al-Kaki
- Died
- 749 AH
- Born in
- -
Qiwam al-Din al-Kaki (d. 749 AH / 1348 CE) was a Hanafi jurist and legal theorist who taught and issued legal rulings in Cairo, best known for his extensive legal commentary Mi'raj al-Diraya .
Lineage and Education
His full name was Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Khujandi al-Sinjari, titled Qiwam al-Din and commonly known as al-Kaki . His nisba al-Sinjari relates to Sinjar in Upper Mesopotamia (al-Jazira), al-Khujandi relates to Khujand in Central Asia, and al-Kaki derives from the appellation Kak .
Al-Kaki pursued his legal training in Central Asia, studying substantive jurisprudence (furu') and legal theory (usul) under Ala al-Din al-Bukhari . He read Burhan al-Din al-Marghinani's al-Hidaya under al-Bukhari in Termez; at al-Kaki's request, al-Bukhari commenced his own commentary on al-Hidaya, though he died after completing only up to the chapter on marriage . Al-Kaki also studied al-Hidaya under Husam al-Din al-Sighnaqi .
Career in Cairo and Students
Al-Kaki travelled to Crimea and later settled in Cairo . In Cairo, he took up residence at the Mosque of Altunbugha al-Maridani (al-Maridani Mosque), where he led prayers as imam, delivered fatwas, and taught jurisprudence to Hanafi students until his death .
Among his prominent students was Jalal al-Din al-Tubbani, who initially received his training in Hanafi jurisprudence from al-Kaki before continuing under other masters . Another notable jurist who studied under him and transmitted al-Hidaya through his teaching line was Akmal al-Din al-Babarti .
Scholarly Contributions and Death
Al-Kaki wrote in both substantive law and legal theory. He authored Mi'raj al-Diraya, a comprehensive four-volume commentary on al-Marghinani's al-Hidaya . In comparative jurisprudence, he composed Uyun al-Madhahib al-Kamili, a concise manual compiling the opinions of the four Sunni schools of law, which he dedicated to the Mamluk sultan al-Malik al-Kamil Sha'ban ibn Muhammad . In legal theory, he wrote Jami' al-Asrar, a commentary on Abu al-Barakat al-Nasafi's Manar al-Anwar .
Al-Kaki died in Cairo in 749 AH (1348 CE) .
Answer updated
List of Works
Miraj al-Diraya fi Sharh al-Hidaya is a multi-volume legal commentary on Burhan al-Din al-Marghinani's al-Hidaya, completed on 21 Muharram 745 AH (1344 CE). Spanning four volumes, the work provides an extensive commentary on substantive rulings and juristic discussions in the base text. It examines the views of the four principal Sunni legal schools, analyzes underlying legal reasoning and textual evidence, and systematically outlines internal gradations within Hanafi doctrine.