Original Islam

<p><em>Original Islam</em> investigates the primacy of Madinan Islam and the madhhab (school of law) of its main exponent, Malik ibn Anas. It contains an annotated translation of <em>Intisar al-faqir al-salik li-tarjih madhhab al-Imam al-kabir Malik</em>, which was written by al-Ra'i, a fifteenth-century Andalusian scholar resident in Cairo.</p><p>This book includes:</p><ul> <li>a comprehensive section on the scholarly credentials of the great eighth-century Madinan jurist Malik ibn Anas </li> <li>a detailed examination of a number of theoretical and practical disputed legal issues </li> <li>examples of the inter-<em>madhhab </em>rivalry and prejudice prevalent in fifteenth-century Cairo </li> <li>an extensive introduction giving background information on al-Ra’i and his life and times. </li> </ul><p>It also highlights the significance of the text for contemporary Muslim discourse, in which both "modernist" and "fundamentalist" elements often equate the concept of <em>madhhab</em> with an outmoded tradition which must be rejected as irrelevant to the practice of Islam in a globalized world. This book aims to put this ongoing controversy about madhhab, particularly the Maliki <em>madhhab</em> and its "pre-<em>madhhab</em>" Madinan origins, on a surer footing. <em>Original Islam</em> provides access to a hitherto little known area of Islamic law and is essential reading for those with interests in this area. </p> <p><strong>Part 1: Introduction </strong>1. Al-Ra'i's Life and Times 2. The <em>Intisar </em>and its Significance 3. Malik and the Way of Madina 4. Malik and his <em>Madhhab </em>in Contemporary Islamic Studies: Some Controversial Issues <strong>Part 2: Translation of Al-Ra'i's <em>Intisar al-faqir al-salik li-tarjih madhhab al-imam al-kabir Malik </em></strong>1. Malik the Imam 2. Malik's <em>Madhhab </em>and its Bases 3. Various Points of Dispute between the <em>Madhhabs </em>4. Examples of the Prejudice that Led to the Writing of this Book 5. Some Linguistics Errors Common to both Specialists and Non-Specialists. Biographical Notes of Persons Mentioned</p>