The Mihna: The Abbasid Inquisition and the Crisis of Authority

The Mihna, often translated as "inquisition" or "ordeal," was a fifteen-year period (833-848 CE) during which the Abbasid caliphs attempted to enforce Mu'tazilite theological doctrine, particularly the belief that the Qur'an was created rather than eternal, throughout the Islamic empire. Initiated by Caliph al-Ma'mun and continued by his successors al-Mu'tasim and al-Wathiq, the Mihna involved testing judges, religious scholars, and other officials on their acceptance of this doctrine, with those who refused facing punishment, imprisonment, and in some cases torture. The Mihna became a defining crisis in Islamic history, raising fundamental questions about religious authority, the relationship between political power and religious doctrine, and the limits of state interference in matters of faith. Its ultimate failure established important principles about the independence of religious scholarship from political control and contributed to the triumph of traditionalist theology over rationalist Mu'tazilism in Sunni Islam.

Background: Mu'tazilite Theology and Rationalism

To understand the Mihna, it is necessary to understand Mu'tazilite theology, the rationalist school of Islamic thought that the caliphs attempted to enforce. The Mu'tazilites emerged in the 8th century CE as a group of Muslim thinkers who emphasized the use of reason in understanding religious truths. They developed sophisticated theological positions on various issues, including the nature of God, human free will, and the status of the Qur'an.

One of the central Mu'tazilite doctrines was the belief that the Qur'an was created (makhluq) rather than eternal and uncreated. The Mu'tazilites argued that if the Qur'an were eternal and uncreated, it would be an eternal attribute of God alongside God himself, which would compromise the absolute unity (tawhid) of God. They believed that God alone is eternal and uncreated, and that everything else, including the Qur'an, must be created. This position was based on rational theological arguments about the nature of God and the requirements of strict monotheism.

The Mu'tazilites also emphasized human free will, arguing that humans have genuine choice in their actions and are therefore morally responsible for them. They rejected predestination and argued that God's justice requires that humans be free to choose between good and evil. They also held that reason could be used to determine moral truths and that God's actions must conform to rational standards of justice and goodness.

These rationalist positions were opposed by traditionalist scholars who emphasized the literal interpretation of scripture and the limitations of human reason in understanding divine matters. Traditionalists argued that the Qur'an was the eternal, uncreated word of God, that human actions were ultimately determined by God's will, and that reason alone could not determine religious truths without revelation. These theological differences reflected broader tensions between rationalism and traditionalism, between philosophical inquiry and scriptural literalism, and between different visions of Islamic intellectual life.

Al-Ma'mun and the Initiation of the Mihna

Caliph al-Ma'mun (r. 813-833 CE) was deeply interested in theology and philosophy and was attracted to Mu'tazilite rationalism. He believed that the Mu'tazilite position on the created Qur'an was correct and that it was important for the unity and proper understanding of Islam. In 833 CE, just months before his death, al-Ma'mun initiated the Mihna by issuing decrees ordering that judges, religious scholars, and other officials be tested on their acceptance of the doctrine that the Qur'an was created.

Al-Ma'mun's motivations for initiating the Mihna were complex. On one level, he genuinely believed that the Mu'tazilite position was theologically correct and that enforcing it would promote proper Islamic belief. He saw himself as having not only political authority but also religious authority to determine correct doctrine. On another level, the Mihna was an assertion of caliphal power over the religious scholarly class (ulama), who were increasingly claiming independent authority to interpret Islamic law and doctrine. By enforcing a particular theological position, al-Ma'mun was asserting that the caliph, not the scholars, had ultimate authority in religious matters.

The Mihna began with letters sent to provincial governors ordering them to test judges and other officials on the created Qur'an doctrine. Those who affirmed the doctrine were allowed to continue in their positions, while those who refused were to be removed from office and punished. The testing was conducted through formal interrogations where officials were asked whether they believed the Qur'an was created. Their responses were recorded, and those who refused to affirm the doctrine faced consequences ranging from dismissal from office to imprisonment.

Al-Ma'mun died in August 833 CE, just months after initiating the Mihna, but his successors continued and intensified the policy. His brother and successor, al-Mu'tasim (r. 833-842 CE), expanded the Mihna and made it more severe. Under al-Mu'tasim, the testing became more systematic, and the punishments for those who refused to affirm the created Qur'an doctrine became harsher, including imprisonment and torture.

