Maqasid as a Basis for an Integrated Framework and Methodology

Abstract

The term Maqasid denotes objectives and purposes, and the maqasid-based Islamic approach to knowledge, manifested in the Maqasidi School of Islamic Thought, has been widely discussed recently. This article aims at taking the discussion to a fundamental and methodological dimension that ensures the genuinity and soundness of the maqasid approach, and introduces the basic fundamentals of a new “Maqasid Methodology”. The formative and hegemonic principle here is the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (sas). Three fundamental logical premises are introduced, namely, connectivity, wholism and emergence. Then, a justification of the necessity of using the “Maqasid Methodology” is presented, namely, future, critical and comprehensive orientations. Finally, the impact of this methodology on knowledge and contemporary Islamic scholarship is outlined.