THE TRANSFORMATION OF IJTIHAD AND FATWA IN THE ERA OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: AN EPISTEMOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL STUDY
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Abstract
The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significantly influenced Islamic legal reasoning, particularly in data processing, textual analysis, and the acceleration of jurisprudential decision-making. This study examines how AI reshapes methodological approaches to ijtihād, redefines the authority of fatwa institutions, and interacts with the epistemological foundations of Islamic law. Employing a qualitative method through literature review, the research engages classical usūl al-fiqh texts and contemporary works on AI and Islamic ethics. The findings reveal that AI acts as an assistant to ijtihād by enhancing analytical efficiency, yet it cannot replace human jurists due to its inability to comprehend maqāṣid, moral judgement, and socio-cultural context. The study also identifies the need for a “collective AI-assisted ijtihād model” to maintain accuracy, objectivity, and normative legitimacy. It concludes that AI must operate within the framework of maqāṣid al-sharīʿah and digital ethics to ensure that fatwas remain valid, adaptive, and accountable.
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References
al-Āmidī, S. al-Dīn. (2003). Al-Ihkām fī Usūl al-Ahkām (Vol. 4). Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Ghazali, A. H. (1993). Al-Mustashfa min ‘Ilm al-Usūl (Vol. 1). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Ghazālī, A. Hāmid. (1993). Al-Mustaṣfā min ‘Ilm al-Usūl (Vol. 2). Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Jawziyyah, I. al-Qayyim. (1991). I‘lām al-Muwaqqi‘īn ‘an Rabb al-‘Ālamīn (Vol. 1). Dar al-Fikr.
al-Juwayni, A. M. (1997). Al-Burhān fī Usūl al-Fiqh. Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Nawawi, Y. ibn S. (2003). Al-Majmū‘ Sharh al-Muhadhdhab (Vol. 1). Dar al-Fikr.
al-Qarafi, A. ibn I. (2001). Al-Furūq (Vol. 2). Dar al-Hadith.
al-Suyuti, J. al-Din. (1990). Al-Ashbah wa al-Naza’ir. Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Suyūṭı, J. al-Dın. (1990). Al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓāʾir. Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah.
al-Syatibi, A. I. (1997). Al-Muwāfaqāt fī Usūl al-Syarī‘ah (Vol. 2). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Zuḥailī, W. (2009). Usūl al-Fiqh al-Islāmī (Vol. 2). Dār al-Fikr.
Al-Aidarūs, M. (2021). Artificial Intelligence and Contemporary Ijtihad: An Epistemological Reflection. Al-Shajarah, 26(1), 85–89.
Al-Ghazali. (1993). Al-Mustasfa min ’Ilm al-Usul (Vol. 2). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
Auda, J. (2008). Maqasid al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law: A Systems Approach. The International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT).
Dar al-Ifta’ and Majelis Ulama Indonesia. (2023). Implementation of E-Fatwa Systems: Case Studies from Dar al-Ifta’ and MUI. Mutawasith: Jurnal Hukum Islam, 6(2).
Dewan Syariah Nasional Majelis Ulama Indonesia. (2018). Himpunan Fatwa Ekonomi Syariah. MUI Press.
Faris, I. (1979). Maqāyīs al-Lughah. Dār al-Fikr.
Hallaq, W. B. (2009). Sharī‘a: Theory, Practice, Transformations. Cambridge University Press.
Jurnal Fatwa Malaysia. (2023a). Artificial Intelligence in Fatwa Management. Jurnal Fatwa Malaysia, 17–19.
Karimullah, S. S. (2023a). Artificial Intelligence and Fatwa in Contemporary Islam. Journal of Islamic Studies, 15(2), 29–45.
Latifi, H. (2024a). Challenges of Using Artificial Intelligence in the Process of Shi’i Ijtihad. Religions, 15(5), 541. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15050541
Manzūr, I. (1990). Lisān al-‘Arab (Vol. 3). Dār Sādir.
Mohamed & others. (2025). Explainable AI for Islamic Law Reasoning. Neural Computing and Applications, 5–7. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00521-025-11229-y
Priantina, A. (2025). AI in Fatwa Formulation: Transforming Sharia-Law Decision Making. International Journal of Islamic Ethics, 9(2), 113–126.
Rahim, N. A., & Idris, S. (2023). Artificial Intelligence and Fatwa: A Maqasid-Based Ethical Evaluation. Journal of Islamic Ethics and Technology, 3(1), 25.
Rahman, F. (1982). Islam and Modernity: Transformation of an Intellectual Tradition. University of Chicago Press.
Taymiyyah, I. (1995). Majmū‘ Fatāwā (Vol. 20). Maktabah Ibn Taymiyyah.
Usmani, M. T. (1996). Usūl al-Iftā’ wa Ādābuhu. Darul Ishaat.
Zawawi, N. (2023). Ethical Dimensions of AI in Islamic Legal Reasoning. Journal of Islamic Studies and Society, 15(1), 77–91.
