, knowledge, and it is of two types: Ilmu Dharuri, the
necessary knowledge and Ilmu Nazhari, the observed knowledge. Ilmu
Dharuri, necessary knowledge, is the knowledge that everyone is born
with. it is to know big, small, hot and cold. With this Ilm everyone
knows that there is a Creator. Around the world everyone worships a
deity in one way or another no matter how isolated one may be. Ilmu
Nazhari, the observed knowledge, is the knowledge that is obtained
through learning, such as learning how to read and write.
Jahalah, ignorance, and it is of two types: Jahl Basit and Jahl
Murakkab. Jahl Basit means simple ignorance and it pertains to a person
not knowing something and acknowledging not to know about it. Jahl
Murakkab, translated as ignorance that is mounted, is ignorance where a
person doesn't know something and is incorrect about it but claims to
know it and claims to be correct.
Lugah, language, and it is the subject of learning proper Arabic
language.
Amr, Commandment, and it pertains to Allah Ta'Ala's and
Rasulullah's Command Salallahu aleyhi wa Sallam. Everything in the
Qur'an and Sunnah is a Commandment in essence.
Nahy, Restriction, and it pertains to the Restrictions made by
Allah Ta'Ala and Rasulullah Salallahu aleyhi wa Sallam. Everything in
the Qur'an and Sunnah is an Order in essence and a Restriction is an
Order not to do Something.
Ahkamu Sharaiyah (The laws of Shariah) and they are five:
1. Fard or Wajib: it is what when done brings good deeds and when
not done brings bad deeds.
2. Mandub: it is what when done brings good deeds and when not done
does not brings bad deeds.
3. Mubah: it is what when done doesn't brings good deeds and when not
done doesn't brings bad deeds.
4. Makruh: it is what when done does not bring bad deeds and when not
done brings good deeds.
5. Haram: it is what when brings bad deeds and when not done brings
good deeds.
Aam is a law that covers everyone.
Khas means special and it is a law that makes the
Aam
law limited to a particular situation or a particular group of people.
For example sacrificing livestock is an Aam law. The mentioning of
sacrificing the livestock during Hajj limits the Aam law of sacrificing
the livestock in general to sacrificing it on Hajj.
Mutlaq, meaning without ties to something and it
refers to a law
that is not tied to anything restraining it. For example the law of
freeing someone. I means to free anyone.
Muqayyid, means tied and it refers to a law tied by something.
For example to free a believing person. Here the Mutlaq law of freeing
any person is restrained by the person having to be a believer in order
to be freed making the law Muqayyid.
Zhahir, means the outer
viewed meaning of the Ayat and Hadith.
Muawwil means turned and it refers to taking the law of the Ayat
and Hadith that is not the outer viewed, Zhahir meaning.
Tartibu l'Adillah, means the arrangement of evidence and refers
to the arrangement of evidence from the Ayat and Hadith. Dalil in Arabic
means evidence and the plural form is Adillah. According to the
arrangement of evidence the strongest evidence is always taken first. An
example of implementing this rule is to take the stronger Zhahir
evidence before the Muawwil evidence. For example a Hadith talks about
an issue regarding being Shaheed and it is understood from the Muawwil
meaning of that Hadith that so and so is Shaheed cannot be said because
we have no knowledge of that person's place in the Hereafter. Then there
is another Hadith with the clear Zhahir meaning saying clearly
"So and so is Shaheed cannot be said." according to the
arrangement of
evidence the Zhahir Hadith is supposed to be used as the primary
evidence and the other as secondary.
Mantuk wa Mafhum means said and understood
and refers to laws that are clearly stated and laws that are not stated
as clearly as the Mantuk laws but are understood from what is stated.
Hakikah wa Mijaz means reality and
metaphors. In the Qur'an and
Sunnah there is no metaphor. Arabs to whom the Qur'an and Sunnah came
didn't talk using metaphors. They did use words that originally mean
other than what they are used for. For example Salah means Duaa. It's
not metaphor when one says the word Salah, instead the true Salah is
meant not a metaphoric meaning of a Duaa. Arabs call this way of
expression Urf. Urf means something known to the people, a customary way
of talking. Words used as Urf stand for something real, something that
is reality, Hakikah, reality, not something metaphorical, Mijaz. Arab
shepherds would feed sheep the fresh green grass that shows up after
rain and would say Askeytu Matara, meaning I fed the rain. This wording
is Urf and not a metaphor, people exactly know what is meant by that
statement, the reality of it, the Hakikah of it. Mijaz, metaphor showed
up among Muslims when the Mutezila showed up and introduced to Muslims
Greek philosophy that includes metaphor. The Greek philosophy was
written by statue worshipping Greeks who were also male chauvinists and
had ways of Kawmu Lut spread among them. The Rum saw Greek books as
pagan and useless blasphemy. When the Rum heard that Muslims
translated an ancient Greek book about Medicine into Arabic, the Rum
then they sent to Muslims three vessels full of Greek Philosophy books
with the intention to corrupt the beliefs of the Muslims. Soon after
that, influenced by Greek philosophy showed up. Influenced by Greek
philosophy, the founder of the Mutazilah, Wasil bin Atta left the
lessons of Hasanu l'Basri to what Hasanu l'Basri said Wasil left us "Ittezalana
Wasil - Wasil left us." This is how the Mutazila began and this is how
metaphor, Mijaz got introduced to Muslims.
