Is the door of Ijtihad still open?

The door of ijtihad (independent reasoning) is open to those who meet its conditions. Ijtihad, linguistically, is the exertion of energy and effort to ascertain a legal ruling from its evidence. Calls have emerged to close the door of ijtihad for various reasons, including sectarian bigotry or fear of some people tampering with legal rulings. However, the correct view is that the door of ijtihad cannot be closed due to the emergence of new issues whose rulings can only be known through ijtihad.

Ijtihad has conditions and controls that ensure it does not turn into a manipulation of texts. Among these conditions are: knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah, knowledge of the abrogating and abrogated verses, consensus (ijma'), and the Arabic language. The mujtahid (one who performs ijtihad) must also be capable of deriving rulings from their evidence.