Whatever ruling Imam al-Shafi`i meant when he said he preferred Arabs to marry Arabs, does not have a bearing on affirming superiority in the eyes of Allah but only with custom and on condition that those concerned are people of Taqwa. Imam al-Shafi`i never said that he would prefer a non-muttaqi Arab over a muttaqi non-Arab. It is likely, also, that what the Imam meant by "Arabs and non-Arabs" in this particular ruling was as an euphemism for free men and slaves, and this sense is also implied in the narration "There is no superiority of an Arab over a non-Arab." Meaning: of a free man over a slave or former slave, because slaves and former slaves were overwhelmingly non-Arabs since the earliest centuries in Islam. This is confirmed by the narration adduced by Ibn al-Salah in his Muqaddima on the Hadith sciences from `Ata' that the latter was asked by the Caliph Hisham ibn `Abd al-Malik in al-Rusafa:
- "O `Ata'! Do you know anything about the foremost Ulema in the world?"
- "Yes, Commander of the Believers."
- "Who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Madina?"
- "Nafi` the Mawla of Ibn `Umar [most likely a Persian according to al-Dhahabi]."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl Makka?"
- "`Ata' ibn Abi Rabah."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Yaman?"
- "Tawus ibn Kaysan."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Yamama?"
- "Yahya ibn Abi Kathir."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Sham?"
- "Makhul."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Jazira?"
- "Maymun ibn Mihran."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl Khurasan?"
- "Al-Dahhak ibn Muzahim."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "No! A Mawla."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Basra?"
- "Al-Hasan and Ibn Sirin."
- "Were they Mawlas or Arabs?"
- "No! Mawlas."
- "Then who is the Faqih of Ahl al-Kufa?"
- "Ibrahim al-Nakha`i."
- "Was he a Mawla or an Arab?"
- "An Arab!"
Hearing which, Hisham said:
- "Had you not said an Arab I think I would have expired on the spot."
Mawla is one of the addad in Arabic- words referring also to their opposites - and can mean the slave-owner, as illustrated by `Ali's word to the Ansar: "How can I be your Mawla [=owner] when you are all Arabs [= free men]?". Narrated by Ahmad with a chain of sound narrators as per al-Haythami in Majma` al-Zawa'id (9:128-129 #14610).
In this sense, what al-Shafi`i meant by his fatwa was that it is disliked for a free woman to marry a slave because it is preferable for her to bring free men and women into the world, and Allah knows best.
"Innallah hina khalaqani ja`alani min khayri khalqihi... " "When Allah created me He made me the best choice of His creation, and when He created tribes He made me come from the best of tribes, and when He created souls He made me come from the best of souls, and when He created clans He made me come from the best of them." Al-Tirmidhi and al-Bayhaqi.
The Prophet also emphasized, although his tribe and clan are the best and they are the Arabs, that being related to him, in fact, consists in obeying Allah, not in being the son of so-and-so among his relatives: "Inna Bani fulanin laysu li bi awliya, innama waliyyi Allah." "The sons of So-and-so are not (necessarily) my relatives. Allah is my Patron, and (so are) the righteous believers." This is part of emphasizing the worth of non-Arabs. The Prophet similarly emphasized that Salman al-Farisi, a Persian, was related to him.
Another hadith reads: "Hubb al-`Arab min al-iman", "The love of Arabs is from belief." But this is forged (mawdu`) according to Abu Hatim, Ibn al-Jawzi, al-Dhahabi, and others.
Bookmarks