According to Rida, the "umma" should be the source of all legislation except in those cases when direct guidance would be available as an explicit text ("nass") in the "Qur'an" or in the authentic "sunna". But Rida was careful to say that ""nass" is very limited."' Thus he granted the "ahl al-hall wa'l 'aqd" broad powers to exercise their legislative authority as a "sort of parliamentary body."' But he maintained that sovereignty should be exercised within the confines of the "shar'ia", not outside it. In Rida's proposal the caliph's powers were carefully circumscribed.