CAMPUSNINJA / THE STUDY DESK

JAMB Islamic StudiesStudy notes & practice

Understand Qur’anic themes, Hadith, belief, practice and Islamic history through original explained exercises.

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Foundation revision notes and original practice. These foundation lessons explain selected Qur’anic themes, Hadith, belief, practice and history. They do not replace study of every prescribed passage.

What these revision notes cover
  • These foundation lessons explain selected Qur’anic themes, Hadith, belief, practice and history. They do not replace study of every prescribed passage.
  • Full Arabic recitation, tajwid demonstrations and detailed report-by-report exercises are not included.

01 Qur’an and Hadith

Revelation and preservation of the Qur’an

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish revelation, compilation and standardisation
  • Explain Makkan and Madinan classification

Understand it

Islamic tradition places Muhammad’s first revelation during retreat at Cave Hira. Revelation over time addressed different circumstances and supported understanding, memorisation and application. The syllabus also asks about modes of revelation and the Qur’an’s names and attributes.

Preservation involved memorisation and written recording. Traditional accounts distinguish the collection associated with Abu Bakr from the standardisation associated with Uthman. Zayd ibn Thabit played an important role in these processes; they should not be collapsed into one event.

Makkan and Madinan usually classify revelation by whether it came before or after the Hijrah, not simply where a verse was physically delivered. Theological claims about divine origin and preservation are studied through the prescribed Qur’anic passages and Islamic interpretation.

Work through an example

Why distinguish compilation from standardisation?

Explanation: Compilation gathers material into a collected form; standardisation establishes an authorised textual form for wider use.

Watch out: Do not assume every verse revealed outside Madinah is automatically classified as Makkan.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

The first revelation is associated in Islamic tradition with

  1. the city of Timbuktu
  2. Mount Arafat during the farewell pilgrimage
  3. the palace of Baghdad
  4. Cave Hira
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: Cave Hira

The traditional account locates the beginning of revelation at Cave Hira near Makkah. The farewell pilgrimage occurred later; Timbuktu, Baghdad and the other locations listed are not the setting of that first-revelation account.

Question 2

The usual dividing event between Makkan and Madinan revelation is the

  1. Battle of Adwa
  2. birth of Abu Hanifah
  3. Hijrah
  4. founding of al-Azhar
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Hijrah

The usual classification distinguishes revelation before the Hijrah from revelation after it. It is a chronological distinction, so the physical place of revelation alone is not the rule. The other events listed do not define the Makkan–Madinan division.

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02 Qur’an and Hadith

Tafsir and tajwid

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish interpretation from recitation
  • Recognise why correct articulation matters

Understand it

Tafsir explains the meaning of the Qur’an using language, context, related verses, transmitted reports and scholarly reasoning. A responsible interpretation considers evidence rather than assigning a meaning merely because it sounds attractive.

Tajwid concerns correct recitation, including articulation, sound qualities, lengthening and appropriate stopping. Makhraj refers to an articulation point; madd concerns lengthening. Transliteration cannot capture every sound distinction accurately.

These notes introduce theory only. The syllabus requires practice with Arabic passages; written English explanations cannot demonstrate accurate recitation. Audio needs a verified reciter and suitable permission, and a qualified teacher should check pronunciation and stopping.

Work through an example

Is explaining the meaning of a verse the same task as reciting it accurately?

Explanation: No. Tafsir addresses meaning and interpretation; tajwid addresses the correctness of recitation.

Watch out: A learner can understand a translation while still needing help with Arabic articulation.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Tafsir is principally concerned with

  1. The study of Arabic verse metres
  2. The biography of transmitters alone
  3. explanation and interpretation
  4. The science of variant recitations alone
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: explanation and interpretation

Tafsir examines the meaning and interpretation of the Qur’an.

Question 2

Madd in tajwid concerns

  1. changing a verse’s subject
  2. counting inheritance shares
  3. choosing a political ruler
  4. lengthening a sound
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: lengthening a sound

Madd is the recitational lengthening of appropriate sounds.

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03 Prescribed Qur’anic passages

Al-Fatihah and accountability surahs

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Identify major themes in Q1 and Q100–104
  • Connect understanding with ethical application

Understand it

Al-Fatihah combines praise, worship and a request for guidance. Al-Adiyat draws attention to human ingratitude and attachment to wealth; al-Qari’ah presents judgement through powerful images and the weighing of deeds.

At-Takathur warns against rivalry in accumulation that distracts from accountability. Al-Asr links avoiding loss with faith, good action, truth and perseverance. Al-Humazah condemns fault-finding and the illusion that gathered wealth makes a person secure.

These are brief thematic explanations, not the Arabic text or a line-by-line translation. For the syllabus task, learners also need to recognise and recite the passages accurately and connect each lesson with its own verses.

Work through an example

Which theme connects at-Takathur and al-Humazah?

