Schacht’s Evaluations of Ahl al-Ra’y and Ahl al-Hadith: A Critical Study

Abstract

This study examines Joseph Schacht’s (d. 1969) theory on Islamic law through the
concepts of Ahl al-Rayy and Ahl al-Hadith. Schacht argued that religious references,
especially hadiths, did not have as much influence on the emergence of Islamic law as
it is believed and that the concepts of ra’y and hadith played a key role in this process.
According to him, the early jurists ruled on legal issues mostly with ra’y and the
influence of religion in this field remained limited. With Shafi’i (d. 204/820), however,
the understanding of hadith and sunnah was systematized and placed among the basic
references of law. The study defines Ahl al-Ray as the Iraqi jurists and Ahl al-Hadith
as the Medina-based scholars and examines the methodological differences between
these two schools. In addition, it emphasizes that after the Mihna period, these concepts
acquired political and theological meanings, especially Ahl al-Ray was loaded with a
negative one. Schacht’s theory is also supported by the concept of living tradition and
the efforts of each school of jurisprudence “to base their jurisprudence on the Prophet’s
Sunnah” over time are analyzed. The study critically evaluates Schacht’s views discusses
the reliability and interpretations of the sources he presents as evidence. Finally, it argues
that the Hanafî school’s relationship with the Sunnah is misunderstood, concluding that
while Schacht’s theory contributes to studies on the early period of Islamic law, it contains
some methodological weaknesses.