Majmuat Rasail Ibn Abidin
- Author died
- 1252 AH
- Editions
- T Istanbul
Majmuat Rasail Ibn Abidin (مجموعة رسائل ابن عابدين, "The Collected Treatises of Ibn Abidin") is a two-volume compendium of thirty-two specialized treatises on Hanafi jurisprudence, legal methodology, devotional rulings, and doctrinal matters composed by the Damascene jurist Ibn Abidin (1198–1252 AH / 1784–1836 CE).
Scope and Contents
The collection brings together monographs written by Ibn Abidin over the course of his scholarly career to resolve complex legal disputes, analyze nuanced Hanafi texts, establish general legal maxims, or address contemporary social and economic questions. The treatises cover diverse disciplines within Islamic law and theology:
- Legal Methodology and Hermeneutics: Includes Sharh al-manzumah al-musammah bi-Uqud rasm al-mufti, Ibn Abidin's commentary on his own didactic poem outlining the protocol and hierarchy of fatwa issuance in the Hanafi school, and Nashr al-urf fi bina ba'd al-ahkam ala al-urf, which investigates the legal authority of customary practice (urf) and how changes in custom influence legal rulings.
- Economic and Monetary Jurisprudence: Includes Tanbih al-ruqud ala masa'il al-nuqud, written in 1230 AH, which examines currency fluctuations, price shifts, and the demonetization of copper and precious coinage.
- Worship and Devotional Rulings: Includes Tanbih al-ghafil wa-al-wasnan ala ahkam hilal Ramadan, an investigation of crescent-moon sighting for Ramadan compiled using more than fifty authoritative legal works from across the Sunni schools; Raf' al-taraddud fi aqd al-asabi' inda al-tashahhud, on the practice of folding fingers and pointing during the prayer's sitting; and Shifa' al-alil wa-ball al-ghalil fi hukm al-wasiyyah bi-al-khatamat wa-al-tahalil, on bequests made for Quran recitation.
- Family Law, Estates, and Transactions: Includes Tahrir al-nuqul fi nafaqat al-furu' wa-al-usul, articulating overarching principles governing the financial maintenance of parents and children; Al-Ibanah an akhdh al-ujrah ala al-hadanah, on compensation for child custody; I'lam al-a'lam bi-ahkam al-iqrar al-amm, regarding general releases and acknowledgments among heirs; and Al-Rahiq al-makhtum sharh Qala'id al-manzum, an abridged commentary on the laws of inheritance.
- Doctrinal and Polemical Inquiries: Includes Tanbih al-wulah wa-al-hukkam ala ahkam shatim khayr al-anam, examining legal penalties concerning blasphemy against the Prophet ﷺ or cursing his Companions; Al-Ilm al-zahir fi naf' al-nasab al-tahir, discussing whether Prophetic descent benefits sinful descendants in the afterlife; and Sall al-husam al-hindi li-nusrat mawlana Khalid al-Naqshbandi, a defense of the Sufi master Khalid al-Naqshbandi.
Composition and Method
Several treatises were occasioned by inquiries presented by peers, legal queries received in Damascus, or directives from his teachers. For example, Raf' al-ishtibah an ibarat al-Ashbah was drafted in Sha'ban 1218 AH at the instruction of his teacher to resolve an ambiguous passage in Zayn al-Din ibn Nujaym's Al-Ashbah wa-al-naza'ir. In his commentaries, such as Manhal al-waridin, Ibn Abidin annotated established manuals, explaining the difficult points of Muhammad al-Birkawi's Dhukhr al-muta'ahhilin on ritual purity and menstruation.
His methodology relies heavily on verifying differing transmissions within the Hanafi school (zahir al-riwayah versus rare transmissions), weighing contending opinions, citing authoritative compendia, and synthesizing rules into accessible principles for muftis and judges.
Publication
While several of the treatises were published individually in Damascus, the full collection of thirty-two treatises was printed in two volumes in Istanbul (al-Astana) in 1325 AH / 1907 CE under the auspices of Muhammad Hashim al-Kutubi.
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