But for the most part, the rules and directions he inscribed in the Quran gave moral guidance to people on how best to fulfil existing duties, rather than instituting a radically new social scheme. The rules Muhammad made told people how to arbitrate and enter into contracts, how to determine which enemies should be fought, and how booty should be distributed, and they told men how to treat women, children, orphans, relatives, and other dependents, including slaves.7 But, at best, they were unsystematic directions for individuals, rather than rules about how governors should resolve disputes,
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