One other significant Muslim — Islam

What the specification asks for

Paper 2, Section 1, 1.4 (Islam). Assessed on AO1 (knowledge and understanding) and AO2 (analysis and evaluation), weighted equally. Incandio is aligned to this specification. It is not published by, endorsed by or affiliated with Pearson, and it reproduces none of Pearson's indicative content — the point numbers are given so you can check every unit against your own copy.

1 · Understand it

Look at the kind of person the great Muslims after the Prophet actually are. Jurists, scholars, administrators, reformers — builders rather than seers. That is not an accident of history. It is a consequence of doctrine, and noticing it turns this question from a biography into an argument.

What it means

The specification asks for ONE important Muslim other than the Prophet and the Shi'a Imams, for their teaching and contribution, and for the extent to which they are relevant to Muslims today. That last clause carries the AO2 marks, and a learner who narrates a life has answered the easy half.

The standard historical choices are worth knowing. The Caliph Umar, whose administration built the institutions of the early state and whose reign gives the Islamic calendar its starting convention. Abu Hanifa, Malik, al-Shafi'i and Ibn Hanbal, who founded the four Sunni madhhabs — schools of law still followed by hundreds of millions. And al-Ghazali, who reconciled the law with inward religion and shaped Sunni Islam decisively.

Contemporary choices are equally acceptable and are often stronger on the relevance clause: Muhammad Yunus and the microfinance institutions built around his work, or Malala Yousafzai and the global campaign for girls' education. Which figure a Muslim regards as most significant varies by tradition, region and personal formation, and there is no required answer.

One rule governs every choice. Muslims honour significant figures for learning and service and never as objects of worship. Islamic teaching praises scholars as inheritors of the prophets, and the contribution is often described in the tradition's own terms as sadaqah jariyah — continuing benefit that outlasts the person.

Why believers hold it

The reasoning is that Islam's authority is closed at the top and open below it. Because no prophet follows Muhammad, every later contribution is necessarily interpretation, service or institution-building rather than revelation. That is why the great later figures are jurists and reformers, and saying so explicitly is the move that lifts an answer: it explains what KIND of significance is even available in Islam before naming somebody who occupies it.

It also sharpens the choice. A historical figure is easier to evidence on influence — a school of law followed for twelve centuries is measurable in a way a recent campaign is not — while a contemporary figure is easier to evidence on relevance, which is the clause the specification actually assesses. The strongest answers treat the two halves separately instead of assuming that the most influential figure is automatically the most relevant.

The honest objection is that focusing on great individuals misrepresents how Islam developed, since Islamic law was built by scholarly consensus across generations rather than by heroes. The specification asks for an individual precisely so that a learner can trace a contribution, and naming the collective context is a strength inside that answer rather than a departure from it.

A second objection is that honouring figures risks the veneration Islam is careful about. The reply is that honouring learning and service is not worship, and that the tradition itself praises scholars — but the caution is real, and an answer that acknowledges it is describing the tradition more accurately than one that does not.

Where it comes from

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 9:60 (translated)

  Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer them.

  The Qur'anic basis of zakat, naming the categories of people entitled to receive it. Zakat is an obligation, not a donation.

  What it is doing here: Gives the shape of a contribution the tradition values: something owed and distributed, which is why institution-builders rather than visionaries occupy this ground.

• Hadith — Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Faith (translated)

  None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.

  Faith is measured by how one treats others. One of the most widely cited hadith on social ethics.

  What it is doing here: Supplies the measure any figure's contribution is judged against, since a benefit to other people is what the tradition counts as service.

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 49:13 (translated)

  We created you from a single pair ... and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another.

  Human diversity is intended by God, and its purpose is mutual knowledge. The verse also states that the most honoured are the most righteous, not the most powerful.

  What it is doing here: Rules out the wrong kind of greatness by locating honour in righteousness rather than in power, which is why administrators are praised for what they built.

Where it bites

The contribution should be visible in something a learner can point at, which is what makes the relevance half answerable rather than assertable. Umar in the institutions of Muslim governance. Abu Hanifa in a school of law followed across South Asia, Turkey and much of the Middle East. Al-Ghazali in the settlement between law and spirituality that Sunni Islam still works within. Yunus in microfinance institutions serving the poor. Malala Yousafzai in a campaign that has changed how girls' schooling is argued about.

For an answer, the useful structure is contribution first, then what it still does. A paragraph that names a school of law and then says what a follower of it actually does differently has answered both halves of the question in one move.

What people get wrong

People think: The most significant Muslim to write about is the Prophet Muhammad.

Actually: The specification excludes him by name, and it excludes the Shi'a Imams too. Choosing an excluded figure answers a question that was not set, however well it is written — and the exclusion exists precisely so that the answer has to be about a contribution rather than about revelation.

