Al-Birmawi's Gloss on Fath al-Wahhab fi Sharh Manhaj al-Tullab

Author: Ibrahim ibn Muhammad al-Birmawi al-Shafi'i

Praise be to Allah, who made jurisprudence in religion a path for His saints and a way for His chosen ones, through which they clarify rulings and expound on the laws of Islam.

Thereafter, among the most important books of the Shafi'i school is "Sharh al-Manhaj" by Sheikh al-Islam Zakariya al-Ansari, may Allah have mercy on him. He abridged "Kitab al-Minhaj" by al-Nawawi, then expanded and clarified it in his commentary, truly making it a methodology in both its abridgement and commentary. Consequently, many glosses and annotations were written on it. Among the most significant of these glosses is the commentary by Sheikh Ibrahim al-Birmawi, may Allah have mercy on him, the Sheikh of Al-Azhar Mosque. This is the gloss from which the esteemed scholars Al-Jamal, Al-Bujairmi, and others quoted. We are pleased to present the first printing of this gloss, meticulously verified against three manuscript copies, one of which belongs to the author's son, Ahmad ibn Sheikh Ibrahim al-Birmawi.

The editor – may Allah reward him – reviewed the sources from which Sheikh al-Birmawi quoted, such as Al-Tuhfa, Al-Nihaya, Sharh al-Rawd, and other major books of the Shafi'i school, until the book emerged in this splendid form. We ask Allah Almighty to make it beneficial, just as He made its original beneficial, for He is the guardian and the capable of that.