Man Chooses his Destiny: Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyas views on predestination

The Hanbalite scholar Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350) discussed predestination and free will in his book Shifā' al-alīl fī masā 'il al-qaḍā' wa-al-qadar wa-al-ḥikma wa-al-talīl . Even though Ibn Qayyim was a traditionalist, he did not reject the teachings of the speculative theol...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
Main Author: Perho, Irmeli (Author)
Format: Electronic/Print Article
Language:English
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Published: Routledge [2001]
In: Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
Online Access: Volltext (doi)
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Summary:The Hanbalite scholar Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350) discussed predestination and free will in his book Shifā' al-alīl fī masā 'il al-qaḍā' wa-al-qadar wa-al-ḥikma wa-al-talīl . Even though Ibn Qayyim was a traditionalist, he did not reject the teachings of the speculative theologians, but was willing to study their opinions and accept those that were in accordance with the Qur'ān and Sunna. Ibn Qayyim's open-mindedness illustrates his effort to exceed the boundaries of the schools and create doctrines for the whole Sunnī community. Regarding predestination, the correct Sunnī belief was neither determinism nor belief in free will. It was a compromise between these two extremes, a true middle road ( al-madhhab al-wasat ). This belief acknowledges God's omnipotence and the predestination of man's acts, but at the same time considers man as a responsible actor. Man exercises his choice ( ikhtiyār ) and will ( irāda ), and then carries out ( fa'ala ) his actions. The book Shifā' is devoted to explaining how it is possible to combine these two apparently contradictory views.
ISSN:0959-6410
Contains:Enthalten in: Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/09596410124404