Islamiyat · May / June 2022 · Paper 11 · Question 2

Write about the Qur’an and Sunna and how they are used with ijma’ in Islamic Law.

Use the AO1 Levels of Response

Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.

A comprehensive answer will provide an account of each of the three sources, what they are and their role in Islamic Law and how they interact with each other.

The four sources of Islamic Law are the Qur’an, the Sunna, ijma’ and qiyas. For this answer candidates have to focus on the first three only.

The Qur’an is an authority in Islamic law; it is the word of God. It is not questioned or contradicted by the other sources. It contains the main teachings and principles of Islam by which Muslims should live. The Qur’an is protected by God therefore its words and rulings cannot be changed until the end of time.

The Sunna is the Prophet’s example and is recorded in the Hadith; these emphasise and expand on verses in the Qur’an, for example, alms-giving (zakat). The Qur’an gives permission to follow the Prophet (pbuh). The Hadith are used when the Qur’an is silent on a matter, for example, inheritance given to a grandmother is not mentioned in the Qur’an, but comes from Hadith. The Hadith are important because the Prophet (pbuh) was the final and perfect messenger to follow; the Hadith of Mu’adh ibn Jabal reflects this. They are interlinked and are the two main (primary) sources.

When neither of the primary sources offer answers, then ijma’ can be used. This is used mainly for issues that did not arise at the time of the Prophet (pbuh).

Ijma’ is the consensus of opinion of scholars. It has its basis in the Hadith: ‘My community will never agree upon an error’. Some issues dealt with by ijma’, at the time of the caliphs, have been the compiling of the Qur’an or the second call to prayer (adhan at Jum’a) and more recently, the permissibility of IVF. Scholars meet and discuss new situations and decide on the issue, taking various factors into consideration, mainly that the decision does not go against the Qur’an and Sunna.

How has the Qur’an, as a primary source of law, helped to unify Muslims over time?

Use the AO2 Levels of Response

Candidates may include some of the following information. All other relevant information must be credited.

Muslims around the world believe in the Qur’an as the most fundamental source of guidance, revealed by God, hence unifying them as they all consult the Qur’an for advice.

The Qur’an provides the basis of Islamic Law making. That means that despite the growth of Islam and the number of Muslims from different countries and cultures, they all believe in the Qur’an as the basis of faith and law-making which unifies them in terms of the main teachings they live by and laws they follow.

As the Qur’an has not changed over the years and was preserved at a very early stage and God has taken the responsibility to guard it, it has prevented many disagreements and divisions in Muslims on different issues.