more knowledgeable may not be the most knowledgeable about every particular issue. This view is supported by the fact that, in the time of the Companions—may Allah be pleased with them—people would ask a less learned scholar even when one more learned was available.

My view on this matter is that one should ask whomever one considers best in religious commitment and knowledge, though this is not obligatory. The more qualified scholar may err on that particular issue, while the less qualified scholar may arrive at the correct answer. It is therefore a matter of preference, and the sounder course is to ask the person most likely to be correct on account of his knowledge, scrupulousness, and religious commitment.

Finally, I advise myself first and then my fellow Muslims—especially students of knowledge—that when a person is faced with a question of religious knowledge, he should neither act hastily nor rush to answer. Rather, he should wait until he has verified the matter and knows the answer before speaking, lest he speak about Allah without knowledge.

The one who issues fatwas is an intermediary between people and Allah, conveying Allah’s revealed law. It is authentically established from the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—that: “The scholars