Baghdad, Iraq
Coordinates: 33.330728, 44.400594
Ibn al-Jawzi was an Arab Muslim jurisconsult, preacher, orator, heresiographer, traditionist, historian, judge, hagiographer, and philologist who played an instrumental role in propagating the Hanbali school of orthodox Sunni jurisprudence in his native Baghdad during the twelfth-century.
During “a life of great intellectual, religious and political activity,” Ibn al-Jawzi came to be widely admired by his fellow Hanbalis for the tireless role he played in ensuring that that particular school – historically, the smallest of the four principal Sunni schools of law – enjoy the same level of “prestige” often bestowed by rulers on the Maliki, Shafi’i, and Hanafi rites.
Belonging to a wealthy family, Ibn al-Jawzi received a “very thorough education” during his adolescent years, and was fortunate to train under some of that era’s most renowned Baghdadi scholars.
Although Ibn al-Jawzi’s scholarly career continued to blossom over the next few years, he became most famous during the reign of al-Mustadi (d. 1180), the thirty-third caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, whose support for Hanbalism allowed Ibn al-Jawzi to effectively become “one of the most influential persons” in Baghdad, due to the caliph’s approval of Ibn al-Jawzi’s public sermonizing to huge crowds in both pastoral and urban areas throughout Baghdad.
Part of Ibn al-Jawzi’s legacy rests on his reputation for having been “one of the most prolific writers” of all time.
The tomb of Ibn Al-Jawzi is located at Baghdad, Iraq near a barbecue restaurant.
The tomb is a simple green cement slab surrounded by rocks, and a paper sign on it indicating it is the tomb.
