GOOD BID'AH (INNOVATION) AND BAD BID'AH (INNOVATION)

[Taqavi]

How many types of bid‘ah (innovation) are there? And do we have “good” bid‘ah?

 

Throughout Islamic history, bid‘ah has remained a controversial and heavily discussed topic. The concept and its categorization vary significantly between Shia and Sunni scholarship. Here, we will examine different perspectives on bid‘ah and its divisions.

Some Sunni scholars—such as al-Shafi‘i, Ibn Hazm, al-Ghazālī, and Ibn al-Athīr—did not view every bid‘ah as blameworthy, and even acknowledged the existence of “good innovations.” A famous example they cite is the statement of the second Sunni caliph, ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, who referred to the congregational performance of Tarāwīḥ prayers as a “good innovation.”[1] Ibn Ḥajar al-‘Asqalānī explained that bid‘ah refers to something newly introduced without any basis in the Sharī‘ah; however, if there is a Sharī‘ah foundation for it, it is not considered bid‘ah. Thus, in Sharī‘ah terminology, bid‘ah is condemned, whereas in its linguistic sense, it simply means anything new without precedent—whether praiseworthy or blameworthy. [2] Other Sunni scholars even divided bid‘ah into five categories, corresponding to the five rulings: obligatory, forbidden, recommended, disliked, and permissible. [3]

Nevertheless, most Shia scholars and some Sunni scholars rejected these divisions. For example, al-Shāṭibī, who transmitted this categorization from earlier Sunni scholars, opposed it. He raised two main objections: first, the categorization itself lacks any Sharī‘ah evidence and is therefore a bid‘ah; second, terms like “obligatory innovation” or “recommended innovation” are contradictory, since if there is Sharī‘ah evidence for obligation, recommendation, or permissibility, the matter ceases to be bid‘ah. [4]

Al-Shahīd al-Awwal, in his book "al-Qawā‘id wa al-Fawā’id", wrote that new matters arising after the Prophet (SAW) can be divided into five: obligatory (such as compiling the Qur’an), forbidden (such as prohibiting temporary marriage), recommended (such as building schools), disliked (such as overeating), and permissible (such as preparing means of comfort). Yet he emphasized that only the forbidden type is truly bid‘ah. [5] Ayatollah Subḥānī notes that al-Shahīd al-Awwal, in another work, also mentioned “disliked bid‘ah.” [6] ‘Allāmah al-Majlisī, however, rejected this fivefold division, citing a narration that states: “Every bid‘ah is forbidden.” [7]

According to Shia jurists, bid‘ah in its technical sense has three defining features: 

1. Alteration of religion by adding to it or subtracting from it. 

2. Having no root or basis in the religion. 

3. Being promoted and propagated as a religious or Sharī‘ah matter within the community. [8]

Therefore, while divisions of bid‘ah may be conceivable in its linguistic sense, in its technical juristic sense such divisions are invalid. In Shia jurisprudence, bid‘ah is always considered harām. [9]

 

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[1] . Diraasaat Fiqhiyyah fi Masaa'il Khilaafiyyah, al-Tabasi, al-Sheikh Najm al-Din, p.168 / al-Bid‘ah Mafhoomuha, Haddoha wa Aatharuhā wa Mawāriduhā, al-Subhani, al-Sheikh Ja‘far, p.26–27.

[2] . Fath al-Baari, al-‘Asqalani, Ibn Hajar, vol.13, p.253.

[3] . al-I‘tisām, al-Shatibi, Ibrahim bin Musa, vol.1, p.241.

[4] . Ibid., p.246.

[5] . al-Qawā‘id wa al-Fawā’id, al-Shahid al-Awwal, vol.2, p.144.

[6] . al-Bid‘ah Mafhoomuha, Haddoha wa Aatharuhā wa Mawāriduhā, al-Subhani, al-Sheikh Ja‘far, p.28.

[7] . Mir’āt al-‘Uqūl fi Sharh Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl, al-‘Allāmah al-Majlisi, vol.1, p.193.

[8] . Bid‘at (Mi‘yārhā wa Payāmadhā), Bayāti, Ja‘far, p.41.

[9] . ‘Awā’id al-Ayyām, al-Narāqi, al-Mawlà Ahmad, p.111.