Early Juristic Approaches to the Application of Hiyal (Legal Devices) in Islamic Law

A precise demarcation separating hiyal from normal application of law has remain ed challenging. The majority ofjuristic trends are seen to categorise hiyal into permissible and impermissible typ es. Out of f our categories of hiyal, juristi c difference is f ound only with regard to one, where a permissible avenue is emp loyed for attaining an unlawful end. Th is highlights that there is a large area of hiyal where there is near unanimity on acceptability. Despite the apparent laxity perceived of Hanafi jurists with regard to hiyal, they have limited the employment of hiyal to justifiable purposes only. The debate on hiyal could essentially be reduced to the juristic difference on th e rel evan ce and s ig nif ic ance of intent in contracts, as upheld by Ibn Hajar al- Asqaldni.