As-Salāmu ‘Alaykum,
Bismillāh,
Dr. Muḥammad Bāzmūl, may Allāh protect him, said:
[The Third Stage]
After the era of the Companions, there came the era of their Students (al-Tābi’īn), those who upheld the fiqh of the Companions. They spoke based on what they heard from the Companions.
What’s unique about the era of the Companions and their Followers is that this is the era wherein the scope of fiqh expanded and spread to many countries. The reason for this is that the Companions had spread-out in the world due to Islamic conquests, causing the area of Islamic countries to expand.
Therefore, some of the Companions resided in al-Shām, some of them resided in al-‘Irāq, some of them remained in al-Madīnah, some of them resided in Makkah, and some of them resided in Miṣr (i.e., Egypt). They also separated and spread within these [very] countries.
As a result, in every country there was a Companion, a beaming light of fiqh and knowledge, disseminating that which he learned from the Messenger of Allāh, may Allāh exalt his mention and grant him safety. He would also spread that which he had of his own knowledge, basing it on diligent analyses of evidences.
This is exactly how you find their Followers as well, the students of the Companions. Indeed, they were spread throughout every country disseminating the knowledge of their teachers, the Companions, those whom they took [their religion] from. (1)
To be continued, in shā Allāh…
The Growth and Development of Fiqh, Pt: [1]
Strengthen Your Understanding:
1. What is the name of a Companion’s follower/student?
2. Why did Islamic fiqh spread during the era of the Companions and their Students?
3. Name some countries in which the Companions resided.
Translated by:
Abū Ādam Jamīl Finch
Umm al-Qurā University, Faculty of Sharī’ah
Makkah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
24th of Rabī’ al-Awwal 1433/February 16, 2012
(1) Muḥammad Bāzmūl, Introductions to Islamic Fiqh, 17, [Dār al-Istiqāmah]
