Understanding 4 Sunni Legal Schools (Madhab): A Guide for Muslims

Sunni Madhhabs explained – An Islamic legal school, called Madhab in Arabic, is a methodology for interpreting the Quran and the Sunnah, established by Fiqh scholars and experts, which the Ummah has been using since the start of Islam.

Every Muslim must follow a Sunni legal school.

It is a clear and reliable way of following the Quran and the Sunnah because each school has a solid and proven methodology for understanding, interpreting and applying Allah’s عزّ وجلّ commandments to all questions that relate to our lives as Muslims.

There are four Sunni legal schools:  

• Hanafi School
• Maliki School
• Shafi’i School
• Hanbali School

These four Muslim schools make up what is called Fiqh (Muslim law).

Fiqh was developed by Muslim scholars (fuqaha) and has been stable since the fourth century of the Hijrah.

All Sunni legal schools are considered orthodox and bear the name of a great scholar of Allah’s عزّ وجلّ law.

The main sources of law in Sunni legal schools are the Quran, the Sunnah, consensus (al-Ijma), reasoning by analogy (as-qiyas), and with a few shades of difference, reason or ijtihad. 

The differences among legal schools are thus at the level of interpretation. They may diverge on some matters of jurisprudence where there are no specific verses in the Quran or the Sunnah or if there is a word or phrase with several meanings.

Despite this apparent diversity, each school follows common principles (Usul Al Fiqh) and was established by interpreting the same sources.

The variety of points of view of Sunni legal schools (ikhtilaf al-fuqaha) is a wealth and a blessing.

It provides for an enriching flexibility and diversity when it comes to solving legal issues.

Legal schools govern Muslims’ activities in all situations and all areas of life.

Legal schools also apply to instructions for worship (ibadat) and to commercial dealings (muamalat) in the moral, cultural, political, economic and legal domains, from birth until death.

The purpose of the legal schools is to simplify, not to complicate, understanding of Islam because they are authentic interpretations that the Ummah has been following for centuries.

Muslims who follow a legal school are certain of their faithfulness to Allah’s  عزّ وجلّ laws. By adopting and following a legal school, Muslims remain consistent in how they practice their religion and avoid the risk of mixing up scholars’ advice and thus falling into blameworthy or prohibited conduct.

Muslim legal schools enlighten Muslims on the appropriate way to practice their religion and  completely and reliably show them the way to go.

The reason legal schools exist, their past, present and future advantage, in other words, is to give the Ummah answers based on true knowledge.

To find out who needs to follow a madhab (legal school), it is necessary to draw a distinction among Muslims based on their level of knowledge of Islamic teachings and sacred law jurisprudence (fiqh).

For knowledge of sacred law jurisprudence (fiqh), Muslims are divided into two groups:

• First Group : Scholars, Ulama and Specialists in Muslim Law (Mujtahid)

People who are learned in Muslim law are those who are able to reason independently (ijtihad) on points of law.

A mujtahid is someone who has skill in many fields and has the intellectual ability to achieve l’ijtihâd in the field of Allah’s عزّ وجلّ. law. A mujtahid must also demonstrate great piety (taqwa) and moral integrity.

Such people, who are obviously few in number, are able to draw their own conclusions about many subjects without having to follow the conclusions and recommendations of a particular legal school.

That is why they do not necessarily have to follow a legal school.

• Second Group : Average Muslims, Without Sufficient Knowledge of Muslim Law (Muqallid)

Average Muslims who are not scholars are ordinary Muslims who do not have knowledge of Islamic teachings, or not enough knowledge. A muqallid is a Muslim who is not able to issue Islamic legal opinions, even if he has reached a high level of knowledge of Fiqh.

A muqallid is someone who is not able to make the mental effort required for ijtihād.

It is furthermore strictly prohibited to do so:

‘’And do not occupy yourself with what you have no knowledge of. The hearing, and the sight, and the brains—all these will be questioned’’
(Quran 17- 36)

Therefore, this includes the vast majority of Muslims. People in this category thus have no choice but to follow a legal school of their choice to the letter (taqlid).

The Quran mentions this category of people saying:

“So ask the people of knowledge, if you do not know”
(Quran 16:43)

It is very likely that you are not a scholar. In other words, you are a Muqallid and, as such, you should follow a legal school.