Abu al-Qasim al-Rāfi'i is acknowledged as one of the most wondrous scholars within the Shafi'is school. He is credited of reviving the once dead science of
fiqh. According to
Ibn al-Subki, To fiqh, al-Rāfi'i was a full moon that the sun and the moon fled from due to his immense brilliance. When he rushed down the routes, he found wajs and transmitted qawls, making him a racehorse not to be caught by other horses. The emergence of Imam al-Rāfi'i was very significant with the reality of the development of the
madhab at that time. This is because since the death of Imam
al-Shafi'i until the time of Imam al-Rafi'i, the jurisprudential writings of the Shafi'i school have been produced in great abundance. Over the course of four centuries, the works of the scholars of the school have been scattered all over the place. The authors come from various academic and geographical backgrounds, starting from
Egypt in the west to the east reaching Central Asia or called ''Bilad Ma Wara' al-Nahr'' which today covers the countries of
Uzbekistan,
Tajikistan and southwestern
Kazakhstan. Due to the lack of modern communication technology, it is certain that the works that are produced in various forms and at different times have deficiencies that need to be corrected, whether it is a mistake in reciting a law that contradicts the proposal of a school, a successful legal practice or ijtihads that are strange (shadhdhah). He lived in the time where fiqh began to be abandoned and was in a period of division and confusion among the Shafi'i school. His appearance was considered timely when the Shafi'i school was split into two streams, namely al-Iraqiyyin and al-Khurasaniyyin who demanded an effort to integrate the two schools and unite them under the same path. Through his contribution into his school, he reviewed all the opinions of his predecessors weighing it according to the strength of the evidence, and determining its ranks. He revised the doctrine, and edited the sayings, opinions, aspects, and methods. He thoroughly investigated the approved or preferred opinion in the Shafi’i school of thought, and collected its methods in brief phrases. He had arguments and preferences for the statements according to the evidence on which he relied, and he did not limit himself to preference in matters of disagreement, but rather worked to liberate and refine the doctrine. He paved the way for those who came after him, and followed his example in the method of weighing evidences. He made additional investigations in comparative jurisprudence and complex issues of disagreement. He was a pioneer who founded many jurisprudential terminologies. He divided it into branches and organized jurisprudence in a way it would be easier for people to learn and understand. He was very knowledgeable in narrations and jurisprudential differences among the
Sahaba and those who came after them (
Tabi'in) including their interpretations of
ahadiths. He would gather all their opinions in order to strengthen each preferred position held by the school. He did this so that the work and
fatwa are based on what is most likely when the evidence is strong, since the multiplicity of sayings on a single issue may lead to the confusion of thought among the general public, and their falling into a problem or difficulties which was a common occurrence in his time. ==Reception==