On account of this...

On account of this, it may be said that ijtihad plays the role of an evolutionary and dynamic force in legal studies which provides solutions to contingent issues of life and fulfils the needs of changing times and the requirements of new phenomena of human civilization. Therefore, Islamic fiqh does not suf­fer with inertia, stagnation and passivity vis-a-vis the demands of the times, of life and its manifestations; it also advances along with them.

It is for this reason that it has been said that ijtihad has been through­out Islamic history the force which has been constantly developing and expanding the boundaries of fiqh with respect to its applications, while maintaining the stability of legislation. Thus, ijtihad is essential for Islamic fiqh, without which it cannot be dynamic and progressive.

On the basis of this, closing of the gates of ijtihad is contrary to the perennial mission of Islam in all ages, and, most certainly, alien elements have played an active role in promoting this ominous venture. For the enemies of Islam, it has been, and still is, the best weapon to strike Islamic law with, and the most effective instrument for eliminat­ing it from scientific, cultural, economic, social and political arenas.

Be­cause, closing of the gates of ijtihad renders fiqh ineffective and incapa­ble of providing answers to emergent and contingent issues of life The present deficiencies in the world of Islam, the failure to con­front the contingent issues in a proper way, the issuing of baseless and ir­rational fatawa, the improper attitude towards new ideas - all these are consequencies of the closing of the gates of ijtihad by the Ahl al-­Sunnah.

It has been instrumental in allowing dubious hands, with the aid of taghuti governments, to instil unhealthy ideas into the people's minds and to insinuate the feeling that Islamic fiqh cannot fulfil the demands of the present age and the modern civilization.

These insinuations have left undesirable effects on the minds of short-sighted and self-alienated persons unaware of the spirit of Islam, to the extent that they servilely follow the aliens and prefer Western laws to the laws of Islam (we shall have more to say about this matter in the article "The Era of the Decline of Sunni Ijtihad"). The most outstanding achievement of Shi'i fiqh has been to keep open the gates of ijtihad throughout the course of history.