Ash-Shāfiʿī

Born in Gaza, Ash-Shāfiʿī grew up in Mecca and studied with Mālik in Medina.

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Ar-Risāla examines the sources and methods of legal reasoning. Al-Umm brings together his legal thought. His students transmitted teachings that became the foundation of the Shafi‘i school.

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Ar-Risāla explains how evidence grounds a ruling. Ash-Shāfiʿī examines Quran and Sunna, consensus and analogy. He also discusses conditions for accepting reports, connecting reflection on sources to the concrete legal disagreements of his time.

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His Egyptian period brought revisions to positions previously taught in Iraq. Students transmitted these developments and gradually built the Shafi‘i school. “Old” and “new” refer to this history, not to every text or opinion changing in the same way.

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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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