Rabi-ul-Awwal is the 3rdmonth in the Islamic calendar. This month holds great prominence due to its blessings because the reason for the creation of the universe, the mercy to all creation, the chosen one, the Beloved Prophet of all mankind, Muhammad Mustafaصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمgraced the world with his presence in this month. The Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمwas born on 12th Rabi-ul-Awwal, Monday at the time of dawn in the Holy land of Makkah. Islamic scholars have asserted that the night of the birth of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمis superior toeven Layla-tul-Qadr (TheNight of Power) because angels descend from the skies on Layla-tul-Qadr but on the 12th night of Rabi -ul- Awwal, the mercy to all creation himself came into this world. Moreover, only Muslimsreap the blessings and favors bestowed by Allahعزّوجلّon Layla-tul-Qadr while on the night of the advent of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم, Almighty Allahعزّوجلّshowered His mercy and blessings on all creation as stated in the Holy Quran:وَ مَاۤ اَرْسَلْنٰكَ اِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِّلْعٰلَمِیْنَ“And We did not send you (O dear Prophet Muhammad) except as a mercy for the entire world.”(Ambiya 21:107)Without a doubt, the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمwas sent as a mercy and indeed, the day when Allah’s mercy descends is a day of rejoicing. Almighty Allahعزّوجلّhas declared in the Holy Quran, part 11, Sura Younus, Verse 58:قُلْ بِفَضْلِ اللّٰهِ وَ بِرَحْمَتِهٖ فَبِذٰلِكَ فَلْیَفْرَحُوْاؕ-هُوَ خَیْرٌ مِّمَّا یَجْمَعُوْنَ“Say, ‘Upon Allah’s munificence and upon His mercy - upon these should the people rejoice”; that is better than all their wealth and possessions.”(Yunus 10:58)The Holy Quran itself orders us to rejoice overAllah’s mercy and Allah’s greatest mercy is embodied in the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم.Abu Lahab was the paternal uncle of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمwho had a slave girl named Suwaybah. He was one of the worst unbelievers and a fierceopponent of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمafter he announced his Prophethood. However, when Rasoolullahصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمwas born, his slave girl Suwaybah gave the news of the birth of his nephew to Abu Lahab and upon receiving this news, AbuLahab freed her as a reward for bearing the news of his nephew’s birth. After the death of Abu Lahab, one of his family members saw him in pain in a dream. He was asked how he was treated after his death. He replied, “I did not receive any goodness after leaving you.” Then pointing towards a hole at the underside of his thumb, he said, “Except this, as I am fed with water fromthis because I freed my slave girl, Suwaybah.”(Musannaf Abdul Razzaq)Shaikh Allama Badr-ud-Din Ayniرحمۃ اللہ تعالٰی علیہhas stated, “That indication means that he is given some water.”(Umda-tul-Qari)Commenting on the above mentioned narration, Sayyiduna Shaikh Abdul Haq Muhaddis Dehelwiرحمۃ اللہ تعالٰی علیہhas stated, “In this incident, there is credible evidence for those who celebrate the birth of the Noble Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمand spend their wealth on this auspicious occasion. Abu Lahab, who was a staunch unbeliever, wasbenefitted due to rejoicing and freeing hisslave girl, Suwaybah, upon hearing the news of the blessed birth of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم. Now imagine how great the reward will be for the Muslim spending his wealth whole-heartedly on this occasion. However, it is necessary to avoid songs and music in Meelad gathering.”(Madarij-un-Nubuwwah)Allama Ibn-e-Jawziرحمۃ اللہ تعالٰی علیہsays: When an unbeliever, likeAbu Lahab (who has been explicitly condemned in Sura-e-Lahab) was rewarded in this way, then what will be the reward of a Muslim who celebrates the birth of the Noble Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم. Indeed, Almighty Allahعزّوجلّwill reward him by entering him into the gardens of peace by his immense mercy.Celebrating Meelad and having devotion for this day is a sign of Iman and celebrating this day has been proved from the Quran, Hadith and the statements of our pious predecessors. The gatherings of Meelad hold countless blessings. The primary concept of a Meelad congregation is that the devotees of the Holy Prophet gather at a venue, an Islamic scholar describes the events of the Holy Prophet’s blessed birth, his miracles, his blessed characteristics and his excellence and eminence in light of authentic narrations. Thereafter, Durood-o-Salam is presented in his holy court while reverently standing up. Sweets are distributed amongst the poor and needy and other fellow Muslims after offering Fatiha to present its reward to the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم. Then supplications are offered for the needs of Muslims in the world and the hereafter. All of the above mentioned acts have been proved from Quran, Sunnah andthe sayings of Islamic scholars.Almighty AllahعزّوجلّHimself discusses the arrival of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمin the Holy Quran in the following words:لَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ رَسُوْلٌ مِّنْ اَنْفُسِكُمْ عَزِیْزٌ عَلَیْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ حَرِیْصٌ عَلَیْكُمْ بِالْمُؤْمِنِیْنَ رَءُوْفٌ رَّحِیْمٌ“Indeed there has come to you a Noble Messenger from amongyou - your falling into hardship aggrieves him,most concerned for your well being, for the Muslims most compassionate, most merciful.”(Taubah 9:128)In the foregoing verse, Almighty Allahعزّوجلّfirstly said, “O Muslims! There has come to you a noble messenger”. Here, Almighty Allahعزّوجلّdescribes the blessed birth of the HolyProphetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّم. Secondly, He said, “Thatmessenger is from among you.” Here, the blessed lineage of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمhas been described. Lastly, He said, “He is most concerned for your well-being. He is most compassionate for Muslims and most merciful.” Here, the blessed Naat (praise) ofthe Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمhas been stated. In the Meelad gatherings which are organized these days, the same 3 things are described and discussed.Sayyiduna Qatadaرضی اللہ تعالٰی عنہsaid thatthe Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمwas asked why he fasted on every Monday. The Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمreplied, “I was born on this day and the revelation descended upon me on the same day.”(Sahih Muslim)The commentator of Sahih Bukhari, Sayyiduna Imam Qastalaniرحمۃ اللہ تعالٰی علیہhas said, “One of the tried-and-true blessing of celebrating Meelad of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمis that peace and tranquility prevails throughout the year and every wish is fulfilled sooner. May Almighty Allahعزّوجلّhave mercy on the one who marks the nights of the month of Meelad like Eid.”(Al-Mawahib Al-Ladunniyah)May Almighty Allahعزّوجلّenable us to celebrate the blessed birth of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمas per the guidelines of Sharia, reward us by His grace and grant us the neighborhood of the Holy Prophetصلّی اللہ تعالٰی علیہ واٰلہ وسلّمin paradise by virtue of it!
The True Knowledge
إن الله وملائكته يصلون على النبي يا أيها الذين آمنوا صلوا عليه وسلموا تسليما - اللهم صل وسلم وبارك عليك ياسيدي يا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم -
Tabarruk
Tabarruk means blessed. In special terms, it means to obtain blessing from the pious. This is permissible, but there are some people who say: to obtain blessing from the pious or their possesings is not permissible and if one says it is permissible, he is leading the people into the way of shirk. We the Ahle Sunnah say, it is proved from the Sunnah and Qur’an that this is permissible and to call it Kufr and Shirk is not acceptable.
Proof from the Qur’an
Allah Almighty says in the Qur’an,
“And their Prophet said to them: ‘the sign of his kingship is that there would come to you an ark in which there is tranquility of hearts from your Lord, and there are something left on the relics of the respectable Musa and the respectable Haroon, the angels raising it would bring. No doubt, in it there is great sign for you if you believe”. (Surah Al Baqarah Verse 248).
Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani write:
In the box there was Musa and Haroon’s clothes, Musa’a stick, and pieces of the Old Testament and some things of the previous Prophets, which had touched their bodies. When Bani Isra’il went to war, they took that box with them and they used to win.
[Tafsir ibn Kathir and Tafsir Fathul Qadir by Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani]
From the above, it has been proved that it is permissible to keep the possessions of the pious for blessings.
Proof from the hadith
Imam Muslim writes:
The Companions of the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) used to get blessings from him. At one time our Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) performed wudu with some water. When he left, Bilal (Radi Allaho anhu) came and saw the left over water he took the water from the house and brought it outside. The Companions took the water and began to wipe it all over their bodies. The other people who were behind were not able to get any water began to wipe the water from the Companions hands and wiped it on themselves. In this way everyone got the blessings from the water that the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did wudu with. [Muslim Shareef, chapter of Salaah]
Imam Muslim writes:
The people of Madinah used to take tubs of water to the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam.) The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) used to dip his hand in the water and the people used to take the tubs back (to get blessings from the water) [Muslim Sahreef chap Fada’il]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Once a barber cut the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s) hair. The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams) Companions were there as well, when the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams) hair used to drop, the companions used to catch the hair to prevent it from dropping onto the ground, which they kept as Tabarruk.
[Muslim Shareef, chapter of Fada’il, Tareekh, Ibn-e-Kathir, chapter, Hajj of Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam]
Imam Muslim writes:
Once the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) went to Ummay Salma’s house. While in her house he went to sleep. While he was sleeping he began to sweat. Ummay Salma got a small bottle and began to catch and collect the sweat of the Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam. When the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) awoke he asked her what she was doing. She replied, I am collecting your sweat and hope that my children will get blessings from this, Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “whatever you have hoped is right.”
[Muslim Shareef, chapter Fada’il]
Imam Muslim writes:
Once Suhail RadiAllaho unho gave the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) some water in a goblet. The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) drank some water from the goblet. When the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had finished drinking, Sohail Radi Allaho unho kept the goblet as Tabarruk. When the Chaliph Ummar bin Abdul Aziz asked him to give the goblet to him. Sohail Radi Allaho unho gave the goblet to Ummar bin Abdul Aziz and he kept it. (Tabarruk) [Sahih Muslim chapter Kitab-ul-Ashriba]
Imam Muslim writes:
Asma Radi Allaho unha had a gown of the Prophet sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam. Sick people used to come to Asma Radi Allaho unha and she used to dipp the gown in the water. She would then take the gown out and give some of the water for the sick to drink as Tabarruk.
[Muslim Shareef, Kitab-ul-Labaas]
Imam Bukhari writes:
The Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam had a large piece of cloth. A person came to the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and asked: If he could have the cloth 'The Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam gave him the cloth. People asked the individual, 'why did you take the cloth, when the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) liked wearing this'. The individual replied: that he was not going to wear the cloth. He said that: 'When I die I want to be buried in this cloth as it is blessed' When the person died he was buried in the cloth.
[Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Labaas and Kitab-ul-Janaais]
Imam Bukhari writes:
Ummar Radi-Allahu-unhu asked Aisha Radi allho unha if he could be buried next to where Abu Bakr Radi-Allahu-unhu and the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) were buried. She allowed him to be buried there. Ummar Radi allhu said: 'This is more valuable to me than anything on earth.' "
[Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Janaais]
This narration proves that to get Tabarruk from the grave of the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is permitted.
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Khalid bin Waleed Radi-Allahu-unhu had a hat. In the hat he put two of the Prophet’s Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams hair. Once he was in the battle of Yarmouk. The battle got very tense. Khalid’s hat dropped onto the ground. He got off his horse and picked up the hat. After the war a person said to Khalid bin Waleed: 'You had a cheap hat and to pick it up during a war is not a wise thing to do'. Khalid replied: 'In that hat I had the Prophet’s (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)s hair, the blessing from that hair gives me victory in every war.
[Tareekh Ibn-Kathir Chapter, Death of Khalid bin Waleed]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Mu’awiyah had the Prophet’s Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s nails and hair. He said: 'When I die, can you bury the nails and hair with me in my grave.'
[Tareekh Ibn Kathir, chapter, Death of Mu’awiyah]
Ummar Bin Abdul Aziz had the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s) hair. He said: 'When I die bury me with the hair in my grave.'
[Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, Chapter, Death of Ummar bin Abdul Aziz]
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah states:
Imam Ahmed Ibn Hanbal Rahmatulah was asked ‘Is it permitted to do Masa of Mimber of Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), to touch the Mimber for blessing. He replied ‘Yes it is permitted’. Abdullah Ibn Ummar, Sa’eed Ibn-ul-Musayyid, Yahya bin Sa’eed, and other great Scholars of Madinah used to do Masa of the Mimber.
