"Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal"

E483725

Islamic theological treatise comparative religion work heresiographical work medieval Arabic prose work

"Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal" is a major medieval Islamic work of comparative religion and heresiography that systematically analyzes and critiques various religious sects, doctrines, and philosophical schools.

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All labels observed (2)

Label	Occurrences
"Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal" canonical	1
al-Faṣl fi al-Milal wa-l-Ahwāʾ wa-n-Niḥal	1

How this entity was disambiguated

This entity first appeared as the object of triple T4971422 — resolving that mention is where its identity was fixed. The disambiguator weighed these candidate entities and picked the highlighted one (or “None”, minting a new entity). This is how homonymy is resolved: the same surface form can point to different entities.

NED1 Entity disambiguation (via context triple) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: "Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal"
Context triple: [Ibn Hazm, mainWork, "Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal"]

A. Kitāb al-Manāẓir
Kitāb al-Manāẓir is Ibn al-Haytham’s foundational treatise on optics that systematically analyzes vision, light, and perception and profoundly influenced later Islamic and European science.
B. Kitab al-Buyu
Kitab al-Buyu is the section of Sahih al-Bukhari that compiles prophetic traditions related to commercial transactions, trade, and business ethics in Islamic law.
C. Al-Hawi
Al-Hawi is a monumental 10th-century medical encyclopedia by the Persian physician al-Razi, compiling and critically evaluating the medical knowledge of Greco-Roman, Indian, and earlier Islamic sources.
D. Kitab al-Farq
Kitab al-Farq is an Islamic scholarly treatise by Usman dan Fodio that addresses religious reform, proper Islamic practice, and the distinction between true faith and un-Islamic innovations in West African Muslim societies.
E. Kitab al-Tawasin
Kitab al-Tawasin is a seminal mystical and poetic work of Islamic Sufism, attributed to the famed mystic al-Hallaj and known for its esoteric reflections on divine love, unity, and martyrdom.
F. None of above. chosen
G. Unsure - the case is ambiguous/there is not enough information to decide.

NED2 Entity disambiguation (via description) gpt-5-mini-2025-08-07

Target entity: "Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal"
Target entity description: "Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal" is a major medieval Islamic work of comparative religion and heresiography that systematically analyzes and critiques various religious sects, doctrines, and philosophical schools.

A. Kitāb al-Manāẓir
Kitāb al-Manāẓir is Ibn al-Haytham’s foundational treatise on optics that systematically analyzes vision, light, and perception and profoundly influenced later Islamic and European science.
B. Kitab al-Buyu
Kitab al-Buyu is the section of Sahih al-Bukhari that compiles prophetic traditions related to commercial transactions, trade, and business ethics in Islamic law.
C. Al-Hawi
Al-Hawi is a monumental 10th-century medical encyclopedia by the Persian physician al-Razi, compiling and critically evaluating the medical knowledge of Greco-Roman, Indian, and earlier Islamic sources.
D. Kitab al-Farq
Kitab al-Farq is an Islamic scholarly treatise by Usman dan Fodio that addresses religious reform, proper Islamic practice, and the distinction between true faith and un-Islamic innovations in West African Muslim societies.
E. Kitab al-Tawasin
Kitab al-Tawasin is a seminal mystical and poetic work of Islamic Sufism, attributed to the famed mystic al-Hallaj and known for its esoteric reflections on divine love, unity, and martyrdom.
F. None of above. chosen

Statements (45)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	Islamic theological treatise ⓘ comparative religion work ⓘ heresiographical work ⓘ medieval Arabic prose work ⓘ
aim	defend orthodox Islamic belief ⓘ expose internal contradictions in rival doctrines ⓘ
alternativeTransliteration	al-Faṣl fi al-Milal wa-l-Ahwāʾ wa-n-Niḥal ⓘ linked to: "Al-Fasl fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwaʾ wa al-Nihal"
author	Ibn Hazm ⓘ
authorName	Abu Muhammad Ali ibn Ahmad ibn Saʿid ibn Hazm al-Andalusi ⓘ linked to: Ibn Hazm
critiques	Christian doctrines ⓘ Islamic theological sects ⓘ Jewish doctrines ⓘ dualistic religions ⓘ philosophical positions contrary to Islamic creed ⓘ
denominationalContext	Sunni Islam ⓘ
epistemologicalStance	Zahiri literalism ⓘ linked to: Zahiri school of law textualism ⓘ
field	Islamic theology ⓘ history of religions ⓘ kalam ⓘ
focus	classification of beliefs ⓘ rational critique of doctrines ⓘ refutation of heresies ⓘ
genre	comparative religion ⓘ heresiography ⓘ polemical theology ⓘ
geographicalContext	al-Andalus ⓘ linked to: Al-Andalus
influenceOn	comparative religion studies in Islam ⓘ later Islamic heresiographical literature ⓘ
language	Arabic ⓘ
legalSchoolContext	Zahiri school ⓘ linked to: Zahiri school of law
method	dialectical argumentation ⓘ systematic analysis ⓘ use of logical reasoning ⓘ
notableFor	extensive use of rational argument in heresiography ⓘ systematic classification of religions and sects ⓘ
religiousTradition	Islam ⓘ
structure	multi-volume work ⓘ
subject	Islamic sects ⓘ doctrinal deviations ⓘ non-Islamic religions ⓘ philosophical schools ⓘ religious sects ⓘ
timePeriod	11th century ⓘ
titleMeaning	The Decisive Criterion concerning Sects, Desires and Schools ⓘ