All Muslims believe in one qibla, one Rasul, and one Quran. Given this basic unity, why do they disagree in their interpretation of Islam? In Kitab Ikhtilaf Usul al-Madhahib (Disagreements of the Jurists), Maulana Qadi l-Nu’man explains the causes of, and issues arising from, the dispute among Muslim scholars regarding the prescriptions of the Shariat. He explains that Rasulullah’s SA Islam is followed by following Ali, and the Imams after him, the one true Guide in every age, who inherits Rasulullah’s Nass, and who provides the correct interpretation of the Quran and the Sunnat. In our age, Rasulullah’s heir is our Imam al-zaman Tayyib SA, who guides us through his Dai and Na’ib Syedna Khuzaima Qutbuddin TUS.
We have published a selection from the prologue and first chapter of Qadi l-Nu’man’s Kitab Ikhtilaf usul al-madhahib (translated by Professor Devin Stewart, titled Disagreements of the Jurists, Library of Arabic Literature, New York University Press, 2015, pp. 5-15).
