Life and Teachings of the Prophet Muhammad
8. The Concept of Ijtihaad in Islam
~ 103 ~
hashish, cocaine, heroin, etc.? The Muslim jurists here applied the
principle of Qiyas. The
muskir
(intoxicant) mentioned in the Hadith
(Musnad Ahmad) was further elaborated upon by them to include
any substance, liquid or solid, causing “intoxication” and hence like
wine, will be considered as
haram
(prohibited). (
Usul al-Fiqh
, A.W.
Khallaf)
One who exercises Ijtihaad is termed “Mujtahid” as opposed to
“Muqallid” (one who unquestioningly abides by an established
school of law). There is a particular branch of Islamic jurisprudence
called “Usul al-Fiqh” (the fundamental principles of jurisprudence),
which exclusively deals with this topic. Starting with Shafi’s book
Al-Umm,
a great number of books have been written to date on
this subject. According to these books, Mujtahid is of two kinds:
Mutlaq
(independent/unrestricted)
and
Muqayyad
(dependent/restricted). Sunni Muslims in general recognise only
four independent Mujtahid in Islamic history. First, Abu Hanifah
(81-150 A.H.), with whom the Hanafi school of law is identified.
Secondly, Malik ibn Anas (94-179), the founder of the Maliki
School of Law, thirdly, Ash Shafii (150-205), who is considered
the founder of the Shafii School of Law, and lastly, Ahmad ibn
Hanbal (164-241) the originator of the Hanbali School of Law.
In the present chapter the vastness of the literature of
Usul-al
Fiqh
preclude the possibility of lengthy discussion of the
fundamental principles of Ijtihaad. The author is mainly concerned
here with showing the relevance of Ijtihaad in the contemporary
world. Traditional scholars hold that, after the above mentioned
