Usul al-Fiqh

The Emergence of Usul al-Fiqh:

After the Prophetic period the revelation stopped and
the Muslims no longer had the Prophet to give them
guidance on the problems that they faced. Whenever
Muslims had problems they would refer to the Quran
and the Sunnah in order to find solutions to those
problems. In the search for the solutions the Muslim
scholars resorted to the interpretations of the Quran
and Hadith
These interpretations most of the time involved the use
of reason. It was, therefore , natural that differences
would emerge on the interpretations of certain words
as reasoning is most of the time subjective and differs
from person to person.

The scholars of the first and second centuries,

after the demise of the Prophet, therefore
concerned themselves with the rules of
interpretations and the creation of methods
that would govern the use of reason. These
rules of interpretation and methods of
reasoning later emerged as a well-developed
science which is known as Usul al-Fiqh.

Usul al-Fiqh is a body of principles and

methods by which the rules of Fiqh are deduced
from their sources.

It can be defined as : The sources and

principles of interpretation and of legal

reasoning that helps the jurists arrive at
the legal rules of conduct.
Usul al-Fiqh is a science which deals with the

sources of Shari'ah and

extracting rules from them.

the

methods

of

The priciples of interpretation are derived

from the Qur'an and Sunnah in accordance

with these rules and methods. These include:
consensus of opinions (Ijma), analogy
(qiyas), juristic preference (Istihsan), public
interest (Masalih al-Mursalah), presumption of
continuity (Istishab), blocking the means
(Sadd al-Dharai), and customs (Urf).
Muslim scholars developed these methods of

reasoning in order to extend the law to new

issues or to provide answers to new
problems.

The meaning of Fiqh

The word Fiqh in the Arabic language, means
understanding and have the knowledge of
something.
Technically: Fiqh is the knowledge of the legal
rules conduct ( that have been
derived by the jurists from specific evidences
found in the Quran and the Sunnah as well as
other specific evidences in Ijma and Qiyas.
During the time of the Prophet the term Fiqh has
the same literal meaning as Ilm or knowledge .
covering the whole of religion.

For instance the Holy Qura'n states: That

they may gain understanding (Liyatafaqqahu)

of the religion (9: 122).
The Prophet is also reported to have blessed
Ibn Abas saying: O God give him
understanding (Faqqiho) in religion.
Both, the Quranic verse and the Hadith mean
a deeper understanding of the religion and
not only knowledge of the legal rules.

However, later the science of Fiqh has got a

more specialized meaning.

Fiqh as understood today includes various
branches of legal rules on transactions,
family matters, offences, constitutional
and international issues, and rules related
to worship or ibadat.

Distinction between Shariah and Fiqh

There is a difference between the meaning of
the terms Shariah and Fiqh:
The real distinction between Shariah and
Fiqh is that Shariah is the law itself, while
Fiqh is knowledge or understanding of
that law.
In other words , Sharah refers to what was
decreed in the time of prophethood found
in the Qurn and prophetic traditions.
Fiqh is what has been gained from the
efforts of scholars after the prophet's (s)
demise.

However

the definition indicates that the

term Shariah has a wider meaning than
fiqh. The term Shariah includes both law
Fiqh- and matters of Faith that is the aqaid.

 The Holy Quran describes the purpose of the

The Objectives of Shariah

Prophets mission to be mercy not only to mankind

but also to all of Gods creatures. (21: 107)
Mercy includes, among other things, protection
and safeguarding peoples interest.
The Shariah aims at safeguarding peoples
interest in this world and in the next.
God instituted the Shariah for the benefit of
mankind both in this word and the next. He has in
fact singled out Maslahah as the only objective of
the Shariah,

The scholars agree that there is no injunction in

the entire Shariah that does not seek to secure a

genuine Maslaha, that all of the commands of
Shariah aim at realizing the interest (Maslaha)
and that all of its prohibitions are designed to
prevent corruption or harms (Mafsadah) in various
degrees.