Authors · Islamic scholarship
Ibn Qudāma al-Maqdisī
عبد الله بن أحمد ابن قدامة المقدسي
541–620 AH
Born in Jammāʿīl near Nablus, Ibn Qudāma moved to Damascus with his family and later studied in Baghdad.
At a glance
- Law and argument
- Al-Mughnī · المغني
- Al-Mughnī starts from a Hanbali legal text to develop evidence and disagreements.
Timeline
- 541 AHBirth
- 620 AHDeath
Biographical overview
- Full name
- Muwaffaq ad-Dīn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Aḥmad ibn Qudāma
- Arabic name
- عبد الله بن أحمد ابن قدامة المقدسي
- Birth
- 541 AH
- Death
- 620 AH
Life and education
Born in Jammāʿīl near Nablus, Ibn Qudāma moved to Damascus with his family and later studied in Baghdad.
Sources [1]
Understanding the work
Al-Mughnī presents Hanbali positions alongside the arguments of other jurists. ʿUmdat al-fiqh is a shorter manual, while Rawḍat an-nāẓir addresses legal theory.
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Method and contribution
Al-Mughnī starts from a Hanbali legal text to develop evidence and disagreements. Ibn Qudāma presents other schools’ positions and reasons for his preferences. A commentary thereby becomes a comparative inquiry, beyond word-by-word explanation.
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Transmission and legacy
His books offer several entry points into Hanbali law. ʿUmdat al-fiqh is shorter than Al-Mughnī, while Rawḍat an-nāẓir concerns reasoning tools. This complementarity supported teaching: knowing a book’s level helps readers approach debates with the necessary concepts.
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A guide to reading
Identify the question and the author’s legal school. Distinguish the quoted evidence, its interpretation and the preferred ruling. Technical discussions often require prior knowledge: definitions and other schools’ arguments clarify the reasoning without making every position a unanimous consensus.
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Selected works
Al-Mughnī · المغني
Law and argumentLegal questions, evidence and discussion of juristic positions.
ʿUmdat al-fiqh · عمدة الفقه
Law and argumentA concise presentation of legal rules for study.
Rawḍat an-nāẓir · روضة الناظر
Law and argumentA study of legal sources and methods of interpretation and inference.
Biographical sources and references
References for further reading on the life and works of Ibn Qudāma al-Maqdisī: