On Subjective Ego and Western Philosophy of Amina Wadud’s Misconceptions on Islamic Law

Authors

  • Muhammad Rusydianta Universitas Darussalam Gontor

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21111/tsaqafah.v22i1.7

Keywords:

Wadud, Thought, Justification, Basis of Understanding, Thought Pattern

Abstract

This article aims to identify the synthesis or any underlying and background factors that inform Wadud’s thought and her justification, specifically the bases of understanding and thought patterns that influence and shape her perspective and justifications in the Women’s Reform Movement, which deconstructed the Sharia of Allah. From this, muslims can learn to be vigilant and avoid, and realise the importance of educational support for Muallaf not to be influenced by any destructive ideas, environments, and thoughts about religion, themselves, and the muslim community. Therefore, as a type of library research and critical study, this research also utilises secondary materials and data from several documents that explain the object. Primarily, primary data came from historiography and Wadud’s explicit and implicit confessions in her works. The multiple data obtained were processed, analysed, and presented descriptively and qualitatively in line with the main theme of the discussion. Finally, concluded that the synthesis of its movement is the crystalisation of the arrangement of the basic thought patterns of Critical Legal Studies (CLS) and Legal Feminist, combined with her missunderstanding in distinguishing legal term, along with other bases of understanding and justification such as her subjective ego derived from the accumulation of her life experiences and the synthesis of thoughts from certain figures on Sufism, liberal and anti-discrimination movements, chistian, secular Jewish philosophers, lesbian feminist political to other hermeneutic (Fazlur Rahman). Academic anxiety, as she admitted, is not the only basis for her movement to deconstruct Sharia through hermeneutics or feminism.

References

Al-Qur’an dan terjemahnya; Juz 1-30. Jakarta: Departemen Agama Republik Indonesia, 1985.

Adib, M. Afiqul. “Pemikiran Aminah Wadud Tentang Relasi Kuasa Dalam Rumah Tangga.” Living Islam: Journal of Islamic Discourses 7, no. 1 (2024): 359–76. doi:10.14421/lijid.v7i2.5358.

Al-Bukhârî, Muhammad bin Ismâ’il. Al-Jâmi’ Al-Musnad as-Ṣaḥîḥ Al-Mukhtaṣar; Ṣaḥîḥ Al-Bukhârî. Beirut: Dâr at-Ṭauqu an-Najât, 1422.

Al-Fairûzâbâdî, Majduddîn. Tanwîr Al-Miqbas Min Tafsîr Ibnu ‘Abbâs. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, n.d.

Al-Ḥâkim, Abu Abdullah Muhammad. Al-Mustadrak ‘alâ as-Ṣaḥîḥaini Li Al-Ḥâkim. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, 1990.

Al-Jauziyyah, Abu Abdullah bin Qayyim. I’lam Al-Muwaqqi’in ’an Rabb Al-’Alamin. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, 1411.

Al-Maḥallî, Jalâluddin Muhammad bin Ahmad, and Jalâluddin As-Suyûṭî. Tafsîr Al-Jalâlain. Kairo: Dâr Al-Hadîts, n.d.

Al-Mâturîdî, Abu Manṣûr Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Maḥmud. Ta’wîlât Ahlu as-Sunnah; Tafsîr Al-Mâturîdî. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, 1426.

Al-Mu’allifin, Majmu’atu. Al-Islam; Su’al Wa Jawab. Riyad: Maktabah as-Syamilah, 1430.

Amaliatulwalidain. “Diskursus Gender: Tela’ah Terhadap Pemikiran Amina Wadud.” Tamaddun XV, no. 1 June (2015).

Amin, Arwani, Imam Mutaqien, Nurul Huda, Iqbal Salafuddin Zaini, Agung Setiabudi, Rusdi, Hilal Askary Syirwan, Irfan Fauzi, and Fasrul Syahrir. “Feminist Exegesis: Tracing The History and Theological Foundations of Siti Musdah Mulia’s Humanist Feminism.” Cultura; International Journal of Philosophy of Culture and Axiology 23, no. 1 (2026).

