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Who Should Perform
Ijtihd?A Discussion on Independent Juristic
Reasoning in Islamic Law
By: Sheikh Salman b. Fahd al-Oa dah
General Supervisor of the IslamToday Website
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Copyright
This book has been adapted from 'Who should perform Ijtihd?' from
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This book is not copyrighted. Any or all parts of this book may be used for educationalpurposes as long as the information used is not in any way quoted out of context or
used for profit.
This material has been reviewed and forwarded for publishing and distribution by the
English language section of the Department of Islamic Resources.
Form #:4439
Date: 19/11/1426
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INTRODUCTION
Praise be to Allah; we praise Him, seek His forgiveness,and turn to Him in repentance. We seek refuge with Himfrom the evils of our souls and the evils of our deeds.Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide, andwhomever Allah leads astray, none can guide. I bearwitness that there is no god but Allah alone withoutpartner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slaveand Messenger.
We live in a time when almost everyone is talking aboutIslam. Matters of Islamic Law are frequently beingdiscussed by all and sundry. Riding this wave of Islamicinterest are a number of people who have no clue aboutIslamic Law and no previous experience in religiousmatters. Students of knowledge have a duty to standagainst this tide and repel the falsehood that it bringswith it. They must expose the deviance and ineptness ofso-called Islamic intellectuals who just yesterday werenationalists, socialists, or what have you until that gravytrain dried up and they had to search for a new way ofmaking a living. Those intellectuals expected the peopleto have very short memories or at least be too much inthe dark to figure out what was going on. Happily, theywere disappointed. The people quickly saw through
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them, turned their backs on them, and hurried back tothe truth. This, in itself, is a sign of the goodness that theMuslim nation still possesses. It shows that the Muslims
cannot be duped so easily. Praise be to Allah whoshowed us in our people what brought contentment toour eyes.
In this short treatise, I hope to touch briefly upon thetopic of ijtihd and to clarify who has the qualifications todiscuss religious beliefs and teachings and form opinionson matters of Islamic Law. The discussion will be dividedinto four chapters:
Chapter One: Why We Must Address the Issue ofIjtihd.
Chapter Two: The Importance of Discussing IslamicIssues and Providing Legal Judgments in Accordancewith Islamic Law.
Chapter Three: What It Means to Speak on AllahsBehalf without Knowledge.
Chapter Four: The Many Forms that Speaking onAllahs Behalf without Knowledge can take.
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CHAPTER ONE
Why We Must Address the Issue of Ijtihd
Today there are many reasons why we must talk aboutthis matter. For one thing, many people are investigatingIslamic legal matters who are not qualified to do so. Theyare not only delving into secondary legal issues, but alsointo fundamental matters of faith. Though they have noexpertise, they are not shy to discuss and criticize everysingle matter related to Islam, no matter how difficult orsensitive that matter might be!
Compounding this problem is the fact that the generalpublic no longer tries to distinguish between legitimatescholars and quacks. They do not know who they shouldlisten to. They do not ask themselves: Should I listen tothis person when it comes to my religion? Is this personworth my attention?
Everyone who decides to speak about Islamic Law findsa receptive ear. Their opinions are passed on to othersand discussed.
Those people who listen to all and sundry when itcomes to their religion do not behave in the same mannerwhen it comes to their worldly concerns. They insistupon taking their problems to the proper specialists. Ifone of their family members is sick, you do not see them
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taking him to the green grocer for a diagnosis. If theyneed architectural blueprints for a new house, they donot contract a tailor for the job.
This is, no doubt, the sensible way to behave, andpeople generally conduct themselves this way when itcomes to their worldly concerns. Then suddenly, whenthe issue at hand is their religion, listen to anybodywilling to shoot off his mouth. It would not be anexaggeration to say that anybody who speaks aboutIslam these days will find a receptive ear somewhere oranother.
What makes matters more urgent is the fact that Islamhas enjoyed a resurgence of late, for which we mustthank and praise Allah. Because of this, everyone livingin the Muslim world is now courting Islam and theMuslims. The most ardent Arab nationalists, leftists, andeven communists of old have begun to speak and writeabout Islam. Some are even making a career of it. This isgoing on all over in Egypt, North Africa, the GulfStates, and elsewhere.
Many people today are pandering to the Islamicsentiments of the masses and are trying to capitalize ontheir desire for Islamic knowledge and their eagerness toknow the Islamic rulings for the issues that affect theirlives. Once we realize this, we can appreciate the greatdanger that Muslim society is facing if the people do notlearn to answer the following questions for themselves:
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*From whom should I take my Islamic knowledge?
*Who is qualified to discuss matters of Islamic Law?*Who should learn to keep quiet?
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CHAPTER TWO
The Importance of Discussing Islamic Issues and
Providing Legal Judgments in Accordance with
Islamic Law
When a person gives an Islamic legal ruling on an issue,he is in effect speaking on behalf of Allah. This shouldnot come as a surprise to anyone. When a person givesan Islamic ruling, he is not being asked about hispersonal opinion, his attitudes, his likes, or dislikes. He is
being asked about the ruling that has been given on a
matter by Allah and His Messenger ().The great jurist and legal theorist of the Mlik school of
law, al-Qarrf, describes the jurist as an interpreter forAllah, because it is as if he interprets the sacred textsinto practical application.
Ibn al-Qayyim came very close to 'hitting the nail on thehead' when he entitled his famous book on Islamic
Jurisprudence: Informing Those Who Act as Signatories
on Behalf of the Lord of All the Worlds.
He regards the muft, the one who gives the rulings on
matters of Islamic Law, as one who signs on behalf of
The Arabic title of this book is: I`lm al -Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al-`lamn.
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Allah in such matters, just as a minister signs on behalf ofthe king or government he represents. Therefore, themuft is merely a person who informs others of what he
believes to be the ruling of Allah and His Messenger ()in a given matter.
From this perspective, Ibn al-Qayyim writes:
The position of signatory on behalf of the king is a
weighty position of indisputably high honor. It is
one of the most prestigious positions one can hold.
So how esteemed must the same position be with
respect to the Lord of the heavens and the Earth?
The position of muft is a very prestigious one. It is anhonor for the one who assumes it as well as a weightyresponsibility. In many places in the Qur'an, Allah carries this role out Himself. He says, for instance:
They ask you for a legal ruling. Say: Allah gives
you the ruling [Srah al-is :
Here Allah gives the ruling and attributes this activityto Himself.
Because of the seriousness of this responsibility, theearliest Muslim scholars would avoid giving legal rulingsas much as they could, passing on the burden to otherswhenever possible. There are many references to thiskind of behavior to be found in the writings of the early
Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al-`lamn ().
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scholars. One excellent example of this can be found inthe Sunan of al-Drim wherein he devotes a chapter tothe matter entitled: Chapter on Those Who Dreaded
Having to Give Legal Decisions.In this chapter, he relates a good number of instances
where people avoided giving legal rulings. We willmention just two of these:
It is related that `Abd ar-Rahmn b. Ab Layl (a well-known student of the Companions) said:
I have met in this mosque one hundred twenty of
the Ansr. ot one of them would relate a hadth
without preferring that his brother did so in hisstead.
