Ibn al-Naqib

Ahmad ibn Lu'lu' Ibn al-Naqib (702–769 AH / 1302–1368 CE) was an Egyptian Shafi'i jurist and scholar based in Cairo, best known for his legal manual Umdat al-Salik wa Uddat al-Nasik (The Reliance of the Traveler and Tools of the Worshiper) Mujam al-Muallifin+1.

Lineage and early life

His full name was Shihab al-Din Abu al-Abbas Ahmad ibn Lu'lu' ibn Abd Allah al-Rumi al-Misri Mujam al-Muallifin+1. He was born in Cairo in 702 AH (1302 CE), though another report places his birth in 706 AH al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1. His father, Lu'lu', was of Byzantine Greek origin from Antioch who had been captured, acquired by an amir, emancipated, and appointed as a prefect (naqib), after which he embraced Sufism and resided at the Baybarsiyya convent in Cairo al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1. Ibn al-Naqib was initially raised in military dress before turning to religious education, memorizing the Quran and committing himself to serious scholarly study around the age of twenty al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1.

Education and career

Ibn al-Naqib studied Shafi'i jurisprudence under scholars including Taqi al-Din al-Subki and al-Qutb al-Sanbati al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1. He studied Arabic grammar with his father, Abu Hayyan al-Gharnati, and Abu al-Hasan Ibn al-Mulaqqin, and received hadith transmissions from Ibn al-Qammah, Ibn Abd al-Hadi, and al-Maydumi al-Aqd al-Mudhahhab fi Ta…+1.

He served as a repetitor (mu'id) at the Mansuriyya madrasa and taught at the Jami'iyya and Ashrafiyya schools in Cairo al-Aqd al-Mudhahhab fi Ta…. Out of scrupulous piety, he refrained from issuing formal written fatwas and declined an invitation from his contemporary Jamal al-Din al-Isnawi to assume the professorship at the Fadiliyya madrasa Tabaqat al-Shafiiyya li-I…. He made frequent pilgrimages and spent multiple extended periods of residency (mujawarah) in both Mecca and Medina al-Tuhfa al-Latifa fi Tar…+1.

Scholarly standing

Biographers characterized Ibn al-Naqib as proficient across Shafi'i jurisprudence, Quranic recitation, exegesis, legal theory, and Arabic grammar, with a strong recall of hadiths concerning devotions and virtues al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1. Al-Isnawi praised his intellect, eloquence, piety, and devotion to teaching, noting that he combined deep religiosity with generosity and humility al-Durar al-Kamina fi Aya…+1. He was also noted for his affability and lively wit despite his strict personal worship al-Alam lil-Zirikli+1.

In addition to his primer Umdat al-Salik, he abridged al-Jajarmi's al-Kifayah into a six-volume legal work titled Tashil al-Hidayah wa Tahsil al-Kifayah, and authored Tarshih al-Madhhab fi Tashih al-Muhadhdhab, a two-volume critique and verification of legal points and terminology in Abu Ishaq al-Shirazi's al-Muhadhdhab al-Alam lil-Zirikli+1.

Death

Ibn al-Naqib died of the plague in Cairo on 14 Ramadan 769 AH (May 1368 CE) al-Alam lil-Zirikli+1. He was buried outside Bab al-Nasr in the funerary plot of Jamal al-Din al-Isnawi al-Aqd al-Mudhahhab fi Ta…+1.