Abrogation in the Quran and Islamic Law

Louay Fatoohi

Paperback

9789670526027

A Critical Study of the Concept of Naskh and its Impact

This book traces the development of the concept of abrogation from its most basic form to the complex and multi-faceted doctrine it has become. Th book also critiques the role of abrogation in rationalizing the view that not all of the Qur'anic revelation has survived in the 'mush' i.e. the written record of the Qur'an. This role makes understanding abrogation an essential prerequisite for studying the history of the Qur'anic text.

In addition to critically analysing the conceptual and documentary bases of each mode of abrogation, the book takes a practical approach by examining specific popular abrogation claims, such as the stoning penalty, the law on fighting non-Muslims and on inheritance.

With the exception of one work that was published over two decades ago and suffers from a number of shortcomings, this is the only book in English that is dedicated to the study of abrogation. The book is suitable as a reference work on abrogation for Bothe the expert and the more general reader.

Contents:

1 A History of the Concept of 'Abrogation'

2 Abrogation in Scriptures before the Qur'an

3 The Term 'Naskh' in the Qur'an

4 The Concept of 'Naskh' in the Qur'an

5 Conceptual and Implementational Differences in Abrogation

6 Legal Abrogation

7 The Verse of the Sword

8 Does the Mushaf Contain All of the Qur'an

9 Did the Prophet Forget Verses?

10 Legal-Textual Abrogation

11 Textual Abrogation I: The 'Stoning Verse'

12 Textual Abrogation II: The Five-Suckling Verse

13 Abrogation of the Sunna

14 Islamic Law: A New Reading

15 Conclusion: The Myth of Abrogation

Appendix A: The Meaning of 'Hadith' and 'Sunna'