Ibn Taymiyyah (1263–1328 CE) was a medieval Islamic scholar known for his expertise in theology and jurisprudence. Born in Harran, he advocated a return to fundamental Islamic principles, opposing perceived innovations in religious practices. Emphasizing Tawhid (the oneness of God), he condemned practices deviating from Quranic and Sunnah teachings. Ibn Taymiyyah engaged in debates, particularly on the concept of jihad, supporting defensive warfare against external threats. His legacy is marked by controversy, with some praising his defense of orthodox Sunni Islam, while others criticize certain extreme views. Despite this, his works have significantly influenced Islamic thought, shaping discussions on theology, jurisprudence, and the concept of Tawhid.
Ibn Taymiyyah Quotes
1. “Don’t depend too much on anyone in this world because even your own shadow leaves you when you are in darkness.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
2. “What can my enemies do to me? My paradise is in my heart, it is with me wherever I go. To imprison me is to provide me with seclusion. To send me into exile is to send me away in the Path of Allah. And to kill me is to make me a martyr.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
3. “If I remained silent and you remained silent, then who will teach the ignorant?”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
4. “A calamity that makes you turn to Allah is better for you then a blessing which makes you forget the remembrance of Allah.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
5. “The sign of the people of bid’ah is that they do not follow the salaf.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
6. “What can you do with me? My jannah is in my heart! If you take me to jail, I will make zikr of Allah. If you exile me out of my land, I will make takaffur. If you execute me, I would be a shaheed. What can you do with me? Because I am not limited to this dunya. I am living for al-akhira!”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
7. “If you do good in secret, Allah will shower His good on you in public.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
8. “What really counts are good endings, not flawed beginnings.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
9. “Don’t depend too much on anyone…”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
10. “The disease that knowledge brings is arrogance, and the disease that worship brings is showing off.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
11. “Make tawba not just for sins you’ve committed, but also for obligations you haven’t fulfilled.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
12. “Allah will support the just state even if it is led by unbelievers, but Allah will not support the oppressive state even if it is led by believers.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
13. “Some people have the disease of criticising all the time. They forget the good about others and only mention their faults. They are like flies that avoid the good and pure places and land on the bad and wounds. This is because of the evil within the self and the spoiled nature.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
14. “The People of the Sunnah are the most knowledgeable of mankind concerning the truth, and the most merciful of the creation towards the rest of creation.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
15. “Guidance is not attained except with knowledge and correct direction is not attained except with patience.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
16. “Avoiding the temptation to sin and being patient upon that, is greater than being patient whilst being afflicted with trials.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
17. “No love that a man has will only give him pleasure in return- he shall also suffer pain because of it, except for love of Allah.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
18. “When people help one another in sin and transgression, they finish by hating each other.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
19. “Verily, I constantly renew my Islam until this very day, as up to now, I do not consider myself to have ever been a good Muslim.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
20. “Whatever is not done by the permission of Allah will not happen, and what is not done for the sake of Allah will not benefit or remain.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
21. “Sins are like chains and locks preventing their perpetrator from roaming the vast garden of Tawheed and reaping the fruits of righteous actions.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
22. “Allah guards the justice loving government, even if it is the government of non-Muslims, and destroys the tyrant government, even if it is the government of Muslims.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
23. “Remembrance is to the heart what water is to the fish. And what is the state of a fish that leaves water?”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
24. “Men mixing with women is like fire mixing with wood.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
25. “If you correct your hidden deeds subsequently, Allaah will correct your outward deeds.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
26. “The more humble, needy, and subdued you are before Allah, the closer you will be to Him.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
27. “A man will never fear something besides Allah unless it be due to a disease in his heart.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
28. “This whole religion revolves around knowing the truth and acting by it, and action must be accompanied by patience.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
29. “Contentment is the greatest door that one enters to Allah, it is the source of tranquility for the worshiper and paradise on earth. Whoever does not enter it will not enter the Paradise in the Hereafter.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
30. “The sincere hearts and the pious supplications are soldiers which can never be defeated.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
31. “Sins cause harm and repentance removes the cause.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
32. “Everyone experiences bouts of jealousy; but the dignified person conceals it, while the vulgar one acts upon it.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
33. “Through patience and certainty, leadership in the religion is obtained.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
34. “Perpetually is the servant either the recipient of a blessing from Allaah, in which case he is need of gratitude; or he is the perpetrator of sin, in which case he is in need of repentance; he is always moving from one blessing to another and is always is in need of repentance.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
35. “I have always known that Greek logic is neither needed by the intelligent nor of any use to the dullard.”
— Ibn Taymiyyah
