Luma al-Adilla fi Qawaid Aqaid Ahl al-Sunna wal-Jamaa
- Author died
- 478 AH
- Editions
- Alam al-Kutub
Luma al-Adilla fi Qawaid Aqaid Ahl al-Sunna wal-Jamaa (Gleams of Evidence on the Foundations of the Creed of the Sunni Community) is a concise theological treatise by the Ash'ari scholar and Shafi'i jurist Abu al-Ma'ali al-Juwayni (419–478 AH / 1028–1085 CE), summarizing the rational proofs and foundational doctrines of Ash'ari theology .
Background and Purpose
Al-Juwayni composed the work in response to a request from students or interlocutors seeking a succinct exposition of the key rational proofs underlying Sunni dogma . Designed as a concise manual (mukhtasar), it condenses complex scholastic debates into structured arguments suitable for teaching and memorization .
Structure and Theological Doctrines
The treatise systematically covers foundational theological issues through distinct chapters and thematic sections:
- Cosmology and the Origin of the World: Al-Juwayni opens with the doctrine of the temporal origination of the world (huduth al-'alam) . He argues that the world consists of spatial substances (jawahir) and transient accidents (a'rad), demonstrating that substances cannot exist free from created accidents and that an infinite regress of temporal events is impossible, thereby proving that the cosmos requires an eternal Creator (al-Sani') .
- Divine Existence and Attributes: He refutes natural causation and deterministic necessity, establishing that the Creator acts through free choice and power . The treatise affirms God's pre-eternal existence and His essential attributes—including life, omniscience, omnipotence, and pre-eternal divine will—while refuting Mu'tazilite counterarguments such as those of al-Ka'bi . It also articulates the Ash'ari doctrine of God's speech (kalam) as an eternal, inner speech (kalam nafsi) that is not composed of letters or sounds .
- Hermeneutics and Figurative Interpretation: In addressing scriptural textual descriptions (al-sifat al-khabariyya), al-Juwayni adopts figurative interpretation (ta'wil) in this work, explaining divine istiwa' over the Throne as subjugation, dominion, and loftiness (al-qahr wal-ghalaba wal-'uluw) rather than physical settling or spatial confinement .
- Human Acts and Predetermination: Al-Juwayni upholds the classical Ash'ari position on human acts, affirming that the created capacity granted to humans (qudrat al-'abd) does not exert independent causal efficacy (la ta'thira laha) in bringing about actions .
Commentary and Modern Editions
The work was commented upon by the Shafi'i legal theorist and theologian Ibn al-Tilimsani (d. 644 AH / 1246 CE) in his Sharh Luma al-Adilla . In modern scholarship, the Arabic text was edited and published by Dr. Fawqiyya Husayn Mahmud in Cairo (1385 AH / 1965 CE) and later reissued in Beirut (1407 AH / 1987 CE) under the review of Dr. Mahmud al-Khudayri .
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