What do you think?
Rate this book
Dear Beloved Son
This book by Hujjatul Islam Imam Al-Ghazali offers advice to children who are about to enter adulthood. How to communicate with your neighbors and elders, how to dress suitably, how to socialize correctly offers advice on manners and respect offers clear and concise guidance on communication with parents.
Extract:
To counsel others is an easy matter, the difficulty is accepting advice since it is bitter for those who follow their own inclination and desire. They love the forbidden from the depth of their hearts. This is more applicable to seekers of knowledge and students of learning, those of them who are busy with the benefits of this world. They believe that mere abstract knowledge, without proper action, will rescue them. This is the belief of the philosophers. Praise and Glory be to Allah, the Greatest of all. They do not know this much, that when they acquire knowledge, if they do not work according to it, the indictment against them is certain. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said "The person most severely punished on the Day of Judgment is the learned one who did not follow Allah's guidance and did not benefit from his knowledge".
Extract:
To counsel others is an easy matter, the difficulty is accepting advice since it is bitter for those who follow their own inclination and desire. They love the forbidden from the depth of their hearts. This is more applicable to seekers of knowledge and students of learning, those of them who are busy with the benefits of this world. They believe that mere abstract knowledge, without proper action, will rescue them. This is the belief of the philosophers. Praise and Glory be to Allah, the Greatest of all. They do not know this much, that when they acquire knowledge, if they do not work according to it, the indictment against them is certain. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said "The person most severely punished on the Day of Judgment is the learned one who did not follow Allah's guidance and did not benefit from his knowledge".
- GenresIslamNonfiction
94 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 19, 2018
12 people are currently reading
49 people want to read
About the author
Abu Hamid al-Ghazali
784 books2,961 followers
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.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 23, 2020
A compilation of 24 pieces of advice from Imam Al-Ghazali RA for his beloved son. Some said that it is his student whom he considered as a son questioned these thus wrote about it and compile them in this very book. I had a hard time finishing this book. I've never been afraid of finishing book as much as when I read this. Every words count and every knowledge will be questioned its implementation. I am afraid I've been too eager to know this and that but nothing from it helps me to improve my good deeds. .
.
.
This book subtly reminds me to be a little bit strict and selective with my book selection and knowledge. There are two counsels from Imam Al-Ghazali that I buried deep in my heart and those are from the second and third counsel. Some of the counsels are reminders, some are warnings and some are beautiful. Those of warnings I think I remembered the most as bitter truth works best as medicine.
.
.
This book subtly reminds me to be a little bit strict and selective with my book selection and knowledge. There are two counsels from Imam Al-Ghazali that I buried deep in my heart and those are from the second and third counsel. Some of the counsels are reminders, some are warnings and some are beautiful. Those of warnings I think I remembered the most as bitter truth works best as medicine.
June 28, 2025
I would rate it 4.5 / 5. The book is concise, but succeeds in delivering essential advice. The author, a well-known Islamic scholar, was influenced by Ahlul-Kalam and Soofiyyah, therefore one must approach his works with this in mind.
The book is a letter the scholar wrote in response to a series of questions posed to him by his student, therefore, it is not a comprehensive book of advice, but rather it addresses that specific student’s concerns. Although, it does answer extremely important points and provides amazing insights which we can all benefit from.
The scholar did not talk about issues of marriage, something which is a huge part of life and of extreme importance in Islam. I would have liked to hear some advice regarding it.
My main take away is that action requires knowledge of the shariah and salvation requires action. Sincerity is of utmost importance and striving against base desires is essential.
The book is a letter the scholar wrote in response to a series of questions posed to him by his student, therefore, it is not a comprehensive book of advice, but rather it addresses that specific student’s concerns. Although, it does answer extremely important points and provides amazing insights which we can all benefit from.
The scholar did not talk about issues of marriage, something which is a huge part of life and of extreme importance in Islam. I would have liked to hear some advice regarding it.
My main take away is that action requires knowledge of the shariah and salvation requires action. Sincerity is of utmost importance and striving against base desires is essential.
April 21, 2025
I expected more advice on how to develop your character and behave, but the book is more of a collection of warnings and general advice. The language format was hard to understand, so I used ChatGPT to break it down for me. Overall, it's a good book, but I thought it was going to be more focused on self-development.
August 28, 2023
Vital read for all students of knowledge. Imam Ghazali classes the Ihya Ulum E Deen as Fardh Ayn & some parts to be Fardh E Kifaya. Nevertheless a vital read for an introductory to tassawuf
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews