Written from the internal viewpoint of Muslims, the book discusses the resurgence that Islamic law is experiencing in...
Read More »Article: Shi‘i ‘Ulama and Ijāza during the Nineteenth Century
There were two types of ijāzas: an ijāza of ijtihād and an ijāza of riwaya. Modern researchers maintain that an ijāza of ijtihād permitted the holder to exercise ijtihād, and that attaining the ijaza was a prerequisite to...
Read More »The Roots of Taqlid in the Shia Community
The following translated passages come from a larger work in Arabic by Sayyid Muḥammad Saeed al-Ḥakim in which he...
Read More »Book: Authority, Continuity, and Change in Islamic Law
In this path-breaking new book, the author shows how authority guaranteed both continuity and change in Islamic...
Read More »Why Should We Do Taqlid in Religious Problems?
It is important to mention a basic thing that blindly following the views and manners of anyone completely is...
Read More »Article: A Brief History of Ijtihad in Twelver Shi’ism
In the classical period of Islam, the term ijtihad was part of a longer formulation, namely: ijtihad bi al-ra’y, which means ‘putting in utmost effort in the exercise of...
Read More »Reinterpretation or Reformation? Shi‘a Law in the West
This article will outline the salient features that characterise the Shi‘a community in the United States of America and will examine some of the recent juridical literature that...
Read More »Article: An Outline of the History of Restriction on Ijtihad
The original in Arabic appeared under the title Ta'rikh hasr al-ijtihad a publication of Madrasat al-Imam al Mahdi ('a), Khunsar, and edited by...
Read More »Thesis: Hasbi’s theory of Ijtihad in the context of Indonesian Fiqh
This thesis studies the proposal for an Indonesian fiqh, articulated by Muhammad Hasbi Ash Shiddieqy (1904-1975) as an effort to bridge the tension in Islamic law between revelation and reality ('ada) in...
Read More »Ijtihad: Its Meaning, Sources, Beginnings and the Practice of Ra’y
The sources of ijtihad according to Shi'ah and the Ahl al Sunnah, put together, are: the Book, the Sunnah, ijma’ (consensus), ‘aql (reason), qiyas (analogy), istihsan, masalih mursalah, istislah, sadd al dhara'i’, fath al dhara'i; madhhab al sahabi, shari’at al salaf, ‘urf, istidlal, and...
Read More »