Consider that these were one hundred twenty of themost eminent Companions of the Prophet (), some ofwhom had been with the Prophet () for a substantialamount of time and acquired a vast amount ofknowledge. In spite of this, they did their best to avoidgiving legal rulings or even relating hadth, each one ofthem preferring to refer the matter to someone else.
Al-Drim relates that al-Sha`b was asked:
What did you all used to do when people inquired
with you about things?
Sunan al -Drim ().
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Al-Sha`b replied:
You have asked the right person this question. If
anyone was asked about a matter, he would refer the
matter to his colleague, who in turn would do thesame. This would go on until the question arrived
back at the man who had been asked in the first
place!
They only behaved in this manner because they fullyappreciated the seriousness of the task at hand. By givinga ruling on a matter, they were speaking on behalf ofAllah, and they knew that speaking on behalf of Allahwithout knowledge is a grave and most serious sin. Ibnal-Qayym emphasizes this point repeatedly in hisaforementioned work.
Sunan al -Drim ().Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al-`lamn ().
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CHAPTER THREE
What It Means to Speak on Allahs Behalf without
Knowledge
Allah says:
Say: The things that my Lord has indeed
prohibited are: licentious deeds whether open or
secret, sins, trespasses against rights, assigning
partners to Allah for which He has given no
authority, and saying things about Allah of which
you have no knowledge. [Srah al-A`rf :
After mentioning these forbidden things that all therevealed scriptures throughout time had prohibited,Allah concludes by saying:
and saying things about Allah of which you
have no knowledge.
This prohibition of speaking about Allah withoutknowledge comprises many things, among which are thefollowing:
*It is prohibited to speak without knowledge about
Allahs essence, His names, His attributes, and His
actions.
Sadly, this is done by many people. Without anyguidance or evidence, they glibly speak about Allahs
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divinity, His Lordship, His names, and His attributes.They also have no reservations when speaking about theUnseen. They freely discuss the Hereafter, Heaven and
Hell, and the Sirat (Bridge) that is suspended over theFire without having a scrap of evidence to their name!
Human reason can provide no guidance or evidence forsuch matters, for when the mind departs from its area ofexpertise and plunges into the world of the Unseen; itstarts to wander around in a bleak desert of delusionsand half-baked hypotheses. Look how the philosophersled themselves and others astray with their strenuous butfruitless mental exertions. How much benefit might they
have realized for themselves and others had they onlypursued more productive lines of reasoning? But theypreferred to waste their energies on futile pursuits thatwere of no avail to humanity, neither in their religion northeir worldly lives.
The proper role for reason in these matters is tounderstand the sacred texts, ascertain their meanings,accept them wholeheartedly, and act upon theirguidance. It is the epitome of arrogance for a person to
think that his rational faculties are the equal of divinerevelation. They think that with their weak minds theycan penetrate the world of the Unseen when their mindscannot even decipher all that goes on in the visible worldaround them!
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It is prohibited to speak without knowledge about whatAllah has decreed for the future. Some people speakabout what is going to happen in the future as if they
know what Allah intends. This is what the soothsayers,astrologers, palm readers, and other charlatans do, whofool the heedless in various ways.
It is prohibited to speak without knowledge aboutmatters of Islamic Law. There are those who speak aboutwhat is lawful and prohibited. They discuss what isobligatory and what is not. They do all this withouthaving any authority to do so.
What, you may ask, would this authority be? It is theBook of Allah and the authentic hadth of AllahsMessenger (). Even with this, not everyone is capable ofunderstanding and expressing the meanings of thesetexts. It takes a qualified and knowledgeable scholar todo so, someone who has the requisite knowledge andskills to discuss matters of Islamic Law.
Allah forbids us from speaking on His behalf withoutknowledge. He says:
Do not say for any false thing that your tonguesmay put forth This is lawful and this is
forbidden so as to ascribe false things to Allah. For
those who ascribe false things to Allah will never
prosper. [Srah al-ahl:
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He says:
Pursue not that which you have no knowledge,
for surely the hearing, the sight, and the heart all
shall be questioned about it. [Srah al-Isr:
About the polytheists, He says:
When they commit an indecent act, they say: We
found our fathers doing so. and Allah commanded
us thus. Say: Allah does not command what is
indecent. Do you say of Allah what you do not
know? [Srah al-A`rf :
Such were people who, if they were accustomed to
doing something and then were prohibited from doingso, would say: But Allah commanded us to do it. Allahcondemns this behavior of theirs and condemns them forsaying about Allah what they did not know.
Speaking on Allahs behalf without knowledge is asgrave sin. It is the root cause of polytheism. EveryMuslim, therefore, should be extra vigilant to avoidfalling into this sin. In the remainder of this treatise, I willmention different ways that people today fall into themistake of speaking on behalf of Allah and HisMessenger () without knowledge or guidance.
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CHAPTER FOUR
The Many Forms that Speaking on Allahs Behalf
without Knowledge Can Take
. Involvement of unqualified people in the various
branches of Islamic knowledge:
Many eloquent speakers and writers who have little orno proper religious knowledge are plunging blindly intoIslamic issues that they are not qualified to discuss. It isnot surprising that they rarely back up what they saywith evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah.
Some of these people actually most of them justifywhat they are doing by the fact that Islam has no clergyor priest class. Now, this is unequivocally true. Islamhas no specific class of people who act as priests andhave the exclusive right to interpret scripture. This isopen to everyone after they acquire the requisiteknowledge and are able to discuss matters of religion
with knowledge and with the proper evidences. It is,
however, not open to everyone in the sense of beingpublic domain for all and sundry to do in as they please.
Though Islam has no priests or monks, it does havescholars with whom others must consult when it comesto understanding the Qur'an and Sunnah. It is so strangethat people understand this concept when it comes to
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other matters of their life, but fail to realize it when itcomes to their religion.
For instance, the shelves in our bookshops these days
are crammed full with medical books. There arethousands of publishers around the world devoted topublishing medical books and journals. There are centersdevoted to producing, publishing, and disseminatingmedical research. There is a vast amount of material inprint, and this body of literature is being updatedeveryday, providing up to date information for thespecialists engaged in the medical profession.
Have the people, because of this, been able to dispensewith doctors? Have they stopped opening hospitals,clinics, and medical research centers? People are asacutely aware as ever of the need for these doctors andtheir services. Why is this? It is because all those printedpages are just not enough. A layman cannot benefit fromthem or even understand most of them. The most he canget out of reading such literature is some generalknowledge to help him converse with his doctor in anintelligent manner. Effective self-diagnosis and treatment
is still very much beyond his reach.
So how can we presume that since the texts of theQur'an, the Sunnah, and numerous scholarly works arereadily available in print, we can dispense with referringour religious questions to qualified scholars? How canwe think that every Muslim has the right to give his
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opinion about any Islamic issue he feels like, simplybecause he has come across a text that he thinksaddresses the issue of his concern?