[Iqtidat Sirratal Mustaqeem page 203]
Hafidhh Asqalani says:
From the grave of Imam Bukhari comes a beautiful smell of fragrance, there are pillars built around the grave and when people go there they take a small amount of clay from it. (Tabarruk)
[Fat-hul-bari by Hafidhh As-qalani biography of Imam Bukhari]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir say’s:
When Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah passed away some people came and gathered around him and sat close to his body to obtain blessing from him. Also a group of women came and the water that was left over after bathing him they drank to get blessing from it as Tabarruk. The left over leaves of a tree which were also used in bathing him, were distributed among themselves for the purpose of Tabarruk. Whatever touched his body, like for example handkerchief, scarf which he used wear round his neck, was sold for a large amount of money, to someone to keep as Tabarruk. People used to come day and night to his grave, and some people use to even spend the night there'. [Tareek Ibn Kathir chap death of Ibn Taymiya]
If from the clothes or from the water which is left over from touching his body or by sitting close to Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya you may obtain blessing, then how can it be wrong to get blessing from the other pious people of Allah. Or how can that be called Bid’ah or go even as far as calling someone Mushrik for doing that.
One Clarification
Some people assert, that there is no benefit (blessings) in items possessed by our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), i.e. clothes, hair, and nails. Those who doubt narrate Ahadith in which our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) gave a shirt to Abdulah Bin Ubay as Tabarurk, which had no effect for his forgiveness.
The answer to this is that an unbeliever or a Munafiq (hypocrite) will gain no benefit from our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)’s Tabarruk. Abdullah Bin Ubaid was the leader of the Munafiqeen so how can he gain blessings from the shirt. Yes, a believer, such as the companions did benefit, as mentioned previously. They kept items such as, shirts, hair, nails, and clothes. Some even asked to be buried with these items.
The second answer to this, question as provided by Hafidhh Ibn Kathir, is:
There is a narration from the Salaf that the shirt which our Prophe, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave was not for Tabarruk. This was because the Munafiq gave a shirt to our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)s uncle, Abbas (R.adialla hu anhu), in return our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) only repaid him.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir, under Surah Toba'h verse 82 by Hafidhh Asqalani].
A further doubt by those who disbelieve in Tabarruk is with regards to the tree where the companions pledged their allegiance (bay’a) to our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Umar (Radiall hu anhu) saw that the people would go to the tree to gain Taburk. So he had the tree cut, from this they claim that Tabarruk is not permissible.
Whenever we mention our views on Islamic issues (such as those described in this book) we are confronted by people who say: “Show us the evidence in Bukhari or Muslim”.
We ask the same people to look in either of these books and show us where the above mentioned narration’s are mentioned regarding Umar (Radiall hu anhu) ordered the tree to be cut down.
Consider the following :
1) In Imam Bukhari’s version; he says that Sa’eed Bin Musayib said: “My Father told me when he went to look for the tree of Bay’a, he said he could not recognize the place where it was and had forgotten the exact place where it was.” (It had disappeared.)
[Bukhari chapter Hu daibiyya]
2) Tariq Bin Abdullah says: 'I saw one tribe there who were performing their prayers'.
1) In the last moments of Jabir Bin Abdullah he had lost his sight he use to say: 'If I could see today I would show you where the tree was, where the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) received the Ba’ya of the companions”.
2) [Bukhari chap,Al-Magazi]
The above mentioned narration above prove that:
1) The tree was not cut, but vanished.
2) The companions knew where the tree was like Jabbir Bin Abdullah.
3) Ta'beain would go there to perform Salaah.
3) From the narration in Bukhari we can say no one was stopped to go there. Hafidhh Ibn Hajar Asqalani says in the commentry: “Some people forgot where this place was like Sa’eed Bin Al-Musayib’s Father, and some knew where it was like Jabir Bin Abdullah”.
4) [Fathul bari, chapter Bay'a Ridwan].
Sayid Maududi writes that Imam Tabari said:
During the period of Umar (Radiall hu anhu’s) Khalifet, he went for pilgrimage, when he passed Hudaiba' he asked: “Where is the tree under which the bay’a took place?” A person replied: 'This one”. Someone said: 'This one”. Umar (Radiall hu anhu) said: “Forget the inconvenience”.
[Tafsir Tafhemul Qur’an Surah Fata’h under verse 18 by Sayyid Maududi].
This must be the reason why Hafidhh Ibn Kathir has not mentioned the narration about the cutting of the tree in Tafsir, Tareekh, and not even in Sirat-un Nabi.
The evidence above proves that it is permitted to get Tabarruk from the pious people and their things in their life and after death. The Ahl-us-Sunnah’s belief is based upon the above evidence. However there are many more similar events proving the permissibility of Tabarruk.
The people who say that it is Shirk/Kufr to believe in Taburruk should have proof from the either the Qur’an or Sunnah. There is no Hadith that proves that to get Tabarruk from the pious is forbidden.
Proof from the Qur’an
Allah Almighty says in the Qur’an,
“And their Prophet said to them: ‘the sign of his kingship is that there would come to you an ark in which there is tranquility of hearts from your Lord, and there are something left on the relics of the respectable Musa and the respectable Haroon, the angels raising it would bring. No doubt, in it there is great sign for you if you believe”. (Surah Al Baqarah Verse 248).
Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani write:
In the box there was Musa and Haroon’s clothes, Musa’a stick, and pieces of the Old Testament and some things of the previous Prophets, which had touched their bodies. When Bani Isra’il went to war, they took that box with them and they used to win.
[Tafsir ibn Kathir and Tafsir Fathul Qadir by Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Qadi Shawkani]
From the above, it has been proved that it is permissible to keep the possessions of the pious for blessings.
Proof from the hadith
Imam Muslim writes:
The Companions of the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) used to get blessings from him. At one time our Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) performed wudu with some water. When he left, Bilal (Radi Allaho anhu) came and saw the left over water he took the water from the house and brought it outside. The Companions took the water and began to wipe it all over their bodies. The other people who were behind were not able to get any water began to wipe the water from the Companions hands and wiped it on themselves. In this way everyone got the blessings from the water that the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) did wudu with. [Muslim Shareef, chapter of Salaah]
Imam Muslim writes:
The people of Madinah used to take tubs of water to the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam.) The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) used to dip his hand in the water and the people used to take the tubs back (to get blessings from the water) [Muslim Sahreef chap Fada’il]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Once a barber cut the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s) hair. The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams) Companions were there as well, when the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams) hair used to drop, the companions used to catch the hair to prevent it from dropping onto the ground, which they kept as Tabarruk.
[Muslim Shareef, chapter of Fada’il, Tareekh, Ibn-e-Kathir, chapter, Hajj of Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam]
Imam Muslim writes:
Once the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) went to Ummay Salma’s house. While in her house he went to sleep. While he was sleeping he began to sweat. Ummay Salma got a small bottle and began to catch and collect the sweat of the Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam. When the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) awoke he asked her what she was doing. She replied, I am collecting your sweat and hope that my children will get blessings from this, Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said: “whatever you have hoped is right.”
[Muslim Shareef, chapter Fada’il]
Imam Muslim writes:
Once Suhail RadiAllaho unho gave the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) some water in a goblet. The Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) drank some water from the goblet. When the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had finished drinking, Sohail Radi Allaho unho kept the goblet as Tabarruk. When the Chaliph Ummar bin Abdul Aziz asked him to give the goblet to him. Sohail Radi Allaho unho gave the goblet to Ummar bin Abdul Aziz and he kept it. (Tabarruk) [Sahih Muslim chapter Kitab-ul-Ashriba]
Imam Muslim writes:
Asma Radi Allaho unha had a gown of the Prophet sallAllahu ‘alaihi wa sallam. Sick people used to come to Asma Radi Allaho unha and she used to dipp the gown in the water. She would then take the gown out and give some of the water for the sick to drink as Tabarruk.
[Muslim Shareef, Kitab-ul-Labaas]
Imam Bukhari writes:
The Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam had a large piece of cloth. A person came to the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and asked: If he could have the cloth 'The Prophet Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam gave him the cloth. People asked the individual, 'why did you take the cloth, when the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) liked wearing this'. The individual replied: that he was not going to wear the cloth. He said that: 'When I die I want to be buried in this cloth as it is blessed' When the person died he was buried in the cloth.
[Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Labaas and Kitab-ul-Janaais]
Imam Bukhari writes:
Ummar Radi-Allahu-unhu asked Aisha Radi allho unha if he could be buried next to where Abu Bakr Radi-Allahu-unhu and the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) were buried. She allowed him to be buried there. Ummar Radi allhu said: 'This is more valuable to me than anything on earth.' "
[Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Janaais]
This narration proves that to get Tabarruk from the grave of the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is permitted.
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Khalid bin Waleed Radi-Allahu-unhu had a hat. In the hat he put two of the Prophet’s Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallams hair. Once he was in the battle of Yarmouk. The battle got very tense. Khalid’s hat dropped onto the ground. He got off his horse and picked up the hat. After the war a person said to Khalid bin Waleed: 'You had a cheap hat and to pick it up during a war is not a wise thing to do'. Khalid replied: 'In that hat I had the Prophet’s (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)s hair, the blessing from that hair gives me victory in every war.
[Tareekh Ibn-Kathir Chapter, Death of Khalid bin Waleed]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir writes:
Mu’awiyah had the Prophet’s Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s nails and hair. He said: 'When I die, can you bury the nails and hair with me in my grave.'
[Tareekh Ibn Kathir, chapter, Death of Mu’awiyah]
Ummar Bin Abdul Aziz had the Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam’s) hair. He said: 'When I die bury me with the hair in my grave.'
[Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, Chapter, Death of Ummar bin Abdul Aziz]
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah states:
Imam Ahmed Ibn Hanbal Rahmatulah was asked ‘Is it permitted to do Masa of Mimber of Prophet (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), to touch the Mimber for blessing. He replied ‘Yes it is permitted’. Abdullah Ibn Ummar, Sa’eed Ibn-ul-Musayyid, Yahya bin Sa’eed, and other great Scholars of Madinah used to do Masa of the Mimber.
[Iqtidat Sirratal Mustaqeem page 203]
Hafidhh Asqalani says:
From the grave of Imam Bukhari comes a beautiful smell of fragrance, there are pillars built around the grave and when people go there they take a small amount of clay from it. (Tabarruk)
[Fat-hul-bari by Hafidhh As-qalani biography of Imam Bukhari]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir say’s:
When Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah passed away some people came and gathered around him and sat close to his body to obtain blessing from him. Also a group of women came and the water that was left over after bathing him they drank to get blessing from it as Tabarruk. The left over leaves of a tree which were also used in bathing him, were distributed among themselves for the purpose of Tabarruk. Whatever touched his body, like for example handkerchief, scarf which he used wear round his neck, was sold for a large amount of money, to someone to keep as Tabarruk. People used to come day and night to his grave, and some people use to even spend the night there'. [Tareek Ibn Kathir chap death of Ibn Taymiya]
If from the clothes or from the water which is left over from touching his body or by sitting close to Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya you may obtain blessing, then how can it be wrong to get blessing from the other pious people of Allah. Or how can that be called Bid’ah or go even as far as calling someone Mushrik for doing that.
One Clarification
Some people assert, that there is no benefit (blessings) in items possessed by our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), i.e. clothes, hair, and nails. Those who doubt narrate Ahadith in which our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) gave a shirt to Abdulah Bin Ubay as Tabarurk, which had no effect for his forgiveness.
The answer to this is that an unbeliever or a Munafiq (hypocrite) will gain no benefit from our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)’s Tabarruk. Abdullah Bin Ubaid was the leader of the Munafiqeen so how can he gain blessings from the shirt. Yes, a believer, such as the companions did benefit, as mentioned previously. They kept items such as, shirts, hair, nails, and clothes. Some even asked to be buried with these items.
The second answer to this, question as provided by Hafidhh Ibn Kathir, is:
There is a narration from the Salaf that the shirt which our Prophe, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave was not for Tabarruk. This was because the Munafiq gave a shirt to our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)s uncle, Abbas (R.adialla hu anhu), in return our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) only repaid him.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir, under Surah Toba'h verse 82 by Hafidhh Asqalani].
A further doubt by those who disbelieve in Tabarruk is with regards to the tree where the companions pledged their allegiance (bay’a) to our Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Umar (Radiall hu anhu) saw that the people would go to the tree to gain Taburk. So he had the tree cut, from this they claim that Tabarruk is not permissible.
Whenever we mention our views on Islamic issues (such as those described in this book) we are confronted by people who say: “Show us the evidence in Bukhari or Muslim”.
We ask the same people to look in either of these books and show us where the above mentioned narration’s are mentioned regarding Umar (Radiall hu anhu) ordered the tree to be cut down.
