Maalim Usul al-Fiqh inda Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa
- Author died
- -
- Editions
- Dār Ibn al-Jawzī
Maalim Usul al-Fiqh inda Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa (Landmarks of the Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence According to Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa) is a contemporary work on Islamic legal theory (usul al-fiqh) by the Saudi scholar Muhammad Husayn al-Jizani .
Origin and Composition
The book originated as al-Jizani's doctoral dissertation submitted to the Islamic University of Madinah under the title Manhaj Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa fi Tahrir Usul al-Fiqh (The Methodology of Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa in Formulating Usul al-Fiqh) . The dissertation was supervised by Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, a professor of legal theory at Umm al-Qura University, and evaluated by a committee consisting of Ali ibn Abbas al-Hakami and Ahmad Mahmud Abd al-Wahhab . It was defended on 25 Muharram 1415 AH (1994 CE) and awarded first-class honors . Prior to publication, the author revised, reorganized, and expanded the material and adopted the present title . It was published in a single volume by Dar Ibn al-Jawzi in Dammam in 1416 AH (1995/1996 CE), with multiple subsequent editions .
Purpose and Scope
Al-Jizani states three main objectives for the work:
- To document and organize the contributions and writings of scholars of Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa in the field of legal theory .
- To clarify the agreed-upon principles of legal theory according to their methodology and delineate the issues subject to internal disagreement .
- To safeguard theological tenets by identifying and critiquing legal-theoretical maxims derived from theological doctrines held by non-Sunni groups .
Structure and Contents
The work is organized into an introduction, a preliminary study, two main parts, a conclusion, and three thematic appendices :
- Preliminary Study (al-Tamhid): Comprises three sections defining Ahl al-Sunna wa al-Jamaa and their distinguishing characteristics, outlining the definition, subject matter, sources, and utility of legal theory, and surveying the history of the discipline across three primary stages: the foundational era of al-Shafi'i, the hadith-oriented phase represented by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi and Ibn Abd al-Barr, and the reformist phase led by Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya . This section also provides focused studies of four classical legal texts: al-Risala by al-Shafi'i, al-Faqih wa al-Mutafaqqih by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, Rawdat al-Nazir by Ibn Qudama, and Sharh al-Kawkab al-Munir by Ibn al-Najjar al-Futuhi .
- Part One: Legal Proofs (al-Adilla al-Shariyya): Spans four chapters discussing legal proofs in general (their origins, epistemic certainty versus probability, and textual versus rational proofs), agreed-upon proofs (the Quran, the Sunnah, consensus or ijma, and analogical reasoning or qiyas), disputed proofs (presumption of continuity or istishab, the opinion of a Companion, pre-Islamic revealed laws, juristic preference or istihsan, and public interest or al-masalih al-mursala), and the mechanisms of abrogation (naskh), apparent conflict (taarud), textual preference (tarjih), and the hierarchy of proofs .
- Part Two: Juristic Principles (al-Qawaid al-Usuliyya): Contains three chapters treating legal rulings (al-hukm al-shari) and their defining categories and corollaries (including rational ethics or al-tahsin wa al-taqbih al-aqliyyan and legal capacity or taklif); textual implications and linguistic derivations (dalalat al-alfaz wa turuq al-istinbat), covering clarity levels, commands, prohibitions, general and specific terms, absolute and qualified terms, and explicit versus implicit meanings; and the rulings governing independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), following authority (taqlid), and legal verdicts (fatwa) .
The book closes with lists documenting the legal-theoretical contributions of Ibn Taymiyya, the legal-theoretical contributions of Ibn al-Qayyim, and a compilation of legal-theoretical treatises produced by scholars adhering to the Sunni traditionalist methodology .
Answer updated