What is the authenticity of attributing the statement that the Fire will cease to exist to Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him)?
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The questioner : What is the authenticity, O Shaykh, of Ibn Taymiyyah's statement that the Fire will cease to exist?
The Shaykh : It is authentic from him, perhaps he retracted it.
The questioner : It is authentic from him, in which book, in which reference?
The Shaykh : His student Ibn al-Qayyim transmitted it from him in some of his books, I think *Hadi al-Arwah ila Bilad al-Afrah*, and al-San'ani also transmitted that in his book which I had authenticated and written an introduction for, *Raf' al-Astar 'an Aqwal Adillah al-Qa'ilin bi Fana' al-Nar*, which refers to Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, and there is a manuscript I had photographed containing speech on this matter.
The questioner : Regarding the manuscript, its attribution to him was not verified, meaning something was found in its attribution.
The Shaykh : It is not relied upon to the extent that one says the attribution was not verified; the reliance is on the words of his student.
The questioner : The words of his student do not contradict the words of Ibn Taymiyyah in his collection and in
*Minhaj al-Sunnah*, and this does not mean his retraction from the statement to...
The Shaykh : I told you perhaps he retracted it, because Ibn al-Qayyim has two statements, one that agrees with Ibn Taymiyyah and defends it. Did you not read the book I mentioned earlier, the one al-San'ani authored, *Raf' al-Astar*?
The questioner : I read it, but I did not reach this issue, as for the words of Ibn al-Qayyim.
The Shaykh : How did you not reach it?! Specifically on this topic, Ibn al-Qayyim fell into wonders of matters, and some of that is found in *Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Da'ifah*, volume one, when I discussed the hadith. Ibn al-Qayyim exerted himself greatly to free this hadith from weakness, so the hadith is narrated through al-Hasan al-Basri from 'Umar, and al-Hasan al-Basri did not meet 'Umar, and he tries in very strange speech, through his reverence for al-Hasan, that al-Hasan must have heard it through a reliable intermediary from 'Umar.
So I said regarding the words of Ibn al-Qayyim in the book he transmitted from his Shaykh, he is more knowledgeable than us in it, but Ibn al-Qayyim has words in *al-Wabil al-Sayb fi al-Kalam al-Tayyib* saying: "The Fire is two fires, a Fire that ceases to exist and a Fire that remains. The Fire that ceases to exist is for the disobedient believers, and the one that does not cease to exist is for the disbelievers". This resolves the problem.
The questioner : Meaning we say that the intended meaning of the words of Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim is the Fire of the disobedient, not the Fire of the disbelievers.
The Shaykh : Yes, provided that this statement—may Allah reward you with good—although it is explicit in the second part that the Fire of the disbelievers does not cease to exist, as for the first part, it is not precise, meaning because it will be said to him, what makes you know that it ceases to exist? It is permissible that it remains, because it is not important to speak about the Fire in detail that this Fire ceases to exist. The important thing is what is the fate of those who enter it? Some of them come out and some do not come out. As for the issue of the Fire in which it was said that it ceases to exist, this requires a text. But what concerns us from his words is his statement regarding the Fire of the polytheists that it does not cease to exist, because this is explicit in the Qur'an:[As-Sajdah 32:20] So it is abiding, [An-Nisa 4:57] until the end of the texts.
And the hadith of the slaughter of death in the surah of the ram, after it is slaughtered, a caller calls out: These are decisive texts that prevent the statement that the Fire will cease to exist and that its people will cease to exist. As for it being said that the Fire of the believers ceases to exist, this is like speech... of the speech, the Fire of the polytheists does not cease to exist and the Fire of the believers ceases to exist. Rather, the truth is to say that those who enter it, even if they are disbelievers, as Allah the Exalted said: [Maryam 19:71-72] The Fire is the same, but some of them enter it and remain in it, and some of them enter and come out of it. And this coming out varies, for example, a person is punished for a day, or part of a day, a month, or more or less, and so on.
The Shaykh : It is authentic from him, perhaps he retracted it.
The questioner : It is authentic from him, in which book, in which reference?
The Shaykh : His student Ibn al-Qayyim transmitted it from him in some of his books, I think *Hadi al-Arwah ila Bilad al-Afrah*, and al-San'ani also transmitted that in his book which I had authenticated and written an introduction for, *Raf' al-Astar 'an Aqwal Adillah al-Qa'ilin bi Fana' al-Nar*, which refers to Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, and there is a manuscript I had photographed containing speech on this matter.
The questioner : Regarding the manuscript, its attribution to him was not verified, meaning something was found in its attribution.
The Shaykh : It is not relied upon to the extent that one says the attribution was not verified; the reliance is on the words of his student.
The questioner : The words of his student do not contradict the words of Ibn Taymiyyah in his collection and in
*Minhaj al-Sunnah*, and this does not mean his retraction from the statement to...
The Shaykh : I told you perhaps he retracted it, because Ibn al-Qayyim has two statements, one that agrees with Ibn Taymiyyah and defends it. Did you not read the book I mentioned earlier, the one al-San'ani authored, *Raf' al-Astar*?
The questioner : I read it, but I did not reach this issue, as for the words of Ibn al-Qayyim.
The Shaykh : How did you not reach it?! Specifically on this topic, Ibn al-Qayyim fell into wonders of matters, and some of that is found in *Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Da'ifah*, volume one, when I discussed the hadith
A day will come upon Hell when the winds will beat its doors
يأتي يوم على جهنم تخفق الرياح بأبوابهاSo I said regarding the words of Ibn al-Qayyim in the book he transmitted from his Shaykh, he is more knowledgeable than us in it, but Ibn al-Qayyim has words in *al-Wabil al-Sayb fi al-Kalam al-Tayyib* saying: "The Fire is two fires, a Fire that ceases to exist and a Fire that remains. The Fire that ceases to exist is for the disobedient believers, and the one that does not cease to exist is for the disbelievers". This resolves the problem.
The questioner : Meaning we say that the intended meaning of the words of Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn al-Qayyim is the Fire of the disobedient, not the Fire of the disbelievers.
The Shaykh : Yes, provided that this statement—may Allah reward you with good—although it is explicit in the second part that the Fire of the disbelievers does not cease to exist, as for the first part, it is not precise, meaning because it will be said to him, what makes you know that it ceases to exist? It is permissible that it remains, because it is not important to speak about the Fire in detail that this Fire ceases to exist. The important thing is what is the fate of those who enter it? Some of them come out and some do not come out. As for the issue of the Fire in which it was said that it ceases to exist, this requires a text. But what concerns us from his words is his statement regarding the Fire of the polytheists that it does not cease to exist, because this is explicit in the Qur'an:
Every time they wish to emerge from it, they will be returned to it
كلما أرادوا أن يخرجوا منها أعيدوا فيهاwherein they abide forever
خالدين فيها أبداًAnd the hadith of the slaughter of death in the surah of the ram, after it is slaughtered, a caller calls out: