Beyond Linguistic Formalism: Maslahah-Oriented Hermeneutics and the Reconstruction of Islamic Legal Reasoning in Ibn ‘Abd al-Salam

Amin Muhtar; Akhmad Kamil Rizani; Ibnu Kharish; Afifi Hasbunallah; Lutfi El Falahy

doi:10.29240/jhi.v11i2.11325

Authors

Amin Muhtar Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia
Akhmad Kamil Rizani Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia
Ibnu Kharish Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia
Afifi Hasbunallah Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia
Lutfi El Falahy Institut Agama Islam Negeri Curup, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29240/jhi.v11i2.11325

Keywords:

Maslahah, Hermeneutics, Islamic Legal Reasoning, Maqasid al-Shariah, Ibn Abd al-Salam

Abstract

This article examines the reconstruction of Islamic legal reasoning through a maslahah-oriented hermeneutical framework in the legal thought of Izz al-Din Ibn Abd al-Salam. Existing studies have highlighted his contribution to maqasid al-shariah and legal ethics, yet insufficient attention has been given to how maslahah functions as an operative interpretive method in textual istinbat. This study aims to analyze the epistemological foundations and methodological structure of his legal hermeneutics. This research employs qualitative library research based on the primary works of Ibn Abd al-Salam, particularly Al-Imam fi Bayan Adillat al-Ahkam, Qawaid al-Ahkam, and Tafsir al-Quran. Data were analyzed using content analysis and hermeneutical interpretation within the framework of Islamic legal theory. The study finds that Ibn Abd al-Salam positions maslahah not merely as a legal objective but as a methodological principle for interpreting revelation. His hermeneutical model operates through three interconnected mechanisms: identifying semantic-ethical indicators of benefit and harm in the Quran, establishing maslahah as the normative basis of legal commands and prohibitions, and interpreting legal meanings through contextual analysis of siyaq al-kalam. This approach integrates textual authority, ethical reasoning, and contextual awareness into a coherent system of legal derivation. The article argues that Ibn Abd al-Salam developed an early form of ethical hermeneutics that transcends linguistic formalism while preserving the authority of revelation. This framework contributes to contemporary discussions on maqasid al-shariah, Islamic legal reform, and the reconstruction of Islamic legal reasoning by offering a model that remains normatively grounded while responsive to changing social realities.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

‘Abd al-Salâm, ‘Izz al-Dîn ‘Abd al-‘Azîz ibn. Qawā’id Al-Aḥkām Fī Maṣāliḥ Al-Anām (A. Al-L. H. Abd Al-Rahman, Ed.). Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-’Ilmiyah, 1999.

‘Abd al-Salâm, ‘Izz al-Dîn ‘Abd al-‘Azîz ibn. Al-Fawāʼid Fī Ikhtiṣār Al-Maqāṣid, Aw, Al-Qawāʻid Al-Ṣughrá (Al-Ṭabʻah 1). Beirut: Dār al-Fikr al-Muʻāṣir, 1996.

Abu Bakar, M., and A. K. Abdul Rahim. “Maqasid Al-Shariah Theory: A Comparative Analysis Between The Thoughts Of Al-Shatibi And ‘Izz Al-Din Ibn ‘Abd Al-Salam.” International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences 11, no. 8 (2021): 180–93. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v11-i8/10683.

Abu Zahroh, M. Ushul Al-Fiqh. Beirut: Dar al-Fikr al-Arabi, 1957.

Aemanah, Ummu, Idzam Fautanu, Usep Saepullah, Ending Solehuddin, and Muhammad Yogi Sandra. “Rethinking Maqāṣid Al-Sharīʿa in Marital Relations: A Systems Approach to Female Migrant Worker Families.” Jurnal Ilmiah Mizani 13, no. 1 (January 1, 2026): 62–78. https://doi.org/10.29300/MZN.V13I1.8938.

Al-Salâm, ‘Abd, and ‘Izz al-Dîn ‘Abd al-‘Azîz Ibn. “Al-Imâm Fî Bayân Adillah Al-Ahkâm.” Beirut: Dâr al-Basyâr al-Islâmiyah, 1987.

Al‑Ashmawī, M. S. Uṣūl Al-Sharī‘Ah. Beirut: Dar al-Iqra, 1983.

Anshori, Ahmad Yani, and Landy Trisna Abdurrahman. “History of the Development of Mażhab, Fiqh and Uṣūl Al-Fiqh: Reasoning Methodology in Islamic Law.” Samarah 9, no. 1 (2025): 273–98. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v9i1.25355.

Auda, J. Maqashid Syariah A Beginner’s Guide. London: The International Institute Of Islamic Thought, 2008.

Bakhshizadeh, M. Changing Gender Norms in Islam Between Reason and Revelation (1st Ed.). Budrich UniPress, 2018.

Barnes, J. “Contextualism: The Modern Approach to Statutory Interpretation.” University of New South Wales Law Journal 41, no. 4 (2018): 1083–1113. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.53637/PRVR3704.

