ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Ijtihad: Its Meaning, Sources, Beginnings and the Practice of Ra'y Objections Against the Definition It may be objected that the above definition is not logical or tech­nical, for a technically and logically correct definition should closely correspond to the thing defined, whereas the said definition is rather loose.

It states that ijtihad is to derive and determine ahkam from the sources; it does not specify that the person performing derivation should also possess the capacity, whereas the mujtahid is one who possesses the capacity of ijtihad. This objection is valid, unless it is said that ijtihad depends on the capacity and it is not possible to derive ahkam from reliable sources except through that capacity, and here possession of the capacity is taken for granted.

In this regard, the requirement of another faculty - the so-called quwwah qudsiyyah - is not essential, for the-ijtihad which is acceptable to all means derivation of the Shar'i ahkam from the sources, and in the same way as a just' (`adil) mujtahid can perform this task, it can also be performed by a mujtahid who is not `just'.

Two Different Conceptions of Ijtihad The term ijtihad as used in the writings of scholars of different Islamic sects conveys two different meanings, each of which gives rise to different viewpoints regarding the sources of Shar'i ahkam. In the first conception ijtihad means derivation of Shar`i hukm through personal judgement and ray for an issue for which the mujtahid does not find any express text in the Quran or the Sunnah.

Such a meaning of ijtihad is found in the writings of `Abd al-Wahhab al-Khallaf and most of Sunni fuqaha' also subscribe to this view. Ijtihad in this sense is. considered by most of Sunni scholars as an independent source parallel to the Quran, the Sunnah, ijma` and `aql, and is acknowledged as one of the bases for determining the ahkam.