Abu Al-Abbass Al-Qurtubi (d. 656 A.H.) on the Regret of Some Mutakallimun

It is common to observe individuals on social media deriding those who raise the issue of Mutakallimun regretting engaging in kalam, treating it as an absurd and unworthy claim. The question of who among the Mutakallimun regretted engaging in ‘Ilmul Kalam and to what extent is a topic that necessitates a separate article. Yet, one need not be an opponent of the kalami theological schools in order to concede that some Mutakallimun did indeed regret engaging in ‘Ilm al-Kalam.

Although Abu Al-Abbass Al-Qurtubi was not a fervent and impassioned adherent of the Ash’ari school, he was nonetheless aligned with Ash’ari theology. [1] Despite this, he expressed the following in his commentary on Saheeh Muslim, Al-Mufham:

وقد رجع كثير من أئمة المتكلمين عن الكلام بعد انقضاء أعمار مديدة، وآماد بعيدة، لما لطف الله تعالى بهم، وأظهر لهم آياته، وباطن برهانه، فمنهم: إمام المتكلمين أبو المعالي، فقد حكى عنه الثقات أنه قال: لقد خليت أهل الإسلام وعلومهم، وركبت البحر الأعظم، وغصت في الذي نهوا عنه، كل ذلك رغبة في طلب الحق، وهربا من التقليد، والآن فقد رجعت عن الكل إلى كلمة الحق، عليكم بدين العجائز، وأختم عاقبة أمري عند الرحيل بكلمة الإخلاص، والويل لابن الجويني. وكان يقول لأصحابه: يا أصحابنا لا تشتغلوا بالكلام، فلو عرفت أن الكلام يبلغ بي ما بلغ ما تشاغلت به

وقال أحمد بن سنان: كان الوليد بن أبان الكرابيسي، خالي، فلما حضرته الوفاة قال لبنيه: تعلمون أحدا أعلم مني؟ قالوا: لا، قال: فتتهموني؟ قالوا: لا، قال: فإني أوصيكم، أفتقبلون؟ قالوا: نعم. قال: عليكم بما عليه أصحاب الحديث، فإني رأيت الحق معهم. وقال أبو الوفا بن عقيل: لقد بالغت في الأصول طول عمري، ثم عدت القهقرى إلى مذهب المكتب

قلت: وهذا الشهرستاني صاحب نهاية الإقدام في علم الكلام وصف حاله فيما وصل إليه من الكلام وما ناله، فتمثل بما قاله

لعمري لقد طفت المعاهد كلها ... وصيرت طرفي بين تلك المعالم
فلم أر إلا واضعا كف حائر ... على ذقن أو قارعا سن نادم

ثم قال: عليكم بدين العجائز؛ فإنَّه أسنى الجوائز

قلت: ولو لم يكن في الكلام شيء يذم به إلا مسألتان هما من مبادئه، لكان حقيقا بالذم، وجديرا بالترك

إحداهما: قول طائفة منهم: إن أول الواجبات الشك في الله تعالى
والثانية: قول جماعة منهم: إن من لم يعرف الله تعالى بالطرق التي طرقوها، والأبحاث التي حرروها، فلا يصح إيمانه، وهو كافر

فيلزمهم على هذا تكفير أكثر المسلمين من السلف الماضين، وأئمة المسلمين، وأن من يبدأ بتكفيره أباه وأسلافه وجيرانه، وقد أورد على بعضهم هذا، فقال: لا يشنع علي بكثرة أهل النار

Many of the leading Mutakallimin have abandoned kalam after many long years, due to Allah’s grace and showing them His signs and the inner truths of His evidence. Among these scholars is the leader of the Mutakallimin, Abu al-Maʿali (Al-Juwayni). Trustworthy sources have reported that he said: "I left the people of Islam and their sciences and embarked upon the vast ocean, delving into what they had forbidden, all in pursuit of truth and to avoid blind imitation. Now I have returned to the word of truth: adhere to the religion of the elderly. I end my journey with the word of sincerity. Woe to the son of Juwayni." He would also tell his students: "O my companions, do not engage in kalam. If I had known that kalam would lead me to where it has, I would never have occupied myself with it."

Ahmad ibn Sinan said: "Al-Walid ibn Aban al-Karabisi was my maternal uncle. When he was on his deathbed, he said to his sons: 'Do you know anyone more knowledgeable than me?' They replied: 'No.' He asked: 'Do you suspect me of any falsehood?' They replied: 'No.' He then said: 'I advise you, will you accept?' They said: 'Yes.' He said: 'Adhere to what the scholars of hadith uphold, for I have found the truth to be with them.'"

Abu al-Wafa ibn ʿAqil said: "I delved deeply into Usul throughout my life, then eventually returned to the madhab of those who write down hadith and are occupied with it."

I say: And here is Al-Shahrastani, the author of Nihayat al-Iqdam fi 'Ilm al-Kalam, describing his state and what he achieved in ‘Ilm al-Kalam. He expressed his feelings with the following:

'Indeed, I have traversed all the places of learning, And I have directed my gaze upon those landmarks. But I have seen only a perplexed individual with his hand on his chin, Or one grinding his teeth in regret.'"

Then he said: "Adhere to the religion of the elderly; for it is the most splendid of rewards."

I say: Even if there were nothing in kalam to criticize except for two issues, which are among its fundamental principles, it would be sufficient grounds for criticism and justifiable to abandon it.

One of these issues is the statement by a group of them that the first obligation is to doubt the existence of Allah Almighty.

The second issue is the claim by another group that whoever does not come to know Allah through the methods they have devised and the inquiries they have refined, his Iman is invalid, and he is considered a disbeliever.

As a result, they are compelled to declare most Muslims of the past generations, including the leading scholars of Islam, as disbelievers. This implies that one should begin by declaring his own father, ancestors, and neighbors as disbelievers. When this objection was raised to one of them, he replied: "The large number of people in Hell does not discredit me."

Recommended Reading:

Allah's Divine Attributes Discourse

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[1] See: Dr. Abdullah ar-Rumayyan, Aaraa’ al-Qurtubi wal-Mazari al-‘Itiqadiyyah min Khilal Sharhayhima li-Saheeh Muslim, vol. 1, pp. 116-117