36. Usul Al-fiqh
36. Usul Al-fiqh
Kilugha, neno 'asl' linamaanisha kile ambacho kinajengwa juu yake, likijumuisha ujenzi wa kimwili, kama ujenzi wa kuta juu ya msingi, na ujenzi wa kiakili, kama ujenzi (wa kikiyasi) wa hukumu [ma'lūl] juu ya sababu ya kisheria [‘illah], au wa hukumu [madlūl] juu ya dalili [dalīl]. Hivyo basi, usūl al-fiqh ni kanuni [qawā'id] ambazo fiqh inajengwa juu yake.
Linguistically ‘asl’ refers to that which is constructed upon, inclusive of both material construction, like the construction of walls upon a foundation, and rational construction, like the (analogical) construction of a ruling [ma’lūl] upon an effective cause [‘illah] or of a ruling [madlūl] upon an evidence [dalīl]. Thus usūl al-fiqh is the principles [qawā’id] upon which fiqh is built.
Kwa upande wa fiqh, kiisimu inamaanisha ufahamu [fahm], kama ilivyo katika kauli ya Allah:
As for fiqh, linguistically it refers to understanding [fahm], as in the saying of Allah:
“Hatufahamu sana ya yale unayosema…” [Hud: 91], na katika istilahi ya wanazuoni wa sheria (fuqahā), *fiqh* ni ujuzi wa hukumu za kiutendaji za Shari'ah (ambazo zinatokana) na dalili za kina. Hapa, maana ya ‘ujuzi wa hukumu’ kwa upande wa mwanazuoni [‘ālim] si maarifa tu, bali ni kufikia umahiri wa *ahkām* za kishari'ah, yaani maarifa haya na uelewa wa kina wake unafikia kiwango cha kumpa mtu anayezijua hizi *ahkām* umahiri juu yake. Kupata umahiri wa namna hii kunatosha kumfanya mtu kuhesabiwa kuwa *faqīh*, hata kama hajui *ahkām* zote. Hata hivyo, ni lazima kujua mkusanyiko wa hukumu za matawi ya kisheria kupitia tafakari [nadhar] na kutoa hoja/kuthibitisha kwa dalili [istidlāl]; kujua kanuni moja au mbili hakuitwi *fiqh*. Wala ujuzi wa kuunda aina mbalimbali za dalili kuwa hoja hauitwi *fiqh*. Neno *fiqh* basi linarejelea mkusanyiko wa kanuni za kiutendaji za matawi, zinazotokana na dalili za kina. Hivyo, inaposemwa kwamba ‘hiki ni kitabu cha *fiqh*’, maana yake ni kwamba kitabu hiki kina kanuni za kiutendaji za matawi; inapotajwa *fiqh*, lengo ni mkusanyiko wa hukumu za kiutendaji za matawi. Jambo la muhimu ni kwamba hili ni kwa kanuni za kiutendaji pekee, kwa sababu kwa ufafanuzi wa kawaida, kanuni zinazohusu imani [*ahkām al-i'tiqādī*] hazimo katika *fiqh*, kwa kuwa *fiqh* ni mahsusi kwa *ahkām* za kiutendaji za matawi, yaani kanuni zinazoweka vitendo, si imani.
“We do not understand much of what you say…” [Hud: 91], and in the terminology of the legal scholars ‘fiqh’ is the knowledge of the practical shari’ah rules (which are) derived from the detailed evidences. The intent here of ‘knowledge of the rules’ with regards to the scholar [‘ālim] is not mere knowledge, rather it is the attainment of mastery of the shar’i ahkām, that is, that this knowledge and deep understanding of it reaches to the extent that it gives the person who knows these ahkām a mastery over them. Acquiring such a mastery suffices one to be considered a faqīh, even if he does not know all the ahkām. However it is necessary to know a collection of the branchial legal rulings through deliberation [nadhar] and deduction/evidencing [istidlāl]; knowing one or two rules is not called fiqh. Nor is knowledge of forming different types of evidences into proofs called fiqh. The word fiqh then is refers to the collection of the practical branchial rules, derived from the detailed evidences. Thus when it is said that ‘this is a book of fiqh’, it means that this book contains branchial practical rules; when fiqh is mentioned, the intent is a collection of practical branchial rulings. Importantly this is exclusive to the practical rules, because by the conventional definition, rules to do with belief [ahkām al-i’tiqādi] are not part of fiqh, because fiqh is particular to the branchial practical ahkām, that is, the rules which establish the actions, not beliefs.
