Reflections on Legal Thought of Iqbal

REFLECTIONS ON LEGAL THOUGHT OF IQBAL: Personalities like Iqbal hardly need an introduction. He was a philosopher, poet, teacher, barrister, politician, linguist etc. In relation to legislation in Islam he believed that Islam allows reinterpretation of its rules and regulations in accordance with changing times and circumstances without deviating from its fundamental principles. For him, only religious obligations are unchangeable. He recognises the fact that the worldly affairs (muamalat) are subject to the law of change. It includes all laws pertaining to civil and criminal matters, which can be changed and reinterpreted in accordance with changing conditions and needs as well as the requirements of the Muslim community. For Iqbal, Ijtihad implies re-interpretation of foundational legal principles in the light of one's own experience and altered conditions of modern life. However he stresses that the works of the predecessors should guide and not hamper the solution of the problems. He has his own understanding about the role which sources of Islamic law can play in modern times. This book is an attempt to address and analyse all these issues.