PREFACE

DIVERSITY IN THE TOPICS OF FIQH

If we study the subjects of FIQH in detail, we find that every one of them is eculiar and sin!ular in itself" #here
may seem to be some similarity at , first !lance, but a deeer study reveals a different asect contained" It meets
with the re$uirements of all wal%s of human life"
&ome of the laws relate to the natural ur!e in human bein!s to adore and worshi" It !uides us to worshi none but
Allah, in the rescribed form, see%in! His leasure" #hen there are laws which romt us to serve, be helful and
useful to human society, at the same time affirmin! our obedience to Allah" #hese are 'a%at, (hums, our social and
olitical duties, )ihad, Amr bil *a+roof and ,ahy anil *un%ar, trainin! in martial arts etc"
-ther laws enunciate man+s duties towards oneself li%e refrainin! from suicide or harmin! oneself or even avoidin!
celibacy" Certain laws deal with human life in relation to nature surroundin! him li%e food, drin%s, huntin!,
slau!hterin!, dresses, use of utensils and so on" #hen there are laws of judiciary, re$uital and comensation" As for
ersonal life, Fi$h !uides us in matters of ,I(AH, #A.AQ, /HIHAR, and .IA," In matters of economy and
earnin! one+s bread, there are rules !overnin! business, artnershi, silent artnershis, ban%rutcy etc" Fi$h also
deals with such versatile acts li%e Haj which aart from bein! an act of worshi, is an oortunity of unity,
collaboration and an international conference"
In site of this diversity, FIQH has one sin!le aim" #o lead human bein!s to hainess on earth, conjoinin! it with
salvation in the hereafter" #herefore, FIQH is considered as one, comosite science of I&.A* and is tau!ht as such
in the Haw0as" #he basis of FIQH is the Holy Quran, the sound #raditions, Consensus and Reason" A FAQEEH
loo%s at the diverse comonent of FIQH as arts interwoven into one fabric, with a sin!le aim to !uide man%ind in
resect of its duties and resonsibilities towards Allah"
CHAP#ER 1
FIQH
#his system commonly %nown as I.*2.FIQH, is e3tensive, coverin! a very wide ran!e4 and its history dates bac%
to the earliest Islamic era" It has been tau!ht with !reat detail and ramifications in every era, roducin! several
jurisconsults of reute durin! every century" Amon! the jurists, %nown as FAQIH 5l" Fu$aha6 some were !enius"
A number of volumes have aeared to elucidate the Islamic jurisrudence, some of them are masterly treatment of
the laws on every wal% of human life"
*ost of the roblems confrontin! human society are dealt with by various laws, li%e, the civil laws, the family
laws, the enal code, the mana!ement laws, and so on" Fi$h deals with all of them under various chaters, and in
different names" *oreover, it deals with such laws which are not covered by the modern day laws, li%e the ones
related to the acts of worshi" 7ecause of a very wide ran!e of subjects covered by Fi$h, it actually includes
numerous faculties which are normally learnt searately today"
#he term +FIQH+ in the Quran 8 Hadith
#he word +FIQH+ and its derivation +#AFAQQ2H+ has been e3tensively used in the Quran and Hadith, and in
almost all cases it denotes indeth study and rofound understandin!" #he Quran says9
"If a group of people from every tribe stayed behind to study (and ponder on) the religion, (they would be able) to
warn and admonish their people when they return to them so that they are cautious." (AlTawbah. V.!!)
And the Prohet 5s"a"w6 is reorted to have said9
""hoever commits forty #adith for the sa$e of my %mmah shall be resurrected by Allah as a learned &A'I#."
It is not %nown whether the term FAQIH was alied to the learned comanions of the Prohet 5s"a"w6" However,
we certainly %now that the !eneration which followed the comanions, %nown as #A7E+EE,, used this aellation
for a number of scholars amon! them" #here were for e3amle, seven !reat jurists amon! them who are %nown as
+F2QAHA &A7+AH+ i"e" the seven fu$aha" #he year :; A"H" was %nown as +&A,A#2. F2QAHA+ 5the year of the
Fu$aha6 because in that year, to!ether with our fourth Imam, Ali b" Hussain 5A"&"6, !reat jurists li%e &aeed b"
*usayyab, 2rwah b" 'ubair, &aeed b" )ubayr and others died" #hereafter, !reat Islamic scholars, articularly the
jurists were commonly classified as Fu$aha"
-ur Imams 5eace be uon them6 have used the term Fa$ih $uite often" &ome of their comanions were
recommended to study reli!ion thorou!hly and become Fa$ih, and when they attained that de!ree of %nowled!e,
they were called F2QAHA" <e %now of $uite a few students of our Imams 5A"&"6 who were %nown as &hiah
Fu$aha by their contemoraries"
The term FAQIH as elucidated by Islamic Schlars!
In the Quran and Hadith, Fi$h denotes rofound understandin! and %nowled!e of Islamic fundamentals and laws,
and is not confined to any articular branch of reli!ious sciences" 7ut with the assa!e of time, the word become
synonymous with the %nowled!e of Islamic laws and jurisrudence"
#he 2lema have divided Islamic teachin!s into three !rous9
Pri"ci#les $ Faith #hese are the fundamentals which are related to one+s faith, li%e the belief of =od, the
resurrection and the /ay of )ud!ement, the Prohethood, the divine revelation, the An!els, the Imamat"
%ral beha&iur a"d ethics #hese are aimed at imrovin! human behaviour6 and cultivatin! siritual asects of
our e3istence" #hey deal with #AQ<A, )ustice, =enerosity, 7ravery, Patience, &ubmission to the <ill of Allah,
and so on"
Practical la's #hese deal with the rules and re!ulations laid down for certain acts, and also rovide !uidelines for
the way these acts be erformed"
#he Fu$aha of Islam have restricted the use of the word FIQH to the third cate!ory, erhas because it has been a
matter of oular concern, and that the believer sou!ht such !uidance more often" #his is why men of roficiency
in this branch of Islamic %nowled!e only came to be %nown as +F2QAHA+"
Hu(me TA)*IFI + Hu(me ,ADH-EE
It is imortant that we are ac$uainted with some of the terminolo!ies used by F2QAHA in relation to Islamic laws"
#he divine laws are divided by them in two !rous9 #A(.IFI and <A/H+EE"
#A(.IFI laws are <A)I7, HARA*, *2&#AHA7, *A(R--H and *27AH" #hese are five asects of Islamic
laws which a *uslim has to %ee in mind while dischar!in! his obli!ations"
In Islam, every human act will fall in one of these five cate!ories" #here are acts which are <A)I7, which must be
erformed as an obli!ation, li%e the daily rayers, as oosed to those which are HARA* and forbidden, li%e
sea%in! lies, bein! unjust, into3ication, and so on" #hen there are acts which are otional" #hey are recommended
acts which are rewarded, but if not erformed, no sin is committed" #he e3amle is otional rayers 5,AFI.AH6
which either recede or follow the daily rayers" -n the other hand, there are certain unworthy acts, i"e"
*A(R--H, which a *uslim is advised to avoid, but no sin is committed if he en!a!es in them, li%e tal%in! about
worldly affairs in the *os$ue which is suosed to be a lace of worshi" 7esides, there are acts which are
*27AH, meanin! ermissible acts, doin! or not doin! of them does not entail any reward or unishment"
#hus, we see that #a%lifi laws are based on +do+s+ and +don+ts+, enjoinin!, forbiddin!, or !enerally ermittin! a
*uslim"
<A/H+EE laws are an amal!am of temoral and divine laws, artly !overned by natural or moral duties, li%e
matrimony, rorietorshi, contracts and so on"
TA-A../DI a"d TA,ASS/*I
#he obli!atory 5<A)I76 acts are of two tyes9 #A+A772/I and #A<A&&2.I"
#hose <ajib acts which must be erformed with a vivid and clear intention 5,I>>A#6 of earnin! the leasure and
ro3imity of Allah 5Q2R7A#6 are #A+A772/I" &uch a niyyat is a rere$uisite, in absence of which the act would
be considered invalid" #he e3amles are all acts of worshis, li%e the daily rayers, fastin! etc"
7ut there are other obli!ations which do not necessarily re$uire the intention of Q2R7A# for their validity, li%e
obedience to the arents, fulfillin! romises and led!es, honourin! the contracts, erformin! incumbent social
resonsibilities and so on"
AYNI + )IFAI
<A)I7 acts have been further classified as A>,I and (IFAI9
<ajibeAyni are those obli!atory acts with which every individual *uslim is char!ed, li%e the daily rayers and
fastin! durin! the month of Ramadhan" 7ut <ajibe(ifai remains a collective obli!ation on the !eneral *uslim
oulace, until it is erformed by one or few amon! them, thus relievin! the rest of the obli!ation"
.i%e the social obli!ations of $ualifyin! as a doctor, becomin! a soldier, a jud!e, a farmer or a businessman, and in
this form of obli!ation is included the rituals of =husle*ayyit, %afan and burial etc"
TA-YINI + TA)HYIRI
#his is yet another classification of <A)I7 acts" <ajibe#a+yini relates to those articular acts which have been
secifically identified as obli!atory, li%e the daily rayers, fastin!, Haj, (hums, 'a%at, Amir bil *aroof, )ehad etc"
7ut <ajibe#a%hyiri offers choice and alternatives, li%e in the case of %affara for a erson who has deliberately left
out a fast in the month of Ramadhan" He will either free a slave, or feed si3ty deservin! oor, or %ee si3ty fasts"
NAFSI + %/QADDA%I
In this classification, ,AF&I <ajib acts are those which are obli!atory by themselves, and are not a relude to
another obli!ation" For e3amle, it is <ajib to rescue a erson who is on the ver!e of bein! burnt, drowned or
harmed to death"
*u$addami obli!ation, besides bein! <ajib itself, is actually a mean to erformin! another <ajib act" For
e3amle, it is <ajib to rescue a erson who has fallen into a well, but rearin! for the rescue by way of rocurin!
a roe or any other imlement is a *u$addami <ajib" &imilarly, Haj is a ,AF&I <ajib, but attendin! to its
rere$uisites li%e !ettin! a assort, buyin! the tic%ets, and other necessary rearations will be termed
*u$addami" In the case of the daily rayers, for e3amle, <udhu and =husl at the time of the rayers would be
called *u$addami"
CHAP#ER ?
#HE F2QAHA
#o understand any system thorou!hly, it is imerative to !et ac$uainted with its scholars, articularly those who
have made si!nificant contribution to its develoment" And in the course of that study, one comes across their
imortant wor%s which over a eriod have become the sources of reference"
Ilmul Fi$h was meticulously recorded to form a valuable literature durin! the last eleven centuries, which still
e3ists, and has been constantly studied in the Islamic seminaries" Eminent scholars were able to train numerous
students who in turn trained their students in this branch of Islamic %nowled!e" #his tutoruil chain has remained
unbro%en till today"
,o doubt, other sciences li%e Philosohy, .o!ic, *athematics and *edicine are much older and volumes written
on those toics date much earlier" >et they cannot be comared to FIQH which has been a !rowin! science with a
continuous line of tutoruil relationshi" -f course, we ma%e this assertion %eein! the Islamic colle!es in view" It
has been a fortunate ractice of *uslim scholars that they always identified !reat scholars accordin! to the
!eneration to which they belon!ed" #his was first done in resect of 2lama of Hadith, to be followed later for the
2lama of other branches of Islamic learnin!s" &ecial boo%s were written to cate!orise the !enerations, li%e
#A7AQA#2. F2QAHA by Abu Isha$ &hira0i, #A7AQA#2. A#I77A by Ibn Abi 2sayaba, #A7AQA#2.
