“If a trustworthy person informs him with certainty, …”
His statement, “If a trustworthy person informs him with certainty”: the author now begins to explain the evidence by which the qiblah may be determined. He mentions several matters:
The first is the report of a trustworthy person, provided that it is based on certainty. Thus, if a trustworthy man or woman informs him with certainty that this is the qiblah, he must accept what that person says.
A trustworthy person must possess both integrity and expertise. If he is not upright, then he is not trustworthy, for Allah Most High says:
“O you who believe, if a wicked person comes to you with news, verify it.” [al-Hujurat 49:6]
Allah has made it obligatory upon us to verify and ascertain the report of a wicked person. He has not required us to reject it outright, nor to accept it outright. Therefore, if a morally corrupt person tells us, “The qiblah is here,” even if he has expertise, we do not act upon his statement, because he is not upright. Likewise, if a person who is outwardly and inwardly upright—devoted to worship, asceticism, and scrupulousness—tells us, “This is the qiblah,” but lacks expertise, we do not accept his statement, because he is not regarded as trustworthy in this matter, since he lacks expertise.
The author also indicates by his statement, “If a trustworthy person informs him,” that multiple informants are not required; that is, it is not a condition that two trustworthy persons inform him. This differs from formal testimony, for this is a religious report, in which the statement of one person is sufficient, just as we act upon the call of the mu’adhdhin that the time for prayer has begun.
He also indicates by his use of the word “trustworthy” that, if the informant is a woman whose statement is reliable because she is upright and knowledgeable, we accept her statement.
The reason is that this is a religious report, so a woman’s report is accepted in it, just as it is accepted in hadith transmission. We accept a woman’s report when she is upright and possesses accurate retention.
The author’s statement, “with certainty,” means that he informs him on the basis of direct observation,