Nasikh and Mansukh means abrogating and abrogated
and refers to the Laws that Allah Ta'Ala sent us and later abrogated with
newer laws. Tawrat and Injil are Mansukh while the Qur'an is Nasikh.
Allah Ta'Ala has Removed Some Ayat in the Qur'an. Some of them still are
still in the Qur'an, their Wording Stays but their laws are Mansukh.
Some Ayaat Allah Ta'Ala Removed from the Qur'an but their law stayed;
their law stays but their Wording is Removed. Some Ayat in the Qur'an
Allah Ta'Ala Removed completely, both their Wording and law.
The law of an Ayah can be abrogated by the law of a later Ayah. This
is called Qur'an by Qur'an Naskh.
The law of an Ayah can be abrogated by the law of a later Hadith.
This is called Qur'an by Sunnah Naskh.
The law of a Hadith can be abrogated by the law of a later Ayah. This
is called Sunnah by Qur'an Naskh.
The law of a Hadith can be abrogated by the law of a later Hadith.
This is called Sunnah by Sunnah Naskh.
Kat'i Dalala refers to evidence with Ayat and Mutawatir Hadith.
Mutawatir Hadith are few in number. Imam Ali bin Al Medini collected 355
Mutawatir Hadith in his book.
Dhanni Dalala refers to evidence with Ahad Hadith. Most of
the Hadith are Ahad. Most of the Hadith in Bukhari and Muslim are Ahad.
Evidence from the Dhanni Dalala is treated the same as evidence from
Kat'i Dalala. No where did Rasulullah say anything about making a
distinction between the Hadith reaching us by way of Ahad or Mutawatir
transmissions. Besides that at the end of the chain of narration
Rasulullah is one Rasul and then all the narrations are Ahad.
Ijmaa is the agreement of all the Ulema in Islam on how an issue
should be addressed and that stands as law in Islamic jurisprudence that
is applied the same way laws from the Ayat and Hadith are applied. After
the Sahabah there is no more Ijmaa because no where after the Sahabah
did Ulema meet together to decide on an issue.
Ijtihad is the process of making a legal
decision and it is done
first with the Qur'an and Sunnah , then with Ijmaa and lastly with Qiyas.
Taqlid means to copy and follow blindly without asking for proof
of what one is learning. The person doing Taqlid is called Muqalid.
Taasub is to follow the Ijtihad of a scholar based on whims,
nationalism and similar reasons. A scholars view by which he goes and
continues his studies is called in Arabic Medhhab. There are over
52 Medhhabs among the scholars. In the last few hundred years
Muslims made following one of four most popular Medhhabs law,
which is not what the scholars wanted and is contradictory to what the
scholars taught people. All of them said that following their Medhhabs
blindly shouldn't be done and that a Muqalid is an ignorant person,
Jahil, not in any way a scholar, Alim.
Taasub can be on three levels. The first at the very lowest level
where a person blindly follows someone else in all aspects. The next
level is when a person asks for evidence but still tends to follows the
Alim he feels Taasub for. The third level is when the person agrees to
follow the Alim with the strongest evidence but when the Ulema have
equally strong arguments the person out of Taasub follows the Alim they
feel Taasub for.
Qiyas in Arabic means measuring and in Shariyah there are
different types of Qiyas of which only Qiyasu Jely is accepted. Qiyasu
Jely is done using the Qur'an, Sunnah and Ijmaa where the difference
between the evidence brought and the examined issue is negated.
The other three types of Qiyas are Qiyasu l'Khafy, Qiyasu
s'Sabah and Qiyasu l'Aks.
Qiyasu l'Khafy is done using the Qur'an, Sunnah and Ijmaa but
where the difference between the evidence brought and the examined issue
cannot be negated because the concealed similarities between the two are
not enough to negate the difference. Therefore Qiyasu l'Khafy is
unacceptable.
Qiyasu s'Sabah is done using two similar original evidences from the
Qur'an, Sunnah and Ijmaa and taking the similarity between them and
applying it to the issue examined. This type of Qiyas is unacceptable
because if two evidences are similar that doesn't make them similar to
the issue being examined.
Qiyasu l'Aks is done using an original evidences from the Qur'an,
Sunnah and Ijmaa opposite to the issue examined. Therefore if the
evidence used is something Haram using this type of Qiyas it is claimed
that the issue examined is Hala or vice versa. This type of Qiyas is
unacceptable by Shariyah.
Mufti and Mustafti regards Fetwas. A Fetwa is a ruling brought by
a scholar based on The Qur'an, Sunnah, Ijma, Qiyas. The scholar giving
the Fetwa is called Mufti and the person asking for the Fewa is called a
Mustafti. The Mufti has to have the required Adab (proper code of
conduct) and knowledge and to be at rest while making the Fetwa. The
Mustafti has to have Adab (proper conduct) and has to be looking for
Truth and not asking for a Fetwa in order to start Fitna.