Āyāt al-aḥkām: ‘verses of the rules’, is a phrase applied those verses of the Qurʾān from which legal rulings are derived. It was well known amongst later jurists that the number of āyāt al-aḥkām is five hundred (e.g. see al-ʿAllāma al-Ḥillī, 242; al-Miqdād al-Suyūrī, 1/5); when the jurists refer to ‘the Book’ as their foremost evidence and legal support regarding legislation they are referring to these verses.

The difference between āyāt al-aḥkām and the other transmitted proofs is that they are deemed to be of defi…