Realistic Ijtihad Thesis
Yahya Mohamed
According to the General Comprehension of the religious text, the circle distinct in the religion is very narrow. In front of it, the process of ijtihad (diligence) according to the principles of religious understanding (reality, rational intuition, and objectives) becomes wide without borders. But the more narrow the circle of religion, the more truth is guaranteed, and vice versa. That is enough of an invaluable benefit.
It is a circle shared by all followers without a difference, and it reminds us of Voltaire's saying: ‹‹What is the doctrine upon which minds agree? Worship of God and integrity, there is a universal religion established in all ages and all human beings, and the point where they all agree is true for that, and the theories through which they differ are wrong for that››.
In terms of the basis, the position of ijtihad in the General Comprehension approach is the open reality, not the text, in contrast to the ijtihad based on the Detailed Comprehension approach, where it is resolved by the text and not the reality.
It is known that the results that the Detailed Comprehension approach leads to are not only epistemological but rather dressed in the sacred garment, even though they do not go beyond the circle of suspicion and probability in most cases. Whereas the consequences of ijtihad in the General Comprehension approach are devoid of such a garment; Because it depends in detail on the reality and not the text, it is more modest than the ijtihad based on the course of Detailed Comprehension.
To highlight the differences between the two interpretations; We refer to the following:
1- Realistic ijtihad has the widest ability to deal with issues of reality and its changing facts while maintaining the position of the text and its general distinct, in contrast to textual ijtihad, which does not have a wide ability to deal with Reality issues consistently, due to its frequent collision with reality, and its retreat after each clash.
2- The research according to realistic ijtihad takes the form of a mating between the general text and the realistic detail, as the latter opens the general closed in the text, contrary to what the textual ijtihad thesis does of searching in the same context of the text in general and in detail.
3- The textual ijtihad is indistinct in detail in which there are probabilities that do not reach definitiveness or certainty. In contrast, it is not impossible for realistic ijtihad to reach the degree of definitiveness.
4- According to realistic ijtihad, we do not attribute the results reached to the Sharia and divine rulings, neither apparent nor real, except when the matter is definitive according to rational intuition without the slightest doubt.
5- If the heritage sects assure us that the understanding of the text cannot, in any case, cover the areas of open reality, then it is indispensable to practice realistic ijtihad with the guidance of the objectives.
6- Realistic ijtihad is often more likely than textual ijtihad if it does not lead to definitiveness. With experience, and the passage of time, it is more likely to come close to the truth, in contrast to textual ijtihad, because of two important considerations as follows:
First: The cognitive process in the case of realistic ijtihad thinking usually passes through short and close ways to reveal the truth, as it is easy for it to review research issues according to what it adopts from generators based on the experience of reality and the guidance of the general directions of the text. Whereas, in the case of textualism suspicions, the cognitive process is based on a long and complex series of inferential ways, including manifold probabilistic orbits, which makes it less powerful and attractive than what is characterized by realistic ijtihad thinking.
For example, when the presumptive ruling is established according to the textualism process, The jurist has to consider, among other things, to lead his Issue to the desired. Since its main material is derived from hadith texts; He will face hesitation in the safety of transmitting the hadith as it is, and another hesitation in its content and meaning, as well as in its relationship with other texts; If it is abrogation (Naskh نسخ), specification of the generalities, limitation of the absolute, or other overlapping problems that are gathered on the axis of weakening the cognitive value. The resulting becomes a multiplication of a large group of conjectures and probabilities, although the greater the number of multiplication sides in probabilities, the greater the weakness of the outcome.
Undoubtedly, this outcome does not usually occur in rational, realistic ijtihad, as it does not pass through that many potential ramifications that depend on each other. Reality issues are often dealt with within indications capable of giving more clarity, As long as these indications can be considered in detail, directly or semi-directly.
Second: Reality has two exploratory landmarks, while the text has only one exploratory landmark in which review and research take place. According to the first exploration, there are also two areas affected, while the second has only one area that can be influenced. This is explained as follows:
As the text is fixed and limited, All that is asked of it is to explore the connotations it contains without waiting for more, as there is no other. Also, since the text's connotations related to revealing reality are often characterized by general semantics; So any review of it doesn't usually reveal what's actually new.
Thus, there is one exploratory landmark in the text, and the exploratory textualism review does not usually have a cognitive impact that exceeds the limits of the text itself. Whereas reality has two exploratory landmarks, one of which relates to the indications given to the attendant or completed events. The other is forward-looking indications within the waiting horizon of the new future events or the historical ones that have not yet been explored.
And if we compare the letters of the text and the events of reality; We will note that the first is characterized by restriction and full attendance; therefore, it is subject to knowledge investment in one go, and its review does not exceed looking at it without waiting for the addition of new character.
While the events of reality are not entirely confined, some have become non-existent, and we are still ignorant of them and seek to know them indirectly. Others are waiting for their arrival, and therefore the knowledge investment - in this case - is double compared to what happens in the case of the text, and the review Of the events of reality takes place sometimes by reconsidering what was previously studied without an approved addition, and at other times what we explore of historical and future worlds that make our review continuous and influential in more than one field, as it works to change our visions of what was monitored in reality, and it also has an impact on changing our thoughts are drawn from the text., and even change the way we deal with it.
Thus, it becomes clear that the assumptions of realistic ijtihad are reliable and capable of review and examination, which are greater and broader than those attributed to textual ijtihad.
The reference
https://www.fahmaldin.net/index.php?id=2578