People think: The Rightly-Guided Caliphs lead Muslim communities today, like imams.

Actually: They led the community in the seventh century, immediately after the Prophet, while an imam today leads prayer in a mosque. Fourteen centuries and a difference of function separate them. In this unit the error also wrecks the relevance clause, since it confuses historical contribution with present role.

People think: Writing the life story of a significant Muslim answers the question.

Actually: The wording asks for teaching, contribution and relevance today. A narrative supplies none of the three directly, and the relevance clause in particular is where the AO2 marks sit — so a life told in order can score very little even when every fact in it is correct.

What the examiner expects you to understand

• Choose somebody the specification allows; the Prophet and the Shi'a Imams are excluded by name.
• State the contribution before anything else, then say what it still does today.
• Answer the relevance clause explicitly, because that is where the AO2 marks are.
• Say what kind of significance is available in Islam at all, given that revelation is closed.
• Do not present any figure as an object of veneration; honouring learning is not worship and the distinction matters.

2 · Grade 9 Notes

Core belief / issue

The specification asks for ONE important Muslim other than the Prophet and the Shi'a Imams, their teaching and contribution, and how far they are relevant today. That last clause is the assessment: a learner who narrates a life has answered the easy half. Choosing a figure whose contribution is still visible — an institution, a discipline, a movement — makes the relevance half answerable rather than assertable.

Key terminology

Incandio's mark schemes credit the religion's own vocabulary; spelling variants are accepted, a vague paraphrase is not.

Contribution

What the figure added that was not there before — a discipline, an institution, a body of teaching.

Relevance

Whether the contribution still shapes Muslim life; the part of the question that carries the AO2 marks.

Sahabah (also sahaba)

The Companions of the Prophet, from whom several standard choices are drawn.

Madhhab (also madhab, school of law)

A school of Islamic law, several of which are named after their founding scholar.

Legacy

What survives the person; in Islamic terms often described as sadaqah jariyah, continuing benefit.

What Islam teaches

• shared — Muslims honour significant figures for their learning and service, and never as objects of worship; worship belongs to Allah alone.
• shared — Standard choices include the Caliph Umar, whose administration built the institutions of the early state; Abu Hanifa, Malik, al-Shafi'i and Ibn Hanbal, who founded the Sunni schools of law; and al-Ghazali, who reconciled law with inward religion.
• shared — Contemporary choices are equally acceptable and often stronger on relevance — for example Muhammad Yunus's work on microfinance, or Malala Yousafzai's on girls' education.
• individual — Which figure a Muslim regards as most significant varies by tradition, region and personal formation; there is no required answer.

Why it teaches this

The reasoning is that Islam's authority is closed at the top and open below it. Because no prophet follows Muhammad, every later contribution is interpretation, service or institution-building — which is exactly why the great later figures are jurists, scholars and reformers rather than revealers. A strong answer says that: it explains what KIND of significance is even available in Islam, and then shows their chosen figure occupying it.

Sources of authority

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 9:60 (translated)

  Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer them.

  The Qur'anic basis of zakat, naming the categories of people entitled to receive it. Zakat is an obligation, not a donation.

  How to use it: Because it is a duty with named recipients and a fixed rate, Islamic giving is closer to a tax than to charity — a distinction that scores well on 4.5.

  What it does not settle: Zakat is a minimum; sadaqah is voluntary giving beyond it. Confusing the two is an accuracy error.

• The Qur'an — the Opening — Qur'an 1 (Surah Al-Fatihah) (translated)

  Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, the Compassionate, the Merciful.

  The chapter recited in every unit of salah. It names God as Creator, as merciful and as judge, and asks for guidance.

  How to use it: Because it is said in every prayer, its content is what a Muslim rehearses several times a day — which is how belief and practice hold together in Islam.

  What it does not settle: Shared by all Muslims, so it distinguishes no tradition from another.

• Hadith — Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Faith (translated)

  None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.

  Faith is measured by how one treats others. One of the most widely cited hadith on social ethics.

  How to use it: It makes belief and ethics inseparable — a Muslim cannot claim faith while wronging a neighbour — which is why hadith is a source of authority alongside the Qur'an rather than an illustration of it.

  What it does not settle: Hadith authority differs between traditions, and the Qur'anists reject hadith entirely — a group the Pearson mark schemes themselves mention.

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 49:13 (translated)

  We created you from a single pair ... and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another.

  Human diversity is intended by God, and its purpose is mutual knowledge. The verse also states that the most honoured are the most righteous, not the most powerful.

  How to use it: Difference is designed rather than tolerated, so racial harmony is God's plan being fulfilled rather than a compromise — that is a stronger claim and it scores better.

  What it does not settle: It does not by itself settle questions about the roles of men and women.

Different interpretations

• Significance read as historical influence, and read as present relevance; the specification asks for both and the second is where answers thin out.
• A Companion read as significant because of proximity to the Prophet, and read as significant because of what they built; the second gives more to say.
• A contemporary figure read as too recent to assess, and read as easier to evidence; both views are reasonable and either can be argued well.

Differences within Islam

The choice of figure varies by tradition and that is expected, not a disagreement. What is shared is the rule that no figure is worshipped and none adds to revelation.

• Sunni — The Rightly-Guided Caliphs and the founders of the four schools are the standard figures.
• Shi'a — The specification excludes the Shi'a Imams from this question, so a Shi'a learner typically chooses a scholar such as al-Kulayni or a modern figure.

Application to the issue

The contribution should be visible in something a learner can point at: Umar in the institutions of Muslim governance and the Islamic calendar; Abu Hanifa in a school of law followed by hundreds of millions; al-Ghazali in the reconciliation of law and spirituality that shaped Sunni Islam; Yunus in microfinance institutions serving the poor; Malala Yousafzai in a global campaign for girls' education.

Arguments supporting

• A historical figure is the stronger choice because their influence can be traced. — A school of law followed for twelve centuries is measurable in a way a recent campaign is not. (shared)
  Answered by: The relevance half of the question is harder to answer for a figure whose world no longer exists.
• A contemporary figure is the stronger choice because relevance is the assessed part. — The specification asks the extent to which they are relevant to Muslims today. (shared)
  Answered by: Contemporary significance is contested and may not last, which makes the contribution harder to state confidently.

Arguments challenging

• Focusing on great individuals misrepresents how Islam actually developed. — Islamic law was built by scholarly consensus over generations, not by heroes. (shared)
  Answered by: The specification asks for an individual precisely so a learner can trace a contribution, and naming the collective context is a strength within that answer.
• Honouring figures risks the veneration Islam is careful about. — Tawhid rules out anything that edges towards worship of a person. (islam)
  Answered by: Honouring learning and service is not worship, and Islamic teaching itself praises scholars as inheritors of the prophets.

Evaluation

The hinge: Whether significance in Islam means influence on the tradition or benefit to people. The strongest answers pick a figure who is both and say which one they are arguing from.

Defensible conclusions

• A jurist such as Abu Hanifa is the most defensible choice on influence, because a school of law shapes what hundreds of millions of Muslims actually do.
• A contemporary figure is the most defensible choice on relevance, which is the clause the specification actually assesses.
• The best answer treats the two halves separately rather than assuming that the most influential figure is automatically the most relevant.

Not defensible

• Choosing the Prophet or a Shi'a Imam; the specification excludes them by name.
• Narrating a life without ever saying what the contribution was or whether it still matters.

Exam use

• Outline · 4 marks — Outline two teachings of one significant Muslim other than the Prophet. Two teachings, each developed.
• Explain · 6 marks — Explain the contribution to Islam of one important Muslim other than Prophet Muhammad — the contribution first, then what it still does.
• Discuss · 10 marks — 'The most important Muslims are those who lived long ago.' Argue influence against relevance rather than asserting one.

Common mistakes

• Choosing the Prophet, which the question explicitly excludes.
• Telling the story of a life and never naming the contribution.
• Ignoring the relevance-today clause, which is where the AO2 marks sit.

“The Rightly-Guided Caliphs lead Muslim communities today, like imams.” — The four Rightly-Guided Caliphs led the community in the seventh century, immediately after the Prophet. An imam today leads prayer in a mosque. They are separated by fourteen centuries and by function.

Write instead: The Rashidun — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali — are historical figures whose leadership Sunni Muslims regard as a model. Today's leadership is exercised by imams, and by the Ulema as scholars of law and belief. Shi'a Muslims understand the succession quite differently, holding that leadership belonged to Ali and the Imams of the Prophet's family. (Named in the 2022 examiner report for Paper 2.)

Grade 9 insight

Notice what kind of person the great post-prophetic Muslims are: jurists, scholars, administrators and reformers — not visionaries. That is not an accident of history but a consequence of doctrine, because the seal of prophethood closed the only route by which a later figure could add to the revelation. A Level 4 answer uses that to explain why Islamic greatness is characteristically institutional, and why the strongest modern candidates are people who built something rather than people who saw something.

Carry on through Islam

• Previous unit: 1.3 · The Ulema and Muslim leadership
• Next unit: 2.1 · Ramadan, Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha
• All of Islam · Incandio Religious Studies · The 4RS1 specification