TITLE:
An Example of Al-Shaf’i’s Jurisprudence
AUTHOR:
Shaykh Gibril Fouad (G.F.) Haddad (PhD)
LANGUAGES :
In English.
ARTICLE:
Abu Mansur al-Baghdadi in Manaqib al-Shafi`i and Naqd Abi `Abd Allah
al-Jurjani fi Tarjih Madhhab Abi Hanifa relates the following example
of the Imam’s perspicuity at an early age:
Al-Shafi`i
was sitting at Malik’s feet one day when a man came in and said: “I
sell turtle-doves, and one of my customers returned one of them to me
today, saying that it does not coo, so I swore to him on pain of
divorce that my turtle-dove coos all the time!” Malik said: “You have
divorced your wife and are not to approach her.” Al-Shafi`i was
fourteen at the time. He said to the man: “Which is more, your
turtle-dove’s cooing or its silence?” The man said: “Its cooing.”
Al-Shafi`i
said: “Consider your marriage valid, and there is no penalty on you.”
Whereupon Malik frowned at him saying: “Boy! How do you know this?”
Al-Shafi`i replied: “Because you narrated to me from al-Zuhri, from Abu
Salama ibn `Abd al-Rahman, from Umm Salama, that Fatima bint Qays said:
‘O Messenger of Allah! Abu Jahm and Mu`awiya have both proposed to me.’
The
Prophet replied: ‘As for Mu`awiya he is penniless, and as for Abu Jahm
he does not put down his staff from his shoulder [from travel].’1
Meaning: in most of his states; for the Arabs declare the more frequent
of two actions [exclusively of the other] because of its constancy. And
since the cooing of this man’s turtledove is more than its silence, I
declared it constant in its cooing.” Malik was pleased at his
reasoning.2
NOTES / SOURCES:
1Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim.
2In Ibn al-Subki, Tabaqat al-Shafi`iyya al-Kubra (5:147-148).
Hajj Gibril
BIBLIOGRAPHY :
Author : Shaykh Gibril Fouad (G.F.) Haddad (PhD)
Copyright : © Shaykh Gibril Fouad (G.F.) Haddad (PhD)
