(1) familiarizing oneself in a general way with the websites posting the Qur'an and hadith collections on line and (2) reading the relevant articles in the Encyclopeadia of Islam (2nd Edition) Ref. DS37.E523, found in reference section of Tutt Library. **The ONLINE trial version of this title http://www.encislam.brill.nl . Username: rsatterwhite@coloradocollege.edu Password: Boundaries
Some categories of Islamic law will have much longer articles devoted to them than others, but this should not deter the student. The paper should be focused on what the student finds in the Qur'an and the hadith collections, with appropriate context supplied by the articles and other secondary literature as necessary.

FINDING VERSES IN THE QUR'AN. To locate verses in the Qur'an pertaining to your topic, several resources are available. Consulting specialized Qur'an encyclopedias should be the first step. The most authoritative and scholarly is Jane McAuliffe, Encyclopaedia of the Qur'an (Leiden: Brill, 2001) Ref. BP133 .E53 2001, the contents of which are organized alphabetically by topic. The downside of this multi-volume series is that it goes only through the letter "Sh," and Tutt has the volumes going only through "O." A good alternative/supplementary source is N. K. Singh and A. R. Agwan, The Encyclopaedia of the Holy Qur'an (Delhi: Global Vision, 2000) Ref. BP133 .E63 2000, of which Tutt has a complete 5-volume set. The great value of Qur'an encyclopedias is that not only do they usually specify the most significant verses in the Qur'an pertaining to your subject, they also provide historical background and context and identify related topics.

The encyclopedias should be only the first step in locating Qur'anic verses. There are hardcopy and on-line reference works that specialize in locating Qur'anic verses for concerned scholars and Muslims. The most comprehensive and detailed, but also the most technically demanding, is Hanna E. Kassis, ed., A Concordance of the Qur'an (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983) Ref. BP133 .K37 1983, found in the Tutt reference section. To use this powerful tool, you will need to develop a list of key words taken from your background reading in the Qur'an encylopedias, and you will need to read Kassis's introduction to learn how to use his book.

A much more accessible, but possibly less comprehensive and less reliable reference resource, are on-line Qur'an search engines. One way to test for comprehensiveness and reliability is to visit several search engines and compare results. Here are some I have found to be reasonably reliable and comprehensive, in order of preference.

(1) MSA-USC Qur'an database: www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/reference/searchquran.html
and www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/quranindex.html
(2) The Qur'an Browser: www.al-quran.org.uk (use the excellent topical index)
(3) The Qur'an Search: www.islamicity.com/QuranSearch/

A few tips when searching on line. First, develop a short list of keywords derived from the basic category and use them consistently in your searches. For example, if your category is pilgrimage, then you should conduct searches not only for "pilgrimage," but also for "pilgrim," and "hajj" (the Arabic word for pilgrimage). Scan topical indices for related terms. The related Arabic-language terms will usually be given in the Qur'an encyclopedias. Second, feel free to use any English translation of the Qur'an you like. The translations preferred by Muslims and therefore the most common on the Web are Pickthall, Yusuf Ali, and Shakir.

FINDING HADITH REPORTS. Internet technology has made locating hadith breathtakingly easy. The four most highly regarded large-scale collections of hadith -- Sahih Muslim, Sahih Bukhari, Sunan Abu Dawud, and the Muwatta of Malik Ibn Anas -- are now on line and easily accessible through a website sponsored by the Muslim Student Association of the University of Southern California. Using this website, you should conduct research on your topic in two ways:

(1) Reading the pertinent legal topic(s) under each of the four hadith collections at:
www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/
(2) Key word searches at www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/reference/searchhadith.html

Students may also consult the helpful topical index and glossary in Malik ibn Anas, al-Muwatta, edited by Aisha Abdurrahman Bewley (Inverness, 2004), which is on library reserve.

When using reference materials in the library, please be considerate of your classmates and return the materials to their shelf after use.