Reflections Taqlid and Ijtihad Tiihii J. a1 Wlwiini The Lexical and Technical Meanings of lbqlid The lexical meaning and structure of the word “taqlid” clearly indicate the negative connotations surrounding its technical meaning as well as its retention of much of the literal sense. The Arabic root q-ld comes from qaM, which means ”to twist or to twine.” As most necklaces were twined or braided, the word came to refer to necklaces, and the active form of the verb (taqlid) to putting on a necklace. An example from early Arabic poetry uses taqlid in this sense: They placed on her (round her neck) amulets, To ward off evildoers and enviers. The same word is also used to refer to the marking made around the neck of an animal destined for sacrifice during hajj. In addition, a camel is said to be “necklaced” (muqallad) when a rope is placed over its head and around its neck. In a less literal usage, this word has the sense of placing responsibility on an individual, as in “The sultan charged (q-I-d) someone with a duty,” as charging a person in such a manner resembles putting a necklace around hidher neck. Here, the one who accepts the responsibility is as one who wears a necklace.‘ The c l a s s i c a l ~ u h i ’define taqlid as one’s ”acceptance of another‘s madhhQb without knowing the other person’s justification.” (In this definition, Madhhab includes everydung that fills within the purview of ijtihad.2) Although the&&’ have defined the term in different ways, all agree that it signifies the acceptance of and acting upon another‘s word without trying to substantiate it. In other words, T i h i J. al “*-is a member of the Fish Academy of the Organization ofthe Islamic Conference, chairman of the Fiqh Council of North America, and president of the International institute of Islamic Thought in Herndon, Virginia. ‘Entries in the dictionaries of classical Arabic may be consulted as follows: a1 M i s b ? z , 704; a1 Mujam a1 &sit, II,706; Eij a1 ‘Uriis, II, 474-6; and M u f m d t a1 Rlghib, 4U. 2For details of the various definitions put forward by the classical&&’, see: al Jurj&-, Ta’rifit, 57; al h i d , all?tkiim, IV, 221; al GhaziIli, a1 Mus{asfa, II, 387 al Mawardi, Aahb a1 Q+, I, 269; and a l ShawkslnI, Zrshidal Fu!uil, 234. al ‘AlwiinI: Taqlid and Ijtihad 235 insight ( b q h h ) , a condition which causes them to be troubled by doubt when confronted by anything they cannot understand. Undoubtedly, an ignorant muqullid (lit. follower), unaware of the proof or justification cited by the one hehhe imitates, is part of the rabble mentioned by Mi, for all he/she knows about Islam is that a certain respected imam said this or did that - hehhe does not even know whether the imam’s opinion was correct or not. As a result, the follower is neither lighting his/her path with the light of knowledge nor is he/she standing on solid ground, because he/she does not know what is right and what is wrong. In a prophetic hadith, the Prophet said: ‘Allah will not strip away knowledge from your breasts all at once. Rather, He will strip it away by talung away (through death and by slow degrees) the scholars. People will then take as their leaders those who are ignorant (of the Shari‘ ah). When they are questioned, they will respond without really knowing the answers. In this way, they will go astray and lead others astray with them.”b It was related that Ibn Abbls once said: “Woe to those who follow the mistakes of the learned!” When asked what he meant, he replied: “When a scholar says something based only on his own opinion and then abandons it when he finds that someone more knowledgeable than he has given another opinion based on something related from the Prophet; while the person who asked for the opinion of the first scholar has gone away and knows nothing of the opinion based on the Prophet’s hadith.” It was related that Ibn Mas’iid said: “Do not take the opinion of another in matters of religion so that if he believes you believe, and if he does not you do not! There can be no ideal in matters of evil!” Because both the Prophet and the Qur’an rejected taqlid, the Su?ziibuh and many others considered it an evil and also rejected it. Thus, scholars are those who give an opinion (fatwa) and then explain their proofs and evidences to the audience when questioned. In this way, those who ask become followers of evidence and not merely blind followers of certain respected personalities. All of these citations indicate that taqlid was forbidden by Islam. The successor generations (ul Tabi’iin) vigorously criticized it and warned people against it. ‘Abd All& ibn al Mu‘tamm said: “There is no difference between an animal that is led and a person who makes taqlid.” Thus taqlid is incorrect, unacceptable, and inadequate in terms of fulfilling one’s religious responsibilities unless certain conditions are met. Following, on the other hand, is allowed, for it involves someone convincing another person, through valid evidence or proof, of the validity of hidher opinions. Ibn Abd al Barr said: “There is no disagreement among scholars that taqlid is corrupt . . . that is why it was never widespread (among the early generations of Muslims). It was they who said: ‘If a muqullid respected and used his brain, he w u l d never fall in behind another. Instead, he would use his own faculties to see for himself why it was that the great imams, even those within the same legal school, often differed.”’ ~~ 61mam al Bukhiiri related it in the chapter of a1 Zti;iim bi a1 Sunnuh. 236 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 9:2 The Imams and n q l i d Imams Abii Hanifah, Mdik, al Shiifi‘i, and Ibn Hanbal warnedpeople not to blindly follow what they said or did and denounced those who did so. Imam al Shiifi‘i said: “One who seeks knowledge without proof is like a gatherer of wood who goes into the forest at night to collect fallen branches and is bitten by a snake when, thinking it to be another branch, he picks it up.”’ His student and the narrator of his knowledge, Ib- al Muzanl, wrote in his ulMkhfayur: ‘‘I have s u m m a all of this from the knowledge of Imam al Shiifi‘i, and from the meaning of what he taught, in order to impart it to whoever wants it, along with notice of his prohibition of taqlid (of his opinions) or of those of others, so that the reader will himself consider the evidence for the sake of his religion, and so as to be the more circumspect about it.”* The great mz&m!dth Abii D M d said: “I once asked m a d (Ibn Hanbal): ‘Did A w S i follow the Sunnah any closer than Mdik? Alpnad replied: ‘In matters of religion, don’t be a muqullid of any of those people! Take whatever is authentic from the Prophet, upon him be peace, and from the $&buh. When it comes to the successor (Tabitin) generation, you can choose.’”g He also said: “Don’t be a muqullid of mine! Nor of Miilik, nor of Thawri, nor of Awza’i! Rather, take from the same sources they took from.”l0 Abii Yiisuf said: “No one may opine what we opine unless they know the reasons why we hold that opinion.”ll When Abii HanTfah was asked what should be done if one of his legal opinions was found to be contrary to the Qur‘an, he replied: “Abandon what I said in favor of what is in the Qur’an.” When he was asked what should be done if it happened that his opinion contradicted some- in the hadith, he replied: “Abandon what I say in favor of the hadith of the Prophet, upon him be peace.” When asked what should be done if his opinion was contrary to something opined by the &&buh, he replied: “Abandon what I say in favor of what was opined by the @@buh.”12 On the same subject, Mdik said: ‘I am human. Maybe I am wrong and maybe I am right. So look into my opinions. If they are in accordance with the Qur’an and the Sunnah, accept them. But those that are not, reject them!”13 Ibn al Jawzi wrote: “Thqlid is a nullification of reason, h r reason was created for consideration and contemplation. It is therefore unbecoming on the part of one given the lamp of reason to extinguish it and grope about in the dark.”l* ~ ’This was related by al Abii Bakr a l Bayhaqi. See Ibn al Qayyim, I’km a1 Muwaqqifn. 8A1 Muzani, al Muwltasar, 1 (printed on the margin of vol. IV of al Shifi‘i’s Kitiibal Umm). ? k e Masii’il A b U Diiwid li al Imiim A @ d , n6. ‘%id. ”See Ibn a l Qayyim, I’km al Muwuqqi‘in, II, 201. ‘*See al Shawkini, a1 Qawl a1 Mufid, 54. 131bid. 14See Ibn al Jawzi, Talbis Zbh, 90. al ‘Alwh-: Taqlid and Ijtihad 237 Taqlid, in general, appeared only after the first generation and its SuccessorS had passed away. This is also true in the case of the four imams, who only began to be objects of taqlid after their deaths. In fact, the four imams were no different from their predecessors in their censure and rejection of taqlid.15 The stories of how Mdik refused al Manyir and of how Abii Yiisuf refused al Rashid when those khaZijizhs wanted to command their subjects to follow a single d h h a b are well knawn.16 An example of the kind of argument given by the early scholars is recorded here from Ibriihim a1 Muzani: It may be said to one who passes judgment on the basis of taqlid: “Do you have proof for your judgment?” If he says: “Yes,” there was no taqlid, for he arrived at his judgment on the basis of evidence. If he says: “NO,” he should be asked: “Why did you shed blood, legalize intercourse, and dissolve fmancial assets when Allah has prohibited all that unless there be sound evidence as to why it should be done? Allah said: ‘You have no proof of that’ (Qur’an 