We should recall that poor man who published in aleading periodical a lengthy article entitled: NotEverything in Sahh al-Bukhr is Authentic.He clearlyhad not done his homework before writing that article!One day, he came across a hadth from the Prophets wife`ishah in Sahh al-Bukhr that he misread in thefollowing manner:
The Prophet () ordered me to put on a waistcloth
and had intercourse with me during my
menstruation.
If he knew what he was reading, he would have knownthat the Arabic word yubshirun meant touch in theliteral sense and did not mean sexual intercourse at all.So he went on to declare the hadth weak andinauthentic. Why? Because, as he claimed, it went againstthe words of the Qur'an! He then went on to quote theverse:
They ask you concerning the womens menstrualcycles. Say: they are a hurt and a pollution, so keep
The hadth should read:The Prophet () ordered me to put on a waistcloth and then
caressed me during my menstruation. [Sahh al -Bukhr
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away from women in their menstrual cycle and do
not approach them until they are clean. [Srah al-
aarah
Those who make haste in these matters and neglectgoing back to the proper source works and references caneasily fall into this kind of mistake or one even morepathetic.
What is most amazing is how readily some people areto offer their opinions about the Prophetic hadth,deciding what is authentic and what is not, decidingwhat should be accepted and what should be rejected.They just as easily delve into maters of Islamic Law,giving verdicts left and right, declaring this lawful, thatforbidden, and something else obligatory. They do noteven bother to refer to the available commentaries on thehadth literature and the opinions of the scholars beforemaking the se declarations.
These same people have the gall to ridicule and mockothers. They claim that the students of religiousknowledge spend a day and night learning and are then
prepared to speak.We have begun to hear many of these people criticize
the young people who have studied Islam, saying thatthey have no insight and insinuating that they have onlystudied for a week or a month or a few days. Ironically,these critics have no hesitation in discussing the most
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serious and critical of Islamic issues without bothering todo even an hour of research to find out what the scholarshave said. It would have been far better if they had
actually spent a month or a week or a few days on thematter! In two places in the Qur'an, Allah says:
Ask the people of knowledge if you do not know.
[Srah al-ahl Srah al -Anbiy
The people of knowledge are those who havespecialized knowledge in their field. Therefore, IslamicLaw requires that people learn about a given matter fromthose who have such specialized knowledge. If the issuein question is a medical one, then the advice of a medicaldoctor must be sought out. If it is linguistic, then ascholar of language must be referred to. Likewise, if theissue at hand is an Islamic issue, then an Islamic scholarmust be asked. This is the way to follow Allahscommand:
Ask the people of knowledge
You do not go to a physician with a question aboutIslamic Law, nor do you go to a jurist with a medical
problem. Likewise, poets, writers, and journalists are notthe people to go to when looking to address Islamic legalmatters. Still, we must respect these people and give duecredit to the role that their professions play in society,cultivating its moral awareness, and developing thecharacter of its members. There are many people among
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them who are carrying out these tasks admirably, forwhich we must be thankful to Allah.
Allahs Messenger () chastised a man for giving a
religious ruling without knowledge. The story goes likethis: One of the Companions was participating in a battlewhen he suffered a serious head injury. Then he fell intoa state of major ritual impurity requiring that he performa bath before he could pray. He asked his comrades whathe should do. They told him that he must bathe. He didso and died as a result. The Prophet () found out aboutthis and said:
Curse them! They have killed him. Shouldnt they
have asked if they did not know? The only cure for
not knowing is to ask.
Here the Prophet () made it clear that someone whodoes not have sufficient knowledge must ask those whodo. It is their duty to ask as well as their right.
There is also the story of al-`Asf who committedfornication with a married woman. Al-`Asfs father went
Musnad Ahmad (). Sunan al -rim (). Sunan Ab wd(). Sunan Ibn Mjah () as related by Ibn `Abbs. It is supported
by another hadth related by Jbir b. `Abd Allah Sunan Ab wd
(). Snan al-raqyutn (). Sunan al-ayhaq (). Shaykh
Al-Albn deems the hadth to be authentic (sahh).
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to the people of knowledge and asked them about his
son. Then he went to the Prophet () and said:
I asked the people of knowledge and they told me
that my son must be given one hundred lashes with awhip and exiled for a year and that the married
woman must be stoned.
The Prophet () informed him that this was correct,
showing his approval for the fact that the man took his
problem to the people of knowledge and relied upon
their legal decision, even while he, the Prophet (), was
living among them.
This shows that the correct thing for the general publicto do in order to learn what is permissible and forbidden
in their religion is to go to the people of knowledge.
When we say that they should ask the people of
knowledge, we do not mean that they should close their
eyes and unquestioningly follow, especially when the
questioners are intelligent, literate, and educated people.
When a scholar gives a ruling on a matter, the questioner
has a right to discuss it with him, ask him for his proof,
and even present him with other opinions that he mighthave heard. What is important is to make sure that
discussions about Islamic issues are kept within their
proper framework. It should not be open to everyone to
speak without observing any guidelines or conditions
Sahh al-ukhr (). Sahh Muslim ().
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whatsoever and without the re being some way to
monitor what they say. It is a danger to have unqualified
people speak on Islamic matters. People cannot dispense
with the muft; the person specialized in Islamic Lawwho has the expertise and experience to give rulings on
Islamic legal matters.
. Claiming the ability to perform ijtihd
Another way people speak on behalf of Allah without
knowledge is to falsely claim to be qualified to engage in
ijtihd or independent juristic reasoning. Some people
are not content with just speaking on Islamic issues. Theymust go further and claim that they are fully capable of
engaging in independent juristic reasoning.
Now, we do not claim, as some have, that the doors to
ijtihd are closed. No one should ever say that we
belittle the value of the human mind. However, we also
do not say what some contemporary writers have said:
that the doors to ijtihd are broken and anyone, whether
qualified or not, can pass through them whenever and
however he likes!
There are some people who are not qualified to engage
in ijtihd who claim that they are. When they delve into
religious matters, they claim that they will be rewarded
by Allah for their efforts. They say that they will be
excused for their mistakes in judgment. These people are
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definitely among those who speak on Allahs behalf
without knowledge.
Let us look at some of the conditions that the scholars
have determined for a person to be a qualified muft,conditions that apply even for those mufts who are notqualified to engage in independent juristic reasoning.
. Islam: An unbeliever or apostate cannot be a muft.
He has no right to speak on matters of Islamic Law
until he accepts Islam, or, in the case of an apostate,
announces his repentance. Thereafter, such a person
can embark upon the required study to enter into such
an arduous and serious occupation.
. Legal Accountability: A person who cannot be held
legally accountable for his own actions cannot be a
mufteither.
. Upright Character: A person of bad character
cannot be a muft. It makes no difference whether hisdeficiency in character is in his words, his deeds, or his
beliefs.
These three conditions are a point of unanimous
scholarly agreement. There are, however, other
conditions about which there is some disagreement.
