Theory of Abrogation (Naskh)
Theory of Abrogation (Naskh)
Introduction
The
Qur’anic interpretive tradition that eventually developed and evolved out of a
long process of scholarship is known as tafsir (Qur’anic exegesis). Within the
body of tafsir, many Qur’anic theories and principles have been developed to
address the legal needs and necessities of the society. One of the most
interesting Qur’anic legal exegetical theories is the theory of naskh.[1]
The
principle of naskh dictates that between the two competing rulings, one rule
abrogates the other, rendering the abrogated ruling null and void. The texts
which is being abrogated is called the ‘mansukh’, and the text which abrogates
is known as the ‘nasikh’.[2]
Though it is generally expressed in such a
case that one verse abrogates and replaces the other, technically, what is
being abrogated is the ruling and not the text.[3]
And
the wisdom behind the theory of Naskh can be summarized as Islamic law works
for the interest (maslahah) of human beings. Interests may keep on shifting
with a change in circumstances, and the law adjusts accordingly. The law was
laid down in the period of the Prophet (PBUH) gradually and in stages. The aim
was to bring a society steeped in immorality to observe the highest standards
of morality. This could not be done abruptly. It was done in stages, and doing
so necessitated repeal and abrogation of certain laws.[4]
Meanings
a) Etymologically
naskh
in Arabic means effacement, obliteration, change, cancellation, suppression, replacement,
substitution, or simply, abrogation.[5]
b) Literally
Naskh means annulment, for instance, it is an
old Arab saying, that “Nasakha-tushamsi minazali” meaning “the sun annulled the
shade”. [6]
Naskh
also means transcription or transfer of something from one state to another
while its essence remains unchanged. But According to the majority view,
however, obliteration is the primary, and transcription/transfer is the
secondary, meaning of naskh.[7]
Definition
“Naskh may be defined as the
suspension or replacement of one Shariah ruling by another, provided that the
latter is of a subsequent origin, and that the two rulings are enacted
separately from one another”.
The hukm, or ruling, in this
definition not only includes commands and prohibitions but also the three
intermediate categories of recommended, reprehensible and mubah.[8]
Application of
Naskh
a) Quran and the Sunnah
Abrogation applies almost exclusively to the Qur'an
and the Sunnah; its application to ijma` and qiyas, has been generally
overruled. And even then, the application of naskh to the Qur'an and Sunnah is
confined, to the lifetime of the Prophet. The ulema are unanimous on the
occurrence of naskh in the Sunnah. It is, however, with regard to the
occurrence of naskh in the Qur'an on which there is some disagreement.[9]
b) Ijma
Some
Hanafi and Mu'tazili scholars have held the view that ijma can abrogate a
ruling of the Qur'an or the Sunnah, but the majority of ulema have held that
ijma` neither abrogates nor can be abrogated itself; and at any rate ijma
cannot abrogate a nass of the Qur'an or the Sunnah. For a valid ijma' may never
be concluded in contradiction to the Qur'an or the Sunnah in the first place.
Al-Amidi elaborates this as follows:
“For
the ijma` which seeks to abrogate the nass of Qur'an or Sunnah is either based
on an indication (dalil) or not. If it is not based on any dalil, then it is
likely to be erroneous, and if it is based on a dalil this could either be a
nass or qiyas. If the basis (sanad) of ijma` is a qiyas, then abrogation is not
permissible and if the sanad of ijma` is a nass, then abrogation is by that
nass, not by ijma`”.
So
in other words, abrogation is not relevant to Ijma.[10]
c) Qiyas
Qiyas has
no place in the theory of naskh.[11]
d) Subjects not applicable to Naskh
There are also certain subjects to
which abrogation does not apply. Included among these are provisions pertaining
to the;
·
Attributes
of God,
·
Belief in
the principles of the faith, and
·
The
doctrine of tawhid and
·
The
hereafter.
The ulema are also in agreement
that rational matters and moral truths such as the virtue of doing justice or
being good to one's parents, are not changeable and are therefore not open to
abrogation.[12]
Conditions/Essentials of Naskh
To summarise the foregoing: no
abrogation can take place unless the following conditions are satisfied;
·
First, that the
text itself has not precluded the possibility of abrogation.
·
Second that the
subject is open to the possibility of repeal.
·
Third that the
abrogating text is of a later origin than the abrogated.
·
Fourth that the
two texts are of equal strength in regard to authenticity (thubut) and meaning
(dalalah).
·
Fifth
that the two texts are genuinely in conflict and can in no way be reconciled
with one another. And,
·
Lastly,
that the two texts are separate and are not related to one another in the sense
of one being the condition (shart), qualification (wasf) or exception
(istithna') to the other.[13]
Types of Naskh
Abrogation may either be explicit (sarih), or implicit
(dimni).
a) Explicit (Sarih)
In the case of explicit abrogation,
the abrogating text clearly repeals one ruling and substitutes another in its
place.
(i) In Hadith
An example of this is the Ahadith
which provides:
“I had
forbidden you from visiting the graves. Nay, visit them, for they remind you of
the hereafter”.
“I
had forbidden you from storing away the sacrificial meat because of the large
crowds. You may now store it as you wish”.
The initial order not to store the
sacrificial meat during the id festival (`id al-Adha). The restriction was
later removed as the circumstances had changed.
(ii) In Quran
An example of explicit abrogation
in the Quran is the passage in sura al-Baqarah (2: 142-144) with regard to the
change in the direction of the qiblah from Jerusalem to the Kabah.
Sura
al-Baqarah (2:142-144)
The fools among the people will say, “What has turned them
(Muslims) from their Qiblah to which they were used to face in prayer” Say, (O
Muhammad SAW) “To Allah belong both, east and the west. He guides whom He wills
to a Straight Way” (142)
Thus We have made you a (just) nation, that you be witnesses over
mankind and the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) be a witness over you. And We made the
Qiblah (prayer direction towards Jerusalem) which you used to face, only to
test those who followed the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) from those who would turn
on their heels (i.e. disobey the Messenger). Indeed it was great (heavy) except
for those whom Allah guided. And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to
be lost (i.e. your prayers offered towards Jerusalem). Truly, Allah is full of
kindness, the Most Merciful towards mankind. (143)
Verily! We have seen the turning of your (Muhammad s.a.w) face
towards the heaven. Surely, We shall turn you to a Qiblah (prayer direction)
that shall please you, so turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid- Al-Haram
(at Makkah). And whosesoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in
that direction… (144)
b) Implicit (Dimni)
(i) In Quran;
An example of implicit abrogation
is the ruling in sura al-Baqarah (2:180) which permitted bequests to one's
parents and relatives. This was subsequently abrogated by another text
(al-Nisa, 4:11) which entitled the legal heirs to specific shares in
inheritance.
Sura
al-Baqarah (2:180)
It is prescribed for
you, when death approaches any of you, if he leaves wealth, that he make a
bequest to parents and next of kin, according to reasonable manners. (This is)
a duty upon Al-Muttaqun (the pious). (180)
Sura
al-Nisa, (4:11)
Allah commands you as
regards your children's (inheritance); to the male, a portion equal to that of
two females; if (there are) only daughters, two or more, their share is two
thirds of the inheritance; if only one, her share is half. For parents, a sixth
share of inheritance to each if the deceased left children; if no children, and
the parents are the (only) heirs, the mother has a third; if the deceased left
brothers or (sisters), the mother has a sixth. (The distribution in all cases
is) after the payment of legacies he may have bequeathed or debts. You know not
which of them, whether your parents or your children, are nearest to you in
benefit, (these fixed shares) are ordained by Allah. And Allah is Ever All
Knower, All Wise. (11)
Imam
Shafi'i at his (Risalah, p. 69) has
observed concerning these ayat that the abrogation of bequest to relatives by
the ayah of inheritance is a probability only, but he adds that the ulema have
held that the ayah of inheritance has abrogated the ayah of bequests.
(ii) Kinds of Implicit abrogation
Implicit
abrogation has been sub-divided into two types, namely total abrogation (naskh
kulli) and partial abrogation (naskh juzi).
I. Total abrogation (Naskh kulli)
In
this case, the whole of a particular nass is abrogated by another, and a new
ruling is enacted to replace it. This may be illustrated by a reference to the
two Qur'anic texts concerning the waiting period (`iddah) of widows, which was
initially prescribed to be one year but was subsequently changed to four months
and ten days.
Sura
al-Baqarah
And those of you who
die and leave behind wives should bequeath for their wives a year's maintenance
and residence without turning them out…(240)
And those of you who
die and leave wives behind them, they (the wives) shall wait (as regards their
marriage) for four months and ten days…(234)
As
can be seen, the provision concerning the waiting period of widows in the first
ayah has been totally replaced by the new ruling in the second. But it is not
certain whether they are genuinely in conflict, for the term ‘a year's
maintenance and residence’ in the first ayah does not recur in the second.
II. Partial abrogation (Naskh juzi)
Partial abrogation (naskh juz'i )
is a form of naskh in which one text is only partially abrogated by another,
while the remaining part continues to be operative. An example of this is the
Quranic ayah of qadhf (slanderous accusation) which has been partially repealed
by the ayah of imprecation (lian).
