In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may blessings and peace be upon the noblest of the prophets and messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon all his family and companions.
This is a detailed summary of what was presented in the second part of the explanation of Imam al-Shafi’i’s book al-Risala, focusing on the important points and clarifications.
Explanation of some of Imam al-Shafi’i’s expressions:
- “By what He knows better of their share in uncovering it, in the Hereafter and the first life”: this refers to what Allah has made lawful and what He has made unlawful, and that the lawful belongs to the domain of latitude and permissibility, which is the widest of domains. “Uncovering” (al-kashf) here means prohibition. “The Hereafter and the first life” means the whole of life, this world and the Hereafter. It may also carry the meaning of the reward attained in this world and the Hereafter.
- “Hamuha”: meaning Allah protected them from it; this is the dialect of the Hijaz.
- “Their fated ends (manaya) come before their hopes (amani)”: manaya means death or what has been decreed.
- “Al-awan”: time.
- “Unf”: to begin anew, that is, to start something new in time. He points out that this relates to the appearance of those who denied divine decree (al-qadar) in Basra.
- “Al-rayn”: the sealing or stamping of the heart.
- “La yu’tab mudhnib”: meaning the sinner does not seek to return.
People’s ranks in knowledge:
- People differ in knowledge according to their degrees in it.
- Effort (al-jahd): exhausting one’s full capacity in something; it is used only for expending effort and enduring hardship.
- He urged seeking knowledge and exerting effort in it, along with patience and sincerity.
Text and inference:
- The text (nass): what relates to the wording.
- Inference (istinbat): extracting the indication from the wording. Example: “and to parents, good treatment” (Al-Isra 17:23) is a text, and its indication is the obligation of treating parents well. A command expressed through the verbal noun is stronger than a command expressed through the verb, because it contains the command to act and something more.
- Inference involves independent reasoning (ijtihad) and extracting the indication from part of the text. He cited the verse: “But if they had referred it back to the Messenger or to those of authority among them, then the ones who [can] draw correct conclusions from it would have known about it” (An-Nisa 4:83). Istinbat is on the pattern istif’al, which carries the meaning of seeking something.
- He urged reaching the utmost in knowing Allah, purifying one’s intention in seeking knowledge, and istidrak (seeking more knowledge).
- He mentioned that among the obstacles that hinder seeking knowledge are: the self, bad company, and poverty.
- He emphasized the importance of seeking Allah’s help in seeking knowledge, and that divine help comes before the deed, citing the verse: “It is You we worship and You we ask for help” (Al-Fatihah 1:5).
Acting upon knowledge:
- He explained that excellence in religion and in worldly life is achieved by grasping the knowledge of Allah, by text and by inference, and by being granted success in speaking and acting according to it.
- He mentioned that leadership in religion comes only through three things: knowledge, action, and calling others to it.
- He urged seeking to please Allah the Exalted alone.
- He supplicated to Allah the Exalted to grant us understanding of His Book, and speech and action through which the truth is fulfilled, and to increase us from His bounty.
Whether the text encompasses all events:
- He raised the question of whether the text encompasses events in their entirety in every age, or whether texts are finite while events are infinite.
- He gave the example of surrogacy (renting wombs) and explained that scholars differ about it.
- Imam al-Shafi’i held that the text contains guidance and direction for every new occurrence that arises, either by explicit text or by inference.
- He cited the verse: “[This is] a Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that you might bring mankind out of darknesses into the light” (Ibrahim 14:1); the verse: “And We revealed to you the message [i.e., the Qur’an] that you may make clear to the people what was sent down to them and that they might give thought” (An-Nahl 16:44); and the verse: “And We have sent down to you the Book as clarification for all things” (An-Nahl 16:89).
Bayan (clarification):
- Bayan means clarity and making clear. It is a form of indication, and it is applied to proof, demonstration, and eloquent, articulate speech. He cited the saying of the Prophet ﷺ: “Indeed, some eloquence is magic.”
- He explained that bayan is a comprehensive term for meanings whose roots are united and whose branches are diverse. The least that can be said of those meanings is that they are clarification to those addressed by them, among the people in whose tongue the Qur’an was revealed, and that they are close to one another because they are equally understood by such a person.
- He mentioned that some modes of clarification are more emphatic than others, while the meaning remains the same. He explained the example of “Zayd is standing” (Zaydun qa’im), “Indeed Zayd is standing” (inna Zaydan qa’im), and “Indeed Zayd is surely standing” (inna Zaydan la-qa’im).
- He mentioned the story of Sibawayh and his book, and explained that by his terms “padding and redundancy” (al-hashw wa-l-laghw) he meant addition, not the evaluative legal sense of these words.
The sum of what Allah has made clear in His Book:
Imam al-Shafi’i mentioned three kinds of clarification in the Book of Allah:
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What Allah made clear to His creation by explicit text, such as the general body of obligations and prohibitions.
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What Allah made clear in principle in His Book while the Sunnah clarified its manner, such as the number of prayers and the manner of zakah and Hajj.
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What the Messenger of Allah ﷺ established as Sunnah in matters where Allah has no explicit textual ruling in His Book, such as the ruling of stoning for the married adulterer. He explained that obeying the Messenger is part of obeying Allah, and cited verses of the Qur’an for this.
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He mentioned that Allah the Exalted made it obligatory upon His creation to exert effort in seeking knowledge, and tested their obedience in it.
Important notes:
- He pointed out that Imam al-Shafi’i connects great meanings to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic.
- He explained that the science of usul either raises its possessor to the stations of the righteous or settles him in the depths of the self-admiring.
- He emphasized the importance of acting upon knowledge and calling others to it, and that leadership is attained only through these three things.
- He pointed out the importance of mastering the terminology of the scholars in order to understand their books.
- He explained the importance of the original manuscript copy in the verification of manuscripts.
This is a comprehensive and detailed summary of what was presented in this part of the explanation of al-Risala. We ask Allah the Exalted to make it beneficial.
All parts of Summary of the Explanation of al-Risala by Shaykh Dr. Ahmad al-Naqeeb