Category Archives: Virtues and Ethics

Kissing the Thumbs, etc. During The Adhan?

Ma sha’ Allah, Rabbi zidni ‘ilman!

In fiqh, the discussion of taqbil al-unbulatayn wa mash al-‘aynayn is usually found at the end of Bab Adhan. Certain gestures performed during the adhan, and specifically the amal of kissing the thumbs and wiping the eye, are something known to Shafi`is, and there can be no objection whatsoever by our jurists (and any jurists for that matter) to those wishing to perform this `amal: as far as we are concerned, it is classified under the category of the Fada’il al-A`mal [I`anat, 1:243; al-Jurdani, Fath al-`Allam, 2:140-1].

Among its legal bases [`ilal] is that it is a Sunna of the first Khalifa of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him!) [i.e., an Athar of the first Khalifa], and it is also based on a number of Hadiths, of which the most well known is the Hadith of Abu Bakr (may Allah be well pleased with him!):

lammA sami’a qawla l-mu’adhdhini ashhadu anna MuHammadan rasUluLlAhi qAla hAdhA wa qabbila bATina l-unmulatayni l-sabbAbatayni wa masaHa `aynayhi fa-qAla SallaLlAhu `alayhi wa sallama man fa`ala mithla khalIlI faqad Hallat `alayhi shafA`atI [Whenever he [Abu Bakr] heard the Mu’addhin say: “I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”, he would repeat this [phrase as it is the Mandub of Adhan] and would kiss the tip of the index fingers [or thumbs] and wipe his eyes. The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him!) said: whosoever does what my friend [i.e., Abu Bakr] did, my intercession will come down upon him] (Related by al-Daylami, with variants).

Almost all of the Muhaddith consider this and other Hadiths like it to be weak [Da`if] (at its lowest level, a Marfu` Hadith [something ascribed to the Prophet]; and it is because the Hadith is Da’if that the `amal is counted among the Fada’il, and not the confirmed Sunna!). Nevertheless, this is definitely not a fabricated Hadith [Mawdu`], and weak Hadiths are not and cannot be considered as false and lies. Furthermore, as Sayyid `Alawi al-Maliki (may Allah be pleased with him!) reported in his dedicated treatise on the rules concerning the use of weak Hadiths, the Manhal Latif, that scholars of the four law-schools [madhhab] concurred by Ijma` [Consensus]–and that this Ijma` was recorded from the time of the Mujtahid Imam, Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (may Allah be well pleased with him!) until now–that any Hadith which are Da`if (as long as it is not Mawdu`), can be acted upon for the Fada’il al-A`mal [`Alawi al-Maliki, Manhal, 251-253]. Literally, “Fada’il al-A`mal” means ‘extra works’; but technically it means the extra acts of devotion performed, or refrained from, beyond one’s call of duty in order to please the Lawmaker, that is, an `amal that can lead to it’s being classed either as recommended [i.e., Mandub/Sunna/Mustahabb] or disliked [Makruh] but never Wajib [obligatory] or Haram [prohibited]. In this mas’ala, of course, it is a recommended act (and not Makruh).

Know that he who blames others–in the name of bid`a–for carrying out an `amal, saying that it is based on a weak Hadith or that the `amal is not based on an authentic Hadith, shows a sign that he may not be a trained faqih (whether he is called a Mufti/Shaykh/Mawlana or not); and that he probably has knowledge only of the literal Arabic but not a deep understanding of what is beyond the text, which is what the jurist is expected to know. In the old days, when scholarship was taken for granted (because scholastic `alims were many and accessible then), even the public knew that a weak Hadith can form the basis of an `amal. Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah be pleased with him!), in his popular work the Adhkar, says:

