Last edition we talked about some of the conditions of al- Ijtihad. Insha Allah in this we shall bring the other conditions.
4. He must be conversant with the science of Usool alfiqh: The knowledge of the science of Usool al-Fiqh is very important for every mujtahid otherwise he would not be able to make sound deduction. He should know general texts and the specific, the absolute and the restricted etc
5. He should be aware of the areas of the ijmaa' of the past scholars: It is also necessary for a mujtahid to know the matters on which there is already ijmaa' so as not to bring another opinion contrary to the existing one.
6. He should consult the experts .en some worldly sciences when necessary: When it has to do with some of the sciences such as medicine, economic, technology etc. it is also necessary for the mujtahid to consult the experts on these fields so as to have details about the matter in question which in turn assists him in arriving at a sound judgement.
The following qualities are, however, recommended though not obligatory.
I. It is good for him to know the opinions of the mujtahidun from among the Salaf how they had come about the opinions on some issues so that he may also benefit. He should also try to know the opinions of scholars before him to know whether to agree with them or disagree.
2. It is also recommended that he has considerable knowledge of the Arabic Poems and Literature.
3. He should also be aware of the rudiments of Arithmetics which are important in the science of inheritance.
Can one ijtihad revoke another?
If a mujtahid who possesses the required qualities passes a ruling concerning a matter and later on he changes his opinion based on some other new facts and evidences he has come across, is it binding on him to annul his previous judgements? The response to this is that his new ijtihad does not invalidate previous judgements. Rather he should begin the implementation of his new ijtihad in subsequent cases and he should not revoke his previous judgement.
The evidence for this iswhat was reported by Ibn Abi Shaybah in his Musannaffrom AI-Hakam bn Mas'ud who said:
"I saw 'Umar sharing one third of the inheritance among full brothers and half brothers (from the mother). A man then said to him : "This was not your judgement last year! He (Urnar) said: "What was my judgement? He said: "You gave it to the half brothers (from the mother) and you did not give the full brothers anything (This is because they were to inherit the ta'seeb)" 'Umar said "That was what we judged then and this is what we are judging now"
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited