The Metaphysics of a Contemporary Islamic Shari'a: A MetaRealist Perspective

Wilkinson, Matthew L. N.

Abstract

The philosophy of metaReality and, in particular, ideas of transcendence can ‘underlabour’ for the re-enchantment of Islamic praxis, ethics and law by helping to uncover in a systematic, non-arbitrary way the spiritual objectives (maqāsid) inherent in the basic beliefs, practices and obligations of Islam. The commonly accepted elements of the Islamic legal pathway (Shari'a), such as the obligation of marriage, far from being inhibiting, can help humans access the dialectical pulse of freedom and the emancipatory meaning inherent tendentially in human relationships. Thus, the Islamic Shari'a, underlaboured by the philosophy of metaReality, rather than a symbol of legal backwardness and inflexibility, can be conducive once again to greater personal ontological wholeness and collective human flourishing.

Citation

Wilkinson, M. L. N. The Metaphysics of a Contemporary Islamic Shari'a: A MetaRealist Perspective. Journal of Critical Realism, 14(4), 350-365. https://doi.org/10.1179/1476743015Z.00000000074

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Aug 3, 2015
• Deposit Date: Oct 8, 2015
• Journal: Journal of Critical Realism
• Print ISSN: 1476-7430
• Electronic ISSN: 1572-5138
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 14
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 350-365
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/1476743015Z.00000000074
• Keywords: metaphysics, metaReality, Islam, Islamic law, Shari'a, maqasid ash-Shari'a, Islamic critical realism, human flourishing