In the Sight of God: Nobody Dies Alone: Exploring Maghrebi Nawāzil Literature on Grief and Mourning

Caught between the devastating spread of the Black Death and the oppressive winds of the Catholic Inquisition, 14th and 15th century North Africa faced multifaceted crises. In this volatile environment, themes of grief, mourning, and exile emerged as central concerns within the intellectual literature of the period. Muslim scholars were not immune to these challenges, as exemplified by the renowned biographer and muḥaddith al-Sakhāwī (d. 1497 CE). Residing in plague-stricken Mamluk Cairo, al-Sakhāwī was profoundly affected by the death of his young child, which culminated in his work Easing the Turmoils of the Heart Through the Soulful Presence of Children. In this treatise, he reflects on the grief of losing children and offers solace to bereaved parents by discussing relevant religious teachings, prophetic narrations, and personal reflections.

Meanwhile, in the far-west North African city of Fez, the esteemed jurist al-Wansharīsī (d. 1508) began compiling centuries of fatwas from regional Maliki madhhab scholars that addressed real-life scenarios requiring navigation of contemporary cultural, social, and legal challenges. These fatāwā include cases concerning unconventional funeral rites for unclaimed bodies and the treatment of individuals fleeing persecution.

This paper draws from a rich tradition of Maliki legal responsa (nawāzil) and condolence (taʿziyya) literature to investigate how jurists navigated the delicate balance between religious duty, public order, and the ambiguous status of marginalized groups. By exploring North African fatwa literature—with a focus on al-Wansharīsī, Mawwāq (d. 1492), and al-Qūrī (d. 1467)—we illuminate how these scholars addressed the sociological and religious dimensions of grief and mourning for individuals marginalized from accepted social or political frameworks. We can then also demonstrate how the practice of fiqh (iftā) functions as sociological practice. approaching fatāwā as lived texts illustrates that legal literature provides insights not only into legal debates but also into the sociological mind of the legal scholar.