The man who changed the course of Islamic history

Ibn Tumart is considered the spiritual founder of the Berber dynasty of the Almohads in the twelfth century. His once revolutionary ideas sent shockwaves through the entire Arab world, ultimately resulting in violent tensions. By Mohamed Yosri

By Mohamed Yosri

A few years after his departure for Andalusia and the Islamic Orient, Ibn Tumart found his way back home. The simple young man who had set out with the intent of acquiring knowledge, returned once again to the barren deserts of Sous. His return heralded the dawn of one of the Maghreb's golden ages; a remarkable era that witnessed the formation of a great empire, founded by this young man whose ambitions knew no limits.

From Cordoba to Baghdad

Ibn Tumart began his journey in what is now Morocco, setting out for Andalusia, the cities and towns of which served as important centres of learning for students of science and religion, welcoming them to study in its major schools and institutes.

Once there, he headed to Cordoba, hailed as a mecca of science and knowledge and the ancient capital of the Umayyad Caliphate. For some time, he studied under the tutelage of a number of renowned scholars, such as Judge Ibn Hamdine, one of the greatest scholars of Andalusia at the time.

While in Cordoba, Ibn Tumart was greatly influenced by the revolt of the clergy against the renowned book The Revival of Religious Sciences by Persian theologian Imam al-Ghazali. The scholars, led by Ibn Hamdine, succeeded in obtaining an order from Prince Ali bin Yusuf to burn this book in the streets of Cordoba.

Many postulate that Ibn Tumart's intellectual progression changed course completely after this incident. He refused to complete his studies with the Andalusian scholars and decided to turn to the Islamic Orient to seek knowledge from its famed scholars.

Ibn Tumart (source: Wikimedia)
Muhammad ibn Tūmart wurde 1077 als Mitglied des Masmuda-Stammes in Sousse im äußersten Süden des heutigen Marokko geboren. Er setzte im 11. Und 12. Jahrhundert eine der größten Umwälzungen der islamischen Geschichte in Gang und wurde zum Begründer der Almohaden-Dynastie. Er strebte die Errichtung eines großen islamischen Kalifats an, das alle Länder und Gebiete der Welt umfassen sollte – vom Orient bis zum Okzident.

Egypt was the first stop on his journey. He settled in Alexandria and attended the lessons of Imam Abu Bakr at-Turtushi, studying his book Kitab Siraj al-Muluk (The Lamp of Kings), with its extensive discussions of power, governance and the inevitability of founding an Islamic state based on justice and equality.

Filled with these revolutionary ideas, he performed the haj pilgrimage in Mecca, and then headed towards the Levant, passing through en route to what is now Iraq. In Baghdad, he met with a number of senior Islamic scholars, including, it is said, Hujjat al-Islam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali. Various historical sources affirm al-Ghazali's powerful influence over Ibn Tumart.

The historian Ibn Abi Zar' al-Fasi noted in his book, Rawd al-Qirtas, that al-Ghazali one day questioned his student on the status of his book The Revival of Religious Sciences in the Islamic West, to which Ibn Tumart replied that it had been burned in public in Cordoba. Ibn Abi Zar notes that al-Ghazali was angered at this and called upon God to put an end to the Almoravid dynasty. Ibn Tumart asked him to pray that he would be the one to fulfil his prayer; al-Ghazali agreed.

Ibn Tumart now began to prepare himself to return to his homeland. However, the man who would return to Sous was not the same simple young man who had left it a few years previously.Return to the Maghreb

Mohammed Ibn Tumart was born around 1077 into the tribe of Al-Masmuda, which settled in Sous, in the far south of what is now Morocco. He had a simple, modest upbringing. Nevertheless, he would set in motion one of the greatest revolutions in Islamic history and become the founder of a vast empire.

Page from a Koran from the Maghreb dating from the 13th–14 century, Chester Beatty Library (source: Wikipedia)
Auf den Grundfesten des Korans und der Hadithe: Als Rechtsgelehrter sah Ibn Tūmart die größten Erfolgschancen für die von ihm ausgerufene Revolution darin, sich selbst zum wahren Mahdi zu erklären. Der Mahdi ist nach islamischer Glaubensauffassung ein Nachkomme des Propheten Mohammed, der das Unrecht der Welt besiegen wird.

Ibn Tumart returned from the east consumed by three ideas: the first was revolution, the second was al-Ghazali's prayer and prophecy for him, and the third was a tenacious religious spiritualism that had taken root in his heart and mind.

The combination of these three factors had a major spiritual impact on Ibn Tumart and led to his adoption of a reformist approach based on education, explanation, and guidance, which later developed into the condonement and use of violent means to enjoin good and forbid evil.

The goal pursued by Ibn Tumart, which crystallised later in his career, was the establishment of a large-scale Islamic caliphate that covered all countries and territories across the world, from the far east to the distant west.