,,AH<I>>I, and #A7AQA#2. &&2FI>>A by Abu Abd alrahman &ilmi"
However, as far as the !eneration of F2QAHA is concerned, the wor%s which e3ist are those written by &unni
scholars" <e do not %now of any &hia wor% on the subject, with the result that we have to rely on various
bio!rahical s%etches and other boo%s of I)A'A# wherein tutors have certified the abilities of their uils and
allowed them to transmit the #raditions further to their students"
In the followin! ara!rahs, we wish to ac$uaint ourselves with some of the most outstandin! F2QAHA of &hia
sect, to!ether with their notable contributions" In so doin!, we hoe to identify them in accordance with the
!enerations to which each belon!ed"
SHIA F/QAHA
For two obvious reasons, we have to be!in the history of &hia F2QAHA from the era of =HA>7A#e&2=HRA,
i"e" minor occultation" 5?@A AH B?: AH6" First, the era recedin! =HA>7A#Ce&2=HRA is an era durin! which
the holy Imams were resent, and althou!h there were many men of %nowled!e and accomlishments who were
trained by the Imams themselves, eole always tried their best to refer to the Imams rather then to the 2lama"
Even the 2lama travelled far and wide to reach the Imams, so as to solve the roblems they faced" #hus, in the era
when Imams were resent and accessible, other scholars were eclised" &econdly, the literature we have at our
disosal on FIQH commences from the era of =HA>7A#eC&2=HRA" <e cannot trace, or rather are unable to
trace, any literature comiled on the subject in the earlier era"
However, many !reat F2QAHA lived in the eriod of our holy Imams, and they are well %nown for their
distinction and e3cellence when comared to their contemoraries from other schools of thou!ht" Ibn al,adeem in
his famous A.FIHRI&# has a comlete chater on the F2QAHA of &hia, and mentions their wor%s on FIQH or
Hadith with dee reverence" For e3amle, for Husain b" &aeed Ahwa0i, he says9 D In his time, he had the widest
%nowled!e of FIQH, Islamic #raditions and EthicsD" &imilarly, he eulo!ises Ali b" Ibrahim Qummi by sayin!9 DHe
is amon! the !reat scholars and F2QAHAD" A!ain, when mentionin! *uhammad b" Hasan b" Ahmed b" al<aleed
Qummi, he says9 D#o his credit is the !reat and comrehensive wor% on FIQHD"
It must be %nown that the wor%s on FIQH to which reference has been made above were of a different nature" #hey
were rincially comilation of those Hadith which they believed to be sound and authentic and accordin! to which
they acted" &o, they can safely be cate!orised as the boo%s of Hadith bearin! a stam of the writers+ considered
oinions"
*uha$$i$ Hilli, the maternal uncle and teacher of Allama Hilli writes9
DIn view of the fact that we have a !reat number of F2QAHA who have coiously written on the subject, it is not
ossible for me to $uote all of them" I have selected from those who were best %nown for their research and
scholarshi, $uotin! their Ijtehad, and the oinions they adoted for action" From amon!st the earlier ones, I have
selected Hasan b" *ahboob, Ahmed b" Abi ,asr 7e0anti, Husain b" &aeed Ahwa0i, Fadhl b" &hadhan ,isaburi,
>unus b" Abd alRahman" #hey lived durin! the resence of our Imams" From the later !rou, I $uote *uhammad
b" 7abawayh Qummi 5oularly %nown as &hai%h &adoo$6 and *uhammad b" >a$oob (ulaini" As for the eole
of Fatwa, I consider the verdicts of As%afi, Ibn Abi A$eel, &hai%h *ufeed, &eyyid *urtadha Alamul Huda and
&hai%h #usi"D
Evidently, *uha$$i$ Hilli, desite his hi!h re!ard for the earlier 2lama and for their indeendent oinions,
e3cludes them from those who he calls Dthe eole of FatwaD" #his is because the earlier 2lama wrote boo%s in the
form of collections of Hadith, indirectly indicatin! their oinions and verdicts by the selection of those #raditions
which they considered sound" #heir wor%s never came out in the form of clear and direct fatwa"
,ow we will mention the )uristconsults of the early eriod4 those who witnessed =haybate&u!hra9
l" Ali b! .aba'ayh Qummi0 died in B?: AH", and was buried in Qum" His son, the famous &hai%h &adoo$ is
buried in the city of RA>" <hat must be noted is that while the son is famous as *2HA//I#H 5#RA/I-,I&#6,
the father is a renowned FAQIH, and a man of FA#<A"
&ometimes, reference is made to both of them as &A/--QAI, meanin! two &adoo$s"
?" Another !reat jurist, who was the contemorary of Ali b" 7abawayh Qummi, or erhas a bit senior, is Ayyashi
Samar(a"di! #hou!h he is better %nown for his #AF&EER, he was a man of diverse caabilities, havin! made an
areciable contribution to fi$h" Ibn al,adeem in his alFihrist says that A>>A&HI+& wor%s on Fi$h were well
%nown in (hurasan" 2nfortunately, we have no access to any of his boo%s on Fi$h" It seems they have all erished"
A>>A&HI was ori!inally a &unni who later converted to become a &hia" He was a rich man, havin! inherited
considerable wealth from his father" 7ut he invested all his wealth in collectin! boo%s, coyin! imortant
manuscrits and in establishin! colle!es for trainin! his students"
&ome chroniclers have included &hai%h )affer b" Qawlawayh amon! the Fu$aha, considerin! him to have lived
durin! the times of Ali b" 7abawayh Qummi and =haybate&u!hra" #hey have also mentioned him as a student of
the well %nown &a+d b" Abdullah Ashari" 7ut this is an error, since Ibn Qawlawayh was the teacher of &hai%h
*ufeed, and his death occurred in either B@E or B@F AH" As such, he cannot be counted as a contemorary of Ali b"
7abawayh, nor amon! the 2lama of =haybate&u!hra" #he fact is that it was his father *uhammad b" Qawlawayh
who lived durin! =haybate&u!hra"
B" Ib" Abi A1eel /mma"i! #his 2mman is on the coast of >E*E,, and therefore he was also %nown as
>E*E,I" He lived durin! =haybate(ubra, 5major occultation6 but the date of his death is not %nown"
7ahrul2lloom mentions him as the teacher of )afar b" Qawlawayh who in turn tau!ht &hai%h *ufeed" #his ma%es it
abundantly clear that )afar b" Qawlawayh was not a contemorary of Ali b" 7abawayh as claimed by some" Ibn Abi
A$eel is still $uoted in FIQH by research scholars"
;" Ib" 2u"aid As(a$i who died in BF1 AH, was also &hai%h *ufeed+s tutor" He authored nearly fifty boo%s, and his
oinions as a )urist are still considered and discussed by the F2QAHA" In fact, he and the above mentioned Ibn Abi
A$eel are often referred to as DA.QA/EE*AI,D, Dthe two old and senior onesD"
G" Shai(h %u$eed0 whose name was *uhammad b" *uhammad b" ,oman" He was a theolo!ian as well as a Fa$ih"
Ibn al,adeem in his alFihrist calls him +Ibn al*uallim+, and eulo!i0es him as a !reat theolo!ian 5master of Ilmul
(alam6" 7orn in BB; AH", he died in ;1B AH" His famous wor% on FIQH is %nown as +*2Q,I+AH+ which still
e3ists" &hai%h *ufeed is one of the most brilliant scholars of Islam"
Abu >ala )a+feri, the soninlaw of &hai%h *ufeed, says9 D*ufeed slet very little durin! the ni!hts, devotin! most of
his time to rayers, studies, teachin! or recitin! the Holy Quran D "
&hai%h *ufeed is a student of Ibn Abi A$eel+s student"
@" Seyyid %urtadha Alamul Huda0 born in BGG AH, died in ;B@ AH" Allama Hilli calls him Dthe !reat teacher of
Imamiyya &hiaD " He was a man of versatility, with a %een taste and talent for literature, theolo!y as well as FIQH"
His verdicts and oinions are ta%en into account even today" Amon! his famous wor%s on Fi$h are +I,#I&AR+, and
+)A*A.2. I.*I <A. A*A.+" &eyyid Radhi, the comiler of ,AH)2. 7A.A=HAH was his brother, and they
both studied from &hai%h *ufeed"
E" Shai(h Abu 2a-$er Tusi0 the brilliant star in the Islamic firmament, was from (H2RA&A," He was born in BFG
AH", and at the a!e of ?B, he moved to 7a!hdad to join the !reat centre of Islamic %nowled!e" He lived in Ira$ all
his life, and came to be %nown as the sole master of FIQH after the death of his mentor, &eyyid *urtadha Alamul
Huda" He has several boo%s and treatises on FIQH, 2&--., HA/I#H, #AF&EER, (A.A* and RI)A."
