Islamic Jurisprudence According to the Four Sunni Schools

Islamic Jurisprudence According to the Four Sunni Schools is a translation of Volume I of al-Fiqh ‘ala al-Madhahib al-Arba ‘ah, by the Azhari scholar Sheikh ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Jaziri (1882-1941).

Dealing with the forms of worship (ibadat), this work offers an in-depth discussion of ritual purity (taharah), ritual prayers (salat), including funeral prayers and the practice of visiting the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad, fasting (siyam), spiritual retreats (i ‘tikaf), charity (zakat), the pilgrimage to Mecca (both al-hajj and al ‘umrah), and the offering of animal sacrifices.

Unlike previous works on Islamic law, which offer a medieval perspective, Islamic Jurisprudence According to the Four Sunni Schools is unique in providing the four legal views of ibadat or acts of worship, according to the interpretations of more recent traditionalists trained at al-Azhar University.

It is a valuable and detailed reference work for those interested in Islam, Islamic law or comparative law and contains a glossary of Islamic terminology. This is a must for academic libraries as well as for individuals who want to learn more about the performance of religious duties.

To date this is the only book on the market which brings together the teachings of all four Sunni schools of jurisprudence on a single topic. As such, it provides a unique service by enabling students of Islam, both Muslim and non-Muslim alike, to compare the teachings of the various schools without having to go in search of the relevant source material for each school. It demonstrates the breadth and mercy of interpretation of each law and provides the Muslim practitioner with various ways in which he or she may fulfill the tenets of the faith.

“This is one of the most clear and precise books of contemporary Islamic jurisprudence. It teaches all of the aspects and categories of Islamic jurisprudence according to the four Sunni schools that are followed by the majority of Muslims: The Hanafi, the Maliki, the Shafi’i and the Hanbali.” – Dr. Shaykh Ali Jum’a, (Former) Grand Mufti of Egypt

Prev. Professor of Islamic Jurisprudence

University of Al Azhar, Cairo

Director of the Azhar Mosque

and Imaam at the Sultan Hasan Mosque

Advisor to the Minister of Islamic Endowments, Cairo

Abd al-Raĥmān Ibn Muĥammad Awađ al-Jazīrī was born on the Egyptian island of Shandawīl in 1882 (1299 AH) and was educated at al-Azhar from 1896-1909; he later became a teacher at al-Azhar.

In 1912, al-Jazīrī was appointed inspector for the Ministry of Religious Endowment’s Department of Mosques, after which he was promoted to the Ministry’s chief inspector.

He was subsequently appointed as a professor in al-Azhar’s College of the Principles of Religion, and before his death in Ĥulwān in 1941 (1360 AH), al-Jazīrī became a member of al-Azhar’s Committee of Senior Scholars.

Al-Jazīrī’s writings include:

-Al-Fiqh Alā al-Madhāhib al-Arba’ah (“Islamic Jurisprudence According to the Four Sunni Schools”) in four volumes (Volume I was composed jointly by al-Jazīrī and a committee of scholars, while the remaining volumes were composed by al-Jazīrī alone)

-Tawđīĥ al-Aqā’id (“Clarification of Doctrines”) on the science of monotheism

-Al-Akhlāq al-Dīniyah wal-Ĥikam al-Sharciyah (“Religious Ethics and the Manifestations of Wisdom in the Islamic Law”)

-Adillat al-Yaqīn (“Proofs of Certainty”) in response to certain Christian evangelists; and Dīwān Khuţab (“Collected Sermons”)

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