Sura al
Nur (24:4)
And those who accuse
chaste women, and produce not four witnesses, flog them with eighty stripes,
and reject their testimony forever, they indeed are the Fasiqun. (4)
Sura al
Nur (24:6)
And for those who accuse their wives, but have no witnesses except
themselves, let the testimony of one of them be four testimonies (i.e.
testifies four times) by Allah that he is one of those who speak the truth. (6)
The first ayah lays down the
general rule that anyone, be it a spouse or otherwise, who accuses chaste women
of zina must produce four witnesses for proof. The second ayah provides that if
the accuser happens to be a spouse who cannot provide four witnesses and yet
insists on pursuing the
charge of zina, he may take four solemn oaths to take the place of four
witnesses. This is to be followed, as the text continues, by a statement in
which the husband invokes the curse of God upon himself if he tells a lie.
c) Further types of Naskh
(i) Naskh al-tilawah
That is, abrogation of
the words of the text while the ruling is retained.
(ii) Naskh al-hukm wa al-tilawah
That is, abrogation of
both the words and the ruling - are rather rare and the examples which we have
are not supported by conclusive evidence.
Text of Quran and Naskh;
Text of the Qur'an has two
distinctive features, namely, the words of the text, and the ruling, or the
hukm that it conveys. Reading and reciting the words of the Quran, even if its
ruling is abrogated, still commands spiritual merit. The words are still regarded
as part of the Quran.
Abrogation of Quran and Sunnah of one another
According to the majority (jumhur)
view, the Quran and the Sunnah may be abrogated by themselves. In this sense,
abrogation may be once again classified into the following varieties;
(1)
Abrogation
of the Quran by the Quran, which has already been illustrated.
(2)
Abrogation
of the Sunnah by the Sunnah. This too has been illustrated by the two ahadith
under the explicit abrogation.
(3)
Abrogation
of the Quran by Sunnah. An example of this is the ayah of bequest in sura
al-Baqarah (2:180)
Sura
al-Baqarah (2:180)
It is prescribed for
you, when death approaches any of you, if he leaves wealth, that he make a
bequest to parents and next of kin, according to reasonable manners. (This is)
a duty upon Al-Muttaqun (the pious). (180)
Which has been abrogated by the
Hadith which provides that;
“There
shall be no bequest to an heir”
But there remains little doubt that
it has been abrogated by the Sunnah.
(4)
Abrogation
of the Sunnah by the Quran. An example of this is the initial ruling of the
Prophet which determined the qiblah in the direction of Jerusalem.
Sura
al-Baqarah (2:144)
And whosesoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in
that direction. Certainly, the people who were given the Scriptures (i.e. Jews
and the Christians) know well that, that (your turning towards the direction of
the Kabah at Makkah in prayers) is the truth from their Lord. And Allâh is not
unaware of what they do. (144)
Exception
The main exception to the foregoing
classification of naskh is taken by Imam Shafi'i, the majority of the
Mu'tazilah, and Ahmad b. Hanbal who have validated the first two types of
abrogation, but have overruled the validity of the remaining two. In their
view, abrogation of the Quran by the Sunnah and vice versa is not valid.
Imam
Shafi'i has drawn from his interpretation from;
Sura al-Nahl (16:101)
______________________________________________________________________________
“And when We change a Verse in place of another. And Allah knows
the best what He sends down”. (101)
This text, according to al-Shafi`i,
is self-evident on the point that an ayah of the Qur'an can only be abrogated
or replaced by another ayah.
Further in Quran
Sura Yunus (10:15)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
“And when Our Clear
Verses are recited unto them, those who hope not for their meeting with Us,
say: Bring us a Qur'ân other than this, or change it. "Say (O Muhammad
SAW): "It is not for me to change it on my own accord; I only follow that
which is revealed unto me. Verily, I fear the torment of the Great Day (i.e.
the Day of Resurrection). If I were to disobey my Lord”. (15)
Imam
Shafi further emphasized that only the Sunnah can abrogate the Sunnah;
Mutawatir
by Mutawatir and Ahad by Ahad. Mutawatir may abrogate the Ahad, but there is
some disagreement on whether the Ahad can abrogate the Mutawatir. And considers
it necessary for the abrogation of Sunnah that the Prophet should have informed
the people specifically about it.
Specification (Takhsis) and Addition (Tazid)
a) Naskh and Takhsis
Naskh and
takhsis resemble one another in that both tend to qualify or specify
an original ruling in some way. But a certain amount of confusion has also
arisen between naskh and takhsis due to conceptual differences between the Hanafis and the
majority of ulema regarding naskh
in that they tend to view naskh differently from one another.
