First introduction; the criterion of cognition

Talking about the criterion of cognition in general and, accordingly, the criterion of cognition of Islam in particular requires presenting a few introductions:

1. Necessity of the criterion of cognition

In order to know anything in the world, a criterion is needed, and cognition of Islam is not an exception to this rule. The meaning of cognition is to distinguish between one thing and another, such as distinguishing between good and bad, or the truth and falsehood, or right and wrong, and this is possible only if there is a criterion for distinguishing. It is clear that judgment is not possible without a criterion, and if it were supposedly possible, each person would judge differently, and this would make judgment impossible in the end; because without a criterion, it is not possible to distinguish which judgment is correct and which is incorrect. Muslims’ disagreements that have led to their weakness and the strength of their enemies can be due to the lack of the criterion of cognition or non-adherence to it, and this makes the need for the criterion of cognition and adherence to it even more clear.

2. Unity of the criterion of cognition

Muslims’ disagreements are caused by their different knowledge of Islam; in the sense that different Muslim individuals and groups have different cognition of Islam and do not tolerate others’ cognition of it. It is obvious that removing these disagreements is not possible without achieving a single cognition, and in order to achieve a single cognition, there must be a single criterion.