Abdulaziz bin Baz

Overview

Abdulaziz ibn Abdullah Al Baz (November 21, 1912 – May 13, 1999) was a Saudi Arabian Islamic scholar who served as the second Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia from 1993 until his death in 1999. Born in Riyadh to a family deeply rooted in Islamic traditions, his father died when he was three years old. In 1927, when he was sixteen, he started losing his eyesight after a serious infection in his eyes, and by age twenty he had totally lost his sight and become blind.

Despite this physical challenge, he relentlessly pursued studies of the Qur'an, Hadith, Fiqh, and Tafsir. He received a traditional Islamic education from prominent scholars rather than formal schooling, which did not exist in Saudi Arabia at that time. He held a number of posts including Judge of Al Kharj district from 1938 to 1951.

Career History

• Judge in the Kharj District (1938–1951)
• Teacher at the College of Shariah in Riyadh (1951–1961)
• Vice-President, then President, then Chancellor of the Islamic University in Al-Madinah (1961–1975)
• Chairman of the Department of Islamic Research and Guidance (1975–1993)
• Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia and Head of the Council of Senior Scholars (1993–1999)

A staunch advocate of the Salafi movement, bin Baz issued influential fatwas that resonated within the Muslim community. He issued a fatwa authorizing a wealth tax to support the mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War, and his endorsement of 'In Defence of Muslim Lands' was a powerful influence in the successful call for jihad against the Soviet Union. He authored more than sixty works on subjects including hadith, tafsir, Islamic inheritance jurisprudence, Tawheed, fiqh, salat, zakat, dawah, Hajj and Umrah. In 1981 he was awarded the King Faisal International Prize for Service to Islam.

His influence on the Salafi movement was large, and most of the current prominent judges and religious scholars in Saudi Arabia are his former students. However, his views and fatwas were controversial, condemned by militants, liberals and progressives alike, particularly regarding cosmology, women's rights, and his support for U.S. troop stationing in Saudi Arabia during and after the Gulf War. He was also criticized by hardline Salafi jihadists for supporting the decision to permit U.S. troops to be stationed in Saudi Arabia in 1991.