What is Sharia?

Lexically, Sharia means: a threshold or a watering place. As a technical term among Islamic scholars, it refers to what Allah has ordained for His servants in terms of doctrinal, practical, or ethical rulings. This includes His, the Almighty's, saying: "Then We put you, [O Muhammad], on an ordained way concerning the matter; so follow it." In modern times, it has become common to apply it specifically to practical rulings, perhaps based on His, the Almighty's, saying: "For each We have made from among you a law and a [clear] way." The difference between the divine laws lies in the practical, subsidiary matters, while the fundamental rulings are one. This name has also been given to faculties concerned with the study of branches, such as "Colleges of Sharia."