Islamic Legal Schools Research Articles

Addressing Inheritance and Divorce Disputes in Deathbed Situations: A Maslahah-Based Study of South Africa�s Muslim Minority

South Africa features a blend of legislative regulations, customary laws, and evolving legal principles. This dynamic becomes especially complex for the small Muslim community, which must also adhere to Islamic Law, particularly in matters of inheritance distribution. Currently, South African legal references regarding inheritance under Islamic law are limited. This article seeks to analyze a specific inheritance case in which a husband, on his deathbed, has two wives, a son, and a daughter. The first wife was divorced while he was on his deathbed, and during this period, he married another woman before ultimately passing away. In his will, the husband stipulated that the estate should be distributed according to Islamic law, thus entitling his legitimate wife to inheritance. This study employs descriptive qualitative research using scenario-thinking methods to explore potential future outcomes for which no legal precedent exists. In analyzing this case, the concept of public interest (maslahah) emerges as a relevant theory aligned with the principle of justice. Various scholarly opinions from Islamic legal schools were also utilized in the analysis. The article recommends that the South African Muslim Judicial Council prioritize maslahah, proposing that both wives share 3/24 of the estate, the son receive 14/24, and the daughter receive 7/24. Although this decision has not yet been formally recognized in Islamic law, it can be viewed as an act of independent reasoning (ijtihad) based on the principle of justice through the approach of public interest without specific textual evidence (maslahah mursalah). Additionally, rationalized public interest (maslahah ma�qul al-ma�na) was applied to allocate inheritance to the first wife, acknowledging her extended time with the deceased husband.

Persianate Fiqh in Indonesia: Majmuʿih-yi Khani as a Rare Legal Manuscript in a Cosmopolitan Context

Abstract It is often said that the Shafiʿi school of law was the main source of the Malay-Indonesian Islamic legal tradition and codes during the last couple of centuries. However, one may wonder if further Islamic legal schools were welcomed in the archipelago and, if so, how and under what circumstances. On this subject, the author examines a rare, thick, fragile, and rare Persian manuscript. Copied in the seventeenth century, the manuscript in question is a work that was not only in the possession of Malay-speaking people. The manuscript clearly shows an attempt to translate it into local languages and to expand its jurisprudential clauses. Being a comprehensive source for the study and practice of Islamic law, it includes both Sunni and Shiʿi classical legal treatises, their Qurʾanic commentaries on “legal verses,” and relevant theological comments. This source has the potential to invite scholars to re-examine the context of seventeenth and eighteenth-century Southeast Asian manuscripts which used to be known as the turning point towards “Shariatization” by means of Arabo-Sunni legal and theological treatises, and to raise a more robust conjecture about the cosmopolitan nature of the Indonesian archipelago.

Creativity in continuity: legal treatises (al-rasāʾil al-fiqhiyya) in Islamic law

Abstract This article explores how legal treatises (rasāʾil) were essential sites for the development and expansion of Islamic legal schools’ (madhāhib) positions. The rasāʾil, along with legal dicta (fatāwā)—besides legal commentaries (shurūḥ) and manuals (mutūn)—were among the prime loci where jurists contended with rapid social, political, and economic changes. Although these legal treatises were written to address specific sociolegal issues, I argue that the treatise—as a separate genre—provided a creative space for jurists to reaffirm, restate, or advance a new opinion in the school. These legal treatises were carefully considered and extensively referenced in the authoritative works of the school for their updated legal positions, practical utility for judges in courts, and relevance for official policy purposes. To demonstrate this dynamic, I present a close reading of two legal treatises by Maḥmūd Efendī al-Ḥamzāwī (d. 1887), a key Ḥanafī authority and judge, and the muftī of Damascus (1867–1887). The first covers the issue of criminal law procedures in Islamic/Ottoman courts and the second addresses the topic of hunting with rifles. Both treatises expanded the legal positions of the Ḥanafī school by incorporating new justifications, qualifications, and information. They offer an essential perspective on the status of this genre of legal writing through an exposition of a range of emerging issues in the late nineteenth century.

