Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuḥaylī’s Thoughts on Reconstruction of Islamic Jurisprudence (A Specific Study of Al-Fiqh Al-Islāmī wa Adilatuhu)

فقہ اسلامی کی تشکیلِ جدید کے ضمن میں ڈاکٹر وہبہ الزحیلی کے افکار ( الفقه الاسلامی و ادلته کااختصاصی مطالعہ)

Abstract

Islamic jurisprudence provides guidance to Muslims in every sphere of daily life. This legal system has evolved from primary level to the developed form since the time of beginning i.e., Prophetic era. During the lifetime of Prophetﷺ, he was the absolute legal authority, however the Ḥadīth of Mu`adh Ibn Jabal declares that Ijtihād was also permissible. This source of Islamic jurisprudence (Ijtihād) has perpetuated the principle of movement in Islamic legal system and has made it workable with the present modern world. In recent years, many jurists and thinkers have voiced the reconstruction of Islamic jurisprudence according to the needs of contemporary issues. Different ideas have been put forwarded by different scholars about this process of reconstruction. Some of them term it as complete legislation according to Qurʾān and Sunnah, the others render it as new formation of Fiqh literature. Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuḥaylī, a prominent Syrian scholar and jurist is renowned for his thoughts on the reframing of Islamic jurisprudence. Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuḥaylī has a long list of academic works on his credit but his most famous book on comparative Islamic jurisprudence is Al-Fiqh Al-Islāmī wa Adalituhū. In this monument work, Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuḥaylī has suggested many new ideas to reframe the Islamic jurisprudence according to the needs of the hour. His core thought about this process is “to compile a cosmopolitan Fiqh from the collective Fiqh literature of all jurists”. An attempt has been made in this article to highlight the thoughts of Dr. Wahbah Al-Zuḥaylī on the reconstruction of Islamic jurisprudence.