Consider the following :
1) In Imam Bukhari’s version; he says that Sa’eed Bin Musayib said: “My Father told me when he went to look for the tree of Bay’a, he said he could not recognize the place where it was and had forgotten the exact place where it was.” (It had disappeared.)
[Bukhari chapter Hu daibiyya]
2) Tariq Bin Abdullah says: 'I saw one tribe there who were performing their prayers'.
1) In the last moments of Jabir Bin Abdullah he had lost his sight he use to say: 'If I could see today I would show you where the tree was, where the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) received the Ba’ya of the companions”.
2) [Bukhari chap,Al-Magazi]
The above mentioned narration above prove that:
1) The tree was not cut, but vanished.
2) The companions knew where the tree was like Jabbir Bin Abdullah.
3) Ta'beain would go there to perform Salaah.
3) From the narration in Bukhari we can say no one was stopped to go there. Hafidhh Ibn Hajar Asqalani says in the commentry: “Some people forgot where this place was like Sa’eed Bin Al-Musayib’s Father, and some knew where it was like Jabir Bin Abdullah”.
4) [Fathul bari, chapter Bay'a Ridwan].
Sayid Maududi writes that Imam Tabari said:
During the period of Umar (Radiall hu anhu’s) Khalifet, he went for pilgrimage, when he passed Hudaiba' he asked: “Where is the tree under which the bay’a took place?” A person replied: 'This one”. Someone said: 'This one”. Umar (Radiall hu anhu) said: “Forget the inconvenience”.
[Tafsir Tafhemul Qur’an Surah Fata’h under verse 18 by Sayyid Maududi].
This must be the reason why Hafidhh Ibn Kathir has not mentioned the narration about the cutting of the tree in Tafsir, Tareekh, and not even in Sirat-un Nabi.
The evidence above proves that it is permitted to get Tabarruk from the pious people and their things in their life and after death. The Ahl-us-Sunnah’s belief is based upon the above evidence. However there are many more similar events proving the permissibility of Tabarruk.
The people who say that it is Shirk/Kufr to believe in Taburruk should have proof from the either the Qur’an or Sunnah. There is no Hadith that proves that to get Tabarruk from the pious is forbidden.
Seeking Assistance from other than ALLAH
Certain Muslims argue that one can only ask Allah directly for help, and if people were to ask help from other than Allah, then he or she would be committing shirk. The scholars of the Ahl al-Sunnah have always maintained that all help is ultimately sought from Allah. However, if an individual seeks help from the Prophets or Allah-conscious people with the intention that they are only a means of achieving help then the person asking is not committing shirk. To illustrate this point, take the example of an ill person being cured by medicine. Metaphorically, the person would say that he was cured by the medicine, but in reality, the actual cure is from Allah.
The Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa also say that help offered by the awliya is only by the will of Allah. No one can be of help to anyone if Allah has not willed it so. Indeed, it is a great blessing from Allah that He has given the anbiya and awliya the ability to help those seeking help. The reason why Allah has given this ability to the pious is to show their status of purity amongst the people, and it indicates their relationship with their Creator.
The argument can be summarised as thus:
Help should only be asked from Allah.
The type of help asked from a pious person should be the help that is within the sphere of human influence.
Seeking help from a pious individual who is physically not present or has passed away is kufr.
We will prove, insha’Allah, that the pious can help in ways that are beyond normal human capability and that even if they are not present and have passed away, help can still be sought.
Belief of Ahl al- Sunnah wa'l- Jamaa regarding Seeking Help through the Awliya
‘Allama Sa’eedi and ‘Allama ‘Abd al-Hakim Sharf Qadri write:
“It is better that help is sought directly from Allah, most High, and through the waseela of the anbiya or awliya. If an individual seeks help from the anbiya or awliya by means of achieving help from Allah, most High, the person is not committing kufr.”
[Sharh Muslim, ‘Allama Sa’idi, Nidaa-e-Ya Muhammad, page 30 by ‘Allama Sharf Qadri]
Shaykh al-‘Alawi al-Maliki, the mufti of Makka writes:
“When we ask help from the anbiya and awliya, as a means, it is through their supplication (du’a) that they help us. Take for example the Day of Judgment when the umma will benefit from our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). This is called asking for help through the anbiya and awliya and likewise to ask them to make du'a for us can be called help or istishfah or tawasul.
[Ziyarat of the Grave, page 213, by the mufti of Makka, ‘Allama Shaykh Muhammad al-‘Alawi al-Maliki al-Makki]
The Permissibility of Seeking Help from the Pious
Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani quote the following hadith:
‘Abd Allah bin Mas’ud, may Allah be pleased with Him, reported that our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), stated: “If you ever find yourselves stranded alone in a desolate place or jungle, then say, ‘O servants of Allah! Help me, Allah have mercy on you.’”
[Al-Kalim al-Tayyib, page 69, by Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya, and Qadi Shawkani in Tufhat ad-Dhakireen, page 130. Ibn Sunni, Imam Bazaar, Hafidhh al Hasamim and Imam Nawawi all quote this hadith also in their various books.]
This hadith, demonstrates that one can ask help from those who one cannot see, like the angels, the friends of Allah, the jinn, and that it cannot be said that it is a wrong act.
Mullah ‘Ali Qari writes that our Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said that:
If you are in the jungle alone say, “O servants of Allah! Help me.” The servants of Allah are the angels, Muslims, jinn, or ‘abdal. This hadith is useful for travellers.
[Al Hirzu al-ThAmin, page 378, by Mullah ‘Ali Qari]
The Awliya’s Provision of Help beyond Human Capability
The Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, asked his companions who could bring the throne of the Queen of Sheba to his court. Allah says, describing this in the Holy Qur’an:
An ifreet of the jinn said,
‘I will bring it to you before you get up from your seat.
I am strong and trustworthy enough to do it.’
He who had knowledge of the Book said,
‘I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you.’
And when he saw it standing firmly in his presence,
he said, ‘This is part of my Lord’s favour to me to test me
to see if I will give thanks or show ingratitude’.
[Surah Al-Naml, verse 39-40]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes concerning this verse that the man who brought the throne was called Asif bin Barkhiyah.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir]
There was a companion named Salamah bin Akwa, may Allah be pleased with Him, who was injured so severely on his shin that people began to fear that he would die a matyr. Salamah, may Allah be pleased with Him, states: “I went to the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and told him about my wound, whereupon he proceeded to blow on it three times and I was cured instantly.”
[Mishkat, chapter on Virtues of Sayyid al-Mursalin]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
“During the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, there appeared a fire in the desert. ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, asked Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him, to assist him. They approached the area of the fire and Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him, began to gather the fire with his hands and started shoving the fire into a hole in the ground. This was a karamah of Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him.”
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, Vol. 6, chapter on Miracles, and Sirat un-Nabi, Ibn Kathir, chapter on Mu’jizat]
Elsewhere, Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
During the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, the governor of Egypt wrote to ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, asking for help as the river Nile had failed to flood. ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, wrote a letter in return and addressed the river itself. This was then placed in the Nile, and no sooner as this was done, the Nile’s water began to flood.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, volumes 1 and 8, chapter on Rivers and chapter on Khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him.]
The above narrations prove that certain categories of humans, even though they are not Prophets, are capable of doing acts that are normally impossible. Secondly, the narrations prove that one can ask for these supernatural acts from humans. If this were not the case, why would the Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, ask Asif bin Barkhiyah to bring the throne of Bilqees (Queen of Sheeba)? Why would ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, ask Tamim al-Dari to quench the raging fire? Why would Salamah bin Akwa, may Allah be pleased with Him, ask the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to miraculously cure his wound? And why would the governor of Egypt ask ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, to make the Nile flood? So, in summary, it is permissible to request a person to do something impossible under ‘normal’ circumstances.
Muhammad bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab writes that the people who claim that it is permissible to seek help from the pious cite the following evidence in support of their argument:
When Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was thrown into the fire, Jibreel peace be upon him, offered his help to free him. If seeking help from other than Allah is shirk, then why did Jibril offer his assistance to Ibrahim? The answer is that the help which was being offered, was within his capability given by Allah, most High, and therefore not shirk.
[Kitab Kasfh al Shubhat, page 23]
The help that is sought from the anbiya or awliya is within their capability. For example, it is permissible for one to request a deceased person to make a du’a, as it has already been proved that the deceased can make du’a. This means that asking help from another which is out of their capacity is not shirk.
Hafidhh ibn al-Qayyim explained in his book Kitab al-Ruh.
The Pious can Help from Far
Muhammad bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab writes:
“One night, the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), was in his house and was heard to proclaim ‘I am here!’ three times and ‘You have been granted help’ also three times. Umm al-Mu’minin, Maymunah, may Allah be well pleased with her, asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), whom he had been talking to since there was no one present. He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), replied, ‘I was talking to a person called Rajiz from the tribe of Bani Ka’ab. He asked for help from me against the Quraysh.’ Umm al-Mu’minin, Maymunah, may Allah be well pleased with her, said that when she finished reading the fajr prayer the next morning, she heard Rajiz calling out the following in the streets of Madina: “Ya Rasul Allah! Help us and call the servants of Allah to help us.”
[Mukhtasar Sirat ar- Rasul, chapter on the Conquest of Makka]
This narration shows that the Sahaba would seek help from the Messenger of Allah from afar and He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), would answer their calls for help. When Rajiz asked the Prophet the following morning for help, the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), did not stop him from asking for this help. The Messenger of Allah was at some distance, yet he still assisted.
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, whilst delivering a Friday sermon in Madinah called out and said, ‘Ya Sariah! The mountain.’ That very moment, Sariah, may Allah be pleased with Him, was in a place in Persia called Nahawand, engaged in a battle with the enemy.
What ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, meant by his call was: O Sariah! Seek protection behind the mountain. Sariah, may Allah be pleased with Him, heard this and was subsequently saved. When the people heard these words during the Friday they were surprised. After winning the battle, Sariah came to Madinah. He told about how they had been under attack by the enemy. Suddenly they had heard ‘Umar’s voice and hid behind the mountain and were saved.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter on the Khilafah of ‘Umar]
This narration demonstrates that the pious can help people who are not present with them. Also, this is why proclaiming ‘Ya Rasul Allah’, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), is not an act of shirk, because he, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), is aware of our call. It could be that the salutations are conveyed through the angels or that he listens to them himself. As Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim wrote:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), has said that when you send salutations to him from wherever you might be, he can hear your voice.
[Jal ul Afhaam, page 100, by Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim]
Another question that is raised is why, if it is possible to seek help and advice from the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), after he had passed away, the Sahaba didn’t go to his blessed grave and ask for help when there was any dispute amongst themselves?
This is only scepticism. The reality is that there was no need for the Companions to go and seek help and advice from the blessed grave of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), as the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) had already foretold the dispute of his Companions and who would be right or wrong, therefore there was no need for the Sahaba to ask again.
Also, the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), did help the Companions on various occasions. Here are some examples from Tarikh Ibn Kathir:
Bilal bin Harith asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), for help during the famine in Madina during the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave water to ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him, from a window when he was being surrounded by his enemies and, furthermore, even comforted him by giving the news that he would be martyred and would be breaking his fast with him in paradise the next day. The Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave advice to Imam Hussayn, may Allah be pleased with Him, regarding the battle of Karbala -when he was departing for Kufa and then later, on the night before his death. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave news that they would meet the next day in Paradise.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter on Khilafa of ‘Umar; chapter on Death of ‘Uthman, and the chapter on Karbala]
It is not wajib to seek help from the pious, it is merely permissible. However, we do not encourage people to ask help from the pious and especially those who are cannot differentiate between help and Istishfah.
Those who argue that once the pious have passed away, they are unable to help, also include the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in this reference. However, it is very strange that this does not apply to scholars whom they hold in high esteem. As Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim states:
Many people saw Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah after his death in their dreams and asked him many difficult questions on issues of Fiqh Masaa’il and he replied to all their questions. Only those people can reject this who are ignorant of the status of the spirits (Arwah)
[Kitab-ar-Ruh, end of chapter 3., Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim]
If Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya can answer questions after passing away, and solve complex fiqh issues, then why is it not possible for our Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to assist his Umma?
