Sharia refers to the sacred law of Islam. All Muslims believe Sharia is God's law, but they have differences between themselves as to exactly what it entails.
Modernists, traditionalists and fundamentalists all hold different views of Sharia, as do adherents to different schools of Islamic thought and scholarship.
Different countries and cultures have varying interpretations of Sharia, as well.
All Sharia is derived from two primary sources, the divine revelations set forth in the Qur'an, and the sayings and example set by the Prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh, or "jurisprudence," interprets and extends the application of Sharia to questions not directly addressed in the primary sources, by including secondary sources. These secondary sources usually include the consensus of the religious scholars embodied in ijma, and analogy from the Quran and Sunnah through qiyas.
Shia jurists replace qiyas analogy with 'aql, or "reason". Where it enjoys official status, Sharia is applied by Islamic judges, or qadis. Sharia deals with many topics addressed by secular law, including crime, politics and economics, as well as personal matters such as sexuality, hygiene, diet, prayer, and fasting.
Modernists, traditionalists and fundamentalists all hold different views of Sharia, as do adherents to different schools of Islamic thought and scholarship.
Different countries and cultures have varying interpretations of Sharia, as well.
All Sharia is derived from two primary sources, the divine revelations set forth in the Qur'an, and the sayings and example set by the Prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh, or "jurisprudence," interprets and extends the application of Sharia to questions not directly addressed in the primary sources, by including secondary sources. These secondary sources usually include the consensus of the religious scholars embodied in ijma, and analogy from the Quran and Sunnah through qiyas.
Shia jurists replace qiyas analogy with 'aql, or "reason". Where it enjoys official status, Sharia is applied by Islamic judges, or qadis. Sharia deals with many topics addressed by secular law, including crime, politics and economics, as well as personal matters such as sexuality, hygiene, diet, prayer, and fasting.