مجله مطالعات فقه امامیه
پیاپی 3 (پاییز و زمستان 1393)

The principle of 'kindnes's has a special application in various social, political, moral, military and financial arenas. This principle associated with the prohibition of abuse and the respect for all, may be understood as integral to Islam. It is the source of numerous impacts in all these areas. This article, however, focuses on the application of the principle in regards to financial and non-financial liability or non-liability. Hence, this study seeks to generalize or broaden the scope of kindness while attempting to refute liability or prove it with reliance on written and rational proofs, as well as on the normative conduct of people, conscience and innate nature. Thus the views of some jurisprudents who hold that the principle is applied at a time when an individual intends to gain benefit or repel harm or when an urgent need arises or when it is preceded by kindness has been pointed out and the application of the principle in all the aforementioned areas has been corrected.

The orientations and viewpoints about the property in excess of the furudh (heirs mentioned in Quran) in inheritance is one of the issues about which the Imamiyah school of jurisprudence and Ahl-e Sunnah have different views. The present research seeks to study the arguments and evidence put forth by those who subscribe to returning the property in excess and those who do not subscribe to the same. The conclusion derived in the closing confirms the theory that subscribe to returning the remainder of the inheritance to Quranic heirs or sharers who are the blood relatives of the deceased, not the husband or the wife.

The concept of reconciliation of hearts [Talif al-qulub] is derived from a jurisprudential subsidiary issue in the discussion concerning the recipients of Zakat in Islamic jurisprudence. Talif al-qulub refers to appeasing some hypocrites and polytheists or even specific groups of Muslims in a bid to seek their political cooperation with the Islamic system or nation or at least to prevent them from hatching a conspiracy or threatening the Muslim nation or system, or to tame their hearts in order to attract them to Islam. One of the basic strategies of political authority in Islam is to create a spiritual bond and an intimate relationship among citizens and people that may help strengthen soft power and influence in the area of public diplomacy. Hence, the basic role of talif al-qulub is provable in every age and time especially when it comes to generating and strengthening the soft power of the Islamic system as well as in expanding of the domain of influence in "internal policies" and "foreign policy". It can be looked at as a strategic Islamic model of compassionate political action and soft power.

This article seeks to examine and elaborate on a subsidiary jurisprudential issue pertaining to Khums. The focal question in this study is whether Khums is a right prerogative of the authority of imamate or it is a right shared in common by Imam (AS) and other groups of people who will have a share of it. Shiite scholars and jurisprudents have discrepant views on this subject. A more famous and widely-held opinion is that Khums is divided into six portions of which three portions go to the Prophet (S) or Imam (AS) and the remaining three portions are divided among needy orphans, indigent and those who are stranded without money provided that they are from Banu Hashim (i.e. their lineage reaches Hashim, the Prophet's great grandfather). This particular opinion is corroborated by verse 41 of Chapter Al-Anfal as well as by a number of reports and narrations which signify the division of Khums into six portions. In this study, the famous view regarding the distribution of Khums is brought up, discussed and critically assessed. In future, a less famous view will be discussed, explained and favored in another to be written soon.

The Quranic verses and prophetic traditions are replete with recommendations about acquiring knowledge. What is meant by knowledge? What kind of knowledge are we supposed to acquire? What is the range of knowledge which is intended by Islam and which we must seek? Are technical and natural sciences counted as part of the recommendation? These are questions addressed and dealt with in this study. The conclusion that has been reached indicates that the knowledge meant for acquisition according to Quran and tradition is not confined to religious and divine knowledge; rather it includes technical, professional and natural sciences as well. However, secondary exigencies such as the need of Islamic society, as well as the dignity, sovereignty and independence of society being associated with technical and natural sciences would make the acquisition of these sciences obligatory in a kifai way which means that it is obligatory on Muslims to acquire, and which, when acquired by some of them, is no longer obligatory on the rest.

Surrogacy is when another woman carries and gives birth to a baby for the couple who want to have a child. Surrogacy is a modern method of assisted reproductive technology in Iran that has given rise to a lot ofcomplex issues of law. One of the most important questions revolves around the jurisprudential and legal nature of the surrogacy agreement as to whether or not surrogate motherhood is permissible in Islamic jurisprudence in general and in Shiis in particular. This research focuses and elaborates on three types of insemination in surrogacy and concludes in closing that from among the three types of insemination, only two of them (the first and second) are consistent with Shiite Islamic jurisprudence whereas the third one is void and impermissible.