Sunnah and its Status and Use within Islamic Law

 Sunnah and its Status and Use within Islamic Law 

Faiyaz M. Khan

Sunnah is defined as “custom, wont, usage,”[1] “precedent,”[2] “the conduct of life, and cumulative tradition:”[3] which can be either beneficial or detrimental.[4] The Qur’an[5] and hadith literature use the word sunnah in both respects.[6] Another term that is commonly used synonymously with sunnah is hadith;[7] however, hadith are mainly the reports of the Prophet’s sayings and actions, while the sunnah is the prophetic example or legal injunction derived from hadith.[8]  In early Islam, the term sunnah was also used to mean the practice of the Muslim community:[9] this is best expressed by Malik’s position of giving preference to the custom of the people of Madinah than to hadith in his legal rulings.[10] Furthermore, within a broader religious context sunnah only refers to everything that is virtuous and from the example of the Prophet;[11] therefore, the most important sunnah is that of the prophet, as he was the intermediary between the creator and the creation: [12] as Allah affirms, “And We have sent you not but as a mercy for the Alamin (all that exists).”[13]  Thus, the prophet’s conduct and character is a mercy to the creation, highlighting the crucial role of sunnah in Islam.[14] Moreover, the Hanafis also include the sunnah of the Prophet’s rightly guided caliphs and that of his companions.[15]

On the other hand, Al-Shafi’i advocated that the sunnah as a source of Islamic law are only those traditions that can be traced through trustworthy narrators in a chain (isnad) leading back to the Prophet, and could not be validated merely by the customs of the early Muslim community.[16] He further emphasised that a legal ruling is rejected, if it is “contrary to an authentic tradition from the Apostle;”[17] as the Lawgiver has obligated the believers to “Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger.”[18] Thus, the Lawgiver’s command to obey the Prophet in many verses of the Qur’an leads to the logical conclusion that his sunnah is a source of shari’ah.[19] This was further emphasised when Al-Shafi’i’s model restricted the sunnah to only apply to the Prophet, once this became the accepted view,[20] extending it to the rightly guided caliphs or to the companions became controversial.[21]

The Qur’an mentions sunnah Allah,[22] in Surah al-Ahzab it states, “and you will not find any change in the way of Allah,”[23] emphasising Allah’s sunnah of sending revelation to mankind in a “continuous and unchanging”[24] manner throughout history.[25] While the majority of scholars, including Al-Shafi’i and Ibn Kathir, hold that the sunnah of the prophet (sunnah Rasul Allah or sunnah al-Nabi) is indicated in the Qur’an by the term hikmah (wisdom):[26] as in Surah al-Jumu’ah which speaks of the Prophet being sent to instruct people in “the Book and Al-Hikmah.”[27]  While the Qur’an does not explicitly mention sunnah al-Nabi, many verses make it clear that the Prophet’s teachings are legislative: like in Surah al-Hashr where it affirms, “And whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it).”[28] Moreover, in Surah al-Ahzab, it is further emphasised: “It is not for a believer, man or woman,  when Allah and His Messenger have decreed a matter that they should have any option in their decision. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he has indeed strayed into plain error.”[29] Clearly these verses demonstrate that believing in the Messenger of God is not enough, he must be obeyed too.

According to usul al-fiqh (principles of Islamic jurisprudence), the primary sources of Shari’ah are the Qur’an and the sunnah, they are the guiding precepts that are applicable to “every aspect of social and intellectual development”[30] in Islam. The sunnah is both an elaboration of the Qur’an, and an independent source of legislation.[31] It is “normative and binding,”[32] comprising exemplary prophetic actions (fi’li), sayings (qawli) and tacit approvals (taqriri).[33] Thus, Muslims universally recognise the sunnah as authoritative and that it is the acknowledged modus operandi to implement the fundamental principles of Islam.[34]