For the first five years in 7a!hdad, &hai%h #usi had the oortunity to study under the suervision of &hai%h
*ufeed, !ainin! reutation as a student of the first ran%" After &hai%h *ufeed, he sat at the feet of &eyyid
*urtadha till the master died in ;B@ AH" #he entire &hia world turned to &hai%h #usi who stayed at the helm for
the ensuin! ?; years" 7ut this was a tumultuous eriod durin! which sectarian differences in 7a!hdad resulted in a
lot of bloodshed and destruction" &hai%h #usi+s own house and library were burnt down"
After 1? years in 7a!hdad, he moved to ,A)AF where he established the world famous HA<'A I.*I>>AH" He
died in ;@A AH, and was buried there"
In the earlier days, &hai%h+s imortant wor% on FIQH called alC,IHA>AH was a art of syllabus in the seminaries"
#he other boo% Dal*absootD had bro%en new !rounds for discussion on various subjects of FIQH, and !reat 2lama
who followed, roudly set forth to !ive elucidatory mar!inal notes and commentaries on the &hai%h+s oinions"
Another imortant wor% in FIQH is al(HI.AF by &hai%h #usi" #his is a comarative dissertation on &2,,I
&HIA FIQH"
7esides these, there are other treatises on FIQH written by &hai%h" For the last several centuries, whenever
F2QAHA mentioned D&HAI(HD, it was understood to refer to &hai%h #usi, and if they said +&HAI(HA,+, they
meant &hai%h *ufeed and &hai%h #usi"
#he descendents of &hai%h #usi were 2lama of !reat reute, most outstandin! amon! them was his son &hai%h Abu
Ali who was %nown as *2FEE/ the second" He wrote a detailed commentary on his father+s boo% al,IHA>A"
#he dau!hters of &hai%h #usi were also F2QAHA"
#he !randson of &hai%h #usi named Abdul Hasan *uhammad became *arja after the death of his father Abu Ali"
His classes were attended by students from far and wide, and he was able to train a !ood number of F2QAHA"
7ecause of his iety and austere way of life, he was resected by one and all" Imad #abari says that if it were
ermissible to recite &A.A<A# uon anyone other than the Aostles, he would choose Abul Hasan *uhammad"
He died in G;A AH"
F" Qadhi Abd alA3i30 better %nown as Ibn al7arraj, was a student of both &eyyid *urtadha and &hai%h #usi" He
was sent to &yria by &hai%h #usi, where he served in #RIP-.I 5in resent day .ebanon6 as a Qadhi for ?A years"
Amon! the famous boo%s he wrote on FIQH the most noteworthy are +*2HA//HA7+ and +)A<AHIR+" He died in
;F1 AH"
:" Shai(h Abu alSalah Halabi of &yria, studied from &eyyid *urtadha and &hai%h #usi" He lived for 1AA years"
#he author of +RA>HA,A#2. A/A7+ mentions that Abu al&alah studied from &allar b" Abdul A0i0 also" If this
were true then it means that Abu al&alah has studied from three successive !enerations of the renowned F2QAHA"
He died in ;;F AH", which means that he was older in a!e than both the tutors" His famous wor% in FIQH is
D(AFID" &haheede#hani calls him D(HA.IFA#2. *2R#A/HA FI 7I.A/I. HA.A7I>>AD, the successor of
&eyyid *urtadha Alamul Huda in Aleo"
1A" Ham3a b! Abd alA3i3 Daylami0 otherwise %nown as &A..AR /A>.A*I died on &aturday, @th of Holy
Ramadhan, ;@B AH" He is the student of &hai%h *ufeed and &eyyid *urtadha" He came from Iran, and assed his
last days in (hurasan, where he was buried" He is a contemorary of &hai%h #usi, thou!h *2HAQQIQ HI..I has
classified him amon! the followers of &hai%h #usi" His famous wor% on FIQH is D*ARA&I* D "
11" Seyyid Abu al%a(arim Ib" 4ehra was from Aleo, and he died in GFG AH" In the faculty of Hadith, he
narrates with only one lin% between him and &hai%h Abu Ali, the son of &hai%h #usi, and in FIQH, he had a chain
of tutors endin! u with &hai%h #usi" His famous wor% in FIQH is D =H2,>AH D "
#he author of *2&#A/RA(2. <A&AE. says that Ibn 'ehra studied al,ihayah of #usi from Ibn alHajib Halabi
who studied it from Abdullah 'ainulbadi in ,ajaf, and he had studied it from &hai%h Rasheed al/een Ali b" 'eera%
Qummi and &eyyid Abu Hashim Husayni, both bein! students of &hai%h Abd al)abbar Ra0i, a well %nown student
of &hai%h #usi" #hus we see that Ibn 'ehra is connected with &hai%h #usi by four intervenin! !enerations"
In the terminolo!y of F2QAHA, whenever a refrence is made to +HA.A7I>>A,+, they mean Abu al&alah Halabi
and Ibn 'ehra" And if the reference is made in lural, that is, +HA.A7I>>2,+, then Ibn al7arraj is included"
1?" Ib" Ham3a Tusi0 %nown as Imad al/een #usi of (hurasan, contributed to FIQH by writin! his famous
+<A&EE.AH+" However, historians have to ma%e further research about this FAQEEH because the date of his
death is un%nown, and it is not established whether he belon!ed to the first era of &hai%h #usi+s students or to the
later ones" *ost robably he died in the second half of the si3th century AH"
1B" Ib" Idrees alHilli is one of the !reatest 2lama, %nown for his indeendent thin%in!" He was an Arab, and some
chroniclers have mentioned him as the !randson of &hai%h #usi from his mother+s side" 7ut this relation has been
disuted by others" He was the first FAQEEH who differed with the oinions of &hai%h #usi at the time when
F2QAHA had uheld #usi+s verdicts as final for nearly two centuries" However, his criticism of &hai%h #usi is at
time $uite harsh and abrasive, borderin! on rudeness" He died in G:F AH" at the a!e of GG"
His famous wor% on FIQH is Dal&arairD which is still a boo% of reference" It is said that Ibn Idrees was a student of
&eyyid Abu al*a%arim b" 'ehra but this seems imrobable, esecially because of Ibn Idrees mentionin! him
casually as his contemorary, and as one who he had met" In certain matters of FIQH, they had e3chan!ed some
letters"
1;" Shai(h Abul Qasim 2a-$ar b! Hasa" b! Yahya b! Saeed Hilli0 famous as *uha$$i$ Hilli" He must not be
confused with Allama Hilli" *uha$$i$ Hilli was Allama+s maternal uncle and also his tutor" He has several boo%s
on Fi$h, most oular amon! them are9 &HARAE, *AARI), *-#A7AR, A.*2(H#A&AR A. ,AFE etc"
*uha$$i$ Hilli studied from the students of the !reat masters li%e Ibn 'ehra and Ibn Idrees Hilli" &ome have
erroneously counted him amon! those who studied directly from these F2QAHA, for!ettin! that this was not
ossible because *uha$$i$ Hilli who died in @E@ Hijra could not have attended the lessons of Ibn Idress or Ibn
'ehra who had died more than FA years earlier" *ost robably, he was trained by his !randfather and later his
father"
*uha$$i$ Hilli is ac%nowled!ed as the !reatest amon! F2QAHA, and whenever the term +*uha$$i$+ is used
without any $ualification, then it refers to him alone" #he !reat hilosoher and mathematician, (hwaja ,aseer alC
/een #usi sea%s hi!hly of his reminiscence with *uha$$i$ who he met in Hilla, and attended his classes of FIQH"
*uha$$i$+s boo% +&HARAE+ is still a art of curriculum in most of the Haw0as"
1G" Hasa" b! Yusu$ b! Ali b! %utahhar Hilli0 renowned as Allama Hilli was a rodi!y" He was born in @;F Hijra,
and died in E?@ AH" He remained under the tutela!e of his maternal uncle *uha$$i$ Hilli for FIQH, and then
roceeded to study from other masters of his era, includin! (hwaja ,aseer al/in #usi who tau!ht him Philosohy
and .o!ic" .ater, he sat with the &unni &cholars to study their FIQH"
His wor%s include several memorable boo%s and treatises on FIQH, 2&--., #heolo!y 5i"e" (A.A*6, .o!ic,
Philosohy and RI)A." <e %now of at least hundred boo%s written by him, some of which are still in the form of
manuscrits" Each boo% of this !reat FAQEEH is enou!h to ortray his recocity and !enius" Amon! the
noteworthy boo%s on FIQH are IR&HA/, QA<AI/, #AHREER, #A/H(IRA#2. F2QAHA and #A7&IRA#2.
*2#A..I*EE,, the last bein! studied by the students of Haw0a till today" .ater Fu$aha wrote e3tensive
commentaries on Allama+s wor%s"
1@" Fa(hral%uha11i1ee"0 is the title !iven to Allama Hilli+s son" His first name was *uhammad" 7orn in @F?
AH", he studied under his father Allama Hilli who was so imressed by the son+s brilliance that he called him Fa%hr
al *uha$$i$een" In his reface to QA<AI/, Allama writes his son+s name showerin! much raise on him, and at
the end of the boo% rays that his son would attend to his incomlete wor%s" His famous boo% on Fi$h is
+A>/HAH A.FA<AI/+ which he wrote to elucidate some difficult arts of his father+s QA<AI/" #he oinions
and deductions by this !reat FAQEEH are still ta%en into account by the F2QAHA" He died in EE1 A"H"
1E" %uhammad b! %a((i0 also %nown as &HAHEE/eA<<A. hailed from )A7A. A*I. in &outh .ebanon,
where &hias have lived for many centuries" He was born in EB; A"H", and ursued his studies under the care of
!reat F2QAHA of his time, amon! them the illustrious FA(HR2.*2HAQQIQEE,"
#he most renowned and oular wor% on FIQH by &haheed is alC.2*A+H which was written by him durin! his
short term in the rison which ended with his e3ecution" He was martyred as a result of a fatwa issued by a *ali%i
fa$ih, suorted by &hafei, in the year EF@ A"H"
It is a stran!e coincidence that two centuries later, a fa$ih who wrote a commentary on al.2*A+H 5i"e" &HARHeC
.2*A+H6 was also e3ecuted and martyred" He came to be %nown as &HAHEE/ #HA,I"
-ther wor%s by &HAHEE/ A<<A. on FIQH are /2R--&, /HI(RA, 7A>A,, A.FI>>AH, all of them are of
hi!hest order, and have received !reat attention from the later day F2QAHA"
#hree !reat Fu$aha, namely, *uha$$i$ Hilli, Allama Hilli, and &haheedeAwwal who lived durin! the Eth and the
Fth centuries have left the rincile te3tboo%s on FIQH, which were then elucidated by the jurists who followed"
#he only other te3t worthy of mention was by &hai%h *urtadha Ansari who died nearly 1GA years a!o"
#he most distinctive feature of the family of &haheedeAwwal is that ractically every member of the household
was a Fa$ih" His wife 2mmu Ali and his dau!hter 2mmu Hasan were both F2QAHA of the first order" .adies
were instructed to refer to them for any roblems of FIQH4 in fact, the dau!hter of &HAHEE/ was %nown as
D&HAI(HAHD or D&I##2. *A&HAI(HD, 5&A>>I/A#2. *A&HAI(H6 amon! the women" &haheed had three
sons, all of them F2QAHA"
1F" Fadhil %i1dad was from HI..A, studied from &HAHEE/ A<<A." He died in F?@ A"H", therefore is %nown
to be amon! the F2QAHA of the ninth century Hijra" #he most imortant boo% on FIQH written by him is
(A,'2. IRFA,, in which he has comiled all those verses of the Holy Quran which form the basis of FIQH, and
had deduced from them several rules of Islamic jurisrudence" -f course, there e3ist several boo%s by &hia as well
as &unni scholars written in the same vein but +(A,'2. IRFA,+ stands out rominently as one of the best, if not
the best"
1:" Abul Abbas Ahmad b! Fahd Hilli Asadi0 oularly %nown as +)A*A. A.&A.I(EE,+, was born in EGE AH"
and died in F;1 AH" He is amon! the students of &HAHEE/eA<<A. and FA(HR2. *2HAQQIQEE," He
also studied HA/I#H and FIQH from FA/HI. *IQ/A/ A.I b" al(HA'I, and &hai%h 7AHA2//I, Ali b"
Abdul%arim" #hou!h he was better %nown for his wor%s on ethics, morals and mysticism, li%e +2//A#2 A.C
/AEE+, his wor%s in FIQH include valuable boo% called +al *2H//HA7 al7ARE+ and commentaries on the
wor%s by Allama Hilli and &haheed"
?A" Shai(h Ali b! Hilal 2a3aeri0 was a man of iety and virtue, and a master of traditional as well as rational
