Blog Archives
Is Nouman Ali Khan a Deviant?
Bismillah.
So the other day my husband came home from work and opened his Facebook in a hurry, said he wanted to see a recently shared clip from Nouman Ali Khan’s Surah Yaseen tafseer series that was creating some sort of hype. I thought to myself, ugh! he’s such a “NAK fanboy” but he would never admit it (LOL)! Anyway, we watch that 6-minute long clip in silence, he turns to me at the end of it with a straight sarcastic face and says, “this is why only scholars should talk about Islam”. My response: “Convey from me, even if it is one verse” [Bukhari]. :3
After some back and forth we agreed that what NAK said wasn’t entirely incorrect, but it was the way he said it. There was disrespect in his sarcasm. And that was that.
Notice the captions during and after the video. Just for laughs. :D
Until.. two days later, Shaykh Assim Alhakeem posted about this video on his Facebook page. He doesn’t take names, but we all know who he’s talking about! Now that was disturbing. He says things he didn’t need to say, for example:
“If he is ignorant, he can be taught, providing he is willing to learn. Unfortunately, when you are too famous and have followers, your ego, driven by Satan would not allow you to do so!”
I is sad. Even sadder to read the comments under this post. Sigh. :(
With utmost respect for the shaykh, I think what he said was a bit too harsh. I’m sure he meant well and was only trying to point out a mistake that could mislead people, but it could have been done in a better way. May Allah reward him for his intention and effort.
Right on!
As for Nouman Ali Khan, he is not a scholar, he does an amazing job talking about Quran in a way that hits home with our youth, but is his understanding/opinion always supposed to be correct? Absolutely not. So if he makes a mistake, we can easily overlook it and move on, assuming good of his intentions and praying for his guidance. Take the good and leave the bad. Period.
Respecting the Quran (Hadith No. 2629)
Bismillah.
Hadith no. 2628 (below) is a repeat. Read it here.
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 232 :
Narrated by Abu Huraira (radiallaahu `anhu)
Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “There is a (compulsory) Sadaqa (charity) to be given for every joint of the human body (as a sign of gratitude to Allah) everyday the sun rises. To judge justly between two persons is regarded as Sadaqa, and to help a man concerning his riding animal by helping him to ride it or by lifting his luggage on to it, is also regarded as Sadaqa, and (saying) a good word is also Sadaqa, and every step taken on one’s way to offer the compulsory prayer (in the mosque) is also Sadaqa and to remove a harmful thing from the way is also Sadaqa.”
Today’s Hadith:
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 233 :
Narrated by ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar (radiallaahu `anhu)
Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) forbade the people to travel to a hostile country carrying (copies of) the Quran.
The Qur’aan is the best book that mankind has ever known, because it is the Word of the Lord of the Universe, which was brought down by the trustworthy Spirit [i.e., Jibreel] to the heart of the noble Messenger, to bring mankind forth from darkness into light, and guide them to the straight path. It is the Book whose miracle abides, the proof of which is constantly renewed; Falsehood cannot come to it from before it or behind it, (it is) sent down by the All Wise, Worthy of all praise (Allaah) [cf. Fussilat 41:42]
Muslims are to follow a certain etiquette when it comes to the Quran. As for the conditions related to purity when reading/touching the Quran, that will not be under discussion here. This post focuses on the aspect of respect when it comes to the copy of Quran (Mus-haf).
There is no difference of opinion among the scholars concerning the fact that the Qur’aan must be respected and protected.
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Al-Majmoo’ (2/85):
Putting it on the Ground..
Shaykh ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Jibreen (may Allaah preserve him) was asked:
What is the ruling on putting the Qur’aan on the clean ground or on the prayer mat?
He replied:
It is better to put it in a high place so that it will be exalted in both the literal and metaphorical sense. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Exalted (in dignity), purified” [‘Abasa 80:14]. If you need to put it down, then put it down in a place that is raised up, even if only a little. If that is not possible then it is permissible to put it on the ground, on a clean carpet and the like. The Qur’aan should not be put down in a low place or a place that is impure or on the dirt, because that is showing disrespect towards it. But if a person needs to put it down on a clean carpet, there is nothing wrong with that, so long as one is keen to exalt it both literally and metaphorically.
Fataawa Islamiyyah (4/15).
Using it as a Pillow..
Ibn Muflih (May Allaah have mercy on him) said:
It is makrooh to use the Mushaf as a pillow. This was stated by Ibn Tameem, who mentioned it in al-Ri’aayah. Bakr ibn Muhammad said: Abu ‘Abd-Allaah said it is makrooh to place the Mushaf beneath one’s head and sleep on it. Al-Qaadi said: Rather that is makrooh because it is humiliating it and failing to respect it, as he is treating it like any other object.
Ibn Hamdaan favoured the view that it is haraam and stated that definitively in al-Mughni and al-Sharh. The same applies to all books of knowledge, if they contain Qur’aan, otherwise it is only makrooh.
Ibn ‘Abd al-Qawiy says in his book Majma’ al-Bahrayn: It is haraam to recline on the Mushaf and on the books of hadeeth and on anything in which there is any Qur’aan, according to consensus. End quote
Al-Adaab al-Shar’iyyah (2/393)
Carrying it in the Pocket..
It says in Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (4/60): One of us carries the Mushaf in his pocket, and he may enter the washroom carrying it. What is the ruling on that, please advise us?
Answer: carrying the Mushaf in one’s pocket is permissible, but it is not permissible for a person to enter the washroom carrying a Mushaf; rather he should put the Mushaf in a suitable place, out of respect and veneration for the Book of Allaah. But if he has no choice but to take it in with him, for fear that it may be stolen if he leaves it outside, then it is permissible for him to take it in with him, out of necessity. End quote.
But if the Mushaf is carried in the back pocket of one’s pants, and that will lead to sitting on the Mushaf when a person wants to sit down, then it is not permissible — in that case — to put it in the back pocket. The least that can be said concerning that is that it is makrooh. In fact more than one of the scholars stated clearly that something less serious than that is haraam, namely putting the Mushaf beneath one’s head like a pillow.
Overdoing it..
The Muslim should not go to extremes in respecting the Qur’aan. People have gone to extremes in this matter and have made it too burdensome, as it was narrated that one of them said: “For thirty years I have not entered a room in which there is a Mus-haf without having wudoo’.” And if one of them is in a room in which there is a Mus-haf he would not sleep all night lest he break wind in a room in which there is a Mus-haf!
These actions are clearly contrary to the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his companions (may Allaah be pleased with them). They lived in small, cramped rooms, but that did not prevent them from sleeping in their houses, or having intercourse with their wives, or staying without wudoo’ for a while, even though there were Mus-hafs in their houses. When the Qur’aan was collected, it was kept in the houses of many of them.
[IslamQA]
The Knowledge and Wisdom of Ibn Mas`ud [radiallaahu `anhu] (Hadith No. 2604)
Bismillah.
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 209 :
Narrated by Abdullah (radiallaahu `anhu)
Today a man came to me and asked me a question which I did not know how to answer. He said, “Tell me, if a wealthy active man, well-equipped with arms, goes out on military expeditions with our chiefs, and orders us to do such things as we cannot do (should we obey him?)” I replied, “By Allah, I do not know what to reply you, except that we were in the company of the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) and he used to order us to do a thing once only till we finished it. And no doubt, everyone among you will remain in a good state as long as he obeys Allah. If one is in doubt as to the legality of something, he should ask somebody who would satisfy him, but soon will come a time when you will not find such a man. By Him, except Whom none has the right to be worshipped, I see that the example of what has passed of this life (to what remains thereof) is like a pond whose fresh water has been used up and nothing remains but muddy water.”
