Imam Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī’s (d. 974 AH) Fatwa on the Ḥanbalī Creed: Distinguishing Between Imam Aḥmad’s Position and Later Interpretations, with Analysis of al-Jīlānī’s al-Ghunya and Response to Ibn Taymiyya
This fatwa addresses the interpretation of divine attributes [ṣifāt] in Ḥanbalī theology, specifically defending Imam Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal’s position on divine transcendence against later anthropomorphist interpretations. Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī systematically argues that Imam Aḥmad’s true doctrine of divine attributes [ṣifāt] aligned with mainstream Sunni theology’s emphasis on absolute divine transcendence, rejecting any attribution of direction [jiha] or corporeality [jismiyya] to Allah.
The text addresses three main points:
- The distinction between Imam Aḥmad’s authentic position on divine attributes [ṣifāt] and later misinterpretations
- A critique of Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya’s interpretations of these attributes [ṣifāt]
- A defense of ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī from accusations of anthropomorphism, arguing that problematic passages in his Al-Ghunya were later interpolations
Ibn Ḥajar emphasizes that any attribution of anthropomorphic interpretations of divine attributes [ṣifāt] to Imam Aḥmad is a fabrication, citing Abū al-Faraj ibn al-Jawzī’s scholarly verification of this matter. The fatwa concludes by warning against the dangers of anthropomorphic interpretation of divine attributes [ṣifāt], positioning such views as potential deviations from orthodox Islamic theology.
٢١١ – وَسُئِلَ ونفعنا بِهِ: فِي عقائد الْحَنَابِلَة مَا لَا يخفى على شرِيف علمكُم، فَهَل عقيدة الإِمَام أَحْمد بن حَنْبَل كعقائدهم؟
211 – He was asked – may Allah benefit us through him: Regarding the beliefs of the Ḥanbalīs, which are not hidden from your noble knowledge, are the beliefs of Imam Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal the same as their beliefs?
فَأجَاب بقوله: عقيدة إِمَام السّنة أَحْمد بن حَنْبَل ﵁ وأرضاه وَجعل جنان المعارف متقلَّبه ومأواه وأفاض علينا وَعَلِيهِ من سوابغ إمتنانه وبوأه الفردوس الْأَعْلَى من جنانه، مُوَافقَة لعقيدة أهل السّنة وَالْجَمَاعَة من الْمُبَالغَة التَّامَّة فِي تَنْزِيه الله تَعَالَى عَمَّا يَقُول الظَّالِمُونَ والجاحدون علوا كَبِيرا من الْجِهَة والجسمية وَغَيرهمَا من سَائِر سمات النَّقْص، بل وَعَن كل وَصْف لَيْسَ فِيهِ كَمَال مُطلق
He responded by saying: The belief of the Imam of the Sunnah, Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal – may Allah be pleased with him, make the gardens of knowledge his dwelling and abode, shower upon us and him abundant favours, and grant him the highest Paradise from His gardens – corresponds to the belief of the People of the Sunna and Community (Ahlus Sunna wa’l Jama’a) in their complete dedication to declaring Allah the Exalted far above what the oppressors and deniers claim, far elevated above direction [jiha], corporeality [jismiyya], and other such attributes of imperfection. Rather, He is above every attribute that does not entail absolute perfection.
وَمَا اشْتهر بَين جهلة المنسوبين إِلَى هَذَا الإِمَام الْأَعْظَم الْمُجْتَهد من أَنه قَائِل بِشَيْء من الْجِهَة أَو نَحْوهَا فكذب وبُهتان وافتراء عَلَيْهِ، فلعن الله من نسب ذَلِك إِلَيْهِ، أَو رَمَاه بِشَيْء من هَذِه المثالب الَّتِي برَّأه الله مِنْهَا، وَقد بَين الْحَافِظ الْحجَّة الْقدْوَة الإِمَام أَبُو الْفرج بن الْجَوْزِيّ من أَئِمَّة مذْهبه المبرئِّين من هَذِه الوصمة القبيحة الشنيعة، أنَّ كل مَا نسب إِلَيْهِ من ذَلِك كذب عَلَيْهِ وافتراء وبهتان وَأَن نصوصه صَرِيحَة فِي بطلَان ذَلِك وتنزيه الله تَعَالَى عَنهُ فَاعْلَم ذَلِك فَإِنَّهُ مُهِمّ.
