Justice as Lived Experience Among Muslim Women in Inheritance Disputes
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Abstract
Justice within Islamic law is not merely a legal construct but a lived moral and experiential reality shaped by faith, culture, and institutional practice. In Indonesia’s Religious Courts, Muslim women involved in inheritance disputes encounter complex intersections between religious doctrine, social norms, and gender expectations. While previous research has emphasized legal texts and procedural analysis, this study explores how women personally and spiritually experience justice during inheritance litigation. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), narratives from twelve women were analyzed through in-depth semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal three dominant themes: (1) justice as a spiritual journey grounded in submission to divine will, (2) justice as social negotiation within patriarchal and institutional constraints, and (3) justice as moral self-affirmation achieved through resilience and reflection. These results show that participants view justice as an evolving process that transcends court decisions, integrating emotional, moral, and faith-based dimensions. Practically, the study highlights the need for gender-sensitive judicial training and the incorporation of spiritual-ethical perspectives in Islamic legal reform. By integrating emotional and spiritual insights into legal discourse, this research contributes to a more holistic understanding of justice in Islamic law and offers pathways for developing equitable inheritance practices for women.
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