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No description available.

This study focuses on orthodoxy and mysticism in the religious thought of Shaikh Mul,tammad ibn Tahir al-Fattani (914/1508-986/1578), a sixteenth century Sunui Rohra scholar. Islam had persistently presented two faces: one that was shari ah­ minded and concerned with the outward, socially cognizable behaviour and anothE'r mystkal-minded, concerned with the inward, personal life of the individual. The former was the domain of the "ulama", whereas the Sufi pirs accepted the care of the latter. While there were always those who accepted the one face of Islam as genuine and mistrusted the other or even regarded it as spurious, Shaikh al-Fattani succeecded in marrying the two. He was at once both a mystic pir and an orthodox religious scholar. A biography of Mul}ammad ibn Tahir al-Fattani based on the previous works is attempted with the aim being to collect the factual information pertaining directly to the details of his life. The last years of Shaikh al-F'attani's life were devoted to his reform involvement in his community and particularly to the removal of the Mahdawiyyah thoughts of Sayyid Muhammad Jawnpuri)who had declared himself the promised Mahdi. Against this backdrop of the life account of al-Fattani elements of orthodoxy and mysticism are identified in his scholarly works. Best known for his work Majma bihar al-anwar fi gharaib al-tanzil wa lataif al-akhbir, all the extant works of the Shaikh are discussed. To understand tbe subject within the context of his ethnic identity, aspects of the Bohra community are studied . lt is shown that their occupation as merchants and a history that emphasised their ancient link to the faith of Islam were some of the factors that shaped their group identity. Religious affiliation of the Bohras is explored in detail and after examining the various religious groupings it is evident that the principal communities amongst them differ substantially in their belief systems. Muslims of Sunni Bohra descent are to be found in South Africa. The Sunni Bohra community in general and their ulama in particular are today constantly challenged to not only be devoted to orthodoxy but to sufi doctrine and discipline as well. / Religious studies / D.Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies)

No description available.

Shurayh&dotbelow; b. al-H&dotbelow;arith al-Kindi, the Successor and qad&dotbelow;i is, without a doubt, the most famous Kufan jurist prior to Ibrahim al-Nakha`i (d. 95/713). But neither Shurayh&dotbelow; nor his Kufan contemporaries left any books or written records. All information about the qad&dotbelow;i comes in the form of traditions provided by the later generations of Muslim chroniclers. These traditions do not satisfy any standard of historical verifiability; they tell us primarily and reliably only about what those later generations thought important to say about, or in the name of, Shurayh&dotbelow;. This is, nonetheless, vital information, and its importance is defined in the thesis question: what can we, by examining the traditions about Shurayh&dotbelow;, learn about the development of Islamic law? / The traditions are categorized into the following typologies, each of which is analyzed in a separate chapter: (a) biographical traditions, (b) legal theory, (c) legal ethics and procedure, (d) substantive law, (e) Shi`a juridical traditions. The analysis of the biographical traditions reveals that quite early after Shurayh&dotbelow;'s death---estimated at sometime between 76/695 and 99/718, he had evolved into a hazy figure. / In addition to providing a response to the thesis question, the conclusion seeks to answer some other questions, among them: why did Shurayh&dotbelow;, who was not the legal reasoner par excellence of his time, metamorphose into an aretological figure? Why did the Kufans seek to back-project his appointment to the time of `Umar? Based on the evidence, it is concluded that in Kufan imagery, Shurayh&dotbelow;'s legal opinions were deemed as valid as those of a Companion, and he personified the Kufan authority of "pastness."

Many works present solid biographical data on h&dotbelow;adith transmitters, offering tajrih&dotbelow; and ta`dil with respect to both personal and social background. These works have different ways of organizing their entries. Some show various classes (t&dotbelow;abaqat) of h&dotbelow;adith transmitters, e.g., T&dotbelow;abaqat of Ibn Sa'd. Others use alphabetical order. The outcome is a difference not only in structure but in contents. Some works are based on transmitters, such as those of the six canonical books of Sunni h&dotbelow;adith ; others are based specifically on the disputable qualities of the transmitters. The purpose of this thesis is to present Ibn H&dotbelow;ajar al-`Asqalani's Tahdhib al-Tahdhib, which comes as a summation of its kind and is to a large degree comprehensive. By focusing on some biographies of h&dotbelow;adith transmitters included in Tahdhib al-Tahdhib which are based on the transmission chains of four selected h&dotbelow;adiths , we hope to show Tahdhib al-Tahdhib as a independent source for assessing the validity of h&dotbelow;adith transmission chains. Moreover, by comparing the assessment of a h&dotbelow;adith transmitter found in Tahdhib al-Tahdhib to that of other works---such as Kitab al-Jarh&dotbelow; wa al-Ta`dil by Ibn Abi H&dotbelow;atim al-Razi and Mizan al-I'tidal by al-Dhahabi---we hope to appraise the position of Ibn H&dotbelow;ajar al-`Asqalani within h&dotbelow;adith criticism.

This study focuses on orthodoxy and mysticism in the religious thought of Shaikh Mul,tammad ibn Tahir al-Fattani (914/1508-986/1578), a sixteenth century Sunui Rohra scholar. Islam had persistently presented two faces: one that was shari ah­ minded and concerned with the outward, socially cognizable behaviour and anothE'r mystkal-minded, concerned with the inward, personal life of the individual. The former was the domain of the "ulama", whereas the Sufi pirs accepted the care of the latter. While there were always those who accepted the one face of Islam as genuine and mistrusted the other or even regarded it as spurious, Shaikh al-Fattani succeecded in marrying the two. He was at once both a mystic pir and an orthodox religious scholar. A biography of Mul}ammad ibn Tahir al-Fattani based on the previous works is attempted with the aim being to collect the factual information pertaining directly to the details of his life. The last years of Shaikh al-F'attani's life were devoted to his reform involvement in his community and particularly to the removal of the Mahdawiyyah thoughts of Sayyid Muhammad Jawnpuri)who had declared himself the promised Mahdi. Against this backdrop of the life account of al-Fattani elements of orthodoxy and mysticism are identified in his scholarly works. Best known for his work Majma bihar al-anwar fi gharaib al-tanzil wa lataif al-akhbir, all the extant works of the Shaikh are discussed. To understand tbe subject within the context of his ethnic identity, aspects of the Bohra community are studied . lt is shown that their occupation as merchants and a history that emphasised their ancient link to the faith of Islam were some of the factors that shaped their group identity. Religious affiliation of the Bohras is explored in detail and after examining the various religious groupings it is evident that the principal communities amongst them differ substantially in their belief systems. Muslims of Sunni Bohra descent are to be found in South Africa. The Sunni Bohra community in general and their ulama in particular are today constantly challenged to not only be devoted to orthodoxy but to sufi doctrine and discipline as well. / Religious studies / D.Litt. et Phil. (Religious Studies)

No description available.

No description available.