L’economia del Profeta: la finanza islamica e i fondamenti religiosi del diritto islamico dei contratti Shari’ah Compliant

SOMMARIO: 1. Premessa: l’Islam tra religione ed economia - 2. Dalla finanza al contratto islamico, tra vincolo e libertà: alla ricerca di una teoria generale dei contratti - 3. L’etica islamica dei contratti: divieto di ribà e divieto di ghàrar - 4. Operatività delle attività della banca islamica e contrattualistica commerciale Shari’ah Compliant - 5. I contratti di tipo partecipativo: “mudàraba” e “mushàraka” - 6. (segue) Tipologie di mudàraba - 7. Cenni conclusivi e prospettive future.
 The Prophet's Economy: Islamic Finance and the Religious Foundations of Islamic Law of Shari'ah Compliant Contracts
 ABSTRACT: The growing presence of Muslim believers in Europe has increasingly led to heated debates also at the doctrinal level. Legal and economic literature, particularly, has recently emphasised the importance that inclusive, effective and efficient financial regulation can have on the degree of integration of the Islamic communities present in non-Muslim contexts. Since the Shari'ah dictates a series of behavioural rules in different sectors of the believer’s life, the Koran and the narratives of the Prophet (hadith) offer a series of prescriptions also in economic matters. With the aim of outlining the religious and juridical reasoning of the so-called halal economic dimension, this paper first examines the economic principles of Islamic finance: the prohibition of ribà (interest), the prohibition of ghàrar (uncertainty) and that of maysìr (speculation). It then provides a recognition aimed at finding a general theory of Islamic contracts. Finally, it reconstructs the discipline of the mudàraba and musharàka participatory contracts. These two forms of contracts represent a product of Islamic finance widely used in banking-financial practice and considered by Islamic legal schools to be totally in conformity with the Word of Allah. They are therefore instruments of comparison particularly interesting as well as useful for the Italian legal system. They can represent a flywheel for the integration of Muslims in the social fabric, and at the same time, an antidote to the unstable European economic panorama.

Kehujjahan Hadis Mursal Menurut Imam Madzhab Empat

<p>According to the muhaddits, a hadis is acceptable and reliable to be hujjah in law when its sanad has continuous authority till the Prophet Muhammad, beside that the narrator who delivered it is a <em>tsiqat</em><em> </em>(<em>‘adil</em> and <em>dhabt</em>). If some sanads are ommited between the successor and the Prophet Muhammad, the hadis is called mursal. Islam scholars have different views in measuring the credibility and realibility of mursal hadis. Some of them absolutely received mursal hadis to be hujjah, the other one received it by giving requisites, while the rest of scholars absolutely rejected it. This article presented the opinion of four Islamic legal schools (Imam Abu Hanifah (d. 148 H), Imam Malik bin Anas (d. 179 H), Imam Syafi’i (d. 204 H), and Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (d. 241 H)) regarding the validity of mursal hadis as hujjah. This result of this arcticle revealed that Imam Abu Hanifah, Imam Malik bin Anas, and Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal accepted mursal hadis as hujjah by generally requites. Furthermore, Imam Syafi’i accepted it by specially requites.</p>

The Muslim orphan paradox: Muslim Americans negotiating the Islamic law of adoption

While the care of orphans is a much lauded form of giving, precisely what care should look like is highly contested. This is due, in large part, to a consensus among the Islamic legal schools that adoption (tabanni) is prohibited. This article explores contemporary Muslim Americans’ negotiations of Islamic law to find ethical ways to care for non-biological children within their household. Through Muslim American collaborations and contentions over the regulation of orphan care, including the interventions of Islamic scholars and scholar-activists, as well as the intimate reflections of adoptive and foster parents, I demonstrate how Islamic law is not the exclusive domain of jurists, but of Muslim American communities forging new notions of care, kinship, and family as they draw together distinct legal bodies, traditions, and values.

