Anum Aftab
Professor Emad Hamdeh
ARIN-185-01
29 April 2014
Shafi’i School of Thought
Abu’ Abdillah Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi’i also known as Imam al-Shafi’i was one of many influential figures in the Sunni Muslim community who gave rise to Shafi’i school of usul al-fiqh/Madh’hab (El Shamsy and Zysow). Born in Gaza, Palestine year 767 CE (Common Era), Imam Shafi’i had memorized the Quran by age seven and was studying usul al-fiqh (study of principles and sources that Islamic jurisprudence is based on) and obtaining knowledge of Islam through jurisprudence. At the young age of thirteen, Imam al-Shafi’i began studying fiqh, which is comprehension, understanding and jurisprudence in Islam, under Imam Malik, a highly respected scholar of fiqh in Sunni Islam (Khatak and Shahab). Through this Imam Shafi’i was able to study several viewpoints of the fiqh which led him to write Kitᾱb Al-Umm and Al-Risᾱla. The Al-Umm focuses on legal material in jurisprudence and the Al-Risᾱla focuses on four main sources: the Quran, the Sunnah of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), consensus of scholars within the Muslim community, and Qiyas or analogical deduction (El Shamsey, 199-200). Through these teachings of law, al-Shafi’i introduced a completely unique perspective of the Islamic legal thought to Sunni Muslims and revolutionized the study of fiqh.
Before the revolutionary idea of systematic legal reasoning was introduced by Imam al-Shafi’i, the society followed sharῑ’a and opposed such an idea but soon it became permanent. Sharῑ’a is an Islamic legal theory that derived from a high divine source and embodied God’s justice and will and at the time mirrored the society’s character. Jurists believed in this theory for generations and believed the idea of syste...
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... al-Shafi’i has contributed politically to society on being the creation of Pakistan (El Shamsey, 5-10).
Shafi’i school of thought is stated to be the most conservative out of the four schools of Islamic Jurisprudence due to its focus on studying fiqh or religious laws and tradition in Sunni Islam that revolutionized religious perspective in society (Khatak and Shahab). The revolution first began by Imam Shafi’i introducing the idea to society, then writing the Kitᾱb Al-Umm and Al-Risᾱla that served as authoritative guides to society, followed by helping create a specific school of thought (El Shamsy and Zysow). This revolution is still present in society today and is helping guide several Muslims follow the laws and regulations of Sunni Islam (El Shamsey, 1). Abu’ Abdillah Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi’I has truly created and revolutionized Sunni Islam perspective.
Livingston, John W., and Al-Jabarti. "The Rise of Shaykh al-Balad 'Ali Bey al-Kabir: A Study in
Al-Nawawi, Y. (2004). Sharḥ al-Nawawī ʻalá Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim [Explanation of Al-Nawawi on Saheeh Muslim]. Saudia Arabia: Al-Rushd Library
The first article discussed the begging of Islamic religion that was founded by Prophet Mohammed who left a huge struggle among his people for whom should succeed the highest position of Islam. The author mention that Mohammed’s daughter Fatima disagreed against Abu Bakr as being the new leader of Islam. Fatima felt that her husband Ali Bin Abitalib who is also Mohammed’s cousin and father of his grandchildren should place the leadership after Prophet Mohammed.
Islam is a monotheistic and Abrahamic religion alongside Judaism and Christianity. It is currently the second largest religion in the world today. Its beliefs come from the Qur'an which literally means "the recitation" which is believed to be a literal transcription of the word of God. Its main prophet is named Muhammad who began Islam by speaking with the angel Gabriel in a cave during his meditation and then acting as an instrument of God to help write the Qur’an. Muhammad then spread Islam to the scattered tribes of Arabia by becoming the leader of Yathrib and using his wonderful leadership abilities to then grow his influence over virtually all of Arabia. Muhammad is known by Muslims to be the seal of the profits because no profits after Muhammad should be considered legitimate. Muhammad also left behind the Hadith or “tradition” which is a collection of writings compiled of reports of Muhammad’s actions as leader of Yathrib. These reports are used as a more specific code of ethics in day to day life and from these reports the 5 Pillars of Islam are derived (Smith 160). Although Islam shares many similarities to Judaism and Christianity it is often viewed in the US with hate derived from preconceived notions following the attack on September 11th 2001. This paper seeks to provide an overview of Islam’s history as well as its two major sects and 5 main pillars to remove preconceived notions and provide a glance into the minds of the Islamic people.
