— resorting instead to the customs of the pre-Islamic Age of Ignorance, or to the tribal and Bedouin conventions, and abandoning the revealed law—then declaring, “This is lawful,” or, “This is equal to what Allah has revealed.” If he claims that it is better than what Allah has revealed, or equal to it, or even if he merely says, “It is lawful and permissible,” without expressly stating that it is equal or superior, his ruling is deemed a ṭāghūt (rebellious authority). The Qur’an states: “They wish to refer for judgment to the ṭāghūt.” It is called a ṭāghūt because it has overstepped its limits.

As for the one who rules by other than what Allah has revealed while still affirming that what Allah revealed is the truth that must be followed, that anything else is false, and that he is in fact ruling by falsehood, such a person falls into the lesser disbelief (kufr aṣghar) that does not remove him from the religion. Even so, he is in grave danger, on a path that could lead him to the disbelief that expels one from Islam if he treats this matter lightly.

However, the jurist qualified for ijtihād (independent juristic reasoning) who rules by other than what Allah has revealed unintentionally—having exerted his scholarly effort yet failed to arrive at Allah’s ruling and thus erred in his ijtihād—is forgiven. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “When a judge rules, makes ijtihād, and is correct, he receives two rewards; and if he rules, makes ijtihād, and errs, he receives one reward,” because his mistake was not deliberate.