English-only Madhab followers...where do you get your fiqh from?

[Ibrahim ibnImran]

Love it or hate it...neither me or my family have ever followed a madhab (we've always been "ahl-e-hadith" for generations). I actually viewed following a madhab somewhat undesirably until just a few years ago when I started to learn more, alhamdulillah . Before this gets too off topic (maybe i'll make another thread)...I wanted to ask those non-arabic speakers who are following a madhab:

What books and other resources do you use to follow your madhab??

There don't seem to too many books in english. Or am I wrong? Fill me in!

The reason why I'm asking is that, if following a madhab in english means wandering from website to website, fatwa to fatwa, shaykh to shaykh...then doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of following a madhab in the first place? Or am I wrong about that too?




*brothers & sisters, please try to stay on topic...

[kako12]

Originally Posted by Ibrahim

What books and other resources do you use to follow your madhab??

I am hanafi and in madrassa i have studied Shorot Salah, Qudoori , Noor ul Idah. These should cover the basics of fasting , salah, hajj , zakah , inheritance and many more issues. All the above mentioned books were in arabic with pashto tsanslation.

Originally Posted by Ibrahim

There don't seem to too many books in english. Or am I wrong? Fill me in!

There are alot of books in english that explain key fiqh issues. There are fatawa books that have been published in english that deal with most of the contemorary issues. I have seen the english version of Noor ul Idah. There is another book called " Key Proofs in Hanafi Fiqh" another good resource for fiqh issues.
I do not know how wandering around to get answers to your queries has anything to do with following a madhab.

[Atif]

SubhanAllah, I think about this everyday...

Yes, there are plenty of books in English for the Hanafi and Shafi'i madhabs, but sometimes you have to "avoid the appendices". This is especially troublesome with a summary text (matn) that has no proofs, because you ask yourself "Is this based on an authentic hadeeth....or something else??".

As for the books/resources on the Hanafi madhab:
-Matn: Essential Islamic Knowledge, Absolute Essentials of Islam, Pearls of Purification
-With Evidences: Fiqh al-Imam, Nur al-Idah, Al-Fiqh al-Islami, Hidayah Vols. 1 and 2

Shafi'i madhab:
-Matn: Al-Maqasid
-With Evidences: Reliance of the Traveler

Is Bulugh Al-Maram a Shafi'i Book?

I haven't seen every book, so I don't know if every book has problems...but we need to get the message across to the shuyookh and book publishers to publish a matn (based on a madhab) that doesn't have problems with it.
The scholars say that a student should memorize a matn of a madhab, then learn it's evidences, and then go from there to a higher level. But because of this kind of situation (with the English matns), it may be best to skip to a book that has evidences, or least a complement a matn with an evidence book.....Allah knows best.

tons of hanafi fiqh texts in english at al rashad books. also you can get fiqh answers from sunnipath.

Originally Posted by Atif

The scholars say that a student should memorize a matn of a madhab, then learn it's evidences, and then go from there to a higher level. But because of this kind of situation (with the English matns), it may be best to skip to a book that has evidences, or least a complement a matn with an evidence book.....Allah knows best.

learning arabic should be in there somewhere.

[Basil]

I have Reliance of the Traveler and generally go by what I hae read in translations of Quran, Bukhari and Muslim. I am rapidly giving less and less credence to Reliance of the Traveler due to the sketchy sufi business Keller put into the back. I really want to learn Arabic (seems like I have no time anymore since I got my new job).

As a side: does anybody know if any of the books on shafii fiqh by Imam Nawawi have been translated to English?

[Ibn Abi Ukhti]

بسم الله الرحمان الرحيم
وعليكم السلام و رحمة الله و بركاته

There are quite a few classical books on different madhahib that have translated such as:

1) Bulugh al Maraam Fee Adillatil Ahkhaam (shafi'i) by al Hafidh Ibn Hajar AL Asqalaani رحمه الله
(basically a book for shafi'i madhhab containing their proofs thus not exactly a fiqh book)
2) Mukhtasar Al Quduri (hanafi) by Imam Al Quduri رحمه الله
3) Al Risalah (maliki) by Imam Ibn Abi Zayd Al Qayrawani رحمه الله
4) 'Umdatul Fiqh (hanbali) by Al Muwwafaq Ibn Qudaamah Al Maqdisee رحمه الله (partially translated)

[Adib Contractor]

There's also alMuwatta of Imam Muhammad ibn Hasan ashShaybani in Hanafi fiqh, with proofs.

[Ibrahim ibnImran]

JazaakumAllahu Khair everyone for your input!!

Keep going!


For those who mentioned Bulugh al Maram...subhanAllah I found that very suprising. I've never considered that a Shafi'ee book (even though it was compiled by Ibn Hajar[rh] ). In fact, that's exactly the book I studied from with some of my teachers...I've always considered it a hardcore ahlul hadith book.
-no fatwas/rulings are given
-there's nothing in the book other than ahadith
-->there's no way it could possibly be used for taqleed

MashaAllah, a beautiful book though indeed. Ibn Hajar[rh] arranged the ahadith in such an amazing and skillful way! mashaAllah.

[Asha]

Originally Posted by Ibrahim

What books and other resources do you use to follow your madhab??

Good question, I would also like to know english resources on the shafiee madhab.

jazakhAllahu Kheir