The Intended Meaning
Shahrur holds that much of what has been called the maqasid of the Sharia is not a legitimate maqasid in the juristic sense, but rather human rights and public freedoms that the state and society should protect. He emphasizes that freedom is the supreme value, and that preserving religion is not achieved by coercion, but by safeguarding freedom of choice and practice.
The Atom’s Structure in the Atlas
- Type of argument: value-based
- Movement of the argument: returns the maqasid to human rights and freedoms.
- Key terms: maqasid of the Sharia, human rights, freedoms.
- Degree of centrality: central.
This atom makes the maqasid of the Sharia a framework for protecting public rights, not a closed list of juristic preservations, and links them to human freedom and dignity.
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Basis
- Supporting text: “He expands his critique to include the concept of ‘maqasid al-sharia,’ as formulated by jurisprudence, and sees many of its alleged purposes as not legitimate maqasid but human rights and public freedoms that the state and society must safeguard. He makes freedom the supreme value, and suggests that it should be the first objective instead of the traditional objectives of preservation, especially in religion, expression, and choice.”
Degree of Documentation
- Level: synthetically documented
- Meaning of the level: the atom relies on more than one witness or on a clear synthesis of closely related expressions.
- Reason for classification: the support explicitly states rights and freedoms and repeats them in multiple close formulations.
- Limits of reading: the formulation above is an analytical summary and should not be treated as a verbatim quotation unless the witness is quoted word for word.
Editorial note
The atom emphasizes the rights-based character of the maqasid.