The Kinds of Aḥkām (Rulings) in the Quran

Usul al-Fiqh

The kind of Aḥkām 1 that are contained in the six hundred or more verses of the Quran cover a very wide range of Aḥkām. These may be divided into the following categories:

  • Aḥkām Pertaining to Aqā’id (Tenets of Faith)
  • Aḥkām Pertaining to the Disciplining and Strengthening of the Self
  • Rules of Conduct (pertaining to the Words and Acts of the Subject)

  1. Aḥkām Pertaining to Aqā’id (Tenets of Faith)

    These are like belief on One God, His Angels, Books, Prophets, and the Day of Judgment. The discipline dealing with these is that of Tawḥīd.

  2. Aḥkām Pertaining to the Disciplining and Strengthening of the Self

    These rules deal with the Quranic ethics. The disciplines that deal with them are ethics and taṣawwuf. Many of the ethical norms of the Quran are to be found clothed in the legal provisions.

  3. Rules of Conduct (pertaining to the Words and Acts of the Subject)

    This category covers the entire field of fiqh. They are divided into two types:

    1. Rules Related to Ibādah (Worship) . The purpose of these rules is to establish the relationship of the individual with his Creator.
    2. All Those Rules that Relate to the Conduct Other than Worship. This area is called mu’āmalāt by the jurists. It regulates the relationship of individuals among themselves, the relationship of individuals with states, and the relationship of the Islamic state with non-Muslim states. In short, it covers the entire area of substantive and procedural law or to put it differently, it includes private and public law.

It is to be remembered that though the particular cases mentioned in the Quran are few, there are many broad and general principles that facilitate the derivation of countless aḥkām. 2

  1. Islamic Rulings. Singular: Ḣukm. ↩
  2. Nyazee, I. A. K. (2000), Islamic Jurisprudence: Uṣūl Al-Fiqh (pp. 161-162). Islamabad: International Institute of Islamic Thought ↩
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