Q.

H OW I S H OLY QU RAN U SED I N EST ABLI SH M EN T OF

I SLAM I C LAW

The Holy Quran, last revealed book by God on Muhammad (P.B.U.H),

is the foundation of our religion and the fountain of Islamic law. It is a
complete book for the guidance of mankind. It is addressed to the entire
humanity without any limitation of race, religion or time. It guides the man in
all spheres of life-spiritual, temporal, individual and collective.
It is the first source of Islamic law. It is said,
“O you who believe
Obey Allah 1
And obey the Messenger 2
And those charged with authority among you 3
If you differ in any thing among yourselves
Refer it to Allah and His Messenger 4”
(Al -Nisa 4.59)
This verse confirms the validity of Quran as a first source of Islamic
Law.

The Quran gives the basic principles and fundamental rules of Islamic
beliefs and practices.
For beliefs, it is said,
“It is righteous to believe in Allah and the last day and the angels and
the book and the messengers” (2:177)
The Quran gives a set of Islamic practices. It commands to establish
worship (prayer) and to pay the poor due after faith in one God. The Quran
frequently says:
“And establish prayer and pay the poor due commandments about the
fasting and pilgrimage to the House of God are prescribed in the holy Quran”.
It is said,
“O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you” (2:183)
“Complete Hajj and Umrah in the service of God” (2:196)
Ahadith of the Holy Prophet provides further detail of these practices.
The Quran becomes basis of Ijma and Qiyas. According to Qiyas
based on Quran, all intoxicants are haram (forbidden)as Quran has declared
Wine as haram. It is said.
“O you who believe, intoxicants and gambling, sacrificing to stones and
arrows are an abomination of Satan’s handiwork: shun you may prosper”.
(Al Maida 5.90)
The Quran makes distinction between Halal (lawful) and Haram
(unlawful) by providing clear and unambiguous instructions. It says:
“O you people! Eat of what is on earth lawful and good; and do not
follow the footsteps of Satan for he is your avowed enemy” (2:168)
It enjoins upon us to establish justice, observe patience and perseverance
and taking care of the rights of fellow-beings. It also prescribes punishments
for serious and major crimes like theft (cutting off hand)
It is said
“As to the thief, male or female, cutting of his or her hand” (5:38)
For punishment of Zina or fornication (100 lashes)
It is said,
“The woman and man guilty of adultery or fornication, flog each of them
with a hundred stripes”. ( 24:2)

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For the heinous crime of murder it recommends the simple rule of an eye for an
eye; by saying:
“O you who believe! The law of equality is prescribed to you in case of
murder: the free for free, the slave for slave, the women for women”
(2:178)
The Quran’s superiority in deciding the matters of daily life including
the judicial issues is an established fact because the Quran says:
“We have sent down to you the Book in truth so that you may judge
between men as guided by God” (4:105)
For division of inheritance, the Quran says,
“Allah directs you concerning your children: to the a portion equal to;
that of two females”. ( Al Nisa 4.11)
It means double share of male as compared to female is mentioned.
In legal matters, the Quran gives some instructions less straightforward.
These instructions require reflection and systematic applications of
interpretational method to the text. This science of tafseer includes
interpretation of Quran with Quran, interpretation of Quran with Hadith, asbab
al nuzul and nasikh-o-mansukh
Thus it can be seen that the Quran serves as the fountainhead of Islamic
law encompassing all aspects of life though not in fine details. For details we
use others sources in the light of the Holy Quran for example the details of
prayer, fasting and matters of marriage, divorce and inheritance are to be found
in Ahadith literature and the scholarly works. The Quran mentions the
fundamental rulings regarding all these matters and has left to its followers to
apply its basic principles to counter the matters of coming time.