Explanation: Both challenge attitudes in which wealth becomes a source of false security or distraction.

Watch out: Do not exchange the name of a surah with another simply because their themes overlap.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Al-Fatihah includes a request for

  1. a commercial monopoly
  2. a particular examination mark
  3. a royal title
  4. guidance
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: guidance

Guidance is a central concern of the opening surah.

Question 2

Al-Asr connects a life avoiding loss with faith, good action, truth and

  1. perseverance
  2. boasting
  3. hoarding
  4. deception
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: perseverance

The surah joins belief and conduct with mutual commitment to truth and patience.

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04 Prescribed Qur’anic passages

Care, worship and refuge in the short surahs

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Identify themes in Q107–114
  • Distinguish sincerity, divine unity and protection

Understand it

Al-Ma’un challenges neglect of vulnerable people and worship performed without sincere care. Al-Kawthar connects divine giving with worship and sacrifice. Al-Kafirun states a distinction in worship rather than authorising mistreatment of other people.

An-Nasr links success with praise and seeking forgiveness, while al-Masad addresses opposition associated with Abu Lahab. Al-Ikhlas expresses divine unity and incomparability in a concentrated form.

Al-Falaq and an-Nas seek refuge from different forms of harm. Their themes should be distinguished while recognising their shared movement towards dependence on God. Full Arabic reading, translation and recitation remain separate required skills.

Work through an example

How does al-Ma’un connect worship with social responsibility?

Explanation: It criticises religious display alongside neglect of practical care and assistance.

Watch out: Do not use a doctrinal distinction as a reason to demean people of another belief.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Al-Ikhlas is especially associated with

  1. the history of Baghdad
  2. the oneness and incomparability of Allah
  3. the Battle of Uhud
  4. the detailed rules of inheritance
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: the oneness and incomparability of Allah

The surah concentrates on divine unity and uniqueness.

Question 2

Al-Falaq and an-Nas are commonly studied together because both concern

  1. seeking refuge
  2. the division of war revenue
  3. the sequence of caliphs
  4. the rules of commercial weights
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: seeking refuge

Both passages seek divine protection, though their wording and emphases differ.

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05 Prescribed Qur’anic passages

Revelation, reassurance and final accountability

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Identify themes in Q87 and Q93–99
  • Separate thematic understanding from full-text mastery

Understand it

Al-A’la connects glorification, creation and reminder. Ad-Duha reassures the Prophet and links remembered care with kindness towards vulnerable people. Al-Inshirah connects hardship with relief and renewed devotion.

At-Tin presents human creation and accountability. Al-Alaq begins with the command associated with reading and learning, then addresses arrogance and obstruction. Al-Qadr describes the significance of the night of revelation.

Al-Bayyinah concerns clear evidence and sincere worship, while al-Zalzalah presents the earth’s upheaval and the disclosure of deeds. The passages have distinct structures; brief theme notes do not replace the required Arabic text, translation and tajwid practice.

Work through an example

What practical lesson connects reassurance in ad-Duha with its closing instructions?

Explanation: Remembered care is connected with considerate treatment of people who need help.

Watch out: Do not infer that every surah in this group has the same occasion of revelation.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Al-Alaq’s opening is closely associated with

  1. a marriage contract
  2. the division of the Atlantic trade
  3. reading and learning
  4. the building of the Sokoto Caliphate
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: reading and learning

Its opening commands are central to Islamic discussions of revelation and knowledge.

Question 2

Al-Zalzalah emphasises that deeds will be

  1. judged only by wealth
  2. disclosed and accounted for
  3. hidden by social status
  4. automatically forgotten
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: disclosed and accounted for

The surah connects the final upheaval with disclosure of actions.

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06 Prescribed Qur’anic passages

Ayat al-Kursi and other selected verses

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What you should be able to do

  • Explain themes in Q2:255, Q2:285–286 and Q9:128–129
  • Recognise the passage references

Understand it

Ayat al-Kursi is Q2:255. It presents divine life, sustaining power, knowledge and authority, including the idea that preservation of creation does not exhaust God. Interpret the verse within Islamic theology rather than reducing it to a formula without meaning.

Q2:285–286 connects belief in God, angels, scriptures and messengers with obedience, responsibility and prayer for mercy. It also addresses the relationship between human capacity and obligation.

Q9:128–129 describes the Messenger’s concern for the community and reliance on God. These verse selections are prescribed alongside complete surahs. Their reference numbers, Arabic wording and meanings require separate study; the notes here cover only the thematic foundation.

Work through an example

Which verse reference identifies Ayat al-Kursi?

Explanation: Q2:255, within Surat al-Baqarah.

Watch out: A commonly used title is not a substitute for knowing the verse reference and meaning.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Ayat al-Kursi is found at

  1. Q114:6
  2. Q1:1
  3. Q2:255
  4. Q103:3
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Q2:255

The verse is al-Baqarah 255.