Prophetic actions that establish sunnah are those witnessed by his companions firsthand and then orally transmitted to others, as in the case of praying the witr prayer on camel back, which was witnessed by the famous companion Abdullah ibn Umar, who taught it to Sa’id ibn Yasar.[35] Hence, this report is the basis for allowing people to pray voluntary prayers while seated in a mode of transport. Moreover, the sayings of the Prophet include him stating that, “Whoever omits the Asr salah all his (good) deeds will be lost;”[36] this advice is to warn Muslims not to be neglectful of the mid-afternoon prayer. This saying is reported by Buraida, a companion who accompanied the Prophet on sixteen military expeditions, indicating his long association with the Prophet.[37] Lastly, sunnah is also established by tacit approval, this includes when the Prophet instructed the companions after the Battle of the Trench, not to pray the Asr prayer until they reach Banu Quraiza.[38] However, the time for the Asr prayer was almost over while the companions were still enroute to their destination, so some of them decided to pray before carrying on while others said that they would not do so until they reached Banu Quraiza.[39] When the Prophet was informed about what the two groups of his companions had done, “he did not blame any of the two groups.”[40] Thus, he approved of both actions, since one group took his instruction to mean that Asr prayer will be due on the journey so they should pray it, while the other group believed that he meant that they should hurry to their destination and not stop for prayer until they reach it. This is also reported by Abdullah ibn Umar who participated in this battle, making him an eyewitness to these events – it was also his first battle.[41] This hadith is an important proof for the validity of both literal and metaphoric interpretations of the sunnah.[42]

When the Prophet was going to send Mu’adh ibn Jabal to Yemen as a judge, he asked him how he would adjudicate cases that were brought before him. Mu’adh replied that he would first “judge in accordance with the Book of Allah”[43] and if the answer was not found there, then he would then refer to the “Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah.”[44] This hadith affirms the status of the sunnah as the second source of Islamic law, its binding authority, and the early use of the term sunnah to mean the normative sayings and deeds of the Prophet. In practical terms, this would apply to the question on whether eating domesticated donkeys was permissible: as the Qur’an is silent on the matter, the sunnah would need to be consulted.[45] In this case, it is reported in an authentic hadith that “the Messenger of Allah forbade eating the meat of domesticated donkeys;”[46] thus, demonstrating the authority and status of the sunnah in cases where the Qur’an does not provide an answer to a legal question.

Conversely, Al-Albanee and Za’i grade the hadith of Mu’adh to be da’if (weak),[47] Al-Albanee also mentions that Al-Bukhari rejected this hadith due to its weakness,[48] and Za’i agrees adding that Al-Daraqutni and other hadith scholars also have the same opinion.[49] Moreover, Al-Albanee while acknowledging the methodology established by the hadith, disagrees that the sunnah should be used after the Qur’an, as he believes that since the sunnah “explains the Book of Allah”[50] so it should be examined together with the Qur’an. He contends that the Qur’an and the sunnah need to be utilised as “one source [with] … no distinction between them at all”[51] for the purposes of deriving rulings. He cites an authentic hadith to support his position, where the Prophet said, “Verily, I have been given the Book and something like it with it.”[52] While Al-Albanee makes an important point about the authenticity of the hadith of Mu’adh, his view of using the Qur’an and sunnah as one source is problematic, as it does not take into consideration the fact that the Qur’an is mutawatir (conveyed through successive chains)[53] while most hadith are not.[54] Furthermore, not very verse of the Qur’an needs elaboration, as there are clear verses that can be used for rulings by themselves.[55]

The sunnah is proof in Islamic law for something to be fard or wajib (obligatory), mustahabb or mandub (recommended), mubah (permitted), makruh (discouraged) or haram (forbidden).[56] The sunnah that is wajib includes reciting Surah al-Fatihah in every rak’ah (unit) of prayer,[57] as the Prophet declared that “Whoever does not recite Surat al-Fatihah in his Salat (prayer), his Salat is invalid.”[58] The Sunni four schools of thought all agree that in the prayer the recitation of Surah al-Fatihah is either fard or wajib.[59] In regard to mustahabb or mandub actions, which are also called sunnah, includes washing each limb three times during wudu (ritual ablution);[60] as when the Prophet performed wudu he “washed his hands thrice. Then he washed his face thrice and his forearms thrice ... [and finally he] washed his feet three times.”[61] Al-Haj, Nadwi and Saqib confirm that the Prophet usually washed his limbs thrice during wudu, and that it this was his preferred practice.[62]

