The concept of "Manat" in usul al-fiqh

The aim of this study, titled "The Concept of Manat in Usûl al-Fiqh," is to reveal the nature of the concept of manat in the literature of usûl al-fiqh and its reflections in furu' al-fiqh; especially to examine the relationship between manat and the illa'. Because in the studies on the subject, it has been observed that the concept of manat is subject to examination either in the context of its relationship with ijtihad or by considering the parts of the manat in the form of articles. However, these are also very limited in number and they do not provide information about when the manat first appeared, what its relationship with the illa' was and for what purpose it was used. In our study, these cases were examined and the basic sources of the Mutakallimûn school and the works that have been classified according to the Mamzûc school have been taken as a basis. Because the concept of manat and the triple division of this concept were not encountered in the literature of the Fuqahâ school of the classical period. However, in order to reveal the historical process of the concept of manat, it has been tried to benefit from the first and classical period of usul-i fiqh works belonging to both Fuqahâ and Mutakallimûn schools and the famous ones of their commentaries and annotations. If the opinions of the methodologists in the mentioned works differ, they are presented separately, and in the areas where they overlap, these opinions are given together. In addition, the differences between the concepts are mentioned and the points where they differ are briefly touched upon. Besides, the concepts that are directly related to the subject are included and the meanings pointed out are tried to be evaluated by comparing them with other concepts that are in close relationship with these definitions. Finally, according to the findings reached in this study, it has been observed that the methodologists use manat not only in the narrow sense of the illa', but also in a broad and comprehensive sense, including the place of ijtihad, sabab, hikmah and hukm and its meaning has expanded over time. Keywords: Islamic Law, Illa', Manat, Tankih al-manat, Tahrij al-manât, Tahqiq al-manat