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MAWLID AL-NABI - 2

2012-02-01T16:42:00.000+01:00

(Part1)

- Peringatan Maulid Nabi masuk dalam anjuran hadith nabiuntuk membuat sesuatu yang baru yang baik dan tidak menyalahisyari’at Islam. Rasulullah s.a.w bersabda:

مَنْسَنَّ فيِ اْلإِسْـلاَمِ سُنَّةً حَسَنـَةًفَلَهُ أَجْرُهَا وَأَجْرُ مَنْ عَمِلَبِهَا بَعْدَهُ مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ يَنْقُصَمِنْ أُجُوْرِهِمْ شَىْءٌ (رواهمسلم في صحيحه)

“Barangsiapa yang memulai (merintis) dalam Islam sebuah perkara baik maka iaakan mendapatkan pahala dari perbuatan baiknya tersebut, dan ia jugamendapatkan pahala dari orang yang mengikutinya setelahnya, tanpaberkurang pahala mereka sedikitpun”. (Muslim dalam kitabShahihnya).

Hadith ini memberikan keleluasaan kepada ummat Nabi Muhammad untuk merintis perkara-perkara baru yang baikyang tidak bertentangan dengan al-Qur’an, Sunnah, Atsar maupunIjma’. Peringatan maulid Nabi adalah perkara baru yang baik dansama sekali tidak menyalahi satu-pun di antara dalil-dalil tersebut.Dengan demikian bererti hukumnya boleh, bahkan salah satu jalan untukmendapatkan pahala. Jika ada orang yang mengharamkan peringatanMaulid Nabi, bererti telah mempersempit keleluasaan yang telah Allahberikan kepada hamba-Nya untuk melakukan perbuatan-perbuatan baikyang belum pernah ada pada masa Nabi.

- Diriwayatkanbahawa ketika Rasulullah tiba di Madinah, beliau mendapatiorang-orang Yahudi berpuasa pada hari ‘Asyura’ (10 Muharram).Rasulullah bertanya kepada mereka: “Untuk apa mereka berpuasa?”Mereka menjawab: “Hari ini adalah hari ditenggelamkan Fir'aun dandiselamatkan Nabi Musa, dan kami berpuasa di hari ini adalah karenabersyukur kepada Allah”. Kemudian Rasulullah bersabda:

أَنَاأَحَقُّ بِمُوْسَى مِنْكُمْ

“Akulebih berhak terhadap Musa daripada kalian”. (Bukhari danMuslim)

Lalu Rasulullah berpuasa dan memerintahkan parasahabatnya untuk berpuasa. Pelajaran penting yang dapat diambil darihadits ini ialah bahwa sangat dianjurkan untuk melakukan perbuatansyukur kepada Allah pada hari-hari tertentu atas nikmat yang Allahberikan pada hari-hari tersebut. Baik melakukan perbuatan syukurkarena memperoleh nikmat atau karena diselamatkan dari marabahaya.Kemudian perbuatan syukur tersebut diulang pada hari yang sama disetiap tahunnya. Bersyukur kepada Allah dapat dilakukan denganmelaksanakan berbagai bentuk ibadah, seperti sujud syukur, berpuasa,sedekah, membaca al-Qur’an dan semacamnya. Bukankah kelahiranRasulullah adalah nikmat yang paling besar bagi umat ini?! Adakahnikmat yang lebih agung dari dilahirkannya Rasulullah pada bulanRabi’ul Awwal ini?! Adakah nikmat dan karunia yang lebih agung daripada kelahiran Rasulullah yang menyelamatkan kita dari jalankesesatan?! Demikian inilah yang telah dijelaskan oleh al-Hafizh IbnHajar al-‘Asqalani.

- Rasulullah ketika ditanya mengapabeliau puasa pada hari Isnin, beliau menjawab:

ذلِكَيَوْمٌ وُلِدْتُ فِيْهِ

“Hariitu adalah hari dimana aku dilahirkan”. (HR Muslim)

Hadithini menunjukkan bahwa Rasulullah s.a.w melakukan puasa pada hari Isninkerana bersyukur kepada Allah, bahwa pada hari itu beliau dilahirkan. Dari ini dapat dijadikan dalil bahawa sekiranya Rasulullah s.a.w sendiri berpuasa padahari Isnin kerana bersyukur kepada Allah atas kelahiran beliau pada hari itu, maka demikian pula bagi umatmya yang sudah selayaknyapada tanggal kelahiran Rasulullah s.a.w, untuk melakukan perbuatansyukur, misalkan dengan membaca al-Qur’an, membaca kisahkelahirannya, bersedekah, atau perbuatan baik lainnya.

FatwaBeberapa Ulama Ahlussunnah

1. Fatwa Syaikh Imam Ahmad IbnHajar al-‘Asqalani rah. yang menukilkan sebagaiberikut:

أَصْلُعَمَلِ الْمَوْلِدِ بِدْعَةٌ لَمْتُنْقَلْ عَنِ السَّلَفِ الصَّالِحِمِنَ الْقُُرُوْنِ الثَّلاَثَةِ،وَلكِنَّهَا مَعَ ذلِكَ قَدْ اشْتَمَلَتْعَلَى مَحَاسِنَ وَضِدِّهَا، فَمَنْتَحَرَّى فِيْ عَمَلِهَا الْمَحَاسِنَوَتَجَنَّبَ ضِدَّهَا كَانَتْ بِدْعَةًحَسَنَةً"وَقَالَ:"وَقَدْظَهَرَ لِيْ تَخْرِيْجُهَا عَلَى أَصْلٍثَابِتٍ.

“Asalperingatan maulid adalah bid’ah yang belum pernah dinukil darigenerasi Salaf soleh yang hidup pada tiga abad pertama, tetapidemikian peringatan maulid mengandung kebaikan dan lawannya, jadibarangsiapa dalam peringatan maulid berusaha melakukan hal-hal yangbaik saja dan menjauhi lawannya (hal-hal yang buruk), maka itu adalahbid’ah hasanah”. Al-Hafizh Ibn Hajar juga mengatakan: “Dantelah nyata bagiku dasar pengambilan peringatan Maulid di atas dalilyang tsabit (Shahih)”.

2. Fatwa al-Imam al-Hafizhas-Suyuthi rah. yang menukilkan dalam risalahnya Husn al-Maqshid Fi‘Amal al-Maulid: Beliau menuliskan sebagai berikut:

عِنْدِيْأَنَّ أَصْلَ عَمَلِ الْمَوِلِدِ الَّذِيْهُوَ اجْتِمَاعُ النَّاسِ وَقِرَاءَةُمَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ القُرْءَانِ وَرِوَايَةُالأَخْبَارِ الْوَارِدَةِ فِيْ مَبْدَإِأَمْرِ النَّبِيِّ وَمَا وَقَعَ فِيْمَوْلِدِهِ مِنَ الآيَاتِ، ثُمَّ يُمَدُّلَهُمْ سِمَاطٌ يَأْكُلُوْنَهُوَيَنْصَرِفُوْنَ مِنْ غَيْرِ زِيَادَةٍعَلَى ذلِكَ هُوَ مِنَ الْبِدَعِالْحَسَنَةِ الَّتِيْ يُثَابُ عَلَيْهَاصَاحِبُهَا لِمَا فِيْهِ مِنْ تَعْظِيْمِقَدْرِ النَّبِيِّ وَإِظْهَارِ الْفَرَحِوَالاسْتِبْشَارِ بِمَوْلِدِهِالشَّرِيْفِ.وَأَوَّلُمَنْ أَحْدَثَ ذلِكَ صَاحِبُ إِرْبِلالْمَلِكُ الْمُظَفَّرُ أَبُوْ سَعِيْدٍكَوْكَبْرِيْ بْنُ زَيْنِ الدِّيْنِابْنِ بُكْتُكِيْن أَحَدُ الْمُلُوْكِالأَمْجَادِ وَالْكُبَرَاءِ وَالأَجْوَادِ،وَكَانَ لَهُ آثاَرٌ حَسَنَةٌ وَهُوَالَّذِيْ عَمَّرَ الْجَامِعَ الْمُظَفَّرِيَّبِسَفْحِ قَاسِيُوْنَ.

“Menurutku:pada dasarnya peringatan maulid, berupa kumpulan orang-orang, berisibacaan beberapa ayat al-Qur’an, meriwayatkan hadits-hadits tentangpermulaan sejarah Rasulullah dan tanda-tanda yang mengiringikelahirannya, kemudian disajikan hidangan lalu dimakan olehorang-orang tersebut dan kemudian mereka bubar setelahnya tanpa adatambahan-tambahan lain, adalah termasuk bid’ah hasanah yangpelakunya akan memperoleh pahala. Karena perkara semacam itumerupakan perbuatan mengagungkan terhadap kedudukan Rasulullah danmerupakan penampakan akan rasa gembira dan suka cita dengankelahirannya yang mulia. Orang yang pertama kali merintis peringatanmaulid ini adalah penguasa Irbil, Raja al-Muzhaffar Abu Sa'idKaukabri Ibn Zainuddin Ibn Buktukin, salah seorang raja yang mulia,agung dan dermawan. Beliau memiliki peninggalan dan jasa-jasa yangbaik, dan dialah yang membangun al-Jami’ al-Muzhaffari di lerenggunung Qasiyun”.

3. Fatwa al-Imam al-Hafizh as-Sakhawirah. seperti disebutkan dalam al-Ajwibah al-Mardliyyah, sebagaiberikut:

لَمْيُنْقَلْ عَنْ أَحَدٍ مِنَ السَّلَفِالصَّالِحِ فِيْ الْقُرُوْنِ الثَّلاَثَةِالْفَاضِلَةِ، وَإِنَّمَا حَدَثَ بَعْدُ،ثُمَّ مَا زَالَ أَهْـلُ الإِسْلاَمِفِيْ سَائِرِ الأَقْطَارِ وَالْمُـدُنِالْعِظَامِ يَحْتَفِلُوْنَ فِيْ شَهْرِمَوْلِدِهِ -صَلَّىاللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَشَرَّفَوَكَرَّمَ-يَعْمَلُوْنَالْوَلاَئِمَ الْبَدِيْعَةَ الْمُشْتَمِلَةَعَلَى الأُمُوْرِ البَهِجَةِ الرَّفِيْعَةِ،وَيَتَصَدَّقُوْنَ فِيْ لَيَالِيْهِبِأَنْوَاعِ الصَّدَقَاتِ، وَيُظْهِرُوْنَالسُّرُوْرَ، وَيَزِيْدُوْنَ فِيْالْمَبَرَّاتِ، بَلْ يَعْتَنُوْنَبِقِرَاءَةِ مَوْلِدِهِ الْكَرِيْمِ،وَتَظْهَرُ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ بَرَكَاتِهِكُلُّ فَضْلٍ عَمِيْمٍ بِحَيْثُ كَانَمِمَّا جُرِّبَ".ثُمَّقَالَ:"قُلْتُ:كَانَمَوْلِدُهُ الشَّرِيْفُ عَلَى الأَصَحِّلَيْلَةَ الإِثْنَيْنِ الثَّانِيَ عَشَرَمِنْ شَهْرِ رَبِيْع الأَوَّلِ، وَقِيْلَ:لِلَيْلَتَيْنِخَلَتَا مِنْهُ، وَقِيْلَ:لِثَمَانٍ،وَقِيْلَ:لِعَشْرٍوَقِيْلَ غَيْرُ ذَلِكَ، وَحِيْنَئِذٍفَلاَ بَأْسَ بِفِعْلِ الْخَيْرِ فِيْهذِهِ الأَيَّامِ وَاللَّيَالِيْ عَلَىحَسَبِ الاسْتِطَاعَةِ بَلْ يَحْسُنُفِيْ أَيَّامِ الشَّهْرِ كُلِّهَاوَلَيَالِيْهِ.

“PeringatanMaulid Nabi belum pernah dilakukan oleh seorang-pun dari generasiSalaf Soleh yang hidup pada tiga abad pertama yang mulia, melainkanbaru ada setelah itu di kemudian. Dan ummat Islam di semua daerah dankota-kota besar senantiasa mengadakan peringatan Maulid Nabi padabulan kelahiran Rasulullah. Mereka mengadakan jamuan-jamuan makanyang luar biasa dan diisi dengan hal-hal yang menggembirakan danbaik. Pada malam harinya, mereka mengeluarkan berbagai macam sedekah,mereka menampakkan kegembiraan dan suka cita. Mereka melakukankebaikan-kebaikan lebih dari biasanya. Mereka bahkan meramaikandengan membaca buku-buku maulid. Dan nampaklah keberkahan Nabi danMaulid secara merata. Dan ini semua telah teruji”. Kemudianas-Sakhawi berkata: “Aku Katakan: “Tanggal kelahiran Nabi menurutpendapat yang paling shahih adalah malam Senin, tanggal 12 bulanRabi’ul Awwal. Menurut pendapat lain malam tanggal 2, 8, 10 danmasih ada pendapat-pendapat lain. Oleh kerana itu tidak mengapamelakukan kebaikan bila-bila pun pada hari-hari dan malam-malam inisesuai dengan kesiapan yang ada, bahkan baik jika dilakukan padahari-hari dan malam-malam bulan Rabi'ul Awwal seluruhnya” .

(Part- 2)

Bidaah terbahagi kepada 2, bidaah hasanah iaitu bidaah yang terpuji dan bidaah dholalah iaitu bidaah tercela. Atas itu, sekiranya sambutan Maulid Nabi jika diadakan dengan mematuhi segala batas-batas agama seperti tiada majlis percampuran antara lelaki dan wanita yang bukan mahram, tiada perasan menunjuk-nunjuk (riyak) dan sebagainya yang bertentangan dengan syariah maka ia adalah bidaah hasanah iaitu bidaah yang terpuji atas usaha mengajak semua memperingati akan kemuliaan Rasulullah صلى الله عليه و سلم .
Syeikh Jalaludin al-Suyuti rah. telah menulis didalam kitab beliau, "Hawi li al-Fatawa", Sheikhul Islam dan Imam Hadith pada zamannya, Ahmad ibn Hajar ('Asqalani) rah. telah ditanya mengenai perbuatan menyambut Maulidurrasul (s.a.w) dan beliau telah memberi jawapan secara bertulis: Adapun perbuatan menyambut Maulidurrasul (s.a.w.) merupakan bida'ah yang tidak pernah diriwayatkan oleh para Salafussoleh pada 300 tahun pertama selepas hijrah. Walau bagaimana pun, ianya penuh dengan kebaikan dan perkara-perkara yang terpuji dan kadangkala ianya dicacatkan oleh perbuatan-perbuatan yang tidak sepatutnya. Jika sambutan Maulidurrasul itu terpelihara dari perkara-perkara yang melanggar shari'a maka ianya tergolong didalam perbuatan bida'ah hasanah tetapi jika sambutan tersebut terselit perkara-perkara yang melanggar shari'ah maka ianya tidak tergolong didalam bida'ah hasanah.
Abu Qatada al-Ansari meriwayatkan didalam Sahih Muslim, kitab as-siyam (puasa), bahawa Rasulullah (s.a.w) kenapa beliau berpuasa pada hari Isnin, dan baginda bersabda,"Itulah hari aku dilahirkan dan itulah juga hari aku diangkat menjadi Rasul." Daripada Mutawalli Sha'rawi:"Banyak peristiwa yang ajaib telah berlaku pada hari baginda (s.a.w) dilahirkan sebagai bukti bagi hadith dan sejarah bahawa malam Rasulullah (s.a.w) dilahirkan tidak seperti malam-malam manusia lain dilahirkan". Peristiwa yang termaktub didalam hadith termasuklah gegaran yang dirasakan di istana 'Chosroes' dan padamnya api yang telah menyala selama 1000 tahun di Parsi dan beberapa peristiwa-peristiwa lain yang ditulis didalam karangan Ibnu Kathir, al-Bidaya, Jilid 2, mukasurat 265-268. Daripada Kitab al-Madhkal oleh Ibnu al-Hajj (jilid 1, ms. 261) "Menjadi satu kewajiban bagi kita untuk membanyakkan kesyukuran kita kepada Allah setiap hari Isnin bulan Rabi'ul Awwal kerana Dia telah mengurniakan kepada kita nikmat yang besar iaitu diutusNya Nabi (s.a.w) untuk menyampaikan Islam kepada kita dan menyebarkan salam. Apabila baginda ditanya mengapa baginda berpuasa pada hari Isnin, baginda bersabda,"Hari itu adalah hari kelahiranku". Oleh kerana itu, hari tersebut telah memberi satu 'penghormatan' kepada bulan tersebut, kerana hari itu merupakan hari Rasulullah (s.a.w) dan baginda bersabda,"Aku merupakan penghulu bagi anak cucu Adam dan aku tidak mengatakan ini kerana kesombongan …dan baginda bersabda: Adam dan anak cucunya akan bernaung dibawah panji-panjiku pada hari pembalasan kelak. Hadith-hadith ini merupakan riwayat Bukhari dan Muslim. Didalam Sahih Muslim, Rasulullah (s.a.w) bersabda, Aku telah dilahirkan pada hari Isnin dan pada hari yang sama juga wahyu yang pertama telah diturunkan kepadaku." Rasulullah (s.a.w) mengutamakan hari kelahiran baginda dan memuji serta bersyukur kepada Allah, dengan berpuasa pada hari tersebut (Isnin) seperti yang diriwayatkan oleh Abu Qatada didalam sebuah hadith. Ini bermakna, Rasulullah (s.a.w) telah melahirkan dan menzahirkan perasaan gembira baginda dengan berpuasa pada hari tersebut - salah satu daripada bentuk ibadah khusus. Oleh kerana Rasulullah (s.a.w) sendiri mengutamakan hari tersebut, jadi sebagai mencontohi baginda, sambutan atau ibadah yang selaras dengan shari'ah adalah dibolehkan - walaupun mungkin kaedah menyambutnya mungkin boleh berubah mengikut keadaan dan tempat tetapi dzat/intipati sambutan itu tetap sama. Dan kerana itu, berpuasa, memberi makanan kepada orang fakir miskin, bersama-sama berselawat kepada Nabi (s.a.w), ataupun bersama-sama mengingati dan merenung akan akhlaq baginda yang terpuji lagi mulia - semuanya merupakan kaedah ataupun cara yang boleh dilakukan untuk mengutamakan dan menyambut hari tersebut.
Kitab Rihal, karangan Ibnu Jubayr (540-614), didalam bab Perjalanan (ms.114-115) merupakan sumber yang terawal yang menceritakan mengenai sambutan Maulidurrasul s.a.w secara beramai-ramai didalam suatu kelompok masyarakat. "Tempat yang diberkati ini (rumah kelahiran Nabi s.a.w ) dibuka dan setiap lelaki dibenarkan untuk memasukinya untuk mendapat barakah daripadanya (mutabarrikin bihi) pada setiap hari Isnin didalam bulan Rabi'al al-Awwal kerana pada hari dan bulan tersebut, Nabi s.a.w telah dilahirkan."
Ibnu Battuta merupakan ahli sejarah abad ke - 8 yang masyhur dan beliau telah menulis didalam kitabnya, Rihla (Jilid 1,ms.309 dan 347) bahawa pada setiap hari Jumaat, selepas solat dan pada hari kelahiran Nabi, pintu Ka'bah akan dibuka oleh ketua Banu Shayba, pemegang kunci pintu Ka'bah. Pada hari Maulidurrasul (s.a.w) juga, Qadi yang bermazhab Shafi'i (Ketua Hakim, Makkah), Najmuddin Muhammad Ibnu al-Imam Muhyiddin al-Tabari, membahagi-bahagikan makanan kepada shurafa' (keturunan Nabi s.a.w) dan juga kepada kesemua penduduk Makkah.
Allah telah berfirman kepada Rasulullah s.a.w untuk mengingatkan ummatnya yang mengakui mencintai Allah, untuk mencintai NabiNya dan katakanlah kepada mereka,"Jika kamu mencintai Allah, ikutlah (dan cintai dan hormati) aku, dan Allah akan mencintai kamu" (3:31) Sambutan Maulidurrasul merupakan natijah atau kesan akan adanya perasaan kecintaan terhadap Rasulullah s.a.w, perasaan taat kepada baginda, sentiasa mengingati baginda, mencontohi baginda dan berbangga dengan baginda sebagaimana Allah bangga terhadap baginda kerana Allah memuji akan baginda didalam Al-Quran, "Sesungguhnya engkau mempunyai akhlaq yang mulia" (al-Qalam:4) Tahap kecintaan kepada Rasulullah s.a.w, merupakan antara pengukur kepada tahap kesempurnaan keimanan antara seseorang mukmin dan seorang mukmin yang lain. Dalam sebuah hadith sahih yang diriwayatkan oleh Bukhari dan Muslim, Rasulullah s.a.w telah bersabda,"Tidak sempurna iman kamu sehingga aku lebih dicintainya daripada anak, ibu bapa dan manusia seluruhnya." Dalam sebuah hadith lain yang diriwayatkan oleh Bukhari Rasulullah (s.a.w) berfirman,"Tidak sempurna iman kamu sehingga aku kamu lebih cintai daripada diri kamu sendiri." Dan Sayyidina 'Umar berkata,"Ya Rasulullah aku mencintaimu lebih daripada diriku sendiri. Kesempurnaan iman seseorang itu amat bergantung pada kecintaannya terhadap Rasulullah (s.a.w) dan para Malaikat sentiasa memuji baginda sebagaimana yang dimaksudkan didalam ayat al-Quran yang berbunyi, "Sesungguhnya Allah dan para Malaikat sentiasa bersalawat keatas Nabi" (33:56). Seterusnya ayat ini disambung dengan perintah Tuhan,"Wahai orang-orang yang beriman berselawatlah kamu keatasnya". Ayat ini sahaja menjadi bukti bahawa kualiti iman seseorang itu bergantung kepada dan dizahirkan melalui selawat kepada Nabi (s.a.w). Ya Allah! Limpahkanlah selawat serta salam kepada Nabi, ahli keluarga baginda dan para sahaba.
Lantaran itu jelas, jumhur ulama ASWJ telah menyatakan bahawa Mawlid Nabi boleh dianjurkan dan dikategorikan sebagai bidaah hasanah tetapi dengan syarat-syarat tegas yang dinyatakan diatas iaitu hendaklah selari dengan syariat Islam.

MAWLID AL-NABI - 1

2012-02-01T16:25:00.001+01:00

(Part– 1)

ByMufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani

Q:What is the truth about Milad? On the 12th of Rabi-AwwalMilad-un-Nabi is celebrated with great fanfare and Milad meetings arearranged. What is the ruling of Shariah regarding that?

A:The gatherings arranged to remember the birth of the Prophet Muhammadصلىالله عليه و سلم , the mercy to the mankind, are called Milad gatherings. Rememberingthe life of Rasulullah صلىالله عليه و سلم andteaching others about it, is an act of great blessing and virtue.However all good deeds have to be performed according to the rulesand guidelines established by the Shariah. To exceed them is a gravesin. For example reciting the Qur'an is a great act of virtue, but itis prohibited to do so while one is in ruku or sujud in prayers.Likewise, Salat is one of the most important acts of worship. Yet, itis haram to perform it at sunrise or sunset.

Similarly,there are rules governing the blessed remembrance of the Sirah. Forexample, this remembrance must not be associated with a particularday or month; it should be considered equally virtuous during everymonth of the year, every week of the month, and every day of theweek. Also it can take any permissible form. For example you canarrange a reading of an authentic book on Sirah or have a lecturedelivered by a scholar. Doing that is not only permissible but itwill bring great reward. But it is important to stay away from theevils found in the prevalent Milad gatherings. Here are some of thoseevils: A particular date (12 Rabi-Awwal) has been designated for thisremembrance. There is no evidence supporting this designation duringthe time of Sahaba (Companions), the tabiyeen (the generation thatfollowed the companions) or taba-tabiyeen (the next generation). Thisdesignation is bida'a (innovation).

Theelement of showoff (riya) is commonly present in these gatherings. If someone does not attend these gatherings, he is looked down upon.Distribution of sweets is considered an indispensable part of theproceedings. To meet the expenses donations are collected fromsometimes unwilling people who give money under social pressure.According to the Hadith it is not permissible to take any Muslim'smoney without his willingness.

Intermixingof men and women commonly takes place in these gatherings. Peoplestay late at night in these meetings thereby missing the nextmorning's prayers.

Thefocus of the talks delivered there is very limited. Rasulullah صلىالله عليه و سلم ,has given guidance for every aspect of our life. These cover acts ofworship, dealing with other people, morals and manners, socialrelationships, business dealings, etc. However, it has been observedthat the prevalent Milad talks concentrate mainly or solely on theaccount of the birth of Rasulullah صلىالله عليه و سلم ,and his miracles. They do not attempt to cover the vast teachings ofRasulullah صلىالله عليه و سلم ,[Thus, not only the form of these meetings but also the message givenby them is generally a distorted one. Translator.]

Forthese reasons one should refrain from the prevalent Milad gatherings.However if care is taken to avoid all of these evils and to followthe Shariah carefully, then a meeting organized to rememberRasulullah صلىالله عليه و سلم ,with the sole purpose of seeking Allah's pleasure, will InshaAllah bea blessed event. And Allah knows best.

(Part- 2)

Scholars state that the first person to introduce thecelebrating the Milad was the ruler of Irbil, Muzaffar ad-Din ibnZain al-Din. This was six centuries after the period of prophet hood.

AllaamahMuizzuddin Hasan Khwaarzimi rah. states in his book, Al-Qawl alMutamad:

-The Ruler of Irbal, King Muzaffar Abu Saeed Kaukari, was anirreligious and prodigal king. He ordered the scholars of his time toact according to their opinions and discard the practice of followingany school of law. A group of learned men inclined towards him. He(this king) organized Mawlood sessions during the month of Rabi alAwwal. He was the first king ever to introduce this practice.

IbnKathir said in al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya (Beirut and Riyadh: Maktabatal-Ma`arif & Maktabat al-Nasr, 1966 ed. 13:136-137): "He(King Muzaffar) used to celebrate the noble Mawlid in Rabi` al-Awwaland organize huge festivities for it. He was a wise king, brave, afierce fighter, intelligent, learned, and just (May Allah have mercyon him and ennoble his grave). Shaykh Abu al-Khattab ibn Dihya (IbnUnain - Ibn Dihya) compiled for him a book on the Mawlid of theProphet s.a.w and named it al-Tanwir fi Mawlid al-Bashir al-Nadhir("The illumination concerning the birthday of the Bringer ofglad tidings and Warner") and the king rewarded him with 1,000dinars for it. His rule lasted until he died in the year 630 (Hijri)as he was besieging the French in the city of Acca (Acre, Palestine)after a glorious and blameless life."

Futhermore, Ibn Kathir himself composed a text on Mawlid, made of hadiths,invocations of blessings on the Prophet s.a.w and poetry in praise ofhim. It is entitled Mawlid Rasulillah sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam,and was edited and published by Salah al-Din al-Munajjid (Beirut: Daral-Kitab al-Jadid, 1961).

Butabout about Ibn Unain (Ibn Dihya), Ibn Kathir rah. has reported onthe authority of As-Sabt say,

قالالسبط:وقدكان كابن عنين في ثلب المسلمين والوقيعةفيهم، ويتزيد في كلامه فترك الناس الروايةعنه وكذبوه

(البدايةوالنهاية -13 / 169دارإحياء التراث العربي)

IbnUnain (Ibn Dihya) used to insult the Muslims and vilify them. Hewould make additions in his report and exaggerate. The people stoppednarrating traditions from him and falsified him. (Al-Bidaya waal-Nihaya, 3/144-146)

IbnHajar Al-Asqalani rah. also has commented on Ibn Unain (Ibn Dihya),

وكانظاهري المذهب كثير الوقيعة في الأئمة وفيالسلف من العلماء خبيث اللسان أحمق شديدالكبر قليل النظر في أمور الدين متهاونا

(لسانالميزان -4 / 296مؤسسةالأعلمي للمطبوعات � بيروت)

Hewas a follower of the Zahiri school of thought and often slanderedthe scholars and the scholars of the past. He possessed an eviltongue and was stupid, self-conceited, lacked insight in religiousmatters, and looked down upon religion. (Lisan al-Mizan, 4/296)

Thecompanions loved the Prophet صلىالله عليه و سلم themost yet they did not celebrate the mawlid. They remained alive afterhim for about a century, but despite their unparalleled and profoundlove towards the Holy Prophet صلىالله عليه و سلم ,they never celebrated his birthday. If the mawlid was a meritoriousand divinely inspired act, then surely Rasulullah would havecommanded the Ummah to celebrate it, or at least, either he or hisnoble Companions would have practiced on it. Since it cannot besubstantiated by any action of theirs, it becomes crystal clear thatcelebrating the mawlid has absolutely no relationship with Islam andit is Bidaah (innovation).

Therefor, this will be bidaah hasanah and it is permissible if thegatherings are conducted at a random in which the love of Nabi صلىالله عليه و سلم isdiscussed and people are encouraged to follow the Sunnah, as longnothing againts syariah like music, intermingling between man andwoman which non-mahram, omiting compulsory prayers etc was having insuch gatherings..