The sunnah that is mubah would fall under normal everyday activities the Prophet did as a man living in Medieval Arabia,[63] like wearing a hibarah (a Yemeni cloak),[64] or that he rode a donkey for travelling,[65] or that he ate squash.[66] This also applies to everyday activities done by Muslims today, which includes eating ice-cream, driving a car, wearing a suit or using a phone to communicate. None of these mubah activities incur reward or punishment per se; however, if they are done with a good intention or an evil intention then it can become an act deserving reward or punishment accordingly.[67]

In the Hadith literature, makruh refers the Prophet’s statements about things that he discouraged Muslims from doing, this includes sleeping before Isha (evening) prayer and talking after it.[68] These makruh actions are to be avoided by Muslims, for which they will be rewarded, but they will not be punished for doing them.[69] The Hanafis divide makruh into two types: makruh tanzihi and makruh tahrimi: makruh tanzihi is similar to the majority’s view on what constitutes makruh as stated above.[70] On the other hand, makruh tahrimi refers those things which are prohibited but not at the level of haram, which requires definite proof like a clear verse from the Qur’an.[71]

Haram actions are proscribed actions which incur punishment if committed and reward if omitted,[72] the punishment is either in this world like for adultery,[73] or in the hereafter like for backbiting.[74] Haram actions are of two types: haram li-dhatihi which is forbidden on its own accord like murder, and haram li-ghayrihi which is prohibited due to circumstances like selling stolen goods.[75] Apart from the Hanafis, the other schools accept ahad (solitary) authentic hadith as proof for something to be haram,[76] this includes when the “Messenger of Allah forbade (eating) every wild animal with fangs and every bird with talons.”[77] This means that cats, dogs, wolves, lions, tigers are prohibited as they have fangs;[78] while eagles, hawks and owls are also prohibited,[79] as they are birds of prey with talons.[80]

At the turn of the last century, saw the emergence of the idea that the Qur’an was sufficient for Muslims, as the Lawgiver states that “And We have sent down to you the Book as an exposition of everything.”[81]  The genesis of this movement can be traced to British India where an Indian imam (prayer leader), Abd Allah Chakralawi, rejected hadith, claiming that the Qur’an was sufficient for guiding Muslims,[82] which he tried to prove by looking for the “details of the salat”[83] in the Qur’an. The idea then spread to other parts of India and the Muslim world, their main claims were that Muhammad’s sunnah was only for the early Muslim community, as the sunnah was not preserved like the Qur’an it could not be trusted, and as the reliability of hadith could not be guaranteed so it could only be used for historical information.[84]

The fact that proponents of this modern movement could not establish how the pillars of Islam could be implemented using only the Qur’an,[85] led some to reinterpret the meaning of Islamic concepts like salah in novel ways.[86] Some claimed that the Qur’an was deliberately silent on how to perform salah to demonstrate “its universal applicability to all times and places,”[87] as well as, allowing “monotheists of different communities … to pray together.”[88] Furthermore, in the 1960s in Pakistan as head of the Central Institute for Islamic Research, Fazlur Rahman agreed with Western orientalists like Goldziher and Schacht that most hadith were developed after the Prophet’s death as postulated by the former, and that the isnad system was “an inevitable by-product of the hadith enterprise”[89] as claimed by the latter.[90] While Rahman did not completely reject hadith, as he recognised their social and historical utility; nonetheless, he preferred to use human reasoning, accounts from the Prophet’s sirah and fiqh in deriving answers to legal questions than to apply relevant hadith.[91] His method has been further developed into a contextualist approach by Islamic Studies professor at The University of Melbourne, Abdullah Saeed.[92] He supports Rahman’s position of creating a set of general principles from both the context of when the Qur’an was revealed and the modern context, to provide rulings for the “needs of the community.”[93] His justification of not using the sunnah to develop “a hierarchy of values”[94] for his contextual approach is that “any hierarchy developed from the Qur’an will not be too distant from the priorities of the sunnah.”[95] However, there are principles that are in the sunnah which are not found in the Qur’an, like “There is no injury or return of injury.”[96]

