Note: According to the information portal of the Research Institute for Contemporary Jurisprudence Studies, the Contemporary Jurisprudence Foundations Group of this institute held a scientific session on Wednesday, December 17, 2025, with the participation of prominent seminary professors. In this session, Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Mohammad Ali Khademi Kusha and Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Dr. Saeed Ziaei-Far presented their views, and the session was chaired by Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Dr. Ali Sharif.
The session secretary, at the beginning of the session, while commemorating Research Week and welcoming the professors and attendees, noted: “The science of usul al-fiqh has a long history among both Shiites and Sunnis, but its current extent is unprecedented, and it is necessary to develop a philosophy for this science so that its deficiencies and strengths can be identified.”
He continued: “The topic of this session is the introduction of the discipline of the philosophy of usul al-fiqh; a discipline that oversees the external study of the science of usul. Every science, after growth and maturity, requires review; it must be viewed from the outside so that its merits and flaws become clear. In this session, we want to examine whether there is fundamentally something called the philosophy of usul al-fiqh or not, and if it exists, what its dimensions and topics are.”
Subsequently, Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Khademi Kusha, professor of advanced seminary courses (dars kharij) and faculty member of the Research Institute of Islamic Sciences and Culture, spoke as the first presenter and stated: “The philosophy of usul al-fiqh, in terms of content, has kept pace with usul al-fiqh in antiquity, but as an independent discipline, it does not have a long history.” He added, raising a serious question: “Usul al-fiqh provides rules for inference, but where should the evidences proving these rules be discussed?”
The professor of advanced seminary courses, referring to the view of Sayyid al-Murtada, stated: “Sayyid al-Murtada has explicitly stated that the evidence for proving usuli rules must be certain knowledge, not solitary reports (khabar wahid).” Khademi Kusha continued: “Over time, the presuppositional discussions of usul al-fiqh became voluminous, necessitating their examination within an independent discipline.”
The faculty member of the Research Institute of Islamic Sciences and Culture, in summarizing his remarks, emphasized: “The philosophy of usul al-fiqh performs three functions: introducing usul al-fiqh, monitoring its deficiencies, and providing recommendations for the advancement of this discipline.”
In the continuation of the session, Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen Dr. Saeed Ziaei-Far, professor of advanced seminary courses and faculty member of the Research Institute of Islamic Sciences and Culture, as the second presenter, presented his views. He said: “We must be careful that the philosophy of usul al-fiqh does not merely repeat usuli discussions but rather adopts a meta-disciplinary perspective.”
The professor of advanced seminary courses added: “The relationship between the philosophy of usul al-fiqh and pure philosophy, as well as the philosophy of fiqh, must be precisely clarified to prevent conceptual confusion.”
He, emphasizing the advisory aspect of this discipline, stated: “If the philosophy of usul al-fiqh merely suffices with reporting, it will lack the necessary efficacy.”
The faculty member of the Research Institute of Islamic Sciences and Culture also noted: “It is necessary to specify the structure of the issues in the philosophy of usul al-fiqh so that it can be introduced as an educational discipline into the Islamic seminaries.” He concluded his remarks by saying: “This discipline must be able to address the real needs of usul al-fiqh, rather than being limited merely to theoretical discussions.”
This session was met with approval from professors and researchers, and it was decided that supplementary discussions would be continued in future sessions.