Thisruling is derived from the following narration of Saheeh Al-Bukhariand Saheeh Muslim,

- حدثناعمرو الناقد وإسحاق بن إبراهيم وابن أبىعمر كلهم عن سفيان قال عمرو حدثنا سفيانبن عيينة عن الزهرى عن سعيد عن أبى هريرةأن عمر مر بحسان وهو ينشد الشعر فى المسجدفلحظ إليه فقال قد كنت أنشد وفيه من (هوخير منك.(متفقعليه

AbuHurairah r.a narrates, Umar r.a once passed by Hassan r.a who wassaying poetry in the Masjid. He glanced angrily towards Hassan r.a.Hassan r.a responded, I used to say poetry and in the Masjid thereused to be one who is greater than you (meaning Nabi صلىالله عليه و سلم).(Bukhari and Muslim)

Asstated by al-Sayyid Muhammad al-Maliki in his Fatwa Hawl al-Ihtifalbi Dhikra al-Mawlid al-Nabawi al-Sharif_ (10th ed. p. 15): "Thefirst to observe the celebration of the Mawlid was the Prophet s.a.whimself by fasting on Mondays because it was the day of his birth asnarrated in Sahih Muslim. This is the soundest and most explicittextual proof for the licitness of commemorating the Noble PropheticMawlid." )

-حدثنايعقوب بن إبراهيم قال حدثنا ابن علية عنعبد العزيز بن صهيب عن أنس عن النبي صلىالله عليه و سلم (ح). وحدثناآدم قال حدثنا شعبة عن قتادة عن أنس قالقال النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم :( لايؤمن أحدكم حتى أكون أحب إليه من والدهوولده والناس أجمعين

Noneof you truly believes until I am more beloved to him than his father,his children and mankind in its entirety. (Bukhari 1/14 and Muslim1/49)

Karamah, miracles among Salaf

2012-01-27T23:47:00.000+01:00

1- A'isha (R.Anha) seeing Jibrael (AS); Dalail An-Nubuwwah, Abu Nu'aym(pg 182). Ibn Sa'ad (Vol 4 pg 250) has reported a similar narration.(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

2- Jibrael (AS) consoles an Ansari Sahabi; Bazzaar and Tabraani,reporting from reliable sources as confirmed by Haythami (Vol.10Pg.41). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

3- Abdullah bin Abbas (RA) sees Jibrael (AS) whispering to Rasulullah s.a.w.Ahmad and Tabraani, reporting from reliable sources as confirmed byHaythami (Vol.9 Pg.276). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

4- An angel teaches a Dua to Irbadh bin Sariyah (RA); Tabraani,Haythami (Vol 10 Pg. 184) has commented on the chain of narrators.(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

5- Angels greet and shake hands with Imran bin Husain (RA); Haakim(Vol.3 Pg.472), Ibn Sa'd (Vol.4 Pg.289), Ibn sa'd (Vol.4 Pg.288).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

6- Salman (RA) asks angel of death to be gentle with him and the angelreplies; Abu Nu'aym in his Hilya (Vol.1 Pg.204). (Hayatu Sahaba –M.Yusuf rah.)

7- Ubai ibn Ka'b (RA) hears Jibrael (AS) speaking; Ibn Abi Dunya inhis Kitaab udh Dhikr, as quoted in Targheeb wat Tarheeb (Vol.3Pg.101) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

8- An Angel speaks on the tongue of Abu Mafazzir (RA); lbn Jareer(Vol.3 Pg.118). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

9- The palace of Heraclius shakes with the Takbeer of Sahabah; Haakim,as quoted in the Tafseer of ibn Katheer (Vol.2 Pg.251). The author ofKanzul Ummaal has reported the narration (Vol.5 Pg.322) from Bayhaqiand quotes from ibn Katheer that the chain of narrators is sound. AbuNu'aym has reported a similar narration in his Dalaa'il (Pg 9).Similar narration quoted from Bayhaqi in Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah(Vol.6 Pg.63). Bukhaari has also reported a similar narration brieflyin his Taareekh. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

10- The city of Hims shakes with the Takbeer of Sahabah; Ibn Jareer(Vol.3 Pg.97). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

11- 'Umar (RA) watches the condition of Muslim army led by Sariyah (RA)at a distant place and calls out to him; Ibn Mardway, as quoted InIsaabah (Vol.2 Pg.3). Abu Nu'aym in his Dalaa'il (Pg 210, 211) andAbu Abdur Rahmaan Sulami in his Arba'een have reported a similarnarration. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

12- The voice of Abu Qirsaafah (RA) reaches his son who was captured bythe Romans; Tabraani, reporting from reliable sources as confirmed byHaythami (Vol.9 Pg.396) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

13- Abu Musa Ash'ari (RA) hears unseen voices; Haakim (Vol.3 Pg.467).Abu Nu'aym in his Hilya (Vol.1 Pg.260). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

14- People hear a voice reciting Qur'an from the body and grave ofAbdullah bin Abbas (RA) when he passed away; Haakim (Vol.3 Pg.543).Tabraani has reported a similar narration from reliable sources asconfirmed by Haythami (Vol.9 Pg.285). One of his narrations statethat the bird was a crane, Abu Nu'aym in his Hilya (Vol. 1 Pg.329),Ibn Asaakir, as quoted in Muntakhab Kanzul Ummal (Vol.5 Pg.230).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

15- A group of Muslims who lost their way are guided by a Jinn; AbuNu'aym in his Dalaa'il (Pg. 128) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

16- Abu Dharr (RA) hears the Tasbeeh of some pebbles; Bayhaqi, asquoted in Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 pg. 132). Abu Nu'aym hasreported a similar narration in his Dalaa'il (Pg.215) (Hayatu Sahaba– M.Yusuf rah.)

17- Abdullah bin Mas'ood (RA) hears the Tasbeeh of food; Bukhaari,Tirmidhi has reported a similar narration, as quoted in Al Bidaayahwan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.97). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

18- Doorstep and walls say Ameen on d'ua; Tabraani, Bayhaqi, Abu Nu'aymIn his Dalaa'il and Ibn Maajah. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

19- Sahabah hear the sobbing of the tree trunk; Bukhaari, as quoted InAl Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.127). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

20- Salman (RA) and Abu Dardaa (RA) hear the tasbeeh of the food. Thepot falls down, topples over, but no food is spilled; Abu Nu'aym inhis Hilya (Vol.1 Pg.224) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

21- Abdullah bin 'Amr (RA) hears the fire speaking; Abu Nu'aym in hisHilya (Vol.1 Pg.289) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

22- 'Umar (RA) speaks to a grave and hears the reply; Haakim, as quotedin Kanzul Ummaal (Vol. I Pg.267). Ibn Asaakir has reported a similarnarration, as quoted in the Tafseer of Ibn Katheer (Vol.2 Pg.279).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

23- 'Umar (RA) hears the speech of people buried in Baqi'; Ibn AblDunya and Ibn Sam'aani, as quoted in Kanzul Ummaal (Vol.8 Pg. 123)(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

24- Abdullah bin Umar (RA) sees Abu Jahl being punished in grave;Tabraani, Haythami (Vol.6 Pg.81) has commented on the chain ofnarrators. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

25- Zaid bin Khaarija (RA) speaks after his death; Bayhaqi, reportingfrom reliable sources, as quoted In Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6Pg.156), Ibn Abi Dunya and Bayhaqi have also reported a more detailednarration, as quoted in Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.293).Tabraani In his Kabeer and Awsat, reporting from reliable sources asconfirmed by Haythami (Vol.5 Pg.180). Ibn Mandah and Abu Nu'aym havereported a similar narration, as quoted in isaabah (Vol.2 Pg 24).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

26- A Woman prays and his son comes back to life after his death; IbnAbi Dunya, Bayhaqi, as quoted in Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.154 & 259). Abu Nu'aym has reported a similar narration in hisDalaa'il (Pg.224). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

27- Sand taken from Sa'd bin Mu'adh (RA)'s grave turns to Musk; AbuNu'aym in his Ma'rifa. as quoted in Kanzul Ummaal (Vol.7 Pg.41). lbnSa'd (Vol. 3 pg. 431) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

28- Amir bin Fuhairah (RA)'s body is lifted to the sky and Sahabahwatch it; Bukhaari. Bayhaqi has reported a similar narration, as hasAbu Nu'aym in his Hilya (Vol.1 Pg.110) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

29- Safeenah (RA) speaks to a Lion; Haakim (Vol 3 Pg.606), reportingfrom reliable sources as confirmed by Dhahabi. Bukhaari has reporteda similar narration in his Taareekh (Vol.2 Pg.179), as had Abu Nu'aymin his Hilya (Vol. I Pg.369) and his Dalaa'il (Pg.212). Ibn Mandahhas also reporled it, as quoted in Al Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.5Pg.316) and so has Tabraani, as quoted in Majma'uz Zawaa'id (Vol.9Pg.366). Bazzaar and Tabraani, reporting from reliable sources asconfirmed by Haythami (Vol.9 Pg.367). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

30- A lion is submissive to Abdullah bin Umar (RA); Ibn Asaakir, asquoted In Kanzul Ummaal (Vol.7 Pg.59) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

31- Auf bin Malik (RA) speaks to a lion; Tabraani, Haythami (Vol.9Pg.357) has commented on the chain of narrators. (Hayatu Sahaba –M.Yusuf rah.)

32- A wolf speaks to a shepherd; Ahmad and Tirmidhi, reporting fromreliable sources as confirmed by Bayhaqi and quoted in Al Bidaayahwan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg 143). Ahmad, Bayhaqi, Haakim and Abu Nu'aymhave also reported similar narrations, as quoted in detail in AlBidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol 6 Pg.144,145). Ibn Wahab, as quoted in AlBidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.146). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

33- River Nile is made subservient to Umar (RA); Ibn Abdul Hakam in hisFutuh Misr, Abu Sheikh in his Adhmah and Ibn Asaakir, as quoted inMuntakhab Kanzul Ummaal (V01.4 Pg.380). Laalkaa'ee has reported asimilar narration, as quoted In the Tafseer of Ibn Katheer (Vol.3Pg.464). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

34- The ocean obeys the command of Abu Rayhaana (RA); Ibraheem binJunayd in his Kitaabul Awliyaa, as quoted In Isaabah (Vol.2 Pg 157).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

35- Alaa bin Hadhrami (RA) and his companions cross the sea on foot andriding on animals; Abu Nu'aym in his Hilya (Pg.207), Bayhaqi, Bukhariin his Tareekh. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

36- Sa'd (RA) and his companions cross the river Tigris on foot and onanimals; Abu Nu'aym in his Dalaa'il (Pg.208). The narration is alsoreported in the Taareekh of Tabari (Vol.3 Pg 119) and in Al Bidaayahwan Nihaayah (Vol.7 Pg.64). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

37- Fire obeys Tameem Dari (RA); Abu Nu'aym in his Dalaa'il (Pg.212).Bayhaqi has reported a similar narration, as quoted in Al Bidaayahwan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.153), Baghawi, as in isaabah (Vol3 Pg.497).(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

38- Light appears for Qataadah bin Numan (RA) from a branch; Ahmad andBazzaar, reporting from reliable sources as confirmed by Haythami(Vol.2 Pg.167). Tabraani, reporting from reliable sources asconfirmed by Haythami (Vol.2 Pg.40). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

39- Light appears for Usayd bin Hudhair and Abbad bin Bishr (RA)showing them the way; Bukhaari. (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

40- Light appears from the fingers of Hamzah bin Amr Aslami (RA);Bukhaari in his Taareekh, Bayhaqi and Tabraani, as quoted in AlBidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.152) and (Vol.8 Pg.213). Tabraani hasreported from reliable sources, as confirmed by Haythami (Vol.9Pg.411). Abu Nu'aym has also reported the narration in his Dalaa'il(Pg.206). lbn Sa'd (Vol.4 Pg.315). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

41- Light appears from the staff of Abu Abs (RA); Bayhaqi, as quoted inAl Bidaayah wan Nihaayah (Vol.6 Pg.152). Abu Nu'aym has reported asimilar narration In his Dalaa'il (Pg.205), as has Haakim (Vol.3Pg.350). Isaabsh (Vol.4 Pg. 130). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

42- The whip of Tufayl bin Amr Dawsi (RA) lights up; Ibn Mandah and IbnAsaakir, as quoted in Kanzul Ummaal (Vol.7 Pg.78) (Hayatu Sahaba –M.Yusuf rah.)

43- A cloud shades 'Amr bin Abasa (RA) wherever he goes; Abu Nu'aym, asquoted in lsaabah (Vo1.3 Pg.6). (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusufrah.)

44- Umm Ayman (RA) drinks water from a bucket suspended from the sky;Ibn Sa'd (Vol.8 Pg.224) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

45- Water in the well increases after Husain bin 'Ali (RA) gargled withit's water and returns it to the well; Ibn Sa'd (Vol.5 Pg.144)(Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

46- Khubayb (RA) receives grapes from unseen source; Ibn Ishaaq, asquoted in Isaabah (Vol. 1 Pg.419) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

47- Rasulullah s.a.w gives water for drinking to 'Uthman (RA) when hewas in house arrest; Ibn Abi Dunya, as quoted in Al Bidaayah wanNihaayah (Vol.7 Pg.182) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

48- A rat gives 17 Dinars to Miqdad bin Aswad (RA); Abu Nu'aym in hisDalaa'il (Pg 165) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

49- A branch turn into a sword for Ukaasha bin Mihsin (RA); Ibn Sa'd(Vol.1 Pg.188) (Hayatu Sahaba – M.Yusuf rah.)

50- Seeking Allah's help through the agency of Rasulullah s.a.w hairs;Tabraani and Abu Ya'la, reporting from reliable sources as confirmedby Haythami (Vol.9 Pg.349). Haakim (Vol.3 Pg.299) has reported asimilar narration, as has Abu Nu'aym in his Dalaa'il (Pg. I59). AbuNu'aym, as quoted In Kanzul Ummal (Vol.7 Pg.31).

51- Ibn Mas'ud (RA) narrated: "A man from among the humans wentout and was met by a man from among the jinn, who said: "Willyou wrestle with me? If you throw me to the ground, I will teach youan verse which, if you recite it when you enter your house, no devilwill enter." So, he wrestled with him and threw him to theground. He said: "I see that you are very small and yourforearms are like the front paws of a dog. Are all the jinn like thisor only you?" He said: "I am strong amongst them. Let uswrestle again." So, they wrestled again and the human threw himto the ground. So, the jinn said: "Recite Ayat al-Kursi, for noone recites it when he enters his house except that Satan leaves,passing wind like a donkey.""

It was said to IbnMas'ud (RA): "Was that man 'Umar?"

He said: "Whoelse could it have been, other than 'Umar?"

['Majma'az-Zawa'id'; 9/71, and it is authentic]

52 - Sa'id binal-Musayyib narrated:

"Zayd bin Kharijah al-Ansari (RA)died during the reign of 'Uthman bin 'Affan (RA). When he was wrappedin a shroud and being prepared for burial, a gurgling sound was heardcoming from his chest, then Zayd got up and said: "Ahmad! Ahmad!He is in the first Book! Abu Bakr has spoken the truth! 'Umar hasspoken the truth! 'Uthman has spoken the truth!""

['al-Bidayahwan-Nihayah'; 6/293; and it is authentic]

Sa'id then said:

"Then, another man died shortly thereafter. When he waswrapped in a shroud and being prepared for burial, a gurgling soundwas heard coming from his chest. The man then got up and said: "Zaydbin Kharijah has spoken the truth!""

['Majma'az-Zawa'id'; 8/230, and it is authentic]

53- A'ishah r.anha narrated: "When he was on his deathbed, myfather said to me: "Verily, you have two brothers and twosisters." So, I became startled at this, as I only had twobrothers and one sister. He referred to his then-pregnant wife, BintKharijah, saying: "I see that she is pregnant with a girl,"and that turned out to be exactly the case."

[Reported byash-Shatibi in 'al-Muwafaqat' (4/85), and Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned itin 'Majmu' al-Fatawa' (11/318)]

54 - The Romans imprisoneda son of the Companion, Abu Qurfasah (RA). So, whenever it was timefor prayer, Abu Qurfasah would climb the wall of 'Asqalan (in Syria)and call out: "O, son! It is time to pray!" And, his sonwould hear him all the way from the land of the Romans."

['Majma'az-Zawa'id' (9/396), and it is authentic]

55 - Ibn'Abbas (RA) died in at-Ta'if, and a bird, the likes of which hadnever been seen before, was seen at his funeral. The bird entered thehole in the ground where Ibn 'Abbas was to be buried. So, we lookedand waited to see if it would come out, and it didn't. When his bodywas finally placed in the ground, we could hear the verse {"O,the one in rest and satisfaction! Come back to your Lord,Well-pleased and well-pleasing!"} [al-Fajr; 27-8] being recitedfrom the edge of his grave, but we were unable to find out who hadrecited it."

[Reported by al-Hakim in 'al-Mustadrak'(3/543), and it is authentic]

56 - When the bodiesof the martyrs of Uhud were being relocated forty years after theirburial (during the reign of Mu'awiyah), the foot of Hamzah bin 'Abdal-Muttalib (RA) was scratched in the process of being moved, and itstarted gushing blood."

['al-Bidayah wan-Nihayah'; 4/43,and it is authentic]

57 - Abu Hurayrah (RA)narrated:

"al-'Ala' al-Hadrami (RA) supplicated for rain,and it then began to rain in the middle of the desert. In anotherincident, he supplicated, and we were able to walk over the water inthe Arabian Peninsula (near Bahrain), without even the bottom of ourfeet getting wet. When he died, we buried him, and after a while, weopened up his grave to find that he was not there."

['Majma'az-Zawa'id'; 9/276]

58 - When Sa'd (RA) and the Muslimarmy arrived at the Tigris River during the battle of Qadisiyyah,Salman (RA) stopped and said: "A river from the rivers of Allah.Will it not carry the soldiers of Allah?" So, he took Sa'd (RA)by the hand and stepped onto the water, leading all 30,000 soldiersacross the Tigris River on foot. The Persians saw this and escaped,saying: "The demons have arrived! The demons havearrived!""

[Reported by at-Tabari in 'at-Tarikh'(3/123), and Ibn Kathir in 'al-Bidayah wan-Nihayah' (7/64)]

59- Khayshamah (RA) narrated:

"Khalid bin al-Walid (RA)came to a man carrying a jug of alcohol, so, he said: "O Allah!Turn it into honey!" So, it turned into honey."

[Reportedby Ibn Hajar in 'al-Isabah fi Ma'rifat as-Sahabah'; p. 414]

...andthese were collected from various other sources (Ibn al-Jawzi's'Sifat as-Safwah,' Ibn Taymiyyah's 'al-Furqan,' adh-Dhahabi's'Siyar,' etc.):

60 – Usayd bin Hudayr (RA)narrated:...that while he was reciting 'al-Baqarah' at night, and hishorse was tied beside him, the horse was suddenly startled andtroubled. When he stopped reciting, the horse became quiet, and whenhe started again, the horse was startled again. Then, he stoppedreciting, and the horse became quiet, too. He started reciting again,and the horse was startled and troubled once again. Then, he stoppedreciting, and his son, Yahya, was beside the horse. He was afraidthat the horse might trample him. When he took the boy away andlooked towards the sky, he could not see it.

The next morninghe informed the Prophet who said: "Recite, O Ibn Hudayr! Recite,O Ibn Hudayr!" Ibn Hudayr replied: "O Messenger of Allah!My son, Yahya, was near the horse, and I was afraid that it mighttrample him, so, I looked towards the sky, and went to him. When Ilooked at the sky, I saw something like a cloud containing whatlooked like lamps, and I went out in order not to see it." TheProphet said: "Do you know what that was?" Ibn Hudayrreplied: "No." The Prophet said: "Those were Angelswho came near you for your voice, and if you had kept on recitingtill dawn, it would have remained there till morning for the peopleto have seen it, as it would not have disappeared."

['Sahihal-Bukhari'; # 5018]

61 – Adh Dhabi (RA) reported:Salman al-Farisi (RA) and Abu ad-Darda' (RA) were eating out of adish. Suddenly, the dish - or what was in the dish - began to say'Subhan Allah.'"

['Siyar A'lam an-Nubala''; 2/348]

62– Anas bin Malik (RA) narrated: One night, 'Ubad bin Bishr (RA) andUsayd bin Hudayr (RA) left the residence of the Prophet on a verydark night. Suddenly, a light appeared that lit their way for them.When they parted ways, the light disappeared."

['Sahihal-Bukhari' (3805), the 'Musnad' of Ahmad (3/138), 'al-Mustadrak' ofal-Hakim (3/288), and 'Siyar A'lam an-Nubala'' (1/299)]

63– Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated:...that Bint al-Harith said, whenKhubayb bin 'Udayy (RA) was a prisoner of the Quraysh in Makkah:"...By Allah, one day, I saw him eating from a bunch of grapesin his hand while he was locked in a steel cage, and there were nocrops growing in Makkah at the time."

['Sahih al-Bukhari'(3045, 3889, 4086, 7402) and 'Siyar A'lam an-Nubala'' (1/249)]

64– Urwah bin Zubair (RA) narrated: When 'Amir bin Fuhayrah (RA) wasmartyred, 'Amir bin at-Tufayl (RA) saw his body being lifted into theair. We considered that these were the Angels liftinghim."

['al-Isabah fi Ma'rifat as-Sahabah'; 4/247]

65– Umm Ayman (R.Anha) narrated: "When I was making hijrah, andhad no supplied or water with me, I was about to die of thirst. I wasfasting, and when it was time to break my fast, I heard a noise abovemy head. So, I looked up, and saw a waterskin hanging above my head.I drank from it until I had quenched my thirst, and I was neverthirsty again for the rest of my life."

[''Siyar A'laman-Nubala'' (2/224), 'at-Tabaqat' of Ibn Sa'd (/224), and 'al-Isabah'(4/415)]

66 – Ibn Hajar rah. narraed:...that whenaz-Zanayrah (R.Anha) was tortured by the mushrikin so that she wouldrenounce her Islam, her eyesight was taken away. So, the mushrikinsaid: "al-Lat and al-'Uzza took away her eyesight!" So, shesaid: "No, by Allah!" So, her eyesight wasreturned.

['al-Isabah fi Ma'rifat as-Sahabah'; 4/305]

Salafi Allegations Against Fazail E Amaal refuted

2012-01-16T08:19:00.000+01:00

All praise is due to Allah Ta’ala who through his infinite mercy and wisdom revealed the glorious Qur’aan for the guidance of mankind. Peace and salutations be showered on Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) who was sent as a practical example of eternal success in this world as well as the hereafter.

It was always the system of Allah Ta’ala that he had chosen his special slaves in every era for the protection, spreading and upliftment of his Deen. Whilst the forces of Baatil (falsehood) would strive to mislead people, Allah Ta’ala chose the great Muhadditheen, Mufassireen and Ulama who would make an all out effort to shun away the evil of such misleading people. It is no surprise that even in our present day and age, there are many such people whose sole purpose and object is to confuse, complicate and puzzle the minds of the ordinary masses. They will make big claims and call themselves whatever they wish to, but alas! Their aim and target is to corrupt the beliefs of people, so as to leave them in utter bewilderment. Such beliefs which have been clearly and explicitly expounded by Allah Ta’ala in the Qur’aan and which have been explained to us in the Ahaadith by Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam), but alas! Not only do they deny such beliefs, instead they wish to brainwash the minds of others to fall into the trap that they have been mislead into (may Allah Ta’ala guide and save us all, Aameen)

With regards to the specific question under discussion, there seems to have stemmed up a group of people who are trying to mislead everyone into believing that the book Fadhaail-e-Aamal entails ‘baseless stories’ and ‘corrupted beliefs’. Written by a great renown researched scholar and luminary of our recent times, this is not just an attack on the book itself, but more on us as Muslims and our beliefs.

In the relevant question at hand, the objector has extracted 4 quotations from the Kitaab, Fadhaail-e-Aamal. Thereafter, the objector, in essence has trounced upon 3 major beliefs, i.e. a) The existence of Abdaals, b) The reality of Kashf or Ilhaam, c) The inhabitants of the grave possessing the ability to see and hear the living. The objector wishes to deceive the public into believing that these are baseless and corrupt beliefs and it is hence deduced there from that Fadhaail-e-Aamal promotes misguidance and deviant stories.

Hereunder, we will discuss each one of these 3 beliefs in detail with proofs from the Qur’aan, Hadith and other sources to prove that these are beliefs which have been clearly expounded and supported by the Qur’aan, Hadith and the great Ulama and Muhadditheen.

We would also expose the fact that many such incidents and quotations have been recorded by other illustrious scholars so as to prove that it was due to ignorance that these objections were made. An Arabic proverb states, ‘A man always opposes something which he is ignorant of.’

THE EXISTENCE AND ABILITIES OF THE ABDAAL

After quoting an extract from the book, Fadhaail-e-Aamaal, the objector states:

‘Note: The Deobandi translator of Ikhmaalush Shiyaam defines Abdaal saying, Abdaal are a class of Awliyaa whose identities remain concealed. They possess miraculous powers and execute a variety of tasks under Divine command in various places of the world.’ (Ikhmaalush shiyaam Eng Trans p.59)”

The Writer in his ‘note’ here, has quoted the definition of the Abdaal and thereafter refuted it by saying the words, ‘Astaghfirullah’.

After realising his ignorance, perhaps, he should repeat the Istighfaar. The presence of the Abdaal, their extraordinary qualities and powers that Almighty Allah has availed to them is a fact that has been proven through various Ahaadith.

Hafiz Suyooti (RA) has written a complete treatise regarding this topic in which he mentions, “There are several narrations regarding them. Among those are the narrations of: 1) Sayyiduna Umar ibn al-Khattaab, 2) Sayyiduna Ali, 3) Sayyiduna Hudhayfa, 4) Sayyiduna Anas, 5) Sayyiduna Ubaadah ibn Saamit, 6) Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbas, 7) Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Umar, 8) Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Mas’ood, 9) Sayyiduna Awf ibn Maalik, 10) Sayyiduna Mu’aadh ibn Jabal, 11) Sayyiduna Waathila ibn al-Asqaa, 12) Sayyiduna Abu-Sa’eed al-Khudriy, 13) Sayyiduna Abu Hurayra, 14) Sayyiduna Abud-Dardaa, 15) Sayyidatuna Umm Salmah (Radhiallaahu Anhum ajma’ee) and many others which are impossible to be enumerated.” (al-Khabaru Daal vol.2 pg.455 of al-Haawi)

In fact, Hafiz Suyooti (RA) and others have accepted that the narrations concerning the Abdaal have reached the status of Tawaatur (highest form of authenticity). (refer Nazmul Mutanaathir minal hadithil mutaawatir pgs.231-232)

Hafiz ibn Hajar (RA) and others have also accepted the authenticity of some of the narrations in which the Abdaal are mentioned.

From the abovementioned narrations, the Hadith of Sayyiduna Anas (Radhiallaahu Anhu) has been classified as Hasan (sound) by Haafiz al-Haythami, the Hadith of Sayyiduna Ubaadah ibn Saamit (Radhiallaahu Anhu) and the Hadith of Sayyiduna ibn Abbaas (Radhiallaahu Anhu) has been classified as Sahih (authentic) by Haafiz ibn Arraaq (RA), the Hadith of Awf ibn Maalik (Radhiallaahu Anhu) has been classified as Hasan (sound) by Hafiz ibn Arraaq. (Tanzihus-Sharee’ah vol.2 pg.307) and the Hadith of Sayyiduna Ali is Hasan (sound) according to Allaamah Suyuti (RA). (Al-la’aaliy vol.2 pg.332) and Hafiz Sakhaawi (RA) has regarded all its narrators as reliable. (al-Maqaasidul Hasanah pg.28)

The following is a list of some of those illustrious Ulama and Muhadditheen that were regarded to be Abdaals, by the scholars of the classical times: 1) Imaam Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Abi Haatim (Muqaddamah ibnus-salaah pg.421), 2) Imaam Abu-Muslim al-Khawlaaniy (Al-Jaami of Khaatib Baghdadi pg.382), 3) Imaam Shaafi’ee (Al-Maqaasidul Hasanah pg.28 and Taarikh Dimishq), 4) Yazeed ibn al-Aswad (Taarikh Dimishq vol.6 pg.112), 5) Imaam Jaabir ibn Marzooq (al-Aadaab of Imaam Bayhaqi pg.326 – Hadith985),

6) al-Qa’anabiy, 7) Hammaad ibn Salamah (Tahzeeb of Haafiz ibn Hajar vol.3 pg.13; Hadith1767), 8) Abdullah ibn Mubaarak (Tahzeeb of ibn Hajar)

From the abovementioned facts, it is firstly apparent that the existence of Abdaals are authentically proven by various illustrious Ulama, let alone in the numerous Ahaadith. Secondly, like the existence of the sun during broad daylight, similar is the case here with the Abdaals. However, this does not mean that these Abdaals are equal to the prophets (Alayhis salaam) as deduced by the objector from the story. The objector states:

‘This story makes this so called Abdaal equal to prophet Moosa (Alayhis salaam) and our messenger Muhammad (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) who spoke directly to Allah.’