“The specialists of Hadiths [i.e., Muhaddith] and the jurists [Fuqaha‘] and other (scholars) have said that one is permitted, and in fact is recommended, to use weak Hadith in matters of ‘extra acts of devotion’ [Fada’il] and in ‘arousing one’s desire to do good and inspiring one’s fear from doing evil’ [Targhib wa al-Tarhib]–as long as it is not a fabricated Hadith. As for the legal rulings pertaining to what is lawful and unlawful [al-Halal wa al-Haram], buying and selling, marriage and divorce, and others like it [because all of them involve either an injunctive legal ruling [Hukm Shar`i Taklifi] (such as Haram and Wajib) or a stipulatory legal ruling [Hukm Shar`i Wad`i] (such as Shart and Mani`)] are concerned, one can only use a rigorously authenticated Hadith [Sahih] or a well authenticated Hadith [Hasan], except if a precautionary ruling [Ihtiyat] is [involved] in some matter relating to one of them. So, if a weak Hadith is found to object against some types of sales or some form of marriages, then it is recommended to avoid it (i.e., the sale or the marriage) even when it is not obligatory to do so [and even when the sale or the marriage is legally valid].”
(al-Nawawi, Adhkar, 7-8)

I am not a Hanafi scholar (from whom you should really be asking your fiqhi/furu` questions), but classical Hanafi reference texts such as those of the Muhaqqiq of your school, Ibn `Abidin (and in spite the fact that he knew this `amal is based on weak Hadiths, he nevertheless) relates the opinion that this `amal is permissible and even Mustahabb, that is, the act when done will entail a reward. [Ibn `Abidin, Hashiya, 2:84-5]. In practice, apart from the Hanafis, some Shafi`i communities have inherited this `amal, and among the Malikis, those who are in the Sudan.

Qa’ida: To this end, we could sum up a point of law tersely in the following maxim: al-`amalu bi-r-riDA yanfI l-Hurmata [an act that is consented to, prevents prohibition].
What I mean by this qa’ida is that once something has been accepted by some of the mustahiqq, in this case, the scholars and the public alike, no one has any right [haqq] to object to it.

So do not be swayed by what you read if Muslims have been doing this in the past and are still doing this fadila `amal. If there are others who blame you for carrying on with this inherited `amal, then know that the person, apart from wasting his precious time, knows not how to leave alone what does not concern him [tark ma la ya`nih] where his time could be better spent in improving the lot of the Muslims today or benefiting others in this world. Not only does he not know how to mind his own business, but he has no right whatsoever to censure [Ihtisab] you in the first place (and by not tolerating and by criticizing you on this, he himself is transgressing a well known rule of Bab Amr bi-l-Ma`ruf wa Nahi ‘an al-Munkar [roughly speaking, the duty of a Muslim to intervene when another is acting wrongly]: that the duty has no application in matters over which the fuqaha‘ differed, thereby making himself liable for others to advise him). Furthermore, what is more embarrassing is that there is no legal basis [`illa] and cause [sabab] that warrants a Hisba for this case, or at least no jurist properly schooled will ever entertain the thought. For when others are blamed by a Muhtasib for carrying out this `amal, it is no different from the case of someone becoming upset at the sight of a pedestrian suddenly stopping to remove a wad of old chewing gum from his path (ponder over this!) or at the very minimum, complaining why a customer is buying only apples and not oranges.

According to Shafi’i jurists, this act is counted among the Fada’il, and there are undeniable benefits for those who wish to take from it and they are means to make one rich in the Next world; and in the same way that the one performing it cannot criticize others for neglecting it, nor can others criticize those who carry on doing it. It is a matter of personal choice (for one’s private-but-made-public bank account is no one else’s in the Next world) if one wants to take or overlook this Fadila in this world: take it or leave it, no more.

Allahumma aj`alna mina’l-`amilin wa-la taj`alna mina’l-mutakallikim!

[O’ Allah! Make us among those who do some work, not among those who can only talk]; Amin!

May this be of benefit.

wa sallallahu `ala Muhammadin wa `ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallam
wa billahi t-tawfiq wa l-hidaya wa l-hamdulillah rabbi l-`alamin.

