Laleh Bakhtiar. Encyclopedia of Islamic Law: A Compendium of the Major Schools.

Chicago: Library of Islam, Kazi Publications, 1995. xl + 624 pp. $39.95, paper, ISBN
978-1-56744-498-8.

Reviewed by Bernard Freamon

Published on H-Law (March, 2000)

To the uninitiated lawyer trained in the west, lished in Arabic in Beirut in 1982. The "Five
the corpus of Islamic law may appear to be a be‐ Schools" or "al madhahib al khamsa" are the five
wildering mass of disconnected rules, principles, major eponymous "schools of law" (or, more prop‐
maxims, and aphorisms -- some seemingly out of erly, "schools of juristic thought") which, over the
touch with the demands of the modern world and past one thousand years, have come to predomi‐
others requiring unreasoned adherence to wood‐ nate in the development of particular rules of law
en, stoical forms of behavior. This is far from the governing the behavior of all Muslims. Every
truth, yet a search of Islamic law materials in Eng‐ good Muslim must accept and follow the fiqh or
lish may not give the uninitiated lawyer much "jurisprudence" of one of the "schools of law" in
comfort, since there are still very few readable, his or her daily life. While the Arabic word "fiqh"
understandable, and comprehensive English lan‐ is often translated as "jurisprudence," and we fol‐
guage treatments of this important subject. low that practice here, this is a somewhat inaccu‐
Laleh Bakhtiar's Encyclopedia of Islamic Law: rate rendering, especially if one acknowledges
A Compendium of the Views of the Major Schools that the word "jurisprudence" can have multiple
(Kazi Publications, Library of Islam Series, 1995), meanings in English as well. The word "fiqh" is de‐
is a commendable attempt to fill part of this gap. rived from the Arabic verb root "faqiha" which
Ms. Bakhtiar is known to western authors primar‐ means to understand or comprehend. "Fiqh" then,
ily through her English-language works on Islam‐ is literally an "understanding" or a "comprehen‐
ic women, and Sufi ceremony; her history of Is‐ sion." In the technical language of the Islamic law,
lam will be published later this year.[1] Her "En‐ "fiqh" is the legal scholar's understanding and ex‐
cyclopedia" is an English language adaptation of a plication of the rules or "branches" of the law, as
modern work, Muhammad Jawad al-Mughniyya's they are derived from the two divine sources or
al-fiqh ala-l-madhahib al khamsa ("The Jurispru‐ "roots" of Islamic Jurisprudence -- the Holy
dence According to the Five Schools"), first pub‐ Qur'an, the divine text, and the Sunnah, or exam‐
 H-Net Reviews

ple, of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon there are some useful footnotes, the citation form
him). used is woefully inadequate and the footnotes of‐
Dr. Bakhtiar's adaptation of al Mughniyya's ten raise more questions than they answer.
work offers English language readers a survey of For example, footnote 2 on p. 551 attempts to
the basic rules of fiqh (the practical rules of law describe the distinction made by the Hanafi schol‐
governing the ritual and non-ritual behavior of ars concerning certain mandatory obligations
Muslims) as they are derived and applied by the that flow from commands found in the Holy
major madhahib or "schools of law" in Islamic ju‐ Qur'an and the Sunnah. This is a basic point fa‐
risprudence. The book assiduously reports these miliar to many scholars in comparative Islamic ju‐
rules to the reader in the same order found in risprudence. While the other Schools of Law
most classical books of fiqh, beginning first with make no distinction between obligatory acts com‐
the rules governing worship (purification, prayer, manded by the Qur'an and Sunnah, the Hanafis
fasting, and pilgrimage), and then treating eco‐ divide obligatory acts into two classes (fard and
nomic and social issues (charity, marriage, di‐ wajib). This division gives rise to varying results
vorce, capacity, guardianship, and inheritance) for those who fail to obey a command, depending
separately. Although Islamic scholars classify on the level of definitiveness found in the lan‐
rules governing charitable obligations as part of guage of the text or in its mode of transmission.
the law of worship, they are dealt with here as an For example, while all Muslims should acknowl‐
aspect of economic relations. This is apparently a edge the obligation to individually perform the
concession to the convenience of the reader and it three-unit witr prayer after the conclusion of the
does not detract from the organization of the mandatory evening prayer, the authenticity of the
work. It should be noted that Dr. Bakhtiar's adap‐ Prophet's command requiring this extra prayer is
tation does not contain any material on the law of not free from doubt. Therefore, according to the
sales and other commercial relations, crimes, Hanafis, the Muslim, while still obligated to make
torts, war, international law and diplomacy, the prayer, is not considered an unbeliever if he,
oaths, or judicial proof -- topics commonly en‐ in good faith, disputes the authenticity of the com‐
countered in other specialized books of fiqh. mand or its applicability in certain situations.
On each topic covered in this adaptation, the Although the subject is somewhat complex
author describes, in bare-bones language, the and academic, requiring some knowledge of Ara‐
rules of conduct for Muslims as they are pre‐ bic grammar, the sciences of hadith, and princi‐
scribed by each of the four Sunni Schools of Law ples of legal interpretation, the footnote does not
(Maliki, Hanafi, Shafi'i and Hanbali) and by the Ja‐ explain the distinction well and the reader will
fari School, a major school followed by many Shi'i likely come away from the topic with less under‐
Muslims. I use the adjective "bare-bones" with standing of the Hanafi position than if he had nev‐
some emphasis because that is essentially all the er read the footnote. To make matters worse, the
adaptation offers the reader. It does not purport reader is not referred to any other sources that
to be a work of erudite scholarship. It is simply a might assist in clarifying the issue. The only bibli‐
recitation of the black-letter rules and the varia‐ ography in the book is a simple list, in an appen‐
tions in those rules that sometimes manifest dix of "authors consulted" without mention of any
themselves between and among the Schools of titles or other useful bibliographic information.
Law. There are no analytical discussions of the Thus, Dr. Bakhtiar's Encyclopedia of Islamic
rules, or their variations, and there is a noticeable Law is probably misnamed. It is not a true ency‐
absence of footnoting to known sources. While clopedia, and it simply cannot be compared to