Amin, Zainab. “Women’s Testimony in Criminal Law (Ḥudūd and Qiṣāṣ): Classical Islamic Frameworks, Contemporary Applications, and Normative Tensions.” The Muslim World 115, no. 4 (2026): 358–83. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/muwo.70021.

Asy-Syâṭibî, Abu Isḥaq Ibrahim bin Mûsa. Al-Muwâfaqât. T.K.: Dar Ibnu ‘Affan, 1977.

Asy-Syinqiti, Muhammad al-Mukhtar. Ma’alim Tarbawiyyah Li Talibi Asna Al-Wilayat Asy-Syar’iyyah. T.K.: Maktabah as-Syamilah, n.d.

At-Ṭabarî, Muhammad bin Jarîr. Jâmi’u Al-Bayân Fî Ta’wîl Al-Qur’ân. T.K.: Muassatu Ar-Risâlah, 2000.

At-Tirmiżî, Abu Isa Muhammad. Sunan At-Tirmiżî. Kairo: Syirkatu Maktabah wa Maṭba’atu Muṣṭafâ al-Bâbî, 1395.

Auda, Jasser. Maqasid Al-Shari’ah as Philosophy of Islamic Law; A Systems Approach. London: the International Institute of Islamic Thought, 2007.

———. Membumikan Hukum Islam Melalui Maqasid Syariah; Pendekatan Sistem Diterjemahkan Oleh Rosidin Dan Ali Abd El-Mun’im. Bandung: Mizan, 2015.

Az-Zuḥailî, Wahbah. Al-Fiqh Al-Islâm Wa Adillatuhu. Damaskus: Dar al-Fikr, 1985.

Baderin, Mashood A. Hukum Internasional, Hak Asasi Manusia Dan Hukum Islam, Diterjemahkan Oleh Musa Kazhim Dan Edwin Arifin. Jakarta: KOMNAS HAM, 2010.

Čustović, Ajla. “Equal Before God but Not Equal Before His Law? Sharia Law and Women’s Right to Interpretation in the Light of the Human Rights Debate.” Religions 16, no. 3 (2025). doi:10.3390/rel16030362.

Farkhanda, Shahid Khan. “Religion, Culture, and the Politics of Gender: A Feminist Study of Malala’s Struggle for Girls’ Education in Swat. , 38(3), 281–295.” Gender and Education 38, no. 3 (2026). doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2026.2617574.

Fragakis, George. “On Becoming Lilith-Allies: How the Myth Became a Meeting Place for a Woman and Her Male Therapist as They Navigated Gendered, Religious, and Male-Centered Conditions of Worth.” Person-Centered & Experiential Psychotherapies, 2025. doi:10.1080/14779757.2025.2480567.

Hardy, Anna. “Does Islam Have a Place in Gender Equality? Perspectives from Muslim Feminism and Secular Feminism.” Feminist Theology 34, no. 1 (2025): 52–67. doi:10.1177/09667350251362708.

Husaini, Adian, and Rahmatul Husni. “Problematika Tafsir Feminis: Studi Kritis Konsep Kesetaraan Gender.” Al-Tahrir 15, no. 2 November (2015).

Indonesia, Republik. Undang-Undang Nomor 01 Tahun 2023 tentang Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Pidana (2023).

Irsyadunnas. “Tafsir Ayat-Ayat Gender Ala Amina Wadud: Perspektif Hermeneutika Gadamer.” Musâwa 14, no. 2 July (2015).

Kéri, Szabolcs. “Frontal Asymmetry and Physiological Responses in Religious and Spiritual Problems with and without Conversion.” Religion, Brain & Behavior 15, no. 2 (2025): 117–27. doi:10.1080/2153599X.2024.2307373.

Majjah, Ibn. “Sunnah Ibn Majah.” Sunnah.Com, 2026. https://sunnah.com/ibnmajah:43.

