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Shariah: The Art of Living Together
Islamic Law
The Meaning of Shariah…
When we hear the word “Shariah” we often assume the meaning to be Islamic Law. This definition is true; however, it is true only in the sense of a discipline of study or a greater umbrella term to designate the area of the sciences where Muslims go to answer the question, “How ought God want me, as a Muslim, to act?” To answer this question, Muslims have come up with an entire science or area of study to figure out what is it that pleases God and what should do to gain that pleasure and what should we do to avoid His displeasure.
The literal meaning of Shariah…
Shariah literally means a way to the watering-place or a path apparently to seek felicity and salvation.
The word occurs only once in the Quran.
Since shariah is a path to religion, it is primarily concerned with a set of values that are essential to Islam and the best manner of their protection.
The Objectives Islamic Law Aims to Preserve are:
Religion
Life
Intellect
Progeny
Wealth/Economic Justice
And most scholars include: Human Dignity
Having these objectives means that the entirety of shariah or Islamic Law works to uphold these main components of human life. If an act does not uphold these objectives, then the act does not seem to be inline with the objectives of the shariah.
Main Content of Islamic Law
The Issues that Islamic law deals with are focused on these main content areas:
Ritual Observances and/or Devotional Matters, ex. Five Pillars of Islam: Testimony of Faith, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat, Haj.
Justice or Civil Transactions: Concerned with the manner in which God Most High wants His creatures to be treated , ex. Commercial Law, Family Law, Penal Law, Civic Law
Five Categorizations of Acts
Acts are categorized in five different categories. People try to reduce their understanding of how God views human acts to simply the forbidden and the obligatory, but Islamic Law is much more than that. The other three categories make up a greater amount of the law creating a very complex system that takes nuance and devotion to fully appreciate.
All human actions can be placed into one of these five categories and Muslims believe that God rewards and punishes accordingly; however, God also forgives and rewards with His mercy:
Obligatory Acts or Fard
If done, receives the reward of God and if not done receives a sin. Ex. Fasting in Ramadan.
Recommended Acts or Mustahab
If done, receives the reward of God and if not done no sin is received. Ex. Giving Charity.
Neutral Acts or Mubah
Neither reward or sin. The largest category. Ex. Usually everyday things like the color of clothing you choose to wear, becoming a teacher, shopping at trader joes versus wholefoods…
Reprehensible but not Forbidden Acts or Makruh
If done, then no sin. If not done, then rewarded. Ex. Some scholars include smoking in this category.
Forbidden Acts or Haram
If done, then sin. If not done, then reward. Ex. Not Drinking Alcohol at a business meeting.
Fiqh
Fiqh is Islamic Jurisprudence or interpretive legal lens to evaluate the shariah or Quran and Sunnah.
It is the actual human understanding of the Quran and Sunnah and the methods used to derive and categorize the actual rulings of Islamic Law.
When Muslims say the shariah is perfect, they are referring to the Quran and the Sunnah, not the discipline of Shariah or the discipline of Islamic Law.
The human element in deriving laws or acts is Fiqh, Jurisprudence.
This is where the lawyers, jurists, judges, all that entails the human mind, interact with the Quran and Sunnah.
In Jurisprudence, the laws are derived and because Jurisprudence is a human endeavor, there is often a variety of methods and categorizations regarding the rulings derived out of the Quran and Sunnah. This means that not all Islamic Jurists agree on the same categorization of human acts.
For example, some jurists consider dogs to be unclean animals and thus rule that dogs should be left outside of the home and away from prayer places. Other scholars find that dogs are not unclean and can be brought into the home. Many rulings in Islamic Law fall into the area of difference amongst the jurists.
Although there are some areas where Muslims do not differ and thus they unanimously agree, there are other areas where there is a plurality of rulings or differences on categorizations.
For example: All Islamic Jurists agree on the five pillars of Islam, that drinking alcohol is forbidden, and that God is One and has no partners.
Islamic Law is thus Pluralistic! It is not uniform! It is not one size fits all!
Scholars are the thus tasked with the responsibility of understanding the Quran and Sunnah in order to communicate how God wants Muslims to live.
Fiqh thus became very important to Muslims between 750CE to 900CE. In this time period, the creation of Islamic Law came into play. In order to find out what was forbidden what was obligatory and what was in-between, Muslims Islamic Scholars or Jurists looked to the Quran and Sunnah for textual proof.
This created a number of madhhabs or schools of law across the Muslim world. Today there are four main Madhhabs in Sunni Islam and One main madhhab in Shi’I or Shi’ite Islam.
Madhhabs, Schools of Islamic Law
Sunni Schools of Law:
Hanafi School
founded upon the teachings of Imam Abu Hanifa, death 767CE
Maliki School
founded upon the teachings of Imam Malik Ibn Anas, d. 796CE
Shafi’I School
founded upon the teachings of Imam Muhammad al-Shafi’I, d. 819CE
Hanbali School
Founded upon the teachings of Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, d. 855CE
Shi’I School of Law:
Ja’fari School
Founded upon the teachings of Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq, d. 765CE
The Sources of Islamic Law
Classical Islamic law recognized four official sources whereby Muslim legal scholars can derive Islamic rulings or Jurisprudence:
Quran
The primary source of God’s revelation and law, The Quran is the sourcebook of Islamic principles and values. It is the direct/literal word of God for Muslims. However, it does not constitute a comprehensive code of laws. Although there are legal prescriptions, the bulk of the Quran consists of broad, general moral directives—What Muslims ought to do. Esposito, 103
Sunna
The Quranic principles and values were concretized and interpreted by the second and complementary source of law, the Sunna of the Prophet, the normative model behavior of Muhammad. The importance of the Sunna is rooted in such Quranic injunctions as “obey God and obey the Messenger.” The Sunna is the Prophetic way or what the Prophet said, did, and tacitly approved of. Esposito, 103-104
Qiyas or Analogical reasoning
Throughout the development of Islamic Law, reason had played an important role as caliphs, judges, and, finally, jurists or legal scholars interpreted law where no clear, explicit revealed text or general consensus existed. Reasoning by analogy was used when faced with new situations or problems, scholars would see a similar situation in the Quran and Sunnah. Esposito, 106
Ijma’ or Consensus of the Community of Scholars
A natural process for solving problems and making decisions. When all the scholars or jurists agree on a ruling, then that ruling becomes valid or agreed upon.
What is a Muslim woman’s relation to Islamic Law?
Through Islamic Law, she has:
Individual Rights
For example, women have the right to education, inheritance rights, choice of marriage or not and who to marry and what the conditions are of her marriage, a right to a marriage contract, and a right to divorce if her needs are not met.
Obligations
For example, a women have the obligation to nurture and educate her children and be a devoted daughter, wife, and mother.
Prohibitions
For example, she cannot have more than one spouse at a time, she is prohibited neglecting her husband, children and parents.
Family Law is one area where women are affected by Islamic law as women.
Family law deals with marriage and types of marriages, as well as rules in actually getting married and marriage contracts. (see Nasir readings)
Family law deals with inheritance laws.
Family law deals with rights of the husband and children as well as her rights as a wife and mother, particularly when her children are older. A mother retains rights from her grown children.