Whatever we have written above some of the narrations involve people’s dreams – and to this, people might argue that this is not a credible proof in Islam. The answer to this is that the narration's we have written are not all from dreams, and even if the narration we used are dreams, the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), has said: 'A Shaytan cannot form my image.' So all the dreams are true about him, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Also, Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim mentions that:
When numerous people have the same type of dream and what they have seen in their dreams actually happens - to call these kinds of dreams as only dreams, this is said by the people that have no sense
[Kitab al Ruh, Chapter, 3., Hafidhh Ibn Qayyim]
The pious can help, even after their death
When the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), went on the Mi’raj, fifty prayers a day were initially ordered. On return Prophet Musa, peace be upon him, requested the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to return to Allah and ask for a reduction in prayers. He did so and by doing this, the number of times was reduced to five prayers a day.
[Muslim and Bukhari chapter Miraj]
Prophet Musa, peace be upon him, helped the Umma of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), even after he had passed away.
Some further evidence:
· Hafidhh Ibn Khathir writes that:
‘Uthman Ghani, may Allah be pleased with Him, said that when the enemy surrounded his house and stopped the household from receiving water, they were thirsty for many days. ‘Uthman said: One day I saw that the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), give me some water from my window. Some days later my roof parted, and the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) accompanied by Aby Bakr and Umar (May Allah be pleased with them, entered and gave me some water to drink, and enquired: You will break your fast with us tomorrow
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, Chapter on the death of ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him]
· Imam al Waqdi writes that:
Abu Ubaidah, may Allah be pleased with Him, was the leader of the army of Damascus and was in Jihad. In his dream he saw the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), inform him that ‘ Tomorrow Damascus will be defeated,’ and He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), departed quickly’. I asked the Prophet ‘ Why are you returning so hastily?’ He replied ‘ Abu Bakr has died and I am going to attend his Janaza’ (funeral)
[Futuh as sham, Allama Waqdi]
· Imam al Waqdi writes;
In the battle of Damascus, a kafir became a Muslim, and began to speak Arabic in an instant. Abu Ubaidah asked him ‘ you do not know Arabic, how is it that you speak so fluently? He replied ‘Last night I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in my dream. I asked him, if you are the messenger of Allah, then supplicate for me that I may speak Arabic. When I woke up in the morning I found that I could speak Arabic’.
[Futuh as Sham, Chapter on Fath ad Dimishk, Allama Waqdi]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes that
In the 18th year of the Hijra during the Khilafa of ‘Umar,may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a famine. ‘Umar and Bilal, May Allah be well pleased with them, went to the blessed grave of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and said ‘Ya Rasul Allah! Your Umma is dying (from hunger), pray for us that Allah sends us rain’. Later, Bilal, may Allah be pleased with Him, had a dream in which the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), told Bilal to go to ‘Umar, and convey his salaam, and to inform him that there will be rain and that he should perform Salaah Istisqa’. This is a very authentic narration.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter Khilafa of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him]
· Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya says that:
In the time of a drought, a person came to our Prophet’s grave and complained about the drought. He then saw our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), who said go to ‘Umar and tell him to perform the Salaah of Istisqah. There are numerous true narrations similar to this.
[Iqtisa Sirat al Mustaqim, page 373, Also Imam Bukhari has mentioned about this in his book, Tarikh al Kabir, biography of Malik al dar]
· Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani writes:
A person came to the grave said: 'Your Umma is dying; supplicate to Allah to send rain. Sayf says: The person who made this supplication to the Messenger of Allah, his name was Bilal Ibn al- Harith, may Allah be pleased with Him. This narration is authentic.
[Fath al Bari, Chapter on al Istisqa, Hafidhh Asqalani]
· The Scholar of Masjid an Nabawi, Shaykh Al-Jazari writes:
The narration of Bilal bin Harith concerning going to the grave and asking our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate for the rain, is also recorded by Imam Bukhari in his book of Tarikh. Also, Hafidhh Asqalani recorded this in Fath al Bari; Imam al Bayhaqi included it in his Dala’il al -Nabuwat, and it also appears in the Musnaf of Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Abi Khusayama and in Ibn Abd al Barr - this narration has really surprised me.
[Waja a-Yarkudun, page32 by Abu Bakr al-Jazari]
If Abu Bakr Al-Jazari knew that Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah and Hafidhh Ibn Kathir wrote this narration, he would not have been so bewildered.
A clarification
After reading Hafidhh Ibn Kathir’s, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya’s and Hafidhh Asqalani’s verifications, there is no need to discuss any further about this narration, of Bilal, may Allah be pleased with Him. However, there is a possibility that there are some Muslims who would then question the narrator of this hadith – whether he was considered weak or authentic. Lets now look at the narrators of this narration.
The narrators of this narration are:
Abu Mu‘awiya
Imam A‘mash
Abu Salih Abd al Rahman bin Sa’eed
Malik bin Ayyad al-Dar
The first two narrators are considered as great narrators of Hadith - all the great scholars of Hadith have taken their narrations including Imam Muslim and Imam Bukhari, so there is no doubt about their authenticity. The third and fourth narrators will be discussed now. The third narrator is Abd al Rahman bin Sa’eed al-Makhzumi.
Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani writes:
Imam Bukhari took a narration from him in his book Juz Raf-al-yadain. Imam Abu Dawud also took a narration from him. He was a student of ‘Uthman bin Affaan, the third Caliph of Islam and he took narrations from Malik Aldar, and he in turn, learned the knowledge of Hadith from his Father (i.e. Ayyad). Imam Ibn Abu Sa’eed said ‘He was an authentic narrator’. Imam Ibn Hibban also listed him in the list of authentic scholars of Hadith. Imam Ibn al-Madani, who was the teacher of Imam Muslim and Imam Bukhari also made the same remarks about him.
[Tahzib-ut-Tahzib, biography of Sa’eed bin Abd al Rahman, Hafidhh Asqalani]
The fourth narrator of this Hadith is Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar.
Imam Bukhari writes:
Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar narrated that: ‘Umar said ‘O Allah, I am only lacking when I am powerless’. Abu Salih also narrated this from Malik Aldar.
[Tarikh al-Kabir, biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Bukhari]
Imam Ibn Abi Hatim writes:
Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar was a slave of ‘Umar and he was freed by him. He narrated from Abu Bakr and ‘Umar. He was a taba’ee and Abu Salih also narrated from him - and he was famous’.
[Al-jar-hu-wal-ta’deel., biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Ibn Abi Hatim]
Imam Ibn Abi Saad writes:
Malik Aldar was a freed slave of ‘Umar, and he narrated Hadith from Abu Bakr and ‘Umar [May Allah be well pleased with them all] and he was a famous man’.
[Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Ibn Sa’ad]
After these references it can be seen that the third and fourth narrators of Hadith are famous, authentic and not unknown and no one can assume these narrators are weak.
· Imam al Qurtabi writes:
One Arab went to the grave of our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and recited the verse from the Holy Qur’an:
‘We sent not a messenger, but to be obeyed in accordance with the leave of Allah. If they had only, when they were unjust to themselves come unto thee and asked Allah’s forgiveness, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them they would have found Allah indeed oft-returning, most merciful.’
[Surah An-Nisa’ verse 6]
He then began to cry and say how sinful he was, and requested to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate for him. A voice then came from our Prophet’s [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] grave, saying that Allah has forgiven your sins.
[Tafsir al Qurtabi, under Ayat 64 Surah Nisa]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir also recorded this event, he writes;
When an Arab came to our Prophet’s grave and said “I repent from my sins through you and ask for forgiveness, I would give my life for you”. Afterwards our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), appeared in the dream of Utba’, may Allah be pleased with Him, and informed him to go to the Arab and convey the message that there is a good news for him that Allah had forgiven his sins.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir, under verse 64 Surah Nisa]
· Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes:
A person came to the blessed grave of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and requested food from the Prophet and sat down. After a while a Hashmi [a member of the Prophet’s (May Allah bless him and grant him peace] family came to him. He had with him a tray of food, and said, “this food has been sent by the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and with it he gave a message: eat it and leave from here because whoever loves us does not make this kind of desire”.
[Iqtida as Sirat al Mustaqim, page 290 by Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani both write:
Imam Bukhari had lost his sight in his days as a youth, and his mother used to pray to Allah vigorously for the return of her son’s sight. One night in her dream, she saw the Prophet Ibrahim, upon whom be peace, who told her that Allah had accepted her prayers because of her tears in them in front of Allah and her son’s sight would be return’. When Imam Bukhari awoke in the morning, his eyesight had returned.
[Tahrikh Ibn Kathir, under biography of Imam Bukhari, and Muqadimah Fath al Bari, biography of Imam Bukhari]
Imam Daarmi writes:
· When Yazid bin Mu’awiya attacked Madinah, there was no adhan or Jam'at in Masjid an-Nabawi for three days. Sa’eed bin Musayab states, ‘I stayed in Masjid an-Nabawi for the three days and pretended to be Majnun, (mad) and for every prayer, I heard the adhan from the blessed grave of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
[Daarmi, chapter on Fada’il e-Nabi]
· Hafidhh Ibn-e-Taymiyya writes that:
Ibn Musayab’s listening of the adhan from the Prophet’s grave or the returning of salaam from the graves of the Awliya, is haqq and we believe in it.
[Iqtida as Sirat al-Mustaqim, page 373]
· Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani writes:
Abd al-Wajid says that I saw the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in a dream with his companions waiting at this place, like they were waiting for someone. I said, “As Salaam 'alaykum,” after the reply to the salaam I asked “what or who are you waiting for?” The reply was we are waiting for Imam Bukhari, and that was the day Imam Bukhari passed away.
[Fath al Bari, chapter on the death of Imam Bukhari, and Tarikh Baghdad by Hafidhh Asqalani, and Khatib al Baghdadi]
· Hafidhh Asqalani writes:
Hafidhh Marwazi says that I was in the Ka'ba and I fell asleep. I then had a dream and in that dream I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said that you have read Imam Shafi’s book and why not mine? I asked which one is yours and the reply was Imam Bukhari’s book is my book.
[Fath al Bari, Hafidhh Asqalani under Biography of Imam Bukhari]
Imam Dhahabi writes that the famous Tabi’i, Simaq bin Harb said that;
My sight was gone and I was completely blind. I prayed a lot and one night when I was sleeping, I saw in my dream Ibrahim, peace be upon him. I said to Ibrahim, ‘my sight is gone and what should I do?’ Ibrahim said ‘go to the river Forat and wash your face in the river and your sight should return’. When I washed my face in the river, my sight returned and I saw 80 companions of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), with that sight.
[Mizan al Ta’dil, biography of Simaq Dhahabi]
From all the above narrations, it should be sufficient proof that to do Istishfah (to make a request) from the Pious is permissible. They are able to help us and they are fully aware of matters that occur on the earthly plain, and this includes the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). From the above examples, we have proof of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)
Asking for forgiveness on the behalf of others; informing of an impeding victory; consoling ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him, at the time of great suffering, and many others.
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes:
Some people came to the grave of our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and requested something, and their needs were fulfilled. In the like manner, the pious people can also fulfill the needs of people - and we do not deny this
[Iqtida as Sirat al-Mustaqim, - page 373, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya]
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
After dying, the Ruh (Spirit) can do those things that it cannot do when the person is alive in the dunya, (world) just as one or two Ruhs defeated a large army. Many companions relate that they saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, May Allah be well pleased with them, in their dreams at night fighting with them against the kuffar and winning the battle. Then it became a reality: on the following day a small army of Muslims defeated an army of many, many kafirs.
[Kitab ar-Ruh, chapter 15, Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim]
From the above statements, they prove that the pious are able to help after their death. Their spiritual powers increase after their death.
Q: Why do we see some people asking the pious for help, rather than asking them to make dua on their behalf?
A: The meaning for this is that they say metaphorically to the pious but really they are asking the pious to make Dua for them. The companions of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), used to do this as well. This has been mentioned in Hadith.
Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim quote the following hadith:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), was on his way to the battle of Khaybar with his companions and asked ‘Amir, may Allah be pleased with Him, to recite a poem. ‘Amir then recited the following:
Oh Prophet of Allah!
Allah is our Witness.
Without you we would not have had guidance.
Nor would we pray nor give zakah.
You forgive us and we sacrifice ourselves for you.
