Shafi'i
The Shafi'i (Arabic: شافعي Šāfiʿī ) madhhab is one of the four schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i. The other three schools of Islamic law are Hanafi, Maliki and Hanbali.
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[edit] Principles
The Shafi'i school of thought stipulates authority to four sources of jurisprudence, also known as the Usul al-fiqh. In hierarchical order, the usul al-fiqh consist of: the Quran, the Sunnah of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, ijmā' ("consensus"), and qiyas ("analogy").
The Shafi'i school also refers to the opinions of Muhammad's companions (primarily Al-Khulafa ar-Rashidun). The school, based on Shafi'i's books ar-Risala fi Usul al-Fiqh and Kitab al-Umm, which emphasizes proper istinbaat (derivation of laws) through the rigorous application of legal principles as opposed to speculation or conjecture.
Shafi'i's treatise ar-Risala fi Usul al-Fiqh is not to be mistaken or confused with the al-Risala of Imam Malik.
Imam Shafi'i approached the imperatives of the Islamic Shariah (Canon Law) distinctly in his own systematic methodology. Imam Shafi'i, Imam Malik and Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal almost entirely exclude the exercise of private judgment in the exposition of legal principles. They are wholly governed by the force of precedents, adhering to the Scripture and Traditions; they also do not admit the validity of a recourse to analogical deduction of such an interpretation of the Law whereby its spirit is adopted to the circumstances of any special case.
Shafi'i is also known as the "First Among Equals" for his exhaustive knowledge and systematic methodology to religious science.
[edit] The Imam
Shafi'i's [150 – 206 AH] full name is Abū ‘Abdu l-Lāh Muhammad ibn Idrīs ibn al-Abbās ibn ‘Uthmān ibn Shāfi‘ ibn as-Sa'ib ibn ‘Ubayd ibn ‘Abd al-Yazīd ibn al-Muttalib ibn ‘Abd Manaf. ‘Abd Manaf was the great grandfather of Muhammad. Based on this lineage, he is from the Quraish tribe.[1] He was born in 150 AH (760 CE) in Gaza in the same year Imam Abū Hanifa died.[2] Al-Nawawī, a prominent Shāfiʻī scholar, cited Sufyan ibn `Uyaynah, one of al-Shafi`i's teachers, as being from "the grandfathers of the Shāfiʻī scholars in their methodology in jurisprudence".[3]
As a member of the school of Medina, ash-Shafi'i worked to combine the pragmatism of the Medina school with the contemporary pressures of the Traditionalists. The Traditionalists maintained that jurists could not independently adduce a practice as the sunnah of Muhammad based on ijtihad "independent reasoning" but should only produce verdicts substantiated by authentic hadith.
Based on this claim, ash-Shafi'i devised a method for systematic reasoning without relying on personal deduction. He argued that the only authoritative sunnah were those that were both of Muhammad and passed down from Muhammad himself. He also argued that sunnah contradicting the Quran were unacceptable, claiming that sunnah should only be used to explain the Quran. Furthermore, ash-Shafi'i claimed that if a practice is widely accepted throughout the Muslim community, it cannot be in contradiction of sunnah.
Ash-Shafi'i was also a significant poet. His poetry is noted for its beauty, wisdom, despite the fact that during his lifetime he stood off becoming a poet because of his rank as an Islamic scholar. He said once:
- و لولا الشعر بالعلماء يزري
- لكنت اليوم أشعر من لبيد
- For scholars, if poetry did not degrade,
- I would have been a finer poet than Labīd.
However, the beauty of his poetry made people collect it in one famous book under the name Diwān Imām al-Shafi'i. Many verses are popularly known and repeated in the Arab world as proverbs:
- نعيب زماننا و العيب فينا
- و ما لزماننا عيب سوانا
- و نهجو ذا الزمان بغير ذنب
- و لو نطق الزمان لنا هجانا
- We blame our time though we are to blame.
- No fault has time but only us.
- We scold the time for all the shame.
- Had it a tongue, it would scold us.[4]
The al-Quran has brought a transformation to the Arab language especially in Arabic poetry,prose,etc thus shaping the from and essence of modern/contemporary Arabic poetry.
[edit] Importance of the Shafi'i School
[edit] Demographics
The Shafi'i school is followed throughout the Ummah and is the official school of thought of most traditional scholars and leading Sunni authorities. It is also recognized as the official school of thought by the governments of Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia. In addition, the government of Indonesia uses this madhab for the Indonesian compilation of sharia law.
