Transcript Shariah Law

Islamic Traditions:
Orthopraxy and
Sharia Law
Orthodoxy vs. Orthopraxy
• All religions are concerned with the
correct interpretation of myths and
beliefs.
• This is known as orthodoxy.
• Some religions, such as Judaism and
Islam, are also concerned with the
correct interpretation of rituals and
lifestyle.
• This is known as orthopraxy.
Orthodoxy vs. Orthopraxy
• Ever since early in the development
of Islam, orthopraxy played an
important role.
• Because Islam was about total
submission to God, every aspect of
life should reflect that submission.
• The proper lifestyle was the one most
similar to way Muhammad lived while
in Medina and Mecca.
• This lifestyle was known as sunna.
The Sunna and the Hadith
• Because Muhammad lived in a
significantly less literate time, it is
difficult to really known what is the
nature of the sunna.
• In order to learn about the sunna,
Muslims turn to the ahadith (plural of
hadith).
• The ahadith are thousands of stories
which recount Muhammad’s words
and deeds.
The Sunna and the Hadith
• In order to sort through the ahadith,
scholars looked at the isnad (chain of
transmission.
• If the isnad was pure, then the hadith
could be considered reliable.
• Unfortunately, individuals would
selectively edit their isnad in order to
be considered reliable.
• Some say that the sunna is a
reflection of ninth century thought
than seventh century traditions.
Ijma, Fatwa and Ijtihad
• Unfortunately, even the sunna and
the ahadith could not answer all the
questions about lifestyle.
• In order to answer these questions,
Muslims turned to Islamic legal
scholars known as ulama (plural of
alim).
• The decisions are the ulama
included: ijma (consensus
decisions), fatwa (individual
declaration), and ijtihad (individual
decision).
The Gates of Ijtihad
• Toward the end of the tenth century,
the ulama decided that “the gates of
ijtihad were closed.”
• Apparently all the independent
decisions that needed to be made
had made by that point.
• The Islamic traditions and decisions
formed the orthopraxic legal code
known as Sharia Law.
• There are four major Sunni schools
of Sharia Law.
Major Sunni Schools of Sharia
1. The Shafii School-founded by
Muhammad ash-Shafi, popular in
Southeast Asia
2. The Maliki School-founded by Malik
ibn Anas, popular in West Africa
3. The Hanafi School-founded by Abu
Hanifah, most popular school,
popular in Central Asia
4. The Hanbali School-founded Ahmad
ibn Hanbal, most conservative
school, popular in the Middle East.
Major Areas of Sharia Law
•
•
The two major sections of Sharia
Law are al-ibadat (acts of worship or
the five pillars) and al-muamalat
(human interaction).
Al-muamalat include laws on
marriage, divorce, war, peace,
judicial matters, and punishments.