10-28-2007, 07:30 PM
Sharh Al Aqeedah Al Wasiteeyah -- by Ibn Uthaimeen
This is a great book. If you want to learn the basics of Islam then this book is a must. The original Al Aqeedah Al Wasiteeyah is a letter from Ibn Taymiyah to a town called Wasit. It's mainly a good batch of verses from the Qur'an, many hadeeths, and a small amount of commentary.
Ibn Uthaimeen, on the other hand, goes deep into explaining everything with great detail. He sometimes spends pages explaining the meanings of a single sentence.
The book focuses on setting a barrier between the true Islam and the innovations that were brought into it. A good portion of the book describes the attributes of Allah (swt). Then it talks about other issues with faith and the stance of Ahlul Sunnah wal Jama'a and compares it to the other sects.
So yeah, even though this book brings up a lot of things that may be basic, I believe that it is necessary for every person that really wants to learn the correct <i>aqeedah</i>.