First of all, to be common in one aspect does not necessitate equality in everything. If a person dresses like a prophet, does this make both of them equal? Did any of the prophets fly planes? Today, so many people can fly planes. Does this make them better or more knowledgeable than the prophets? Secondly, there is a world of difference between the Abdaals and the prophets (Alayhis salaam) in this very same action of speaking directly to Allah Ta’ala. The manner in which the prophets (Alayhis salaam) speak to Allah Ta’ala is far much different from the one that is between the Abdaals and Allah Ta’ala. In fact, in the holy Qur’aan, Allah Ta’ala states, ‘And your Lord said to the Ant ….’ Would any person in his sane mind even dare to irrationally claim that this ant is equal to any of the messengers of Allah Ta’ala?

The details of this will be explained under the discussion of Kashf and Ilhaam.

In order to finally close the door on this discussion with regards to the Abdaal, we will suffice on quoting just one Hadith which will befittingly smash these objections into smitherings.

KASHF AND ILHAAM

The second belief which the objector has trounced upon is that of Kashf and Ilhaam. Kashf refers to divine manifestation whilst Ilhaam means a divine inspiration. These are two powers given by Allah Ta’ala to whosoever he desires. This is not within the capacity, ability or choice of any individual. This deviant group of people have trounced the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam claiming that knowledge of the unseen and of future events is something that can only be attributed to Allah Ta’ala Alone, not acknowledging the fact that sometimes, Allah Ta’ala can give certain of his special servants the power of foretelling and foreseeing some future events.

After quoting a story from the book, Fadhaail-e-Aamal, the objector and his group of followers state:

‘In this deviant story, the knowledge of the conditions of paradise and hell-fire and the knowledge of future events is claimed for the so-called ‘man of Kashf’. He is also aware of the matters between Allah and His slaves and therefore shows gratitude to Sheikh Qurtubi, even though Sheikh Qurtubi did it so secretly that nobody could know it, except the Almighty Allah.’

Hereunder, we will not only prove that the belief of Kash and Ilhaam and incidents of such nature appear in various other renown books (besides Fadhaail-e-Aamaal), but we shall also manifest that such incidents were experienced by many great people of the past proving it to be a reality that cannot be denied, but we will first establish the fact that this concept has been expounded clearly in Qur’aan and Hadith.

Allah Ta’ala says in the Qur’aan, ‘(Allah Ta’ala is) the All-Knower of the unseen and he reveals not to anybody of his unseen. Except to a messenger whom he has chosen, then he makes a band of watching guards (angels) to march before him and behind him.’ (Surah Jinn Aayat27)

We will now look at a brief study of how this verse has been interpreted by the vast majority of renown Mufassireen. Almost all commentators of Qur’aan have supported, included and explained the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam under this verse.

1) Shaykh Allaamah Muhammad Fakhruddeen al-Raazi (RA), a renown scholar and commentator of the 6^th century states in his famous ‘Tafseer Kabeer’ that this verse has a special and specific meaning. However, he does not deny the belief of Ilhaam. In fact, he openly promotes it where he states, ‘It must be carefully known that this verse does not mean that nobody else besides the prophet (Alayhis salaam) are given knowledge of the unseen. This can be supported from various realities (from amongst these realities, one of them as quoted by him is) we see this in the true Ilhaam of the Awliyaa (RA).’ (Tafseer Kabeer vol.15 pg.170; Darul Fikr)

Yet, under another verse of the Qur’aan, this very same great Mufassir clearly explains that ‘the meaning of angels befriending the believers is this that the angels cause Ta’seeraat (inspirations) in the souls of these (chosen) believers through Ilhaam and Kashf.’ Thereafter, he explicitly mentions that ‘this is a well known fact experienced by people of Kashf and Mushaahadaat.’ (Tafseer Kabeer vol.14 pg.124)

2) Allaamah Alauddin Ali ibn Muhammad Baghdaadiy (RA), yet another known commentator of the seventh century openly declares in his Tafseer Khaazin under the above mentioned verse: ‘It is the belief of the Ahlus sunnah Wal Jamaa that the miracles of Awliyaa (RA) are an established reality as opposed to by the Mu’tazila and that this is Jaaiz and possible. It is permissible and possible for Allah Ta’ala to give Ilhaam (inspire) to some of his Awliyaa about some future events.’ (Khaazin vol.4 pg.319; Fikr)

3) Shaykh Abul Hasan Ibraahim ibn Umar al-Biqaa’ee, a scholar and commentator of the eighth century and a student of Hafiz ibn Hajar al-Asqalaani (RA) interprets the relevant verse in his ‘Tafseer Nazmud-Durar’ as follows: ‘(knowledge of the unseen) is taken by an angel and given to whomsoever the angel has been permitted (to by Allah Ta’ala). Sometimes, in the form of Wahy (divine revelation) to the prophets (Alayhis salaam) and sometimes in the form of inspiration and Ilhaam to the Awliyaa.’ (Nazmud-Durar vol.8 pg.199; Ilmiya)

4) In the Tafseer of Muhyuddin Shaikhzaada which is an explanation to the famous and reknown ‘Tafseer Baydhaawi’. Allaamah Muhammad ibn Muslihuddeen Hanafi, a scholar of the ninth century writes, ‘The fact that this verse refers to Allah Ta’ala informing his chosen prophets (Alayhis salaam) of some of the unseen without the intervening of any angel does not deny Allah Ta’ala’s inspiring to the Awliyaa with regards to some of the unseen by means of Ilhaam.’ (Haashiya Shaykh Zadah vol.8 pg.371; Ilmiyah)

The above mentioned commentaries thus far and including the one given hereunder also refute the objectors claim where, after quoting another story from Fadhaail-e-Aamal, he states:

‘The deviant story promotes that the false belief that someone can receive knowledge directly from Allah without the mediation of the messenger (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) and to receive knowledge from is something specific to the messengers.’

5) Allaamah Ahmad ibn Muhammad Saawi Maaliki, a commentator of the twelfth century, states in his famous and most widely accept Tafseer ‘Haashiyatus-Saawi’, an explanation to the great Tafseer Jalaalayn, ‘This verse does not defy the miracles performed by the Awliyaa through the power of Kashf. This verse relates to Allah Ta’ala’s informing the prophets through Wahy. This in turn (Wahy) is far more stronger than Allah Ta’ala’s informing his Awliyaa through Ilhaam.’ (Haashiyatus Saawi vol.6 pg.185; Ilmiyah)

6) And, if per chance the above mentioned commentaries happen to coincidentally seem ‘strange’, rare and unknown then who can deny the popularity of ‘Roohul Ma’aani’? Allaamah Sayyid Mahmood Aaloosi Baghdaadi (RA) renown Mufassir of the twelfth century clearly states that ‘this verse does not contradict miracles of the Awliyaa (RA) which take place by an angel inspiring knowledge of the unseen into the heart of the person.’ (Roohul Ma’ani vol.15 pg.108; Ilmiyah)

7) Qaadhi Shihaabuddin al-Khafaaji (RA), a commentator of the tenth century writes in his explanatory of Tafseer Baydhaawi named, ‘Hashiyatus-Shihaab’ under the verse wherein Allah Ta’ala says, ‘Allah will not disclose to you the secrets of the ghayb (unseen), but Allah chooses of his messengers whom he wishes.’ (Surah 3 Verse179)

He states, ‘Allah Ta’ala does not inform everyone but he chooses whomsoever he wishes and gives him knowledge of the unseen. This is one of the signs which can be achieved through Firaasat (keen and minute observation) and through divine inspiration (Ilhaam) for some people of Kashf.’ (Haashiyat-us-shihaab vol.3 pg.168; Ilmiyah)

These are 7 widely known and accepted commentaries of the Qur’aan written by great researchers and scholars. All of them unanimously support and establish the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam as can be clearly seen. We will now take a brief look at some Ahaadith of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) that support this belief.

- This Hadith appears in Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Tirmidhi and Nasaaie, hence, nobody may dare question its authenticity.

Hadhrat Abu Hurayra (Radhiallaahu Anhu) reports that Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) said, ‘Most certainly there existed amongst nations of the past such people who were Muhaddathoon’ (spoken to), if there had to be any such person in my nation, it certainly is Umar ibn Khattaab (Radhiallaahu Anhu).’ (Bukhari vol.1 pg.521 Qadeemi; Muslim vol.2 pg.276 Qadeemi; Tirmidhi vol.2 pg.210 Qadeemi)

The world needs no introduction to Allaamah Hafiz ibn Hajar al-Asqalaaniy (RA), neither can anybody deny the acceptance and popularity of his commentary ‘Fathul Baari’. Explaining the above Hadith and in particular the word ‘Muhaddathoon’, he writes,

‘There is a difference of opinion with regards to the interpretation of this word. Most scholars say it refers to Ilhaam. They further explain that it refers to such a person who is gifted with true and real thoughts. This means that such a person is inspired via the angels …’ (Fathul Bari vol.7 pg.62; Qadeemi)

In his commentary of Sahih Muslim, Imaam Nawawiy (RA) a world renown scholar of the past and present, states under the abovementioned Hadith:

‘There are different interpretations of this word ‘Muhaddathoon’. Ibn Wahb said it refers to Ilhaam. Some say it refers to such a person whose thinking is always correct. This means that when such a person thinks, it is as though somebody spoke to him, therefore, he thinks accordingly. Some say it means angels speak to them…’ (al-Minhaaj Sharh Nawawiy vol.15 pg.162; Hadith6154)

Imaam Tirmidhi (RA) after narrating the abovementioned Hadith quotes Sufyaan ibn Uyayna (RA) explaining the word ‘Muhaddathoon’ to mean ‘Mufahhamoon’ i.e. one who is made to understand. (Tirmidhi vol.2 pg.210; HM Saeed)

The author of the famous Tuhfatul Ahwazi, a commentary on Tirmidhi states under the abovementioned Hadith, ‘After concurring with the interpretation by Hafiz ibn Hajar (RA) as quoted earlier on’, he adds on further, ‘Some say it means that angels speak to such people. This can well be supported from a Hadith narrated by Abu Sa’eed Khudriy (Radhiallaahu Anhu) that Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) was asked, ‘How will such people (Muhaddathoon) be spoken to?’ he (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) replied, ‘Angels will speak from his tongue.’

It is clear from the abovementioned Hadith, looking at the various interpretations by worldly renown scholars that the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam is well established and that in particular, Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu), was bestowed with the power of Ilhaam by Allah Ta’ala.

We will now look at a few incidents during the glorious era of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) and the Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum). These incidents bear ample testimony to the fact that the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam is not only well established, but moreso it is a reality and that some Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum) were given these powers.

1) Hadhrat Abdullah ibn Abbaas (Radhiallaahu Anhu) narrates that once a Sahaabi (Radhiallaahu Anhu) pitched up his tent on top of a grave, not realising that it was a grave. All of a sudden, this Sahaabi (Radhiallaahu Anhu) began to hear the voice of an inhabitant of that grave reading Suratul Mulk until he completed the entire Surah. Thereupon, Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) replied ‘Suratul Mulk is a barrier, it is a protector from the punishment of the grave.’ (Tirmidhi vol.2 pg.117; HM Saeed)

The apparent meaning of this Hadith is that this Sahaabi (Radhiallaahu Anhu) was blessed by Allah Ta’ala with the power of Kashf through which he was able to hear the inhabitant of the grave.

2) Abdullah ibn Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) narrates that once on the day of Jumu’ah, whilst Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) was delivering the Khutbah, he (swerved off the topic and) suddenly said, ‘O Saariya! Hasten towards the mountain.’ He said this three times and then continued with the Khutbah. The people were confused and astonished at this. Later on, when he was asked as to what had transpired, he said, ‘I could see that the Muslim army was about to be defeated and at that time, they were walking past a mountain. If they had passed the mountain, the enemy would have defeated them but if they took to the mountain, they would have had one side covered and only one way to fight. So, I called out to the Ameer (leader) of the army (Saaiya) that they should take the mountain. After one month, the army returned victorious explaining that they had heard the words of Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) on that very same day clearly. In other narrations, Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) is reported to have said, ‘I saw the army fighting near the mountain…’ Another narration mentioned that the distance between Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) and the army was the distance of one month’s journey.’ (Dalaailun nubuwwah of Abu Nu’aym vol.2 pg.579; Darun-Nafaais)

Hafiz ibn Hajar (RA) and Hafiz ibn Katheer (RA) have regarded these narrations as authentic refer al-Isaabah vol.3 pg.5 and Hayaatus-Sahaabah vol.3 pg.562-564

The abovementioned incident is a clear proof of Kashf. It explicitly shows that Allah Ta’ala had blessed Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) with the power of Kashf through which he was able to see and visualise the battlefield from a distance as far as a month’s journey.

3) Hadhrat Abu Dawood Maazni (RA), who was a Sahabi, that participated in Badr says, ‘On the day of Badr, I was chasing one of the enemy to kill him when all of a sudden, his head fell off even before I could reach him. I then realised that someone else (angels) killed him.’ (Dalaailun-Nubuwwah of Abu Nu’aym vol.2 pg.472; Darun Nafaais)

4) Hadhrat Sahl ibn Sa’ad (Radhiallaahu Anhu) narrates that Abu Usayd (Radhiallaahu Anhu) said to him after he had lost his eyesight, ‘Had you been with me now at Badr, and Allah Ta’ala restored my sight, I will certainly show you the mountain pass from where the angels came out so clearly without any doubt.’ (Majmauz-zawaid vol.6 pg.84; Maktaba Qudsi)

5) Hadhrat Irbaadh ibn Saariya was an elderly Sahaabi and he reached a stage where he yearned for death. He used to make the following Du’aa, ‘O Allah, I am old, my bones are weak so take my soul away.’ Thereafter, one day whilst sitting in the Musjid in Damascus (he says) a very handsome young man appeared wearing green robes. He asked me why are you making such a Du’aa? I replied, ‘how should I make Du’aa?’ he said, ‘Say, O Allah, make me do good (and continue to do good) until the appointed time comes.’ I asked him, ‘Who are you?’ he replied, ‘I am Ribaa’eel (the angel) who removes grief from the hearts of the believers.’ (Majmauz-zawaid vol.10 pg.184; Maktaba Qudsi)

The above are just a few of the various incidents from the lives of the Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhu) from which we can see clearly that they too, at times were blessed with the power of Kashf which enabled them to see the angels, which are a part of the unseen as well. In fact, the books of Hadith are full of such incidents where the Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum) saw angels fighting and capturing the enemy in Badr and helping them in Uhud and Khandaq. Hadhrat Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anha) and Hadhrat Abdullah ibn Abbaas (Radhiallaahu Anhu) saw Jibraaeel (Alayhis salaam). Angels used to make salaam to Hadhrat Imraan ibn Husain (Radhiallaahu Anhu). All these are clear indications that the belief of Kashf is a well established belief that is apparent not only in the Qur’aan and Hadith but in the lives of various Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhu) a reality that nobody can deny.

Finally, we will take a look at what the great renown Ulama of the past have to say about this belief.

1) Shaykhul Islam Allaamah Taqi-u-ddin Hafiz Ahmad ibn Taymiyah (RA). In his famous ‘Fataawa ibn Taymiyah’ he states, ‘miracles (of the Awliyaa) sometimes occur by a person hearing something that others can’t, sometimes a person sees something that others don’t whilst awake or in a dream, sometimes a person is given knowledge of something which others don’t know about through Wahy (revelation) or Ilhaam (inspiration)… this this is called Kashf and Mushahadaat..’ (Fataawa ibn Taymiyah vol.11 pg.173; Darul Wafaa)

2) Mulla Ali Qari (RA), a great scholar of the 10th century, who needs no introduction, writes in his famous commentary on ‘al-Fiqhul Akbar’, ‘There are 3 types of Firaasat (insight). The first type is ‘Imaani Firaasat’, this is a noor (special light) that Allah Ta’ala places in the heart of his chosen slave. (thereafter quoting Allaamah Abu Sulaiman Daaraani he says – this type of Firaasat is visualising of the unseen. This is a special status of Imaan.’) (Sharh Fiqhul Akbar pg.80; Qadeemi)

3) Hafiz Allaamah Jalaaluddin Suyyuti (RA) in his famous al-Haawi lil fataawa quotes many examples from the lives of the Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum), one of which was quoted ealier on, i.e. the story of Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) calling out to Hadhrat Saariyah (Radhiallaahu Anhu) and how Allah Ta’ala had blessed him with the power of Kashf. (al-Haawi vol.2 pg.482; Quds)

The above are 3 worldrenown scholars that have made indepth research and authored great works in almost every branch of knowledge. Suffice to take note of the fact here, that all 3 of them have openly and explicitly supported and promoted the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam.

The abovementioned facts bear ample testimony to this fact that the belief of Kashf and Ilhaam is something that has been clearly explained by and established in Qur’aan, Hadith and by the great Ulama and Muhadditheen of the past. Furthermore, numerous incidents of such nature have been recorded in various other books besides Fadhaail-e-Aamal, the details of which will be discussed towards the end of this treatise.

The third major belief which the objector has trounced upon is the belief that the inhabitants of the grave can see and hear the living. Thus, the objector quotes three stories from Fadhaail-e-Aamal, after which he makes the following deductions and claims:

‘These stories teach that the inhabitants of the grave can help the living. This belief forms the basis for grave worshipping. The Fadhaail-e-Aamal promotes all these erroneous beliefs under the guise of virtues and exhortation. Those who expose themselves to the teachings of Fadhaail-e-Aamal which include believing that the engraved can hear, see and help the living will undoubtedly weaken their Tawheed and establish hope in other than the one, who Alone has the power to benefit and harm.’

In essence, there are three parts to this, i.e. for the inhabitants of the grave to, a) See, b) Hear, and c) Help the living. We will discuss the first two parts here and thereafter, the third.

THE ABILITY OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE GRAVE TO SEE AND HEAR THE LIVING (THROUGH THE WILL OF ALLAH)

It is a fundamental belief of the vast majority of Ulamaa that the inhabitants of the grave are able to hear and see those that visit them. (Kitaab-ur-Rooh of ibn Qayyim pg.12)

Here under are but some of the authentic proofs that substantiate this viewpoint:

Sayyiduna Buraydah (Radhiallaahu Anhu) reports that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) would teach the Sahaaba that, ‘When they enter the graveyard, they should address its inhabitants with the following words, ‘Peace Be upon you the believers among those in the graves, and surely through the will of Allah Ta’ala, we will soon join you. We ask Almighty Allah for eternal comfort for us and for you.’ (Sahih Muslim Hadith2254)

Hafiz ibn Qayyim (RA) (the famous student of Hafiz ibn Taymiyah) says, it is impossible that we be instructed to make salaam to things that cannot hear us … this is in fact a greeting and an address to something which can hear and perceive. (Kitaabur-Rooh pg.15) Hafiz ibn Katheer (RA) has also mentioned this analogy in his Tafseer.

2.
Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Abbaas (Radhiallaahu Anhu) reports that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) said, ‘Whenever any of you passes by the grave of his Muslim brother whom he knew in his lifetime, and you make Salaam to him, Allah then returns his soul to his body so that he may reply to the salaam.’ (Classified as Sahih by Haafiz ibn Abdul-Barr; ibn Katheer vol.3 pg.575 and Hafiz Abdul-Haqq al-Ishbeeli – refer al-Ahkaamul Wustaa vol2. pg.152)

Sayyiduna Abu-Talha (Radhiallaahu Anhu) reports that after the battle of Badr, Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) addressed some of the disbelievers who were killed. The Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum) enquired as to how could some lifeless bodies hear what he was saying. At this, he remarked, ‘You are not hearing more than they are (i.e. they can hear just as you can).’

Imaam Qataadah (RA) – a famous Taabi’ee – says, ‘Allah gave them life so that they may hear what Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) said’ (Sahih Bukhari Hadith3976)

4.
Hafiz ibn Taymiyah (RA) states that, ‘The deceased are able to speak and at times even hear those that address them. This has been established authentically from Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) that they can hear the footsteps of those who visit them.’ (Fataawa ibn Taymiyah vol.4 pg.168)

The Hadith that Hafiz ibn Taymiyah (RA) has referred to is recorded by Imaam Bukhari in his Sahih (vol.1 pg.178 Qadeemi; Hadith 1338)

In fact, Imaam Bukhari (RA) was also of the same view (that the deceased can hear the footsteps). He named a chapter in his Sahih as follows, ‘The Chapter on that the deceased can hear the footsteps (of those present).’ (Sahih Bukhari vol.1 pg.178 Qadeemi; Chapter No.67)

5.
Imaam Abu-Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah (RA) has recorded from Sayyiduna Sa’d ibn Abi-Waqqas that when he used to pass by the graves of the martyrs, he would make salaam to them, then he would say to his companions, ‘Why don’t you make salaam to them so that they may reply to you.’ (Musannaf ibn Abi Shaybah)

For various other narrations similar to these, refer to Ahwaalul Quboor of Haafiz ibn Rajab al-Hambali (pgs.141-146; 132-134) as well as Kitaabur-Rooh of Haafiz ibn Qayyim (pgs.11-26)

Based on the abovementioned traditions, it can be clearly understood that through the will and power of Almighty Allah, it is possible for the inhabitants of the grave to see or hear the living.

As mentioned earlier, this is accepted by the vast majority of the scholars such as: 1) Hafiz ibn Abdul-Barr (RA), 2) Hafiz ibn Kathir (RA), 3) Hafiz ibn Qayyim (RA), 4) Allaamah Shawkaani (RA) and others. It, thus, becomes abundantly clear that ignorance of the above proven fact had led to such baseless / irrational objections.

The third aspect is of the inhabitants of the grave helping the living

The objector, after quoting a few stories claims, ‘These stories teach that the inhabitants of the graves can help the living.’

Firstly, we would have to clear this point. It is not our belief, neither is it the author’s belief that the inhabitants of the grave can assist the living. Our belief, the belief of the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaa, the belief of the author of Fadhaail-e-Aamal is clear and that is, that undoubtedly the inhabitants of the grave cannot assist the living.

Secondly, the objector has made a tremendous blunder in making such an absurd claim. Nowhere in the entire book, Fadhaail-e-Aamal, did the author every say or support such a claim. The objector was being biased and hence he searched for a few stories here and there from which he quickly jumped to conclusions. Such irrational claims are of no avail in front of justice. If this was the case, then any person can make any deduction from any book to suit his own whims and desires. Let alone any book, even the Qur’aan. Take for example, the verse wherein Allah Ta’ala states, ‘Your wives are a tilt for you, so approach your tilt as you wish’. Speaking about how a husband may have intercourse with his wife. Now any person can quickly come to a deduction here that it is permissible for a husband to have annul intercourse with his wife, whereas this is prohibited and unlawful. Likewise, the objector’s claims were irrational. He did not understand the object of the story, hence, he took the meaning that suited his own desires, made a false allegation and wishes to mislead everyone else into believing his fabricated lie. We, thus, place on record that this allegation is a lie and that the author never said that, neither did he intend the false meaning that is being portrayed by the objector.

This brings us to end of the three major issues that were raised by the objector. The information mentioned above were all based on clear facts with references and explicit proofs from the Qur’aan, Hadith, incidents of the noble companions of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) and the verdicts of the great Ulama and Muhadditheen of the past. The abovementioned facts and proofs are more than sufficient for one who reads with an open mind and does not have a biased attitude. However, we wish to further elucidate the fact that stories and incidents of this nature (as appears in Fadhaail-e-Aamaal) are replete with in other authentic and worldrenown books. Hereunder, we will mention but a few:

Hasan ibn Sufyaan Nasawi (RA) was once with his friends in Egypt out in search for Ahaadith. Their provisions became exhausted to such an extent that three days passed by without a morsel of food. They were forced to beg. Hence, they drew lots to see who from amongst them will go out to beg. Hasan ibn Sufyaan’s name came up and consequently, he took to one corner of the Musjid and performed two Rakaats of Salaat after which he made Du’aa crying and begging unto Allah Ta’ala. When he finished, he saw a young handsome man who had just entered the Musjid and remarked, ‘Where is Hasan ibn Sufyaan?’ he replied, ‘I am here’ The young man then said, ‘The King (Tooloon) conveys his salaams to you and he apologises for his shortcomings towards your service. Here is one hundred Dinaars for every one of you. when Hasan and his friends asked the young man as to how the King had come to know of them, the young man said, ‘The King saw a dream in which a rider flew to him in the air. The rider was holding a spear with which it entered his home and pierced the King in his hip and said – wake up! Go and see to Hasan ibn Sufyaan and his friends. Go! Wake up – Go. Wake up because they are starving for 3 days in the Musjid. The Kinf asked, ‘Who are you?’ the reply was, ‘I am Ridhwaan, the door-keeper of Jannat’ The King woke up and his hip was in severe pain. Thus, he sent these coins to you. (Siyaar aalamin nubalaa vol.14 pg.161; of Hafiz Dhahabi)

Now, look at the abovementioned incident. The objector quoted a similar incident from Fadhaail-e-Aamaal in which ibn Jalaa relates that he saw in a vision Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) giving him a piece of bread. He ate half of it and after he woke up, the other half was in his hand. The objector quotes this story and then (out of ignorance) boldly states that the book Fadhaail-e-Aamaal promotes erroneous beliefs. Yet, we see a similar incident quoted by Allaamah Dhahabi (RA)? Such a great scholar and Muhaddith who is world-renown and unanimously accepted for his indepth knowledge and research on Ahaadith – he has narrated this incident, has he deviated.

Abu Idrees Madeeni (RA) says that once a person from Madina by the name of Ziyaad came to us and joined us in a battle that we fought. We laid siege to one city and the 3 of us; myself (Abu Idrees), Ziyaad and another person were all together. One of us went to search for food whilst all of a sudden a caterpult was shot up which landed close to Ziyaad and injured him. He fell down unconscious. We gathered around him for the entire day, but he never moved an inch. Thereafter, all of a sudden he laughed to the extent that he opened his mouth wide enough for us to see his teeth. Then he cooled down. Then he began to cry until he even shed tears. Then he regained consciousness and sat up in bewilderment saying, ‘What am I doing here?’ We explained to him, ‘Don’t you remember the caterpult that hit you?’ He was quite confused. We asked him about what had transpired because of which he laughed. He said, ‘Let me tell you. after I lost my conscious, I was taken to a room made out of rubies and chrysolite and in there, I was taken to luxuries and comfortable bed which was steadily made from woven pearls of gold and rubies upon which lay the choicest of cushions. When I sat upon it, I heard the sound of jewellery from my right side. A beautiful young woman appeared before me, I do not know whether she was more beautiful or her robes or her jewellery. She welcomed me saying, ‘Welcome to the harsh person who never used to ask Allah for (great bounties like) us. We are not like his wife.’ When she said this, I smiled after which she came and sat next to me on my right side. I asked her, ‘Who are you?’ She said, ‘I am your young beautiful wife’. When I stretched my hand to touch her, she said, ‘Hold on! Not now, you will come to me at the time of Dhuhr.’ I cried until she finished speaking. Then I heard a sound to my left and the exact same thing happened. A young beautiful woman appeared and the same thing transpired between us, as previously. Abu Idrees Madeeni says that this person, Ziyaad, was sitting and talking to us. When the Muadhin called out the Dhuhr Adhaan, he passed away. (Man aasha ba’adal mawt of Hafiz ibn Abid-Dunyaa pg.82).

Now, look at the abovementioned incident. The objector quotes an incident from Fadhaail-e-Aamaal in which Shaykh Khayr Nurbaf knew the exact time of his death. The objector, after quoting the incident says that this story is deviant. Furthermore, the objector quotes other stories in which certain people saw paradise and hell after which he refutes Kashf. Here is a perfect example of both Kashf and also the fact that this person, Ziyaad, knew that he is going to die at the time of Dhuhr. This incident has been recorded in a book called Man Aasha ba’adal mawt, written by the great Muhaddith ibn Abid-Dunyaa (RA). He is a renown personality especially amongst all other great Muhadditheen. Will the objector say that his books too are promoting corrupt beliefs?

Another incident of a similar nature is mentioned in the very same book where once a person fell ill. He became so ill that he stopped all movement. So, the people shut his eyes and prepared him – took off his clothes, etc. so as to give him Ghusl. All of a sudden, he woke up and showed signs of movement. The people said, ‘Glory be to Allah, we thought you passed away!’ He said, ‘Yes I had passed away and I was taken to my grave at which I saw a handsome young man with a sweet smelling fragrance. He put me in my grave and covered me up with leaves. Therein, an ugly evil oudored woman appeared saying, ‘You did this and that and she counted a few things of which I was put to shame. I said, ‘I swear by Allah that you should leave me alone.’ She said, ‘Lets go, we will challenge you.’ We went to a wide spacious sweet smelling house at which there was an outdoor side bench made from silver. In one corner, stood a person performing Salaat. He was reciting Surah Nahl and he got stuck repeating the same verse over and over again. The woman then corrected the man.

