What is the
difference between us since both of us are following the Quran And Hadith?
-by Manna Mohammed Salafi
Alhamdulillhi rabbil aalameen,was salaatu was salaamu ala ashrafil
ambiyaaee wal mursaleen, ammaa baad:
Assalaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu. . .
People these days usually pester the Ahlul
Hadeeth youth with the questions such as why you call yourself 'salafi or
ahleHadeeth' whereas the Prophet Mohammad(sallallhualaihiwasallam) never called
himself so.What is the necessity of labellling yourself with a name other than
what Allah has provided?
What is the difference between an AhleHadeeth/Salafi youth and any
other youth who claims to follow "The Quran and Authentic Hadeeth"?
There are many groups who if you see on the first instance will
outwardly appear to follow the Quraan and Sunnah.For
example;-Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen(Pakistani version),Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen(UK
version),People who agree to Dr.Zakir's ideology that only the Quran and
Authentic Hadeeth is enough but we shouldn't use labels like
Salafi-Ahlulhadeeth-Ahlus Sunnah etc,we also have other cults like
Hizb-ut-Tahreer,Hizbollah(Pakistan), Tawheedis, Najathis, etc.
Lets answer this by answering the basic
question,why do we call ourself salafi/Ahle Hadeeth,when the Quraan says 'call
yourself muslim'?
"I am one of the muslims".>>>
Let us now compare the interpretations of all the groups I
mentioned above and the interpretation of the salafis.
All the first three groups I mentioned i.e
Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen(Pakistani version),Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen(UK version),people
who agree to Dr.Zakir's ideology that only the Quran and Authentic Hadeeth is
enough,say that "calling yourself muslim is enough!",added to that
the Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen(from Pakistan) say that calling yourself
"sunni,salafi,hanafi,shafii etc. is Haraam and ammounts to major
kufr", and anyone doing so is a ‘Kafir’.
***Now Dr.Zakir Naik(may allah rectify him) interprets it by
saying that(I am summarising it) Allah is telling us to call ourselves as
'muslims' ,we are "First a muslim and last a muslim".
Also Zakir Naik says,that "We have to agree that
the Salafis and the Ahle Hadees are the closest to the quraan and sunnah",many
ahle hadees and salafis were impressed this line and thought that Doctor Zakir
has indirectly praised the salafis.
But the point to note is that being "closest to the quran and
sunnah" does not imply being on the quraan and
sunnah,i.e there is some imperfection which brother Zakir has possibly found,we
can understand it when we hear him saying "I am pakka AhleHadeeth they are
98% or 99% but I am 100%".
***Interpretation of Jamaat-ul-Mulimeen(Pakistan),is that the
Quraan calls us Muslims,the Hadeeth' never used any other word, and hence
adding any new name such as Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah or AhulHadeeth is a
bidah,and haraam,and anyone doing so is a kafir,because of the hadeeth:-
(Extract of the hadeeth,Sahih
Muslim:-Volume 1:Book 4:Hadeeth no.1885)
"...The best of the speech is
embodied in the Book of Allah, and the beet of the guidance is the guidance
given by Muhammad. And the most evil affairs are their innovations; and every
innovation is error..."
So they say that such a thing as adding a new name is a
biddah(innovation) and hence is haraam and amounts to kufr.
***What do Salafis and Ahlul Hadeeth say about this aayah?
First let us understand the sources of legislation of the
AhlulHadeeth(AhleHadeeth),what makes us different?
Sheikh-ul-Islam ibn Taimia(rahmatullahialih) has given a beautiful
reply in his book "Al-Jawab Al-Bahir ‘An Zuwar Al-Maqabir(-The outshining
answer about the visitors of graves)" to a question from the ruler of that
time(The king An-Nasir of his time),regarding visiting graves.
Sheikh-ul-Islam ibn Taimia replies in the
form of a book, and in the initiation of his reply he outlines the sources from
where he is giving his reply;
"...As the ruler, may Allah support
and direct him, enjoined me, I (have) presented to him a lot of writings from
the books of Muslims, old and new, containing the words of the Prophet (saw),
the Sahabah,the Tabi’is and words of the Imams of Muslims, the four and other
than the four, and the words of the followers of the four that are in agreement
with what I wrote in my religious verdict, and verily this religious verdict is
concise and
cannot contain long details.
