The presumptive consensus: Is it binding like the definitive?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, you mentioned that consensus is definitive and presumptive. Is the presumptive binding like the definitive?
The Shaykh:
Yes, and even if it is presumptive, it is obligatory to act upon it, unless a dissenting opinion appears. As long as no dissenting opinion has appeared, it appears that they are in consensus. As long as no dissenting opinion has appeared, it appears that they are in consensus. And we have nothing but the apparent. But it is not said that this is definitive. Yes.
The questioner:
What follows from this matter regarding the patch and the earth?
The Shaykh:
In terms of reality, in terms of reality only. But in terms of deriving evidence, there is no doubt that consensus is used as evidence, even if it is presumptive. Yes.
Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, you mentioned that consensus is definitive and presumptive. Is the presumptive binding like the definitive?
The Shaykh:
Yes, and even if it is presumptive, it is obligatory to act upon it, unless a dissenting opinion appears. As long as no dissenting opinion has appeared, it appears that they are in consensus. As long as no dissenting opinion has appeared, it appears that they are in consensus. And we have nothing but the apparent. But it is not said that this is definitive. Yes.
The questioner:
What follows from this matter regarding the patch and the earth?
The Shaykh:
In terms of reality, in terms of reality only. But in terms of deriving evidence, there is no doubt that consensus is used as evidence, even if it is presumptive. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 34 من 36/شرح العقيدة الواسطية (مع الأسئلة)/سبيل السابقين الأولين/صالح الفوزان/العقيدة/كبار العلماء — youtube.com (1:10:28)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.