Thereafter, the man then lifted up a pillow nearby under which lay a piece of paper which he removed. He looked at it but before he could say anything, the ugly woman spoke out, ‘This man did this and that’. The young handsome man said, ‘But he did this and this and this…’ enumerating all the good. The man said, ‘This is a servant who has wronged himself but Allah Ta’ala has forgiven him. His time is not yet up. He will die on Monday. This person then explained to the people around him – look – if I die on Monday, then I hope to get what I’ve seen and if I don’t die on Monday then these were just imaginary thoughts. The man passed away on Monday after Asr. (Man aasha ba’adal mawt pg.127). It is clear from this incident also that this person knew the time of his death and also had the power of Kashf which – obviously – was afforded to him by Allah Ta’ala alone.

Once during the era of Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) there was a drought. A person came to the grave of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) and said, ‘O Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam)! Seek rain for your Ummah because they are about to be destroyed.’ This person saw in a vision a voice telling him, ‘Go to Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu), convey salaams to him and inform him that very soon it will rain.’ Also, tell him to be alert and watchful. The man went to Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) and related this to him. Hadhrat Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu) began to cry and thereafter he said, ‘O my Lord! I do not leave out except that which I am incapable of doing.’

Subhaanallah, look at the abovementioned incident. The objector has quoted various incidents of this nature from Fadhaail-e-Aamal and thereafter claims that this is ‘grave worship’ and further he claims, ‘Reading such stories from Fadhaail-e-Aamal to them will play havoc with their beliefs and further corrupt their religion.’ Will the objector then make his concocted deduction here too and say that this story promotes grave worship? look, this was done in the time of such a great Sahaabi like Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu). There were so many other Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhum) around at that time. Even when this was brought to the awareness of Umar (Radhiallaahu Anhu), neither himself nor anyone else had any objections. When Sahaaba (Radhiallaahu Anhu) had no objections, who are we to do so?

Now, let us have a look at the source of this incident. Firstly, this incident is recorded in Dalaail-un-nubuwwah of Imaam Bayhaqi (vol.7 pg.47).

This book is world renown and unanimously accepted. Imaam Bayhaqi needs no introduction, suffice to say that he has written great works on Ahaadith upon which the whole world is dependent upon. Will the objector lay his false blatant allegation of ‘grave worship’ on Imaam Bahyaqi, just because he mentioned such an incident in his book? Secondly, this incident is also recorded in Musnadul Faarooq by ibn Katheer (vol.1 pg.223). Thirdly, it has also been recorded by the worldrenown scholar Hafiz ibn Hajar (RA) in his al-Isaabah (vol.6 pg.216). One wonders how on earth would the objector lay such a foolish allegation of grave worship on these great scholars. What’s even better is this that the incident has also been recorded in Fath al-Baari (vol.2 pg.629; Qadeemi) - The most accepted commentary of the most authentic book after the Qur’aan – Saheeh al-Bukhari. That’s not all, Imaam Bukhari (RA) himself has made indication towards this incident in his Taareekh al-Kabeer (vol.7 pg.304). The objector should cover his face quickly out of shame because both ibn Katheer (RA) and ibn Hajar (RA) have classified this incident as authentic. (Musnadul Faarooq vol.1 pg.23; Fath al-Baari vol.2 pg.629). This clearly proves that the objector is being biased and wishes to attack the book Fadhaail-e-Aamal for no reason whatsoever. Why does the objector not lay his blatant lie against all these books – Dalaail-un-nubuwwah, Fath al-Baari, Isaabah, Taareekh al-Kabeer and Musnadul Faarooq? Why doesn’t he say that these books promote graveworship?

Like these, there are numerous other such incidents that have been authentically recorded by the illustrious scholars of Islam. This further establishes the fact that the objectors were led to these types of ignorant and baseless objections due to their lack of Islamic knowledge and the true understanding of Islam. The wise people have rightly stated, ‘Objecting is a sign of a man’s ignorance.’

Faculty of Specialty in Hadith Sciences

Madrasah In'aamiyyah, Camperdown
P.O. Box 39, Camperdown
3720, KZN, South Africa

Are there differences in the sholah of men and women?

2012-01-12T15:50:00.001+01:00

Are there differences between sholah man and woman? This issue havebeing rising up by those who call them Salafi, the blindly follower of S.Nasir ud-din Albani (whichextually, they self claim that taqlid or following blindly is act of kufur).As result of their following blindly S. Nasir ud-din Albani, some which call scholar among them claim thatthere are no different the prayer between man and woman.

Butindeed, those who follow the Madhab Ahlu Sunnah wal Jamaah (Hanafi, Maliki, Syafie and Hambali) have clearproof that there are different between sholah man and woman. Thosewho make taqlid in 4 Madhab suppose not to be worry, because this wasthe correct way (Ahlul haq) with all the evident or dalil where in the 4 Madhabstand on. Here is some of the dalil establish from Prophet (Peace beupon him), Sahaba, Tabiyeen and great Fuqaha that prayer of woman isdifferent in many ways from prayer of man.

Dalil- 1

عنعبد الله بن عمر قال قال رسول الله صلىالله عليه وسلم إذا جلست المرأة في الصلوةوضعت فخذها على فخذها الاخرى وإذا سجدتالصقت بطنها في فخذيها كالستر ما يكونلها وان الله تعالى ينظر إليها ويقول ياملائكتى اشهدكم انى قد غفرت لها

Translation:Ibn Umar (ra) narrates that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:When a woman sits in prayer thensheshould place her one thigh upon the other and attach the stomach toher thighs so that it is more concealing for her.Indeed, Allah looks at her and informs the angels by saying: "OAngels! Be witness that I have forgiven her! [Sunnan al Bayhaqial-Kubra (3/74)]

This hadith is reliable and alsocorroborated by many ahadith [I’laal al Sunnan (3/33)]

Note:Thisarticle is composed on the basis of "Sound Principle" thateven if some hadith is weak in it's chain then it can become "Hasan(fair) or Sahih (correct)" due to many corroborating evidences,hence if some people dispute over a certain hadith then they would bewrong principally as the same matter is proven from many differentTuraq which strengthen each other, hence whole article with allahadith with different turaq (ways) have to be understood. This isamongst the great principles in science of Hadith classification.

Dalil- 2

عنيزيدَ بن أبي حبيب أنَّ رسولَ الله مَرَّعَلَى امرأتينِ تصليانِ، فقال :«إذَاسَجَدْتُمَا فَضُمَّا بعضَ اللحمِ إلىالأرضِ، فإنَّ المرأةَ لَيْسَتْ في ذلِكَكالرجلِ

Translation:Narrated by Yazid bin Abi Habib (ra) that the Prophet (Peace be uponhim) passed by two women while they were performing prayer. He said:When you make prostration “KEEPYOUR BODY ATTACHED TO THE GROUND BECAUSE WOMEN ARE NOT LIKE MEN INTHIS CASE”[Sunnan al Bayhaqi al-Kubra (3/74)]

In I’laal al Sunnan(3/26) it is said that narrators of this hadith are relied upon andnot rejected

Provenfrom Many Sahaba and Tabiyeen

Dalil- 3

عنعليّ قال:إذاسجدت المرأة فلتحتفر ولتضم فخذيها.
Translation:Ameer ul Momineen Sayyidna Ali (RA) said: When a woman goes inprostration then she should “Leanon one side while sitting on her buttocks” andkeep her thighs close to eachother [MusannafIbn Abi Shayba, (1/302, Hadith # 2773)]Note: فخذيهاmeansto lean on side while sitting on the buttocks.

Plus this Atharis narrated with many routes. In Musannaf Abdur Razzaq it comes viaroute of Isra’il whereas in Ibn Abi Shaybah it came from AbulAhwaas

Dalil- 4

عنخالد بن اللجلاج قال:كنالنساء يؤمرن أن يتربعن إذا جلسن في الصلاةولا يجلسن جلوس الرجال على أوراكهن

Translation:Khalid ibn Lajlaaj (RA) narrates: Women have been ordered to do“TARABBU” while sitting during prayer andthey “SHOULD NOT SIT LIKE MEN” [MusannafIbn Abi Shayban (1/303)]

Note: Tarabbu means to sit crosslegged, remember doing Tarrabu was abrogated later, please see Dalil7 for more details.

Dalil- 5

حدّثناأبو بكر قال نا أبو خالد عن محمد بن عجلانعن نافع أن صفية كانت تصلي وهي متربعة.

Translation:Nafi’ narrates that Sayyidah Safiyah (RA) used to pray in stateof “TARABBU” [MusannafIbn Abi Shayban (1/303)]

Dalil- 6

حدّثناأبو بكر قال نا وكيع عن العمري عن نافعقال:كننساء ابن عمر يتربعن في الصلاة.

Translation:Nafi’ narrates that the women of Ibn Umar (ra) i.e. his family usedto do “TARABBU” duringprayer [Musannaf Ibn Abi Shayban (1/303)]

Provenfrom Leading Tabiyeen

Dalil– 7

(عننافع، عن ابن عمر أنه سئل كيف كن النساءيصلين على عهد رسول اللّه صلى اللّه عليهوسلم أي في زمانه صلى اللّه عليه وسلم(قال:كنيتربعن)أيفي حال قعودهن (ثمأمرن أن يحتفزن

Translation:Ibn Umar (ra) was questioned about how women used to sit during thetimes of Prophet (Peace be upon him)? He said: In the beginningthey used to perform “Tarabbu” butlater they were commanded to do “IHTIFAAZ” [MusnadImam Abu Hanifa (1/120)]

Note:Tarabbu became abrogated and Ihtifaaz (i.e. sitting on one side uponbuttocks) became the latter practice, even this abrogation itselfproves difference of prayer between men and women.

Dalil– 8

عنإبراهيم قال:إذاسجدت المرأة فلتلزق بطنها بفخذيها ولاترفع عجيزتها ولا تجافي كما يجافي الرجل

Translation:Ibrahim (rah) said: When a woman goes in Sajdah she should jointhe thighs to her stomach and also not raise her posterior andalso “NOTSTRETCH HER LIMBS OUT LIKE A MALE” [MussanafIbn Abi Shaybah (1/303)]

Dalil- 9

عنمجاهد أنه كان يكره أن يضع الرجل بطنه علىفخذيه إذا سجد كما تضع المرأة.

Translation:Imam Mujahid (rah) considered it “MAKRUH” fora man to attach his stomach to the thighs “LIKEA WOMAN DOES” [MusannafIbn Abi Shaybah (1/303)]

Dalil– 10

حدّثناأبو بكر قال نا ابن مبارك عن هشام عن الحسنقال:المرأةتضم في السجود

Translation:Hasan al Basri (rah) said: A woman should drawherself close together in sajdah [MusannafIbn Abi Shayban (1/270)]

Dalil- 11

وعنوائلِ بنِ حجرٍ قالَ:قالَلي رسولُ الله صلى الله عليه وسلّم :«ياوائلُ بنَ حجرٍ إِذَا صَلَّيْتَ فَاجْعَلْيَدَيْكَ حِذَاءَ أُذُنَيْكَ، والمَرْأَةُتَجْعَلُ يَدَيْهَا حِذَاءَ ثَدْيَيْهَا».

Translation:It is narrated by Wa’il bin Hujr (ra) that the Prophet (Peace beupon him) said to him:..O Wai’l bin Hujr when you (men) start theprayer then raise your hands till your ears”WHEREASA WOMAN SHOULD RAISE THEM TILL HER SHOULDERS (ONLY)” [Tabraniin his Mu'jam al Kabeer (22/19), I’laa as-Sunnan (2/156)]

SoIt is established from Prophet (Peace be upon him), leading Sahabalike Ibn Umar (ra), Ibn Abbas (ra), Hadrat Ali (ra) also leadingTabiyeen like Mujahid (rah), Ibrahim al Nakha’i (rah), Hasan alBasri (rah) that a women should not pray like men do and their prayeris that which is more concealing.

Thereare many proofs from Fuqaha in this regard including that of Hanafischool which are not mentioned in this article due to brevity issues.

Refutingthe misuse of hadith by Albani

Ascholar in recent past with the name of Nasir ud-din Albani, who wasknown for his spurious and off tangent fatwas, he tried to claim thatprayer of woman is exactly similar to that of men, he misused thehadith of Bukhari which states: “PRAY AS YOU HAVE SEEN ME PRAYING”[Sahih Bukhari (1/606)]

Thisis in actual a gross misinterpretation of the hadith because here theProphet (Peace be upon him) was referring to men, If we do not acceptthis condition then Prophet (Peace be upon him) saying that"Pray as you have seen mepraying" would become illogical because Prophet (Peace be uponhim) was “SEEN” praying with turban, so should the women alsostart wearing turbans? The Prophet (Peace be upon him) wasalso “seen” prayingwith his ankles exposed, so should women also start exposing theirankels? The Prophet (Peace be upon him) was “seen” leadingmen in prayer, so should women also lead men in prayer? etc… Thisproves that Albani was ill-mastered in the science of hadith and hegave illogical verdicts by looking at ahadith just apparently.

Hereare more dalil which refute the claim that women should also prayjust like men

Dalil- 1

عنأبي موسى ، عن النبيّ قال :«الْجُمُعَةُحَقٌ واجِبٌ على كلِّ مُسْلِمٍ في جَماعَةٍ،إِلا أَرْبَعَةٌ عَبْدٌ مَمْلُوكٌ أَوِامْرأَةٌ أَوْ صَبِيٌّ أَوْ مَريضٌ».

... هذاحديث صحيح على شرط الشيخين،

Translation:The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: Jummah in congregation isWajib uponevery Muslim “EXCEPT”forfour (1) A Slave (2)“A WOMAN” (3)a child (4) and one who is sick (Imam Hakim narrated it in hisal-Mustadrak ala Sahihayn where Imam Hakim declared it “SAHIHON CRITERIA OF BUKHARI AND MUSLIM” andImam Dhahabi“AGREED” withhim (1/423 Hadith#1062)]
Had the hadithof Bukhari been mutlaq then according to Salafis the Prophet (Peacebe upon him) has Naudhobillah contradicted himself by not makingJummah in mosque to be Wajib upon women.

Dalil- 2

Alsoremember that men should say “Subhan Allah” loudly in order tocorrect the Imam whereas women should clap their hands.

عنأبي هريرةَ رضيَ اللهُ عنهُ عنِ النبيِّصلى الله عليه وسلّم قال «التسبيحُللرجالِ والتَّصفيقُ للنساءِ»

Translation:It is narrated by Abu Hurraira (ra) that the Prophet (Peace be uponhim) said: Tasbeeh is for men whereasclapping is for women [Jamius-Sahih al-Bukhari, (1/402)]

Sothe LA Madhabiyyah people whose thinking works in reverse order, theyshould from tomorrow start clapping hands just like women.

Dalil- 3

ماصلَّتِ امرأَةٌ مِنْ صَلاةٍ أَحَبَّ إِلىالله مِنْ أَشدَّ مكانٍ في بَيْتِهاظُلْمةً. رواهالطبراني في الكبير ورجاله موثقون.

Translation:The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: The beloved prayer of woman insight of Allah, isthe one which she performs in the darkest place in herhouse [Al-Haythamiin Majmz az-Zawaid (2/156)]

Imamal-Haythami (rah) says after narrating it: It is narrated byAt-Tabarani (rah) in his Al-Kabeer and the Rijaal of it are(all)“THIQA” [ibid]

Dalil- 4

عننافع عن ابن عُمَرَ أنَّهُ قَالَ:لَيْسَعَلَى النِّسَاءِ أَذَانٌ وَلاَ إِقَامَةٌ

Translation:Nafi narrates from Ibn Umar (ra) who narrates that Prophet (Peace beupon him) said: BothAzan and Iqamah (for prayer) are not binding upon women[Sunnanal-Bayhaqi al-Kubra (2/169)

Regardingthe Athar of Tabi'i Umm ad-Darda (rah)

Soall these proofs are also corroborating evidences that prayer ofwoman is different in many issues from that of men, howeverNasir ud-din Albani also misused this Athar as proof

Itis narrated in Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah: Umm e Darda (rah) usedto sit like males in prayer [Musannnaf(1/270)]

Albanishowed as if Umm ad-Darda (rah) was amongst the Sahabiyah, which isnothing short of deception

Howeverit is incorrect to use this report for the following 3 reasons:

(a) Firstof all it “contradicts” another report from Ummad-Darda (rah) in which Ibrahim Abi Ablah (rah) narrates that he saw:Umm ad-Darda (rah) praying crosslegged (ورأيتُأُمَّ الدَّرْداء تُصلِّـي مُتَربِّعة.) [Imamal-Mizzi in Tahdhib ul Kamaal, (22/468)]

(b) SecondlyImam al Mizzi (rah) has said that this Umm ad-Darda wasamongst “Tabi’in [Referto Tahdhib ul Kamaal (22/64)]. Plus Imam Ibn Hajr al Asqalani (rah)has proven that the narrator of this hadith i.e. Makhul only narratedfrom Umm al-Darda –As-Sughra (which refers to Tabi’i notSahabi) Hencepractice of a lone Tab’i is not hujjat and Albani had spreaddeception in this regard.

(c) Third:Imam Ibn Hajr al Asqalani (rah) has also said in his Fath ul Bari:The practice of a Tabi’i alone is “NOT HUJJAT” evenif it “DOESNOT GO AGAINST ANY PRINCIPLE” [Fathul Bari, Sharh Sahih ul Bukhari (2/243)

ImamBadr ud-din Ayni (rah) the great commentator of Bukhari said:

هذههي الصغرى التابعية، لا أم الدرداء الكبرىالصحابية، لأن مكحولاً أدرك الصغرى دونالكبرى

Translation:This is Umm ad-Darda “AS-SUGHRA”not the Umm ad-Darda “AL KUBRA” who was a Sahabiyah, andMakhul only met As-Sughra (Tabi’i) not the Al-Kubra (i.e.Sahabiyyah)[Umdat ul Qari, Sharh Sahih ul Bukhari (6/101)]

Conclusionwith verdict from Imam al-Bayhaqi (rah)

Soeven If practice of some lone Tabi’i does not go against anyprinciple still it is not hujjat, but the reality is that, thispractice goes against known principle amongst Muslim world i.e. Womenhave to pray in a manner which is “MORE CONCEALING” for her whichis proven from many ahadith.

Aboveall, regarding the hadith of “PRAY AS YOU HAVE SEEN ME PRAYING”none of the major commentators of Bukhari such as Imam Ibn Hajr alAsqalani (rah), Imam Badr ud-din Ayni (rah), Imam Ibn Bataal (rah)etc… have given the pseudo interpretation like Albani did in orderto misuse the hadith for his personal agenda.

Ifsome people are still stubborn and do not accept contradiction inreports of Umm ad-Darda, then even the former report “ITSELF”proves that practice of other Muslim women was clearly different fromUmm ad-Darda because had they all sat like men then this report wouldnot have specified her.

Hencewe would like to conclude this article with this beautiful verdict ofImam al-Bayhaqi (rah)

مايفارق المرأة فيه الرجل من أحكأم الصلاةراجع إلى الستر

Translation:The “distinction”in ruling regarding prayer of men and women is that thewoman prays in a way which is more “CONCEALING" forher [Al-Bayhaqiin As-Sunnan al Kubra (2/222)]

Perbezaan Salaf Al-Asya'irah & Salafiah

2012-01-11T07:01:00.000+01:00

Seminar "Imam Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah: Imam Abul Hasan AlAsya'ari rhm"

- Oleh Ustaz TM Fouzy

Review Ma'ariful Qur'an - 3

2012-01-09T09:12:00.000+01:00

The Preservation of the Holy Qur'an

In the days of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) Since the noble Qur'an was not revealed all at once, on the contrary, different verses from it used to have been revealed as and when appropriate, therefore, it was not possible from the very beginning to write and preserve it in a book form. So, during the initial stage of Islam, major emphasis was laid on memory as a means of preserving the noble Qur'an. When Wahy used to come in the very beginning, the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) would tend to repeat its words instantly so that they would be memorized well enough. Thereupon, Allah Almighty directed him through the verses of Surah al-Qiyamah that he need not repeat words in a hurry immediately as Wahy came. Allah Almighty would Himself endow him with a memory that he will be unable to forget the words of the Wahy once its descention has been completed. So it was that the moment the Qur'anic verses would come to him, they would be committed to his memory the next moment. Thus the blessed chest of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam), was the most protected vault of the noble Qur'an, in which there was no chance of even some common mistake, editing or alteration. Moreover, as a matter of additional precaution, he used to recite the Qur'an before angel Jibra'il every year during the month of Ramadan; and the year he left this mortal world he completed a cumulative review of Qur'anic recitation (daur) twice with Jibra'il (Sahih al-Bukhari with Fath al-Bari, p. 36, v. 9).

Again, as it was, he would not restrict his teaching of the Companions to just the meanings of the noble Qur'an, but had them memorize its words as well. Then, the revered Companions were themselves so enamoured with the desire to learn and remember the noble Qur'an that everyone of them was anxious to get ahead of the other. There were women who claimed no mahr (dower) from their husband except that they would teach the Qur'an.

Hundreds of Companions, freeing themselves from all other concerns, had devoted their whole lives for this purpose. Not only did they memorize the Qur'an but also went on repeating it within their nightly prayers. When someone migrated from Makkah al-Mukarramah and came to Madinah al-Tayyibah, says Sayyidna 'Ubadah ibn Samit (radhiAllaho anhu), the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) would entrust him to one of us Ansars so that he could teach Qur'an to the newcomer. The Mosque of the Prophet was so filled with voices generated by learners and teachers of the Qur'an that the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) had to ask them to lower their voices so that mistakes are not made (Manahil al-'Irfan, 1/234).

So, within a fairly short time, there was on hand a large group of the noble Companions who had the glorious Qur'an all committed flawlessly to their memory. Included in this group were, in addition to the Four Guided Caliphs, persons like Sayyidna Talhah, Sayyidna Sa'd, Sayyidna Ibn Mas'ud, Sayyidna Hudhayfah ibn Yaman, Sayyidna Salim Mowla abi Hudhayfah, Sayyidna Abu Hurayrah, Sayyidna 'Abduilah ibn 'Umarr Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas, Sayyidna 'Amr ibn al-'As, Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, Sayyidna Mu'awiyah, Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Zubayr, Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn al-Sa'ib, Sayyidah (A'ishah, Sayyidah Hafsah, Sayyidah Umm Salmah, may peace be upon them all.

In short, memorization of the Qur’an was given more emphasis in early Islam as this was the only protected and trust-worthy method given the conditions of that time. The reason is that the number of people who could read or write was very limited in those days. The means of publishing books, such as the printing press, etc., were not there. Therefore, in that situation, if writing was taken to be sufficient, it would have neither been possible to spread out the Qur'an on an extensive scale nor to protect it reliably. In its place, Allah Almighty had blessed the people of Arabia with a memory of such dimensions that thousands of poetic lines would normally rest in the memory of one person after another. Ordinary, run-of-the-mill villagers would remember by heart their genealogies and those of their families, and unbelievably enough -- even those of their horses! Therefore, this power of memory was well utilized for the conservation and protection of the noble Qur'an and it was through it that the verses and chapters of the noble Qur'an reached all over into the far corners of Arabia.

The writing of Wahy

Besides having the Qur'an committed to memory, the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) made special arrangements to have the Qur'an committed to writing as well. Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu) says: 'I used to write down the words of Wahy for him. When Wahy came to him he felt burning with heat and the drops of perspiration would start rolling down on his body like pearls. When this state would go away from him, I would present myself before him with a shoulder-bone or a piece (of something else). He would go on dictating and I would go on writing. When I would be finished with writing, the sheer weight of copying the Qur'an would give me the feeling that my leg is going to break and I would never be able to walk. In any case, when I would be finished with writing, he would say: 'Read'. I would read it back to him. If there was a shortcoming, he would have it corrected and then let it be known to people (Majma al-Zawaid with reference to Tabrani 1/156).

Besides Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu), there were many other Companions who carried out the duty of committing the Wahy to writing. Some of those who can be specially mentioned, in addition to the Four Guided Caliphs, are Sayyidna 'Ubayy ibn Ka'b, Sayyidna Zubayr ibn 'Awwam, Sayyidna Mu'awiyah, Sayyidna Mughirah ibn Shu'bah, Sayyidna Khalid ibn al-Walid, Sayyidna Thabit ibn al-Qays, Sayyidna Aban ibn Sa'id and others (Fath al-Ban, 9/18)

Sayyidna 'Uthman says that it was the blessed practice of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) that he, soon after the revelation of a certain portion of the Qur'an, would pointedly instruct the scribe of the Wahy to write it in such Surah after such and such verse (for details see Fath al-Bari, 9/18 and Zad al-Ma'ad 1/30).

Since paper was not available in Arabia during those days, therefore, these Qur'anic verses were mostly written on stone slabs, parchments, date branches, bamboo units, tree leaves and animal bones. However, at times, paper pieces have also been used (Ibid., 9/11).

Thus, there existed, during the times of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam), a copy of the noble Qur'an which he had arranged to be committed to writing under his supervision. Although, it was not there as a formally prepared book, but it certainly was there in the form of various units of available writing materials. Along with it, it was also the practice of some revered Companions that they would make copies of the Qur'anic verses and keep them for personal recollection. This practice was common since the very early period of Islam. Accordingly, much before Sayyidna 'Umar j (radhiAllaho anhu) embraced Islam, his sister and brother-in-law had in their possession verses of the Qur'an which they had written and kept in book form (Sirah ibn Hisham).

Preservation: In the period of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu)

However, it was characteristic of all copies of the noble Qur'an made during the days of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) that they were either written on different available writing surfaces, for instance, a verse would appear on parchment, another on tree leaf and yet another on a bone; or they were not complete copies. One Companion would have only a single Surah in his record while someone else would have five or ten Surahs and some others will have only a few verses. Then there were Companions having in their possession explanatory sentences as well along with the text of the verses.

On these grounds, Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu), during his tenure of Khilafah, thought it necessary to bring together all these scattered units of the Qur'an and thus have them preserved. The motives and the methods behind this great achievement of his have been explained in detail by Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu) when he says: "One day, soon after the battle of Yamamah, Sayyidna Abu Bakr sent a message calling me in. When I reached him, Sayyidna 'Umar was present there. Sayyidna Abu Bakr said to me: 'Umar has come just now and he tells me that a large group of Huffaz (those who had committed the Qur'an to memory) have met their death as martyrs in the battle of Yamamah. If the Huffaz of the noble Qur'an continue to meet their shahadah (martyrdom) in this manner, I am afraid a large portion of the Qur'an may just go extinct. So, in my view, you should begin the task of having the Qur'an collected together under your order'. I said to 'Umar: 'How can we do what the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) himself did not do? 'Umar replied: 'By God, this is for nothing but good.' After that, this is what 'Umar continued telling me, until I too started seeing the truth, and now, my view was the same as 'Umarts'. After that Sayyidna Abu Bakr told me: 'You are young, and intelligent. We have no doubts about you. You have been working as a scribe of Wahy as well under the supervision of the Messenger of Allah (sallallaho alehey wasalam), so you search and collect the verses of the noble Qur'an'."

Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit says: "By God, had these blessed people commanded me to haul some mountain, that would have been much less weightier than this duty of collecting the Qur'an. I said to them: 'How are you doing something that the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) did not do?' Sayyidna Abu Bakr said: 'By God, this is good, nothing but good.' After that, this is what Sayyidna Abu Bakr kept saying to me again and again until Allah Almighty put my heart at rest for the same view that was the view of Sayyidna Abu Bakr and 'Umar. Consequently, I started searching for the Verses of the Qur'an and it was from the branches of date palms, slabs of stones and hearts of people that I finally collected the noble Qur'an." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab Fada'il al-Qur’an)

At this point while we are dealing with the process of the collection of the Qur'an, we should have a clear perception of the method used by Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu). As mentioned earlier, he was himself a Hafiz of the Qur'an, therefore, he could have written down the whole Qur'an from his memory. In addition to that, there were hundreds of Huffaz (memorizers of the Qur'an: plural of Hafiz) present at that time; the noble Qur'an could have still been written down by entrusting the duty to a selected group from out of them.

Also, the copies of the noble Qur'an committed to writing during the times of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) could have been used by Sayyidna Zayd to make his copy of the Qur'an. But he, guided by his caution and concern, did not limit himself to any one of the many methods available. On the contrary, by using all these methods simultaneously, he did not allow any verse to be included in his master copy of the Qur'an unless he received written and verbal testimonies proving its uninterrupted succession. In addition to that, the verses that the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) had arranged to be written under his supervision, were still preserved by the Companions. Sayyidna Zayd collected them together so that the new copy be made from them. Consequently, a public proclamation was made to the effect that anyone possessing any number of written verses of the noble Qur'an should bring them over to Sayyidna Zayd. When a written verse was brought to him by someone, he used to verify its authenticity by the following four methods:

(1) To begin with, he tested its reliability against his own memory.

