Any idea when Turath Publishing's translation of Lubab sharh al kitab is coming out?

[numanthabit]

Assalamu alaikum,
In terms of content does the translation of Hidayah not have more information and topics than Quduri in general? Also they are only translating the first volume. I hope it does not end with Hajj because there are many books dealing till Hajj. What we need is the rest of the stuff. So far the translation of Hidayah dealt with marriage issues, etc. but other than that we only have Beheshti Zewar that deals with a broad spectrum of topics including Financial matters. I honestly don't see what's taking them so long. They were quick to be out with the hadith books.

Assalamu Alaikum

I would say Al Hidayah and Lubab are almost the same, as they are both commentaries of almost the same books (Mukhtasar Quduri and Bidayat al Mubtadi are almost exactly the same). Also, both are four volumes, so each volume should have around the same amount of information. However, Turath is releasing Lubab in two volumes, not four, so this release, in my opinion, would cover what the first two volumes of Lubab would cover (which would be comparable to the first two volumes of Hidayah). Then it would cover the acts of worship, along with many of the hudud. I dont really know, though, as this is all speculation.

As for why they are taking so long, I cannot say. I agree they should speed up the work.

[numanthabit]

Assalamu alaikum,
I sometimes wonder if it is not possible for students doing their classes in Darul Uloom to translate some of these works as they go along with their studies. Then in one year (maybe 2) we can have the whole syllabus translated.

That would be great. We could have works like Radd al Muhtar, Ilaa as sunan, Ahkam al Quran lil Jassas, Fath al Bari, and other works translated in no time. Maybe someone should tell them to do so. It would be well worth their time as well, because it would be a lucrative undertaking as well as the ajar they would get.

[numanthabit]

As Salamu Alaykum



I would love to see a translation of Nawawi's Minhaj at Talibin for the Shafi'i school that isnt done by an orientalist that translated not from the Arabic but from French.

How about Rawdat at talibin? That has not been translated by anyone yet. In addition, if Kitab al Umm could be translated, that would be great. I think it would be far too much to ask for a translation of al Majmu of an nawawi. But then, if tarikh at tabari was translated completely by some college professors, you never know which western specialist in Islamic law will attempt a translation. I never imagined Al Fiqh ala al Madhaahib al Arba'ah by Imam al Jaziri to be translated, but the first out of four volumes is due out in May.

[Nawawi619]

How about Rawdat at talibin? That has not been translated by anyone yet. In addition, if Kitab al Umm could be translated, that would be great. I think it would be far too much to ask for a translation of al Majmu of an nawawi. But then, if tarikh at tabari was translated completely by some college professors, you never know which western specialist in Islamic law will attempt a translation. I never imagined Al Fiqh ala al Madhaahib al Arba'ah by Imam al Jaziri to be translated, but the first out of four volumes is due out in May.

As Salamu Alaykum


The reason why I say Minhaj at Talibin is because it is the main reference mukhtasar of the Shafi'i madhhab. It would be optimal if a translation of Minhaj is done coupled with excerpts from commentaries Tuhfa al Muhtaj of Ibn Hajar al Haytami, Nihayatul Muhtaj of Ramli, as well as supercommentarties from Shirwani and others to explain Nawawi's text. Rawdat at Talibin although an important work studied in the Shafi'i school is down the totem pole when it comes to finding the soundest positions of the school. Kitab al Umm, also important would be nice to translate as a reference but not as a practical manual for everyday Shafi'is.

I think since the Hanafis are turning the heat up as far as getting their main works translated (i.e. nur al idah, quduri, hidayah, and others), it behooves the scholars of other madhahib to translate the main works of their respective schools, not so much the multivolume fatawa work but the mukhtasar and matun that are used to teach pratical fiqh to the everyday people and talib ul 'ilm.

If it were up to me and I had a team of Shafi'i scholars and translators and a publishing house, I would translate the following for the Shafi'i school along with the commentaries and contemporary glosses to help explain the text along with the arabic text:

1. Safinat an-Najah (all we have is an online translation with no commentary from sunnipath and an incomplete translation from the majmu website)

2. Muqadimah al hadramiyyah

3. Matn Abu Shujah

4. Safwat az Zubad

5. (of course) Minhaj at Talibin


I'm not saying that we shouldnt learn Arabic. But translated works help as a crutch to those still learning and help the everyday people who dont plan on becoming muftis and scholars to learn their deen properly (that is have a good translated text with the arabic facing it and have a qualified teacher explain and teach the text through avenues like sunnipath and others).