sciences" His tutor in FIQH was Ibn Fahd Hilli, and he himself roduced brilliant students li%e *uha$$i$ (ARA(I,
and Ibn A7I )A*H2R AH&AI" He was %nown as &HAI(H2. I&.A* in his era"
?1" Shai(h Ali b! Abd alAali )ara(i0 better %nown as *uha$$i$ (ara%i or even *uha$$i$ #hani 5i"e" *uha$$i$
the second6 was ori!inally from )abal Amel, south .ebanon" He comleted his studies in &HA* and IRAQ, before
comin! to Iran durin! the rei!n of &hah #ahmas, the first" #hen an unrecedented thin! haened" #he &hah
bestowed the title of D&HAI(H2. I&.A*ID uon *uha$$i$ (ara%i, !rantin! him an instrument of total authority
over the affairs of the state, and aointin! himself as the *uha$$i$+s reresentative rulerH After *uha$$i$ (ara%i,
this seat was occuied by his student &hai%h Ali *inshar, the fatherinlaw of &hai%h 7ahai, the latter occuyin! it
after the &hai%h+s death"
2on his arrival in Iran, he established a !reat Haw0a in Qa0wain and later in Isfehan, trainin! several students of
reute, with the result that Iran once a!ain became centre of FIQH years after &A/--QAI," He studied under the
distin!uished tutela!e of Ali b" Hilal )a0aeri, who had studied from Ibn" Fahd Hilli" And as we %now Ibn Fahd was
a student of the students of &haheed Awwal" #his way, *uha$$i$ (ara%i is lin%ed with &haheed throu!h two
!enerations"
Amon! his own famous wor%s on Fi$h are D)A*I2. *AQA&I/D which, in fact, is a commentary on QA<AI/ by
Allama Hilli" He also wrote mar!inal elucidations and notes on the boo%s of Fi$h by *uha$$i$ Hilli and &haheedeC
Awwal" His son, &hai%h Abd al Aali was also a !reat FAQIH" *uha$$i$ (ara%i died in :;A AH"
??" Shai(h 4ai"uddi"0 better %nown as &HAHEE/e#HA,I 5the second &haheed6, is amon! the !reatest &hia
F2QAHA" He was born in :11 AH" in )abal Amel, but he must have lived in #2& for a considerable time, as he
occasionally si!ned his name as Dal#2&I, alC&hami D "
He was a widely travelled man, havin! visited E!yt, &yria, Hija0, 7aitul *u$addas, Ira$ and Constantinole
5Istanbul6" Always in ursuit of %nowled!e, he studied from nearly twelve &unni 2lama of FIQH" Aart from the
roficiency in FIQH, he was well versed in 2sool, Philosohy, Irfan, *edicine and Astronomy"
He was a man of iety, %nown for his austere way of life" His students have recorded in his bio!rahy that &haheed
maintained his family by sellin! the woods cut by himself durin! the ni!hts, and then sat to teach durin! the day"
<hile in 7a+lba%, he conducted classes in Fi$h accordin! to five schools, i"e" )a+fari, Hanafi, &hafei, *ali%i and
Hambali" His famous wor% is the commentary on al.2*+AH which had been authored by &haheedeAwwal" His
commentary, &HARHE .2*2AH is a art of curriculum in almost every Haw0a even today" He studied from
*uha$$i$ (ara%i before the later mi!rated to Iran"
&haheede#hani+s son wrote the famous boo% on 2sool, called *A+A.I*2.2&--." &haheede#hani was martyred
in :@@ AH"
?B" Ahmad b! %uhammad Ardabili0 oularly %nown as *u$addas Ardabili was roverbial for his iety and
austerity" He is also well %nown for his e3tensive research in &hia FIQH" He lived in ,ajaf, durin! the &afavid rule
in Iran"
It is said that &hah Abbas &afavi very much wanted him to come and live in Iran, but Ardabili would not relent"
7ecause of the esteem in which he held *u$addas Ardabili, &hah Abbas wrote him to !ive an order or a command
which he would dutifully fulfil" -nce it so haened that a fu!itive *omin from Iran came to *u$addas Ardabili in
,ajaf, re$uestin! him to write to the &hah recommendin! a ardon or rerieve" *u$addas wrote9
D#he holder of temorary rule, Abbas, is advised that althou!h this man was initially a trans!ressor, he now seems
to be oressed" If you ardon him, Allah may for!ive some of your lases" From the slave of *aster of <ilayat
5i"e" Imam Ali 5A"&"66 Ahmad ArdabiliD"
In rely, &hah Abbas wrote9
DI brin! to your esteemed notice that Abbas has rendered the service ordered by you feelin! rofoundly obli!ed" I
hoe you will not for!et this devotee of yours in your !ood rayers" IFrom a do! on the threshold of Ali 5A"&"6
Abbas D "
Ardabili+s refusal to mi!rate to Iran in site of the &hah+s ersistent re$uests, roved a blessin! to the Haw0a of
,ajaf" It !rew in stren!th, and became as lively as the Haw0a of Isfehan" #he same way, the continuous resence of
&haheede#hani, his son &hai%h Hasan, the author of *A+A.I*, and his nehew &eyyid *uhammad, the author of
*A/ARI(, lent considerable stren!th and vi!our to the Haw0a of &ham and )abal Amel in .ebanon" In fact, the
later two derived themselves of visitin! the shrine of Hadhrat Imam Redha 5A"&6 fearin! that they mi!ht be
ersuaded to live in Iran"
#hou!h we do not %now the e3act names of Ardabili+s tutors, he certainly ac$uired his trainin! from the students of
&haheede#hani In return, he tutored the son of &haheed and his nehew"
Ardabili+s noteworthy contribution to FIQH is his commentary on IR&HA/ and his A>A#2. AH(A*" His
rofound treatment of the subject is still valued by the F2QAHA" He died in ::B Hijra"
?;" Shai(h .ahauddi" Ameli0 more oular as &hai%h 7ahai is from )abel Amel, .ebanon" Accomanied by his
father &hai%h Husain b" Abd al&amad, he travelled to Iran as a child" .ater, he travelled e3tensively to various
Islamic countries in search of !reat scholars from whom he ac$uired %nowled!e" 7ecause of his creative talent and
ercetion, he became a master of several faculties and has boo%s on various subjects to his credit" He was a man of
literature, a oet, a hilosoher, a mathematician, a Fa$eeh as well as a *2FA&&IR, and had a considerable
e3erience in ancient medicine"
He is the first FAQEEH who wrote a handboo% on FIQH for simle layman in Persian lan!ua!e" #he boo%, D)ame
AbbasiD still e3ists" 7ut Fi$h has not been counted as his e3clusive subject, because the scoe of his interests was
so very wide" From his tour of E=>P#, &HA*, HI)A', IRAQ, PA.E&#I,E, A'AR7A>)A, and HERA#, the
man had actually become a wal%in! encycloaedia" In site of his diverse interests, he trained !reat F2QAHA li%e
*ulla &adra &hira0i, *ajlisi the first, 5i"e" the father of *ajlisi the second who authored 7IHAR2. A,<AR6,
*uha$$i$ &ab0wari and Fadhil )awad" As mentioned earlier, after the death of his fatherinlaw, &hai%h Ali *inshar,
7ahai occuied the seat of +&HAI(H2. I&.A*I+ in Iran" His wife was also a FAQIH"
&hai%h 7ahai was born in :GB AH" and died in 1ABA AH"
?G" %ulla %uhammad .a1ir Sab3'ari was a man of many sided talents" &ince he remained attached to the
colle!e of Isfehan which was renowned for both FIQH and PHI.-&-PH>, he became a master of rational as well
as traditional sciences" He has two famous wor%s on FIQH, namely, +/HA(HEERAH+ and +(IFA>AH+, and is
fre$uently mentioned by the contemoraries as well as later day F2QAHA" In hilosohy6 he wrote a
comrehensive commentary of Abu Ali &ina+s &HIFA on I.AHI>>A# 5i"e" /ivinities or #heolo!y6"
*ulla &ab0wari, also %nown as *uha$$i$ &ab0wari, was tau!ht by &hai%h 7ahai and *ulla *ohamed #a$i *ajlisi
5the first *ajlisi6" He died in 1A:A AH"
?@" A1a Husai" )h'a"sari also %nown as *uha$$i$ (hwansari, lived in the times of famous traditionists li%e
*ulla *uhsin Faidh (A&HA,I, and Allama *uhammad 7a$ir *ajlisi 5the second6" He was married to the sister
of *uha$$i$ &ab0wari" 7oth of them shared common roensities, and therefore turned out to be brilliant masters
of rational and traditional sciences"
*uha$$i$ (hwansari wrote +*A&HARIQ al&H2*--&+ in Fi$h" In fact, it is a slendid elucidation of +/2R--&+
by &haheedeAwaal" He died in 1A:F AH"
?E" 2amal al%uha11i1ee"0 better %nown as )amal (hwansari was *uha$$i$ (hwansari+s son, e$ually roficient
in rational as well as traditional sciences" His wor% in Fi$h is the famous mar!in of elucidatory notes on &HARHE
.2*AH" He has so many students of distinction to his credit, li%e &eyyid Ibrahim Qa0waini and others" #he
famous &eyyid *ahdi 7ahr2l2loom is lin%ed to him throu!h two !enerations of teachers"
?F" Shai(h .ahauddi" Is$eha"i0 famous as +FA/HI.eHI,/I+ was a Fa$ih of the first ran%, whose oinions are
valued even today" He wrote a commentary on Allama Hilli+s DQA<AI/D, the boo% is called D(A&HF alC
.I#HA*D" He died in 11BE AH" durin! the days of Af!han rebellion"
?:" %uhammad .a1ir b! %uhammad A(mal0 oular as +<AHEE/ 7EH7EHA,I+, is, in fact, the saviour of
I)#IHA/, and is therefore called +2&#A/2. (2..+" He contributed to FIQH in two ways9 one, he trained a
number of F2QAHA, each of whom became well famed *2)#AHI/ of &hia school" #he !litterin! names of
2lama li%e &eyyid *ahdi 7ahrul 2loom, &hai%h )afar (ashiful =hita, *ir0a Abul Qasim Qummi, Haj *ulla
*ehdi ,ura$i, &eyyid Ali the author of DRI>A/HD, *ir0a *ehdi &hahrastani, and many others remind us of the
!reatness of the master" &econdly, he stood firm a!ainst the innovative onslau!ht of A%hbaris, and dealt them a
death blow, from which A%hbari school has never recovered"
<aheed 7ehbehani rose at the time when &afavid emire had declined, and Isfehan had ceased to enjoy a central
lace" He mi!rated to Ira$, alon! with his tutor &eyyid &adruddin Ri0vi, and settled in (ER7A.A" 7ecause of his
iety and austere way of life, his students held him in very hi!h esteem"
7ehbehani is related to Allama *ajlisi throu!h his mother" His !randmother Amena 7e!um, was a woman of
erudition and FIQH, married to *ulla &aleh *e0andarani, a man of rofound %nowled!e" <e have instances when
Amena 7e!um has ta%en art in difficult discussions with her husband, and solvin! theolo!ical roblems"
He was born in 111@ AH" and died in 1?AG AH"
BA" Seyyid %ehdi .ahrul /lm0 is a Fa$ih who has been ri!htly laced in the immediate ran% after our
*A&--*EE, 5A&6, because of his iety and virtue" His contribution to Fi$h e3ists in the form of verses" &hai%h
)afar (ashiful =hita, himself a Fa$eeh of the first order, used to wie 7ahrul 2loom+s sliers with the end art of
his turban"
He was born in 11GG AH", and died in 1?1? AH"
B1" Shai(h 2a-$ar )ashi$ul 5hita was born in 11G; AH" in ,ajaf" He studied from <aheed 7ehbehani and &eyyid
*ehdi 7ahrul 2loom" His famous wor% is +(A&HIF2. =HI#A+ from which the family derived the famous
aellation, +(A&HIF2. =HI#A+" Amon! his outstandin! students are &hai%h *uhammad Hasan, the author of
encycloaedic wor% called )awahir al (alaam, and &eyyid )awad who wrote +*IF#AH2. (ARA*AH+ " All of his
four sons were F2QAHA of reute, and have immensely contributed to the develoment of FIQH"
He died in 1??F AH"
B?" Shai(h %uhammad Hasa"0 the author of an encycloaedic wor% on FIQH, D)A<AHIR2. (A.A*D, was
born in 1?A? AH" He is of Arab descent" #his !reat wor% has become monumental4 the author sent thirty years of
his rime life for its comletion" #he last edition rinted in Iran ran into fifty volumes, each volume consistin! of
about ;AA a!es" #he wor% is an indisensable comanion of every FAQIH worth any name, since each line in it
re$uires rofound onderin! and elucidation" -ne could say that &hai%h *ohammad Hasan was an ideal e3amle
of devotion and dedication" He died in 1?@@ AH", havin! commenced the e3tra ordinary wor% at the a!e of ?G"
&hai%h was a student of &hai%h )a+far (ashiful =hita, as well as of &eyyid )awad, the author of +*IF#AH2.
