Tattaunawa kan umarni da kyakkyawa (al-ma'ruf) da hani daga mummuna (al-munkar) tana shiryar da mu zuwa sanin abin da ya zama kyakkyawa da abin da ya zama mummuna. Ilimi yana gabanin umarni ko hani; ba za a iya umarni ko hani ba tare da ilimi ba. To menene iyakokin ilimin da Shari'ah ta wajabta wa Musulmi?

The discussion of enjoining the ma’roof and forbidding the munkar guides us to the knowledge of the ma’roof and the munkar. Knowledge comes before the order or prohibition; there can be no enjoining or forbidding without knowledge. So what are the Shar’ee limits of knowledge required from the Muslim?

Abu ce a bayyane cewa ilimi yana gaban aiki. Aikin kuma dole ne ya kasance bisa ilimin Shari'a. In ba haka ba, aikin ba zai zama ibada ba. Allah 􀀬 ya umurci Musulmi da aikata ma'rūfāt, don haka wajibi ne mutum ya san wadannan ma'rūfāt domin ya aikata su. Haka kuma, Ya umurce su da kaucewa munkarāt; saboda haka wajibi ne a sami ilimin munkarāt, domin mutum ya iya kaucewa su.

It is self-evident to say that knowledge precedes action. The action must also be according to the Shar’ee knowledge. Otherwise the action will not be worship. Allah 􀀬 has ordered the Muslims to undertake the ma’roofaat, so it is imperative that one has knowledge of these ma’roofaat in order to undertake them. Similarly, He 􀀬 has ordered them to refrain from the munkaraat; hence it is imperative to have knowledge of the munkaraat, so that one can refrain from them.

Don haka, ibada, biyayya da riko da shari'a ne asali, kuma ilimi yana wajabta su, kuma don su ne yake. Ilimi ba a wajabta shi don kansa ba; a maimakon haka yana don ibada da biyayya. Allah ya ce: “Ba mu aiki wani Manzo face a yi masa biyayya da izinin Allah.” [TMQ 4:64]. Kamar yadda Abdullahi b. al-Mubaarak (Allah ya yi masa rahama) ya ce: “Mun kasance muna neman ilimi don ilimin kansa. Amma ilimi ya ki zama don komai face don Allah.” Ibada da biyayya ne abin nufi. Sanin wadannan abubuwa biyu ana samunsa ta mafi karancin matakinsa, wato ta taqlid, kuma ana samunsa ta mafi girman matakansa, wato Ijtihadi. Dukkansu suna da kyau matukar riko ya kasance kuma biyayya ta tabbata. Wanda ya yi salla, yana kiyaye sharuddan sallah da sharuddanta, yana nisantar abubuwan da suke bata sallah, to ya kafa ibada kuma ya aikata abin da aka umurce shi. Sai dai kuma, rashin aikata ibadar ta hanyar ijtihadi da nazari yana nufin ya rasa alheri mai yawa; wannan alherin shi ne ilimin da Allah ta hanyarsa yake daukaka Musulmi zuwa darajoji. Domin ya kafa ibada a matsayin muqallidi (mai bin malami), yana karbar hukunci daga wanda yake da ilimi, mai tsoron Allah kuma mai takawa a ganinsa. Don haka yana da mafi karancin shakka cewa abin da wannan malamin ya fada shi ne mafi daidai kuma mafi kusa da biyayya ga Allah. Haka kuma, wanda yake salla a matsayin muttabi’ wato yana karbar hukunci daga wani, amma tare da sanin dalili, shi ma muqallidi ne. Sai dai shi ya fi matsayin 'aammi (talaka) wanda yake karbar hukunci ba tare da dalilinsa ba. Dukkansu sun karbi hukunci daga wasu, kuma sun cimma biyayya da ibada. Amma mujtahidi shi ne ya fi matsayi; mafi kyawun sakamako, kuma mafi girman daraja. Yana daukar hukuncin shari'a da kansa, yana neman dalilai kuma yana fitar da hukuncin Allah daga cikinsu game da kansa.

Thus, worship, obedience and adherence is the origin, and knowledge is necessitated by them, and is for their sake. Knowledge is not required for itself; rather it is for the sake of worship and obedience. He 􀀬 said; “We sent no Messenger, but to be obeyed by Allah’s Leave.” [TMQ 4:64]. As Abdullah b. al-Mubaarak (May Allah have mercy on him) said; “We used to seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge. But knowledge refused to be for anything other than for the sake of Allah.”Worship and obedience are what is intended. Knowledge of these two things is achieved by its minimum limit, which is through taqleed, and are also achieved by its maximum limits, which is Ijtihaad. Both are good as long as the adherence existed and the obedience is realised. The one who prays, maintaining the pillars and conditions of the prayer, and refraining from the things that invalidate the prayer, has established the worship and has performed what he has been commanded to do. However, the fact that he did not perform the worship through Ijtihaad and study means that he missed much goodness; that goodness is the knowledge by which Allah 􀀬 raises the Muslim in degrees. For he established the worship as a muqallid (follower), taking the hukm from the one who has knowledge, is muttaqi (God fearing) and pious in his view. Thus he has the least amount of doubt that what that scholar has said is the most correct and closest to the obedience to Allah 􀀬. Likewise, the one who prays as a muttabi’ ie he takes the hukm from another, but with the knowledge of the evidence, he is also a muqallid. However, he is of better status than the ‘aammi (layman) who takes the hukm without its evidence. Both have taken the hukm from others, and realised the obedience and worship. As for the mujtahid, he is of better status; of more preferable consequence, and of higher degree. He takes the Shar’ee rule by himself and he searches for the evidences and derives from them the hukm of Allah 􀀬 regarding himself.