According to verse 13 in chapter 42 of the Quran: He has ordained for you the same way of religion which He had enjoined on Noah, and that We have now revealed to you, and which We had already enjoined for Abraham and Moses and Jesus so that you should remain steadfast in religion and not become divided therein. Referring to various communities who received guidance from their prophet, the Quran has this to say: For each, We have appointed a law and a way. (5:48) From these two verses of the Quran, we learn that the guidance God sent through His prophets has two parts to it. One is called Al-Deen, and the other is called Shariah or Minhaj. Al-Deen refers to that part of divine guidance given equally to all the prophets, from Noah to the Prophet of Islam. It is the eternal part of God’s guidance. In this part of the guidance, there has never been any change in the past, nor will there be any future change. However, in the other part of divine guidance, known as the Shariah, we find changes being made. Different Prophets have been given a different Shariah. That is, unlike Al-Deen, Shariah is subject to change. This division in the teachings means that God’s religion has an eternal message that has been the same. However, when this message is practically applied to any given situation, it becomes a matter of Shariah. Moreover, in Shariah, the situation has to be taken into consideration. It is due to this wisdom that we find differences in different Shariah. For, the circumstances keep changing. No Shariah can be eternal in its entirety. It will always remain a subject of Ijtihad or exercise of judgement with reasoning. In this exercise of Ijtihad, the practices of previous prophets can serve as examples for us. Shariah is a non-political concept. Anyone who wants to follow the Islamic way of life in his personal affairs must refer to the Shariah. It is only a matter of personal following; no institution or state is involved in this.