al-Kharashi = al-Khirashi

Muhammad al-Kharashi (1010–1101 AH / 1601–1690 CE) was an Egyptian Maliki jurist and scholar who served as the first Grand Imam (Shaykh) of al-Azhar, widely recognized for his authoritative legal commentaries on Mukhtasar Khalil Mujam al-Muallifin+1.

Lineage and Early Life

His full name was Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Ali al-Kharashi (also vocalized as al-Khirashi) al-Mawsua al-Fiqhiyya al-…+1. He was born in 1010 AH (1601 CE) in the village of Abu Kharash, located in the Shubrakhit district of the Buhayra province in Egypt, to which his nisba refers al-Mawsua al-Fiqhiyya al-…+1.

Education and Teaching

Al-Kharashi studied Islamic disciplines under several prominent scholars of his era, foremost among them his father, Abd Allah ibn Ali al-Kharashi, as well as Ibrahim al-Laqani, Ali al-Ujhuri, Yusuf al-Fishi, Abd al-Mu'ti al-Basir, and Yasin al-Shami al-Khitat al-Tawfiqiyya a…+1.

He established his teaching circle at al-Azhar Mosque, conducting much of his instruction at the Aqbughawiyya Madrasa Silk al-Durar fi Ayan al-…+1. In his lessons, he would divide the text of Mukhtasar Khalil into two halves, reciting one half after the noon prayer by the minbar and the remaining half on the following day al-Khitat al-Tawfiqiyya a…. His lectures were attended by the majority of Maliki scholars and students of his generation Silk al-Durar fi Ayan al-….

Among his notable students were Muhammad ibn Abd al-Baqi al-Zurqani, Ibrahim al-Fayyumi, Abd al-Baqi al-Qallini, Ahmad al-Shabrakhiti, Muhammad al-Nafrawi, and Ahmad al-Laqani Sharh al-Kharashi ala Muk…. He also granted an ijaza to Abd Allah al-Shabrawi during the year of his death Silk al-Durar fi Ayan al-…+1.

Leadership and Scholarly Standing

When the administration of al-Azhar expanded and required a unified head to oversee its affairs and represent its scholars before state authorities, al-Kharashi was appointed as its first official Shaykh Mawsuat al-Amaal al-Kamil…+1. He was held in high regard by both commoners and elites for his piety, modesty, and frequent intercessions with rulers on behalf of those in need Silk al-Durar fi Ayan al-…+1. Gifts and votive offerings were sent to him from as far as the Maghrib and West Africa, though he did not retain them for himself and allowed his relatives and acquaintances to distribute them al-Khitat al-Tawfiqiyya a….

In jurisprudence, he authored two commentaries on Khalil ibn Ishaq al-Jundi's Mukhtasar Khalil: a larger work, Fath al-Jalil, and a smaller commentary commonly known as Sharh al-Kharashi, which became widely studied across North Africa and the Levant and later received a well-known supercommentary by Ali al-Sa'idi al-Adawi Mujam al-Muallifin+1.

Death

Al-Kharashi died on the morning of Sunday, 27 Dhu al-Hijjah 1101 AH (1690 CE) in Cairo Mujam al-Muallifin+1. His funeral was attended by vast crowds, and he was buried alongside his father near the burial site of Muhammad al-Banawfari in the Turbat al-Mujawirin cemetery Sharh al-Kharashi ala Muk….