Since as will follow...

Since as will follow, the special meaning of Ijtihad belongs to issues in which there is no tradition. Ijtihad in its Special Meaning There are some definitions for the special meaning of Ijtihad, too. Some have defined it as Qiyas , as Imam Shafi’i who equals between Ijtihad and Qiyas and says, “These two are used to name the same concept.”[^22] Others equal it with Ra’y (opinion).

Ijtihad is defined as: “Making effort in obtaining a rule, when there is no (reported) tradition, by pondering and using ways shown by religion in order to inference.”[^23] Still others have equaled Ijtihad with Ra’y (opinion), Qiyas (analogy) and Istihsan (approbation). The late Sayyid Murtaza Alam al-Huda has a different view. To him, Ijtihad and Qiyas are different and their relationship is general and specific.

This great scholar writes: “Among jurisprudents, some differentiate between Qiyas and Ijtihad saying, ‘In Qiyas , the analogy is made based on a definite principle, but in Ijtihad there is no principle for analogy, such as Ijtihad in finding Qiblah, defining the value of the damaged things and difference of healthy and injured ( arsh ).’[^24] Some others consider Qiyas as a kind of Ijtihad.

So when speaking of those who accept Ijtihad, we mean those who use conjectures and reasons to reach religious rules, not those who only trust reasons.[^25] Ijtihad in its specific usage, meaning either Ra’y (opinion), Qiyas (analogy), or Qiyas , Istihsan and Masalih Mursalah , if proved only through conjecture, is not valid to Imamiyyah jurisprudents, and hence cannot prove religious rules.[^26] Since it includes reasons prohibiting from following conjectures.[^27] It should be kept in mind that since Ijtihad was used by jurisprudents as conjectural Ijtihad at a point in time, the early Shi’a scholars have written explicitly or implicitly on rejection of Ijtihad (conjectural Ijtihad).

As an example Shaykh Mufid, the great Shi’a scholar of the third century, has written a book under the title Al-Naqz Ala Ibn Al-Junayd fi Al-Ra’y (rejection of Ibn Junayd in Ijtihad according to the opinion). As a result, when dealing with the term Ijtihad in the books, or when using it, we should pay attention to its two senses. Sources of Ijtihad Having defined Ijtihad, we now turn to the sources of Ijtihad (in its general sense).