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Topic: The Reality of Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam, the Extreme Soofee, Ash'aree, Reviler of Ahlus-Sunnah
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 Moosaa
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Member
Posts: 1280
Joined: Sep 2002
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An Important Clarification
Regarding Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam As-Sulamee
the Extreme Soofee, Ash'aree, Reviler of Ahlus-Sunnah
(soon to be published on Bakkah.net, in shaa' Allaah)
Introduction
In the Name of Allaah, the Most Merciful, may His Salaah and Salaam be upon the Final Messenger. To proceed:
A little over two years ago, I came across a booklet in 'Arabic called Bidaayatus-Suwal fee Tafdheel Ar-Rasool (The Superiority of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam, as formerly found on Bakkah.net) by Al-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam. Since it had been printed along with comments from Shaykh Muhammad Naasir Ad-Deen Al-Albaanee, I felt it was worthy of being translated, especially due to his statement:
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"I found a short missive called Bidaayatus-Sool fee Tafdheelir-Rasool by Al-Imaam Al-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam As-Sulamee, the great Shaafi'ee scholar of Damascus, well known by the title Sultaanul-'Ulamaa' (the Authoritative Leader of the Scholars). So I devoted myself to its careful examination and study, indeed a very precise and scrutinizing study was needed. It then became clear to me that it was a priceless piece of work, something to be extremely beneficial for this Ummah for many reasons."
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At that time I was not aware of the reality of this man, Al-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam. After hearing our scholars begin to warn against him, clarifying that he was not from Ahlus-Sunnah at all, in fact he was a bitter enemy of the scholars of the Sunnah, and then reading what the brother, Khaalid Ath-Thufayree, had gathered about him, I felt it incumbent on me to write something in English to clarify his affair, especially since it was I who introduced him to many of the English speaking Muslims by way of the aforementioned translation and its placement on www.Bakkah.net
I pray that Allaah allows this clarification to reach open hearts, and may He grant us all clarity and insight?
Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam was an Extreme Soofee
He studied under two well-known Soofee shaykhs in his time, Shihaab Ad-Deen As-Sahroorudee and Abul-Hasan Ash-Shaathilee. Furthermore, he praised the speech of Ash-Shaathilee, and he would wear the Soofee cloak that was specific to the followers of As-Sahroorudee. [1]
Ath-Thahabee said:
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"Qutb Ad-Deen said: He used to like hearing funny stories and poetry, and he used to attend chanting circles and dance ." [2]
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So indeed he was a Soofee, having studied under Soofees, worn their special clothes, attended their specific chanting and dancing circles, and praised their speech. Furthermore, let us take a look at what Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam said in his own book:
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"From the kinds of knowledge Allaah bestows on the Prophets and pious worshippers: Divine knowledge that allows him to see what is in the (people's) hearts, and thus he is able to see unseen affairs the likes of which are unheard of. He will also be able to smell and feel things, and he will attain knowledge of different spheres of the Creation by his heart, like how Ibraaheem saw all the dominions of the heavens and the earth. Some of them see angels, devils, and faraway places. Some even see what is beneath the earth, and others see distant galaxies and planets with their suns and moons, just as they are. Some of them see Al-Lawh Al-Mahfooth (the Preserved Tablet) and they can read what is in it. One of them even heard the scribbling of the pens and the voices of the angels and Jinns. One of them was able to understand the language of the birds?" [3]
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This is clearly the speech of an extreme Soofee, not a man from Ahlus-Sunnah. Furthermore, look at his revilement of the scholars as he compares them to the Soofees:
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"How can the 'Aarifoon (a word used to refer to dedicated Soofees) be compared to the Fuqahaa' (Fiqh scholars)? The 'Aarifoon are the best of the Creation and the most mindful of Allaah. Allaah, the Glorified and Exalted, has said, ( Verily the most honorable of you with Allaah are the ones with the most taqwaa ), and He has praised them in His Book, calling them muttaqoon, more than He has praised the rest of His Creation. And as for His Statement, ( Verily those who (truly) fear Allaah from amongst His Servants are the 'ulamaa' ), then the intended meaning is the 'Aarifoon, those who know Him, His Attributes, and His Actions, not those who know His Legislation. So it is not permissible to apply this Verse to the scholars of legislation, since the vast majority of them have no fear (of Allaah)?" [4]
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Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam was an Ash'aree
Ash'arees are a people who twist the texts of the Book and the Sunnah until they explain away all of Allaah's Attributes except seven. [5] This was the belief of Al-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam.
