[2] Imam Ibn Al-Wazir [775H] – A Truthful and Noble Scholar

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

His Upbringing, Education, and Teachers

He was raised at Al-Dhahrāwayn with his family, who prioritised the pursuit of knowledge above everything else. They dedicated their lives to learning, teaching, and writing. Inspired by them, he chose to follow their path, emulated those who came before him, followed their methodology and dedicated himself to their approach. He memorised the noble Qur’an, attained proficiency in its recitation and committed it fully to memory. He memorised the texts that are first memorised in the path of knowledge on nahu, sarf, the science of expression, clarification and meanings, fiqh, and fundamental principles; then he embarked upon studying the shorter explanations of these texts. Thereafter, he traveled to Sa’dah, where he thoroughly studied all sciences of the religion under his elder brother, Al-Allamah Al-Hadi Bin Ibraheem Al-Wazeer. He benefited a lot form him, even in the field of Arabic literature. He acquired knowldge from Al-Qadhi, Al-Allamah Muhammad ibn Hamzah ibn Muzaffar, who was renowned for his proficiency in sciences of the Arabic language, linguistics, and Tafsir. He also studied Usul Al-Fiqh under Al-Qadhi, Al-Allamah Abdullah ibn Hasan al-Dawari.

Thereafter, he traveled to Sana’a, where he acquired knowledge from Ali ibn Abi al-Khayr, Al-Qadhi Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Hanash, Shaikh Ibn Muwayh, Sayyid Jamal al-Din Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Abi al-Qasim, and other teachers.

With regards to his self-study in various sciences, it was so extensive that it cannot be completely listed. His main area of focus, to which he dedicated the energy of his youth—as mentioned by Ahmad ibn Abdullah al-Wazir in his work Al-Fada’il—was Usul al-fiqh and usul al-din. In these areas, he achieved the highest level of proficiency, thoroughly investigating, verifying, and researching them until he reached the highest level. He became familiar with the opinions of scholars in both fields to a degree that few others could match, as he mentions in his book Al-‘Awasim wa al-Qawasim, where he states in the introduction:

“I devoted the days of my youth and the years of my learning to the arduous study of Ilmul Kalam and debate, examining the doctrines of the people of misguidance until I came to understand the meaning of the saying of one who said: ‘I have wandered through all of those schools and institutions, and I have cast my gaze among all of those landmarks and doctrines. [a] The reason I chose this path and followed these ideas is that what first caught my attention and became deeply ingrained in me was the belief that reflection and independent thinking are essential. Anyone who simply imitates others in their beliefs will fall into disbelief, thus, I dedicated my sharp mind and youthful energy to this matter. I observed various groups of the proponents of theological rhetoric attempting to fix flawed doctrines and mend broken beliefs. I found no real benefit from them, thus, I recited a line of poetry based on the words of the poet: “All of them trying to heal the sick, but where can we find someone who is truly healthy and has no illness?”

An Excerpt from Al-Awasim Wal Qawasim 1/52-53

[a] This statement by Abu Abdillah Muhammad Ibn Abdil Kareem Ash-Shahrastani who complained about finding nothing among the philosophers and the people of theological rhetoric except bewilderement and regret. [Sharh Al-Aqeedah at-Tahawiyyah by Ibn Abil Izz Al-Hanafi, rahimahullah]

To be continued InShaaAllah.

May Allah bless my Salafi brother, close friend and confidant Ustaadh Abu Tasneem who narrated to me something from the biography of this truthful, steadfast, patient and great scholar, may Allah have mercy upon him, who endured much harm while defending the Sunnah of the Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.