For students of Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), few texts carry the weight and authority of Al-Hidayah fi Sharh Bidayat al-Mubtadi (The Guidance). Written by the great Hanafi jurist Burhan al-Din al-Marghinani (d. 1197 CE), this book has been the backbone of Hanafi fiqh curriculum for over 800 years.

However, accessing a reliable English version—especially a free PDF—requires careful navigation. Here is everything you need to know. Al-Hidayah is not a beginner’s primer. It is a commentary (sharh) on the author’s own earlier work, Bidayat al-Mubtadi . It compiles rulings derived from the Qur’an, Sunnah, and reasoned opinion (ijtihad) according to the Hanafi school. al-hidayah book english pdf