Ahmad ibn Hanbal and the Resistance

The most famous figure associated with resistance to the Mihna was Ahmad ibn Hanbal (780-855 CE), a prominent hadith scholar and jurist who would later be recognized as the founder of the Hanbali school of Islamic law. Ahmad was a traditionalist who believed that the Qur'an was the eternal, uncreated word of God and that this belief was essential to Islamic faith. When he was summoned to affirm the created Qur'an doctrine, he refused, insisting that he could not affirm something that contradicted his understanding of Islamic teaching.

Ahmad's refusal to submit to the Mihna made him a symbol of resistance to state interference in religious matters. He was arrested and brought to Baghdad, where he was interrogated by al-Mu'tasim himself. Despite pressure, threats, and reportedly torture, Ahmad refused to affirm that the Qur'an was created. According to the accounts, he was flogged and imprisoned, but he remained steadfast in his position. His suffering and steadfastness made him a hero to traditionalist Muslims and demonstrated that religious conviction could not be forced through state power.

Ahmad's resistance was not merely about the specific theological question of whether the Qur'an was created. It was about the broader principle of religious authority and the independence of religious scholarship from political control. Ahmad and other traditionalist scholars believed that religious doctrine should be determined by the scholarly community based on the Qur'an and hadith, not imposed by political rulers based on their theological preferences. Ahmad's refusal to submit to the Mihna was thus a defense of the independence and authority of religious scholarship.

The accounts of Ahmad's suffering during the Mihna became central to his legacy and to the traditionalist narrative about the period. Stories of his torture, his steadfastness, and his refusal to compromise his beliefs circulated widely and made him a model of religious integrity and courage. When he was finally released from prison after al-Mu'tasim's death, Ahmad was celebrated as a hero who had stood firm against tyranny and defended true Islamic belief.

The Continuation and End of the Mihna

After al-Mu'tasim's death in 842 CE, his son al-Wathiq (r. 842-847 CE) continued the Mihna, though with somewhat less intensity. Al-Wathiq maintained the policy of testing officials on the created Qur'an doctrine and punishing those who refused to affirm it. However, the Mihna was becoming increasingly unpopular, and resistance to it was growing. Many scholars and ordinary Muslims sympathized with Ahmad ibn Hanbal and others who had suffered for refusing to compromise their beliefs.

The Mihna finally ended in 848 CE when Caliph al-Mutawakkil (r. 847-861 CE) reversed the policy. Al-Mutawakkil issued decrees ending the testing and affirming the traditionalist position that the Qur'an was eternal and uncreated. He released those who had been imprisoned for refusing to affirm the created Qur'an doctrine and restored them to their positions. He also began to favor traditionalist scholars and to distance himself from Mu'tazilite theology.

The end of the Mihna marked a decisive victory for traditionalist Islam and a defeat for rationalist Mu'tazilism. The Mu'tazilite position that the Qur'an was created was rejected, and the traditionalist view that it was eternal and uncreated became the orthodox Sunni position. More importantly, the Mihna's failure established the principle that political rulers should not interfere in matters of religious doctrine and that religious authority belongs to the scholarly community rather than to caliphs. This principle would shape the relationship between political and religious authority in Sunni Islam for centuries to come.

Consequences and Legacy

The Mihna had profound and lasting consequences for Islamic intellectual and religious life. Most immediately, it discredited Mu'tazilite theology and contributed to its decline. While Mu'tazilite ideas continued to influence Islamic thought, particularly in Shia Islam, Mu'tazilism as a distinct school largely disappeared from Sunni Islam after the Mihna. The association of Mu'tazilism with state coercion and persecution made it unacceptable to many Muslims, and traditionalist theology became dominant in Sunni Islam.

The Mihna also established important principles about religious authority and the relationship between political power and religious doctrine. The failure of the caliphs to enforce their theological views through state power demonstrated that religious belief cannot be coerced and that religious authority must be based on scholarly consensus and popular acceptance rather than political force. This established the independence of the religious scholarly class (ulama) from political control and gave them authority to interpret Islamic law and doctrine without interference from rulers.