(ARA*AH+" In his time, he was a sole *arja, havin! established a !reat Haw0a of his own in ,A)AF" He is
referred to as +&AHI7e)A<AHIR+"
BB" Shai(h %urtadha A"sari was a descendent of the Prohet+s noble comanion, )abir b" Abdullah Ansari" He
was born on 1Fth /hul Hajj 5the day of Idde=hadeer6 1?1; AH" in /e0ful" For ?A years, he studied in Iran before
leavin! for Ira$" After a brief stay there, he decided to return to Iran" <hen he met *ulla Ahmed ,ura$i, the author
of +*E+RA)2 &&A+A/AH+ and +*2&#A,A/ A.&HIAH+, in (ashan, &hai%h decided to remain there under his
tutela!e" In 1?G? AH" he decided to visit the holy shrines of Ira$, but this sojourn was destined to be final, for here
he started his own classes which made him world famous" He became an indisutable *AR)A+ after the death of
&ahibe)awahir"
&hai%h was a !enius of e3tra ordinary calibre" In 2sool and FIQH, his ori!inality and analytic mind enabled him to
bla0e a new ath, a ath which has been adoted and followed by all the subse$uent F2QAHA" His two !reat
wor%s, +RA&AI.+ and +*A(A&I7+ are an inalienable art of the curriculum in modern Haw0as" <e can say that
after *uha$$i$ Hilli, Allama Hilli and &haheedeAwwal, the fi!ure of &hai%h *urtadha Ansari towers hi!hest
amon! the &hia F2QAHA" He is ri!htly %nown as + (HA#I*2. F2QAHA <A. *2)#AHE/EE,+ "
He died in ,ajaf in 1?F1 AH"
B;" Ha6 %ir3a %uhammad Hasa" Shira3i oularly %nown as +*ir0a &hira0i 7u0ur!+ was born in &hira0 on 1Gth
)amad AlAwwal 1?BA AH" He did his reliminary studies in Isfahan and then mi!rated to ,ajaf to join the Haw0a
of +&AHI7e)A<AHIR+" After the death of D&ahibe)awahirD, he joined the classes of &hai%h *urtadha Ansari,
becomin! one of the most brilliant and hi!hly re!arded students" After the death of &hai%h Ansari, he became the
sole *arja, his tenure lastin! for ?B years" He is famous for his #obacco fatwa which led to the abro!ation of the
notorious 7ritish monooly in Iran"
2nfortunately, we do not have any of his written wor% on Fi$h, but his verdicts and I)#EHA/ have been %nown
throu!h his !reat students, li%e, *ulla *uhammad (adhim (hurasani, &eyyid *uhammad (adhim #aba #abai,
Haji Redha Hamdani, and *ir0a *uhammad #a$i &hira0i" He died in 1B1? AH"
BG" A(hu"d %ulla %uhammad )adhim )hurasa"i was born in #us in 1?GG AH", in a family not %nown for any
contribution to FIQH" At the a!e of ??, he came to #ehran for a brief study in Philosohy and then travelled to
,ajaf where he had an oortunity of joinin! the lessons of &hai%h Ansari for two years" #hereafter, he studied
under the tutela!e of *ir0a &hira0i 7urur!"
<hen his master, *ir0a &hira0i left for &amarra, A%hund (hurasani decided to stay behind in ,ajaf" Here he
started his own Haw0a" 7ecause of his effective style of teachin! he attracted many students" It is reorted that at
one !iven time, he tau!ht nearly 1?AA students, out of whom nearly ?AA were of the ran% of I)#EHA/"
=reat F2QAHA of our time, li%e &eyyid Abul Hasan Isfehani, Haji &hai%h *uhammad Hasan Isfehani, Haji
&eyyid Husain 7urujardi, &eyyid Husain Qummi, A$a 'iaud/een Ira$i were all his students" #he Haw0a of
A%hund is distin!uished for its e3tensive and analytic treatment of 2soolalFi$h" His !reat wor% +(IFA>AH+ is
studied even today with utmost care" It is a wor% which has necessitated writin! elucidatory footnotes and
commentaries" *any 2lama of reute have attended to this need, and nearly 1?A commentaries e3ist to e3lain
what A%hund had to say"
A%hund (hurasani !ave a fatwa in favour of *A&HR2#I>>A# which was adoted in the state constitution of
Iran" A%hund died in 1B?: AH"
B@" %ir3a Husai" Nace"i was born on 1Eth /hul Qa+dah 1?E@ AH" in ,aeen" He was a student of *ir0a &hira0i
7u0ur! and &eyyid *uhammad Fishara%i Isfehani" In his major contribution to 2soolulCFi$h, he differed in many
matters with A%hund (hurasani, disutin! the latter+s conclusions" *any students were trained by him in Fi$h" He
is also famous for his olitical treatise called +#A,'EEH2. 2**AH+" He died in ,ajaf in 1BGG AH"
BE" Ayatullah Seyyid Abul Hasa" Is$eha"i was born in 1?EE AH" in one of the villa!es on the outs%irts of
Isfehan" He was a Fa$ih of the first ran%, and a sole *arja after the death of his contemorary, *ir0 Husain ,aeeni"
#he tenure of his *arjaiyyah is articularly %nown for its commendable administration" After his reliminary
trainin! in Isfehan he travelled to ,ajaf and !radually joined the lessons of A%hund (hurasani, who soon
reco!nised the talents of his discile His famous Amaliyya in FIQH is +<A&EE.A#2 ,,A)A#+ which due to its
comrehensive nature, has been elucidated by many F2QAHA includin! Ayatullah (homeini" Amon! his famous
students were Ayatullah &eyyid *ohsin AlHa%im, Ayatullah &eyyid *eelani, Ayatullah *ir0a Hashim Amuli and
others"
He died in ,ajaf on :th /hul Hijjah in 1B@G AH"
BF" Ayatullah Seyyid Husai" .uru6ardi0 was born in 7urujard in 1?:? AH" He was a student of masters li%e
A%hund (hurasani and A$a 'ia Ira$i" FIQH was his secial interest, and in order to master it fully, he studied
FIQH of all the Islamic schools of thou!ht" <hile citin! the #raditions of *asoomeen 5A&6 to suort any of his
deductions, &eyyid Husain 7urujardi is %nown to have brou!ht so many new asects to li!ht" He also had a %een
insi!ht in the science of RI)A." &haheed *utahhari and Ayatullah &hai%h Husain *untadhar are amon! his
numerous worthy students"
He died in Qum on 1Bth &hawaal 1BF1 AH" at the rie a!e of :A"
B:" Ayatullah Seyyid %uhsi" AlHa(im was born in 1BA@ AH" in a family renowned for its scholarshi" He
studied under the tutela!e of !reat F2QAHA, li%e Ayatullah &eyyid *uhammad (adhim >a0di, Ayatullah *ir0a
Husain ,aeeni, Ayatullah 'ia Ira$i and others"
He became a sole *arja after the death of Ayatullah &eyyid Husain 7urujardi, with whom his family tree shared a
common linea!e finally reachin! Ameerul *umineen Imam Ali b" Abu #alib 5A&6" #he Haw0a of ,ajaf !rew
immensely under his *arjaiyya, boastin! nearly an unrecedented fi!ure of FAAA students" He also instituted
several chan!es in the curriculum of the Haw0as, which have had far reachin! effects" His famous wor% in FIQH is
+*2&#A*&A(+ which is ac%nowled!ed as the most e3haustive and enli!htenin! commentary on the first art of
al2rwatul <uth$a" #he style and s%ill of his reasonin! established him amon! the F2QAHA of the first ran%" He is
also well %nown for his clear fatwa a!ainst Communism, declarin! it an ideolo!y of (2FR and A#HEI&*"
He died on ?Ethe RabiulAwwal 1B:A AH" in ,ajaf and was buried in the !reat and modern library he had
established"
;A" Ayatullah Seyyid Abul Qasim El)hee was born in (huy, on 1Gth Rajab, 1B1E AH" He came to ,ajaf at the
a!e of 1B with his father &eyyid Ali A%bar El(hoee" After comletin! his reliminary studies at the a!e of ?A, he
joined the final classes under !reat tutors li%e &hai%h al&hariah Isfehani, &hai%h *uhammad Husain Isfehani,
&hai%h 'ia Ira$i and *ir0a Husain al,aeeni" Ayatullah El(hoee+s main contribution was to 2sool alFi$h, but he
was also a !reat FAQEEH, in a sense that his classes on FIQH were attended by some of the most rominent
scholars of his time" After the death of Ayatullah &eyyid *uhsin AlHa%im in 1:E1 A/" he became a sole *arja"
His tenure of *arjaiyyah was tumultuous, and it lasted for nearly ?? years" He died on Fth &afar 1;1B AH" 5i"e" Fth
Au!ust 1::?6"
It is said that the number of !reat F2QAHA trained by him durin! the five decades of constant teachin! e3ceeds
one thousand"
S/%%ARY
<e have briefly introduced ;A !reat lives from the world of FIQH, startin! with the era of =haybate&u!hra till the
onset of fifteenth century Hijra" #hese were the rominent jurisconsults of &hia sect whose names and wor%s have
!uaranteed the life and !rowth of Islamic &hariah" However, it must be mentioned that there were many others
whose contributions cannot be underestimated, and some o them have been referred to in this brief treatment"
Followin! imortant oints emer!e from the above9
a6 Fi$h has had a continuous !rowth ri!ht from the third century Hijra, and it has been tau!ht and develoed
incessantly in the !reat &hia seminaries" If we were to ta%e the e3amle of Ayatullah &eyyid Abul Qasim El(hoee,
we can connect him uwards with his masters one !eneration after another, formin! a !lorious chain which lin%s
with the era of our Imams 5A&6" #his continuity is uni$ue in Islam and what is more noteworthy is that the
continuity made Islamic !uidance available to the 2mmah at all times and in varyin! circumstances "
#he reason for startin! from the third century Hijra is not because no F2QAHA e3isted before that time" It is
because the era earlier than =haybate&u!hra was the era of our Imams 5A&6 and in their resence F2QAHA
obviously were eclised" However, we %now their namev and we also ossess a list of their wor%s on fi$h" For
e3amle, the earliest wor% on record is the boo% on Fi$h written by Ali b" Rafe+ who lived durin! the time of Imam
Ali b" Abu #alib 5A&6" Ali b" Rafe+s brother Abdullah was Imam Ali+s 5A&6 scribe as well as official in char!e of
#reasury"
b6 It is not true to say that fi$h and other &hia teachin!s were romul!ated by the Iranians alone" #ill tenth century
Hijra, the contribution mainly sran! from nonIranian sources" .ater, durin! the &afavid rule in Iran, Iranian
scholars became major contributors"
c6 Iran has not always been the centre of FIQH" In fact, the earliest or!anised &hia Centre of FIQH is traced in
7a!hdad, followed by ,ajaf durin! the days of &hai%h #usi" .ater, it was matched by )abal Amel 5.ebanon6, Hilla
5Ira$6 and Aleo 5&yria6" Isfehan 5Iran6 became %nown as a centre of FIQH durin! the &afvid re!ime, but at the
same time *u$addes Ardabili revived the Haw0a of ,ajaf"
As far as Qum is concerned, it had a ro!ressive Haw0a durin! the bloom of 7a!hdad, centred around ersonalities
li%e Ibn 7abawayh, Ibn Qawlawayh and others" #hen there was a eriod of decline, till its re!eneration durin! the
Qajar dynasty, under the suervision of *ir0a Abul Qasim Qummi, the author of monumental +QA<A,I,+" <ith
the !rowth of Haw0a in ,ajaf, Qum a!ain withered away till the third revival too% lace under &hai%h Abdul%arim