. Ijtihd: Some scholars are of the opinion that a
person who is unable to engage in independent juristic
reasoning cannot be a muft. This is to ensure that hewill not unwittingly give a ruling that goes against
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juristic consensus. The conditions for ijtihd are well
known, like knowledge of the Arabic language,
knowledge of jurisprudence, and knowledge of the
areas of juristic consensus. He must also be conversantin the different opinions of the scholars and their
arguments, so he will be able to weigh the merits and
demerits of their opinions.
. Legal aptitude: Many scholars require a muft tohave the intelligence and insight to deal effectively
with legal matters. A mufthas to be able to accuratelyassess the character of the people who come to them
seeking legal counsel and see through their plots and
deceptions. He has to know the appropriate means ofarriving at the truth.
Ahmad b. Hanbal, after mentioning similar conditions
for a qualified muft, insists that, before he embarks uponissuing Islamic legal rulings, a muft must also possesswithin himself the following five character traits:
. Purity of intention: Unless a person has a good
intention, neither he nor his speech will be
enlightened.. Knowledge, discernment, and dignity: The moral
virtues of the muft should be of such as to command
trust and respect. He should be an example for others
to follow and someone people would be willing to
emulate.
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. A grasp of the issues: He should have a solid
grounding in all facets of Islamic Law and the ability
to grasp all the pertinent details of the matters that he
investigates.. Financial security: He must not be dependent on
the people, otherwise they will devour him.
. People skills: He must know how to relate with
people, see through their deceptions, and recognize
the games that they play, so he does not fall victim to
their lies and schemes.
The leading jurists of the past used to be extremely
careful when giving rulings and they used to forbid thosewho had insufficient knowledge from doing so. Ibn al-
Qayyim writes:
"Our mentor (Ibn Taymiyah) was severe in his
condemnation of those people who hastily gave
Islamic legal rulings without knowledge. Once, I
heard him say
Some people asked me if I had been appointed as
an official to monitor the conduct of the mufts. I
replied that if there is someone appointed to monitor
and regulate the work of the baker and the chef, then
Refer to: Ibn al - Qayyim, I`lm al -Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al-`lamn
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there definitely should be someone appointed to
monitor the work of the muft.
It was the case back then, just like it is today, that for
each profession one of its practitioners was appointed tomonitor the conduct of the people engaged in it. So theyasked Ibn Taymiyah if he had been appointed by thegovernment to monitor the conduct of the mufts. Heresponded to them that he decided on his own to fulfillthis function and prevent people without the requisiteknowledge from issuing Islamic legal rulings.
It is, therefore, quite astounding to hear some peopletoday claiming that Ibn Taymiyah was of the opinion thateveryone, even the layperson, is allowed to engage inijtihd. How can they even make such a ludicrous claim,when Ibn Taymiyah used to actively prevent unqualifiedpeople from giving religious rulings? He would exposethose who tried to pass themselves off as scholars andpublicly denounce them.
If you try to object to what these people are doing, theyoften say: My brother, do not be rigid in something that
is flexible. Didnt Allahs Messenger (
) say:If someone gives a ruling that is correct, then he
receives a double reward, and if he gives a ruling
that is wrong then he receives a single reward.?
Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al -`lamn
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I will either get a reward or a double reward So why
are you getting so upset? And why do you fight with me
about my speaking, writing, and giving rulings on
important Islamic legal matters?This is how they often phrase their arguments The
truth of the matter is that the hadth they are using
applies only to people who fulfill the following two
conditions:
The person should have the ability to perform
ijtihd and possess the requisite knowledge and
expertise
The person must expend every effort ininvestigating the matter of concern
It is not enough that the issue may be well-known The
investigator must research the issue from all angles,
carefully weighing the strengths and weaknesses of the
different opinions that exist Any supporting research
that needs to be done must be carried out
In this way, every effort is made to ensure that the truth
is likely to be found If both of these conditions are
fulfilled, then the person will not be blameworthy He
will be rewarded for his efforts If he gets it right, he will
Sahh al -ukhr Sahh uslim elated from Amrb al-s
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receive a double reward If he makes a mistake, then asingle reward will still be his
As for a person who speaks without knowledge, he is a
sinner, even if he just happens to get the answer rightThis is because his answer, if it happens to be correct, isonly correct by virtue of coincidence and has nothing todo with the dictates of Islamic Law This is the meaningof the following hadth:
Whoever speaks about the Qur'an on the strength of
his own opinion and gets it right, he is wrong
If this hadth proves authentic, then it supports what we
are saying hereAnyhow, there is an established hadth wherein the
Prophet said:
Whoever issues a baseless legal verdict, then its
sin will be on the one who issues it
Therefore, a person who issues an Islamic legal rulingwithout knowledge and without valid evidence willcarry the full weight of the sin for those who follow him
in his errorSunan al -Tirmidh Al-Tirmidh declared this narration asstrange gharb Scholars such as al- ukhr and Ibn Hibbn havecriticized one of its narrators, Suhayl b Ab Hazmusnad Ahmad Sunan al-rim Sunan Ibn jah
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Allah says:
Who does more wrong than one who invents a lie
against Allah to lead astray people without
knowledge? Allah does not guide a people who dowrong [Srah al-Anm
Those who speak on matters of religion withoutknowledge are the most oppressive of wrongdoers Theyoppress themselves as well as others They wrong all theuslims and society at large They bear the sin of whatthey do as well as the sins of those they lead astray Onthe ay of equital, they will shoulder the burdens of allthose people who followed them in error Allah says:
That they may bear on the Day of Requital their
own burdens in full and also some of the burdens of
those without knowledge whom they misled Alas,
how grievous is the burden they shall bear! [Srah
al-ahl
Ibn al-Qayyim writes:
Whoever gives religious rulings to the people
without being qualified for the task is a recalcitrant
sinner Whoever holds a political post and affirms
this behavior is just as sinful
Ibn al-Jawz writes:
Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al -`lamn
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It is the duty of those in authority to prevent them
from behaving like this, as the Umayyads had
prevented them. Such people are like guides who do
not know the way or like a blind man pointing outthe direction of prayer. They are like bogus
physicians who ignorantly provide people with
medical treatment. They are actually worse than all
of those people. Since it is the responsibility of those
in authority to prevent unqualified people from
offering medical treatment to the people, then what
should be the case be for those who issue religious
rulings but do not know the Qur'an and Sunnah and
have no knowledge of the religion?
It is startling to see the double standards applied by
those who preside over the affairs of the Muslims, whosuppress the views of their peers and often restrict otherscholars from speaking about the religion, while leavingthe door open to every unqualified novice who wishes totry his hand at Islamic scholarship.
The jurists of the Hanaf school of law speak at lengthabout a type of muft they call the impudent muft.
Ab Hanfah writes: This impudent muft must berestrained. Why?
Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al -`lamn.
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because he plays games with Islamic legal rulings
by issuing them without having the ability to do so.
May Allah protect the Muslims from the evil of those
who bring destruction upon religious injunctions,who dress the hearts of wolves in the clothes of
sheep.