Mâlikî Mezhebinde Hastalık ve Kusur Sebebiyle Yargısal Boşanma (Tefrîk)

İslâm aile hukukuna göre nikâh akdinin sonlandırılmasında temel yöntem bireysel iradeye dayanan talaktır. Bununla beraber bazı durumlarda bu akdin yargı tarafından sonlandırılmasına ihtiyaç duyulmuştur. Söz konusu durumlar, mezhepler arasında farklı yaklaşımlara sahiptir. Bu çalışmada, Maliki mezhebine göre tefrik sebeplerinden hastalık ve kusur unsurları incelenmiştir. Konuya genel bir bakış açısı sağlama adına, giriş bölümünde tefrîk’in tarifi, mahiyeti ve hukuk sistemi içerisinde yer almasının dayanakları da ele alınmıştır. Hastalık ve kusur diye isimlendirdiğimiz durumlar, kaynaklarda uyûb-ı müştereke, uyûb-ı ricâl ve uyûb-ı nisâ ifadeleri eşliğinde zikredilmektedir. Bu ifadelere uygun olarak, hem erkek hem de kadında bulunan ayıplar (uyub-ı müştereke) “hastalık” başlığı altında, taraflarda bulunan cinsel hastalıklar da “erkekte bulunan kusur (uyub-ı rical)” ve “kadında bulunan kusur (uyub-ı nisa)” başlığı altında değerlendirilmiştir. Taraflarda bulunması söz konusu olan hastalık ve kusurun Mâlikî mezhebinde tefrîk sebebi olarak kabul edilmesinin gerekçeleri üzerinde durulmuş, bu gerekçeler doğrultusunda tıbbi gelişmeler dikkate alınarak günün şartlarına göre değerlendirme yoluna gidilmiştir.

Hanefî Fıkıh Kaynaklarında Hükme Delalet Etmesi Açısından Hz. Peygamber’in Dini Nitelikli Bir Fiile Devamı (Muvazâbe)

Bu makalede Hz. Peygamberin dini nitelikli bir fiile devam etmesi anlamındaki muvâzabenin klasik Hanefî kaynaklarında ifade ettiği anlam ve sonuçları ele alınmaktadır. İslâm hukukunda Kur’an-ı Kerîm’den sonra ikinci şerî delil kabul edilen sünnetin fiili kısmında değerlendirilen muvâzabeye birbirinden farklı sonuçlar bağlanmıştır. Mezheplerin sistematiğinden kaynaklanan sebeplerden dolayı her mezhebin farklı bir hüküm bağladığı muvâzabeye Hanefî fakihler de bazı hüküm/hükümler bağlamışlardır. Hanefî fakihler Hz. Peygamber’in bir fiile devamlılığın mahiyetini göz önünde bulundurarak muvâzabeyi birbirinden farklı hükümlere mesned kabul etmişlerdir. Hanefî fıkıh eserleri incelendiğinde bunların vacib, sünnet, müstehab ve mendup gibi hükümler olduğu görülmektedir. Fakat muvâzabenin Hanefî fıkıh eserlerinde ifade ettiği bu hükümlerin net olmadığı, Hanefî fakihlerin Hz. Peygamber’in bir fiile devam sıklığının aynı olmasına rağmen muvâzabeyi farklı hükümlerin kaynağı kabul ettikleri anlaşılmaktadır. Bu bağlamda özellikle Hanefî fakihler arasında muvâzabenin medlûlleri olan vacib-sünnet-i müekkede ve müstehab-menduba delaleti konusunda görüş ayrılıkları meydana gelmiştir. Bu ihtilafı sona erdirmek maksadıyla bazı Hanefî fakihler konuyla ilgili farklı görüşleri uzlaştırmaya çalışmışlardır.