alHaeri in 1B;A AH" #oday, as we en these lines, Qum is the !reatest seminary of FIQH and other Islamic
branches of %nowled!e" <ith the onslau!ht of 7A+#HI&# infidelity in Ira$, the Haw0a of ,ajaf has disinte!rated"
Hoefully, this is one of the temorary henomena which ma%e their aearance in history" Allah %nows best, and
uon Him we rely"
,o doubt, the !rowth of smaller Haw0as in Iran had been noticeable, and they were $uite rolific" *ention should
be made of FIQH bein! tau!ht at its hi!hest level in *A&HHA/, HA*/A,, &HIRA', >A'/, (A&HA,,
#A7REE', 'A,)A,, QA'<AI,, and (H<A,&AR" 7ut these never !rew u to reach the ma!nitude of Haw0a
in Qum"
d6 It must be ac%nowled!ed that the imact of F2QAHA of )A7A. A*E., li%e *uha$$i$ (ara%i and &hai%h
7ahai, has been !reat and decisive" #he &afavids themselves, as it is %nown, were more inclined towards
#A&A<<2F and mysticism" Had it not been for these F2QAHA who decided to mi!rate and live in Iran,
establishin! the !reat colle!e of Isfehan, Iran would not have been what it is today in as far as romul!ation and
develoment of FIQH is concerned"
e6 As &ha%eeb Arsalan has mentioned, &hia &chool in )abal Amel is centuries older than the one in Iran" &ome
historians have indicated that the school of Ahlul 7ait 5A&6 in )abal Amel was established by Abu /har =hifari, the
noble comanion of our Prohet 5s"a"w6" Abu /har lived in &ham which in those days included all or arts of
.ebanon, condemnin! the wealth bein! unscruulously amassed by *ua+wiyah and his lac%eys, at the same time
reachin! the &hia faith"
f6 <e feel that the contribution of F2QAHA in India must not be i!nored" In order to !ive a balanced view of the
!lobal develoment of FIQH, we would li%e to briefly introduce some of the renowned names in &hia history of
India9
7! Seyyid Dildar Ali0 oularly %nown as =hufran *a+ab, was the son of &eyyid *uhammad *uin bin &eyyid
Abdul Hadi" It would seem that his family, li%e many other &eyyid families, left ,ishaur 5Iran6 because of the
*on!ol invasion and settled in India" He was born in 11@@ AH" He comleted his early studies in India, and in
11:B AH travelled to Ira$ for further studies" Amon! his tutors in Ira$ were !reat Fu$aha li%e &hai%h )a+far
(ashiful =hita, and <ahid 7ehbehani" .ater, he went to *ashhad 5Iran6 for further studies"
&eyyid /ildar Ali, while in India, was of A%hbari ersuasion, but he chan!ed to 2suli school after his intensive
studies in Ira$" 2on his return to .uc%now, he became a *arja+ in India, his fatwas bein! re!arded as final by the
&hia oulace"
His ma!num ous in #heolo!y 5Ilmul(alam6 is %nown as DImadulIslamD which he wrote in Arabic, in refutation of
antishia ar!uments by Fa%hrud/in Ra0i" His detailed wor% in FIQH is +*2,#AHA. AF(AR+" His sons were also
ious, dedicated scholars and teachers"
&eyyid /ildar Ali died in the ni!ht of 1:th Rajab 1?BG 5?nd *ay 1F?A6, and was buried in .uc%now"
8! %u$ti %hammad Abbas son of &eyyid Ali A%bar )a0aeri &hushtari, was born at the end of RabiulAwwal 1??;
AH" 51Gth *ay 1FA:6" As a child, he was !ifted and recocious, havin! comosed an 2rdu *A#H,AJI on &hia
doctrines at the a!e of 1?" *ore than 1GA of his boo%s have been ublished but a lar!e number still remain in
manuscrit form" He never visited Arabia, yet Arab scholars were imressed by his Arabic rose and oetry"
His dee understandin! of FIQH romted &ultanul 2lama, &eyyid *ohammad, son of =hufran *a+ab, to aoint
him the *2F#I of .uc%now" *ufti *ohammad Abbas comiled a !uide boo% for the Qadhis and *ufties of
A<A/H and the rinciles laid down by him were followed by the judiciary"
He had si3 sons, one of them *ufti &eyyid Ahmad Ali 5died in 1:@:6 was also a Fa$ih of reute" He was the
rincile of ,a0mia Arabic Colle!e, .uc%now"
*ufti *ohammad Abbas died on ?Gth Rajab 1BA@ 5?Eth *arch 1FF:6 at .uc%now"
9! Seyyid Hamid Husai"0 son of *ufti *uhammad Quli, was born in *eerut, India, on Gth *uharaam 1?;@ 5?Eth
)une, 1FBA6" He studied Arabic literature with *ufti *ohammad Abbas, and &ayyidul 2lama &eyyid Husain 5the
youn!est son of =hufran *a+ab6 trained him in FIQH and 2sool"
&eyyid Hamid Husain ac$uired his %nowled!e of the Islamic sciences in India, and althou!h he visited many
scholars durin! his il!rima!e to Arabia and Ira$, his main interest lay in collectin! boo%s and manuscrits for
doctrinal and historical research" 2lama of Iran and Ira$ have aid !lowin! tributes to him in their evaluation of his
coious contributions, articularly the encycloaedic wor% on Imamah, called +A7AQA#2. A,<AR+"
Ayatullah &eyyid *uhsin Amili in his +A+A>A,2 &&HIA+ says9 D A man of his elo$uence, roficiency in
#raditions, Islamic history and #heolo!y is not to be found durin! his time" In fact, neither before nor after" If we
said that a scholar of his status has not aeared after the era of *2FEE/ and *2R#A/HA, it would not be an
e3a!!erationKD
His wor% on FIQH includes DA./HARAED which is a commentary on +&HARAE+, +'AI,2. <A&AI.+, +A.C
&HARIAH A.=HARRA+, +A.,A)* A.#HAQI7+ and others"
; Seyyid Na6mul Hasa"0 oularly %nown as ,ajmul *illat" He was the son of &eyyid A%bar Husain of Amroha"
&eyyid was born on @th /hul Hijja 1?E: 5?Gth *ay 1F@B6" He was a favourite discile and soninlaw of *ufti
*uhammad Abbas" He studied all the hi!her faculties, includin! Fi$h and 2sool in India, under the tutela!e of
Abul Hasan Abbu &ahib and *ufti *uhammad Abbas" Himself a Fa$ih of the first ran%, he trained several 2lama
li%e &eyyid &ibte Hasan, &eyyid Adeel A%htar and Hafi0 (itayat Husain" He will ever be remembered for his
services to the &hias of #ibet, 7urma, Africa, and countries in the <est, rendered throu!h the missionaries trained
in his *adrassah ,a0miah, .uc%now"
He died on 1Eth &afar 1BG1 AH 51Fth Aril 1:BF6"
CHAP#ER B
THE CHAPTERS AND TIT*ES IN FIQH
As mentioned earlier, the ran!e of toics covered by Fi$h is very wide" It is therefore necessary to briefly ac$uaint
oneself with the chaters and headin!s of these subjects" #he only subjects which are outside the ale of Fi$h are
the fundamentals and the Islamic ethics"
It must be noted that the classification of the subjects under Fi$h was first or!anised by *uha$$i$ Hilli in his
famous wor% +&HARAE+, and later, +&HAHEE/EA<<A.+, !lossed over it" He divided the toics into four arts9
I7A/AA#, 5acts of worshi6, 2Q--/ 5contracts6, IQAA+A#5ronouncements6 AH(A* 5the laws6"
I.ADAAT All those acts which ou!ht to be erformed as rescribed in &haria, and must be receded by the
,I>>AH of Q2R7A# are %nown as I7A/AA#" e"!" daily rayers, fastin!, Haj etc"
AH)A% #hose duties which are to be dischar!ed accordin! to &haria, but do not necessarily re$uire any
,I>>AH of Q2R7A# nor do they re$uire any ronouncement of secific formula while erformin! them are
called AH(A*" For e3amle, the laws of inheritance, the enal code, the laws of comensation and blood money
etc"
/QOOD #hose contracts of &haria which do not re$uire the ,I>>AH of Q2R7A#, but are to be declared with the
ronouncement of a formula in which one arty declares the intention and another resonds by accetance, are
called AQ/ 5l" 2Q--/6 for e3amle, *arria!e 5,i%ah6, Ijarah 5lettin! or leasin!6, 7ay+ 5 buyin! and sellin!6 etc"
IQA-AAT #hose ronouncements which do not re$uire articiation of two arties" In other words, a erson
ronounces it unilaterally, and the act is considered valid in &haria" For e3amle, remission of debt 5releasin! a
debtor from his liabilities6, divorce, and releasin! a slave etc"
*uha$$i$ Hilli has discussed all the four cate!ories under forty ei!ht Chaters" In Ibadaat, he has ten chaters, in
2$ood fifteen, in I$a+aat eleven and in Ah%am twelve" .ater, these numbers have had some alterations which we
shall notice in the course of our discussion"
In the early era, that is, the first and the second century Hijra, the F2QAHA chose one or two toics of FIQH and
wrote about them" #hey did not venture to write a comrehensive wor% coverin! the whole ran!e" As we study their
lives, we find that they have authored boo%s on &A.A#, I)ARAH, ,I(AH and so on" Instead of statin! that they
have dealt with a articular chater in FIQH, they named each searate treatise as (I#A7" #hus, we come across
+(I#72, ,I(AH+, +(I#A72 ##AHARAH+ and so on"
.et us now e3amine how *uha$$i$ Hilli divided I7A/AA# in ten chaters"
CHAP#ER ;
I.ADAAT
First Cha#ter )ITA./ T TAHARAH
#aharat means cleanin! from the imurities, which are of two tyes9 (HA7A#H and HA/A#H"
#hose imurities which have been secified as inherently ,A)I& li%e urine, e3crement, blood, semen etc" are called
(HA7A#H" <hen our bodies or clothes come into contact with them, they have to be made clean" #hen there are
certain acts of #aharat which are ritual and are a rere$uisite to the acts of worshi li%e ,ama0 and #awaf" #hese
are <2/H2, =H2&. or #A>A**2*" #hey are invalidated by natural causes li%e sleein!, urinatin! or
enterin! into a state of )A,A7A#, and they have be reinstated"
Sec"d Cha#ter )ITA./S SA*AAT
In this chater, various rayers li%e the daily ,ama0, ,ama0 of Idd, ,ama0e*ayyit, ,ama0e#awaf, ,afila etc are
outlined" #hen the laws which e3lain the rere$uisites of &A.AA#, and the acts which invalidate the rayers are
elaborated" /etails are !iven about ,ama0 in one+s own home town, ,ama0 of a traveller, ,ama0 rayed alone, and
the one in con!re!ation 5)A*AAH6, ,ama0 rayed on time, and those as QA/HA"
Third Cha#ter )ITA./4 4A)AH
In this chater, various tyes of wealth ta3 are discussed, esecially the one whicll is alied to =old, &ilver,
<heat, 7arley, /ates, =raes, Cattle 5bi! and small6 and Camels" /etails of ercenta!e levied, and the ways of
sendin! 'a%at are also e3lained"
Furth Cha#ter )ITA./* )H/%S
(hums means onefifth 5?AL6 and is also a tye of wealth ta3" Accordin! to &2,,I FIQH, this is alicable to the
soils of war only" 7ut in our FIQH, the soils of war are just one of the many other incomes and accruals on
whicl1 ICH2*& is to be aid" For e3amle, the minerals, the treasures, the wealth which is mi3ed with HARA* in
a manner that it cannot be e3tricated, and its ri!htful owner cannot be traced, the wealth ac$uired by divin!, and the
net savin!s and rofit in businesses etc"
Fi$th Cha#ter )ITA./S SA,%