Moreover, no one can mention contrary to
this, neither from the Prophet(sallallahualayhiwasallam) nor from the Sahabah, nor
from the Tabi’is, nor from the Imams of Muslims, the four or other than them.
Only speak contrary to this are those who speak without knowledge, having no
text to support their opinions, neither from the
Prophet(sallallahualayhiwasallam) nor from the Sahabah, nor from the Tabi’is
and nor from the Imams of Muslims.And they cannot bring any writing among the
relied upon books quoting from the Imams of Muslims what agrees with their
sayings, and they do
not know how the Sahabah and the Tabi’is
used to behave during the visit of the
grave of the Prophet
(sallallahualayhiwasallam) and of others...End quote"
Allahuakbar , Masha’allah see how the Shaikh Ibn Taimia (may allah
shower his mercy on him),has outlined the manhaj of the AhlulHadeeth.
Our first(and second) source of
legislation are the Quraan And Hadeeth-as the hadeeth goes-
"...The best of the speech is
embodied in the Book of Allah, and the best of the guidance is the guidance
given by Muhammad...”(Muslim: same ref as before)
Our next sources of legislation is the Ijma of the Sahaba and the
Tabiin. Ijma means the unanimous agreement of the muslim scholars over any
issue, Ijma may be by similarity of actions or texts written,and no one in that
time period objecting to that. How do we get to know the permissibility of
using Ijma as a source of legislation? This is from the hadeeth-
“…My Ummah cannot get together on the wrong way…” (at-Tirmidhee
and Haakim – Sahih)
And finally if a matter cannot be found in
any of the above three sources, we do Ijtihad (reasoning and finding the ruling
for an issue not in the Quran and Hadeeth).
(Summary of hadeeth)The Prophet did ijtehad in the following
hadeeth, wherein he said that horses are of 3 kinds, first one- whose owner is
liable for reward because he uses his horse for Allah’s cause, second- the
horse which gives neither benefit nor sin , third- the horse which causes sin
because of its master using it as a symbol of his pride and arrogance. When a
companion asked about the categories of donkeys,the Prophet said :
"Nothing particular was revealed to me regarding them except the general
unique verse which is applicable to everything: "Whoever does goodness
equal to the weight of an atom (or small ant) shall see it (its reward) on the
Day of
Resurrection."Implying that there are three types of donkeys
as well.(Sahih al-Bukhari 3.559)
The Sahaba too practiced Ijtehad many a
times, examples of which will follow.
Bukhari narrated from Aisha that when the Prophet (saw) returned
from the battle of khandaq (ditch) and laid down his arms and took a bath.
Jibrail came and said “You have laid down your arms? By Allah, we angels have
not laid them down yet. So set out for them.” The Messenger
(sallallahualihiwasallam) asked, “where to go?” so Jibrail pointed towards Banu
Quraiza. The Prophet (saw) instructed the mu`azzin to give azan and so he
announced to the people: “Whosoever hears and obeys he should not pray Asr
except in Bani Qurayzah.” So they headed towards the fortresses of Bani
Qurayzah, however they had different understandings of what the Messenger
(sallallahualihiwasallam) had said to them. Some took the literal meaning and
they did not pray until they reached Bani Qurayzah after maghrib. And others
took it to mean that they should go there quickly, so they prayed Asr in
Madinah or on the way. When the Messenger (sallallahualihiwasallam) heard about
this he accepted the action of all them. [Bukhari: 894, 3810 Muslim: 3317]
In the above hadeeth the Sahabas differed over the praying of Asr
prayer, and yet the Prophet agreed to both the issues. Since the matter had not
been clearly described by the Prophet the Sahabas differed upon with their
personal interpretations over the issue with their own Ijtehad.
Another example from the hadeeth of Sahih Muslim.
The Messenger of Allah (sallallahualihiwasallam) made Sa’d bin
Mu’az to judge over Bani Qurayzah, so(the sahabi) he gave the judgment that
they should be killed and their offspring to be taken prisoners. The Messenger
(sallallahualihiwasallam) said: “You gave have given a judgment that is
(similar to the one given) from above the seven skies.” [Muslim:1761, Ahmad:
2/22]
Someone may argue that this was during the
lifetime of the Prophet (sallallahualihiwasallam), but as soon as the verse
"This day we have completed your religion" was revealed the doors to
Ijtehad were closed, for them, we give the following examples from the lifetime
of the Sahabas after the Prophet’s(sallallahualihiwasallam) death.