And what has become famous among the ignorant ones who associate themselves with this great scholarly Imam that he spoke of direction or similar matters is a lie, slander, and fabrication against him. May Allah curse whoever attributes such things to him or accuses him of any of these faults from which Allah has exonerated him. The authoritative, exemplary scholar Imam Abū al-Faraj ibn al-Jawzī (d. 597 AH), one of the leading scholars of his school who are free from this ugly, reprehensible blemish, has clarified that everything attributed to him of this nature is a lie against him, a fabrication and slander, and that his explicit texts demonstrate the invalidity of this and declare Allah the Exalted far above it – so know this, for it is important.
وَإِيَّاك أنْ تصغى إِلَى مَا فِي كتب ابْن تَيْمِية وتلميذه ابْن قيم الجوزية وَغَيرهمَا مِمَّن اتخذ إلهه هَوَاهُ وأضله الله على علم وَختم على سَمعه وَقَلبه وَجعل على بَصَره غشاوة فَمن يهديه من بعد الله، وَكَيف تجَاوز هَؤُلَاءِ الْمُلْحِدُونَ الْحُدُود، وتعدوا الرسوم وخرقوا سياج الشَّرِيعَة والحقيقة، فظنوا بذلك أَنهم على هدى من رَبهم وَلَيْسوا كَذَلِك، بل هم على أَسْوَأ الضلال وأقبح الْخِصَال وأبلغ المَقَّتْ والخسران وأنهى الْكَذِب والبهتان فخذل الله متَّبِعهم وطهر الأَرْض من أمثالهم.
Beware of listening to what is in the books of Ibn Taymiyya and his student Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya and others who have taken their desires as their god, whom Allah has led astray despite their knowledge, sealed their hearing and hearts, and placed a covering over their sight – so who can guide them after Allah? How these heretics have transgressed the boundaries, violated the principles, and torn apart the fence of the law [Sharīʿa] and reality [ḥaqīqa], thinking they are upon guidance from their Lord when they are not. Rather, they are upon the worst misguidance, the ugliest characteristics, the most intense divine wrath and loss, and the ultimate in lying and slander. May Allah abandon their followers and purify the earth of their likes.
وَإِيَّاك أَن تغتر أَيْضا بِمَا وَقع فِي [الغُنْية] لإِمَام العارفين وقطب الْإِسْلَام وَالْمُسْلِمين الْأُسْتَاذ عبد الْقَادِر الجيلاني، فَإِنَّهُ دسَّه عَلَيْهِ فِيهَا مَنْ سينتقم اللَّهُ مِنْهُ وَإِلَّا فَهُوَ برىء من ذَلِك وَكَيف تُروَّج عَلَيْهِ هَذِه الْمَسْأَلَة الْوَاهِيَة مَعَ تضَّلُعه من الْكتاب وَالسّنة وَفقه الشَّافِعِيَّة والحنابلة حَتَّى كَانَ يُفْتِي على المذهبين
Also beware of being deceived by what appears in [al-Ghunya] by the Imam of the gnostics and pole of Islam and Muslims, the master ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī, for it was interpolated into it by one from whom Allah will take vengeance, otherwise he is innocent of it. How could this weak matter be attributed to him given his mastery of the Book and Sunna and the jurisprudence of both the Shāfiʿīs and Ḥanbalīs, to the extent that he would issue legal opinions according to both schools?
هَذَا مَعَ مَا انضْم لذَلِك من أَن الله منّ عَلَيْهِ من المعارف والخوارق الظَّاهِرَة والباطنة وَمَا أنبأ عَنهُ مَا ظهر عَلَيْهِ وتواتر من أَحْوَاله، وَمِنْه مَا حَكَاهُ اليافعي ﵀ وَقَالَ: مِمَّا علمناه بالسند الصَّحِيح الْمُتَّصِل أَن الشَّيْخ عبد الْقَادِر الجيلاني أكل دجَاجَة ثمَّ لما لم يبْق غير الْعظم توجه إِلَى الله فِي إحيائها فأحياها الله إِلَيْهِ وَقَامَت تجْرِي بَين يَدَيْهِ كَمَا كَانَت قبل ذَبحهَا وطبخها
This is in addition to what Allah bestowed upon him of spiritual knowledge [maʿārif] and manifest and hidden supernatural acts, and what was reported about him and became widely transmitted of his states. Among these is what al-Yāfiʿī – may Allah have mercy on him – narrated, saying: “Among what we know through an authentic, connected chain is that Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī ate a chicken, then when only the bones remained, he turned to Allah seeking its revival. Allah brought it back to life for him, and it stood running before him as it had been before its slaughter and cooking.”
