Doctrine of Fitrah in the thought of Ibn Taymiyyah: Critical Analysis with Especial Reference to the Contemporary Scholars of the Aqidah
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The current study aimed to discuss fitra as a central concept in Islamic theology and analyzed the meanings this concept carries in Ibn Taymiyyah’s writings. The importance of fitra lies in the fact that it has been mentioned in the Qur’an and the Hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), which refers to the state in which a human being is born. Ibn Taymiyyah’s view of the meaning of fitra differs from that of other Muslim scholars, and this difference stems from two main philosophical ideas found in rationalist and empirical philosophy. Ibn Taymiyyah claims that a person is born devoid of prior knowledge; therefore, fitra does not contain any knowledge, while other scholars, such as al-Ghazali, claim that fitra includes a set of knowledge and sciences. The research also addressed the contradictions found in Ibn Taymiyyah’s writings on the concept of fitra, as it presents contradictory views that indicate a lack of clarity regarding fitra in Ibn Taymiyyah’s thought. This research used inductive analysis to clarify Ibn Taymiyyah’s position on the issue of fitra. It examined the differences among Muslims on this issue, as it is one of the central differences in Islamic thought. The research relies on the induction of texts from Ibn Taymiyyah’s works, analyzing, criticizing, and comparing them with the opinions of other Muslim scholars.
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