Introduction to the history of the science of the roots of jurisprudence in North Morocco

Since my immersion in the sanctuary of the science of the fundamentals of jurisprudence, I have been battling my longing for it, suffering from researching it, and my enthusiasm turns entirely toward writing about the history of this science in the northern Moroccan region, and I look forward to something new that has not been woven into its fabric. After long journeys of wandering the pen in the sciences of Sharia, I have grown tired of repetition and what is stale, except what I am compelled to write (academic) which people have engaged with and clung to in various ways of treatment, yet I find myself keen on embellishing it with benefits and gains. The truth is that the scientific history of the north of Morocco has not received optimal attention that matches the justified efforts of its scholars in classification and teaching, and raising the foundations of Islamic education in cities and rural areas. Pages of this history remain hidden in the depths of forgetfulness due to the laxity of researchers’ ambitions and the difficulty of approaching the biographies of obscure teachers; some of them preferred isolation in remote villages, hiding their news and circumstances from people. When you seek a biography from them, they make excuses, claiming they are students of knowledge not deserving of mention among the greats, often fearing hypocrisy or shunning fame’s allure! And if you are surprised, then be amazed that some descendants of scholars are stingy with those seeking to care for their ancestors’ heritage and reveal their buried genius. And this stinginess — if they knew — is a kind of disobedience and denial! The history of the science of the fundamentals of jurisprudence in the north of Morocco is a forgotten, overlooked part, of which we know only what biographical books generously mention about scholars who taught the science of the fundamentals or engaged in classification in it. This situation does not exclude major cities like Tetouan and Tangier, which necessitates — and must — to intensify research into the historical fundamentals of the region, to clarify the contribution of its sons in the circles of study and classification arts. Among them are those blessed with abundant grace, broad capacity, and ease with the pen, deserving both recognition and gratitude. From the northern cities whose fundamental history has been neglected and the role of their scholars in study and teaching overlooked are: Chefchaouen, Al-Qasr al-Kabir, Al-Qasr al-Maghrib, Asilah, Larache, Wazan, Nador, and Al-Hoceima. I had hoped for an informative material to be gained from the book "Famous Scholars of Religious Institutes in the Cities of Northern Morocco," and to be used to illuminate some aspects of the forgotten history, but I only found two references, which are neither enough nor satisfying! Amid this neglect, it has become an obligatory duty to write an introduction to the history of the science of the fundamentals of jurisprudence in the northern region, as a reminder to researchers of the Moroccan brilliance of its sons, and an encouragement for them to fully explore this brilliance and venture into its unknown depths. The goal is to stimulate interest and alert those with pens to a modest research obligation. As for thorough investigation and detailed coverage, that is a task only university theses can fulfill. This introduction is a small door through which researchers can enter to complete the structure and adorn it.