Tell us about ijtihad and taqlid? Was taqlid present in the time of the Companions and the Tabi'un, with some of them following others?
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The questioner : The listener is also from Pakistan. He says, O honorable Shaykh, tell us about ijtihad and taqlid. What is taqlid and what is ijtihad? Was taqlid present in the time of the Companions and the Tabi'un, with some of them following others, or not?
The Shaykh : Yes. Ijtihad is exerting effort to reach a ruling in Islamic sacred law from the evidences of the Shari'ah: the Book, the Sunnah, scholarly consensus, and valid analogical reasoning. This is ijtihad. It is well known that one is not qualified for ijtihad unless he knows its methods and has knowledge and understanding, so that he can derive rulings from the evidences I mentioned.
As for taqlid, it is accepting the statement of a mujtahid without knowing his evidence, rather following him in trust of his word. In reality, taqlid has existed since the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). Indeed, Allah the Exalted says:[An-Nahl 16:43] There is no doubt that among the people, from the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to our present time, there are those who cannot reach the ruling on their own due to their ignorance and deficiency. The duty of such a person is to ask the scholars. Asking the scholars necessitates accepting what they say, and accepting what they say is taqlid. Therefore, we say: whoever cannot reach the truth on his own, let him reach it by following others among the scholars whom he was commanded to ask if he is not a scholar. But if a questioner asks, "Whom should I follow?" the answer is that it is obligatory for you to follow the one you see as closest to the truth. The scholars are like doctors; they are doctors of the hearts. If one of us falls ill and there are many doctors in the town, he will choose the one who is most skilled and knowledgeable about medicine, drugs, and treatment. No one can go to a deficient doctor when there is one more skilled than him, except in cases of dire necessity. So it is with taqlid: choose the one you see as closest to the truth because he is more knowledgeable and more mindful of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). In this case, you have obeyed the command of Allah the Exalted in His saying: [An-Nahl 16:43] Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you. Are there conditions for the mujtahid or for ijtihad, O honorable Shaykh?
The Shaykh : The scholars mentioned conditions for ijtihad, the most important of which is that a person must have knowledge and aptitude.
The questioner : Very well.
The Shaykh : Knowledge of the evidences of the Shari'ah and an aptitude that enables him to derive rulings from their evidences. For how can one be a mujtahid in something he has no knowledge of if he has no knowledge of the Shari'ah? And one who has knowledge but lacks the aptitude to derive rulings is like one who has a sword in his hand but does not know how to kill with it. It is necessary for a person to have knowledge and aptitude. If a person has knowledge and aptitude, he becomes one of the people of ijtihad. There is no difference between being a mujtahid in general ijtihad or in specific ijtihad. Some people may be a mujtahid in a specific issue, knowing its evidences and able to apply them, but in other issues he is ignorant, in the position of an unlettered person. There are students of knowledge who have knowledge in matters of worship, enabling them to exercise ijtihad, but they have no knowledge in transactions. Or they may have knowledge in contractual transactions such as sales, leases, pledges, endowments, and the like, but no knowledge in matters of inheritance and the law of inheritance shares. In any case, ijtihad can be partial, so a person may be a mujtahid in one issue or one chapter of knowledge, but not in other issues or chapters. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : Yes. Ijtihad is exerting effort to reach a ruling in Islamic sacred law from the evidences of the Shari'ah: the Book, the Sunnah, scholarly consensus, and valid analogical reasoning. This is ijtihad. It is well known that one is not qualified for ijtihad unless he knows its methods and has knowledge and understanding, so that he can derive rulings from the evidences I mentioned.
As for taqlid, it is accepting the statement of a mujtahid without knowing his evidence, rather following him in trust of his word. In reality, taqlid has existed since the time of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them). Indeed, Allah the Exalted says:
So ask the people of the message if you do not know.
فاسألوا أهل الذكر إن كنتم لا تعلمونSo ask the people of the message if you do not know.
فاسألوا أهل الذكر إن كنتم لا تعلمونThe questioner : May Allah reward you. Are there conditions for the mujtahid or for ijtihad, O honorable Shaykh?
The Shaykh : The scholars mentioned conditions for ijtihad, the most important of which is that a person must have knowledge and aptitude.
The questioner : Very well.
The Shaykh : Knowledge of the evidences of the Shari'ah and an aptitude that enables him to derive rulings from their evidences. For how can one be a mujtahid in something he has no knowledge of if he has no knowledge of the Shari'ah? And one who has knowledge but lacks the aptitude to derive rulings is like one who has a sword in his hand but does not know how to kill with it. It is necessary for a person to have knowledge and aptitude. If a person has knowledge and aptitude, he becomes one of the people of ijtihad. There is no difference between being a mujtahid in general ijtihad or in specific ijtihad. Some people may be a mujtahid in a specific issue, knowing its evidences and able to apply them, but in other issues he is ignorant, in the position of an unlettered person. There are students of knowledge who have knowledge in matters of worship, enabling them to exercise ijtihad, but they have no knowledge in transactions. Or they may have knowledge in contractual transactions such as sales, leases, pledges, endowments, and the like, but no knowledge in matters of inheritance and the law of inheritance shares. In any case, ijtihad can be partial, so a person may be a mujtahid in one issue or one chapter of knowledge, but not in other issues or chapters. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, O honorable Shaykh.