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Differences Between Shari’ah and Fiqh

Islamic law can be interpreted differently depending on the state due to differences in interpretations of religious texts. While Islamic law has become integrated into some justice systems, the courts are still essentially religious as they are often officiated by religious clerics and base their rulings on religion. However, interpretation of Islamic law is not limited only to religious scholars, as any qualified legal expert or academic can interpret the law and issue opinions on cases. The differences between Sharia (divine Islamic law) and Fiqh (human understanding of Sharia) are unclear, as Fiqh is developed through independent legal reasoning (ijtihad) from the sources of Sharia to apply to modern issues.

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186 views1 page

Differences Between Shari’ah and Fiqh

Islamic law can be interpreted differently depending on the state due to differences in interpretations of religious texts. While Islamic law has become integrated into some justice systems, the courts are still essentially religious as they are often officiated by religious clerics and base their rulings on religion. However, interpretation of Islamic law is not limited only to religious scholars, as any qualified legal expert or academic can interpret the law and issue opinions on cases. The differences between Sharia (divine Islamic law) and Fiqh (human understanding of Sharia) are unclear, as Fiqh is developed through independent legal reasoning (ijtihad) from the sources of Sharia to apply to modern issues.

Uploaded by

priyanka
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© © All Rights Reserved
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applied is variable, and there are also different interpretations placed on the religious text, which

can result in different legal applications, depending on the state.

The argument that arises here is that, despite this, it should be noted that, as Islamic law has
become integrated into the justice system, it still bases itself on religion, and therefore the courts
are religious courts, which are often officiated on by religious men or clerics. In fact, the
interpretation of Islamic law is not limited to the religious men, but in Islam is allowed to any
one of the law scholars or researchers in this field so as to interpret the law and give their opinion
about any case. Markedly, the law scholars could be academics at the university, judges, lawyers,
or anybody capable of and qualified to give a sound opinion on matters of Islamic law. He/she is
entitled to understand Islamic law and its methods of the inference the rules from sources of
Islamic law and applies the rule on the present case. Moreover, non-Muslims are able to apply
Islamic law, such as that which is happening in some banks or finance institutions in some
Western countries: for example, the applications of Islamic finance standards or Islamic
contracts in some banks of the United Kingdom.9

2.2.1 The differences between Shari’ah and Fiqh

The development and applicability of Islamic Law today, interpretation is a fundamental


constituent of ensuring an ever-evolving, ever-organic Islamic Law which is able and willing to
keep up with an ever-changing society. It is through Fiqh that this is to be achieved.
Fiqh ‘literally means knowledge or understanding.’10 In the context of Islamic law, Fiqh refers to
the ‘human understanding or comprehension of … [the] divine law.’11 In addition, Shari’ah
constitutes the source from which Fiqh is developed through ijtihad, the latter meaning ‘to exert
all one’s effort to know, against all odds, what God’s law is.’ 12

As noted by countless experts, there exists a hazy grey ground between Shari’ah and Fiqh with
13
the ‘undefined borderline between revealed law and jurist formalities.’ In quantative terms,

9
For example HSBC Amanah bank, apples Islamic law sander in mortgage.
10
Mohammad Kamali, ‘Fiqh and adaptation to social reality’ (1996) 1The Muslim World 62,68
11
Frank Vogel, ‘ An introduction to Law of the Islamic world’ (2003) 31 International Journal of Legal Information
357
12
Ibid.
13
Ayla Karmali, ‘Sharia and Muslim Legal Thought in the 21 st Century: The Paths Ahead’ (2006) 13 Y.B Middle
E.L. 3

29

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