(2) Then, Sayyidna 'Umar too was a Hafiz of Qur'an, and as proved by reliable reports, Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu), had assigned him too to work with Sayyidna Zayd on this project. When someone came with some verse, Sayyidna Zayd and Sayyidna 'Umar used to receive it jointly (Fath al-Bari with reference to ibn Abi Dawud).

(3) No written verse was accepted until such time that two trustworthy witnesses had testified to the fact that the particular verse was written in the presence of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam). (al-ltqan, 1/10)

(4) After that, these verses in writing were collated with collections that different Companions had prepared for themselves (al-Burhan fi 'Ulum al-Qur'an, by Zarkashi, 1/238).

If this functional methodology behind the collection of the Qur'an during the period of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu) is kept in mind, it would become perfectly simple to understand what Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit meant when he said: 'I found the last verses of Surah al-Bara’ah beginning with: (Arabic text) with Sayyidna Abu Khudhaymah (radhiAllaho anhu) only. They were not found with anyone else except him."

This never means that no person other than Sayyidna Abu Khudhaymah (radhiAllaho anhu) remembered these verses, or somebody else did not have these in the written form, or anyone other than him did not know of their being part of the Qur'an. On the contrary, it means that these verses were not found with anyone from among those who were coming along with different verses written as dictated by the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam). Otherwise, as far as the fact of these verses being part of the Qur'an is concerned, everyone knew it in an uninterrupted succession. There were hundreds of Companions who remembered it as well. Moreover, these were available in writing with Companions who possessed complete collections of the Qur'anic verses. But, among those written separately under the supervision of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) this verse was found only with Sayyidna Abu Khudhaymah (radhiAllaho anhu) and not with anyone else (al-Burhan, 1/234-45).

So, in every way possible, it was with great caution and concern that Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu), by collecting the Qur'anic verses, wrote them out in an organized form on pages of paper (al-ltqan, 1/60).

But, each Surah was written in separate folios, therefore, this copy was composed of many folios. In the terminology of Qur'anic Studies,
this copy is called the 'Umm" (literally, 'the mother', meaning 'the
original') and it had the following features:

1. In this copy, the Qur'anic verses were indeed arranged in accordance with the order identified by the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam), but the Surahs were not so arranged, rather they were written separately (Ibid).

2. Incorporated in this copy were all seven Huruf (versions) of the Qur’an (which have been explained earlier). (Manhil al'lrfan, 1/246 and Tarikh al-Qur’an by al-Kurdi, p. 28)

3. Collected here were all verses the recitation of which has not been abrogated.

4. The purpose of having this copy made in writing was to prepare an organized document with the collective endorsement of the whole ummah, so that, reference can be made to it when needed.

These folios committed to writing on the orders of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu) remained with him during his life-time. Then, they remained with Sayyidna 'Umar (radhiAllaho anhu). After the martyrdom of Sayyidna 'Umar, they were transferred to the custody of Umm al-Mu'minin Sayyidah Hafsah (radhiAllaho anhu). After the death of Sayyidah Hafsah (radhiAllaho anhu), Marwan ibn al-Hakam had these burnt since the copies of Qur'an ordered by Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) were ready at that time, and a consensus of the ummah had already been reached to the effect that following these copies of the Qur'an, in script and arrangement of Surahs, was obligatory. Marwan ibn al-Hakam thought it inadvisable to let any copy which was contrary to this script and arrangement remain in existence (Fath al-Bari, 9/16).

Preservation: In the period of Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu)

When Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), became Khalifah, Islam had grown out of Arabia reaching into the far-flung areas of Byzantium and Iran. As people from new areas embraced Islam, they would learn the noble Qur'an from the Mujahidin of Islam or from the traders because of whom they had found the blessing of Islam. On the other side, you have already read that the noble Qur'an was revealed incorporating seven versions with various readings, and different Sahabah (Companions) had learnt it from the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) in accordance with different readings, therefore, every Companion taught Qur'an to his disciples in accordance with that particular reading which they had themselves learnt from the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam). In this manner, this difference in readings reached far-out countries. Until such time that people knew that the noble Qur'an has been revealed incorporating seven Huruf (versions) no harm was done by this difference. However, when this difference reached those far-out countries, and the fact that the noble Qur'an has been revealed incorporating different readings was not fully publicised there, disputes among people started showing up. Some people began to insist on their reading as correct and that of others as incorrect. On the one hand, these disputes posed the danger that people would fall into the grave error of declaring the readings of the noble Qur'an which have followed in uninterrupted succession as incorrect. On the other hand, there was no such standard copy available throughout the Islamic world which could become the rallying authority for the entire ummah, except, of course, the copy committed to writing by Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (radhiAllaho anhu) which was there in Madinah. Since other copies were written individually, and in them, there was no provision to incorporate all the readings, therefore, the only reliable method to resolve these disputes was that copies which incorporate all valid readings be spread out all over the Islamic world, and then, by seeing them it could be decided as to which reading is correct and which, incorrect Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), accomplished this very remarkable feat during the period of his Khilafah.

Details of this feat, as given in hadith narrations, inform us that Sayyidna Hudhayfah ibn Yaman (radhiAllaho anhu) was engaged in jihad on the Armenian-Azerbaijan front. There he noticed that differences were rising among people about readings of the noble Qur'an. So, on his return to Madinah, he went straight to Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), and once there, he pleaded: 'Ya Amir al-Mu'minin! Before this Ummah falls a prey to differences in the Book of Allah like the Jews and Christians, you should do something about it.' Sayyidna 'Uthman asked: 'What is the matter? In reply, Sayyidna Hudhayfah said: 'I was on a jihad mission fighting on the Armenian front. There I saw people of Syria following the reading of Ubayy ibn Ka'b which would not be familiar to the people of 'Iraq, and the people of Iran follow the reading of 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud which would not be familiar to the people of Syria. As a result of this, they are charging each other of being kafirs.'

In fact, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) had himself sensed the danger much earlier. He was told that there were cases right there in Madinah al-Tayyibah itself where a teacher of the noble Qur'an would teach the text to his disciples in accordance with one reading, and another teacher would do so in accordance with another reading. In this way, when the disciples of different teachers came together, differences would crop up between them, and there were occasions when this difference would extend to teachers, and they too, would declare each other s reading to be incorrect. When Sayyidna Hudhayfah ibn Yaman (radhiAllaho anhu) too invited his attention to this danger, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) convened a meeting of some highly-regarded Companions and sought their advice. He said: 'I have been informed that there are people who say to each other things like -- “my reading is better than yours" -- and this could touch the extreme limits of kufr. So, what is your opinion in this connection?' The Companions themselves asked Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu): 'What are your own thoughts on this subject?' Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) said: 'I believe we should unite everyone on one Book so that we face no difference or division.' The Companions, approving of this opinion, supported Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu).

Consequently, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) gathered people together and delivered a sermon and in it he said: "You who live so close to me in Madinah, if you can falsify each other and differ with each other in respect of the readings of the noble Qur'an, it is quite obvious that those who are far away from me will be indulging in falsification and disputation on a much larger scale. Therefore, let everyone get together and come up with a copy of the Qur'an following which becomes obligatory for all."

With this in view, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) sent a message to Sayyidah Hafsah (radhiAllaho anhu) requesting her to let them have the blessed folios of the Qur'anic text (prepared under the orders of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu) which she had in her custody). He promised that these will be returned to her after copies have been made. Sayyidah Hafsah (radhiAllaho anhu) sent these pages of the Qur’an to Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu). He then formed a group of four Companions which was composed of Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit, Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Zubayr, Sayyidna Sa'id ibn al-'As and Sayyidna 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Harith ibn Hisham (radhiAllaho anhu). This group was entrusted with the duty of making several copies from the original copy of Sayyidna Abu Bakr's Qur'anic folios and making sure that Surahs too are arranged in order. Out of these four Companions, Sayyidna Zayd was an Ansari, while the rest of the three were Qurayshis. Therefore, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) said to them: 'When you and Zayd differ in respect of any portion of the Qur'an (that is, differ as to how a certain letter should be written) you write it in the language of the Quraysh because the noble Qur'an has been revealed in their very language."

Basically, this duty was entrusted to only four distinguished persons named above, but later on, other Companions were also attached to help them out. (Fath al-Ban, pp. 13-15, v. 9)

They performed the following functions in connection with the writing of the Qur'an:

1. In the copy prepared during the period of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu), Surahs were not placed in sequence, rather each Surah was written separately. They wrote down all Surahs in their proper sequence in a single copy. (Mustadrak, 2/229)

2. The verses of the noble Qur'an were written in a way so that all readings backed by uninterrupted succession could be incorporated within their script. Therefore, no dots or desinential marks were placed on them so that the text could be recited in accordance with all readings that are supported by uninterrupted succession. For instance, they wrote (Arabic text) in order that it could be read both (Arabic text) and (Arabic text), because both readings are correct. (Manahil al-'Irfan, 1/253-254)

3. Upto this time, there existed only one single copy of the noble Qur'an -- complete, authentically standard and collectively attested by the whole ummah. These distinguished persons prepared more than one copy of this newly organized Mushaf (copy of the Qur'an).

It is generally believed that Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) had accomplished the preparation of five copies, but Abu Hatim Sijistani says that a total of seven copies were prepared. Out of these one was sent to Makkah al-Mukarramah, one to Syria, one to Yaman, one to Bahrain, one to Basrah and one to Kufah, and one was preserved in Madinah al-Tayyibah.

4. To accomplish the task cited above, these revered elders-basically worked through the pages of the Qur'an which were written during the times of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu). But, along with it, as a matter of added precaution, they adopted exactly the same method that was employed during the times of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu). Consequently, assorted copies of texts committed into writing during the days of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) which were preserved by different Companions were recalled once again, and it was, by yet another collation with these, that the new copies were prepared. This time, a separately written verse of Surah al-Ahzab, (Arabic text) was found with Sayyidna Thabit al-Ansari (radhiAllaho anhu) only. As we have explained earlier, it does not mean that nobody else remembered this verse because Sayyidna Zayd (radhiAllaho anhu) has himself said: 'While writing the copy of the Qur'an, I could not find the particular verse of Surah al-Ahzab which I used to hear the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) recite.' This shows very clearly that the verse under reference was something Sayyidna Zayd and other Companions remembered very well. On the other hand, it also does not mean that this verse never existed in writing anywhere, because this verse was obviously there in the pages of the Qur'an written during the times of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu). Besides that, obviously enough, this verse was also included in the copies of the noble Qur'an which were written and preserved by the Companions on their own. But, like it was in the days of Sayyidna Abu Bakr (radhiAllaho anhu), this time too, all those scattered documents, available with the Companions in writing, were collected together, therefore, Sayyidna Zayd (radhiAllaho anhu) and others with him did not write down any verse into these copies of the Qur'an until such time when they did find it in those written documentations as well. As such, the fact was that other verses were found written separately too with several Companions, but this verse from Surah al-Ahzab was not found written separately with anyone else except Sayyidna Khudhaymah (radhiAllaho anhu).

5. After having these several standard copies of the Qur'an prepared, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), had all copies personally kept by different Companions burnt so that all copies of the Qur'an become uniform in terms of the script, incorporation of accepted readings and the order of chapters, leaving no room for any difference between them.

The entire ummah acknowledged this achievement of Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) with admiration, and the Companions supported him in this venture. The only exception is that of Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (radhiAllaho anhu) who was somewhat unhappy about it, something that cannot be taken up here in its proper perspective. Sayyidna 'Ali (radhiAllaho anhu) says:

"Say nothing about 'Uthman unless it be in his favour because, by God, whatever he did in connection with copies of the Qur'an was done in the presence of all of us, and with our advice and counsel." (Fath al-Bari, 9/15)

Steps Taken to Facilitate Recitation

After the afore-mentioned achievement of Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), the ummah reached a consensus on the rule that it is not permissible to write the text of the noble Qur'an using any method other than the 'Uthmani Script. Consequently, all copies of the Qur'an were, later on, written in accordance with this method, and the Companions and their successors, may Allah be pleased with them all, by bringing forth repeatedly, reproductions of the standard 'Uthmani copies of the Qur'an, helped spread the noble Qur'an on a vast scale.

But, the copies of the noble Qur'an were still devoid of dots and vowel points or desinential marks which made it difficult for non-Arabs to recite them freely. As Islam spread out wide and deep in non-Arab countries, the need to add dots and vowel points became acute, in order that people may be able to recite them easily. Several steps were taken to achieve this purpose. Their brief history is as follows:

Inclusion of Dots

The practice of placing dots over or under letters was just not there among early Arabs, however, the readers were so used to this style that they had practically no difficulty in reading dot-less writing to the limit that they would easily distinguish between doubtful letters by referring to the context. Specially, there was no possibility of any doubt in the case of the noble Qur'an because its preservation did not rest on writing, rather on the strength of memories, pursuant to which, Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), had assigned Qaris, accomplished reciters of the Qur'an, along with its copies sent out to various parts of the Muslim world so that they could teach how to read it.

There are different reports as to who first placed dots on the copy of the noble Qur'an. Some reports say that this feat was first accomplished by Hadrat Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali (Arabic text) (al-Burhan, 1/250). Some say he did this under the instructions of Sayyidna 'Ali (Arabic text) (Subh al-A'sha, 3/155). There are others who have said that Ziyad ibn Abi Sufyan, the Governor of Kufah, asked him to do this. Then there is yet another report which credits Hajjaj ibn Yusuf with this feat who did it with the help of Hasan al-Basri, Yahya ibn Ya'mur and Nasr ibn 'Asim al-Laythi, may Allah's mercy be upon them all. (Tafsir al-Qurtubi, 1/63)

Marks for correct reading

In the beginning, like dots, the Qur'an did not have any desinential marks either. Here too, reports are at variance as to who placed desinential marks first. Some say Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali did it first while others claim that this was accomplished by Hajjaj ibn Yusuf through Yahya ibn Ya'mur and Nasr ibn 'Asim al-Laythi. (Ibid)

Keeping in view all reports in this connection, it appears that desinential marks were first invented by Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali, but they were not like what they are today. Instead, placed there for fathah was a dot (.) over the letter, for kasrah a dot ( ) under the letter, for dammah a dot ( .) in front of the letter; and there were two dots (.. or or .. ) for tanwin or nunnation. It was only later that Khalil ibn Ahmad innovated the signs of hamzah (glottal stop) and tashdid (doubling). (Subh al-A'sha, 3/160-161) After that, Hajjaj ibn Yusuf requested Yahya ibn Ya'mur, Nasr ibn 'Asim al-Laythi and Hasan al-Basri, may Allah's mercy be upon them all, to simultaneously place dots and desinential marks on the text of the noble Qur'an. On this occasion, the present forms of desinential marks were chosen to replace dots as expression of case signs. The purpose was to avoid confusing them with dots intrinsically belonging to letters.

Ahzab or Manazil

It was the practice of Companions and their Successors that they would complete the recital of the entire Qur'an once every week. For this purpose, they had identified fixed portions for their daily recitation which is known as 'hizb' or 'manzil'. Thus the entire Qur'an was divided over seven 'ahzab' (plural of 'hizb') 'manazil' (plural of 'manzil'). (al-Burhan, 1/250)

Ajza' or Parts
Today, the Qur'an is divided over thirty 'ajz'a' (plural of 'juz') or parts. This division in parts has nothing to do with the meaning of the Qur'an. In fact, this division in thirty equal parts has been made to serve as teaching aid for children as, it will be noticed, there are places where the designated part ends with an unfinished statement. It is difficult to say with certainty as to who brought about this division of the Qur'an in thirty parts. Some people believe that Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), had arranged to have these written in thirty different folio-units while their copies were being made, therefore, this division dates back to his time for sure. But, this humble writer was unable to find any proof of this position in the writings of earlier scholars. However, 'Allamah Badr al-Din al-Zarkashi has written that the thirty parts of the Qur'an have been known all along and they customarily appear in copies of the Qur'an used in schools. (al-Burhan, 1/250; Manahil al-'Irfan, 1/402)

Akhmas and A'shar: The sets of Fives and Tens

Another sign used in Qur'anic copies of early centuries was that they would write the word, khams ((Arabic text): five) or its abbreviation (Arabic text) after every five verses (on the margin); and the word, 'Ashr ((Arabic text): ten) or its abbreviation ((Arabic text)) after every ten verses. The former kind of signs were called 'Akhmas' (a pentad or group of five) and the later, 'A'shar' (a decade or group of ten). Consequent to another difference among early scholars, these signs were considered permissible by some, and reprehensible or makruh by others. Saying, with any degree of certainty, as to who was the first to place the signs, is difficult indeed. According to one view, Hajjaj ibn Yusuf was its inventor, while another view credits this to an order of 'Abbasi Khalifah, al-Ma'mun (al-Burhan, 1/251). But, these two views do not appear to be sound since the idea of a'shar seems to be there during the times of the Companions. For example, Masruq' a well-known Tabi'i, says that with Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (radhiAllaho anhu) the placement of 'A'shar' markings in the copy of the Qur'an was makruh. (Musannaf ibn Abi Shaybah, 2/497).

Ruku' or Section

Moreover, the signs of Akhmas and A'shar were abandoned later on but, yet another sign which continues on even to this day is the sign of ruku' or section. This has been determined in terms of the contents of the noble Qur'an whereby a sign of ruku' (the letter (Arabic text) on the margin) is placed at the conclusion of a statement. Inspite of his efforts, this humble writer was unable to locate anything authentic which would tell us as to who originated the ruku', and in what period. However, this much is almost certain that the purpose of this sign is to identify an average portion of verses which could be recited in one raka'ah. It is called 'ruku" so that ruku' (bending position) could be made in salah after reaching this point. There are 540 ruku'at in the whole Qur'an. So, by reciting one ruku' in every raha'ah of tarawih, it is possible to complete the recital of the entire Qur'an on the night of the twenty seventh (Fatawa 'Alamgiryah, Fasl al-Tarawih, 1/94).

Rumuz al-Awqaf: Stop Signs

Another useful step taken to facilitate recitation and phonetically correct pronunciation (tilawah and tajwid) was to provide signs with Qur'anic sentences which could tell the nature of making a stop (breathing) there. These signs are known as the 'rumaz' (signs) or 'alamat (symbols) of awqaf (stops). Their purpose is to help a person who does not know Arabic to stop at the correct spot during his recitation, and thus, avoid causing a change in meaning by breaking his breath at the wrong spot. Most of these signs were first invented by 'Allamah Abu 'Abdullah Muhammad ibn Tayfur Sajawandi, may Allah's mercy be upon him (Al-Nashr fi al-Qira'at al-'Ashr, 1/225). Details about these signs are given below: : This letter Ta' is an abbreviated form of al-waqf al-mutlaq. It means that the statement stands completed at this point. Therefore, it is better to stop here. : This letter Jim is an abbreviation of al-waqf al ja'iz and it means that it is permissible to stop here. : This letter Za' is an abbreviation of al-waqf al-mujawwaz. It means that making a stop here is correct all right, but the better choice is not to make a stop here.: This letter Sad is an abbreviation of al-waqf al-murathkhas. It means that the statement has not yet been completed at this point but, because the sentence has become long, here is the place to breathe and stop rather than do it elsewhere (al-Mianh al-Fikriyyah, p. 63). : This letter mim is an abbreviation of al-waqf al-lazim. It means if a stop is not made here an outrageous distortion in the meaning of the verse is possible. So, it is better to stop here. Some phoneticians of the Qur'an have also called this al-waqf al-wajib or the obligatory stop. But this is not 'wajib' of fiqh which brings sin if abandoned. In fact, the purpose is to stress that making a stop here is the most preferable of all stops (al-Nashr, 1/231). : This letter la is an abbreviation of " la" taqif. It means 'do not stop here,' but it does not imply that making a stop here is impermissible, because there are certain places bearing this sign where making a stop brings no harm and making an initiation from the following word is also permissible. Therefore, the correct meaning of this sign is: If a stop is made here, it is better to go back and read over again. Initiation from the next word is not approved (al-Nashr, 1/233).

As far as the origin of these signs is concerned, it stands proved beyond doubt that they were invented by 'Allamah Sajawandi. In addition to these, there are some other signs as well that appear in the copies of the Qur'an, for instance: : This ma' is an abbreviation of "mu'anaqah". This symbol is inserted at a place where a single verse has two possible explanations. According to one explanation, the stop will be made at one given place, while according to another explanation, this will be at another place. So, a stop can be made at either one of the two places, but once a stop has been made at one place, it is not correct to stop at the other. For instance, take the verse (Arabic text). If a stop is made here at (Arabic text), then it is not correct to stop at (Arabic text) and should a stop be made at (Arabic text), then it is not correct to stop at (Arabic text). However, if a stop is not made at both places, that will be correct. It is also known as 'al-maqabalah'. It was, first of all, pointed out by Imam Abu al-Fadl al-Razi (al-Nashr, 1/237 and al-ltqan, 1/88). : This is a symbol for saktah. It means one should stop here breaking the sound but not the breath. This is generally inserted at a place where assimilated reading is likely to cause an erroneous projection of meaning. : At this sign of waqfah, one must stop a little longer than saktah (pause). But, breath should not break here too. : This letter qaf is an abbreviation of qila 'alazhz l'waqf. It means that some phoneticians of the Qur'an identify a stop here while others do not. : This word is 'qif which means 'stop' and it is inserted where the reader may possibly think that a stop was not correct there. : This is an abbreviation of al-waslu awla which means 'it is better to recite in assimilated continuity'. : This is an abbreviation of qad yusalu, that is, some stop here, while others like to recite on in assimilated continuity. : This is marked at places where some hadith report proves that the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) stopped here while reciting.

The printing of the Holy Qur'an
Before the advent of the printing press, all copies of the Qur'an were calligraphed by hand, and for this purpose, there always has been, in every age, a large group of calligraphers whose sole purpose in life was nothing else except the calligraphy of the Qur’an. The amount of hard work put in by Muslims in writing the words of the Qur'an in ever better styles, and the way they demonstrated their intense emotional involvement with this great Book has a long and interesting history of its own which would need a regular book. This is not the appropriate place to go in such details.

With the invention of the printing press, the noble Qur'an was first printed at Hamburg in 1113 Hijrah, a copy of which is still present in Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyyah. After that, several orientalists arranged the publication of the copies of Qur'an but they were not received with much approval in the Muslim world. After that, Mawlay 'Uthman was the first person among Muslims who had one manuscript of the Qur'an printed at St. Petersburg, a Russian city, in 1787 A.D. Similarly, another manuscript was printed in Qazan also. In 1828 A.D., the Qur'an was printed by lithography on stone slabs in the Iranian city of Tehran. After that, printed copies of the Qur'an became common throughout the world. (Tarikh al-Qur'an by al-Kurdi, p. 186, and 'Ulum al-Qur'an by Dr. Subhi Saleh; Urdu Translation by Ghulam Ahmad Hariri, p. 142)

- Extract from Ma`ariful Qur`an, commentroy of the Holy Quran by Mufti Muhammad Shafi, (in 8 volumns) revised by Justice Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, english translation by Prof. Muhammad Hasan Askari and Prof. Muhammad Shamim.

Review Ma'ariful Qur'an - 2

2012-01-09T09:04:00.000+01:00

The Seven Readings of the Holy Qur'an

In order that the noble Qur'an becomes easily recitable, Allah Almighty has blessed the Muslim community with special convenience by allowing it to read the words of the Qur'an in more than one way. If there are situations when a person is unable to pronounce some words in one manner, he could recite it in another. It appears in a hadith of Sahih Muslim that the Holy Prophet was once sitting by the pond of Banu Ghifar while Angel Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) came and said: 'Allah Almighty has commanded you to ask your community to recite the Qur'an following one method of reading.' He said: 'I seek from Allah His pardon and forgiveness. My people do not have the ability to do so.' Then, Angel Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) returned to him and said: 'Allah Almighty has commanded you to let your people recite the Qur'an following two readings.' He said: 'I seek pardon and forgiveness from Allah Almighty. My people do not have the ability to do even that.' Then, Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) came the third time and said: 'Allah Almighty has commanded you to let your people recite the Qur'an following three readings.' Again he said: 'I seek pardon and forgiveness from Allah Almighty. My people do not have the ability to do even that.' Then he came the fourth time and said: 'Allah Almighty has commanded you to let your people recite the Qur'an following seven readings. So, whichever of these they follow to read the Qur'an, their recitation will be correct.'(Manahil al-'Irfan, v. 1, p. 33)

Accordingly, there is yet another hadith where the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) has said:

This Qur'an has been revealed covering seven versions. So from out of these, recite in a way that is easy on you.

What is meant by 'Seven Versions' in this saying of the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) There are several scholarly positions in this connection but according to scholars who have conducted painstaking and exhaustive research on the subject, the weightier meaning of this expression is that the variations found in different readings of the Holy Qur'an are of seven types. These are as follows:

1. The difference in nouns: This includes the difference concerning singular, dual, plural, as well as, masculine and feminine.

2. The difference in verbs: That there be past in one reading, the present in another and the imperative in yet another.

3. The difference in the placement of diacritical marks: That which shows variance in I'rab, which reflects variance in grammatical mode of a word and is demonstrated through desinential inflections, such as kasrah, fathah, dammah.

4. The difference caused by addition and deletion of words: That there be some word missing in one reading while it has been added on in another; for instance, the words (arbic text) appear in one reading while the words (arbic text) appear in another.

5. The difference of precedence and succession: That there is a word which precedes in one reading, while it succeeds in the other.

6. The difference caused by transposition: This happens when a word found in one reading is replaced by another word in another reading.

7. The difference caused by manners of reading: It includes variations in tafkhim (velarization, making sound heavy), tarqiq (making a letter sound soft), imalah (inclination, bending the sound of a short vowel), madd (prolongation), qasr (to shorten), hamz: hamzatation (providing a letter with hamzah), izhar (clear pronunciation) and idgham (assimilation). It means that, by doing these, the actual word does not change but the mode of its pronunciation does change.

Anyhow, many readings were revealed incorporating these seven types of different renderings. This difference between them really made no difference in meaning. The latitude so given was aimed at making recitation easy.

In the beginning, people were not totally used to the style of the Qur'an, therefore, many readings were permitted within the radius of these seven types. But, it was the blessed practice of the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam) that he would go through the entire revealed Qur'an with Jibra'il during the month of Ramadan every year. The year he left this mortal world, that was the year he did so twice. This 'daur' or meticulous re-reading of the Qur'an is called (Arabic text) (last review). On this occasion, many readings were abrogated. Only readings retained were the ones which continue to stay preserved to this day with uninterrupted succession.

Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu), during the period of his khilafah,arranged to have seven copies of the noble Qur'an prepared in order to remove misgivings regarding the recitation of Qur'an. He incorporated all readings in these seven copies by leaving the calligraphed verses of the noble Qur'an without dots and desinences (the vowel-points) so that the text could be read in accordance with whichever reading one wished to follow from among the very readings cited. Thus most of the readings merged into this script, and the readings that could not merge into the script were saved by him when he elected to have one copy written according to one reading, and another, in accordance with another reading. The community demonstrated such care and diligence in having the fondly-remembered readings collected in these copies that Qira'ah developed into a branch of knowledge in its own right, and there rose hundreds of scholars, reciters and memorizers of the Holy Qur'an who spent their entire spans of life to keep it preserved and protected.

What actually happened was that when Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu) sent the seven copies of the noble Qur'an to various areas, he had also sent particular reciters who could teach how to recite them. So, when these revered reciters reached their designated areas, they taught people to read the Qur'an in accordance with their respective readings. These different readings spread out among people. At this stage, some people bequeathed their lives to memorize different readings, and in training others to continue the discipline. This is how the foundation of the 'science of readings' was laid and people from different parts of the Islamic world started turning to the masters of the discipline to achieve the highest of excellence in it. Some memorized only one reading, others did two or three or seven, or even more than that. In this connection, a standard rule was accepted as norm throughout the ummah and it was invariably followed everywhere. It stipulated that only such reading (qira'ah) will be accepted as being the Qur'an which fulfils three conditions:

1. There is room for it in the script of 'Uthmani' copies of the Qur'an.

2. It conforms to the grammar of the Arabic language.

3. It should have, provenly -- with sound authority, originated from the Holy Prophet (sallallaho alehey wasalam), and be well-known among the masters of readings, that is, the Imams of Qira'ah.

A reading which lacks even one of these three requirements cannot be considered as part of the Qur'an. Thus a large number of readings continued to be reported in uninterrupted succession. Then, as a matter of convenience, it so happened that an Imam started giving instructions in one, or some selected readings, and that particular reading became identified with his name. Then, scholars started writing books to collect these readings. So, Imam Abu 'Ubayd Qasim ibn Sallam, Imam Ab'u Hatim Sijistani, Qadi Isma'il and Imam Ab'u Ja'far al-Tabari were the first among those who compiled books in this field which included more than twenty readings. Then came the great scholar, Abu Bakr ibn Mujahid (died 324 Hijrah) who wrote a book in which he had included readings from seven qaris (reciters) only. This book of his became so popular that these readings from the seven qaris became much more famous as compared with those of other qaris.