Your silent brother in Oxford,

M. Afifi al-Akiti
24 Muharram 1425
17 III 2004

Select Bibliography:

`Alawi al-Maliki. al-Manhal al-Latif fi Ahkam al-Hadith al-Da`f. In Majmu’ Fatawa wa-Rasa’il al-Imam al-Sayyid ‘Alawi al-Maliki al-Hasani. Edited by [his son and our scholar] Muhammad ibn ‘Alawi al-Maliki al-Makki al-Hasani. [Medina: Matabi` al-Rashid], 1413 H.

al-Bakri. Hashiyat I`anat al-Talibin. 4 vols. Bulaq, 1300 H.

al-Jurdani. Fath al-`Allam bi-Sharh Murshid al-Anam fi al-Fiqh `ala Madhhab al-Sadah al-Shafi`iyah. Edited by Muhammad al-Hajjar. 4 vols. Cairo: Dar al-Salam, 1990.

Ibn `Abidin. Radd al-Muhtar `ala Durr al-Mukhtar Hashiyat Ibn `Abidin. Edited by `Abd al-Majid Tu`mah Halabi. 12 vols. Beirut: Dar al-Ma`rifa, 2000.

al-Nawawi. al-Adhkar al-Muntakhab min Kalam Sayyid al-Abrar. Beirut: al-Maktaba al-`Umawiyya, 1955.

taken from : www.livingislam.org

 


© 2012 As-Sunnah Foundation of America

Big Nights and Days of Islam: Eid

Hadeeth Ibn Majah ra

It was narrated from Hazrat Abu Umaamah radi Allaahu ‘anhu: “Whoever spends the nights of the two ‘Eids in praying voluntary night prayers, seeking reward from Allah, his heart will not die on the Day when hearts will die.” [Ibn Majah, Hadeeth #1782]

Hazrat Aysha radi Allaahu ‘anhaa related: “God the Exalted showers goodness (khayr) in abundance during four nights; the Nights of Aḍḥā and Fiṭr (i.e. the night of the two ʿĪds), the Night of Mid-Shaʿbān in which deaths and provisions are determined as are the pilgrimages written, and the evening of ʿArafa until the call to prayer.” [Kanz ul-ʿUmmaal, Vol #12, Hadeeth #35215][1]

It is related from Hazrat Mu’aadh ibn Jabal radi Allaahu ‘anhu that whoever observes the night vigil during the following five nights has heaven made obligatory on him: the 8th, 9th and 10th nights of Dhul Hijjah, fourth is the night of Eid-ul-Fitr and fifth is the 15th night of Sha’baan. [At-Targheeb wat-Tarheeb, Vol #2, Hadeeth #2]

Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbas radi Allaahu ‘anhumaa relates: When the blessed night of Eid-ul-Fitr arrives, it is called “Laylatul Jaaizah” which means “the night of reward.” When the morning of Eid comes in, Allah sends His innocent angels to all the cities. As a result these angels come to the earth and stand at the head of every street and call out: “Oh Ummah of Prophet Muhammad sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam! Come to the Court of that Divine Lord who bestows copiously and forgives the greatest of sins!”

Then Allah addresses His creatures as follows: “O My servants! Ask! What would you like to ask? By My Honor and Majesty! Today at this gathering (of the Eid prayer) whatever you will ask Me related to your Hereafter I Will Fulfill it. And whatever you ask related to your dunya, I Will do whatever is best for you. By My Honor! As long as you pay heed to Me, I will also cover your faults. By My Honor and Majesty! I will not disappoint you with the transgressors. Now return to your homes forgiven! You have pleased Me and I am also pleased with you!” [At-Targheeb wat Tarheeb, Vol #2, Hadeeth #23]

Hazrat Syedna Wahb bin Munabbah radi Allaahu ‘anhu relates: Whenever Eid arrives, shaytaan cries out loudly. Seeing his almost faintly state, the other devils gather around him and ask: O master! Why are you angry and sad? He says: Alas! Today, Allah has forgiven Ummat-ul-Muhammad (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam). Therefore you lure them into sensual pleasures and selfish desires. [Mukaashafa-tul Quloob of Hazrat Imam Ghazali rahmatullah alayh, p.308]

 

The Love of Allah: An act of free choice or an involuntary compulsion?