The narrator of this hadith, Abdullah, is none other than the famous Abdullah ibn Mas`ud (radiallaahu `anhu), about whom `Allaamah adh-Dhahabi writes:
“‘Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud (ra), the learned leader (al-imam al-rabbani), Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman ‘Abdullah Ibn Ummi ‘Abd al-Hudhali; Companion and personal servant of the Messenger (saw); among the first to embrace Islam; among the veterans of the battle of Badr; among the expert jurists and teachers of the Qur’an; among those who strove to convey (the words of the Messenger – saw) very accurately; extremely scrupulous in (his) narrations; and one who would admonish his students upon their negligence in recording the exact words (of the Messenger – saw)…(Due to extreme caution) he would narrate very little (himself)… His students would not give preference to any Companion over him…. Surely he was from among the leading Companions, the bearers of sacred knowledge, and the exemplars (a’imma) of guidance.” (Tadhkirat al-Huffaz 1:13-16)
Hudhayfa (radiallaahu `anhu) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said:
“Whatever ‘Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud (radiallaahu `anhu) narrates to you, accept it.” (Sunan al-Tirmidhi)
Going back to the hadith, his reply to the questioner is basically in affirmative when he says that we used to do whatever the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said to us. And that you would prosper as long as you obey Allah (by obeying the leader). Now we know from yesterday’s post that one must obey the appointed ruler as much as he can and as long as he doesn’t order you to do acts of kufr (disbelief) etc. Ibn Mas`ud (radiallaahu `anhu) did not say yes explicitly to not make it hard for the person to follow his fatwa. So he said when such things happen (I’m supposing this was a hypothetical question), ask someone who can satisfy you – meaning a scholar, who will be rare to find. And his parable of the life already lived as compared to the remaining portion adds weight to his point in my opinion – that the days are only getting worse. So it will definitely happen that rulers will ask of subjects what they cannot do resulting in disobedience of the subjects.
Story of Anas ibn Nadhr (radiallaahu `anhu) (Ahadith 2454 – 2455)
Bismillah.
Hadith no. 2453 (below) is a repeat. Read it here.
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 60 :
Narrated by Abdullah bin Abbas (radiallaahu `anhu)
That Abu Sufyan told him that Heraclius said to him, “I asked you about the outcome of your battles with him (i.e. the Prophet ) and you told me that you fought each other with alternate success. So the Apostles are tested in this way but the ultimate victory is always theirs.
Today’s Ahadith:
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 61 :
Narrated by Anas (radiallaahu `anhu)
My uncle Anas bin An-Nadr (radiallaahu `anhu) was absent from the Battle of Badr. He said, “O Allah’s Apostle! I was absent from the first battle you fought against the pagans. (By Allah) if Allah gives me a chance to fight the pagans, no doubt. Allah will see how (bravely) I will fight.” On the day of Uhud when the Muslims turned their backs and fled, he said, “O Allah! I apologize to You for what these (i.e. his companions) have done, and I denounce what these (i.e. the pagans) have done.” Then he advanced and Sad bin Muadh (radiallaahu `anhu) met him. He said “O Sad bin Muadh ! By the Lord of An-Nadr, Paradise! I am smelling its aroma coming from before (the mountain of) Uhud,” Later on Sad (radiallaahu `anhu) said, “O Allah’s Apostle! I cannot achieve or do what he (i.e. Anas bin An-Nadr) did. We found more than eighty wounds by swords and arrows on his body. We found him dead and his body was mutilated so badly that none except his sister could recognize him by his fingers.” We used to think that the following Verse was revealed concerning him and other men of his sort: “Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah…” (33.23) His sister Ar-Rubbaya’ broke a front tooth of a woman and Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) ordered for retaliation. On that Anas (bin An-Nadr) (radiallaahu `anhu) said, “O Allah’s Apostle! By Him Who has sent you with the Truth, my sister’s tooth shall not be broken.” Then the opponents of Anas’s sister accepted the compensation and gave up the claim of retaliation. So Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said, “There are some people amongst Allah’s slaves whose oaths are fulfilled by Allah when they take them.”
