Reviving The Balance

Ibn Khaldun, the fourteenth century Arab historiographer and historian, is viewed as a founder of modern historiography, sociology and economics. He lived during a turbulent part of history, and out of his experiences, he ?conceived and created a philosophy of history that was undoubtedly the greatest work ever created by a man of intelligence…?. This work tells of the period of unrest in Ibn Khaldun?s life marked by political rivalries. It is during this turbulent period which provided him with the opportunity to write the Muqaddimah (or Prolegomena), earning him an immortal place among historians, sociologists and philosophe

This work constitutes a critical analysis of classical and modern aspects of the concept of istihsan (juristic preference), an important principle in Islamic legal legislation throughout history. Although there has been many research works on the subject, it still requires further investigation on the role and nature of istihsan with regard to a combination of classical and modern approaches. Consisting of four chapters, the author begins by introducing some general principles of Islamic law, before discussing the history of istihsan during the time of the Prophet and his Companions. He also analyses the validity of istihsan as a source of law and discusses the differences among scholars on its method of implementation.

This book offers a detailed presentation of the theory of Muslim law (usul al-figh). Often regarded as the most sophisticated of the traditional Islamic disciplines, Muslim jurisprudence is concerned with the way in which the rituals and laws of religion are derived from the Qur’an and the Sunna – the precedent of the Prophet. Revelation, which is given to man to restore unity and help him achieve a just and devout order in society as well as in the soul, must be interpreted so as to render it practicable in every culture, while not betraying its spirit and immutable provisions. To achieve this, additional sources of legal authority are recognized, including consensus (ijma), analogical deduction (qiyas), public interest (maslaha) and local customary precedent (urf). In employing these, the jurist guards the five principles which it is the purpose of Islamic law to uphold, namely, the right to life, sound mind, property, lineage and religion.