Naturally, it is possible for a student who is capable of
investigating an issue to do so. If he has the ability to
refer to the proper source works, compile and analyze all
the evidence, weigh the different opinions, and then
arrive at worthwhile conclusions, he may engage in
ijtihd to an extent. A person may be capable of engaging
in ijtihd in some issues and not others, but still there areconditions that must be met.
. elving into a specic issue on the presumption
that it is simple:
One way people fall into speaking on Allahs behalf
without knowledge is to justify themselves by arguing
that the matters they are speaking about are simple and
easy. It is amazing how fast people arrive at that
conclusion.Consider a group of people maybe ordinary people or
maybe so-called modern intellectuals. They sit around
talking. None of them have any deep knowledge of
Islamic Law that would enable them to arrive at any
worthwhile conclusions, yet they start talking about
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these matters anyway. Their discussions do not stay
confined to thinking out loud or group study. They go so
far as to form very specific opinions and very pointed
conclusions. If you try to talk to them about what theyare doing, they say to you:
These issues are simple. They do not require any
heavy deliberations.
It was a great gift of Allah when the great jurist Imam
Mlik said to a questioner the words: I do not know.
The man replied that the issue he asked about was a
simple one. This made Mlik very angry and he said:
There is nothing in matters of knowledge that canbe taken lightly. Havent you heard Allahs words:
Soon shall we send down to you a weighty word.
[Srah al-Muammil:
The rule to be followed is that issues of Islamic legal
importance are never to be taken lightly or brushed off as
easy. The person who speaks on these matters is
discussing the laws of Allah, so it is as if he is translating
the words of Allah and His Messenger (). It is just as ifhe is speaking on Allahs behalf. He is not pullingsomething out of his own pocket to present to the people,
Ibn al-Qayyim, I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al -`lamn ().
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so he has no right to take a laid -back attitude about whathe is doing.
. Assuming that the eistence of disagreement is an
argument in and of itself:
This is one of the most perilous ways a person can fallinto the error of speaking on Allahs behalf withoutknowledge. It is also one of the most common ways thatit happens in our day and age. Many people, especiallythose who possess specialized knowledge in certainunrelated fields, assume that the existence ofdisagreement on an issue is enough justification for themto select for themselves whichever opinion they like. Forexample, if there are two established, scholarly opinionson a certain matter one that a given thing is forbiddenand the other that it is permitted they automaticallyassume that it is permitted. Why? Because there are twoopinions on the issue, and they assume that the mereexistence of disagreement is a valid proof in and of itself!
The Muslims have been aversely affected by a goodnumber of these people who have been promoting this
idea to the general public. They give the people theimpression that they can choose whatever opinions suittheir personal whims and fancies, without any regard forthe evidence behind those opinions. Disagreement on amatter, for them, usually equates to permissibility. Thishas been observed by al-Khattb and al-Shtib who
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have written against those who take disagreement on amatter as an indication of its permissibility.
One of these people will turn to you and say: O my
brother! Do not make things difficult for people. Thisissue is one in which the scholars have disagreed withone another. So why do you condemn those who elect tofollow another opinion on the manner? Why do youinsist on arguing with them?
Such a person is clearly not basing his views onevidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah or on any researchinto which of the scholarly opinions is correct. Thisperson is not following a scholar that he relies upon inthese matters. If he had been doing any of this, his
behavior might have been acceptable.
One of them might say: Look, there is disagreementbetween scholars on this matter, so I will not accept whatyou say. If he then says that he is prepared to researchthe issue thoroughly until he arrives at the conclusionthat convinces him, then we have no objection to this provided that he does not try to arrive at an opinion
contrary to those of all the scholars and that he issincerely looking for the truth and not just following hiswhims and desires.
If, on the other hand, he says that he follows in thesematters a certain scholar whom he trusts, even beforeknowing that scholars view on a particular issue, then we
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also have no objection. As long as he is not versed inIslamic law, then he is doing nothing wrong by followingsomeone whom he trusts. He must, however, follow that
scholars opinions whether they are easy or difficult andwhether they conform to his fancies or not. On the otherhand, if he claims that he can just pick and choose whichscholarly opinions he feels like following, then what roleis left for Islamic law?
The decisive factor must be Islamic law, not personalinclination. Allah commands us when we fall intodispute to take matters back to the Qur'an and Sunnah.Allah says:
If you differ in anything among yourselves, refer it
to Allah and His Messenger. [Srah al- Nis:
The differing mentioned in the verse concerns mattersof religion. We are commanded in this verse to referthese matters in which we differ back to the Qur'an andSunnah Allah and His Messenger respectively.Allah makes the ruling clear regarding the one who doesnot accept the Qur'an and Sunnah as the decisive factor,
for He
says:If you differ in anything among yourselves, refer it
to Allah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allah
and the Last ay [Srah al- Nis:
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Referring matters of dispute back to the Qur'an andSunnah is what the believers do. As for unbelievers, theywill choose whatever they like. In other places in the
Qur'an, Allah negates the belief of those who do notaccept the Qur'an and Sunnah as their criteria. He says:
Have you not turned your attention to those who
declare that they believe in the revelations that come
to you and to those before you, but who wish to
resort to false judges in their disputes though they
were ordered to reject them [Srah al-Nis:
And He says:
They say: We believe in Allah and His Messengerand we obey. Yet even after that, some of them turn
away. They are not really believers. When they are
summoned to Allah and His Messenger so that he
may judge between them, some of them decline to
come. But if the right is on their side, they come to
him with all submission. [Srah al-Nr : -
If they find that one of the laws of Islam conforms totheir personal interests, they take to it wholeheartedly. If,
however, the law does not suit them, they reject it,saying: There is disagreement among scholars on thismatter. They accuse those who dare to object of beingsevere and overly strict.
We do not seek to veil the fact that scholars disagree,nor do we dismiss any scholars view in particular. What
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we do find objectionable, however, is the outrightdismissal of the basis upon which such matters are to bedecided. This basis is clearly stated by Allah when He
says:If you differ in anything among yourselves, refer it
to Allah and His Messenger.
Islam does not permit us to decide on these mattersaccording to our whims and inclinations. Quite thecontrary, Islam seeks to take people away from theirpersonal desires and bring them in accord with Allahslaws.
Allah says:And we put you on a straight way of religion, so
follow it and do not follow the desires of those who
know not. [Srah al-thiyah :
Likewise, Allah says:
And judge between them by what Allah reveals and
do not follow their vain desires. [Srah al-Midah:
Therefore, what Allah reveals is one thing and whattheir vain desires call towards is another. We arerequired to govern by what Allah has revealed, even if itmeans setting aside our personal interests.
A person, when he petitions a scholar for an answerregarding a particular issue, is already acutely aware of
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his own personal inclinations and desires, so we can restassured that he is not inquiring about these. In fact, heonly goes to the scholar to ask about the ruling of his
Lord. He is no more interested in that scholars personalpredilections than he is concerned about his own.Therefore, it is wrong for a muftto answer him that thereare two opinions on the matter and that he should pickwhichever one suits him. By doing this, the muft isactually referring the matter back to the questionersfancy. This is wrong, because the questioner came to himseeking the ruling of Allah and His Messenger ().
