Metodologi Hukum Islam ‘Abd al-Halîm Mahmûd

This article discusses the concept of ijtihâd (legal reasoning) and the typology of legal thought of ‘Abd al-Halîm Mahmûd. According to Mahmûd, ijtihad is devoting all abilities of a mujtahid to arrive at the essence and substance of a problem intended by the Prophet Muhammad. This definition is supported by the division of ijtihâd into two: ijtihâd istinbât î , the object of which is the texts of the Qur’ân or the Sunnah, and ijtihâd tatb î q î , the object of which is legal problems of the time. Mahmud maintains that a mujtahid should meet certain qualifications such as the abilities of understanding Arabic language, memorizing the Qur’ân, understanding asbâ b al-nuzûl (causes of revelation), memorizing the Traditions of the Prophet related to legal matters, and the brilliance in making legal reasoning and conclusions. Mahmûd belongs to moderate group that agrees with the formalization of private laws, while public laws in his view serve only as materials for national laws. Mahmûd also gives an emphasis on the integration between nass (text) and maqâsid al-shar î ‘ah (the objectives of law).