Duderija. “Toward a Scriptural Hermeneutics of Islamic Feminism.” Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 31, no. 2 (2015): 45. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.2979/jfemistudreli.31.2.45.

Eyadat, Zaid, and Hanadi Riyad. “A Critique of Al-Jabri’s Arab Ethical Reason.” In Islam, State, and Modernity, 219–247, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59760-1_12.

Fadl, Khaled Abou El. “Islam and the Theology of Power.” Middle East Report 221 (2001): 28–33.

Fadl, Khaled Abou El. “Qur’anic Ethics and Islamic Law.” Journal of Islamic Ethics 1, no. 1–2 (2017): 7–28. https://doi.org/10.1163/24685542-12340002.

Fadl, Khalid Abou El. “On Christian Men Marrying Muslim Women (Updated).” Scholar of the House, 2011.

Gasimov, K. “Ijtihad in the Light of the Goals of Sharia: Jasser Auda’s Ethical and Legal Theory. Islamology.” ISLAMOLOGY 8, no. 2 (2019). https://doi.org/https://islamology.in/journal/article/view/176.

Hallaq, W. B. “Usûl Al-Fiqh: Beyond Tradition. Journal of Islamic Studies.” Oxford University Press 3, no. 2 (1992): 172–202.

Hefni, Wildani, Imam Mustofa, and Rizqa Ahmadi. “Looking for Moderate Fiqh: The Thought of Mohammad Hashim Kamali on the Reformation of Rigidity and Inflexibility in Islamic Law.” Al-Istinbath: Jurnal Hukum Islam 10, no. 1 (2025): 30–57. https://doi.org/10.29240/jhi.v10i1.10694.

Jasser Auda. Maqasid Al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law: A Systems Approach. London: International Institute of Islamic Thought, 2008.

Jumʻah, ʻAlī. Tārīkh Uṣūl Al-Fiqh. Kairo: Dār al-Muqaṭṭam lil-Nashr wa-al-Tawzīʻ, 2015.

Kamali. “Issues in the Legal Theory of Uṣūl and Prospects for Reform.” Islamic Studies, 2001. https://doi.org/https://www.jstor.org/stable/20837072.

Kamali, M. H. “Methodological Issues in Islamic Jurisprudence.” Arab Law Quarterly 11, no. 1 (1996): 3. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.2307/3381731.

Larrauri Pertierra, I. X. “On Gadamerian Hermeneutics: Fusions of Horizons, Dialogue, and Evolution(s) within Culture as Dynamic System of Meaning.” Eidos: A Journal for Philosophy of Culture 4, no. 4 (2021): 45–62. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.14394/eidos.jpc.2020.0040.

Leroy Huizenga. The New Isaac: Tradition and Intertextuality in the Gospel of Matthew. BRILL, 2009. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004175693.i-340.

Mashhour, A. “Islamic Law and Gender Equality: Could There Be a Common Ground?: A Study of Divorce and Polygamy in Sharia Law and Contemporary Legislation in Tunisia and …. Human Rights Quarterly.” Human Rights Quarterly, Query 27, no. 2 (2005): 562–96. https://doi.org/https://www.jstor.org/stable/20069797.

Masud, Muhammad Khalid. Classical” Islamic Legal Theory as Ideology: Nasr Abu Zayd’s Study of Al-Shafiʿi’s Al-Risala. Islamic Studies in the Twenty-First Century, 2017.

Mir-Hosseini, Z. “The Challenges of Islamic Feminism.” Gender a Výzkum / Gender and Research 20, no. 2 (2019): 108–122. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.13060/25706578.2019.20.2.486.

Muhammad, H., and F. A. Kodir. Fiqh Perempuan: Refleksi Kiai Atas Wacana Agama Dan Gender (Cet. IV). Yogyakarta: LKIS, 2007.

Opwis, F. M. M. “Maslaha: An Intellectual History of a Core Concept in Islamic Legal Theory,” 2001.

Osborne, W. R. “Paradigm Shifts: The Philosophical Hermeneutics of Friedrich Schleiermacher.” Midwestern Journal of the Theology 10, no. 2 (2011): 62–74.

Rahman, Fazlur. “Islamic Modernism: Its Scope, Method and Alternatives.” International Journal of Middle East Studies 1, no. 4 (1970): 317–33. https://doi.org/doi:10.1017/S0020743800000714.

Schleiermacher Friedrich. Hermeneutics : The Handwritten Manuscripts. America: Missoula, Mont. : Published by Scholars Press for the American Academy of Religion, 1977.

Sheibani, M. Islamic Law in an Age of Crisis and Consolidation:’Izz al-Dīn Ibn’Abd al-Salām (577-660/1187-1262) and the Ethical Turn in Medieval Islamic Law (2018).

Vessey, D. “Gadamer and the Fusion of Horizons.” International Journal of Philosophical Studies 17, no. 4 (2009): 531–542. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/09672550903164459.