Ijma & Qayas

Tariq Saeed Chaudhry

Ijma -Definition

Literally means agreement on a matter

In its technical sense, it means the

consensus of the independent jurists from the
Ummah of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW)
after his death

Example : Jurists have reached a consensus

(Ijma) that the selling of goods by an party
who doesnt own the goods and without the
approval of the goods owner is void

Ijma -Definition

The ijma' , or consensus amongst Muslim

jurists on a particular legal issue.

Ijma` is defined as the unanimous agreement

of the mujtahidun, of the Muslim community
of any period following the demise of the
Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) on any matter.

Ijma -Definition

Ijma' plays a crucial role in the development

of Shari'ah. The existing body of fiqh is the
product of a long process of ijtihad and ijma

Since ijma` reflects the natural evolution and

acceptance of ideas in the life of the
community, the basic notion of ijma' can
never be expected to discontinue

Ijma in Quran

Muslim jurists provide many verses of the

Qur'an that legitimize ijma' as a source of
legislation.
In the Qur'an the

phrase fajma'u amrakum which occurs in sura

Yunus (10:71) means 'determine your plan'.
Similarly fajma'u kaydakum in sura Taha (20:64),
where the Prophet Noah addresses his estranged
followers, means 'determine your trick'.

Ijma in Quran

The one ayah which is most frequently quoted

in support of ijma' occurs in sura al-Nisa'
which is as follows:

And anyone who splits off from the Messenger

after the guidance has become clear to him and
follows a way other than that of the believers, We
shall leave him in the path he has chosen, and
land him in Hell. What an evil refuge! (Qauran
4:115)

Ijma in Hadith

The Hadith which is most frequently quoted in

support of ijma' reads:

My community shall never agree on an

error.
Ibn Majah, Sunan, II, 1303. Hadith
no. 3950.

Ijma the usage

Ijma' ensures the correct interpretation of the

Qur'an, the faithful understanding and
transmission of the Sunnah, and the legitimate use
of ijtihad.
The question as to whether the law, as contained
in the divine sources, has been properly
interpreted is always open to a measure of
uncertainty and doubt, especially in regard to the
deduction of new rules by way of analogy and
ijtihad.
Only ijma' can put an end to doubt, and when it
throws its weight behind a ruling, this becomes
decisive and infallible

Essential Requirements (Arkan) of Ijma`

Whenever an issue arises and attracts the

attention of the mujtahidun of the Muslim
community at the time of its incidence, and they
reach a unanimous agreement on its ruling, it is
implied that the ruling so agreed upon is the
correct and authoritative ruling of the Shari'ah,
provided that the following conditions are fulfilled:

1.

That there are a number of mujtahidun available

at the time when the issue is encountered.

Essential Requirements (Arkan) of Ijma`

2.

3.

According to the majority of ulema, unanimity is

a prerequisite of ijma`. All the mujtahidun,
regardless of their locality, race, color and school
or following, must reach a consensus on a
juridical opinion at the time an issue arises
The agreement of the mujtahidun must be
demonstrated by their expressed opinion on a
particular issue. This may be verbal or in writing,
such as by giving a fatwa in either of these
forms, or it may be actual

Examples of Ijma

Three talaq at one sitting is valid

"The occurrence of three Talaaqs is the mazhab of
the Jumhoor (majority) and on this is ijma of the
ummat and whosoever opposes this will not be
considered in any way. Sharh Zarqani, Vol. 3, p. 167
alislam.co.za.

Interest is prohibited
"All the schools of thought of Muslim
jurisprudence hold the unanimous view that riba,
usury and interest are strictly prohibited."Shahid
Hasan Siddiqui. Islamic Banking: Genesis & Rationale, Evaluation & Review,
Prospects & Challenges [Karachi: Royal Book Company, 1994], p. 15.

Examples of Ijma

Intentionally missed prayer must be made up

There is consensus (ijma) of the scholars whose
opinion counts that whoever leaves a prayer
intentionally must make it up. Imam Nawawi. al-Majmu Sharh
al-Muhadhdhab (3.86), quoted at qa.sunnipath.com.

