Kifungu cha 9

Ijtihad ni wajibu wa kutosheleza, na kila Muslim ana haki ya kufanya Ijtihad mradi atimize masharti yake yote.

Ijtihad is a duty of sufficiency and every Muslim reserves the right to perform Ijtihad provided he meets all its prerequisites.

Sharia ya Kiislamu imeweka ijtihadi kuwa wajibu kwa Waislamu ili kutoa hukumu za Sharia kutoka katika kauli ya Mwenye Kutoa Sharia, yaani kutoka katika nusu za Sharia zilizoteremshwa na Allah (SWT) kwa Mjumbe wa Allah ﷺ. Ukweli kwamba ijtihadi ni wajibu umethibitishwa kupitia riwaya kadhaa. Mjumbe wa Allah ﷺ alisema:

The Islamic Shari’ah has made Ijtihad to deduce the Shari’ah rules from the address of the Legislator – i.e. from the Shari’ah texts which are revealed by Allah (swt) to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) - an obligation upon the Muslims. The fact that Ijtihad is an obligation has been confirmed through several narrations. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said:

. إِذَا حَكَمَ الْحَاكِمُ فَاجْتَ هَدَ ثُمَّ أَصَابَ فَ لَهُ أَجْرَانِ، وَإِذَا حَكَمَ فَاجْتَ هَدَ ثُمَّ « » أَخْطَأَ ف لَهُ أَجْرٌ .

"Hakimu anapotumia ujuzi wake wa kufikiri na kutoa hukumu sahihi, atapata thawabu mara mbili, na anapotumia ujuzi wake wa kufikiri kisha akakosea, atapata thawabu moja." (Imekubaliwa na Bukhari na Muslim, kutoka kwa Amru bin Al-Aas). Pia alisema:

“When a judge utilizes his skill of judgement and comes to a right decision, he will have a double reward, but when he uses his judgement and commits a mistake, he will have a single reward.” (agreed upon through Amru Bin Al-Aas). He also said:

. » وَرَجُلٌ قَضَى لِلنَّاسِ عَلَى جَهْلٍ فَ هُوَ فِي النَّارِ «.

"na mtu aliyehukumu watu bila elimu, yuko katika Moto wa Jahannam" (ilipokewa na waandishi wa Sunan na Al-Hakim na Al-Tabarani kwa mnyororo wa wapokezi Sahih). Hii inathibitisha kwamba hakimu lazima awe na ufahamu wa mambo anayoyahukumu. Pia imepokewa kwamba alimwambia Ibn Mas'ud:

“and a man judged people without knowledge, he is in Hell fire” (transmitted by the compilers of the Sunan and Al- Hakim and Al-Tabarani with a Sahih chain). This confirms that the judge must be acquainted with what he judges on. It is also reported that he said to Ibn Mas’ud:

. اقْضِ بِالْكِتَابِ وَالسُّ نَّةِ إِذَا وَجَدْتَ هُمَا، فَإِذَا لَمْ تَجِدِ الحُكْمَ فِيهِمَا فَاجْتَهِدْ « » رَأْيَكَ .

"Hukumu kwa Kitabu na Sunnah popote unapopapata (hukumu) ndani yake, na ikiwa hutapata hukumu ndani yake, basi fanya Ijtihadi (tumia busara yako)," kama ilivyotajwa na Al-Amidi katika Al-Ahkam na Al-Razi katika Al-Mahsul. Alisema hayo kwa Mu'adh na Abu Musa Al-Ash'ari alipokuwa karibu kuwatuma Yemen:

Judge by the Book and the Sunnah wherever you find (the ruling) in them, and if you don’t find the ruling in them, then do Ijtihad (use your judgement)” as mentioned by Al- Amidi in Al-Ahkam and Al-Razi in Al-Mahsul. He said to Mu’ath and Abu Moussa Al-Ash’ari when he was about to dispatch them to Yemen:

. بِمَ تَ قْضِيَانِ ؟ فَ قَالاَ: إِنْ لَمْ نَجْدِ الْحُكْمَ فِي الْكِتَابِ وَالسُّ نَّةِ قِسْ نَا الأَمْرَ « » بِالأَمْرِ، فَمَا كَانَ أَقْ رَبَ إِلَى الحَقِّ عَمِلْنَا بِه .