10:68).” If he replies that he knew his judgment was correct, even if he did not know the evidence, because he is a muqullidof a great scholar who gave legal opinions only on the basis of sound evidence, it should be said to him: “Then you mean to say that your taqlid of your teacher w a s legitimate even though you did not know his reasons for adopting the opinion? Thus you consider it legitimate for your teacher to make taqlid of his teacher, even if he did not know his teacher‘s reasons for a certain opinion? So are you a muqullid of your teacher or of your teacher’s teacher?” If he answers that he is a muqullidof his teacher’s teacher, he has abandoned the taqlid of his teacher in favor of his teacher’s teacher . . . which means that he abandons the taqlid of teacher after teacher until he finally goes back to the Prophet and his Companions (which is not taqlid). If he denies this, he contradicts himself, and he may then be asked: “How do you legitimize your making taqlid 15See al ShawlGni, a1 Qawl a1 Mufid, 5. lbSee Ibn al Qayyim, Z‘ZrIm a1 Muwqqi‘in, 11,187. The attemptsby Mansfir, %n al Rashid, and others to codify and standardize the law represented, in the eyes of the imams who refused to sanction such undertakings, an attempt to limit their freedom in formulating their own legal opinions. In fact, they feared that any limitation would lead to the rule& attempt to quell the freedom of thought in general, thus paving the way to political absolutism. Several scholars suggested that a ruler’s confusion, resulting from the presence of so many varied and conflicting legal opinions, could be solved by endorsing a single madhhab while allowing all other legal opinions to be taught and to be used for the formulation of alternative solutions to current issues. Thus while no one would be prevented from formulating hidher own opinions through ijtihad, the problem of standardization within the courts and legal system would be resolved. 238 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 9:2 of someone whose knowledge and station are (relative to the Prophet’s) so insigmficant? That is clearly contradictory!” If he replies: “Because my teacher, although of a lower station, combined his own knowledge with the knowledge he gained from his predecessors. Thus his opinions were more informed in terms of what he accepted and what he rejected,” it may be said to him: “Then the same must be true of those who learned from your teacher, because they combined their knowledge with his and his predecessors’ knowledge. You should therefore be the muqallid of your teacher’s students. What this means is that you should be the muqallid of yourself, because you have combined your knowledge with that of your teacher and his predecessors .”l The Forms of ’Ihqlid as Defined by the Fuqahi’ There are three forms of taqlid. These are: a) taqlid in matters that either result in knowledge or likely assumption. Examples of this are the acceptance of testimony or evidence (when the conditions for their authenticity have been satisfied), the acceptance of a scholar’s opinions on an issue of personal relevance (to the nonscholar), a blind person’s facing the qiblah toward which he/she is directed by someone who can see, the acceptance of another’s word about the biographical data of narrators of hadith, or about their reliability or lack of it. Personally, I have my doubts about whether this category actually falls under the heading of taqlid;ls b) taqlid that results in neither knowledge nor in likely assumption, depending on how these are defined, and what conditions are set for each;19 c) Taqlid that is permissible and legitimate. Imam R k i and those usiiZi scholars who hllowed him considered this as taqlid of a scholar by a nonscholar, or taqlid of a more knowledgeable scholar by a less knowledgeable scholar.2o * * * It should now be clear from the opinions and statements of the learned Sakbah, the Ebi‘iin, thefuqahii’, and the usiiliyiin that taqlid, generally speaking, is a practice to be avoided and that its prohibition, if it is not a matter ”See Ibn Abd a1 Barr, Jiimi‘Bayiin a1 Tlm, 11,204. 18See Ibn al Qayyim, Muwaqqi‘in, 11,254. 