I completely understand the need to turn to Scholars who have spent years to derive rulings on many, many topics. Each of the for main madhabs use hadith to form rulings, and there's no confusion about that. So all can be right, AND hold differing opinions on the same matter.
Having said the above, WHY cant I pick and chose a different madhab for different queries? Since all have based their rulings on sound sources...
Peace pinks ... Mainly due to internal inconsistency ... Usually the rulings on a given issue are calibrated to work consistently within the framework of the madhab whole ... To pick and choose can result in a confusion of the basis of a given ruling and there will be tendency to pave out the simplest set of rulings from each madhab ... And a further inclination where all rulings on a matter differ significantly for all of them to be rejected under the false conclusion that the difference of opinion means anything goes and they end up making their own third derivation from it. We need to be people who can embrace both the matters we find easy and the matters we find hard within the madhab in order to at least demonstrate a sincere approach to our Deen.
Einstein said, "Make things simple, but no simpler than they need to be" ... Over simplification can be a form of complication ...
Submission to Allah (SWT) should come about through sincerity and it is more sincere to follow an 'alim or set of ulema from within the same madhab than it is to pick and choose from rulings that apply different often opposing bases as their reasons for the ruling.
The sequence of how I learn is by listening and studying the various talks and books of modern scholars ... 9 times out of 10 that is enough ... Sometimes I go to depth to root out the basis of the ruling. I read a book or an article on the matter or ask the scholar the question. This tends to satisfy me ... I don't feel the need to jump from scholar to scholar of different madhabs to get satisfactory analyses ...
One particular fiqh may have a Hadith to back up the rafa yadain ... But another fiqh utilises the mashur observation of the masses to conclude that no rafa yadain is done ... So if the person chooses to do both intermittently then he has drawn a third path ...
following a scholar with 'Ijaza is at least following a legacy of opinion ... It is not the same as just following a high street mulla ... Islam can and should be learnt by all and by all means learning about other madhabs is good ... But I would favour changing madhabs than to pick and choose certain rulings.
how on earth did you twist that into submission to 'authority' and the molvies?
if allah has blessed me with an education, intelligence and a functioning brain.....what excuse do i have on the day of judgement for not trying and making an effort to understand and follow what convinces my heart?
Why does quran say in hundreds of places to think and to ponder and to look at the signs? from what i know (i may be wrong) those verses are directed at all humans..........not only the molvies........
i cant just be lazy and outsource my reasoning/logic/aqal to some molvies and relax and blame everything on the molvi on day of judgement.....do i?
how on earth did you twist that into submission to 'authority' and the molvies?
if allah has blessed me with an education, intelligence and a functioning brain.....what excuse do i have on the day of judgement for not trying and making an effort to understand and follow what convinces my heart?
Why does quran say in hundreds of places to think and to ponder and to look at the signs? from what i know (i may be wrong) those verses are directed at all humans..........not only the molvies........
i cant just be lazy and outsource my reasoning/logic/aqal to some molvies and relax and blame everything on the molvi on day of judgement.....do i?
Peace ButtSb
If you believe that the ulema don't themselves submit to Allah (SWT) then of course you submit to Allah (SWT) only ... But I believe I have found sound authority in people who embody the Sunnah, of the one who was sent by Allah (SWT) ... Neither can I say that it is the Sunnah of the Sahabah to question RasoolAllah (SAW) nor can I say the Tabieen didn't seek council and accept the authority of Sahabah ... I would just like to continue that tradition ... The mind that Allah (SWT) has given me has led me to that conclusion without being hindered by the ego that Allah (SWT) has given me also that tells me I should believe in my own faculties ... Or that I should give my own reasoning and study preference over the ulema ...
One particular fiqh may have a Hadith to back up the rafa yadain ... But another fiqh utilises the mashur observation of the masses to conclude that no rafa yadain is done ... So if the person chooses to do both intermittently then he has drawn a third path ...
Jizak Allah for your detailed response.
I guess the part quoted above exemplifies where the difference between the Muqallid/ Ghair Muqallid lies. What you've stated as a "third path" i would (maybe wrongly) say is the all inclusive path :) There's plenty of evidence pro/against rafayadain so to me, both seem ok. May Allah forgive me and guide me to the path that most pleases Him.
