What limits keep analogy from overriding clear revelation?
2026-09-21
T98 · Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah
شيخ الإسلام أحمد بن تيمية
Selected explanation · Selected continuous excerpt — fully translated
One continuous paragraph from a longer answer about analogy, Majmu al-Fatawa 20/505. The translation preserves both the stated certainty and the qualification that some people may not recognize the analogy's defect. This is a complete translation of the selected paragraph, not the full answer.
النص العربي
المقتطف
وحيث علمنا أن النص جاء بخلاف قياس: علمنا قطعا أنه قياس فاسد بمعنى أن صورة النص امتازت عن تلك الصور التي يظن أنها مثلها بوصف أوجب تخصيص الشارع لها بذلك الحكم فليس في الشريعة ما يخالف قياسا صحيحا لكن فيها ما يخالف القياس الفاسد وإن كان من الناس من لا يعلم فساده.
English translation
English translation prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic source. It is not an official translation.
Selected explanation
Whenever we know that a revealed text has come with a ruling contrary to an analogy, we know with certainty that the analogy is unsound. This means that the case addressed by the text differs from those cases thought to be like it by a characteristic that required the Lawgiver to single it out for that ruling. There is therefore nothing in the revealed law that contradicts sound analogy. It does, however, contain rulings that contradict unsound analogy, even though some people may not recognize that the analogy is unsound.
Source and editorial notes
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 20/505
مجموع الفتاوى
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā
Selected Arabic passage and attribution checked in the cited source; English translates the whole displayed passage. Arabic diacritics omitted for display.