Dawn: Is suicide bombing justified? Can women lead prayers? Is there a feminist interpretation of Islam?

These are some of the questions Muslims living in the West often face. They attempt to answer these questions as best as they can. And in the process, they are often forced to reinterpret their faith, a process called ‘ijtihad’, although they are no ‘mujtahids’.

The concept of ijtihad allows Muslims to interpret their beliefs according to the time and place they live in. This concept, however, has not been used for centuries.

‘Ijtihad’ is an Islamic legal term that means “independent reasoning”, which is used for defining an issue in a way that does not contradict the teachings of the Holy Quran and the Sunnah.

Explore: Why are matters of faith beyond discussion?

In Sunni Islam, ijtihad is recognised as a process of legal decision-making through personal effort. It is also accepted as one of the four main sources of law.

The person making such a decision is required to have a thorough knowledge of theology, revealed texts, legal principles and the Arabic language. Other qualifications include sincerity, goodness and intellect.

A person qualified to do so is recognised as a mujtahid, one who can make ijtihad.

Both words are derived from a three-letter Arabic root, J-H-D, i.e. struggle. Thus ijtihad is a process of “struggling with oneself” to interpret an issue through independent reasoning in the light of the revealed text and the instructions of the Sunnah.

In the early periods of Islam, Muslims saw ijtihad as an acceptable form of interpreting legal and social issues that an individual or a group faced.

Among the Sunnis, ijtihad was often interpreted as a scholar’s personal judgment of an Islamic law.

Among the Shias, ijtihad evolved into a practice of applying careful reasoning to uncover the knowledge of what Imams would have done in particular legal situations.

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