Muhammad Baqir Behbahani
Encyclopedia
Muhammad Baqir ibn Muhammad Akmal al-Wahid Bihbahani, also Vahid Behbahani (1706–1791), was a Twelver Shia Islamic scholar. He is widely regarded as the founder or restorer of the Usuli school of Twelver Shi'a Islam
and as playing a vital role in narrowing the field of orthodoxy in Twelver Shi'a Islam
by expanding "the threat of takfir
" against opposing scholars "into the central field of theology
and jurisprudence
".
and Usuli schools of Shia Islam. Briefly, the Akhbari believed that the sole sources of law were the Qur'an
and the Hadith
, in particular the Four Books
accepted by the Shia: everything in these sources was in principle reliable, and outside them there was no authority competent to enact or deduce further legal rules. The Usuli believed that the Hadith collections contained traditions of very varying degrees of reliability, and that critical analysis was necessary to assess their authority. On this view, the task of the legal scholar is to establish intellectual principles of general application (Usul al-fiqh
), from which particular rules may be derived by way of deduction: accordingly, legal scholarship has the tools in principle for resolving any situation, whether or not it is specifically addressed in Quran or Hadith (see Ijtihad
).
Traditionally these intellectual principles were analysed through the procedures of Aristotelian logic. The Akhbari scholar Muhammad Amin al-Asterabadi criticised this approach, arguing that since the alleged general principles were arrived at by way of generalisation from the existing practical rules, the whole process was circular.
in the 1760s. With the defeat of the Safavid state following the Afghan invasion in 1722 and the rise of a new generation of Bahraini Akhbari clerics, state-centric Usulism lost its self confidence. The most influential Bahraini cleric, Yusuf Al Bahrani
, was installed as the dean of scholarship in Karbala
, where he led an intellectual onslaught on Usuli scholarship in the mid-eighteenth century. Behbahani's role in the 1760s was at first to tentatively challenge Al Bahrani's neo-Akhbarism before building up the supporters, confidence (and financial support) to eventually lead an Usuli revival following Al Bahrani's death in 1772.
Behbahani's main contribution to legal theory was the analysis of probability. Granted that general principles cannot be arrived at with complete syllogistic certainty, there are still presumptions, sufficient in ordinary life, for deciding on the better view. For example, where there is doubt whether a given situation (such as ritual purity) exists but it has certainly existed in the past, one can rely on a presumption that it is more likely to have continued the same than to have changed.
Given the probabilistic nature of this approach, and the need for practical certainty, it followed that there must be people with the authority to decide on the application of these principles to particular facts. Accordingly the role of Islamic jurist (mujtahid) becomes one of political and judicial authority, and not merely one of scholarly expertise. Behbahani is blamed, in particular by Akhbaris, for having used physical force to enforce his authority and for having laid the intellectual foundations of Iranian Shi'a theocracy
.
The principles of probability were further analysed by Shaykh Murtada al-Ansari in the mid-nineteenth century, and the Usuli school remains the dominant force in Shi'ite Islam.
" — i.e. declaring the opponent an apostate
, apostasy being a capital crime —
, Behbahani's near-contemporary Aryeh Leib HaCohen Heller
made a similarly sophisticated analysis of presumptions to be followed in cases of doubt in his work Shev Shema'tata
.
In Roman Catholic moral theology, a distinction is recognised between "direct principles" and "reflex principles". Reflex principles are presumptions to be applied in cases of doubt, such as the rule that where the moral right to something is unclear the law favours the person in possession. (See Catholic Probabilism
.) Such principles are widely found in Western legal systems.
Shi'a Islam
Shia Islam is the second largest denomination of Islam. The followers of Shia Islam are called Shi'ites or Shias. "Shia" is the short form of the historic phrase Shīʻatu ʻAlī , meaning "followers of Ali", "faction of Ali", or "party of Ali".Like other schools of thought in Islam, Shia Islam is...
and as playing a vital role in narrowing the field of orthodoxy in Twelver Shi'a Islam
Shi'a Islam
Shia Islam is the second largest denomination of Islam. The followers of Shia Islam are called Shi'ites or Shias. "Shia" is the short form of the historic phrase Shīʻatu ʻAlī , meaning "followers of Ali", "faction of Ali", or "party of Ali".Like other schools of thought in Islam, Shia Islam is...
by expanding "the threat of takfir
Takfir
In Islamic law, takfir or takfeer refers to the practice of one Muslim declaring another Muslim an unbeliever or kafir...
" against opposing scholars "into the central field of theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
and jurisprudence
Fiqh
Fiqh is Islamic jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the code of conduct expounded in the Quran, often supplemented by tradition and implemented by the rulings and interpretations of Islamic jurists....
".
The dispute
In the eighteenth century there was a dispute between the AkhbariAkhbari
The Akhbārīs are Twelver Shī‘a Muslims who reject the use of reasoning in deriving verdicts, and believe only the Qur'an, aḥadīth, and consensus should be used as sources to derive verdicts . The term Akhbārī is used in contrast to Usūlī...
and Usuli schools of Shia Islam. Briefly, the Akhbari believed that the sole sources of law were the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
and the Hadith
Hadith
The term Hadīth is used to denote a saying or an act or tacit approval or criticism ascribed either validly or invalidly to the Islamic prophet Muhammad....
, in particular the Four Books
The Four Books
The Four Books is a Twelver Shiʿa term referring to their four best known hadith collections.The books are:Shi'a Muslims use different books of ahadith than Ahl al-Sunnah's Six major Hadith collections...
accepted by the Shia: everything in these sources was in principle reliable, and outside them there was no authority competent to enact or deduce further legal rules. The Usuli believed that the Hadith collections contained traditions of very varying degrees of reliability, and that critical analysis was necessary to assess their authority. On this view, the task of the legal scholar is to establish intellectual principles of general application (Usul al-fiqh
Usul al-fiqh
Uṣūl al-fiqh is the study of the origins, sources, and principles upon which Islamic jurisprudence is based. In the narrow sense, it simply refers to the question of what are the sources of Islamic law...
