This is a Level Two course in the Islamic Studies Curriculum. This course is based on the Mukhtasar of Imam Quduri, which is one of the most celebrated and influential primers in the Hanafi school of methodology and is one of the foundations for the school.
This course serves to provide a proper understanding of the Islamic rulings of public law according to the Hanafi school. Shaykh Faraz Rabbani covers the chapters focused on human conduct, relying on Maydani’s Lubab—and other major reference works of the Hanafi School.
Topics covered include the rulings of public law as well as the impact these rulings have and the wisdom behind them. They cover the issues of crime and punishment, the permissible and impermissible, court procedures, witnesses, oaths, the mercy of the Sacred Law, and more.
The purpose of the sacred law is to preserve the life, wealth, intellect, property, and honor of each individual. How does the Islamic legal code achieve that? How do the laws of Qisas (retaliation), and Hudud (punishments for contravention of limits) serve to give life to the community? These Islamic punishments cannot be applied by vigilante justice. There is immense wisdom in Islamic legal practices and there are many strict requirements that must be fulfilled before the laws are applied.
In a time where people have become so detached from the impacts of the practices people engage in at a communal level, effort must be given to act according to what Allah Most High has told us is rightful conduct. In order to do so, there must be understanding of the rulings and wisdom of the Sacred Law, and specifically, of those rulings that relate to how we act with each other - as a community.
This course is ideal for students of Islamic knowledge. A previous study of Fiqh is recommended, but not a requirement.
- Teacher: Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Imam Quduri’s full primer (matn) in Islamic law is so famous that it is simply referred to as “The Book” (al-Kitab). It is said that when Imam Quduri completed his work, he went on Hajj. After he completed his tawaf (circumambulations), he made du’a that Allah protect his work from errors.
Quduri’s Mukhtasar is one of the four core primers (mutun) of the Hanafi school. For over a thousand years, it has been the starting point of full study of Hanafi fiqh. This is because of the text’s reliability in transmitting the Hanafi school, its clarity, its comprehensiveness in dealing with the core issues of each chapter; and its proven blessedness (baraka).
- This course is for adults.
- It is particularly beneficial for students of Islamic law.
- This is a Level Two course. Before taking this course, take The Absolute Essentials of Islam (Hanafi) and On Worship (Purification, Prayer, Fasting, Zakat, and Hajj): Shurunbulali’s Ascent to Felicity. Take this course before any course in Level Three.
- This course can also be taken by anyone who is interested in learning the parameters of Islamic law for the general public.
At the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Understand the core rulings related to public law.
- Appreciate the wisdom of Divine Guidance.
- Explain how and when the “hadd” punishments can be applied.
- Understand the mercy of the preventive punishments in Islamic law.
- Explain the impact of the laws Allah Most High has given us.