19Knawledge might be defined as a certain perception that is in accordance with reality, whereas likely assumption ( p n n ) may be understood as perception of the more likely of tw possibilities. losee Tij a l Din a1 Armawi, a1 H@il min a1 Ma?qUl, unpublished manuscript, folio 3,977. a1 ‘Alwini: Taqlid and Ijtihad 239 of zjmii‘(consensus among the learned), is at least the opinion of the majority (jurnhiir) . The crux of the matter is that one should rely on sources from which legal judgments may be derived. Moreover, when an individual performs ijtihad for himself/herself without legal proof, his/her subsequent actions are permissible only as a matter of juristic license (rukhqzh) and may not, therefore, be blindly followed by another person unless that person finds a legal basis (proof) for doing If this is clear, then the first form of taqlid mentioned above, if it can be considered taqlid at all, is both acceptable and legally enjoined. Accepting testimony, for example, is enjoined in both the Qur’an and the Sunnah, while prohibiting the withholding of evidence is a matter of zjmii‘. The same is true for accepting the accounts of trustworthy narrators. A nonscholar’s questioning a scholar is also enjoined, for Allah said: ‘Then ask the people of remembrance (scholars) if you yourself do not know” (Qur’an 16:43; 21:7). In the early days of Islam, the common people used to question the Prophet’s Companions about rulings in cases that concerned them. When the Companions replied, the people would act in accordance with their replies. On another occasion, a person might ask a different Companion for his ruling, and then in complete confidence follow his advice. Certain scholars considered the taqlid of a scholar by an unlearned person not to be taqlid, but rather following, for it is at least supposed that one who answers a question must have some kind of knowledge and that such a person would not give an answer unless there was evidence to support it. In a well-known hadith, the Prophet is reported to have said: “If they do not know the answer themselves, why do they not ask those who do? The only cure for ignorance is to ask question^."^^ Based on this, something resembling consensus arose on the responsibility of the unlearned to question the learned when faced with issues that confounded them. After this, however, the question arose as to whether or not the questioner was required to learn the evidence in support of the scholar’s answer. Must he/she know the reason for the answer? The majority of scholars opined that the questioner must ask for proof and that the scholar must mention it.22 What has been stated so far leads one to the certainty, or at least to the likely assumption ( ~ a n n riijih) , that the second type of taqlid mentioned above has no legitimacy, and that we are responsible for making our own ijtihad and for preparing ourselves to become capable of doing so. This form of taqlid is prohibited, as any belief based upon it is no better than a guess, which is clearly so. zlThis was related by Abii D i w 3 from Jibir. The same hadith was related by m a d , al Hikim, and AbU Diw~id from Ibn ‘Abbis, though with the words: “Is not the cure for ignorance to ask questions?” See al SuyUG, a1 F a ~ h a1 Kabir, II, 295. ”See al Amidi, ?al&rn a1 Wrn, IV, 228; a l Shitbi, a1 Muwiifaqit, IV, 292. An opposing position was taken by Ibn H a m . See al k i d i 4kii.m a1 AhkGrn, I, 151-3. 240 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 9:2 unacceptable as the foundation for belief. It is therefore also unacceptable as the foundation for a legal ruling or legal advice (htwa). Such taqlid, whether of a living mujtahid or a dead one, is expressly prohibited. The third form of taqlid given above is no different from the first. Scholars who hold that a certain form of taqlid is permissible have differed among themselves as to whose opinions may be adopted. Some of their positions are : a ) Taqlid of classical scholars and contemporary scholars more knowledgeable than the questioner is allowed, because Allah said: ’Then ask the people of remembrance (scholars) if you yourself do not know” (Qur’an 16:43; 21:7). Some permit taqlid of only the Sakbah and TQbi‘iin, because the Prophet said: “The best of the generations is my generation, then the ones who follow them.”23 Imam al ShLEi (in an earlier opinion which he later altered), Imam w d ibn Hanbal, Ishiiq ibn Rihiiyah, and Sufyiin al Thawri said that only taqlid of the Sa?ziibah was permissible. In his early work, a1 Risiilahal Baghdiidiyah, al Shiifi‘i wrote: “The +.&%ah were superior to us in every respect when it comes to knowledge, ijtihad, piety, and understanding. Accordingly, their opinions are better for us than our own.” In the same work, a1 ShLfi‘i wrote, after further extolling the many virtues of the &@&ah: “So is it reasonable to expect that taqlid of them should be the same as taqlid of those who in no way measure up to them?”24 Abii DLwiid related that Alpad ibn Hanbal said: “Following means that one follows what has come from the Prophet, upon him be peace, and from his companions. After that, in relation to the Tabi‘iin, one may make up one’s own mind.”25 Some scholars held that taqlid of the +@bah was limited to the first four caliphs (al khulafi ’al riishidiin), for the Prophet stated: “Adhere to my Sunnah, and to the Sunnah of the rightly- guided caliphs who come after me.”26 b ) c ) d ) “This hadith was related ty both al B e - a n d Muslim, as well as by al TmnidlGand Alpnad. See al Suyiiti, II, 99. The scholars of hadith have themselves spoken of this type of permission. See al Miwad-, Aahb a1 Q+, I, 27. 