Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
12. The Relevance of the Quran and Sunnah in Modern Times
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Islamic principle will also be the same as that of other nations. This
decision of the Prophet of Islam shows that in matters of age-old
customs the law of the believers as well as of other nations would
not be separate, provided the matter in hand did not pertain to
some unlawful act, for instance, the eating of pork. It is obvious
that if Islam followed this principle in international matters, then
there would be no conflict or clash in the practical sense between
Islam and other nations in respect of changing times.
One important teaching of Islam is that, with the exception of
matters of worship and beliefs, no command is absolute so far as
social matters are concerned. Commands can change with changes
in place and time. The Shariah law can be changed as per the rule
framed by our jurists. “Commands change with the change of time
and place.” This teaching establishes at the outset that in no
circumstance we should clash with the times. Rather, in keeping
with the demand of the times we are free to carve out our path. In
such a situation there is no possibility of Islam ever appearing to be
irrelevant with the change of time. Obviously, when we are not
supposed to go against circumstances, how could Islam ever
become irrelevant due to the changed situation.
From a study of the Prophet’s life we may adduce the
important congregational principle that Islam does not encourage
us to clash with the prevailing political status quo but urges us
instead to pursue our goal by accepting the status quo. This
teaching solves the problem of Islam ever becoming irrelevant with
the changing times. A system becomes irrelevant only when it is at