Cessâs’ın Şâfiî’nin Beyân Anlayışına Yönelik Eleştirileri

Bu makalede, Cessâs’ın İmam Şâfiî’nin beyân anlayışına yönelttiği eleştiriler doğrudan incelenmiş; Cessâs dışında bu teoriye eleştiri getiren âlimlerin düşüncelerine ve bu teoriyi savunanların gerekçelerine de dolaylı olarak temas edilmiştir. Hem İmam Muhammed’in hem de İmam Mâlik’in talebesi olan İmam Şâfiî, dönemindeki mevcut usul anlayışından memnun olmadığından yeni bir usul anlayışı inşa etmiştir. Onun için, usul anlayışını beyân kavramı üzerinden; beyânı da sünnet üzerinden şekillendirdiğini söylemek mümkündür. O, mevcut fıkıh ekollerinin Kur’ân’a değil; haber-i vâhidlerle nakledilen sünnete yaklaşımlarını doğru bulmadığından beyân teorisinde sünnete merkezi bir önem atfetmektedir. Ona göre Kur’ân ve Sünnet ilkten hüküm koymaları bakımından eşit seviyededirler. Şâfiî, beyân sözcüğüne bir tanım getirerek onu bir terim mahiyetinde zikreden ilk kişidir. Tanımlamasının ardından yaptığı taksimde beyânı beşli bir tasnife tabi tutmuştur. Şâfiî bütün beyân türlerini Kur’ân’a irca etmekte ve iyi bir Arapça bilgisine sahip olunup Kur’ân iyi anlaşıldığı takdirde nasların sahih bir şekilde anlaşılacağını savunmaktadır. Hanefî usulcüsü Cessâs, beyân adında bir teori ürettiği için değil; beyânın tanımında ve taksimatında tutarsızlıklar bulunduğu gerekçesiyle Şâfiî’ye eleştiriler yöneltmiştir. Cessâs’a göre onun yaptığı tanım maksadını açık bir şekilde ifade etmediği gibi; beyânın kısımları da tutarsızlıklar barındırmaktadır.Şâfiî gerek Cessâs tarafından gerekse başka alimler tarafından icmâı beyânın kısımları arasında zikretmediği için de eleştirilmiştir. Cessâs’a göre ictihadın beyânın kısımları arasında zikredilmesindense icmâın zikredilmesi daha uygundur.

EKSEKUSI NAFKAH PERCERAIAN DI PENGADILAN AGAMA KOTA MALANG

This article aims to answer to important questions in legal studies that how to implement the legal execution of earning the expenses caused by divorce based on Indonesian law? And, how do the perspective of Islamic legal schools deal with the execution? There are numbers of scholarly journals studying this specific issue. However, the preliminary study that specifically focuses on the Legal Verdict of the Religious Court of Malang No. 0957/Pdt.G/2014/PA.MLG is offered by this article. It finds that legally, the judge has authority to order the ex-husband to pay the expences of the divorce compensation (mut’ah), financial responsibility due to divorce (iddah) and financial claim (madiyah) and financial childcare (hadhanah) before the divorce pledge is pronounced. If the expences cannot be paid, the ex-wife has right to purpose the legal execution to the court. Due to the purpose the chief of justice is responsible for and has authority to remind the ex-husband (aanmaning) and doing the legal execution if he disrespectly avoided the court’s order. The concept of legal expenses due to divorce is ruled by the fiqh of Islamic legal schools, in spite of the fact that the details of execution remain no any explanation. This article argues that the execution has been done referring to the law. It purposes to fulfil justice, expediency and rule of law. Furthermore, these purposes are the beginning step in order to achieve the public order (mashlahah) and the higher objective of Islamic law (maqashid al-syari’ah).

