Yousef Saanei: Difference between revisions

Another widely used rule in Yousef Saanei's jurisprudence is the [[Principle of No-Hardship (Nafi al-Haraj)]]. From his perspective, this rule is a definitive ruling, but the crucial matter is its extent. Sharia is based on the negation of difficulty and hardship (usr wa haraj). "Hardship" (haraj) is a customary concept without a seperate religious definition and its instances is identified customarily. The principle of ease and facilitation in religion is a governing criterion (a general principle) and can even be cited as a preference-criterion (murajjih) in the conflict of hadiths.<ref>Sa'anei, An Approach to Women's Rights, p. 205.</ref>

His fatwa on the [[Mahramiyyah of the Adopted Child]] is a clear example of this approach. In response to a question about making a child mahram who was taken from welfare services and whose age has passed the nursing (radha') period, he states: the customary religious ways (nursing or marriage contract) are not possible in these cases; however, given that caring for helpless children is a recommended and desirable act (birr and ihsan) leading to "otherworldly reward and happiness in both worlds," the hardship and difficulty resulting from being non-mahram after the child's puberty (such as the problem of informing the child about the real parents, the spiritual suffering from childlessness, and the disruption of normal life) removes the prohibition of looking (nazar). Citing the principle that "Islam is a religion of ease and facility," he considers such hardship a justification for removing the prohibitory ruling (hukm taklifi).<ref>Nur al-Thaqalayn Cultural and Artistic Institute, Mirror of Opinion: Grand Ayatollah Sa'anei from the Perspective of Others, pp. 166-168.</ref> Prior to him, no jurist had so explicitly removed the prohibition of looking based on hardship.