"Utahukumu kwa kitu gani?" Wakasema: "Ikiwa hatutapata hukumu katika Kitabu wala katika Sunnah, tutafanya qiyas (kulinganisha) baina ya mambo; lolote (kwa mujibu wa ijtihadi yetu) lililo karibu zaidi na usahihi ndilo litakalochukuliwa." (Amesimulia Al-Amidi katika Al-Ahkam na Abu Al-Husain katika Al-Mu'tamad). Qiyas hii yenyewe ni Ijtihadi ya kuistinbati hukumu, na Mtume wa Allah ﷺ aliikubali. Pia imepokewa kwamba Mtume wa Allah ﷺ alimwambia Mu'adh alipomteua kuwa gavana wa Yemen:

“What will you judge by?” They said: “If we don’t find the rule in the Book or in the Sunnah, we will make analogy (Qiyas) between things; whichever (according to our judgement) is closer to the right is adopted.” (mentioned by Al-Amidi in Al- Ahkam and Abu Al-Husain in Al-Mu’tamad). This analogy is in itself an Ijtihad to deduce the rule, and the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) approved it. It is also reported that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said to Mu’ath when he appointed him as governor to Yemen:

كَيْفَ تَ قْضِي إِنْ عَرَضَ لَكَ قَضَاء ؟ قَالَ: أَقْضِي بِكِتَابِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ: فَإِنْ لَمْ « قَالَ: فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِي سُنَّةِ رَسُولِ ، يَكُنْ فِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ ؟ قَالَ: فَسُنَّةِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ قَالَ: أَجْتَهِدُ رَأْيِي وَلاَ آلُو. قَالَ: فَضَرَبَ صَدْرِي فَ قَالَ: الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي ؟ اللَّهِ » لِمَا ي رُْضِي رَسُولَه وَفَّقَ رَسُولَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ.

"Utatawala kwa kutumia nini?" Akasema: "Kwa Kitabu cha Allah." Akasema: "Itakuwaje usipopata hukumu?" Akasema: "Kwa Sunnah ya Mtume wa Allah ﷺ." Akasema: "Itakuwaje usipopata hukumu?" Akasema: "Nitatumia maoni yangu mwenyewe." Hapo Mtume wa Allah ﷺ akasema: "Sifa njema zote ni za Allah, ambaye amemwongoza mjumbe wa Mtume wa Allah ﷺ kwa lile linalomridhisha Mtume Wake." (Imepokewa na Ahmad, Al-Tirmidhi, Al-Darimi na Abu Dawud, na ilithibitishwa na Al-Hafidh Ibn Kathir Al-Basrawi, ambaye alisema kwamba riwaya hii ni Hasan Mashhur na inategemewa na wanazuoni wa Kiislamu.)

“What will you rule by?” He said: “By the Book of Allah.” He said: “What if you do not find the rule?” He said: “By the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh).” He said: “What if you do not find the rule?” He said: “I will exert my own opinion.” Upon this the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “Praise be to Allah Who guided the envoy of the Messengerof Allah (pbuh) to what satisfies His Messenger” (transmitted by Ahmad and Al- Tirmidhi and Al-Darimi and Abu Dawud and was authenticated by Al-Hafiz Ibn Kathir Al-Basrawi who said that the narration is Hasan Mashur and relied upon by the scholars of Islam).

Hii inaonyesha wazi idhini ya Mtume wa Allah ﷺ kuhusu kitendo cha Mu'adh cha kufanya Ijtihadi. Zaidi ya hayo, elimu ya hukumu za Kishariah inaunganishwa na kuhusiana na Ijtihadi, kwa kuwa kufahamu na kuelewa hukumu hizo hakuwezi kupatikana bila hiyo. Kwa hiyo, Ijtihadi inakuwa ya lazima, kwa sababu kanuni ya Shari'ah inasema:

This clearly indicates the approval of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) with regard to Mu’ath’s performance of Ijtihad. Furthermore, the knowledge of the rules is linked and is related to Ijtihad since the realisation and the comprehension of the rules could not be established without it. Hence, Ijtihad becomes obligatory because the Shari’ah principle stipulates:

. )ما لا يتم الواجب إلا به فهو اجب( .

"Kile ambacho bila hicho wajibu hauwezi kutekelezwa, chenyewe ni wajibu".

“That, without which the obligation cannot be accomplished, is itself an obligation”.