It is the dominant school of thought in the Palestinian Territories, the United Arab Emirates, majority of the North Caucasus (notably in Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia), Kurdistan (East Turkey, North west Iran, North Iraq, Northern Syria), Egypt, Djibouti, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, Maldives, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam and Indonesia.
It is also practised by large communities in Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia (in the Hejaz and Asir), Israel, the Swahili Coast, Mauritius, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan (by Chechens) and Indian States of Kerala (most of the Mappilas), Karnataka (Bhatkal, Mangalore and Coorg districts), Maharashtra (by Konkani Muslims) and Tamil Nadu.
The second largest school of the Sunni branch of Islam in terms of followers, the Shafi`i madhhab, is followed by approximately 29% of Muslims worldwide.
[edit] Historical
Early European explorers speculated that T'ung-kan (Hui people, called "Chinese Mohammedan") in Xinjiang originated from Khorezmians who were transported to China by the Mongols, and that they were descended from a mixture of Chinese, Iranians, and Turkic peoples. They also reported that the T'ung-kan were Shafi'ites, which the Khorezmians were as well.[5]
[edit] Famous Shafi'i's
- Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari, Imam of Ash'ari Aqida
- Imam Jalaluddin Al-Mahally, Sunni authority in Quranic Tafsir (exegesis)
- Shaykh 'Alee Jawhar aSumali, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imam Suyuti, Sunni authority in history, Quran, Fiqh, Tafsir, and Hadith
- Imām al-Bayhaqi, Sunni authority in Hadith; Shafiite authority in Fiqh
- Imām ibn Majah, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imām al-Hakim, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imam Abu Dawud Al-Tayalisi, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imām Tirmizi, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imam Nasa'ie, Sunni authority in Hadith.
- Imam Daraqutni, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imam Tabrani, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Imam Al-Mawardi, Sunni authority in Legal ordinances, history and Islamic governance.
- Ibn al-Salah, hadith specialist
- Imām Dhahabi, Sunni authority in Hadith
- Al-Hāfidh ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Sunni's foremost authority in Hadith, author of the authoritative commentary of Sahih Bukhari.
- Imām an-Nawawi, Sunni's second highest authority in Hadith, principal Shafi'i jurist; author of the Sahih Muslim commentary.
- Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, A renowned Sunni expert in Hadith methodology and jurisprudence
- Imam Al-Baghawi, Also known as "Reviver of Sunnah", well-known for his Ma'alim Al-Tanzil in Tafsir.
- Imam Al-Bayhawi, A major Shafiite exegete and legal expert.
- Imam Muhammad Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, Sunni most respected exegete
- Imam Bukhari, Sunni's most prominent Hadith authority in verification
- Imam Muslim ibn Hajjaj, student of Imam Bukhari.
- Ibn Kathir, top-notch Sunni expert in Tafsir, Hadith, Biography and Fiqh.
- Al-Sakhawi
- Sheikhul Islam Zakariyya Al-Ansari, a notable Sunni expert in jurisprudence.
- Imam Daqiequl-Eid, Sunni specialist scholar in Fiqh and Theology
- Sultan Al-Ulama' Izzuddin Abdul-Salam, renowned Sunni authority in legal law.
- Zainuddin Makhdoom I and II, The Jurist and Historian (respectively) of Kerala
- Sheikh Safi al-Din Is'haq Ardabili
- Imam Al-Ghazali, The Early authority in Principles of Fiqh (Jurisprudence), well-known for his Al-Wasit Fi Al-Madzhab" Author of the Incoherence of The Philosophers and "Ihya Ulum Al-din" The revival of the religious sciences.
[edit] Contemporary Shafi'i Scholars
- Shaykh Taha Karaan, "Imam Shaf'i Saghir" South Africa's Leading Shafi'i Scholar
- Abdullah al-Harari (1910 – September 2, 2008) Started the Ahbash or Habashi movement, also known as the Association of Islamic Charitable Projects at AICP.org
- Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar, A. P. Sunni leader in Kerala and General Secretary of the Sunni Scholars’ Organisation of India.
