Ibn Abidin
Hanafi jurist and mufti of Damascus, author of the authoritative Radd al-Muhtar.
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Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin, known as al-Shami, was an Islamic scholar and jurist in Damascus during the Ottoman era.[1] He served as the official mufti, the authority people consulted for legal questions.[2] Today, the Hanafi school's authoritative text remains the Radd al-Muhtar, a work for which Ibn Abidin is best known.[2]
Life and work
He memorized the Qur'an before reaching maturity and received his first degree of authorization around age twelve.[2] He studied vigorously under several well-known scholars and eventually received four degrees of authorization.[2] He believed that many legal rules change with the change of time and local custom.[3][4] He argued that jurists should pay attention to the needs of their time, or the harm they do will outweigh the benefit.[5]
Ibn Abidin died on 21 Rabi al-thani in 1252 AH at age 54.[1] The year 1784 saw the birth of Ibn Abidin in Damascus, into a family lineage that was highly regarded for its scholarly tradition.[2] More than 50 separate writings were produced by him, which included collections of fatwas, short treatises, poetic works, and explanatory notes on others' texts.[2]
What the cited sources add
A 2012 article describes Ibn Abidin as the final verifier of the Hanafi school, with Radd al-Muhtar being the final word on most legal issues.[6] The same source notes that his work is considered more comprehensive than the earlier Fatawa Hindiyya.[6] Shaykh Muhammad Effendi al-Hulawani, who served as the Mufti of Beirut, declared that no lesson he ever attended matched those given by Ibn Abidin.[6]
References
- Wikipedia, "Ibn Abidin" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Imam Ibn Abidin Shami - Biography and Works at Sunniport"; Hasan, "Imām Ibn Áābidīn Shāmī - Biography and Works", Sunniport (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ibn Abidin" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: an-Nubala (2011) (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ibn Abidin" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gerber (1999), 88-121 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ibn Abidin" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gerber (1999), 110 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Ibn Abidin" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gerber (1999), 114 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Hanafi Texts: The Difference Between Primers and Reference Works in Islamic Law", 20 November 2012. facts only, no text reused. seekersguidance.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Ibn Abidin (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Ibn Abidin (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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