Q. Out line t he proc e ss of Com pila t ion of t he H oly Qura n

during
Period of The Holy Prophet
The Holy Quran, last book of God was revealed by Jibrail on
Muhammad (P.B.U.H). Immediately after the revelation of each verse the Holy
Prophet dashed to memorize it. This job of recording the Divine Revelation
was devolved to the number of scribes by the Holy Prophet particularly the
four Caliphs and Hazrat Zaid bin Sabit, Khalid bin Saeed, Obay bin Kaab,
Muawiya bin Abu Sufyan, Sabit bin Qais, Abdullah bin Masaud etc. At
whatever time a chapter or a verse was revealed, the companions with the
directive of the Holy Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) wrote it down. The
Holy Prophet also illustrated the proper place of a specific verse in a pertinent
chapter.
In this way the Quran was recorded in the scriptural form and committed
to memory during the lifetime of the Holy Prophet The Quran was written on
thin and flat tablets of stone, wood, twigs of palm trees, carcasses of camels
and goats and on the pieces of leather. It was not compiled in the book form
during the time of the Holy Prophet. According to the scribe Hazrat Zaid bin
Sabit:
“The Holy Prophet departed from this universe and the Quran had not
been collected and compiled on any thing so far”

Period of Hazrat Abu Bakr

During the reign of the first rightly guided Caliph Abu Bakr, the
necessity to collect and compile the Book was felt by a few of the companions
of the Holy Prophet after the battle of Yamama against the false prophet

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Musailma, the great liar. During this battle a number of the readers of the Holy
Quran lost their lives and this made fear that Quran might be lost. Hazrat Umar
suggested the compilation of the Quran. Abu Bakr hesitated to do this job left
undone by the Holy Prophet. Very soon he realized the need of compilation of
Quran. Hazrat Abu Bakr undertook this dignified task, which was completed
during his office and under his supervision. According to Hazrat Abu Bakr:
“Umar went on persuading me to accept his suggestion till I was
convinced that he was right so I accepted it.”
Hazrat Abu Bakr then directed Zaid bin Sabit , one of the scribe, to
compile the Quran with care.
Zaid was not content just finding a written piece of the Holy Quran, but
also verified its correctness from those people who had heard it from the Holy
Prophet and beard it in mind. He compiled the Quran.

Period of Hazrat Usman

The compiled copy prepared by Zaid remained with the first Caliph.
After his death, it was transferred to Hazrat Umar. After the death of Umar in
644A.D. this script was passed to daughter of Umar, Hazrat Hafsa, who had
been the Prophet’s wife. The collection of sheets became known as the Mushaf
Hafsa. With expansion of Islamic state, Commanders of Muslim forces soon
discovered that soldiers from different places were reciting the Quran in
different ways.
Huzaifa bin Yamman approached to Hazrat Usman and requested him to
take immediate action for the removal of those differences, otherwise it might
be the cause of rifts among the Muslims.
Hazrat Usman commissioned Zaid bin Sabit to make an accurate
collection of the revelation.Zaid was assisted by other knowledge able
companions, Abdullah bin Zubair, Saad bin Aas and Abdul Rehman bin Haris.
Finally, they compared this standardized copy with mushaf Hafsa. Other
versions, which differed in any way, were destroyed. Hazrat Usman ordered a
number of copies of this authoritative collection to be made and had them sent
to major cities of the empire.
Due to this fabulous, prominent, superlative, matchless, spectacular,
incredible and snooping service Hazrat Usman reaped the title of Jami-ul-
Quran.

Q. De sc ribe t he role of t he se c om pa nions in t he of

Com pila t ion of t he H oly Qura n

Hazrat Abu Bakr

During the reign of the first rightly guided Caliph Abu Bakr, the
necessity to collect and compile the Book was felt by a few of the companions
of the Holy Prophet after the battle of Yamama against the false prophet
Musailma, the great liar. During this battle, a number of the readers of the
Holy Quran lost their lives and this made fear that Quran might be lost. Hazrat
Umar suggested the compilation of the Quran. Abu Bakr hesitated to do this
job left undone by the Holy Prophet. Very soon he realized the need of
compilation of Quran. Hazrat Abu Bakr undertook this dignified task, which
was completed during his office and under his supervision. According to
Hazrat Abu Bakr:
“Umar went on persuading me to accept his suggestion till I was
convinced that he was right so I accepted it.”

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 Hazrat Abu Bakr then directed Zaid bin Sabit , one of the scribe, to
compile the Quran with care.

