Sheikh al Akbar Muhayyudeen ibn Arabi

M

Mohamed Shah Qadri

sunniport user
I have opened this thread to discuss the great Sheikh Ibn arabi. There is not much reliable information about the sheikh and in the ummah there is a mixed response towards him. He is praised by great ulema yet also criticised by others (ie Ibn Hajar Al asqalani and Mullah Ali Qari). In Hind he was championed by great luminaries like Pir Mehr Ali Shah. Unfortunately ,like Moulana Rumi Raheemullah, ibn arabi is paraded by Orientalists who have minute knowledge of the vastness of tasawuf. One such organization is the Ibn Arabi society. Insha allah i hope we can use this thread to gain authentic knowledge about this great sheikh, his life, karamats, books, Philosophy, predictions and understand the controversy that surrounds him.


A lecture by Sheikh Muhammed Yaseen on Ibn arabi :
 
Unfortunately neither the detractors of Shaykh Al Akbar be it among the Ulama-e-Kiram nor the proponents hailing from anglosphere are to be given "much" attention to, expect to learn how one dubiously unsheathes metaphysics or lashes criticism without ever experiences it (to the same degree) themselves; as is the case of both parties. As for our respected scholars , they are to be respected and for their veracity in upholding orthodoxy, but we are not to give praise in their failure in comprehension (from the lack of spiritual wayfaring). Rather, we acknowledge that they were rash to judge on this matter. Where as you have the Illustrious Awliya who have all the right to unveil the reality and or expound the err's as they have been given the mantel of divine love [they have tasted the Ahwal, traveled the Manazil, and reached the Maqamaat] and among his compeers. Despite this, it is worth reading what the ingenious among the disingenuous(-neosufis) have to say, as they do bring to lights the often overlooked aspects surrounding Shaykh Al Akbar's life.
 
YaMustafa said:

Lecture by Maulana Syed Mukhtar Shah Naeemi
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Salam, this video has been edited very badly but at 1.55.20 it says "yehi tou problem hai, data mushkil kusha ya kisi ko mabood manana, shirk shirk ki awaz aaee"

Was this a mistake or have I misunderstood the word mabood or the whole debate?
 
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Follow up on Mukhtar Shah's 'kisi ko mabood manana'

He says ibn Arabi's tawheed was so great the ordinary group are not upto this level "farmaya Uluhiyat sifat mai shirkat tau aap ne shirk kaha tum logon ne, wujud tau be Allah ta'ala ki wo sifat hai Jo aine zaat hai... Tau mustakil zaat Jo hai wo tau Allah ta'ala ki hai, tau khalis tawheed Jo wo hai sirf ibn Arabi samje"

In plain English you people have called association/mixing with the attribute of Uluhiyat (divinity) as shirk (disbelief) , but wajood (presence) is also from the main attributes. The only necessary presence is Allah so ibn Arabi best understood tawheed (Allah's Oneness)



It seems less likely his usage of the word mabood was a slip of the tongue. His whole argument is something like that


Protection is sought with Allah


Shaykh Hisham on the other hand says wahda tul wujud is Shirk but Ibn Arabi didn't say that (it was assumed or inferred from his writings)

 
The Famous Qaseeda Babu Hadi...it's a poem in praise of the Sheikh ibn Arabi.

If a translation is available please share


And if any one has the arabic and overview of Hizb al Wiqaya please post it here.
 

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Alahazrat ('alayhir raHmah) considered Shaykh. Muhiyuddeen ibn 'Arabi a true and great wali and quotes him as a hujjah in Maqaal al 'Urafa.

Beautiful remembrance and defense of shaykh al Akbar by Sh. Abdul Aziz Khateeb:


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Sh. s'aeed faoudah, on the other hand, seems to openly disagree with parts of the Fusus


in the following clip (obviously edited)- sh. sa'eed says that he is fairly certain that the extant copies of Fusus are by shaykh Al-Akbar himself and that the claims of tampering do not stand testimony:


Even if true, I do not understand why sh. sa'eed would take it at it's apparent meanings when scholars, such as Imam Suyuti, and including the great wali himself, have warned the uninitiated against delving into these works?
 
