Peace be upon you. In the matter of precaution, which corresponds to ijtihad and taqlid, I have a question: How can I take the most cautious opinions? When I want to know the most cautious opinions, do I need to consider the views of scholars who are likely to be the most knowledgeable, whether they are deceased or alive, or should I take the views of the scholarly jurists, or what? I would appreciate an answer according to the opinions of His Eminence Sayyid Ali Sistani, His Eminence Sayyid Ali Khamenei, His Eminence Sheikh Al-Fayyad, Sayyid Khomeini, and Martyrs Al-Sadr I and II, as well as other likely knowledgeable scholars. May Allah reward you well.
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1 Answer
Peace be upon you.
Ayatollah Khamenei (may Allah protect him):
Precaution means considering all jurisprudential possibilities in a way that assures the obligated person that they have fulfilled their religious duty. For example, one should avoid actions that some jurists declare forbidden while others do not, and one should perform actions that some jurists declare obligatory while others do not.
Source: Educational Message, Taqlid (1)
Ayatollah Sistani (may Allah protect him):
Precaution is the action that ensures the release of the obligation from an unknown reality. This is absolute precaution, as opposed to relative precaution, such as precaution among the fatwas of jurists when it is generally known that one of them is more knowledgeable.
Source: Minhaj al-Salihin, Vol. 1, Taqlid
May you be successful in all good.