Loving and following the Prophet & his family (tawalla).

Loving and following the Prophet & his family (tawalla). Disassociating from the enemies of the Prophet & his family (tabarra). These ten teachings reflect the main framework of the Islamic shari’a; otherwise, the entire corpus of Islamic shari’a falls under the term ‘branches of religion’. 2. The Classification of Shari’a Laws All the issues covered by the shari’a are traditionally classified into four main groups.

The classification was put in the final form by one of the great Shi’a mujtahids of the 7th Islamic century, al- Muhaqqiq al-Hilli (d. 676 AH). His famous work of jurisprudence, Sharaya’u ‘l-Islam, is still one of the main reference books for the scholars of Islamic laws. Al-Muhaqqiq al-Hilli classified the laws into the following groups: ‘Ibadat — the Acts of Worship like prayers, fasting, hajj, etc.

‘Uqud — Mutual Contracts like business transaction, partnership, trusts, power of attorney issues, and marriage. lyqa’at — Unilateral Instigations like divorce, confessions in legal matters, vows, etc. Ahkam — Miscellaneous: anything which does not fit in the three groups above like rules of eating and drinking, agriculture, arbitration, testimony, etc. Here I would like to present a modern classification of shari’a issues done by the late Sayyid Muhammad Baqir as-Sadr.

Ayatullah as-Sadr of Najaf was a rising star among the new generation of mujtahids; unfortunately the Shi’a world was deprived of his knowledge and leadership when he was tortured and killed by Saddam’s regime in 1981. Sadr also divides the shari’a laws into four groups but his classification makes the issues more clear for the modern man unused to classical texts. ‘Ibadat — the Acts of Worship like prayers, fasting and hajj. 2.

Financial Laws: (a) On Social Level: issues like Islamic taxes of various kinds. (b) On Individual Level: i. the laws pertaining to the means of possessions. ii. the laws pertaining to the utilization of one’s possessions. Personal Laws: issues like marriage and divorce, eating and drinking, vows and oaths, hunting and slaughtering, bidding good and forbidding evil, etc. Social Laws: issues like the political system, judiciary, penal code, jihad, etc. 3.

The Five Types of Decrees All Islamic injunctions fall within the five main categories of laws: wajib, mustahab, ja’iz, makruh, and haram. There are other sub-divisions within these five decrees. Wajib: means obligatory, necessary, incumbent. An act which must be performed.