Journal of Contemporary Maqasid Studies

Unveiling the Universal Law of Human Life: A Study with Maqasid Methodology

Bagus Riyono — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this study is to understand the universal law of human life by integrating the scientific findings and revelation concerning the fundamental life dynamics. The aim of this study is to answer the question: “What are the universal psychological dynamics of human life which are always relevant since the Prophet Adam until today?” The method used in this study is called a "maqasid" methodology, which is an approach that refers to revelation as the source of concepts and meaning to construct theories, integrated with state-of-the-art science. The result found that there are two groups of themes that represent the dynamic of human life. The first group is about the basic realities of human beings living in this world. The first reality is human freedom as the predisposition of human capacity that every individual is born with. The second reality found in this study is life uncertainty, especially about the future. The third reality is human vulnerability. The second group of themes found in this current study concerns the most appropriate response or attitude toward the previously mentioned natural realities of human life. The first attitude that can best compensate for human freedom is responsibility. The second attitude or response that is related to the uncertainty of the future is hope. The third response related to human vulnerability is humility. These findings are then constructed in a model of universal law in human life that will be able to describe and explain any life issues from parenting, education, and social interaction to larger issues of humanity as a whole, for example, human rights issues. More than that, the model can also be used as a framework to predict and prescribe interventions to various issues in life.

Deontological Islamic Pacifism: ‘Abdallāh Bin Bayyah on Jurisprudence of Peace, Sufism and Covenants

Abdessamad Belhaj — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

‘Abdallāh Bin Bayya (born in 1935) is probably the most significant voice of Islamic pacifism in the Middle East today. His deontological pacifism (maintaining peace is both a duty and a right), which emphasizes ethics of Islamic law, a commitment to state authority in matters of war and peace, and a critical attitude toward Islamist violence, was overlooked in academic research. In the context of the Arab Spring, some critics contended that his pacifism is a legalization of the authoritarian state in the Middle East. We challenge this claim here and argue that Bin Bayya, prior to the Arab Spring, considered safety, peace, and order as higher objectives of Islamic law. In particular, his earlier work on Sufism, jurisprudence of peace, covenantal concepts of ‘ahd and mīthāq, and safety provides the foundation for his pacifism. In terms of method, we conduct a textual study of Bin Bayya's written works, published between 1996 and 2014, paying particular attention to his pacifist arguments and critique of Islamist violence. We conclude that Bin Bayya's pacifism is based on the idea that the ultimate measure of law and ethics is the benefit of mankind as individuals and society, a principle that takes precedence over any political system or ideology.

Extending the Maqasid Methodology: Mediation through Revelation-Grounded Scholarship

Bilal Bugaje — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Auda's Maqasid Methodology (MM) proposes a purpose-oriented, revelation-engaged procedure for Islamic research, remedying five limitations of contemporary scholarship through direct Cycles of Reflection on the Quran and Sunnah. The procedure is demanding, and Auda himself admits mediation at the applied level through reputable translation. This article extends the admission: revelation-grounded scholarship can serve as a mediating source to revelation. The extension (MM-E) preserves the MM's purpose-orientation, seven-element Composite Framework, critical engagement, and principles extraction; what it modifies is the path by which the composite framework is populated. To distinguish from taqlid (imitation), MM-E specifies three operations on the mediating work: identification of where each framework element is articulated, verification that cited revelation supports each derivation, and critical engagement with the revelation-grounded scholarship itself. MM-E is demonstrated on al-Qaradawi's Fiqh al-Zakah, producing a 192-element framework, substantive critique of the source, and resulting in the emergence of twenty-two principles for zakat assessment. The methodology generalises to other revelation-grounded works under the same qualifying conditions. The article's contribution is methodological: Fiqh al-Zakah is the demonstration; MM-E is the proposal it carries.

