An Evaluation of Asad b. al-Furāt's al-Asadiyya

Abstract: Although Mālik's understanding of fiqh developed largely in the context of Muwaṭṭa’, i.e., narration-centred, until the end of the second century AH, it began to take on a ra’y-centred character as a result of Asad b. al-Furāt's efforts. Since the Mālikīs were not yet familiar with the ra’y-centred understanding of fiqh at that time, al-Asadiyya was subject to some criticism in the early period, but along with al-Mudawwana, the narrations were added to the work, bringing it closer to their style, and thus the fiqh of Mālik began to develop as ra’y-centred. The most significant person in this change and transformation is Asad b. al-Furāt. This is because he determined the questions in the works written according to ahl al-Kūfa and then, together with Ibn al-Qāsim, wrote down Mālik's understanding of fiqh based on ra'y. Therefore, the questions of whether ahl al-Kūfa had an influence on the formation of al-Asadiyya and what was Asad’s contribution to the formation of al-Mudawwana are important questions for our study. In this study, I will try to explore the answers to these questions based on the historical record and some similarities between al-Mudawwana and al-Aṣl.