Table Of ContentContents
Definition of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah.................................................................................................... 4
As two separate words ....................................................................................................................... 4
al-Qawāʿid ....................................................................................................................................... 4
al-Fiqhiyyah ..................................................................................................................................... 4
As the science of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah .......................................................................................... 4
What is its relationship with Fiqh and Uṣūl? ......................................................................................... 6
The sources of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah ................................................................................................ 6
Types of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah .......................................................................................................... 6
Benefits of Studying Legal Maxims of Islamic Jurisprudence ............................................................... 6
Are Legal Maxims of Islamic Jurisprudence evidence that can be relied upon? ................................. 7
The beginning, documentation and development of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah ................................... 9
The time of legislation, the Prophet () and the honourable companions. ......................... 9
The time of documentation, in the era of the four imām’s and their senior students ...................... 9
The time of establishment as an independent science .................................................................... 10
Categorising the book of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah ............................................................................ 10
Matters are by what is intended ......................................................................................................... 11
Meaning ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Evidence ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Matters regarding the intention ....................................................................................................... 11
Benefits ......................................................................................................................................... 11
Ruling ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Timing ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Matters which corrupt it ............................................................................................................... 11
Residence ...................................................................................................................................... 11
Legal maxims which fall under this ................................................................................................... 11
Certainty is not removed with doubt .................................................................................................. 12
Meaning ............................................................................................................................................ 12
Evidence ............................................................................................................................................ 12
Acting on that which is overwhelmingly likely .................................................................................. 12
Legal maxims which full under this ................................................................................................... 13
Hardship begets ease ........................................................................................................................... 13
Meaning ............................................................................................................................................ 13
Evidence ............................................................................................................................................ 13
Reasons ............................................................................................................................................. 13
Types of ease .................................................................................................................................... 13
Types of hardship .............................................................................................................................. 14
Legal maxims which fall under this ................................................................................................... 14
No harming nor reciprocating harm .................................................................................................... 14
Meaning ............................................................................................................................................ 14
Evidence ............................................................................................................................................ 14
Legal maxims which fall under this ................................................................................................... 14
Custom is authoritative ........................................................................................................................ 14
Meaning ............................................................................................................................................ 14
Connection between norms and customs ........................................................................................ 14
Divisions of the al-‘Urf ...................................................................................................................... 15
Evidence ............................................................................................................................................ 15
Conditions ......................................................................................................................................... 15
When is the ‘Urf taken into account ................................................................................................. 15
Legal maxims which fall under this ................................................................................................... 15
Books ..................................................................................................................................................... 15
Allāh and the Messenger have informed us regarding everything that will; bring
us closer to Paradise, distance us from the Hell-Fire, and reap goodness in this world.
There is no worldly benefit that we can attain, except the Shari’ah works towards
fulfilling it.
As the Poet said:
َ َّ َ َّ ٍّ ََ ُ َ َ َ َ َّ َ َّ ٌ َ ٌ َ َ َ َ
هرذح لاإِ ش نمِ نكي ملو *** هررق لاإِ طق يرخ سيلف"
َ َ َ َ َّ ِّ َ َ َ ُ َ ُ َ َ َ ُ َ
لاضعأ ام ادب ول ،نِ امزلا رم *** لَع مٍ كح نع لخي مل اننيدِ ف
َ َ َ َ َ َ َ ُ َ َ ُ َ َ َ ُ ََّ
"اد شار اهنع ماكحلأا جرختست *** ادعِ اوق ىوتحاِ دق هنلأ
“There is absolutely no good except it affirmed it *** and there is no evil except it warned us
Our religion is not deficient from ruling upon [matters] *** over time, whether it be clear or complex
For it possesses legal maxims *** where rulings can be derived from correctly”
Definition of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah
As two separate words
al-Qawāʿid
It is the plural of al-Qāʿidah and it means the foundation.
al-Fiqhiyyah
Attribution to the science of al-Fiqh.
As the science of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah
The scholars state that al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah is:
ر َ
"باب نم يكأ ف ةشابم ةيهقفلا تايئزجلا مكح هنم فرعتي لَك مكح"
ي ي
“An all-inclusive ruling from which a subsidiary jurisprudent ruling can be known directly in more
than one chapter”
1. “مكح” means: Attributing a matter to something else, which can accept
affirmation of negation. Some of the Scholars use the term “ةيضق” as it is a
synonym.
2. “ لَك” means: All-inclusive1, as in the word “لك” can be placed before the legal
ي
maxim.
