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The Revival of the Religious Sciences #29
Al-Ghazali on the Condemnation of Pride and Self-Admiration
The Condemnation of Pride and Self-Admiration is the first translation into a European language of chapter twenty-nine of The Revival of the Religious Sciences , a monumental work of classical Islam written by the greatest theologian-mystic of Islam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (d. 1111). Perhaps the most important chapter in the whole of the Revival, The Condemnation of Pride and Self-Admiration delves into the fundamental spiritual ailments and major impediments of the soul, namely pride and self-admiration. Ghazali offers readers an in-depth analysis of how and why pride and self-admiration are so harmful to a person's soul, and oulines methods of recognizing and subsequently healing these diseases of the heart. The key ingredient in this cure, Ghazali explains, is the cultivation of humility, which results from an increasing awareness of one's lowliness and essential nothingness before God. An indepth and very lucid analysis of the major vices and virtues central to all religions.
227 pages, Hardcover
Published August 1, 2018
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About the author
Abu Hamid al-Ghazali
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أبو حامد الغزالي
Muslim theologian and philosopher Abu Hamid al-Ghazali of Persia worked to systematize Sufism, Islamic mysticism, and in The Incoherence of the Philosophers (1095) argued the incompatibility of thought of Plato and Aristotle with Islam.
Born in 1058, Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghazālī ranked of the most prominent and influential Sunni jurists of his origin.
Islamic tradition considers him to be a Mujaddid, a renewer of the faith who, according to the prophetic hadith, appears once every century to restore the faith of the ummah ("the Islamic Community"). His works were so highly acclaimed by his contemporaries that al-Ghazali was awarded the honorific title "Proof of Islam" (Hujjat al-Islam).
Al-Ghazali believed that the Islamic spiritual tradition had become moribund and that the spiritual sciences taught by the first generation of Muslims had been forgotten.[24] That resulted in his writing his magnum opus entitled Ihya 'ulum al-din ("The Revival of the Religious Sciences"). Among his other works, the Tahāfut al-Falāsifa ("Incoherence of the Philosophers") is a significant landmark in the history of philosophy, as it advances the critique of Aristotelian science developed later in 14th-century Europe.
أبو حامد محمد الغزّالي الطوسي النيسابوري الصوفي الشافعي الأشعري، أحد أعلام عصره وأحد أشهر علماء المسلمين في القرن الخامس الهجري،(450 هـ - 505 هـ / 1058م - 1111م). كان فقيهاً وأصولياً وفيلسوفاً، وكان صوفيّ الطريقةِ، شافعيّ الفقهِ إذ لم يكن للشافعية في آخر عصره مثلَه.، وكان على مذهب الأشاعرة في العقيدة، وقد عُرف كأحد مؤسسي المدرسة الأشعرية في علم الكلام، وأحد أصولها الثلاثة بعد أبي الحسن الأشعري، (وكانوا الباقلاني والجويني والغزّالي) لُقّب الغزالي بألقاب كثيرة في حياته، أشهرها لقب "حجّة الإسلام"، وله أيضاً ألقاب مثل: زين الدين، ومحجّة الدين، والعالم الأوحد، ومفتي الأمّة، وبركة الأنام، وإمام أئمة الدين، وشرف الأئمة.
كان له أثرٌ كبيرٌ وبصمةٌ واضحةٌ في عدّة علوم مثل الفلسفة، والفقه الشافعي، وعلم الكلام، والتصوف، والمنطق، وترك عدداَ من الكتب في تلك المجالات.ولد وعاش في طوس، ثم انتقل إلى نيسابور ليلازم أبا المعالي الجويني (الملقّب بإمام الحرمين)، فأخذ عنه معظم العلوم، ولمّا بلغ عمره 34 سنة، رحل إلى بغداد مدرّساً في المدرسة النظامية في عهد الدولة العباسية بطلب من الوزير السلجوقي نظام الملك. في تلك الفترة اشتُهر شهرةً واسعةً، وصار مقصداً لطلاب العلم الشرعي من جميع البلدان، حتى بلغ أنه كان يجلس في مجلسه أكثر من 400 من أفاضل الناس وعلمائهم يستمعون له ويكتبون عنه العلم. وبعد 4 سنوات من التدريس قرر اعتزال الناس والتفرغ للعبادة وتربية نفسه، متأثراً بذلك بالصّوفية وكتبهم، فخرج من بغداد خفيةً في رحلة طويلة بلغت 11 سنة، تنقل خلالها بين دمشق والقدس والخليل ومكة والمدينة المنورة، كتب خلالها كتابه المشهور إحياء علوم الدين كخلاصة لتجربته الروحية، عاد بعدها إلى بلده طوس متخذاً بجوار بيته مدرسةً للفقهاء، وخانقاه (مكان للتعبّد والعزلة) للصوفية.
