LessonsPrayer for a Good End and Dissociation from Deviant DoctrinesQuiz

The Muʿtazilah are associated with the early second Islamic century. Wāṣil ibn ʿAṭāʾ al-Ghazzāl is identified as the founder of this movement; his death is dated to 131 AH.

In the gathering of al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī, a disagreement arose over the status of a Muslim who commits a major sin. Wāṣil maintained that such a person leaves faith without entering unbelief.

The words «هٰذَا الرَّجُلُ قَدِ اعْتَزَلَ عَنَّا»—“This man has withdrawn from us”—are associated with that dispute. The name Muʿtazilah is traced to this separation.

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The Muʿtazilah and Wāṣil ibn ʿAṭāʾ

Prayer for a Good End and Dissociation from Deviant Doctrines

The Muʿtazilah are associated with the early second Islamic century. Wāṣil ibn ʿAṭāʾ al-Ghazzāl is identified as the founder of this movement; his death is dated to 131 AH.

In the gathering of al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī, a disagreement arose over the status of a Muslim who commits a major sin. Wāṣil maintained that such a person leaves faith without entering unbelief.

The words «هٰذَا الرَّجُلُ قَدِ اعْتَزَلَ عَنَّا»—“This man has withdrawn from us”—are associated with that dispute. The name Muʿtazilah is traced to this separation.