Re: Sin/Punishment for Ghair-e-Muqallid…
as-salaamu alaykum
that’s fine insha’Allah…there’s nothing in the Qur’an or sunnah which would indicate that it’s wajib upon everyone to follow one of the four mathahab. Those who propagate this are simply mistaken in that regard. The laymen are simply instructed by the Qur’an to ask those who have knowledge. Of course, the laymen shouldn’t go around picking & choosing according to his desires. Or ask those who are not scholars or known for having deviant beliefs and odd views. On other side, given the modern day circumstances and problems (i.e., many people consider anyone who comes on TV or gives fiery lectures or active in dawah to be a scholar), many scholars/students of knowledge say that it’s better/safe if you seek fatawa from a mufti belonging to a specific math-hab or just ask the mufti to give you fatwa/opinion of a specific math-hab. This doesn’t mean that you have to limit yourself to one math-hab. Besides, 99% of muftis now days will be following one of the mathahab anyway.
Honestly, the whole thing about following math-hab shouldn’t even concern the laymen. The laymen don’t have a math-hab; the math-hab of a laymen is math-hab of his mufti(s)! Within usool al-fiqh following a math-hab is a lot more than just asking a scholar who happens to be from a math-hab or being raised up in accordance with fiqh from a certain math-hab. For example, I take fatwas from hanabli and shafi scholars and 99% of my daily fiqh is based upon hanabli math-hab; however, this doesn’t make me a hanabli.
WaAllahu A’lam
PS: there’s not such thing as ghayr muqalid - everyone who is not a mujtahid is a muqalid of someone one way or the other. Some people are just too stubborn to realize it.