Foundations of ʿAqīdah Books for the Student of Knowledge

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Questioner: What are the most important books of ʿaqīdah which a student of knowledge should read at the beginning stages of seeking knowledge?

Shaykh Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān al-Fawzān (b. 1354 AH / 1933 CE): Among the most important books is Kitāb al-Tawḥīd by Shaykh Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb (1115 to 1206 AH / 1703 to 1792 CE), concerning Tawḥīd al-ʿIbādah. Also, al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah by Shaykh al-Islām Taqī al-Dīn Aḥmad ibn Taymiyyah (661 to 728 AH / 1263 to 1328 CE), which encompasses all major chapters of ʿaqīdah, and al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah by Imām Abū Jaʿfar Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭaḥāwī (239 to 321 AH / 853 to 933 CE).

Then, one should study the explanations of these works: al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, and al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah, so that the student may benefit himself and others and proceed with clarity in his religious affairs.

This matter is not easy, for ahead of us is the questioning and answering that will take place when we are placed in our graves. How will we respond? Therefore, it is obligatory to give this matter due importance and to prepare for it.

Questioner: What are the best explanations of Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah, and al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah?

Shaykh Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān al-Fawzān: As for Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, among its most valuable explanations is Fatḥ al-Majīd fī Sharḥ Kitāb al-Tawḥīd. It is the best commentary: simple, concise, and clear. Whoever wishes for greater detail may refer to Taysīr al-ʿAzīz al-Ḥamīd fī Sharḥ Kitāb al-Tawḥīd by Shaykh Sulaymān ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb (d. 1233 AH / 1818 CE), from which Fatḥ al-Majīd was abridged.

Regarding al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, the commentary of Ibn Abī al-ʿIzz al-Ḥanafī (Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr, d. 792 AH / 1390 CE) is the best. It is reliable, highly beneficial, and follows the methodology of the Salaf.

As for al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah, its text is itself clear. Nevertheless, it has beneficial contemporary explanations, such as the commentary of Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn (1347 to 1421 AH / 1929 to 2001 CE) and the commentary of Shaykh ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn Rashīd (d. 1357 AH / 1938 CE). These are valuable and beneficial explanations.

Scholarly Endorsement of al-Tanbīhāt al-Sanīyyah

Shaykh Ṣāliḥ ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Āl al-Shaykh (b. 1378 AH / 1959 CE) stated: “This blessed treatise on ʿaqīdah has many explanations, and among the most beneficial and eloquent of them is the work entitled al-Tanbīhāt al-Sanīyyah ʿalá al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah by the Shaykh and ʿAllāmah ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz al-Rashīd. It is indeed among the most beneficial commentaries on al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah. It clarifies the key points of this creed in a manner sufficient for the student of knowledge in understanding the matters of iʿtiqād. Due to the extensive knowledge contained within it, a student who suffices with it in clarifying the creed of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamāʿah will find it adequate. For this reason, I strongly encourage anyone seeking an explanation of this treatise to obtain this book.”

Methodological Significance

These foundational texts and their authoritative commentaries form the core curriculum for students of ʿaqīdah upon the methodology of Ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamāʿah. They combine textual evidence from the Qurʾān and Sunnah, scholarly consensus, and the understanding of the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥ, providing clarity in belief and firmness upon sound methodology.

Through systematic study of these works, the student develops sound theological grounding, intellectual discipline, and preparedness for accountability before Allah ﷻ.

Reference

Ṣāliḥ ibn Fawzān ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Fawzān (b. 1354 AH / 1933 CE), Kutub al-ʿAqīdah wa Manhajiyyat al-Istifādah Minhā, Dammām: Dār Ibn al-Jawzī, 1439 AH / 2018 CE, pp. 17 to 29.

1. Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb (d. 1206 AH / 1792 CE), Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, various editions, Riyāḍ: Dār al-Ṣumayʿī, 1999.

2. Taqī al-Dīn Aḥmad ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH / 1328 CE), al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah, Beirut: Dār Ibn Ḥazm, 2005.

3. Abū Jaʿfar Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad al-Ṭaḥāwī (d. 321 AH / 933 CE), al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, Cairo: Dār al-Salām, 2006.

4. ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Ḥasan Āl al-Shaykh (d. 1285 AH / 1869 CE), Fatḥ al-Majīd fī Sharḥ Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, Riyāḍ: Dār al-ʿĀṣimah, 1997.

5. Sulaymān ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb (d. 1233 AH / 1818 CE), Taysīr al-ʿAzīz al-Ḥamīd fī Sharḥ Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, Mecca: Dār ʿĀlam al-Fawāʾid, 2003.

6. Muḥammad ibn Abī Bakr Ibn Abī al-ʿIzz al-Ḥanafī (d. 792 AH / 1390 CE), Sharḥ al-ʿAqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, ed. Shuʿayb al-Arnāʾūṭ, Beirut: Muʾassasat al-Risālah, 1997.

7. Ṣāliḥ ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Āl al-Shaykh, al-Lāʾālīʾ al-Bahiyyah fī Sharḥ al-ʿAqīdah al-Wāsiṭiyyah, Riyāḍ: Maktabat al-Ḥijāz, 1434 AH, pp. 15 to 16.