Al-Waadih Fee Usool ul-Fiqh by Muhammad Hussein Abdullah

This is when a Hukm is established by the Sunnah that makes it necessary to oppose the Qiyaas and to reject it, within a reality from amongst the realities. An example of this is found in what has been narrated in relation to the validity of fasting when food or drink is consumed accidently. The Qiyaas dictated the breaking of the fast however the presence of the text guiding to the validity of the fast made the Hanafiyah reject the Qiyaas within this context.

Another example in respect to the Hanafiyah relates to the invalidation of the Wudoo’ and the loud burst of laughter during the Salaah. Qiyaas dictates that the Salaah alone is invalidated as the fault or defect lay in it alone. And if the fault lay in the Mashroot (conditioned matter) which is the Salaah that fault (Khalal) does not extend beyond that to the Shart (condition) which is the Wudoo’. However, that which nullifies the Wudoo’ is the Sunnah because the Nabi (saw) declared the Wudoo’ of those who had laughed out loud in their Salaah as a result of seeing a blind man tumble to be invalidated.

Consequently, the Istihsaan taken from the Sunnah is in opposition to the Qiyaas in these two scenarios and consequently the Sunnah is taken and not the Qiyaas.

This means leaving the Qiyaas in a Mas’alah (issue) due to the convening of an Ijmaa’ upon other than what the Qiyaas led to within that issue.

That is like the Ijmaa’ of the Muslims upon the validity of the contract of Istisnaa’ (ordering something to be manufactured). This would be like your agreement with a carpenter to make a wardrobe for you of a particular description. Qiyaas would not permit that because the matter the agreement (i.e. the contract (‘Aqd)) is being made upon that which does not exist in the case where the Shaari’ (legislator) has prohibited the contract upon that which does not exist.

Here the Istihsaan is reflected in taking from the Ijmaa’ which states the permissibility of Istisnaa’ (manufacturing) and is contrary to the Qiyaas that states the impermissibility of convening such a contract upon that which does not exist, like the wardrobe in the above example.

The Hanafiyah adopt the Qaa’idah (principle): ‘Ad-Darooraat Tubeehu l-Mahzhooraat’ (The necessities make the prohibited matters permissible). So when or if the Mujtahid found a Daroorah (necessity) within a Mas’alah (issue) he would leave the Qiyaas and adopt in accordance to the dictates of the Qaa’idah: ‘The necessities make the prohibited matters permissible’. An example of this is the purifying of the land and the wells because it is not possible to purify them when we have adopted Qiyaas. That is because it is not possible to pour water upon the basin or well for it to be purified as the water entering the basin or well becomes impure upon coming into contact with the Najas just as the bucket becomes impure by coming into contact with the water and returns as being Najas (impure). Therefore, due to necessity of the need they utilised Istihsaan to abandon working in accordance to the dictates of the Qiyaas.

The Fuqahaa’ evaluated that the well or water basin would be purified by scooping out a large number of bucketfuls of water corresponding to the (amount of) Najaasah (impurity) until, by repeating the scooping and pouring (i.e. replacing), the proportion of the Najaasah is lessened, even if it is not completely removed.

This is accordance to the opinion of the Hanafiyah in respect to leaving the Qiyaas that dictates removing the Najaasah (completely) whilst adopting Istihsaan Ad-Daroorah that overlooks some of the Najaasah (impurity) remaining. The opposition of Istihsaan to Qiyaas according to the Hanafiyah in regards to the first two types: ‘Istihsaan As-Sunnah’ and ‘Istihsaan Al-Ijmaa’’, represents a conflict between texts which contain Shar’iyah ‘Ilal (reasons) and other texts within the same issue (Mas’alah) from the Sunnah and Ijmaa’. The ‘Ulamaa’ have examined this conflict and have placed down principles (Qawaa’id) for it, which we will discuss in the second part of ‘Al-Waadih Fee Usool ul-Fiqh’ Inshaa Allah. These principles are like of the ‘Umoom and the Khusoos, the Istithnaa’ and At-Ta’aadul and At-Taraaajeeh.

As for Istihsaan Ad-Daroorah and Al-Maslahah then we have already explained this view previously