Irshad al-Ammah ila Marifat al-Kadhib wa Ahkamuhu - ضمن "Athar al-Muallimi

Irshad al-Ammah ila Ma‘rifat al-Kadhib wa-Ahkamih (Arabic: إرشاد العامة إلى معرفة الكذب وأحكامه, lit. 'Guiding the Public to Understanding Falsehood and Its Rulings') is a scholarly treatise by the Yemeni scholar Abd al-Rahman al-Muallimi al-Yamani (d. 1386 AH / 1966 CE) on the linguistic, theological, and legal definitions and rulings concerning lying and falsehood Irshad al-Ammah ila Marif…+1.

Background and Purpose

Al-Mu‘allimi stated in his opening preface that he was prompted to write the treatise after observing extensive disputes concerning Islamic creeds and rulings, as well as widespread arbitrary figurative interpretations (ta’wil) of scriptural texts Irshad al-Ammah ila Marif…+1. He noted that many such interpretations effectively amounted to attributing falsehood to God and His messengers, while certain extremist theological formulations explicitly leveled such accusations, leading to widespread confusion among Muslims about the precise definition of lying Irshad al-Ammah ila Marif…+1. Consequently, he set out to independently investigate the reality of falsehood and determine its legal boundaries Irshad al-Ammah ila Marif…+1.

Content and Themes

The surviving portions of the work examine several key legal, rhetorical, and theological issues through detailed proofs and examples Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y…:

• The linguistic and technical definitions of a declarative statement (khabar), truthfulness (sidq), and lying (kadhib) Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Determining who bears the blame and liability of lying (ma‘arrat al-kadhib) and the role of the speaker's intent Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• The distinction between lying and literary figurative devices, including metaphor (majaz) and borrowing (isti‘arah), along with the function of contextual clues (qara'in) Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Errors of comprehension caused by shortcomings on the part of the listener Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Indirect phrasing and double entendres (ma‘arid and tawriyah), including the three famous statements of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y…+1.
• Exceptions and exemptions (rukhas) permitted in cases popularly labeled as lying, alongside the strict scriptural prohibitions and warnings regarding untruthfulness Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y…+1.

Manuscript State and Publication

The complete text of the treatise has not survived; rather, it has reached posterity through several disjointed manuscript portions Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y…+1:

• First piece: Located in the library of the Grand Mosque in Mecca (Maktabat al-Haram al-Makki, MS 4697, pp. 1–24), containing the introduction and the opening chapters Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Second piece: Found among the author’s uncataloged drafts (pp. 33–44), opening the subject afresh and covering four inquiries, the fourth being incomplete Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Third piece: Defective at the beginning (pp. 92–101), containing a digression refuting pagan objections regarding the Qur'anic verse إِنَّكُمْ وَمَا تَعْبُدُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ حَصَبُ جَهَنَّمَ , and discussing the delay of clarification beyond the time of need (ta’khir al-bayan) as well as double entendre Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Fourth piece: Preserved alongside the first piece in Mecca (pp. 47–86, lacking pp. 70–73), covering subsequent inquiries up through the eleventh Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….
• Draft sheet: Page 89 of the draft was recovered separately and appended after page 86 of the original text Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y….

Al-Mu‘allimi referred back to this treatise in several passages of his larger critical work al-Tankil bi-ma fi Ta'nib al-Kawthari min al-Abatil al-Nukat al-Jiyad al-Munt…+1. The surviving text was edited and printed within the legal theory treatises volume (Volume 19) of the collected works project Athar al-Mu‘allimi Athar Abd al-Rahman ibn Y…+1.