Reconstructing Individual Rights and Social Obligations in Islamic Family Law: A Comparative Madhhab Analysis of Ḥadīth al-Aḥkām
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Contemporary Islamic family law faces growing tensions between the protection of individual rights and the preservation of social obligations amid the expansion of liberal individualism and changing family structures. Although numerous studies have examined ḥadīth al-aḥkām from textual and socio-legal perspectives, limited attention has been given to how different Islamic madhhabs derive legal rulings from these traditions to address contemporary family issues. This study analyses the comparative legal reasoning of the four major Sunni madhhabs regarding the balance between individual rights and collective responsibilities in Islamic family law. Employing qualitative library research, it combines thematic (mawḍū‘ī) analysis of selected ḥadīth al-aḥkām from the Kutub al-Sittah with comparative madhhab analysis based on the uṣūl al-fiqh methodologies of the Ḥanafī, Mālikī, Shāfiʿī, and Ḥanbalī madhhabs. The findings indicate that while all madhhabs regard the family as the primary institution for safeguarding justice and social welfare, they differ in defining the scope of individual autonomy, legal authority, and reciprocal obligations according to their respective juristic methodologies. These differences represent methodological diversity rather than normative contradiction and provide flexible legal responses to contemporary family challenges. This study contributes to comparative madhhab scholarship by demonstrating the continuing relevance of classical juristic reasoning in the reform and development of contemporary Islamic family law.
Source: Mazahibuna
Institutions: Universitas Muslim Indonesia, Ez-Zitouna University
Language: English
Subfield: Religious studies
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7208742630