The classification of Zaydi Fuqaha: A study within the framework of the work named Bulugh al-arab wa- kunfiz al-dhahab fi mari fat al-madhhab

Abstract

In this study, the classification of Zaydi fuqaha' that emerged in the mutaabbiriln period of Zaydi fiqh and related terms are examined. The book named Bulagh al-arab wa- kunaz al-dhahab ff-marifat al-madhhab, which has great importance among the studies ai- ming to present the Zaydi fiqh accumulation as a uniform doctrinal structure was taken as a basis in the processing of the subject. After an introduction in which Zaydi fiqh studies are evaluated in their relationship with the subject, the issue is addressed under three main headings. In the first title, the author and his work are introduced, and in the second and third titles, the methods and terms used in the classification of the Zaydi fukaha are examined. The author of the work is 'Ali b. `Abd Allah al-Shahari (d. 1190/1776) who lived during the period of the Qasimi dynasty (al-dawla al-Qasimiyya) in Yemen. The most important characteristic of this work, which was prepared by using many important sources in the Zaydi literature, is that it was the most comprehensive study written on madhhab doctrine until then. The first part of the work explains that the right madhhab to be followed is Zaydiyya. In the second part, the classes of the Zaydi fuqaha', which is the subject of our study, are explained. The fuqaha' classes are primarily divided into two parts: al-salaf al-salihin and al-halaf al-salihin. The first dates back to the beginning of the 3rd/10th century. This class is divided into two parts, as al-sabiqiin and al-mutaabbiriln. The sabiqiin starts with 'Ali b. Abi Talib and his two sons al-Hasan, and ljusayn, and ends with the sons of twelve imams who are their descendants. Zayd b. 'Ali (d. 122/740) is one of the twelve imams. The most important of the faqihs in the part of mutaabbiriln, which started with al-Qasim b. Ibrahim al-Rassi (d. 246/860), are the six imams called ahl-al-nusils or a'imma al-nusils. The reason why they are named as such is that their words were taken as a basis in determining the views of the sect on the field of usill and Mill' 1-fiqh. al-Qasim al-Rassi is at a point where all the knowledge of the Prophet's family and the principles agreed upon by sabiqon, reach him through many channels. al-Hadi Yahya b. al-ljusayn (d. 298/911), grandson of al-Qasim, is the most important imams in terms of his position in the madhhab. The halaf al-salihin is also divided into two parts as ahl l-tahsil and ahll-naar. The first part also referred to as muhassain or a'imma al-tahsil, has no subcategories. The second part is divided into two sub-sections as ahll-tacwir and mudhakiriln. The muhassain class starts with those who catch up with the last class of ahl al-nusils and ends with 'Abd Allah b. Hamza (d. 614/1217), one of the three important imams. Two other important imams of muhassain are Ahmad b. al-Husayn (d. 411/1020) and his brother Yahya b. al-Husayn (d. 424/1032). It is the fiqh activity of the jurists of this class, called tahsil 1-madhhab, that brought Zaydi fiqh, which was fiqh of imams (madhahib 1-a'imma) in its first period, into a single madhhab and to its classical form in the last period. Mudhakiriln jurists lived at the same time as the ahl-t-taqrir.This period is about 700 years from the beginning of the 6th/12th century, which is the last century of the muhassilfin class, to the end of the 12th/18th century, when Shahari lived. The roles of the ahl al-tacifir in the madhhab mostly consist of reviewing the works of the ahl-1 tahsil, approving the correct ones, and correcting the wrong ones. That's why they are so named. The author of Kit4b 1-Azithr, Ahmad b. Yahya 1-Murtada (d. 840/1437), is one of the prominent jurists among the ahll-tacwir. The majority of Zaydi fuqaha' belongs to the muzakiriln class. These are the lowest class of the ahl-al-naar. As an important result reached in the study, it is possible to state the following: There is a difference between some of the knowledge and opinions in modern Zaydi studies, which include the same subject as Shahari's work, in terms of the classification of Zaydi fuqaha' and the terms used. Therefore, the findings and conclusions based on this work should be confirmed by new studies on other Zaydi classics, and existing opinions on Zaydi jurisprudence should be reviewed.