Author: suheillaher

6b – Belief in Qadar (II)

4. Practical Applications of the Belief in Destiny


4.1 Thankfulness in times of prosperity and well-being


The Muslim should always be thankful to Allah, for he owes all his favors to Him. We should be thankful in the good times such that we do not become arrogant and conceited. We should realize that any success we attain is from Allah, Who could withdraw it whenever He wills. We should not, therefore, be like Qarun, the evil kinsman of Prophet Moses `alayhis-salam, who had been given immense wealth, but claimed the credit for himself. “He said, ‘I have only been given it only because of knowledge which I possess.’ Did he not know that Allah has destroyed before him generations who were mightier than him in power, and greater in number?” [(28) Al-Qasas, 78]

Qarun attributed his wealth to knowledge : either religious knowledge – for it is said that he had memorized the Torah – or worldly knowledge, such as that of trade and commerce. He thus failed the test, for even if the wealth were a partial reward for piety, then in order to remain in the favor of Allah, he should have been thankful to Him and spent the money in good causes such as feeding the poor, helping the needy and working for justice. And, even if he had obtained the money through some worldly business expertise, he overlooked the fact that that was only a means, and that in fact the means themselves could not have been obtained, maintained and exercised without the will and grace of Allah.

“Then, when affliction smites man, he cries out to Us, then when We have removed it, as a favor from Us, he says, ‘I have only been given it based on knowledge.’ Nay! It is a test, but most of them do not know. Those before them said [the same], but all they earned did not avail them [aught].” [(39) Al-Zumar, 49-50] Continue reading “6b – Belief in Qadar (II)” →

The Night of Mid-Sha`ban

  1. Virtues of the 15th Night
  2. General Conduct
  3. Extra Worship
  4. Fasting on the 15th Day

Praise be to Allah, and blessings and peace upon the Messenger of Allah.

Sha`ban in the eighth month of the Islamic calendar.  There are numerous ahadith narrated about the 15th night of Sha`ban, indicating that it has a certain distinction over ordinary nights. While some of these narrations are undeniably weak, there are others which have been graded as reliable by some hadith experts. Among the most authentic of these are the following two:

1. Virtues of the 15th Night

1. Hafiz Ibn Hibban recorded in his “Sahih,” [vol XII, p. 481; #5665] :

From Makhul, from Malik ibn Yukhamir, from Mu`adh ibn  Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet,  (may Allah bless him and his Household and grant them peace), he said,

“Allah looks at His creation in the night of mid-Sha`ban; He forgives all His creation except for a mushrik (polytheist) or a mushahin (one who has illegitimate hatred or enmity of others).” Continue reading “The Night of Mid-Sha`ban” →

6a – Belief in Qadar (I)

1. Essentiality of the belief in destiny
The sixth pillar of faith is to believe in destiny, that the good of it and the bad of it is all from Allah. Allah, the Exalted, is the creator, Lord and sustainer of everything in existence. Neither good nor evil comes into being without His leave and knowledge. We do not say, as some religions do, that Allah is Lord of good, but Satan is in charge of the evil.
[We return shortly to the problem of how to reconcile the existence of evil with omnipotence of God.]
(NOTE: Qadar is sometimes translated as ‘destiny,’ and I am using this translation in this article, for easier reading, with the disclaimer that some people’s conceptions of destiny might not be compatible with the correct belief in qadar.)

“Say : Praise be to Allah Who has not taken a son, nor has He any partner in sovereignty.” [(17) Al-Isra, 111]
“Glory be to He in Whose Hand is sovereignty, and He has power over all things.” [(67) Al-Mulk, 1] Continue reading “6a – Belief in Qadar (I)” →

3 – Fasting

FASTING (SIYAM)

(According to the Qur’an and Sunnah, as extracted and inferred by scholars of the Hanafi school.)

From “Mukhtasar al-Quduri“, a matn of Hanafi fiqh

1.0 THE OBLIGATION OF FASTING

1.  The time for fasting is from the rising of the second dawn
until the setting of the sun.

2.  Fasting is : abstention from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse
by day with the intention.

3.  If in Ramadan a child reached adulthood, or an unbeliever
accepted Islam, they abstain [from things which invalidate fasting] for
the remainder of that day, and fast that which comes thereafter.
They do not make up what passed. Continue reading “3 – Fasting” →

Imam Muslim on The Importance of Hadith Verification


The Importance of Hadith Verification
From Muslim’s Introduction to his Sahih

NOTE: This text is copyright.

Know – may Allah have mercy upon you – that what is obligatory upon every individual who is familiar with discrimination between the authentic among narrations and the inferior [thereof], [as well as between] the reliable reporters thereof from the incriminated ones, is that he narrate from [the body of hadith] only that [material] for which he knows that the source is authentic and its reporters are [of] blameless [character]. He should avoid those [narrations] which are [related] from incriminated people, and [from] obstinate people of innovation.

The evidence that what we have stated is binding rather than anything different is the words of Allah – may His mention be glorified – (translated), “O you who believe! If a transgressor comes to you with information then verify [its truth], in case you smite a people out of ignorance, and then [later] become full of regret over what you have done.” And He said – glorified be his praise – (translated), “. . . from among those whom you approve as witnesses.” And He, the Mighty, the Majestic, said, (translated), “And establish in testimony two upright [men] from among you.” So, He has indicated, through these verses which we have mentioned, that the report of a transgressor is disreputable and unacceptable, and that the testimony of a non-upright individual is inadmissible. Although the import of a report differs from that of a testimony in some respects, they correspond in most of their features, for the report of a transgressor is not acceptable before the people of knowledge, just as his testimony is inadmissible according to all of them. Continue reading “Imam Muslim on The Importance of Hadith Verification” →

Mutawatir and Ahad Hadiths

Authority of Ahad and Mutawatir Hadith

A mutawatir narration is one which is:

narrated by a multitude of narrators
their numbers being such that experience / common sense rules out the possibility of their all having colluded to lie, or of their all having made the same mistake or fabrication by coincidence
with such numbers being present in each generation (level) of the chain of narration
the chain ending with something which was directly sensed (e.g. seen, heard) by the initial narrator (as opposed to something s/he concluded or hypothesized).
[see: Sharh Sharh Nukhbat al-Fikr, by `Ali al-Qari, (being a commentary on Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-`Asqalani’s summary text and commentary), pp. 161 ff.]