These modern approaches relegate the sunnah from its rightful place as the second source of Islamic law, giving preference to other sources, including human reason – which directly contravenes the command of the Lawgiver. Interpreting the Qur’an without the sunnah would entail rejecting the Prophet’s authority, and his role as teacher of the Qur’an: both of which have been bestowed on him by the Lawgiver, as in Surah al-Hashr, “And whatsoever the Messenger gives you, take it; and whatsoever he forbids you, abstain (from it),”[97] and also in Surah an-Nahl, “And We have sent down to you the Dhikr (reminder), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought.”[98] Hence, any approach to interpreting the Qur’an without any reference to the Prophet cannot be accepted, as it contradicts the Lawgiver’s commands to obey the Messenger – which can only be done by following the sunnah.[99]

In conclusion, the sunnah is a vital precept of Islam, this is because the guidance sent by God was not only the Book but also the Messenger who received and explained the Book to his companions.[100] Its status is given by the Lawgiver, so it cannot be taken away by human reasoning.[101] Without it, Muslims would not be able to lead righteous lives as they would not know what was mundub, makruh or even haram. Moreover, the authenticity and reliability of hadith is not a sound reason to reject the whole corpus of hadith, as hadith scholars throughout history have spent their lives preserving, researching, and grading hadith.[102] Ultimately, the sunnah safeguards the ummah from going to extremes and staying on the Straight Path.[103]

 

 

 

 

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[1] Cyril Glasse, “Sunnah,” in The New Encyclopedia of Islam, rev. ed. (Walnut Creek: Altamira Press, 2001), 441.

 

[2] Juan E. Campo, ed., “Sunna,” in Encyclopedia of Islam (New York: Checkmark Books, 2009), 644.

 

[3] Azim A. Nanji, “Sunnah,” in The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World, ed. John L. Esposito (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), 5:252.

 

[4] Muhammad Aman Al-Jami, The Position of the Sunnah in the Islamic Legislation, trans. Raha Batts (Philadelphia: Authentic Statements Publishing, 2017), 23; Abdul Wahid, Principles of Deen, trans. Afzal Hoosen Elias (Karachi: Zam Zam Publishers, 2017), 48-49.

 

[5] This paper has used Interpretation of the Meanings of the Noble Qur’an in the English Language, translated by Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali and Muhammad Muhsin Khan. 

 

[6] Wahid, Principles of Deen, 49-50.

 

[7] Muhammad Zubayr Siddiqi, “Hadith: A Subject of Keen Interest,” in Hadith and Sunnah: Ideals and Realities, ed. P. K. Koya (Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Book Trust, 1996), 3-4.

 

[8] Mohammad Hashim Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 3rd rev. ed. (Cambridge: The Islamic Text Society, 2003), 61.

 

[9] Wael B. Hallaq, The Origins and Evolution of Islamic Law (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005), 110; Mohammad Hashim Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 3rd rev. ed. (Cambridge: The Islamic Text Society, 2003), 61.

 

[10] Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 63.

 

[11] Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam, 645; Wahid, Principles of Deen, 50-51.

 

[12] Ahmad ibn Taimiyyah, The Criterion Between the Allies of the Most Merciful and the Allies of the Devil, trans. Salim Abdallah ibn Morgan, rev. Hassan El-Rashid (Sydney: International Centre for Islamic Studies, 2001), 45.

 

[13] Qur’an, 21:107.

 

[14] Iyad ibn Musa Al-Yahsubi, Muhammad Messenger of Allah: Ash-Shifa of Qadi Iyad, trans. Aisha Abdarrahman Bewley (Inverness: Madinah Press, 1991), 5; Seyyed Hossein Nasr, ed., The Study Qur’an: A New Translation and Commentary (New York: HarperCollins, 2015), 828-829.

 

[15] Ahmad Hasan, “Sunnah as a Source of Fiqh,” Islamic Studies 39, no. 1 (2000): 7; Wahid, Principles of Deen, 50-51.

