Wasil ibn Ata
Encyclopedia
Wasil ibn Ata was an important Muslim
theologian and jurist of his time, and by many accounts is considered to be the founder of the Mutazilite
school of Islamic thought
.
Born around the year 700 in the Arabian Peninsula
, he initially studied under Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah
, the grandson of the renowned Rashidun Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib. Later he would travel to Basra
in Iraq
to study under Hasan al-Basri (one of the Tabi‘in
). In Basra he began to develop the ideologies that would lead to the Mutazilite school. These stemmed from conflicts that many scholars had in resolving theology and politics. His main contribution to the Mutazilite
school was in planting the seeds for the formation of its doctrine.
Wasil ibn Ata died in 748 in the Arabian Peninsula.
He married the sister of Amr ibn Ubayd
.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
theologian and jurist of his time, and by many accounts is considered to be the founder of the Mutazilite
Mu'tazili
' is an Islamic school of speculative theology that flourished in the cities of Basra and Baghdad, both in present-day Iraq, during the 8th–10th centuries. The adherents of the Mu'tazili school are best known for their having asserted that, because of the perfect unity and eternal nature of God,...
school of Islamic thought
Kalam
ʿIlm al-Kalām is the Islamic philosophical discipline of seeking theological principles through dialectic. Kalām in Islamic practice relates to the discipline of seeking theological knowledge through debate and argument. A scholar of kalām is referred to as a mutakallim...
.
Born around the year 700 in the Arabian Peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
, he initially studied under Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah
Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah
Abd-Allah ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, also known as Abu Hashim, was one of the Salaf and a Narrator of hadith.His father was Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah, a son of Ali...
, the grandson of the renowned Rashidun Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib. Later he would travel to Basra
Basra
Basra is the capital of Basra Governorate, in southern Iraq near Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of two million as of 2009...
in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
to study under Hasan al-Basri (one of the Tabi‘in
Tabi‘in
The Tābi‘ūn are the generation of Muslims who were born after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad but who were contemporaries of the Sahaba "Companions". As such, they played an important part in the development of Islamic thought and philosophy, and in the political development of the...
). In Basra he began to develop the ideologies that would lead to the Mutazilite school. These stemmed from conflicts that many scholars had in resolving theology and politics. His main contribution to the Mutazilite
Mu'tazili
' is an Islamic school of speculative theology that flourished in the cities of Basra and Baghdad, both in present-day Iraq, during the 8th–10th centuries. The adherents of the Mu'tazili school are best known for their having asserted that, because of the perfect unity and eternal nature of God,...
school was in planting the seeds for the formation of its doctrine.
Wasil ibn Ata died in 748 in the Arabian Peninsula.
He married the sister of Amr ibn Ubayd
Amr ibn Ubayd
Amr Ibn Ubayd ibn Bāb was one of the earliest leaders in the "rationalist" theological movement of the Mu'tazilis, literally 'those who withdraw themselves' - which was founded by Wasil ibn Ata . A student of the famous early theologian Hasan al-Basri, he led the Mutazilis during the early years...
.
External links
- Wasil ibn Ata an article by Encyclopædia Britannica online.
- Wasil ibn Ata (ra) & The Mutazilla Encounter The Khawarij
- Imam Jafar As Sadiq (as) and The Mu`tazila
- Imam Zayd ibn Ali (as) and The Mu`tazila