Ibn Tumart

Lore & Background

Ibn Tumart was born between 1078 and 1082 in the small village of Igiliz in the Sous region. He came from a humble family; his father was a lamplighter at the mosque. As a child he was notably pious, earning the nickname 'Asafu' (Tamazight for 'light') for his habit of lighting candles at mosques. He and his followers asserted he was a descendant of Idris I and thus from al-Hasan ibn Ali, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad—a claim supported by Ibn Khaldun but widely disputed by modern scholars. Around 1106 he went to Córdoba to study under al-Turtushi, then traveled east, where he came under the influence of al-Ghazali's ideas, though whether he actually met al-Ghazali is disputed by contemporary historians like ibn Khallikan. He studied with both Mu'tazili and Ash'ari theologians. In Baghdad, according to De Lacy O'Leary, he attached himself to Ash'arite theology and the Zahiri school of jurisprudence, with the creed of ibn Hazm. He developed his own system combining Ash'arite teachings with parts of other doctrines and a touch of Sufi mysticism. Almohad hagiographers report that al-Ghazali charged him with the mission of setting the Almoravids right after they proscribed and burned al-Ghazali's work Ihya' Ulum al-Din.

Reader's Guide

Ibn Tumart's significance lies in founding the Almohad movement, which after his death conquered much of North Africa and part of Spain. His core doctrine was a rigid unitarianism (tawhid) that denied the existence of divine attributes as incompatible with God's unity. He was a rigid predestinarian and strict observer of the law. He opposed the Almoravids' sponsorship of the Maliki school, accusing them of neglecting the Sunnah and hadith and relying too much on ijma. He condemned the public sale of wine and pork in markets and ordered the destruction or hiding of religious art in mosques. His followers called themselves al-Muwwahidun ('those who affirm the unitarianism of God'), later rendered as Almohades. After his death in August 1130, his successor Abd al-Mu'min was elected in 1133 by the Masmuda Shaykhs as the leading authority of the state, through the councils of 10 and 50. The details of Ibn Tumart's life come largely from hagiographers, whose accounts likely mix legendary elements from Almohad doctrine.

Did You Know?

• Ibn Tumart's name 'Tumart' comes from the Berber language and means 'good fortune', 'delight', or 'happiness', equivalent to the Arabic name 'Saad'.
• As a child he earned the nickname 'Asafu' (Tamazight for 'light') for his habit of lighting candles at mosques.
• On his sea voyage back to the Maghreb, he tossed the ship's flasks of wine overboard and lectured sailors on correct prayer times.
• When confronted by the Almoravid ruler Ali ibn Yusuf, Ibn Tumart reportedly said, 'Where is the emir? I see only women here!'—an insult referring to the Almoravid veil.
• His followers called themselves al-Muwwahidun, meaning 'those who affirm the unitarianism of God', later translated by Spanish authors as Almohades.