Ijma al-Salaf fi al-Itiqad kama Hakahu Harb al-Kirmani
- Author died
- 280 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Imam Ahmad
Ijma al-Salaf fi al-Itiqad kama Hakahu Harb al-Kirmani (The Consensus of the Early Generations in Creed as Narrated by Harb al-Kirmani) is a theological creedal treatise compiled by the Hanbali jurist and traditionist Harb ibn Isma'il al-Kirmani (d. 280 AH / 893 CE), articulating the doctrinal consensus of early Sunni scholars and traditionists (Ahl al-Hadith) .
Origin and Attribution
The text originally formed a chapter titled Bab al-Qawl bi-l-Madhhab within Harb al-Kirmani's major work of jurisprudence and legal traditions, Masa'il Harb al-Kirmani, which al-Dhahabi described as among the most precious Hanbali writings . In this section, al-Kirmani recorded the collective creed of the leading figures of Sunnah whom he met or studied under across Iraq, the Hejaz, and the Levant, including Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, Sa'id ibn Mansur, and Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr al-Humaydi .
The same creedal statement was also transmitted under the attribution of Ahmad ibn Hanbal through Ahmad ibn Ja'far al-Istakhri, as recorded by Ibn Abi Ya'la in Tabaqat al-Hanabila . However, Ibn Taymiyya and al-Dhahabi rejected the attribution to Ahmad ibn Hanbal directly, with Ibn Taymiyya noting that the transmission chains through al-Istakhri contain unknown narrators and that the phrasing belongs authentically to Harb al-Kirmani .
Structure and Content
The treatise serves as a concise statement of the articles of faith held by early traditionists, asserting that anyone who rejects or disparages these tenets is an innovator who has deviated from the Sunnah . Its key themes include:
- Faith (Iman): Defined as consisting of speech, action, and intention, adhering strictly to the Quran and the Sunnah .
- The Quran and Divine Speech: Affirmed as the uncreated speech of God, condemning as heretics both those who claim it is created (the Jahmiyya) and those who withhold judgment without declaring it uncreated (the Waqifa), as well as those who assert that their pronunciation of the Quran is created (the Lafziyya) .
- Divine Attributes: Affirmation of God's attributes as transmitted in religious texts without interpretation or negation, including hearing, sight, love, wrath, joy, mercy, the divine descent to the lowest heaven every night, the face, fingers, foot, and God creating Adam in His image .
- Eschatology: Affirming the beatific vision of God by the believers in the hereafter, the physical Balance (al-Mizan) possessing a tongue and two pans, the Prophet's Basin (al-Hawd), the Bridge (al-Sirat), intercession (al-Shafa'a), and the literal slaughter of death on the Day of Resurrection .
- Political Authority and the Companions: Restricting the supreme Caliphate to the Quraysh, maintaining obedience and conducting jihad under Muslim rulers whether just or oppressive, remitting taxes and alms to them, and emphasizing love, praise, and refraining from criticizing any of the Prophet Muhammad's companions .
- Refutation of Sects: Denouncing theological factions and extreme sects, including the Saba'iyya, Mansuriyya, Murji'a, and other divergent groups .
Scholarly Reception and Publication
The creed received widespread validation among later Hanbali scholars. Ibn Taymiyya cited it extensively across his works, including Dar' Ta'arud al-Aql wa-l-Naql and Majmu' al-Fatawa . Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya quoted major portions verbatim in works such as Hadi al-Arwah and Ijtima al-Juyush al-Islamiyya, remarking that whoever examines the transmitted statements of early hadith masters will find them identical to what al-Kirmani reported .
The treatise was edited as an independent monograph under this title by As'ad ibn Fathi al-Za'tari, based on a single manuscript, with an introduction by Muhammad ibn Hadi al-Madkhali, and published by Dar al-Imam Ahmad in Cairo (1432 AH / 2011 CE) .
Answer updated