The Flogging of the Imams and the Forging of Islamic Constitutionalism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47134/pssh.v3i4.639Keywords:
ulama-caliph relations, Islamic constitutionalism, legal pluralism, Abbasid revolution, judicial independenceAbstract
This study examines the foundational struggle between independent jurists and caliphal power during the Umayyad–Abbasid transition as a critical juncture in Islamic political thought. Through a qualitative historical-comparative analysis that process‑traces the principled resistance of Imams Abū Ḥanīfa and Mālik ibn Anas, it demonstrates how their refusal of state appointments, endurance of torture, and assertion of law above the ruler forged an enduring “separation of powers.” The analysis reveals that their stances institutionalised the ulama as autonomous guardians of Sharia, insulating legal pluralism—the four Sunni schools—from executive manipulation and creating a proto‑constitutional order centuries before Western analogues. The study further traces how this dynamic shaped legitimacy bargains, financial independence, and the soft power of transnational scholarly networks, yielding a normative architecture that constrained tyranny and preserved a vibrant legal tradition. Contemporary implications are drawn for judicial independence, academic freedom, and accountable governance in Muslim‑majority states, anchoring global rule‑of‑law principles in indigenous Islamic heritage.
References
Abu Hanifa. (2024). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Hanifa
American Bar Association. (2026, April). Rule of law and an independent judiciary: Cornerstones of business success, economic development, and the American dream. Business Law Today. https://businesslawtoday.org/2026/04/rule-of-law-independent-judiciary-cornerstones-business-success-economic-development-american-dream/
An-Na'im, A. A. (2010). Islam and the secular state: Negotiating the future of Sharia. Harvard University Press.
Brown, N. J. (2006). The rule of law in the Arab world: Courts in Egypt and the Gulf (No. 6). Cambridge University Press.
Brown, N. J. (2012). Egypt’s judges in a revolutionary age. Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2012/02/egypts-judges-in-a-revolutionary-age
Bulliet, R. W. (1994). Islam: The view from the edge. Columbia University Press.
Chaudhry, H. (2024, April 9). The flogging of Imam Mālik. Islam21c. https://www.islam21c.com/tarbiya/trials/flogging-of-imam-malik/
Crone, P. (1980). On the meaning of the ʿAbbāsid call to al Riḍā. The Cambridge History of Iran, 4, 95–111. https://www.ias.edu/sites/default/files/hs/Crone_Articles/Crone_On_Meaning_of_Abbasid_Call_to_al-Rida.pdf
Crone, P., & Hinds, M. (2003). God's Caliph: Religious authority in the first centuries of Islam (Vol. 37). Cambridge University Press.
Donner, F. M. (2010). Muhammad and the believers: At the origins of Islam. Harvard University Press.
Fox, J. & Sandier, S. (2004). Bringing religion into international relations (pp. 9-10). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
George, A. L., & Bennett, A. (2005). Case studies and theory development in the social sciences. MIT Press.
Haas, P. M. (1992). Introduction: epistemic communities and international policy coordination. International organization, 46(1), 1-35.
Hallaq, W. B. (2005). The origins and evolution of Islamic law (p. 89). Cambridge University Press.
Hawting, G. R. (2000). The first dynasty of Islam: The Umayyad caliphate AD 661–750 (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://almuslih.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Hawting-G-%E2%80%93-The-First-Dynasty-of-Islam.pdf
Haynes, J. (2016). Religious transnational actors and soft power. Routledge.
Hijazi, A. T. (2012, May 7). Imam Malik: A star among scholars. Arab News. https://www.arabnews.com/node/412526
House of Wisdom. (2024). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Wisdom
Ibn Abī Khaythama, A. (2006). al Tārīkh al kabīr (Ṣ. F. Hallāl, Ed.; 1st ed., Vols. 1–2). al Fārūq al Ḥadītha li l Ṭibāʿa wa l Nashr. https://shamela.ws/book/1440
Ibn Masud. (2013, January 25). The life and times of Abu Hanifa. Sunnah Mu’akkadah. https://sunnahmuakada.wordpress.com/2013/01/25/the-life-and-times-of-abu-hanifa/
Kennedy, H. (2022). The Prophet and the age of the Caliphates: the Islamic Near East from the sixth to the eleventh century. Routledge.