Juristic Retrievalism in Contemporary Sunni Fatwa: Toward Maqāṣid-Based Validation

Abdullah Hemmet Abdullah — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article develops juristic retrievalism as a concept for analysing a recurring weakness in contemporary Sunni fatwa production: the treatment of inherited juristic opinions as ready-made answers whose authority rests primarily on historical authenticity, school affiliation, or intra-madhhab preference. Method: The study is a qualitative conceptual investigation combining normative legal theory with a purposive, triangulated reading of classical uṣūl al-fiqh and fatwa sources, contemporary scholarship on religious authority and maqāṣid al-sharīʿah, and official data on the digital environment in which fatwas circulate. It distinguishes conceptual claims from empirical generalisation and tests the proposed model through illustrative applications and counter-objections. Findings: Juristic retrievalism is not equivalent to legitimate taqlīd, madhhab continuity, or disciplined tarjīḥ. It is a methodological reduction that weakens contextual diagnosis, consequence assessment, purposive evaluation, and institutional review. The article proposes a five-dimensional validation framework comprising textual fidelity, juristic coherence, contextual adequacy, maqāṣid realisation, and institutional accountability. Contribution: The framework converts maqāṣid from general reformist language into a transparent institutional procedure for classifying questions, consulting expertise, qualifying public guidance, and revising fatwas when relevant facts change. Contemporary renewal therefore requires neither rupture with Sunni legal tradition nor mechanical repetition, but a disciplined reconstruction of ijtihād that preserves textual loyalty while restoring the moral and civilisational purposes of sharīʿah.

Religious Departure in India: A Sociological Study of Ex-Muslims Through the Maqasid Framework

Abul Hasan — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This paper provides a comprehensive examination of the ex-Muslim movement in contemporary India, analyzing the phenomenon through Rambo's stage-based conversion theory while integrating critical perspectives from postcolonial studies, religious sociology, and digital culture scholarship. Drawing on empirical data from the Pew Research Center indicating approximately 4.14 million Indians raised as Muslims no longer identify with Islam, the research explores the complex interplay of individual intellectual crises, structural fragilities inherent in minority religious status, and deliberate political instrumentalization of apostasy by Hindu nationalist organizations including the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The study traces the historical lineage of reconversion movements in South Asia, from nineteenth-century Arya Samaj shuddhi (purification) ceremonies through contemporary Ghar Wapsi (homecoming) campaigns. It examines documented reconversion campaigns in Agra year 2014, where 100–250 Muslims were claimed to be reconverted, and Ambedkar Nagar in 2017, where at least 22 individuals, including children, were reconverted in a secretive ceremony. By evaluating these structural and intellectual departures against the Maqasid al-Shari’ah, specifically the objectives of preserving faith (hifz al-din) and intellect (hifz al-'aql), this study reveals how institutional rigidity contributes to apostasy. This paper interrogates the distinction between genuine religious departure and political appropriation, concluding that understanding apostasy in India requires moving beyond binary frameworks of individual choice or coercive manipulation, instead recognizing how structural forces, institutional constraints, and political opportunities converge to shape religious identity transformation.

From Divine Trust to Sustainable Civilization: Reconstructing Consumption Ethics Through Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah in the Anthropocene

Amjad Hussain — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Anthropocene has intensified scholarly concern regarding unsustainable consumption, ecological degradation, and growing inequalities within global food systems. Sustainability discourse has generated significant theoretical and policy responses, yet much of it emphasizes technology and regulation and pays comparatively less attention to the moral dimensions of consumption. This article proposes that Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah can inform the reconstruction of consumption ethics by framing consumption as a moral responsibility grounded in stewardship, accountability, gratitude, and justice. Drawing on qualitative and conceptual methods, the study undertakes textual analysis of the Qur’an, Prophetic traditions, and maqāṣid scholarship, complemented by comparative engagement with sustainability theory and environmental ethics. It examines the ethical significance of resource use, moderation, and human responsibility in relation to ecological challenges, with attention to food waste as an illustrative case of the wider consumption-ethics problem. The study finds that the Qur’anic moral economy and the objectives of Islamic law offer an integrated vision linking individual behaviour, social welfare, environmental stewardship, and civilizational flourishing. Building on these insights, the article proposes the Maqāṣid-Based Sustainable Consumption Framework (MSCF), a conceptual model connecting divine trust, gratitude, moderation, responsible consumption, social justice, and ecological responsibility. The sequence and relationships within this framework are conceptual and remain to be tested empirically. The article concludes that sustainability requires ethical transformation alongside technological adaptation, and that Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah offers a relevant conceptual resource for thinking about sustainable civilization in an age of ecological crisis.