In fact, some people got used to thinking that these are the only sound readings coming in uninterrupted succession. Although, the truth of the matter is that 'Allamah ibn Mujahid has collected these seven readings in one place just by chance. He never meant that readings other than these were wrong or unacceptable. This act of 'Allamah ibn Mujahid created yet another misunderstanding when some people began to think that (seven versions) means just these seven readings which have been collected by ibn Mujahid. Although, it has been explained earlier that these seven readings are simply a part of sound readings, otherwise every reading that fulfils the above-mentioned three conditions perfectly is sound, acceptable and included within the seven versions (Huraf) in which the noble Qur'an was revealed.

The Seven Qaris
Anyhow, the seven qaris who became most famous as a result of this act of 'Allamah ibn Mujahid are:

1. 'Abdullah ibn Kathir al-Dari (died 120 Hijrah). He was fortunate enough to have seen Sayyidna Anas ibn Malik, 'Abdullah ibn Zubayr and Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (radhiAllaho anhu) from among the Companions. His reading became more famous in Makkah al-Mukarramah. Well-known among those who transmitted his rendition are Bazzi and Qambal, may Allah have mercy on them all.

2. Nafi' ibn 'Abd Al-Rahman ibn Abi al-Nu'aym (died 169 Hijrah). He had the benefit of learning from seventy successors to the Companions who were direct disciples of Sayyidna 'Ubayy ibn Ka'b, 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas and Abu Hurayrah (radhiAllaho anhu). His reading became more famous in Madinah and among those who transmitted his rendition, Ab-u Musa Qalun (died 220 Hijrah) and Abu Sa'id Warsh (died 197 Hijrah) are better known.

3. 'Abdullah al-Hisbi, better known as Ibn 'Amir (died 118 Hijrah). He was fortunate to have seen Sayyidna Nu'man ibn Bashir and Wathilah ibn Asq-a' (radhiAllaho anhu) from among the Companions. He had learnt the art of Qur'anic reading from Mughirah ibn Shihab al-Makhzumi who was a disciple of Sayyidna 'Uthman (radhiAllaho anhu). His reading gained currency mostly in Syria, and more famous among those who transmitted his rendition are Hisham and Dhakwan.

4. Abu 'Amr Zabban ibn al-'Ala (died 154 Hijrah). He has reported his rendition from Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas and 'Ubayy ibn Ka'b (radhiAllaho anhu), through Mujahid and Sa'id ibn Jubayr. His reading became fairly well-known in Basrah. Abu 'Umar al-Dawri (died 246 Hijrah) and Abu Shu'ayb al-Susi (died 261 Hijrah) are among the more famous transmitters of his rendition.

5. Hamzah ibn Habib al-Zayyat, ex-slave of 'Ikramah ibn Rabi' al-Taymi (died 188 Hijrah). He is a disciple of Sulayman al-A'mash, who was a disciple of Yahya ibn Waththab, who was a disciple of Zirr ibn Hubaysh, and he had the benefit of learning from Sayyidna 'Uthman, 'Ali and 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (radhiAllaho anhu). Among his transmitters, Khalf ibn Hisham (died 188 Hijrah) and Khallad ibn Khalid (died 220 Hijrah) are more famous.

6. 'Asim ibn Abi al-Najud al-Asadiyy (died 127 Hijrah). Through Zirr ibn Hubaysh, he is a disciple of 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (radhiAllaho anhu) and through Abu 'Abd al-Rahman Sulami and al-Asadiyy, he is a disciple of Sayyidna 'Ali (radhiAllaho anhu). More famous among the transmitters of his rendition are Shu'bah ibn 'Ayyash (died 193 Hijrah) and Hafs ibn Sulayman (died 180 Hijrah). Generally, the recitation of the Holy Qur'an these days is made following the rendition of this very Hafs ibn Sulayman.

7. Abu al-Hasan 'Ali ibn Hamzah al-Kisa'i (died 189 Hijrah). Among his transmitters, Abu al-Harith Marwazi (died 240 Hijrah) and Abu 'Umar al-Dawri (who is also a transmitter of Abu 'Amr) are better known. The readings of the later three became more common in Kufah.

As it has been submitted earlier that several other readings, other than these seven, are sound and have been reported in uninterrupted succession. However, when the misunderstanding that sound readings are limited to these seven started gaining currency, several scholars (for example, 'Allamah Shadha'i and Abu Bakr ibn Mihran) collected, instead of seven, ten readings in one book. Thereupon, the term, "Al-qira'at al-'ashrah" or "Ten Readings" became famous. In these ten readings, the readings by the following three were also included in addition to those of the seven mentioned above:

1. Ya'qub ibn Ishaq al-Hadrami (died 205 Hijrah). His rendition was famous mostly in Basrah.

2. Khalf ibn Hisham (died 205 Hijrah) who is also a transmitter of the rendition of Hamzah. His rendition was common mostly in Kufah.

3. Abu Ja'far Yazid ibn al-Qa'qa' (died 130 Hijrah). His rendition found wider currency in Madinah al-Tayyibah.

4. Abu al-Faraj Shambudhi (died 388 Hijrah) who was a resident of Baghdad.

Some scholars have counted Sulayman al-A'mash among the fourteen qaris in place of Shambudhi. Out of these, the first ten readings are credited with uninterrupted succession as vouched by sound authority.

Other than these are Shadhdh or rare (Manahil al'Irfan with reference to Munjid al-Muqri'in by ibn al-Jazri).

- Extract from Ma'ariful Qur'an, commentroy of the Holy Quran by Mufti Muhammad Shafi, (in 8 volumns) revised by Justice Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, english translation by Prof. Muhammad Hasan Askari and Prof. Muhammad Shamim.

Review Ma'ariful Qur'an - 1

2012-01-09T08:58:00.000+01:00

By Mufti Taqi Usmani

Wahy (Revelation) and its true nature

Since the Holy Qur'an was revealed to our beloved prophet Sayyidna Muhammad al-Mustafa (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) by means of Wahy (revelation), an understanding of some particulars about Wahy is. imperative at the very outset.

The need for Wahy (Revelation)

Every Muslim knows that Allah Almighty has sent man into this world as a matter of test, and in return for his being obligated with certain duties, the whole universe has been placed at his service. For this reason man, once he is in the world, must do two things:

He should make the best use of this world, and of things created in it.
While using this world to his advantage, he should keep the injunctions of Allah Almighty in sight and do nothing that goes against His will and pleasure.

For these two functions man needs knowledge. Therefore, unless he knows the reality of this world, the properties of different things and the manner in which they can be put to use, he cannot use anything in this world to his advantage. Likewise, unless and until he knows the will of Allah Almighty as to what pleases Him and what displeases Him, it will be impossible for him to lead a life in line with the will of Allah Almighty.

So Allah Almighty, along with the creation of man, has created three things through which he could continue receiving knowledge of the above-mentioned matters of concern. These are:

1. Man’s senses, that is, the eyes, the ears, the nose, the mouth, the hands and the feet.
2. The reason.
3. The Revelation (Wahy)

Consequently, man finds out many things through his senses, many others through reason, and the knowledge of things he cannot get through these two sources are bestowed upon him through Wahy.

The arrangement between these three sources of knowledge is such that each one has its limits, and a particular sphere of activity beyond which it does not work. In natural sequence, the knowledge of things man collects through his senses cannot be deduced through bland reason. For instance, you know by seeing a wall with your eyes that its colour is white. But, should you close your eyes and try to find out the colour of that wall on the sole strength of your reason, this will then be impossible. Similarly, the knowledge of things that comes through reason cannot be discovered by senses alone. For instance, you cannot find out as to who made that wall by simply seeing it with your eyes or touching it with your hands. Not at all, you rather need reason to arrive at that conclusion.

In short, reason gives no guidance as far as the five senses work efficiently, and when the five senses become helpless, reason starts functioning. But, even the guidance given by this reason is not unlimited. This too stops at a certain limit. Then there are things the knowledge of which can neither be acquired through senses nor through reason. For instance, to find out about this very wall, as to what manner of its use will please Allah Almighty and what manner of its use will displease Him, is possible neither through senses nor through reason. In order to give man the answer to such questions, the source that Allah Almighty has prescribed is what is known as Wahy. And the method it follows is that Allah Almighty selects one of His servants, ordains him as His messenger and to him He reveals His Word. This Word is Wahy.

This makes it clear that Wahy is the highest source of knowledge for man which offers to him the answer to questions about his life which cannot be solved by means of reason and senses, but, he still has to have that knowledge. This further explains that reason and perception alone are not enough to show man the way. It is rather all the more necessary, almost inevitable, that the Divine Wahy be there for his guidance. Since Wahy is basically needed where reason does not work, it is, therefore, not necessary that everything communicated through Wahy be compulsively comprehended through reason. On the contrary, as reason is no help in finding out the colour of some object since that is the job of the senses, so is the knowledge of many religious beliefs, the gracious giving of which is the sole prerogative of Wahy and not of reason. Furthermore, trusting reason alone for their comprehension is not sound and correct.

To begin with, it is totally senseless to discuss the issue of Wahy with a person who, God forbid, does not accept the very existence of God. But, for a person who believes in the existence of Allah Almighty and has faith in His perfect power it is not at all difficult to understand that Wahy is a rational need, that it is possible and that it is there for real. If you have faith in the fact that this universe has been created by an absolutely powerful entity, He is the One who has sent man down here to accomplish some particular mission, how then is it possible to imagine that He, after once having created man, would leave him off in total darkness, without ever telling him why did he come into this world, what his duties were, where was he destined to go and how could he realize the purpose of his life? How could a person, whose sanity is still there, send one of his servants on a certain trip under a designated mission without ever telling him the purpose of the trip while he is leaving, nor explaining it to him later on through some message as to why he has been sent out there and what duties he is supposed to carry out during the trip? When a man of ordinary reason cannot do something like this, how can something like this be imagined with respect to the most Holy Lord of the Universe under Whose ultimate wisdom this whole system of the universe is functioning? After all, how is it possible that the Being, that did create such a mind-boggling system composed of the moon, the sun, the sky, the earth, the stars and the planets, would remain unable to institute some arrangement of communication with His servants, through which human beings could be given guidance about the purpose of their lives? If there is 'Iman or faith in the ultimate wisdom of Allah Almighty, then admitting that He did not forsake His servants in the dark, will become all the more necessary; rather on the contrary, He has surely instituted some regular system for their guidance And so, this very regular system of guidance is known as Wahy (Revelation) and Risalah (Prophethood).

This makes it crystal clear that Wahy is not only a religious belief but also a rational need the rejection of which amounts to a rejection of the ultimate wisdom of Allah Almighty.

The Modes of Descent

This sacred sequence of Wahy (revelation) and Risalah (prophethood) came to an end with the last of the prophets, Muhammad al-Mustafa (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam)Nevermore, shall Wahy descend upon any man, nor there is need for it. Wahy used to come to the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) in several forms and modes. In a hadith from Sahih al-Bukhari, Sayyidah 'A'ishah (Radhiallaho Anha) says that Sayyidna Harith ibn Hisham (Radhiallaho Anho) once asked the Holy Prophet as to how did Wahy come to him. The Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said that 'there are times when I hear something like the chiming of bells and this mode of Wahy is the hardest on me. After that, when this chime-sequence ends, that which has been said by the sound seems to have been committed to my memory. And there are times when the angel appears before me in the shape of a man.' (Sahih al-Bukhari, 2/1)

As regards the likening of the sound of Wahy to the sound of bells in the hadith cited above, Shaikh Muhyy al-Din ibn al-'Arabi has explained it by saying that, in the first place, the sound of Wahy is continuous like the sound of a bell which does not break off in between; and in the second place, when the bell rings continuously, it generally becomes difficult for the listener to determine the direction of its sound because its sound seems to be coming from all directions. And the Divine Word too carries with it the distinction that it has no one single direction, in fact, the sound gives the impression of being heard from all directions. A correct realisation of this phenomenon is just not possible without auditory experience, however, in order to bring this happening closer to common comprehension, the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) by, has simply likened it to the sound of bells. (Fayd al-Bari,19,20/1)

With the descent of Wahy in this mode, the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) came under very heavy strain. Sayyidah 'A’ishah (Radhiallaho Anha) says towards the end of this very hadith that she had seen the coming of Wahy to him during days of extreme winter. When the progression of Wahy ceased, his blessed forehead would have already become dripping-wet inspite of the chilly weather. In yet another narration, Sayyidah 'A'ishah (Radhiallaho Anha) relates: When Wahy came to him, his breath would seem to stop, the radiant face would change turning pale like the branch of a date palm, the front teeth would shiver from cold and he would perspire so much that its drops would roll like pearls. (Al-ltqan,1/46)

On occasions, so much intensity would be generated in this state of Wary that the animal he would be riding at that time would sit down, wilting under his weight. Once, when he was resting his blessed head on the lap of Sayyidna Zayd ibn Thabit (Radhiallaho Anho) there started the descent of Wahy in that very posture. This released so much weight on Sayyidna Zayd's (Radhiallaho Anho) thigh that it seemed to break. (Zad al-Ma'ad, 1/18,19)

There were times when a low-volumed sound of this Wahy was sensed by others as well. Sayyidna 'Umar (Radhiallaho Anho) says: When Wahy came to him, a sound somewhat similar to the buzzing of honey-bees could be heard close to his most bright face. (Tabwib Musnad Ahmad, Kitab al-Sirah al-Nabaviyah, 20/212)

Under the second mode of Wahy, an angel would come to him in some human form and deliver Allah's message Generally, such occasions, Sayyidna Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) used to come to him in the form of Sayyidna Dihyah al-Kalbi . Certainly, at other times, he has come in other forms as well. In any case, this mode of the coming of Wahy when it was brought by Sayyidna Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) ?dull w appearing in human form, was the easiest on the Holy Prophet . (Al-ltqan, 1/46)

The third mode of the coming of Wary used to be that Sayyidna Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) ould appear as he was, without having taken on the shape of a man. But this has happened only thrice in his entire lifetime. First of all, it was when the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) had himself wished to see him in his real form and shape. The second time, it was in the Mi'raj (the Ascent to Heaven), and the third time it was at Ajyad-d in Makkah al-Mukarramah during the very early days of Prophethood. The first two happenings stand proved authentically, however, the last one suffers from weak chains of authority and is, therefore, doubtful. (Fath al-Bari. 1/18.19}

The fourth mode is distinguished by a direct, not intermediary two-way conversation with Allah Almighty. This honour was bestowed upon the Holy Prophet only once, that is, in Mi'raj, while awake. In addition to that, once it was in a dream as well that he was in a conversing situation with Allah Almighty.

Under the fifth mode of Wahy, it so happened that Sayyidna Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) would, without appearing physically in any form whatsoever, let some words of the message fall into his heart. This is technically known as (nafth fi al-rau; blowing into the heart) (Ibid.).

The Chronology of the Revelation of the Qur'an

The noble Qur'an is, in fact, the Divine Word. It is, therefore, secure in the Preserved Tablet. The noble Qur'an says: (arbic text) rather, it is the glorious Qur'an in the Preserved Tablet) (Quran 85:21-22)

Then, from the Preserved Tablet, its descention took place twice. Once, the whole of it had been sent to al-Bayt al-Izzah, the most exalted House on the firmament of the world. The most exalted House (also known as al-Bayt al-Ma'mur) is a House facing Ka'bah that exists in the firmament as the place of worship for angels. This descention took place on the Night of Qadr (rendered as the Night of Power in English). The second time it used to be revealed to the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) gradually as needed, having reached its completion in twenty three years. These two modalities of the Qur'anic revelations become clear through the style of the noble Qur'an itself. In addition to that, al-Nasa'i, al-Baihaqi and al-Hakim and others have reported from Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas (Radhiallaho Anho) , what can be summed up by saying that the first descention of the noble Qur'an to the firmament of the world took place all at one time and the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) was blessed with the second descention gradually. (al-Itqan, v. 1, p. 41)

Explaining the wisdom behind the first descention of the noble Qur'an on the firmament facing the world, Imam Abu Shamah has said that it aimed at demonstrating the exalted majesty of the noble Qur'an, and at the same time, it was to tell the angels that this was the last Book of Allah which is ready for descention for the guidance of the people of the earth.

Shaykh al-Zurqani makes yet another point when he says that this two-timed descention also aimed at stressing that this Book is beyond all doubts, and it stands preserved at two more places other than the blessed heart of the Holy Prophet , (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) that is, in the Preserved Tablet, and in the Exalted House. (Manahil al-'Irfan, v.1, p. 39).

It is almost agreed by all the scholars that the second gradual descention which was on the heart of the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) began when his age was forty years. The beginning of this descention, as authentically reported, was in the Night of Qadr, and this was the date on which, some years later, the event of the Battle of Badr came to pass. However, nothing definite can be said about the exact date of Ramadan when this Night fell. There are some reports which identify that of the seventeenth Ramadan, while others place it on the nineteenth, and still others which indicate the Night of the twenty- seventh. (Tafsir Ibn Jarir v. 10, p. 7)

The verses that came first

It is authentically said that the first verses to come to the Holy Prophet were the verses from which Surah al-'Alaq begins. As in Sahih al-Bukhari, Sayyidah 'A'ishah,(Radhiallaho Anha) while relating its background has said that the very first beginning of revelations to the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) actually was through true dreams. Following that, came his zeal to worship-in seclusion. During this period, he would spend night after night in the Cave of Hira and stay in the state of I'tikaf devoted to his ibadah (worship) when one day, right there in that cave where came an angel from Allah Almighty and the very first thing he said was (Iqra: 'Read'). The Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said: ,(arbic text) I am unable to read.' After that, relating the event himself, he said that 'the angel, hearing this answer of mine, caught hold of me and embraced me with such force that I had to go through unbearable strain.' Then he released me and said: (arbic text) 'Read" I said: 'I am unable to read.' Thereupon, he seized me the third time gave a hard embrace and then released me. After that he said:
( arbic text)

translation:

Recite with the Name of your Lord who created, created Man out of a blood-clot. Recite and Your Lord is Most Generous who taught by the Pen, taught Man what he did not know. (96:1-3)

These were the first verses to be revealed to him. Thereafter, the coming of Wahy stayed discontinued for three years. This period is known as the period of fatrah, that is, the period when Wahy was discontinued for a short interval of time. Then, it was after three years that the same angel who had visited him in the Cave of Hira' became visible to him between the heaven and the earth. He read to him the verses of Surah al-Muddaththir. Thereafter, the sequence of Wahy was reactivated.

The Makki and Madani Verses

While looking at the titles of the Surahs of the Holy Qur'an, you may have noticed the entry, Makka (or Meccan, Makkan, Makkiyyah) with some Surahs, and Madani (Medinan, Medinite, Madaniyyah) with some others. It is necessary to understand correctly what it means. In the terminology of the commentators, the 'Makki 'ayah' means a verse that was revealed to the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) earlier than he actually reached Madinah by way of hijrah (emigration). Similarly, the 'Madanz 'ayah' or the Madani verse means that it was revealed after he migrated to Madinah. Some people take 'Makki' to mean that the verse concerned was revealed in the city of Makkah, and so the 'Madani' is supposed to have been revealed in Madinah. This view is not correct because there are several verses which were not revealed in the city of Makkah, yet are called Makki because they had already been revealed before hijrah. As such, the verses that were revealed in Mina, 'Arafat, or during the Journey of Ascent (Mi'rajj) are also called Makki. So much so, that the verses revealed during the journey of hijrah enroute Madinah are also called Makki. Similarly, there are several verses which were not revealed in the city of Madinah, but they are Madani. For example, there were several journeys that the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) had to undertake while going many hundred miles away from Madinah, and the verses revealed at all those places are called Madani anyway. So much so that the particular verses that were revealed on the occasion of the Conquest of Makkah or the military campaign of Hudaybiyyah in the city of Makkah proper or its environs are also called Madani. Accordingly, the Qur'anic verse:
(arbic text)

Surely, Allah commands you to fulfil trust obligations towards those entitled to them. (4:58)

is Madani although it was revealed in Makkah al-Mukarramah. (al- Burhan, v. 1, p. 88, and Manahil al-'Irfan, v. 1, p. 88)

Then there are Surahs which are either totally Makki, or totally Madani. For instance, Surah al-Muddaththir is wholly Makki and Surah 'Al-'Imran is wholly Madani. But, on occasions, it has so happened that one or some Madani verses find a place in the Surah which is wholly Makki. On other occasions, it has happened just the reverse. For instance, Surah al-A'raf is makki but in it the verses from (arbic text) to (arbic text) are Madani. Similarly, Surah al-Hajj is Madani but four of its verses, that is, those from to (arbic text) to (arbic text) are Makki.

This also makes it clear that the incidence of a Surah being Makki or Madani is generally conditioned by the nature of the majority of its verses and so it happened frequently that the initial verses of a Surah which were revealed before Hijrah were regarded as Makki, although some of its verses may have been revealed latter on following Hijrah. (Manahil al-'Irfan, v. 1, p. 192)

Characteristics of Makki and Madani Verses

The scholars of Tafsir, after having made a thorough investigation into the Makki and Madani Surahs, have come up with a set of characteristics that tell right off if a Surah is Makki or Madani. Some of these characteristics are recognized as universal rules while others hold good most of the time. The universal rules are as follows:

1. Every Surah in which the word (arbic text); never appears is Makki. This word has been used 33 times in 15 Surahs, and all these verses are in the last half of the noble Qur'an.

2. Every Surah in which (according to the Hanafiyyah) there appears a verse of Sajdah is Makki.

3. Every Surah, with the exception of Surah al-Baqarah, in which the story of Adam and Iblis finds mention is Makki.

4. Every Surah in which a permission of jihad or a description of its injunctions has been given is Madani.

5. Every verse which mentions the hypocrites is Madani. The following characteristics are general and mostly frequent, that is, sometimes the contrary may happen, but usually and mostly it follows the said pattern:

a). In makki Surahs, generally, the form of address used is ,(arbic text) (O people), and in Madani Surahs it is (arbic text) O' believers).

b). The Makki 'Ayat (Verses) and Surahs are generally short and brief while the Madani verses and chapters are long and detailed.

c). The Makki Surahs mostly consist of subjects such as, Oneness of Allah, Prophethood, affirmation of the Hereafter, the panorama of the Resurrection, words of comfort for the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) and events relating to the past communities, and in these, the number of injunctions and laws taken up is much less as compared with the Madani Surahs where family and social laws, injunctions of jihad and expositions of limits and duties appear frequently.

d). In Makki Surahs, most of the confrontation is against idolaters while in Madani Surahs it is against the people of the Book and the hypocrites.

e). The style of Makki Surahs is more majestic. It has profusion of metaphors, similies and allegories and the vocabulary used is extensive. Contrary to this, the style of the Madani Surahs is comparatively simple.

This difference in the style of Makki and Madani Surahs initially owes its origin to a variety of conditions, circumstances and addressees. Muslims had to deal mostly with the idolaters of Arabia during their Makkan life. No Islamic state was born yet. Therefore, during this period, more emphasis was laid on the correction of beliefs, reform of morals, logical refutation of the idolaters and the miraculous nature of the noble Qur'an. Contrary to this, an Islamic state had risen in the Holy city of Madinah. People were rushing into the fold of Islam, group after group. Idolaters stood refuted intellectually The ideological confrontation was now wholly against the people of the Book. Therefore, greater attention was paid to education in injunctions, laws, limits and duties, and on the refutation of the people of the Book. The style adopted matched these objectives.

The Gradual Revelation of the Noble Qur'an

As said earlier, the noble Qur'an was not revealed to the Holy Prophet suddenly and simultaneously. On the contrary, it was revealed, little by little, over a span of nearly twenty three years. At times, Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) ; would come with a small verse, or even with some unit of a verse. Then, there were times when several verses would be revealed at one time. The smallest portion of the Qur'an which was revealed as such is (arbic text) (al-Nisa': 4:94) which forms part of a long verse. On the other hand, the whole of Surah al-An'am was revealed at one time. (Ibn Kathir, v. 2, p. 122)

Rather than being revealed all at once, why was the Qur'an revealed little by little? The polytheists of Arabia had themselves put this question to the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) Allah Almighty has taken it upon Himself to answer the question in the following words:

The disbelievers said, "Why has the Qur'an not been sent down upon him all at once?" "(We did) like this, so that we may strengthen your heart thereby, and we have recited it very distinctly. They bring not to thee any similitude but that We bring thee the truth, and better in exposition" (25:32-33)

It is sufficient to understand a gist of the wisdom behind the gradual revelation of the Holy Qur'an as stated by Imam al-Razi in his explanation of this verse. He says:

1. The Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) was ummiyy, that is, being unlettered, he did not read or write. So, had the entire Qur'an been revealed at one time, it would have been difficult to remember and document. Contrary to this, Sayyidna Musa (Alayhis-Salam) (Moses) knew reading and writing, therefore, the Torah was revealed to him at one single time.

2. If the entire Qur'an had been revealed all at once, immediate compliance of all its injunctions would have become obligatory, and this would have gone against the wise graduation which has featured as a matter of concern in the Shari'ah of our Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam)

3. The Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) had to go through ever-new tortures inflicted by his people. That Jibra'il (Alayhis-Salam) came, again and again, with the words of the noble Qur'an, made his stand against these tortures bearable, and gave strength to his heart

4. A large portion of the Qur'an is devoted to answers given to people who posed questions, while some other portion refers to various particular events. Therefore, the revelation of those verses was appropriate at the time when those questions were asked, or those events came to pass. This increased the insight of Muslims and when the Qur'an unfolded that which was unseen, its truth became all the more manifest. (al-Tafsir al-Kabir, v. 6, p. 336)

Sabab' al-nuzul: (Cause of revelation)

The verses of the noble Qur'an are of two kinds. In the first place, there are the verses that Allah Almighty revealed on His own. Their revelation was not caused by some particular event or a question asked by someone. In the second place, there are those verses which were revealed in answer to some question or with reference to some event. This could be termed as the background of these verses. This background is known, in the terminology of the commentators, as the 'sabab' of nuzul ('cause' of revelation) or the 'sha'n' of nuzul (the 'background' of revelation). For instance, take the verse in Surah al-Baqarah:

Do not marry female associators unless they come to believe, and a Muslim slave girl is better than a female associators, even though she is liked by you. (2:221)

This verse was revealed in the wake of a particular event. During the days of Ignorance, Sayyidna Marthad ibn Abi Marthad al-Ghanavi (Radhiallaho Anho) by , had a relationship with a woman, named 'Anaq. After embracing Islam, he migrated to Madinah while that woman stayed behind in Makkah al-Mukarramah. There was an occasion when Sayyidna Marthad (Radhiallaho Anho) visited Makkah al-Mukarramah on a certain business. 'Anaq came to him with an invitation to sin. Sayyidna Marthad (Radhiallaho Anho) refused flatly and said: 'Now Islam has come between me and you, but should you so wish, I can marry you after clearing it with the Holy Prophet (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) After returning to Madinah, Sayyidna Marthad (Radhiallaho Anho) sought his permission to marry the woman he said he liked. Thereupon this verse was revealed, and it prohibited marriage with mushrik women. (Asbab al-Nuzul by al-Wahidi, p. 38)

This event is the 'sha'n' or 'sabab' of nuzul ('cause' or 'background' of revelation) behind the verse mentioned above. The background of revelation is, therefore, very important in the exegesis of the noble Qur'an. There are many verses the meaning of which cannot be correctly understood unless the circumstances underlying their revelation become known.

Sunni-Shia beliefs and differences

2012-01-07T09:09:00.000+01:00

"Sunni-Shia beliefs and differences" a vital lecture by Sheikh Mumtaz Ul Haq. Proof from classic authentic Shia books e.g. Usool-e-kafi.

Please note: We are not causing differences nor promoting hatred, we are mearly raising awareness and educating the masses.

Khuffain - leather socks

2012-01-04T10:28:00.002+01:00

Question: On what types of socks is Masah permissible? What do 'Ulema of Islam say regarding this?

a) As far as masah on leather socks is concerned, in this matter the opinion of permissibility is almost unanimous.

However, there is some difference regarding masah on socks made out of wool, cotton, nylon etc. Some put conditions to the permissibility of masah on such socks. One famous personality of present times says that masah on socks of all types is permissible without any restrictions.

b) Below is what this famous personality says regarding the conditions which fuqaha (jurists) have placed on the permissibility of masah on such socks:

“I have tried to find the basis for such conditions but I could not find anything in the Sunnah. From Sunnah it is established that the prophet Muhammad (saw) did masah on socks and shoes. Apart from Nasai, Book of Sunan and Musnad Ahmed relate from Mugheera Ibn Sha'bah that prophet Muhammad (saw) performed wudhu (ablution) and did masah on his socks and shoes (masah 'ala al-jurbain wa al-na'layn). Abu Dawood says that Ali (ra), Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (ra), Bara' ibn 'azab (ra), Anas ibn Malik (ra), Abu Amamah (ra), Suhail bin Sa'd (ra) and 'Umar bin Harith (ra) all did masah on socks and this act is also related from 'Umar (ra) and 'Abbas (ra). Furthermore Baihaqi relates from Ibn 'Abbas (ra) and Anas bin Malik (ra) and Tahawi relates from Ovais ibn Aus that prophet Muhammad (saw) performed masah only on his shoes. There is no mention of socks in these narrations and the same act is narrated by 'Ali (ra). These narrations prove that not only is masah on socks permissible but masah on shoes worn on socks is also permissible. None of these narrations mention the prophet Muhammad (saw) had put conditions on performing masah like fuqaha have put conditions. Moreover none of these narrations mention the material out of which the socks were made on which the prophet Muhammad (saw) and Sahabah (Companions) did masah.
Because of this I am compelled to say that there is no basis for the conditions which the fuqaha have put on masah of socks and thus if anyone does not follow their conditions then he will not be sinful. The summary of this research is that masah can be done on all forms of socks whether they are made of wool, cotton, nylon or of some other material, leather or oilcloth. In fact if cloth is wrapped around the feet then masah on it is also permissible.”

