The Islamic Law is derived from the Holy Quran and the authentic tradition of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) known as Sunnah or Hadith. The word “authentic” is emphasised since there are lots of unauthentic traditions, of which Islamic laws may not be extracted from. To understand how to differentiate between the two and to understand the authenticity of Islamic law, we need to read the Quran and Tradition Compiled After Prophet’s death.
Sunnah is Arabic for the way of life or tradition, while hadith literally means narration. So the collected narrations of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), which include what he did, said, or approved of either directly or indirectly, represent the Sunnah.
The word “Shariah” stands for both constitution and law similar to the constitution and law of any modern country, except that it differs in its principles and many of its details since, as Muslims believe, it is divine, a law prescribed by God to mankind.
General Islamic principles represent the constitution portion; while social, economical, and political laws signify the law portion of Shariah.
The Quran contains mostly general laws while the Hadith has more specific laws or details about Quranic laws. Certain topics are detailed in the Quran itself, such as the laws of inheritance.
For Muslims, the Quran and the Hadith are inseparable; a simple example is the law of the five daily prayers. Allah ordains to pray in the Quran, but the way it is performed and the time ranges for each prayer are detailed in the Hadith.
Islamic law is taught in Islamic and non-Islamic universities, more or less like the laws that are taught in law schools around the world; except it pertains to Muslims. So anyone interested may obtain a degree, even a P.hd in Shariah.
Shariah’s goal is to protect the individual, the community above the individual, and the state above all; meaning, if protecting the individual’s right will harm the community then that right cannot be granted and if the community’s right harms the entire state then protecting the state takes precedence; the community being a portion of the population and not the entire population; while the state here represents the entire population and not the governing body. The governing body is simply individuals who serve the Muslim state in order to benefit the state, the community, and the citizens of the state.
The state’s duty is to protect the lives, dignity, and properties of all individuals without jeopardising the lives, dignity, and properties of others whether individually or collectively. It is also responsible for creating the best infrastructure, the healthiest relationships between the Muslim state and other nations, and the unsurpassed protection of the state as a whole.
It is worth mentioning that the Islamic state should take care of all social diseases; no citizen should steal because of poverty, or commit adultery because pornography is widespread, before even implementing any law. Most modern state laws are constantly changing because of human perception of the law. In general, Islamic law does not change much since it is divine and it applies, in general, to all times.
Muslim scholars could interpret current issues not mentioned directly in the original law by comparing between current and original subject matters. The sunnah is quite detailed so there is always a solution to every problem that scholars may rely on for comparison purposes. Logically, all governments in Muslim countries around the world should follow the basic concepts taught in Islamic law; but, unfortunately, most governing bodies around the globe are serving the interests of the few, which are the governing body and the elites. They obviously serve their own interests above the citizens, the community, and in many occasions above their own state, creating chaos, poverty, and misery for their own people.
Some aspects of Shariah are applied in several countries but not the entire Islamic law; and in many cases, it is inappropriately put into practice, such as applying it on the poor but not the rich nor the one who is well connected to an influential governing entity. Since God is the Most Just, His law is also most just and it is surely not meant to turn people’s lives into a nightmare. God should not be blamed for people’s shortcomings.www.onislam.net
