Essential Islamic Creed

Shaykh Ahmad ibn Zayni Dahlan, Amjad Mahmood (tr.)

Paperback

9780993475603

This work is an important, timely, accessible work on tawhid. Written by the Shafi’i Mufti of Makkah in the 1800s, Shaykh Ahmad ibn Zayni Dahlan, the work elaborates on the key aspects of Ahl Sunna wal Jamaah doctrine. The author explains (aided for the sake of the modern reader by the extensive footnotes of the translator) the twenty attributes of Allah - or as traditional Malay Sunni scholars refer to it, ‘Sifat Dua Puluh’; the attributes of the Prophets (what is possible and impossible for them); the angels; and what is to come after death. 

“Whoever leaves four, then his [realization of His] unity is perfected; these are: how, when, where and how many. The first is an enquiry about modality, and the reply to it is ‘There is nothing whatsoever like unto Him’; the second is an enquiry about time, and the reply to that is ‘He is not restricted by time’; the third is an enquiry about place, and the reply to it is ‘He is not restricted to place’; and the fourth is an enquiry about number, and the reply to it is ‘He is one, the unique’.” 

Contents

1. Foundational Principles

2. The Attributes of Allah

3. The Attributes of The Prophets, alayhim as-Salam

4. The Unseen Realm and the Afterlife, & other Essential Beliefs and Practices