Ibn Qudamah

Imam Mawaffaq ad-Din Abdullah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Qudama al-Maqdisi (Arabic ابن قدامة Ibn Qudamah) (Born 1147 - Died 7 July 1223) was a noted Hanbali ascetic, jurisconsult and traditionalist theologian. He authored many treatises on jurisprudence and doctrine, including one of the most celebrated encyclopaedic books on Hanbali jurisprudence al-Mughni, as well as Tahrim an-Nazar (Censure of Speculative Theology, criticism of Ibn Aqil's views.) He was a member of the school founded by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, and he is considered as one of its greatest scholars, and also called Sheikh al-Islam.

He was Muwaffaq al-Din Abu Muhammad 'Abd Allah Ibn Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Qudamah Ibn Miqdam Ibn Nasr Ibn 'Abdillaah al-Maqdisee (موفق الدين أبو محمد عبد الله بن أحمد بن قدامة بن مقدام من ذرية سالم بن عمر بن الخطاب العدوي القرشي المقدسي).

Early life

He was born in Palestine in Jammain in 1147AD/541AH. He received the first phase of his education in Damascus where he studied the Qur'an and hadith.

He left Palestine with his maternal cousin, 'Abd al-Ghani, for Baghdad in 561AH where he was received by the leading Hanbali of the day, the celebrated mystic Abdul-Qadir Gilani. He later received the Khirqa from him and passed it onto another Hanbali, his cousin Ibrahim ibn 'Abd al-Wahid. As a consequence of his experience with Abdul-Qadir al-Jilani, Ibn Qudama was to receive a special place in his heart for mystics and mysticism.

He studied with the following scholars of his time:

• Abdul-Qadir Gilani (Baghdad)
• Abi al-Makarim ibn Hilal (Syria)
• Abi al-Fadl at-Tusi (Iraq)
• Al-Mubarak ibn at-Tabbakh (Mecca)

Death

In later life, Ibn Qudamah left Damascus to join Saladin in his expedition against the Franks in 1187AD / 573AH, participating particularly in Saladin's conquest of Jerusalem. He died on Saturday, the Day of Eed-ul Fitr on 7 July 1223 AD / 620 AH.

Ibn Qudamah was considered one of the primary proponents of the Athari school of Aqidah. In line with this school he held the view that the Divine attributes should be believed in simply as they are without applying much reason to expand upon them. He said:

"For we have no need to know the meaning which Allah intended by His attributes; no course of action is intended by them, nor is there any obligation attached to them except to believe in them. It is possible to believe in them without the knowledge of their intended sense."

• Waines, David (2003). An Introduction to Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 122. ISBN 0521539064. 

His works are thought to number more than a few dozen. Amongst his printed works are:

On Fiqh:

• Al-'Umdah
• Al-Muqni'
• Al-Kaafi
• Al-Mughni

On 'Aqeedah:

• Lum'at-ul-'Itiqaad: translated by Saladin Publishing ISBN 978-0-9564214-0-1
• Al-Qadar
• Dhamm-ut-Ta'weel
• al-Uloow

On Usool-ul-Fiqh:

• Raudat-un-Naadhir

On Sufism:

• Al-Ruqqah wal-Bukaa
• At-Tawwaabeen

On Hadith:

• Mukhtasar 'Ilal-ul-Hadith Lil-Khilaal

• Ikhtiyarat Ibn Qudamah al-Fiqhiyyah’ By Dr. `Ali ibn Sa`eed al-Ghamidi
• Makdisi, George (1971). The Hanbali School and Sufism. Leiden: Actas IV Congresso de Estudos Arabes e Islamicos. p. 118.