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Fatwa CenterUsing Ibn Al-Qayyim's book Ar-Rooh to prove extraordinary matters of Sufi leaders
Question
Assalaamu alaykum. In our country, Bangladesh, many Sufis quote various miracles from the book of Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allaah have mercy upon him, named "Ar-Rooh" to prove their claim about the miracles of their Sufi leaders. I want to know in details about this book. Was it really written by Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
Shaykh Ibn ʻUthaymeen 
was asked, "What do you think of Ibn Al-Qayyim's book Ar-Rooh? Are the stories cited therein about inhabitants of the graves correct?" He answered:
"The book addresses good and valuable topics. Whoever reads the book would know that it was written by Ibn Al-Qayyim . As for the stories cited therein about the visions pertaining to some dead people, the authenticity of such stories are not certain. It seems, though, that Ibn Al-Qayyim was less strict in verifying the authenticity of such stories because they pertain to heart-softening topics and help revive fear of the punishment of the grave within the hearts, urging the reader to aspire to the bliss of the grave. Stories are very effective in this regard, but the authenticity of these stories is not verified..." [Fataawa Noor ʻala Ad-Darb]
Hence, the book was written by Ibn Al-Qayyim . In his commentary on Alfiyyat Ibn Maalik, Shaykh Ibn ʻUthaymeen remarked that Ar-Rooh and Rawdhat Al-Muhibbeen were perhaps written by Ibn Al-Qayyim earlier in his career.
As for your remark that the Sufis rely on the book to support their false beliefs, this does not entail criticizing the book itself. They hold corrupt and false beliefs that have no foundation in the Quran or the Sunnah and then seek evidence to support them in some way or the other. It should be noted that stories and visions cannot be used as evidence; rather, they themselves are in need of evidence to prove them.
Allaah knows best.
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