Taqlid and sect debates in the twentieth century: The case of Hujandi-Buti

Throughout the history of fiqh, there have been many debates around taqlid in connection with ijtihad. These debates, which have continued since the early periods and encompassed the sects with their emergence, have made themselves felt more in terms of power and influence in certain periods. Especially in the 19th and 20th centuries, debates on taqlid and sectarian phenomena intensified, and many works were written under the title of ijtihad and taqlid. In this context, Khujandi and Buti stand out as two thinkers who made remarkable studies on the subject. Khujandi who wrote his work as an answer to the question asked by new Muslim converts in Japan about sects, explains taqlid as taking into account an opinion that is not based on evidence and following it, as a result, he does not tolerate the disregard by the interlocutors of the Nasses which addresses to all Muslims In this framework, he criticizes the sects that establish a kind of functioning ground for taqlid from various aspects. Buti, on the other hand, considers taqlid as a natural consequence of human nature (in terms of the relationship between the cognizant and the miscognizant) and does not approve of the absolute opposition to taqlid and the general criticism of sects in this context. For this purpose, he refuted Khujandi and the Salafiyyah in general and wrote the work that is the subject of this study. In this study, the approaches of Muhammad Sultan al-Khujandi, who was originally from Khujand in Central Asia and spent a significant period of his life in Haremeyn, and Muhammad Said Raman al-Buti, a prominent scholar from Syria in the recent period, to the phenomenon of taqlid and sect are discussed comparatively in the context of their works on the subject. In this way, it is aimed to examine and evaluate an issue that has been the subject of many academic studies in the recent period and continues to be the subject of many academic studies, through two scholars who influenced society with their works.