 

[16] Muhammad ibn Idris Al-Shafi’i, Al-Risala fi Usul Al-Fiqh: Treatise on the Foundations of Islamic Jurisprudence, 2nd ed., trans. Majid Khadduri (Cambridge: The Islamic Texts Society, 1987), 239-240; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 62.

 

[17] Al-Shafi’i, Al-Risala fi Usul Al-Fiqh, 183.

 

[18] Qur’an, 4:59.

 

[19] Hasan, “Sunnah as a Source of Fiqh,” 12-13.

 

[20] Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam, 645; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 60; Amr Osman, “The Qur’an and the Hadith as Sources of Islamic Law,” in Routledge Handbook of Islamic Law, ed. Khaled Abou El Fadl et al. (New York: Routledge, 2019), 128; Fazlur Rahman, Islam, 2nd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979), 76.

 

[21] Muhammad Yousuf Guraya, “The Concept of Sunnah: A Historical Study,” Islamic Studies 11, no. 1 (1972): 35; Hasan, “Sunnah as a Source of Fiqh,” 7.

 

[22] Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 60; Nanji, “Sunnah,” 252-253.

 

[23] Qur’an, 33:62.

 

[24] Nanji, “Sunnah,” 252.

 

[25] Ibid., 252-253.

 

[26] Al-Shafi’i, Al-Risala fi Usul Al-Fiqh, 111-112; Mustafa As-Siba’ee, The Sunnah and its Role in Islamic Legislation, trans. Faisal ibn Muhammad Shafeeq, ed. Jamila Hakam (Riyadh: International Islamic Publishing House, 2008), 79; Ibn Kathir, Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 2nd ed., abr. Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri (Riyadh: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2003), 2:313; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 59.

 

[27] Qur’an, 62:2.

 

[28] Qur’an, 59:7.

 

[29] Ibid., 33:36.

 

[30] Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, Saviours of Islamic Spirit, ed. Abdur-Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera (London: White Thread Press, 2015), 69.

 

[31] Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, Approaching the Sunnah: Comprehension and Controversy, trans. Jamil Qureshi (London: The International Institute of Islamic Thought, 2006), 41; Muhammad ibn Abdullah As-Suhaym, Islam: Its Foundations and Concepts, trans. Abdur-Raafi Adewale Imam (Riyadh: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2006), 163; Nadwi, Saviours of Islamic Spirit, 68.

 

[32] Osman, “The Qur’an and the Hadith as Sources of Islamic Law,” 128.

 

[33] Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam, 644; Glasse, The New Encyclopedia of Islam, 441; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 65; Osman, “The Qur’an and the Hadith as Sources of Islamic Law,” 127-128.

 

[34] Al-Qaradawi, Approaching the Sunnah, 45; Guraya, “The Concept of Sunnah,” 28; Hasan, “Sunnah as a Source of Fiqh,” 11.

 

[35] Muhammad ibn Ismail Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, trans. Muhammad Muhsin Khan (Riyadh: Maktaba Darussalam, 1997), 2:79, no. 999.

 

[36] Ibid., 1:332, no. 553.

 

[37] Ibid., 5:454, no. 4473.

 

[38] Ibid., 5:269, no. 4119.

 

[39] Ibid.

 

[40] Ibid.

 

[41] Ibid., 5:265, no. 4107.

 

[42] M. Tariq Quraishi, “From the Publishers of the English Edition,” in As-Sayyid Sabiq, Fiqh-us-Sunnah, trans. Muhammad Sa’eed Dabas & Jamal al-Din M. Zarabozo (Indianapolis: American Trust Publications, 1991), v.

 

[43] Abu Dawud Sulaiman ibn Ash’ath, English Translation of Abu Dawud, trans. Nasiruddin Al-Khattab, ed. Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’i, rev. Abu Khaliyl (Riyadh: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2008), 4:179-180, nos. 3592 & 3593.

 

[44] Mohammad ibn Eisa At-Tirmidhi, English Translation of Jami At-Tirmidhi, trans. Abu Khaliyl, ed. Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’i (Riyadh: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2007), 3:124, no. 1327.

