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Creed and law (aqida and shari'a)

العقيدة والشريعة

The division in which Mahmud Shaltut sets out Islam as two parts that cannot be realised without each other: creed, the theoretical part that must be believed first, and law, the regulations God set for a person's relation to God, fellow Muslims, other people, the cosmos and life; creed is the root on which law is built.

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Era
The Modern Era
Region
Global / Diaspora
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Creed

Summary

Mahmud Shaltut presents Islam as a division into two branches: belief ('aqida), the theoretical side that must be believed first, and law (shari'a), the systems God laid down for the human being's relationship with his Lord, with his fellow humans, with the cosmos and with life. In this presentation, belief is the foundation on which the law is built. 1

In the book

Shaltut makes the Qur'an the common source of both branches. He holds that law without belief lacks the moral force that carries a person to obey, and that whoever takes up one of the two and neglects the other is not a Muslim in the judgement of Islam. 2 3

Note

This is the author's own presentation of his view in describing contemporary Sunni doctrine, not a final ruling binding on every school. 1

Opinions on the question

The question: Does the law stand on creed alone, or are creed and law two inseparable parts of Islam?

First opinion · Sunni tradition (the museum's frame)Main reference

Islam is creed and law together; creed is the root and law the branch, and whoever keeps one and discards the other is not a Muslim under Islam's rule

Shaltut sets out this division in the book's opening and makes the Qur'an its unifying source, holding that law without creed lacks the inner force that makes people keep it; this is the author's own presentation of the view, not a final ruling for every school.

Basis: Islam, Creed and Law — Mahmud Shaltut the book's introduction, paragraphs 6 to 9, PDF pp. 31 to 34

People and things also explored

The people of the qibla and not declaring takfir for sin· The hereafter: the grave, resurrection and reckoning· Islamic eschatology· Reason and heart· The Throne (al-Arsh)· Al-din al-qayyim (the upright religion)· Absolute unseen (al-ghayb al-mutlaq)· «Be, and it is» (kun fa-yakun): creation by command, not by a mould

Sources

  1. Islam, Creed and Law — Mahmud Shaltut , p. 31
  2. Islam, Creed and Law — Mahmud Shaltut , p. 33
  3. Islam, Creed and Law — Mahmud Shaltut , p. 34
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Creed and law (aqida and shari'a)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/aqidah-and-shariah/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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Wing

Ideas

Beliefs, concepts, sciences and schools, explained in plain words. Related

The people of the qibla and not declaring takfir for sin

al-Tahawi's principle of calling the people of the qibla Muslims and believers so long as they accept what the Prophet brought, and of not declaring any of them an unbeliever for a sin unless he declares it lawful.