QUAID-E-AZAM LAW COLLEGE

LLB-I ISLAMIC JURISPRUDENCE

IJMA AS SOURCE OF ISLAMIC LAW

OVERTURE

The Quran and the Sunnah are the primary sources of Islamic law. Ijma (that
is consensus of opinion of scholars) are Qiyas (that is laws derived through
analogical deduction) are the secondary or dependent sources of Islamic law
or Shariah.

Ijma and Qiyas derive their value or authority from the Quran and the
Sunnah. Therefore, they are called dependent sources.

SIGNIFICANCE OF IJMA
Ijma or the consensus of scholars signifies the importance of delegated
legislation to the Muslim community. The Muslim society requires such a rule
making power to meet the practical problems for the implementation of
Islamic Shariah (Islamic Law).

MEANING OF IJMA
Ijma has been technically defined as the consensus of the jurists of a
certain period over a religious matter. Ijma is considered a sufficient evidence
for action because the Prophet if Islam said, "Muslim will never agreee on a
wrong matter." As such the agreement of the scholars of Islam on any
religious matter is a source of law in Islam

Al-Shafii was also instrumental in a second re-definition The third

source, after Qur'an and sunna, was ijma, "consensus". But whereas the
Madinans had recognised an ijma of the people of Madina as authoritative (or
mostly so), al-Shafii's ijma was to be an ijma of all the Muslims - or, at least,
all the learned ones amongst them. In other words, the idea of a "local" ijma -
which was how he saw Madinan ijma, although this was not how the
Madinans understood it - was done away with and a universal concept
substituted. Now in fact all the Muslims had always accepted this universal
concept - there is the famous hadith that "My community will not agree on an
error" - but what, in a sense, was really happening was that the ijma of
Madina was being denied, which was something else.

TECHNICALLY
Ijma means the consensus of mujtahids (independent jurists) from the
ummah of Mohammad (P.B.U.H) after his death, in a determined period upon
a rule of Islamic law
QURANIC AUTHENTICITY IN SUPPORT OF IJMA
 (Quran 10:71)
Determine your plan and among your partners

CONDITIONS FOR VALIDITY OF IJMA

1. The agreement or consensus must have to take place among the
mujtahids, that is, those who have attained the status of ijtehad and
excludes members of modern legislature, unless all of them are
mujtahids, non-muslims and the general public.

2. The agreement is not to be considered as in majority decision. If the

majority agrees upon a hukm it will not amount to ijma according to
most jurists, the reason being that there is a possibility that the
minority may be true.

3. Its has been unanimously agreed that all the jurist participating in ijma
must be from the ummah of Muhammad (P.B.U.H) as there are textual
evidences that only the ummah of the prophet is protected against error
in collective agreements.

4. An agreement in the lifetime of The Holy Prophet will not be

considered an ijma. Thus the ijma must have taken place after the
death of the Prophet.

5. The agreement must be among the mujtahids of a single determined

period, even if some of the jurists of the following period or of a
subsequent period opposed them.

6. The agreement must be upon a rule of law, the hukm shari and not
upon the rules of grammar in Arabic or other rational worldly
propositions.

7. The death of the jurist who participated in the ijma, either explicitly or
by silence, is not a condition for the validity of ijma according to the
majority of the jurists.

TYPES OF IJMA
1. Ijma Qawli (Explicit)
2. Ijma Sukuti (Tacit)

OPINION OF MAJORITY
If anyone contends with the Messenger even after the guidance
has been plainly conveyed to him, and follows a path other than
that of the believers, we shall leave him in the path he has chose,
and land him in hell. What an evil refuge. (Quran 4:115)

My Ummah will not collectively agree upon an error

ARGUMENTS OF MINORITY WHO ARE AGAINST IJMA

 O ye who believe, Obey Allah and obey the Prophet,
The response to this argument is that it is the Book of Allah and the
Sunnah of His Prophet (SAW) that gave us guidance about ijma as
indicated above.

Example of Muadh ibn Jabal

MODERN VIEW ABOUT IJMA

If a rule or principle is upheld collectively by the highest legal forum in the
land, then, such a principle or rule must be followed by those sub ordinate to
this forum. This is exactly what the doctrine of STARE DECISIS says in
English Common Law system