al-Iqna fi Hujjiyyat al-Ijma
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al-Iqna fi Hujjiyyat al-Ijma (Persuasion Regarding the Authoritativeness of Consensus) is a contemporary treatise on Islamic legal theory (usul al-fiqh) by the Saudi scholar Abd al-Aziz al-Rayyis, dedicated to establishing the binding authority of scholarly consensus (ijma') and refuting misconceptions surrounding it.
Background and Purpose
The treatise originated as a transcription of a lecture delivered by al-Rayyis on the night of 24 Jumada al-Akhirah 1438 AH (22 March 2017 CE), titled Hujjiyyat al-Ijma wa-Kashf Ba'd al-Shubuhat (The Authoritativeness of Consensus and Uncovering Some Objections). After students transcribed, documented, formatted, and indexed the lecture, al-Rayyis revised and edited the material into a formal treatise, concluding his preface on 18 Rabi al-Thani 1439 AH (5 January 2018 CE).
Al-Rayyis composed the work to address what he described as historical and modern efforts by doctrinal innovators to reject or weaken consensus as a proof, set against a practical neglect of the subject by many students of Islamic knowledge. In his preliminary remarks, he emphasizes that consensus serves as a decisive safeguard for the creed and methodology of Sunnism, functioning as a definitive proof (qat'i al-dalalah) that cannot be abrogated.
Structure and Contents
The book is organized into an introduction, a general preface, two main chapters, and a conclusion:
- Preface (Tamhid): Discusses the essential role of consensus in legal derivation and creedal preservation.
- Chapter One: Issues Related to Consensus (Masa'il Muta'alliqah bi-l-Ijma'): Comprises thirteen specific discussions, including the definition of consensus as the agreement of the jurists of the Muslim community on a legal matter after the death of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ; the textual proofs for consensus; the stance of dissenting groups; the categories of consensus; silent consensus (al-ijma' al-sukuti); the necessity of consensus being grounded in a textual proof; the authoritativeness of consensus before and after historical disagreement; the criteria of anomalous opinions (al-qawl al-shadhdh); the authority of consensus among specialists in their respective fields; the requirement of the expiration of the era (inqirad al-'asr); the prohibition against originating novel opinions; methods for verifying consensus; and the function of consensus as an explanatory proof (dalil kashif).
- Chapter Two: Objections to Consensus (Ishkalat 'ala Dalil al-Ijma'): Systematically addresses and resolves twenty-four objections and doubts raised against consensus, including claims concerning isolated narrations, supposed breaches in reported consensus, discrepancies between early and late legal scholars, and tensions between textual indications and reported agreements.
- Conclusion (Khatimah): A brief closing supplication.
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