The poet said:
َّ ِّ ُ ٌ َّ َ َّ َّ ُ َ َ ُ َّ َ ُ
"هيلك ةيضِ ق اهنأبِ *** هيهِ قفِ لا ةدعِ اقلا فرعت"
“A legal maxim is defined by *** being an all-inclusive judgement”
1 There is a discussion between the Scholars whether it is all-inclusive or preponderant.
Some people ask, how can it be all-inclusive when there are exceptions to the legal
maxims? The response is that this exception does not enter under the legal maxim
in the first place.
3. “فرعتي” means: It requires the use of the brain, and it will not be understood
instantly. It will require the individual to strive in utilising their brain.
ُ
They did not say “فرعي” or “فرعي”, rather they said “فرعتي”. There is a linguistic
principle:
"ةدحاو ةداملا تناك اذإ بلاغ نعملا ف ةدايز نبملا ف ةدايزلا"
ي ي
“An increase in the construction usually [leads to] an increase in the meaning, if they have one root”.
4. “ةيهقفلا تايئزجلا مكح” means: Analysing the ruling on the subsidiary matters,
issue by issue.
َ
5. “ةشابم” means: The wording of the legal maxim will provide the ruling
directly.
Example:
A person states that they performed Wudū’ and prayed Dhuhr. When the time of ‘Asr
entered they prayed ‘Asr and now they are unsure whether they broke their Wudū’
before ‘Asr. In response we would say: that their ‘Asr is correct, as the legal maxim
states:
"كشلاب لوزي لا يرقيلا"
“Certainty is not removed with doubt”
It is here where the Scholars differentiate between Al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah and
Qawā’id al-Usuliyyah aka Usūl al-Fiqh, as in Usūl al-Fiqh the ruling is not known
directly from the wording of the legal maxim.
Example:
If a man asks regarding the ruling of growing the beard, it may be said to him, my
beloved brother: Growing the beard is obligatory because,
"بوجولل رملأا"
“A command shows obligation”
The command is not apparent here, because the connection between growing the
beard and the command showing obligation has not been explained. It is required to
say: growing the beard is obligatory because the Prophet said: grow the beard, this
is a command, and command shows obligation.
ر
6. “باب نم يكأ ف” means: It enters more than one chapter. That which enters one
ي
chapter alone is known as a “ اطباض”.
Example:
"ةراهطلا ناولأا ف لصلأا"
ي ي
“The original essence of utensils is that they are pure”
This is specific to the chapter of utensils. Therefore some of the Scholars state: this
is a “طباض”, as it does not enter more than one chapter.
What is its relationship with Fiqh and Uṣūl?
The first thing which is established is al-Qawā’id al-Uṣūliyyah, then Fiqh and then
al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah; as it inducted from the subsidiary Fiqh issues.
The sources of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah
al-Al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah is based upon:
1. The evidences of the religion.
2. Induction from the subsidiary issues.
Types of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah
There are two types:
1. The major legal maxims2
2. The non-major legal maxims
Benefits of Studying Legal Maxims of Islamic Jurisprudence
1. Precision in Fiqh and makes it easier to memorise.
There are a plethora of individual subsidiary issues that branch off each of these
headings. If we analyse the books of Fiqh e.g. “al-Minhāj” by Imām al-Nawawī ,
the scholars state that in it Imām al-Nawawī discusses sixty-thousand individual
issues. In “Irshād al-Ghāwī” by Ibn al-Muqri’ , it is stated that within this book
he discusses eighty-thousand separate issues.
To learn and retain each of these matters individually, including the many
contemporary issues, will be extremely difficult for the student of knowledge.
However, Al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah provides legal maxims that can be utilised in a
variety of different chapters, allowing a student of knowledge to be precise when
discussing different subsidiary issues.
Exemplar legal maxim:
"اهدصاقمب روملأا"
“Matters are determined according to the intention”
This single legal maxim enters many different chapters, such as; purification, prayer
etc. Some of the Salaf stated that it enters into seventy chapters.
It can also apply in a situation where a man marries a woman with the intention of
divorce. Though the majority of Scholars stated it is permissible, it is not permissible,
due to this legal maxim.
2. To know the reasoning, wisdom and the objectives of the religion.
The Shari’ah connects commands and prohibitions to reasons and wisdoms.
2 Agreed upon by the four Imāms.
Exemplar legal maxim:
"راض لاو رض لا"
“There is no harming or reciprocating of harm”
Therefore with this legal maxim, we know that anything that causes harm is
prohibited.
3. To know the manner in which the scholars applied to be able to apply it
in contemporary matters.
