Story of Shaykhul Islam and his enemy

During the time of Shaykhul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, he was disliked by many people. But no one harboured a greater hatred for him then Nur al-Din Ali al-Bakri. This Al-Bakri was a good scholar of the Shafi'i madhab who did Jihad against the Coptic Christians and educated young children, however, he had fallen into the errors of the Ash'airah, and subsequently, he became an innovator. Over time, he became very popular amongst the people, and his pride got the best of him. To combat this, Ibn Taymiyyah wrote a book of refutation against him; this book was meant to correct the error of his ways and move him away from his arrogance. But Al-Bakri did not take kindly to this. He was very angry, and he declared Ibn Taymiyyah to be a disbeliever and ordered that he be persecuted. When his teacher heard this, he scolded Al-Bakri, but the latter did not listen.

One night, Ibn Taymiyyah was walking alone on the street to his home. Out of the blue, Al-Bakri and a group of his companions appeared and cornered him. The innovators beat the Shaykh very badly, and left him lying in pain on the street. However, people in nearby houses heard the commotion, and they all rushed out of their homes to help him, causing Al-Bakri and the gang to flee immediately. 

The people asked if Shaykhul Islam was alright, and they told him that they would exact revenge on Al-Bakri. So, Ibn Taymiyyah said, “For what? It is not permissible to do so, I do not like if a Fitna is caused by me.” Then the people replied, “Was what they did not permissible?” The Shaykh replied in exasperation, “The right which you want me to claim either belongs to me, or to you or to Allah. If this right belongs to me, then I have pardoned my oppressors. If it belongs to you, then if you will not listen to me then do as you wish. If this right belongs to Allah, then Allah will claim His right when and how He wishes.” 

The people did not listen to Shaykhul Islam, and they thought he was just being generous. They hunted for Al-Bakri, who was now a ‘Wanted’ criminal. He was so scared, he considered running away. Fortunately, Ibn Taymiyyah found Al-Bakri hiding and sheltered him in his house. Ibn Taymiyyah then went out to the palace of the Mamluk Sultan, Al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, where he interceded for Al-Bakri and asked the Sultan to forgive him. The Sultan did, and Al-Bakri was free again, and he was able to write his book Kitab Tafsir Al-Fatihah.

Then a few months (or years) later, Nur al-Din al-Bakri was delivering a sermon in front of Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad. During this sermon, he said, “The best jihad is a word of truth to a tyrannical ruler.” So the Sultan asked if he was a tyrant, and Al-Bakri replied, “Yes, you are one, because you have empowered the Copts over the Muslims.” The Sultan was angry and ordered him to be imprisoned, and his tongue cut out. However, Ibn Taymiyyah arrived just in time to intervene, and he requested that the Sultan forgive Al-Bakri. So, again, the Sultan did forgive Al-Bakri, but he stopped him from giving any fatwas, and eventually Al-Bakri was exiled from Cairo. So, Al-Bakri stayed in Dahrut, the town of his ancestors, until he passed away, and his funeral was well-attended. He was buried in the cemetery of Qarafa, also known as the “City of the Dead.” 

After these events, the Ash'ari and Maturidi scholars in Egypt saw Ibn Taymiyyah in a different light. That is, a more positive one. They felt that he had qualities and morals that were “usually seen in the Prophets of Allah.” More people had a postitive view of Ibn Taymiyyah after the incidents. 

May Allah have mercy on Shaykhul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and Nur al-Din Ali al-Bakri.