Abu Bakr (ra) gave a share of the inheritance to the mother’s
mother and not the father’s mother. Some of the Ansar said to him: ‘you give
inheritance to a woman from a deceased woman who would not inherit from her if she died. Yet you ignored a
woman, who if she had died, would have inherited everything she left behind.’
So Abu Bakr (ra) gave both grandmothers equal share in the inheritance.
Abu Bakr (ra) also used to give equal grants to the Muslims. Umar
(ra) said to him concerning this matter: ‘do not put those who emigrated for
the Prophet and left their homes and wealth behind on an equal footing with
those who embraced Islam under duress.’ Abu Bakr (ra) answered: ‘they embraced
Islam for the sake of Allah, and the Dunya is nothing but a message (Balagh).’
Likewise Umar (ra) said: ‘I judge concerning the paternal grandfather (father’s
father) by my opinion and say concerning it according to my opinion.’ i.e.
according to his understanding of the texts. In the time of Umar (ra)’s rule a
woman passed away leaving behind a husband, mother, two maternal brothers and
two paternal brothers. Umar first thought that the maternal brothers should
have the third as their right, but this left nothing to the paternal brothers.
They approached Umar (ra) and said to him: ‘assume that our father is but a
donkey (in other narrations, a stone) – are we still not of one mother?’ So
Umar (ra) changed his mind and gave all the brothers an equal share in the
third. This is despite the fact the Sahaba had judged differently. They had
given the husband one half of the inheritance, one sixth of the inheritance was
given to the mother as decreed in the text, and the final third was given to
the maternal brothers, as also determined in the text, thus leaving nothing for
the paternal brothers. Umar (ra) understood that the maternal brothers were
brothers of the man from his mother’s side, and this applied not just to the
maternal brothers but also to the paternal brothers. The mother was the common
factor between them all, so when there was nothing given to the paternal
brothers, their right to them was of what they deserved from the maternal
brothers. The rest of the Sahaba saw it differently and they understood the
text so they were able to make their own Ijtihad.
Consider the situation of what was said to Umar (ra) when a
Muslim, Samra took from a Jewish merchant a tenth portion of alcohol, bottled
and priced it and then sold it. So Umar (ra) said: ‘May Allah (swt) fight
Samra. Does he not know that the Prophet (saw) said: ‘May Allah (swt) curse the
Jews. The fat was made Haram upon them, so they ornamented it and sold it.’” In
this case, Umar (ra) made the analogy between the alcohol and the fat, and that
prohibition of it meant prohibition of its price.
Ali (ra) said regarding punishment (Hadd) for the crime of
drinking alcohol. He said: ‘Whoever drinks it will speak nonsense, and who did
so would fabricate lies, so I see that he must be punished like the fabricator
of lies.’ Ali (ra) made an analogy between drinking and fabrication because he
understood from Shar’a that it could be considered that which is likely to
happen to be the same as that which actually happens.
All these are examples of Ijtehad from the
time of the Sahaba and Ijma’a as-Sahaba on the issue of Ijtehad. The fact that
the Companions resorted to ijtehad in the absence of a text is established by
continuous testimony (tawatur). [Ghazali, Mustasfa, II, 106; Ibn al-Qayyim,
I'lam, I, 176; Kassab, Adwa', p. 19.]
Hence we as salafis agree on four
Adilla-Shareeyah(four basic sources of legislation),namely,The Quran, The Hadeeth, Ijma and Ijtehad (can
also be called Qiyas).
And last but not the least, we study the
matters of the religion with the Ulama-e-Haq. Since the
Prophet(sallallahualihiwasallam) said-“Scholars are the inheritors of the
prophets.”[Related byTirmidhi, Abu Dawud, Nasa'i, Ibn Maja, Ahmad, Ibn
Hibban,Isnaad is Saheeh]
So our question was about the aayah of the Quraan, >>and
that “What do Salafis and Ahlul Hadeeth say about this aayah?
Since now you have understood our fundamental principles, let us
interpret this aayah in the light of our resources.
First,the basic aayah of the Quraan is as I quoted before.