By understanding Al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah, an individual will know legal maxims
which can be applied to modern day issues.
Example: The Internet
The internet is a contemporary innovation that did not exist at the time of the Prophet
. However, if an individual harms another person via social media, then by utilising
the aforementioned legal maxim we conclude that it is impermissible.
Are Legal Maxims of Islamic Jurisprudence evidence that can be relied
upon?
The Scholars differed regarding this:
1. al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah can be used as a proof because its rulings are
affirmed by the evidence.
2. al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah cannot be used as proof, as it is from the speech of
the Scholars, therefore it cannot be used as a proof in and of itself; except if
the Scholars unanimously agree upon it.
These two views are incorrect, what is correct – in Shā ‘Allāh – is that it is a proof
which requires explanation because the legal maxims are of three levels:
1. The legal maxim is taken directly from the wording of a textual
evidence.
Exemplar legal maxim:
"نامضلاب جارخلا"
“Profit follows responsibility”
This is a legal maxim that is taken directly from the wording of the Hadīth of the
Prophet ; therefore it can be used as evidence.
Example:
A person buys a car from another person. When driving around for the day they
realise that the car has faults. They then proceed to return the car to the individual
who sold it. Do they have to compensate for the time that they used the car for? The
answer is no, because of this legal maxim. This is because the buyer now has the
responsibility for the car.
2. The legal maxim is taken from the meaning of a textual evidence.
Exemplar legal maxim:
"اهدصاقمب روملأا"
“Matters are determined according to the intention”
This is a legal maxim that is taken directly from the meaning of the Hadīth of the
Prophet ; therefore it can also be used as evidence.
It is taken from the Hadīth of the Prophet :
َّ ِّ ُ َ ْ َ َ َّ
" تِ اينلابِ لامعلأا امن إِ"
“Actions are only based upon the intention”3
Example: The examples have been mentioned previously.
Also, the legal maxim:
"كشلاب لوزي لا يرقيلا"
“Certainty is not removed with doubt”
It is taken from the Hadīth of the Prophet :
َ َ ْ َ ْ َ َ َ ْ َ ََّ َ ْ َ ْ َ َ
"احيرِ دجِ ي وأ اتوص عمسي نح لتِفني لا"
“Do not leave [the prayer] until a sound is heard or an odour is smelt”4
3. The legal maxim is taken from deductive reasoning.
This means that the legal maxim is made based upon deduction from various rulings,
however it does not have specific evidence. It is placed on the same level as analogy
(Qiyās). This is only used when evidence cannot be found. As Imām al-Shāfi’ī
said:
"رطضملل ةتيملاك ؛هيقفلل سايقلا"
“Analogy for the jurist; is like [eating] dead corpse for the one in dire necessity”
Therefore, this is only used when there is no specific evidence that can be found.
Exemplar legal maxim:
"عبات عباتلا"
“That which follows in name and essence follows in ruling”
Example:
An individual states that he sold his house, and in the fortress of his house was a
tree. This tree was very fruitful, and he did not mention it in the transaction, however,
he sold his house. Is it permissible for him to pick the tree? The Jurist will ask: Based
on your community/customs when the word “house” is used, does it include
3 Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1
4 Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 137
everything or only the place of residence. If everything is included, then this legal
maxim is utilised.
The beginning, documentation and development of al-Qawāʿid al-
Fiqhiyyah
The time of legislation, the Prophet () and the honourable companions.
The Prophet Muḥammad () was given something which the previous prophets
did not have. He () said:
َ ْ َ َ َ ُ ْ ُ ٍّ َ َْ َ َ ُ ْ ِّ ُ
" ... مِلِكلا عمِاوج تيطِ عأ تسِ بِ ءِايبِنلأا لَع تلضف"
“I have been given superiority over the other prophets in six respects: I have been given words
which are concise but comprehensive in meaning…”5
With this comprehensive speech the Prophet () was placing Qawāʿid. For
example, the Prophet () said:
َ َ َْ ْ َ َ َ ُ َ ْ َ َّ ُ َْ َ َ ُ َ ِّ َ َْ
" ركنأ نم لَع يرمِيلاو عي ِدملا لَع ةنيبلا"
“But the proof lies on the one who is making the claim, and an oath must be taken by the one who
rejects the claim.”6
The one who accuses someone should bring the evidence because the default position
is that the individual is innocent. The one who is being accused only needs to swear
by Allāh that they are innocent. This is a legal maxim that has been placed by the
Messenger ().