), from which particular rules may be derived by way of deduction: accordingly, legal scholarship has the tools in principle for resolving any situation, whether or not it is specifically addressed in Quran or Hadith (see Ijtihad
Ijtihad
Ijtihad is the making of a decision in Islamic law by personal effort , independently of any school of jurisprudence . as opposed to taqlid, copying or obeying without question....
).
Traditionally these intellectual principles were analysed through the procedures of Aristotelian logic. The Akhbari scholar Muhammad Amin al-Asterabadi criticised this approach, arguing that since the alleged general principles were arrived at by way of generalisation from the existing practical rules, the whole process was circular.
Analysis of probability
Behbahani led the Usuli intellectual challenge to Akhbari dominance in KarbalaKarbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
in the 1760s. With the defeat of the Safavid state following the Afghan invasion in 1722 and the rise of a new generation of Bahraini Akhbari clerics, state-centric Usulism lost its self confidence. The most influential Bahraini cleric, Yusuf Al Bahrani
Yusuf Al Bahrani
Yusuf ibn Ahmed al-Bahrani was a Bahraini theologian and a key figure in the intellectual development of Twelver Shia Islam.Al-Bahrani grew up in Safavid-ruled Bahrain, at a time of intellectual ferment between Akhbari and Usuli Shi'ah Islam. His family were Usuli clerics who also worked as pearl...
, was installed as the dean of scholarship in Karbala
Karbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
, where he led an intellectual onslaught on Usuli scholarship in the mid-eighteenth century. Behbahani's role in the 1760s was at first to tentatively challenge Al Bahrani's neo-Akhbarism before building up the supporters, confidence (and financial support) to eventually lead an Usuli revival following Al Bahrani's death in 1772.
Behbahani's main contribution to legal theory was the analysis of probability. Granted that general principles cannot be arrived at with complete syllogistic certainty, there are still presumptions, sufficient in ordinary life, for deciding on the better view. For example, where there is doubt whether a given situation (such as ritual purity) exists but it has certainly existed in the past, one can rely on a presumption that it is more likely to have continued the same than to have changed.
Given the probabilistic nature of this approach, and the need for practical certainty, it followed that there must be people with the authority to decide on the application of these principles to particular facts. Accordingly the role of Islamic jurist (mujtahid) becomes one of political and judicial authority, and not merely one of scholarly expertise. Behbahani is blamed, in particular by Akhbaris, for having used physical force to enforce his authority and for having laid the intellectual foundations of Iranian Shi'a theocracy
Theocracy
Theocracy is a form of organization in which the official policy is to be governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided, or simply pursuant to the doctrine of a particular religious sect or religion....
.
The principles of probability were further analysed by Shaykh Murtada al-Ansari in the mid-nineteenth century, and the Usuli school remains the dominant force in Shi'ite Islam.
Takfir
According to scholar Moojan Momen, Behbahani played a very important role in Shii Islam by bringing in "the threat of takfirTakfir
In Islamic law, takfir or takfeer refers to the practice of one Muslim declaring another Muslim an unbeliever or kafir...
" — i.e. declaring the opponent an apostate
Apostasy in Islam
Apostasy in Islam is commonly defined in Islam as the rejection in word or deed of one's former religion by a person who was previously a follower of Islam...
, apostasy being a capital crime —
into the central field of theology and jurisprudence where previously only ikhtilafIkhtilafIkhtilaf is an Islamic scholarly religious disagreement, and is hence the opposite of ijma.Islam teaches that when there is a scholarly disagreement on a certain issue, it is impermissible to condemn a person who follows a position that is different from one's own...
(agreement to hold differing opinions) had existed. Bihbahani was now to exclude by takfir all who disagreed with the principles of reasoning ('Aql'Aql‘Aql , is an Arabic language term used in Islamic theology or philosophy to the intellect the rational faculty of the soul or mind. It is the normal translation of the Greek term nous...
) and ijtihadIjtihadIjtihad is the making of a decision in Islamic law by personal effort , independently of any school of jurisprudence . as opposed to taqlid, copying or obeying without question....
as sources of law. This paved the way for a great increase in the power and influence of the mujtahids in Qajar times and for the evolution of the concept of the marja at-taqlid.
Parallels in other religions
In Jewish lawHalakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
, Behbahani's near-contemporary Aryeh Leib HaCohen Heller
Aryeh Leib HaCohen Heller
Aryeh Leib Heller-Kahane was a Rabbi, Talmudist, and Halachist in Galicia. He was known as "the Ketzos" based on his greatest work, Ketzot Hachoshen, קצות החושן.-Biography:...
made a similarly sophisticated analysis of presumptions to be followed in cases of doubt in his work Shev Shema'tata
Shev Shema'tata
Shev Shema'tata , sometimes pronounced Shev Shmaytsa, is a work on Talmudic logic and methodology by R. Aryeh Leib HaCohen Heller...
.
In Roman Catholic moral theology, a distinction is recognised between "direct principles" and "reflex principles". Reflex principles are presumptions to be applied in cases of doubt, such as the rule that where the moral right to something is unclear the law favours the person in possession. (See Catholic Probabilism
Catholic Probabilism
In Catholic moral theology, probabilism provides a way of answering the question about what to do when one does not know what to do. Probabilism proposes that one can follow a probable opinion regarding whether an act may be performed morally, even though the opposite opinion is more probable...
.) Such principles are widely found in Western legal systems.