Maqāṣid al-Sharī’ah Critique of Nahdlatul Ulama’s Fiqh of Disability

Abstract

This article critically examines the implementation of the concept of maqāṣid in the construction of the Nahdlatul Ulama’s (NU) fiqh of disability. It purposes to intellectually confirm whether the mode of Islamic legal interpretation (ijtihād) of the construction has been influenced by the horizon of the thought of maqāṣidi (the higher objective of Islamic law) or has not. This confirmation is essential, since it seems that the fiqh of disability produced by Lembaga Bahtsul Masail NU/LBMNU (the Islamic legal body) is humanistic and egalitarian. However, are both inclinations the result of intellectual elaborations within the circle of NU Muslim jurists (‘ulama’) – those who have taken a position on the side of maqāṣid legal consideration? Engaging closely with this issue, this article claims that there is no study that specifically examining the maqāṣid al-sharī’ah in the NU’s fiqh of disability. This article arguably asserts that the NU’s fiqh of disability has been enlightened by the maqāṣidi perspective and it is highly likely consistent in considering the virtue of maṣlaḥah (the public good) as the ultimate goal of maqāṣid, especially for disabled people. This consistency can be identified from the NU’s fatwas (Islamic legal opinions).