ARABIC:THE USUL PRINCIPLES RELATED TO MAFHUM AL-MUKHALAFAH IN AL-GHAZALI’S TAHSIN AL-MA’AKHIDH AND THEIR APPLICATIONS IN JURIDICAL DIALECTICS

القواعد الأصولية المتعلقة بمفهوم المخالفة في تحصين المآخذ للغزالي وتطبيقاتها في الجدل الفقهي

Abstract

This study examines the usul (legal theory) principles related to "Mafhum al-Mukhalafah" (argument from silence), in Al-Ghazali’s Tahsin al-Ma’akhidh, a key work in the Shafi‘i-Hanafi jurisprudential debate. It highlights Al-Ghazali's definitional, declarative, and evidentiary principles, clarifying their meanings, documenting their formulations in Tahsin al-Ma’akhidh, and showing how he uses them to present and counter objections to the Shafi‘i position. The study addresses these principles theoretically and practically. The theoretical aspect introduces Al-Ghazali’s view of Mafhum al-Mukhalafah, the scholarly debate, the development of his position, key themes, formulations, interrelations, and documentation. The applied aspect examines jurisprudential disputes linked to these usul principles by outlining disagreements, clarifying the dispute's locus and basis with documentation, identifying the disagreement's origin and its connection to Mafhum al-Mukhalafah. It analyzes the dialectical process by presenting objections to the Shafi‘i position, responses, and the underlying usul principles, meanings, and applications.