Fiqh wata ɗaya ce daga cikin muhimman ilimomin Musulunci da suka fi tasiri ga al'umma. Ita ce ɗaya daga cikin muhimman rassan al'adun Musulunci. Hakan ya faru ne saboda al'adun Musulunci su ne Alƙur'ani da Sunnah, da duk abin da ake dogaro da shi kuma aka tsara shi domin fahimtar Alƙur'ani da Sunnah. Duk da cewa al'adun Musulunci sun haɗa da ilimomin harshen Larabci, hadisi da tafsiri, abu mafi fitowa fili daga cikinsu shi ne tunanin da ke da alaƙa da ra'ayi game da rayuwa da mafitoci da ke magance matsalolin rayuwa. A takaice, yana bayyana ne a cikin akidu (‘aqaid) da hukunce-hukuncen Shari'ah, domin su al'ada ce ta aiki da aka karɓa don fuskantar matsalolin rayuwa, wacce a mafi yawan lokuta ta ƙunshi tunani game da akidu da mafita, watau hukunce-hukuncen. Fiqh ba komai ba ne face sanin waɗannan hukunce-hukunce.

Fiqh is one of the most important Islamic disciplines having the greatest effect on society. It is one of the most important branches of the Islamic culture. That is because the Islamic culture is the Qur’ān and Sunnah and whatever is relied upon and laid down in order to understand the Qur’ān and Sunnah. Even though the Islamic culture includes the sciences of the Arabic language, hadīth and tafsīr, the most prominent thing that appears from it are the thoughts which relate to the viewpoint about life and the solutions which treat the problems of life. In other words, it appears in the beliefs (‘aqaid) and Sharī’ah rules because they are a practical culture adopted to face lifes problems which, in most cases, contains thoughts about beliefs and solutions i.e, the rules. Fiqh is nothing other than the knowledge of these rules.

Al'adun Musulunci da koyon dokokin Shari'a sun fara ne tun daga lokacin da aka aiko Manzon Allah ﷺ. Manzon Allah ﷺ ne kaɗai tushen dokokin Shari'a, domin an aike shi ne don koyar da mutane addinin Allah. Ya ce:

The Islamic culture and the learning of Sharī’ah rules began from the time the Messenger  was sent. The Messenger  was the only reference point for the Sharī’ah rules because he was sent to teach people Allah’s deen. He  said:

Ya ce:

He  said:

Ban da Manzon Allah ﷺ, babu wani Musulmi da yake da hakkin ya gabatar da ra'ayinsa da kansa game da kowace mahanga ko hukunci. Saboda kasancewar Manzon Allah ﷺ a tsakaninsu, komawa gare shi game da duk abin da suka ci karo da shi yana da sauƙi. Duk da haka, ba a halatta wa kowa daga cikinsu ya bayar da ra'ayinsa na kansa game da kowane lamari ba. Shi ya sa, idan suka ci karo da wani lamari, ko takaddama ta taso, ko kuma wani daga cikinsu yana da wata shawara, sai su koma ga Manzon Allah ﷺ. Shi kuma yana bayar da ra'ayi, yana warware takaddamarsu, yana amsa tambayoyinsu, wani lokaci da ayar Alkur'ani wani lokaci kuma da hadisi. Amma abin da aka ruwaito cewa wasu Sahabbai sun yi ijtihadi a zamanin Manzon Allah ﷺ, sun yanke hukunci bisa ijtihadinsu a wasu takaddama, ko kuma sun fitar da hukuncin wasu lamura ta hanyar ijtihadinsu, to wannan ba ya sa waɗannan ijtihadan su zama tushen dokokin Shari'a. Maimakon haka, sun zama fahimtar Shari'a bisa umarnin Manzon Allah ﷺ. Sun zama aiwatar da Shari'a, suna dogara ga Alkur'ani da Sunna kamar yadda waɗannan mujtahidai suka fahimce su. Wannan kuwa ana iya gani daga yanayin da waɗannan ijtihadan suka faru. An ruwaito cewa Manzon Allah ﷺ ya aika Ali ibn Abi Talib zuwa Yemen a matsayin alkali. Ya ce masa:

With the exception of the Messenger  no Muslim has the right to independently put forward an opinion regarding any viewpoint or ruling. Due to the Messenger’s  presence among them referring to him regarding anything they came across was easy, It was still not permitted for any of them to give his personal opinion regarding any event. That is why, when they came across an event or a dispute arose or one of them had an idea they would refer to the Messenger . And he  would give an opinion, settle their disputes and answer their questions, sometimes with an ayah and sometimes with a hadīth. As for what has been reported that certain Sahabah exercised Ijtihād in the time of the Messenger  and pronounced judgements according to their own Ijtihād in certain disputes or that they deduced the rule regarding certain events through their own Ijtihād. This does not make these Ijtihāds a source for Sharī’ah rules. Rather they constitute an understanding of the Sharī’ah in accordance with the order of the Messenger . They constitute the application of the Sharī’ah, relying on the Qur’ān and Sunnah as understood by those mujtahidin. This is demonstrated by the circumstance in which these Ijtihāds took place. It has been reported that the Prophet  sent ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib  to Yemen as a judge. He  told him:

