Ibn Hazm
Ibn Hazm | ||
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ٱبْن حَزْم | ||
Title | ||
Personal | ||
Born | 7 November 994 Zahiri | |
Creed | Independent literalist[2] | |
Main interest(s) |
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Notable work(s) |
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Occupation | ||
Patronymic (Nasab) Ibn Aḥmad ibn Saʿīd ibn Ḥazm | ٱبْن أَحْمَد بْن سَعِيد بْن حَزْم | |
Teknonymic (Kunya) | Abū Muḥammad أَبُو مُحَمَّد | |
Toponymic (Nisba) | Al-Andalusī ٱلْأَنْدَلُسِيّ | |
Muslim leader | ||
Influenced |
Ibn Hazm
Personal life
Lineage
Ibn Hazm's grandfather Sa'id and his father, Ahmad, both held high advisory positions in the court of
al-Dhahabi said: "Ali Ibn Ahmad Ibn Saeed Ibn Hazm, known for his extensive knowledge and skills, hailed from Persian origin and later became an integral figure in Andalusia, specifically in Cordoba. His notable contributions and lineage are detailed in the respected historical text 'Siyar A'lam al-Nubala.'"[12]
Upbringing
Having been raised in a politically and economically important family, Ibn Hazm mingled with people of power and influence all his life. He had access to levels of government by his adolescence that most people then would never know throughout their whole lives. Those experiences with government and politicians caused Ibn Hazm to develop a reluctant and even sad skepticism about human nature and the capacity of human beings to deceive and to oppress.[13]
His reaction was to believe that there was no refuge or truth except with an infallible God and that with men resided only corruption. He was thus known for his cynicism regarding humanity and a strong respect for the principles of language and sincerity in communication.[4]
Career
Ibn Hazm lived among the circle of the ruling hierarchy of the Caliphate of Córdoba government. His experiences produced an eager and observant attitude, and he gained an excellent education at Córdoba.
After the death of the grand vizier, al-Muzaffar, in 1008, the Caliphate of Iberia became embroiled in a civil war that lasted until 1031 and resulted in the collapse of the central authority of Córdoba and the emergence of many smaller incompetent states, the taifas.[7]
Ibn Hazm's father died in 1012. Ibn Hazm was frequently imprisoned as a suspected supporter of the Umayyads.
Contemporaries coined the saying "the tongue of Ibn Hazm was a twin brother to the sword of al-Hajjaj", an infamous 7th century general and governor of Iraq. Ibn Hazm became so frequently quoted that the phrase "Ibn Hazm said" became proverbial.[7]
As an
In 1029, both were expelled from the main mosque of Cordoba for their activities.[19]
Works
Much of Ibn Hazm's substantial body of works, which approached that of
Ibn Hazm wrote works on law and theology and over ten medical books. He called for science to be integrated into a standard curriculum. In Organization of the Sciences, he diachronically defines educational fields as stages of progressive acquisition set over a five-year curriculum, from language and exegesis of the Qur'an to the life and physical sciences to a rationalistic theology.[21]
Apart from his rational works, Ibn Hazm's
Detailed Critical Examination
In Fisal (Detailed Critical Examination), a treatise on
Jurisprudence
Perhaps Ibn Hazm's most influential work in the Arabic, selections of which have been translated into English, is now The Muhalla (المحلى بالأثار), or The Adorned Treatise. It is reported to be a summary of a much longer work, known as Al-Mujalla (المجلى). Its essential focus is on matters of jurisprudence or fiqh (فقه), but it also touches of matters of creed in its first chapter, Kitab al-Tawheed (كتاب التوحيد), whose focus is on credal matters related to monotheism and the fundamental principles of approach to divine texts. One of the main points that emerges from the masterpiece of jurisprudencial thought is that Ibn Hazm rejects analogical reasoning (qiyas قياس) in favor of direct reliance on the Quran, sunnah, and ijma.[25]
Logic
Ibn Hazm wrote the Scope of Logic, which stressed on the importance of sense perception as a source of knowledge.[26] He wrote that the "first sources of all human knowledge are the soundly used senses and the intuitions of reason, combined with a correct understanding of a language". Ibn Hazm also criticized some of the more traditionalist theologians who were opposed to the use of logic and argued that the first generations of Muslims did not rely on logic. His response was that the early Muslims had witnessed the revelation directly, but later Muslims have been exposed to contrasting beliefs and so the use of logic is necessary to preserve the true teachings of Islam.[27] The work was first republished in Arabic by Ihsan Abbas in 1959 and most recently by Abu Abd al-Rahman Ibn Aqil al-Zahiri in 2007.[28]
Ethics
In his book, In Pursuit of Virtue, Ibn Hazm had urged his readers:
Do not use your energy except for a cause more noble than yourself. Such a cause cannot be found except in Almighty God Himself: to preach the truth, to defend womanhood, to repel humiliation which your creator has not imposed upon you, to help the oppressed. Anyone who uses his energy for the sake of the vanities of the world is like someone who exchanges gemstones for gravel.[29]
Poetry
A poem or fragment of a poem by him is preserved in
- You came to me just before
- the Christians rang their bells.
