Ummu Seleme's as a faqih and the effect of her narration on Islamic law

The role of the companions in the formation of Islamic law is undeniably significant.Because the companions lived with Prophet , they witnessed the revelation of the Qur'an, observed the Prophet's life, and were able to ask him any questions that came to their minds, thus ensuring the transmission of knowledge to the present day.While all the companions had knowledge of fiqh, it cannot be said that every individual among them had an equal level of fiqh knowledge.Because some of the companions were constantly with Prophet Muhammad day and night, while others were busy and therefore couldn't spend as much time with him.As a result, the knowledge accumulation of the companions who couldn't spend much time with the Prophet was not as extensive as the knowledge accumulation of the Companions who remained with the Prophet.Among the companions, the wives of Prophet Muhammad were the ones who spent the most time with him, directly witnessing his words, actions, and most importantly, the revelation of the Qur'an. They were the ones who had the most extensive knowledge due to their direct exposure to the Prophet's teachings.Because when we look at both Islamic history books and hadith collections, as well as exegesis works, we see that the Companions often sought fatwas from Umm Salama and sometimes from other wives of the Prophet.Therefore, we decided to write this thesis because we believe that it is worth investigating the legal personality, fatwas, and narrations used as evidence by all four Sunni schools of jurisprudence of Umm Salama, who stood out with her jurisprudential knowledge among the wives of Prophet Muhammad.In our thesis, we first briefly discuss the life of Umm Salama. Then, we explain the narrations attributed to her and the legal methods she employed when transmitting these narrations. Afterward, we examine which of the four Sunni schools of jurisprudence used Umm Salama's narrations as evidence. Finally, we conclude our thesis by discussing Umm Salama's influence on Islamic jurisprudence.Although Umm Salama's narrations can be found in many sources, in our thesis, we specifically focus on her legal narrations found in the Kutub al-Sittah (the six major hadith collections). We discuss how these narrations are evaluated and examine which of the four major Sunni schools of jurisprudence—Hanafi, Shafi'i, Hanbali, and Mâlikî—use Umm Salama's narrations as evidence to derive legal rulings and their implications on Islamic jurisprudence.Umm Salama, her narrations and the legal opinions she provided shed light on many jurisprudential issues. Particularly, by addressing numerous questions, especially those concerning the specific situations of women, she highlighted her juridical expertise. In doing so, she ensured the transmission of the Sunnah and legal rulings to future generations.