Abstract: The historical development of “Maqasid Al-shariah” the objectives of shariah is a key important issue in the lives of the muslims in particular and humanity in general. Man needs to know his source of existence as well as the level and the extent of his submission to His creator. Shariah which literally means a path, technically stands for a means by which man is properly guided towards Almighty Allah. Shar’iah is therefore provided by the creator of all to confirm to us that, life is created for a purpose. In addition to the proof to humanity that, life has a purpose, shariah as a product of a divine source is designed to guide man towards proper management of all aspects of life. The significance and importance of Maqasid Al-shariah have attracted attention of many scholars for its study and analysis. One of these scholars who had a critical study of the subject under consideration is “Osman Bakar”. He wrote on “The place and role of Maqasid Al-Shar’iah in the twenty first century civilizational renewal”. An epistemological perspective. It is inline with his objective that this paper seeks to examine the emergence of Maqasid al-shariah and its relevance to the civilizational trend among Muslims in the contemporary time. In an attempt to do this, qualitative historical and analytical approach was adopted while a relying on the book and some other few available related literatures on the contemporary issues were examined. The study constitute of the summary of the major findings which include an effort by the author to entrench and motivate individuals towards the acceptance and utilization of orthodox goals of Maqasid Al-shariah. The study also discovered that civilizational renew is always impossible if it does not constitute an Islamic civilization as well as interest in the Maqasid Al-shar’iah. The paper concluded with recommendations on the proper utilization of Maqasid Al-shar’iah and one of these recommendations is that, Government should inculcate Maqasid Al-shar’iah into the curriculum of Islamic education at all levels.
Keywords: Maqasid, Shar’iah, Civilization, Epistemology, ContemporaryHistorical Development and Critical Analysis of Maqasid Al-Shar’iah (Goals of Islamic Law) and its Relevance to Ummah’s Civilizational Renewal: An Examination of Osman Bakar’s Epistemological Perspective
