The Four Main Sources Of Islamic Law

Abstract: This chapter deals with the four main sources of Islamic Law. Its goal is to introduce some of the prevailing concepts of Islamic thought and to analyse the different disciplines and opinions that shape the practice of Islam today. It is known that there are four Muslim schools of thoughts. However, each differs in their interpretations . The primary sources, accepted universally by all Muslims, are the Qur’an and the Sunnah. It is however, in fields that they are silent that the secondary sources are to be used, thus the Ijma (consensus of opinion of scholars) and the Qiyas(laws derived through analogical deduction -analogy).

Qur’an

The Arabic word Qur’an is derived from the root ‘qara’a’, which means “to read” or “to recite”. Qur’an is the holy book of Islam. Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the final revelation of Allah, that is, the literal word of God, revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The Qur’an was written and preserved during the life of Muhammad, and compiled soon after his death. The Qur’an consists of 114 surahs (chapters) with over 6,000 ayat,(verses). However the exact number of ayat is disputed due to different methods of counting.

The Qur’an is the first and most important source of Islamic law. The scripture specifies the moral, philosophical, social, political and economic basis on which a society should be constructed.

Sunnah

The Sunnah is the second source of Islamic law. Sunnah is an Arabic word which means “Method”. It was applied by the Prophet Muhammad as a legal term to represent what he said, did and agreed to. Its authority is derived from the text of the Quran. The Quran says,

“For you the life of the Prophet is a model of behaviour” (Al-Quran 33:21)

Many of books of traditions were compiled by the companions of the Prophet. These were later on incorporated in the great collections of Hadith (i.e. traditions) of Bukhari, Muslim etc. The collectors of the traditions adopted a very scientific system in collection the Traditions. They did not record any tradition except with the chain of narrators. Every tradition gives the names of the last narrator of the tradition from whom he learnt the tradition and so on back to the Prophet or Companion of the Prophet. The Sunnah which is established through reliable narrators is fully dependable as legal element.

The sunna of the Prophet generally means “tradition” and includes the following three categories: sayings of the Prophet; his deeds; and his silent or tacit approval of certain acts which he had knowledge of. The record of the Prophet’s words and deeds were recorded in narrative ahadith, reports that were transmitted before finally being compiled in authoritative collections decades after the death of the Prophet.

Muhammad brought the Quranic teachings ti life through his interpretation and implementation.

The Quran and Sunnah are complementary. The meaning of the Quran is general in nature, the Sunnah makes it specific and particular. The Sunnah explains the instructions of the Quran. The Quranic injunction is sometimes implicit, the Sunnah makes it explicit by providing essential ingredients and details.

Ijma and Qiyas derive their value or authority from the Quran and the Sunnah. Therefore, they are called dependent sources.

Ijma

The third source of law, Ijma or the consensus of scholars signifies the importance of delegated legislation to the Muslim community. The Muslim society requires such a rule making power to meet the practical problems for the implementation of Islamic Shariah (Islamic Law). Ijma has been technically defined as the consensus of the jurists of a certain period over a religious matter. Ijma is considered a sufficient evidence for action because the Prophet if Islam said, “Muslim will never agree on a wrong matter.” As such the agreement of the scholars of Islam on any religious matter is a source of law in Islam (Ref: Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence by M. Hashim Kamali).

Qiyas or analogy

qiyas, is the fourth important source of Islamic law, is reasoning by analogy. In order to apply qiyas to similar cases, the reason or cause of the Islamic rule must be clear. For example, because the Quran clearly explains the reason that consumption of alcohol is prohibited (because it makes the user lose control of his actions), an analogy can be drawn to drugs which induce the same affect. But because the Quran does not specifically state the reason why pork is prohibited, Muslims cannot justify banning another meat product with a similar cholesterol level, etc. The use of analogies greatly varied among scholars; for example, Spain’s Ibn Hazm (10th century) who was formidable proponent of the Zahiri school, rejected the use of qiyas, whereas Imam Abu Hanifa of the Hanafi school (8th century) applied them extensively.

Qiyas or analogy is resorted to in respect of problems about which there is no specific provision in the Quran or the Sunnah of the Prophet. In such issues, the scholars have derived law through analogical deduction on the basis of the provisions of the Quran and the Sunnah on some similar situation. The scholars have developed detailed principles of analogical deductions or Qiyas in the books of Islamic jurisprudence.

Qiyas is a kind of Ijtihad. The Prophet has permitted Ijtihad which literally means ‘to exert’. Technically it means to exert with a view to form an independent judgement on a legal issue. Ijtihad is the Islamic method of facing the new situations and problems in the light of the general principles of the book of Allah SWT), the Quran and the traditions of the Prophet or the Sunnah.

Apart from Qiyas, there are other methods of Ijtihad such as Istihsan (that is the juristic preference from different interpretations) and Masalaha (that is moral consideration).

In addition to the above sources, the practices of the Khulafa-e-Rashidun (the first four rulers of Islam), the decisions of the judges and the customs of the people are also considered sources of Islamic law in matters which are not spelled out in the Quran and the Sunnah.