An rawaito cewa Annabi ﷺ ya aika Mu'az ibn Jabal zuwa Yemen, sai ya ce masa:

It has been reported that the Prophet  sent Mu’az ibn Jabal to Yemen and he  said to him:

An wallafa cewa wasu mutane suna jayayya a tsakaninsu game da wani buki, sai aka aika Hudhaifa ya yanke hukunci a tsakaninsu. Bukhari da Muslim sun ruwaito daga Amr bin al-Aas cewa ya ji Manzon Allah ﷺ yana cewa:

It is reported that some people were disputing over a hut between themselves so Hudhayfa was sent to judge between them. Bukhari & Muslim report on the authority of ‘Amr bin al-‘Aas that he heard the prophet  say:

Duk waɗannan rahotanni da sauran misalai irinsu suna nuna cewa ijtihadin da Musulmi suka yi a zamanin Manzon Allah ﷺ yana cikin umarninsa. Saboda haka, shi ne tushensu. Don haka, zamanin Manzon Allah ﷺ zamani ne da tushen dukkan al'adun Musulunci ya kasance a cikinsa. Wannan ya ci gaba daga lokacin da aka aiko shi har zuwa mutuwarsa, a cikin tsawon lokaci wanda bai wuce shekara ashirin da biyu da 'yan watanni ba, a lokacin ne aka saukar da dukkan Alkur'ani, kuma aka kammala Sunnah mai girma. Waɗannan su ne kawai nassoshin da ake ɗaukarsu a matsayin tushen tunani, hukunce-hukunce da al'adu a Musulunci.

All of these reports and other such examples indicate that the Ijtihādat that the Muslims performed during the days of the Messenger  were in accordance with his  order. Therefore, he was their source. Thus, the time of the Messenger  was a time in which the source of the entire Islamic culture existed. That continued from the time he was sent until his death, in a period of time not exceeding twenty two years and a few months in which the whole Qur’ān was revealed and the sublime Sunnah was completed. These are the only texts considered as the source of thoughts, rules and culture in Islam.

Da mutuwar Manzon Allah a shekara ta goma sha ɗaya ta Hijira ne zamanin Sahabbai ya fara. Zamani ne na tafsiri da buɗe ƙofofin istinbadi (zurfafa fahimta da cire hukunci) ga al'amuran da ba su da nassi bayyananne. Sahabbai sun ga cewa ba dukkan nassoshin Alƙur'ani da Sunna ne aka yaɗa ko'ina a cikin mutane ba, har ya zama kowane mutum yana iya samunsu, domin nassoshin Alƙur'ani an rubuta su ne a kan takardu na musamman da aka adana a gidan Manzon Allah ﷺ, da kuma a gidajen wasu Sahabbai, amma Sunna kuwa ba a rubuta ta ba tukuna. Sun kuma ga cewa nassoshin Alƙur'ani da Sunna sun shar'anta hukunce-hukunce ne ga abubuwan da suka faru a lokacin shar'antawar, ba wai don abubuwan da ke iya faruwa kawai ba. Bukatu, abubuwa da al'amura sun faru a tsakanin Musulmi waɗanda ba su faru a zamanin Manzon Allah ﷺ ba, don haka babu nassoshin da za su bayyana hukuncin matsalolin da za su taso daga baya. Haka nan, sun ga cewa ba kowane Musulmi ne ya cancanta ya koma ga nassoshin Alƙur'ani da Sunna da kansa ya fahimci hukuncin da suke nunawa ba, domin talakawa ba sa iya fahimtar nassoshin sai ta hannun wanda zai fahimtar da su dokokin Musulunci. Saboda haka, sun fahimci cewa wajibi ne a kansu su yaɗa Alƙur'ani mai girma da hadisan Manzon Allah ﷺ a cikin Musulmi. Don haka suka ɗauki nauyin tattara Alƙur'ani, daga wannan tattarawa suka yi kwafi da yawa suka rarraba su a tsakanin Musulmi, kuma suka ɗauki matakan tabbatar da amincin ruwayar Sunna da amana wajen bincike game da masu ruwaya. Sun kuma fahimci cewa wajibi ne a kansu su bayyana wa Musulmi bayani da fayyace nassoshin Alƙur'ani da Sunna kamar yadda ya dace. Sai suka fara koyar da mutane addini, sannan suka ga cewa ya kamata su ba mutane hukunce-hukuncen shari'a game da al'amuran da ke faruwa a rayuwarsu, waɗanda babu nassi (bayyananne) a kansu. Don haka suka fara fitar da hukunce-hukuncen da ake buƙata saboda al'amuran da suka faru. Saboda wannan suka ɗauki nauyin addini, suka gudanar da shi ta hanya mafi kyau da za a iya.

