Scholars Archive

His Noble Ancestry Imam Al-‘Ash^ariyy, whose full name was Abu l-Hasan ^Aliyy, was born in 260 AH in the Iraqi city of Basra. Hailing originally from Yemen, his ancestor, ‘Abu Musa ^Abdu l-Lah fils de Qays Al-‘Ash^ariyy, was a revered companion of the Messenger of Allah. Praised for his piety and wisdom, Abu Musa possessed the qualifications required to issue fatwas and was renowned for having one of the most beautiful voices in Qur'anic recitation. Abu Musa emigrated to Abyssinia with his two brothers and Ja^far Ibnu ‘Abi Talib before joining the Messenger of Allah…

Abu Mansur, whose full name was Muhammad, son of Muhammad, son of Mahmud, was born in Maturid, a region of Samarkand located north of the river Jayhun.

The esteemed jurist Abu Bakr Muhammad ibnu t-Tayyib Ibnu Muhammad Ibnu Ja^far Ibnu l-Qasim Al-Baqillaniyy was born in the year 338 of the Hegira, as noted by the author of the directory "Mu^jamu l-mu’allifin".  Hailing originally from Al-Basrahh, he later migrated to Baghdad, where he made his residence.

Allah is attributed with all proper perfection. He is clear of any imperfection. That is, He is clear of all that which do not befit Him such as ignorance, powerlessness, place, space, colour and limit. Imam ^Aliyy, May Allah raise his rank said: “'Allah created the throne (ceiling of paradise: al-^Arsh ) to show his Power and did not take it as a place for Himself'. Imam Abu Mansur al-Baghdadiyy mentioned that statement in his book “Al-farqu bayna l-firaq” after he had conveyed the consensus about clearing Allah of places and limits.

He was named Ahmad, son of ^Aliyy, son of Muhammad, son of Muhammad, son of ^Aliyy, son of Ahmad of the tribe of Kinanah. Originally from ^Asqalan [west of Jerusalem], but Egyptian by birth and a follower of the Shafi^iyy school, he was, like his forebears, nicknamed Ibnu Hajar after the clan of Hajar that populated the south of Biledulgerid in the territory of Gabès [now in Tunisia].

He was Imam ^Abdu l- Malik, son of ^Abdu l-Lah, son of Yucuf, son of Muhammad Al-Juwayniyy, An-Naysaburiyy, denoting his origins from Juwayn, his native village situated in the region of Naysabur. He received his education in the Shafi^iyy school of jurisprudence and adhered to the Sunni ‘Ash^ariyy creed. He earned the esteemed title "Imam of the Two Sacred Places," referring to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. He was also known as ’Abu l- Ma^aliyy  and by his honorific title, Diya’u d-Din. He was a distinguished and eloquent scholar, an expert in the principles of faith, and an expe…

He is the distinguished Imam, the jurist, the specialist in Prophetic Tradition, the expert in the foundations of faith, the learned scholar, the ascetic, the pious, Shaykh 'Abu Bakr 'Ahmad Ibnu l-Husayn Ibni ^Aliyy Ibni ^Abdi l-Lah Ibni Musa Al-Bayhaqiyy Al-Khusrawjirdiyy.

Qadi ^Iyad was of the ‘Ash^ariyy creed; his books are filled with expressions of transcendence and the negation of any resemblance between Allah, the Exalted and His creation. He affirmed for Allah the attributes of perfection and magnified Him with expressions of reverence.

Malikite scholars have consistently adhered to the belief of tanzih, meaning Allah's exemption from any attribute of creatures, such as place, direction, or 'how'. Al-Baqillaniyy Qadi Abu Bakr Muhammad Al-Baqil-laniyy Al-Malikiyy Al-‘Ash^ariyy  (d. 403 AH) stated in "Al-‘Insaf fima yajibu-^tiqaduhu wa la yajuzu l-jahlu bih" (p. 65): "The Throne is not a locus of establishment or a site for Allah, because Allah ta^ala eternally exists, and no place exists eternally. After creating places, He did not deviate from what He is from eternity." Al-Baqillaniyy also stated in "A…