al-Istighatha fi al-Radd ala al-Bakri
- Author died
- 728 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat Dar al-Minhaj lil-Nashr wal-Tawzi'
al-Istighātha fī al-Radd ʿalā al-Bakrī (Arabic: الاستغاثة في الرد على البكري, lit. 'The Seeking of Aid: In Refutation of al-Bakrī') is a theological and polemical treatise by the Hanbali scholar Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728 AH / 1328 CE) addressing the doctrine and practices surrounding supplication, intercession, and seeking deliverance (istighātha) through created beings.
Background and Composition
The origin of the work dates back to a brief legal inquiry answered by Ibn Taymiyya in Egypt in 711 AH (1311–1312 CE) regarding seeking intercession and aid through the Prophet Muhammad (Risālat al-Istighātha). In response to that verdict, the Egyptian Shafi'i jurist Abu al-Hasan Nūr al-Dīn ʿAlī ibn Yaʿqūb al-Bakrī (b. 673 AH, d. 724 AH / 1324 CE) authored a treatise defending the practice of seeking aid from the Prophet and righteous individuals, declaring those who prohibited it to be disbelievers. Ibn Taymiyya noted that al-Bakri relied on arguments drawn from Ibn Taymiyya's earlier work al-Ṣārim al-Maslūl ʿalā Shātim al-Rasūl, adapting points meant to defend the Prophet's honor to support invocations directed toward the deceased.
Ibn Taymiyya composed the refutation in two stages: he drafted the initial section between 711 AH and 714 AH before being interrupted, and completed the remainder after an event involving al-Bakri and the Mamluk sultan in Muharram 714 AH, prior to al-Bakri's death in 724 AH. The work is referenced under several titles, including Kitāb al-Istighātha, al-Istighātha al-Kabīr (to distinguish it from his shorter initial epistle), and al-Radd ʿalā al-Bakrī.
Content and Arguments
In the treatise, Ibn Taymiyya systematically addresses al-Bakri's propositions, categorizing istighātha into distinct linguistic and legal meanings:
- Aid from the living: Seeking assistance from living persons in matters within their physical capability is valid and recognized in Islamic texts.
- Aid from the deceased or absent: Requesting deliverance, sustenance, guidance, or relief from hardship from deceased individuals, prophets, or absent beings constitutes unlawful worship directed toward creation, as such matters belong exclusively to God.
Ibn Taymiyya argues that al-Bakri conflated asking God by means of someone's status (tawassul) with asking the creature directly (istighātha), and incorrectly equated seeking the Prophet's supplication during his worldly lifetime with invoking him after his death. He also examines hadith reports cited on the subject, including the narration where the Prophet stated: إنه لا يستغاث بي وإنما يستغاث بالله ("I am not to be sought for aid; only God is sought for aid"), clarifying its authenticity and doctrinal implications. Furthermore, he refutes theological interpretations that blur the distinction between the Creator and creation, comparing such arguments to incarnationist (ḥulūl) concepts.
Transmission and Editions
The opening portion of the text is missing from the surviving manuscripts, with the extant copies beginning in the middle of a refutation of al-Bakri's scriptural interpretations. Manuscripts are preserved in collections including Umm al-Qura University, Dārat al-Malik ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz, the Maʿhad al-ʿIlmī in Ha'il, and a fragment in the Berlin State Library.
The book was abridged by the historian and traditionist Ibn Kathir (d. 774 AH / 1373 CE) under the title Talkhīṣ al-Istighātha, in which he commended Ibn Taymiyya's refutation for decisively dismantling al-Bakri's claims with scriptural proofs. In modern times, the full treatise was critically edited by Dr. Abdullah ibn Dujayn al-Suhayli and published in Riyadh.
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