Kamar yadda suka yi sabani a kan batun raba-gadon haɗin kai (al-Mushtaraka), lokacin da wata mace ta rasu ta bar miji, uwa, 'yan'uwan uwa (uterine) da cikakkun 'yan'uwa (full brothers). ‘Umar ya kan ba mijin rabin gado, uwar kashi ɗaya cikin shida, sannan 'yan'uwan uwa kashi ɗaya cikin uku. Don haka babu abin da ya rage ga cikakkun 'yan'uwa. Sai aka ce masa: Ka ce mahaifinmu jaki ne? Ashe ba mu fito daga uwa ɗaya ba? Sai ya canza ra'ayinsa, ya ba su rabo. Sun kasance suna nazarin maslaha (amfani) wadda nassi ya zo domin ita, idan an fahimce ta daga nassin. Wani misali kuma shi ne lokacin da Allah ya ce:

Similarly when they disagreed about the question of joint share, when a woman died leaving a husband, mother, uterine brothers and full brothers. ‘Umar used to give the husband half, the mother a sixth, and the uterine brothers a third. So nothing remained for the full brothers. It was said to him: Suppose our father was a donkey. Are we not from one mother? So he changed his view and gave them a share. They used to acquaint themselves with the maslaha (benefit) for which the text came, if it was understood from the text. Another example is when Allah  said:

Don haka Allah ya sanya waɗanda zukatansu ke a sulhunce (zuwa ga Musulunci) cikin abubuwan da ake kashewa daga cikin hanyoyin zakka. An tabbatar da cewa Annabi ﷺ yana ba mutane kuɗi waɗanda zukatansu sun sulhunta da Musulunci. Bayan rasuwar Manzon Allah ﷺ, an ruwaito game da ‘Umar cewa ya hana biyan waɗanda zukatansu suka sulhunta (al-mu’allaftu qulubuhum). Ya ce musu:

So Allah  made those whose hearts have to be a reconciled (towards Islâm) an expenditure from the sources of zakat. It has been established that the Prophet  used to give money to people whose hearts had been reconciled with Islam. After the death of the Messenger  it is narrated about ‘Umar that he forbade the payment of those whose hearts had been reconciled (al-mu’allaftu qulubuhum). He told them:

Umar was of the view that the reconciling of hearts towards Islam was there because the state was weak, because the expression, for the expression 'reconciling hearts' (ta'leeful al-qulub), indicates this. For when do you reconcile hearts except when you are in a state of need for them (the people)? Umar took the opinion that the need to reconcile hearts ended when Islam became strong, and without the need to reconcile hearts, the 'illah (legal cause) does not apply, and due to this the hukm also does not apply.

Umar was of the view that the reconcilings of hearts towards Islam was there because the state was weak because the expression, for the expression ‘reconciling hearts’ (ta’leeful al-qulub) indicates this. For when do you reconcile hearts except when you are in a state of need for them (the people) ? Umar took the opinion that the need to reconcile hearts ended when Islam became strong, without the need to reconcile hearts, the ‘illah (legal cause) does not apply and due to this the hukm also does not apply.

Sahabbai sukan binciko tare da tambayar mutane game da nassosin Shari'a dangane da al'amuran da ba su sani ba, kuma (Allah ya yarda da su) sukan taru a Hijaz, suna tattaunawa a kan Alkur'ani da Sunnah. Idan ba su sami hukunci a cikin Alkur'ani da Sunnah ga al'amarin da suke nema ba, sai su tambayi Musulmi ko akwai wanda ya san abin da Manzon Allah ﷺ ya yanke a matsayin hukunci a kan al'amarin. Shi ya sa suke komawa ga juna, suna taruwa don tattaunawa a kan al'amuran da bayar da ra'ayi a kansu. Abu Bakr da 'Umar sukan fitar da hukunce-hukunce ta hanyar hujja, suna kuma komawa ga mutane. Al-Baghawi ya ruwaito a cikin littafinsa Masabih al-Sunnah:

