Wujub Tahkim Sharia Allah wa Nabdh ma Khalafahu
- Author died
- 1420 AH
- Editions
- al-Ri'asah al-Ammah li-Idarat al-Buhuth al-Ilmiyyah wa-al-Ifta' wa-al-Da'wah wa-al-Irshad, Idarat al-Tab' wa-al-Tarjamah
Wujub Tahkim Sharia Allah wa Nabdh ma Khalafahu (The Obligation of Judging by Allah's Law and Rejecting What Opposes It) is a treatise by the Saudi Arabian scholar Ibn Baz (d. 1420 AH / 1999 CE) on the religious obligation to implement and submit to Islamic law (Sharia) .
Purpose and Background
Ibn Baz described the work as a concise treatise and necessary counsel (risāla mūjazah wa-naṣīḥah lāzimah) composed after observing individuals turning away from divine revelation to arbitrate disputes through alternative authorities . These included soothsayers (ʿarrāfīn), diviners (kuhhān), Bedouin tribal elders (kibār ʿashāʾir al-bādiyah), and practitioners of positive law (rijāl al-qānūn al-waḍʿī) . He noted that some engaged in these practices out of ignorance of their religious status, while others did so out of obstinacy and defiance toward God and His Messenger .
Contents and Core Arguments
The treatise begins by articulating the fundamental purpose of the creation of humanity and the jinn as the worship of God alone . Ibn Baz argues that true worship requires complete submission (al-inqiyād al-tāmm) to divine commands and prohibitions in belief, speech, and action, as well as subjecting all personal and collective behavior to the Sharia . He asserts that an individual cannot truly be considered a worshipper of God if they submit to Him in certain areas of life while submitting to created beings in others .
The text emphasizes that seeking legal judgment and arbitration through Sharia is an essential requirement of the two testimonies of faith (shahādatayn) . Consequently, turning instead to false authorities (ṭawāghīt), chieftains, or diviners undermines faith and falls under disbelief (kufr), oppression (ẓulm), and transgression (fisq) .
In addressing the legal ruling on governing by non-revealed law, Ibn Baz maintains that deeming man-made legislation permissible, equal to, or superior to divine law constitutes major disbelief (kufr akbar) that expels one from the faith by consensus . Conversely, failing to rule by Sharia due to personal desires, bribery, or enmity—while acknowledging the sinfulness and impermissibility of the act—is categorized as a major sin and lesser disbelief (kufr aṣghar) .
Publication
The treatise has been issued as an independent booklet, including a fourth edition published in 1401 AH (1981 CE) by the General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta in Saudi Arabia . It was also compiled into the first volume of the author's collected works, Majmūʿ Fatāwā wa-Maqālāt Mutanawwiʿah .
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