24See Ibn al Qayyim, I ’ h n a1 Muwaqqi‘in, 11, 261-2. 25See Abii Diwiicl, Masii’il a1 I&m &mad, 276. Welated by Alpad, Abii Dkwid, al Tirmidhi, Ibn Mijah, Ibn Hibbin, and al H&m on the authority of al ‘Irbid ibn Siiriyah. See al Miwardi, Aa2zb a1 QM,. I, 271. al ‘AlwinI: Taqlid and Ijtihad 241 f ) Other scholars held that taqlid may be made only of Abii Bakr and ‘Umar, because the Prophet said: “Rllow the two who come after me, Abii Bakr and ‘Uma~-.’’~~ M~&ammad ibn al Hasan (Abii HanTfah’s student and al ShiiWTs teacher) held that taqlid by one less knowledgeable of one more knowledgeable is permitted. Another opinion is that one may make taqlid only in regard to matters of immediate concern to oneself and not in matters that may be mentioned as fatwa to others. Ibn Surayj (of the ShWi school) opined that a student may make taqlid of hidher teacher on a matter of immediate personal concern, but only if there is not enough time for him/her to perfodijtihad before the opportunity to act accordingly is lOSt.28 The different opinions of the classical scholars on this matter are rather nicely summarized by Ibn Taymiyah: As regards the particulars of law, the majority of theologians and jurists say that ijtihad is a responsibility placed upon every individual, even on the nonscholars. That, however, is not a tenable position, for if seeking knowledge of the evidence were the responsibility of every individual it would only be so where there was the ability to do so, and such ability is clearly not possessed by the great majority of nonscholars. On the other hand, there are some who follow one legal school or another who say that taqlid is the responsibility of everyone who comes after the (four Sunni) imams, including the learned and the unlearned. The position adopted by most scholars is that, generally speaking, ijtihad and taqlid are permitted. They do not quire ijtihad of everyone while declaring taqlid to be b r t i m , nor do they require taqlid while declaring ijtihad &rtim. Ijtihad is permitted to those who are capable of it, and taqlid to those who are incapable of ijtihad. What then of the one who is capable of ijtihad? May such a one resort to taqlid? There is a difference of opinion on this question. The correct answer, however, is that taqlid is permissible for such a person when he/she is unable toperform ijtihad due to conflicting evidence, insufficient time, or a complete lack of evidence. This is because when one cannot z7Related on the authority of Hudhayfah by Alpad, a l Tirmidhi, Ibn Mijah, and AbU Ya‘li. See a l SuyUti, a1 Fath af Kabir, I, 215. 242 The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 9:2 undertake ijtihad, the necessity to do so no longer remains. Instead, the alternative is prescribed, which in this case is taqlid. This is analogous to the person who cannot find water to perform hidher ablutions. 29 The same is true with regard to the nonscholar. If he/she can perform ijtihad for himself/herself on certainquestions, it is permitted, because ijtihad is not an absolute - the pivotal point is ability or the lack thereof. Thus a person might be able to perform ijtihad on certain questions and not on others. Nonetheless, the ability to perform ijtihad may only be acquired through the knowledge of those sciences which lead to an understanding of what is sought. It is hard to imagine, however, how one’s knowledge of a single aspect of a discipline or a science would qualify one for ijtihad. Allah knows best.”30 * * * Islam, moreover, forbids us to follow any way other than that of knowledge. Allah says in the Qur’an: “Do not pursue matten of which you have no knowledge. Surely every act of hearing, of seeing, and of the heart will be enquired into” (1736). Thus our responsibility in regard to every aspect of the divine law (shar9, be it a command or a prohibition, is that we attain knowledge of its wisdom by whatever means possible. If sure knowledge is not possible, it is our responsibility to reach an understanding based at least on the most likely possibility. This is why our scholars have not permitted taqlid except in the case of the most ignorant and i n ~ a p a b l e . ~ ~ z8This opinion was recorded by al Miwardi in Adab a1 Q+, I, 262-3. 29Under such circumstances the legal alternative is to use dust under the conditions prescribed for lily. Ibn Taym-yah, Majmu‘al PbtiiwrI, X X , 203-4. 31See Ibn al Qayyim, Z‘kim al Muwaqqi‘in, 11, 260.