Mohamed Shah Qadri said:
Ibn Arabi society :

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3cyQ7JiL_LETx7siAJ8m8A

Don't know their creditabity.
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ibn arabi society was my first introduction to sh. al Akbar's works. Their articles are generally very well written and pleasurable to read. But they are not careful about sunni aqayid and one must be wary of accepting their assertions about the shaykh and his writings and their interpretations of them at face value - most likely, they are perennialists.

Allah knows best.
 
The problem is there are so many noble sunni ulema who disagree with the Fusus. Some like Yusuf Nabhani and Sayuti are Pro - sheikh akbar yet other scholars like Sheikh Fouda seem to disagree.

Does Sheikh Saeed Foudah do Takfir of Ibn arabi?

What was the stance of Sheikh Ramadan buti Raheemullah ?
Unbeknown said:
Alahazrat ('alayhir raHmah) considered Shaykh. Muhiyuddeen ibm 'Arabi a true and great wali and quotes him as a hujjah in Maqaal al 'Urafa.

Beautiful remembrance and defense of shaykh al Akbar by Sh. Abdul Aziz Khateeb:


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Sh. s'aeed faoudah, on the other hand, seems to openly disagree with parts of the Fusus


in the following clip (obviously edited)- sh. sa'eed says that he is fairly certain that the extant copies of Fusus are by shaykh Al-Akbar himself and that the claims of tampering do not bear testimony:


Even if true, I do not understand why sh. sa'eed would take it at it's apparent meanings when scholars, such as Imam Suyuti, and including the great wali himself, have warned the uninitiated against delving into these works?
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I think our answer lies with Imam Rabbani's possision on Ibn Arabi.

"I wonder that Shaykh Muhyī 'l-Dīn appears in vision to be one of those with whom God is pleased, while most of his ideas which differ from the doctrines of the People of truth appear to be wrong and mistaken. It seems that since they are due to error in kashf, he has been forgiven... I consider him as one of those with whom God is well-pleased; on the other hand, I believe that all his ideas in which he opposes (the people of truth) are wrong and harmful."

[Sufism and Shari'ah: A study of Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi's effort to reform Sufism, Muhammad Abdul Haq Ansari, The Islamic Foundation, 1997, p.247]

However Dr Omar Zaid wrote in one of his books that the jews are responsible tampering ibn Arabi's books.

Even Mark Hanson believes that the Fusus was tampered...I think we should stick with Imam Rabbanis position...
 
Mohamed Shah Qadri said:
Does Sheikh Saeed Foudah do Takfir of Ibn arabi?
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no he doesn't. that is clarified in the second video I have posted down below.

In the other video (third) he also said that shaykh al-Akbar (quddisa sirruh) is from amongst the well-known "a'laam and kubara" ""doyens and elders" of ahlussunnah.

Yet he says that the books and commentaries on them by the shaykh's own students, for example, sadr al-deen al-qunawi, who accompanied the shaykh for 40 years (raHimahumAllah) contain tons of explicit statements against the aqaid of ahlusunnah. Further, even Imam Sha'rani's abridgment of the Futuhaat has such content. And that constitutes, as per him, sufficient direct and indirect evidence that these statements (at least some of them?) are not extrapolations. He says that it is a quandary, since he cannot declare the shaykh a heterodox and yet his mind cannot accept that all of that is interpolation - though that, as per him, is the only explanation which can be presented.
 
Unbeknown said:
no he doesn't. that is clarified in the second video I have posted down below.

In the other video (third) he also said that shaykh al-Akbar (quddisa sirruh) is from amongst the well-known "a'laam and kubara" ""doyens and elders" of ahlussunnah.

