فقہی قاعدہ تَرْكُ الِاسْتِفْصَالِ كعُمُومِ الْمَقَال کا تحقیقی وتجزیاتی مطالعہ

An Analytical Study of the Jurisprudential Rule of Tark al-Istifṣāl ka ‘Umūm al-Maqāl

Abstract

This discussion is about an important rule of Islamic jurisprudence. This rule arises when the Prophet (peace be on him) forsakes the demand for details on an event or a question which is likely to be an event or a question in many cases instead of confining it to a particular situation. An unrestricted order is imposed and this order is common to all cases of this condition. This rule was first deduced by Imām al-Shāfi‘ī, and then it was adopted in many cases but not all of those cases are entirely out of the question: tark al-istifṣāl ka ‘umūm al-maqāl (abandoning the demand for details like a normal conversation). Most of the jurists have unrestrictedly followed this rule, some have restricted it to certain conditions and some have rejected it. This rule apparently contradicts another rule that is also attributed to Imām al-Shafi‘ī, which is: Qaḍāya al-aḥwāl idhā taṭarraqa ilayhā ’l-iḥtimāl kasāḥā thawb al-ijmāl wa saqaṭ bihā ’l-istidlāl (when a case is probable, this probability creates brevity and the argument based on it turns void). Therefore, one of the purposes of this discussion is to dispel the illusion of contradiction between these two rules.