Anas Zarka

Anas Zarka provided a file (attached to bottom of page) which documents history of Islamic Economics and the Shia contribution to the subject.

Islamic Economics Is not Based On Mathahib

Muhammad Anas Zarka

By Mathahib I mean traditional fiqh schools (singular mathhab).

I take the title to be a true positive statement about modern (post 1976 Makkah Intl Conference) Islamic Economics (IE) literature , andabout the attitude held by professionals in the field whom I came across since 1976.

I also hold the title as a normative statement to which I subscribe and invite all to do so.

IE, in its value‑dependant aspects is based on the corpus of Shariah from which all schools of fiqh derive.

I list justifications as they come to my mind .

1-My father Shaikh Mustafa Al Zarqa and Professor Muhammad Al Mubarak introduced me in the early 1970’s to Muhammad Baqir Al Sadr books (in Arabic: Our Philosophy and Our Economics . They thought very highly of both. Al Mubarak was especially fond of the latter book.

2- Dr Muhammad Omar Zubair, former rector of KAAU, was chairman of the 1976 Conference, and later established the Intl Center for RESEARCH IN Islamic Economics. He for several years later taught a course in Islamic Economics at KAAU. He always assigned Al Sadr IQTISAADUNA= Our Economics as textbook , adding other readings to it. His choice of IQTISAADUNA was criticized by several professors at Umm Al Qura Univ. So we invited them for a Wednesday Dialog to discuss the matter.

3- Present at that Wednesday Dialog (mid 1980’s ?) , in addition to Dr Zubair, were Drs MN Siddiqi, Rafic Al Misri , Md ElGari, myself and probably some scholars from IRTI ( I cannot recall now). The criticism boiled down to Al Sadr building his analysis and theory on fiqh positions peculiar to Shea Imami school and not approved by Sunni schools. The dialog went over the criticism point by point. The conclusion, surprising to some: There was scarcely a POINT where the Imami position was not also shared by one of the four Sunni schools.

4- I have many times heard from my father Shaikh Mustafa a similar conclusion about fiqh muamalat : i.e, similarity of Imami and Sunni positions in the above sense, even though they may reach their respective positions through different routes.

5- The significant differences are almost confined to the political system , which is not our area of expertise as economists.

6- There will be healthy differences of opinions, or schools, within Islamic economics, based on genuine differences in interpretation of TEXTS or analysis of ground REALITY and initial conditions, not on traditionally known mathhahib. These mathhahib are now of historical significance.

A sensible practical economic policy can hardly confine itself to any particular mathhab. Modern Islamic finance, both in its achievements and failings, is proof enough of that fact.

7- As economists, we are studying, filtering and benefiting from the thoughts of all economists past and present, many of whom are agnostics, or atheists like J M Keynes ( See his biography by R. Skidelsky"). Does it make sense to invent Sunni –Imami distinctions within Islamic Economics?