EKSEKUSI NAFKAH PERCERAIAN DI PENGADILAN AGAMA KOTA MALANG

This article aims to answer to important questions in legal studies that how to implement the legal execution of earning the expenses caused by divorce based on Indonesian law? And, how do the perspective of Islamic legal schools deal with the execution? There are numbers of scholarly journals studying this specific issue. However, the preliminary study that specifically focuses on the Legal Verdict of the Religious Court of Malang No. 0957/Pdt.G/2014/PA.MLG is offered by this article. It finds that legally, the judge has authority to order the ex-husband to pay the expences of the divorce compensation (mut’ah), financial responsibility due to divorce (iddah) and financial claim (madiyah) and financial childcare (hadhanah) before the divorce pledge is pronounced. If the expences cannot be paid, the ex-wife has right to purpose the legal execution to the court. Due to the purpose the chief of justice is responsible for and has authority to remind the ex-husband (aanmaning) and doing the legal execution if he disrespectly avoided the court’s order. The concept of legal expenses due to divorce is ruled by the fiqh of Islamic legal schools, in spite of the fact that the details of execution remain no any explanation. This article argues that the execution has been done referring to the law. It purposes to fulfil justice, expediency and rule of law. Furthermore, these purposes are the beginning step in order to achieve the public order (mashlahah) and the higher objective of Islamic law (maqashid al-syari’ah).

Abortion law in Muslim-majority countries: an overview of the Islamic discourse with policy implications

Religion plays a significant role in a patient’s bioethical decision to have an abortion as well as in a country’s abortion policy. Nevertheless, a holistic understanding of the Islamic position remains under-researched. This study first conducted a detailed and systematic analysis of Islam’s position towards abortion through examining the most authoritative biblical texts (i.e. the Quran and Sunnah) as well as other informative factors (i.e. contemporary fatwas, Islamic mysticism and broader Islamic principles, interest groups, and transnational Islamic organizations). Although Islamic jurisprudence does not encourage abortion, there is no direct biblical prohibition. Positions on abortion are notably variable, and many religious scholars permit abortion in particular circumstances during specific stages of gestational development. It is generally agreed that the least blameworthy abortion is when the life of the pregnant woman is threatened and when 120 days have not lapsed; however, there is remarkable heterogeneity in regards to other circumstances (e.g. preserving physical or mental health, foetal impairment, rape, or social or economic reasons), and later gestational development of the foetus. This study secondly conducted a cross-country examination of abortion rights in Muslim-majority countries. A predominantly conservative approach was found whereby 18 of 47 countries do not allow abortion under any circumstances besides saving the life of the pregnant woman. Nevertheless, there was substantial diversity between countries, and 10 countries allowed abortion ‘on request’. Discursive elements that may enable policy development in Muslim-majority countries as well as future research that may enhance the study of abortion rights are discussed. Particularly, more lenient abortion laws may be achieved through disabusing individuals that the most authoritative texts unambiguously oppose abortion, highlighting more lenient interpretations that exist in certain Islamic legal schools, emphasizing significant actors that support abortion, and being mindful of policy frames that will not be well-received in Muslim-majority countries.

Territorial jurisprudence, ikhtilaf al-darayn: Political boundaries & legal jurisdiction