(i) Difference
Naskh
and takhsis differ from one another in that
1)
There is no real conflict in
takhsis.
2)
Naskh can occur in respect of
either a general or a specific ruling whereas takhsis can, by definition, occur
in respect of a general ruling only.
3)
Naskh is basically confined to the
Qur'an and Sunnah and could only be effected by the explicit rulings of divine
revelation. Takhsis on the other hand could also occur by means of rationality
and circumstantial evidence, (`aql ), custom (`urf) and other rational proofs.
4)
In naskh it is essential that the
abrogator (al-nasikh) be later in time than the ruling which it seeks to
abrogate. But this is not a requirement of takhsis.
5)
Naskh does not apply to factual
reports of events (akhbar) whereas takhsis could occur in regard to factual
reports.
b) Naskh and Tazid
Another issue which arises
concerning naskh is whether a subsequent addition (tazid) to an existing text,
which may be at variance with it, amounts to its abrogation. The majority of
ulema have answered this question in the negative, holding that the new
addition does not overrule the existing law but merely adds a new element to
it. But Hanafis have held that such an addition does amount to abrogation.
Criticism on Naskh;[14]
While
al-Suyuti has claimed, in his Itqan fi `Ulum al-Qur'an, twenty-one instances of
naskh in the Qur'an, Shah Wali Allah (d. 1762) has only retained five. Abu
Muslim al-Isfahani (d. 934) has, on the other hand, denied the incidence of
abrogation in the Qur'an altogether.
The
majority of ulema have nevertheless acknowledged the incidence of naskh in the
Qur'an on the authority of the Qur'an itself. This is the conclusion that the
majority have drawn from the relevant Qur'anic passages.
Sura al-Baqarah, (2:106)
______________________________________________________________________________
Whatever a Verse
(revelation) do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, We bring a better one or
similar to it. Know you not that Allâh is able to do all things? (106)
Sura al-Nahl (16:101)
______________________________________________________________________________
And when We change a Verse in place of another. And Allâh knows
the best what He sends down (101)
To
some commentators, the word “ayah” to these passages refers, not to the text of
the Qur'an itself, but to previous scriptures including the Torah and the
Gospel. To al-Isfahani, the word “ayah” in these passages means not a portion
of the Qur'anic text, but “miracle”. God empowered each of His Messengers with
miracles that none other possessed.
According
to Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan vehemently refuted it. According to him the word
‘naskh’ in the Qur'anic verse 2: 106 meant the abrogation of the codes of law
revealed to the earlier Prophet.[15]
But
the proponents of naskh have stated that the incidence of naskh in the Qur'an
is proven, not only by the Qur'an itself, but also by a conclusive ijma. Anyone
who opposes it is thus going against the dictates of ijma.
Bibliography
·
(2015, 01 02). Retrieved from
thelawstudy.blogspot.com: http://thelawstudy.blogspot.com/2015/02/doctrine of
abrogation naskh. html
·
hassan, A. (1965). The Theory of Naskh. Dr Muhammad
Hamidullah Library IIUI.
·
kamali, M. H. (1991). Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence.
International Islamic University, Malaysia.
·
Rahim, R. A. (2011). 'Naskh al quran' a theological and
juridical reconsideration of the theory of abrogation and its impact on
quranic exegesis. PhD thesis. Temple University.
[1] Roslan Abdul-Rahim
‘NASKH Al-QUR’AN A Theological And
Juridical Reconsideration Of The Theory Of Abrogation And Its Impact On
Qur’anic Exegesis’ (PhD thesis, Temple University 2011)
[2]
Ibid.
[3]
Ibid.
[4] 'Doctrine of
Abrogation (Naskh)' (Blogspotcom, no-date) <http://thelawstudy.blogspot.com/2015/02/doctrine-of-abrogation-naskh.html>
accessed 15 January 2018
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ahmad hassan, 'The
theory of Naskh' [1965] 1(1) Dr Muhammad Hamidullah Library, IIU, Islamabad
<http://iri.iiu.edu.pk/> accessed 12-Jan-2018
[7] M h kamali, Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence
(International Islamic University, Malaysia 1991) 139.
[9]
Ibid.
[10]
Ibid. 140.
[11]
Ibid. 141.
[12]
Ibid. 142.
[13]
Ibid.
[15]
Roslan
Abdul-Rahim ‘NASKH Al-QUR’AN A
Theological And Juridical Reconsideration Of The Theory Of Abrogation And Its
Impact On Qur’anic Exegesis’ (PhD thesis, Temple University 2011)
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