1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:09,599 A summary of the concepts of the Ahl al-Sunnah. 2 00:00:09,599 --> 00:00:13,599 Wherever the law of Allah is found, there lies the true interest. 3 00:00:13,599 --> 00:00:21,820 Whatever Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, has legislated in His Book and upon the tongue of His Messenger, peace be upon him, 4 00:00:21,820 --> 00:00:24,820 whether it be obligatory or recommended acts, 5 00:00:24,820 --> 00:00:28,820 or permissible, prohibited, or disliked acts, 6 00:00:28,820 --> 00:00:35,850 He, the Glorified, legislated them only for the benefit of humanity and their welfare in this world and the Hereafter. 7 00:00:35,850 --> 00:00:40,850 Thus, wherever the law of Allah is found, there lies the true interest. 8 00:00:40,850 --> 00:00:45,060 Interests in the balance of the Sharia. 9 00:00:45,060 --> 00:00:50,149 Interests in the balance of the Sharia are of three types: 10 00:00:50,149 --> 00:00:54,149 Recognized, nullified, and unrestricted (masalih mursala). 11 00:00:54,149 --> 00:00:59,579 Recognized interests: 12 00:00:59,579 --> 00:01:05,579 These are interests that the Sharia has attested to by accepting and validating them through specific evidence. 13 00:01:05,579 --> 00:01:08,579 It has legislated a ruling to realize them. 14 00:01:08,579 --> 00:01:12,579 These are interests that cannot be rejected, 15 00:01:12,579 --> 00:01:16,579 and there is no disagreement regarding the legitimacy of adopting and implementing them. 16 00:01:16,579 --> 00:01:18,620 Examples of this include: 17 00:01:18,620 --> 00:01:20,620 The interest of preserving life, 18 00:01:20,620 --> 00:01:23,620 for which the ruling of retaliation (qisas) was legislated. 19 00:01:23,620 --> 00:01:26,620 The interest of preserving wealth, 20 00:01:26,620 --> 00:01:29,620 for which the cutting of the thief's hand was legislated. 21 00:01:29,620 --> 00:01:31,620 The interest of preserving the intellect, 22 00:01:31,620 --> 00:01:34,620 for which the prohibition of intoxicants was legislated. 23 00:01:34,620 --> 00:01:38,620 And so on, to the end of such examples. 24 00:01:38,620 --> 00:01:44,340 Nullified interests: 25 00:01:44,340 --> 00:01:48,340 These are interests that the Sharia has attested to by invalidating and rejecting them. 26 00:01:48,340 --> 00:01:50,340 Examples of this include: 27 00:01:50,340 --> 00:01:55,340 The interest of earning wealth through usury (riba), gambling, or games of chance. 28 00:01:55,340 --> 00:02:00,340 The Sharia has invalidated these by prohibiting both usury and gambling. 29 00:02:00,340 --> 00:02:05,340 Likewise, the perceived interest in banning polygamy 30 00:02:05,340 --> 00:02:11,340 due to the expected harm arising from problems and jealousy between a woman and her co-wife. 31 00:02:11,340 --> 00:02:15,340 The Sharia has disregarded this interest and did not consider it, 32 00:02:15,340 --> 00:02:18,340 in order to realize a higher interest, 33 00:02:18,340 --> 00:02:22,340 which is the increase of offspring, the facilitation of chastity, 34 00:02:22,340 --> 00:02:24,340 and the protection of the soul. 35 00:02:24,340 --> 00:02:28,330 Unrestricted interests (masalih mursala): 36 00:02:28,330 --> 00:02:34,900 These are interests for which no specific evidence has come in the Sharia to either validate or nullify them. 37 00:02:34,900 --> 00:02:38,900 They are "unrestricted" from the constraint of being explicitly recognized or nullified. 38 00:02:38,900 --> 00:02:43,900 However, they contain a meaning suitable for a ruling to be legislated for them. 39 00:02:43,900 --> 00:02:47,900 Furthermore, they fall under the general principles of the Sharia 40 00:02:47,900 --> 00:02:51,900 regarding the consideration of interests and the warding off of harms. 41 00:02:51,900 --> 00:02:53,900 Examples of this include: 42 00:02:53,900 --> 00:02:58,900 The compilation of the Qur'an, the establishment of administrative registers, and the codification of sciences, 43 00:02:58,900 --> 00:03:03,900 such as the Arabic linguistic sciences, the principles of fiqh, and the science of hadith terminology. 44 00:03:03,900 --> 00:03:12,090 And other such interests that no rational person would doubt are in harmony with the Sharia. 