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Rules of Purity (Ṭahāra) →
← Introduction
Rules of Taqlīd (Emulation)
Issue 1: The sacred Sharīʿa law includes obligatory acts (wajibāt) and prohibitions (muḥarramāt). Every duty-bound person (mukallaf) must adhere to these laws and ensure his actions align with them. For most non-jurists (non-mujtahids), acting upon Sharīʿa law is usually possible through one of two methods:
1. Taqlīd (emulation): This means the duty-bound person performs his actions according to the fatwa (juridical opinion) of a qualified mujtahid.
2. Iḥtiyāṭ (precaution): This involves acting on such precaution which should assure him that he has fulfilled his religious obligation. For example, if there is a possibility that announcing the call to prayer (Iqāma) is obligatory, one must perform it. Similarly, if one suspects that smoking is forbidden and wants to be cautious, he must abstain from it.
In other cases, precaution might require performing an act in multiple ways. For instance, a traveler who wants to be cautious might need to perform the Ẓuhr prayer both in its shortened (qaṣr) and complete (tamām) forms.
It is worth noting that understanding the methods to exercise precaution often requires extensive knowledge of jurisprudence, which is not accessible to most people in the Islamic community. Additionally, precaution can often be difficult or sometimes impossible. These factors make taqlid the best option for most mukallafs to fulfill their religious obligations.
Issue 2: The age of religious obligation (taklīf) begins for girls after they complete nine lunar years (approximately eight years, eight months, and twenty days in solar years) and for boys when they complete fifteen lunar years (approximately fourteen years, six months, and fifteen days in solar years). However, if a boy exhibits any of the following signs before reaching fifteen lunar years, he is considered to have hit puberty:
1. Growth of coarse hair below the navel, above the genital area.
2. Emission of semen, whether awake or asleep.
3. Growth of coarse hair on the face or above the lips (moustache).
Issue 3: A mujtahid who meets the following criteria is qualified for taqlid:
1. Be of legal age (bāligh).
2. Be of sound mind (ʿaql).
3. Be male.
4. Be of legitimate birth, i.e., he should have been born in accordance with Islamic laws, not from adultery.
5. Be a believer (muʾmin), i.e., follow the Ithnā ʿAsharī Shīʿa.
6. Be just (ʿādil), meaning he is steadfast in the ways of Islam, performing obligatory acts, and refraining from prohibitions.
7. Not make frequent mistakes, forget, or be negligent in matters related to jurisprudential expertise.
Issue 4: If multiple mujtahids meet the aforementioned criteria and have differing fatwas in many jurisprudential matters, as it is usually the case, the following scenarios apply:
First Scenario: If it is proven to the duty-bound person that one mujtahid is more learned (aʿlam) than the others, he must follow him.
Second Scenario: If it is proven that two mujtahids are more learned than the others but are equal in knowledge, or it is unknown which one is more learned, and if it is also proven that one of these two is more pious -- he is more precise and exercise more precaution in the sense that he applies all his faculties to find out what in all probability is the law -- then it is obligatory to follow the more pious one. If this is not proven, the duty-bound person can follow the fatwa of either one, except in certain specific cases as explained in Islamic Laws.
Third Scenario: If it is proven that one mujtahid is the most learned but the duty-bound cannot identify who he is, he must exercise precaution among the fatwas of the mujtahids of whom one is believed to be the most learned. Exceptions to this rule are also detailed in the book of Islamic Laws.
Issue 5: The preeminence in knowledge (aʿlamiyya) of a mujtahid can be established through one of two ways:
1. Testimony from a reliable person with sufficient expertise in this area, such as qualified mujtahids and experts, or individuals with knowledge close to ijtihād. This testimony is valid unless contradicted by others of the same qualifications, in which case, the testimony of those with greater expertise and specialization is preferred.
2. The mukallaf (duty-bound person) attains knowledge or certainty about the mujtahid's preeminence in knowledge through generally accepted rational means, such as widespread acknowledgment among scholars or by personally evaluating the mujtahid's scholarly level if he himself the necessary expertise.
Issue 6: If a person believes that a certain mujtahid is more learned and follows his rulings, but later becomes convinced of the scholarly preeminence (aʿlamiyya) of another mujtahid, he must switch his taqlīd to the second mujtahid.
Issue 7: If the mujtahid whom the mukallaf follows passes away, and the deceased mujtahid is more learned than all the living mujtahids, the mukallaf should continue following the deceased mujtahid. This applies regardless of whether the mukallaf has acted according to the deceased's fatwas or learned them. However, if over time a living mujtahid becomes more learned than the deceased mujtahid, the mukallaf must switch to the living mujtahid, as the validity of taqlīd is based on following the most learned.
Issue 8: It is not permissible to begin following a deceased mujtahid, even if he is more learned than all the living mujtahids.
Issue 9: If the most learned mujtahid has no fatwa on a specific issue, or the mukallaf cannot access his opinion when needed, it is permissible to refer to another mujtahid, making sure he is the next most learned one.
Issue 10: The rulings in this treatise that are expressed as "obligatory precaution" are those cases where one can refer to another mujtahid, observing the hierarchy among the mujtahids in terms of preeminence in knowledge. It should be noted that "obligatory precaution" is expressed in various ways in this treatise:
1. Sometimes it is explicitly stated, such as "as an obligatory precaution, one should wipe the feet up to the ankle joint."
2. Sometimes it is implied, as in "if one washes the face starting from the bottom or the middle, the ablution is problematic."
3. Sometimes a ruling or fatwa is conditioned with the phrase "based on precaution," such as "one who travels after the call to noon prayer must, based on precaution, complete their fast."
