Imam Shafi‘i Scholar and Saint By Kecia Ali (Oxford, UK: Oneworld, 2011. 160 pages.)

Abstract

Kecia Ali has performed a great service for Islamic studies by harmonizing
early sources with the most compelling recent scholarship to produce a biography
of Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi‘i (d. 204/820), one of Islam’s most
important figures. His life is presented in a tightly organized and lucid way,
accessible to non-specialists or undergraduates, useful for graduate students,
and a fine source of reference for scholars.
This book consists of an introduction and six chapters. The first chapter
covers his early years in Arabia, and the second discusses his transformation
from “Student to Shaykh.” Chapters 3 through 5 present al-Shafi‘i’s legal theories and methodologies, and chapter 6, the final chapter, studies the popular
cult that has grown up around him, thus delivering on the title’s promise.
Also included are three pages of suggested “Further Reading,” along with
why these works are pertinent, an invaluable extra measure that students will
find particularly helpful. Needless to say, the bibliography is long and rich,
giving a final affirmation to the author’s mastery of her subject.
Throughout her study, Ali exhibits an acute awareness of the ideological
agendas of the early biographers who have shaped perceptions of the imam.
Her critical approach to traditional reports concerning his formative years (the
oft-referenced Bedouin years, for example) allows her to question without
discarding altogether some of the more famous episodes in his life. She ultimately
suggests that what is most crucial for our understanding of al-Shafi‘i’s
development was his encounter with Malik and his thought, an engagement
so deep that he almost certainly had to have spent at least ten years under the
elder scholar’s tutelage. These critical years laid the groundwork for the
scholar he would become ...