Shariah fundamentals

Istihsan (juristic preference)

A recognised method of preferring one ruling over a strict analogy when a stronger consideration justifies it.

Istihsan, often translated as juristic preference or Shariah approbation, is a recognised method by which a jurist departs from a strict analogy in favour of another ruling when a stronger consideration justifies it. AAOIFI's standard on fatwa lists it alongside public interest as a basis a jurist may use after the texts, consensus and analogy. AAOIFI's istisna standard also cites istihsan among the grounds for the contract's legitimacy, because manufacturing to order would otherwise look like selling something that does not yet exist.

Sources

AAOIFI Shari'ah Standards, English edition (full text, PDF): Shari'ah Standard No. 29, methods of fatwa; Shari'ah Standard No. 11, Appendix B

This entry explains a term; it is not a Shariah ruling. Approving a product is for each institution's own Shariah board and regulator.

Related terms

IstisnaA contract to manufacture or build a specified asset for delivery on a set date, with the price paid in stages or as a lump sum.Maslaha (public interest)Benefit or public interest, considered in reaching rulings where the texts are silent, within the principles of Shariah.Qiyas (analogical reasoning)Extending a ruling from a case covered by the texts to a new case that shares the same underlying cause.Usul al-fiqh (principles of jurisprudence)The discipline that studies the sources of Shariah and the methods for deriving rulings from them.