Hazrat Usman
During caliphate period of Hazrat Usman, Islamic state was expanded up
to east in Persia, west in Byzantine and North Africa. With expansion of
Islamic state, Commanders of Muslim forces soon discovered that soldiers
from different places were reciting the Quran in different ways.
Huzaifa bin Yamman approached to Hazrat Usman and requested him to
take immediate action for the removal of those differences, otherwise it might
be the cause of rifts among the Muslims.
Hazrat Usman commissioned Zaid bin Sabit to make an accurate
collection of the revelation. Zaid was assisted by other knowledge able
companions. Finally, they compared this standardized copy with mushaf Hafsa.
Other versions, which differed in any way, were destroyed. Hazrat Usman
ordered a number of copies of this authoritative collection to be made and had
them sent to major cities of the empire.
Due to this fabulous, prominent, superlative, matchless, spectacular,
incredible and snooping service Hazrat Usman reaped the title of Jami-ul-
Quran.

Hazrat Zaid bin Sabit

Abu Bakr realized the need of compilation of Quran after great loss of
readers of Quran in battle of Yamama. He gave this responsibility to Zaid bin
Sabit, one of the scribes of the Holy Prophet. Zaid collected the Quran from
thin and flat tablets of stone, wood, twigs of palm trees, carcasses of camels
and goats and the pieces of leather.
Zaid was not content just finding a written piece of the Holy Quran, but
also verified its correctness from those people who had heard it from the Holy
Prophet and beard it in mind. He compiled the Quran in book form.
After finding differences in accent of recitation of Quran in new
conquered territories, Hazrat Usman gave responsibility of standardized
compilation of Quran to Zaid bin Sabit. Zaid was assisted by other
knowledgeable companions, Abdullah bin Zubair, Saad bin Aas and Abdul
Rehman bin Haris. Finally, they compared this standardized copy with mushaf
Hafsa.Other versions, which differed in any way, were destroyed.

Hazrat Hafsa
Hazrat Hafsa was daughter of Hazrat Umar and wife of Holy Prophet.
The compiled copy prepared by Zaid remained with the first Caliph. After his
death, it was transferred to Hazrat Umar. After the death of Umar in 644AD,
this script was passed to daughter of Umar, who had been the Prophet’s wife.
The collection of sheets became known as the Mushaf Hafsa At demand of
Hazrat Usman , this copy was given to him.

Q.1 : Ex pla in w it h e x a m ple , how do t he Qura n a nd H a dit h

w ork t oge t he r in e st a blishm e nt of Sha ria .
Q.2 : Ex pla in w it h e x a m ple , how a re t he Qura n a nd H a dit h
use d in w ork ing out t he I sla m ic la w ?

The Quran is first source and Hadith is the second source of Islamic law.
The clear Quranic teachings are followed without question. Where Quranic

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teachings are undetailed or not clear, the Ahadith are employed. The Ahadith
fill out the Quran and add teachings where it is silent. Quran and Hadith are
primary sources of Islamic law. It is said,
“O you who believe
Obey Allah 1
And obey the Messenger 2
And those charged with authority among you 3
If you differ in any thing among yourselves
Refer it to Allah and His Messenger 4”
(Al -Nisa 4.59)
This establishes the authority of the Quran and Hadith as the first and
second source of Islamic law.
The Quran gives the basic principles and fundamental rules of
Islamic beliefs and practices.
The Quran repeatedly asks us:
“Establish regular prayer”
without speaking about the number of raakats and manners in which it
should be performed. Sunnah of the Prophet explains it.
The Holy Prophet said,
“Look at me, see I worship and follow me” (Al-Bukhari)
Hadith/ Sunnah of the Prophet provides the explanation of the
teachings of the Quran.
The Quran says,
“Allah has permitted trade and forbidden Riba” (2:275)
Sunnah of the Holy Prophet provides detail of the Riba by saying,
The Holy Prophet said.
“The bartering of gold for gold is Riba, except if it is from hand to hand
and equal in amount, and wheat grain for wheat grain is Riba, except if it is
from hand to hand and equal in amount”
The Quran says
“As to the thief, male or female, cutting of his or her hand” (5:38)
Further detail is given in the Hadith. it is said
“Allah’s Messenger cut off the hand of a thief for stealing a quarter of
quarter of dinar or more”
Sunnah of the Holy Prophet provides practical methods of Islamic
practices. The Quran enjoins us:
“Pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah, those who can afford
the journey”
Full method of the Hajj is not mentioned in Quran. Sunnah of Prophet
explains its performance, as it is said.
Ibn Umar reported,
“The Holy Prophet pronounced Talbiyah in Hajj and Umrah”
Quarn and Sunnah of the Prophet become basis of Ijma and Qiyas.
These examples show that Quran and Hadith work side by side and together in
establishment of Islamic law.

