Yahya ibn Sharaf al-Nawawi

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Damascus scholar
Medieval era
Name: Yahiya ibn Sharaf al-Nawawi
Birth: 631 AH
Death: 676 AH [1]
School/tradition: Shafi'i
Influences: Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi`i
Influenced: Shafii Madhab

Abu Zakaria Mohiuddin Yahya Ibn Sharaf al-Nawawi (1233 - 1278) (Arabic:أبو زكريا يحيى بن شرف النووي), popularly known as al-Nawawi, an-Nawawi or Imam Nawawi (631 - 676 A.H. / 1255 - 1300 CE), was a Sunni Muslim author on fiqh and hadith.[2] His position on legal matters is considered the authoritative one in the Shafi'i Madhhab. He was born at Nawa near Damascus, Syria. As with many Arabic and Semitic names, the last part of his name refers to his hometown.

Contents

[edit] Accomplishments

He studied in Damascus from the age of 18 and after making the Hajj in 1253 he settled there as a private scholar. From a young age he showed signs of great intelligence, and so his father paid for a good education. As a qadi (judge), he was much sought after for advice and adjudication of disputes.

During his short life of only 45 years [3] he wrote many books on Islamic studies and other topics. He collected and sourced 40 hadiths back to one of the shahabaeen (companions of Muhammad) [4], which was no small task.

In 1267 he succeeded Abu Shama as professor of hadith at the Ashrafiyya school in the city. He died at Nawa at a relatively young age, having never married.

[edit] Views

Shaykh Mohiuddin expresses his impression of Imaam an-Nawawi thus:

Imaam an-Nawawi had three distinctive commendable qualities in his person. If anybody has only one out of these three, people turn to him in abundance for guidance. First, having knowledge and its dissemination. Second, to evade completely from the worldly inclinations, and the third, inviting to all that is good (Islam) enjoining Al-Ma'ruf [i.e., Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do] and forbidding Al-Munkar [polytheism and disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden]. Imaam an-Nawawi had all three in him.

Shi'a Muslims have a sympathetic view of him. They regard some of his works favourably and have translated some into Persian.

[edit] Works

  • Al Minhaj bi Sharh Sahih Muslim شرح صحيح مسلم, making use of others before him, and is considered one of the best commentaries on that book. It is available online [1].
  • Riyadh al-Salihin رياض الصالحين is a collection of hadith on ethics, manners, conduct, and is still quite popular in the Muslim world today.
  • al-Majmu' sharh al-Muhadhdhab المجموع شرح المهذب is a comprehensive manual of Islamic law according to the Shafi'ite school has been edited with French translation by van den Bergh, 2 vols., Batavia (1882-1884), and published at Cairo (1888).
  • Minhaj al-Talibin منهاج الطالبين وعمدة المفتين في فقه الإمام الشافعي, another Shafii fiqh work
  • Tahdhib al-Asma wal-Sifaat تهذيب الأسماء has been edited as the Biographical Dictionary of Illustrious Men chiefly at the Beginning of Islam by F. Wüstenfeld (Göttingen, 1842-1847).
  • Taqrib al-Taisir التقريب والتيسير لمعرفة سنن البشير النذير, an introduction to the study of hadith, was published at Cairo, 1890, with Suyuti's commentary. It has been in part translated into French by W. Marçais in the Journal asiatique, series ix., vols. 16-18 (1900-1901).
  • Forty Hadiths الأربعون النووية collection of the forty (actually forty-two) chief traditions has been frequently published with commentaries in Cairo. For other works see C. Brockelmann's Geschichte der arabischen Litteratur, vol. i. (Weimar, 1898), pp. 395-397.
  • Ma Tamas ilayhi hajat al-Qari ما تمس إليه حاجة القاري لصـحيح البـخاري
  • Tahrir al-Tanbih تحرير التنبيه
  • Kitab al-Adhkar الأذكار المنتخبة من كلام سيد الأبرار is a collection of supplications of prophet Muhammad.
  • al-Tibyan fi adab Hamalat al-Quran التبيان في آداب حملة القرآن
  • Adab al-fatwa wa al-Mufti wa al-Mustafti آداب الفتوى والمفتي والمستفتي
  • al-Tarkhis fi al-Qiyam الترخيص بالقيام لذوي الفضل والمزية من أهل الإسلام

[edit] Recent English language editions

Al-Nawawi's Forty Hadith, Translated by Ezzeddin Ibrahim, Islamic Texts Society; New edition (1997) ISBN 0-946621-65-9

The forty Hadith of al-Imam al-Nawawi, Abul-Qasim Publishing House (1999) ISBN 9960-792-76-5

An-Nawawi's Forty Hadith, Dar-us-Salam Publications (2001) ISBN 9960-740-27-7

Commentary on the Forty Hadith of Al-Nawawi (3 Vols.) by Jamaal Al-Din M. Zarabozo , Al-Basheer (1999) ISBN 1-891540-04-1

The Complete Forty Hadith, Ta-Ha Publishers (2000) ISBN 1-84200-013-6

Al-Maqasid: Nawawi's Manual of Islam, edited by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Amana Publications; 2nd edition (2003) ISBN 1-59008-011-4

Al-Maqasid: Imam Nawawi's Manual of Islam, Sunna Books (1994) ISBN 0-9638342-1-5

Gardens of the righteous: Riyadh as-Salihin of Imam Nawawi, Rowman and Littlefield (1975) ISBN 0-87471-650-0

Riyad-us-Saliheen (2 Volumes), Dar-us-Salam Publications (1999) ISBN 1-59144-053-X

Minhaj et talibin: A manual of Muhammadan law ; according to the school of Shafi, Law Publishing Co (1977) ASIN: B0006D2W9I

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://kitaabun.com/shopping3/product_info.php?products_id=1445
  2. ^ A Short Biography of Imaam an-Nawawi, The Islamic Network
  3. ^ an-Nawawi and his works - The Islamic Network
  4. ^ An-Nawawi's Forty Hadiths -Translation of Imam An-Nawawi's Book

also: This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

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