Question 2

Q2:285–286 combines statements of belief with

  1. a list of West African rulers
  2. responsibility and prayer for mercy
  3. instructions for building a market
  4. a history of the four schools
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: responsibility and prayer for mercy

The closing verses combine belief, obedience and supplication.

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07 Qur’an and Hadith

Hadith collection and authentication

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish isnad and matn
  • Recognise major collections and authentication terms

Understand it

A hadith reports a saying, action or approval attributed to the Prophet. Isnad is the chain of transmitters; matn is the reported content. Authentication examines transmission and content through scholarly methods, not popularity on social media.

Sahih, hasan and da’if describe different assessments of reliability. A weak report is not automatically a deliberate fabrication, and a collection’s title does not mean every report has the same grading.

The six widely studied Sunni collections are associated with al-Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa’i and Ibn Majah. Malik’s al-Muwatta is another major early work. Hadith and Qur’an are related sources in Islamic learning but are not interchangeable categories.

Work through an example

In a report, which part tells us who transmitted it through successive narrators?

Explanation: The isnad. The matn is the content being transmitted.

Watch out: Do not label a saying authentic solely because it is widely repeated.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

The matn of a hadith is its

  1. reported content
  2. chain of narrators
  3. book-cover design
  4. place on a shelf
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: reported content

Matn means the text or content, distinct from isnad.

Question 2

Al-Muwatta is associated with

  1. Mansa Musa
  2. Muhammad Bello
  3. Imam Malik
  4. Ibn Khaldun
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Imam Malik

Malik ibn Anas compiled the work.

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08 Qur’an and Hadith

Themes in the selected Nawawi hadiths

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Connect selected reports with ethical themes
  • Recognise the limits of a thematic summary

Understand it

The prescribed selection includes reports on intention, Islam’s foundations, following sound guidance and avoiding doubtful matters. Others concern sincerity, doing what one can, lawful sustenance and leaving unhelpful interference. These themes connect belief with deliberate conduct.

The collection also addresses care for others, responsible speech, anger, good character, reliance, steadfastness and broad forms of charity. When studying a report, identify its main claim and one practical application rather than memorising an English slogan without context.

The syllabus specifies numbered reports from an-Nawawi: 1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 27, 34 and 41. Full Arabic texts and individual authentication notes need careful review, especially where scholarly grading differs.

Work through an example

How can two outwardly similar actions differ ethically in the intention theme?

Explanation: Their purposes can differ, so the motive matters alongside the action.

Watch out: Do not assume a thematic overview completes the required Arabic-text study.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

The opening hadith in Nawawi’s collection chiefly concerns

  1. the number of mosque doors
  2. the location of Timbuktu
  3. intention
  4. the sequence of the caliphs
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: intention

Its central concern is the relationship between action and intention.

Question 2

A student pauses before spreading an unverified rumour. This most directly illustrates

  1. responsible speech
  2. public boasting
  3. hoarding
  4. ritual pilgrimage
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: responsible speech

Restraint in speech prevents harm caused by careless claims.

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09 Qur’an and Hadith

Moral lessons and social responsibility

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Connect prescribed teachings with practical conduct
  • Distinguish doctrinal explanation from judging people

Understand it

The advice associated with Luqman includes worship, gratitude, responsibility and humility. The wider passages address kindness to parents, truthfulness, trust, promises, patience and mutual support. These themes require conduct, not only verbal agreement.

Bribery, fraud, intoxicants, gambling, arrogance and extravagance are treated as moral problems in the prescribed curriculum. Honest labour, justice and fulfilling obligations offer positive contrasts. Assess a scenario by identifying the relevant principle and the harm or duty involved.

The syllabus also includes modesty and sexual-ethics passages. Explain their doctrinal argument and context accurately, without using the lesson to insult people or make assumptions about identities. Moral study should preserve dignity and encourage responsible, non-abusive conduct.

Work through an example

A cashier discovers that a customer has paid too much. Which principle applies?

Explanation: Trust and honesty: the excess should be acknowledged and returned rather than concealed.

Watch out: Do not use religious vocabulary to excuse fraud, humiliation or abuse.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Giving a false weight to increase profit violates the principle of

  1. honesty in trade
  2. hospitality alone
  3. chronology
  4. memorisation alone
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: honesty in trade

The buyer is deceived about the amount received.

Question 2

Respectfully correcting a false claim rather than spreading it supports

  1. extravagance
  2. hoarding
  3. arrogance
  4. truthfulness and responsibility
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: truthfulness and responsibility

The action protects others from misinformation.

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10 Tawhid and fiqh

Tawhid, shahadah and incompatible practices

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Explain divine unity and the testimony of faith
  • Distinguish a doctrinal classification from personal abuse

Understand it

Tawhid is the Islamic teaching of the oneness of Allah. The shahadah expresses worship of Allah alone and Muhammad’s messengership. The curriculum connects these teachings with the Prophet’s servanthood, universal mission and final prophethood.

Shirk concerns associating partners with Allah in worship or divine status. The syllabus compares Islamic monotheism with beliefs it regards as incompatible and discusses superstition, fortune-telling and certain religious innovations. Explain these as Islamic doctrinal positions, not neutral descriptions of other people’s worth.

Different traditions may explain their own beliefs in different terms. An accurate answer distinguishes the Islamic critique from how another faith describes itself. Disagreement about belief never makes harassment or dehumanisation acceptable.

Work through an example

What is the central concern of tawhid?

Explanation: The uniqueness and oneness of Allah in Islamic belief and worship.

Watch out: Do not confuse describing a doctrinal disagreement with judging a person’s dignity.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Tawhid refers to

  1. a school of grammar
  2. the migration to Abyssinia
  3. a particular trade tax
  4. the oneness of Allah
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: the oneness of Allah

It is the central Islamic teaching of divine unity.

Question 2

The shahadah includes recognition of Muhammad as

  1. a divine partner
  2. a ruler of Timbuktu
  3. the messenger of Allah
  4. the founder of every legal school
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: the messenger of Allah

The testimony distinguishes messengership from divinity.

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11 Tawhid and fiqh

Articles of faith

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Identify the articles of faith
  • Explain accountability without abandoning responsibility

Understand it

The articles studied include belief in Allah, angels, revealed books, messengers, the Last Day and divine decree. These are related to, but not identical with, the practical pillars such as prayer and fasting.

The syllabus asks about divine attributes, the missions of prophets and the significance of resurrection and judgement. In Islamic belief, these connect human life with accountability beyond immediate social reward.

Qada and qadar are discussed as aspects of divine decree and determination, with terminology explained in different ways by scholars. Belief in decree should not be presented as an excuse for fraud, neglect or refusing responsible effort.

Work through an example

How do articles of faith differ from pillars of practice?

Explanation: Articles describe central beliefs; pillars describe central religious duties, though belief and practice are connected.

Watch out: Do not exchange angels and prayer when listing beliefs and practices.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Which is an article of faith rather than a ritual action?

  1. Fasting in Ramadan
  2. Performing hajj
  3. Belief in angels
  4. Paying zakah
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Belief in angels

Belief in angels belongs to the articles of faith.

Question 2

Belief in the Last Day is closely connected with

  1. freedom from every responsibility
  2. accountability for conduct
  3. the abolition of all moral choices
  4. a guarantee of material wealth
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: accountability for conduct

Judgement links conduct with ultimate responsibility.

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12 Tawhid and fiqh

Purification and salah

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish wudu, ghusl and tayammum
  • Explain the purpose and validity of prayer

Understand it

Taharah concerns purification. Wudu is the ritual washing associated with particular prayer requirements; ghusl is a full ritual bath in specified circumstances. Tayammum is a prescribed alternative using clean earth when its conditions are met.

Salah has required conditions, actions and times. Intention, purification and appropriate performance matter. Obligatory and voluntary prayers should be distinguished, as should a condition before prayer and a required action within it.

The syllabus requires descriptions and invalidating acts. Details can differ between legal schools, so a teacher should identify the school and rule being taught. These notes are a conceptual introduction and do not replace a checked practical demonstration.

Work through an example

Why is knowing a prayer’s time different from performing its bowing?

Explanation: The first concerns a condition for the prayer; the second is an action within it.

Watch out: Do not treat every difference between recognised legal schools as a simple error.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

A full ritual bath is called

  1. ghusl
  2. zakah
  3. shurah
  4. qiyas
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: ghusl

Ghusl refers to the full ritual washing.

Question 2

Tayammum is best described as

  1. A shortened form of every obligatory prayer
  2. a prescribed purification alternative under specified conditions
  3. A voluntary fast
  4. A charity payment
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: a prescribed purification alternative under specified conditions

Its use depends on conditions such as lack of usable water.

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13 Tawhid and fiqh

Zakah and sadaqah

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish obligatory and voluntary giving
  • Identify categories and conditions without overgeneralising rates

Understand it

Zakah is a prescribed obligation on qualifying wealth or produce under specified rules. It differs from voluntary sadaqah. Zakat al-fitr is connected with the end of Ramadan, while zakat on wealth follows different conditions.

Q9:60 identifies categories of recipients, including people in poverty or need and other specified groups. Collection and distribution should follow the relevant rules rather than personal favouritism.

Different assets have different conditions and rates. A familiar percentage must not be applied automatically to every crop, animal or asset. In a calculation question, identify the asset, threshold, time condition and stated assumptions before calculating.

Work through an example

A question states that qualifying savings of ₦200,000 are assessed at 2.5%. What is the amount?

Explanation: ₦5,000. This arithmetic uses the question’s stated eligibility and rate; it does not decide whether an actual person meets every condition.

