On Tuesday, December 25, 2012, Onislam.net hosted a seminar about the Maqasid (Objectives) of Shari`ah and its contemporary applications on political Islam. The guest speaker was Dr. Jasser Auda, a prominent professor and specialist in the field.

In this series, we broadcast in consecutive parts of Dr. Auda's lecture with a summary of the most important points of each part.

As an introduction, Dr. Auda began with emphasis on the importance of Maqasid. To him, Maqasid is not an advanced Islamic study. Rather it is Islam 101:

It is your entry to Islam. When you start to learn about Islam, after la ilah ila Allah, Muhammad Rasul Allah (testimony of faith) , you should learn about the Maqasid of Islam: the values, the objectives, the philosophy, the ends and the goals of Islam. Because everything in Islam is actually contributing to one or another of Maqasid Ash-Shari`ah

He continued to point out the necessity of this approach in Da`wah (Calling to Islam). Introducing Islam without paying due attention to its objectives and purposes results in a distorted, partial perception of Islam that ignores the whole picture.

We have a problem in our da`wah methods… and in our application and understanding of Islam in general, that is, often times we approach Islam from a very specific angle and not from the whole picture. So, we are like somebody who is describing a mounting by describing a tree on the mountain or a rock on the mountain… but failing to see the mountain. Shari`ah is like the mountain. Maqasid is the attributes and description of that mountain.

In this part, Dr. Auda discusses the following topics:

Definition of Maqasid.
Does Allah have intents for His actions?
Different perspectives on Maslaha (good/interest).
Induction as an evidence for Maqasid: Reliable?
Imam Ash-Shatibi's approach to the evidence of Istiqraa' (induction)

The Qur'an's method of building evidence and its relevance to the topic.

Why reliable evidence is necessary?
Relationship between the universals and the details of Islam.
Contemporary examples of fatwas conflicting with the universals of Islam:
Are Syrian protestors committing suicide?!

Are women not allowed to drive cars?!

Could weapons of mass destruction be used indiscriminately?!

Can a fatwa be wrong?
Below you could watch Part 1 of this significant series; your feedback is appreciated.

====

Source: www.onislam.net — Ask about Islam — Jasser Auda.