A Brief Study of the Treatise
Assessing the Soundness of Attributing the Treatise to Ibn al-Qayyim
This treatise was attributed to Ibn al-Qayyim by the esteemed Shaykh Bakr Abu Zayd (1), and no one before him is known to have done so. It would seem, therefore, that he relied on the ascription that appears on the first page of the manuscript itself.
To verify whether the attribution is correct, one must compare the method followed in this treatise with Ibn al-Qayyim’s established methodology in his authenticated works, examine its passages alongside passages from his books, and set some of its turns of phrase against his own characteristic expressions. What follows is an outline of that comparison.
First: A comparison between the methodology of the treatise and that found in Ibn al-Qayyim’s recognized works
Several contemporary researchers have written about Ibn al-Qayyim’s method and literary style, identifying a number of approaches he adopted in both composition and investigation. The most relevant of these will be listed here, together with a comparison to what is found in the present treatise.
- A distinctive feature of his method is reliance on proofs from the Qur’an and the Sunnah (2). This trait appears plainly in the treatise, both in practice and in explicit statement. Practically, it is evident in many places; as for explicit wording, he says—when discussing the foundational principles contained in verse 24 of—