But, nowhere in the Quraan does Allah say
that ascribing yourself a name other than that which Allah has provided you is
detestful or disliked or haraam. And if someone has any such verse, then he is
welcome to present it.
Second are the hadeeths of the Prophet(sallallhualihiwasallam);
can anyone get any hadeeths of the Prophet (sallallhualihiwasallam) on this
issue,that calling oneself a name other that muslim is haraam, let him bring
it.
Sadly he will not be able to, but yes, one (or some) hadeeth which
he will put forth is:
Prophet Muhammad (SallAllah-u-Alaihi-wa-Sallam) said: Whoever
introduces a new thing in our affair (Deen) will be rejected. (Sahih Bukhari:
Kitabus Sulaah and Sahih Muslim: Kitab ul Aqdiyya)
And in Sahih Muslim( an extract of a hadeeth) "...The best of
the speech is embodied in the Book of Allah, and the beet of the guidance is
the guidance given by Muhammad. And the most evil affairs are their
innovations; and every innovation is error..."
So their argument, those who oppose names
such as AhlulHadeeth,say that this name itself is a biddah(an innovated term) ,
and they understand that this hadeeth applies to the AhlulHadeeth and Salafis
as well.
And brothers, the Hadeeth collections referred to here are the
Sahihain (the two Sahihs-namely Bukhari and Muslim).Let’s see what the
Shaikhain(Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim) have to say about the term
AhlulHadeeth.
*Imaam Bukhaari said concerning the
victorious group, “ they are the Ahlul Hadeeth.” (Masalah al-Ihtijaaj Baa ash-
Shaaf’ee Lil-Khateeb (pg.47), The chain is authentic, al-Hujjah Fee Bayaan
al-Muhajjah (1/246)*
*Imaam Muslim further said, “We have
explained the Madhab of Ahlul Hadeeth and its people.” (Saheeh Muslim,
al-Muqaddimah (pg.6) before the first chapter, another edition (1/5)*
So from these aqwaal(statements) of the
two shaikhs we get to know that they used the two terms to distinguish the
‘victorious group’ from the rest of them.
Hence neither of the two considered using AhlulHadeeth as a biddah
(innovation). And in case someone says that maybe both the shaykhs are mistaken
in their interpretation of Islam , and have also commited a biddah , then we
say to them that’s the difference between you and us.
You understand the hadeeth as your
intellect suggests you, and we understand the hadeeth as the salaf-us-salih
understood it, the compilers of the hadeeth understood it.
As for those who tell that perhaps these were rare instances of
the usage of the word, then your allegation is false . Both the Shayks Imam
Bukhari and Imam Muslim have used this word to signify if a particular person
was reliable for narration or not.
Imaam Bukhaari has mentioned from Yahyaa
ibn Sa’eed al-Qattaan concerning a narrator, “He was not from the people of
hadeeth.” (Ahlul Hadeeth) At-Taarekh al-Kabeer (6/429), adh-Dhua’faa as-Sagheer
no.281)
Imaam Muslim said concerning disparaged
narrators, “They are accused (ie disparaged remarks pertaining to hadeeth.)
according to the Ahlul Hadeeth.” (Saheeh Muslim, al-Muqaddimah (pg.6) before
the frst chapter, another edition (1/5)
Subhan’allah , Imam Bukhari and Imam
Muslim never felt anything wrong in using the word AhlulHadeeth.
But these modern day Fitan like Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen and their
likes, understand the Quraan and Hadeeth better than these people and rebuke
those who call themselves AhlulHadeeth.
Nowadays such Fitan has erupted that whenever you see a man with
untrimmed beard, praising the Salaf-us-Salih and their books, then people, even
those who claim to follow the ‘Quran and Sunnah’ jester(joke) about them saying
“see these are the AhlulHadeeth!!!”.
Let’s see what Imam Ash-Shafii has to say
about this.
Imaam Ash-Shaafi also said, “Whenever I
see a man from the Ashaabul Hadeeth then it is as if I have seen the Prophet
(SallalahuAlayhee Wasallam) alive.” (Sharf Ashaabul Hadeeth of Khateeb (no.85)
the chain is authentic.)
Allahuakbar,May Allah honour Imam Shafii in both the worlds,
aameen.
Generally what we agree is that the best Tafseer (exegesis) of the
Quraan was written by Haafiz Ismaa’eel Ibn Katheer ad-Dimashqi (called Tafseer
Ibn Katheer).