Watch out: Do not apply 2.5% indiscriminately to all types of zakah.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Voluntary charitable giving is commonly called

  1. sadaqah
  2. isnad
  3. qiyas
  4. iddah
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: sadaqah

Sadaqah is broader voluntary giving, distinct from obligatory zakah.

Question 2

At a stated rate of 2.5%, qualifying wealth of ₦80,000 gives

  1. ₦2,000
  2. ₦20,000
  3. ₦8,000
  4. ₦200
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: ₦2,000

80,000 × 0.025 = 2,000, using the eligibility assumed by the question.

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14 Tawhid and fiqh

Fasting and its conditions

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Compare obligatory, voluntary and compensatory fasting
  • Recognise exemptions and ethical aims

Understand it

Sawm involves abstention during the prescribed period with intention and applicable conditions. Ramadan fasting is obligatory for those who meet the conditions, while other fasts may be voluntary or connected with making up missed duties.

Q2:183–185 connects fasting with piety and provides for circumstances such as illness and travel. Different situations require different responses; a temporary exemption is not the same as a permanent inability.

Study invalidating acts and the distinctions among qada, kaffarah and other provisions through a qualified explanation. Avoid a blanket answer for every medical or personal situation. The ethical aims include discipline and awareness of responsibility, not merely hunger.

Work through an example

Why should illness and deliberate violation not be treated as the same situation?

Explanation: They have different reasons and applicable rules, so the consequence cannot be assumed identical.

Watch out: Do not issue a personal medical or legal ruling from a simple revision example.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

The obligatory annual fast is associated with

  1. Rajab
  2. Muharram
  3. Shawwal
  4. Ramadan
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: Ramadan

Ramadan is the month of the prescribed annual fast.

Question 2

Qada in the fasting context concerns

  1. making up a missed obligation
  2. the collection of tax on land
  3. the selection of a caliph
  4. the chain of narrators
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: making up a missed obligation

It refers to performing the missed duty later under its rules.

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15 Tawhid and fiqh

Hajj, umrah and the concept of jihad

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish hajj forms and umrah
  • Explain striving within ethical limits

Understand it

Hajj is the pilgrimage with specified rites and times, required for those who meet its conditions. Umrah has a different set of rites and is not identical with hajj. Ifrad, qiran and tamattu distinguish ways of combining or separating hajj and umrah.

The syllabus requires the essentials, conditions and significance of pilgrimage. Accurate practical teaching needs a checked sequence and clear distinction between pillars, obligations and recommended acts; these categories should not be mixed.

Jihad broadly concerns striving in God’s cause and has different forms in Islamic discussion. Armed conflict is a regulated subject, not a permission for private violence. Q2:190 includes a prohibition on transgression; curriculum study should explain limits, protection and responsibility rather than provide violent instructions.

Work through an example

Why is umrah not simply another name for hajj?

Explanation: The rites, timing and legal status are not identical.

Watch out: Do not translate every use of jihad as unrestricted warfare.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Which statement correctly distinguishes hajj from umrah?

  1. Neither involves pilgrimage
  2. They are identical in every detail
  3. Hajj has specified rites and an annual period distinct from umrah
  4. Umrah replaces every obligation of hajj automatically
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Hajj has specified rites and an annual period distinct from umrah

The two pilgrimages differ in prescribed rites and timing.

Question 2

The prohibition of transgression in Q2:190 indicates that

  1. all violence is unrestricted
  2. ethical responsibility ends in conflict
  3. private revenge is automatically lawful
  4. conduct in conflict is subject to limits
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: conduct in conflict is subject to limits

The verse does not present fighting as free of constraints.

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16 Family matters

Marriage, rights and responsibilities

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Explain the purpose and conditions of marriage
  • Distinguish rights from permission to mistreat

Understand it

The syllabus treats marriage as a relationship with responsibilities, mutual rights and legal conditions. Relevant topics include consent, mahr, prohibited relationships and the roles specified in the applicable legal framework. A ceremonial label alone does not establish every condition.

Q30:21 connects marriage with affection and mercy. The discussion of polygyny in Q4:3 is linked to justice, while Q4:129 addresses the difficulty of complete equality of inclination. These passages should be read with their qualifications.

Ill-treatment is a separate issue in the syllabus and must not be hidden beneath claims of authority. Explain the curriculum’s rights and duties without giving personal legal decisions or suggesting that a spouse must accept abuse.

Work through an example

Why should a question about marriage identify the conditions rather than only the ceremony?

Explanation: Validity and responsibilities depend on more than the fact that a ceremony occurred.

Watch out: Do not present authority in a household as freedom from accountability.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Mahr refers to

  1. the chain of hadith transmitters
  2. a tax on agricultural land
  3. a form of Qur’anic rhyme
  4. the marriage gift due to the wife
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: the marriage gift due to the wife

Mahr is part of the marriage framework and belongs to the wife.