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other important encyclopedic English language nesses is a necessary precondition for a valid Is‐
works on Islam and Islamic Law, such as the mas‐ lamic marriage contract, the book (at Section 10.2,
sive Encyclopedia of Islam, Gibb and Kramers' p. 400) answers this question, quickly, (generally
Shorter Encyclopedia of Islam, or Fyzee's Outlines two witnesses required, except the Jafaris, who do
of Muhammadan Law. not make the presence of witnesses mandatory)
All that having been said, Dr. Bakhtiar's work as well as offering a useful comparison of the
will be of considerable use on a number of levels, views of the Schools of Law concerning the gen‐
in spite of these shortcomings. Its black-letter de‐ der of the witnesses and other particular details.
scriptions of the rules of fiqh on various points Similarly, in the law of worship, the book
appear to be reasonably accurate and, because of nicely summarizes the points of consensus and
that, it certainly can serve as a useful quick refer‐ the fine points of difference among the Schools of
ence work for teachers and advisors on Islamic Law concerning the times of prayer and the oblig‐
law. Anglo-American lawyers are familiar with atory aspects of the prayer, including the recita‐
and frequently use digests of the law in an effort tion of the Qur'an, bending forward, prostration,
to quickly ascertain what the law is on any given and the sending of greetings. In many other in‐
subject. Because of the nature of the sources in Is‐ stances, the book gives pithy and succinct com‐
lamic Jurisprudence and the absence of a code or parative descriptions of the law that will put the
system of precedents, it is very difficult to find a reader on the right track in developing a better
compendium of Islamic law that will digest the understanding of the fiqh and the differences
law in the Anglo-American style. Dr. Bakhtiar's among the schools of law. Although poorly docu‐
adaptation performs this task quite nicely. Al‐ mented, Dr. Bakhtiar's adaptation is a short work‐
though the author should have taken more care in manlike comparative abridgement or "Reader's
referring the reader to sources and in not over‐ Digest" of the central issues in the fiqh. Within
simplifying some of the more complex rules, this that limited sphere it is a useful addition to the
book will be appreciated by Muslims and non- English language literature on Islamic law.
Muslims alike as the first attempt, in English, to NOTE
digest the Sunni and Shi'i fiqh in one coherent ef‐
[1]. A partial listing of Bakhtiar's recent works
fort.
as editor, author, or translator includes: Laleh
The book is also improved by the addition of Bakhtiar, "Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani,"
a fine introduction by Professor Kevin Reinhart of Encyclopedia of Muhammad's Women Compan‐
Dartmouth College. Professor Reinhart offers the ions and the Traditions They Related (1998); Laleh
non-Muslim reader a succinct description of the Bakhtiar, Traditional Psychoethics and Personali‐
Islamic legal system and the place of the "Schools ty Paradigm (God's Will Be Done, vol. 1) (1994);
of Law," including the Shi'i schools, in that system. Moral Healer's Handbook: The Psychology of Spir‐
While frankly acknowledging that Dr. Bakhtiar's itual Chivalry (God's Will Be Done, vol. 2) (1994);
adaptation barely "scratches the surface" of the Laleh Bakhtiar, Simon Bakhtiar, Moral Healing
rich intellectual tradition of Islamic law, Professor Through the Most Beautiful Names: The Practice
Reinhart points out that the adaptation can serve of Spiritual Chivalry (God's Will Be Done, vol. 3)
as a "Reader's Digest" of Islamic law that will be of (1995); Laleh Bakhtiar, Muhammad's Compan‐
some use to those who have a need to compare ions: Essays on Those Who Bore Witness; (trans.),
and contrast the views of the five major schools Ali Shariati, Shariati on Shariati and the Muslim
on particular practical points of law. For example, Woman (1996); Abu'L-Qasim Al-Qushayri, Rabia
if one needs to know whether the presence of wit‐ Harris (trans.), Laleh Bakhtiar, ed. Sufi Book of

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Spiritual Ascent: (Al-Risala Al-Qushayriya) (1997);

, Sufi Women of America: Angels in the Making
(1996); , Sufi: Expressions of the Mystic Quest (Art
and Imagination) (1997); , Handbook of Tradition‐
al Psychoethics : Jihad Phase I: Centering the Self
(1993); , Muhammad's Companions: Essays on
Those Who Bore Witness (1998); (ed.), Ramadan:
Motivating Believers to Action: An Interfaith Per‐
spective (1994); , Moral Healing Through the Most
Beautiful Names. See also Laleh Bakhtiar, History
of Islam (forthcoming 2000).
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Citation: Bernard Freamon. Review of Bakhtiar, Laleh. Encyclopedia of Islamic Law: A Compendium of
the Major Schools. H-Law, H-Net Reviews. March, 2000.

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