SHARIAsource

This is a reference to a collection of multiple reports in connection with mutʿa marriage. Hossein Modarressi cites this source to argue that Sunnī scholars disagreed over whether and when mutʿa was abrogated by the Prophet or, as was commonly believed, proscribed by ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to a report in Muslim's Ṣaḥīḥ collection indicating that mutʿa remained in effect during the lifetime of the Prophet and Abū Bakr. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference to show the complexity of discussions surrounding the meaning and lawfulness of mutʿa in early Islamic discourse.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to Sunnī views on the legal status of homicide in situations of "precautionary secrecy" (taqiyya). Hossein Modarressi cites this source to show the various legal arguments and views pertaining to taqiyya, which is often misunderstood and additionally considered a sectarian issue.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to unusual sexual behaviors that were espoused by the school of Medina based on the idea that a wife's entire body was available for her husband's pleasure. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference to show that, along with other schools and jurists, Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq strictly forbade such sexual relations.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to reports from Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq that condemn certain sexual behaviors (e.g., anal intercourse) and clarify the meaning of Q. 2:223: "Your women are a tilth to you, so go unto your tilth as you will." Hossein Modarressi cites this reference in the course of his discussion on the attribution of conflicting legal views to al-Ṣādiq on the subject.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to the tradition of the House of the Prophet that held the call to prayer (adhān) to be taught to the Prophet by the angel Gabriel. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference as an example of how the tradition of the House of the Prophet compared to the Sunnī belief that the call to prayer originated in a Companion's dream.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to a report by Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq that holds the original call to prayer (adhān) to have included a call to "the best of acts" (ḥayya ʿalā khayr al-ʿamal). Hossein Modarressi cites this report as an example of one of the differences between the legal legacy of the House of the Prophet and other legal schools with respect to cases concerning prayer.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to 400 books thought to be compiled by Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq's disciples and including his legal opinions. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference in the course of his discussion on the extremely large number of reports and statements attributed to al-Ṣādiq, which, in the Shīʿī tradition, are held to have originated with the efforts of his many disciples.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to the similarity between "seven years of servitude" in the report in Kulaynī, Kāfī, 6:196–97 and in Deuteronomy 15:12–15. Hossein Modarressi cites this source in the context of his selection of legal responses by Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq on the maximum number of years of servitude by a believer, drawing attention to the similarity between the case in Jewish and Islamic law. 

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to the common Medinan practice of women asking for their dowers before moving to the matrimonial home. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference to clarify the context surrounding Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq's view with respect to when a wife may no longer be entitled to request her dower (in Kulaynī, Kāfī, 5:385-86).

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to the disagreements of the early jurists and various schools on the question of liability if one's riding animal hits another person. Hossein Modarressi cites this source to present a comparison between these views and that of Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq, which restricted liability to the case of the animal hitting another person with its forelegs, not hind legs. 

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This fatwa acknowledges the principal distinctions between Sunni and Shi'a Islam:

1. Shi'a Islam rejects hadith not narrated by the Prophet's family (Ahlu Bait), while Sunni Islam (Ahlu Sunnah wal Jama'ah) does not differentiate between hadith provided that those hadith meet the criteria of the classification of hadith (mustalah hadis);
2. Shi'a Islam perceives imams as infallible (ma 'sum), while Sunni Islam does not;
3. Shi'a Islam does not acknowledge consensus (ijma') without the presence of an imam, while Sunni Islam does;
4. Shi'a Islam believes that political leadership/government is included in the pillars of religion, while Sunni Islam believes in general welfare with the aim of religious, spiritual, political leadership being to guarantee and protect the proselytisation and interests of the Islamic people (umat); and
5. Shi'a Islam, in general, does not acknowledge the succession of Abu Bakar as-Siddiq, Umar Ibnul Khatab, and Usman bin Affan, while Sunni Islam does.

Acknowledging these principal differences, especially with regard to government (imamah), the Indonesian Council of Ulama implores Indonesian Muslims to understand Sunni Islam in order to increase their own vigilence towards the flow of interpretations based on Shi'a Islam.

Plaintiff Joe Burgos Vega, a practicing Muslim prisoner at the Connecticut Department of Corrections (“DOC”), brought this action against the Respondents, officials at the DOC, claiming that Respondents’ 1) denial of the Plaintiff’s request to be circumcised; 2) denial of access to suitable Islamic prayer oils; and 3) frequently canceled Friday congregational prayer constituted a violation of his right to exercise his religion. The Respondents argued that they are entitled to qualified immunity from suit in their individual capacities. The Court sided with the Respondents, finding that 1) prisoners have no constitutional or statutory right to a surgery that is not medically necessary; 2) DOC officers did not violate the Plaintiff’s right with regard to prayer oils, because they provided him with access to the imam-approved commissary oil; and 3) that although prisoners have the right to participate in group religious services, the frequent Friday prayer cancellations were reasonable because they occurred due to a shortage of volunteer imams and that other opportunities for religious practice were available to Muslim inmates.