Send blessings on us and make us stand firm when fighting the enemy
[Bukhari & Muslim Chapter. - Battle of Khaybar]
Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani and Hafidhh al Asqalani have commented upon this Hadith that
The poem’s verses are addressed to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), because the word “sacrifice” cannot be used to Allah. This is because scholars have said the word ‘sacrifice’ (fida) is used in situations when one takes the place of another who is in difficulty, to remove the harm from another and take it upon oneself. This of course cannot apply to Allah - most High. The word “forgive” means that if we have gone astray obeying you, then bring us back on to the straight path. The objection to this may come from the first line of the poem - “Oh Allah!” The word ‘Allahumma’ is used to take Allah's oath to the following verses and the poet used the word ‘Allahuma’ in the beginning for baraka (blessing) and he wants to start with the word of Allah - most High. The objection to the opinion that the verses are addressed to the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), may come from the phrases - “bless us” and “make us stand firm”. The answer to this question lies in the fact that the Prophet makes Dua to Allah for blessings to be sent to the people
[See Fath-al-Bari/Irshad-as-sari, Chapter on Khaybar by Hafidhh Asqalani & Qastalani]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Ibn Athir have said that ‘Amir has said these verses in the praise of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
[Sirat an- Nabi and Usd al-Ghaba, Chapter on Khaybar and the Biography of ‘Amir bin Akwah by Hafidhh ibn Kathir & Hafidhh ibn Athir]
Also, if the poetry were addressed to Allah, it would not make sense at all. The reason being that the words of the poem state, ‘without you we would not have had guidance. Nor would we pray nor give zakah’. If Allah did not exist (Which is a stupid thing to say, as what Allah is implies that He is), nothing else would exist, not only guidance, prayers, and zakah, not even ‘nothingness’ would exist, as Allah has created all. So by assuming the poem is addressed to Allah, they are not those words which would be expected of a Muslim, let alone in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). The above proves that the one who is being addressed, in this poem is none other than the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Also, the poem asks for forgiveness and this does not have to be specifically directed to Allah. If ‘Amir has used these words of praise for the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), it does not go against the spirit of Islam. To ask the pious for help directly is not shirk as ‘Amir asked help from the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). The real meaning of ‘Amir’s seeking help, was to ask the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate on his behalf. In the same way when an ordinary Muslim asks help from the pious, their real meaning is also the same as ‘Amir’s. The help comes through the pious’s supplication’s so metaphorically we say - the pious is helping us – when in fact, everything comes from Allah.
Q: Some people argue that once the pious have died – their ability to help anyone ceases. So, why do people still go to their graves to seek help?
A: We, the Ahl as-Sunna wa'l Jama say that when the pious die, their ability to help others does not diminish and end. They are alive in their graves and the power of their souls become stronger than when they were alive. If you cover a living person with a blanket, he would not be able to recognise those who pass by, but it has been proved from narrations that the deseased can recognise and hear the footsteps of those who pass by the grave. A living person cannot understand what the birds are saying, but the deceased can hear and understand exactly what they are saying. Also, a living person cannot travel millions of miles faster than the blink of an eye, but the deceased can travel many millions of miles faster than the blink of the eye. An example of this is when one sleeps, one can travel many miles and break the physical laws of this world. In the same way the deceased can break the laws of this world, as their spiritual bodies are stronger.
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes that the deceased are pleased with those people who attend the funeral or those who stand at his grave. When people pass the grave and convey their salaams, he [the person in the grave] returns the salaams and also recognises the person who has conveyed the salaam. When the birds praise Allah - most High, the person in the grave also understands the birds’ praises (i.e. what the birds are saying).
The martyrs’ souls are in heaven, and when people convey their salaam to them at their graves, they come back to their grave and return the salaam.
The ordinary souls at the very highest of the seven skies are at a place called Illiyin and when someone greets them with salaam, they come back to their grave, answer the salaam and also recognise the person. As in the case with people who are alive – some are strong and some are weak. In the same way, some souls are stronger than others like in the case of the pious. The more pious the person is, the stronger the soul. There could be some people who do not believe in what has been written, but Allah - most High has created those people who believe this and their hearts verify it. Every Muslim should believe that the deceased soul meets other souls, in the same way that the living people meet each other and this is proved in the Qur`an. Allah - most High says in the Qur’an, in Surah az Zumr Verse 42:
Allah takes away the souls at the time of their death and of those who don’t die during their sleep. Then He with holds that against which He has decreed death and sends back the other until an appointed time
Imam Sudayy says that Allah takes souls when people are asleep, and the deceased souls and people who are alive come together and discuss issues in their dreams. The deceased souls can give the living information that other people do not know. Sometimes they can inform people when people are going to die. In different matters, they guide the living.
There were two companions of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), called Salman Farsi and Abd Allah bin Salam, May Allah be well pleased with them both. They both said that whoever dies first, he would inform the other what had happened to him. Abd Allah bin Salam died first and appeared in Salman Farsi’s dream. Abd Allah then informed Salman Farsi that out of all of his good deeds, Allah - most High liked one particular deed the most, which was perfect reliance of God, so Salman continued having unshakable tust in Allah.
Ibn Sirin, may Allah be pleased with Him, appeared in his friends dream and said that Allah, most High has given him paradise. The dreamer asked him about Hasan al Basri. He said Allah has given him a higher status than himself. There was another companion called Mas’ar and he used to appear in peoples’ dreams and inform them to attend dhikr gatherings since Allah was pleased with this act. Similarly, many people have seen Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya in their dream, and they have asked him very complex fiqh questions, and Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya has answered them and satisfied them all
Some people might say that these are only dreams and we don’t know whether they are right or wrong so how can we trust them? But they should know that when the deceased gives news about a person who is going to die at a particular time; or says that on a particular day rain will fall; or there will be famine; or the enemy will attack; or there will be trouble; or if he gives that kind of news that nobody knows accept him, these will become reality. These types of facts are only ignored by a person who is unaware of the power of the spirits. It is also a fact that if many Muslims see a similar dream, this becomes evidence like Prophet Muhammad (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said to his companion: all of your dreams show that the Night of Power (Laylat al Qadr) will be on the last ten days of Ramadan.
What I have written is not all from the dreams. The Power of Souls, I have proved from the Qur’an and Sunna in the last chapter.
[Kitab ar Ruh, a summary of chapters 1, 2, 3 and 15, Hafidhh ibn al Qayyim]
On this Topic I have written everything to the best of my knowledge. May Allah The Most High and Merciful, accept this, and if in any way I have made any errors, May Allah The Most Generous, The Most Kind and the Most Merciful. Forgive me. Aameen.
The Ahl as-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa also say that help offered by the awliya is only by the will of Allah. No one can be of help to anyone if Allah has not willed it so. Indeed, it is a great blessing from Allah that He has given the anbiya and awliya the ability to help those seeking help. The reason why Allah has given this ability to the pious is to show their status of purity amongst the people, and it indicates their relationship with their Creator.
The argument can be summarised as thus:
Help should only be asked from Allah.
The type of help asked from a pious person should be the help that is within the sphere of human influence.
Seeking help from a pious individual who is physically not present or has passed away is kufr.
We will prove, insha’Allah, that the pious can help in ways that are beyond normal human capability and that even if they are not present and have passed away, help can still be sought.
Belief of Ahl al- Sunnah wa'l- Jamaa regarding Seeking Help through the Awliya
‘Allama Sa’eedi and ‘Allama ‘Abd al-Hakim Sharf Qadri write:
“It is better that help is sought directly from Allah, most High, and through the waseela of the anbiya or awliya. If an individual seeks help from the anbiya or awliya by means of achieving help from Allah, most High, the person is not committing kufr.”
[Sharh Muslim, ‘Allama Sa’idi, Nidaa-e-Ya Muhammad, page 30 by ‘Allama Sharf Qadri]
Shaykh al-‘Alawi al-Maliki, the mufti of Makka writes:
“When we ask help from the anbiya and awliya, as a means, it is through their supplication (du’a) that they help us. Take for example the Day of Judgment when the umma will benefit from our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). This is called asking for help through the anbiya and awliya and likewise to ask them to make du'a for us can be called help or istishfah or tawasul.
[Ziyarat of the Grave, page 213, by the mufti of Makka, ‘Allama Shaykh Muhammad al-‘Alawi al-Maliki al-Makki]
The Permissibility of Seeking Help from the Pious
Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani quote the following hadith:
‘Abd Allah bin Mas’ud, may Allah be pleased with Him, reported that our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), stated: “If you ever find yourselves stranded alone in a desolate place or jungle, then say, ‘O servants of Allah! Help me, Allah have mercy on you.’”
[Al-Kalim al-Tayyib, page 69, by Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya, and Qadi Shawkani in Tufhat ad-Dhakireen, page 130. Ibn Sunni, Imam Bazaar, Hafidhh al Hasamim and Imam Nawawi all quote this hadith also in their various books.]
This hadith, demonstrates that one can ask help from those who one cannot see, like the angels, the friends of Allah, the jinn, and that it cannot be said that it is a wrong act.
Mullah ‘Ali Qari writes that our Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said that:
If you are in the jungle alone say, “O servants of Allah! Help me.” The servants of Allah are the angels, Muslims, jinn, or ‘abdal. This hadith is useful for travellers.
[Al Hirzu al-ThAmin, page 378, by Mullah ‘Ali Qari]
The Awliya’s Provision of Help beyond Human Capability
The Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, asked his companions who could bring the throne of the Queen of Sheba to his court. Allah says, describing this in the Holy Qur’an:
An ifreet of the jinn said,
‘I will bring it to you before you get up from your seat.
I am strong and trustworthy enough to do it.’
He who had knowledge of the Book said,
‘I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you.’
And when he saw it standing firmly in his presence,
he said, ‘This is part of my Lord’s favour to me to test me
to see if I will give thanks or show ingratitude’.
[Surah Al-Naml, verse 39-40]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes concerning this verse that the man who brought the throne was called Asif bin Barkhiyah.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir]
There was a companion named Salamah bin Akwa, may Allah be pleased with Him, who was injured so severely on his shin that people began to fear that he would die a matyr. Salamah, may Allah be pleased with Him, states: “I went to the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and told him about my wound, whereupon he proceeded to blow on it three times and I was cured instantly.”
[Mishkat, chapter on Virtues of Sayyid al-Mursalin]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
“During the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, there appeared a fire in the desert. ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, asked Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him, to assist him. They approached the area of the fire and Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him, began to gather the fire with his hands and started shoving the fire into a hole in the ground. This was a karamah of Tamim al-Dari, may Allah be pleased with Him.”
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, Vol. 6, chapter on Miracles, and Sirat un-Nabi, Ibn Kathir, chapter on Mu’jizat]
Elsewhere, Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
During the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, the governor of Egypt wrote to ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, asking for help as the river Nile had failed to flood. ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, wrote a letter in return and addressed the river itself. This was then placed in the Nile, and no sooner as this was done, the Nile’s water began to flood.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, volumes 1 and 8, chapter on Rivers and chapter on Khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him.]
The above narrations prove that certain categories of humans, even though they are not Prophets, are capable of doing acts that are normally impossible. Secondly, the narrations prove that one can ask for these supernatural acts from humans. If this were not the case, why would the Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, ask Asif bin Barkhiyah to bring the throne of Bilqees (Queen of Sheeba)? Why would ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, ask Tamim al-Dari to quench the raging fire? Why would Salamah bin Akwa, may Allah be pleased with Him, ask the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to miraculously cure his wound? And why would the governor of Egypt ask ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, to make the Nile flood? So, in summary, it is permissible to request a person to do something impossible under ‘normal’ circumstances.
Muhammad bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab writes that the people who claim that it is permissible to seek help from the pious cite the following evidence in support of their argument:
When Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was thrown into the fire, Jibreel peace be upon him, offered his help to free him. If seeking help from other than Allah is shirk, then why did Jibril offer his assistance to Ibrahim? The answer is that the help which was being offered, was within his capability given by Allah, most High, and therefore not shirk.
[Kitab Kasfh al Shubhat, page 23]
The help that is sought from the anbiya or awliya is within their capability. For example, it is permissible for one to request a deceased person to make a du’a, as it has already been proved that the deceased can make du’a. This means that asking help from another which is out of their capacity is not shirk.
Hafidhh ibn al-Qayyim explained in his book Kitab al-Ruh.
The Pious can Help from Far
Muhammad bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab writes:
“One night, the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), was in his house and was heard to proclaim ‘I am here!’ three times and ‘You have been granted help’ also three times. Umm al-Mu’minin, Maymunah, may Allah be well pleased with her, asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), whom he had been talking to since there was no one present. He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), replied, ‘I was talking to a person called Rajiz from the tribe of Bani Ka’ab. He asked for help from me against the Quraysh.’ Umm al-Mu’minin, Maymunah, may Allah be well pleased with her, said that when she finished reading the fajr prayer the next morning, she heard Rajiz calling out the following in the streets of Madina: “Ya Rasul Allah! Help us and call the servants of Allah to help us.”
