Muntaha al-Iradat fi Jam al-Muqni ma al-Tanqih wa Ziyadat
- Author died
- 972 AH
- Editions
- t al-Turki
Muntaha al-Iradat fi Jam al-Muqni ma al-Tanqih wa Ziyadat (Arabic: منتهى الإرادات في جمع المقنع مع التنقيح وزيادات, lit. 'The Utmost of Aspirations in Combining al-Muqni with al-Tanqih and Additions') is an authoritative legal manual of the Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence, authored by the Egyptian jurist Taqi al-Din Ibn al-Najjar al-Futuhi (898–972 AH / 1492–1564 CE) .
Background and Composition
Ibn al-Najjar composed the text during his journey to the Levant (al-Sham) and subsequently returned to Cairo after refining its legal rulings according to the preponderant positions of the Hanbali school . The work was designed to synthesize two pivotal Hanbali texts: Ibn Qudama's (d. 620 AH) al-Muqni and Ala al-Din al-Mardawi's (d. 885 AH) critical revision, al-Tanqih al-Mushbi . As Ibn al-Najjar noted in his preface, although al-Tanqih was essential for identifying the soundest school rulings, students still required al-Muqni for its primary legal cases, creating a need for a unified text that merged both along with scattered ancillary benefits (fawa'id) .
The idea of combining al-Muqni and al-Tanqih had been attempted before Ibn al-Najjar; the scholar Ahmad ibn Abd Allah al-Askari (d. 910 AH) commenced such a compilation but died before its completion, having reached only the chapter on bequests (al-wasaya) . Al-Askari's student, Ahmad ibn Ahmad al-Shuwayki (d. 939 or 948 AH), also compiled a synthesis titled al-Tawdih .
Structure and Method
Muntaha al-Iradat is a concise legal compendium (matn) that occupies a single medium-sized volume . It is structured around single authoritative rulings, stripped of explicit scriptural proofs (adillah) and legal rationales (ta'lil) . Ibn al-Najjar excluded outdated and non-relied-upon opinions (al-marjuh), adhering strictly to the corrections made by al-Mardawi in al-Tanqih, except in select instances where practical application or strong prevailing disagreement warranted mention . When conflicting views were presented without resolution under the formula "it was said and it was said" (qila wa-qila), this indicated that no conclusive determination had been identified .
The organizational layout follows the books (kutub), chapters (abwab), and sections (fusul) of al-Muqni and al-Tanqih, but dispenses with formal descriptive headings; instead, the opening word of each passage functions grammatically as the title and conceptual key for the section (for example, beginning directly with "Book: Purification is the removal of ritual impurity..." [كتاب: الطهارة ارتفاع حدث...]) .
Reception and Status
Muntaha al-Iradat achieved widespread acceptance among later Hanbali scholars, becoming the primary reference text for fatwas and legal judgments alongside Musa al-Hajjawi's al-Iqna . Ibn al-Najjar's father taught the book to students and praised it during the author's lifetime . Later jurists noted that its comprehensive codification caused students to turn away from earlier expansive manuals .
In the judicial system of Saudi Arabia, an official decree issued by the Judicial Committee in 1347 AH / 1928 CE designated Muntaha al-Iradat (via its commentaries) and al-Iqna as the primary bases for courtroom verdicts, stipulating that in cases of divergence between them, preference is given to the position in al-Muntaha .
Commentaries and Related Works
Owing to its compact and dense phrasing, numerous scholars wrote commentaries, glosses, and syntheses based on the text :
- Maunat Uli al-Nuha bi-Sharh al-Muntaha: The author's own three-volume commentary, in which he drew substantially from Ibn Muflih's al-Furu .
- Daqaiq Uli al-Nuha li-Sharh al-Muntaha (commonly known as Sharh Muntaha al-Iradat): A renowned commentary by Mansur al-Bahuti (d. 1051 AH), composed by drawing from Ibn al-Najjar's commentary, his own Kashshaf al-Qina, and Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Umar's al-Sharh al-Kabir .
- Supercommentaries and Glosses: Marginal glosses (hawashi) on the text include those by Mansur al-Bahuti, the author's grandson Uthman ibn Ahmad al-Futuhi (d. 1064 AH), Muhammad al-Khalwati (d. 1088 AH), and Uthman ibn Ahmad ibn Qaid al-Najdi (d. 1097 AH) .
- Ghayat al-Muntaha fi al-Jam bayn al-Iqna wa-l-Muntaha: A comprehensive work by Mari ibn Yusuf al-Karmi (d. 1033 AH), who combined Muntaha al-Iradat with al-Hajjawi's al-Iqna .
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