Kimsingi, uamuzi wa hukumu za Sharia hufanywa na Mujtahidina (wale wenye uwezo wa Ijtihadi), kwa sababu ujuzi wa hukumu ya Allah katika jambo fulani hauwezi kufikiwa isipokuwa kwa Ijtihadi, hivyo Ijtihadi inakuwa ya lazima. Wanazuoni wa Usul al-Fiqh (misingi ya elimu ya fiqh) wameeleza kuwa Ijtihadi ni wajibu wa kutosheleza kwa Waislamu, na kwamba ni haramu kwa Waislamu kuwa bila Mujtahidi hata mmoja wakati wowote. Iwapo wote wangekubaliana kuacha Ijtihadi, wangekuwa wametenda dhambi, kwa sababu njia pekee ya kujua hukumu za Sharia ni kupitia Ijtihadi. Kwa hiyo, zama zisizo na angalau Mujtahidi mmoja ambaye angeweza kutegemewa katika kutambua hukumu, zingesababisha kupooza kwa Sharia, jambo ambalo ni haramu. Zaidi ya hayo, maandiko ya Sharia yanawawajibisha Waislamu kufanya Ijtihadi kwa sababu maandiko haya (yaani Kitabu na Sunnah na si kingine) hayakuja kwa undani, bali kwa ujumla unaoweza kutumika kwa kila hali inayokabili binadamu. Kuyaelewa na kutoa hukumu ya Allah kutoka kwake kunahitaji kutumia juhudi kamili ili kupata hukumu ya Sharia kwa kila jambo. Ijtihadi hii si kazi isiyowezekana wala ngumu mno; bali ni mchakato wa kutumia juhudi zote za mtu ili kupata hukumu za Sharia kwa shaka ndogo kabisa. Kwa maneno mengine, ni kuelewa maandiko ya Sharia kwa kutumia juhudi kubwa kabisa ili kufikia uelewa huo na kutambua hukumu ya Sharia. Hili kwa kweli liko ndani ya uwezo wa kila mtu. Ijtihadi ilikuwa ya kawaida na dhahiri kwa Waislamu katika zama za mwanzo, wala haikuwa na masharti ya awali. Hata hivyo, kwa kuwa kuelewa Kiarabu cha kale kulianza kudhoofika na kwa kuwa watu walianza kutoa umakini mdogo katika kufahamu Dini, imekuwa wajibu kwa Mujtahid kujua dalili za kinakili (Adillah Sam’iyyah) ambazo kanuni na hukumu hutolewa kutoka kwake. Pia imekuwa wajibu kwake kufahamu maana ya misemo inayotumika kwa kawaida katika Kiarabu cha kale na katika matumizi ya balagha. Hakuna sharti nyingine zaidi ya hizi mbili kwa ajili ya kufanya Ijtihad. Kwa hiyo, mbali na kuwa wajibu wa kutosheleza kwa Waislamu, Ijtihad iko ndani ya uwezo wa Waislamu wote. Hizi ndizo dalili zote za Ibara hii.

In origin, the deduction of the rules is performed by Mujtahideen (those capable of Ijtihad) because the knowledge of Allah’s rule in a given matter cannot be reached except through Ijtihad, and Ijtihad ,therefore, becomes indispensable. The scholars of Usul Al Fiqh (the principles of jurisprudence) have indicated that Ijtihad is a duty of sufficiency upon the Muslims and that it is forbidden for Muslims to be without a single Mujtahid at any given time, and that if they all agreed upon forsaking Ijtihad, they would be sinful because the only way to know the Shari’ah rules is through Ijtihad. Therefore, if an era were devoid of at least one Mujtahid upon whom it could be relied in perceiving the rules, it would lead to the paralysis of the Shari’ah and this is forbidden. Besides, the Shari’ah texts make it incumbent upon Muslims to perform Ijtihad because these Shari’ah texts (i.e. the Book and the Sunnah and nothing else) have not come in a detailed manner but rather in a general manner that can be applied to every reality faced by humanity. Their understanding and the deduction of the rule of Allah require the exhausting of efforts in order to obtain the Shari’ah rule from them for every matter. This Ijtihad is not an impossible task nor is it extremely difficult; rather, it is the process of exhausting one’s effort in order to acquire the Shari’ah rules with the least amount of doubt. In other words, it is the understanding of the Shari’ah texts with the exhausting of one’s utmost effort in order to attain this understanding and to perceive the Shari’ah rule. This is in fact within everyone’s reach. Ijtihad was natural and evident to the Muslims in the early times and it had no prerequisites. However, since the understanding of the classical Arabic language started to weaken and since people started to devote less attention to discerning the Deen, it has become incumbent upon the Mujtahid to know the narrated evidences (Adillah Sam’iyyah) from which the principles and the rules are deduced. It has also become incumbent upon him to discern the meaning of expressions which are commonly used in the classical Arabic language and in the usage of rhetoric. There are no other conditions apart from these two to performing Ijtihad. Therefore, in addition to being a duty of sufficiency upon the Muslims, Ijtihad is within the reach of all the Muslims. These are all the evidences for this Article.