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Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Islam: Faith, Practice & History Lesson 21: The Shari‘a The Place of Shari‘a in Islam The word “ shari‘a ” literally means “a way.” In Islamic terminology, it means the legal system of Islam. It is normally translated as the laws of Islam or the Islamic laws. Islam is a din —religion. The word din bears a concept wider and more comprehensive than the word `religion'. It means believing in the fundamentals as well as living according to the Islamic laws.

This concept of religion is beautifully conveyed in the terms used by Islamic scholars to describe the fundamental beliefs and the practical laws of Islam. The “beliefs” are described as “ usūlu ’d-dīn — the roots of religion”. The “sharī‘a laws” are described as “ furū‘u ’d-dīn — the branches of religion”. Beliefs without practice is incomplete Islam; and practice without belief may be useful in this world but not of much use in the hereafter.

The sharī‘a is a complete way of life; no aspect of human life is outside its domain. Islam expects a Muslim to follow its laws in every aspect of life: personal and familial, religious and social, moral and political, economic and business, etc. After all, “Muslim” means one who submits to God. The Qur’ān says, “When Allah and His Messenger have decreed a matter, it is not for any believing man or believing woman to have a choice in their affairs.

And whosoever disobeys Allāh and His Messenger has gone astray into clear error.” (33:36) The Need for the Sharī‘a Man’s nature dictates that he can only function properly within a society. Human beings are interdependent by nature.

This interdependency of human beings on each other is beautifully expressed in the following passage: “The baker told me to bake my own bread; the tailor told me to cut and sew my own clothes; the shoemaker told me to make my own shoes; similarly, the carpenter, the engineer, the farmer, and all the labourers and workers told me to do everything by myself.

It was then that I looked at myself and realized that I am naked, hungry and powerless with no shelter over my head, waiting for death to overcome me. It was then that I realized that I cannot survive without my fellow human beings; my survival depends on living in the society.”[^1] A society, however, depends for its existence on laws and regulations. If there are no laws in a society, it is overtaken by the law of the jungle: the struggle for existence and the survival of the fittest.