Islamic Law: Cases, Authorities and Worldview

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Introducing undergraduate students to Islamic law, this accessible textbook does not presume legal or technical knowledge. Drawing on a comparative approach, it encourages students to think through the issues of the application of Islamic law where Muslims live as a majority and where they live as a minority, including the USA, Saudia Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan. The book surveys the historical development as well as the contemporary contexts of Islamic law. In distilling the history of Islamic law for non-specialists, the author covers important topics such as the development and transformation of Islamic institutions before and after colonialism. Coverage of Islamic law across contemporary contexts draws on real case material, and allows for discussion of Islam as a legal and a moral code that is activated both inside and outside the court. Readers will learn about rituals, dietary restrictions, family, contracts and property, lawful and unlawful gain, criminal law and punishments, and what makes a government legitimate in the eyes of Muslim individuals and authorities.

Reviews

Lively, relevant, bold and challenging, this book is a welcome addition to the literature on Islamic law that will thoroughly enrich the discussion of shariah and its social, intellectual and political apparatuses and implications, not only inside the classroom but outside as well. * Sherman A. Jackson, King Faisal Chair of Islamic Thought and Culture, University of Southern California, USA *
This book contributes to the progressive understanding of Islam not only as a religion but also as an intellectual discipline propelled by a balanced analysis of relevant authoritative sources and their judicial expositions, scholarly views, historical antecedents, and contemporary contexts. This timely work has the potential of ushering greater understanding of Islam towards peaceful co-existence of all religions worldwide. * Rafiqul Islam, Professor of Law, Macquarie University, Australia *
This unique and wide-ranging text is a useful resource for students interested in exploring the complexity of the Islamic legal tradition. * Aria Nakissa, Assistant Professor of Islamic Studies, Washington University in St. Louis, USA *
an exemplary introduction to Islamic law encompassing its history, theory, as well as its diverse applications in personal, social, national, and transnational realms of human life worth recommending for inclusion in the syllabi of Islamic studies classes at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in universities around the world Keeping in view its contents, language, and style of presentation, along with the diversity of issues it addresses vis--vis the application of Islamic law, it is far better than the books on Islamic law that are currently in use in Islamic Studies classes * Reading Religion *

Author Bio

Ahmad Atif Ahmad is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, USA. He has taught Arabic, Islamic and Religious Studies at Harvard University, USA; Tufts University, USA; Macalester College, USA; Utrecht University, the Netherlands; and the College of William and Mary, USA.