Choosing the easier opinions

[Mahyar]

Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullah..

I don't want to slander the imam of my masjid at all. I respect him and he has taught me a lot.
He's a shafa'ee, and is teaching me shafa'e fiqh step by step, wa lillahi hamd.

One thing he supports which is sort of a shock to me is, he says that we can take any opinion from any other school, when we want to. As long as it doesn't contradict a principle which would nullify let's say.. Your wudu, or Salah.

For example, the Maliki madhab is known to have an easier ruling with regards to the Dog. I can take the maliki opinion when it comes to that.
Or in salah al taraweeh, I can take the hanafi position of not reciting the Al Fatihah after the imam, in order to listen to the Quran being recited.
Or a Hanafi can, take the shafi'i possition on the "Kafara" Which is when you break your fast intentionally , (with food) you don't have to fast 2 months consecutively...

From listening to deobandi scholars/da3e's which got me interested in following a madhab in the first place, they said.....
"If you take one opinion from another madhab, you need to take everything from that madhab"
"Don't follow your desires"

The argument of my imam was... Following your desires would be to take an opinion that a scholar may of said in absolute error.
For example "passing wind doesn't break wudu" or...... "Anal intercourse is permissible"
Like extreme cases...

Because if you think about it... The claim of the madhabi's are.. "All madhabs are correct, they all have legitamate ijtihad that can be followed"
So.. How can one stop me from taking opinions from any, when they are all correct? Of course relying on one is fine, and preferred, but when it comes down to certain situations which may cause discomfort, why not take the easy opinions? They are all within the shariah... So how can one tell you , that you can't ?

What are your views?

[junaid123]

For example "passing wind doesn't break wudu" or...... "Anal intercourse is permissible"

which scholar even holds such view? do their exist any!

[IbnMuhammed]

The argument of my imam was... Following your desires would be to take an opinion that a scholar may of said in absolute error.
For example "passing wind doesn't break wudu" or...... "Anal intercourse is permissible"
Like extreme cases...

Because if you think about it... The claim of the madhabi's are.. "All madhabs are correct, they all have legitamate ijtihad that can be followed"
So.. How can one stop me from taking opinions from any, when they are all correct? Of course relying on one is fine, and preferred, but when it comes down to certain situations which may cause discomfort, why not take the easy opinions? They are all within the shariah... So how can one tell you , that you can't ?

What are your views?

Never heard this in my life. As far as I know, going with desires means exactly what it says, going with desires, not going with desires if the scholar is wrong. Thats going with desires if the scholar is wrong.
They're two completley different things.

[Al Muhajir]

"All madhabs are correct, they all have legitamate ijtihad that can be followed"
So.. How can one stop me from taking opinions from any, when they are all correct?

Makes sense to me.

[Prolix]

wa 'alaykum salaam wa rahmatullaahi wa barakatuhu

Brother, I just have one thing to advise...

Read through all of this first: http://forums.islamicawakening.com/f...-taql-d-33412/

And then post. Or better yet - post in that thread, get the answers you're looking for.

[Bilal_123]

The focus of that thread is the permissibility of following other than one's own school.
This Imam seems to be allowing this in order to follow the easier fatwa for every school. Not sure which scholars actually allowed this.
Basically one is now seeking out the easiest opinion for all 4 schools when the requirement for the layman is that he seek out the fatwa for his problem and then stick to it. In this case, one is going to be fatwa shopping and then implementing the easier opinion.

Br. HH or justabro, any comments?

[Butterknife al-Batil]

Because if you think about it... The claim of the madhabi's are.. "All madhabs are correct, they all have legitamate ijtihad that can be followed"
So.. How can one stop me from taking opinions from any, when they are all correct? Of course relying on one is fine, and preferred, but when it comes down to certain situations which may cause discomfort, why not take the easy opinions? They are all within the shariah... So how can one tell you , that you can't ?

What are your views?

walaykum as-Salaam wa Rahmatullaah

Your Imaam deserves a high five for that!

[Patience]

Salaam Alaikum,

The saying is 'whoever collects the mistakes of the scholars becomes a zindeeq' and 'easier opinions' are not 'mistakes.'

You're not honor-bound to follow everything in Radd al-Muhtar by choosing to follow the Hanafi mad'hab in terms of prayer or something. If the positions of the mad'habs are legitimate, then the only argument against following whatever fatwa you end up getting from whomever you end up getting it from is that it leads to following desires, which is a specious notion at best. Anyone who wants to follow desires will follow desires; a mad'hab is not some kind of instant-cure. Just look at how many people identify as 'Hanafis' but don't pray sunnah or have no beard or what-have-you.

[الحصان الأسود]

The focus of that thread is the permissibility of following other than one's own school.
This Imam seems to be allowing this in order to follow the easier fatwa for every school. Not sure which scholars actually allowed this.
Basically one is now seeking out the easiest opinion for all 4 schools when the requirement for the layman is that he seek out the fatwa for his problem and then stick to it. In this case, one is going to be fatwa shopping and then implementing the easier opinion.

Br. HH or justabro, any comments?

This is an interesting subject. But what if somebody takes all Fatawa from i.e. IslamQA site, and looks for no other solution? Is that not blind following IslamQA Shuyukh?
Another thing is I believe Islam didn't come to make our life harder, but easier, is that not true?

Some folks take everything from Ibn Taymiyyah (except things that are available now and were not in his lifetime) or al Albani, would this not be blind following? So now we have so-called "Fatwa shopping" (I hate to name it as such!) vs. "blind following"? Is there a middle path?

[Patience]

This is an interesting subject. But what if somebody takes all Fatawa from i.e. IslamQA site, and looks for no other solution? Is that not blind following IslamQA Shuyukh?
Another thing is I believe Islam didn't come to make our life harder, but easier, is that not true?

Some folks take everything from Ibn Taymiyyah (except things that are available now and were not in his lifetime) or al Albani, would this not be blind following? So now we have so-called "Fatwa shopping" (I hate to name it as such!) vs. "blind following"? Is there a middle path?

The question is the relevant one in the Sunniforum Taqlid thread, not what laymen do- because whatever laymen do is 'blind following' by definition- as they are being led regardless.

The question being 'is one duty-bound to take all the muta'mad positions of mad'hab X or can one ask any scholar, even if the layman knows that the mad'hab the scholar issues fatwa in accordance with has an easier position on amal Y?'

Most say 'yes, because it's still a valid opinion.' The ahnaf of the subcontinent say 'no, because to leave your mad'hab is the same thing as following desires.'