In his explanation to verse 71 of Soorah
Banee Israaeel :-
“And remember the Day when We shall call
together all human beings with their(respective) imams”
Ibn Katheer(rahimullah) said:- “Some of
the Salaf have said this is the greatest virtue of the Ashaabul-Hadeeth (ie the
people of Hadeeth) that their Imaam will be Prophet Mohammed (Sallalahu Alayhee
Wasallam)” (Tafseer Ibn Katheer 4/164)
Now my question to these people is,from
which Tafseer of The Quraan, did you pick up the interpretation which says that
“Calling yourself a name other than muslim is detested or disliked or hated or
a biddah or haraam”.
No one from amongst the Salaf-us-Salih
held that opinion, and these are the new people who have derived this idea of
theirs from their own intellects.
I ask you by making Allah my witness; Do
you people have a greater degree of understanding of the texts or these people.
Have you ever pondered over such things. We don’t not enforce it upon you
to give yourself attributes, but why do you hate us if we give ourselves an
attribute?!
The son the great Imaam and author of Sunan Abu Dawood (Imaam Abu
Bakr bin Abu Dawood ) who is truthful according the great majority said, “and
do not be from those who toy with their religion for you may become from those
who curse and criticise the Ahlul Hadeeth” (Kitaab ash-Shareeah (pg.975) of
Imaam Muhammad bin al-Hussain al-Aajurree, and it’s chain is authentic)
I can give numerous examples from the
aqwaal (sayings) of the Salaf-us-salih to prove that the usage of the word
AhlulHadeeth was common amongst the Muhaddiseen(scholars of the hadeeth) and no
scholar till date has objected to it.
As for some people who quote Shaikh Salih
Al-Uthaimeen(rahimahullah) that he forbade people from calling oneself ‘Salafi’,
then I will Insha’allah quote him so that this false aura what some people have
created that ‘there is a difference of opinion amongst the scholars as to
whether or not we should call oneself salafi-and some say it is
waajib(compulsory) and some say it is haraam’ .
Laanallahu allal kaazibeen (May Allah curse the liars).
There are three lies in the statement ‘there is a difference of
opinion amongst the scholars as to whether or not we should call oneself
salafi-and some say it is waajib(compulsory) and some say it is haraam’, the
first lie being that no Salafi scholar has stated that it is waajib to call
oneself Salafi, the second lie- that some scholars (the one being referred to
here is Shaikh Saalih Al-Uthaimeen) regarded it haraam to call oneself
salafi,the third-that there is a difference of opinion on this issue.
Determining Shaikh Ibn Uthaymeen's true position on
this matter:-
Shaikh Ibn Uthaymeen (rahimahullah) was asked, "What is the
ruling of ascribing to as-Salaf as-Saaleh (the Pious Predecessors); and our
saying, 'I am Salafi in Aqeedah'?
Reply by Shaikh Ibn Uthaimeen,
"Ascription to as-Salaf as-Saaleh (the Pious
Predecessors) is obligatory, because as-Salaf as-Saaleh were upon
that which was the Prophet (sallallahu alahi wa-sallam). And saying, 'I am
salafi', if he intends to establish a hizb (party/group), or
affiliate with a hizb, then we oppose the groups (hizbs). According to us, the
entire Muslim Ummah should be one group upon the
way of the Prophet (sallallahu alahi wa-sallam) and his
companions. If he intends by the saying, 'I am Salafi' that is 'I
follow the Salaf' and 'I don't want to form a hizb (party) such that I declare
astray,
everyone who opposes me' - then this is Haqq(true, correct).
We are all Salafis (salafiyoon). All of us ask Allah that we die upon
the way of the salaf. We all ask Allah for this. But to make a
hizb by the name of Salafi, and another hizb by the name
ikhwaani, and another hizb by the name Tableeghi, and another group named such
and such, we do not agree with
this, we do not agree with this.
Did the sahabah make Hizbs like this? … reply. (the audience
replies): No. No. We say No. Whosoever claims it (i.e., the sahabah made such
hizbs), then he should bring the proof…."End Quote...
Since these things have been made clear.Let us move to the basic
fact.Did the sahaba use a word other than muslim?
Yes Alhamdulillah.
Khateeb Baghdadi rahimullah(d463H) has been a renowned scholar of
hadeeth.He has cited the following report in his famous work Sharf Ashaabul
Hadees:
"When Abu Said Khudri Raziallahuanhu
(a companion) would see young students he would say: "(O yound men!) Be
you blessed with the Prophet's word regarding you.He asked us to make room for
you in our academic gatherings and help you learn ahaadeeth. You are our
successors. After us you would be Ahlul Hadeeth."
"You are our successors and.After us you would be
AhlulHadeeth."- this was the address of a companion to his pupils the
tabaain,Mashaallah.
In Surah Ale-Imraan,verse 106, the aqwaal
of the companion Abdullah ibn Abbas raziallahuanhu comes to picture- "This
aayah refers to the Ahlus-Sunnah and not the Ahlul-Biddah",similar reports
by Abdullah ibn Abbas are many.
Since the sahaba have used these terms, we do not find it wrong or
sinful to use these names.You are free to differ with the sahaba. . .May Allah
guide all of us...
As for the statement of Brother Zakir Naik that Shaikh ul Islam
Taqiuddin Ibn Taimiyya said that "we do not require names other than what
Allah has given us", then I dont know which book of Ibn Taimiyyah is Zakir
Naik referring to...
For those who have read Ibn Taimiyyah you may well know his book
'al-Wasiyyatul- Kubraa' - and the theme of the entire essay is the
'Distinguishing Characteristics of Ahlus-Sunnah.'!!!
Now for a change lets see what Ibn Taimiyyah Rahimullah says about
all the muhaddiseen in his book ...
He said in answering a question, “all
praise be to Allah, so Bukhaari and Abu Dawood were the Imams of fiqh and
ijtihaad and as for Imaams Muslim, Tirmidhee, Nasaa’ee, Ibn Maajah, Ibn
Khuzaimah, Abu Ya’ala and Bazzaar all of them were upon the Madhab of Ahlul
Hadeeth and none of them were muqallids of any particular Imaam nor were they
mujtahid mutlaqs” (Majmoo’a Fataawa 20/40)
Some people of innovation say the Ahlul Hadeeth only refers to
the Scholars of Hadeeth whether these scholars are from
Ahlus-Sunnah
or people of innovation so we say their statement is rejected on
the
basis of it being contrary to the understanding of the Salaf
us-Saaliheen.
By accepting this statement of the people of Innovation it
necessitates
misguided people are also part of the victorious group so this
statement
being futile and is also apparent to the general people. The
Scholars of
Hadeeth have themselves clearly said about certain narrators not
being
from the Ahlul Hadeeth.
Remember Ahlul Hadeeth and Ahlus-Sunnah
are names of the one and same group.
And for those who say that Ahlul-Hadees or Ashaabul-Hadees only
refers to the scholars.The Shaikh-Ul-Islaam Ibn Taimiyyah says-
“We do not take the meaning of Ahlul Hadeeth to just
mean the people who heard (ahadeeth), wrote them and or conveyed (or narrated
them) rather we take the meaning it refers to the one who preserves, knows,
learns and understands them inwardly and outwardly and follows them inwardly
and outwardly and this is the same for the people of the Quraan” (Majmoo’a
Fataawa4/95)
Whatever we say, some people(not all) who claim to adhere to the
Quraan And Sunnah do detest at the sight of the Ahlul-Hadees...
Imam Ibn Al-Qayyum rahimullah said in his
famous Qasedah Nooniyyah “Oh you who have hatred and abuse the Ahlul Hadeeth,
glad tidings to you for your friendship with Shaytaan.” (al-Kaafiyya
ash-Shaafiyyah Fee Intisaar al-Firqatun-Naajiyyah pg.99)
Now the question may arise in your mind "What about those
people who use the words like Salafi/Ahlulhadeeth for self praise?"
Then we all are unanimous that its forbidden to use these words
for self praise, the matter ends here.
For those who are okay now with the words AhlusSunnah and
AhlulHadees, now you may ask 'who used the word Salafi then?' They were the
muhaddiseen of the era 500H onwards who used the word Salafi to denote someone
with the right aqeedah. They never felt that using this new term was a biddah!