Question 2

The discussion of polygyny in Q4:3 is qualified by concern for

  1. justice
  2. membership of a trade guild
  3. the length of a surname
  4. military rank
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: justice

Justice is central to the passage’s qualification.

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17 Family matters

Divorce, waiting periods, custody and inheritance

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish forms of dissolution and waiting periods
  • Solve explicitly limited inheritance examples

Understand it

Talaq, khul, faskh and mutual separation describe different routes or circumstances in marriage dissolution. Iddah is a waiting period whose duration depends on the situation. Ila, zihar and li’an require their own explanations and should not be used as interchangeable terms.

Custody concerns care of children and has rules distinct from ownership of property or a former spouse’s preferences. Real cases require qualified advice and attention to applicable law; revision notes should not be treated as personal rulings.

Inheritance shares depend on surviving relatives and other conditions. Q4:11–12 and 176 specify different cases. A calculation must state all relevant heirs and what has already been deducted; the familiar two-to-one ratio is not a rule that every male always receives twice every female.

Work through an example

In an explicitly simplified exercise, only one son and one daughter share a distributable residue of ₦90,000 in a 2:1 ratio. What are their shares?

Explanation: Three equal units are ₦30,000 each: the son receives ₦60,000 and the daughter ₦30,000. This is only the stated classroom case.

Watch out: Never apply one inheritance ratio to an unspecified family or whole estate.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Iddah is a

  1. chain of narrators
  2. waiting period with rules depending on the circumstance
  3. tax on land
  4. form of pilgrimage
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: waiting period with rules depending on the circumstance

Its duration and purpose are studied within marriage and dissolution rules.

Question 2

A stated 2:1 division of ₦60,000 gives the larger share as

  1. ₦50,000
  2. ₦20,000
  3. ₦30,000
  4. ₦40,000
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: ₦40,000

There are three ratio units of ₦20,000; the larger share takes two.

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18 Tawhid and fiqh

Sources and schools of law

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Distinguish the four principal sources
  • Associate Sunni schools with their founders

Understand it

The principal sources in the syllabus are Qur’an, Sunnah, ijma and qiyas. Ijma concerns scholarly consensus in its technical setting; qiyas is analogical reasoning from an established case to another case through a shared effective cause.

The four Sunni schools are associated with Abu Hanifah, Malik ibn Anas, Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi’i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal. Their methods and transmitted teachings developed into legal traditions, not four different religions.

Differences in interpretation may arise from evidence, language, transmission or method. An exam answer should identify the school or principle specified instead of assuming that every jurist uses identical reasoning in every case.

Work through an example

What distinguishes qiyas from simply guessing an answer?

Explanation: Qiyas reasons from an established ruling through a relevant shared cause; it requires a structured basis.

Watch out: Do not define ijma as an informal majority vote by any group of people.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Analogical reasoning in Islamic law is called

  1. qiyas
  2. matn
  3. hijrah
  4. sawm
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: qiyas

Qiyas connects a new case to an established one through a relevant common cause.

Question 2

The Maliki school is associated with

  1. Ibn Battuta
  2. Malik ibn Anas
  3. Muhammad Bello
  4. al-Bukhari
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: Malik ibn Anas

The school takes its name from Malik ibn Anas.

Link to this topic

19 Islamic economic system

Economic ethics and public revenue

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Explain riba, short measure and harmful hoarding
  • Distinguish historical sources of revenue

Understand it

The syllabus examines riba, cheating in weights and measures, and hoarding that harms public access to goods. At-tatfif concerns giving less than the proper measure. Explain the conduct and its effects rather than treating every profit as prohibited.

Zakah, jizyah, kharaj and ghanimah are different categories in historical Islamic public finance. They have different bases and rules; they are not interchangeable names for one modern tax.

Bait al-mal is the public treasury associated with collective revenue and welfare. Compare economic systems through ownership, contracts, distribution and ethical limits. Avoid claiming that all Western economies form one identical system or that these revision notes settle a real financial contract.

Work through an example

How does short measure harm a buyer?

Explanation: The buyer pays for a stated quantity but receives less, making the transaction deceptive.

Watch out: Do not confuse legitimate storage for future use with every form of harmful market manipulation.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

At-tatfif chiefly concerns

  1. migration to Madinah
  2. the dawn prayer
  3. short measure and dishonest weights
  4. a school of recitation
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: short measure and dishonest weights

It names unfair dealing through reduced measures.

Question 2

Bait al-mal is best described as

  1. a public treasury
  2. a kind of marriage gift
  3. a pilgrimage garment
  4. the chain of a hadith
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: a public treasury

It concerns the management of collective funds.

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20 Islamic political system

Consultation, justice and accountability

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Explain shurah, adalah and accountability
  • Recognise the rights of people with different beliefs

Understand it

The syllabus presents divine sovereignty alongside human responsibility in governance. Shurah concerns consultation; adalah concerns justice; accountability asks how leaders and individuals answer for the use of authority.