There is a very dangerous tendency that comes as an
outgrowth of this idea. This danger becomes clear whenwe look at the stages through which this way of thinkingtakes its adherents.
The first stage is for people to take the existence ofdisagreement on a matter as a way of freeing themselvesfrom the fetters of Islamic law. Whenever you tell themsomething, they merely have to say: The scholars are indisagreement on this matter. In this way they feelthemselves free from accountability. In order to establish
the existence of disagreement on a given issue, they willsometimes search far and wide to unearth the mostunusual and untenable opinions that have ever been held
by scholars. If you were to refer back to the older booksof Islamic law, you would often find that these opinions
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have long been decisively refuted and rejected by thescholarly community.
If we were to mention some of the strange opinions that
have at one time or another been held by some jurists, wewould shock our readers out of their senses. For example,I once read that one of the early jurists claimed that aperson who is heavily in debt to another and unable tomake payment can hand himself over in slavery to hisdebtor in lieu of his debt! Now, would anyone of us wantto advance this opinion?! Can such an opinion ever besupported by the Qur'an and Sunnah? In fact, it isdiametrically opposed to the fundamentals of Islamic
Law and to the established consensus of the jurists. Yet,someone in history once held this opinion, or at least thisopinion has been attributed to someone.
So, if we were to go ahead and accept every strange andunsubstantiated view ever held by someone, we wouldget nowhere. We would dismantle Islamic lawcompletely before we ran out of cases of disagreement.
This, though, is only the first stage. At this stage, they
still say that whatever is a matter of consensus among allthe scholars is binding. Only in matters wheredisagreement exists do they allow people to choose whatthey like. When they take this line of thinking to itsultimate conclusion, they arrive at the second stage.
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At this stage, these people say that the principle ofjuristic consensus is itself a matter of dispute. These samepeople, who just yesterday used to say that they accept
nothing but what is established by juristic consensus,today say that they need not bother with consensuseither, since there have been some scholars who did notaccept it. They might mention the scholars of the Dhhirschool of thought, who only accepted a very narrowdefinition of consensus, or some later scholars of
jurisprudence who rejected the principle of juristicconsensus outright.
If you then were to ask them: Arent you the ones who
used to always refer us back to juristic consensus? theywill reply: Yes, but the principle of consensus is itself indispute, so we are not bound by it. We do not have totake even those opinions as our own. We can, in fact,have our own opinions on these matters as well.
It is very easy to conceive of people arriving at thisstage of thinking, especially since few people make thedistinction between the scholars of the past andcontemporary scholars in matters of consensus. If a
modern scholar says something that goes against theconsensus of the scholars of the past, they see his opinionas proof that no consensus exists in the matter. Some ofthem advance for their arguments the opinions ofcontemporary figures like Muhammad Rashd Rid orMuhammad Shaltt.
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No doubt our present age has produced its share oferudite scholars who are of the highest caliber. Many ofthem, like Muhammad Rashd Rid, offer us some very
astute opinions.At the same time, they hold other opinions that are
unacceptable. The purpose of saying this is not to passjudgment over any of these scholars. The point I amtrying to make is that some people do not make thedistinction between the earlier scholars among whomconsensus was reached and a later scholar who comesalong and violates that consensus without realizing it.
A good example of this can be found in the book Fath al-Mun`im, which discusses issues found in Sahh Muslim.When the discussion of shaving the beard comes up and by no means is the issue of shaving the topic of ourdiscussion it says:
'Since shaving the beard has now become the
common practice in Eastern countries, so much so
that a good number of religious people have begun
to follow the custom of the general public from fear
of public ridicule, I decided to undertake etensiveresearch to see if I could find any precedent for the
permissibility of shaving, so that some of these
learned personages might have an option in a matter
which is unlawful by general agreement.'
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Look at the inconsistency here. He states clearly thatshaving the beard is unlawful by general agreement
but still goes on to say: I decided to undertake
etensive research to see if I could find any precedentfor the permissibility of shaving so he could give thosepoor wretches who feel ashamed in front of the generalpublic a justification for shaving.
Therefore, if we accept that we should neither discussnor reproach anybody in matters of disagreement, thenwe will invariably arrive at the principle of consensusitself, since it is also a matter wherein there isdisagreement. This leaves nothing that cannot be
overturned save fundamental issues of belief. Actually,not even these issues of belief are safe, since people candrag in divergent views from various misguided sects,like the Murji`ah, Jahmiyyah, Qadriyyah, Khawrij,
Mu`tazilah, and others.
From here, the religion becomes a very chaotic andunruly entity. It becomes impossible to say anythingconclusive about it. Nothing remains of it except thedubious notion that some people call the spirit of the
religion. I implore them to tell me what this spirit ofthe religion is! Where did they chance to find it? Wouldthat it were scholars who spoke on these matters for itwould be impossible for scholars to talk such rubbish then the problem would be trivial. But the situation is,indeed, how a poet once described:
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If only I were put to the test by a Hashemite. From the
tribe of `Abd al-Madn his uncles be;
What they threw at me wouldve been ever so slight,
But look at those who have tried me, just come and see!
We should take a look at the state of these people. Some
of them have lost any last vestige of logic and objectivity,
not to mention shame. If someone ventures to say to
them: My opinion about the matter is that it is
unlawful they have a habit of replying with: By God!
He is accusing the people of unbelief! He is casting them
out of Islam! Now where in the statement that
something is unlawful is there any implication ofunbelief?
A person could deem something unlawful while
maintaining that another person who engages in it is not
even a sinner, let alone an unbeliever, because that
person may have a different view on the matter. He may
see it as permissible based on valid evidence that he finds
convincing. For that reason he is not a sinner. So how do
these people come off saying that a person who declares
something unlawful is calling other people unbelievers?Where is the objective discourse? Where is the
argumentation in the best of manners? Where is the logic
in all of this? Where is the atmosphere of free enquiry
that they are so fond of mentioning?
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If you refer them to the words of Allah and his
Messenger (), they often say something like: Are youmore knowledgeable than so-and-so to have the
presumption of disagreeing with him?! Then if you referto the words of people of knowledge, they return with:You are a stagnant, blind follower, adhering to thoseopinions unyieldingly and defending them for their ownsake!
Should we not be taken aback by such contradictoryarguments? They go running after the opinions of thisone and that on the presumption of according respect tothe scholars, calling those who disagree recalcitrant and
irreverent. Then they turn around and reject the opinionsof the scholars by extolling the virtues of free thoughtand by purportedly opening the doors to ijtihd.Sometimes they call towards free enquiry and at othertimes they cut off their opponents voices and try to keepothers from hearing what they have to say. How long canthis unruly conduct be allowed to go on?
Another way people speak on Allahs behalf without
knowledge is by actively seeking out lenient rulings.
