Islamic Culture and Religious Studies Book -4

Lesson 14 : Akham Why Study Them?

We know that that Islam is not merely a collection of rituals, a few rules of conduct, and some sayings put together. It is an ideal and reasonable system of life that deals with every aspect of humanity.

Once a person has developed strong faith and conviction, all his actions stem from this faith and become a sign of this inner belief. Yet, despite this, Islam still imposes certain laws upon him.

These rules and laws provide a means of understanding Islam better and developing a deeper relationship with Allah (S.W.T.) and a Believer not only pays great attention to carrying them out but also follows them without hesitation.

Where do we Start?

Having already understood why we need to follow Ahkam, the next step is to discover where we can find these heavenly rules and laws. We know that Islam encompasses all the available knowledge and its concepts are extensive and diverse. Thus, it is not possible for every Muslim to be able to study and analyse the vast sources of Islamic Laws i.e.

Qur'an, sermons, traditions and speeches of the Ma'soomeen (a.s.). For this reason, only some of people dedicate their lives to this study and become professionals in it. These are the Fuqaha (Islamic Jurists) It becomes obligatory on every Mukkalaf (One who has attained Buloogh) to follow one of these scholars in matters of jurisprudence.

He does this placing his trust in the superior knowledge of his chosen Marja'e Taqleed. The ordinary man does not question the scholar in his decisions (unless they obviously go against the Qur'an) and accepts them without doubt.

From the above description of Taqleed (the following of a Marja'e), it is obvious that taqleed is not allowed in matters of belief. Since belief is based on a person being convinced he must ask questions in this area.

We can therefore say that general Islamic beliefs are divided into two:

a) Usul-e-Deen (Roots of Religion) which refers to belief in Tawheed (Oneness of God), Adalat (Justice of God), Nubuwwat (Prophethood), Imamat (Successorship) and Ma'ad/Qiyamat (Resurrection/Day of Judgement).

b) Furu-e-Deen (Branches of Religion) which consist of the various acts of ebadah that a Muslim must perform.

In matters of Usul, a person can raise any questions he requires answered in order to convince himself of their truth. Taqleed comes in the second group of Furu.

If a person performs his ebadat without following a Marja'e then his actions are considered void. The only exception to this is when he decides to do ehtiyaat.

Ehtiyaat may arise in the situation where one mujtahid is of the opinion that an act is haram and another disagrees. The ehtiyaat in this case would be to avoid the act all together. If one is unable to perform ehtiyaat for any reason then one must follow the Marja'e.

Outside of ehtiyaat, any ebadat a person performs without doing taqleed is considered nullified unless he is absolutely sure that he has performed in correctly and according to the fatwa's of the marja'e he was supposed to follow.

Kinds of Taqleed

There are four different kinds of taqleed that can occur:

1. A mujtahid following another mujtahid.
2. An ignorant person following another ignorant person.
3. An aalim (mujtahid) following an ignorant person.
4. An ignorant person following a mujtahid.

The first kind of taqleed is not allowed. By definition, a mujtahid must have enough Ilm at his disposal to be able to understand all the required articles of faith and derive solutions about them if needed. If a mujtahid is so unconfident of his own knowledge and decisions that he finds it necessary to follow other scholars then he is not fit to lead the general ummah.

The second and third kinds of taqleed are only destructive and must be avoided at all times. It is this kind of blind following that led the idol worshippers in the ancient times to tell the prophets sent to them that they would continue in their shirk simply because their fathers before them had done so!

It is worse when an aalim, who can tell the difference between right and wrong, finds himself so blinded by the world that he follows its ignorance. When a Muslim who knows his true purpose in life begins to imitate the ignorant ways of the materialistic world then he is in the third category and is much cursed.

The last definition of taqleed is the only feasible option of the four. It can be likened to a sick person who goes to a doctor for a cure. What we would say of the same person if he went to another sick person for help or to a mechanic?

When a person who does not know enough about a certain subject, seeks answers from an expert in the field, he is doing taqleed. In the case of Islam, the Marja'e followed must be both an A'lim (Knowledgeable) and Adil (Just).

Common Terminologies in Taqleed

When we follow a particular marja'e, we do so through the risaalah (Articles of Islamic laws) he presents. In his presentation, he explains the Sheriat under a number of classifications. Below is a brief description of each.

I. Fatwa

When a mujtahid gives a Hukm (Law) where he knows that there are no doubts about its performance and has not had to resort to ehtiyat, then this law is called a Fatwa. For example, when he says that it is waajib to wash ones face, hands and perform masah in wudhoo, then this is a fatwa. Basically, Hukm refers to that law which is definite.

There are 4 ways of obtaining the verdicts of a mujtahid:

i)Hearing it from the mujtahid himself. ii)When it is quoted from the mujtahid by two Adil (Just) persons. iii)When it is heard from a person whose honesty you do not doubt. iv)Reading the mujtahid's book of masa'il (laws) provided you are satisfied by its authenticity and translation.

A marja'e uses four different definitions to define a fatwa. These are :

a) Strong meaning the opinion is has a strong foundation i.e. it is a definite fatwa.

b) Close, that is, near to the truth. Such a statement will also be considered as fatwa.

c) Clear means the opinion is apparent and can be understood from the resources given. It can be justified as fatwa.

d) Not Distant which means not very far from truth. Such an opinion can be considered as fatwa also..

II. Ehtiyate - Mustahab

Occasionally, the A'lam Mujtahid observes precaution after or before giving a fatwa. His order is permissible but he expresses it as Ehtiyate-Mustahab, which means Recommended Precaution. In this case, his followers can choose not to perform that particular act.

An example will help us better understand this term. It is Ehtiyate-Mustahab that when Salaatul Jama'at is being prayed, the people in the second row should wait for those in the first row to recite their Takbir before reciting their own takbir. This means that those in the second row can chose not to wait and still pray valid Salaat.

III.Ehtiyate - Waajib

If a marja'e marks a fatwa as Ehtiyate-Waajib, then this means that his followers must act according to it. If however, they have some Ishkal (Doubts) regarding it then they can follow the ruling of another Marja'e Taqleed who may be available.

A case of Ehtiyate-Waajib is for example, when you find a lost item and cannot trace its owner. It is Ehtiyate-Waajib for you to give out that item in charity on behalf of the owner. This means that if another Marja'e has a different fatwa regarding this issue, which you find easier to perform then you can choose to follow him.