Download (1 MB) - Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations: Articles ...

GLOSSARY 261Maliki — A school of Sunni lawnamed after Malik b. Anas (d. 795); an adherentof this school.masjid — Mosque.mawlawi/mawlana — A term used to designate a religious scholar; see ‘ulama.milla — A community as defined by ties of faith.mufti — A jurisconsult; one who issues legal opinions (fatwas [q.v.]).mujahidin — Those waging jihad (q.v.).mujtahid — A practitioner of ijtihad (q.v.).muqallid — A practitioner of taqlid (q.v.).mullah — A religious scholar; see ‘ulama.Murji’a — A religiopolitical group in early Islam whose adherents insisted on “deferring”to God judgment on those who had committed grave sins; often associatedwith the doctrine of giving precedence to “faith” over “works.”pandit — Hindu religious scholar.pir — A Sufi master.qawm — Nation as defined by ties of ethnicity, shared territory, and language.qadi — Muslim judge who rules according to the shari‘a (q.v.).qanun — Lawas enunciated by the ruler, as distinguished from the discourses ofthe Muslim jurists (fiqh).qasba — Small town.ra’y — “Opinion”; in the early history of Islamic law, it designated a mode ofargumentation based on informed personal reasoning. Critics of the Hanafi juristshave often accused them of basing their legal rulings on “mere” personalopinion rather than on the secure authority of foundational religious texts.sahaba — The Companions of the Prophet Muhammad. For the Sunnis, they arenot only the source of all information about the teachings of Muhammad butalso the paragons of religious authority that is second only to the Prophet. TheShi‘a recognize only some of the Companions as righteous.Shafi‘i — A school of Sunni law, named after Muhammad b. Idris al-Shafi‘i (d.820); an adherent of that school.shari‘a — The totality of Islamic legal and ethical norms; the sacred lawof Islam.shaykh — A religious scholar; a Sufi master.Shi‘a (sing. Shi‘i) — Community of Muslims who, unlike the Sunnis, believe thatafter the death of the Prophet infallible religious guidance must continue in theperson of the imams (q.v.), who are divinely designated to lead the communityin religious and political matters. There are several subdivisions within theShi‘a, of which the historically most important are the Ithna ‘ashariyya (q.v.)and the Isma‘iliyya.Sufi — Muslim mystic.sunna — The normative example of the Prophet, usually expressed in the form ofreports relating his teachings and conduct (hadith [q.v.]).Sunnis — Those professing adherance to the sunna (q.v.) of the Prophet and tothe agreed upon norms and practices of the universal Muslim community. TheSunnis constitute the overwhelming majority of the Muslim people worldwide.tabligh — The preaching of Islam.Tablighi Jama‘at — A proselytizing movement that emerged in early-twentiethcenturyIndia and now has operations worldwide. Those associated with the