[Mukhtasar Sirat ar- Rasul, chapter on the Conquest of Makka]
This narration shows that the Sahaba would seek help from the Messenger of Allah from afar and He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), would answer their calls for help. When Rajiz asked the Prophet the following morning for help, the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), did not stop him from asking for this help. The Messenger of Allah was at some distance, yet he still assisted.
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes:
‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, whilst delivering a Friday sermon in Madinah called out and said, ‘Ya Sariah! The mountain.’ That very moment, Sariah, may Allah be pleased with Him, was in a place in Persia called Nahawand, engaged in a battle with the enemy.
What ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, meant by his call was: O Sariah! Seek protection behind the mountain. Sariah, may Allah be pleased with Him, heard this and was subsequently saved. When the people heard these words during the Friday they were surprised. After winning the battle, Sariah came to Madinah. He told about how they had been under attack by the enemy. Suddenly they had heard ‘Umar’s voice and hid behind the mountain and were saved.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter on the Khilafah of ‘Umar]
This narration demonstrates that the pious can help people who are not present with them. Also, this is why proclaiming ‘Ya Rasul Allah’, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), is not an act of shirk, because he, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), is aware of our call. It could be that the salutations are conveyed through the angels or that he listens to them himself. As Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim wrote:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), has said that when you send salutations to him from wherever you might be, he can hear your voice.
[Jal ul Afhaam, page 100, by Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim]
Another question that is raised is why, if it is possible to seek help and advice from the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), after he had passed away, the Sahaba didn’t go to his blessed grave and ask for help when there was any dispute amongst themselves?
This is only scepticism. The reality is that there was no need for the Companions to go and seek help and advice from the blessed grave of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), as the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) had already foretold the dispute of his Companions and who would be right or wrong, therefore there was no need for the Sahaba to ask again.
Also, the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), did help the Companions on various occasions. Here are some examples from Tarikh Ibn Kathir:
Bilal bin Harith asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), for help during the famine in Madina during the khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave water to ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him, from a window when he was being surrounded by his enemies and, furthermore, even comforted him by giving the news that he would be martyred and would be breaking his fast with him in paradise the next day. The Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave advice to Imam Hussayn, may Allah be pleased with Him, regarding the battle of Karbala -when he was departing for Kufa and then later, on the night before his death. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), gave news that they would meet the next day in Paradise.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter on Khilafa of ‘Umar; chapter on Death of ‘Uthman, and the chapter on Karbala]
It is not wajib to seek help from the pious, it is merely permissible. However, we do not encourage people to ask help from the pious and especially those who are cannot differentiate between help and Istishfah.
Those who argue that once the pious have passed away, they are unable to help, also include the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in this reference. However, it is very strange that this does not apply to scholars whom they hold in high esteem. As Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim states:
Many people saw Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah after his death in their dreams and asked him many difficult questions on issues of Fiqh Masaa’il and he replied to all their questions. Only those people can reject this who are ignorant of the status of the spirits (Arwah)
[Kitab-ar-Ruh, end of chapter 3., Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim]
If Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya can answer questions after passing away, and solve complex fiqh issues, then why is it not possible for our Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to assist his Umma?
Whatever we have written above some of the narrations involve people’s dreams – and to this, people might argue that this is not a credible proof in Islam. The answer to this is that the narration's we have written are not all from dreams, and even if the narration we used are dreams, the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), has said: 'A Shaytan cannot form my image.' So all the dreams are true about him, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Also, Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim mentions that:
When numerous people have the same type of dream and what they have seen in their dreams actually happens - to call these kinds of dreams as only dreams, this is said by the people that have no sense
[Kitab al Ruh, Chapter, 3., Hafidhh Ibn Qayyim]
The pious can help, even after their death
When the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), went on the Mi’raj, fifty prayers a day were initially ordered. On return Prophet Musa, peace be upon him, requested the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to return to Allah and ask for a reduction in prayers. He did so and by doing this, the number of times was reduced to five prayers a day.
[Muslim and Bukhari chapter Miraj]
Prophet Musa, peace be upon him, helped the Umma of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), even after he had passed away.
Some further evidence:
· Hafidhh Ibn Khathir writes that:
‘Uthman Ghani, may Allah be pleased with Him, said that when the enemy surrounded his house and stopped the household from receiving water, they were thirsty for many days. ‘Uthman said: One day I saw that the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), give me some water from my window. Some days later my roof parted, and the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) accompanied by Aby Bakr and Umar (May Allah be pleased with them, entered and gave me some water to drink, and enquired: You will break your fast with us tomorrow
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, Chapter on the death of ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him]
· Imam al Waqdi writes that:
Abu Ubaidah, may Allah be pleased with Him, was the leader of the army of Damascus and was in Jihad. In his dream he saw the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), inform him that ‘ Tomorrow Damascus will be defeated,’ and He, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), departed quickly’. I asked the Prophet ‘ Why are you returning so hastily?’ He replied ‘ Abu Bakr has died and I am going to attend his Janaza’ (funeral)
[Futuh as sham, Allama Waqdi]
· Imam al Waqdi writes;
In the battle of Damascus, a kafir became a Muslim, and began to speak Arabic in an instant. Abu Ubaidah asked him ‘ you do not know Arabic, how is it that you speak so fluently? He replied ‘Last night I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in my dream. I asked him, if you are the messenger of Allah, then supplicate for me that I may speak Arabic. When I woke up in the morning I found that I could speak Arabic’.
[Futuh as Sham, Chapter on Fath ad Dimishk, Allama Waqdi]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes that
In the 18th year of the Hijra during the Khilafa of ‘Umar,may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a famine. ‘Umar and Bilal, May Allah be well pleased with them, went to the blessed grave of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and said ‘Ya Rasul Allah! Your Umma is dying (from hunger), pray for us that Allah sends us rain’. Later, Bilal, may Allah be pleased with Him, had a dream in which the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), told Bilal to go to ‘Umar, and convey his salaam, and to inform him that there will be rain and that he should perform Salaah Istisqa’. This is a very authentic narration.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir, chapter Khilafa of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him]
· Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya says that:
In the time of a drought, a person came to our Prophet’s grave and complained about the drought. He then saw our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), who said go to ‘Umar and tell him to perform the Salaah of Istisqah. There are numerous true narrations similar to this.
[Iqtisa Sirat al Mustaqim, page 373, Also Imam Bukhari has mentioned about this in his book, Tarikh al Kabir, biography of Malik al dar]
· Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani writes:
A person came to the grave said: 'Your Umma is dying; supplicate to Allah to send rain. Sayf says: The person who made this supplication to the Messenger of Allah, his name was Bilal Ibn al- Harith, may Allah be pleased with Him. This narration is authentic.
[Fath al Bari, Chapter on al Istisqa, Hafidhh Asqalani]
· The Scholar of Masjid an Nabawi, Shaykh Al-Jazari writes:
The narration of Bilal bin Harith concerning going to the grave and asking our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate for the rain, is also recorded by Imam Bukhari in his book of Tarikh. Also, Hafidhh Asqalani recorded this in Fath al Bari; Imam al Bayhaqi included it in his Dala’il al -Nabuwat, and it also appears in the Musnaf of Ibn Abi Shayba, Ibn Abi Khusayama and in Ibn Abd al Barr - this narration has really surprised me.
[Waja a-Yarkudun, page32 by Abu Bakr al-Jazari]
If Abu Bakr Al-Jazari knew that Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyyah and Hafidhh Ibn Kathir wrote this narration, he would not have been so bewildered.
A clarification
After reading Hafidhh Ibn Kathir’s, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya’s and Hafidhh Asqalani’s verifications, there is no need to discuss any further about this narration, of Bilal, may Allah be pleased with Him. However, there is a possibility that there are some Muslims who would then question the narrator of this hadith – whether he was considered weak or authentic. Lets now look at the narrators of this narration.
The narrators of this narration are:
Abu Mu‘awiya
Imam A‘mash
Abu Salih Abd al Rahman bin Sa’eed
Malik bin Ayyad al-Dar
The first two narrators are considered as great narrators of Hadith - all the great scholars of Hadith have taken their narrations including Imam Muslim and Imam Bukhari, so there is no doubt about their authenticity. The third and fourth narrators will be discussed now. The third narrator is Abd al Rahman bin Sa’eed al-Makhzumi.
Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani writes:
Imam Bukhari took a narration from him in his book Juz Raf-al-yadain. Imam Abu Dawud also took a narration from him. He was a student of ‘Uthman bin Affaan, the third Caliph of Islam and he took narrations from Malik Aldar, and he in turn, learned the knowledge of Hadith from his Father (i.e. Ayyad). Imam Ibn Abu Sa’eed said ‘He was an authentic narrator’. Imam Ibn Hibban also listed him in the list of authentic scholars of Hadith. Imam Ibn al-Madani, who was the teacher of Imam Muslim and Imam Bukhari also made the same remarks about him.
[Tahzib-ut-Tahzib, biography of Sa’eed bin Abd al Rahman, Hafidhh Asqalani]
The fourth narrator of this Hadith is Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar.
Imam Bukhari writes:
Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar narrated that: ‘Umar said ‘O Allah, I am only lacking when I am powerless’. Abu Salih also narrated this from Malik Aldar.
[Tarikh al-Kabir, biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Bukhari]
Imam Ibn Abi Hatim writes:
Malik bin Ayyaz Aldar was a slave of ‘Umar and he was freed by him. He narrated from Abu Bakr and ‘Umar. He was a taba’ee and Abu Salih also narrated from him - and he was famous’.
[Al-jar-hu-wal-ta’deel., biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Ibn Abi Hatim]
Imam Ibn Abi Saad writes:
Malik Aldar was a freed slave of ‘Umar, and he narrated Hadith from Abu Bakr and ‘Umar [May Allah be well pleased with them all] and he was a famous man’.
[Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, biography of Malik Aldar by Imam Ibn Sa’ad]
After these references it can be seen that the third and fourth narrators of Hadith are famous, authentic and not unknown and no one can assume these narrators are weak.
· Imam al Qurtabi writes:
One Arab went to the grave of our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and recited the verse from the Holy Qur’an:
‘We sent not a messenger, but to be obeyed in accordance with the leave of Allah. If they had only, when they were unjust to themselves come unto thee and asked Allah’s forgiveness, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them they would have found Allah indeed oft-returning, most merciful.’
[Surah An-Nisa’ verse 6]
He then began to cry and say how sinful he was, and requested to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate for him. A voice then came from our Prophet’s [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] grave, saying that Allah has forgiven your sins.
[Tafsir al Qurtabi, under Ayat 64 Surah Nisa]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir also recorded this event, he writes;
When an Arab came to our Prophet’s grave and said “I repent from my sins through you and ask for forgiveness, I would give my life for you”. Afterwards our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), appeared in the dream of Utba’, may Allah be pleased with Him, and informed him to go to the Arab and convey the message that there is a good news for him that Allah had forgiven his sins.
[Tafsir Ibn Kathir, under verse 64 Surah Nisa]
· Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes:
A person came to the blessed grave of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and requested food from the Prophet and sat down. After a while a Hashmi [a member of the Prophet’s (May Allah bless him and grant him peace] family came to him. He had with him a tray of food, and said, “this food has been sent by the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and with it he gave a message: eat it and leave from here because whoever loves us does not make this kind of desire”.
[Iqtida as Sirat al Mustaqim, page 290 by Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya]
· Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani both write:
Imam Bukhari had lost his sight in his days as a youth, and his mother used to pray to Allah vigorously for the return of her son’s sight. One night in her dream, she saw the Prophet Ibrahim, upon whom be peace, who told her that Allah had accepted her prayers because of her tears in them in front of Allah and her son’s sight would be return’. When Imam Bukhari awoke in the morning, his eyesight had returned.
[Tahrikh Ibn Kathir, under biography of Imam Bukhari, and Muqadimah Fath al Bari, biography of Imam Bukhari]
Imam Daarmi writes:
· When Yazid bin Mu’awiya attacked Madinah, there was no adhan or Jam'at in Masjid an-Nabawi for three days. Sa’eed bin Musayab states, ‘I stayed in Masjid an-Nabawi for the three days and pretended to be Majnun, (mad) and for every prayer, I heard the adhan from the blessed grave of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
[Daarmi, chapter on Fada’il e-Nabi]
· Hafidhh Ibn-e-Taymiyya writes that:
Ibn Musayab’s listening of the adhan from the Prophet’s grave or the returning of salaam from the graves of the Awliya, is haqq and we believe in it.
