sharía

Sharia, also spelled Shari'ah, is the Islamic concept of divine law. The word derives from the Arabic sharīʿah, meaning the path to the water or the way to be followed. In Islamic thought, Sharia represents the moral and legal framework divinely revealed for human conduct. It is distinguished from fiqh, human scholarly jurisprudence that interprets and applies the divinely revealed texts.

The primary sources are the Quran and the Sunnah (the practices and teachings of the Prophet Muhammad). Jurists add derived prescriptions through ijma (consensus) and qiyas (analogical reasoning). Over time additional methods developed in different schools, such as istihsan and maslahah. Sharia is not a single codified statute; it is a broad, evolving tradition with significant variation across historical periods and communities.

In practice, Sharia covers worship duties, personal conduct, family law, contracts, property, and, in some jurisdictions, criminal penalties (hudud) defined in some legal systems. The extent of enforcement and the balance with secular or customary law vary widely. Many Muslim-majority countries incorporate Sharia into civil or family law to differing degrees, while others base law on secular systems or apply Sharia only in personal status matters.

Differences exist among the major fiqh schools (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali) and between Sunni and Shia traditions. Modern debates address interpretation, gender equality, due process, and human rights, with opposing views on the appropriate scope and methods of applying Sharia in contemporary states.