فَمن امتَّن الله عَلَيْهِ بِمثل هَذِه الكرامات الباهرة يتَصَوَّر أَو يتَوَهَّم أَنه قَائِل بِتِلْكَ القبائح الَّتِي لَا يصدر مثلهَا إِلَّا عَن الْيَهُود وأمثالهم مِمَّن استحكم فِيهِ الْجَهْل بِاللَّه وَصِفَاته وَمَا يجب لَهُ وَمَا يجوز وَمَا يَسْتَحِيل: ﴿سُبْحَانَكَ هَاذَا بُهْتَانٌ عَظِيمٌ﴾ [النُّور: ١٧، ١٨]
So how can one whom Allah has favoured with such dazzling miracles [karāmāt] be imagined or supposed to have spoken such repugnant things that only emanate from the Jews and their like, from those in whom ignorance of Allah, His attributes, and what is necessary, possible, and impossible for Him has become entrenched? “Glory be to You (O Allah), this is a great slander” [Sūrat al-Nūr: 17, 18]
وَمِمَّا يقطع بِهِ كل عَاقل أَن الشَّيْخ عبد الْقَادِر لم يكن غافلًا عَمَّا فِي (رِسَالَة الْقشيرِي) الَّتِي سَارَتْ بهَا الركْبَان واشتهرت بَين سَائِر الْمُسلمين سِيمَا أهل التَّحْقِيق والعِرْفان، وَإِذا لم يجهل ذَلِك فَكيف يتوَّهم فِيهِ هَذِه القبيحة الشنيعة، وفيهَا عَن بعض رجالها أَئِمَّة الْقَوْم السالمين عَن كل مَحْذُور ولوم أَنه قَالَ: كَانَ فِي نَفسِي شَيْء من حَدِيث الْجِهَة فَلَمَّا زَالَ ذَلِك عني كتبتُ إِلَى أَصْحَابنَا إِنِّي قد أسلمت الْآن
Moreover, every person of intellect can be certain that Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir was not unaware of what is in the Risāla al-Qushayriyya, which travelled with the caravans and became famous among all Muslims, especially the people of verification [taḥqīq] and gnosis [ʿirfān]. And if he was not ignorant of that, how could this ugly, reprehensible matter be imagined of him? In it, one of its men – from among the leaders of the people who are free from every objection and blame – said: “I had something in myself regarding the matter of direction [jiha], but when that left me, I wrote to our companions saying that I have now truly submitted to Islam.”
فَتَأمل ذَلِك واعتن بِهِ لَعَلَّك توفق للحق إِن شَاءَ الله تَعَالَى وتجري على سنَن الاسْتقَامَة، وَلم نعلم أحدا من فُقَهَاء الشَّافِعِيَّة ابتلى بِهَذَا الإعتقاد الْفَاسِد الْقَبِيح الَّذِي رُبمَا أدّى إِلَى الْكفْر وَالْعِيَاذ بِاللَّه إِلَّا مَا نقل على العمراني صَاحب الْبَيَان وَلَعَلَّه كُذِب عَلَيْهِ، أَو أَنه تَابَ مِنْهُ قبل مَوته بِدَلِيل أَن الله تَعَالَى نفع بكتبه شرقًا وغربًا، ومَنْ على ذَلِك الإعتقاد لَا ينفع الله بِشَيْء من آثاره غَالِبا.
So reflect upon this and take care with it – perhaps you will be guided to the truth, if Allah the Exalted wills, and proceed upon the path of uprightness. We do not know of anyone from the Shāfiʿī jurists who was afflicted with this corrupt, repugnant belief that might lead to unbelief [kufr] – and we seek refuge in Allah – except what has been transmitted about al-ʿImrānī, the author of al-Bayān, and perhaps it was falsely attributed to him, or he repented from it before his death, evidenced by the fact that Allah the Exalted has made his books beneficial in both east and west. And one who holds such a belief, Allah generally does not make any of his works beneficial.
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Source: The Ḥadīth-Related Legal Opinions [Al-Fatāwā al-Ḥadīthiyya, p. 144, see here – https://app.turath.io/book/1922?page=143]Author: Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī
