"Abrogation of Rulings” Methodology: A Critique

Abstract

Surveying the subject of abrogation (naskh) in the Qur’ān, ḥādīth and Islamic literature, it is clear that most abrogation cases were introduced after the Prophetic era in order to interpret certain Qur’ānic verses and Prophetic narrations (aḥādīth) that some scholars perceived as “conflicting.” Two striking examples are “The Verse of the Sword” (āyat al-saif) and “The Verse of the Barrier” (āyat al-ḥijāb). The Qur’ānic verses and aḥādīth, which were misperceived as “conflicting,” should be contextually situated and applied according to the purposes (maqāṣid) behind them. This would validate all Qur’ānic verses and (authentic) Prophetic instructions regardless of their perceived contradictions. This allows jurisprudence to retain its flexibility within changing circumstances.