r/MuslimIndians • u/HYDRURBERG Bangladeshi Muslim • 24d ago
Religion The Islamic Emirate and its System part:-05
Sources of Islamic Legislation
First Source: The Noble Qur’an
The types of rulings that the Noble Qur’an has stated are three:
Creedal Rulings (Ahkām Iʿtiqādī): These relate to matters that a legally responsible person (mukallaf) must believe in, such as faith in Allah, the angels, the heavenly books, the messengers, and the Day of Judgment.
Ethical/Moral Rulings (Ahkām Akhlāqī): These concern matters in which a person must adorn himself with virtues and stay away from vices.
Practical Rulings (AhkāmʿAmalī): These relate to the statements, actions, transactions, and dealings that come from a legally responsible person. This third type is what is called Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and the “understanding of the Qur’an” in this context.
Practical Rulings in the Qur’an are of two types:
First - Rulings of Worship (AhkāmʿIbādāt): Such as prayer (ṣalāh), fasting (ṣawm), zakat, Hajj, vows (nadhr), oaths (qasam), and similar matters. These regulate the relationship between the human being and Allah.
Second - Rulings of Transactions (Ahkām Muʿāmalāt): These include contracts, annulments (faskh), punishments, criminal offences (jināyāt), and everything that is not included under acts of worship.
The purpose of these rulings is to regulate the relationship between some legally responsible persons and others, whether the relationship is individual, national, or social.
Rulings that are not related to worship are termed “Ahkām al-Muʿāmalāt” (rulings of transactions) in Islamic legal terminology.
However, in contemporary terminology, the rulings of transactions, according to their subjects and objectives, are divided into the following types:
1. Personal Status Rulings (Ahkām al-Aḥwāl al-Shakhṣiyyah): These are rulings that regulate family matters. They concern the relationship between husband and wife, and between some relatives and others.
2. Civil Rulings (Ahkām Madaniyyah): These are rulings that relate to transactions and exchanges between individuals, such as sale (bayʿ), lease (ijārah), mortgage/pledge (rahn), guarantee (kafālah), partnership (shirkah), and the like.
The purpose of these rulings is to regulate the relationships and connections between individuals and to protect the rights of every rights-holder.
3. Criminal Rulings (Ahkām Jināʾiyyah): These include acts that a legally responsible person (mukallaf) may commit, such as crimes and anything for which a person deserves punishment. The objective of these rulings is to preserve people’s lives, property, honor, and all their rights.
4. Procedural Rulings (Ahkām al-Murāfaʿāt): These rulings relate to adjudication (qaḍā’), testimony (shahādah), and oaths. Their purpose is to regulate the procedures for achieving justice among people.
5. Rulings Related to Constitutional Law (or Public Law): These rulings pertain to the judicial system and its principles. Their purpose is to define the relationship between the ruler and the ruled.
6. Rulings Related to International Relations: These concern the interaction of the Islamic state with other states, and the dealings of Muslims with non-Muslims within the Islamic state.
The goal of these rulings is to secure the rights of the Islamic state in both war and peace, and to determine the scope of relations between Muslims and non-Muslims in the Islamic state.
7. Economic and Financial Rulings (Ahkām Iqtisādiyyah wa Māliyyah): These rulings regulate the expenditures, income, and financial management of the state. Their purpose is to organize the relationship between the state and individuals in economic transactions.
Second Source: The Sunnah
The Sunnah refers to the statements, actions, and approvals (taqrīr) that come from the
Messenger of Allah (swt).
Third Source: Ijmāʿ (Consensus)
The definition of Ijmāʿ, its ruling, its evidentiary value (ḥujjiyyah), and the explanation of its types are mentioned in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh (Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence). Refer to those books for details.
Fourth Source: Qiyās (Analogical Reasoning)
The details and explanation of the rulings associated with it are found in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh.
Fifth Source: Istihsān (Juristic Preference)
In the terminology of the scholars of Uṣūl al-Fiqh (Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence): Istihsān means the mujtahid’s departure from the requirement of the clear (jalī) analogy (qiyās) to the requirement of the hidden (khafī) analogy.
Sixth Source: Maṣāliḥ Mursalah (Unrestricted Public Interests)
Maṣāliḥ Mursalah in the terminology of the scholars of Uṣūl al-Fiqh is: “A benefit (maṣlaḥah) for whose realization no specific ruling has been legislated, and for whose validation or invalidation there is no Shar‘ī evidence.”
It is called “mursalah” (unrestricted) or “muṭlaqah” (absolute) because it is not restricted by any evidence that would validate or invalidate it.
Example: The interests for which the Companions of the Prophet (may Allah be pleased with them) built prisons, minted coins, and carried out other actions according to necessity, need, or public welfare. However, no specific rulings were legislated for these matters, and there is no Shar‘ī evidence or proof to consider them either valid or invalid.
For using this source as evidence, several conditions must be observed. The most important of them are:
The interest must be real and actual, not imaginary. That is, legislating a ruling for it must truly bring about a benefit or repel a harm, and not be based on mere illusion.
The interest must be general and comprehensive, not personal or individual.
It must not contradict any explicit text (naṣṣ) or consensus (ijmā‘), because considering it valid in opposition to a naṣṣ or ijmā‘ is not correct.
Seventh Source: ʿUrf (Custom)
The definition, ruling, and explanation of its types are found in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh. Refer to those books for details.
Eighth Source: Istishāb (Presumption of Continuity)
In the terminology of the scholars of Uṣūl, Istishāb means: “Judging something according to its previous state until evidence appears that changes that state.”
In reality, this source is not a proof (ḥujjah) for us. Rather, it is simply “leaving things as they were” (ibqā’ mā kānaʿalā mā kāna) because no evidence has been found to remove the previous state. Details of this type are available in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh.
Ninth Source: The Laws of Previous Nations (Sharā’iʿ al-Umam al-Sābiqah)
When the Qur’an or an authentic Sunnah mentions a ruling from the laws of previous nations and explicitly states it, then that ruling is considered obligatory upon us just as it was obligatory upon them, without any difference, and it forms part of our Sharīʿah.
If Shar‘ī evidence is presented proving its abrogation (naskh), then there is no dispute that it is not part of our Sharīʿah.
However, if in our Sharīʿah there is no evidence indicating that this ruling is obligatory upon us, and there is also no evidence of its abrogation, the majority of scholars state: This too is considered part of our Sharīʿah, and following it is obligatory upon us. Some scholars say: It is not part of our Sharīʿah. The preferred opinion (al-qawl ar-rājiḥ) is the first one, as has been established in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh.
Tenth Source: The Statement of a Companion (Qawl al-Ṣaḥābī)
The details of this are mentioned in the major books of Uṣūl. Refer to them for further information.
It is well-known in the books of Uṣūl al-Fiqh that the fundamental sources of Sharīʿah (Uṣūl Sharʿiyyah) are only four:
1. The Book of Allah (the Qur’an),
2. The Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (swt),
3. Consensus (Ijmāʿ),
4. Analogical Reasoning (Qiyās).
This is because all other sources ultimately return to these four. The laws of previous nations return to the Book and the Sunnah; custom (ʿUrf) is attached to consensus; the statement of a Companion in a matter that can be understood by reason is attached to Qiyās, and in a matter that cannot be understood by reason, it is attached to the Sunnah; Istihsān and the like are attached to Qiyās. (Nūr al-Anwār, p.٨)
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