- The half-moon was rising
- looking like an old man's eyebrow
- or a delicate instep.
- And although it was still night
- when you came a rainbow
- gleamed on the horizon,
- showing as many colours
- as a peacock's tail.
Medicine
Ibn Hazm's teachers in medicine included al-Zahrawi and Ibn al-Kattani, and he wrote ten medical works,[31] including Kitab fi'l-Adwiya al-mufrada mentioned by al-Dhahabi.[32]
Views
Language
In addition to his views on honesty in communication, Ibn Hazm also addressed the science of language to some degree. He viewed the
Literalism
Ibn Hazm was well known for his strict literalism and is considered the champion of the literalist Zahirite school within Sunni Islām. A commonly-cited example is his interpretation of the first half of verse 23 in the Qur'anic chapter of
Philosophy
Ibn Hazm's works lightly touched upon the traditions of Greek philosophy. Agreeing with both
The concept of absolute free will was rejected by Ibn Hazm, as he believed that all of an individual's attributes are created by God.[15]
Shia
Ibn Hazm was highly critical of the Shia.[37] He said about the sect:
The Persians possessed a great kingdom and an upper hand above all other nations. They magnified the danger they posed [to others nations] by calling themselves al-Ahrār (the free ones) and al-Asyād (the noble ones). As a result, they considered all other people their slaves. However, they were afflicted with the destruction of their empire at the hands of the Arabs whom they had considered a lesser danger among the other nations [to their empire]. Their affairs became exacerbated and their afflictions doubled as they plotted wars against Islam various times. However, in all of their plots, Allāh made the Truth manifest. They continued to plot more useful stunts. So, some of their people accepted Islām only to turn towards Shī'ism, with the claim of loving Ahl al-Bayt (the family of the Prophet) and abhorrence to the oppression against 'Alī. Then, they traversed upon this way until it led them away from the path of Guidance [Islām].[38]
Homosexuality
Ibn Hazm states in no uncertain terms that homosexual acts between men constitute a sin, since they are expressly condemned in the Quran and the Sunna.[39] [40] However, his rejection of qiyàs prevents him from assimilating liwàt to zinâ: illicit sex between a man and a woman.[41] The punishment prescribed by him is therefore not that which is incurred by zinà, viz. stoning or intensive flogging, but a milder one consisting of a maximum of ten lashes and imprisonment with the aim of bringing about the reformation of the sinner.[42] Ibn Hazm rejects those reports and traditions which proclaim that jfl qawm Lût is worse than zinà, including certain traditions from the canonical collections.[43] In the same way that male homosexuality is not assimilated to illicit heterosexual contacts, so homosexual acts between women cannot be compared to them, nor can they be compared to male homosexuality.[44] Nevertheless, sahq, like liwàt, incurs a ta^zir punishment of up to ten lashes. Whether women, too, will have to serve a term in prison, like the men, is not clear.[45]
Reception
Muslim scholars, especially those subscribing to Zahirism, have often praised Ibn Hazm for what they perceive as his knowledge and perseverance.
