Capability Assessment of Jurisprudential Sources in Deducing Statements of Political Jurisprudence

Certitude, authority and authenticity in citing a document in support of legal matters can be obtained by referring to the sources in Islamic jurisprudence as the main source for starting deliberation on jurisprudential issues. The Qur’Án and the Sunnah (of the Prophet Muhammad) are believed to be the two main sources for Islamic jurisprudence and political jurisprudence. The authority of the Sunnah in political jurisprudence, though it is based on the authority of the Qur’Án, has to be considered as the richest source for deducing judgements in political jurisprudence as it serves to explain and expound the QurÞÁnic doctrines. Consensus (ijmÁÝ ) in ShiÝi political jurisprudence can be taken as both a source for issuing judgments and political obligation only when it serves as an instrument to discover the Sunnah. The self-evident and definite perceptions of the intellect in the ShiÝi political jurisprudence are the authority and other rational deliberations have attracted the attention of the ShiÝi jurisprudents as they correspond with the definite revealed teachings which are themselves a criterion. Custom (Ýurf ) is more used in recognizing the subjects of political jurisprudence, and expedience is applied as an instrument to diagnose the referents of the political subjects. However, it is not taken as an independent source. Social contracts, if deduced from the genuine religious sources, is, in fact, a return to the Holy Qur’Án and the Sunnah and the theory of Western social contract is of no resemblance or relevance to the ShiÝi political jurisprudence.