^And to us all ... Ameen ... Another important factor to realise is that.
a) All Qur'an translations are done by scholars.
b) All Hadith translations are done by academics.
c) Qur'an is taught through a tutelage chain.
d) Hadith compilations are done by scholars copying what previous scholars have done, i.e. compilation of Sahih Bukhari, Muslims, etc
e) All fiqh books are prepared by scholars and their students from the learnings with their teachers.
So the people who think they can actively AVOID giving their trust to scholars and learn from the source of Qur'an and Hadith are kidding themselves ... Islam has been brought to us from scholars by scholars, if we don't trust an 'alim who has 'ijaza to do exegesis and qiyaas then we choose to do that qiyaas ourselves for whatever reason ... Picking up a book of Hadith and forming an opinion on it means that at least we have trusted the translator and the narrators of those ahadith ...
I guess the part quoted above exemplifies where the difference between the Muqallid/ Ghair Muqallid lies. What you've stated as a "third path" i would (maybe wrongly) say is the all inclusive path :) There's plenty of evidence pro/against rafayadain so to me, both seem ok. May Allah forgive me and guide me to the path that most pleases Him.
I too say that both are okay ... But we don't know which of the two might or might not have been abrogated unless we study further ... Of course when it comes to a difference of opinion we respect the difference because both are borne out of sound reasoning ... My concern is that individuals who are not scholars start to DO or practice both intermittently believing that BOTH are okay to practice for one person .... For example someone could choose to do rafa yadain for everyone of his Fajr prayers but not for the rest ... Or he could choose do it only in the third rakah and fourth but no in the first and third ... Do you see how many options become presented simply by this little difference?
What is it that prevents him from putting these ideas in to practice? Or do you still think it is allowed to do that? And if so is there evidence to suggest both were being done at the same time? It is minutia ... But for scholars minutia is not ignored or belittled.
Taqlid is inescapable ... So we might as well do it properly ... However, I am obliged to accept the ghair muqalid as a sibling in Islam. The all inclusive path is actually not ghair muqalid (as ghair muqalid means without taqlid) it is in fact Taqlid of multiple opinions ... One can demonstrate all inclusivity by practicing everything ... Or can also practice all inclusivity by adopting a path ... But respecting and loving people who are on other paths ... Including those people who don't believe in taking a specific path ...
Addressing ButtSb's concern ... There is no reason for fighting and I disagree that madhabs are a cause for hatred and separation ...
Rather personal character is all responsible for that!
^And to us all ... Ameen ... Another important factor to realise is that.
a) All Qur'an translations are done by scholars.
b) All Hadith translations are done by academics.
c) Qur'an is taught through a tutelage chain.
d) Hadith compilations are done by scholars copying what previous scholars have done, i.e. compilation of Sahih Bukhari, Muslims, etc
e) All fiqh books are prepared by scholars and their students from the learnings with their teachers.
So the people who think they can actively AVOID giving their trust to scholars and learn from the source of Qur'an and Hadith are kidding themselves ... Islam has been brought to us from scholars by scholars, if we don't trust an 'alim who has 'ijaza to do exegesis and qiyaas then we choose to do that qiyaas ourselves for whatever reason ... Picking up a book of Hadith and forming an opinion on it means that at least we have trusted the translator and the narrators of those ahadith ...
There is no denyig that much and all of the informatioan available to date is brought by people of knowledge.
It does not absolve individual's responsibility to check and verify from searching on his/her own the source.
At least one can hope that Quran with its translation is as accurate as it can be. And the tafseer is all one has to look up to for explanation.
There is no attempt to reduce the importance of Aalims here.
But what is proposed is the fact that even the Aalims and Imams do DIFFER in their interpretations of Quran and Hadiths.
And hence there is absonlutely no need to follow one or other Aalim on any specific issue rigidly especially if it involves small or trivial matters.
**There are people who make these small or trivial matters unnecessarily huge/create divisions among Muslims and they are wrong to the core.