Schools of Muslim Law | 12 Oct 2023

Introduction

At the time of the death of the Prophet, there was a quarrel between the two groups
for imamate (the temporal leadership of the religion).
One group advocated the principle of the election in choosing the ‘Imam’, this group is
known as ‘Sunni’. The adherents to the ‘Sunni’ doctrine are called ‘Sunni Muslims’.
While, the other group opposed the principle of the election in choosing the ‘Imam’
and proclaimed that ‘Ali’ is the successor of the ‘Prophet’.
They firmly believe that imamat must be devolved upon the successors of the
prophet, i.e.
Ali, the son in law
Fatima, the daughter of Prophet.
This group is known as ‘Shia’.
Thus, there are two main schools of Muslim Law:
Sunni school
Shia school

Sunni Schools

In Sunni sect, there are four major schools of Muslim law which are as follows:

1. Hanafi School (699 AD – 767 AD):

‘Hanafi School’ is the first and the most popular schools in Muslim law.
Before being named ‘Hanafi’, this school was known as ‘Kufa School’ which was
based on the name of the city of Koofa in Iraq.
Later, this school was renamed ‘Hanafi School’ based on the name of its founder
‘Abu Hanafi’.
The founder of this school was ‘Imam Abu Hanifa’. He had two most important
disciples:
Abu Yusuf
Imam Muhammad.
In India, most of the Muslims follow ‘Hanafi school’. This school was followed in China,
Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkey as well. Among the entire Muslim population around
the world, the followers of this school are one third.
They followed a simple methodology and were amongst the most popular and
prevalent schools.
They did not rely much on the prophet’s hadiths until they were proved to be true
beyond a reasonable doubt. They relied very much on Qiyas. They even extended
‘Ijma’ and gave preference to ‘Isthiasan’.
This school was believed to be stricter than other schools in lifting traditions.
Also, in the application of the law, Abu Hanifa believed that it is important to rely
on usages and local authorities.

2. Maliki School (711 AD – 795 AD):

‘Imam Malik’ was the founder of this school. This school gets its name from Malik-
bin-Anas. He was the ‘Mufti of Madina’.
During his period the ‘Kufa’ was considered as the capital of Muslim ‘Khaleefa’
where ‘Imam Abu Haneefa’ and his disciples flourished with ‘Hanafi’ Schools.
People of ‘Madina’ also followed a certain way of ‘Islam’, this way was also followed
by the ‘Maliki School’ and accepted the practices of the people of ‘Medina’ and the
 sayings of the companions of the prophet.
They followed ‘Qiyas’ only when the ‘Quran’ or ‘Sunnat’ were silent on that
particular matter. They also followed the ‘Public Interest’ –Al-masalih, al- mursalah.
The pupils of ‘Iman Malik’ were ‘Imam Muhan’ and ‘Imam Shafi’.
This school was popularly followed in North Africa, Morocco, Spain, Algeria, Tanzania,
etc.

3. Shafi School (767 AD – 820 AD):

Imam Muhammad Ibn Idris Ash-Shafi was the founder of this school. He was the
student of Imam Malik of Madina
Then he started working with the disciples of ‘Imam Abu Haneefa’ and went to
‘Kufa’.
He concluded the ideas and the theories of ‘Hanafi School’ and ‘Maliki School’ in a
friendly manner.
The ‘Imam Shafi’ was considered as one of the greatest jurists of Islam. He
created the classical theory of the Shafi’s Islamic Jurisprudence.
The followers followed all four sources and rejected the public interest methodology
followed by the ‘Maliki school’ and were also not in favor of ‘Isthiasan’.
He was the first person to collect ‘Sources of Law’.
Their teachings were popular in Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and some parts of Iraq,
Pakistan, Iran, Yaman, and India as well.

4. Hanbali School (780 AD – 855 AD):

‘Ahmad bin Hanbal’ was the founder of the ‘Hanbali School’ of Islamic
Jurisprudence.
They were strict regarding the traditions of the ‘Prophet’ and strictly confirmed to the
principle of Hadiths.
Their methodology depended on the Quran, Ijma, and Sunnat.
They followed ‘Qiyas’ only when they believed it to be necessary. They were dominant
in Saudi Arabia mostly.

Shia Schools

Shia Sect is considered as the minority in the ‘Muslim’ world. They enjoy the political
power only in Iran though they don’t have the majority in that state also. As per Shia
Sect, there are three schools of law:

1. Ithna-Ashari:

These schools are based on the followings of ‘Ithna-Ashari’ laws. The followers of
these schools are mostly found in Iraq and Iran.
In India too, the majority of ‘Shia Muslim’ follow the principles of the Ithna-Ashari
School.
They are considered political quietists. This school is considered as the most
dominant school of the ‘Shia Muslims’.
The Ja’fari Fiqh of the ‘Shias’ in most cases is indistinguishable from one or more of
the four Sunni madhahib, except mutah is considered as a lawful marriage.
The people who follow the ‘Ithna Asharis’ school believe that the last of the Imams
disappeared and will be returning as Mehdi (Messiah).

2.The Ismailis:

The school of ‘Ismailis’ accepted only seven ‘Imams’ and were hence known as the
‘Seveners’. Their origin could be traced to Egypt. There are two groups of them
 namely:
The Kohojas or Eastern Isamilis who were believed to be followers of ‘Aga
Khan’ who was the 49th Imam in the line of the prophet.
Western Ismailis popularly called ‘Bohoras’ who were divided among the
‘Sulaymanis and Daudis’. They prevailed in Central Asia, East Africa, Arabia,
Pakistan, Syria, and Iran.

3. Zaidya:

Imam Zaid founded this school.

The followers of this school believed that ‘Imam’ should be based on election, so the
succession in this school is through the election. They believed ‘Imam’ to be above all
and considered him as a ‘right guide’.
The followers of this school are not found in India but are maximum in number in
South Arabia. This sect of the ‘Shia school’ is the most dominant among all in ‘Yemen’.
The followers of these schools are considered political activists. They often reject the
‘Twelver Shia’ school philosophies.