Al-Hallaj

The Brotherhood of Religions and the Dignity of the Human Being

Al-Husayn ibn Mansur al-Hallaj, the author of Al-Tawasin (244–309 AH / 858–922 CE), lived and died in Iraq.

Al-Hallaj may be a unique case among well-known figures who were actually executed on charges of apostasy. It is not accurate to claim that execution for apostasy was common; rather, it was rare, and such rulings were often influenced by significant political factors. Al-Hallaj himself was accused of supporting Ismaili ideas and advocating allegiance to the family of the Prophet, a charge that was sufficient to label him a Qarmatian and justify his execution.

It is true that many philosophical figures were declared heretics in later periods; however, in reality, they lived honored lives and often held high-ranking positions, such as Ibn al-Muqaffa‘, Ibn Sina, Al-Biruni, Al-Farabi, Al-Suhrawardi, Ibn Tufayl, Ibn Bajjah, Ibn Rushd, and Lisān al-Dīn Ibn al-Khaṭīb. Although political circumstances later turned against some of them, it would be inaccurate to say they were formally tried or executed for apostasy.

Thus, Al-Hallaj remains exceptional in this regard. While others did face similar punishments, it is difficult to find a prominent figure executed for apostasy without a political stance that provoked the ruling authority, which then used charges of heresy to justify the sentence.

Al-Hallaj’s view on the unity of religions can be understood as rooted in his doctrine of total submission to God and the negation of human will. According to this perspective, God alone determines people’s knowledge, positions, destinies, beliefs, and ultimate outcomes. Based on this, it would not be reasonable to assume that differences in religious affiliation determine people’s fate in the Hereafter, since such affiliations are not chosen by humans but are manifestations of divine will. This idea is expressed in his famous verses:

What can a servant do when destiny runs its course

Over him in every state, O observer?

He cast him into the sea, bound hand and foot, and said:

Beware, beware lest you get wet in the water.

And he also said:

Glory be to Him who revealed His human aspect

As a radiant secret of His divine reality,

Then appeared among His creation openly

In the form of one who eats and drinks,

Until His creation beheld Him

Like the meeting of eyelid with eyelid.

Among the sayings attributed to him regarding the brotherhood of religions:

“O my son, all religions belong to God. Each group is occupied with a religion—not by choice, but because it has been imposed upon them. Whoever blames another for the falsity of his belief assumes that he chose it for himself.

Know that Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and other religions are merely different names and varied labels, while their ultimate purpose does not change or differ.”

He also wrote:

I reflected deeply upon the religions

And found them a single root with many branches.

So do not demand that a person adhere to one religion,

For that would cut him off from the deepest connection.

Rather, there is a root that encompasses all meanings and virtues,

Through which all truths are understood.

As for Hell, Al-Hallaj did not interpret it in the literal sense presented by jurists—as a physical fire in which skins are repeatedly replaced for punishment. Rather, he understood it as annihilation in God and immersion in divine presence. He said:

I have attained all my desires

Except the sweetness of finding delight in suffering.

Although Al-Hallaj’s execution was carried out under the order of the Abbasid caliph Al-Muqtadir, influenced by the minister Hamid ibn al-Abbas, and supported by the testimony of many jurists and scholars, a significant number of scholars regarded him as one of the greatest figures of faith. Among them were Al-Shibli, Ibn Khafif, Ibn Ata Allah al-Iskandari, Al-Wasiti, and Al-Nasrabadhi, who said: “If there is a true monotheist after the prophets and the truthful, then it is certainly Al-Hallaj.”

Al-Hallaj remains an enigma in the history of Islamic thought, with sharply conflicting interpretations surrounding his legacy. Nevertheless, it is difficult not to view the day of his execution as a dark and tragic moment in the history of Islamic civilization. Restoring his intellectual legacy is a historical responsibility, for he stands as one of the most famous figures executed for his ideas and his freedom of belief.