Al-'Izz himself said, after denying that Allaah has a real Hand, and explaining it away as power and authority:
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"And as for the one who says that he believes in these texts as the Salaf did (meaning that he affirms the Attributes), then verily he has lied. For how could he believe in something he does not understand, nor does he know the meaning of? To speak like this (meaning to explain the Hand as power) is not a blameworthy innovation, rather it is a praiseworthy innovation, an obligatory one due to the doubts that have spread?" [6]
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This is exactly the position of the Ash'arees. He also denied that the Qur'aan is the Speech of Allaah, claiming that it is only a reference to the Speech of Allaah, and that Allaah speaks with no letters or sounds. He said:
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"How strange is it that someone claims that the Qur'aan is made up of letters and sounds!" [7]
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Furthermore, he was asked about people who believe that Allaah is actually above His Throne, while He is everywhere by way of His Knowledge, which is the belief of Ahlus-Sunnah. He replied:
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"The apparent meaning of what Ibn Abee Zayd (the fourth century Maalikee scholar who held the correct beliefs referred to in the question) mentioned is that it is a claim that Allaah has a position, since he has made a distinction between His Presence above the Throne and His Presence with His Creation. So the base rule on the one who believes in a position, is that he has not left Islaam, since the scholars of Islaam have not put them out of Islaam, rather they ruled that they can inherit from the Muslims, be buried in their graveyards, have their blood and money honored, and they must be prayed over, like the rest of the leaders (literally "lords") of innovation?" [8]
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So he called those who believe that Allaah is above His Throne "Arbaab Al-Bida'", literally: the lords of innovation.
Furthermore, Shaykh Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah said
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"So it is to be said to those Jahmiyyah Kulaabiyyah, like Aboo Muhammad (Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam) and those like him: How can you claim to be upon the way of the Salaf, when the essence of the what Salaf were upon was being in agreement with the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam??" [9]
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Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam Reviled the People of the Sunnah
The first proof for this has preceded, that he said that the 'Aarifoon are not comparable to the Fuqahaa, claiming that the vast majority of them have no fear of Allaah.
Furthermore, regarding those who affirm all of Allaah's Attributes, like His Hand and His Face, he said:
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"The Hashawiyyah (those who place padding inside of dolls) and the Mushabbahah, those that claim that Allaah is like His Creation are of two types: The first type are those who have no problem openly proclaiming their hashw (meaning their claim that Allaah is like His Creation); The second type are those who hide under the math-hab of the Salaf?" [10]
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The Ash'arees have always claimed that Ahlus-Sunnah are Mushab-bihah and Mujassimah (those who liken Allaah to His Creation), so this is not shocking, however his labeling them with Hashawiyyah, that they are stuffing or putting the padding in dolls by way of their affirmation of the Attributes is a disgusting insult, showing his sheer animosity for Ahlus-Sunnah.
His extreme hatred for the people of the Sunnah even lead him to turn the ruler away from the 'Aqeedah of the Salaf, and instill in him hatred for Ahlus-Sunnah and a desire to punish them. He wrote to the ruler, Al-Ashraf, who had been upon the 'Aqeedah of Ahlus-Sunnah:
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"That which we believe about the ruler is that if the Truth becomes clear to him, then he must return to it (intending the Ash'aree beliefs), and he must punish those who spilled falsehood upon him, for verily he is most deserving of being in accordance with his father, the ruler, King Al-'Aadil, may Allaah cover him in His Mercy and Pleasure, for verily he had chastised a group of the innovative Hambalees with an extreme and exemplary reprimand, and he declared them to be innovators and disgraced them?" [11]
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And thus Al-Ashraf turned to the way of the Ash'arees. He also caused another ruler, Al-Kaamil, to disgrace the people of the Sunnah as well. [12]
Shaykh Al-Islaam's Position on Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam
Khaalid Ath-Thufayree said:
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"Throughout his refutations of Al-'Izz, Shaykh Al-Islaam Ibn Taymiyyah described him with a number of things. From them:
1) His lack of knowledge of the statements of the people of the Sunnah, and those of the people of innovation. (Al-Fataawaa 4/153)
2) Most of the companions of Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam outwardly showed their contradiction to the Salaf in affairs of Eemaan and ta'weel. (Al-Fataawaa 4/156)
3) He described Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam and those like him as being "Jahmiyyah Kulaabiyyah." (Al-Fataawaa 4/158)
4) Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam and those like him have taken the path of the criminals who have claimed that the Messenger did not convey the Truth with regards to Tawheed, nor did he exemplify the affair for the people within his own practice. Rather, he showed the people that which is in contradiction to the Truth. And the Truth is either that which he hid, or either that which he was not knowledgeable of. (Al-Fataawaa 4/195)" [13]
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Conclusion
I hope that Allaah grants success to this attempt to clarify the reality of Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam, the extreme Soofee, Ash'aree, and reviler of Ahlus-Sunnah.
This clarification is necessary since certain callers to innovation claiming Salafiyyah are trying to boost the status of Al-'Izz until they have made him comparable to the great imaams of Ahlus-Sunnah! So know that this fitnah is on its way to the English speaking Muslims, if it has not already found its way there.