Volume 4, Book 52, Number 62 :
Narrated by Kharija bin Zaid
Zaid bin Thabit (radiallaahu `anhu) said, “When the Quran was compiled from various written manuscripts, one of the Verses of Surat Al-Ahzab was missing which I used to hear Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) reciting. I could not find it except with Khuzaima bin Thabit Al-Ansari (radiallaahu `anhu), whose witness Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) regarded as equal to the witness of two men. And the Verse was:– “Among the believers are men who have been true to what they covenanted with Allah.” (33.23)
The ayah:
“Among the believers are men true to what they promised Allah.” [33:23]
Ibn Kathir comments:
When Allah mentions how the hypocrites broke their promise to Him that they would not turn their backs, He describes the believers as firmly adhering to their covenant and their promise:
﴿صَدَقُواْ مَا عَـهَدُواْ اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ فَمِنْهُمْ مَّن قَضَى نَحْبَهُ﴾
(﴿they﴾ have been true to their covenant with Allah; of them some have fulfilled their Nahbah;) Some of them said: “Met their appointed time (i.e., death).” Al-Bukhari said, “Their covenant, and refers back to the beginning of the Ayah.”
﴿وَمِنْهُمْ مَّن يَنتَظِرُ وَمَا بَدَّلُواْ تَبْدِيلاً﴾
(and some of them are still waiting, but they have never changed in the least.) means, they have never changed or broken their covenant with Allah. Al-Bukhari recorded that Zayd bin Thabit said: “When we wrote down the Mushaf, an Ayah from Surat Al-Ahzab was missing, which I used to hear the Messenger of Allah reciting. I did not find it with anyone except Khuzaymah bin Thabit Al-Ansari, may Allah be pleased with him, whose testimony the Messenger of Allah counted as equal to that of two other men. (The Ayah in question was:)
﴿مِّنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُواْ مَا عَـهَدُواْ اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ﴾
(Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah;)” This was recorded by Al-Bukhari but not by Muslim, It was also recorded by Ahmad in his Musnad, and by At-Tirmidhi and An-Nasa’i in the chapters on Tafsir in their Sunans. At-Tirmidhi said, “Hasan Sahih. Al-Bukhari also recorded that Anas bin Malik, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “We think that this Ayah was revealed concerning Anas bin An-Nadr, may Allah be pleased with him:
﴿مِّنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ رِجَالٌ صَدَقُواْ مَا عَـهَدُواْ اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ﴾
(Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah.)” This was reported only by Al-Bukhari, but there are corroborating reports with other chains of narration. Imam Ahmad recorded that Anas said: “My paternal uncle Anas bin Al-Nadr, may Allah be pleased with him, after whom I was named, was not present with this Messenger of Allah at Badr, and this distressed him. He said: `The first battle at which the Messenger of Allah was present, and I was absent; if Allah shows me another battle with the Messenger of Allah , Allah will see what I will do!’ He did not want to say more than that. He was present with the Messenger of Allah at Uhud, where he met Sa`d bin Mu`adh, may Allah be pleased with him. Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, said to him, `O Abu `Amr! Where are you going’ He replied, `I long for the fragrance of Paradise and I have found it near the mountain of Uhud.’ He fought them until he was killed, may Allah be pleased with him. Eighty-odd stab wounds and spear wounds were found on his body, and his sister, my paternal aunt Ar-Rabayyi` bint Al-Nadr said, `I only recognized my brother by his fingertips.’
Qur’an, Torah and Gospel (Hadith No. 2348)
Bismillah.
Volume 3, Book 48, Number 850 :
Narrated by Ubaidullah bin Abdullah bin Utba
Ibn Abbas (radiallaahu `anhu) said, “O Muslims? How do you ask the people of the Scriptures, though your Book (i.e. the Quran) which was revealed to His Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) is the most recent information from Allah and you recite it, the Book that has not been distorted? Allah has revealed to you that the people of the scriptures have changed with their own hands what was revealed to them and they have said (as regards their changed Scriptures): This is from Allah, in order to get some worldly benefit thereby.” Ibn Abbas (radiallaahu `anhu) added: “Isn’t the knowledge revealed to you sufficient to prevent you from asking them? By Allah I have never seen any one of them asking (Muslims) about what has been revealed to you.”
