Is it permissible to follow the scholars in preferring one opinion over another in matters of scholarly disagreement?

The questioner : He says:The questioner : Some young people lack the drive to study the scriptural evidence

The Shaykh : What, what?

The questioner : They lack the drive to study the scriptural evidence for certain issues, especially those that are disputed.

The Shaykh : Especially?

The questioner : Disputed ones. He said: So he refers to the opinion of one of the scholars of the Ummah whose opinion he feels at ease with. Is there anything wrong with this action?

The Shaykh : Yes, the reality is that this issue requires detail. A person who is unable to reach knowledge of the truth on his own must follow the scholars, by the command of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said: When? And they were commanded to ask them in order to take their legal rulings. As for the person who has advanced in knowledge and has taken a large share of it, it is obligatory for him to refer to the primary sources, which are the Book and the Sunnah, to the extent he is able. If it becomes difficult for him after research and independent legal reasoning, then at that point he follows a scholar. This is the detail in this issue. As for the lazy person who says, "I am not troubling myself by seeking the evidence," he is deprived, except for the one I mentioned first: the one who is unable to do it on his own, such as a young person who has just started learning, or a layperson. In that case, he has no option but to follow a scholar.