Q. GI V E AN ACCOU N T OF T H E FOLLOWI N GS.

Kinds of tafsir

The word 'tafseer comes from fassara', which means, 'to explain, to
expound, to elucidate, to interpret. This word is meant for the explanation or

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interpretation of the Holy Quran. There are two kinds of tafseer, tafseer ul
Quran bil Quran and tafseer ul Quran bil Hadis.
In tafseer ul Quran bil Quran, one quranic verse is clrified by any other
Quranic verse.
In one Quranic verse it is said,
O you who believe, fulfill all regulations. Lawful to you are all beasts
of cattle, with the exceptions named. (Al-Ma’ida 5.1)
Here ‘the exception named’ are not directly listed. It is mentioned in later,
Forbidden to you are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that
on which has been invoked the name of other than Allah; that which has
been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by
being gored to death; that which has been eaten by a wild animal, unless
you are able to slaughter it; that which is sacrificed on stone altars; also
the division by raffling with arrows: that is impiety. (Al-Ma’ida 5.3)
This very full list clarifies exactly the exception to which the earlier verse
refers.
The second kind of tafseer is tafseer ul Quran bil Hadis.
It is said in the Holy Quran,
“Allah has permitted trade and forbidden Riba” (2:275)
Hadith of the Holy Prophet provides detail of the Riba by saying,
The Holy Prophet said.
“The bartering of gold for gold is Riba, except if it is from hand to
hand and equal in amount, and wheat grain for wheat grain is Riba,
except if it is from hand to hand and equal in amount”.
This Hadith confirms the concept of riba in Islam.

Nasikh o Mansookh
Mansookh verses are particular verses that were overtaken by verses revealed
at a later date, the nasikh verses. As the Quran says.

None of Our revelations do We abrogate (nansakh) or cause to be

forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Do you not know
that Allah has power over all things? (Al-Baqara 2.106)
This verse confirm the concept of nasikh and mansookh in the Holy Quran.
An example of nasikh and mansookh is given in two verses in the same surah
relating to prayer.
In surah Al-Muzammil it is said,
O you folded in garments! Stand by night but not all night half of it,
or a little less, or a little more; and recite the Qur’an in slow, measured,
rhythmic tones. (Al-Muzammil 73.1-5)
At the end of the same surah is a long verse that provides these details more
clearly.
Your Lord knows that you stand almost two-thirds of the night, or
half the night, or a third of the night, and so does a party of those with you.
But Allah appoints night and day in due measure. He knows that you are
unable to keep count of it. So He has turned to you: Therefore, read from
the Qur’an as much as may be easy for you.
(Al-Muzammil 73.20)
Here, the Prophet Muhammad and his followers are advised more definitely to
be moderate in the time they devote to prayer at night. Rather than making this
prayer a hardship by prolonging it, they are advised not to recite more of the
Quran than is easy for them.

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Pre requite of a Mufassir
The practice of tafsir developed into an advanced science as time progressed,
and there were many pre-requisites of a good mufassir, clarifier or

 Mufassir must be pious Muslim

commentator of the Holy Quran.

 He must be expert in Arabic grammar and the manner in which the

 He must be competent in use of Ahadith of the Holy Prophet.

language is used, the science of recitation.

 He must be capable of full understanding of the asbab al nuzul, the

 He must be skilled in nasikh o mansookh verses, clarified or redefined

occasions on which verses were first revealed.

earlier verses with later verses.

Q. H ow doe s Qura n w ork for I jm a .

Ijma is the third source of Islamic Law. It means, “agreeing upon” or “uniting
in opinion”. It is the unanimous agreement of the Islamic Community on some
aspect of law.
The use of Ijma in legal thinking is based on the number of verses in the
Quran.
“You are the best of peoples evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right,
forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah”.
(AL, Imran 3.110)

These references indicate that Quran allows the use of Ijma. It has been
accepted that agreed view of the community is binding upon Muslims in legal.
Ijma is based on Quran and Sunnah and it can only be operated when Quran
and Sunnah become silent on some aspect of law. Ijma is employed when the
teachings of Quran and Sunnah don’t clarify the problem of the Umma.

