Ilm Fruits

Bismillah walhamdolilah wasalatu wasalam ‘ala Rasool Allah

When we begin to talk about a field of study in the religion of Islam it is very imperative we begin by defining the terms; making clear the terminology which is used throughout that field of study. With that said, I want to focus on Fiqh.

Linguistically, fiqh is defined as the true understanding of what is intended. For example: The true understanding of Anatomy, the true understanding of Plants, or the true understanding of Religion. All of these exemplify the linguistic understanding of fiqh. When applied to Islam, fiqh means the science of deducing Islamic Laws from evidences found in the sources of Islamic Law.

Another term which we must define is sharee’ah. This term, linguistically, means a waterhole or the straight/ordained/clear way. When applied to Islam, sharee’ah means the the totality of Islamic Laws which:

1. Were revealed to the Prophet sallalahu alayhi wasalam
2. Are recorded in the Qur’an
3. Can be deduced from the Prophet’s sunnah

From these two definitions of fiqh and sharee’ah, the following may be deduced:

1. Sharee’ah is revealed laws found in the Qur’an and Sunnah while fiqh is a body of laws deduced from the Qur’an and Sunnah to cover situations not directly treated in the sharee’ah.
   
2. Sharee’ah is fixed; it doesn’t change over time. Fiqh changes as circumstances change.
3. Sharee’ah is mostly general; laying down the basic principles. Fiqh tends to be specific; how the basic principles of sharee’ah should be applied in different situations.

Source

Philips, Bilal. The Evolution of Fiqh: Islamic Laws & The Madhabs (3rd edition).

Fard: technically, it means any action which, if done, deserves reward from Allah; and if neglected, deserves punishment from Allah. (Yes, that’s right–you actually earn reward for doing all those fard actions!)

Here, we discuss two classifications of faraaid–Sofa Fard, and Bucket-Seat Fard.

Sofa Fard (also known as Fard Muwassa’) is a fard which you have a choice of when you can do it. It’s like a sofa–you can sit on the left, on the right, in the middle, anywhere you want!

Praying Dhur is a sofa fard–you can pray at the start time, half an hour before the end time, at some point in the middle, etc. anytime before ‘Asr. (Another definition of sofa fard is: an action you have time to do, and have time to do another similar action.)

Some examples of sofa fards include:

• Praying any of the 5x daily prayers
• Giving Zakaat-ul-Badl to poor people in Ramadan before ‘Eid
• Performing Hajj

Bucket-Seat Fard (also known as Fard Mudayyaq) is an action where you don’t have a choice of when you can do it. It’s like a bucket–if you need to sit in the bucket (camping, anyone?) then you have to sit in the bucket. You can’t choose where–you only fit in one spot.

The fasts of Ramadan are bucket-seat fards–you have to do them IN Ramadan, you can’t do them before or after (unless you missed them legitimately).

Some examples of bucket-seat fards include:

• Fasting in Ramadan
• Paying zakaah one year after you cross the nisaab
• Visiting Arafah in Hajj on the 8th of Dhul Hijjah

What other examples of sofa and bucket-seat fards can you think of?

Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Code of Scholars. University of Toronto, Toronto. August 2005.

Abu Ameenah Bilal Phillips. Usool Al Fiqh: the Methodology of Islamic Law Made Easy. Ltd ed. United Arab Emirates: Preston University, 2003. 16.

Every specific Islamic rule originates from a law maker. Here, we investigate who can say, in Islam, that something is the law.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), Lord of the Worlds, is the law maker. None can dispute His laws. What’s the proof? In Surah Yusuf Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

Translation: the command is for none but Allah: He hath commanded that ye worship none but Him: that is the right deen, but most men understand not. [Surah Yunus, verse 40]

Subhanallah, the basis of Western law is that intelligence is the most trustworty, and the source of all law. But is that true in Islam? Can Intelligence be the law maker?

Surah Nisaa reveals the answer:

Translation: Apostles who gave good news as well as warning, that mankind, after (the coming) of the apostles, should have no plea against Allah: For Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise. [Surah Nisaa, verse 165]

Intelligence is used in making laws, but it is not the law maker. Check the ayah above: if people never get the message, they say “nobody told me”; Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) does not ask, “Why didnt you figure it out yourself?” Because that method will never lead to the true Law. (Just look at Western socities, and where their laws, influenced as they are from Islam, are now.)

What’s more, ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه), who was the most intelligent among the companions, only about four times reached a conclusion that matched a command of Allah.

This confuses a lot of Muslims. Why do we accept law from the Prophet? Well, because of what Surah Al-Ghashiyah:

Translation: Therefore do remind, for you are only a reminder. You are not a watcher over them. [Surah Gashiya, verse 21-22]

If the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) is not a law maker, what does that make a mujtahid or an imam?

They are not law-makers. They simply research (inshaAllah) and tell you what they think Allah told us to do. Based on their research and tools (such as codes of Usool-ul-Fiqh).

It’s sad that, in our community, people say things like “the shaykh said mortgages are ok” and when you show them ayat probiting interest from the words of Allah, they turn away. Or worse, they argue (one of the characteristics of munfaiqin). What are they really saying? “Well, my Mufti says so, who cares about the Qur’an?” May Allah protect us from being among such people, ameen.

If you know such people, remind them (gently) of the hadith of the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم): “There is no obedience to the creation when it entails disobedience to the Creator.” [Musnad of Ahmad] [1]

There is also this hadith of the Prophet:

The Prophet sent a Sariya under the command of a man from the Ansar and ordered the soldiers to obey him. He (i.e. the commander) became angry and said “Didn’t the Prophet order you to obey me!” They replied, “Yes.” He said, “Collect fire-wood for me.” So they collected it. He said, “Make a fire.” When they made it, he said, “Enter it (i.e. the fire).” So they intended to do that and started holding each other and saying, “We run towards (i.e. take refuge with) the Prophet from the fire.” They kept on saying that till the fire was extinguished and the anger of the commander abated. When that news reached the Prophet he said, “If they had entered it (i.e. the fire), they would not have come out of it till the Day of Resurrection. Obedience (to somebody) is required when he enjoins what is good.” [Bukhari 5/59/629]

Subhanallah. May Allah protect us from misguidance and from the Fire, ameen!

[1] Abdul Hasib. “A Trip to Your Neighbour.” There is no obedience to the creation when it entails disobedience to the Creator. 6 Aug. 2006. 13 Aug. 2006 <http://forums.almaghrib.org/showthread.php?t=9343&page=15&pp=10>.

[2] Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Code of Scholars. University of Toronto, Toronto. August 2005.