Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn – Its Attribution and the Status of Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah (Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām), Vol. 2, p. 421
Is the book Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn genuinely authored by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله)? Also, what is his status in the view of the ḥadīth scholars and the imāms of jarḥ wa-taʿdīl?
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh. Ammā baʿd:
Scholars have differed regarding the attribution of Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn to Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله). However, Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī (d. 748 AH) and Ibn Rajab al-Ḥanbalī (d. 795 AH) have both affirmed it as his work.
Preferred opinion: It is indeed authored by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله).
Note: The currently circulated editions of Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn do not have a known, verified, connected chain of transmission. Wallāhu aʿlam.
“The Shaykh, the Imām, the scholar, the ascetic, the ʿārif, the exemplar, Shaykh al-Islām, the banner of the awliyāʾ…”
(Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ, Vol. 20, p. 439)
“Our Shaykh al-Islām ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Abī Ṣāliḥ al-Jīlī narrated to us…”
(Siyar, 20/440 – authentic chain)
“A righteous, pious jurist.”
(Siyar, 20/20; Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/89)
Note: This statement is missing from the printed 5-volume edition of al-Ansāb by al-Samʿānī. Wallāhu aʿlam.
“He attained great acceptance, and Allāh caused wisdom to flow from his tongue.”
(Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/92 – events of 561 AH)
He mentioned Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir in al-Muntaẓam — despite having strong differences with him, he did not criticise his integrity.
(Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/189; al-Muntaẓam, 18/173, no. 4259)
هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
Source: Fatāwā ʿIlmiyyah (Tawḍīḥ al-Aḥkām), Vol. 2, p. 421
Question:
Is the book Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn genuinely authored by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله)? Also, what is his status in the view of the ḥadīth scholars and the imāms of jarḥ wa-taʿdīl?
Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh. Ammā baʿd:
Attribution of Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn
Scholars have differed regarding the attribution of Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn to Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله). However, Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī (d. 748 AH) and Ibn Rajab al-Ḥanbalī (d. 795 AH) have both affirmed it as his work.
- Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī, in al-ʿUluw lil-ʿAliyy al-Ghaffār (p. 193), attributed it to him.
- Ibn Rajab, in al-Dhayl ʿalā Ṭabaqāt al-Ḥanābilah (Vol. 1, p. 296), also confirmed the attribution.
Preferred opinion: It is indeed authored by Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله).
Note: The currently circulated editions of Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn do not have a known, verified, connected chain of transmission. Wallāhu aʿlam.
Status of Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī in the Eyes of Ḥadīth Scholars
Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī’s Statement:
“The Shaykh, the Imām, the scholar, the ascetic, the ʿārif, the exemplar, Shaykh al-Islām, the banner of the awliyāʾ…”
(Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ, Vol. 20, p. 439)
Imām Muwaffaq al-Dīn Ibn Qudāmah’s Statement:
“Our Shaykh al-Islām ʿAbd al-Qādir ibn Abī Ṣāliḥ al-Jīlī narrated to us…”
(Siyar, 20/440 – authentic chain)
Al-Dhahabī’s Quotation from Ibn al-Samʿānī (d. 562 AH):
“A righteous, pious jurist.”
(Siyar, 20/20; Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/89)
Note: This statement is missing from the printed 5-volume edition of al-Ansāb by al-Samʿānī. Wallāhu aʿlam.
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Najjār’s Statement:
“He attained great acceptance, and Allāh caused wisdom to flow from his tongue.”
(Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/92 – events of 561 AH)
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Jawzī’s Mention:
He mentioned Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir in al-Muntaẓam — despite having strong differences with him, he did not criticise his integrity.
(Tārīkh al-Islām, 39/189; al-Muntaẓam, 18/173, no. 4259)
Conclusion:
- Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (رحمه الله) was trustworthy, truthful, and a pious scholar.
- The book Ghuniyat al-Ṭālibīn is most likely his work according to leading historians, though its available editions contain some weak and fabricated narrations that must be identified and treated with caution.
هٰذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
