Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) wrote a chapter in his monumental work, “al-Ṣawāʿiq al-Mursalah”, a refutation of the Jahmites and their offshoots:[1]
Chapter Twenty-Four: Mentioning the Four Ṭaghūts By Which the People of False Taʾwīl Have Destroyed the Strongholds of the Religion and By Which They Have Violated the Sanctity of the Qurʾān And Have Erased the Affairs of Imān:
He explained:
And they are:
a) Their saying that the speech of Allāh and the speech of His Messenger are only spoken evidences which do not amount to knowledge, and nor can certainty be acquired through them.
b) That the verses related to the Attributes and the ḥadīths related to the Attributes are allegorical and do not have any reality behind them.
c) Their saying that the narrations from Allāh’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم), those that are authentic, which are reported by trustworthy, reliable, upright narrators, and which the Ummah has taken with acceptance, that they do not amount to knowledge, rather that they amount to conjecture only.[2]
d) Their saying that when the intellect contradicts the texts of revelation, then we take the intellect and we do not turn to the revelation.
So these then are four ṭāghūts.
And these (ṭāghūts) are ones that have done to Islām whatever they have done [of destruction and distortion], and these [ṭāghūts] are the ones who have erased the affairs of Islām, have put an end to its signposts, have destroyed its foundations, and have removed the sanctity of the texts (of revelation) from the hearts, and have laid down the path of revilement (of these texts) for every zindeeq (heretic) and mulhid (deviating heretic).
So one [of them] does not seek evidence by way of the Book or the Sunnah, except that he recourses to a ṭāghūt from amongst these ṭāghūts, holds onto it, and takes it as a shield, in order to prevent from the path of Allāh.
Yet Allāh by his power and ability, and his favour and excellence, has destroyed these ṭāghūts, one ṭāghūt at a time, upon the tongues of His Messengers and the Inheritors of the Prophets. So never have the Helpers of Allāh and His Messenger ceased to cry out against the adherents to these [ṭāghūts] in all parts of the earth, or to strike them with the blazing meteors of revelation, and sound evidences. And we will now devote some speech to them, ṭāghūt by ṭāghūt.
Notes
01 Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) is speaking of the Jahmites and their offshoots, such as the Muʿtazilites and Ashʾarites who built their creed on the back of Greek metaphysics, the philosophical terminology and baggage of Aristotle, Plato, Democritus and their likes and ended up with what is called “negative theology”, entailing the negation of Allāh’s Names and Attributes, to varying degrees.
The Jahmites, being most consistent, negated everything and as for their offshoots, they affirmed some and negated others without any uniform consistent valid principle. As such they fell into the most apparent contradictions and sophistry.
02 They tried to prove Allāh’s existence through flawed arguments or false premises using that baggage, and then in order to remain consistent, to validate the proof, they had to negate what is in the revealed texts of affirmation of attributes for Allāh.
03 To this end, they began to invent foundations and principles to prop up this false doctrine, enabling thereby to fight against the People of the Sunnah.
04 These principles are summarised as:
- That reason is primary and has precedence over revealed evidences and texts upon the claim that the revealed texts are nothing but reports (akhbār) containing no rationalities, and which themselves require reason for them to be validated and proven authentic. Hence, reason is the judge.
- Claiming that the texts of the attributes, which falsify their false doctrine based on speculative philosophy, are nothing but allegories and are not indicative of existent realities.
- Casting doubt upon the reports through which the religion has been conveyed to the ummah by the Prophet’s Companions, comprising both beliefs and rulings, and claiming that they amount to conjecture and speculative knowleldge only, and that certain knowledge lies in their application of reason.
- That when the intellect (through which they negate Allāh’s attributes) contradicts revelation (which affirms attributes for Allāh), then it is the intellect that takes precedence.
It is the way of the People of Innovations and Misguidance to invent principles in religion from their corrupt intellects, through distortion and misinterpretation of texts in order to justify their innovation, out of bigotry and partisanship.
Allāh (عز وجل), from His wisdom, decreed for these people to exist to enable the People of the Sunnah to continue upon the path of the Prophets and Messengers in validating and establishing truth whilst invalidating falsehood, by aiding His revealed Books and sent Messengers through correct interpretations coupled with sound reason and sound arguments.
Arabic Text:
Footnotes
1. Al-Ṣawāʿiq al-Mursalah (2/632).2. This is the very same taghūt that the Ikhwāni Innovator, Abū al-Ḥasan al-Miṣrī tried to revive in contemporary times, when he indulged in pastimes and toyed with fancies concerning this subject.
