Born in the year 310 of the Hegira, Ibn Abī Zayd was the Sheikh of the Malikites of the Maghreb. His knowledge and mastery of the legal opinions of Imam Mālik Ibn Anas earned him the nickname of “Little Mālik” by his peers. He composed several works including his famous Risālah – a reference book among the Malikites, still studied today – in which he summarized the Malikite rite after having devoted the very first chapter to the foundations of the Muslim faith.

This chapter, also known under the name of Mouqaddimatu-r-Risālah, is one of the writings setting out the creed of the illustrious imams of the community who preceded or succeeded him, like the great Malikite scholars of Andalusia such as 'Ibn Abī Zamanīn, aṯ-Ṯalamankī or Ibn ʿAbdi-l-Barr. On the other hand, the defenders of the Sunnah did not cease, through the centuries, to teach the words of Ibn Abī Zayd in order to put forward the sound belief of the Pious Predecessors.
It is therefore with pleasure that we present to French-speaking readers the translation of Mouqaddimatu-r-Risālah commented by the eminent scholar of Medina, Sheikh ʿAbdu-l-Mouẖsin al-ʿAbbād -HafizahuLLAH-. The result is a book that is distinguished by the richness of its arguments from the Koran and the Sunnah, embellished with explanations from the highest Muslim authorities (Ibn Abī-l-ʿIzz, Ibn H̱ajar, an-Nawawī, etc.).

Imam adh-Dhahabī wrote about Ibn Abī Zayd: “The Imam, the eminent scientist, the example to follow, the jurisconsult, the scholar of the inhabitants of the Maghreb. »