Practical principles in Islamic law are primarily intended to address religious issues and provide an excuse before the Lawgiver (God). However, in certain cases, these principles can also be utilized to establish matters related to worldly affairs and civil law issues, provided they are consistent with legal principles and criteria.
One of the challenges in Islamic jurisprudence and law is the extent to which practical principles are employed to resolve issues. On one hand, the absolute validity of the evidence supporting practical principles renders them authoritative in cases of doubt or absence of valid evidence. On the other hand, excessive reliance on these principles in jurisprudence and law distances these disciplines from reality, serving merely as an excuse before the Lawgiver without striving to attain the truth. In an exclusive interview with Dr. Mehdi Meqdadi Davoodi, we discussed the role of practical principles in Islamic jurisprudence and civil law.