Islamand West:; Onceupon a time, a clear distinction between Islam and West may have been possible. But no longer. The boundaries are blurring. Millions of Muslim men and womenlive in the west and many are citizens of western nations. They are therefore, now inextricably part of the west.
Thewest has left its marks on the Islamic world: through its politicians andgenerals, but also through its materialism, technologies, communication tools, andway of thinking and organizational paradigms. TheIslamic Shari’ah differs fundamentally from Western law in at least threeaspects.· Firstit is based on Revelation, whereas Roman law is the lawyer’s law.· Second, being of Divine origin, it is virtually immutable.· Andfinally it is wider in scope than the Roman law, for it includes eveninternational relationships of which the Arabs were the Pioneers.
Tracingthe history of the origin of the laws which govern the life of society in itscontrolling positivity, they all speak about the will of the ruler and expressonly his aims and interests in life. This is because the western laws, inreality, express nothing but the desire to enslave mankind, to serve the willof the oppressor and subdue humanity to the whims of the deviated rulers whoeither intentionally or unintentionally considers themselves as powerful godsor god-heads. Whereason the other hand, it was contrary in respect to the role of Islamiclegislation, which sought to establish truth and justice, and to liberate man fromoppression, be kind to him, and protect his interests in life. Whilelooking in depth, the most important differences which distinguish Islamic orDivine laws from western law and which define their respective identities andfeatures are as follows: 1. Criterion of truth and justice. 2. Objectivity.
3. Clarity of vision. 4. The ethics of the Islamic law.
5. Capacity and universality. 6.
Harmony and non-contradiction. 7. Humanitarianism. 8.
Everlastingness. Theabove points of differentiation are explained below in detail. 1. Criterion of truth and justice: · TheIslamic canon is based on the criteria of truth and justice, the two constantvalues of life by which the legislation and law-making are judged.· Thereis no single law in the entire Islamic legislation which is not backed by thesetwo principles.· Further, when a thing is true, it deserves legitimate place in the life of society, asfalsehood has neither place nor originality in Islam and is regarded asunstable and unjustified.
· Consequently, the western law knowing no ‘ truthful’ or natural base proves to be false, transient, haphazard, accepting no noble values, irrationally formed, admittingno estimation, having no consistency and showing no justification for existence.· Sothe human legislator knows nothing about the status, values and effects of lawshe is asked to legislate, therefore, Quran describes the procedure on part ofman’s confusion by stating: 2: 42 And do not mix up the truth with the falsehood, nor hide thetruth while you know (it). 2. Objectivity: · Theobjectivity of the Islamic legislation is concentrated in its being free fromthe intrusion of personal interests of desires and the subconscious factors, which may quite possibly affect the human law maker.
· Theabove fact displayed was also discovered in western law and man-made canons. Thus, as a matter of fact, such laws carry the symptoms of diseases prevalentin the society, and actually express the will of rulers, as these laws caneasily be affected by the legislator’s desires and inclinations.· TheIslamic canon, on the other hand, is scientific, objective, honest and far frombeing under the influence of the motives and factors which determine man-madelaws.· Thetrue law giver here is Allah, the Exalted, Who is glorified from all thoseinclinations from which man can never completely and absolutely, be free. 3. Clarity of Vision: · TheIslamic law which is divinely revealed has a clear objective, and a definedgoal, that charts out man’s course in life, and shows him his aim, and manrealizes that the goal of the Divine Law is to have him serve his Creator.
· Consequently, his lawful actions which he practices during his lifetime entitle him to a lairreward in the Hereafter.· Whereasin west, man feels heinous tied with the letters of the ruling authority. · Therefore, individual under the grip of such laws does not sincerely respects itsregulations but tries to break through the bonds whenever opportunity affordshim the chance.
4. The Ethics of the Islamic law: · TheIslamic law is based on its respect for morals, safeguarding them and maintainingclose ties with them, which is evident from the saying of Prophet Muhammad(PBUH): “ I have been sent to complete the noblest of morals, and the one who isthe best in morals is the most complete in faith.” · Oncontrary, the western law, this does not adhere to morality, nor cares for it. Hence, it neglects the ethical argument and turns away from it that the humancivilization is thrown at a terrible tragedy which drags man to degradation andlawlessness.· Thisirrational separation between morals and law gave birth to differentmaterialistic cultures. 5.
Capacity and Universality: · TheIslamic law leaves no part of the human activity, big or small, without havingit organized in one way or another or through well-defined laws. It coversevery part of action like eating, drinking, and behavior with children andneighbors etc.· Itprohibits all actions which are harmful such as gambling, alcohol, adultery, wantonness and the alike.· Westernlaw, miserably, lacks all these characteristics, since it suffers from thenarrowness and limits of its horizon and is incapable of organizing differentaspects of human behavior. 6. Harmony and non-contradiction: · Eachpart of Islamic law supports the other and helps it to be applicable.
Forexample, Islam’s prohibition of performing the prayers on a usurped propertyhelps to protect people’s rights and to respect private possession.· Inwest, this deficiency forces the legislative authorities to establishConstitutional Tribunals to tackle and solve such contradictions. For example, in some west countries, the mercantile law contradicts the Economic and Administrativelaw. 7. Humanitarianism: · TheIslamic law reflects humanitarianism and does not support racism, classdiscrimination, opportunism and egoism.
Its laws are general and not for thesake of particular group. As illustrated in Quran: 21: 107 And We have not sent youbut as a mercy to the worlds. · Thecontrary is the case concerning the west. It reflects the legislatorsunderstanding and its personal inclination. It is full of anti-human conceptsrevolving around narrow limits, class-difference, racialism, selfishness andthe like. 8. Everlastingness: · Thebiggest characteristic distinguishing the Islamic canon from other laws is thefact that is everlasting. · Islamalone enjoys this attribute which gives it the power throughout the ages and itremains with the generations as a leader, director and the pioneer, on the roadof virtue and guidance.
· Theeverlastingness of Islam is due to the following factors: 1. Islamexpresses the external will and wisdom of Allah in existence. 2. Islamexpresses universal legislative form and is not the offspring of particularsocial circumstances, nor is the product of human thinking under influence.
3. Islamdoes not impose a rigid form of application and enactment. It is open andflexible.· Thewestern law avails no such merits. It revolves within the limits of the will ofits maker and his social conscience. This, of course, would result in laws farfrom being in harmony with the natural rules of life.
Conclusion: Onthe whole, western law might have some influences over Islamic law but couldn’tovertake it wholly. The Islamic law, being more flexible is far better in termsof morals, applicability, equality, free will, and ethics, maintaining peaceand harmony and so on. Islamic law, unlike western, is based on certainobjective which is followed by specific rules to get reward hereafter. References: · www. al-islam. org· “ Islamand West” by Bernard Lewis· “ TheWest and Islam” by Mishal Fahm Al-Sulami