The Sahabah used to investigate and ask the people about the Sharī’ah texts regarding matters they did not know and they (may Allah be pleased with them) used to be all gathered together in the Hijaz, discussing the Qur’ān and Sunnah. If they did not find a hukm in the Qur’ān and Sunnah for the issue they were looking for they would ask Muslims if any of them knew what the Messenger of Allah  passed as a judgement for the issue. That is why they used to refer to each other and get together to discuss the issues and give an opinion for it. Abu Bakr and ‘Umar used to deduce rules and refer to the people. Al-Baghawi has narrated in his Masabih al-Sunnah:

Idan bai samu wata Sunnah daga Manzon Allah ﷺ ba, sai ya tattara shugabannin mutane da mafi kyawunsu, ya tuntube su. Idan suka yi ijma'i a kan wani al'amari, sai ya yi hukunci da abin da suka yarda a kai. An rawaito cewa 'Umar yana tuntubar Sahabbai duk da ilimin fiqhu da yake da shi, har ta kai idan wani lamari ya zo masa sai ya ce: "Ku kira mini 'Ali, ku kira mini Zaid." Yana tuntubar su, yana kawo ƙarshen sabani da abin da suka amince da shi. Saboda Sahabbai suna komawa ga juna, ba a cika samun sabanin ra'ayi a tsakaninsu ba, domin kowane Sahabi yana bayyana wa ɗan'uwansa Sahabi ra'ayinsa da hujjojin da ya fitar. Ra'ayinsu gaba ɗaya gaskiya ne kuma daidai, kuma kowa yana komawa ga ɗan'uwansa. Ko da yake ra'ayoyinsu sun bambanta a wasu hukunce-hukunce, bambancin nasu ya kasance kaɗan, kuma yana cikin fahimta ne, ba a cikin hanyar fahimtar ba.

If he failed to find a Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah  he gathered the heads of people and the best amongst them and consulted them. If they had a consensus on a matter he would judge with that. It has been reported that ‘Umar used to consult the Sahabah despite his knowledge of fiqh to the extent that when an incident would be refered to him he would say: Call ‘Ali for me, call Zayd. He used to consult them and settle the dispute with whatever they were agreed upon. Due to the Sahabah’s reference to each other differences of opinion between them were rare because each Sahābi expressed to another Sahābi his own perspective and the evidences he educed. Their view on the whole was true and correct and each one referred to the other. And even though their views differed in certain rules but their differences were rare and it was in their understanding and not in the method of understanding.

Lokacin da fütūḥāt (cin yankuna) ya faɗaɗa, sahabbai suka warwatsa a garuruwa daban-daban, kuma ya zama yana da wuya waɗannan sahabbai su haɗu, duk lokacin da wani lamari ya faru wanda babu nassi a kansa, kowane sahabi yana ba da ra'ayinsa da kansa ba tare da ya bayyana wa wasu ba ko ya koma gare su ba, saboda wahalar haɗuwa tun da garuruwa suna nesa da juna, kuma saboda buƙatar ba da ra'ayi game da lamarin da ya faru a cikin gari domin a yi hukunci da shi. A kowane garin Musulmi akwai sahabi ɗaya ko fiye. Su ne mafaka ga hukunce-hukunce. Suna ƙirƙira dokoki waɗanda babu nassi a kansu, kuma suna ɗaukar nauyin bayani da fassara nassi, haka nan kuma suna ɗaukar alhakin koyar da mutane Alƙur'ani da Sunnah. Sunnah tana har yanzu ba a rubuce ba, saboda haka ra'ayoyin sahabbai sun bambanta game da lamari guda, kuma kowane ɗayansu yana da hujja ga ra'ayin da ya fitar da shi kuma yana yanke hukunci da shi. Duk da haka, dukkan waɗannan ra'ayoyin dokoki ne na Shari'ah, kuma dukkansu suna karɓuwa a wurin kowa, domin bambancinsu ya kasance ne kawai cikin fahimta. Dangane da hanyarsu ta Ijtihadi kuwa, hanya ce ta duba nassin Alƙur'ani da hadisi, da bincika nassoshi, da tabbatar da cewa maslahohin da aka amince da su su ne waɗanda Shari'ah kaɗai ta nuna, da kuma yin qiyasi ga al'amura da maslahohi. Haɗin kai a hanyar Ijtihadi bai bari bambancin fahimta ya yi tasiri ba. Akasin haka, ya kasance ɗaya daga cikin dalilan bunƙasa da faɗaɗar fiqhu. Hukunce-hukuncen fatawarsu sun kasance daidai da al'amura da lamuran da suka faru. Iyakar bambancinsu bai faɗaɗa ba, kuma bai wuce matakin furu' (rassan fiqhu) ba. Bambancin sahabbai a cikin furu' yana komawa ga dalilai guda biyu.