Abd al-Rahman al-Awza'i

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Jump to: navigation, search Abu Amr Abd al-Rahman ibn Amr al-Awzai (707 - 774) was the chief representative and eponym of the Awzai school of Islamic jurisprudence, which descended from the ancient Syrian school. Apparently, born in Damascus, Syria in 707, very little of al-Awzai's writings survive, but his style of Islamic jurisprudence (usul al-fiqh) is preserved in Abu Yusuf's (d.798) book Al-radd ala siyar al-Awzai, in particular his reliance on the "living tradition," or the uninterrupted practice of Muslims handed down from preceding generations. For Awzai, this is the true Sunnah of Muhammad (d. 632). Awzai's school flourished in Syria, the Maghreb, and Muslim Spain but was eventually overcome by the Maliki school of Islamic law in the 9th century. However, given his authority and reputation as a Sunni Imam and pious ancestry, his views retain potential as a source of law and a basis for alternative legal approaches and solutions. He died in 774 and was buried near Beirut, Lebanon, where his tomb is still visited.[1]

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1 History of the Madhhab of al-Awzai o 1.1 In the Maghreb and Muslim Spain o 1.2 In Syria 2 Notes

[edit] History of the Madhhab of al-Awzai

[edit] In the Maghreb and Muslim Spain The reason why the people of Morocco took up the madhhab of Imam Malik, is that the people of Morocco and Spain were originally upon the madhhab of al-Awzai, and likewise the Sham, from where they were conquered. Then during the rule of Al-Hakam I, the official fatwas were changed and given according to the opinion of Malik ibn Anas and the people of al-Madeenah. This was due to the opinion and preference of al-Hakam due to some political benefits he saw and they differ about the actual reason. Most hold that it was due to the scholars of Spain travelling to al-Madeenah, then when they returned to Spain they spoke of the excellence of Malik, his wide knowledge and great station, so they honoured him and preferred his madhhab. Others say that Imam Malik asked some of the people of Spain about the rule in Spain and they described it to him and Malik was very pleased by it since the Abbasids in that time did not rule

in a manner that was agreeable. So, Imam Malik said to the person who told him, We ask Allaah to enlighten our sacred precincts with your rule. This was transmitted to the ruler of Spain, who already knew of the knowledge, excellence and piety of Malik; so he lead the people to accept his madhhab and ordered that the madhhab of al-Awzai be abandoned. The kings of Morocco and the west agreed that the rulings and actions should be according to the preferences of Ibn alQaasim al-`Utaqi (a famous student of Malik) only.[2] [edit] In Syria In Syria, the Madhhab of al-Awzai remained the main school of thought until the 10th century, when Abu Zarah Muhammed ibn Uthman of the Shafiee Madhhab was appointed judge of Damascus. Abu Zarah began the practice of giving a prize of 100 dinars to any student who memorized the book, Mukhtasr al-Muzanee (the basics of Shafiee fiqh). Naturally, the practice caused the Shafiee Madhhab to spread rapidly in Syria, until none of al-Awzais followers remained until the 11th century.[3]

[edit] Notes
1. ^ John Esposito, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, Oxford University Press, 2003 2. ^ Nafh ut-Teeb min Ghasn il-Andalus ir-rateeb, by Ahmad al-Muqree al-Maghribee (3/158) 3. ^ al-Madkhal, pg.205-206, and Fiqh al-Imaam al-Awzai, by Abdullah Muhammed al-Jabooree, Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abd_al-Rahman_al-Awza%27i" Categories: 707 births | 774 deaths | Muslim scholars | Taba at-Tabiin hadith narrators | People from Beirut