Taqlidi versus Ijtihadi approaches: The Prophet based his decisions on what is possible and what is not
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
The difference between the taqlidi and the ijtihadi mindsets can be illustrated with the help of an example. Shakespeare was a famous English writer, and so was George Bernard Shaw, who was born some two hundred and fifty years after the former's death. Shaw's contribution to English literature was less than that of Shakespeare, and he himself admitted this when he said, 'I am smaller in stature than Shakespeare, but I stand upon his shoulders'. This is an example of an ijtihadi way of thinking, and a society characterised by such persons constantly progresses in terms of thought and intellect. Each new generation in such a society builds on the contributions of its predecessors, adds to it and then transmits its legacy to the generations that come after it.
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