1 MAHMUD S HALTUT (D . 1963): MODERN MUSLIM SCHOLAR AND
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1 MAHMUD S HALTUT (d. 1963): MODERN MUSLIM SCHOLAR AND REFORMER BY KATHARINE PATRICIA ZEBIRI SUBMITTED IN FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY SCHOOL OF ORIENTAL AND AFRICAN STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF LONDON SEPTEMBER 1988 ProQuest Number: 10672609 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10672609 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 2 ABSTRACT The thesis deals with Mahmud Shaltut (Shaykh al-Azhar 1958- 63), an important contemporary Muslim scholar and reformer. Following a chapter on Shaltut's life and reform work at the Azhar, the material is divided into three major chapters, on tafsir, law and social issues. The chapter on tafsir describes the innovations of the Muhammad cAbduh school of tafsir and the work of certain key scholars prior to Shaltut, with a brief description of developments after Shaltut. A detailed analysis of his methodology with reference to form and content aims to show the extent of his contribution to that development. The chapter on law is divided into four sections: (1) the sources of law, where we see Shaltut's theoretical exposition of the workings of the Sharlca; (2) Shaltut's fatwas, which illustrate his practical application of those principles; (3) penal law, chosen as a case study because Shaltut deals with it in considerable depth, and (4) comparative jurisprudence, an area in which Shaltut took an especial interest in connection with his work for al-taqrib bayna al-madhahib (the coordination of the schools of law). The chapter on social issues initially describes the normative values of Islamic society, then proceeds to describe aspects of the contemporary reality, with reference to the impact of imperialism and the religious response to the needs of the modern 3 age in general. The ideal and the real are thus juxtaposed in a way which reflects Shaltut's own writings. In this area comparative analysis is of particular value in view of the widely differing responses to particular issues; we have selected for discussion controversial issues such as polygamy, birth control and financial transactions, in order to highlight those differences. An attempt has been made throughout to place Shaltut within the context of modern Muslim scholarship and to define his own contribution in each area. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, for his support and guidance and patient answering of many questions; the British Academy, for funding my research; Miriam Arabia, who kept my youngest daughter happy for many hours while I worked; Gesina Martens, who generously translated some essential material from the German; and my husband, who has always encouraged me with the words: "al-cilmu wa'l-adabu kanzani la yanfadhani". 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ............................................... 8 CHAPTER ONE: SHALTUT'S LIFE AND REFORM W O R K ................15 1 Biographical Details .............................. 15 2 Reform W o r k ........................................... 22 CHAPTER TWO: SHALTUT AS MUFASSIR .......................... 45 1 Tafsir: Definition and Outline History ........... 45 a The Early Development of Tafsir ................. 46 b The Classical TafsTrs .............................. 48 c Taf sir in the Modern P e r i o d ........................ 55 2 Shaltut’s Tafsir .................................. 82 a Shaltut’s Views on Tafsir ........................ 83 b The Form of Shaltut’s T a f s i r ...................... 86 c The Sura as an Organic U n i t y ...................... 88 d The Relationship between the Suras .............. 90 e Shaltut’s Method of Tafsir ..................... 94 f Structure and S t y l e ................................127 3 Tafsir after Shaltut .............................. 134 Conclusion ................................................... 141 CHAPTER : SHALTUT AS F A Q I H ............................. 142 Introduction ............................................... 142 The Range of Shaltut’s Legal Thought ...................... 143 6 1 The Sources of L a w .................................. 146 a The Qur'an .......................................146 b The S u n n a ......................................... 149 c A l - R a ' y ........................................... 152 d S u m m a r y ........................................... 156 2 "Al-Fatawa” ......................................... 161 a The Sources ........................................ 163 b The Characteristics of Shaltut's Fatwas .......... 186 S u m m a r y .............................................201 3 Penal L a w .............................................202 a Methods and Aims of the Sharica in establishing Penal L a w .......................................... 203 b The Crime of Homicide in Islam and other Laws . 210 c Rulings of the Qur’an and theSunna with regard to Homicide and T a l i o n ........................... 211 d S u m m a r y .............................................225 4 Comparative Jurisprudence .......................... 229 a Al-Ikhtilaf ....................................... 229 b Shaltut's Methods of Conciliation and Tarjih . 238 c S u m m a r y .............................................246 CHAPTER FOUR: SOCIAL ISSUES.. .............................. 247 1 The Ideal P a r a d i g m .................................. 247 a The "Identity” of the Islamic U m m a ................247 b Social Solidarity ................................ 250 c The Islamic State .................................. 254 d Conclusions....................................... 269 7 2 The Contemporary Reality ....................... 275 a The Impact of Imperialism.......................275 b The Religious Response: theDefence of Islam . 279 c Social Evolution and Religious Conservatism . 318 Conclusions......................................334 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................... 338 INTRODUCTION The reform work of Muhammad cAbduh and his Syrian disciple Rashid Rida has received much attention from specialists in Islamic studies; there is no doubt that Muhammad cAbduh was a pioneer in many respects, and has become known for his conviction that Islam was sufficiently flexible to adapt itself to the modern age. In more recent times, however, there is something of a lacuna as regards studies on individual Islamic religious scholars, as opposed to Western-educated intellectuals or political activists. Prominent members of the Muslim Brotherhood, for example, have received a certain amount of attention, but there is no outstanding figure from the class of culama', at least in the Arab world, to compare with Muhammad cAbduh as regards the extent of his influence and the radical departure which he represents. Perhaps as a result of this, the class of culama’ has been somewhat neglected, and dismissed by many, who feel that they are isolated from the mainstream of Muslim society, "losing touch with the thought of the age".1 While there is no doubt some truth in this, we aim to show that it is possible for even a scholar with a wholly traditional training, like Shaltut, to be deeply concerned with communicating his knowledge to ordinary Muslims and with its application to contemporary problems. Shaltut could not be described as an 1H.A.R. Gibb, Modern Trends in Islam, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1947, p. 122. 9 isolated example, since he was widely respected by his colleagues at the Azhar, and ultimately attained the most prominent position within it. It is to be hoped that parts of this thesis will provide a study of Islam "from within", in particular Chapter Three, which deals with Shaltut's work in the area of Islamic law. In this area, it will be seen that Shaltut has a special contribution to make, being more thoroughly versed in Islamic jurisprudence than Muhammad cAbduh or Rashid RidS. Here, some of Shaltut's ideas will counteract certain impressions which have been conveyed by Orientalists; there is a tendency on the part of many of them to narrow the scope of the Sharica. For example, Schacht claims that "there are no fines in Islamic law", no concept of negligence, and no concept of mitigating circumstances or theory of attempt.2 However, we will see in Chapter Three that fines are considered to be a valid form of punishment, on the basis of the practice of the Prophet.3 The concept of negligence is covered in Shaltut's section on civil and criminal liability, where he discusses the various juristic opinions on the case of the employee who damages goods which are in his care, and where the issue at stake is in fact whether or not the employee was negligent.4 The case described by Shaltut where a man, happening upon his wife in the 2Joseph Schacht, An Introduction to Islamic Law, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1984 (repr.), pp. 176, 182 and 187 respectively. 3Infra, p. 207. 4 Infra, p. 241. 10 act of adultery, kills either or both of them, takes into account the violent emotions of the husband ("al-qhavrat allatT tushbihu