Course Name: Introduction to Ḥadīth and Islamic Law
HADITH SECTION: Waḥy (revelation) is divided into two categories: one that is recited (i.e., the Qurʾān) and one that is not recited (i.e., Hadith). This course will focus on introducing students to understanding the history, development and methodology scholars of hadith utilized to document, categorize, organize and arrange the statements of the Prophet. The course will also explore the relationship between hadith and sunnah. Students will learn the academic gradings of aḥādīth from authentic to fabricated. Through learning the grading, students will be able to take a glimpse into the implementation of Islamic law through Hadith, which is one of the sources of Islamic law. Students will also be exposed to the various compilations of hadith works.
ISLAMIC LAW SECTION: This course will map the historical development of Islamic Law from the Prophetic Era to the development of the four schools of fiqh. The students will be introduced to the status of fiqh from the Qurʾān and the Sunnah, the various types of evidence used in Islamic Law, and the different grading of legal rulings. Key areas of focus will be differences in fiqh during the era of the companions, how those differences formalized into methodologies, the intersection between ḥadīth and fiqh, and the legal status of following a madhhab. The primary objective of the class will be to provide the student with an academic lens through which he/she can understand the dynamic and nuanced differences observable in the practice of Islam.
Introduction to Hadith & Islamic Law