 

[45] Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 69.

 

[46] Muslim ibn Al-Hajjaj, English Translation of Sahih Muslim, trans. Nasiruddin Al-Khattab, ed. Huda Khattab (Riyadh: Maktaba Darussalam, 2007), 5:275, no. 5008.

 

[47] Abu Dawud, English Translation of Abu Dawud, 4:179-180, nos. 3592 & 3593; At-Tirmidhi, English Translation of Jami At-Tirmidhi, 3:124, no. 1327; Abu Dawud, Sunan Abi Dawud, Book 25, Hadith 3592, accessed May 11, 2024, https://sunnah.com/abudawud/25

 

[48] Muhammad Naasir-ud-Deen Al-Albanee, The Status of the Sunnah in Islam, trans. Isma’eel Alarcon (USA: Al-Ibaanah Book Publishing, 2004), 17.

 

[49] At-Tirmidhi, English Translation of Jami At-Tirmidhi, 3:124, no. 1327.

 

[50] Al-Albanee, The Status of the Sunnah in Islam, 17.

 

[51] Ibid.

 

[52] Abu Dawud, English Translation of Abu Dawud, 5:160, no. 4604; Abu Dawud, Sunan Abi Dawud, Book 42, Hadith 4604, accessed May 11, 2024, https://sunnah.com/abudawud/42

 

[53] Islam Question & Answer, “Mutawaatir Hadith,” last modified March 31, 2003, https://islamqa.info/en/answers/34651/mutawaatir-hadith

 

[54] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 92-93; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 79-80.

 

[55] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 92-93; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 79.

 

[56] Glasse, “Shari’ah,” 419; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 70-71; Suhaib Sirajudin, A Commentary on Al-Waraqat of Imamul Haramain Abdul Malik ibn Abdillah ibn Yusuf Al-Juwaini Ash-Shafi (Self-published, 2022), 22-23; David R. Vishanoff, Islamic Legal Theory: A Critical Introduction: Based on al-Juwayni’s Waraqat fi Usul al-Fiqh, 28, last modified May 28, 2021, https://waraqat.vishanoff.com/e/e2/

 

[57] Sabiq, Fiqh-us-Sunnah, 1:121.

 

[58] Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, 1:424, no. 756.

 

[59] Sayyidi Abd ar-Rahman Al-Akhdari, Mukhtasar Al-Akhdari: Summary on Ibadat According to the School of Imam Malik, trans. Aisha Bewley (Bradford: Diwan Press, 2019), 46; Hatem Al-Haj, Umdat Al-Fiqh Explained: A Commentary on Ibn Qudamah’s The Reliable Manual of Fiqh (Riyadh: International Islamic Publishing House, 2019), 1:178; Salim bin Abd Allah bin Sumayr Al-Hadrami Al-Shafi’i, Ark of Salvation: Essential Islamic Beliefs & Obligations, trans. Musa Furber (Kuala Lumpur: Islamosaic Publishing, 2020), 25; Muhammad Akram Nadwi, Al-Fiqh Al-Islami: According to the Hanafi Madhhab (London: Angelwing Media, 2007), 1:123.

 

[60] Al-Haj, Umdat Al-Fiqh Explained, 1:79; Nadwi, Al-Fiqh Al-Islami, 1:41-42; Sabiq, Fiqh-us-Sunnah, 1:31.

 

[61] Abu Dawud, English Translation of Abu Dawud, 1:95, no. 135.

 

[62] Al-Haj, Umdat Al-Fiqh Explained, 1:79; Nadwi, Al-Fiqh Al-Islami, 1:42; Sabiq, Fiqh-us-Sunnah, 1:31.

 

[63] Recep Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh: Methodology of Islamic Jurisprudence (New Jersey: Tughra Books, 2015), 247; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 419; Sirajudin, A Commentary on Al-Waraqat, 29.

 

[64] Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, 7:388, no. 5813; Muslim, English Translation of Sahih Muslim, 5:444-445, nos. 5440 & 5441.

 

[65] Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, 4:145, no. 2987.

 

[66] Muslim, English Translation of Sahih Muslim, 5:395, nos. 5325 & 5326.

 

[67] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 247; Sirajudin, A Commentary on Al-Waraqat, 29.

 

[68] Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, 1:339, no. 568.

 

[69] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 245; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 424; Sirajudin, A Commentary on Al-Waraqat, 33.

 

[70] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 245; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 426; Sirajudin, A Commentary on Al-Waraqat, 33-34.

 

[71] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 245; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 421-422.

 

[72] Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 421.

 

[73] Al-Bukhari, The Translation of Sahih Al-Bukhari, 7:131, no. 5271.

 

[74] Abu Dawud, English Translation of Abu Dawud, 5:301, no. 4878.

 

[75] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 243-244; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 423.

 

[76] Dogan, Usul Al-Fiqh, 245; Kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence, 421.

 

[77] Muslim, English Translation of Sahih Muslim, 5:269, no. 4994.

 

[78] Abdurrahman Dahlan, “Is it Halal to Eat Fanged Animals?” National Council of the Indonesia Ulema Council, last modified September 5, 2022, https://halalmui.org/en/halalkah-eating-fanged-animals/

 

[79] Muhammad ibn Adam Al-Kawthari, “The Fiqh of Halal and Haram Animals,” IslamQA, accessed May 10, 2024, https://islamqa.org/?p=34878

 

[80] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Bird of Prey,” Encyclopedia Britannica, last modified April 25, 2024, https://www.britannica.com/animal/bird-of-prey

 

[81] Qur’an 16:89.

 

[82] Daniel W. Brown, “Reappraisal,” in The Wiley Blackwell Concise Companion to the Hadith, ed. Daniel W. Brown (New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 2020), 322, https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118638477.ch16

 

[83] Ibid.

 

[84] Ibid., 323-324.

 

[85] Hamad Alfarisi, Noor Mohammad Osmani, and Zainab Zubi, “The Status of Sunnah in Islam,” International Journal of Academic Research in Business & Social Sciences 13, no. 2 (2023): 666, accessed May 10, 2024, http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v13-i2/16292; Al-Qaradawi, Approaching the Sunnah, 29.

 

[86] Brown, “Reappraisal,” 324.

 

[87] Ibid.

 

[88] Ibid.

 

[89] Brown, “Reappraisal,” 328.

 

[90] Rahman, Islam, 59-60.

 

[91] Brown, “Reappraisal,” 329.

 

[92] Abdullah Saeed, Interpreting the Qur’an: Towards a Contemporary Approach (London: Routledge, 2006), 128.

 

[93] Ibid.

 

[94] Ibid.

 

[95] Ibid., 129.

 

[96] Malik ibn Anas, Al-Muwatta of Imam Malik ibn Anas: The First Formulation of Islamic Law, trans. Aisha Abdurrahman Bewley (Granada: Madinah Press, 1989), Book 36, 307, no. 31.

[97] Qur’an, 59:7.

 

[98] Ibid., 16:44.

 

[99] Alfarisi, Osmani and Zubi, “The Status of Sunnah in Islam,” 666; Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo, The Authority and Importance of the Sunnah (Denver: Al-Basheer Company for Publications and Translations, 2000), 217.

 

[100] Al-Qaradawi, Approaching the Sunnah, 2-3.

 

[101] Abdur Rahman I. Doi and Abdassamad Clarke, Shari’ah: Islamic Law, 2nd rev. ed., ed. Abia Afsar-Siddiqui (London: Ta-Ha Publishers, 2008), 74-75.

[102] Muhammad Ali, “Collection and Preservation of Hadith,” in Hadith and Sunnah: Ideals and Realities, ed. P. K. Koya (Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Book Trust, 1996), 50-51; S. M. Yusuf, “The Sunnah: Its Development and Revision,” in Hadith and Sunnah: Ideals and Realities, ed. P. K. Koya (Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Book Trust, 1996), 121.

 

[103] Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo, Towards Understanding Our Religion (Denver: Al-Basheer Company for Publications and Translations, 1999), 282-283.