Yet he says that the books and commentaries on them by the shaykh's own students, for example, sadr al-deen al-qunawi, who accompanied the shaykh for 40 years (raHimahumAllah) contain tons of explicit statements against the aqaid of ahlusunnah. Further, even Imam Sha'rani's abridgment of the Futuhaat has such content. And that constitutes, as per him, sufficient direct and indirect evidence that these statements (at least some of them?) are not extrapolations. He says that it is a quandary, since he cannot declare the shaykh a heterodox and yet his mind cannot accept that all of that is interpolation - though that, as per him, is the only explanation which can be presented.
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Yes that is why Imam Rabbani (Qadassallhu Sirrahu) mentioned that his err'r were due to kashf but was forgiven, it is one of those cases like Imam Junaid and Al Hallaj , and I repeat those who have never traversed this path won't comprehend what was going in the minds of the Awliya; Imam Rabbani and Imam Sha'rani and all those who wrote in defense of Ibn Arabi were all sahib ul hal; while those who objected were all from sahibul qal. There are certain stages in which a salik traverses in which he will utter statements (shathat) that will be problematic, and other times they pass through stage in which they see things/ comprehend in only certain aspects of Divine Reality; which causes them to say certain statments. They take the ruling (for the onlookers/readers) as those drunk or mad-men, for as long as they are in such stages; but this is a sphere I have no right to speak in, this faqir only wished to state what I felt was needed."

May Allah forgive me for my mistakes
 


Above are 2 links to Hizb ul Waqiyya. It is attributed to the sheikh al akbar. But what is its Authenticity and does any one have the script(Arabic, or transliteration or even traslation).
 
Mohamed Shah Qadri said:
What was the stance of Sheikh Ramadan buti Raheemullah ?
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Tariq Owaisi said:
The defence contained here is on the basis of denial of the attribution of fusus to him.
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I stumbled upon this lecture. Towards the end - around 24 mins. - the shaykh (raHimahullah) says that there is no doubt that interpolation has crept into the works of sayyiduna ibn 'arabi (quddisa sirruh) and he is free of the charges of wahdat ul wujood that some have leveled against him.

 
Rough translation of the relevant parts:

In consequence of the treatment by the late Hakeem 'Ataaullah (marhoom), having been delivered of the ailment in a few short weeks, and with the kind consent of Gazzali-e-Zamaan [sa'eed ahmad kaazmi - 'alayhirraHmah], I presented myself in the service of Imaam al Wasileen, afdal al 'aamileen, sanad al kamileen, jaami' al m'aqool-wa-manqool, sayyidi-wa-sanadi-wa-murshidi, Imam Shaah (May Allah illuminate his blessed resting place), to fulfill my long-cherished desire for studying the "soul of tasawwuf", Fusoos al Hikam.
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Here, for a month and a half, I studied the noble Fusoos-al-Hikam, chapter-wise, under the tutorship of Imam-ul-Wasileen. At the conclusion of the course, in the dawn of eid-al-fitr, before leaving for the eeid-gaah, (my teacher) performed a dastaar-bandi for me with his own blessed hands. Were I to sketch here my beautiful experiences of hazrat's daily and nightly practices, or enter into details about the benefits and blessings (fuyood-o-barkaat) and revelations (mukashifaat) that I encountered during my study of the noble Fusoos al Hikam, it would make an entirely separate book in itself.
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Otherwise, I have more than sufficient beautiful recollections associated with Meheraabaad Shareef.
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However, in obedience to the command "and as to the favors of your Lord, proclaim (them)", I cannot do without mentioning that after reading Fusoos-al-Hikam Shareef under hazrat's spiritually-fruitful tutelage (faidh-raasan dars) I received that tawfeeq for expansion of the heart (sharh-us-sudoor) after which, even the most difficult stages of theology began to become easy for me, the knots of the secrets hidden in all the branches and books of the Dars-e-Nizaami, began to open-up for me, and most importantly, I received access to the illuminating cognition (ma'aarif) of the Qur'an and the Sunnah, after which I reached the level of Haqq-al-Yaqeen (true certainty) regarding a remark in Fataawa-Durr-e-Mukhtaar, which he copied from Imam Majdud-deen Fayruzabadi, author of Al-Qamoos-Fil-Lugah:

"One of the unique characteristics of the works of Shaykh Al-Akbar is that the one who pursues them diligently, his undertsanding is
enlarged to the point that the forbidding and the formidable complexities are eased up for him".​
 
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