"And the servants of (Allah) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, Peace!" [TMQ 25:63]

Imam Al-Ghazzali

 Abu Hamid Muhammad, famous in the world of learning as al-Ghazzali.

He was born in 450 AH (1058 A.D). in Persia . He attended the village madressa and as a young man went to the Nizamia Madressa, which was a very famous educational institution in Nishapur. He was a clever and keen student who took interest in all subjects.

His cleverness as a student was commented upon in court circles in Persia and the Grand Vizier took special interest in his progress and encouraged him to devote himself to the pursuit of knowledge.

Al-Ghazzali justified the confidence shown in him by his patron and graduated from the Nizamia Madressa at Nishapur, with distinction.

Later he was appointed as a teacher at the Nizamia College in Baghdad, where he proved very successful in imparting knowledge to the scholars under his care. This valuable gift of sustaining interest of his pupils and passing on his knowledge to them made him so famous that students from all parts of the country flocked to study under him.

Some years later al-Ghazzali left the Nizamia College in order to devote his time and energy in undertaking long journeys in search of truth and knowledge. He travelled far and wide and visited Arabia, Palestine and Syria.

It was in Damascus, Syria, that al-Ghazzali began writing books on religious philosophy which later made him famous throughout the world. He was a prolific writer and he wrote nearly  400  books on a variety of subjects which covered several volumes.
some of his works include:

• Four works in Shafi‘i fiqh: the large al-Basit, the medium, seven-volume al-Wasit, and the two-volume al-Wajiz, condensed in al-Khulasa. Al-Wasit received many commentaries and abridgments, among them al-Nawawi’s Rawda al-Talibin.
• Four books on usûl al-fiqh: al-Mankhul, written in the lifetime of his teacher, Imam al-Haramayn; Shifa’ al-Ghalil fi Masa’il [or Masalik] al-Ta ‘lil; al-Maknûn; and al-Mustasfa. "Imam al-Ghazali’s Encyclopedia of Shari‘a Source Methodology, his fourth book on the subject, and his last word, was al-Mustasfa, which has been printed several times in Egypt and elsewhere. Indeed, this is the work he wrote after coming out of his period of meditation and seclusion."
• Ihya’ ‘Ulum al-Din, among his last works.
• al-Imla’ ‘ala Mushkil al-Ihya’, in which he replied to some of the insinuations made against the Ihya’ in his lifetime. This book is also called al-Ajwiba al-Muskita ‘an al-As’ila al-Mubhita.
• Tafsir al-Qur’an al-‘Azim, now lost.
• Jawahir al-Qur’an.
• al-Arba‘un fi al-Tawhid, originally part of Jawahir al-Qur’an.
• al-Asma’ al-Husna.
• al-Ma’akhidh, on the divergences of jurisprudents.
• Tahsin al-Ma’akhidh, a commentary on al-Ma’akhidh.
• Kimya’ al-Sa‘ada, The Alchemy of Happiness, originally written in Persian.
• al-Lubab al-Muntakhal, on disputation.
• al-Iqtisad fi al-I‘tiqad, i

Imam al-Ghazzali was  fondly referred to as the "Hujjat-ul-lslam", Proof of Islam.

He is honoured as a scholar and a saint by learned men all over the world.

Al-Ghazzalli taught his followers to love and serve God, trust in Him and to do good. He enjoined them to realise that man can do nothing without the help of God; but that should not be made an excuse to be lazy and indolent. Man possesses the freedom of choice as far as good and evil actions are concerned, but this freedom does not extend beyond certain limitations.

Imam al-Ghazzali's life was spent in self-sacrificing service of God and his fellowmen. He left behind him a fine example for all men to follow.

He died in 505 AH
 
 

Reference:
Ihya Ulum-Id-Deen Translated by Maulana Fazlul Karim
G F Haddad - Sunna foundation of America 
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"And say: truth has  arrived, and falsehood has  perished: for falsehood is ever  bound to perish." [TMQ Al-Isra:81]

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