The Pillars and Divisions of Analogy (Qiyās) in the Context of Tāj al-Dīn al-Subkī’s Jam‘ al-Jawāmi‘

Abstract

This study aims to examine the conception of qiyās, in the work Jam‘ al-Jawāmi‘ by Tāj al-Dīn al-Subkī (d. 771/1370), one of the most prominent scholars of the Mamlūk period and a leading Shāfiʿī jurist in the field of uṣūl al-fiqh. By addressing the pillars of qiyās, the conditions of the effective cause (illa), methods of identifying the illa, and the types of qiyās, the article systematically analyzes al-Subkī’s understanding of analogical reasoning. In doing so, it seeks to demonstrate how he grounds qiyās as the fourth source of Islamic law within the framework of its relationship to the Qurʾān and Sunnah (naṣṣ), ijmā‘, and aql. Although no independent study has been found that directly examines the section on qiyās in Jam‘ al-Jawāmi‘, there exists a study by Davut Eşit that addresses the conception of qiyās held by Molla Gürānī (ö. 893/1488), one of the commentators on Jam‘ al-Jawāmi‘. This indicates that scholarly works focusing specifically on al-Subkī’s own text and his treatment of qiyās remain limited. In this work, which he composed during the final period of his life, al-Subkī largely follows the earlier uṣūl al-fiqh tradition. As a result of having been authored during al-Subkī’s period of intellectual maturity, Jam‘ al-Jawāmi‘ represents one of the most comprehensive and refined expressions of his legal-theoretical thought.