Modernist revival of Ibn Hazm's general critique of Islamic legal theory has seen several key moments in Arab intellectual history, including
See also
- Hazm (name)
- Miguel Asín Palacios
References
Notes
- Arabic: أَبُو مُحَمَّد عَلِيّ بْن أَحْمَد بْن سَعِيد بْن حَزْم ٱلْأَنْدَلُسِيّ)
Citations
- ^ Al-Dhahabi. Tadhkirah al-Huffaz. Vol. 3. p. 227.
- ISBN 978-0-19-969670-3.
- ^ ISBN 1-898942-02-1
- ^ a b c d e f R. Arnaldez, Ibn Ḥazm. Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Brill Online, 2013. Reference. 9 January 2013
- ^ a b "USC-MSA Compendium of Muslim Texts". Usc.edu. Archived from the original on 28 November 2008. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
- ^ a b c d Joseph A. Kechichian, A mind of his own. Gulf News: 21:30 December 20, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Fiegenbaum, J.W. "Ibn Ḥazm". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
- ^ Ibrahim Kalin, Salim Ayduz (ed.), The Oxford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Science, and Technology in Islam, Volume 1, p. 328
- ISBN 9789004097384
- al-Mansur, and his successor and son, al-Muzaffar
- ^ Britannica "Ibn Ḥazm was born into a notable family that claimed descent from a Persian client of Yazīd, the son of Muʿāwiyah, the first of the Umayyad dynasty rulers in Syria. Muslim families of Iberian (Spanish) background commonly adopted genealogies that identified them with the Arabs; some scholars, therefore, tend to favor evidence suggesting that Ibn Ḥazm was a member of a family of Iberian Christian background from Manta Līsham (west of Sevilla)."
- ^ Shamsuddeen al-Thahabi, Siyar A'lam al-Nubala, vol. 18, p. 184.
- ^ Salma Jayyusi. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1994.
- ^ Camilla Adang, This Day I have Perfected Your Religion For You: A Zahiri Conception of Religious Authority, pg. 19. Taken from Speaking for Islam: Religious Authorities in Muslim Societies". Ed. Gudrun Krämer and Sabine Schmidtke. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2006.
- ^ ISBN 9788174352880.
- ISBN 9780230106581.
Indeed, Ibn Hazm, who was an Athari scholar of the now extinct Zahirite school of law in Spain...
- ^ Bilal Orfali, "In the Shadow of Arabic: The Centrality of Language to Arab Culture." Pg. 34. Brill Publishers, 2011. Print.
- ^ Adang, "From Malikism to Shafi'ism to Zahirism: The Conversions of Ibn Hazm", p. 73-87. Conversions islamiques. Identites religieuses en Islam mediterraneen, ed. Mercedes Garcia-Arenal. Paris: 2001.
- ISBN 9789004234246
- ^ Adang, Zahiri Conceptions, p. 20.
- ISBN 0415124123
- ^ Stearns, Peter N. “Arabic Language and Literature.” In The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern World. Oxford University Press, 2008.
- Leiden University Libraries. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
- ^ Ibn Hazm, Islamic Philosophy Online.
- ^ Abdallah, Fadel I. (1985). "Notes on Ibn Hazm's Rejection of Analogy (Qiyas) in Matters of Religious Law". American Journal of Islam and Society (PDF). 2 (2): 223.
- ^ Muhammad Iqbal, The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam, "The Spirit of Muslim Culture" (cf. [1] and [2])
- ISBN 0-415-05667-5.
- ISBN 9789004234246
- ^ In Pursuit of Virtue, section under Treatment to be given to Souls, and the Reform of Vicious Characters, #9
- ISBN 978-0-87286-242-5.
- ^ Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Oliver Leaman (ed.), History of Islamic Philosophy, Routledge, 2013, p. 945
- ^ Camilla Adang, Maribel Fierro, Sabine Schmidtke (ed.), Ibn ?azm of Cordoba: The Life and Works of a Controversial Thinker, BRILL, 2012, p. 685
- ^ ISBN 9780415157575
- ISBN 9780748625703
- ^ Robert Gleave, Islam and Literalism, pg. 170.
