Usooli
Encyclopedia
Usulis are the majority Twelver Shi'a Muslim
group. They differ from their now much smaller rival Akhbari
group in favoring the use of ijtihad
i.e. reasoning in the creation of new rules of fiqh; in assessing hadith to exclude traditions they believe unreliable; in considering it obligatory to obey a mujtahid when seeking to determine Islamically correct behavior.
Since the crushing of the Akhbari
s in the late 18th century, it has been the dominant school of Twelver Shi'a and now forms an overwhelming majority within the Twelver Shia denomination
.
collections contained traditions of very varying degrees of reliability, and that critical analysis was necessary to assess their authority. In contrast the Akhbari believe that the sole sources of law are the Qur'an
and the Hadith
, in particular the Four Books
accepted by the Shia: everything in these sources is in principle reliable, and outside them there was no authority competent to enact or deduce further legal rules.
In addition to assessing the reliability of the Hadith, Usuli believe the task of the legal scholar is to establish intellectual principles of general application (Usul al-fiqh
), from which particular rules may be derived by way of deduction: accordingly, legal scholarship has the tools in principle for resolving any situation, whether or not it is specifically addressed in Quran or Hadith (see Ijtihad
).
The dominance of the Usuli over the Akhbari came in last half of the 18th century when Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
led Usulis to challenge Akhbari dominance and "completely routed the Akhbaris at Karbala and Najaf," so that "only a handful of Shi'i ulama have remained Akhbari to the present day."
or "imitation", i.e. the acceptance of a religious ruling in matters of worship and personal affairs from someone regarded as a higher religious authority (e.g. an 'ālim) without necessarily asking for the technical proof. These higher religious authorities can be known as a "source of imitation" (Arabic marja taqlid مرجع تقليد, Persian marja
) or less exaltedly as an "imitated one" (Arabic مقلَد muqallad). However, his verdicts are not to be taken as the only source of religious information and he can be always corrected by other muqalladeen (the plural of muqallad) which come after him. Obeying a deceased taqlid is forbidden in Usuli.
Taqlid has been introduced by scholars who felt that Quranic verses and traditions were not enough and that ulama
were needed not only to interpret the Quran and Sunna
but to make "new rulings to respond to new challenges and push the boundaries of Shia law in new directions." Critics also say a major motive behind introducing this was to collect Islamic taxes.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
group. They differ from their now much smaller rival Akhbari
Akhbari
The Akhbārīs are Twelver Shī‘a Muslims who reject the use of reasoning in deriving verdicts, and believe only the Qur'an, aḥadīth, and consensus should be used as sources to derive verdicts . The term Akhbārī is used in contrast to Usūlī...
group in favoring the use of ijtihad
Ijtihad
Ijtihad is the making of a decision in Islamic law by personal effort , independently of any school of jurisprudence . as opposed to taqlid, copying or obeying without question....
i.e. reasoning in the creation of new rules of fiqh; in assessing hadith to exclude traditions they believe unreliable; in considering it obligatory to obey a mujtahid when seeking to determine Islamically correct behavior.
Since the crushing of the Akhbari
Akhbari
The Akhbārīs are Twelver Shī‘a Muslims who reject the use of reasoning in deriving verdicts, and believe only the Qur'an, aḥadīth, and consensus should be used as sources to derive verdicts . The term Akhbārī is used in contrast to Usūlī...
s in the late 18th century, it has been the dominant school of Twelver Shi'a and now forms an overwhelming majority within the Twelver Shia denomination
Religious denomination
A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name, tradition, and identity.The term describes various Christian denominations...
.
Background
The Usuli believe that the HadithHadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
collections contained traditions of very varying degrees of reliability, and that critical analysis was necessary to assess their authority. In contrast the Akhbari believe that the sole sources of law are the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
and the Hadith
Hadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
, in particular the Four Books
The Four Books
The Four Books is a Twelver Shiʿa term referring to their four best known hadith collections.The books are:Shi'a Muslims use different books of ahadith than Ahl al-Sunnah's Six major Hadith collections...
accepted by the Shia: everything in these sources is in principle reliable, and outside them there was no authority competent to enact or deduce further legal rules.
In addition to assessing the reliability of the Hadith, Usuli believe the task of the legal scholar is to establish intellectual principles of general application (Usul al-fiqh
Usul al-fiqh
Uṣūl al-fiqh is the study of the origins, sources, and principles upon which Islamic jurisprudence is based. In the narrow sense, it simply refers to the question of what are the sources of Islamic law...
), from which particular rules may be derived by way of deduction: accordingly, legal scholarship has the tools in principle for resolving any situation, whether or not it is specifically addressed in Quran or Hadith (see Ijtihad
Ijtihad
Ijtihad is the making of a decision in Islamic law by personal effort , independently of any school of jurisprudence . as opposed to taqlid, copying or obeying without question....
).
The dominance of the Usuli over the Akhbari came in last half of the 18th century when Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
Muhammad Baqir ibn Muhammad Akmal al-Wahid Bihbahani, also Vahid Behbahani , was a Twelver Shia Islamic scholar. He is widely regarded as the founder or restorer of the Usuli school of Twelver Shi'a Islam and as playing a vital role in narrowing the field of orthodoxy in Twelver Shi'a Islam by...
led Usulis to challenge Akhbari dominance and "completely routed the Akhbaris at Karbala and Najaf," so that "only a handful of Shi'i ulama have remained Akhbari to the present day."
Taqlid
An important tenet of Usuli doctrine is TaqlidTaqlid
Taqlid or taklid is an Arabic term in Islamic legal terminology connoting "imitation", that is; following the decisions of a religious authority without necessarily examining the scriptural basis or reasoning of that decision, such as accepting and following the verdict of scholars of...
or "imitation", i.e. the acceptance of a religious ruling in matters of worship and personal affairs from someone regarded as a higher religious authority (e.g. an 'ālim) without necessarily asking for the technical proof. These higher religious authorities can be known as a "source of imitation" (Arabic marja taqlid مرجع تقليد, Persian marja
Marja
Marja , also known as a marja-i taqlid or marja dini , literally means "Source to Imitate/Follow" or "Religious Reference"...
) or less exaltedly as an "imitated one" (Arabic مقلَد muqallad). However, his verdicts are not to be taken as the only source of religious information and he can be always corrected by other muqalladeen (the plural of muqallad) which come after him. Obeying a deceased taqlid is forbidden in Usuli.
Taqlid has been introduced by scholars who felt that Quranic verses and traditions were not enough and that ulama
Ulama
-In Islam:* Ulema, also transliterated "ulama", a community of legal scholars of Islam and its laws . See:**Nahdlatul Ulama **Darul-uloom Nadwatul Ulama **Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal**Jamiat ul-Ulama -Other:...
were needed not only to interpret the Quran and Sunna
Sunnah
The word literally means a clear, well trodden, busy and plain surfaced road. In the discussion of the sources of religion, Sunnah denotes the practice of Prophet Muhammad that he taught and practically instituted as a teacher of the sharī‘ah and the best exemplar...
but to make "new rulings to respond to new challenges and push the boundaries of Shia law in new directions." Critics also say a major motive behind introducing this was to collect Islamic taxes.