Imam As-Sam’aanee (d.562H) rahimullah-
“We have been commanded to follow and we have been encouraged with
this. We have been forbidden from innovating (bid’ah) and severely warned
against such behaviour. The hallmark of the People of the Sunnah is their
adherence to AL-SALAF AL-SALIH (the Pious
Predecessors) and their abandonment of everything that constitutes an innovation(mubtada’)
or a matter from the Religion that appears without precedent (muhdath)”
[al-Intisar li Ahl al-Hadith of Abu
al-Muzaffar al-Sam'ani by way of the book Sawn al-Mantaq wa al-Kalam (p.158)]
As-Sam’aanee also said in al-lnsaab (3/273):
“AS-SALAFI: this is an ascription to the SALAF and
following their ways, in that which is related from them.”
lbn al-Atheer (d.630H) said in al-Lubaab fee Tahdheebul-lnsaab
(2/162), commenting upon the previous saying of as-Sam’aanee: “And
a group were known by this ascription.”
Imam Adh-Dhahabee (d.748H)
“It is authentically related from ad-Daaraqutnee that he said:
There is nothing more despised by me than ‘ilmul-kalaam (innovated speech and
theological rhetoric). I say: No person should ever enter into ‘ilmul-kalaam,
nor argumentation. Rather, he should be SALAFEE (a
follower of the Salaf).” [Siyar 16/457]
Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani (d. 852H)
Stated al-Haafidh Ibn Hajr about Abu Amr Ibn as-Salaah, “He was
extremely strong and given to devotion, SALAFI in
the generality (of his affairs)…”[Siyaar 23/142]
As for those who can understand what i have written above,
Alhamdulillah I have given enough evidences to show that the Pious predecessors
never considered it detested let alone haram to use descriptive titles other Muslim.
Now for a short story on how people deviated(or self interpreted
islam) after they started disliking the descriptive terms...
As I had mentioned above about Jamaat-Ul-Muslimeen (Pakistan),
then their founder Masood Ahmad who split away from the AhleHadees to make an
only muslim Jamaat- and do takfeer of all people who use a name other than
muslim, I pity him that he could decipher Salaah,Sawn,Zakah and Hajj from the
Quraan And Authentic Hadeeth but, in his book Tawheed-Ul-Muslimeen,Masoo Ahmad
writes, "Allah is on the arsh(throne) as well as Farsh(floor)"
thereby implying Allah is everywhere. This aqeedah is an aqeedah of kufr!
He fell into the trap of shaitaan the day he slandered the
AhleHadeeth and did takfeer of them to make an only muslim group. Shaitaan did
not make him slip in the fareeyah(salah,namaaz etc) but shaitaan made him slip
in the pit of a false and baatil aqeedah.All because he left the path of the
salaf us saalih.
So now one may ask, is there no a concise aqeedah of 'muslims' or
should we follow the salafi/ahlulhadeeth/ahlussunnah Aqeedah?
The answer is that you may happily call yourself muslim, but
your aqeedah should be salafi/ahlulhadeeth.And this was the accepted aqeeedah
amongst the Salaf-Us-Saalih.
Abu Ismaa’eel Abdur Rahmaan bin Ismaa’eel
as-Saboonee (d.449H) wrote a book titled, ‘Aqeedatus-Salaf Wa Ashaabul Hadeeth’
in it he says, “The Ahlul Hadeeth have the Aqeedah, they testify Allaah The
Glorious is above the seven heavens upon his Throne.” (Aqeedatus-Salaf
Ashaabul-Hadeeth pg.14)
Now for those who affiliate their only Muslim ideas with those of
Brother Zakir Naik,some of the cases where he has shown his self styled
interpretation of the aayaat and hadees are...
"Ahwaar is a neuter gender! For males it means females and
for females it means males!"
The Prophet (sallallahualihiwasallam)said: "A houri is a very
beautiful young woman with a transparent body."(Tirmizi v:2)!!!
Let me show you another example. Zakir Naik made fun Dr Campbell
on origin of creation in 1st chapter of Genisus(bible). Which
stated that trees were made on first day but light was made of third day.
Zakir Naik said How tree sustain with out light. He called it scientific
contradiction.
Genesis:-1:12 And the earth brought forth vegetation, plants
yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with seed in them,
after their kind; and God saw that it was good.
(after some verses)
1:16 And God made the two great lights, the greater light to
govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars
also.
But guess what we have similar hadith in
an authentic book. How will you explain it now? Are you going to reject
ahadith using
your new logic!!