Muslim theologian and philosopher Abu Hamid al-Ghazali of Persia worked to systematize Sufism, Islamic mysticism, and in The Incoherence of the Philosophers (1095) argued the incompatibility of thought of Plato and Aristotle with Islam.
Born in 1058, Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghazālī ranked of the most prominent and influential Sunni jurists of his origin.
Islamic tradition considers him to be a Mujaddid, a renewer of the faith who, according to the prophetic hadith, appears once every century to restore the faith of the ummah ("the Islamic Community"). His works were so highly acclaimed by his contemporaries that al-Ghazali was awarded the honorific title "Proof of Islam" (Hujjat al-Islam).
Al-Ghazali believed that the Islamic spiritual tradition had become moribund and that the spiritual sciences taught by the first generation of Muslims had been forgotten.[24] That resulted in his writing his magnum opus entitled Ihya 'ulum al-din ("The Revival of the Religious Sciences"). Among his other works, the Tahāfut al-Falāsifa ("Incoherence of the Philosophers") is a significant landmark in the history of philosophy, as it advances the critique of Aristotelian science developed later in 14th-century Europe.
أبو حامد محمد الغزّالي الطوسي النيسابوري الصوفي الشافعي الأشعري، أحد أعلام عصره وأحد أشهر علماء المسلمين في القرن الخامس الهجري،(450 هـ - 505 هـ / 1058م - 1111م). كان فقيهاً وأصولياً وفيلسوفاً، وكان صوفيّ الطريقةِ، شافعيّ الفقهِ إذ لم يكن للشافعية في آخر عصره مثلَه.، وكان على مذهب الأشاعرة في العقيدة، وقد عُرف كأحد مؤسسي المدرسة الأشعرية في علم الكلام، وأحد أصولها الثلاثة بعد أبي الحسن الأشعري، (وكانوا الباقلاني والجويني والغزّالي) لُقّب الغزالي بألقاب كثيرة في حياته، أشهرها لقب "حجّة الإسلام"، وله أيضاً ألقاب مثل: زين الدين، ومحجّة الدين، والعالم الأوحد، ومفتي الأمّة، وبركة الأنام، وإمام أئمة الدين، وشرف الأئمة.
كان له أثرٌ كبيرٌ وبصمةٌ واضحةٌ في عدّة علوم مثل الفلسفة، والفقه الشافعي، وعلم الكلام، والتصوف، والمنطق، وترك عدداَ من الكتب في تلك المجالات.ولد وعاش في طوس، ثم انتقل إلى نيسابور ليلازم أبا المعالي الجويني (الملقّب بإمام الحرمين)، فأخذ عنه معظم العلوم، ولمّا بلغ عمره 34 سنة، رحل إلى بغداد مدرّساً في المدرسة النظامية في عهد الدولة العباسية بطلب من الوزير السلجوقي نظام الملك. في تلك الفترة اشتُهر شهرةً واسعةً، وصار مقصداً لطلاب العلم الشرعي من جميع البلدان، حتى بلغ أنه كان يجلس في مجلسه أكثر من 400 من أفاضل الناس وعلمائهم يستمعون له ويكتبون عنه العلم. وبعد 4 سنوات من التدريس قرر اعتزال الناس والتفرغ للعبادة وتربية نفسه، متأثراً بذلك بالصّوفية وكتبهم، فخرج من بغداد خفيةً في رحلة طويلة بلغت 11 سنة، تنقل خلالها بين دمشق والقدس والخليل ومكة والمدينة المنورة، كتب خلالها كتابه المشهور إحياء علوم الدين كخلاصة لتجربته الروحية، عاد بعدها إلى بلده طوس متخذاً بجوار بيته مدرسةً للفقهاء، وخانقاه (مكان للتعبّد والعزلة) للصوفية.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 15, 2024
So I wrote a whole review but it got deleted. Here we are again! I don’t know what to say subhanAllah imam ghazali has proved his gift of writing and the height of his intellect. I can’t help but wonder what he must’ve been like in his time. 10/10 recommend!! Go and read it right now!! A gem of a book ما شاء اللّٰه اللّٰهُمَّ بارِك
March 2, 2024
A must-read for everyone. As people, over very own existence is intertwined with our ego - accepting a challenge even the mountains declined.
