Misquoting Muhammad: The Challenge and Choices of Interpreting the Prophet's Legacy

by Jonathan A.C. Brown

In time, Muslim scholars would develop a five-tiered model for marking the status of any conceivable act in God’s eyes. ‘Required’ (wajib) acts would be rewarded by God in the Afterlife, and failing to carry them out would result in punishment by God and perhaps in this life by state authorities as well. ‘Recommended’ (mandub) acts were rewarded by God but not required for Muslims. If a person avoided ‘Disliked’ (makruh) actions, God would reward him or her, but committing them was nonetheless allowed. The ‘Prohibited’ (haram) acts carried the threat of punishment by God in the hereafter and possibly in this life by the state. ‘Permitted’ (mubah) was a narrow category of acts that had no value, positive or negative, in God’s eyes. All conceivable words and deeds had some ruling under God’s law, and, as an early Muslim scholar explained, it was not permitted for a Muslim to undertake anything without determining what that ruling was. To do this they had to ask the ulama.