Sahih Muslim Book 039, Number 6707:
Abu Haraira reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be
upon him) took hold of my hands and said: Allah, the Exalted and Glorious,
created the clay on Saturday and He created the mountains on Sunday and He
created the trees on Monday and He created the things entailing labour on
Tuesday and created light on Wednesday and lie caused the animals to spread on
Thursday and created Adam (peace be upon him) after 'Asr on Friday;the last
creation at the last hour of the hours of Friday, i. e. between afternoon and
night.
From the above hadeeth we also get to know that Allah created the
earth in seven days and not seven long epochs as Dr.Zakir Naik understood it
and claimed the Bible to be unscientific because it said that God created the
earth in seven 24 hour periods.
I agree that the bible is unscientific in many aspects, but our
brother refuted many supposedly unscientific things in the bible which were
actually there in the authentic ahadeeth!!!
"Claiming that the earth is egg shaped" was another
fallacy zakir naik created amongst the masses.None of the predecessors
understood the verse(“And the Earth, after that, He spread out (dahâhâ).”
[Sûrah al-Nâzi`ât: 30]) to say that the earth is egg-shaped! But 1400
years later Zakir naik seems to see the quraan in new light...
Apart from many other issues Zakir Naik seems to have the belief
that the life in the heaven and hell is not forever, a belief contradictory to
what all the muslims have believe it till now!
Untill now the people of the muslim ummah believed that they were
going to the heaven forever,but in a QnA session of 'Dare to Ask' ,when a
questioner asks "Does living in heaven forever make us similar to the
forever of God?", Brother Zakir Naik gives a mixed answer implying the
forever of heaven is not actually "forever", it may mean millions or
billions of years!!!
The Messenger of Allaah , said that on the
Day of Resurrection death, will be presented in the form of a big sheep, then
it will be slaughtered in front of those who will enter Paradise and those who
will enter Hell so that they know that there is no more death, only eternity in
Paradise or Hell. Al-Bukhaari, Muslim and others narrated this Hadeeth on the
authority of Abu Sa‘eed Al-Khudri .
Zakir naik's latest stand on apostacy is well known now,that
"death is not a standard punishment for apostacy" referring to the
hadeeth in Abu Dawud 4345, if one reads the hadeeth in context and the hadeeths
4344 and 4346, it will be clear that the punishment for apostacy is only death
in an islamic nation unless the apostate reverts to islaam before 3 days from
the day he actually anounced his apostacy. He also goes on to say that the
other scholars do not give reference but he does!!!Giving the reference is not
important but understanding it is!
"Allah's Apostle said, "The
blood of a Muslim who confesses that none has the right to be worshipped but
Allah and that I am His Apostle, cannot be shed except in three cases: In Qisas
for murder, a married person who commits illegal sexual intercourse and the one
who reverts from Islam (apostate) and abndons the group of Muslims."Sahih
al-Bukhari, 9:83:17
"Whoever changed his (Islamic) religion, then kill him"
Sahih al-Bukhari, 9:84:57
Are these not references, or are these not attractive to the
non-muslims!Or do they ward off the non-muslims from Islaam! If somebody claims
that why dont we post all these mistakes to Zakir naik instead of putting it up
here, we reply to then that he has been notified by the scholars on these
issues but Allah knows why he doesnt agree to them and why he doesnt accept his
mistakes in public.
So my intention here was to tell you the result of those who
traverse a path other than that of the Salaf-us-Salih, first they reject and
refute the attributes of naming and then the methodology!
The basic difference between the Salafi/AhlulHadeeth and all the
other claimants to the Quraan And Sunnah is the way we follow the salaf-us-salih.
We dont claim anyone to be infalliabe except the
Prophet(sallallahulaihiwasallam) but when all the muslims of a time period
agree at a point we also agree to it's legality (=ijma).Our interpretation is
not driven by our intellect, it is based oin the interpretation of the
Salaf-Us-Saalih.
If the Salaf never interpreted the verses of the quraan to mean
"only muslim" why are we interpreting them that way?
If you dont want to call yourself anything,other tan a muslim, it
is fine with us, but you can not refute people who use descriptive names since
it has been proven from the salaf-us-salih.
Now it's for you to think!
And all praises are for Allah...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(to give me bouquets and brickbats,on Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/mannaforpeace)