Q4:58 and 135 connect trust and justice with responsibility even when personal interests are involved. Q42:38 presents consultation as a feature of communal affairs. Consultation loses value if a decision maker refuses to hear relevant information.

The prescribed discussion includes the rights of non-Muslims and passages concerning freedom from compulsion and restraint in insulting others’ worship. Compare political principles carefully rather than claiming every historical Muslim government implemented them identically.

Work through an example

A leader hears only supporters and ignores evidence from affected residents. Which principle is weakened?

Explanation: Meaningful consultation, because relevant voices and information are excluded.

Watch out: Do not assume a government’s religious label proves just conduct.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Shurah means

  1. short measure
  2. inheritance residue
  3. ritual bathing
  4. consultation
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: consultation

It concerns seeking and considering views in communal affairs.

Question 2

Judging a case fairly even when a relative is involved illustrates

  1. extravagance
  2. justice and accountability
  3. hoarding
  4. favouritism
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: justice and accountability

The principle requires fair treatment despite personal interests.

Link to this topic

21 Islamic history and civilisation

Pre-Islamic Arabia and Muhammad’s early life

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Describe the reform context without stereotyping all people
  • Trace the early life and call to prophethood

Understand it

Jahiliyyah is the Islamic term used in the curriculum for the pre-Islamic setting and practices criticised by Islamic reform. Arabia contained different communities, beliefs and customs; avoid claiming that every person practised every custom listed.

Muhammad was born in Makkah and belonged to Quraysh. His early life, family circumstances, reputation and marriage to Khadijah form the background to the call to prophethood. The traditional date of birth is approximate rather than a modern birth-registration record.

Early preaching stressed divine unity and moral responsibility and faced opposition. The syllabus asks about both belief and social reform, including responses to exploitation, gambling and harmful practices. Study causes and reactions in their historical context.

Work through an example

Why is it misleading to say every pre-Islamic Arab followed one identical way of life?

Explanation: The region contained diverse communities and practices; a list of criticised practices is not a description of every individual.

Watch out: Do not turn a historical period label into a stereotype about all its people.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Muhammad’s early life and first preaching are associated principally with

  1. Timbuktu
  2. Cairo
  3. Baghdad
  4. Makkah
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: Makkah

Makkah is the central setting before the Hijrah.

Question 2

Khadijah is important in the early life narrative as

  1. the compiler of al-Muwatta
  2. the ruler of Borno
  3. Muhammad’s wife and supporter
  4. a founder of ECOWAS
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: Muhammad’s wife and supporter

The traditional accounts emphasise her support at the beginning of revelation.

Link to this topic

22 Islamic history and civilisation

Hijrah, Madinah and major events

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Arrange key events and explain their significance
  • Connect diplomacy and community organisation

Understand it

The Hijrah to Madinah in 622 marks a major transition from the Makkan period to organised community life. It is the event from which the Islamic calendar is reckoned, not Muhammad’s birth. Community organisation included relations among groups and responsibilities of membership.

Badr, Uhud and Khandaq occurred in different circumstances. Study causes, decisions and consequences rather than memorising names alone. The Treaty of al-Hudaybiyyah illustrates diplomacy and the difference between an apparently difficult immediate compromise and later opportunities.

The conquest of Makkah and the farewell pilgrimage belong to the later period. The farewell teaching is studied for themes of responsibility, treatment of others and community obligations; exact wording should be checked against reliable reports rather than unattributed internet posters.

Work through an example

Why can a treaty be historically important even when some participants initially dislike its terms?

Explanation: Its longer-term consequences may differ from its immediate appearance and can create new opportunities.

Watch out: Do not confuse the earlier migration to Abyssinia with the Hijrah to Madinah.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

The Islamic calendar is reckoned from the

  1. Hijrah to Madinah
  2. birth of Muhammad
  3. death of Ibn Khaldun
  4. founding of al-Azhar
Show answer and explanation

Answer A: Hijrah to Madinah

The migration is the epoch of the calendar.

Question 2

Al-Hudaybiyyah is chiefly associated with

  1. a West African university
  2. a treaty
  3. the compilation of al-Muwatta
  4. a form of inheritance
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: a treaty

It was a negotiated agreement in the Prophet’s later mission.

Link to this topic

23 Islamic history and civilisation

The four Rightly Guided Caliphs

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Identify the sequence of the caliphs
  • Distinguish their major contributions and challenges

Understand it

The four caliphs studied are Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, in that order. Their leadership followed Muhammad’s death and involved different political, military and administrative circumstances.

Abu Bakr’s period included challenges to the community and the collection of the Qur’an. Umar is associated with major expansion and administration. Uthman’s period includes the standardisation of the Qur’anic text and rising political tensions.