Majmu' would be a difficult project and would take whole team of translators and scholars to get that work finished. From Sh Nuh's translation of Reliance, in arabic the text in print is about 200 pages without commentary. With translation it jumped to over 600 pages. That is 3 times the size. I've seen printed editions of Majmu' run between 23 volumes to 27 volumes depending on publisher. I'm thinking that each volume is at least 300 pages or more. So we are looking at over 8,000 pages which if translated could mean over 24,000 pages (rough estimate based on the ratio of translated text to Arabic in Reliance).

[Hamood]

Assalamu alaikum,
I sometimes wonder if it is not possible for students doing their classes in Darul Uloom to translate some of these works as they go along with their studies. Then in one year (maybe 2) we can have the whole syllabus translated.

as-salamu 'alaykum,

There is no real benefit in translating those works. They are supposed to be studied in Arabic and they are not meant for the awam (laypeople). The laypeople should consult the 'ulama and rely on their fatawa. That's how it has always been.

As far as attaining basic knowledge is concerned, we need to have more works like Bahishti Zewar. Works like Bahishti Zewar simply give solutions to the masa'il based on the mufta bihi positions rather than taking the laypeople for a ride by mentioning the ikhtilafat between the imams of the madhab.

I still don't understand why some publishers are doing what they are doing. It's never a bad idea to publish Islamic texts but surely their enormous talent and skills can be used to publish works which are more relevant to the laypeople. I mention laypeople because students of knowledge shouldn't be learning from english translations in the first place!

-hamood

[numanthabit]

As Salamu Alaykum


Rawdat at Talibin although an important work studied in the Shafi'i school is down the totem pole when it comes to finding the soundest positions of the school.

Really? I thought that it was an authoritative book on the Shafi'i maddhab.

[Nawawi619]

as-salamu 'alaykum,

There is no real benefit in translating those works. They are supposed to be studied in Arabic and they are not meant for the awam (laypeople). The laypeople should consult the 'ulama and rely on their fatawa. That's how it has always been.

As far as attaining basic knowledge is concerned, we need to have more works like Bahishti Zewar. Works like Bahishti Zewar simply give solutions to the masa'il based on the mufta bihi positions rather than taking the laypeople for a ride by mentioning the ikhtilafat between the imams of the madhab.

I still don't understand why some publishers are doing what they are doing. It's never a bad idea to publish Islamic texts but surely their enormous talent and skills can be used to publish works which are more relevant to the laypeople. I mention laypeople because students of knowledge shouldn't be learning from english translations in the first place!

-hamood

As Salamu Alaykum Sidi Hamood,


I agree with you to a point that there are some books that shouldnt be translated and should be reserved for the talibul 'ilm who is seeking to become an alim or mufti.

At the same time looking at the detrioration of the ummah and the advent of Salafi style fiqh books and manuals that purport to teach according to the Quran and Sunnah yet encourage impermissible talfiq, discourage "blind following" taqlid, and other deviant issues...the traditional scholars and community need to counteract that.

As a Muslim alhamdulillah of 11 years, when I first became Muslim back in 1998, there was rarely any traditional fiqh manuals translated , let alone teachers available to teach such manuals. All the while year after year the Salafis come out with works like Fiqh us Sunnah (which is more of an ikhwani work ), pamphlet style books that teach tahara, salah, etc..and people especially new converts who dont know the difference get those books and fall into deviance.

Realizing the need, alhamdulillah in the 21st Century CE, traditional scholars especially in the west saw the need to translate some basic texts and offer classes that respond to the needs of the community. We see the growth of whitethread press, turath publishing, alhambra productions, sunni publications, etc etc putting out classical works .

We also saw the emergence of Sunnipath, Paltalk halaqas, deen intensives, rihla programs, Dar al ulums being established in America (of all places!) and UK, Zaytuna, etc etc.

This was all done because there was a need to do so. It was either learn from your local Salafi Imam who thinks Allah is physically on the throne and who teaches from Fiqh us Sunnah or not learn at all (which is all equally unacceptable).

I remember Shaykh Nuh Keller said when he translated Umdat as Salik (Reliance of the Traveller), that his translation was meant as a bandaid on a gushing wound. Sure it wont stop the bleeding completely but at least its something that is helping. That is our condition today. Yeah it isnt the best thing to translate all this stuff but would you want our fellow brothers and sisters to read fiqh us sunnah instead? or the latest dar us salam book on Fiqh?

