Original Islam

Original Islam investigates the primacy of Madinan Islam and the madhhab (school of law) of its main exponent, Malik ibn Anas. It contains an annotated translation of Intisar al-faqir al-salik li-tarjih madhhab al-Imam al-kabir Malik, which was written by Al-Ra'i, a fifteenth century Andalusian scholar resident in Cairo.

Yasin Dutton is Associate Professor of Arabic Studies at the University of Cape Town. His current research interests include early Islamic law, early Qur'anic manuscripts, Islam and the environment, Islamic economics and the application of Islamic law in the modern world. Recent publications include: The Origins of Islamic Law: The Qur'an, the Muwatta' and Madinan 'Amal (Richmond, UK: Curzon Press, 1999; second, revised edn, London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2002).

Part 1: Introduction 1. Al-Ra'i's Life and Times 2. The Intisar and its Significance 3. Malik and the Way of Madina 4. Malik and his Madhhab in Contemporary Islamic Studies: Some Controversial Issues Part 2: Translation of Al-Ra'i's Intisar al-faqir al-salik li-tarjih madhhab al-imam al-kabir Malik 1. Malik the Imam 2. Malik's Madhhab and its Bases 3. Various Points of Dispute between the Madhhabs 4. Examples of the Prejudice that Led to the Writing of this Book 5. Some Linguistics Errors Common to both Specialists and Non-Specialists. Biographical Notes of Persons Mentioned