Main Article Content
Abstract
The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has significantly influenced Islamic legal reasoning, particularly in data processing, textual analysis, and the acceleration of jurisprudential decision-making. This study examines how AI reshapes methodological approaches to ijtihād, redefines the authority of fatwa institutions, and interacts with the epistemological foundations of Islamic law. Employing a qualitative method through literature review, the research engages classical usūl al-fiqh texts and contemporary works on AI and Islamic ethics. The findings reveal that AI acts as an assistant to ijtihād by enhancing analytical efficiency, yet it cannot replace human jurists due to its inability to comprehend maqāṣid, moral judgement, and socio-cultural context. The study also identifies the need for a “collective AI-assisted ijtihād model” to maintain accuracy, objectivity, and normative legitimacy. It concludes that AI must operate within the framework of maqāṣid al-sharīʿah and digital ethics to ensure that fatwas remain valid, adaptive, and accountable.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
References
al-Āmidī, S. al-Dīn. (2003). Al-Ihkām fī Usūl al-Ahkām (Vol. 4). Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Ghazali, A. H. (1993). Al-Mustashfa min ‘Ilm al-Usūl (Vol. 1). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Ghazālī, A. Hāmid. (1993). Al-Mustaṣfā min ‘Ilm al-Usūl (Vol. 2). Dār al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Jawziyyah, I. al-Qayyim. (1991). I‘lām al-Muwaqqi‘īn ‘an Rabb al-‘Ālamīn (Vol. 1). Dar al-Fikr.
al-Juwayni, A. M. (1997). Al-Burhān fī Usūl al-Fiqh. Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Nawawi, Y. ibn S. (2003). Al-Majmū‘ Sharh al-Muhadhdhab (Vol. 1). Dar al-Fikr.
al-Qarafi, A. ibn I. (2001). Al-Furūq (Vol. 2). Dar al-Hadith.
al-Suyuti, J. al-Din. (1990). Al-Ashbah wa al-Naza’ir. Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Suyūṭı, J. al-Dın. (1990). Al-Ashbāh wa al-Naẓāʾir. Dār al-Kutub al-ʿIlmiyyah.
al-Syatibi, A. I. (1997). Al-Muwāfaqāt fī Usūl al-Syarī‘ah (Vol. 2). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
al-Zuḥailī, W. (2009). Usūl al-Fiqh al-Islāmī (Vol. 2). Dār al-Fikr.
Al-Aidarūs, M. (2021). Artificial Intelligence and Contemporary Ijtihad: An Epistemological Reflection. Al-Shajarah, 26(1), 85–89.
Al-Ghazali. (1993). Al-Mustasfa min ’Ilm al-Usul (Vol. 2). Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah.
Auda, J. (2008). Maqasid al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law: A Systems Approach. The International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT).
Dar al-Ifta’ and Majelis Ulama Indonesia. (2023). Implementation of E-Fatwa Systems: Case Studies from Dar al-Ifta’ and MUI. Mutawasith: Jurnal Hukum Islam, 6(2).
Dewan Syariah Nasional Majelis Ulama Indonesia. (2018). Himpunan Fatwa Ekonomi Syariah. MUI Press.
Faris, I. (1979). Maqāyīs al-Lughah. Dār al-Fikr.
Hallaq, W. B. (2009). Sharī‘a: Theory, Practice, Transformations. Cambridge University Press.
Jurnal Fatwa Malaysia. (2023a). Artificial Intelligence in Fatwa Management. Jurnal Fatwa Malaysia, 17–19.
Karimullah, S. S. (2023a). Artificial Intelligence and Fatwa in Contemporary Islam. Journal of Islamic Studies, 15(2), 29–45.
Latifi, H. (2024a). Challenges of Using Artificial Intelligence in the Process of Shi’i Ijtihad. Religions, 15(5), 541. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15050541
Manzūr, I. (1990). Lisān al-‘Arab (Vol. 3). Dār Sādir.
Mohamed & others. (2025). Explainable AI for Islamic Law Reasoning. Neural Computing and Applications, 5–7. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00521-025-11229-y
Priantina, A. (2025). AI in Fatwa Formulation: Transforming Sharia-Law Decision Making. International Journal of Islamic Ethics, 9(2), 113–126.
Rahim, N. A., & Idris, S. (2023). Artificial Intelligence and Fatwa: A Maqasid-Based Ethical Evaluation. Journal of Islamic Ethics and Technology, 3(1), 25.
Rahman, F. (1982). Islam and Modernity: Transformation of an Intellectual Tradition. University of Chicago Press.
Taymiyyah, I. (1995). Majmū‘ Fatāwā (Vol. 20). Maktabah Ibn Taymiyyah.
Usmani, M. T. (1996). Usūl al-Iftā’ wa Ādābuhu. Darul Ishaat.
Zawawi, N. (2023). Ethical Dimensions of AI in Islamic Legal Reasoning. Journal of Islamic Studies and Society, 15(1), 77–91.