Madhhab (School of Law)
An Islamic school of law with its own methodology for legal derivation from the sacred sources.
Madhhab (plural: madhahib) literally means "way" or "direction" and refers to an Islamic school of law with its own systematic methodology for deriving legal rules from the Quran and Sunnah. In Sunni Islam, there are four recognized schools of law: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali.
Each madhhab has its own approach to prayer with characteristic differences in details: the placement of the hands (qabd vs. irsal), recitation of Bismillah (aloud or silently), saying "Amin" (aloud or silently), calculation of Asr time, and the number of rak'ah in certain voluntary prayers.
The four imams deeply respected each other despite their differences. Imam Abu Hanifah said: "When a hadith is authentic, it is my madhhab." Imam al-Shafi'i said: "If you find an authentic hadith that contradicts my statement, then know that my statement is that hadith." And Imam Ahmad said: "Do not follow me blindly — take from the sources they took from." This humility illustrates the flexibility of the schools of law.
Related terms
Mihrab (Prayer Niche)
The semicircular niche in the mosque wall that indicates the qibla direction.
Nafilah (Voluntary Prayer)
Voluntary extra prayers beyond the five obligatory daily prayers.
Du'a al-Faraj (The Supplication of Deliverance)
A short, powerful supplication for Imam al-Mahdi's appearance and deliverance from suffering.
Minaret (Prayer Tower)
The mosque's tower, from which the adhan (call to prayer) is traditionally recited.
Kaaba (Allah's Sacred House)
The holiest building in Islam, in Mecca, toward which all Muslims face in prayer.
Ijma' (Consensus)
Agreement among Islamic scholars on a legal question, considered the third source of Islamic law.