For those of you who can read 'Arabic, then I highly recommend that you refer to the book by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree: Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam wa Mawqif Shaykh Al-Islaam Minhu. It is available from the Sahab forum at the following URL:
http://www.sahab.org/books/book.php?id=150
I anticipate that some people may have some questions or concerns about what has been presented, thus I have prepared replies to two questions:
Q1: What about Al-Albaanee's praise of Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam, that he was a great Shaafi'ee scholar, and so on?
A1: I posed this question to Shaykh 'Ubayd Al-Jaabiree, who replied:
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"As for Shaykh Al-Albaanee's praise for Al-'Izz, then we will apply our principle, that detailed criticism takes precedence over general praise. The shaykh was not aware of the criticism against him, so he was only speaking based on what he knew. And as Imaam Maalik said, 'Everyone can have their statements accepted or rejected, except the occupant of this grave,' meaning the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam."
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Q2: Why are some people upset about those who speak against Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam?
A2: Well, there are different types of people who dislike this clarification for different reasons, so this answer requires us to look at each group and why they dislike it:
1) Muslims who do not like refutations in general, due to their ignorance of the manhaj of the Salaf and the importance of clarifying the truth for the people.
2) Soofees, since Al-'Izz was a Soofee, and they hate that Ahlus-Sunnah have discovered his true orientation and have exposed him.
3) Ash'arees, since Al-'Izz was an Ash'aree, and like the Soofees and the rest of the people of desires, they hate that Ahlus-Sunnah have discovered his true orientation and have exposed him.
4) Followers of groups like Al-Ikhwaan Al-Muslimoon, Surooriyyah, and Qutbiyyah. They dislike refutations in general due to their innovated principle of Muwaazanaat. They hate this refutation specifically since they believe that Al-'Izz used to publicly rebuke the leaders, thus becoming a great imaam in their eyes.
5) More specifically, followers of Salmaan Al-'Awdah, since he specifically has tried to include Al-'Izz from the imaams of Ahlus-Sunnah, even placing him on the level of Imaam Ahmad. So shedding light to the deviation of Al-'Izz exposes more of the errors of Salmaan Al-'Awdah, thus further enraging his followers.
And Allaah knows best.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Husn Al-Muhaadharah (1/273) of As-Suyootee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.6).
[2] Al-'Ibar (3/299) of Ath-Thahabee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.6).
[3] Qawaa'id Al-Ahkaam (p.102) of Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam, Mu'assasatu-Rayyaan printing, 1419.
[4] Fataawaa Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.242), Mu'assasatur-Risaalah, 1416.
[5] Fur further discussion of the Ash'arees and the sources of their beliefs, refer to the excellent book of our Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih Al-'Uthaymeen, Exemplary Foundations, which has been published in English by our brothers at TROID.
[6] Fataawaa Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.456), Mu'assasatur-Risaalah, 1416.
[7] At-Tabaqaat Ash-Shaafi'iyyah (8/224) of As-Subkee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.5). Indeed Allaah does speak with sounds and letters, as occurs in the authentic narrations, "Then Allaah will call out with a voice?" and "Whoever reads a single letter from the Book of Allaah, then he will have ten rewards?" To deny this is to deny the basic meaning of speech itself.
[8] Fataawaa Al-'Izz Ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.287), Mu'assasatur-Risaalah, 1416.
[9] Majmoo' Al-Fataawaa (4/158-159).
[10] At-Tabaqaat Ash-Shaafi'iyyah (8/222) of As-Subkee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.9).
[11] At-Tabaqaat Ash-Shaafi'iyyah (8/230) of As-Subkee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.10).
[12] Refer to At-Tabaqaat Ash-Shaafi'iyyah (8/238-239) of As-Subkee, as quoted by Khaalid Ath-Thufayree in Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.10).
[13] Haqeeqatul-'Izz ibn 'Abdis-Salaam (p.3-4) of Khaalid Ath-Thufayree.
Moosaa Richardson
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سبحانك اللهم وبحمدك
أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت
أستغفرك وأتوب إليك
This message was edited by Moosaa on 8-9-03 @ 2:08 PM
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| Moosaa
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Member
Posts: 1280
Joined: Sep 2002
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| Umm.Rizqin.Rosinah
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Member
Posts: 69
Joined: Mar 2005
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Assalamualaykum Warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
is Izzudeen Abdul Aziz bin Abdus Salaam ( the one who called ibn arabi a kaafir)the same person as above?
I can still find some fatawaa/sayings/quotes by al 'izz Abdis Salaam in many salafi websites. So what is the advise on this ?
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| ummmusa88
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Member
Posts: 260
Joined: Sep 2008
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asalamu alaikum,
does this mean that we should not read the Bidaayat us-Sool...? it has a lot
of footnotes by shaykh Al Albaanee and if there were any mistakes, i think he
pointed them out...
and Allah knows best
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09-08-2003 @ 1:31 PM
06-08-2010 @ 5:00 PM