As in my tagline whenever I post. I was never of the opinion that people can learn solely from books. That is a sure way to massive misunderstanding. What I do say is we do need translated works along with its arabic text as a crutch for those learning. but not only that, but also hav qualified advanced students and or teachers , teach and explain the text. That is why alhamdulillah I'm glad sunnipath offers Reliance of the Traveller and Quduri courses. I finished the first quarter of the text of Reliance of the Traveller alhamdulillah from sunnipath.

Online classes or even week long deen intensives are never enough for people who wish to specialize and become scholars, but its good enough, I feel for the everyday lay person who works or goes to school because they can learn their basics and get qualified answers rather than from deviant groups.

[numanthabit]

as-salamu 'alaykum,

There is no real benefit in translating those works. They are supposed to be studied in Arabic and they are not meant for the awam (laypeople). The laypeople should consult the 'ulama and rely on their fatawa. That's how it has always been.

I still don't understand why some publishers are doing what they are doing. It's never a bad idea to publish Islamic texts but surely their enormous talent and skills can be used to publish works which are more relevant to the laypeople. I mention laypeople because students of knowledge shouldn't be learning from english translations in the first place!

-hamood

Assalamu Alaikum

I humbly disagree. These works are not being translated to make scholars--obviously an aspiring scholar would need to study Arabic. However, there are people who dont have the time or ability to learn Arabic, or simply dont want to become muftis. These works are for them. I think that given the Salafi publishers' enthusiasm to release books that attempt to repudiate traditional Islam, these books are a must.

Just my opinion. Feel free to disagree...

[Nawawi619]

Really? I thought that it was an authoritative book on the Shafi'i maddhab.

As Salamu Alaykum


Don't get me wrong it is an important fiqh work of imam nawawi and I have seen Shafi'i scholars quote it as a source in their fatawa from time to time but as far as it being the main reference to find the most reliable fatwa for the school it is ranked 11th from GF Haddad's list. the primary source of ifta in the Shafi'i school is the first three books listed.


Among the fiqh books which contains most of the opinions considered "mu'tamad inda ash-shafi'iyyah" :

1) Tuhfatul Muhtaj - Ibn hajar al-haitami
2) Nihayatul-Muhtaj - Al-Ramli
3) Mughni-Muhtaj - Khatib Sharbini
4) Hasyiah qalyubi wal umairah 'ala sharhil minhaj
5) fathul Wahhab - sheikhul islam zakariyya al-ansari
6) Syarah mahalli 'ala Minhaj
7) Al-Iqna - khatib sharbini
8) Fathul-Qariib
9) I'anatut-Talibiin - Sh. Abu bakar Syata
10) Al-Majmu' - An-Nawawi
11) raudatut-talibiin - an-nawawi
12) At-tahrir - zakariyya ansari
13) fathul Jawwad
14) fatawa al-kubra
15) Syarah Ubab
16) minhajul qawim
*(13)to(16)all by ibn Hajar al-haitami
17)and of course the book by Sahibul-Madzhab al-Imam Ash-Shafie rahimahullah "Al-Umm"
18) etc.

[numanthabit]

As Salamu Alaykum


Don't get me wrong it is an important fiqh work of imam nawawi and I have seen Shafi'i scholars quote it as a source in their fatawa from time to time but as far as it being the main reference to find the most reliable fatwa for the school it is ranked 11th from GF Haddad's list. the primary source of ifta in the Shafi'i school is the first three books listed.


Among the fiqh books which contains most of the opinions considered "mu'tamad inda ash-shafi'iyyah" :

1) Tuhfatul Muhtaj - Ibn hajar al-haitami
2) Nihayatul-Muhtaj - Al-Ramli
3) Mughni-Muhtaj - Khatib Sharbini
4) Hasyiah qalyubi wal umairah 'ala sharhil minhaj
5) fathul Wahhab - sheikhul islam zakariyya al-ansari
6) Syarah mahalli 'ala Minhaj
7) Al-Iqna - khatib sharbini
8) Fathul-Qariib
9) I'anatut-Talibiin - Sh. Abu bakar Syata
10) Al-Majmu' - An-Nawawi
11) raudatut-talibiin - an-nawawi
12) At-tahrir - zakariyya ansari
13) fathul Jawwad
14) fatawa al-kubra
15) Syarah Ubab
16) minhajul qawim
*(13)to(16)all by ibn Hajar al-haitami
17)and of course the book by Sahibul-Madzhab al-Imam Ash-Shafie rahimahullah "Al-Umm"
18) etc.

Why is Kitab al Umm so low on the list? I would expect the Imam's book to be the most reliable since it is his maddhab.