Which Opinion Is to Be Acted Upon in Case of Disagreement

Question

In practically all the textbooks of Hanafi fiqh there is disagreement among the Hanafis themselves. Is the result of the disagreement that either practice is permissible, or not? If not, then which is to be acted upon — the position of the Imam [Abu Hanifa] or the position of Imam Abu Yusuf and Imam Muhammad; how are we to decide?

Answer

To act upon any opinion at random (kayfama ittafaq) is not correct; rather, there are certain rules and principles for this, adherence to which is necessary. If in some issue there are several opinions and the “masters of preference” (ashab al-tarjih — the scholars authorised to give preference) have explicitly stated the preference of some opinion, then the preferred (rajih)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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