What is the correct stance regarding taking fatwas, Shariah rulings, and jurisprudential branches—for which there is no legal text concerning the point of contention among scholars—from books of Fiqh, commentaries on the Sunnah, and Tafsir works? Is it permissible to adopt the lenient opinions based on the principle that religion is ease, or the stricter ones based on the principle that safety lies in precaution and strictness, in matters for which there is no definitive legal text, and which arose after the era of the Companions, such as conditional divorce? Will a person be held accountable before Allah if he acts upon a fatwa or the saying of a scholar that matches his case, after knowing that there is no legal text on the matter, and he chose what was easier and more convenient for him?
A Muslim must seek the preponderant opinion in matters of fiqh, and should not act upon the weak opinions unless it is impossible to act upon the preponderant one. The preponderant opinion does not necessarily have to be based on a text always; rather, it can be reached by weighing between analogies (aqyisah) and definitions (hudud). And whoever does not find a text concerning an issue is not at liberty to choose what to act upon; rather, he should present it to the rules of ijtihad or seek fatwa from the people of knowledge.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · imported
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/87730
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 87730
- Imported
- Translation status
- Source text, unreviewed
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy