Principles that underpin what to do when in doubt (1)

As explained in the previous blog, I am starting an Usul course in the Summer, and the next few blogs will discuss one topic that is an important theoretical discussion on which there is a lot of debate. For those interested, please email!

The question is basically:

If there is a doubt about Allah’s ruling about what is a duty on the individual (شك في التكليف), and you are unable to reach a definitive legal ruling from the main sources, you have to define a position on what is the right thing to do (أصل عملي = asl ‘amali).

[This assumes there is no definitive ruling that you were sure about before, which then changed, in which case you should take the former position of certainty – istis-hab)]

How should you define this position? Now the source of this discussion is when there is a doubt in the ruling. There are different types of doubt:

[Important definition:
علم إجمالي = ‘ilm ijmali. Here there is general knowledge about the overall (علم بالجامع) with doubt about the options i.e. you know you have to pray on Friday, but you have a doubt about whether it is Juma or Dhuhr (or both).]

1. شك بدوي (Shak Badawi = basic doubt). This is when there is not even any overall knowledge about a topic (i.e. not even any علم إجمالي) e.g. smoking tobacco [of course, some might argue that there is when it talks about harming yourself but others would argue that this is completely a different situation and there is no overall knowledge on this topic]. Shahid al-Sadr believes that this is undoubtedly the place for baraa`a (freedom to choose what to do)

2. شك مقرنة بالعلم الإجمالي (a doubt on something on which there is ‘ilm ijmali). This is when there is overall knowledge about a topic but doubt about its constituent parts/details e.g. Jum’a v Dhuhr. There are two options here:

1. When there is doubt between two opposite things e.g. praying Dhuhr makes Jum’a unnecessary
2. When there is a doubt between more and less e.g. if there are 9 or 10 parts to Fajr

This is the place for احتياط – ihtiyat.


3. شك بين الوجوب والحرمة (doubt between two contradictory things e.g. haram and wajib). This is where there is a place for تخيير (choice).


In the next blog, we will start the discussion about shak badawi (basic doubt). We will look at what one would do in the absence of any information to the contrary from the Qur`an and Sunnah, and then look at what is the correct thing to do (with reasoning from the Qur`an and Sunnah).