Qawaid wa Fawaid fi al-Amr bil-Maruf wa al-Nahy an al-Munkar min Kalam Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiya
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- Qawaid wa Fawaid fi al-Amr bil-Maruf wa al-Nahy an al-Munkar min Kalam Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiya
Qawaid wa Fawaid fi al-Amr bil-Maruf wa al-Nahy an al-Munkar min Kalam Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiya (Principles and Benefits Concerning Enjoining Good and Forbidding Evil from the Words of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya) is a treatise compiled by Abd al-Majid bin Muhammad al-Wa'lan that extracts legal principles, guidelines, and benefits regarding commanding right and forbidding wrong directly from the writings of Ibn Taymiyya.
Purpose and Sources
The compiler gathered the work's principles and insights on the premise that enjoining good and forbidding evil is an essential act of worship governed by specific conditions, manners, and regulatory guidelines. To articulate these principles, al-Wa'lan drew directly from three primary works and treatises by Ibn Taymiyya:
- Al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya fi Islah al-Ra'i wa-l-Ra'iyya (Governance According to Sharia in Reforming the Ruler and the Ruled)
- Mas'alat al-Hisba (also known as Qa'ida fi al-Hisba)
- The chapter dedicated to commanding good and forbidding evil from Kitab al-Istiqama (The Book of Steadfastness)
Structure and Contents
The text presents Ibn Taymiyya's statements arranged under thematic headings addressing the conceptual, legal, and practical dimensions of commanding right and forbidding wrong:
- Importance and Status: The collection establishes commanding good and forbidding evil as a core constituent of the divine message and among the most obligatory and virtuous deeds. Citing Ibn Taymiyya's citation of Al-Fudayl ibn Iyad, it underscores that such actions are accepted only when they are both sincere for God alone (khalis) and in accordance with the prophetic tradition (sawab).
- Essential Pillars: It records Ibn Taymiyya's determination that the practitioner of commanding good requires three sequential pillars: knowledge ('ilm) prior to the action, gentleness (rifq) during its execution, and forbearance (hilm) after its completion.
- Legal Obligation and Public Offices: The treatise notes that commanding good and forbidding evil is a collective obligation (fard kifaya) upon capable Muslims, which becomes an individual duty (fard 'ayn) for anyone possessing specific authority or capacity when no one else fulfills it. It affirms that all Islamic public offices (al-wilayat al-Islamiyya)—including military governorships, police administration, judicial authority, financial treasuries, and market inspection (al-hisba)—exist fundamentally to command right and prohibit wrong.
- Social Necessity and Universal Scope: The text addresses who is required to carry out this duty, outlining that every human inherently commands and forbids, and that human welfare in this life and the hereafter cannot be achieved except through mutual cooperation and social organization.
- Duties of Leaders: It details the specific responsibilities of authorities (ulu al-amr), encompassing the scholars, commanders, and elders of every group. Their duty includes ordering fundamental Islamic obligations—such as the five daily prayers, zakat, fasting, and the pilgrimage—as well as inner virtues like sincerity, reliance on God, justice, unity, and honesty. Conversely, it enumerates the prohibited matters to be suppressed, chief among them being polytheism (shirk), followed by murder, financial corruption, usury, severing family ties, and religious innovations.
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