Question: in one of my classes it was talking about itjihad I have never heard of this before. I was wondering if you can explain it? the professor says that in varies parts of the quran it mentions that we as muslims must do it.So since I have never heard of this maybe you can make it clear for me.
Time: Thursday September 24, 2009 at 11:26 pm
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Simply said: ijtihad is done by a mujtahid. The mujtahid is a person that has the ability to extract data from Quran and Hadith and present rulings from it without contradicting any aspect of religion in final rulings shared. They are sound in the areas or Fiqh, Hadith, Quran Tafseer and its multiple ways of recitation, know the laws of Arabic grammar exceptionally well, aspects of poetry, mastered the methods of deducing facts from multiple areas of sharia, etc. The likes of such persons are Imaam(s) Abu Hanifa, Shafee, Malik, Hanbal, zhufar, mohammad, yusuf, etc.
Your professor is correct in that Muslims that are masters of the above can do Ijtihad. Until then, it is a pie in the sky idea. We have yet to meet such Muslims in modern times. Modern Muslims define their Mujtahid skills in accordance to the the amount of books/CD’s they have on their desk tops that have preplanned fatwas, hadiths etc. upon them. Such in the conventional sense are not mujtahids! Mujtahids int he true sense remain beyond this.
Modern secular scholars entice Muslim youth with such claims to test their gullibility, naivety, they often try to entice Muslims to live by their own human made laws in exchange of the laws made by Allah (Subhanahu Wata’Ala). Do not let these mental gaming’s challenge your mind wrongfully.
I too have taken these classes at the university level on aspects of religion, and they remain a waste of good energy and time. Pass your class and move on with your life to subject matters that would make you accept the greatness of Allah (Subhanahu Wata’Ala) and fulfill your obligations towards Him as Allah (Subhanahu Wata’Ala) requires.
Wishing you the best,
Allah Certainly Knows Best.