Apart from him, Allama Ibn Taymiyyah has also given the same fatwa in volume 2 of his fatawa book. Hafiz ibn Qayyim and Allama Ibn Hazm have the same ruling that masah can be performed on any type of socks without any restriction.

Answer: None of the Imams and Mujtahideen have regarded it permissible to do masah on the type of wollen, cotton and nylon socks that are available today. You have understood it incorrectly that there is a difference of opinion regarding this matter. In fact the opinion of impermissibility is unanimous regarding such thin socks.

This is what Malik al 'Ulema Kasani رحمة اللہ علیہ writes:

“So if socks are so thin that water can be strained through them then as per ijma masah on them is impermissible.” (Bada'i al-sana'i vol.1 page 10)

'Allamah Ibn Najeem رحمة اللہ علیہ writes:

ولا یجوز المسح علی الجورب الرقیق من غز ل اوشعر بلا خلاف ولو کان ثخینا یمشی معة فرسخا فضا عدا فعلی الخلاف

"It is not permissible to do masah on a sock made out of hair Ghazl (i.e. cotton, wool etc) and that is without any disagreement among the 'ulema. If the sock is thick and it is possible to walk with it about 3 miles, then there is a disagreement." (al-Jar al-Raiq Vol.1 pg 192)

This shows that the socks which do not have to condition of “thakheen” ( ثخین ) i.e. water can be strained through them or they need to be tied because they cant stay upright because of their thickness or one cant walk a mile in them without shoes then masah on them is not permissible in the madhhab of any mujtahid. Yes, the socks which fulfill all these three conditions, there is a difference of opinion regarding masah on them.

As far as Syed Abu al-'ala Maududi is concerned, he has taken a different path from the majority and this matter is one such place where he adopted an opinion different from the majority fuqaha. This is a serious mistake on his part. The arguments of Maududi which you have presented show that he did not try to understand the reality of this matter in its entirety. For your satisfaction the gist of the matter is explained hereunder.

The Qur'an in Surah Maidah has defined a method to do wudhu which includes the command to wash your feet and not to do masah on them. Hence, according to the Qur'an, feet are to be washed whenever wudhu is performed and masah would be impermissible in any situation even if a person is wearing leather socks. But the permissibility to do masah on leather socks is given so that masah is done on such socks and this permission has been given by Prophet Muhammad s.a.w in tawatir manner and is undeniable.

If masah on leather socks was mentioned in only 2 or 3 ahadith then the permissibility of masah would not have been given because no alteration can be made in the order of the Qur'an based on khabar ahad. But because the ahadith of masah on leather socks are mutawatir, that is why in light of these mutawatir ahadith it has become the ijma of entire ummah that the verse of the Qur'an is special to the case when a person is not wearing leather socks.

Hence Imam Abu Hanifa رحمة اللہ علیہ states:

“I was not convinced about masah on leather socks till the time I did not have evidence for it which was as clear as the sunlight in the day.” (al-Jara al-Ra'iq Vol.1 pg 731)

80 Companions رضی اللہ عنھم have related the order of masah on leather socks. Ibn Hajar, in Fath al-Bari Vol.1 pg 176 writes:

“A large group of huffaz have attested that the order of masah is mutawatir and some collected the sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم who narrated these traditions and the number of sahabah was more than 80 including 'ashara mubashara.”

And Hasan al-Basri رحمة اللہ علیہ says:

“If the issue of masah on leather socks was not proven through tawatir or excess narrations then there would have been no place for any alteration or extension of the Qur'anic order to wash feet.” (Talkhees al-Jabeer Vol.1 pg 158; Bada'i Vol.1 pg 7)

Hence Imam Abu Yusuf رحمة اللہ علیہ states:

“Qur'anic order can only be abrogated by Sunnah of the Prophet s.a.w only when it is proven by tawatir like in the case of masah on leather socks” (Ahkam al-Qur'an lil Jassas Vol.2 pg 425)

The summary is that the order of the Qur'an is not something which can be limited to certain conditions based on 2 or 3 ahadith. For this to be done it should be proven by tawatir like the issue of masah on leather socks is proven in ahadith. Now as far as the issue of leather socks are concerned, it is established by tawatir the the prophet Muhammad s.a.w did masah on leather socks and even told the ompanions رضی اللہ عنھم to do it. But for socks made of other materials, no such tawatir is present. “Khufain” in Arabic language refers only to leather socks and socks made out of cloth cannot be called “Khuff”. Thus this permissibility is only for leather socks. For other types of socks, the command by the Qur'an to wash the feet will be followed. However, if the material of the socks are so thick (Thakheen) that their characteristics are at par with leather socks, which means water cannot be strained through them and to keep them erect one does not need to tie them and one can walk a mile or two in them, then there is a difference of opinion among the fuqaha regarding this matter. Some have stated that because such socks come under the meaning of leather socks, hence masah on them should also be permissible. And some have stated that because only masah on leather socks is established by tawatir, hence masah on anything else is impermissible.

Now socks are therefore of three types as far as the issue of masah is concerned:

a) Leather socks which are called “Khufain”; masah is permissible on them unanimously.

b) Thin socks which are not of leather and neither are characteristics of leather are found in them, like the socks of cotton, wool and nylon that are available today, the ijma on them is that on these masah is not permissible. This is because masah on them is not proven by such evidence, in light of which, the command of washing feet in the Qur'an can be left.

c)Those socks that are not of leather but their thickness give them characteristics of leather socks. There is difference of opinion regarding masah on them.

The gist of the entire matter is that those socks which are not made of leather, on them there is no difference in the mujtahideen regarding lack of reason for doing masah. And this is due to the fact that the command to wash feet in the Qur'an cannot be left unless proven by tawatir evidence like the reason to do masah on leather socks is proven. Hence the conditions which fuqaha have applied, on socks made out of material other than leather, are not due to their whims and desires but to determine whether such socks have the characteristics of leather socks and there has been a difference of opinion in this matter as well whether doing masah on socks that have passed the conditions is permissible or not.

After understanding the reality of the matter, now see those narrations in which masah on socks (jurbain) is mentions. In the entire ocean of ahadith there are only a total of 3 ahadith. One is from Bilal, one from Abu Musa Ash'ari and one from Mugheera bin Shu'ba رضی اللہ عنھم.

Hadith by Bilal رضی اللہ عنہ is in Mun'ajam Sagheer Tabrani and the one by Abu Musa Ash'ari رضی اللہ عنہ is in Ibn Majah and Baihaqi etc. Hafiz Zail'ee رحمة اللہ علیہ, in Nasb al-Rayah Vol.1 pg 183-4, has proven both these ahadith to have da'eef (weak) sanad (chain of narrators).

Abud Dawood says regarding the hadith of Abu Musa Ash'ari: لیس بالمتصل ولا بالقوی "It is not strong." (Bazal al-Majhood Vol.1 pg 96).

Hence both these ahadith are out of the discussion.

Now what remains is the hadith by Mugheera bin Shu'ba رضی اللہ عنہ. The issue of this hadith is that although Imam Tirmidhi رحمة اللہ علیہ has stated that it is hasan sahih, other prominent muhaditheen have strongly criticized this classification by Imam Tirmidhi رحمة اللہ علیہ.

Imam Abu Dawood رحمة اللہ علیہ quotes the hadith and writes:

“Abdul Rahman bin Mahdi would not narrate this hadith because the famous ahadith from Mugheera are regarding masah on leather socks.” (Bazal al-Majhood Vol.1 pg 96)

Imam Nasai رحمة اللہ علیہ in Sunan Kubra writes:

“Apart from Abu Qays, no one else has narrated this tradition and no other narrator supports this according to my knowledge. However the sahih narration from Mugheera is about masah on leather socks.” (Nasb al-Rayah Vol.1 pg 183)

Other than this, Imam Muslim, Imam Baihaqi, Sufyan Thawri, Imam Ahmed, Yahya bin Mu'een, Ali bin al-Madni and other muhaditheen رحمة اللہ علیھم have declared this hadith da'eef (weak) on basis of the weakness of Abu Qays and Huzayl bin Sharjeel.

Imam Nawawi رحمة اللہ علیہ in his sharh of Sahih Muslim writes:

“Those people who declared this hadith weak, if each one of them would have been alone, even then they would hold more weight over Imam Tirmidhi (rh). Moreover, the principle is that jarh is given preference to ta'deel and huffaz of Hadith are unanimous over the weakness of this hadith. Therefore, Tirmidhi's opinion that this hadith is hasan sahih, is not acceptable.” (Nasb al-Rayah Vol.1 pg 183)

This is the value of the isnad of this hadith which Maududi has presented as evidence for his opinion. You saw that this hadith is da'eef and not acceptable to majority of huffaz of hadith.

Secondly, if for argument's sake, we accept the classification of Imam Tirmidhi رحمة اللہ علیہ and say that this hadith is hasan sahih, so in the entire ocean of ahadith this would be the one and only narration in which prophet Muhammad s.a.w performed masah on socks.

Now how can we leave the clear command in the Qur'an to wash the feet because of this one solitary hadith which has been severely criticized by muhaditheen?

It has been seen that the matter of masah on leather socks was only established when the ahadith regarding it reached the level of tawatir and Imam Abu Yusuf رحمة اللہ علیہ states that if the issue of masah on leather socks was not proven by so many ahadith then there was no room to leave out the washing of feet as commanded by the Qur'an. The command of masah on socks is only mentioned in 3 ahadith. 2 of them have been unanimously declared da'eef and the third one is declared da'eef by the majority of muhaditheen. Only Imam Tirmidhi رحمة اللہ علیہ classified it as sahih. On the basis of such a narration, no restriction can be placed on a command by the Qur'an.

Thus Imam Abu Bakr Jassas رحمة اللہ علیہ says:

“The reality of the matter is the verse refers to washing the feet like stated earlier. Hence, if it was not proven through mutawatir ahadith of prophet Muhammad (saw) regarding masah of leather socks, then we would never have said that masah on leather socks is permissible.....and because masah on socks (made out of cloth) are not related in the same manner like the one regarding leather socks, thus here we have upheld the order in the Qur'anic verse to wash the feet.” (Ahkam al-Qur'an lil Jassas Vol.2 pg 428)

Now the question remains that those Sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم who performed masah on socks or permitted it, for what reason did they do this.

The answer is that the Sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم did not state anywhere that these socks were made of thin cloth material. And unless this is not stated anywhere then how can one prove the permissibility of doing masah on these socks?

The famous 'alim of ahl-e-hadith Allama Shams-ul-Haq Azeem Abadi writes:

“Socks are made of leather, wool, cotton and all of them are called 'socks'. And masah on any type of socks cannot be proven until it is not proven that Prophet Muhammad s.a.w did masah on wollen socks.” ('Awn al-Ma'bood Vol.1 pg 62)

On the contrary it is proven that these people who did masah on socks, they were either made of leather or were like leather socks because of their thickness and they had the characteristics of leather socks. This is why Ibn Abi Sheeba رحمة اللہ علیہ narrates:

“Sa'eed bin Museet and Hasan Basri رحمة اللہ عنھما said that masah on socks is permissible on the condition that they are very thick.” (Musanif ibn Abi Sheeba Vol.1 pg 188)

It is to be noted that the words in the narration is Thawb Safeeq (ثوب صفیق) which means that cloth which is highly strong, durable and firm. For reference please check Qamoos and Mukhtaar al-Sahaah etc.

Hasan Basri and Sa'eed bin al-Museeb رحمة اللہ عنھما both were famous and prominent tab'een and they gave this fatwa after witnessing the act practiced by the Sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم.

Hence, by the practice of these people and their fatwa, it is established that those socks which due to their thickness have similar characteristics of leather socks, masah on them is permissible. And to clarify this thickness of the socks, I have mentioned the 3 conditions: that water cannot be strained through them, they would stay erect due to their thickness and thus need not be tied, and third that one can walk a mile or two wearing them. Such socks fall under the same category of leather socks and based on this, as well as the actions of the Sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم, the majority of the fuqaha have included them in the ruling of masah on leather socks.

Hence Allama Ibn al-Hamaam رحمة اللہ علیہ writes:

“There is not doubt the permissibility of masah on leather socks was established without qiyas and hence qiyas of anything else cannot be done on them except if they enter the meaning of leather socks and by Khufeen, such socks are meant which have covered the feet completely and it would be possible to continuously walk in them during travelling.” (Fath al-Qadeer Vol.1 pg 109)

So it is incorrect to state permissibility to do masah on any type of socks is established in hadith and thus the fuqaha who put conditions on them are wrong and did it just by themselves without any evidence. The reality of the matter is that the command to wash feet cannot be left unless it is proven through mutawatir ahadith. Because such ahadith were present in the case of leather socks, hence masah was allowed in its case. But regarding socks of any other material, no such hadith is present that can be unanimously declared sahih hence masah on them cannot be allowed except for those socks which fall under the same category of leather socks because of their characteristics. And because from the Sahabah رضی اللہ عنھم and tab'een رحمة اللہ علیھم, masah on such socks was established, hence majority of fuqaha permitted it and defined the 3 conditions which would prove something to fall under the same category as leather socks. Thus ijma of all mujtahideen is held.

As far as Ibn Hazm and Ibn Taymiyyah and Ibn Qayyim رحمة اللہ علیھم are concerned, their high status is in its place but they have taken positions contrary to the majority in many matters which the Ummah have rejected. Especially in this matter where they have provided no evidence for their ruling. Hence on the basis of an opinion from only these 3 people against the unanimous opinion from all others, the command of the Qur'an to wash the feet cannot be left out. And there is absolutely no basis whatsoever for the “ijtihad” of wrapping cloth around feet and doing masah on them. Allegations are raised against fuqaha by some that they have no evidence for their ruling even though you have witnessed the undeniable evidence in this reply. On the other hand these same people do their own “ijtihad” in which you can wrap your feet with a cloth for no reason and do masah on them. Is there any source for this to omit the command of the Qur'an to wash feet?

The extract which you presented of Maududi has the issue of masah on shoes also in it. So now the reality of that matter will be discussed in short here in the end.

If socks are thick then there are fuqaha who agree to the legality of performing masah on them. However, masah on shoes is not permissible in any madhhab of the imams.

In Ma'ruf ul San Vol.1 pg 347 it is written:

“None of the imams agreed on the permissibility of doing masah on shoes.”

The reason for this is that masah on shoes is proven by Prophet Muhammad s.a.w at such a time when he s.a.w was already in a state of wudhu and would do a new wudhu for a new salah. In such a condition, because he s.a.w was already in a state of wudhu, he s.a.w would do masah on shoes instead of washing his feet.

Thus there is a narration in Sahih Ibn Huzaima Vol.1 pg 100:

“Ali رضی اللہ عنہ asked for a glass of water and did a concise wudhu and did masah on his shoes. He then said: 'Prophet Muhammad s.a.w used to do wudhu just like this when the previous wudhu was intact and not invalidated.'”

After this clarification it is clear that there is no room for a person who is without wudhu to do masah on his shoes when doing wudhu.

Conclusion:

All fuqaha unanimously agree that masah on thin socks through which water can be strained, need to be tied to stay erect and cannot be used to walk a mile or two is not permissible and neither is masah on shoes permissible. And because the socks we have today are thin and they do not pass the 3 conditions stated, hence masah on them is not permissible under any condition. The person who does masah on them, then according to Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Shafi'i, Imam Malik and Imam Ahmed, in fact according to any mujtahid, the wudhu of such a person will be invalid.

(Fiqhi Maqalat Vol.2 pg 9-24)

Placing feet in Salah

2011-12-31T09:17:00.003+01:00

Introduction

In this fourteenth century of the Islamic era, arecently mushroomed sect known as the Salafis, has invented some newrules which they believe are the Sunnat teachings of Rasulullah(sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Inspite of their views being inconflict with the teachings of the Salf-e-Saaliheen belonging to theNoblest Ages of Islam (Khairul Quroon), they obstinately cling totheir misguided opinions. Their method is to subject the Ahadith totheir personal understanding. Inspite of the divergence which thisself-opinion produces from the Way of the Ummah inherited from theSahaabah, the Salafis intransigently cling to their deviation.

A little reflection would convince them that it isnot possible that the Aimmah-e-Mujtahideen who were the Students ofthe Sahaabah would propagate acts which are in conflict with theSunnah. Any act which has been accepted and practised by the entireUmmah from the earliest era of Islam cannot be deviation. Deviationwill be the act which is in conflict with this sacred unanimity.

One of the erroneous practices of the Salafis istheir act of spreading their legs wide apart during Salaat. In thebid to touch the toes of the musalli standing adjacent to them, theydisfigure their stance and ruin their composure with the mentalpreoccupation of touching the toes of the musallis standing on bothsides in the Saff during Jamaat Salaat. Even when performing Salaatalone, they stretch the legs hideously apart. But for this innovationthey have absolutely no Shar’i evidence. A solitary Hadith whichmakes reference to ‘foot with foot’ has been grievouslymisunderstood and misinterpreted by them. Besides theirmisinterpretation, they have intentionally ignored all the otherShar’i proofs which refute their interpretation.

A perusal of the relevant Ahadith on this subjectwill convince every unbiased Muslim that the Salafi interpretation ofthe Hadith is a concoction of the nafs. It is a concoction designedand prepared by shaitaan to create rifts and discord in the Ummah.When people opt to abandon the practices which the Aimmah Mujtahideenhave reported on the basis of the authority of the Sahaabah, thenshaitaani manipulation is evident.

All four Madhabs of the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’ahunanimously refute the Salafi contention on the position to beadopted when standing for Salaat. None of the Madhabs teaches thatthe legs should be spread out widely when standing for Salaat northat the toes of the Musalli alongside should be touched. Some of theSalafis go to great lengths in spreading their legs in the bid totouch the next man’s toes causing annoyance and much irritation.

The Emphasis on Straghtening theSufoof
(Sufoofis the plural of saff which refers to the row of musallis in aJamaat)

The Ahadith of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhiwasallam) emphasise the straightening of the sufoof. The emphasis inall the Hadith narrations dealing with this subject is directed toproper saff*-formation, not on the feet of the musallis touching thetoes of the musalli standing alongside as the Salafis inordinatelyand inconsiderately practice.

In the endeavour to sustain the practice ofstretching the legs wide open while performing Salaat, the Salafishave gone to the extreme of adopting this ugly stance even whenperforming Salaat alone. While a man who is uneducated in the laws ofthe Shariah may misunderstand the solitary Hadith in which referencehas been made to foot with foot, the same mistake cannot and shouldnot be made in so far as Salaat performed alone because the questionof foot with foot is not remotely related to infiraadi Salaat, i.e.performing Salaat alone.

The Salafis may abortively argue that the aim ofspreading the legs wide apart is to ensure straightness of thesufoof, but what argument do they have for justifying this unbecomingpractice when a man is performing Salaat infiraadan(individually)?Furthermore, there is no Hadith narration in this regard which couldeven be misinterpreted to support the case of a munfarid stretchinghis legs to the extremities of east and west or north and south,depending on the location of the Qiblah from where he happens to be.

The Salafis claim that it is Sunnah to stretch thelegs wide apart and for a musalli’s toes to touch the toes of themusalli standing alongside him in the saff. This ludicrous positionis imposed by the Salafis on even women who are obliged to stand withtheir legs wide open. What an ugly, miserable and immodest stance fora woman to adopt? A woman is an object of concealment according tothe statement of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). When shehas to stretch her legs wide open, she adopts the stance of lewd andshameless women. Throughout Salaat, a woman’s postures are to beconstricted — made small and drawn in, not asserted like a manasserts and expresses his actions during Salaat.

As far as their stance is concerned for the munfarid,there is not a single Hadith which they can cite in substantiationfor their view which anyhow is utterly baseless. All the relevantAhadith on this topic teach the contrary, namely, that the feetshould be held slightly apart — about four to five inches (10 cm).There also exists consensus of the Four Madhabs on this issue.

As far as the feet position for the saff isconcerned, the Salafis conveniently overlook all the Ahadith whichnegate their corrupt view and intransigently cling to a view whichthey have understood to be the method. In taking to this view, theydeliberately cast aside what exactly the Hadith in question says.They took a single word (namely ‘foot with foot’) out of thecontext of the Hadith and formulated the practice of stretching thelegs wide apart and touching the toes of the musallis standingalongside on either side in the saff. For understanding this issue,it is best that we cite all the relevant Ahadith.

The Ahadith

1. Hadhrat Umar (radhiyallahu anhu) narrates thatRasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: Straighten the sufoof,line up the shoulders, close the gaps and become tender in the handsof your brothers. Do not leave any gaps for shaitaan. Whoever joinsthe saff, Allah will join him. And whoever cuts the saff Allah willcut him. (Bukhari & Abu Dawood)

[Become tender: that is to comply when a brothermusalli in the saff touches your shoulder indicating that you shouldbring it in line with the shoulders of the other musallis in thesaff.]

2. Hadhrat Baraa’ Bin Aazib (radhiyallahu anhu)narrates that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) used to enterthe saff from end to end, touching our chests and our shoulders. Hewould say:

Do not be irregular (in your rows), forthen your hearts will become irregular (i.e. discord will overtakeyou). He would (also) say: Verily, Allah Azza Wa Jal and His Malaaikahdispatch Salaam on the first sufoof

[When the word ‘Salaat’ is related to Allah Ta‘ala, it denotes Rahmat, i.e. He sends down mercy. When it isrelated to the Malaaikah, it means that they supplicate to AllahTa`ala to send His mercy upon His servants.]

3. Hadhrat Anas Bin Maalik (radhiyallahu anhu)narrates that the Iqaamah for Salaat was given. Rasulullah(sallallahu alayhi wasallam) turned towards us and said: Straightenyour sufoof and stand close together, for verily I see you frombehind. In a narration of Hadhrat Anas (radhiyallahu anhu) it ismentioned: Everyone among us would put his shoulder with the shoulderof his companion (alongside) and his foot with his foot.

4. Hadhrat Anas (radhiyallahu anhu) narrates thatRasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: Join your sufoof andstand close together, and stand in line with (your) necks. I takeoath by The Being in Whose power is my life that most certainly I seeshaitaan entering the gaps in the saff as if he is a lamb. (AbuDawood)

5. Abul Qaasim Jadli (rahmatullah alayh) said :Iheard Nu’maan Bin Basheer (radhiyallahu anhu) say: ‘Rasulullah(sallallahu alayhi wasallam) turned towards the people (the musallis)and say three times: ‘By Allah! Most certainly, you shouldstraighten your sufoof otherwise Allah will create discord in yourhearts.’ Thereafter I saw that a man would attach his shoulder tothe shoulder of his companion (the one standing alongside), his kneeto the knee of his companion and his ankle to the ankle of hiscompanion. (Bukhari & Abu Dawood)

6. Nu’maan Bin Basheer (radhiyallahu anhu)narrates: Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) would arrange (setin order) our sufoof. One day he came out (from his home) and saw aman (in the saff) whose chest was protruding in front of the (chestsof) the community (i.e. the musallis). He then commented: ‘Straightenyour sufoof otherwise Allah will cast discord in your faces (i.e. inthe words coming from your mouths). (Tirmizi)

7. Maalik Ibn Abi Aamir Ansaari (radhiyallahu anhu)narrates: Uthmaan Bin Affaan (radhiyallahu anhu) would recite in hisKhutbah: ‘When the Salaat is ready, arrange the sufoof properly andline up with the shoulders’ (i.e. the shoulders of the musallisshould all be in line and touching). (Muatta Imaam Muhammad)

8. Hadhrat Anas (radhiyallahu anhu) narrated thatNabi (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: Join your sufoof and drawclose among yourselves and line up with the necks. Reported by AbuDawood and Nisai. Authenticated by Ibn Hibbaan. (Bulooghul Maraam)–I’laaus Sunnan

These are about all the narrations pertaining to themanner and style of standing in Jamaat Salaat. Explaining theseAhadith, Imaam Bukhaari (rahmatullah alayh) states in the sectioncaptioned:

JOINING SHOULDER TO SHOULDER:

This is what the Jamhoor have said:‘Verily, the meaning (of joining in this context) is completenearness and lining up, not actual joining (or touching).’Al-Haafiz said: The meaning of this is to emphasise in straighteningthe saff and closing the gaps. And Aini too has said so. With this,the indication is towards emphasis in straightening the sufoof andclosing the gaps. Qustulaani and others have also said this. (Laamiud Duraari commentary of Bukhari)

In Faidhul Baari it is reported as follows:

It is stated in Sharhul Wiqaayah: ‘The musallishould stand apart (with his feet) so that there is a distance offour fingers in between them, and that is also the view of ImaamShaafi (rahmatullah alayh), In another view it is said that thedistance (between the feet) should be one hand (i.e. about 10 cm).’(The author says): I did not find any difference of opinion among theSalf (i.e. Salf-e-Saaliheen) between the stance (of the musalli) inJama’ah and in infiraad (i.e. performing alone). There is nodifference regarding the gap (between the feet). It is not that thespreading of the feet should be more in Jama’ah than whenperforming Salaat alone.

The summary of this is: When we do not find theSahaabah and the Taabi-een differentiating in their standing positionbetween Jama’ah and individual Salaat, then we understand that theonly meaning of Rasulullah’s statement of ‘joining the shoulders’is to line up closely and to abstain from leaving gaps (between themusallis).

The following appears in Laamiud Duraari, Commentaryof Saheeh Bukhaari:

The Authorities (the Fuqaha) stated that it is bestfor the musalli to keep his feet about four fingers apart. They didnot say that the feet should be united in ruku’ or sajdah. Ainisays in Binaayah: ‘It is appropriate that there be the distance offour fingers between the feet of the musalli, for verily, this isnearest to khushoo.’

Ibn Umar (radhiyallahu anhuma) would not spread(widely) his feet nor would the one foot touch the other, but betweenthis there would be neither much closeness nor much distance.

In Raddul Mihtaar it is reported as follows:

The meaning of joining ankles to ankles is thateveryone in the Jama’ah should stand alongside the other (i.e. in astraight line). So is it said in Fataawa Samarqand). (I’laausSunan)

From all the narrations and views of the Muhadditheenand Fuqaha of the Khairul Quroon era it is abundantly clear that theHadith which mentions joining foot with foot does not have a literalmeaning. It simply means that the feet should be all in line, andthis is achieved by the heels of the musallis all being in the sameline. This will ensure a straight saff on which the emphasis of allthe Ahadith is.

The Salafis

The Salafis of this age, while grabbing the words‘foot with foot’, ignore ‘neck with neck’, ‘shoulder withshoulder’, ‘knee with knee’ and ‘ankle with ankle’. Thenarrations command joining of the necks just as it instructs joiningof the feet. And, in the same way it commands joining of the kneesand ankles. How is it possible for the neck of one musalli to touchthe neck of the musalli alongside? At most, shoulders can touch. Butto achieve the phenomenal act of joining necks, the musallis willhave to ruin their Salaat and stand on their toes balancing at aprecarious angle to achieve the goal of touching each other’s neck.But no one has ever advocated this ludicrous stance. Similarly, ifthe literal sense of the ‘ankle with ankle’ has to be accepted,it will place the musallis under great stress to achieve what is notsimple because the protruding heels are barriers for thisachievement. Also, if ‘knee against knee’ had to be literallyconsidered, the musallis would have to stand with ugly bandied legs,stretching even their thighs hideously in order to join their kneeswith the knees of their companions? But, not even the Salafis haveventured such ludicrousness.

Why do the Salafis choose only ‘foot with foot’out of the several instructions pertaining to the joining of variousbodily parts? For this choice they have only their intransigentnafsaani desire –no daleel whatsoever. What is the determiningfactor to choose only feet and to ignore necks, knees, shoulders andankles? On the other hand, the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’ah — thefollowers of the Four Madhabs have a mass of evidence to support‘joining of the shoulders’. Furthermore, joining or lining up ofthe shoulders is simple, rational and fulfills in the best way theinstruction of straightening the saff.

It should be noted that the emphasis is on closingthe gaps. There should be no gap between two musallis standing in thesaff. But, the wider the legs are spread apart, the more the distancebetween the shoulders will increase. Thus, spreading the legs wideapart defeats the very command issued in the Hadith to close the gapsand straighten the sufoof.

In order to achieve ‘foot with foot’ literally,the Salafis are constrained to turn their feet at angles away fromthe Qiblah. In this hideous exercise they manage only to touch thetoes of the adjacent musalli with much difficulty and irritation tothose whose peace of mind is disturbed with the unruly encroachmentof his companion’s toes. When the toes are made to touch with thefeet in diagonal positions, the shoulders cannot touch, the knees,ankles, necks, etc. are thrown completely out of alignment.

When shoulders are not lined up, it is impossible toachieve straight sufoof. It is for this reason that the Hadithemphasises more on shoulders. Feet are mentioned only once. TheSahaabah and the Taabi-een relate the instruction ‘to line up’and straighten the saff to the shoulders, necks, knees, ankles andthe feet. In other words, all these should be in line, not out ofalignment. It is for this reason that the Hadith clearly mentionsthat the Khulafa-e-Raashideen, in fact Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhiwasallam) himself, would order protruding chests to recede into line.Never did any of the Authorities of the Shariah speak about feetwhich should touch.

In the adoption of the Salafi mode, the movement isexcessive in Salaat. Neither is proper Ruku’ nor proper Sajdahpossible if this hideous posture has to be retained throughoutSalaat. In fact Sajdah is not at all possible with the feet spreadwide apart. Therefore, the Salafis are constrained to shift positionsrepeatedly when going to ruku’. This excessive movement in Salaatin negatory of khushoo’.

THE FOUR MADHABS

While the case of the Four Madhabs is logical, theactual daleel (proof) for our view is not rational interpretation,but is narrational evidence. Such evidence has been transmitted downthe centuries from the Sahaabah. It should be understood that theAimmah-e- Mujtahideen — the Imaams of the Madhabs — had acquiredtheir knowledge of Islam from either the Sahaabah or the Taabi-eenwho were the Students of the Sahaabah. Whatever they taught istherefore, what the Sahaabah had instructed. It is the height offolly and deviation to differ with them and to choose a way which isat variance with what they had disseminated.

It is not conceivable that the Salf-e-Saaliheen —all the Imaams of the Madhab were among them — were in deviationand the present-day Salafis are on Rectitude. This is unacceptable toany Muslim who is prepared to reflect a bit. The greatest daleel forthe view of the Madhabs is that whatever they teach has been acquireddirectly from either the Sahaabah or the Taabi-een.

The Salafi practice of spreading the feet wide apartand the irritating attempt to touch the next man’s toes are inconflict with the Sunnah as the aforegoing Shar’i evidences haveestablished.

Conclusion

1. According to the Hambali Madhab there should be a‘small’ gap between the feet of the musalli.

2. According to the Maaliki Madhab, the distanceshould be moderate, neither together nor so wide apart which isconsidered repugnant.

3. According to the Shaafi Madhab, the gap betweenthe feet should be one hand. It is Makrooh to spread the feet widerthan this.

4. According to the Hanafi Madhab, the distancebetween the feet should be four fingers.

This is the Sunnah and the Way of theSalf-e-Saaliheen. The Salafis have no authority from theSalf-e-Saaliheen to substantiate its view of bid’ah.

The Feet in Salaat
ByMujlisul Ulama of South Africa
P.O.Box 3393
PortElizabeth, 6056

Placing hand in Salah (Qiyam)

2011-12-30T02:56:00.000+01:00

MadhabHanafi:

Hajjajibn al-Hassan relates, eitherI heard Abu Mijlaz saying or I inquired from him, "How should oneposition his hands [during prayer]?" He replied, "He should place theinner portion of his right hand upon the back of the left one beneaththe navel." [MusannafIbn Abi Shayba1:390] The transmission of this hadithis sound [hasan],as Allama Mardini states in his book al-Jawharal-naqiyy.

Ibrahimal-Nakhay relates, "Oneshould place his right hand upon the left one beneath the navelwhilst in salat."[MusannafIbn Abi Shayba1:390] The transmission of this hadithis also sound [hasan].

AbuHurayra r.a narrates, "Theplacing of one hand over the other in salat should be beneath thenavel."[al-Jawharal-naqiyy2:31

Anasr.a reports that there are three aspects from the character of Nubuwwa[Prophethood]: "to open fast early, to delay thesuhur[pre-dawn meal], and to position the right hand over the left onebeneath the navel while in salah."[al-Jawharal-naqiyy2:31]

Theauthor of al Durr al Mukhtaar, explaining the Hanafi position says: "For men the hands should be below the navel."

MadhabMaliki:

ImamMalik rah. has three narrations: 1) Not fastening the hands at allbut letting them hang at the sides. This is the most famous ruling ofhis madhab. 2) A choice of fastening or letting them hang at thesides. 3) Placing the hands above the navel but below the chest.

(One of Imam Malik rah. view is that the right hand should not be placed on theleft either on the chest or on the navel, rather both the handsshould be left on their respective sides. Even there was no hadith to supportthis view but however, there is a practice ofsome Sahabah on which Imam Malik rah. has based his view. This is ajuristic matter which is subject to different opinions. The threeImams i.e. Imam Abu Hanifah, Imam Shafi'i and Imam Ahmad, do notendorse the view of Imam Malik in this regard. Same as moving the finger in tahsyahud which only Imam Malik rah. hold this view)

Madhab Shafi'e:

ImamShaf'i rah. says that they should be placed above the navel butbelow the chest. Imam Nawawi rah. discusses this in his commentary ofMuslim saying, 'This is the better known ruling of our Madhab.' Healso says in Sharh al Muhaddhab, 'He should place them below hischest and above his navel. This is the correct and clear ruling (ofour school).'

Madhab Hanbali:

ImamAhmad Ibn Hanbal's rah. view is that that hands should be fastenedbelow the navel. This is his most famous narration and is adopted byvirtually all the hanbali ulama.

The Hanbali scholar Alaa alDeen al Mardawi writes in his al Insaaf, "He should place his handsbelow the navel. This is the Madhhab (of the Hanbali's), and uponthis are the clear majority of the Hanbali ulama." [al Insaaf1/46]

Imam Ahmed rah. also has two other narrations: 1) Abovethe navel but below the chest. 2)A choice of either of the twopositions without preference for either.

Sheikh-ulHadith, Moulana Muhammad Zakariyya rah. quotes the authors of Nail alMaarib, al Anwaar and al Rawdh al Murabb'a in his Awjaz al Masalikand then concludes, "We learn from this that the preferred and securenarration amongst the Hanbali ulama is that of below the navel."[Awjaz al Masalik 3/171]

- Thus, in reality, there are onlytwo positions of fastening the hands: above the navel, and below it.No school of fiqh advocates the fastening of the hands on thechest.

Abu al tayyib al Madani writes in his commentary onTirmidhi that none of the four Imams adopted the practise of placingthe hands on the chest.

Ibn al Qayyim al Jawziyyah rah. alsowrites in his Badai' al Fawaid, 'It is makrooh (undesirable) to placethe hands on the chest in view of the narration that the Prophet(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) forbade takfeer, which is to place thehands on the chest.' (Bada'i al Fawa'id, 3/73)

Matter of hadith placing hands upon the chest and the following ofanalysis the hadith which often quoted for placing the hands upon thechest.

1. Wail bin Hujr r.a says, "I prayed withthe Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) and he placed his righthand over his left on his chest". (Ibn Khuzaimah, 479)

ImamNawawi rah. says, "It's isnad is questionable and the additionalwording 'on his chest' is inauthentic and not established."

Thishadeeth has been reported by Muammal bin Ismaeel from Sufyan alThawri from Aasim bin Kulaib from Wail bin Hujr rah. However it isonly Muammal who reports these additional words from Sufyan alThawri. Sufyan's other student, Abdullah bin al Waleed who alsonarrates this hadith from him does not include these words in hisnarration as recorded in Imam Ahmad's Musnad. (Ahmad 18392)

Theother narrators who report the hadeeth together with Sufyan al Thawrifrom Aasim bin Kulaib have also not included these words in theirnarrations. Observe the following list of narrators who have alreported the same hadeeth from Aasim bin Kulaib but none of then haveincluded the additional words reported by Muammal bin Ismaeel

•Sh'ubah, Abdul Wahid, and Zubair bin Muawiyah as in Imam Ahmad'sMusnad. (Ahmad 18398, 18371 & 18397)

• Zaidah as in ImamAhmad's Musnad, Darimi, Abu Dawood. Nasai and Baihaqi (Ahmad 18391,Darimi 1357, Abu Dawood 726, Nasai 889 and Baihaqi 2325)

•Bishr bin al Mufaddhal as in Ibn Majah, Abu Dawood and Nasai (IbnMajah 810, Abu Dawood 726 & 957, and Nasai 1265)

•Abdullah bin Idrees as in Ibn Majah (Ibn Majah 810)

• Salambin Saleem as in Abu Dawood Tayalisi's Musnad (Abu Dawood Tayalisi1020)

There are many other chains for this hadith, however,none contain this extra wording. Thus, it is clear that this isMuammal bin Ismaeel's own erroneous addition to the hadith. Ibn alQayyim al Jawziyyah rah. also says in I'laam al Muwaqqieen, "No one hassaid upon the chest apart from Muammal bin Ismaeel." (I'ilaam alMuwaqqieen 2/361) Therefore, as Imam Nawawi rah. has concluded in his alTa'leeq al Hasan, this hadith with the additional wording of `uponhis chest` is extremely weak.

It is an accepted principle ofhadith that if a certain authentic and reliable narrator contradictsother equally authentic or more reliable 'arrators in his wording ofa hadith then his narration will be declared shaadh and will not beaccepted. If this is the case with authentic narrators, then anirregular addition of the words 'upon the chest' cannot be acceptedfrom a narrator who, although declared acceptable by some, errsexcessively and is weak of memory like Muammal bin Ismaeel. Study thefollowing observations of the scholars of Jarh and T'adeel aboutMuammal bin Ismaeel:

Abu Hatim says, "He is sadooq, firm insunnah, but one of many mistakes."

ImamBukhari says, "Muammal is munkar al hadith" (People who view ImamBukhari as the ultimate authority in matters of Hadeeth should notehis following statement: "It is not permissible to narrate fromanyone whom I have labelled munkar al hadeeth." [Mizan al I'itidal.1/119]

Dhahabi says in al Kashif, "He is sadooq, firm insunnah, but one of many mistakes. It was also said that he buried hisbooks and narrated by heart and thus erred."

Ibn Sa'd says, "He is thiqah, though one of many mistakes."

Yakub bin Sufyansays, "Muammal Abu Abdul Rahman is a great sunni shaikh. I heardSulaiman bin Harb praise him. Our shaikhs would advise us to take hishadith, only that his hadith are not like the hadith of hiscompanions. At times it is obligatory upon the people of knowledge todistance themselves from his narrations as he narrates munkar hadith from even his authentic teachers. This is worse for had henarrated these munkar hadith from weak authorities we would haveexcused him.'

Sajisays, "He errs excessively. He is sadooq, but one of many mistakes.He has errors that would take too long to be mentioned."

Muhammadbin Nasr al Marwazi says, "If Muammal alone relates a certainnarration then it becomes obligatory to pause and research thehadith as he had a bad memory and erred excessively." (See Tahdheeb alTahdheeb)

HafidhIbn Hajar has made it clear in his Fath al Bari that there is dhaif(weakness) in Muammal bin Ismaeel's narrations from Sufyan (Fath alBari, 9/297). The above hadith has this very chain of narration.

Wemust also bear in mind that Sayyiduna Wail Ibn Hujr(ra), the verycompanion who narrates this hadith, was a resident of Kufa, and thepractice of the people of Kufa was to fasten their hands below thenavel. There is nothing to suggest that he contravened this practice.Sufyan al Thawri, from whom Muammal narrates this hadith, is himselfof the view that the hands should be placed below the navel (IbnQudamah in al Mughni 2/23, and others as quoted by the author ofBughyah al Almaee 1/316)

Furthermore, there is another hadeethnarrated by Sayyiduna Wail (ra) himself (quoted above) which saysthat he saw the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) fasten hishands below the navel.

2. Sayyiduna Hulb (ra) relates, "I sawthe Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) turn from both his rightand left and I also saw him place this upon his chest." Yahya (one ofthe narrators) described this as being the right hand upon the leftabove the wrist joint. 292

The above hadith contains the words'upon his chest'. This extra wording is not firmly established orconfirmed, because of all the narrators who report this hadeeth fromSimak, only one reports this extra wording.

Observethe following narrations of the same hadith without the extrawording of 'upon his chest'.

• Abu al Ahwas reports fromSimak bin Harb from Qabeesah bin Hulb from his father that theProphet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would lead us in prayer andwould clasp his left hand with his right.293

• Shareekreports from Simak from Qabeesah bin Hulb from his father who says(towards the end of a longer hadeeth), "I saw him place one of hishands on the other and I also saw him turn once towards his right andonce towards his left." 294. Wakee reports from Sufyan from Simakbin Harb from Qabeesah bin Hulb from his father who says, 'I saw theProphet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) place his right hand upon hisleft in prayer and I also saw him turn away from both his right andleft.'295

• Daruqutni narrates from Abdul Rahman bin Mahdiand Wakee', from Sufyan from Simak bin Harb from Qabeesah bin Hulbfrom his father who says, "I saw the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) place his right hand upon his left in prayer." (Daruqutni1087)

The above narrations all clearly show that the wording'upon his chest' is an unreliable addition on the part of one of thereporters and therefore this particular narration is shaadh.

ImamNawawi rah. adds in his al T'aleeq al Hasan (1/145): "I have asuspicion that the wording of this hadeeth has mistakenly beenchanged by a writer. The correct words would appear to be "Yadhauhadhihi ala hadhihi", i.e., "he would place this hand uponthis hand", and not "hadhihi ala sadrihi", i.e., "thishand upon his chest". Only this wording would be in agreementwith the narrators own interpretation of the hadeeth as is stated inthe narration "Yahya described this as being the right hand uponthe left above the wrist joint". This would also tally with allthe other narrations of this hadeeth that do not contain the wording"upon the chest", and would also explain why the followingauthors have not included this narration in their comprehensivebooks: Haithami in his Majm'a al Zawaid, Suyuti in his Jam' alJawami, and Ali al Muttaqi in his Kanz alUmmal. And Allah knowsbest."

The author of Awn al M'abud also admits that Yahya'scommentary does not fit the wording of the hadeeth.

NOTES:

footnote(fn) no. 292 says: Ahmad 21460. Allamah Hashim Sindhi says in Dirhamal Surrah p. 113 that both Simak bin Harb and Qabeesah (two of thenarrators of this hadeeth) have been disparaged by some of the ulamaof jarh and t'adeel.

fn. 293 Ibn Abi Shaibah 3934, Ahmad21467, Ibn Majah 809 and Tirmidhi 252. Imam Tirmidhi adds that it isa hasan hadeeth.

fn. 294: Ahmad 21464.

fn. 295:Ahmad2146I & 21475. Daruqutni 1087. al T'aleeq al Hasan 1/145

Gurau - 3

2011-12-21T15:32:00.004+01:00

Tetamu dan ayam

Sebuah rumah disuatu desa dikunjungi tetamu, lalu tuan rumah pun sibuk menyediakan makanan dan menjemput tetamu tersebut menjamahnya. Maka mereka pun mula menjamah hidangan tersebut, hanya nasi, sayuran dan kuah kari. Tetamu yang berkeinginan daging ayam atau ikan tetapi segan bertanya kenapa hanya kuah kari tanpa apa-apa isi hanya berharap didalam hatinya.

Tiba-tiba dari dalam, isteri tuan rumah bertanya, apakah perlu membawa keluar ayam, sisuami menjawab: "nanti". Tetamu pun amat girang hatinya bila mendengar perkataan ayam, lalu berangan akan besarnya hidangan ayam yang akan nanti dibawa keluar.

Setelah sepinggan dua habis nasi dimakan, seisteri tuan rumah bertanya lagi, apakah perlu sekarang dibawa keluar ayam, sisuami menjawab : "nanti". Sitetamu menjadi kehairanan namun segan bertanya lalu terus menjamah makanan sehinggalah kekenyangan.

Setelah itu, sisuami, tuan rumah lalu menjerit, "bawalah ayam-ayam tu keluar", lantas siisteri pun memberikan anaknya ayam-ayam tersebut untuk dibawa keluar. Lalu sianak pun membawa dua-tiga ekor ayam hidup keluar untuk memakan saki-baki nasi yang tumpah dilantai, manakala sitetamu terpinga-pinga.....

Ayam-ayam

Seperti biasa, sijaka, suami kepada banyaknya ayam-ayam betina berkokok sebelum matahari keluar, samaada untuk membangunkan seluruh keluarganya, tuannya mahupun memang itu adalah rutin hariannya.

Setelah berkokok, maka keluarganya yang terdiri dari banyak isteri-isterinya seta anak-anaknya pun perlahan-perlahan bangun sambil dalam keadaan rabun menanti akan keluarnya sang matahari agar kembali melihat dengan jelas disamping menjalani kehidupan seharian yang bebas diperkarangan rumah tuan mereka.

Tuan mereka pun seperti biasa akan menabur makanan kepada mereka dan seterusnya mereka bebas kesana kemari mencari cacing dan bahan makanan lainnya. Sungguh aman dan beruntungnya mereka merasa bilamana kedatangan sang matahari.

Suatu hari, situan menangkap sijaka, ayam jantan dan suami-ayah serta harapan kepada sekelian ayam-ayam disitu. Situan membawanya kebelakang lalu menyembelihnya. Lalu sekelian ayam betina begitu gelisah terutamanya dipagi hari keesokan harinya sebelum matahari keluar. Begitu gelisah sehingga menganggu itik-itik dikandang sebelah. Maka siitik pun berkata, "Mengapa begitu gelisah dan sedih, itukan lumrah hidup kita semua, segala yang hadir akan pergi juga. Jadi janganlah terlalu bersedih diatas kehilangan sijaka"

Siayam-ayam betina kemudiannya dengan bersungguh-sungguh menjawab bahawa mereka gelisah dan sedih bukan kerana sijaka, ayam jantan harapan mereka yang telah disembelih semalam, tetapi kerana kini tiada siapa lagi akan berkokok dan memanggil sang matahari keluar (kerana mereka melihat, setiap kali sijaka, ayam jantan harapan mereka berkokok maka keluarlah sang matahari lalu adanya kehidupan mereka disiang hari dengan rezeki yang terbentang).

Siitik begitu terpegun mendengar kata-kata siayam-ayam betina tersebut...

Gurau - 2

2011-12-16T03:08:00.000+01:00

Suatu hari, setelah selesai solaiJumaat, Imam masjid mengumumkan bahawa dia ingin menyampaikan 2berita, satu berita baik dan satu berita buruk.

Imam masjid memulakan denganmenyampaikan berita baik: "Saya ingin mengumumkan bahawa pihak masjidkita kini telah memiliki cukup kewangan untuk membina masjid yangbaru dan selesa untuk para makmum semua"

Kemudian Imam tersebut menyambungnya: "Namun berita buruknya adalah bahawa segala kewangan yang pihak masjidmiliki, masih lagi berada didalam saku-saku seluar kamu semua"

Disuatu masa, semasa Khutbah Jumaat,Imam menekan akan pentingnya mengucapkan Insyaallah bila hendakmelakukan sesuatu.

Beberapa hari kemudian, Abdullah, salahseorang makmum yang mendengar khutbah tersebut bertemu dengantemannya ditengah perjalanan, lalu dia bertanya apa hajatnya.Temannya memberitahu bahawa dia mahu kepasar untuk membeli seekor lembu betina buatladangnya.

Bila mendengar kata temannya, diaberpesan pada temannya sebagaimana yang didengarnya dari khutbahJumaat untuk berkata, "Insyaallah saya akan membeli seekor lembu", namuntemannya menyangkal dengan berkata, duit didalam poketnya manakalapenjual lembu telah sedia menunggu, jadi mengapa dia perlu berkataInsyaallah, lalu pergi meninggalkan Abdullah.

Bila temannya sampai kepasar, maka terjadilah tawar-menawar antara temannya dengan sipenjual lembu. Setelah harga ditetapkan, maka temannya pun menyeluk poketnyauntuk membayar, tetapi didapati bahawa poketnya berlubang dan duityang ada didalamnya telah hilang. Terus dikala itu, teringat temannyaakan pesanan Abdullah untuk sentiasa mengucapkan Insyaallah danmengaku atas kesilapannya menyangkal untuk mengucapkan Insyaallah,Allah telah mentarbiahnya dengan menghilangkan duit yang dimiliki.

Dengan penuh kekesalan, temannya punkembali dan dipertengahan jalan, Abdullah yang melihat temannya yangkelihatan begitu suram wajahnya bertanya, "Mana lembu yang mahu dibeli?"

"Insyaallah, saya akan membeli lembutersebut minggu depan", jawab temanya dan berlalu pergi meninggalkan Abdullah dengantergesa-gesa. Sesampai dirumah, isteri temannya juga bertanya, "Manalembu yang hendak dibeli?", dijawap temannya, "Insyaallah, lain kalisahajalah saya membelinya", dan semenjak hari itu, tidak pernah luput dari bibirtemannya untuk mengucapkan Insyaallah, walau untuk perkara sekecilmana pun.

Gurau - 1

2011-12-13T03:03:00.000+01:00

Satu ketika,Rasulullah s.a.w dan para sahaba sedang makan buah kurma,biji-bijinya mereka sisihkan ditempatnya masing- masing. Akhirnyakemudian, sisa biji-biji kurma terkumpul lebih banyak disisiAli r.a berbanding disisi Rasulullah s.a.w. Maka Ali r.a pun secara diam-diam memindahkan biji-biji kurma tersebut kesisi Rasulullah.

Kemudian Ali r.adengan bergurau berkata, “ Wahai Nabi, engkau memakan kurma lebihbanyak daripada aku. Lihatlah sisa biji-biji kurma yang berkumpulditempatmu.”

Rasulullah s.a.wpun tersenyum dan menjawab, “Ali, kamulah yang memakan lebih banyakkurma. Aku memakan kurma dan masih menyisakan biji-bijinya. Sedangkanengkau, memakan kurma dengan biji-bijinya”. (HR. Bukhari)

Manakala dalamriwayat yang lain, Rasulullah s.a.w pernah bergurau dengan seorangwanita tua yang datang dan berkata, “Doakan aku kepada Allah agarAllah memasukkan aku kedalam syurga .”

Rasulullah s.a.wberkata kepadanya, “Wahai Ummu Fulan! Sesungguhnya syurga itu tidakdimasuki orang yang sudah tua .”

Maka wanita tuaitu pun menangis. Lantas kemudian, Rasulullah s.a.w memahamkannya,bahawa disyurga tiada orang tua kerana ketika dia memasuki syurgananti, tidak akan masuk syurga sebagai orang yang sudah berumur, tetapiakan berubah menjadi muda belia dan cantik.

Lalu Rasulullahs.a.w membaca firman Allah SWT:

“SesungguhnyaKami menciptakan mereka (wanita-wanita syurga) itu dengan langsung,dan Kami jadikan mereka gadis-gadis perawan, penuh cinta lagi sebayaumurnya.” (Surah Al Waqi’ah: 35-37)

Niat merompak, tetapi diberi hidayat

2011-11-15T14:31:00.001+01:00

A Long Island deli owner who held a robber at gun point,then let him go after giving him $40 and a loaf of bread, says he gotananonymous letter from the crook that included a $50 bill and athank-you for saving him from a life of crime. During the robberyattempt, the failed thief brandished a baseball bat and demandedcash, but Sohail pulled out a 9mm rifle and disarmed the man, whopleaded for his life on his knees before the deli counter, crying,"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" and tear fully claiming his familyhad fallen on hard times.

The mysterious writer apologized to his would-be victim,Mohammad Sohail, saying,"First of all I would like to say I amsorry at the time I had no money, no food on the table and no job andnothing for my family."

Similar to comments he made on his knees during theincident last May,he said he realized that trying to rob the storewith a baseball bat"was wrong but I had [no] choice. I needed tofeed my family."

Theletter claimed, "When you had that gun to my head I was 100%thatI was going to die," and said he begged to convert to Islam atthat moment only because he feared death. But the letter-writer saidhe actually did convert, "decided to become a true Muslim,"and turned his life around after Sohail, 47, spared his life.

"NowI have a new child and good job make good money staying out oftroubleand taking care of my family. You gave me forty dollars thank you forsparing my life and because of that you change my life."

Theletter was signed in type: "Your Muslim Brother."

"That'sthe same guy I gave $40 to," said Sohail, 62, displaying thetypewritten letter at his Shirley Express deli yesterday. There wasno return address.

"I'mreally thrilled," said Sohail. "I'm very happy for thatguy, because he is now doing good for the community. "He has ajob and he is a good person. I really feel great. Thank God he's doinggood. He's got a new baby and he's not in jail," said Sohail.

"Whenyou do good things for somebody, it comes back to you. I gave him $40and he sent me back $50. It was a good investment," Sohaillaughed.

Eid adha Mubarak

2011-11-05T21:58:00.000+01:00

لَبَّيْكَاللَّھُمَّ لَبَّيْك، لَبَّيْكَ لاَشَرِيْكَ لَكَ لَبَّيْك،

إِنَّالْحَمْدَ وَ النِّعْمَةَ لَكَ وَالْمُلْكُ لاَ شَرِيْكَ لَك

LabbaikAllahumma Labbaik, Labbaika la scharika laka

Labbaik,Innal hamda wanni‘mata laka walmulkLa

scharikalak

Enter Kaabah

2011-11-04T08:28:00.000+01:00

Aa'isha r.anha says: 'I very muchwanted to enter the Kaaba to perform salaat inside it. Rasulullahs.a.w then took me by the hand and said: 'Perform the salaat youdesire in this hateem for verily your people, the Quraish left thissection of the Kaaba outside it when they rebuilt the Kaaba.

It is mustahab to enter theKaaba. This is one of the places where duaa is accepted and answered.However, it is never permissible for anyone to enter through thegiving of bribes. When the Quraish rebuilt the Kaaba they lifted theroof quite high and raised the door so high that one cannot enter theKaaba without a staircase. Rasulullah s.a.w wanted to rebuild theKaaba according to the same plan as it had been before. Hence he saidto Aa'isha r.anha: 'These Arabs have only recently entered Islam; Itis possible that their feelings may become roused and sentimentsexcited, as a result of the demolition of the Kaaba; if it was notfor this I would rebuilt the Kaaba, and I would have included thehateem in the Kaaba: and I would have made two doors. One from whichpeople could enter and leave from the other; and I would have loweredthe door of the Kaaba to the ground: 'Your people raised the door ofthe Kaaba so that they admit only these whom they prefer.'

According to another hadithRasulullah s.a.w said to Aa'isha r.anha: 'Your people did not do theroper thing when erecting the Kaaba, if we were not so near to thetimes of disbelief, I would again include this section into theKaaba; the section they have left outside; rebuilt, this should beincluded. Rasulullah s.a.w then measured off a further seven feet'.This was the cause of Abdullah bin Zubair r.a increasing the size ofthe Kaaba when he rebuilt it. So actually Ibn Zubair r.aaccomplished what Rasulullah s.a.w himself had desired. Later underAbdul Malik bin Marwaan , Hijjaaj had the Kaaba restored to itspre-Islamic structure.

No matter what niyyat promptedHajjaj, one can to day still feel thankful that it is made so easyfor anyone who wishes to be inside the Kaaba. No bribe to be given toenter into the hateem. Here one may enter at any time to his heartdelight, pray there and make his special supplication to Allah. Beingin the hateem, means being inside the Kaaba. For this reasonRasulullah s.a.w told Aa'isha r.anha to say her prayers here.Further, it becomes exceedingly difficult for females to enter theKaaba. This hateem simplifies matters for them. Be very careful ofyour conduct inside the Kaaba. The ulama have stated that on enteringthe Kaaba, one's conduct should be one of utmost respect, upholdingthe great dignity of the place. It is best to go bare feet withoutsocks, and to bath before entry. It is best to enter with greathumility and to enter crying, with tears streaming down.

One saintly man was once asked:'Did you ever enter the Kaaba? He said: "I do not consider myfeet worthy of being allowed to walk around the Holy House of myLord, so how can, consider them worthy of entering his Holy House? Iknow where these two have been going and coming, and I also know forwhich bad intentions they went." (Ithaaf)

Ghalib the poet said:
'Withwhat face O Ghalib, shall you appear before the Kaaba. Have you noshame no fear.'

Some ulama (e.g. Nawawi andIthaaf) have laid great emphasis on the following two points againstwhich people entering the Kaaba should watch. Firstly there is a ringon the wall opposite the door of the Kaaba. Ignorant ones have calledit the Urwatul Wuthqa- the handle of strength. Having touched it theyconsidered themselves 'possessors of the strong handle' which is purenonsense. Secondly there is a peg in the center of the floor of theKa'ba. This has been called the 'navel of the earth', by ignorantpeople. On entering the Ka'ba they used to rub their navels againstit. This too is pure nonsense and ignorance.

- From Fadhail Hajj by MaulanaZakariya rah.