Beyond Body (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781957773117)

Can Allāh be described as a body, confined to a direction, or contained within space?

For centuries, Muslim theologians have answered this question with rigorous textual and rational proofs. Among the most profound contributions to this discussion is Qawāriʿ al-Qahhār ʿalā al-Mujassimah al-Fujjār by the renowned Sunni scholar, Imām Aḥmad Riḍā Khān al-Māturīdī (d. 1921).

In this remarkable treatise, the Imām systematically dismantles anthropomorphic conceptions of Allāh through twenty penetrating arguments rooted in the Qur'ān, Sunnah, reason, and the classical tradition of Ahl al-Sunnah. Demonstrating extraordinary precision in ʿIlm al-Kalām (Islamic Theology), he addresses questions concerning body, direction, place, movement, descent, and the Divine Attributes with exceptional clarity and intellectual rigor.

This edition presents the first complete English translation of the work, accompanied by extensive annotations, explanatory notes, references to primary sources, and contextual discussions that make this important text accessible to both students and scholars.

Whether you are studying Sunni creed, Māturīdī theology, Ashʿarī theology, classical Islamic thought, or the Divine Attributes of Allāh, Beyond Body offers a compelling defense of His absolute transcendence and a masterful example of traditional Islamic scholarship.

• The first complete English translation of Qawāriʿ al-Qahhār ʿalā al-Mujassimah al-Fujjār
• Extensive annotations and explanatory footnotes
• References to classical Qur'ānic, ḥadīth, and theological sources
• Clarification of technical terminology in ʿIlm al-Kalām
• A systematic refutation of anthropomorphism from the Sunni tradition