4. In some cases, only the term "precaution" is mentioned without specifying a ruling or fatwa, such as "if a dog's saliva falls into a container, the precaution is to first rub the container with earth and then wash it three times with water."
Rules of Purity (Ṭahāra) →
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1. Taqlīd (emulation): This means the duty-bound person performs his actions according to the fatwa (juridical opinion) of a qualified mujtahid.
2. Iḥtiyāṭ (precaution): This involves acting on such precaution which should assure him that he has fulfilled his religious obligation. For example, if there is a possibility that announcing the call to prayer (Iqāma) is obligatory, one must perform it. Similarly, if one suspects that smoking is forbidden and wants to be cautious, he must abstain from it.
In other cases, precaution might require performing an act in multiple ways. For instance, a traveler who wants to be cautious might need to perform the Ẓuhr prayer both in its shortened (qaṣr) and complete (tamām) forms.
It is worth noting that understanding the methods to exercise precaution often requires extensive knowledge of jurisprudence, which is not accessible to most people in the Islamic community. Additionally, precaution can often be difficult or sometimes impossible. These factors make taqlid the best option for most mukallafs to fulfill their religious obligations.
Issue 2: The age of religious obligation (taklīf) begins for girls after they complete nine lunar years (approximately eight years, eight months, and twenty days in solar years) and for boys when they complete fifteen lunar years (approximately fourteen years, six months, and fifteen days in solar years). However, if a boy exhibits any of the following signs before reaching fifteen lunar years, he is considered to have hit puberty:
1. Growth of coarse hair below the navel, above the genital area.
2. Emission of semen, whether awake or asleep.
3. Growth of coarse hair on the face or above the lips (moustache).
Issue 3: A mujtahid who meets the following criteria is qualified for taqlid:
1. Be of legal age (bāligh).
2. Be of sound mind (ʿaql).
3. Be male.
4. Be of legitimate birth, i.e., he should have been born in accordance with Islamic laws, not from adultery.
5. Be a believer (muʾmin), i.e., follow the Ithnā ʿAsharī Shīʿa.
6. Be just (ʿādil), meaning he is steadfast in the ways of Islam, performing obligatory acts, and refraining from prohibitions.
7. Not make frequent mistakes, forget, or be negligent in matters related to jurisprudential expertise.
Issue 4: If multiple mujtahids meet the aforementioned criteria and have differing fatwas in many jurisprudential matters, as it is usually the case, the following scenarios apply:
First Scenario: If it is proven to the duty-bound person that one mujtahid is more learned (aʿlam) than the others, he must follow him.
Second Scenario: If it is proven that two mujtahids are more learned than the others but are equal in knowledge, or it is unknown which one is more learned, and if it is also proven that one of these two is more pious -- he is more precise and exercise more precaution in the sense that he applies all his faculties to find out what in all probability is the law -- then it is obligatory to follow the more pious one. If this is not proven, the duty-bound person can follow the fatwa of either one, except in certain specific cases as explained in Islamic Laws.
Third Scenario: If it is proven that one mujtahid is the most learned but the duty-bound cannot identify who he is, he must exercise precaution among the fatwas of the mujtahids of whom one is believed to be the most learned. Exceptions to this rule are also detailed in the book of Islamic Laws.
Issue 5: The preeminence in knowledge (aʿlamiyya) of a mujtahid can be established through one of two ways:
1. Testimony from a reliable person with sufficient expertise in this area, such as qualified mujtahids and experts, or individuals with knowledge close to ijtihād. This testimony is valid unless contradicted by others of the same qualifications, in which case, the testimony of those with greater expertise and specialization is preferred.
2. The mukallaf (duty-bound person) attains knowledge or certainty about the mujtahid's preeminence in knowledge through generally accepted rational means, such as widespread acknowledgment among scholars or by personally evaluating the mujtahid's scholarly level if he himself the necessary expertise.
Issue 6: If a person believes that a certain mujtahid is more learned and follows his rulings, but later becomes convinced of the scholarly preeminence (aʿlamiyya) of another mujtahid, he must switch his taqlīd to the second mujtahid.
Issue 7: If the mujtahid whom the mukallaf follows passes away, and the deceased mujtahid is more learned than all the living mujtahids, the mukallaf should continue following the deceased mujtahid. This applies regardless of whether the mukallaf has acted according to the deceased's fatwas or learned them. However, if over time a living mujtahid becomes more learned than the deceased mujtahid, the mukallaf must switch to the living mujtahid, as the validity of taqlīd is based on following the most learned.
Issue 8: It is not permissible to begin following a deceased mujtahid, even if he is more learned than all the living mujtahids.
Issue 9: If the most learned mujtahid has no fatwa on a specific issue, or the mukallaf cannot access his opinion when needed, it is permissible to refer to another mujtahid, making sure he is the next most learned one.
Issue 10: The rulings in this treatise that are expressed as "obligatory precaution" are those cases where one can refer to another mujtahid, observing the hierarchy among the mujtahids in terms of preeminence in knowledge. It should be noted that "obligatory precaution" is expressed in various ways in this treatise:
1. Sometimes it is explicitly stated, such as "as an obligatory precaution, one should wipe the feet up to the ankle joint."
2. Sometimes it is implied, as in "if one washes the face starting from the bottom or the middle, the ablution is problematic."
3. Sometimes a ruling or fatwa is conditioned with the phrase "based on precaution," such as "one who travels after the call to noon prayer must, based on precaution, complete their fast."
4. In some cases, only the term "precaution" is mentioned without specifying a ruling or fatwa, such as "if a dog's saliva falls into a container, the precaution is to first rub the container with earth and then wash it three times with water."
