Abstract
The validity of the established schools of law (sing. madhhab) is a major bone of contention between contemporary Salafis and Traditionalists. The controversy reached its peak around 1970 in a famous exchange between Nāir al-Dīn al-Albānī, who called for direct reliance on authenticated hadith, and Muammad Saīd Ramaān al-Būī, who favored the jurists' legal expertise. In this essay, I chart the course of the lā madhhabiyya debate in Syria by analyzing the polemical writings of three generations of Syrian ulama from 1870 to 1970. I argue that the seeds of the controversy were sown in the late Ottoman period in the Salafi challenge to taqlīd. I also uncover the central role of the Indian Ahl-i Hadith in mediating the anti-madhhabī position to the core Arab lands, and the part of Syrian anafī-Naqshbandī ulamā in defending the madhhabs. Finally, I allude to the political split among the Traditionalist ulamā between the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood and the Bath regime.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 403-430 |
Number of pages | 28 |
Journal | Islamic Law and Society |
Volume | 31 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2024 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2024 Itzchak Weismann.
Keywords
- Ahl-i Hadith
- Muslim Brotherhood
- Naqshbandiyya
- Salafism
- Traditionalist Islam
- lā madhhabiyya
- taqlīd
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Sociology and Political Science
- Law