Ijma' (Consensus)
Agreement among Islamic scholars on a legal question, considered the third source of Islamic law.
Ijma' (consensus) is the third source of Islamic jurisprudence after the Quran and the Sunnah. It refers to the agreement among qualified Islamic scholars (mujtahidun) on a legal question in a given period. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "My community will never agree upon an error" (Sunan Ibn Majah).
Regarding prayer, there is ijma' on many fundamental aspects: that the five daily prayers are obligatory, that wudu is a prerequisite, that the prayer must be performed facing the qibla, and that the prayer has specific pillars (arkan) such as qiyam, ruku, and sujud. These matters are not subject to disagreement among the scholars.
Imam al-Shafi'i was the first to systematically define ijma' as a legal source in his "al-Risalah." There is, however, disagreement about who should participate in ijma': some require all scholars in the entire Muslim community, while others accept the scholars of a particular region or period.
Related terms
Masjid al-Haram (The Sacred Mosque)
The holiest mosque in Islam, located in Mecca, which surrounds the Kaaba.
Salat al-Mayyit (Funeral Prayer)
The prayer for the deceased, performed before the burial.
Sunnah Mu'akkadah (Emphasized Sunnah)
Voluntary prayers that the Prophet (peace be upon him) performed regularly and rarely omitted.
Madhhab (School of Law)
An Islamic school of law with its own methodology for legal derivation from the sacred sources.
Surah Al-Ikhlas (Chapter of Sincerity)
The 112th chapter of the Quran, declaring Allah's absolute oneness.
Sahih Muslim (Muslim's Authentic Collection)
The second most authoritative hadith collection in Sunni Islam, compiled by Imam Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj.