The removal of blame from the great Imams

Ibn Taymiyyah is often seen through a simplistic anti-rationalist prism, that is, as someone with strict and literal inclinations towards hadith which he over emphasized and preferred to acceptance of broader legal theories and principles. The present text would suffice to undermine the view. Raf al Malaam an AlAimmat al A'lam is a short text in which the reader observes Ibn Taymiyyah as a jurist Par excellence. In this treatise, which has a balanced tone and is couched in erudite language, he proceeds to argue as to why a mujtahid might depart from directly acting upon a hadith text and follow instead his methodological principles (Usul). This forms the basis of his delineating the reasons underlying the disagreements found among Muslim jurists in general and their holding differing legal opinions and proffering divergent arguments in support of those opinions.