My Love Islam

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His Death and the Immense Crowd That Attended His Funeral

More than one person who was present in Damascus when he died told me that the Shaykh (may Allah be Pleased with him) became sick for a few days, and the writer Shams ad-Din al- Wazir was in Damascus at the time. So, when he knew that the Shaykh was sick, he asked to visit him. The Shaykh gave him permission to do so, and he sat with him and apologized to him for any shortcomings from his side in regards to the rights of the Shaykh. So, the Shaykh replied to him by saying: “I have forgiven you and all of my enemies who did not know that I was following the truth. I have forgiven King Nasir for imprisoning me, because he did this based on what he believed from others and not from his own intent, and he is excused for this, as Allah Knows that he is not one to do this on his own. I have forgiven everyone who had some conflict with me except those who are enemies to Allah and His Messenger.” They then said that the Shaykh remained until the night of the 22nd of the sacred month of Dh...

His Physical Appearance and Dress

He was moderate in his appearance and dress. He would not wear extravagant clothes that attracted attention or made him look special. Rather, his clothing and appearance were just like that of the general people, and he did not wear one particular type of clothing in exclusion to another. He would wear whatever was available, and he would eat whatever was made available to him, and the badhadhah (plain appearance) of faith was evident on him. He was never seen showing off with his turban, his clothing, his manner of walking, or how he stood and sat, and he never dressed up for anyone who he was meeting or was visiting him from another land. And many people told me that he was never seen or heard asking for food - dinner or supper - no matter how long he remained busy with some matter related to knowledge and deed. Rather, he would sometimes be given food that he would leave for a long time before even turning to it, and if he ate from it, would only eat small bits. He would never me...

His Worship.

As for his worship, he (may Allah be Pleased with him) was unlike anyone else, as he would spend all of his time engrossed in it. He would not let anything - family or wealth - distract him from Allah. During the nights, he would separate himself from everybody, secluding himself with his Lord, strictly maintaining his recitation of the Mighty Qur'an, and repeating the various types of daily and nightly worship. When the night was over, he would rejoin the people for the Fajr prayer, praying the optional prayer before meeting them. When he would begin the prayer, your heart would want to fly from its place just from the way in which he would make the opening takbir. When he would begin the prayer, his limbs would shake, moving him left and right. When he would recite, he would elongate his recitation just as was authentically reported regarding the recitation of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). His bowing, prostration, and his coming up from them were from the most ...

His Knowledge of the Various Types of Related Information

As for his knowledge of both authentic and weak narrations, he was like a mountain in this that nobody could climb. It was very rare that a narration would be mentioned to him without him knowing who said it, who narrated it, who transmitted it, or who recorded it, in addition to knowing the condition of each narrator in light of the sciences of jarh and ta’dil. One person who witnessed this describes that he was one day in a class in which a Muhaddith was reading to him from a book of Hadith. He was reading very fast, and the Shaykh corrected him in the name of a man in the isnad of a hadith that the reader had sped by, mentioning that his name was such and such as opposed to what was read by the Muhaddith. They looked into it and found that it was exactly as the Shaykh said. So, look at this swift comprehension and detailed, precise knowledge that nobody can compare to unless they are granted extreme precision! This is clear as day when looking at the ability Allah granted him...

His Abundant Knowledge, Writings, and Excellent Memory

As for his abundant knowledge, this includes his knowledge of the sciences of the Holy Qur’an, his ability to derive the smallest and most minute benefits from it, his knowledge of the statements of the scholars in explaining it, his way of using these statements as evidence, as well as the ability Allah gave him to expose its wonders, the beauty of His legislations, its rare and amazing gems, its linguistic miracles, and its clear grace. In all of this, he was a leader and example that everyone strove to imitate. If someone were to recite some verses of the Mighty Qur’an in one of his classes, he would proceed to explain them, and his class would end with this. His class would last for a good portion of the day, and he did not have a designated person to recite for him predetermined verses that he would prepare for. Rather, any random person who was attending his class would recite what was easy for him, and Ibn Taymiyyah would then explain whatever was recited. He would usually no...

His Upbringing

The scholar and educator of this Ummah - the Imam, the mujtahid, the defender of the pure Shari’ah and Prophetic Sunnah, Shaykh al-Islam Taqi ad-Din Abi al-‘Abbas Ahmad bin ‘Abd al-Halim bin ‘Abd as-Salam bin Taymiyyah (may Allah sanctify his soul and brighten his grave) As for his birth, it is as many of the scholars told narrated to me: he was born in Harran on the 10th of Rabi’ al-Awwal 661 H, and remained in it until he was seven years old. Then, his father (may Allah have Mercy on him) took him to Damascus (may Allah protect it), and he was best upbringing possible there, and Allah implanted in him the best of traits. The signs of excellence, dedication, and sharpness were clear in him from an early age. From trustworthy sources, it is known that when the Shaykh (may Allah be Pleased with him) was still in the midst of his youth and would to walk to the library, he would be stopped in his path by a Jew who lived on the road leading to the library. The Jew would ask him abou...