Sharh al-Aqida al-Wasitiyya - Ibn Wahf
- Author died
- 1440 AH
- Editions
- Matba'at Safir
Sharh al-Aqida al-Wasitiyya (Sharḥ al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah fī Ḍawʾ al-Kitāb wa-al-Sunnah) is a concise commentary by Saeed bin Ali bin Wahf al-Qahtani on the creedal treatise al-Aqida al-Wasitiyya by Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH) .
Background and Purpose
The original text was composed by Ibn Taymiyyah in a single sitting after the afternoon prayer at the request of a judge from Wasit who came during the pilgrimage season . Recognizing the treatise's standing as an exposition of the doctrine of Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamaʿah, al-Qahtani authored an abridged commentary to elucidate its meanings in a succinct manner .
Method and Sources
In his commentary, al-Qahtani cross-referenced Quranic verses to their chapters by name and verse number, and documented the hadiths by attributing them to their original source collections, occasionally referencing the source without citing the full text .
In preparing his explanations, al-Qahtani drew upon earlier commentaries on al-Aqida al-Wasitiyya, including:
- al-Rawdah al-Nadiyyah by Zayd ibn Fayyad
- al-Kawashif al-Jaliyyah and al-Asʾilah wa-al-Ajwibah al-Usuliyyah by Abd al-Aziz ibn Muhammad al-Salman
- Sharh al-Aqida al-Wasitiyya by Muhammad Khalil Harras
- al-Taʿliqat al-Mufidah by Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Sharif
The text addresses key creedal topics, beginning with the definition of the Saved Sect (al-Firqah al-Najiyah) and Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamaʿah, followed by detailed sections on the pillars of faith—belief in Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, and His messengers .
Publication and Reception
The commentary was reviewed by Abd Allah ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Jibreen . It was published in Riyadh by Matabiʿ Safir, with its first edition appearing in 1409 AH (c. 1988–1989 CE), comprising 87 pages in a small format . Bibliographer Abd al-Aziz ibn Ibrahim ibn Qasim noted that for the sake of brevity, the author omitted certain Quranic verses and hadiths concerning some divine attributes from the original text .
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