Do we believe in the “Holy Books” present today?
We Muslims do not believe that there is any contradiction between the Holy Qur’an and the original Torah and Gospel, because we believe that they are all divinely revealed books that were sent down from Allah, may He be glorified. Thus they came from the same source, and as that is the case there cannot be any contradiction or conflict between them, as Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Do they not then consider the Quran carefully? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much contradictions”
[an-Nisa’ 4:82].
Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, describes the Holy Qur’an as “confirming” the Books that came before it, and that which confirms something cannot contradict or conflict with it. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“It is He Who has sent down the Book (the Quran) to you (Muhammad SAW) with truth, confirming what came before it. And he sent down the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel).
Aforetime, as a guidance to mankind, And He sent down the criterion (of judgement between right and wrong (this Quran)).”
[Aal ‘Imraan 3:3-4]
“And We have sent down to you (O Muhammad SAW) the Book (this Quran) in truth, confirming the Scripture that came before it and Mohayminan (trustworthy in highness and a witness) over it (old Scriptures)”
[al-Maa’idah 5:48].
As for what we see nowadays of contradictions in the copies of the Torah and Gospel that are extant today, the reason for that is clear and obvious. It is because these two Books have fallen prey to distortion and alteration, with things being taken away, added and changed. That is in addition to the fact that the sources and manuscripts that have come down to us today cannot be trusted. This is what explains any differences that researchers or students find between these two Books and the Holy Qur’an which has been transmitted to us in a mutawaatir fashion (i.e., narrated by so many from so many that it is inconceivable that they could all have agreed upon a lie), as is attested by both believers and nonbelievers.
Can we read them?
Reading these distorted books is not permissible, except for one who has enough Islamic knowledge to be able to distinguish between truth and falsehood in them, and who reads them with the aim of refuting their followers and convincing them that what is in these books is falsehood.
Hence the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) got angry when he saw a book in the hand of ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) that he had taken from some of the People of the Book. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Are you in doubt of it, O son of al-Khattab? By the One in Whose hand is my soul, I have brought to you that which is white and pure, and by the One in Whose hand is my soul, if Musa ((peace be upon him) were alive, he could do nothing but follow me.” [Imam Ahmad].
Allah has told us that these people are plotting and that they will do all that they can to take the Muslims away from their religion. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And they will never cease fighting you until they turn you back from your religion (Islamic Monotheism) if they can.” [2:217]
Shaykh al-S’adi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Allah tells us that they will never stop fighting the believers, and that their aim is not to steal their wealth or kill them; rather their aim is to turn them back from their religion so that they will become disbelievers after having believed, and so that they will be doomed to Hell. So they are doing all that they can to achieve this and striving as hard as they can, but Allah will not allow except that His Light should be perfected even though the Kafirun (disbelievers) hate (it) [9:32].
This description is general and applies to all the disbelievers. They will not cease to fight others until they turn them back from their religion, especially the People of the Book, the Jews and Christians, who set up organizations and send missionaries and doctors, and build schools in order to attract people to their religion and to introduce to them whatever they can of specious arguments which will make them doubt their religion.
But hope comes from Allah Who has blessed the believers with Islam and has chosen for them His true religion, and has perfected His religion for them, and has completed His blessings upon them, and has thwarted everyone who wants to extinguish His light, caused their plans to fail, supported His religion and made His word supreme.
This verse speaks the truth about these disbelievers as it speaks the truth about those who came before them (interpretation of the meaning): “Verily, those who disbelieve spend their wealth to hinder (men) from the path of Allah, and so will they continue to spend it; but in the end it will become an anguish for them. Then they will be overcome. And those who disbelieve will be gathered unto Hell.” [8:36] End quote. Tafsir al-S’adi.
iLookiListen 