In the past few years, I’ve been asked on numerous occasions to present a lecture on the essential Islamic rules and guidelines regarding death, dying, and inheritance. I’ve also been asked to provide the presentation slides to attendees after the seminar, due to which I am uploading them here. Please be aware that the presentation simply… Continue reading Planning for Death: Essential Guidelines on Death and Inheritance
Category: Islamic Law
Step-by-Step Description of the Ritual Ablution
Below is a simplified explanation of the method of performing the ritual ablution (wuḍūʿ) in the Ḥanafī madhhab, using brackets to demarcate its farḍ [f], wājib [w], sunnah [s], and mustaḥabb [m] elements. The explanation is part of a workbook I prepared for a short seminar entitled Perfecting Prayer that provided a step-by-step guide to wuḍūʿ and… Continue reading Step-by-Step Description of the Ritual Ablution
Excerpt: Lessons of Faith by Ḥakīm al-Ummah Ashraf ʿAlī al-Thānawī
Produced below is a selection from the first chapter of an upcoming translation of Mawlānā Ashraf ʿAlī al-Thānawī’s work Taʿlīm al-Dīn, which is a concise manual of Islamic precepts that cover a wide range of topics, including theology, law, ethics, mysticism, and politics. The first draft of the entire translation and its footnotes were recently… Continue reading Excerpt: Lessons of Faith by Ḥakīm al-Ummah Ashraf ʿAlī al-Thānawī
A Short Answer to a Question on Extravagance from the Islamic Perspective
A question was once posed by a student through email regarding the issue of wastage, more specifically in regards to wasting water. It was published by our dear friend Hafiz Faraz Abdul Moid on the attalib blog some years ago. I repost it here for your benefit, iA. Question: I had a question, and if you’re not… Continue reading A Short Answer to a Question on Extravagance from the Islamic Perspective
Consolidating the Divergent Rulings of Imam Abū Ḥanīfah and His Students
Question: When reading the rulings in the book we come by several instances where Imam Muhammad differs from Abu Hanifa. As one who does taqleed, which ruling should we follow? Do we take Imam Muhammad’s ruling or do we take Abu Hanifa’s? Is it acceptable to take either opinion or does one need to consider the… Continue reading Consolidating the Divergent Rulings of Imam Abū Ḥanīfah and His Students
al-Kawashif al-Jaliyyah ‘an Mustalahat al-Hanafiyyah by Shaykh ‘Abd al-Ilah al-Mulla
The following treatise is a wonderfully brief but expansive work on the terminology of the Hanafi school of law. It began as an introduction to Shaykh ‘Abd al-Ilah’s (amongst the scholars of Ahsa’) doctorate on the first volume of ‘Allamah Siraj al-Din Ibn al-Nujaym’s al-Nahr al-Fa’iq and was later expanded upon to include more terms from those… Continue reading al-Kawashif al-Jaliyyah ‘an Mustalahat al-Hanafiyyah by Shaykh ‘Abd al-Ilah al-Mulla
Categorization of Legal Rulings Within the Hanafi School
Hanafi legal rulings are divided into distinct categories which are utilized by jurists (fuqaha’) when issuing rulings and identifying superior opinions in case of apparent contradiction. Ibn ‘Abidin mentions three categories of rulings in his Sharh ‘Uqud Rasm al-Mufti and the introduction to his Radd al-Muhtar. (Sharh ‘Uqud Rasm al-Mufti 46, Radd al-Muhtar 1:37, both from Misbah 1:297) [Note that the following division… Continue reading Categorization of Legal Rulings Within the Hanafi School
Was the Fast of ‘Ashura Ever Obligatory?
Question Some scholars mention that fasting on ‘Ashura was obligatory upon the ummah before the fasts of Ramadan were made obligatory, but I have also heard that this is not true from other scholars. Can you please clarify? Answer On the issue of the obligation of the ‘Ashura fast before the obligation of the fasts… Continue reading Was the Fast of ‘Ashura Ever Obligatory?
Bilal Ali Ansari 