Definition
The science of how scholars extract rulings from the Qur'an, Sunnah, ijmā‘, and qiyās — including rules of language, classification of commands and prohibitions, abrogation, and methods of inference.
Pronunciation: u-ṢŪL al-fiqh
Etymology & Root
Uṣūl = 'roots, foundations'; fiqh = 'understanding.' Uṣūl al-fiqh is the foundations upon which fiqh is built.
Scholarly Notes
Imām ash-Shāfi‘ī's ar-Risālah is the first surviving systematic work in this science. Without uṣūl, fiqh becomes random opinion.
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