Abstracts
INTRODUCTION

In it, the share of imaginative and innovative thinkers in the religious heritage and the advancement of Islamic sciences has been briefly discussed.From the same angle,the writer has sought to highlight the contribution of Shaykh Ansari in the fields of Islamic law(fiqh) and Islamic Jurisprudence(usul al-fiqh) and has pointed out the change he has brought about in the mechanism of ijtihad.Eventually he lists the secrets of Shaykh Ansariصs success and explicates how he attained such glory and how his thought has spread and lasted.

The Intellectual Foundations of Shaykh Ansari

In this article,the author after alluding to the Shaykhشs scholarly status undertakes an analysis of the intellectual foundations of his ijtihad.From this viewpoint he glances at the place Quran, sunnah, ijma (consensus),aql(reason) and urf(custom)occupy in Shaykhصs ijtihad,and believes that he gives more importance to reason and custom for deriving the laws when compared with any other mujtahid.later he proves his claim by examples from Shaykhs writings.

Innovativeness in Islamic Jurispruolence

This article is an effort in the direction of expounding Shaykhصs innovations in Islamic jurisprudence.It is the writers opinion that the jurisprudential innovations of Shaykh Ansari,apart from leading to a retrospection and making methodological the jurisprudential ideas of earlier usulis(jurisprudents),have opened up vast areas before the forthcoming students of this subject and have had an extraordinary influence in the spread of this science,both quantitatively and qualitatively. A knowledge of these innovations gives a clear picture of the extent of Shaykh Ansariشs influence in this field.

The Instances of Consuming goods wrongfully in Shaykh Ansaris View.

Keeping in view the role of wealth in mans life,Islam has opposed the unreasonable benefits which accrue to him and such of his dispensations which involve usurpation,injustice and abuse of othersrights,and has named such commerceconsuming goods wrongfully.Shaykh Ansari,by relying on this Quranic dictum which prohibits consuming goods acquired wrongfully,has enumerated as illegal a large number of financial and commercial activities which take place in socity and has critically analysed them.The writer of this article,after discussing the meaning of wrongful(batil) and hinting at the instances of wrongful means of consumption, goes on to discuss some specific instances of this kind fom Shaykh Ansaris perspective and provides useful information about certain instances of comman occurrence,such as buying and selling of blood,parts of the human body,things which are either essentially or accidentally impue(najis and mutanajjis),a corpse,etc..

Liability in Shaykh Ansaris Opinion

In view of the importance of the law of liability(qanun-e-dhaman)in the creation of a secure society and the variety of losses and damages occurring in the financial and industrial sectors,a study of the issue of liability,its place in Islamic law,and the factors which boing or end liability law been discussed from the viewpoint of Shaykh Ansari and a few recent instances of liability have been alluded to.

Shaykh Ansaris view about chess

The author,after explaining the literal meaning of chess and hinting at its history and the manner in which it entered the Islamic world,goes on to mention the opinion of Shaykh Ansari concerning playing chess.The author considers that Shaykh Ansari has propounded a general rule concerning gambling, and playing chess without stakes is not gambling and hence not haram.But Shaykh Ansaris excluding chess from this general rule is needless and does not have a sound proof.

Visual Arts and Sculpture in Shaykh Ansaris vievs.

Keeping in view the importance of the fine arts in the life of man and the variety of their dimensions and manifestations,it is necessary to find out the Islamic view about the permissible sphere of creativity and artfulness.In this regard the author keeps in view Shaykh Ansariصs opinion about visul arts and sculpture:their production,collection,using them for decoration, and their sale and purchase.

For this purpose the author relies on Shaykh Ansariصs book al-Makasib which contains his views concerning the aforementioned topics.

Wilayat-e-faqih in the opinion of Shaykh Ansari.

This study has been conducted with the aim of identifying the opinion of Shaykh Ansari concerning Wilayat-e-faqih by referring to all his writings.The writer proves that the opinion of Shaykh in al-Makasib varies from his views in his other works.In al-Makasib, although he accepts the concept of wilayat-e-faqih,he limits its sphere of operation,while in the books on khums, zakat, etc. he has accepted and given fatwa even in those instances which he had disputed scholarly in al-Makasib.The possible reason of this variance could be that al-Makasib is a book which teaches the method of ijtihad and is not directly concerned with expressing a fatwa.

Therefore ascribing him with opposition to wilayat-e-faqih is either the result of ignorance of his works or due to ulterior motives!

Bidat in Islamic Fiqh

This is an enquiry into the concept of bidat(innovation in religion) and the rules applicable to it in Islamic law.The writer gives the various meanings of the word bidat in the terminolgy of the fuqaha(Islamic legists) and analyses and critically reviews them.Later he draws the line between bidat and tashri(legislating on ones own accord in the name of religion).Throughout the discussion Shaykh Ansaris opinions have been kept in view.