Abstract Background: Ikhtilaf al-darayn (territoriality) is a unique Hanafi legal concept that signifies the Hanafi recognition of the constraints of enforcing a legal system when it comes to geopolitical realities. This paper argues that the Hanafi legal application of the theory of territoriality in their primary legal literature allowed them to go beyond defining individuals based on their religious identities to mainly focus on the legal status of individuals within or outside Muslim jurisdiction. Unlike the majority of Islamic legal schools, Hanafis consistently upheld the theory of territoriality and stressed that the universal features of the law do not have any legal imperative outside the political framework of Muslim jurisdiction. Hence, they acknowledged the constraints of the legal and political powers of the Imam outside the Muslim jurisdiction. Methodology: The primary Hanafi legal texts were relied upon to explore the theoretical foundation of the concept of territoriality (ikhtilaf al-darayn). In my analysis, I have traced usage and application of this concept across different legal topics and in different historical moments. The aim was to show the consistent usage of this doctrine in the Hanafi school. I have benefited from the Hanafi debates with other legal schools regarding the realm and applicability of the concept of territoriality. Finally, the case studies that I have explored demonstrated that Hanafis differentiate between the legal status of a dhimmi and a musta’man residing in dar al-Islam, despite the fact that these individuals are non-Muslims and adopt the same religion. Results: The significant results of this concept can be summarized in two points. First, it reveals a diverse tradition of legal theories that have framed the extra territorial relations of dar al-Islam. Second, for Hanafis, religion was never a factor in their legal determinations in deciding the inviolability (‘isma) of individuals’ life or property within dar al-Islam. Conclusion: Ikhtilaf al-darayn is a legal doctrine particular to the Hanafi school. Hanafis place a significant weight on the role of the Muslim ruler in executing the law. Therefore, they acknowledge the constraints of the legal and political powers of the Muslim ruler outside the Muslim jurisdiction. Consequently, the legal imperative of these legal concepts have been exclusively framed within the political jurisdiction of dar al-Islam. Thus, Hanafis conceded to the fact that the addressees of the ethical or moral values of Islamic legal system are exclusively Muslims and those who reside permanently in dar al-Islam, namely dhimmis. Hanafis maintained that the universalist features of the law do not have any legal imperative outside the political structure of the Muslim jurisdiction.

Límites legales del concubinato: normas y tabúes en la esclavitud sexual según la <i>Bidāya</i> de Ibn Rušd

Concubinage is a kind of relationship between a man and a woman whose legal implications have been discussed and regulated by all Islamic legal schools. Norms of both religious and juridical nature regulate the relationship between a man and his concubine, in relation to several factors: sexual and family taboos, the slave condition of the concubine, the man’s obligations in regard to the individuals under his surveillance, etc. The goal of this paper is to investigate which are the limits of concubinage according to Mālikī legal doctrine, with special focus on cases in which marriage and concubinage show parallels. The basis for this study is the treatise on comparative law Bidāyat al-mujtahid , by Ibn Rushd (Averroes).

Islamic Law in Contemporary Scholarship

Despite the importance of law in societal formations, and what looks like a revival in the field of legal studies, Islamic law is still by and large accessible to only a small group of specialists, and thus cannot claim a large audience even within Islamic and Middle (Near) Eastern studies, not to mention the much broader European and American legal scholarship. There are various reasons for such isolation, which are too complex to enumerate in a summary fashion, but which mostly involve the way the scholarship has evolved in the last few decades in Islamic societies, Europe, and North America, and which reflects the nature of Islamic law. First, unlike Roman law and all the continental codes that followed, and unlike the English and American common-law systems, what is commonly referred to as ‘Islamic law’ does not stand out as an organized set of codes, statutes, or even precedents. Instead, the body of Islamic law, which stretches over many centuries, has spawned several schools known as the madha̱hib, so that a modern scholar who needs to look at the legal framework of, say, an institution of the early ‘Abba̱sid period would have to dig hard into the labyrinth of the fiqh manuals only to realize that layers of interpretations follow each opinion, making it unrealistic to limit the ‘law’ to a set of codified norms. Second, modern scholars tend to look skeptically at the large corpus of Islamic law precisely because of its prescriptive nature and its uncertain historical evolution. We have consequently made little progress in assessing the nature of judicial decisionmaking and how the normative values prescribed by jurists affect it. Third, throughout the twentieth century, the majority of Islamic and Middle Eastern societies have adopted a new set of codes, a process that began in the second half of the previous century with Ottoman reforms, and which for the most part were derived from European civil-code systems. Since the implications of this rupture with the past have attracted little attention from scholars, the relevance of the classical legal systems is the biggest issue of concern here: will the transplanted systems utterly eclipse the various Islamic legal schools, or will there be a revival of the legal schools so as to make up for the inadequacies that result from the civil systems? Indeed, a lot needs to be done before more comprehensively elaborated codes are drafted, in particular in such domains as property, contract, and tort, which, under present conditions, seem like a hybrid mixture of Ottoman feudal practices and modern but poorly implemented Western notions.