We encounter this type of narration often in the mundane aspects of our lives. It is by such narrations that we have come to know about distant lands which we have never visited, and similarly about events and people in the past, yet because of the certainty conveyed by these narrations, we do not doubt the existence of these entities. For example, we know about the tyranny of certain world leaders of our day, the poverty of Haiti, and the fact that there is a US-led war going on in `Iraq, because the numerous, abundant reports we have heard about these things have served to corroborate one another to the extent that we have become convinced without doubt that these are incontrovertible facts. Continue reading “Mutawatir and Ahad Hadiths” →

Ibn Hazm on Authority of the Sunnah

The Authority of the Sunnah

selections from

Al-Ihkam fi Usul al-Ahkam

vol I, pp. 96-108, Dar al-Afaq al-Jadidah, Beirut, 2nd ed., 1983/1402.

by Imam `Ali Ibn Hazm (d. 456 H)

“Since we have clarified [in the previous section] that the Qur’an is the source of reference for laws, we looked into it, and found therein the obligation of obedience to what the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) has ordered us, and we found [Allah] the Mighty, the Majestic therein describing His messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), [translated], “He does not speak of his own desire. It is only an inspiration with which he is inspired.” Q[53:3-4] Thus, it is proved for us thereby that inspiration from Allah, the Mighty the Majestic, to His Messenger, can be divided into two categories: one of them [being] recited inspiration compiled in a miraculous form, which is the Qur’an, and the second [being] narrated inspiration, neither compiled [into a single book] nor of miraculous composition, and that is the narrations which have come from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), his being the explainer on behalf of Allah, the Mighty the Majestic. Allah, the Exalted, says, [translated], “…in order that you may explain to people what has been sent down to them.” Q[16:44] We found [Allah] the Exalted obligating obedience to this second category as He obliged obedience to the first category, without any difference, for [Allah] the Exalted, has said, [translated], “Obey Allah and obey the Messenger.” Q[5:92 and others] Continue reading “Ibn Hazm on Authority of the Sunnah” →

On the Methodology of Acquiring Knowledge

Praise be to Allah, the Mighty, the Exalted, and blessings and peace be upon His chosen messenger.
The Qur’anic and hadith texts on the virtues and excellences of knowledge are numerous, and need not be listed here, for they are not the subject of disagreement.  Those who so desire may peruse them in the appropriate references.  What is, however, sometimes overlooked, is that knowledge is taken first and foremost from the scholars; books alone are not sufficient to make a person a scholar.  The scholars say, “Knowledge may not be taken from a SuHufi (‘journalist – one who studied only from books) nor the Qur’an from a muSHafi (one who learned to recite the Qur’an on his own, without a teacher).”

1. Evidence from the Qur’an and Sunnah

Allah sent the Qur’an – a book – with a Messenger – a teacher, to explain its contents.
(“And We have sent down to you the Reminder in order that you might explain to people what has been sent down to them.”) [Qur’an]
The story of the Sahabi who misinterpreted the verse about the black and white threads of dawn is well known.  And, according to a narration in Sunan Ibn Majah, the Prophet criticized those Companions who, based on the outward meaning of the Qur’an, gave the fatal fatwa that tayammum is not permissible for one who has water, even if he fears the water will harm him.  It is reported that he said, “Could they not have asked, since they did not know? The only remedy for incompetence is asking.” Continue reading “On the Methodology of Acquiring Knowledge” →

2 – Prayer

RITUAL PRAYER (SALAH)

(According to the Qur’an and Sunnah,
as extracted and inferred by scholars of the Hanafi school.)
From “Mukhtasar al-Quduri“, a matn of Hanafi fiqh

  1. Times for Salah
    • Times of Salah
    • Preferred Times
    • Disliked and Prohibited Times
  2. Adhan
    • Its form
    • Its sunnahs
  3. The Constituents and Manner of Performing the Salah
    • Its Pre-Requisistes
    • Its Rudiments
    • Its Obligations
    • Description of the Salah
    • Disliked Actions in Salah
    • Disruptors and Nullifiers of the Salah
    • Prostrations of Inattentiveness
    • Prostration of Recitation
  4. Group Prayer

1 – Purity

PURIFICATION (TAHARAH)

(According to the Qur’an and Sunnah,as extracted and inferred by scholars of the Hanafi school.)
From “Mukhtasar al-Quduri“, a matn of Hanafi fiqh

1.0 WUDU

1.1 The Rudiments of Wudu’
Allah, the Exalted, says, (translated),
“O you who believe!  When you stand for prayer, then wash your faces, and your hands upto the elbows, and wipe your heads, and [wash] your feet upto the ankles.”
So, the obligatory elements of purification [i.e. wudu’] are:
– Washing the three parts [the face, the two arms, and the two feet].  The elbows and the ankles are included in washing.
– Wiping the head – the obligatory [part] in wiping the head is the extent of the forelock [one-fourth], based on that which Mughirah ibn Shu`bah narrated, that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) made wudu’ and wiped his forelock and his khuffs. Continue reading “1 – Purity” →