An outspoken Hanbalite
jurist and theologian who sought to model Islam on the form it had during its
first few generations. He therefore engaged in ijtihad
instead of relying on established fiqh, and strongly
criticized innovations such as the practices of popular Sufism.
These ideals have been taken up in modern times by the Wahhabi movement, which
is the basis of the present Saudi regime, and by other islamists who
call for the abandonment of traditional fiqh
and a return to the original revealed sources
of law.
The opinions or statements
expressed herein should not be taken as a position of or endorsement by the
University of Oklahoma.