Sunna as Historical Ijtihād: Muhammad Shahrur and the Epistemological Reconfiguration of Islamic Authority
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64529/gw5v5635Keywords:
Muhammad Shahrur, The Prophet historical ijtihād, Islamic Epistemology, Religious AuthorityAbstract
This article analyzes the reconceptualization of the Prophet's sunnah in the thought of Muhammad Shahrur by placing it as historical ijtihād and examining its implications for the epistemological structure of classical Islamic authority. The unit of analysis of this research is Shahrur's conceptual construction of the sunnah as formulated in his primary works, especially Al-Kitāb wa al-Qur'ān and Nahwa Uṣūl Jadīdah li al-Fiqh al-Islāmī. This study aims to explain how Shahrur limits the epistemic status of sunna through the distinction between nubūwah and risālah and how this position challenges the claims of the classical tradition's transhistorical normativity. The method used is qualitative-conceptual analysis, with an epistemological approach, informed by a critical reading of primary texts and supporting academic literature. The main findings suggest that Shahrur positioned the sunnah as a historical practice of the Prophet, lacking independent normative authority. The novelty of this article lies in the reading of Sunna as a question of epistemology of religious knowledge, not just a legal or hadith issue. The contribution of this research is to expand the discourse on Islamic thought reform by offering an alternative epistemological framework for restructuring contemporary Islamic religious authority.
References
Abu Zayd, N. H. (2006). Reformation of Islamic thought: A critical historical analysis. Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.5117/9789053569983
Arkoun, M. (2003). Rethinking Islam: Common questions, uncommon answers. Westview Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429498066
Brown, J. A. C. (2009). How do we know early ḥadīth critics did matn criticism? Journal of Islamic Studies, 20(2), 143–184. https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/etp006
Brown, J. A. C. (2014). Misquoting Muhammad: The challenge and choices of interpreting the Prophet’s legacy. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674726561
Christmann, A. (2009). Introduction. In M. Shahrur & A. Christmann, The Qur’an, morality and critical reason: The sunna of the prophet (pp. 1–25). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004178742.i-260
Donner, F. M. (2010). Muhammad and the believers: At the origins of Islam. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.4159/harvard.9780674050970
Duderija, A. (2011). Constructing a religio-intellectual identity in contemporary Islamic thought: Neo-traditional Salafi and progressive Muslim approaches. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230118121
El Shamsy, A. (2013). The social construction of orthodoxy. Journal of Islamic Studies, 24(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/ets064
Griffel, F. (2009). Al-Ghazālī’s philosophical theology. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331629.001.0001
Hallaq, W. B. (1997). Was the gate of ijtihad closed? International Journal of Middle East Studies, 16(1), 3–41. https://doi.org/10.2307/1595739
Hallaq, W. B. (2009). The impossible state: Islam, politics, and modernity’s moral predicament. Columbia University Press. https://doi.org/10.7312/hall14892
Hodgson, M. G. S. (1974). The venture of Islam: Conscience and history in a world civilization (Vol. 1). University of Chicago Press. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226346861.001.0001
Rahman, F. (1982). Islam and modernity: Transformation of an intellectual tradition. University of Chicago Press. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226702865.001.0001
Reinhart, K. (1983). Islamic law as Islamic ethics. Journal of Religious Ethics, 11(2), 186–203. https://doi.org/10.2307/40014949
Saeed, A. (2006). Islamic thought: An introduction. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203088864
Shahrur, M. (1990). Al-Kitāb wa al-Qur’ān: Qirāʾah muʿāṣirah. Damascus: Al-Ahali.
Shahrur, M. (1996). Al-Islām wa al-Īmān: Manẓūmah al-qiyam. Damascus: Al-Ahali.
Shahrur, M. (2000). Nahwa uṣūl jadīdah li al-fiqh al-islāmī. Damascus: Al-Ahali.
Shahrur, M., & Christmann, A. (2009). The Qur’an, morality and critical reason: The sunna of the prophet. Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004178742.i-260
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Moh. Nor Ichwan
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
