Is the development of Fiqh sciences, the categorization of Fiqh chapters, and the division of Hadith into weak, good, and authentic considered a "bid'ah hasanah" (praiseworthy innovation)?
The division and classification of the Islamic sciences are intellectual processes that have evolved over time, starting with the compilation of the Quran and the classification of the . This is considered among the masalih mursalah (unrestricted public interests), a principle acted upon by the Companions and the Pious Predecessors, such as the compilation of the Mus'haf (the written Quran) and the codification of knowledge due to weakening memory. It is not correct to describe this as a "good innovation" (bid'ah hasanah) if the term bid'ah is intended in its blameworthy legal sense, because "goodness" contradicts blameworthiness. Furthermore, classifying books and building schools are means to legitimate ends and are not bid'ah in the legal sense. However, if "good innovation" is intended in its linguistic sense, such as the saying of Umar ibn al-Khattab, "What a good bid'ah this is," then there is no harm. Many scholars have held this view, making the disagreement merely semantic. The classifications and codification in the Islamic sciences are among the good innovations that do not entail any legal prohibition.
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Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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