Shaikh ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, rehmatullahi ta’aala alayhe on the love of Allah – part of a discourse given in AH 545 in Baghdad sharif – 888 years ago shared by Ruslan Moore and translated by the late Muhtar Holland (may Allah have mercy upon his soul):

At this point someone asked: “Do you see love [mahabba] as being experienced in the first instance because of an involuntary compulsion [idtiraran], or by an act of free choice [ikhtiyaran] ?”

By way of reply, the Shaikh (may Allah be well pleased with him) went on to say:

In the case of a few isolated individuals, the Lord of Truth (Almighty and Glorious is He) simply casts His gaze upon them and He loves them. He shifts them from one thing to another in a single instant. He does not
come to love them gradually, more and more as the years go by. He loves them in a single moment, so they love Him too, of necessity. They notice that all the blessings they have received have come from Him, not from any other. They notice all His kindness and tender loving care, and all the gifts He bestows upon them, so they love Him promptly and immediately, without any gradual process or passage of time.

In the case of the vast majority, however, it is a matter of choice. Lovers begin to choose Allah (Exalted is He) in preference to His creatures, then they start choosing Him in preference not only to this world, but also to the hereafter. They start giving up things that are either strictly unlawful [haram] or merely of dubious legality [shubha], then they cut back on their consumption of things that are lawful [halal]. They prefer to lead a very simple life, making do with basic things that are readily available. They shun bed and blankets, sleep and rest.

Their sides shun their couches [as they call on their Lord in fear and hope]. (32:16)

Their night is no longer an ordinary night, and their day is no longer an ordinary day. They say: “Our God [Ilahana], we have left everything behind the backs of our hearts, and we have hastened toward You, so that
You might be well pleased.” They journey toward Him on the feet of their hearts [qulub], sometimes on the feet of their innermost beings [asrar], sometimes on the feet of their earnest intention [irada], sometimes
on the feet of their aspiration [himma], sometimes on the feet of their genuine sincerity [sidq], sometimes on the feet of their love [hubb], sometimes on the feet of their ardent longing [shawq], sometimes on the feet of their meekness [dhull] and their modest humility [tawadu’], sometimes on the feet of their fear [khawf], sometimes on the feet of their hope [raja ‘], and all of this out of love for Him and eager yearning to meet with Him.

In your own case, O questioner, you belong to the group consisting of those who love Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He) both through involuntary compulsion [idtiraran] and through a process of free choice
[ikhtiyaran]. So, since your question cannot be answered simply, either this way or that, you had better hold your tongue and concentrate on practicing Islam as it ought to be practiced!

If only you could experience all that Islam and faith [iman] can mean! If only you would leave the company of the unbelievers [kafirin] and the hypocrites [munafiqin] today, and stay away from them tomorrow. If only you would get up and walk away from meetings held by those who idolize their fellow creatures and material means [al-mushrikin bi ’l-khalq wa ’l-asbab], and who quarrel with the Lord of Truth (Almighty and Glorious is He)! You must repent and mend your ways. Do not meddle with the treasuries of worldly kings, and do not pry into their secrets.

Shaikh Hammad (may Allah the Exalted be well pleased with him) would often say: “If a person does not acknowledge his own worth, the decrees of destiny will teach him to acknowledge his own worth [man lam
ya’raf qadrahu ‘arrafat-hu ’l-aqdaru qadrah].” To recognize your own worth is better than refusing to acknowledge your own worth, because an ignorant person is someone who knows neither his own worth nor the worth of other people.

O Allah, do not include us among the ignorant, lying pretenders!
O Allah, include us among those of Your creatures who enjoy Your special favor, and:

Give us in this world good, and good in the hereafter, and guard us against
the torment of the fire! (2:201)