Ahmad ibn Hanbal emerged from the Mihna as a hero and a symbol of religious integrity. His steadfastness in the face of persecution made him a model for later generations of Muslims, and his school of law, the Hanbali school, became one of the four major schools of Sunni jurisprudence. Ahmad's example demonstrated that religious scholars could resist political pressure and maintain their independence, and his legacy influenced the development of Sunni Islam's understanding of the proper relationship between religious and political authority.

The Mihna also had consequences for Islamic intellectual life more broadly. Some historians have argued that the backlash against the Mihna contributed to a closing of the "gates of ijtihad" (independent reasoning) and a turn toward more conservative and traditionalist approaches to Islamic law and theology. While this interpretation is debated, it is clear that after the Mihna, rationalist theology declined in influence and traditionalist approaches became dominant in Sunni Islam. The Mihna may have discouraged the kind of bold theological speculation that the Mu'tazilites had engaged in, leading to a more cautious and conservative intellectual atmosphere.

However, it is important not to overstate the Mihna's impact on Islamic intellectual life. Islamic science, philosophy, and scholarship continued to flourish after the Mihna, and Muslim thinkers continued to engage with Greek philosophy and to develop sophisticated theological and philosophical systems. The Mihna's impact was primarily on theology and on the relationship between political and religious authority, not on Islamic intellectual life as a whole.

Modern Interpretations and Relevance

The Mihna has been interpreted in various ways by modern scholars and has been invoked in contemporary debates about Islam, reason, and authority. Some modern Muslim reformers and rationalists have looked back on the Mihna with regret, seeing it as a missed opportunity for Islam to embrace rationalism and philosophical inquiry. In this view, the failure of the Mihna and the triumph of traditionalism represented a turn away from reason that limited Islamic intellectual development.

Others have argued that the Mihna's failure was actually positive, as it established the principle that religious belief cannot be coerced and that religious authority must be independent of political power. In this view, the Mihna demonstrated the dangers of state interference in religious matters and the importance of protecting religious freedom and scholarly independence. Ahmad ibn Hanbal's resistance is seen as a defense of religious liberty and intellectual integrity against political tyranny.

The Mihna has also been invoked in contemporary debates about the relationship between Islam and the state. Those who advocate for the separation of religious and political authority often cite the Mihna as an example of why political rulers should not interfere in religious matters. Conversely, those who believe that Islamic states should enforce religious orthodoxy sometimes defend the caliphs' intentions in the Mihna, even if they acknowledge that the methods were flawed.

Western scholars have generally interpreted the Mihna as an example of religious persecution and state interference in matters of conscience. The comparison to the Christian Inquisition, while not exact, highlights the Mihna's nature as an attempt to enforce religious orthodoxy through state power. However, scholars have also noted important differences, including the relatively short duration of the Mihna (fifteen years compared to centuries for the Christian Inquisition) and its ultimate failure to achieve its objectives.

Conclusion

The Mihna stands as one of the most significant episodes in Islamic intellectual and religious history, a fifteen-year period that raised fundamental questions about religious authority, the relationship between political power and religious doctrine, and the limits of state interference in matters of faith. Initiated by Caliph al-Ma'mun as an attempt to enforce Mu'tazilite rationalist theology, the Mihna ultimately failed, discrediting Mu'tazilism and establishing important principles about the independence of religious scholarship from political control.

The Mihna's most enduring legacy is the principle that religious belief cannot be coerced and that religious authority belongs to the scholarly community rather than to political rulers. Ahmad ibn Hanbal's steadfast resistance to the Mihna, despite imprisonment and torture, made him a hero and a symbol of religious integrity. His example demonstrated that religious scholars could maintain their independence and resist political pressure, establishing a model that would influence Sunni Islam for centuries.

The Mihna also had significant consequences for Islamic theology, contributing to the decline of Mu'tazilite rationalism and the triumph of traditionalist theology in Sunni Islam. While the long-term impact of this shift is debated, it is clear that the Mihna marked a turning point after which rationalist theology declined in influence and traditionalist approaches became dominant.

Understanding the Mihna requires recognizing both the genuine theological convictions that motivated it and the problematic methods used to enforce those convictions. Al-Ma'mun and his successors believed they were promoting correct Islamic doctrine and asserting legitimate caliphal authority. However, their attempt to enforce religious belief through state power ultimately failed and demonstrated that religious conviction cannot be coerced. The Mihna remains a cautionary tale about the dangers of mixing political power with religious doctrine and a reminder of the importance of protecting religious freedom and scholarly independence.