Ibn Abi Ahmed
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Significance of Fatwa & Islamic Rulings
By Sheikh Muhammad Abdul-Azeez AMJA Shari`a Researcher
Praise be to Allah, prayers and peace be upon Prophet Muhammad, his family members, companions, and his followers until the Day of Judgment.
Many voices and much talk have been raised recently demanding making a law that prohibits issuing Islamic rulings (Fatawa) except from professional and specialized Fiqh and Shari`ah scholars, in order to control chaos that hit the Islamic Fatwa forum deep lately.
The Assembly of Muslim Jurists in America (AMJA) is a pioneer authority in issuing its first publications about this critical topic, like: "The Responsibility of the Shari`ah Fatwa: Controls and Implications on the Rationality of the Ummah", by Professor Dr. Muhamad Duad Al-Barazy; and about "The Gentleman Agreement on the Fatwa and Fatwa Requesting", by Prof. Dr. Salah Al-Sawy, AMJA Secretary-General.
It is sufficient for a Muslim who would dare to issue Fatwa rulings, as a deterrent and a restraint from delving into this critical realm, to read Allah`s saying in this regard: "But say not for any false thing that your tongues may put forth, this is lawful, and this is forbidden, so as to ascribe false things to God. for those who ascribe false things to God, will never prosper. (In such falsehood) is but a paltry profit; but they will have a most grievous penalty", (Quran, 16:116-117).
Issuing Fatwa and Islamic rulings without knowledge could be compared to committing implicit and explicit grave sins, as Allah says: "Say: the things that my Lord hath indeed forbidden are: shameful deeds, whether open or secret; since and trespasses against truth or reason; assigning of partners to God, for which he hath given no authority; and saying things about God of which ye have no knowledge", (Quran, 7:33).
Giving Fatwa without knowledge could be deadly and fatal, for both the one who would issue it, as it happened with the Muslim monk who ruled to a murderer who killed 99 people that his repentance would not be accepted by Allah, and he killed him to complete the 100 number; and for the one who would request it, as it happened with a man who had a deep cut in his head, and he had a wet dream, and asked his friends if they knew an excuse for him to dry-wash for purity, and they denied it to him and urged him to fully wash with water, and he did, which caused him to die. When Prophet Muhammad, prayers and peace of Allah knew of this story, he said: "They have killed him, may Allah kill them…", (Reported by Abou-Dawoud in his book: Sunnan).
Yes, to this limit could a Fatwa be very critical to the individual and to the whole Ummah, and for this reason, Abdul-Rahman Ben Abi-Layeila says: "I knew 120 of Al-Anssaar people, who were companions of the Prophet, prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, and that one of them would ask another to give a Fatwa ruling, and he would refer him to the other, and the other to the next, etc, until the question returns back to the first one without being answered". And in another narrative: "They all would have liked to talk with each other, except daring to talk about Fatwa giving".
Al-Shu`abei; Al-Hasan; And Abul-Houssein said: "You dare to give Fatwa, but if it is referred to Omar, he would have gathered for answering it all the people who have witnessed the Battle of Badr".
Lo! How these great men valued the gravity of Fatwa giving, and how did they esteemed its status in their judgments! For this reason, they controlled the whole wide world!
Here is a list of literature that would further the knowledge about the rules and manners of Fatwa issuance:
By Sheikh Muhammad Abdul-Azeez AMJA Shari`a Researcher
Praise be to Allah, prayers and peace be upon Prophet Muhammad, his family members, companions, and his followers until the Day of Judgment.
Many voices and much talk have been raised recently demanding making a law that prohibits issuing Islamic rulings (Fatawa) except from professional and specialized Fiqh and Shari`ah scholars, in order to control chaos that hit the Islamic Fatwa forum deep lately.
The Assembly of Muslim Jurists in America (AMJA) is a pioneer authority in issuing its first publications about this critical topic, like: "The Responsibility of the Shari`ah Fatwa: Controls and Implications on the Rationality of the Ummah", by Professor Dr. Muhamad Duad Al-Barazy; and about "The Gentleman Agreement on the Fatwa and Fatwa Requesting", by Prof. Dr. Salah Al-Sawy, AMJA Secretary-General.
It is sufficient for a Muslim who would dare to issue Fatwa rulings, as a deterrent and a restraint from delving into this critical realm, to read Allah`s saying in this regard: "But say not for any false thing that your tongues may put forth, this is lawful, and this is forbidden, so as to ascribe false things to God. for those who ascribe false things to God, will never prosper. (In such falsehood) is but a paltry profit; but they will have a most grievous penalty", (Quran, 16:116-117).
Issuing Fatwa and Islamic rulings without knowledge could be compared to committing implicit and explicit grave sins, as Allah says: "Say: the things that my Lord hath indeed forbidden are: shameful deeds, whether open or secret; since and trespasses against truth or reason; assigning of partners to God, for which he hath given no authority; and saying things about God of which ye have no knowledge", (Quran, 7:33).
Giving Fatwa without knowledge could be deadly and fatal, for both the one who would issue it, as it happened with the Muslim monk who ruled to a murderer who killed 99 people that his repentance would not be accepted by Allah, and he killed him to complete the 100 number; and for the one who would request it, as it happened with a man who had a deep cut in his head, and he had a wet dream, and asked his friends if they knew an excuse for him to dry-wash for purity, and they denied it to him and urged him to fully wash with water, and he did, which caused him to die. When Prophet Muhammad, prayers and peace of Allah knew of this story, he said: "They have killed him, may Allah kill them…", (Reported by Abou-Dawoud in his book: Sunnan).
Yes, to this limit could a Fatwa be very critical to the individual and to the whole Ummah, and for this reason, Abdul-Rahman Ben Abi-Layeila says: "I knew 120 of Al-Anssaar people, who were companions of the Prophet, prayers and peace of Allah be upon him, and that one of them would ask another to give a Fatwa ruling, and he would refer him to the other, and the other to the next, etc, until the question returns back to the first one without being answered". And in another narrative: "They all would have liked to talk with each other, except daring to talk about Fatwa giving".
Al-Shu`abei; Al-Hasan; And Abul-Houssein said: "You dare to give Fatwa, but if it is referred to Omar, he would have gathered for answering it all the people who have witnessed the Battle of Badr".
Lo! How these great men valued the gravity of Fatwa giving, and how did they esteemed its status in their judgments! For this reason, they controlled the whole wide world!
Here is a list of literature that would further the knowledge about the rules and manners of Fatwa issuance:
- Responsibility of Shari`ah Fatwa: Controls & Implications on the Rationality of the Ummah, by Prof. Dr. Muhamad Fuad Al-Barazy.
- Manners of the Mufti and the One Who Requests Fatwa, by Ben Hamdan.
- Manners of the Mufti and the One Who Requests Fatwa, by Ben Al-Salah.
- `Ilaam Al-Muaqe`een `An Rab Al-`Aalameen, by Ben Al-Qaiyyem.
Sheikh Muhammad Abdul-Azeez AMJA Shari`a Researcher
