The Knowledge of Principles of Fiqh:
Its Field and the Ruling upon Learning it
Translated by: www.asaala.com
The field of the principles of Fiqh
It is the General proofs (adillah ijmalliya) that lead to the practical legislative rulings; and it shows their divisions, their ranks, and the best way to utilize these rulings through these general proofs; and thus the skillful Usoolee (i.e. a scholar of the principles of Fiqh) is the one who knows all of these matters.
The ruling upon learning the principles of Fiqh:
It is a collective obligation (i.e. an obligation which the group become exempted from doing it in case one / some of them did it) like any other branch of science where some people in the community should practice. Thus, there should be some talented Usoolees, Hadeeth narrators, Faqeehs (jurists), Qur'an interpreters, and linguists.
And those are like physicians in that they hold the role of rectifying of the nation, because nothing shall rectify the last of this Ummah except by that which rectified its first part. And when the reliable scholars of the Ummah became very scarce, the laymen started to look for parties and groups to replace them with, while these parties and groups could not play this role, and they will never be able to do so!!
However, it may become an incumbent upon whom he finds the ability in himself to do so (i.e. to learn this branch of knowledge); and it is also an obligation over the Mujtahid.
Which one comes first; Fiqh or its principles?
The scholars differed over this matter into two groups:
The first one said that learning the principles comes before learning Fiqh. This say has been adopted by a group of them and their proof for that was that the branches could not be arrived to without their principles, and that the results cannot be validated unless their premises are produced. Likewise, the branches are results and the principles are their premises.
The second one said that learning Fiqh is put before learning its principles. This say has been adopted by Abu Ya'laa al-Farraa' in his book al-'uddah fee Usoolil-Fiqh (1/70), they adopted this say because those who did not rely on the ways of the branches will not be able to get to what the principles are used for, and they also said that through learning the branches one gets the special abilities and experience that enable him of utilizing these principles and rules in the proper way.
The conclusive say herein is that the Mukallaf (i.e. the sane and sexually mature Muslim who is assigned to offer the regular obligatory acts of worship and is accounted for all his deeds) should learn the obligatory portion of the branches which is the part that the person must learn so that he can offer his worship properly and save himself from punishment.[1] After that, one may start learning and going through the field of principles.
THE NEED FOR THE FIELD OF
THE PRINCIPLES OF FIQH
The jurists and Mujtahids always needed this field of knowledge, and through observing the rules that the Salaf used in inferring their rulings, those who came after them would see it better to gather these rules and unite them in one established art; they called it: the principles of Fiqh. However, these rules can be gained either from the texts, or by investigations and following their traces, or by complete induction for their items.
And through observing these rules, the legal rulings will remain safe and perfect for the Ummah. Thus, the so-called renovation of this era—which denotes abstaining away from the rules of inferring that were applied by the late predecessors, abstaining away from the rules of classification of the hadeeth, and not paying attention to the two Saheehs [2], for instance—is a great aberration.
Those who attach themselves to such renovation call themselves: "the people of the enlightened thought!"; they follow their minds arbitrarily treading in the steps of their deviant ancestors, the Mu'tazilah. Indeed, they are their offspring!
We refute them by what Sa'eed Ibn Jubair said; he said: "What has not been known by the rightly-guided ancestors is not from Religion" [3]. We also say that knowledge is put before mind, because "the Shar' (revelation) is like a judge, and mind is like a witness, and so the judge can dismiss the witness whenever this pleases him", and "Shar' appointed the mind as a ruler but then dethroned it". The last two saying are of Sheikhul-Islaam, Ibn Taymiyyah—may Allah have mercy on him--.
And thus "if the mind and the text (revelatory text) aided one another regarding the Sharee'ah matters, provided that the text is put first and becomes followed, while the mind is put behind and becomes a follower; and thus the mind will not go beyond the limits that the text draws to it"[4] , then we are followers.
And as compliance includes the branches and the practical rulings, then it—with all the more reason—includes the general principles!
Ibn al-Qayyim—in his book I'laamul-Muwaqi'een 'an Rabbil-'Aalameen—spoke in detail about this matter, and he warned against some mistakes of the Jurists due to familiarity, imitation, bigotry, and sectarianism. He dealt with lots of matters therein where the Jurists of his era dealt with by elaboration in the view that Fiqh is a group of principles, and that these principles became sacred in that they were put before the Texts of the Book and the Sunnah; and that is how the tricks—that Allah has sent down no proof of—happened. Thus, the topic of tricks has a large area of research in his book.
Source: http://asaala.net/viewTopic.php?topicID=453
Footnotes
1-Some acts of worship are obligatory on some but not on the others like the Zakaah for instance, so it is an incumbent upon the rich to learn the rulings of Zakaah, whereas it is not upon the poor. Likewise, the one who is able of performing the Hajj should learn the rulings of Hajj, the women should learn the rulings of dress, the man who is inflicted with pride should learn how to get rid of it, and so on.
2-The two Saheehs have a sublime position with the students of knowledge, and no one will approach them except he is a distracted. And we heard our Sheikh, al-Albaanee, say: " I have never said anything about them or one of them unless I was. preceded by other scholars in such a say
3-Narrated along with its chain of narrators by Ibn 'Abdil-Barr in Jaami' Bayaan al-'Ilm with accepted Isnaad.
4-Al-Muwaafaqaat (1/125—under the scholarly inspection of Sheikh Mash-hoor Bin Hasan—may Allah preserve him--). Ash-Shaatibee mentioned three proofs on that; he also mentioned some ambiguities and cleared them away very tactfully. See it.