During his journey back to Sous, Ibn Tumart began to campaign for his reformist approach in all the cities and villages through which he passed. His ideas sent major shockwaves throughout society, ultimately resulting in violent tensions.

He was said to have smashed liquor shops with his staff wherever he went and delivered speeches and held debates with the jurists of the cities he visited. The last of these debates was with Ali ibn Yusuf, the emir of the Almoravid dynasty, in Marrakech. He was known for decisively defeating anyone who argued against him.Declaring revolution

Throughout his journey from Marrakech to his native Sous, Ibn Tumart found many supporters and followers of his ideas, who quickly assumed active roles in his movement.

As he prepared to declare his revolution, and since he was a scholar and faqih, he believed that claiming to be the true Mahdi (in Islam, the Mahdi is prophesised to be the awaited redeemer of all mankind) could be the best way to fulfil his desired goals. To pave the way for himself, he began spreading the Prophet's hadiths about the awaited Mahdi, and claimed to be of Alawite descent, and that he was descended from the sons of Al-Hassan bin Abi Talib.

Then, during Ramadan 1121, he took the critical step of proclaiming himself "the prophesised infallible Mahdi" heralded by the Prophet's hadiths, among companions and followers. In his book Nazm al-Juman, Moroccan scholar Ibn al-Qattan wrote that, during his speech on that day, Ibn Tumart declared:

"Thanks to Allah, who does what He wants and who judges what He wishes. There is no objection to His command. There is no commentator on His judgment. God praise our master Muhammad who brought good news about the Mahdi who will fill the Earth with equity and justice as it was filled with oppression and injustice. God will send him when the truth is abrogated by falsehood and justice is removed by injustice."

Moschee von Tinmal, das langjährige Bergexil Ibn Tūmarts; Foto: Wikimedia
Bollwerk gegen die heranrückenden Almoraviden: Ibn Tūmart zog nach Tinmal, einer befestigten Bergstadt, um seine Truppen ausrüsten zu können, ohne einen Angriff der Almoraviden befürchten zu müssen. In Erinnerung an Ibn Tūmarts langjähriges Bergexil gründete dessen Nachfolger Abd al-Mu'min um 1153/54 die Moschee von Tinmal.

According to Ibn Qattan, the speech continued: "His place is the Far Maghrib, and his time is the last time, and his name is the name of the prophet, who is praised by God and his gracious, intimate angels. The rulers' injustice has appeared and the Earth has been filled with corruption. This is the last time, the name is the name, the lineage is the lineage, and the work is the work."

One can consider the day when Ibn Tumart announced that he was the awaited Mahdi the most decisive day in the history of his movement in particular, and in the history of the Maghreb and the Islamic world in general. From that day, Ibn Tumart was said to have put on the "spiritual dress that he has claimed for his own to support the legitimacy of and holiness his Imamate".

It was not enough for Ibn Tumart to receive an oath of allegiance from the tribes loyal to him; he began to move quickly to prepare his supporters for the expected military confrontation with the Almoravid authority. He then moved to Tinmel, one of the fortified mountain cities, so that he could equip his forces without fearing an attack by the Almoravids.

Meanwhile, he imposed on his followers, who were dubbed the Almohads, a meticulous system of education, which required attending lessons. He also wrote books for the instruction of his men, most prominent among which were Al-Murshada and A'azz Ma Yutlab. He recruited a number of spies among his preachers to ensure he was aware of everything that was going on among his supporters.

Ibn Tumart also fought the tribes of the Berber Masmuda, who initially opposed his call, before eventually joining him. However, throughout his life, he remained suspicious of his disciples and followers. This culminated in a purging of his movement on a massive scale, known as "tamyiz", during which thousands of his supporters whose absolute loyalty was in doubt were executed.

Was Al-Ghazali's prophecy fulfilled?

Following all these preparations, Ibn Tumart clashed with the Almoravid state in numerous successive battles; his armies were able to achieve many impressive victories. Indeed, he almost fulfilled al-Ghazali's prophecy.

But in 1130, before the walls of Marrakech, the capital of the Almoravid dynasty, the Almohad forces were dealt a harsh defeat by the desperate Almoravid fighters, who were fighting for their lives, in the battle known as the Battle of al-Buhayra.

Shortly after that defeat, Mahdi Ibn Tumart died in Tinmel at the age of 50, to be succeeded by his loyal disciple, Abdul-Mu'min ben 'Ali al-Kumi, who transformed the movement into a great empire that included the Maghreb and Andalusia, becoming the first dynasty of what would be known in history as the Almohad Caliphate.

Mohamed Yosri


© Raseef 22


* Translation quoted from The Dearest Quest: A Biography of Ibn Tumart by Wilyam Sharif, 2010, pages 91–92