Muhammad Bakhit al-Muti'i محمد بخيت المطيعي | |
|---|---|
| Personal life | |
| Born | 1271 A.H. = 1856 A.D. |
| Died | 1354 A.H. = 1935 A.D. |
| Nationality |  Egypt |
| Main interest(s) | Aqidah,Kalam (Islamic theology),Tawhid,Fiqh (Islamicjurisprudence),Usul al-Fiqh,Hadith studies,Tafsir,Logic,Philosophy |
| Notable work(s) | Tathir al-Fu'ad min Danas al-I'tiqad |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Denomination | Sunni |
| Jurisprudence | Hanafi |
| Creed | Maturidi |
| Muslim leader | |
Influenced | |
Muhammad Bakhit al-Muti'i (1854 or 1856 — 1935) was theGrand Mufti ofEgypt,judge in the Shari'a Courts,rector ofal-Azhar, and one of the leadingHanafi-Maturidi scholars of his time. He was educated atal-Azhar and was teaching in this university for several years. In 1914 he was appointed mufti, a title he held for seven years. He was known as the bitterest foe of the Islamic Reform movement led byJamal al-Din al-Afghani andMuhammad 'Abduh. He was also known as a devout scholar who chose to lose his position as mufti rather than bow to government pressure to issue a particularfatwa.[1]
Bakhit studied at al-Azhar and taught there from 1875 to 1880, when he was appointedqadi (Muslim judge) ofQalyubiyya, after which he served as a judge in various provincial centers,Alexandria, andCairo. He was appointed Grand Mufti of Egyp on 21 December 1914, serving until 1921. He opposedMuhammad 'Abduh's reforms at al-Azhar, issued a fatwa (Muslim legal opinion) to warn Muslims againstbolshevism (presumably meaning politically inspired violence) in the midst of the1919 Revolution, and took conservative stands on such issues as thetranslation of the Quran,women's rights, and the abolition of familyawqaf. After he ceased to be the Grand Mufti, he attacked severely'Ali 'Abd al-Raziq's al-Islam wa Usul al-Hukm (Islam and the Principles of Rule).[2]
He was born in the village of al-Muti'ah inAsyut Governorate. He studiedHanafifiqh at al-Azhar from 1865 to 1875 and was among those who heard al-Afghani lecturing privately in the Muski district inCairo. In 1880 he was appointedqadi, and in 1892 he was made Shari'a Legal Supervisor for theMinistry of Justice. The following year he became president of the al-Mahkama al-Shar'iyya (Shari'a Court) inAlexandria, whereupon he was transferred to the Cairo court and became president of its technical council. He was finally appointed President of the Cairo al-Mahkama al-Shar'iyya al-'Ulya, in succession to the 'Abd Allah Jamal al-Din, who went withHassunah al-Nawawi to theKhedive in Alexandria. In 1915, he was appointed Grand Mufti of Egypt by the new SultanHusayn Kamil.[Note 1]
Among his most celebrated students was'Abdullah al-Ghumari.[4]
He published numerous treatises onIslamic law andtheology.[5]
Among his well-known writings are:
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