[Iqtida as Sirat al-Mustaqim, page 373]
· Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani writes:
Abd al-Wajid says that I saw the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), in a dream with his companions waiting at this place, like they were waiting for someone. I said, “As Salaam 'alaykum,” after the reply to the salaam I asked “what or who are you waiting for?” The reply was we are waiting for Imam Bukhari, and that was the day Imam Bukhari passed away.
[Fath al Bari, chapter on the death of Imam Bukhari, and Tarikh Baghdad by Hafidhh Asqalani, and Khatib al Baghdadi]
· Hafidhh Asqalani writes:
Hafidhh Marwazi says that I was in the Ka'ba and I fell asleep. I then had a dream and in that dream I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). Our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said that you have read Imam Shafi’s book and why not mine? I asked which one is yours and the reply was Imam Bukhari’s book is my book.
[Fath al Bari, Hafidhh Asqalani under Biography of Imam Bukhari]
Imam Dhahabi writes that the famous Tabi’i, Simaq bin Harb said that;
My sight was gone and I was completely blind. I prayed a lot and one night when I was sleeping, I saw in my dream Ibrahim, peace be upon him. I said to Ibrahim, ‘my sight is gone and what should I do?’ Ibrahim said ‘go to the river Forat and wash your face in the river and your sight should return’. When I washed my face in the river, my sight returned and I saw 80 companions of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), with that sight.
[Mizan al Ta’dil, biography of Simaq Dhahabi]
From all the above narrations, it should be sufficient proof that to do Istishfah (to make a request) from the Pious is permissible. They are able to help us and they are fully aware of matters that occur on the earthly plain, and this includes the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). From the above examples, we have proof of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)
Asking for forgiveness on the behalf of others; informing of an impeding victory; consoling ‘Uthman, may Allah be pleased with Him, at the time of great suffering, and many others.
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes:
Some people came to the grave of our Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and requested something, and their needs were fulfilled. In the like manner, the pious people can also fulfill the needs of people - and we do not deny this
[Iqtida as Sirat al-Mustaqim, - page 373, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya]
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
After dying, the Ruh (Spirit) can do those things that it cannot do when the person is alive in the dunya, (world) just as one or two Ruhs defeated a large army. Many companions relate that they saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), Abu Bakr and ‘Umar, May Allah be well pleased with them, in their dreams at night fighting with them against the kuffar and winning the battle. Then it became a reality: on the following day a small army of Muslims defeated an army of many, many kafirs.
[Kitab ar-Ruh, chapter 15, Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim]
From the above statements, they prove that the pious are able to help after their death. Their spiritual powers increase after their death.
Q: Why do we see some people asking the pious for help, rather than asking them to make dua on their behalf?
A: The meaning for this is that they say metaphorically to the pious but really they are asking the pious to make Dua for them. The companions of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), used to do this as well. This has been mentioned in Hadith.
Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim quote the following hadith:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), was on his way to the battle of Khaybar with his companions and asked ‘Amir, may Allah be pleased with Him, to recite a poem. ‘Amir then recited the following:
Oh Prophet of Allah!
Allah is our Witness.
Without you we would not have had guidance.
Nor would we pray nor give zakah.
You forgive us and we sacrifice ourselves for you.
Send blessings on us and make us stand firm when fighting the enemy
[Bukhari & Muslim Chapter. - Battle of Khaybar]
Hafidhh Ibn Hajar al Asqalani and Hafidhh al Asqalani have commented upon this Hadith that
The poem’s verses are addressed to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), because the word “sacrifice” cannot be used to Allah. This is because scholars have said the word ‘sacrifice’ (fida) is used in situations when one takes the place of another who is in difficulty, to remove the harm from another and take it upon oneself. This of course cannot apply to Allah - most High. The word “forgive” means that if we have gone astray obeying you, then bring us back on to the straight path. The objection to this may come from the first line of the poem - “Oh Allah!” The word ‘Allahumma’ is used to take Allah's oath to the following verses and the poet used the word ‘Allahuma’ in the beginning for baraka (blessing) and he wants to start with the word of Allah - most High. The objection to the opinion that the verses are addressed to the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), may come from the phrases - “bless us” and “make us stand firm”. The answer to this question lies in the fact that the Prophet makes Dua to Allah for blessings to be sent to the people
[See Fath-al-Bari/Irshad-as-sari, Chapter on Khaybar by Hafidhh Asqalani & Qastalani]
Hafidhh ibn Kathir and Ibn Athir have said that ‘Amir has said these verses in the praise of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
[Sirat an- Nabi and Usd al-Ghaba, Chapter on Khaybar and the Biography of ‘Amir bin Akwah by Hafidhh ibn Kathir & Hafidhh ibn Athir]
Also, if the poetry were addressed to Allah, it would not make sense at all. The reason being that the words of the poem state, ‘without you we would not have had guidance. Nor would we pray nor give zakah’. If Allah did not exist (Which is a stupid thing to say, as what Allah is implies that He is), nothing else would exist, not only guidance, prayers, and zakah, not even ‘nothingness’ would exist, as Allah has created all. So by assuming the poem is addressed to Allah, they are not those words which would be expected of a Muslim, let alone in the presence of the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). The above proves that the one who is being addressed, in this poem is none other than the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
Also, the poem asks for forgiveness and this does not have to be specifically directed to Allah. If ‘Amir has used these words of praise for the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), it does not go against the spirit of Islam. To ask the pious for help directly is not shirk as ‘Amir asked help from the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). The real meaning of ‘Amir’s seeking help, was to ask the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), to supplicate on his behalf. In the same way when an ordinary Muslim asks help from the pious, their real meaning is also the same as ‘Amir’s. The help comes through the pious’s supplication’s so metaphorically we say - the pious is helping us – when in fact, everything comes from Allah.
Q: Some people argue that once the pious have died – their ability to help anyone ceases. So, why do people still go to their graves to seek help?
A: We, the Ahl as-Sunna wa'l Jama say that when the pious die, their ability to help others does not diminish and end. They are alive in their graves and the power of their souls become stronger than when they were alive. If you cover a living person with a blanket, he would not be able to recognise those who pass by, but it has been proved from narrations that the deseased can recognise and hear the footsteps of those who pass by the grave. A living person cannot understand what the birds are saying, but the deceased can hear and understand exactly what they are saying. Also, a living person cannot travel millions of miles faster than the blink of an eye, but the deceased can travel many millions of miles faster than the blink of the eye. An example of this is when one sleeps, one can travel many miles and break the physical laws of this world. In the same way the deceased can break the laws of this world, as their spiritual bodies are stronger.
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes that the deceased are pleased with those people who attend the funeral or those who stand at his grave. When people pass the grave and convey their salaams, he [the person in the grave] returns the salaams and also recognises the person who has conveyed the salaam. When the birds praise Allah - most High, the person in the grave also understands the birds’ praises (i.e. what the birds are saying).
The martyrs’ souls are in heaven, and when people convey their salaam to them at their graves, they come back to their grave and return the salaam.
The ordinary souls at the very highest of the seven skies are at a place called Illiyin and when someone greets them with salaam, they come back to their grave, answer the salaam and also recognise the person. As in the case with people who are alive – some are strong and some are weak. In the same way, some souls are stronger than others like in the case of the pious. The more pious the person is, the stronger the soul. There could be some people who do not believe in what has been written, but Allah - most High has created those people who believe this and their hearts verify it. Every Muslim should believe that the deceased soul meets other souls, in the same way that the living people meet each other and this is proved in the Qur`an. Allah - most High says in the Qur’an, in Surah az Zumr Verse 42:
Allah takes away the souls at the time of their death and of those who don’t die during their sleep. Then He with holds that against which He has decreed death and sends back the other until an appointed time
Imam Sudayy says that Allah takes souls when people are asleep, and the deceased souls and people who are alive come together and discuss issues in their dreams. The deceased souls can give the living information that other people do not know. Sometimes they can inform people when people are going to die. In different matters, they guide the living.
There were two companions of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), called Salman Farsi and Abd Allah bin Salam, May Allah be well pleased with them both. They both said that whoever dies first, he would inform the other what had happened to him. Abd Allah bin Salam died first and appeared in Salman Farsi’s dream. Abd Allah then informed Salman Farsi that out of all of his good deeds, Allah - most High liked one particular deed the most, which was perfect reliance of God, so Salman continued having unshakable tust in Allah.
Ibn Sirin, may Allah be pleased with Him, appeared in his friends dream and said that Allah, most High has given him paradise. The dreamer asked him about Hasan al Basri. He said Allah has given him a higher status than himself. There was another companion called Mas’ar and he used to appear in peoples’ dreams and inform them to attend dhikr gatherings since Allah was pleased with this act. Similarly, many people have seen Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya in their dream, and they have asked him very complex fiqh questions, and Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya has answered them and satisfied them all
Some people might say that these are only dreams and we don’t know whether they are right or wrong so how can we trust them? But they should know that when the deceased gives news about a person who is going to die at a particular time; or says that on a particular day rain will fall; or there will be famine; or the enemy will attack; or there will be trouble; or if he gives that kind of news that nobody knows accept him, these will become reality. These types of facts are only ignored by a person who is unaware of the power of the spirits. It is also a fact that if many Muslims see a similar dream, this becomes evidence like Prophet Muhammad (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), said to his companion: all of your dreams show that the Night of Power (Laylat al Qadr) will be on the last ten days of Ramadan.
What I have written is not all from the dreams. The Power of Souls, I have proved from the Qur’an and Sunna in the last chapter.
[Kitab ar Ruh, a summary of chapters 1, 2, 3 and 15, Hafidhh ibn al Qayyim]
On this Topic I have written everything to the best of my knowledge. May Allah The Most High and Merciful, accept this, and if in any way I have made any errors, May Allah The Most Generous, The Most Kind and the Most Merciful. Forgive me. Aameen.
The Permissibility to say YA RASOOLALLAH
The sensitive issue of whether or not Muslims can say the words 'Ya Rasool Allah' or ‘Ya Muhammad!’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] needs to be clarified, since this issue divides the Muslim community and causes a great deal of friction among the Muslims throughout the world. Basically, there appears to be what we could label as two “schools of thought”. One insists that saying that stating “Ya Rasul Allah is 'shirk' and that any Muslim proclaiming it in fact goes outside the pale of Islam. Now the other School believes that it is indeed permissible to say so – based on evidences from the Salaf, and the tafsirs of later day scholars. However, they do not insist that one must proclaim this – or that it is even a fard to do so, rather, it is permissible to do so. This is, and always has been, the stance of the Ahl al-Sunna.
Those who believe that it is impermissible to say Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] not only say that there are no evidences to support the permissibility, but also believe that the prefix of Ya, can only be used when that person [who is being called upon] is present, as opposed to being absent. The proclamation of Ya Muhammad, or Ya Rasul Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] is not an innovation [bid’a] that crept in after the first three generations, but contrary to modern misconceptions, was initiated and practiced within these generations, as we shall see, Allah willing. Also, the fact that the later generations did proclaim Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] the death of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant him peace], did not prevent them in doing so, even though there were great distances between them and Madina.
As we shall aim to demonstrate to the readers in this chapter, Insha’ Allah, that if it is wrong today [or even Kufr and shirk as some of our brothers declare], to proclaim Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] why then, did the Sahaba, Tab’ee in and the later generations of Muslims do so? Would those brothers who oppose the Muslims of saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] apply the same criteria to the first generations of this Umma as they do for the believers of today?The permissibility of saying Ya! For someone who is not physically present.
One of the main arguments used against the believers on this issue, is the one of the impermisibility of using the prefix Ya [Oh!] to someone who is not physically present.Innovation in the Language
This understanding of the Arabic language [that of not being able to use Ya! For an absent person] is an innovation [bid’a] in Arabic grammar. To the minority holding this view, it appears that this is the only way of accusing the majority of Muslims to be constantly committing an impermissible deed, or even shirk and kufr as others may profess.
We first would like to invite those who hold the above view, to examine one of the most respected classical dictionaries of the Arabic language, the Lasan al Arab of Ibn Manzur (d. 711 hijri). Ibn Manzur states that Ya! can be applied for either a person who is near, or far from the caller.
[Ibn Manzur al-Afriqi, Lasan al-Arab under the word ‘Ya’]
Since those Muslims who often claim that saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] is shirk, I now propose to examine the views of Ibn Taymiyya on this issue. Why? Well, it is mainly because these very brothers have given Ibn Taymiyya the noble title of Shaykh al Islam, and such, use him as an authority, if not, the foremost, in their attempts to practice Islam as the Salaf [pious predecessors] did. Ibn Taymiyya writes:
When someone calls upon someone else, saying Ya! it may be used in one of two ways – physically or by the knowledge of that person. An example of this is when the Messenger of Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] warned the people at the time of Dajjal: “Yaa ‘ibaadillaahi Fathbutu…” (Oh servants of Allah! Keep your feet steadfast…) The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said this to the people who would be present at the time of Dajjal, and who were not yet born.
