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To Ibn Saadi's letter on the principles

Author's name: Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al-Saadi

Explained by Sheikh Abdullah Al-Fawzan

the introduction

In the name of the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, seek His aid, and ask for His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our own souls and the wickedness of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide, and whomsoever He misguides, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and his followers.

Now then:

The science of the principles of jurisprudence is a science of great value, abundant in benefit and extreme importance, because it is the foundation of the Islamic sciences, and no interpreter, hadith scholar, or jurist can do without it. Indeed, the culture of the Muslim student is not complete without it, because it is the aid - with God’s help - to understand the texts and derive rulings. Ibn Taymiyyah, may God be pleased with him, said: “The purpose of the principles of jurisprudence is to understand the intention of God and His Messenger through the Book and the Sunnah.” (1) Therefore, the scholars exhausted their efforts and devoted their time to establishing its principles and branching out its branches, and it became numerous.

There are books with different approaches and multiple characteristics. However, it is noted that most of the books on principles are difficult to express, which makes the student of principles struggle to understand its issues and clarify its expressions. Therefore, the efforts of some scholars - especially contemporary ones - have been directed towards simplifying the principles, deleting what is useless, and writing it in a style

Clear, with clarity of moderation in explaining its issues and providing sufficient examples that are the rule; because this is the goal of the science of principles.

This letter that we have with us was written by the scholar of Qassim, Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Nasser Al Saadi, who died in the year 1376 AH, may God bless him. It is characterised by the following: the ease of its words and the clarity of its meanings, and it is...

1 - It is clear in all of the Sheikh’s works, such as “Tafsir,” “Sharh Umdat Al-Ahkam,” “Al-Mukhtarat Al-Jaliyya wa Bahjat Qulub Al-Abarar,” “Tawdih Al-Kafiya Al-Shafiyya,” and other works.

2 - His concern with the rules and regulations. The message from beginning to end is full of fundamental issues and jurisprudential rules. This is an approach that the Sheikh followed in a number of his books, such as: “The Jurisprudential Rules,” “The Comprehensive Rules and Principles,” and others.

3 - It is a concise message that is comprehensive and covers the intended meaning. It is needed by the novice seeker, and is indispensable for the advanced seeker. For this reason, it has been stripped of its right to proof and illustration.

4 - It included issues that may not be found in most books of principles, and perhaps one of the reasons for that is that he benefited from the principles of Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and his student Ibn al-Qayyim - may God have mercy on them - which were spread throughout their books. The Sheikh had a clear interest in the books of Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and his student Ibn al-Qayyim, and this is evident to anyone who contemplates or reads his writings.

I had chosen this thesis to be taught in some summer academic courses1, including: The Second Academic Course of the Rightly-Guided Caliph Ali bin Abi Talib Allah, which was held in the Taiba Al-Nasr Allah Mosque in the Sabah Al-Salem suburb in the State of Kuwait - may God protect it - due to its simplicity, brevity, and usefulness. I explained it in a style that suited it, not too long and boring, nor too short and inefficient, with attention to sufficient examples. A number of brothers - including those in charge of the aforementioned course - asked me to print its explanation for the benefit of beginner students, so I wrote it and added some useful information and examples. This thesis is similar to the gentle thesis that the Sheikh wrote on the principles, and this thesis contains important issues that were absent from the first thesis, including:

1 - Nine issues related to the rules of words.

2- The issue of confusing what is permissible with what is forbidden.

3- The issue of the narrator contradicting his narration.

4 - Conditions of work in the concept of violation.

5- The issue of whether a preferred action may become virtuous for reasons.

I have included the hadiths that I have mentioned in the explanation, adhering to brevity, and I have not attributed many of the issues, so as not to burden the book with unnecessary footnotes. The Sheikh had been satisfied with the abstract chapters between the topics, so I placed side headings in the explanation before the fundamental issues to facilitate their understanding and comprehension.

Finally, I hope that if the honorable reader sees in what I have written a slip of the pen or a lapse of understanding, he will write it to me, thank you and be rewarded, so that I can avoid that in the future, for the ear is all ears and the chest is open, and what a person writes is subject to criticism and criticism, mistakes and corrections, so shortcomings are possible and errors do exist. I ask Allah Almighty to make my work righteous and sincere to Him, and to benefit from it as it benefited from its origin, and to grant us beneficial knowledge and acceptable work, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His servant and messenger, our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and companions and those who follow him in righteousness until the Day of Judgment.

And his books

Abdullah bin Saleh Al-Fawzan

Qassim - Buraidah P.O. Box 12370 Zip Code 81999