Slaughtering without Allah's name mentioned

is not lawful
The great Hanafi jurist, Allamah Ibn Abidin (Allah
have mercy on him) explains the above by stating:
Meaning a slaughtered animal will not be lawful to
consume (halal) if the name of Allah was
intentionally not pronounced whether the
slaughterer was a Muslim or from the people of the
book (kitabi), because of the (clear) text of the
Quran and the consensus (ijma) of all the

Examples of Ijma

The Isra (mi'raj) was in body and soul

There is scholarly consensus (ijma) that Prophet
Muhammad journeyed in body and soul the night
of al-Isra' from Masjid al-Haram in Makkah to
Masjid al-Aqsain Jerusalem. Moreover, these
scholars indicated the person who denies al-Isra'
is a blasphemer for belying the explicit text of the
Qur'an.

Ijma- Amendment or abrogation (naskh)

When ijma` fulfills the foregoing requirements,

it becomes binding (wajib) on everyone.
Consequently, the mujtahidun of a
subsequent age are no longer at liberty to
exercise fresh ijtihad over the same issue.
For once it is concluded, ijma` is not
open to amendment or abrogation
(naskh).
The rules of naskh are not relevant to ijma` in
the sense that ijma` can neither repeal nor be
repealed

Qiyas

Qiyas (Analogical Deduction) - Definition

Literally, qiyas means measuring or ascertaining

the length, weight, or quality of something, which
is why scales are called miqyas.

Qiyas also means comparison, with a view to

suggesting equality or similarity between two
things

Qiyas thus suggests an equality or close similarity

between two things, one of which is taken as the
criterion for evaluating the other.

Qiyas (Analogical Deduction) - Definition

Technically, qiyas is the extension of a

Shari'ah value from an original case, or asl, to
a new case, because the latter has the same
effective cause as the former.
The original case is regulated by a given text,
and qiyas seeks to extend the same textual
ruling to the new case. [3. Shawkani, Irshad, p. 198.]
It is by virtue of the commonality of the
effective cause, or 'illah, between the original
case and the new case that the application of
qiyas is justified.

Qiyas (Analogical Deduction) - Definition

Qiyas is the extension of a Shariah ruling

from an original case (Asl) to a new case
(Far'), because the new case has the same
effective cause (Illah) as the original case
(Asl)

Original case (Asl) is regulated by a text of

Quran or Sunnah and Qiyas seeks to extend
the original ruling to the new case (Far).

Reason for Qiyas

A recourse to analogy is only warranted

if the solution of a new case cannot be
found in the Qur'an, the Sunnah or a
definite ijma.

It would be useless to resort to qiyas if the

new case could be resolved under a ruling of
the existing law.

It is only in matters which are not covered by

the nusus and ijma` that the law may be
deduced from any of these sources through
the application of analogical reasoning.

Essential requirements of Qiyas

The essential requirements of qiyas which are

indicated in these definitions are as follows:
1.

2.
3.

4.

The original case, or asl, on which a ruling is

given in the text and which analogy seeks to
extend to a new case.
The new case (far`) on which a ruling is wanting.
The effective cause ( `illah) which is an attribute
(wasf) of the asl and is found to be in common
between the original and the new case.
The rule (hukm) governing the original case
which is to be extended to the new case.

Essential requirements of Qiyas

Example:
To illustrate these, we might adduce the
example of the Qur'an (al-Ma'idah, 5:90),
which explicitly forbids wine drinking.

If this prohibition is to be extended by analogy

to narcotic drugs, the four pillars of analogy in
this example would be:

Prohibition of wine drinking.

Asl

Far'

Illah

(original case)

(new case)

(cause of ruling) (ruling)

Wine drinking

Taking narcotic Intoxicating

drugs
Effects

Hukm

Prohibition

Each of the four essentials (arkan) of analogy

must, in turn, qualify a number of other
conditions which are all designed to ensure
propriety and accuracy in the application of
qiyas. It is to these which we now turn.

