THE DAMASCENE POLYMATH, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728/1328) is one of the most fascinating scholars from medieval Islamic civilization, acknowledged for his intellectual brilliance by both his admirers and his detractors. His readiness to present his own scholarly interpretations of scripture, and his instinctive rejection of much of the received wisdom of his day, mark him out as one of the most original thinkers of Islam, and indeed, one of the most incisive minds in human history. This collection, a commentary on a brief sampling of Ibn Taymiyyah’s writings, represents a drop in the ocean of his multifaceted scholarly legacy. The reader is given a taste of this scholar’s views on theology, worship, spirituality, law, reason, revelation, and much else that is sure to enrich the reader’s understanding of Islam. Dr Mustapha Sheikh is a Lecturer in Islamic studies at the University of Leeds, where he is also the Co-Director of the University’s Iqbal Centre for the Study of Contemporary Islam. He completed his traditional Islamic studies in the Middle East, and his MSt and DPhil at Oxford University. He is one of the UK’s authorities on the thought of Ibn Taymiyyah.