that the child belongs to the man who impregnated his mother, and believed that Abū Sufyān was the one who impregnated Sumayya, Ziyād’s mother. This ruling may be unknown to many people, especially before the Sunnah became widely known, particularly since this had been the custom in pre-Islamic times. Or there may have been other impediments preventing the grounds for this warning from taking effect, such as good deeds that erase evil deeds, and other such factors.

This is a broad subject. It encompasses everything prohibited by the Quran or Sunnah when some members of the Muslim community have not received the evidence establishing its prohibition and therefore regard it as lawful, or when they believe that other evidence outweighs the evidence of prohibition, having exercised independent judgment in weighing the evidence according to their understanding and knowledge. Prohibition entails consequences such as being held sinful, censure, punishment, being deemed a transgressor, and other consequences. These, however, have conditions and impediments. Thus, the prohibition may remain established while these consequences do not apply because a condition is absent or an impediment is present. Alternatively, the prohibition may not apply to that particular person, even though it applies to others.

We have expressed the matter in these alternative terms because there are two views on this issue:

The first—which is the view of the overwhelming majority of the early generations and jurists—is that Allah’s ruling is one, and that anyone who departs from it through a legitimate exercise of independent judgment is mistaken, yet excused and rewarded. On this view, the very act committed by someone acting on an interpretation is forbidden, but the consequences of its prohibition do not apply to him because Allah pardons him, for He does not burden any soul beyond its capacity.