ABSTRACT
J. Schacht's theory is partly rejected even in principle by a wide spectrum of scholars. The impressive coherence of Schacht's theory, along with its immensely rich documentation and most detailed discussions of general outlines and minutiae, provide the background for the author's express claim to supersede the traditional description of the early development of Islamic jurisprudence. Schacht seems to suspect that the author is guided by certain principles in describing the first century. Schacht was positive about the identity of the ground on which Islamic legal thinking first grew. A significantly recurring argument put forward by Schacht was that the detailed descriptions found in their writings about institutions, events, sayings and acts of numerous persons during the first century of Islam, are nothing but a flction created by the necessity imposed by the ruling dogma. "The conclusions of Schacht, like those of his great predecessor, are to the date standing up well to the test of time and criticism".
