Imam Ibn ʿAṭiyyah
Name: Abū Muḥammad ʿAbd al-Ḥaq ibn Ghālib ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Ghālib ibn ʿAbd al-Raʾūf ibn Tamām ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Tamām ibn ʿAṭiyyah ibn Khālid ibn ʿAṭiyyah al-Muḥāribī.
Born: 481 AH/ 1088 CE
Demise: 541/1147
His Life and Works
His Life
Ibn ʿAṭiyyah was born in Granada, during the reign of the Murābiṭūn two years after the battle of al-Zallāqah.[1] He was raised in a house of knowledge and piety and began his quest of the Islamic sciences at a young age. Ibn ʿAṭiyyah’s father, a proficient scholar in fiqh and ḥadīth, held the post of qāḍī in Granada, which attested to his high status. As a child, Ibn ʿAṭiyyah often saw scholars visiting his father’s house to study under his guidance.
The period he lived in was one of jihad as the Muslims were at warwith the Christians. Ibn ʿAṭiyyah himself participated in numerous battles against the Christians. Despite the political turmoil of the time, the Murābiṭūn provided significant support to scholars, which greatly assisted Ibn ʿAṭiyyah in his quest for knowledge.
He travelled extensively throughout al-Andalus, covering its length and breadth to quench his thirst for knowledge and would always seek to obtain ijāzah from any visiting scholar. For several years, he held the post of qāḍi, following in the footsteps of his father. He was a Mālikī in fiqh and Ashʿarī in ʿaqīdah.
He passed away in the year 541/1147 in the Castle of Lorca. May Allah have mercy on the Imam and grant him the highest stages in Jannah. Āmīn.
Praise of the Author
Ibn ʿAṭiyyah has been commended for his mastery of the Arabic language, intelligence, and profound knowledge of the Qurʾān.
Imam al-Dhahabī (d. 748/1348) said regarding him:
وكان إماماً في الفقه، وفي التفسير، وفي العربية، قوي المشاركة، ذكياً فطناً مدركاً، من أوعية العلم
He was a leader in jurisprudence, in exegesis, and in the Arabic language, possessing extensive expertise, intelligent, astute, and deeply knowledgeable, among the vessels of knowledge.
Imam al-Suyūṭī (d. 910/1505) quoted regarding him:
قال ابن الزبير: كان فقيها جليلا، عارفا بالأحكام والحديث والتفسير، نحويا لغويا أديبا، بارعا شاعرا مفيدا، ضابطا سنيا، فاضلا من بيت علم وجلالة، غاية في توقد الذهن وحسن الفهم وجلالة التصرف،… وولي قضاء المرية، يتوخى الحق والعدل. وألف: تفسير القرآن العظيم – وهو أصدق شاهد له بإمامته في العربية وغيرها.
Ibn al-Zubayr said: “He was a distinguished jurist, knowledgeable in legal rulings, narrations and exegesis, proficient in Arabic grammar and rhetoric, eloquent, skilful as a poet, benefitting everyone. He was precise and revered, distinguished (coming from a) house of knowledge and dignity. He possessed an exceptional sharpness of mind, excellent comprehension, and dignified conduct… He was appointed as the judge of Almería, always pursuing truth and justice. He authored an exegesis of the Noble Qurʾān, which is the most truthful testimony to his leadership in Arabic and other sciences.”
His Works
Ibn ʿAṭiyyah does not appear to have been a prolific author. The only known printed works attributed to him are:
- Al-Muḥarrar al-wajīz — tafsīr
- Fihrist shuyūkh Ibn ʿAṭiyyah —ṭabaqāt
[1] The Battle of Sagrajas (Zallāqah) was fought on 4 Dhū al-Ḥijjah 427/ 23 October 1086, between the Murābiṭūn army of Yusuf ibn Tāshfīn (d. 500/1106) and the Castilian army of Alfonso VI. The Murābiṭūn were called to fight by the ṭāʾifahs, a group of Muslim kingdoms that had been fighting each other but had united to oppose the Christian states to the north. The ṭāʾifahs provided troops to the Murābiṭūn, who were victorious in the battle. The battlefield was later named al-Zallāqah [slippery ground] because of the tremendous amount of blood that was shed there. It was an extremely decisive battle as this was the last stronghold of the Muslims in al-Andalus.