Chapter 9: Medieval Sunni Theological Writing

Abū Hāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghazālī (1058-1111 CE) was one of the most influential Muslim theologians of the Middle Ages.  Born in Northeast Iran, al-Ghazālī became a professor at the prestigious Nizāmiya madrasa in Baghdad in his early thirties (1091 CE).  Four years later, al-Ghazālī left teaching to take on the lifestyle of a Sufi mystic.  He returned to teaching in 1106 at a madrasa in the city of Nishapur, and went on to publish numerous treatises, the best known of which (The Revival of the Religious Sciences) is still widely read among Sunni Muslims in our own time.

Al-Ghazālī’s texts, in which he attacked the Muslim use of rationalist philosophy (most notably in The Incoherence of the Philosophers) as well as defended mainstream Sufi teachings and practices, were extremely influential upon the beliefs and teachings of scholars who followed in his footsteps.  Although the study of rationalistic philosophy had been practiced by earlier Muslim scholars such as al-Kindi, al-Farabi and Ibn Sina, it mostly died out in Sunni scholarship during the years that followed the death of al-Ghazālī.  Meanwhile, Sufi practices expanded and became more widely accepted in the Sunni world.  While al-Ghazālī can’t be held completely responsible for these developments, there is no doubt that his writings contributed directly to them.

The two texts linked below will introduce you to the important work of al-Ghazālī.  “The Life and Writings of al-Ghazālī” connects you to an article from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  This article not only provides a concise biography of al-Ghazālī’s life, but it also summarizes and evaluates his most important works and their impact upon Muslim thought.  The second text is a link to an English translation of al-Ghazālī’s semi-biographical work entitled The Confessions of al-Ghazzali (note that the difference in spelling al-Ghazālī’s name is due to variations in transliteration of the original Persian).  In this text, al-Ghazālī describes how he came to his viewpoints on philosophy (falsafa) and Sufism as a result of his search for a true knowledge of God.  You may find the English used in this text to be a little dated, as the translator, Claud Field, completed his translation of the text in 1909.  Still, many modern readers can identify with al-Ghazālī’s search for truth and are impressed with his sharp intellect and keen insight, whether or not they agree with his conclusions.

Life and Writings of al-Ghazali

The Confessions of al-Ghazzali, trans Claud Field