al-Ikhtiyarat al-Fiqhiyya li-Muhammad ibn Dawud al-Saydilani
- Author died
- -
- Editions
- al-Ikhtiyarat al-Fiqhiyya li-Muhammad ibn Dawud al-Saydilani
al-Ikhtiyarat al-Fiqhiyya li-Muhammad ibn Dawud al-Saydilani (The Juristic Choices of Muhammad ibn Dawud al-Saydilani) is a specialized study in Shafi'i jurisprudence prepared by Khalid bin Abd Allah Afif as a doctoral dissertation at the Islamic University of Madinah during the academic year 1438–1439 AH under the supervision of Abd al-Aziz ibn Muti' al-Hujayli . The work compiles, documents, and analyzes the legal preferences (ikhtiyarat) of the fifth-century Shafi'i jurist Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Dawud al-Saydilani (d. 427 AH) across various legal domains, spanning from the chapter of marriage to that of slave mothers (Ummahat al-Awlad) .
Background and Purpose
Al-Saydilani was a prominent disciple of Abu Bakr al-Qaffal al-Marwazi (d. 417 AH) and a key figure within the Khurasanian branch of the Shafi'i school . His juristic transmissions, analytical distinctions, and choices were widely cited by classical authorities, most notably by Imam al-Haramayn al-Juwayni in Nihayat al-Matlab, and subsequently by al-Rafi'i in al-'Aziz, al-Nawawi in al-Majmu' and Rawdat al-Talibin, and Ibn al-Rif'ah in Kifayat al-Nabih .
Because al-Saydilani's legal positions remained scattered throughout broader Shafi'i compendia rather than preserved in a standalone work, the Department of Fiqh at the Islamic University established a collaborative project to collect and edit his juristic choices . While Afif examined 122 issues starting from marriage onward, a complementary doctoral study by Tariq ibn Salih Haydarah gathered 156 of al-Saydilani's choices in the spheres of ritual worship (al-'Ibadat) and financial transactions (al-Mu'amalat) .
Structure and Content
The dissertation is organized into an introduction, an extensive preliminary chapter, six core thematic chapters, and a conclusion with indexes :
- Preliminary Section (al-Tamhid): Offers a biographical outline of al-Saydilani, detailing his lineage, education, teachers, students, creed, and scholarly praise, followed by a conceptual definition of ikhtiyar (legal choice), its terminology, and the hermeneutical principles governing al-Saydilani's preferences .
- Chapter 1: Covers marriage (al-Nikah), including conditions of the marriage contract, spousal disputes, prohibited marriages, marriage of slaves, dower, and wedding feasts .
- Chapter 2: Addresses family dissolution and related rights, comprising redemption (khul'), divorce (talaq), continence oaths (ila'), injurious assimilation (zihar), mutual imprecation (li'an), waiting periods ('idda), fosterage (rida'), maintenance (nafaqat), and child custody (hadana) .
- Chapter 3: Examines torts and penal law, including bodily injuries (al-Jirah), homicide claims, compurgation (al-Qasama), blood money (al-Diyat), and fixed legal penalties (al-Hudud) .
- Chapter 4: Details warfare, statecraft, and governance (al-Jihad wa-al-Siyar), the poll tax (al-Jizya), the rights and obligations of non-Muslim subjects (Ahl al-Dhimma), and safe-conduct (al-Aman) .
- Chapter 5: Covers hunting, slaughtered animals, newborn sacrifice (al-'Aqiqa), dietary rulings, and oaths (al-Ayman) .
- Chapter 6: Discusses the judiciary (al-Qada'), testimonies (al-Shahadat), claims and proofs (al-Da'wa wa-al-Bayyinat), and slavery laws, including standard emancipation (al-'Itq), contracts of manumission (al-Kitaba), and slave mothers of children (Ummahat al-Awlad) .
Method
Afif systematically extracted al-Saydilani's legal positions from Shafi'i reference works by identifying explicit textual markers indicating preference, such as "he affirmed" (sarraha bihi), "he asserted" (jazama bihi), "he chose" (ikhtarah), "he inclined toward" (mala ilayh), or direct citations attributed to him . The study arranges the issues according to the legal taxonomy of al-Nawawi's Minhaj al-Talibin . For each issue, the author documents al-Saydilani's position and original wording, conducts a comparative analysis across the four recognized Sunni madhhabs along with the views of the Companions and Successors, evaluates supporting evidence, and provides critical weighing (tarjih) of the opinions .
Answer updated