The companions also placed legal maxims. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb () said:
“This is what we are going to judge with and this is what we already judged with”
This became a principle that independent reasoning can change from time to time.
The time of documentation, in the era of the four imām’s and their senior students
An example of a legal maxim extracted in this era was by Imām al-Shāfiʿī. It was
narrated by Ibn ʿAbbās ():
. مٍرَحْ مَ يَ ذَِ َعَْمَ لاََّ َإِ ةَُّأَرْمَُ لَْا ر ِْفِاسََْتُ لاَ َوَ َمٍرَحَْمََ وَ ذُ َاهََعَ مََوَْ َلاَّ إِ ةٍأَرَُمْاْبِ ُلٌْ جُرَِّ نََّوًَلُخَّْ يَ َلاَ :ْ لُ وَ قَُيََ بُ َطَ َُ خْْ يََّ ملسه و َهيلعُ َاللهَ َ لََ صَ ٌ نَّيُ ِنََّلا َتَُ َعْمِسَ "
" كتِأرما عم جحف قلِطنا : لاق . اذكو اذك ةِوز غ فيِ تبتِتكا ني إِو ةجاح تجرخ نيِأرما نإِ للَِّ ا لوسر اي لاقف لجر ماقف
“I heard Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) delivering a sermon and making this observation: No person should
be alone with a woman except when there is a Mahram with her, and the woman should not
undertake journey except with a Mahram. A person stood up and said: Allah's Messenger, my wife
has set out for pilgrimage, whereas I am enlisted to fight in such and such battle, whereupon he said:
You go and perform Hajj with your wife.”7
The Prophet () did not ask whether this Ḥajj was obligatory or voluntary. This
shows that is is not permissible for a woman to travel by herself in either of the two
5 Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 523
6 Bulūgh al-Marām 1423
7 Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1341
situations. Imām al-Shāfiʿī extracted a legal maxim from this which is that when the
Messenger () does not questions regarding a matter then it is understood
generally.
Imām al-Shāfiʿī8 extracted another principle which is that: “A speech cannot be
attributed to one who is silent”.
Therefore, in this time the scholars were mentioning legal maxims in their books.
The time of establishment as an independent science
In this time al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah became a subject which stood by itself. The first
to write in it was Abū al-Ḥasan al-Karkhī (d.340AH) in a book titled: ‘Uṣūl al-Karkhī’.
He was a Ḥanafī and therefore the Ḥanafīyyah were the first to author in al-Qawāʿid
al-Fiqhiyyah.
The next book written was ‘Ta’sīs al-Naẓar9’ by the Ḥanafī scholar Abū Zayd al-
Dabūsī. Following this, Sulṭān al-ʿUlamah al-Imām Izz ibn ʿAbdissalām wrote a book
called ‘al-Qawāʿid al-Aḥkām fī Maṣāliḥ al-Anām’. Many scholars came after and
followed al-Imām Izz ibn ʿAbdissalām.
Categorising the book of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah
The books of al-Qawāʿid al-Fiqhiyyah can be categorised in two ways:
1. In relation to the title of the book:
a. al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓā’ir
i. Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī10
ii. Ibn Nujaym al-Ḥanafī11
b. al-Furūq
i. al-Qarāfī
ii. Abī Muḥammad al-Juwaynī
c. al-Qawāʿid
i. Ibn Rajab
ii. ‘al-Majmū’ al-Mudhab fī Qawā’id al-Madhab’ by Salāh al-Dīn
Khalīl Kaykaldī al-‘Alā’ī (publication: Awqāf al-Kuwait)
2. In relation to the sequence of the legal maxims:
a. Based upon the most important and general
i. al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓā’ir by Jalāl al-Dīn al-Suyūṭī
b. Based upon alphabetical order
ii. al-Manthūr by al-Zarkashī
c. Based upon the chapters of Fiqh
i. Taqrīr al-Qawāʿid wa Tahrīr al-Fawā’id by Ibn Rajab
8 There is a book titled “al-qawāʻid wa al-ḍawābiṭ” which gathers legal maxims which are present in the Kitāb
al-Umm of Imām al-Shāfiʿī. It was a master’s thesis written by ʿAbd al-Wahhāb ibn Aḥmad Khalīl.
9 This book was refuted by Abū al-Muẓafar al-Samʿānī in his book titled ‘Qawāṭiʿ al-Adillah’.
10 ‘al-Farā’id al-Bahiyyah’ is a poetry form of ‘al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓā’ir’ written by al-Ahdal.
11 He came after al-Suyūṭī, benefitted from his work and wrote it in accordance to the Ḥanafī school of
thought.
