Al Ghazali quotes

Al-Ghazali Quotes from the Ihya (Revival of Religious

Sciences) and Al-Munquidh (the full name is AlMunquidh min al-dalal which translates as
Deliverance from Error) , including his references to
the Quran.
These quotes are meant to be used as part of a response you will need to work out
the response yourself, although I have sent you a sample in a previous email. I would
say to use at least 3 quotes in a 20-mark question and maybe one quote in a 5/6 mark
question. I have included references to the Quran as well any time the word Sura is
mentioned it means a chapter of the Quran. Just the chapter numbers should be
enough even if you cant remember the actual verse numbers. In the exam, just put
whatever you can remember. You may shorten the quotes and you may ignore some
quotes its probably good to have about 5 up your sleeve in case you forget some.
Also, there is a very good PowerPoint on myclasses about Al-Ghazali and there are
longer quotes there.
Good luck
Mr ONeill

Al-Ghazali writes: The excellence of teaching is supported in the

Quran by the following words of Allah: ..And may warn

their people when they come back to them, haply they may take
heed themselves (Surah 9:123), by which is meant teaching and
guidance(Ilha, Section 1)
Here Al-Ghazali is underlining the importance of teaching in bringing
people back to the correct path, which is something that he valued highly
towards the end of his life when he returned to teaching.

But now I invite men to knowledge by which glory is

renounced and its lowly rank recognized . . . I now earnestly
desire to reform myself and others . . . I ask Him, then, to reform
me first, then to use me as an instrument of reform . . . To show
me the false as false, and to grant me the grace to eschew it! (AlMunqidh, 72)
Earlier, Al Ghazali felt that he was approaching teaching in a way that was influenced
by his pride: and I saw that it was not directed purely to

Allah, but rather was instigated and motivated by the quest for
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Al Ghazali quotes

fame and wide-spread prestige. (Al-Munqidh, 53). This demonstrates his

humility in a sense, because he was able to admit to his earlier sin of pride. It also
shows that Al Ghazali was on a spiritual journey and that he had learnt through
experience, including the spiritual experiences of Sufism, that knowledge of Allah
needs to be coupled with humility and submission to Allah.
Whilst Al Ghazali was suffering from doubts and problems he felt that the Islamic
theologians could not help him very much: .So kalam (Muslim

theology) was not sufficient in my case, nor was it a remedy for

the malady of which I was complaining. (Munqidh, 26)
He also found little joy, at one point, in philosophy: It

is in the metaphysical
sciences that most of the philosophers errors are found( AlMunqidh, 35-36).
Al-Ghazali looked to Muhammed and to Allah for infallibility, not to the Imams:

But our infallible teacher is MuhammadAllahs blessing and

peace be upon him.... (Al-Munqidh,, 44).
He found that a more experiential approach to religion was helpful and he discovered
this through Sufism:

. . . I learned all that could be learned of their way by study and

learning. Then it became clear to me that their (the Sufis) most
distinctive characteristic is something that can be attained, not
by study, but rather by experience and the state of ecstasy .
(Al-Munqidh, 51-52)
Al Ghazali promotes knowledge of Allah as extremely important. As he states in the
Ilha: Allah also said, And We have brought them a book: with

knowledge We have explained it.(Surah7:50)

Al Ghazzali quotes the Quran on many occasions in his writing, such as when he
wrote in support of teaching (in the Ilha): And who speaks fairer than he

who submits to Allah and does the thing that is right?(Surah 2:283)
Al-Ghazali knew what it was like to suffer and to go through times when his faith was
tested, but this only renewed in him the desire to pass on to others the knowledge that
he possessed. During that time I was a skeptic in fact, but not in

utterance and doctrine. At length Allah Most High cured me of

that sickness. (Al-Munqidh, 22-23)

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