Hidden Gems – Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī by Shaykh Faheem
Name: Abul Hassan bin Ismā’īl bin Abī Bishr Is’hāq bin Sālim bin Ismā’īl bin Abdullāh bin Mūsā ibn Amīr Al-Basrah Bilāl bin Abī Burdah bin AS’HĀBI RASūLILLĀH Abī Mūsā Al-Ash’arī[1]
Title: Imām Al-Mutakallimīn – Leader of the Theologians
Date of Birth / Date of Demise– 260 AH[2] (874 CE) / 324 AH (936 CE).
Region – Basra, Baghdad
Synopsis intro – Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī t was an Arab Sunnī scholar who hailed from Basra, Irāq and who lived during the Abbāsid era. His is hailed as one of the Mujaddids of the 3rd century. His works and positions on the highly debated issues during that age led many to adopt and adhere to his creedal standpoints that later merged into the orthodox Sunnī position. Those who adopted his theological positions came to be known as ‘Ash’arīs’, and with the Māturīdīs, represent the orthodox Sunnī position as majority in creed.
Teachers – Abū Alī Al-Jubbā’ī, Zakariyyā As-Sājī, Sahal bin Nūh
Brief Bio – Born in Basra during the Abbāsid era, Imām Abul Hassan Al-Ash’arī twas a descendent of the famed companion of the Noble Messenger ﷺ, Sayydunā Abū Mūsā Al-Ash’arī . Historians opine that his aristocratic background allowed for him to pursue and focus on studying. The Abbāsid regime was infiltrated by the Mu’tazilites, a schism from the Muslims who preferred reason over revelation when deducing matters. The great Imām was thus exposed to the doctrines of the Mu’tazlites and grew up in adherence to their school. His teacher was the then-leader of the Mu’tazlites, Abū Alī Al-Jubbā’ī who was fond his sharp-intellect. Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī remained in adherence to the Mu’tazlite school until the age of forty. His debate with his teacher is renowned and exhibits the fallacies of the Mu’tazilite school.
Debate with Abū Alī Al-Jubbā’ī – Imām Abull Hasan Al-Ash`ari said to his teacher, Abū Alī Al-Jubbā’ī:
Imām Al’Ash’arī – “What do you say regarding three brothers, one of whom dies whilst he had been obedient unto Allāh ﷻ, the other dies whilst he had been disobedient unto Allāh ﷻ, and the third dies as an infant?”
Al-Jubbā’ī responded: “The first will be rewarded with Jannah. The second will be punished in Jahannam. The third will neither be rewarded nor punished.”
Imām al-Ash`arī asked him, “What if the third, who died as an infant, says to Allāh ﷻ: “O Allāh, why did You cause me to die as an infant and not let me grow up so that I could have believed in You and thus entered Jannah?” What will Allāh ﷻ say?”
Al-Jubbā’ī responded: “Allāh ﷻ will say to him: “I knew that had you grown up, you would have been disobedient and thus would have entered the fire of Jahannam, so it was best for you to have died as an infant.”
Imām al-Ash`arī asked him, “What if the second one says: “O Allāh, why did You not let me also pass away as an infant, so that I would not have been disobedient and thus would not have entered the fire of Jahannam?”
Al-Jubbā’ī had no answer.
After that, Imām al-Ash`arī abandoned him and abandoned the mazh-hub of the Mu`tazilah, and he and those with him devoted their time and energy to refuting the views and arguments of the Mu`tazilah sect, establishing that which has reached us from the Sunnah of Rasūlullāh ﷺ as well as what the Sahābah were upon (in creed), and thus they were named: “Ahlus- Sunnah wal-Jamā`ah” (The People of the Sunnah and the Group, i.e. the Sahaabah).[3]
Afterwards, Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī began to refute the Mu’tazilah school and openly refuted the positions propagated by his former teacher as well. His refutations against them is believed to have been the beginning point for the destruction of the Mu’tazlite school.
His use of Ilm-al-Kalām (rational theology)[4] was firm in refutation of the Rawāfidh, the Khawārij, the Jahmīs, and many other innovators in creed.[5]
The great Imām settled in Baghdād till the end of his mundane life where his mausoleum remains today.
