Najl Ibn Abidin
- Died
- 1306 AH
- Born in
- Damascus
Muhammad Ala al-Din ibn Abidin (1244–1306 AH / 1828–1889 CE) was a Syrian Hanafi jurist from Damascus, best known for Qurrat Uyun al-Akhyar, the continuation and completion of his father's celebrated legal supercommentary Radd al-Muhtar ala al-Durr al-Mukhtar.
Biography and Career
Born in Damascus in 1244 AH (1828 CE), his full name was Muhammad Ala al-Din ibn Muhammad Amin ibn Umar ibn Abidin. He grew up in an established family of jurisprudence and received his legal education and scholarly transmissions directly from his father, the chief Hanafi authority Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin.
In 1285 AH (1868 CE), he traveled to Constantinople (Istanbul), where he was appointed as a member of the scholarly commission tasked with drafting the Mecelle (Majallat al-Ahkam al-Adliyyah), the codification of Ottoman civil law, under the chairmanship of Ahmad Cevdet Pasha. After three years of service, he resigned from his post and returned to his homeland of Damascus.
Scholarly Activity and Students
Following his return to Damascus, he completed his major jurisprudential undertaking, Qurrat Uyun al-Akhyar li-Takmilat Radd al-Muhtar ("The Solace of the Best Eyes in Completing the Return of the Perplexed"), finishing the work in two volumes in 1290 AH (1873 CE) to supplement the unwritten chapters of his father's vast legal commentary. He also composed al-Hadiyyah al-Ala'iyyah ("The Ala'ite Gift"), an instructional primer on Hanafi law and personal conduct for students.
He taught and transmitted hadith and legal chains in Damascus; among his notable students and transmitters were his cousin's son, the mufti of Damascus Abu al-Khayr ibn Abidin, as well as Abd al-Fattah al-Zu'bi of Tripoli and the judge Muhammad Rida al-Za'im.
Death
He died in 1306 AH (1889 CE).
Answer updated
List of Works
Minnat al-Jalil li-Bayan Isqat ma ala al-Dhimma min Kathir wa Qalil is a legal treatise on Hanafi jurisprudence dealing with the discharge and expiation (isqat) of unperformed religious obligations on behalf of deceased individuals.
Qurrat Uyun al-Akhyar Takmilat Radd al-Muhtar, commonly known as Takmilat Hashiyat Ibn Abidin, is a late Ottoman-era work of Hanafi jurisprudence that serves as the official continuation and completion of the supercommentary Radd al-Muhtar ala al-Durr al-Mukhtar.