Abstract

Islam comprises a set of doctrinal, jurisprudent and ethical beliefs and regulations, extrapolated from a number of legal sources that vary according to denomination. The Islamic sources of legislation from which Shiah jurisprudents derive law and social policy include the Quran, traditions and reason.In this paper, we shall first outline the method of extrapolating rulings – from the Shiah perspective – and then illustrate how different legal mechanisms are put into play when verdicts are issued in relation to different aspects of abortion. The main function of jurisprudents lies in their understanding of the verses of the Quran and traditions. The two pivotal concepts extracted from the transmitted texts that constitute the driving force and rationale behind Shiah jurisprudent rulings are those of personhood and ensoulment.