Qiyas - Hanafi School of thought

The Hanafi school of thought very strongly

supports qiyas.
Imam Abu Hanifa, an important practitioner of
qiyas, elevated qiyas to a position of great
significance in Islamic law.
Abu Hanifa extended the rigid principle of basing
rulings on the Qur'an and Sunnah to incorporate
opinion and exercise of free thought by jurists.
In order to respond suitably to emerging
problems, he based his judgments, like other
jurists, on the explicit meanings of primary texts
(the Qur'an and sunnah).

Qiyas - Hanafi School of thought

But, he also considered the "spirit" of Islamic

teachings, as well as the whether the ruling
would be in the interest of the objectives of
Islam. Such rulings were based on public
interest and the welfare of the Muslim
community.[20]
The knowledge of ours is an opinion, it is the
best we have been able to achieve. He who is
able to arrive at different conclusions is
entitled to his own opinion as we are entitled
to our own. Abu Hanifa[20]

Qiyas ShafiI School of thought

The Shafi'i school of thought accepts qiyas as a valid

source.
Imam Shafi'i, however, considered it a weak source,
and tried to limit the cases where jurists would need
to resort to qiyas.
He criticized and rejected analogical deductions that
were not firmly rooted in the Qur'an and sunnah.
According to Shafi'i, if analogical deductions were not
strictly rooted in primary sources, they would have
adverse effects. One such consequence could be
variety of different rulings in the same subject. Such
a situation, he argued, would undermine the
predictability and uniformity of a sound legal system.

Qiyas Maliki School of thought

Imam Malik accepted qiyas as a valid source

of legislation.
For him, if a parallel could be established
between the effective cause of a law in the
primary sources and a new case, then
analogical deduction could be viable tool.
Malik, however, went beyond his adherence to
"strict analogy" and proposed
pronouncements on the basis of what jurists
considered was "public good".

Types of Qiyas

Qiyas has been further divided into two

types:
1.

Obvious analogy' (qiyas jali)

2.

Hidden analogy' (qiyas khafi).

Types of Qiyas
Obvious

analogy' (qiyas jali)

The equation between the asl and far` is obvious and

the discrepancy between them is removed by clear
evidence. An example of this is the equation the ulema
have drawn between the male and the female slave with
regard to the rules of manumission.
Thus if two person, jointly own a slave and one of them
sets the slave free to the extent of his own share, it is
the duty of the Imam to pay the other part-owner his
share and release the slave.
This ruling is explicit regarding the male slave, but by an
`obvious analogy' the same rule is applied to the female
slave. The discrepancy of gender in this case is of no
consequence in regard to their manumission.

Types of Qiyas

Hidden analogy' (qiyas khafi).

The 'hidden analogy' (qiyas khafi) differs from the
'obvious' variety in that the removal of discrepancy
between the asl and the far` is by means of a
probability (zann).
An example of qiyas khafi is the extension, by the
majority of ulema (excepting the Hanafis), of the
prescribed penalty of zina to sodomy, despite a
measure of discrepancy that is known to exist
between the two cases.
And finally, the foregoing analysis would suggest
that qiyas khafi and qiyas al-adna are substantially
concurrent.

International authorities
governing Islamic Finance

International authorities
governing Islamic Finance

AAOIFI (1991) : Accounting and Auditing

organization for Islamic Financial institutions

IFSB (2002) : Islamic financial Services Board

Benchmark of Islamic accounting and auditing standards (56

standards)

Standard setting body of regulatory and supervisory agencies

(complementing BASEL II Capital Accord)

IIFM (2001) : International Islamic Financial

Market

Development of Global Islamic capital and money market

International authorities
governing Islamic Finance

GCIBFI (2001) : General Council for

Islamic Banks and Financial Institutions

LMC (2002) : Liquidity Market Council

Promotion industry in theory and practice

Creation of active Islamic inter-bank market

IIRA (2005) : International Islamic Rating

Agency

Rating of Islamic Financial institutions

JAZAKALLAH KHAIR