The Middle Path of Moderation in Islam RELIGION AND GLOBAL POLITICS SERIES EDITOR John L. Esposito University Professor and Director Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding Georgetown University ISLAMIC LEVIATHAN BEING YOUNG AND MUSLIM Islam and the Making of State Power New Cultural Politics in the Global South Seyyed Vali Reza Nasr and North Asef Bayat and Linda Herrera RACHID GHANNOUCHI A Democrat Within Islamism CHURCH, STATE, Azzam S. Tamimi AND DEMOCRACY IN EXPANDING EUROPE BALKAN IDOLS Lavinia Stan and Lucian Turcescu Religion and Nationalism in Yugoslav States THE HEADSCARF CONTROVERSY Vjekoslav Perica Secularism and Freedom of Religion Hilal Elver ISLAMIC POLITICAL IDENTITY IN TURKEY THE HOUSE OF SERVICE M. Hakan Yavuz The Gülen Movement and Islam’s Third Way RELIGION AND POLITICS IN David Tittensor POST-COMMUNIST ROMANIA Lavinia Stan and Lucian Turcescu MAPPING THE LEGAL BOUNDARIES OF BELONGING PIETY AND POLITICS Religion and Multiculturalism from Israel Islamism in Contemporary Malaysia to Canada Joseph Chinyong Liow Edited by René Provost TERROR IN THE LAND OF THE RELIGIOUS SECULARITY HOLY SPIRIT A Theological Challenge to the Islamic State Guatemala under General Efrain Rios Naser Ghobadzadeh Montt, 1982–1983 Virginia Garrard-Burnett THE MIDDLE PATH OF MODERATION IN ISLAM IN THE HOUSE OF WAR The Qur’ānic Principle of Wasaṭiyyah Dutch Islam Observed By Mohammad Hashim Kamali Sam Cherribi The Middle Path of Moderation in Islam The Qur’ānic Principle of Wasaṭiyyah z MOHAMMAD HASHIM KAMALI Foreword by Tariq Ramadan 1 3 Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offices in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press in the UK and certain other countries. Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 © Mohammad Hashim Kamali 2015 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by license, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reproduction rights organization. Inquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above. You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kamali, Mohammad Hashim. The middle path of moderation in Islam : the Qur’ānic principle of wasaṭiyyah / Mohammad Hashim Kamali. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0–19–022683–1 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Moderation—Religious aspects—Islam. I. Title. BP188.16.M59K358 2015 297.2—dc23 2014033399 1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper Contents Foreword vii I. Introduction 1 PART ONE: Conceptual Analysis II. Definition and Scope ofWasa ṭiyyah 9 III. Review of the Source Evidence 16 IV. A Round-Up of Modern Opinion 29 V. Hallmarks and Types of Extremism 36 VI. Manifestations of Wasaṭiyyah 49 VII. Identification of Wasaṭiyyah 59 VIII. Institutional Developments 67 PART TWO: Thematic Perspectives IX. Moderation and Justice 83 X. Moderation and Religiosity 96 XI. The Moderating Role of Ikhtilāf (Reasoned Disagreement) 110 XII. Between Spirituality and Legalism: The Moderating Influence of Sufism 115 vi Contents XIII. Harm (Ḍarar) Must Be Eliminated 123 XIV. Forbearance, Bringing Ease, and Removing Hardship (Taysīr, Rafc al-Ḥaraj, Samāḥah) 128 XV. Environmental Imbalance 137 XVI. Financial Imbalance, Extravagance, and Waste (Isrāf, Tabdhīr) 146 XVII. Moderation in Jihād 158 XVIII. Character and Lifestyle 167 XIX. Wasaṭiyyah and Women’s Rights 190 XX. Wasaṭiyyah and Globalization 203 XXI. Islam Between Antiquity and the Modern World 210 XXII. Continuity and Change in Islam: An Analysis of Tajdīd and Iṣlāh (Renewal and Reform) 219 XXIII. Conclusion and Recommendations 235 Notes 245 Glossary 283 Bibliography 287 Index of Qur’anic Verses and Hadith 301 Index 307 Foreword The Middle Path: Understanding Moderation Professor Mohammad Hashim Kamali is providing us here with an essen- tial and timely exploration of the concept known in contemporary Islamic tradition as al-wasaṭiyyah. Kamali adopts a perspective that is different to that of other studies within this subject area and thus is a welcome addition. The importance of Kamali’s forty-year contribution to the field of Islamic Studies, in particular within the discipline of Islamic Law and Jurisprudence, is already widely recognized. Indeed, many of his books have become significant references for those using the English language, providing much needed support toward the in-depth and comprehen- sive study of Islamic law and jurisprudence, ethics, and certain essential notions such as freedom, penal code, and interfaith dialogue. Kamali’s Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence and Freedom of Expression in Islam are two such noteworthy resources. This new book is another valuable contribution of critical importance. In this study, Kamali focuses upon a central notion of Islam, that of mod- eration and the way in which moderation can, and indeed, needs, to be understood from within the Islamic reference. The book is divided into two. The first part is a conceptual analysis, with Kamali undertaking to define the concept of al-wasaṭiyyah and then, in consideration of the scrip- tural sources, seeking to illustrate where we can find the notion of mod- eration in our daily lives; how moderation is defined; and the way in which the centrality of the Islamic message relies upon the correct interpretation and practice of moderation. Believers will be familiar with the well-known verse of the Quran: “Thus .( َو َكَذالِ َك َج َعلْ َن ْاكُم أُ َّم ًة َو َسطًا) ”we have made of you a community justly balanced In his book, Kamali enables readers to clarify their understanding of moderation within Islam through highlighting and reflecting upon other viii Foreword verses of the Qur’an and the prophetic traditions (aḥādīth), each of which addresses the notion of moderation. Kamali’s study states, in this first part of the book, that everything within the Islamic tradition is based upon the notion of moderation. Moreover, Kamali connects his process of thought through the study of, for example, the work of Sa’d al-Din al-Taftazani, using different key notions such as wisdom al-( ḥikmah), purity (al-’iffah), and courage (al-shajāʿah). Kamali pays close attention to the notion of jus- tice (al-‘adl), which includes the crucial, yet sometimes overlooked or mis- understood, dimension of striving to seek the middle path in everything. Kamali examines the opinions of scholars within the Muslim tradi- tion (both modern and notable historic scholars) concerning moderation. He uses the scriptural sources as well as the scholarly legacy (turāth), the reference that originates from the understanding that the scholars had or have, by using both the text and the context. Kamali relies on the School of Law as much as the School of Maqasid (the higher objectives of Islam) to illustrate that in relation to rules, not only is everything in Islam based on moderation but that the very understanding of the higher objectives of Islam relies on moderation, too. So the entire message of Shari’ah is in fact an approach whose essence is that of moderation. As part of his conceptual analysis, Kamali observes that the meaning of moderation includes the urgent understanding that everything in Islam is very much based on the rejection of extremism and extremist interpretations in one way or another. Kamali brings to our attention a key area, which he refers to as “mani- festations of al-wasaṭiyyah.” Through his explanation of these manifesta- tions, Kamali demonstrates that everything within these manifestations divine oneness. This is a ,(التوحيد) is related to the centrality of al-tawḥīd fundamental point since the understanding of the way Muslims consider the very notion of tawḥīd is based on this understanding of al-wasaṭiyyah, as well as the importance of taking into consideration the diversity of the various schools of thought. Kamali goes further still, proposing the need to include in our understanding a balance between that which is change- able (mutaghayyirāt) and that which is immutable (thawābit). Kamali also demonstrates the importance of moderation related to the notion of graduality (tadarruj). This is insightful. Hence, he concludes that not only is the message of Islam based on moderation, but so, too, is the methodology that we derive from our scriptural sources. Kamali pro- poses that this is evident in, for example, the requirement for Muslims to promote benefits (maṣāliḥ) and avoid harm (mafāsid)—in practical terms, Foreword ix we need to consider both the balance and the strategy in implementing (taḥqīq al-manāṭ). Kamali explores and presents this concept in an inter- esting way, furthering our understanding of what he refers to as “the iden- tification of al-wasaṭiyyah.” This is a critical contribution to the way we can understand our relationship with oneself and within our community; our relationship within interfaith dialogue; and our relationship to “the other.” This in turn helps us in our understanding of the different schools of thought; the relation to rationality (al-‘aql). It helps us in our understand- ing of the texts (an-nuṣūṣ); and in the understanding even of the consen- sus (al-ijmāʿ).