al-Siyasa al-Shariyya fi al-Shuun al-Dusturiyya wa al-Kharijiyya wa al-Maliyya
- Author died
- 1375 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Qalam
al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya fi al-Shu'un al-Dusturiyya wa al-Kharijiyya wa al-Maliyya ("Sharia Governance in Constitutional, Foreign, and Financial Affairs") is a legal treatise on Islamic public law and state governance by the Egyptian jurist Abd al-Wahhab Khallaf (1305–1375 AH / 1888–1956 CE) . The book examines the administrative institutions, legal principles, and regulatory frameworks governing the Islamic state across constitutional, international, and fiscal spheres .
Composition and Background
Khallaf authored the work after he was assigned in Jumada al-Ula 1342 AH (December 1923 CE) to teach Sharia governance (al-siyasa al-shar'iyya) in the specialization department for Sharia judiciary (qism al-takhasis bi-l-qada' al-shar'i), established for select graduates of Madrasat al-Qada' al-Shar'i and al-Azhar . Noting that the subject lacked a systematized curriculum or unified scholarly structure in modern legal education, he compiled and arranged its core inquiries into an organized legal discipline .
Scope and Methodology
Khallaf defines the science of Sharia governance as the inquiry into the laws and systems used to manage the affairs of the Islamic state in accordance with Islamic principles, even in cases where no specific textual proof exists for every individual measure . Its subject matter comprises the regulations required by the state to fulfill public welfare and human needs while adhering to the foundations of the religion . The work aims to establish the capacity of Islamic governance to adapt to changing societal needs across eras and lands, frequently comparing classical Islamic legal provisions with modern constitutional and international legal systems .
Structure and Contents
The book opens with an introduction and a preliminary section (tamhid) discussing Islamic legislation, independent legal reasoning (ijtihad), and the foundational capacity of Islam to secure just administration . The core text is organized into three principal divisions:
- Constitutional Governance (al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya al-Dusturiyya): Covers the form and pillars of Islamic government, individual rights, the sources and distribution of state authority, and the caliphate along with its necessity and prerequisites .
- Foreign Governance (al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya al-Kharijiyya): Focuses on relations with non-Muslim states, Islamic rules of warfare compared with public international law, and peacetime legal stipulations .
- Financial Governance (al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya al-Maliyya): Details the principles of just fiscal policy, categories and sources of Islamic state revenues, designated avenues of public expenditure, tax collection and allocation methods, and a historical overview of the public treasury (bayt al-mal) .
Title Variants and Editions
The work is also recorded under the expanded title al-Siyasa al-Shar'iyya aw Nizam al-Dawla al-Islamiyya fi al-Shu'un al-Dusturiyya wa al-Kharijiyya wa al-Maliyya . Notable print editions include those issued by al-Matba'a al-Salafiyya in Cairo , Dar al-Qalam in Damascus (1408 AH) , and Mu'assasat al-Risala in Beirut (1418 AH / 1997 CE) .
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