The Status of Consultation

Question

Question: What is the meaning of: [ar]وَشَاوِرْهُمْ فِى ٱلْأَمْرِ[/ar] “…and consult them in the matter” (Surah Al ‘Imran, 3:159)? What is consultation: fard, wajib, sunna or mubah (permissible)? If Zayd refuses to act upon it, is he an unbeliever, and will he be outside Islam or not?

Answer

Seeking counsel is a thing of goodness and blessing. One of its blessings is also that one who acts by consultation never comes to regret. However, it does not have such a rank that one who does not consult would go out of Islam. Yes, if he denies the Qur’anic verses [ar]وَشَاوِرْهُمْ فِى ٱلْأَمْرِ[/ar] “…and consult them in the matter” (Surah Al ‘Imran, 3:159)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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