The removal of blame from the great Imams, livre ebook

The Removal of Blame from the Great Imāms is an annotated translation of Ibn Taymiyyah's classical jurisprudential treatise Rafʿ al-Malām ʿAn al-Aʾimmah al-Aʿlām. This foundational text in Islamic legal theory examines the methodological basis for scholarly disagreement among mujtahid jurists.

Taqiuddin Ibn Taymiyyah (661–728 AH / 1263–1328 CE), a distinguished medieval Ḥanbalī scholar, systematically identifies ten reasons why equally qualified jurists arrive at divergent legal conclusions despite shared commitment to Qurʾān and Sunnah. The work addresses core issues in uṣūl al-fiqh: hadith authentication, textual interpretation, reconciliation of conflicting evidence, and the ethical application of legal rulings.

Essential for academic collections in Islamic studies, this translation by Abdul Hakim al-Matroudi provides critical insights into the epistemological and methodological foundations of classical Islamic jurisprudence. The work demonstrates how the legal tradition balances textual authority with recognition of legitimate interpretative diversity, offering scholars a rigorous model of juristic reasoning and ethical restraint.

Suitable for graduate-level courses, research libraries, and scholars examining legal theory, religious authority, and comparative jurisprudence.

From the opening discourse of The Removal of Blame from the Great Imāms:

"It should not be said that the hadiths have all been documented and compiled and therefore it is unlikely that they would have been unknown. This is because the well-known collections of Hadith were compiled after the demise of the Imāms who are followed (may Allah have mercy on them all). Also, it is not acceptable to claim that the hadiths of the Prophet (peace be on him) are limited to those found in the specific collections of Hadith. Moreover, even if this were to be the case, not everything in these collections would be known by a single scholar, and this is highly unlikely to be the case with any person; indeed it is possible that a scholar might possess a large number of collections of Hadith and yet not be aware of all of the hadiths contained within them. In fact, those who came before the emergence of these Hadith collections were by far more knowledgeable in the Sunnah than those who came after them. This is because a large part of the Sunnah that had reached them and had been authenticated by them might not have reached us except through unknown transmitters or a severed chain of narration or might not have reached us at all."

—Taqiuddin Ibn Taymiyyah, Rafʿ al-Malām ʿAn al-Aʾimmah al-Aʿlām

Introduction (by Abdul Hakim al-Matroudi)

Biographical Context

• Ibn Taymiyyah's Life and Historical Setting (661–728 AH / 1263–1328 CE)
• The Mamluk Era: Political Fragmentation and Legal Disputes
• Contemporary Perspectives on Ibn Taymiyyah's Scholarship

Distinctive Features of Ibn Taymiyyah's Jurisprudence

• Mastery of Hadith Sciences and Legal Theory
• Position on Legal Imitation (taqlid) and Independent Reasoning (ijtihad)
• Balance Between Textual Fidelity and Methodological Sophistication

Overview of Raf' al-Malam

• Purpose and Scope of the Treatise
• Central Arguments and Methodological Approach
• Significance for Understanding Juristic Disagreement

The Removal of Blame from the Great Imams

Raf' al-Malam 'An al-A'immah al-A'lam (Translation)

Opening Discourse

• The Nature of Juristic Disagreement
• Why Divergent Opinions Do Not Constitute Error
• The Role of Revelation and Methodological Principles

The Ten Reasons for Scholarly Differences

Reason One: Non-Transmission of Hadith

• Hadith reaching some scholars but not others
• Historical limitations of hadith compilation
• Distinction between early and later scholars' access to prophetic traditions

Reason Two: Doubts Regarding Authenticity

• Variations in assessing transmitter reliability
• Interrupted (munqati') versus continuous (muttasil) chains
• Standards for accepting or rejecting narrations

Reason Three: Conflicting Assessments of Hadith Weakness

• Scholarly disagreement on transmitter credibility
• Science of narrator criticism ('ilm al-rijal)
• Regional variations in hadith authentication (Hijazi vs. 'Iraqi traditions)

Reason Four: Conditional Acceptance of Solitary Reports

• Standards for accepting ahad (single-chain) hadith
• Requirements for corroboration or juristic expertise
• Criteria for widespread narration (tawatur)

Reason Five: Forgetfulness of Hadith

• Examples from the Companions (Sahabah)
• 'Umar ibn al-Khattab and cases of forgotten textual knowledge
• Human limitations in retention of prophetic tradition

Reason Six: Misunderstanding Textual Implications

• Unfamiliar (gharib) terminology in hadith
• Dialectical variations and linguistic interpretation
• Examples: muzabanah, mukhabarah, ighlaq

Reason Seven: Belief That Text Lacks Specific Implication

• Disagreement over hermeneutical principles
• General ('amm) versus specified (khass) texts
• Inferential meaning (mafhum) and its validity

Reason Eight: Belief in Textual Opposition

• Apparent conflict between general and specific evidence
• Reconciliation of absolute (mutlaq) and qualified (muqayyad) texts
• Preference (tarjih) between competing evidences

Reason Nine: Belief in Countervailing Evidence

• Opposition from Qur'anic verses, other hadith, or consensus
• Principles of abrogation (naskh)
• Interpretative strategies for resolving conflict

Reason Ten: Belief in Abrogation of the Hadith

• Determining chronological sequence of revelation
• Distinguishing Makkan from Madinan texts
• Criteria for establishing abrogated versus abrogating texts

Application to Hadiths Containing Legal Threats

The Nature of Prophetic Warnings

• Verses and hadith containing censure (la'n) or punishment
• Conditions for applicability of legal threats
• Impediments preventing individual attribution

Examples of Scholarly Disagreement on Prohibitions

• Surplus interest (riba al-fadl) and deferred exchange (riba al-nasi'ah)
• Intoxicants (khamr) and nabidh
• Hair extensions, silver vessels, and other disputed matters
• Historical conflicts: Battles of al-Jamal and Siffin

Ethical Framework for Applying Legal Rulings

• Distinction between establishing prohibition and attributing culpability
• Role of repentance, good deeds, and divine mercy
• Avoiding singling out individuals for censure

Scholarly Positions on Threatened Punishments

• Majority view: single divine ruling with excused error
• Alternative view: contextual permissibility for those with valid interpretation
• Semantic versus substantive disagreement

Conclusion

Obligation to Act Upon Prophetic Texts

• Affirming hadith authority in areas of disagreement
• Rejecting abandonment of Sunnah due to scholarly variance
• Balance between textual commitment and ethical restraint

The Path of Moderation

• Avoiding extremes: neither Khariji rigorism nor total relativism
• Following the straight path (al-sirat al-mustaqim)
• Comprehensive adherence to Qur'an and Sunnah

Closing Supplications

• Prayer for divine guidance
• Blessings upon the Prophet, his family, and Companions