Madhab Crash Course: The Malikites
A very brief introduction to one of the jurisprudential schools in Islam
Firstly, a disclaimer. The Maliki are not a sect; they are a school (madhhab) of jurisprudence (fiqh) that falls into the larger Sunnite canon. Calling such schools of thought “sects” is not only improper but also an exonymic label not part of Islam. When it comes to the four canonical law schools, of which the Malikis are a part, the majority of Sunni Muslims believe that all of them are true; however, they may choose to prioritize their respective one.
As such, their existence isn’t that of a sect or denomination, especially since these English terms carry some Christian connotations or understanding.
Nevertheless, this is a school established by Malik ibn Anas, the eponymous founder of the Malikites in Madina. Although we can’t ascribe a proper date to its foundation, as these thoughts were evolving as soon as Imam Malik began his studies, the general idea seems to associate them with his Muwatta, a collection of hadith concerning law and some explanations. The other schools do not attribute an extensively sahih [= “true”] title to it, choosing to select it for the narrations within; for the Malikites, this entire collection is the truth.
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The Maliki fiqh was founded in Madina and, as such, it paid greater attention to the “living” societal tradition within the Madinan state, since this was the proper stronghold of Islam. Given Imam Malik’s proximity to the time of the Prophet Muhammad (may peace be upon him) and that he studied under Imam Jaf’ar as-Sadiq, Muhammad’s (may peace be upon him) fifth generational descendant, this was a rather apt conclusion.
Generally, this was the time of the tabi’un, the followers of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), which meant that this was only two generations from the founding of Islam — by Islamic measures. As such, the Islamic ideal was preserved within Madina, and the Malikites would favor the local legal procedures over other interpretations, including traditional (ahl al-hadith) or rational (ahl al-ra’y) approaches. You can find this reflected in the hierarchical structure of primary and secondary sources they established: the Qur’an, mass transmitted narrations (tawwatur), the societal actions of the Madni people, and so on.
They also interestingly used istislah and ‘urf, both of which favor public interest and social customs. Although this didn’t make them as lenient or adaptive as the Hanafites, who are presently the dominant school, this also didn’t make them as strict as the Hanbalites. In fact, given the relation between Abu Hanifa and Malik ibn Anas — they were both students of Ja’far — these two schools most closely resemble one another.
Due to a lack of state-sponsorship, the Maliki school failed to dominate the Arabian peninsula, and would eventually make way westward into al-Andalus (modern-day Spain and Portugal) and North Africa. It would be there that they’d establish state-backed institutions and, to this day, they are largely based in West & North Africa, with influences in Chad and Sudan, amongst other regions. Given their impact in Andalusia, famous philosophers and mystics, the likes of Ibn Rushd (Averroes) and Ibn ‘Arabi, would be brought up in their tradition. The former was even a Maliki jurist and qadi (judge) himself!
For now, though, this much would suffice. There’s no need to overdo what I’ve done here and complicate things even further. I recommend taking some time to get used to how [Sunni] Islam structures itself, and then proceeding. Have a nice day.