Ludwig, P. (1999). Iranian Nation and Islamic Revolutionary Ideology. Die Welt des islams. 39(2). 183-217.
He presents the themes and elements of the pre-Islamic society, including its tribal culture, economic culture, religious background, prominence of poetry (how the Qur’an situates itself in relation to the poetry of the “Jahileen”), and discusses gender issues (particularly infanticide of daughters). Moreover, he introduces the connection between Abraham and Muhammad which is identified as the “cornerstone to the Islamic tradition” (84), situating it relative to other monotheistic religions. Through these elements Safi notes that pre-Islamic Arabia shaped the ways in which “Islamic discourses and practices expressed themselves” (53) thus providing the “the context of Islamic practices”
The Islamic tradition, as reflected in Naguib Mahfouz’s Zaabalawi, has over the course of history had an incredible impact on Arab culture. In Mahfouz’s time, Islamic practices combined with their political relevance proved a source of both great power and woe in Middle Eastern countries. As alluded to in Zaabalawi, Mahfouz asserts the fact that not all Muslims attain religious fulfillment through this common tradition, and other methods outside the scope of Islam may be necessary in true spiritual understanding.
Since the beginning of time, religion has played one of the most significant roles within human existence and has been believed to be the source whereby our governing laws have been derived. However, dating back to as early as the 3rd to 6th century, Greek philosophers inclusive of Diagoras of Melos, Euhemerus, alongside the schools of Hindu philosophy, Samkhya and the Greek Cyrenaic School were all amongst some of the first who did not accept the idea of God (Friedrich, 1942, 25). In the 7th century and during the Early Middle Ages, undergoing the Golden Age, the idea of knowledge was emphasised amongst the Muslim world, translating and collaborating knowledge from all over the world, giving rise to a group of people known as the Dahriyya who were the ‘holders of materialistic opinions of vari...
Sayyid Qutb was a prominent Islamic thinker known to the world and fundamentally researched in the West. Many have attempted to understand the ideologies that Qutb followed that lead him to become such a radical Islamic thinker. The radical ideology that Qutb followed has been associated with terrorist organizations that exist today. He spent most of his life developing his ideological way of thinking. He was seen as being radical but when his ideology is put against others within the same category it is easy to see that they are very similar. For Qutb growing up in a small village left a huge impact on his outlook and ideologies for the future, which lead him to his most influential work.
Al Ghazali a significant person in Islam has helped shape Islam to be what it is today - a living religious tradition for the lives of its adherents. His contribution to Islam though his theories, knowledge and works have left a positive impact upon the Islamic world that continues into the present. An everlasting impact upon the faith, Muslims and the expansion of Islam to be one of the most popular religious traditions in the present world for the lives of its adherents is seen as Al Ghazali’s
...made him highly recognized among all the Islamic philosophers. He is, indeed, regarded as the most important Islamic philosopher.
1-Fakhry, Majid. Al-Farabi, founder of Islamic Neoplatonism : his life, works and influence, Oxford: Oneworld,c 2002. Print.
Therefore, for the development of the society, a legal, formal and universal system has to be established, that can deal with subjects, that cannot be resolved or addressed through natural, customary or religious law. Thus over time, the law scholars and sociologists started to understand the complexity and interrelationship between law and society.
Khan, Sir Muhammad Zafrullah (1989). Islam: Its Meaning for Modern Man. New York & Evanston: Harper & Row.