#his chater deals with the laws !overnin! fastin!, and distin!uishes obli!atory fasts of the month of Ramadhan
from other cate!ories" For e3amle, the forbidden fasts on I// days, the *A(R--H fast on A&H2RA day, and
so on"
Si:th Cha#ter )ITA./* I-TE)AF
.iterally, it means to retire into a lace" In FIQH, it is a form of worshi" <hen a erson wishes to do I+#E(AF, he
has to retire into a mos$ue for three days or more, and fast for three days" He remains secluded, not stein! out of
the mos$ue" #his act is otional in itself, but if one commences it and continues for two days, then it is <A)I7 to
comlete the third day" -ri!inally I+#E(AF was to be observed in *A&)I/2. HARA* 5i"e" *a%%ah6,
*A&)I/2. ,,A7I 5i"e" *adinah6, *A&)I/ of (2FA" 7ut it is also allowed in the central mos$ues of any town
or city, e3cludin! small mos$ues" #he Prohet 5s"a"w"6 always observed I+#E(AF in the last ten days of holy
RA*A/HA,"
Se&e"th Cha#ter )ITA./* HA2
#his deals with all the obli!atory and otional acts, durin! il!rima!e to *a%%ah, li%e wearin! IHRA*, #A<AF,
,A*A' -F #A<AF, <2Q--F at ARAFAH, *A&HAR, *I,A etc"
Ei;hth Cha#ter )ITA./* /%RAH
It is a smaller or lesser Haj, and it is obli!atory for the Hajis who must erform it first before roceedin! to
comlete the Haj" It consists of Ihram, #awaf, ,ama0 of #awaf, &aee+, #a$seer"
#he acts of 2mrah are erformed in the followin! order9
1" Ihram
?" #awaf
B" #wo Ra%aats of #awaf
;" &aee 5between &AFA and *AR<AH6
G" #a$seer
In Haj, the order is as follows9
a6 Ihram
b6 <u$oof at ARAFAH
c6 <u$oof at *A&HAR
d6 RA*I of the last )A*ARAH at *I,A
e6 &acrifice of animal
f6 #o shave off the hair, or cuttin! nails etc"
!6 #awaf of Haj
h6 #wo Ra%aats for #awaf
i6 &aee+ for Haj
j6 #awafun,isa
%6 #wo Ra%aats for #awafun,isa
l6 &tayin! at ni!ht in *I,A m6 Rami of all )A*ARA#& in *I,A
Ni"th Cha#ter )ITA./* 2IHAD #his chater deals with the holy wars which is deemed absolutely necessary
for the reservation of security and welfare of a society" )ihad can be of two tyes9 -ne initiated and another
defensive" &hia FIQH stiulates that in order to initiate a )ihad, consent must be had from the Prohet 5s"a"w6 or any
*asoom Imam" As for the defensive holy war, it can be wa!ed as and when it becomes necessary" #his chater also
deals with the laws ertainin! to /HI**I& who see% refu!e under an Islamic state, and about truce and eace
treaties between Islamic and nonIslamic countries"
Te"th Cha#ter A%R .I* %A-ROOF a"d NAHY ANI* %/N)AR
In an Islamic society, it is the resonsibility of every *uslim to enjoin !ood and forbid evil" -f course, there are
conditions and re!ulations for carryin! out this duty" #his chater deals with them e3tensively"
CHAP#ER G
2Q--/
5Contracts6
*uha$$i$ Hilli has divided this into fifteen chaters"
Cha#ter O"e )ITA./ TTI2ARAH It deals with urchase and sale, conditions of transactions, tyes of
transactions li%e cash or credit sales, rofits, usury, and so on" It also e3lains rules of contracts, ronounced or by
conduct"
Cha#ter T' )ITA.A*RAHN /eals with buyin! or sellin! a mort!a!e"
Cha#ter Three )ITA. A*%/F*IS *uflis means a ban%rut, who cannot ay off his debts" #he Islamic jury
would immediately issue an order to restrain such a erson from usin! his wealth till such time when a thorou!h
assessment has been made, and ossible ayments to the creditors have been arran!ed"
Cha#ter Fur )ITA. A*HI2R It is an interdiction where an owner of wealth or roerty is restrained from
havin! any say in its use, li%e in the cases of a ban%rut, a minor, an insane erson, a dyin! erson who intends to
will beyond his ri!ht of onethird, a fool etc"
Cha#ter Fi&e )ITA. A*DHA%AN
It means a warranty or !uarantee" In &hia FIQH, a !uarantor becomes resonsible for the debts, to the e3clusion of
the debtor, but the !uarantor can call for reimbursement from the debtor" *uha$$i$ Hilli has included all sureties
and romissory notes in this cate!ory"
Cha#ter Si: )ITA. A*S/*H
&ulh here does not mean eace a!reement or truce" It actually means settlement, concession or comromise" For
e3amle, to settle a debt whose e3act fi!ure is not %nown by offerin! a certain sum, and so on"
Cha#ter Se&e" )ITA. A*SHARI)AH
It means joint ownershi, li%e in the case of inheritance" As lon! as it has not been divided, it belon!s jointly to all
the heirs" It also means artnershi" Interestin!ly, there are cases of unwillin! artners, when wheat owned by one
erson !ets mi3ed u with wheat belon!in! to another, and searatin! is imossible" Partnershi in businesses,
industries and a!riculture are contracted by an a!reement"
Cha#ter Ei;ht )ITA. A*%/DHARI.AH
It is a artnershi between caital and labour" <hen a man or a !rou of men investin! their caital for a business,
enter into an a!reement with those who will ut in their labour or will mana!e, they must first a!ree about the share
of dividends, and then either ronounce a formula for *2/HARI7A, or ma%e some ractical !estures"
Cha#ter Ni"e )ITA. A*%/4ARI-AH OR %/SAQAT
#his is a tye of *2/HARI7A, but with a difference" Instead of an arran!ement between a businessman, an
industrialist and a wor%er, it is an a!reement between a landowner and a erson who will wor% to till the land and
carry out lantation, with a clear understandin! about rofit sharin! when the harvest is ready" *2&AQA# is an
arran!ement between the farmer or !arden owner, and the wor%er who underta%es to water the !arden etc" and do
all such wor% which would hel the harvest or fruition" A!ain, it is absolutely necessary that a rior a!reement on
the roortion of rofit to be shared by each is reached" In *2/HARI7AH, *2'ARIAH and *2&AQA#, the
rofit, little or more, is roortionately shared, but the losses are borne by the caitalist alone"
Cha#ter Te" )ITA. A*,ADEE-AH
#his is just li%e A*A,A#, where a erson deosits his roerty in trust with another erson, ma%in! him
resonsible for its rotection and security" #his chater deals with the resonsibilities of the trustee, articularly in
the circumstances of loss or dama!e"
Cha#ter Ele&e" )ITA. A*ARIYAH
#o borrow somethin! from a erson, with an intention of benefitin! from it" #he difference between this and
<A/EEAH is that in <A/EEAH a erson is !iven somethin! to hold in trust, with no ermission to use it in any
way4 while in ARI>AH, a erson a!rees to lend his roerty to another erson with a clear understandin! that the
latter will use it to derive some benefit" &imle e3amle are lendin! a car to someone for his use, lendin! clothes
for wearin! etc"
Cha#ter T'el&e )ITA. A*I2ARAH
#o hire, or !ive on rent" #his is done in two ways" Either one !ives away his roerty to another for use a!ainst an
a!reed sum of rent, or one underta%es to comlete a certain eace of wor% a!ainst ayment" #his arran!ement has
one common feature with ordinary urchase and sale in both the cases, somethin! is !iven in return" #he difference
is that in any business or sale, a commodity is e3chan!ed with money or its value, while in I)ARAH, the roerty
itself is not e3chan!ed, but its utilisation or benefit is hired or rented out"
Cha#ter Thirtee" )ITA. A*,A)A*AH
#o aoint someone authorisin! him to enter into a contract on one+s behalf or to ma%e a certain commitment" #he
e3amle is when a <A(I. is aointed for ,i%ah, Ijarah, &ellin!, /ivorce, etc"
Cha#ter Furtee" )ITA. A*,/QOOF + SADAQAT
#his deals with endowments and charities" <AQF means to e3clude ones own roerty from ownershi and !ive it
away for a articular use" In other words, it is an endowment settled for ublic use" *any laws !overn this act, and
F2QAHA debate over whether <AQF re$uires an intention of Q2R7A# or not" #hen there are laws about <AQF
(HA& 5family endowments6 and <AQF AA*"
Cha#ter Fi$tee" )ITA. A*S/)NA ,A* HA.S
It is another tye of endowment but with a difference" <hile <AQF is ermanent, where the owner !ives away his
roerty forever, &2(,A is a temorary arran!ement" In it, a erson !ives away his abode or house to a deservin!
erson for a fi3ed eriod of time" <hen the time e3ires, the roerty is restored to him, as its ri!htful owner"
HA7& means a temorary be$uest for charitable uroses" In this arran!ement, the roerty itself is not !iven
away4 only its accruals or benefits are be$ueathed for a certain eriod, uon e3iration of which the benefits revert
to the owner"
Cha#ter Si:tee" )ITA. A*HI.AT
/eals with the !ifts" -ne can only settle a thin! which he ri!htfully owns as a !ift" #hey are of two tyes9 a !ift
!iven in e3chan!e or a !ift !iven away without any return" =ifts !iven in e3chan!e or substitute cannot be claimed
bac%, but that which is !iven away without any e3chan!e can be claimed bac%" 7ut if this unconditional !ift has
been settled on ones own relatives, or if its ori!inal form has been chan!ed or destroyed, then it cannot be
reclaimed"
Cha#ter Se&e"tee" )ITA. A*S/.Q ,A A*RA%AYAH
/eals with racin! and shootin!, a chater which falls under subsidiary laws of )IHA/" Islam forbids wa!erin!,
bettin! or sta%in!, but allows trainin! for racin! or shootin! or mar%smanshi as a relude to military s%ills"
Cha#ter Ei;htee" )ITA. A*,ASIYYAH
#his relates to ma%in! of the <ill, testament etc" in resect of one+s estate and minor heirs" *an has a ri!ht to
aoint an e3ecutor or administrator for the urose" He can direct the aointee to loo% after his minor children,
educate them and rovide them with necessary trainin!" &imilarly, he can direct him to use uto 1MB of his estate in
the manner he, the testator, refers"
&uch directives are of three tyes9 -ne is related to distribution of his money and roerty, another can be about
erformin! certain duties, li%e Haj, 'iyarat, Qadha ,ama0, Fasts, etc" #he last one concerns releasin! from the
bonda!e, li%e when he directs that a articular slave be set free uon his death"
Cha#ter Ni"etee" )ITA. ANNI)AH
*arria!e Contract" In this chater, Fu$aha discuss several asects, includin! the conditions, the tyes of woman or
man one can marry, rohibition in marria!e, temorary marria!es, ermanent marria!es, maintenance of the wife
and the children and so on"
#hou!h *uha$$i$ Hilli had enumerated 1G chaters, we observe that there are more" Possibly, *uha$$i$
amal!amated certain chaters under one headin!"
