A Scholar in the Shadow: Essays in the Legal and Theological Thought of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah

Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (1292-1350), the author of several key-works in Islamic law, theology, and mysticism, is chiefly known in Western scholarship as the most devoted disciple of the great Hanbali theologian and jurisconsult, Ibn Taymiyyah (1263-1328). While substantial innovative research was recently published by Western scholars about Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah’s broad literary corpus remains almost unexplored. Although some of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah's works were recognized as unique and, in some cases, were used as the almost exclusive source for research, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah was rarely credited for them as an independent and substantial thinker. This book examines Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah’s contributions to several fields of Islamic knowledge. The articles here offer new insights on his legal and theological thought, while revealing his views on a wide range of subjects, thematically divided into Society and Law, God and Man, and Body and Soul. The book also offers a fresh reading in the biographical sources on Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah. This literary work exposes so far overlooked details on his biography and suggests some new trajectories for future research. The articles featured in this volume, written by leading scholars in their respective fields, portray Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah as a systematic theologian and scholar, who strives to integrate highly theoretical discussions with practical aspects of everyday life. A Scholar in the Shadow is the first comprehensive academic treatment of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah’s legal and theological thought. The book attempts to decipher the appeal of Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah to modern Muslims and others interested in early medieval Islam, while highlighting Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah’s contributions to Islamic thought.