Ahkam al-Quran lil-Kiya al-Harrasi
- Author died
- 504 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmīyah
Ahkam al-Quran (Rulings of the Quran) is a work of legal exegesis (tafsir fiqhi) authored by the Shafi'i jurist al-Kiya al-Harrasi (450–504 AH / 1058–1110 CE), examining legal verses across the Quran from the perspective of the Shafi'i school .
Purpose and Scope
Al-Kiya al-Harrasi composed the work to expound the legal deductions developed by Imam al-Shafi'i from intricate scriptural indications, adding further deductions formulated according to the same methodology . The text addresses the legal verses of the Quran, establishing Shafi'i legal opinions and deriving statutory rulings directly from revealed text .
The book also serves a distinct polemical objective: it counters the Hanafi exegesis Ahkam al-Quran by Abu Bakr al-Jassas (d. 370 AH), defending al-Shafi'i and replying to al-Jassas's arguments against him . Al-Kiya al-Harrasi likewise addresses positions and transmissions from the Maliki jurist Isma'il ibn Ishaq (d. 282 AH) in several passages .
Method and Content
The author follows the order of the Quranic surahs, deducing legal rulings and evaluating conflicting legal positions . The structure and discussions draw heavily on the framework established by al-Jassas, summarizing areas of agreement while independently establishing and asserting the Shafi'i positions . Beyond strictly legal matters, the author occasionally interprets verses concerning divine attributes using figurative interpretation (ta'wil) in line with later theological approaches .
Reception and Publication
Ahkam al-Quran is regarded as a primary classical reference for Shafi'i legal exegesis . Long preserved in manuscript form—including copies at Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya—the work was later edited and printed, including an edition prepared by Musa Muhammad Ali and 'Izzat Ali 'Iyd 'Atiyyah published in Cairo, as well as editions in Saudi Arabia and Beirut . Modern scholars have noted that earlier printings varied in critical precision .
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