- Mufti 'Ali Gomaa' – Grand Mufti of Egypt
- Shaykh Nuh Keller – Translator of Imam Nawawi's Al-Maqasid and Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri's Umdat al-Salik wa Uddat al-Nasik
- Shaykh Nuh 'Ali Salman al-Qudat – Former Mufti of the Jordanian Armed Forces
- Shaykh Al-Habib Umar bin Muhammad bin Salim bin Hafidh – Descendant of The Prophet, Dean, Dar Al-Mustafa
- Shaykh Al-Habib Ali Mashhour bin Muhammad bin Salim bin Hafidh – Imam of the Tarim Mosque and Head of Fatwas Council, Tarim, Yemen
- Shaykh Ali Zain Al-Abidin Al-Jifri[6] – Descendant of The Prophet, Founder of the 'Tabah Foundations for Islamic Studies and Research', lecturer at Dar al Mustafa, Tarim, Yemen
- Shaykh Amjad Rasheed – Islamic scholar from Tarim, Mufti at Sunnipath.com
- Shaykh Hamza Karamali – Teacher at Sunnipath.com
- Shaykh AbdulKarim Yahya - Teacher at Sunnipath.com
- Shaykh Muhammad Afifi al-Akiti - University Research Lecturer in Islamic Studies at University of Oxford
- KH. DR. Muhammad Achmad Sahal Mahfudz (President,Nahdhatul Ulama.Indonesia)
- Shaykh Abu Zakarriya Muhammad Wardare - Mufti of the Salafi Ikhwa of the Sirat Mujtama' based in North London. Currently a student of knowledge at Brook House College.
- Dr. Bahauddin Muslyar – Vice Chancellor or Darul Huda University, Kerala
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ Ibn Hazm, Jamharah Ansab al-'Arab
- ^ al-Zubaidi, Taj al-'Urus under the header 'Shafa'a'. However, there are also early reports of his having been born in Ashkelon and Yemen, for which see Yahia (2009), 89-90.
- ^ al-Nawawi, Yahya ibn Sharaf (2005). Ali Mu`awwad and Adil Abd al-Mawjud. ed (in Arabic). Tahdhib al-Asma wa al-Lughat. al-Asma. Beirut: Dar al-Nafaes. pp. 314–6.
- ^ Diwān Imām al-Shāfi‘ī. Damascus, Syria: Karam Publishing House Verses are translated by Salma al-Helali.
- ^ Roerich Museum, George Roerich (2003). Journal Of Urusvati Himalayan Research Institute, Volumes 1-3. Vedams eBooks (P) Ltd. p. 526. ISBN 8179360113. http://books.google.com/books?id=yBO3pmzzhWkC&pg=PA526&dq=erh-hun-tze+a+mongols+chinese+inhabit&hl=en&ei=81-GTazoJYHQgAfrnfDYCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CD0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=erh-hun-tze%20a%20mongols%20chinese%20inhabit&f=false. Retrieved 2010-6-28.
- ^ Short Biography on Habib 'Ali al-Jifri
[edit] References
- Yahia, Mohyddin (2009). Shafi'i et les deux sources de la loi islamique, Turnhout: Brepols Publishers, ISBN 978-2-503-53181-6
- Rippin, Andrew (2005). Muslims: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices (3rd ed.). London: Routledge. pp. 90–93. ISBN 0-415-34888-9.
- Calder, Norman, Jawid Mojaddedi, and Andrew Rippin (2003). Classical Islam: A Sourcebook of Religious Literature. London: Routledge. Section 7.1.
- Schacht, Joseph (1950). The Origins of Muhammadan Jurisprudence. Oxford: Oxford University. pp. 16.
- Khadduri, Majid (1987). Islamic Jurisprudence: Shafi'i's Risala. Cambridge: Islamic Texts Society. pp. 286.
- Abd Majid, Mahmood (2007). Tajdid Fiqh Al-Imam Al-Syafi'i. Seminar pemikiran Tajdid Imam As Shafie 2007.
- al-Shafi'i,Muhammad b. Idris,"The Book of the Amalgamation of Knowledge" translated by A.Y. Musa in Hadith as Scripture: Discussions on The Authority Of Prophetic Traditions in Islam, New York: Palgrave, 2008
[edit] External links
- Shafi'i Fiqh Legal Resource with Questions and Answers etc.
- Detailed Biography of Imam Shafi'i
- Short Biography of Imam Shafi'i
- Concise Summary of Imam Shafi'i
- Contribution of Imam Shafi'i
- Urdu Translation of Imam Shafi'is Kitaab-ur-Risala by Mubashir Nazir
- Review of Imam Shafi'i's al-Risala
