Fatwa: A Dynamic Jurisprudence and a Great Responsibility

Prof. Dr. Faid Mohammed Said

Allah Almighty says: “They ask you for a legal ruling. Say, Allah gives you a ruling concerning al-Kalālah” (Qur’an 4:176).

This noble verse demonstrates the immense significance of the fatwa (a formal Islamic legal opinion), for Allah attributes it to His own Divine authority: “Allah gives you a ruling.” This shows that the fatwa is not a passing word, nor a mere personal opinion, but rather a declaration of God’s ruling regarding the affairs of people—a grave trust that concerns both their religion and their worldly lives.

The fatwa, therefore, is a divine mandate and a weighty religious responsibility. It is not confined to merely transmitting texts or quoting juristic opinions, but rather requires vast knowledge of the Islamic sciences, precise awareness of juristic differences, and a deep understanding of the higher objectives of the Sharia. It further demands a discerning recognition of people’s customs, conditions, and what suits them or does not.

The late scholar Dr. Muhammad Kamal al-Din Imam (d. 2020) aptly described the fatwa as “a moving jurisprudence”—not static or rigid, but dynamic and responsive to the changing realities of life. The question posed to the jurist is never abstract or theoretical; it arises from a specific case and a concrete circumstance, for which the jurist seeks an answer that accords with the revealed texts while realizing the objectives of the Sharia.¹

I. The Changing Nature of the Fatwa

Ibn al-Qayyim (d. 1350) declared that fatwas may change depending on six factors:

“The change and variation of fatwas, depending on the change of times, places, conditions, intentions, customs, and people, is a matter denied by none who possess even the slightest share of knowledge.”²

Thus, the fatwa changes because the Sharia is not founded upon rigidity but upon expansive objectives that consider human realities. These six factors are:

1. Time: What is appropriate in one era may not be so in another, due to evolving circumstances and emerging contingencies.
2. Place: Customs and environments differ, and what is suitable in one land may not be in another.
3. Conditions: Such as the distinction between wealth and poverty, health and illness, or safety and fear.
4. Intentions: Inner motives affect rulings, as the judgment differs between one who seeks truth and one who seeks evasion.
5. People: The state of the questioner must be considered, for people differ in understanding, capacity, and responsibility.
6. Customs: Custom is a recognized legal source in Islamic jurisprudence, and changing practices influence the application of rulings.

II. Imam al-Shāfiʿī as a Model

Imam al-Shāfiʿī (d. 820 CE) represents a striking example of how fatwas evolve with place and time. He established two schools of legal thought: his old school in Iraq and his new school in Egypt.

Reasons for Change:

1. Differences between the social and customary environments of Iraq and Egypt.
2. His exposure in Egypt to traditions and reports that had not reached him earlier.
3. Interaction with new scholarly circles, particularly the legacy of Imam al-Layth ibn Saʿd.

Examples of His Changing Fatwas:

• The Call to Prayer during Travel: In his old school, he held that the adhān was recommended only in settled towns. In Egypt, he changed his view, affirming its recommendation for travelers as well, based on authentic reports.
• Zakāt al-Fiṭr: In his old school, he permitted it to be paid from any type of food. In Egypt, he restricted it to the staple food of the land—at the time, wheat—out of consideration for local custom.
• The Maximum Duration of Menstruation: Initially he held it to be ten days, but in Egypt he extended it to fifteen days after receiving an authentic report from ʿĀʾishah, Mother of the Believers.

These examples show that al-Shāfiʿī’s changes were not inconsistency but deliberate transitions founded on evidence, broader awareness, and contextual understanding.

III. Imam al-Qarāfī on the Change of Fatwas

Imam al-Qarāfī (d. 1285) was one of the foremost scholars to systematize the jurisprudence of changing fatwas. In his al-Furūq, he wrote:

“To issue fatwas merely in accordance with transmitted statements and inherited opinions, without regard for the customs of the age and the conditions of its people, is misguidance in religion and ignorance of the objectives of the jurists of Muslims. Indeed, it contradicts consensus, for they agreed that rulings vary with the change of times, places, conditions, customs, and intentions.”³

This statement makes clear that clinging rigidly to earlier formulations without accounting for new contexts is ignorance and a betrayal of the very purposes of the Sharia.

IV. Further Examples from the Early Generations

• ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (RA): Suspended the allocation of zakat to “those whose hearts are to be reconciled” once Islam became strong, though the Qur’anic verse remained unchanged, in recognition of shifting needs.
• ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd (RA): Adapted his fatwas concerning inheritance distribution among apostates depending on the political and social turmoil of his time.
• al-ʿIzz ibn ʿAbd al-Salām (d. 1262): Permitted the sale of weapons in times of peace, but prohibited it during civil strife when it would lead to Muslim bloodshed.

V. Examples from Egypt and Dār al-Iftāʾ

Egypt has long been a center for dynamic fatwa practice. Notable modern examples include:

• Shaykh Muḥammad Bakhīt al-Muṭīʿī (Mufti of Egypt, d. 1935): Permitted commercial insurance when necessity required, given new economic realities.
• Shaykh ʿAbd al-Majīd Salīm (d. 1954): Approved the use of loudspeakers for the adhān, a means unknown in earlier times.

These cases highlight how fatwas cannot remain static but must engage with contemporary realities, serving the Sharia’s higher objectives of ease and the removal of hardship.

VI. The Mercy and Breadth of Sharia

Recognizing these variables ensures that the fatwa remains a living, renewing jurisprudence that balances the permanence of divine texts with the dynamism of reality. If fatwas were rigid and ignored such differences, they would become oppressive and contradict the very spirit of the Sharia, which is to facilitate ease and remove hardship: “Allah intends ease for you, and He does not intend hardship for you” (Qur’an 2:185).

Thus, the fatwa stands as a dynamic jurisprudence, constantly engaging with human life, reflecting the mercy and universality of Islam, and realizing its highest objectives: establishing justice, spreading compassion, and alleviating hardship for creation.

References

1. Muhammad Kamal al-Din Imam, al-Ijtihād wa al-Tajdīd fī al-Fiqh al-Islāmī (Cairo: Dār al-Shurūq, 2010).
2. Ibn al-Qayyim, Iʿlām al-Muwaqqiʿīn ʿan Rabb al-ʿĀlamīn, ed. Ṭāhā ʿAbd al-Raʾūf Saʿd (Cairo: Maktabat al-Kulliyyāt al-Azhariyyah, 1973), 3:11.
3. al-Qarāfī, al-Furūq (Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifah, n.d.), 1:177.
4. al-Shāfiʿī, al-Umm (Cairo: Dār al-Maʿrifah, n.d.).
5. al-ʿIzz ibn ʿAbd al-Salām, Qawāʿid al-Aḥkām fī Maṣāliḥ al-Anām (Beirut: Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah, 1991).
6. Dār al-Iftāʾ al-Miṣriyyah, Fatāwā Muʿāṣirah (Cairo, 2000).