The search for God's law : Islamic jurisprudence in the writings of Sayf al-Dīn al-Āmidī /

Al-=Amid=i (d. 1233) wrote a masterful treatise on the principles of Muslim jurisprudence, summarizing all important previous statements and providing what may be considered the most comprehensive guide ever written to this difficult Islamic science. Weiss, however, presents neither a critical translation nor a synthetic study, but rather what may be called an analytical paraphrase. And rightly so: although the current state of research clearly needs more primary sources available in English, a full translation would be impossibly technical for most persons outside the field. Many Islamic concepts are described, and the descriptions of Arabic terms and some of the English coinages will prove useful. Lack of bibliography, general index, and glossary-index of technical terms is somewhat counterbalanced by a detailed table of contents. Little has been available in Western languages on this topic, and even for Arabic readers, the subject is daunting. Weiss makes the subject accessible, and this hefty volume will be warmly welcomed by scholars and advanced students of Islam, as well as by students of the theory and history of all legal traditions, contemporary and classical. S. Ward; University of Denver