Kenney, J. T., & Moosa, E. (Eds.). (2013). Islam in the modern world. Routledge.
Khalīfa ibn Khayyāṭ. (1977). Tārīkh Khalīfa ibn Khayyāṭ (A. Ḍ. al ʿUmarī, Ed.; 2nd ed.). Dār al Qalam; Muʾassasat al Risālah. https://shamela.ws/book/6615
Kuru, A. T. (2021, September 2). The ulema–state alliance: A barrier to democracy and development in the Muslim world. Tony Blair Institute for Global Change. https://institute.global/insights/geopolitics-and-security/ulema-state-alliance-barrier-democracy-and-development-muslim-world
Mandaville, P. (2020). Islam and politics. Routledge.
Maspul, K. A., & Yusron, H. (2026). Historical Pathways to Sovereignty Fakhr al Dīn II and the Arab Revolt in Policy Perspective. Indonesian Journal of Social Development, 3(3), 11. Retrieved from https://journal.pubmedia.id/index.php/jsd/article/view/4971
Melchert, C. (2024). The formation of the Sunni schools of law, 9th-10th centuries CE (Vol. 4). Brill.
Melkomyan, N. M. (2005). A study on the compatibility of Islam and democracy: Theory and practice (Master’s essay, American University of Armenia). DSpace AUA. https://dspace.aua.am/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/305/Nairi_Melkom_Melkomyan.pdf
Nadwi, M. A. (2010). Abu Hanifah: His life, legal method and legacy. Kube Publishing Ltd.; Interface Publications Ltd. https://archive.org/download/ABUHANIFAHHISLIFELEGALMETHODLEGACY/ABU_HANIFAH_HIS_LIFE_LEGAL_METHOD_LEGACY.pdf
Notes on Al-Imam Al-A’zam. (2011, December 21). Imam Abu Hanifah’s refusal of judgeship and his political activism. Notes on Al-Imam Al-A’zam. https://notesonalimamalazam.wordpress.com/2011/12/21/imam-abu-hanifahs-refusal-of-judgeship-and-his-political-activism/
Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development. (2025). Levels of trust in public institutions. In Government at a glance 2025. OECD Publishing. https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/government-at-a-glance-2025_0efd0bcd-en/full-report/levels-of-trust-in-public-institutions_62a3b94e.html
Pew Research Center. (2017, April 26). The world’s Muslims. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2017/04/26/the-worlds-muslims/
Sachedina, A. (2001). The Islamic roots of democratic pluralism. Oxford University Press.
The Umayyad and Abbasid Empire. (n.d.). History Guild. https://historyguild.org/the-umayyad-and-abbasid-empire/
Ulrichsen, K. C. (2020). MBS, political and religious authority in Saudi Arabia. Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University. https://www.bakerinstitute.org/research/mbs-political-religious-authority-saudi-arabia
United Nations Development Programme. (2022). Arab Human Development Report 2022: Expanding opportunities for an inclusive and resilient recovery in the post COVID era. UNDP. https://www.undp.org/arab-states/publications/arab-human-development-report-2022-expanding-opportunities-inclusive-and-resilient-recovery-post-covid-era
Weber, M. (1978). Economy and society (vol. 1). Berkeley. CA: University of California, 90.
World Justice Project. (2023). WJP Rule of Law Index 2023. World Justice Project. https://worldjusticeproject.org/rule-of-law-index/downloads/WJPIndex2023.pdf
Yusron, H., & Maspul, K. (2025). The Silence of the Mind: Intellectual Stagnation and the Unmaking of an Empire. Pubmedia Social Sciences and Humanities, 3(2), 20. https://doi.org/10.47134/pssh.v3i2.523
Zaman, M. Q. (2010). The ulama in contemporary Islam: Custodians of change. Princeton University Press.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Kurniawan Arif Maspul, Hasbi Yusron, Aditia Nugraha
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
