 |
There was only one madhhab (school of
fiqh) during the time of the Righly-guided
Caliphs (Khalifah-Rashedien). With
the emergence of the Umayyad rule,
the situation changed. The Umayyad
caliphs did not have the same religious
authority as the previous ones. After
the Umayyad (661-750 CE) came the
Abbasids. In comparison to the Umayyads,
they were more supportive of Islamic
law. The crystallization of four major
Sunni madhahib of Islamic fiqh came
about by the third century of Hijrah;
before this there were about twenty
different madhahib.
In the Sunni world there are now Four
Orthodox Schools (Schools of Fiqh)
of thought [the Four Madhahib]: the
Shafi’i,
Hanafi,
Maliki and
Hanbali.
With regard to legal matters, these
four orthodox schools give different
weight in legal opinions to prescriptions
in the Quran, the hadith or sayings
of the Prophet Mohammad, the consensus
of legal scholars, analogy (to similar
situations at the time of the Prophet),
and reason or opinion. Towards the
end of the first century of Islam,
Imam Abu Hanifa in Kufa and Imam Malik
in Madina founded mazahib (schools)
or religio-legal thought, named after
them as the Hanafi and the Maliki
schools. In the following century,
the two other great schools were founded
-- the Shafei school of Imam Idris
al-Shafei in Egypt and the Hanbali
school of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal in
Baghdad. The differences between the
four famous Jurists Imaam Abu Hanifa,
Shaaf'ee, Maaliki and Hanbaliy stem
from their differences on principles.
The basic principle according to Imaam
Maaliki is to prefer Amal-e-Madinah,
that is the practices of the people
of Madina Munawwarah. However, that
principle is not adopted by Imaam
Ahmad ibn Hanbal.
The fanatical loyalty to a particular
madhhab among Muslims is decreasing.
Now Hanafi, Shafi`i, Maliki and Hanbali
and even Ja`fari followers pray together
and work together. Most scholars hold
that it is not required of the Muslim
to follow a certain Fiqh School because
nothing can be made required of Muslims
except that made by Allah and His
Prophet. When in need of Fatwa, Muslims
could consult with any scholar regardless
of his Madh-hab. A common Muslim is
said to have no Madh-hab.
Sunni Islam does not possess clerical
hierarchies and centralized institutions.
The absence of a hierarchy has been
a source of strength that has permitted
the faith to adapt to local conditions.
However, it also has been a weakness
that makes it difficult for Sunni
Muslims to achieve any significant
degree of solidarity. Despite some
very minor disputes there are many
Sub-Groups in the four groups like
Kharjiites, Wahabis, Deobandi, Barelvi,
Ahle-Sunnat Wal Jamat, Ahle Hadith,
Ghurba Ahle Hadits, Sunnis of Green
Turban, Sunnis of Brown Turbans etc.
etc. They declare each other wrong
and seldom offer prayer behind each
other.
Among Sunni Muslims, effective power
and the ability to maintain order
are sufficient for legitimate authority,
in stark contrast to the more uncompromising
Shia views of government as the sole
province of religious leaders. For
Sunnis, even a bad Muslim ruler is
preferable to chaos and anarchy, and
the Sunni religious tradition contains
only a limited right to rebel. However,
if a ruler commands something that
is contrary to God’s law, the subject’s
duty of obedience lapses.
Originally political, the differences
between Sunni and Shia interpretations
rapidly took on theological and metaphysical
overtones. In principle a Sunni approaches
God directly; there is no clerical
hierarchy. Some duly appointed religious
figures, however, exert considerable
social and political power. Imams
usually are men of importance in their
communities but they need not have
any formal training; among the beduins,
for example, any tribal member may
lead communal prayers. Committees
of socially prominent worshipers usually
run the major mosque-owned land and
gifts. In many Arab countries, the
administration of waqfs (religious
endowments) has come under the influence
of the state. Qadis (judges) and imams
are appointed by the government.
The Sunni tradition is one of the two
main sectarian divisions in Islam
(the other being
Shi'a). A number of important
principles govern the Sunni tradition.