45 00:03:12,090 --> 00:03:19,889 Among the conditions for adopting an unrestricted interest: 46 00:03:19,889 --> 00:03:25,889 That it does not contradict a Sharia proof from a text, consensus (ijma'), or analogy (qiyas). 47 00:03:25,889 --> 00:03:30,889 And that adopting it does not result in the loss of a higher interest. 48 00:03:30,889 --> 00:03:36,710 The difference between unrestricted interest and innovation (bid'ah): 49 00:03:36,710 --> 00:03:43,509 Unrestricted interests only apply to matters where the meaning is rationally understood. 50 00:03:43,509 --> 00:03:46,509 They have no place in purely devotional acts (ta'abbudat), 51 00:03:46,509 --> 00:03:51,509 for which no specific rational meaning is sought. 52 00:03:51,509 --> 00:03:58,509 Such as the details of ablution, the number of units in prayer, and the specification of fasting to a particular time, 53 00:03:58,509 --> 00:04:03,509 or the standing at the sites of Hajj, and so on. 54 00:04:03,509 --> 00:04:07,509 This is one of the most important distinctions between unrestricted interests 55 00:04:07,509 --> 00:04:13,509 and the innovation that occurs in acts of worship based on pure devotion, 56 00:04:13,509 --> 00:04:18,509 or in matters of creed, as these are fixed and established foundations. 57 00:04:18,509 --> 00:04:23,470 The ruling on agreeing upon an unrestricted interest: 58 00:04:23,470 --> 00:04:29,620 If the scholars or specialists reach a consensus on an unrestricted interest, 59 00:04:29,620 --> 00:04:32,620 it is not permissible to act contrary to it. 60 00:04:32,620 --> 00:04:38,620 If consensus is not reached, the one in charge acts upon the opinion of the majority of scholars. 61 00:04:38,620 --> 00:04:43,060 The overlapping of interests and harms: 62 00:04:43,060 --> 00:04:48,250 Interests and harms are rarely pure and isolated. 63 00:04:48,250 --> 00:04:52,250 Rather, the norm is their intermingling or competition. 64 00:04:52,250 --> 00:04:57,250 In such cases, the Muslim acts according to the general rules regarding this, 65 00:04:57,250 --> 00:05:01,250 such as: warding off harm takes precedence over bringing about benefit, 66 00:05:01,250 --> 00:05:05,250 prioritizing the higher of two interests over the lower, 67 00:05:05,250 --> 00:05:08,250 and committing the lesser of two evils. 68 00:05:08,250 --> 00:05:12,050 The competition of interests: 69 00:05:12,050 --> 00:05:16,980 Prioritizing one interest over another when they compete 70 00:05:16,980 --> 00:05:19,980 is done according to the following criteria: 71 00:05:19,980 --> 00:05:27,040 First: Prioritizing an interest that is certain over one that is merely speculative. 72 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:33,139 Second: If the two interests are equal in their certainty, 73 00:05:33,139 --> 00:05:37,329 the public interest is prioritized over the private. 74 00:05:37,329 --> 00:05:43,329 Third: If the two interests are equal in their realization and general benefit, 75 00:05:43,329 --> 00:05:48,329 the greater interest is prioritized over the lesser. 76 00:05:48,329 --> 00:05:56,000 The objectives of legislation are derived from the texts of the Sharia, not rulers over them. 77 00:05:56,000 --> 00:06:05,860 The general objectives of legislation are only known through examining the texts of the Sharia and its interpretive rulings. 78 00:06:05,860 --> 00:06:13,860 By deriving the objectives from them, the texts are the foundation, and the objectives are the branches derived from them. 79 00:06:13,860 --> 00:06:24,860 Therefore, it is impossible for any text or interpretive Sharia ruling to contradict a general objective of the legislation. 80 00:06:24,860 --> 00:06:32,860 Such claims are only made by people of deviation and desire; when they were unable to confront the texts, they resorted to reinterpreting them 81 00:06:32,860 --> 00:06:37,860 according to their misguided understanding of the general objectives of Islam. 82 00:06:37,860 --> 00:06:44,860 They call this adopting the "purposive" (maqasidi) understanding of Islam instead of the "textual" understanding. 83 00:06:44,860 --> 00:06:50,990 Examples of this include their claim that usury was only prohibited because of injustice, 84 00:06:50,990 --> 00:06:59,990 so any form of it that does not lead to injustice is permissible—we seek refuge in Allah from deviation and misguidance.