al-Dhull wa al-Inkisar lil-Aziz al-Jabbar
- Author died
- 795 AH
- Editions
- al-Fārūq al-Ḥadīthah lil-Ṭibā‘ah wal-Nashr
al-Dhull wa al-Inkisar lil-Aziz al-Jabbar (Humility and Brokenness before the Almighty and Compeller) is a spiritual treatise on devotion and heart-felt humility by the Hanbali traditionist and jurist Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali (736–795 AH / 1335–1393 CE) .
Overview and Titles
The author opens the treatise by describing it as an epistle dedicated to khushu' (devotional humility) and the heart's submission and brokenness before the Lord (inkisar al-qalb lil-Rabb) . Classified in the genre of spiritual exhortations and soul-softening literature (al-wa'z wa al-raqa'iq), the work is also widely known and published under the popular title al-Khushu' fi al-Salah (Humility in Prayer) .
Content and Themes
Ibn Rajab organizes the work around the spiritual reality of humility, drawing upon Quranic verses, prophetic traditions, and reports from the early generations (salaf) :
- Definition and Seat of Humility: The author defines the essence of khushu' as tenderness, softness, tranquility, lowliness, and brokenness of the heart . When the heart experiences genuine humility, the physical limbs, bodily posture, gaze, and voice naturally follow in complete stillness and submission .
- Source of Devotion: Ibn Rajab explains that khushu' stems directly from the servant's knowledge of God (ma'rifat Allah), His majesty, and His perfection; thus, the greater one's knowledge of God, the deeper one's humility . Variations in hearts' humility correspond to contemplation of divine attributes, such as God's nearness and watchfulness, His magnificence, His beauty, or the fear of His punishment .
- Divine Closeness to the Brokenhearted: God acts as the healer of hearts broken for His sake, drawing close to those who humble themselves in prayer, prostrate with faces in the dust, supplicate at the plains of Arafat, or seek forgiveness during the predawn hours .
- The Reality of Prostration (sujud): Prostration is highlighted as the supreme manifestation of servanthood, wherein a person places the most noble and elevated parts of the body low upon the dust, aligning outward submission with inward humbleness .
- Warning against Hypocritical Humility (khushu' al-nifaq): Ibn Rajab cautions against displaying outward physical signs of meekness while the heart is empty of genuine humility, citing the warnings of early authorities like Umar ibn al-Khattab and Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman against affectation and deceitful piety .
- Loss of True Humility: The treatise addresses traditions indicating that inner humility represents the essence of beneficial knowledge and will be the first aspect of religious knowledge to be lifted from the Muslim community .
Manuscript Tradition and Publication
Manuscript copies of the treatise are preserved in several collections, including the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin, the Zahiriyya Library in Damascus, and the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies in Riyadh .
The treatise has been edited and published multiple times, both independently as al-Khushu' fi al-Salah—with hadith verifications and annotations by scholars including Muhammad 'Amr 'Abd al-Latif—and within compiled editions of Ibn Rajab's collected treatises (Majmu' Rasa'il Ibn Rajab) .
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