al-Qawl al-Ahmad fi Ahkam fi Hurmat al-Masjid
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- Editions
- Islamic University of Madinah
al-Qawl al-Ahmad fi Ahkam fi Hurmat al-Masjid (Arabic: القول الأحمد في أحكام في حرمة المسجد, lit. 'The Most Praiseworthy Discourse on the Rulings Concerning the Sanctity of the Mosque') is a contemporary treatise on comparative Islamic jurisprudence by Abdullah ibn Mu'tiq al-Suhaili, published in 1424 AH (2003–2004 CE), examining the legal rulings, sanctity, and proper maintenance of mosques.
Overview and Purpose
Al-Suhaili composed the treatise to clarify key legal rulings pertaining to the sanctity of mosques in an accessible, independent study. He noted that people had grown lax regarding the veneration and sanctity of mosques, and that rulings on the subject remained scattered across various jurisprudential works. The work was published by the Islamic University of Madinah in issue 125 of its academic journal in 1424 AH.
Structure and Contents
The treatise is organized into an introduction, a preliminary section, four main chapters, and a conclusion:
- Introduction (al-Muqaddimah) and Preliminary Section (al-Tamhid): Outlines the research plan and methodology, defines the mosque linguistically and legally, and details its status and the merit of its upkeep.
- Chapter 1 (al-Mabhath al-Awwal): Addresses the presence of ritually impure individuals in the mosque across three subsections: the staying of the ritually impure (al-muhdith) and the menstruating woman; the passing through of the sexually impure (al-junub) and the menstruating woman; and the entrance of women with non-menstrual bleeding (al-mustahadah), individuals with urinary incontinence, continuous physical impurity, or offensive odors.
- Chapter 2 (al-Mabhath al-Thani): Examines the entry of young children and the insane into the mosque.
- Chapter 3 (al-Mabhath al-Thalith): Covers commercial transactions and announcing lost property in the mosque, including those who enter specifically for these purposes or engage in them while attending for prayer.
- Chapter 4 (al-Mabhath al-Rabi'): Treats the ruling on non-Muslims (al-mushrikun) entering mosques.
- Conclusion (al-Khatimah): Summarizes the principal findings and legal conclusions reached in the study.
Methodology
Al-Suhaili adopted a comparative jurisprudential method (dirasah muwazanah), outlining the positions of the four Sunni legal schools alongside the views of various Companions, Followers (Tabi'un), and the Zahiri school, generally arranged in chronological sequence. In issues subject to scholarly consensus (ijma') or agreement (ittifaq), he opens with that determination; where disagreement is minor, he presents the majority view before addressing dissenting opinions, weighing their respective textual evidence (adillah), and concluding with the preferred position (al-qawl al-rajih).
He cited legal opinions directly from primary sources, referenced hadiths with source attribution and grades of authenticity, and clarified obscure terminology. To maintain conciseness, he omitted biographical notices for cited figures.
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