I should start by making clear what I do not mean bythis. I am not talking here about the concessions that existin Islamic law, like the permission given to a traveler to
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break his fast and combine his prayers and thepermission given to a sick person to break his fast. Allahloves his worshippers to take these concessions. The
Prophet () said:Aah v ha y p H cc
pacc a mch a H v ha y p H
cmmadm pacc
Allah says:
H ha ch y ad ha mpd dffc
y [ah a-Ha
Allah also says:
Aah wa a f y H d wa p
y dffcy [ah a-aaah
The Prophet () said:
Ma h ay D ma hm dffc
The Prophet () also said:
I hav b wh h ad
Musnad Ahmad (, ).Sahh al -Bukhr (). Sahh Muslim ().Musnad Ahmad m bu gd by upp
d bg gd gd
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lg Ilm p d
lxbly m ubl vy m d pl
d m Ilm yld d
um bu d m ju bppld ud ll d
pl Ilm L ll
l d lg
Svy g ldg A u l
ly l m
ju Suy l- d:
Knowledge, to us, is leniency coming from a
reliable source. Anyone can be severe.
ug lg l d y ppl
d m uld b m
y y mu b m lbl u m
m ly dd d
vy dd Evy b v bu
bd vyg m lg
A l b bl l g
dm d b ud d xd
ppl p d j My p All umb l ud
ld dy qu pbl dg
I my dl dl p
d Ilm L I v dud
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p pl W I d
mly mpz p Ilm y lg
Amg y Ilm m g y
pp All l d bybddg mg p by g
pmbl lv All Mg d
bu m uld ly b
bdd d lld
Ab S`d l-Kud l u All
Mg ppd m gv Kyb;
m m m vy g-quly yp d
All Mg d:
Are all the dates of Khaybar like this?
H pld: By Allah, no. O Messenger of Allah,
we trade two quantities of regular dates for one
quantity of these or three quantities of regular dates
for two quantities of these.
All Mg d m: Do not do this. Sell
your dates for money, and then use that money to
purchase the high-quality dates.
S l -u S Mulm
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W Pp pbd
bg d d pvdd lul
lv
W d d l plz m dm lgy pylgy
pl d vy ld quy l
v Ilm L W d ppl
pp vy u u m
pp Ilm ppv Alvly l
Ilm L mu ju
pl y v pp uddg
u y mu dd up
Fuly dm bd
y m x l Cul Ldg Ilm
Sl Ilm L Admy d umb
gz ugu ld
bgg bu m dd W p d
ll dvlp ul ll pblm g Mulm
b lvd lg Qu' d Su
O y vd
mpl ppl ll y p l l lg vld vd b up A
m m mu v y m: Yu my
p l l v mply
bu W p p d
bd mpl dgd Ilm
lgl d ud v p
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O I ud m ppl d
bld dm dm
xluvly m uy I d m: O
b d yu m dm my?y pld: W d p d ud
p Imm Amd pmbl m
dm my dd
A p y d b d: Dd y d
p ll dg
p Imm Amd? Dd y l
vd bg up vu p y uld
g m d dm? I y dd y
dd g g O d y mly
d up Imm Amd m bu m
p pld m pp
g
W uld l mpz l
Ilm L g d my
O l mg v m d
uddg l mp
l y ll gp ldg d g p mpl pu
Ilm L
Hv ppl mly y
p l lm llg yp
y I l l d m y m
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O l l ll dm m pmbl l
ll d ulul m l l
d gv m pmbl ll dl
g bdd l ldm pmbl Sm ppl pp l
l g m m d
y p l bdg dul
vy u ppl ju llg
p g u y gudg ppl d
m g u m plg l dul
y u p m lz
l d ubm L All
Sm ppl v All g mpl b ll g y
p vu l d dbu
b gl publ m
m p y
vy gd y l p ld
l-yq I g ll:
The judge Ism`l entered upon the Abbasid Caliph
al-Mu`tadid, who presented him with a book to lookover. The book was a compilation of easy rulings and
concessions that various scholars had arrived at in
error along with the evidence those scholars used to
support their claims. Upon looking over the book,
Isml said to the Caliph: The author of this book is
a heretic!
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The Caliph asked why. So the judge told him:
The statements that are mentioned in the book are
not represented properly. Those who gave the ruling
that temporary marriage is lawful did not considersinging or certain intoxicants lawful. There is no
scholar who has never made a mistake. Whoever
collects these mistakes together and acts upon them
loses his religion.
At this point the Caliph ordered the book to be
burnt.
A d m d m: H dply
d l-Mu`dd dp umb bl dy! I d y
Mulm v ug gd d
uddg gg gd
judgm ll b ll bu ug
ld ul ly u by All g ll
m
Ppl ldg ugu y v d
g g y ulg Sulym l-ym
y:
Al- Db Siyar A`lm al-Nubal
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If you were to act upon the concessions of every
scholar, you will have collected within yourself
every possible evil.
Ib `Abd l- p:
I know of no disagreement among the people of
knowledge that this type of conduct is forbidden.
Ib Hzm l-j Ib l-Sl d ldg
ju v d m g y m u
blu u mg l
pmbl Mulm m b
y p d W v
my u ldg ju Ib `Abd l-Ib Hzm l-j d Ib l-Sl g
bdd dg u
l l y y y
Al-Az` ldg ju Sy y:
He who acts upon the strange opinions of different
scholars has left Islam.
Adg l-`Az` p left Islam
v ug dpd m m ppl ldg
Al- Sb al-Muwfaqt Al- Sb al-Muwfaqt Al- Sb al-Muwfaqt
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ll ly b m md by l m
ud l ll v l u m
d I m z up m d
m md by d p m p ppl ldg y
ully llg?
Al-Az` l y:
We avoid five opinions that come from the scholars
of Iraq. We also avoid five opinions that come from
the scholars of Mecca.
H g m ulg
Amd b Hbl y:
If a man were to act upon the opinion of the
scholars of Kfah regarding intoxicating beverages
and the opinion of the people of Madinah regarding
singing, and the opinion of the people of Mecca
regarding temporary marriage, he would be a brazen
sinner.
Imm Amd m v ug
v ud p lImm Al-Az` dlg p
bully u u p ublv
Imm Ib Hzm d:
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There are people who see the religion as so trivial
and who have so little fear of Allah that they seek
out the opinions that conform to their vain desires.
They look for what is easy from each scholar,without even imploring into what Allah and his
Messenger have said.
Cg vl qu
m u ll:
It causes people to disdain and think little of the
religion. lg bm l- Sb db :
a liquid flowing without a course.
ll m lg g b y d d y:
It will lead people to eschew the Qur'an and
Sunnah as sources of Islamic Law.
