رسالة د. كهلان الخروصي

It is also true that selective (intiq~|‚) ijtih~d is possible، but it is of a strictly limited kind compared to creative (insh~|‚ or mu\laq) ijtih~d.

… This is one of the issues on which the Sunn‚s and the Ib~‡‚s show greatest contrast. And it is not unfair to say that the use of ijtih~d observable in the >th~r al-Rab‚` b. ™ab‚b would have been enormously influential in drawing the Ib~‡iyya towards their stance of keeping the door of ijtih~d open.

… The principle of practicing ijtih~d freely and considering the evidence rather than the opinions of authorities is observable in the work >th~r al-Rab‚`. It presents throughout its content the approval of Ib~‡‚s for the opinions of other authorities in the community. Actually we find in the book on some occasions more than a mere presentation of the opinions of different authorities; i.e. these 'other' opinions are apparently assumed، by J~bir's students، to be strong enough to override the opinions of J~bir. It clearly offers an early practical example of the implementation of this postulate within the Ib~‡‚ school as will be detailed later on in this study.⁽¹⁾ This obviously intensifies the importance of the work and confirms the early maturity mentioned earlier.