Legacy – His teachings soon became prevalent as a representation of the orthodox creed of Islām. Eventually his personal appellation of ‘Al-Ash’arī’ came to be the recognized name as the true creed that stood out against heterodoxic views that emerged. To this day, hundreds and millions of Muslims attribute the Ash’arī creed as their inclination of belief. In general, those who are adherents to the Shāfa’ī school of jurisprudence align themselves to the Ash’arī creed and with that, the Māturīdī creed makes up for the majority of the Muslim world.
Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī t has thus been counted as a Mujaddid (Reviver of the Faith)[6] of the third century (along with Ibn Shurayh Ash-Shāfa’ī) by many scholars such as Imām Jalāluddīn As-Suyūtī t in his poem discussing the renovators of the religion. The list can be found in the poem titled, التنبئة بمن يبعث الله على رأس كل مائة
Scholars who adhered to the Ash’arī position – The famous scholars to have adopted the Ash’arī creed were, Abul Hasan Al-Bāhilī, Imām Abū Bakr Al-Bāqillānī,Imā Abū Nu’aym Isfāhānī, Imām Al-Bayhaqī, Al-Khatīb Al-Baghdādī, Abdul Qāahir Al-Jurjānī, Imām Rāghib Al-Isfāhānī, Imām Yahyā bin Sharaf An-Nawāwī, Al-Hāfizh Ibn Asākir, Tājuddīn As-Subkī, Taqiyyuddīn As-Subkī, Imām Al-Juwainī, Imām Abū Hāmid Al-Ghazzālī, Imām Fakhruddīn Ar-Rāzī, Ibn Al-Jazarī and many more. A list of the names of the scholars from the various fiqh backgrounds can be viewed online.
Works – Scholars have differed at how many works were written by the great Imām. They differ between 55 up to even 300.
Maqālāt Al-Islāmiyyīn wa Ikhtilāf Al-Musallīn (Discourses of the Proponents of Islām and the Disagreements Among the Worshippers) – Encyclopedic, this work is an examination of deviated sects and an investigation into beliefs via Ilm-Al-Kalām.
Al-Luma’ Fir-Radd alā Ahliz-Zaygh wal-Bid’ah – (The Sparks: A Refutation of Heretics and Innovators). Although concise, it was comprehensive in analysis. It was followed by another two works Al-Luma’ Al-Kabīr and As-Saghīr which was a Major and Minor connected to the first.
Adab al-Jadal (The Etiquette of Disputation) – a work on the art of debate and disputation.
Another work of his, which has since been disputed in its attribution to him is, ‘Kitāb Al-Ibānah an-Usūl Ad-Diyānah.’
Al-Jism (The Body) – A refutation against the Mu’tazilites on corporeality that contradicted the Ahlus-Sunnah.
Al-Mukhtasar Fit-Tawhīd Wal-Qadr (The Abridgment – on the Doctrine of Oneness and Destiny) – a review of the variant opposing views on the subject that contradicted the Ahlus Sunnah.
Conclusion – Imām Abul Hasan Al-Ash’arī was indeed a gem of immense wisdom, though in our own fervour to focus on scholars in and around our own circles, we have forgotten the works and efforts of these giants. May Allāh benefit us through his knowledge, Āmīn.
[1] Siyaru A’lāmin Nubalā by Al-Hāfizh Al-Imām Azh-Zhahabī t
[2] Some opine 270 AH
[3] Introduction to Sharhu Aqā’id An-Nasafī by Imām Sa’duddīn At-Taftāzānī t.
[4] Initially the scholars forbade the use of philosophy, particularly of Aristotelian logic and many other Greek works. Eventually many of the maxims and premises were amended to suit the laws of Islāmic thinking and was thereafter utilized in defence of Islāmic principles. This came to be known as Ilmul-Kalām (rational / scholastic theology).
[5] See Tārīkh Baghdād by Allāmah Khatīb Baghdādī no.6189
[6] The concept of a Mujaddid is derived from the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad stating that every century God Almighty will send one who will revive the teachings of the religion. See Sunan Abū Dāūd, Hadīth 4291