Al Ghazali رحمه الله discusses critical points in a concise and effective way, his points on the human condition are ever-relevant.
A salient point during my reading was in chapter 9 of part 1, where I viewed the “scholar” here as simply the reader addressing his pride:
“a servant must not be proud towards a single person.
Indeed, if the scholar looks at an ignoramus, he should say, 'He disobeys God out of ignorance, whereas I disobey Him with knowledge. So he has more of an excuse than me!'”
and
“If the scholar sees a religious innovator or an unbeliever, he should say, 'What do I know? Perhaps he will die in a state of Islam and I will die as he is right now. There is no guarantee that my guidance will continue, just as there was no guarantee that it would begin for me.”
To get the most out of this book, I suggest a reflective approach, writing notes to yourself after each chapter (my intention when I re-read inshAllah).
Al Ghazali رحمه الله discusses critical points in a concise and effective way, his points on the human condition are ever-relevant.
A salient point during my reading was in chapter 9 of part 1, where I viewed the “scholar” here as simply the reader addressing his pride:
“a servant must not be proud towards a single person.
Indeed, if the scholar looks at an ignoramus, he should say, 'He disobeys God out of ignorance, whereas I disobey Him with knowledge. So he has more of an excuse than me!'”
and
“If the scholar sees a religious innovator or an unbeliever, he should say, 'What do I know? Perhaps he will die in a state of Islam and I will die as he is right now. There is no guarantee that my guidance will continue, just as there was no guarantee that it would begin for me.”
To get the most out of this book, I suggest a reflective approach, writing notes to yourself after each chapter (my intention when I re-read inshAllah).
July 6, 2025
"When a group is captured for a crime and are informed that their necks will be smitten, they would not devote themselves to being proud over each other, since the peril is common to all"
Confession: I have been reading and re-reading this book in parts over the years, so this "review" is not holistic.
Confession no.2: I really like Imam Al-Ghazali.
This chapter of the 'Ihya, like the others, is nothing short of amazing. It gives insight into many forms of pride, its causes, and remedies. And also briefly touches on self-admiration in a similar manner.
If I were to summarize the book in a few sentences (which definitely doesn't represent the density of content, just what I found most resonant in my latest read), it would be:
Understand that pride emerges from delusion and must be treated with reality—and this reality is often harsh. Pride indicates one's feeling safe from God, and feeling safe from God entails destruction. Whatever you are proud of, understand that it is not yours. You did not earn it or deserve it, and it can very well be taken away at any point in time, with no disclaimers or warnings, so be grateful.
Confession: I have been reading and re-reading this book in parts over the years, so this "review" is not holistic.
Confession no.2: I really like Imam Al-Ghazali.
This chapter of the 'Ihya, like the others, is nothing short of amazing. It gives insight into many forms of pride, its causes, and remedies. And also briefly touches on self-admiration in a similar manner.
If I were to summarize the book in a few sentences (which definitely doesn't represent the density of content, just what I found most resonant in my latest read), it would be:
Understand that pride emerges from delusion and must be treated with reality—and this reality is often harsh. Pride indicates one's feeling safe from God, and feeling safe from God entails destruction. Whatever you are proud of, understand that it is not yours. You did not earn it or deserve it, and it can very well be taken away at any point in time, with no disclaimers or warnings, so be grateful.
February 2, 2021
Eloquently written, short and succinct. This book covers the many constructs faced in the world today due to pride and self-admiration. This has come to the forefront, like a prolonged fog leading to the squandering of introspection.
September 9, 2023
Best of the Ihya Ulum E Deen by far.
September 13, 2021
Amazing, should be compulsory reading
July 27, 2023
Obviously like every other Al-Ghazali book, this one was a brilliant read as well. A lot of great stuff I had to take notes on.
Before reading this book, one would probably think that they understand the vices of Pride & self admiration but Al-Ghazali's intellect, eloquence and explanation takes one's understanding of these to another level.
Recommended for sure!
Before reading this book, one would probably think that they understand the vices of Pride & self admiration but Al-Ghazali's intellect, eloquence and explanation takes one's understanding of these to another level.
Recommended for sure!
March 18, 2024
Whew. Mashallah. Talk about a reality check.
August 25, 2024
If only everyone could give a chance to Al-Ghazali’s works. This is a gem.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews