Mawizat al-Muminin min Ihya Ulum al-Din
- Author died
- 1332 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyah
Maw‘izat al-Mu’minin min Ihya’ ‘Ulum al-Din (The Admonition of the Believers from the Revival of the Religious Sciences) is an abridgment of Abu Hamid al-Ghazali’s Ihya’ ‘Ulum al-Din by the Damascene scholar Jamal al-Din al-Qasimi (1283–1332 AH / 1866–1914 CE) .
Composition and Purpose
Al-Qasimi resolved to abridge the Ihya’ in 1323 AH after years of teaching Islamic texts, having observed a lack of comprehensive, accessible materials designed specifically for public instruction and general spiritual reminder . His initiative followed discussions with a respected scholar who observed that no specialized work fulfilled this pedagogical need, recommending that Ghazali’s Ihya’ serve as the basis once stripped of its overly intricate discussions . Al-Qasimi also recalled an incident in Damascus where an instructor had struggled to teach the entirety of the Ihya’ literally to a lay audience until advised by a leading scholar to select only suitable portions .
Structure and Method
Al-Qasimi organized the abridgment into two concise volumes, strictly maintaining the sequence and arrangement of chapters found in Ghazali's original work . His primary method was to extract essential ethical and devotional directives while eliminating intricate subtleties, theoretical disquisitions, and complex inquiries that were beyond the comprehension of ordinary readers or irrelevant to practical spiritual guidance .
Editions and Editorial Care
The text was printed in Beirut and subsequently re-edited in various editions . A single-volume edition edited by Ma’mun bin Muhyi al-Din al-Jinan was published by Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyya in 1415 AH / 1995 CE . This edition included textual collation, hadith documentation referencing standard hadith compendia while omitting most narrations already analyzed in al-Hafiz al-‘Iraqi’s al-Mughni ‘an Haml al-Asfar, biographical notes with death dates for personalities cited in the text, explanations of obscure phrases and terminology, and subject indices .
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