The Prophet and his revelation are
of foremost authority.In order for
the Qur'an to be used as a basis for
sound judgement for subjects under
dispute it is necessary to take sound
hadiths into account. Qur'anic verses
should be interpreted in the context
of the whole of the Qur'an. In understanding
the Qur'an rational thinking is subordinate
to revelation. If the Qur'an or the
Sunnah of the Prophet offers a clear
judgement on anything, the Muslim
is obliged to follow this judgement.
If there is no clear judgement about
anything in the Qur'an, then it is
necessary to make a rational opinion
(known as Ijtihad) which is consistent
with Qur'anic teaching. The first
four caliphs were the legitimate rulers
of the early community. Faith and
deeds are inseparable. Everything
occurs according to the divine plan.
Allah will be seen in the life after
death.
The Sunni tradition also emphasises the
importance of religion in the formation
of public policy. This emphasis has,
according to Sunni-Muslim scholars,
given rise to two interrelated processes:
the supremacy of the Shari'a and the
sovereignty of the Islamic community.
According to the Sunni tradition,
if Islam is a legalistically oriented
religion, concerned with the organization
of human society, it follows that
religious teaching must concern itself
with matters of marriage and divorce,
inheritance and ownership, commercial
transactions and contractual dealings,
government, banking, investment, credits,
debts and so on. The proper execution
of these contractual matters according
to the principles of the shari'a based
on the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the
Prophet constitutes an important part
of the way to salvation.
History Islam is divided between the
minority Shia tradition and the majority
Sunni tradition. The minority group
regard the Prophet's Son in law, Ali,
and his descendants as divinely authorised
to rule the Muslim community. The
majority group believed that the caliph
should be appointed through the consensus
of the community.
The Muslim community's encounter with
other cultures, coupled with further
divisions in the community itself,
brought home the need to formulate
the principles of faith within a rational
framework. In the 10th century much
of the contents of the Muslim community's
theology was put into a set of propositions
known as Sunni (orthodox) theology.
The word Sunni derives from the sunnah,
or example, of the Prophet, and indicates
the orthodoxy of the majority community
as opposed to the peripheral positions
of schismatics who by definition must
be in error.
A further response to schisms involved
developing a trend of accommodation
and synthesis. The principle of accommodation
made it possible for diverse schools
of thought to coexist and recognize
each other. Thus, the two principal
theological schools of al-Ashari and
al-Maturidi accepted each other as
orthodox while opposing minority traditions
such as Mu'tazilah, Kharijites and
Shi'a. The legal framework of the
Sunni tradition was provided by the
Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali
schools.
The political leadership of the Sunni
community, and therefore the symbol
of orthodoxy has been the caliphate.
After the first four caliphs the community
came under the authority of the Ummayads,
who set up their capital in Damascus.
The period of the Ummayad caliphs
(661-750) saw the conquest of North
Africa and Spain. In 732 Muslim armies
reached as far as Toulouse in the
south-west of France. In the East,
Muslim armies arrived in Afghanistan
and the region that is present-day
Pakistan.
In 750 the Ummayad caliph was overthrown
in rebellion led by the 'Abbasids,
who were to form the next caliphate.
Remnants of the Ummayad family, however,
were able to establish themselves
in Muslim Spain, where they ruled
until 1031.
The 'Abbasids established their capital
in Baghdad in 750. From then until
the 10th century both the Muslim empire
and the power of the 'Abbasids continued
to grow. However, from the 10th century
the empire began to fragment. A rival
caliphate, the Fatimids, was established
in North Africa. The Mongol invasions
and the capture of Baghdad in 1258
brought to an end the caliphate in
Iraq. An 'Abbasid caliphate was established
in Cairo, but this was without any
real political power.
The caliphate was taken over when the
Ottomans invaded Egypt in 1517. The
defeat of the Ottoman empire after
the first world war, and the creation
of a secular state in Turkey (which
had been at the heart of the Ottoman
empire) brought the caliphate to an
end. For the first half of the twentieth
century many regions of the Islamic
world have sought to free themselves
from European colonial rule. In the
absence of the caliphate a pan-Islamic
identity has been sought through organisations
such as the Muslim World League and
the Islamic Conference. Internal divisions
have, however, impeded any real scope
for Islamic unity.
Page last updated:
Friday, November 25, 2005 22:04:51 -0500 |
|
