Life, Scholarly Character, and Works of Taqī al-dīn al-Subkī

Abstract

Taqī al-dīn al-Subkī (d. 756/1355), lived in the Turkish-Mamluk homeland and witnessed many events in that period; after him, he raised great scholars such as his son Taqī al-dīn al-Subkī, who was an important Shāfiʿī scholar. He had worked in different fields of Islamic sciences such as fiqh, hadith, kalam, tafsir, qiraat, lugat and had also had intellectual sciences. However, his main area of specialization was the science of usūl al-fiqh and furū al-fiqh, and he was also a mujtahid. Al-Subkī's has been a pioneer for future generations with his studies in usūl and furū al-fiqh. He trained many scholars by working as a teacher in different madrasahs of important centers of knowledge such as Cairo and Damascus. At the same time, he was appointed to the levels of the state administration and was promoted to the rank of chief qādīs (chief judge), which was the highest authority of the scientific class of that period.  In this study, al-Subkī's life and his scientific personality, teachers, students and works of al-Subkī's, who lived in a brilliant period of Islamic law and history where hıs works were introduced which had a great impact on the scholars who came after him. In addition, what scholars who were contemporaries of al-Subkī's said about him, what they wrote about him, and their memories are included. Due to al-Subkī's position as a mujtahid jurist within the sect and his authoritative position within the Shāfiʿī sect, his jurisprudence in opposition to or confirmation of his sect has also been presented. This article is a biography of Taqī al-dīn al-Subkī, who was born in 683/1284, died in 756/1355 and lived for seventy-one years. He is a member of the "Subkiyya" family, which has historically produced a large number of scientist and scholars from grandpa to grandson. This will become clear to everyone who examines the lives of his father and his kids. With his father, he began his education at an early age. Since he started his education at a young age with his father, his first teacher was his father. His enthusiasm for reading and learning became more and more evident as he grew older. He made his first journey of knowledge from his native village of Subkulabîd to Cairo, the capital of the Turkish Mamluk Sultanate. Cairo stood as the caliphate's capital and the scientific hub of the Islamic world in 650/1252. A lot of scholars were forced to relocate to Cairo after the Mongols invaded and persecuted Baghdad. The most potent Islamic State of the time, the Turkish Mamluks, served as a roof over the Islamic globe. Throughout his education, he studied in many madrasahs and received knowledge from Sayf al-dīn al-Āmidī and many other instructors, and he learned rational and narrative sciences such as fiqh, hadith, tafsir, kalam, mysticism, usūl, and logic. His mental faculties were so robust that he had no trouble memorizing the texts he read. In our essay, we've shown instances of this. After completing his education, he received authorization to teach knowledge and educate students. In fact, his scholarly level rose to such an extent that he became a mujtahid, the authority of fatwa in the Shāfiʿī madhhab. Having knowledge of his standing, the state elders appointed him to a high-ranking state position, such qād al-qudāt. Furthermore, he trained numerous scholars in madrasas of significant importance in Islamic history and was bestowed with the chair of knowledge in numerous madrasas, including the Shamiyya Madrasah. One of the most important of these scholars he trained was his own son, Taj al-dīn al-Subkī. Describing this incident with the aphorism “a son sees his father ride a horse, a daughter sees her mother set the table” would be quite appropriate. He lived a modest life free from fame and arrogance, even though he was highly knowledgeable and was recognized and heard by leaders and the country at large. From our perspective, his current status can be attributed to the sincere application of the knowledge he acquired to his life. In light of all of this, the fact that this al-Subkī's the subject of our inquiry in 2024 is among the most obvious signs that al-Subkī's has accomplished a great lot. Even to this day, experts continue to read and analyze hundreds of his writings with great attention. His life philosophy was to live simply and without ostentation. A scholar who committed his life to learning, teaching, and knowledge, he passed away in Cairo in 756/1355. At his funeral, thousands of his loved ones gathered in what could be described as a stampede, sending him off in prayer to the hereafter. Those who read the topics we have summarized here and those we will mention in our article, such as his life, his family, his education, his teachers, his students, his legal and administrative duties, his death, his competence in Islamic sciences, his works, the opinions of his contemporaries about him, excerpts from his life, and his jurisprudence will have a detailed knowledge about Taqī al-dīn al-Subkī.