Ali’s rule faced civil conflict and disputes over legitimacy. Study these events through careful historical explanation and respect for different traditions; a school lesson should not become sectarian abuse or a claim that every source interprets events identically.

Work through an example

Why should Abu Bakr’s collection and Uthman’s standardisation be distinguished?

Explanation: They refer to different stages and purposes in the traditional account of textual preservation.

Watch out: Do not exchange the chronology of Umar and Uthman.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Which sequence is correct?

  1. Uthman, Umar, Abu Bakr, Ali
  2. Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali
  3. Ali, Uthman, Umar, Abu Bakr
  4. Umar, Abu Bakr, Ali, Uthman
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, Ali

This is the standard chronological sequence of the four caliphs.

Question 2

Standardisation of the Qur’anic text is especially associated with

  1. Mansa Musa
  2. Ibn Sina
  3. Ibn Battuta
  4. Uthman
Show answer and explanation

Answer D: Uthman

Traditional accounts distinguish this from the earlier collection under Abu Bakr.

Link to this topic

24 Islamic history and civilisation

Islam in Africa and West African societies

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Trace routes and agents of spread
  • Assess social, political and economic effects

Understand it

The migration of some early Muslims to Abyssinia is an important early African contact. Islam later spread into Egypt and across North Africa under different circumstances. One migration should not be treated as the cause of every later African development.

In West Africa, traders, scholars, teachers, preachers, Sufi networks and reform movements contributed to spread. Local rulers and communities made choices and adapted institutions. Commerce, learning and political power interacted without producing identical outcomes everywhere.

The syllabus includes Ghana, Mali, Songhai and Borno and the economic and intellectual settings of Timbuktu, Kano and Borno. Distinguish a ruler’s adoption from complete conversion of a population, and examine literacy, administration, trade and scholarship with specific examples.

Work through an example

Why does a ruler’s adoption of Islam not prove that every subject immediately converted?

Explanation: Religious change spreads unevenly, and rulers and communities may follow different patterns over time.

Watch out: Avoid a single-route explanation for Islam’s spread across an entire continent.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

A major peaceful channel for Islam’s spread in West Africa was

  1. Oceanic steamship routes in the earliest medieval period
  2. trade and scholarly networks
  3. European colonial school policy as the first cause
  4. Modern radio broadcasting in the medieval period
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: trade and scholarly networks

Merchants and scholars linked communities through exchange and teaching.

Question 2

Timbuktu is especially associated with

  1. the Great Trek
  2. trade and Islamic scholarship
  3. the discovery of the Pacific Ocean
  4. the first Nigerian constitution
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: trade and Islamic scholarship

Its history includes important commercial and intellectual activity.

Link to this topic

25 Islamic history and civilisation

Education and intellectual contributions

Read this lesson

What you should be able to do

  • Connect learning institutions with scholarly activity
  • Associate named thinkers with their contributions

Understand it

The curriculum links education with the Qur’an’s attention to knowledge and with traditions of teaching, writing and debate. Qur’anic schools, scholarly circles and libraries served different educational functions; modern institutional labels should not be projected backwards without qualification.

West African learning includes Ahmad Baba, al-Maghili, Usman dan Fodio, Muhammad Bello and the travel record of Ibn Battuta. Timbuktu and Sankore belong to this setting. Baghdad’s House of Wisdom and Nizamiyyah and Cairo’s al-Azhar represent different institutions and periods.

Ibn Sina and al-Razi contributed to medicine; al-Ghazali to theology, ethics and education; Ibn Rushd to philosophy and law; Ibn Khaldun to historical method and analysis of society. These fields overlap. Verify famous sayings before attributing them to the Prophet; a popular educational maxim may lack a sound hadith basis.

Work through an example

Why should Ibn Khaldun’s work be studied as more than a list of dates?

Explanation: He analysed social conditions and criticised unreliable historical explanations, contributing to method as well as narrative.

Watch out: Do not label every famous saying about education an authenticated hadith.

2 practice questions with answers

Try each question before opening its answer. These are original CampusNinja practice questions.

Question 1

Ibn Khaldun is especially associated with

  1. the annexation of Lagos
  2. the first compilation of al-Muwatta
  3. analysis of society and historical method
  4. the founding of the Zulu kingdom
Show answer and explanation

Answer C: analysis of society and historical method

His work examines social organisation and the reliability of historical explanation.

Question 2

Al-Azhar is historically associated with

  1. Sokoto
  2. Cairo
  3. Makkah alone
  4. Kano
Show answer and explanation

Answer B: Cairo

Al-Azhar developed in Cairo as a major institution of Islamic learning.

Link to this topic

Syllabus source and learning material

Scope checked against JAMB’s IBASS source on 2026-10-16. Current IBASS file; not independently labelled 2027. Notes, examples and practice questions are original CampusNinja learning material, not authenticated JAMB past questions.

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