Ruling on the principle: The legislation of those before us is legislation for us, unless our legislation comes with a contrary ruling
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned in his book *Istidra' al-Sirat al-Mustaqim* a principle, which is: "The legislation of those before us is legislation for us, unless our legislation comes with a contrary ruling." The commentator at the bottom of the margin stated that this principle is not established except through derivation and independent legal reasoning, and he added, saying that this principle gives the impression that our legislation needs to be supplemented. So, what is your esteemed opinion on this? This is a settled matter. When we say "legislation," if Allah mentions it to us, or if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) mentions it, is it considered legislation for us? If there is no prohibition against it, or is a new legislative command required? The middle position and the correct position is what Shaykh Taqi al-Din and others mentioned: that it is legislation for us unless our legislation comes with a contrary ruling, meaning unless it is abrogated. Because if our legislation comes with a contrary ruling, it is no longer valid. As for what our legislation does not come with a contrary ruling, it remains, because this means approval; it means that our Shari'ah approved what preceded in the previous Shari'ahs.
Answer:
This is the middle position. As for this criticism mentioned by the commentator, it is questionable. Does our Shari'ah need to be changed? This is not a matter of change. We say that the entire matter belongs to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. The One who legislated the previous Shari'ahs is the One who legislated the Shari'ah that is appropriate. And He is the One who commands and prohibits, Glorified and Exalted is He. So, if He did not prohibit a previous legislation that He related to us and approved, and did not prohibit it, then this is a command from Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, to continue with it. This is not a matter of likening Allah to creation, but rather this is a matter of likening Allah to creation, as you have misunderstood. In any case, you write in the comments. I am warning our brothers, especially those who read books and write comments on them, I am warning them not to rush in their comments until they understand the intended meaning, and understand the words of the scholars, and become proficient in understanding the texts. They rush to comment immediately; when someone asks about something or consults on something, they go and comment immediately and rush. Because I have seen people who commented and later regretted their comments, because they rushed.
Imam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned in his book *Istidra' al-Sirat al-Mustaqim* a principle, which is: "The legislation of those before us is legislation for us, unless our legislation comes with a contrary ruling." The commentator at the bottom of the margin stated that this principle is not established except through derivation and independent legal reasoning, and he added, saying that this principle gives the impression that our legislation needs to be supplemented. So, what is your esteemed opinion on this? This is a settled matter. When we say "legislation," if Allah mentions it to us, or if the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) mentions it, is it considered legislation for us? If there is no prohibition against it, or is a new legislative command required? The middle position and the correct position is what Shaykh Taqi al-Din and others mentioned: that it is legislation for us unless our legislation comes with a contrary ruling, meaning unless it is abrogated. Because if our legislation comes with a contrary ruling, it is no longer valid. As for what our legislation does not come with a contrary ruling, it remains, because this means approval; it means that our Shari'ah approved what preceded in the previous Shari'ahs.
Answer:
This is the middle position. As for this criticism mentioned by the commentator, it is questionable. Does our Shari'ah need to be changed? This is not a matter of change. We say that the entire matter belongs to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. The One who legislated the previous Shari'ahs is the One who legislated the Shari'ah that is appropriate. And He is the One who commands and prohibits, Glorified and Exalted is He. So, if He did not prohibit a previous legislation that He related to us and approved, and did not prohibit it, then this is a command from Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, to continue with it. This is not a matter of likening Allah to creation, but rather this is a matter of likening Allah to creation, as you have misunderstood. In any case, you write in the comments. I am warning our brothers, especially those who read books and write comments on them, I am warning them not to rush in their comments until they understand the intended meaning, and understand the words of the scholars, and become proficient in understanding the texts. They rush to comment immediately; when someone asks about something or consults on something, they go and comment immediately and rush. Because I have seen people who commented and later regretted their comments, because they rushed.
Source
قاعدة "شرع من قبلنا شرع لنا" — alfawzan.live
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.