W mu qu ppl u Qu' d
Su p m mg
vy Mulm mu dm All y:
But no, by your Lord, they can have no faith until
they make you (O Muhammad) the judge in all
disputes between them and find in their souls no
resistance against your decisions, but accept them
with full conviction. [Srah al-is:
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. oing along with circumstances:
A y ppl p bl All u
ldg by gg lg um
um d ulul m y ddg mg d x ul y
md m m I d m
mu v p Ilm L
Ppl ly pud by um Ppl
ully l b gm ud m
d my m y
p y dl
mg bm dpd mmpl d
pd by ppl bm dul m y m: bdd by All vd
umbl p g g
y ju dl bdd g
pmbl H my v v ml
dg m g y ppl
b dub um x
pul lu v ppl My l lpl
g mpv u m m plg
All u lg lpl mppl yldg um m
y
W mu : d y
Ilm L? N dub gz y
Ilm ulg bu y mu
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b pply bld N ly vyg
p l d ully y I Ilm
L y dg ppl d
d mu b dMv y bld
mu b dld pp p A ulg bd
y mu b xdd byd ppl
d d dly mu b md uvlly
pplbl
Ppl ll bu v y uld
gv y uld l y dl
ul du lul md d
b m d Allgv d mg vy ll v d
m d dlv b
lg y juy mmg I y
p du ml All? I All
gg m Dy Ru bu
ud b d d m l y
All gg m bu lly d
umbguuly d Qu' d Su?
All y:
On that day, He will call them and say: What was
the answer that you gave to the Messengers? [Srah
al-Qasas:
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All gg u: What was the
answer that you gave to the Messengers? pv u
m lg m u pmbl
ubl vd llg L y l d y m dpd ul
p d gv u y ju l
m y dl pmbl
W mu d dm bdd
gz gg d py All lp u
d y uld l y d
m d u y l d
ll l l py x g ll m
lg d d l mv blgm u y W uld v u py
mv m u ppl l y dl
lul
L u d J Il I my
b u du umb Mulm
dy pbl mvg m m Mulm ld
S y g ll m u ll
mv J m ld y v l ju
All Mg ld u y uld O d uld b m u u
J dg d pl u m
y Pl bu pbl dg
yg bu I vd u gm
y dg uld b mg J
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up u ld Ilmlly lgm
uld b g l-dp
W mu d dm u bly d
Il x bu dl u g W mu gz Il dg
m bugl v mbdy u
d g bu W d
u y? H y ml dy
ll u d u b H d
ll v: u yu bu yu
g upp E W
Sm ppl v mudd d
gzg um xu g
l Ilm y mp d Ib l-
Qyym Y Ib l-Qyym d du
Ilm ulg g bu lg
bu y y udd
muddg d l xmpl
pp ppl vd
Ilm L d mlgy Ilm L
dlvg
Ib l-Qyym :
Islamic rulings change with changing customs,
circumstances, and with time and location, and in
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consideration of the intention of the one engaged in
the matter.
W y v llud by xmpl A
muftmy gv ulg uy d dulg b d umy
p u H ? F xmpl
u d md gld
d dm md lv I
uy d qul g dm
qul dm l d qul lv
dm I m ud blg py y
d bu ly dm vlbl uld
muftv ul? I uy d qul dm uld bvuly v
ul m mu py u dm Hv
m bug m uy
d qul lv dm muftuldul m mu py u dm ulg
d g d vyg uy
dd d u
xmpl: I Ilm L dv u
dl m ubd I um m u ubd dv
y : Yu xud I ld Njd
Ib l-Qyym I`lm al-Muwaqqi`n `an Rabb al -`lamn
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v u p u I Njd
ld dy m dd dv
uld y : I l yu Kpg md
mg m Njd dy bump ubd dlly d bg pd u
ml d y: Yu xud Wuld
ybdy g md dl dvd? O
u ! I uld b ju ludu ud
Njd m plyully gb by d d
u l g d m: Rl m d
blg d m dl dv!
yp ulg g d
um ld Al p dv ulg
my u xmpl m u
dv mum d ml m
L u d l xmpl I m Ab u
d halb ud b ml d u ml Im uy dl: I by All I
ll d halb ll v b mb ml d u ml d p I
u ml lld halb d u ml lld laban p mg m uld ll b bl d u ml
Su ulg vy d b um
ppl m pg d
g ju Ab H gv ulg
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p uld pu u v ly
m u Wy? u b `Iq
u bul dl m g
m ug H ud dd u ulg d d g m u
Wy? u um d gd d ppl
d buldg u d yl m
vyg z d p I uly dd l
Ilm g? N ulg v gd du
gg um Ib l-Qyym
m : Islamic rulings change with
changing customs
p u u v Ilm L u pp
l g p bd jd A l
uld ulg dy mg y
bdd ggg u d
udy g p d ulg
bm l m ug
bdd ully pmbl Ilm L Sm
ppl ulg gg
gg um g ug mppl l v bu
m W l g
p bd jd mly v
p gg md ggg jd
m m Smg my
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bm l l d
b H my mg
pmbl dy dd mpmbl
b d v v I pbly v m lu m p
ulg ppl vd ld up
ulg
l l d v Cmp
m gd ulg y gv
qu d d ld v O m
l uld ly g v
m bu uld d mpl
m um g l g md qu d
ulg g u gg
um
I qu lg m ppl g
m ud mu
d m yg: A xmpl Ilm
ulg gg p m ppl ug
m mg d dy bdy
m l j udm du pup b F ll
v b l pd ulg
mg? pbly m
mmb gl publ ug
mg y ud m d
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p ldg pdd m
u dv ul mp
mg qu mg l A p lm
Ilm l v dld b m mg ju pg u l d ddg
m
W d m l yg: A xmpl
Ilm ulg gg u lvy Ppl
ud v lv p d l
dld lvy ulul N u
N l v dld lvy ulul
m lvg m Ilm ulg
b ud Qu' d Su I lpm I v m p
u d d
I Ilm p ju b pud d lvd
Slvy m ul d y
Mulm dl pv
u lvy pp Ilm L lul
lvy m v b d
v b dpud vd d
x dy vu bu lv d lv ud
dm d m ulg m
gd v Qu' m l
d bdg d v v b bgd N
pbl xpugg m m x Qu'
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Fm ll lud pu
um m mpllg y ppl
y d l Ilm d m m m
publ lg lly y All
Mg m u d l lg
H m m g y d m g
dul All pld duly lg
ju v g ppl l: I m
bm d l bm m lxbl d
Dul um qu ly I uld
lgy du dl ppl ull
W mp mpz v ppl d mply u
um d g ulv m
l Ilm
ly ulg g um
ppl ulg g
um A ulg bug u by All d
H Mg y b gd ud y
um
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COCLUSIO
Rlg publ dm vy d
y pl I mg All d
u ppl ldg y ppl
Qu' d Su ppl
pv lg m bg upd by xm
d dv
Ilm g gg g ll
All g u uu I ll
pvd u gu l pu
ldg p y ll b l pbl
yg u du vyg ldg d
pvdg ulg u u y ll b
bl pp ld v ll
d gudd by ldg
I All bl Mulm l pbl
pmg jd ll y d
dd Ilm I All gv myl
d yu my d d My All xl
m H Pp d d m d
uld d mp m vydgy g