CHAPTER <
IQAAAT
=/"ilateral Pr"u"ceme"t>
*uha$$i$ divided these into eleven Chaters" In IQ+AA ronouncin! a formula is necessary, but it does not have
two sides" It is done unilaterally"
Cha#ter O"e )ITA. A*TA*AQ
/issolution of marria!e It is either Absolute 57ain6 or Revocable 5Raje+e6" #he revocable #ala$ is that in which the
husband has the ower of revocation durin! the I//A# eriod, while in the absolute, the husband has no ower of
revocation" #his chater discusses all the laws in this connection" It also sets down all the conditions for #ala$ to be
valid"
Cha#ter T' )ITA. A*)H/*A- + %/.ARAAT
#hese are two other tyes of absolute divorce" (hula+ is when wife has a disli%e for her husband and as%s him to
divorce her in e3chan!e of a sum, or all or art of her *AHR" In such a case, when the husband a!rees to divorce,
he forfeits the ower of revocation, e3cet when the wife a!rees to ta%e bac% the money or ransom she !ave"
*ubaraat is when disli%e is mutual, and in this case also the wife has to ay some ransom to the husband" However,
the ransom aid in the case of *ubaraat should not e3ceed the *ahr" #his divorce is also absolute"
Cha#ter Three )ITA. A*DHIHAR
In the reIslamic era, when husband said to his wife Dyou are on me li%e the bac% of my motherD, it was construed
as /ivorce" Islam has effected an imortant chan!e" It does not reco!nise /HIHAR as a form of divorce, but
whoever does this ou!ht to ay (AFFARA before he can resume conju!al relations with his wife" #his %affara is
freein! a slave, and if that is not ossible, he svill fast for two consecutive months" And if that is not ossible also,
then he should feed si3ty oor"
Cha#ter Fur )ITA. A*EE*A-
It is an oath by =od, wherein the husband swears that he would never have conju!al relation with his wife, or that
he would not have the relation for a eriod e3ceedin! four months" In such a case, when the wife comlains to
Ha%ime &hara+, the husband would be !iven a choice either to divorce her or to abro!ate the oath" ,aturally, if the
husband abro!ates the oath, he will ay the e3iation 5%affara6" In !eneral, Islam forbids abro!atin! the oaths, but in
this case it recommends"
Cha#ter Fi&e )ITA. A**IAN
#his chater deals with the slander or denial of a child" #he law of accusin! someone without ade$uate roof etc"
are also discussed" Husband stands before Ha%ime &haria and ronounces .IA,, sayin! four times9 D=od is my
witness, that I am truthful in my accusation a!ainst my wifeD" #hen he says9 D*ay =od curse me if I were not
sea%in! the truthD" #hereafter, the wife says four times9 D=od be my witness that my husband has lied and accused
me wron!lyD" #hen she adds9 DCurse of =od befall me if I was lyin!D" <hen this rocess is comlete, the marria!e
is irrevocably dissolved"
Cha#ter Si: )ITA. A*ITQ
It discusses about freein! the slaves" Islam does not encoura!e slavery, that is why we do not find a chater on +alC
Ri$$+, 5enslavin!64 the only chater is +all#Q+ 5freein!, liberatin!6" #he chater outlines circumstances in which the
slaves are voluntarily or automatically liberated"
Cha#ter Se&e" )ITA. A*TAD.EER0 %/)ATI.AH + ISTEE*AD
#his chater deals with secific circumstances whicl1 lead to freein! the slaves" Al#A/7EER is when the master
ma%es a will statin! that his slave will be free uon his death" *2(A#I7AH is when a slave wishes to enter into
an a!reement witl1 his master that he be freed in e3chan!e of some consideration" #he Holy Quran says that if the
master finds the slave caable and ri!hteous, he should accede to the wishes of the slave, and also endow him with
some of his own wealth" I&#EE.A/ is an automatic rocess" <hen a female slave, for e3amle, becomes re!nant
by her master, such a female slave will revert to her offsrin! uon her husband+s 5master+s6 death" And since she is
the mother, and Islam does not allow anyone to be a slave of his or her forebearers however hi!h, and descendants
however low, the female slave will automatically be free"
Cha#ter Ei;ht IRITA. A*IQRAR
It deals with admission and is connected with the judiciary" <hen a erson ma%es a claim a!ainst someone and has
no evidence or witness to substantiate it, the claim is not admissible" 7ut if the debtor himself wishes to admit the
debt, which is IQRAR, then it is deemed ade$uate"
Cha#ter Ni"e )ITA. A*2IA*AH
It means offerin! a wa!e or reward" Aarently, it resembles the act of hirin! a wor%er or a labourer for a articular
iece of wor% a!ainst a!reed amount" 7ut in )IA.AH, the emloyer does not hire a articular erson, he ma%es a
ublic announcement statin! that whoever would do a certain job for him, he would ay him a certain amount"
Cha#ter Te" )ITA. A*AY%AN
A>*A, is lural of >A*EE,, which means an oath" In this chater, the sanctity of a reli!ious oath, ta%en in the
name of Allah, is discussed" It describes the imlication of ta%in! an oath in the name of Allah, the tyes of oath,
erjury and the e3iation for one who brea%s the oath"
Cha#ter Ele&e" )ITA. A*NADHR
,A/HR is a solemn vow, or led!e made in the name of Allah" It e3lains the formula which one has to ronounce
or at least to have it in mind before ,A/HR is formally established, and the occasions for ,A/HR" A ,adhr made
for a *27AH 5ordinarily ermissible6 thin!, havin! no le!itimate benefit here or hereafter, is not valid" 7oth oath
and ,A/HR are a covenant made witl1 Allah and they must be honoured"
CHAP#ER E
AH(A*
*uha$$i$ Hilli has !iven the above name to this cate!ory, since the toics which fall under it are neither acts of
worshi nor contracts or unilateral ronouncements" He has divided this into 1? chaters"
Cha#ter O"e )ITA. A*SAYD AND A*DHA.AHA
#his chater deals with huntin! and slau!hterin! of those animals whose meat we are allowed to eat" &A>/ is
huntin!, /HA7H is slau!hterin!" An animal who has not been hunted as rescribed in &haria, or has not been
slau!htered as !uided by Islam, will be +*A>#AH+, a corse which is ,A)I&, and HARA* to eat" #his chater
also deals with the huntin! of wild animals by trained huntin! do!s"
Cha#ter T' )ITA. A*AT-I%AH AND A*ASHRI.AH
#his chater deals with those thin!s which we are allowed to eat or drin%, and those which are forbidden" A detailed
treatment is !iven to animal food, sea food, nonanimal food and so on" It also e3lains and cate!orises those
animals which are Halal and those which are not" And even in the Halal animals, it tells us of those arts of the
body which are HARA* to consume" It also !ives rational treatment to those acts which may be ordinarily
ermissible and harmless, but are harmful for a articular erson in a !iven circumstance"
Cha#ter Three )ITA. A*5HAS.
It means an ille!al ossession of roerty, or usuration" As is %nown, =HA&7 is Haram, but it must also be %nown
that it involves a liability" #hat means if a erson usurs someone+s roerty and if that roerty is dama!ed or
destroyed while still in his ille!al ossession, he is liable for it, even if he did not directly dama!e or destroy it, but
was instrumental in causin! the dama!e or destruction"
Cha#ter Fur )ITA. A*SH/F-AH
*eans the ri!ht of reemtion" <hen a artner wishes to sell his share, the remainin! artner has a ri!ht of
reemtion for ac$uirin! the share by buyin! it at the rice offered by others"
Cha#ter Fi&e )ITA. IHYA A*%A,AT
*awat refers to the barren, uncultivated land" A land which has been develoed, either by buildin! uon it or by
cultivation is called DA*IRD in FIQH" #he Prohet 5s"a"w6 said9 D<hoever !ives life to a barren, uncultivated land,
that land belon!s to himD" #his has numerous ramifications, e3lained under the chater"
Cha#ter Si: )ITA. A**/QTAH
#his refers to thin!s which are ic%ed u by chance, and the owner is un%nown" #his can aly to animals and nonC
animals" If a stray animal is found which is not in anyway endan!ered, then one should not ta%e it into custody" 7ut
if it faces any dan!er, then it can be ossessed with the intention to return it to its owner if found" If the owner is not
found, then Ha%ime &hara+ has to authorise its use" #his chater also deals with nonlivin! objects, found in the
sacred recincts of Haram or outside, basin! the !uidelines on the value of the object"
Cha#ter Se&e" )ITA. A*FARAIDH
It is an elaborate chater dealin! with the laws of inheritance" Heirs are divided in three cate!ories9
516 Parents, children, !randchildren 5when the children are not resent6 "
5?6 =randarents, brothers and sisters 5and in their absence, their children6"
5B6 2ncles, aunts 5both aternal and maternal6 and their children"
#he above heirs are by ,A&A7 5i"e" consan!uinity6" #here are heirs who inherit by &A7A7 5i"e" affinity6 li%e
husband and wife" #his chater deals with various cases of succession in !reat detail" #he testator does not have the
ri!ht to will for more that onethird of his or her estate, nor does he or she have any ri!ht to fi3 u the shares of his
or her heirs" #he estate devolves on the heirs accordin! to &hariah"
Cha#ter Ei;ht )ITA. A*QADHA
It is a chater on judiciary, with elaborate sets of laws" #here are laws !overnin! the aointment of jud!es, their
ri!hts, their emoluments, and also about dis$ualifications" In FIQH, it is stiulated that a )ud!e must be an
ac%nowled!ed *ujtahid"
Cha#ter Ni"e )ITA. A*SHAHADAH
About the witnesses, who constitute the evidence to substantiate a claim" #he onus of rovidin! the evidence does
not rest on the defendent" #he chater also e3lains how, in certain cases, the defendent may be called uon to ta%e
an oath"
Cha#ter Te" )ITA. A*H/DOOD + TA-4EERAT
/eals with unishment and retribution" #hese are of two tyes9 H2/--/ and #A'EERA#" H2/--/ are fi3ed
unitive measures rescribed for secified offences, li%e sodomy, false accusation of fornication, drin%in! alcohol
etc", stealin!, belli!erency and so on" #A'EERA# are such retributive measures which may vary accordin! to the
decision reached by the jud!e who may a!!ravate or miti!ate the sentence"
Cha#ter Ele&e" )ITA. A*QISAS
It is a chater on re$uitals" An elaborate discussion is carried out about the crimes committed advertantly or
inadvertantly, and in each case the e3tent of re$uital is rescribed" #hen there are laws of recomensin! for those
who are murdered or are inadvertantly %illed"
Cha#ter T'el&e IlITA. A*DIYAT
It is a form of re$uital, but unli%e QI&A&, it is only monetary comensation" Interestin!ly enou!h, a doctor+s
resonsibility towards human life, and a discilinary action by a tutor have a lace under this chater" A doctor
must be $ualified enou!h to treat a atient" If he is not and if the atient dies durin! the treatment, he is liable for
comensation" In any case, a $ualified and efficient doctor must absolve himself of the liability beforehand"
&imilarly, a tutor carryin! out cororal unishment must be careful not to crile or %ill the uil" If he does, he is
liable for comensation" #hese are dealt with in some detail"