (Ibn Ibrahim) bin Ali bin Abdullah Al-Harrani, known as Ibn Taymiyyah Al-Numairi Al-Harrani, and later Al-Dimashqi. His father is a Hanbali jurist, Abd al-Halim bin Taymiyyah, and his mother is Sitt al-Na`mah bint Abd al-Rahman bin Ali bin Abdos, from the Harran tribe.
Scholars have attributed him to the Arab tribe of Banu al-Nimr, as was mentioned by most historians who wrote about Ibn Taymiyyah. However, Qasim bin Yusuf al-Tajibi (died 730 AH) attributed him to the Salem tribe, and both of them are of Qaysi origin. On the other hand, Muhammad Abu Zahra mentioned that Ibn Taymiyyah was a Kurd.
It is said that the name "Ibn Taymiyyah" originated from various stories. One story indicates that his grandfather, Muhammad bin Al-Khidr, performed the Hajj with his pregnant wife. While he was on the way to Tihama, he saw a girl emerge from a hiding place. When he returned to Harran, he found that his wife had given birth to a girl. He said: Oh Taymiyyah, oh Taymiyyah. Which leads to naming. Another explanation is that his mother’s name is Taymiyyah, and she is a preacher, and the name is derived from her.
Birth and migration to Damascus
Ibn Taymiyyah was born in the city of Harran on the tenth of Rabi’ al-Awwal in the year 661 AH, or perhaps the twelfth of the same month. His father named him Ahmed Taqi al-Din when he was young. However, he became better known as Ibn Taymiyyah, a title that overshadowed his first name, and became widely known.
After the Mongols invaded, Ibn Taymiyyah's family migrated from Harran to Damascus in 667 AH. Shortly after their arrival and settlement, his father, Abd al-Halim ibn Taymiyyah, began teaching at the Umayyad Mosque and took over Dar al-Hadith al-Sukkariyya. Ibn Taymiyyah's mother, Lady of Grace, lived to an advanced age and was alive when he returned from Egypt in the year 712 AH, but she died on the twentieth of Shawwal in the year 716 AH.
Education and mentors
Ibn Taymiyyah memorized the Qur’an in his early years and advanced in studying jurisprudence, the foundations of Islam, Arabic language sciences, interpretation of the Qur’an, and other various disciplines. His father played a decisive role in teaching him Hanbali jurisprudence.
He was honored to learn from more than two hundred scholars, including: Ibn Abd al-Daim al-Maqdisi, Ibn Abi al-Yusr, al-Kamal bin Abd, Shams al-Din bin Abi Omar al-Hanbali, and Shams al-Din bin Atiya. Al-Hanafi, Jamal al-Din Yahya bin al-Sayrafi, Majd al-Din bin Asakir, al-Najib al-Muqaddam, Ahmad bin Abi al-Khair al-Haddad, al-Muslim bin Allan, Abu Bakr al-Hirawi, al-Kamal Abd al-Rahim, Fakhr al-Din bin al-Bukhari, Ibn Shayban, al-Sharaf bin al-Qawwas, Zainab bint Makki, Sitt Al-Arab Al-Kindi, Abu Muhammad bin Abdul-Qawi in Arabic, Taj Al-Rahim. -Al-Din Al-Fazari, Zain Al-Din Ibn Al-Manjah, Al-Qadi Al-Khoei, Ibn Daqiq Al-Eid, Ibn Al-Nahhas, Al-Qasim Al-Arbali, Abd Al-Halim Ibn Abd Al-Salam (his father), Sharaf Al-Din Abu Al-Abbas Ahmad Ibn Ahmad Al-Maqdisi, Jamal Al-Din Al-Baghdadi, Ibrahim Ibn Al-Darji, and Ali Ibn Balban, Youssef bin Abi Nasr Al-Shaqawi, and Abdul Rahman bin Ahmed Al-Aqousi.
Personal Biography
He began teaching in the year 683 AH/1284 AD. Ibn Taymiyyah began teaching and issuing fatwas when he was seventeen years old. At the same time, he began his writing endeavors. The scholar Kamal al-Din Ahmad bin Nima al-Maqdisi was one of those who authorized Ibn Taymiyyah to issue fatwas. Historians have documented that Al-Maqdisi was proud to allow Ibn Taymiyyah to issue religious beliefs.
When Ibn Taymiyyah was 22 years old, his father, Abdul Halim bin Taymiyyah, died in the year 682 AH. This event led to a major vacuum in the teaching leadership at Dar Al-Hadith Al-Sukkariyya. His son, Ahmed bin Taymiyyah, succeeded him on the second of Muharram in the year 683 AH. Many scholars attended Ibn Taymiyyah's first lecture, expressing their admiration for his teaching style. Among the prominent attendees: Bahaa al-Din ibn al-Zaki al-Shafi’i, Taj al-Din al-Fazari, Zayn al-Din ibn al-Marahil, Zain al-Din ibn al-Munji al-Hanbali, and some Hanafi scholars. .
In addition to teaching at Dar al-Hadith al-Sukkariyya, Ibn Taymiyyah assumed responsibility for teaching Hanbali jurisprudence in the Hanbali school of thought, succeeding Zain al-Din ibn al-Munji al-Hanbali. But because of his many travels between the Levant and Egypt, and his interest in fighting the Tatars and preparing people to confront them, he eventually gave up his teaching position in the Hanbali school of thought. He began teaching there on the tenth of Shaban in the year 695 AH and left the position to Shams al-Din bin al-Fakhr al-Baalbaki after a long period.
Despite Ibn Taymiyyah’s travels and commitments, he resumed teaching in Dar al-Hadith al-Sukkariyya and the Hanbali school of thought upon his return to Damascus in 712 AH, after an absence that lasted more than seven years.
Teaching style
Ibn Taymiyyah's teaching sessions were characterized by a unique style. Before starting his lessons, he would pray two rak'ahs, thank God, and pray for the Prophet. His lectures began with the material he had memorized. During the sessions, he would close his eyes when narrating hadiths. He integrated the approaches of the commentators with jurisprudence, hadith, language, and reasoning, by referring to Qur’anic sources and Sunnah.
His education extended beyond Dar al-Hadith al-Sukkariyya to the Umayyad Mosque, where he conducted interpretation of the Qur’an after Friday prayers. Ibn Taymiyyah's teaching style won the admiration of scholars, which enhanced his influence and recognition as a prominent Islamic scholar of his time.