Doctrinal Refutations

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How a radd works

The genre has a fixed shape: the author quotes the thesis he contests, often in his opponent's own words, then breaks it down and answers it argument by argument. That structure has a practical consequence worth knowing before buying: a large part of the book is the opposing position set out. Read without method, or read in fragments, a work of radd is understood backwards.

The works in this section

Al-Radd ala al-Jahmiyya wa al-zanadiqa by Imam Ahmad, and the Naqd of Uthman al-Darimi: the earliest texts of the genre.
Dar' ta'arud al-aql wa al-naql by Ibn Taymiyya: his largest work of this kind, on the relation between reason and revealed text. Ten volumes, very advanced level.
Bayan talbis al-Jahmiyya by the same author.
Al-Radd ala al-mantiqiyyin and Naqd al-mantiq: an answer to the foundations of Greek logic, to be read alongside the Rational sciences section.
Al-Sawa'iq al-mursala by Ibn al-Qayyim: on the rules for interpreting the texts on the attributes. An abridgement exists and is often more readable.

The level required, said plainly

This is the most demanding section in aqida. These works assume the language, the technical vocabulary of the attributes, and a sense of the historical context that the Sects and schools section provides. We flag it on every listing, and we prefer to say it before the order rather than after: a student who starts with Dar' al-ta'arud will not finish the first volume.

What to check in an edition

The volume count and whether the text is complete, since these titles exist as abridgements that do not always say so clearly. The editor, decisive on dense argumentative texts. And the presence of indexes, which changes everything on a ten-volume work.

Related sections

The basics are in Aqida treatises and Names and attributes. The early sources are in Works of the salaf, and the positions under discussion are presented descriptively in Sects and schools.

Ordering and shipping

Real stock shown, dispatched within 24 to 48 working hours, shipped across Europe and worldwide. To learn the actual level and page count of a title before ordering, write to us.

How is a book of radd built?

The author quotes the thesis he contests, often in his opponent's own words, then breaks it down and answers it argument by argument. Practical consequence: a large part of the book is the opposing position set out, and reading it in fragments leads to misreadings.

What level is really needed?

Advanced. These works assume the language, the technical vocabulary of the attributes and a sense of the historical context. A student starting with Dar' ta'arud al-aql wa al-naql will not finish the first volume, and it is better said before the order.

Where should I start in this section?

With the abridgement of Al-Sawa'iq al-mursala rather than the original, and only after working through Al-Qawa'id al-muthla and a general aqida treatise. Ibn Taymiyya's large works come much later.