Issues of Ijtihad

Muslims, by adopting peaceful means, can achieve far more than they could through violent struggle. The failure to understand this reality lies in their continued adherence to an outdated mindset rooted in medieval jurisprudence, which recognizes only violent struggle as a valid means to achieve goals. Anachronistic Attitude Contemporary Muslim leaders and intellectuals, constrained by an imitative mindset, have succumbed to an outdated mode of thinking. The figures they emulate from the past lacked the concept of peaceful methods or nonviolent struggle. While these concepts are clearly outlined in the Quran and Sunnah, deriving rulings directly from these sources requires ijtihad (independent reasoning). Unfortunately, the door to ijtihad was long ago shut, to the extent that, as one scholar remarked, even the key to that door seems to have been lost. The Quran articulates a timeless law of nature in these words: “Reconciliation is best” (4:128). This verse underscores the superiority of a conciliatory approach over a confrontational one, advocating non-violence in place of violence. Similarly, the Prophet Muhammad emphasized this principle in a hadith: “God is gentle and loves gentleness, and He grants to gentleness what He does not grant to harshness” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith No. 2593).