The reception of Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328) in Ibrāhīm al-Kūrānī’s (d. 1101/1690) works

Abstract

Mullā Ibrāhīm al-Kūrānī (d. 1101/1690) was an Ash‛arī scholar who was heavily influenced by the Ṣufī ideas of Ibn ‛Arabī (d. 638/1240). Nevertheless, he has been described in much of 20th-century Arabic literature as a Salafī scholar and a defender of Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328). Western academic studies have also described him as the scholar who rehabilitated, or at least played a crucial role in rehabilitating, Ibn Taymiyya and the Ḥanbalī school of thought. How did an Akbarian and Ash‛arī scholar come to be known as a Salafī and a defender of Ibn Taymiyya, who famously declared Ibn ‛Arabī an unbeliever? Why was al-Kūrānī labeled a Salafī and what influence did Ibn Taymiyya have on al-Kūrānī’s works? In this paper, I examine the reception of Ibn Taymiyya in al-Kūrānī’s works and argue that al-Kūrānī’s interest in and knowledge of Ibn Taymiyya’s works was limited to a single idea related to understanding ambiguous Qur’ānic verses (mutashābihāt) that served his Ṣufī project, without displaying any genuine interest in Ibn Taymiyya or his thought more generally.