• It is unanimously agreed according to teachings of Quran that marriage

between a man and any of his grandmothers or granddaughters is
forbidden.
This is based on the teaching in the Quran
“It is prescribed, when death approaches any of you, if he leaves any
goods, that he should make a bequest to parents and next of kin.
(Al- Baqrah 2: 180)

It allows for the grandfather to take the father’s place in inheriting from the
son, even though it is not stated in so many words in the Holy Quran.

• Marriage between man and any of his grandmothers or granddaughters is

This is based on the teaching in the Quran

forbidden.
This is based on the teaching in the Quran
“Prohibited to you are , your mothers, daughters, sisters, father’s sister,
mother’s sisters, foster mothers, foster sisters, your wives’s mothers,
your step daughters under guardianship, born of your wives.
(Al- Nisa 4: 23)
The principle follows the spirit of this full list, and adds two categories
about which it is silent but which clearly conform to all the ones mentioned
here.

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 These examples show that Ijma can be regarded as a continuation of the
divine teaching for legal and practical purposes.
Example of Ijma at present time.
* For sighting of moon of all months, a committee of experts is appointed
by the government, to refer whether the moon is sighted or not.
Unanimous decision of the committee is accepted by every one. This is
based on Ijma.
Q. How does Quran work for Qiyas.

Qiyas literally means measuring or ascertaining the length, weight or

quality of something.. Qiyas means essentially to use human reasoning to
compare an existing situation with one for which legislation already exists.
Qiyas is comparison to establish equality or similarity between two things.
It is the fourth source of Islamic law. It is said,
“o you who believe
obey Allah 1
and obey the Messenger 2
and those charged with authority among you 3
if you differ in any thing among yourselves
refer it to Allah and His Messenger 4” (Al -Nisa 4.59)
This verse confirms the validity of Qiyas as a fourth source of Islamic law.
Qiyas is the most important method of Ijtihad. It is exercised when
Quran, Sunnah and Ijma become silent. It is based upon human reasoning. It is
dependant upon Quran, Sunnah and Ijma. It is practised when common feature
between new matter (far) and fundamental teaching (asl) is found. It cannot be
exercised against any “Nas”
Qiyas is exercised with the help of these four pillars,
Asl: the fundamental teaching
Far: the new matter in question
Illah: the linking cause that connects them
Hukm: new judgment
Quranic example would is as follows;
It is said in the Holy Quran
The Quran forbids sales transactions after the call to prayer on Friday
(asl). By analogy, all kinds of transactions (far) have been forbidden (hukm),
because like sales they distract Muslims from Friday prayer.
Examples of Qiyas based on Quran
Justification of Qiyas is seen in many verses. For example, in the verse
following more than one wife;
Marry women of your choice, two or three or four; but if you fear that you
shall not be able to deal justly, then only one. (Al-Nisa’ 4.3)
Here a man himself will know whether he can deal justly by exercising
personal judgement.
Use of sand if water is not available is based on Qiyas;
And [if] you find no water, then take for yourselves clean sand (or earth),
and with it rub your face and hands. (Al-Nisa’ 4.43)
The point of comparison between water and clean sand is that they can both be
used effectively to rub off any dirt or pollution. Water may be better for this,
but sand has similar properties, so it can be used in emergencies.

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Conditions of Qiyas

There are certain conditions for a person to exercise Qiyas. The person
has to be a Mujtahid or doctor of law with command over Quranic & Sunnah
matters & the Arabic language. He must have sound memory & enjoy good
repute as a pious person. He must have good knowledge of history &
contemporary matters.

There are necessary conditions for Qiyas. Qiyas must be according to

basic principles of Quran and Sunnah. The aim of Qiyas is not to alter any
Quranic or Sunnah law or text (Nas). Moreover it should be understandable for
the Ummah. Its reasoning should be easily comprehended by human intellect.
Qiyas is redundant where Nass is there. Qiyas is accepted by majority
including 4(four) Sunni schools and Zaydi Shias.

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