Kwa hiyo maana ya usūl al-fiqh ni kanuni [qawā’id] ambazo juu yake upatikanaji wa umahiri wa hukmu za kivitendo (zinazotokana) na dalili za kina hujengwa. Kwa hiyo usūl al-fiqh kwa mujibu wa istilahi hufafanuliwa kuwa ni elimu ya kanuni ambazo kwazo istinbāt (kutoa hukmu) za hukmu za shar’i kutoka katika dalili za kina hupatikana; na kanuni hizo zenyewe pia huitwa usūl al-fiqh. Kitabu cha usūl al-fiqh ni kitabu kinachojumuisha kanuni hizi. Kujifunza usūl al-fiqh ni kujifunza kanuni na dalili, yaani hukmu, vyanzo vya hukmu, na mbinu ya kutoa hukmu kutoka vyanzo hivyo. Usūl al-fiqh unajumuisha dalili za jumla [adillah ijmāliyyah] na namna zinavyoonyesha hukmu za shar’i, na pia kwa ujumla unajumuisha hali ya mtu anayefanya istidlāl [mustadil], yaani elimu ya ijtihād. Pia unajumuisha mbinu ya istinbāt: kupima [ta’ādul] na kupa upendeleo [tarjīh] baina ya dalili. Hakika ijtihād na tarjīh hutegemea elimu ya dalili na namna zinavyoonyesha hukmu. Kwa hiyo dalili na namna zinavyoonyesha hukmu ni misingi miwili ya usūl al-fiqh, pamoja na kujifunza hukmu yenyewe na mambo yanayohusiana nayo.
Therefore the meaning of usūl al-fiqh is the principles [qawā’id] upon which the acquisition of the mastery of the practical rules (derived) from the detailed evidences is built. Hence usūl al-fiqh is defined conventionally as the knowledge of the principles whereby the derivation [istinbāt] of the shar’i rulings from the detailed evidences is attained; and these principles themselves are also termed usūl al-fiqh. A book of usūl al fiqh is a book which contains these principles. The study of usūl al-fiqh is a study of the principles and of the evidences, that is, of the ruling [hukm], the sources of the ruling, and the methodology of deriving the ruling from these sources. Usūl al-fiqh includes the general evidences [adillah ijmāliyyah] and the ways in which these indicate upon the shar’i rules, as it includes, generally, the state of the one doing the deduction [mustadil]; that is, (it includes) the knowledge of ijtihād. It also includes the methodology of derivation: weighing [ta’ādul] and giving preference [tarjīh] between evidences. Indeed, ijtihād and tarjīh depend upon knowledge of the evidences and the ways in which these indicate upon the rulings. Therefore the evidences and the way in which they indicate upon the rulings are the two foundations of usūl al-fiqh, together with the study of the ruling itself and matters related to it.
Kwa hiyo usūl al-fiqh ni dalili za jumla zisizobainishwa za fiqh, kama vile amri ya kujumuika [mutlaq al-‘amr], katazo la kujumuika [mutlaq al-nahy], kitendo cha Mtume ﷺ, ijmāʿ al-ṣaḥāba na qiyās. Hii inatenga dalili maalum za kina kama "Simamisheni swala", "Wala msikaribie zinaa", swala ya Mtume ﷺ ndani ya Kaaba, kuanzishwa kwa ulezi [wilāyah] juu ya asiyeweza kusimamia mambo yake mwenyewe [maḥjūr], na haki ya wakala kupata ujira anapoajiriwa kwa msingi wa malipo kwa kulinganisha na mfanyakazi. Yote haya si sehemu ya usūl al-fiqh kwa sababu ni dalili maalum za kina. Kuyakuta yakitumiwa kama mifano katika somo la usūl al-fiqh hakumaanishi kwamba ni sehemu yake. Bali usūl al-fiqh ni dalili za jumla, namna dalili hizi zinavyoonyesha (hukumu), hali ya anayetoa dalili, na mbinu ya kutoa dalili [istidlāl].