al-Jami li Ulum al-Imam Ahmad - Usul al-Fiqh
- Author died
- 241 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Falāḥ lil-Baḥth al-ʿIlmī wa-Taḥqīq al-Turāth
al-Jami li Ulum al-Imam Ahmad - Usul al-Fiqh is an encyclopedic compilation that brings together the legal theory and methodological principles transmitted from Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (164–241 AH / 780–855 CE) .
Background and Compilation
The work forms the fifth volume and opening section of the legal and jurisprudential division within the multi-volume project Mudawwanat al-Hanabilah: al-Jami li-Ulum al-Imam Ahmad . Because Ahmad ibn Hanbal did not author a unified treatise on jurisprudence, his legal and methodological views remained dispersed across numerous question-and-answer collections (masa'il) compiled by his immediate students, as well as later biographical and legal works .
The collection, preparation, and classification of the volume were led by Khalid al-Ribat and Sayyid 'Izzat 'Id, along with Wa'il Imam 'Abd al-Fattah, Muhammad Ahmad 'Abd al-Tawwab, Muhammad 'Abd al-Fattah 'Ali, Ahmad Mahmud 'Abd al-Majid, and Ibrahim al-Nahhas . Hadith verification (takhrij) was conducted by Hani Ramadan Hashim, Ahmad Fawzi Ibrahim, Ahmad Rubi 'Abd al-'Azim, Ahmad 'Uways Junaydi, Rabi' Muhammad 'Iwad Allah, and Sha'ban Muhammad Junaydi, with text collation assisted by Khalid Mustafa Tawfiq, 'Isam Hamdi, and Rajab Sha'ban Muhammad .
Method and Scope
The compilers drew upon primary sources containing direct transmissions from Ahmad, including the Masa'il recorded by his sons Salih and 'Abd Allah, Ishaq ibn Ibrahim ibn Hani, Harb ibn Isma'il al-Kirmani, and other contemporaries, as well as his Kitab al-Zuhd and classical Hanbali compilations such as Tabaqat al-Hanabilah .
The methodology of the volume is structured around thematic legal issues (masa'il). Rather than presenting raw, isolated answers, the editors grouped multiple narrations on a single topic under unified descriptive headings . They organized the material according to a logical sequence compatible with traditional Hanbali chapter arrangements, preserved the historical terminology of the school in labeling the chapters, provided exact citations for each report, and documented the source of every transmission . The text addresses topics fundamental to jurisprudence and legal methodology, opening with the merits of knowledge, scholars, and travel for seeking hadith and legal understanding .
Publication
The first edition of the work was published in 1430 AH / 2009 CE by Dar al-Falah li-l-Bahth al-'Ilmi wa-Tahqiq al-Turath, based in Faiyum, Egypt .
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