Customer Reviews

Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence

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This 390 pages book is a dense compendium (or treatise) of Islamic law for students and scholars. It is not for beginners and it is a tough reading. Since this textbook is for student of Islamic law written by an Islamic lawyer, this book assumes that the reader has a basic knowledge of both Qur'an and Shariah. The author is professor of law at the International Islamic University of Malaysia, founded in the 80s to be a center of excellence in several fields and sponsored by the Organization of Islamic Conference and other governments. The main language at the University is English and this text is mainly catered for those students. In the preface, the author says he had initiated the book while he was teaching Islamic Law to postgraduate students at McGill University in Montreal. However, it does not offer international comparisons with other Western legal systems. The book devotes a lot of space to the rules of interpretations of the law within a historical context. So you get Islamic law and history to explain its developments within the several traditions in the Islamic world. It is divided in 19 chapters that span from the Source of the law (Quar'an and Sunnah); Rules of interpretations; Abrogation; Analogical deduction; Revealed laws preceding the Shariah; Equity in Islamic law; Public interest; Custom; Conflict of evidences etc. The author shows a scholarly detachment from the subject and therefore don't expect moral judgments of value on a specific norm, whether it is right or wrong, but only a legal analysis. It is a worthy reading for those who have an interest, other than in Islamic law, in Political Science, International relations and Islamic civilization.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Islamic Law, either Muslim or not. To my knowledge, it is the best book available of its kind in the english language. In these days of many extremes, it is essential to erase our ignorance with knowledge.

An excellent book covering the principles of 'Usul al-Fiqh' or the fundamentals of Islamic jurisprudence according to the four sunni schools of Islam.

The book begins with an introduction to the principles of Islamic jurisprudence and a short history of its development before the author covers its understanding (which is far more complicated than what some modern so called 'experts' on the middle east (and yes, I am talking about Pipes (a man who thinks Muhammad may have not even existed! (see his reviews) and the rabble of pseudo 'scholars' (such as the author of 'Politically incorrect guide') who cant even speak a word of Arabic and the equally useless (unless your a tabloid journalist) fanatics would have you believe)

The author further covers the development of Usul during the last few centuries especially concerning the controversial issue of Ijtihad and the attempts over the centuries to revive it.

An excellent read but not one that can be taken lightly. It will need to be read and read again, this is a book for serious study.

The author of this book is simply a genius, who has allot of knowledge on Islamic Jurisprudence. He is very clear, and it is easy to understand if you have some basic knowledge of Islamic law. Most likely the best book I have ever read on this subject.

Dr. Hashim Kamali's book is a marvelous adaptation of Islamic Fiqh (jurisprudence) in English. I have read through this book extensively, benefited from it greatly, and enjoyed the high literacy quality of this work. He does indeed make use of Arabic words and expressions frequently and that is absolutely needed; all of the reputed work on Islamic Fiqh is in Arabic and he does a painstakingly excellent job of transmitting the soul of the original texts (mainly in Arabic) into English. People complaining about the excessive use of Arabic words in this book perhaps needs to read through the Preface where he provides a great exposition of the need to use the traditional Arabic terms and makes it clear that due to the meticulous nature of the subject, it is important to retain the most important terms and expressions in Arabic upon which the Principles of Fiqh is erected. I give this book very high marks since it has almost no competitors (in English language) in this discipline. Caution should be also exercised since it is not a "casual reading" book; you'll need to pay attention and take good notes. Each page can easily take 3-4 minutes to read. I also wish that Kamali had given more examples in several sections. A great addition to the book will be some sort of Questions or Exercises at the culmination of each chapter. The footnotes and references are well organized and thoroughly researched. You would almost need to read this book more than once to retain the contents due to its complex and deep nature of dicussion. Lastly, this book cannot be simply read and understood by an individual alone unless he/she has the required credentials (e.g. have a good grasp of various Islamic disciplines); for the most part, it is best to study this as part of the course with a qualified teacher so that the book's text can be explained when there's is confusion or lack of clarity. I give the highest rating to this book.

Kamali's book is an excellent "behind closed-doors" look at that pretentious and exclusive club you knew you never wanted to be a member of anyway.

Far from being an introduction to the "Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence" it is more aptly described as cruel and teasing school-yard game entitled, "How Many Arabic Words Can You Remember?" With 521 pages of English text, a reader would imagine that Kamali was attempting to present a detailed account of the principles of Islamic Law to an English speaking audience. He appears, however to take great delight in using a vast vocabulary of Arabic words that are introduced briefly, if at all, and are rarely found in the pathetic glossary at the back. The subject matter is rather dense and requires the readers full attention. Kamali does a great disservice to his reader by forcing constant "look-up that word" breaks.

Another cruel game Kamali plays is "Oh, You Don't Know Him, Do You?" In a seemingly gleeful attempt to add to the confusion, he frequently refers to historical figures well known to Muslims but unheard of to Western readers. Without Wikipedia, this book would be completely impossible. Even with the internet as a supplement to Kamali's book, the flow of the writing is utterly destroyed by the constant interruptions.

His point of view is strictly, exclusively and unapologeticly Sunni, with thinly veiled contempt for Shi'ite Jurisprudence. As he has chosen to title the text "Islamic Jurisprudence" one would expect at least an attempt at academic equality.

There are numerous books out there that cover the same information in an intelligent, approachable and unpretentious manner. Kamali's book may be the worst I have ever read in an academic setting.