This fatwa was issued in response to a letter received by the Indonesian Council of Ulama (Majelis Ulama Indonesia) from Bambang Sulastomo regarding the transfer of a corpse from the holy land (tanah Suci - Mecca) to the homeland (tanah air - Indonesia). After convening on 13 October 1981, the Council determined that it would be preferable for the deceased's body to remain in the holy land where it had already been buried. The only exception to this would be if a reason existed according to shari'a. Imam Maliki stated that transferring a corpse already buried would be permissible if a reason could be found that pertained to the welfare of others, including to make the pilgrimage easier or to enable the body to be buried with other deceased family members. Government instructions would also be necessary if a body was to be repatriated.

This fatwa states that among Islamic jurists (fuqaha') there exist two schools of thought as to determining the commencement of Ramadhan and Syawal/Idul Fitri. The first, championed by Imam Syafi'i, is dictated by the relevant time the sun rises and sets and, therefore, the place. The second does not take these points into consideration. The Fatwa Committee states that, in the absence of a 'Qadi Internasional', it is the prerogative of each country's government to stipulate the relevant commencement date.

With regards to determining the commencement date of Zulhijjah/Idul Adha, the fatwa acknowledges that the ulama have reached a consensus that each country has its own time to perform the Idul Adha prayer (shalat).

This indictment relates to a case involving a defendant with the initials AM who was accused of committing khalwat (being in a close proximity with a man unrelated to her by blood or marriage) and ikhtilath (physical intimacy between an unmarried man and woman). Her neighbors found her to be in close proximity in her home with a man, RS. AM insisted that RS was, in fact, her legitimate husband and that they were married by way of nikah dibawah tangan, a marriage officiated by a local imam and not registered in the civil registry. The prosecutor rejected the legitimacy of her marriage with RS by claiming that such unregistered marriage violated the Indonesian Marriage Law of 1974. Accordingly, AM’s act of being in close proximity with RS was considered unlawful.

This document is an authenticated copy of a court decision from Rabi I 1358 (June/July 1939). The original decision was issued on 13 Rabiah II, 1332 (March 10, 1914) by Yahya b. Muhammad b. Abbas. The decision describes a controversy in the Jewish community of Sanaa and the enforcement of the Pact of Umar on the community. The controversy revolved around a group of Jews that had rejected the teaching of a Jewish mystical text, the Zohar. The document describes that the Imam (Yahya Muhammad Hamid al-Din) brought the controversy to court. The judge rules to allow the Zohar to be taught and institutes a number of orders to maintain the peace and the status quo in the community. The judge also issues several other orders related to the Jewish community, including orders regulating the appearance of Jewish men and women, and a process for resolving potentially new (and therefore illegal) synagogues.

This is a reference to a story about one of Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq's slaves, together with someone else, who killed a person. When permission for retaliation was sought from al-Ṣādiq by the governor of Medina, al-Ṣādiq at first remained silent because his view was that two people could not be put to death for the murder of one person, later withdrawing his protection of his slave after the victim's family convinced the governor to put pressure on him. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference to explain that al-Ṣādiq was keenly attuned to social sensitivities.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022). 

This is a reference to Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq's use of term Āl Umayya rather than the more common term Banū Umayya to refer to the Umayyads. Hossein Modarressi draws on this reference to make the case that al-Ṣādiq's advice to his followers to follow that which contradicts the masses had no sectarian implications; rather, it was because the Umayyads had insisted on promoting beliefs and practices that explicitly contradicted the legal legacy of the House of the Prophet. 

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).

This is a reference to a report by Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq where he is asked about the permissibility of consuming an eel-like fish (jirrī/jirrīth); al-Ṣādiq states that eating it is impermissible based on the view of ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib. Hossein Modarressi cites this reference to argue that, contrary to reports found in some Sunnī works that claim that ʿAlī agreed with others on the lawfulness of eating jirrī, reports from al-Ṣādiq and his father al-Bāqir challenge the validity of this attribution.

This source is part of the Online Companion to Hossein Modarressi, Text and Interpretation: Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq and His Legacy in Islamic Law (Harvard University Press, 2022).