- ISBN 9772251191
- ^ Israel Friedlaender (1908). "The Heterodoxies of the Shiites in the Presentation of Ibn Hazm" (PDF). Journal of the American Oriental Society. 29. American Oriental Society. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
- ^ Ibn Hazm, 'Ali. Kitab al-Fisal fi al-milal wa-al-ahwa' wa-al-nihal. pp. 2/273.
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Quran An-Naml (The Ants) 27:55
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Adang, Camilla. "Ibn Hazm on Homosexuality. A case of Zahiri legal methodolgy" (PDF).
- ^ Al-Waadi'i, Muqbil "Ijabat al-Sa`il fi Ahamm al-Masa`il", pg. 333
- ^ Abdullaah Nasir Rehmaani, "A Biography of Shaykh Badee-ud-Deen Shah Rashidee as-Sindhee." Trns. Abu Naasir and Abu Handhala. Prepared by al-Meezaan.com.
- ^ See:
*Maribel Fierro, "Heresy in al-Andalus". Taken from The Legacy of Muslim Spain, pg. 905. Ed. Salma Jayyusi. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 1994.
*Ibn Hazam Khilal Alf Aam. Lebanon: Dar al-Gharab al-Islami, 1982. 303 pages.
*Tahrir ba'd al-masa'il 'ala madh'hab al ashab. 1st Ed. Riyadh: Maktabat Dar al-Ulum, 1981. - ISBN 9789004234246
Sources
- The Ring of the Dove by Ibn Hazm, translation and preface by A. J. Arberry ISBN 1-898942-02-1
- al-Fasl fi al-milal wa-al-ahwa' wa-al-nihal, by Ibn Hazm. Bairut: Dar al-Jil, 1985
- Abenházam de Córdoba y su Historia crítica de las ideas religiosas vols. 1–5, by Miguel Asín Palacios. Madrid, 1928–1932
- Muslim writers on Judaism and the Hebrew Bible : from Ibn Rabban to Ibn Hazm, by ISBN 90-04-10034-2
- Ibn Hazm et la polémique islamo-chrétienne dans l´histoire de l´Islam, by Abdelilah Ljamai. Leiden: Brill, 2003. ISBN 90-04-12844-1
- Ibn Hazam Khilal Alf Aam, by Abu Abd al-Rahman Ibn Aqil al-Zahiri. Lebanon: Dar al-Gharab al-Islami, 1982. 303 pages.
- Kitab al-'axlaq wa-s-siyar ou Risala fi mudawat an-nufus wa-tahdib al-'axlaq wa-z-zuhd fi r-rada'il / Ibn Hazm al-'Andalusi; introd., éd. critique, remarques par ISBN 91-554-1048-0
- The Zahiris, Their Doctrine and Their History: a contribution to the history of Islamic theology by Ignaz Goldziher, trans. and ed. Wolfgang Behn. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1971.
- "Ibn Hazm of Cordova: on Porphyry's Isagoge", by Rafael Ramón Guerrero, in J. Meirinhos - O. Weijers (eds.): Florilegium mediaevale. Études offertes à Jacqueline Hamesse à l'occasion de son éméritat, Louvain-La-Neuve, FIDEM, 2009, pp. 525–540.
External links
- Biodata at MuslimScholars.info
- The original Arabic manuscript of Tawq Alhamama
- Global webpost Ibn Hazm and female prophethood
- Muslim Heritage Biography
- Britannica.org Encyclopædia Britannica article on Ibn Hazm
- Polemics (Muslim-Jewish), Camilla Adang, Sabine Schmidtke: Andalusi Ibn Ḥazm, who was known for his rather indiscriminate vilification of opponents, even if they were Muslims., p. 6, in "Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World", ed. Norman Stillman
- (in French) The Position of Ibn Hazm about Asharism by at-tawhid.net