Muttaqin, Ujang Imamul. “Pemikiran Feminisme Amina Wadud.” El-Hamra 5, no. 3 (2020).

Penyusun, Tim. “Draft Naskah Akademik Rancangan Undang-Undang Tentang Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Pidana (KUHP).” Jakarta, 2015.

Q.S. Al-Qur’an dan terjemahnya; Juz 1 - Juz 30. Jakarta: Departemen Agama Republik Indonesia, 1985.

Rahman, Habibur. “Amin Al-Khuli, Pendekatan Kritik Sastra Terhadap Al-Quran.” Al-Irfan 1, no. 1 (2019).

Rasjidi, Lili, and Ira Tania Rasjidi. Pengantar Filsafat Hukum. Bandung: Mandar Maju, 2010.

Saifullin, Duman, Samet Okan, and Askar Akimkhanov. “Women Rights From Islamic Perspectives: Navigating Rights, Challenges and Contemporary Perspectives.” Front. Sociol., 2026. doi:10.3389/fsoc.2025.1727894.

Salman, Otje, and Anthon F. Susanto. Teori Hukum; Mengingat, Mengumpulkan Dan Membuka Kembali. Bandung: Refika Aditama, 2013.

Saprudin, U., J. Junaedi, K. Kerwanto, and D. Anurogo. “Limiting The Number of Polygamies To Realize Economic Justice: A Hermeneutic Analysis of Muhammad Syahrur.” QiST: Journal of Quran and Tafseer Studies 2, no. 3 (2023): 347–368. doi:https://doi.org/10.23917/qist.v2i3.2769.

Sarwar, Azam, and Muhammad Safdar. “Solidifying Interstitial Space (the Third Gender) for Hijra/Khwajasara Through Islamic Feminist Hermeneutics: A Trans Inclusive Approach.” Contemporary Islam 19 (2025): 143–160.

Syafrin, Nirwan. “Konstruk Epistemologi Islam: Telaah Bidang Fiqh Dan Ushul Fiqh.” TSAQAFAH 5, no. 2 (1430).

Wadud, Amina. “Aishah’s Legacy: The Struggle for Women’s Rights within Islam.” In The New Voices of Islam: Rethinking Politics and Modernity - a Reader, edited by Mehran Kamrava. California: University of California Press, 2007.

———. “Alternative Qur’anic Interpretation and The Status of Muslim Women.” In Windows of Faith: Muslim Women Scholar-Activists in North, edited by Gisela Webb. New York: Syracuse University Press, 2000.

———. “Citizenship and Faith.” In Women and Citizenship, edited by Marilyn Friedman. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.

———. Inside the Gender Jihad: Women’s Reform in Islam. Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 2006.

———. Qur’an and Women; Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman’s Perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Yudatama, Yossi Kurnia, and Meirando Rukhuz. “Linguistik Al-Qur’an Dalam Penafsiran Bintu Syathi.” AL-AFKAR: Journal for Islamic Studies 7, no. 4 (2024). doi:10.31943/afkarjournal.v7i4.1533.

Yusuf, Muhammad, Baharuddin, and Mardan. “The Quranic Hermeneutics Approach To Gender Equality In Amina Wadud Muhsin’s View.” Adabiyah; the Journal of Islamic Humanities 20, no. 2 (2020). doi:10.24252/jad.v20i2a1.

Zenrif, Fauzan, and Syabbul Bachri. “Critical Study of Amina Wadud’s Thought in the Issue of Inheritance.” De Jure; Jurnal Hukum Dan Syariah 15, no. 1 (2023). doi:https://doi.org/10.18860/j-fsh.v15i1.22217.

Zulpana, Hamnah, and Maulana. “Penafsiran Amina Wadud Perspektif Kesetaraan Gender Terhadap Al-Qur’an Surah Al-Nisa’ Ayat 34.” Borneo: Journal of Islamic Studies 4, no. 2 (2024).

Submitted

17-10-2025

Accepted

03-05-2026

Published

10-05-2026

Similar Articles

1 2 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.