The Relative Lenience or Strictness of the Sunni Schools of Law

Abstract

ʿAbd al-Wahhāb b. Aḥmad al‑Shaʿrānī (d. Cairo, 973/1565), al-Mīzān, is a survey of agreements and disagreements among the Sunni schools of law. For each question, it locates the rules of the different schools on a spectrum from lenient to strict, suggesting that a believer may choose whichever suits his situation, such as his capacity for self-control. The Ḥanafī school has a reputation for relative lenience, which al-Shaʿrānī’s survey tends to confirm.