Another example, is when Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, was walking through the plain of Karbalah, he said ‘Ya Abu ‘Abd Allah Hussayn, Fasbir! [Oh, (my son) Abu ‘Abd Allah Hussayn! Be patient (when facing the enemy in this place]’ This was because ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, was informed by the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), that his son, Hussayn [May Allah be pleased with Him], would be martyred at Karbalah. Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, called Hussayn despite the fact that he was not present with him, and even though Hussayn could not hear his Father ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, but remained in his thoughts.
[Ibn Taymiyya, Minhaj-as-sunna, chapter Aswad-al-Qadeem]
The above example demonstrates, as provided by Ibn Taymiyya, that at least in one way, Ya can be used in the Arabic language to call someone who is not physically present, but who is present in the thoughts of the caller, as when Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, remembered his son and called to him.Evidence to support the permissibility of saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Hafidhh ibn al Qayyim writes that the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:
Send salutations on me, but send more salutations on Friday. When you recite the salutation, your voice will reach me wherever you are. Some companions asked, “ even after your death?” The Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “Allah has made it unlawful for the earth to decompose my body”.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim, Jala-ul-Afhaan page 145]
Imam Nasa’i narrates that there are specific angels who visit the earth and whose sole duties are to go to the persons who sends salutations upon the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and then to take those salutations to the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)
[Mishkat chapter on Salaah al Nabi]
The above mentioned Ahadith, indicate that if anyone were to send salutations to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), he himself would either hear the salutations, or an angel will convey them to him. In both cases, salutations will reach the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
The Salaf used to say Ya Muhammad![May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Imam Bukhari, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani all posed the same question, that if a person’s foot becomes numb, what should he do? Their recommendations were the same, and included with their answer, the following hadith:
Some time after Rasul Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), had passed away, ‘Abd Allah Ibn ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] was in Najd where one day his foot became numb. As a remedy to alleviate the pain, a person said to him. “Remember the one whom you love the most!” Upon hearing this Ibn ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] said “Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]” and his foot made an immediate recovery from numbness.
[Imam Bukhari, Adab al Mufrad al Kalim al Tayyab; Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani, Tuhfah al Dakireen chapter on Khadirat Rijluhu, and also Imam Nawawi’s Kitab al Adkar]
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes,
In the same way as ‘Abd Allah ibn Umar’s foot became numb and he remembered the one he loves the most, ‘Abd Allah Ibn Abbas’s foot also became numb. Someone also said to him to remember the one who he loves the most, whereupon ‘Abd Allah Ibn Abbas said Ya! Muhammad [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and his foot immediately recovered from numbness.
[Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya, Al Kalim al Tayyib chapter on Khadirat Rijluhu]
Qadi Shawkani writes:
If one is in trouble or is in distress, he should perform two nawafil rakats and then make a supplication. They should say ‘‘Ya Muhammad!’’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and Allah most High will grant them what they requested and their problems and troubles should be resolved. The scholars of hadith say that this hadith is authentic and Tirmidhi, Hakim, Nasa’i, Ibn Majah and at-Tabarani record it.
[Qadi Shawkani, Tofah al Dhakireen chapter on Salaah al Hajah]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir, Imam Tabari and Imam Ibn Athir all wrote [that]:
During the Khilafa of Abu Bakr as- Siddique, may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a battle against the false prophet Musaylima [of Najd]. When the battle commenced, the Muslims lost their footing at which point Khalid bin Walid, may Allah be pleased with Him, and the rest of the companions called out “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and proceeded to win the battle.
[Tarikh at Tabari, Tarikh Ibn Kathir and Tarikh Qamil by Imam Tabari, Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Ibn Athir and Ibn Jarir in Chapter Musaylima Kadhaab]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Tabari both write:
During the Khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a famine outside the city of Madinah. A companion called Bilal bin Harith al Muzni, may Allah be pleased with Him, said to his people “The famine is very severe, [let us] sacrifice a goat”. Apart from a red bone nothing came from the goat [the goat was very thin due to famine and as such, there was no meat on the bones]. Bilal bin Harith, may Allah be pleased with Him, called out “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), then appeared in the dream of Bilal bin Harith and informed him that there will be rain.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir and Ibn Jarir chapter of khilafah of ‘Umar (May Allah be pleased with Him]
As-Sayyid Mawdudi writes:
When Hajaj bin Yusuf had placed tax upon some new Muslims, they left Basra crying with their fuqaha [scholars] and they were all saying, Ya Muhammad!, Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
[Sayyid Mawdudi, Khilafah wa Malukiyat, page 270 and Tarikh Ibn Athir]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Tabari both write that
After the occasion of Karbala, Sayyida Zaynab, May Allah be well pleased with her, [the sister of Hussayn, may Allah be pleased with Him] and her company were taken as prisoners to Syria. When she passed the dead bodies she proclaimed: “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] Your Hussayn is drenched in blood without a shroud or a grave, and Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace], your daughters are taken prisoners and your children have been killed
[Ibn Jarir and Tarikh Ibn Kathir in Chapter of Karbala*]
*For those of us, who have forgotten, Karbala took place in Iraq in 60AH. At that time Zaynab may Allah be well pleased with her, said ‘Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Imam Waqdi writes:
During the khilafah of Abu Bakr Siddiq [may Allah be pleased with Him], there was a battle at Halb. Ka’ab. Abu Bakr [may Allah be pleased with Him] said “Ya Muhammad! Ya! Muhammad, [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and shouted, “Oh Companions! Stay firm footed!”
['Allama Waqdi, Futoohusham, in the chapter on the Battle of Halb]
Imam Ibn Sa'ad writes:
After the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), had passed away, Arwa bint ‘Abd al Muttalib, May Allah be well pleased with her, recited the: “Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]. You were our place of hope.”
[Imam Ibn Sa'ad, Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, chapter on the Death of the Prophet]
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
Muhammad bin ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, relates: ‘I was sitting in the company of Abu Bakr bin Mujahid in Baghdad when Shaykh Shibli came before them. Whereupon Abu Bakr bin Mujahid stood up and hugged Shaykh Shibli, kissed his forehead and sat him by his side.’ Muhammad bin ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] enquired: “You are the Shaykh [Abu Bakr bin Mujahid] whilst the whole of Baghdad regards Shibli as Majnun [Mad] - why have you treated him with so much respect?” To this, Abu Bakr bin Mujahid replied “I have done nothing strange, I have treated him exactly as I have seen the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), treat him. In my dream I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), kiss Shibli between his two eyes. I asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), “Why did you treat Shibli in this way?” to which he, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), replied “I love him because after every Salaah he recites the last verse of Surah Tauba after which he recites Sallal la ho ‘alayka Ya Muhammad! [Peace and blessings from Allah be upon you Oh Muhammad!) Three times.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim, Jala-al-Afham., page 80]
The above mentioned Ahadith clearly illustrate that the Companions and others of the Salaf used to say Ya Muhammad or Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] when they experienced difficulty, and that the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) did help us either by making supplication for their success or appearing in their dreams to comfort them. Those Companions who were ill and said Ya Rasul Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] found that they would get better; and if they were in a battle which they were losing - they would soon win; and if they were facing a famine - they would soon have rain.
The last quotation from Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim shows that the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), loves the one who pronounces ‘Ya Muhammad!’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] to a considerable high degree. All these occurances took place many years after the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), passed away. So if it was kufr to say ‘Ya Muhammad!’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] today and after the lifetime of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), would not have expressed any love for Shibli. Also, if this is an unreliable narration, why did Ibn al-Qayyim choose to quote it? Was he someone who supported shirk or kufr?
What has been said above supports the fact that it is not kufr or shirk to call out Ya Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
However, still people will insist, despite of all the above, that to say Ya Muhammad (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) is shirk, and will deduce to the fact that this is a form of worshipping someone besides Allah. They often put forward the following ayat of the Qur’an:
And the masjids are only for Allah, so worship none with Allah
[Surah al Jinn verse 18]
This is just a doubt and a misunderstanding of the grammatical use of the words Tad`u/Yad`u in the Arabic language - since Tad’u and Yad’u have been used in two different contexts in the Qur’an: in the context of worship and also in the context of calling.
In the above verse it has been used in the context of worship and we agree that anyone who worships something besides Allah is a kafir and a mushrik. However, when a Muslim says Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] he is not worshipping the Messenger of Allah, but merely calling him, as Ibrahim, peace be upon him, called all the people to Hajj [Tafsir Ibn Kathir under Surah Hajj] and as ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, called Sariah. This type of calling is not worship, of which an example is provided in the Qur’an when Allah commanded Ibrahim, peace be upon him, to call the dead birds [Surah Al- Baqara, verse 260]
This should demonstrate that the word ‘call’ is not always used in the context of worship. Whoever says Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] cannot be called either a kafir or mushrik because he is calling with the love of the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), as was the case when the salaf called upon the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). His intention is not the intention to worship him.
The pious can hear from afar
1) The Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, heard the conversation of the ants from a distance.
[Al- Qur’an Surah al Namal verse 19]
2) The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), heard the footsteps of Bilal,may Allah be pleased with Him, in Paradise. [Bukhari and Muslim Kitab-al-Manaqib., Muslim., fazail Bilal]
3) Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), stated: ‘I hear the voice of every person who sends salams (peace and blessings) upon me, wherever he may be’.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim Jala-al-Afham page 145]
4) When women quarrel with their husbands who are righteous (and who go to paradise) the Hoors (fair Maidens of Paradise) listen to their arguing from Paradise whilst they are still on the earth. [Mishkat-al-Masabih in Chapter of Mu’ashirat-an-Nisa]
To conclude this chapter, we would like to state that:
From the above statements it is proved that the pious can hear from a far distance, by the grace of Allah most High.
Secondly, it is not shirk to call them using the word Ya! We would like to clarify that to call upon the pious using Ya! is simply permissible: being neither fardh, nor wajib, nor sunna.
Thirdly, as proven, the Salaf did proclaim Ya Muahammed! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] at times of distress – and this difficulty was alleviated.
The reason for writing this article is only to clarify, to those people who shout ‘kafir’ and ‘mushrik’, to those Muslims who call using the word Ya! - that we can use the word Ya!
We also say that help should only be asked from Allah most High. We should only present the Waseela of the pious, when asking from Allah.
Those who believe that it is impermissible to say Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] not only say that there are no evidences to support the permissibility, but also believe that the prefix of Ya, can only be used when that person [who is being called upon] is present, as opposed to being absent. The proclamation of Ya Muhammad, or Ya Rasul Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] is not an innovation [bid’a] that crept in after the first three generations, but contrary to modern misconceptions, was initiated and practiced within these generations, as we shall see, Allah willing. Also, the fact that the later generations did proclaim Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] the death of the Prophet [May Allah bless him and grant him peace], did not prevent them in doing so, even though there were great distances between them and Madina.
As we shall aim to demonstrate to the readers in this chapter, Insha’ Allah, that if it is wrong today [or even Kufr and shirk as some of our brothers declare], to proclaim Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] why then, did the Sahaba, Tab’ee in and the later generations of Muslims do so? Would those brothers who oppose the Muslims of saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] apply the same criteria to the first generations of this Umma as they do for the believers of today?The permissibility of saying Ya! For someone who is not physically present.
One of the main arguments used against the believers on this issue, is the one of the impermisibility of using the prefix Ya [Oh!] to someone who is not physically present.Innovation in the Language
This understanding of the Arabic language [that of not being able to use Ya! For an absent person] is an innovation [bid’a] in Arabic grammar. To the minority holding this view, it appears that this is the only way of accusing the majority of Muslims to be constantly committing an impermissible deed, or even shirk and kufr as others may profess.
We first would like to invite those who hold the above view, to examine one of the most respected classical dictionaries of the Arabic language, the Lasan al Arab of Ibn Manzur (d. 711 hijri). Ibn Manzur states that Ya! can be applied for either a person who is near, or far from the caller.
[Ibn Manzur al-Afriqi, Lasan al-Arab under the word ‘Ya’]
Since those Muslims who often claim that saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] is shirk, I now propose to examine the views of Ibn Taymiyya on this issue. Why? Well, it is mainly because these very brothers have given Ibn Taymiyya the noble title of Shaykh al Islam, and such, use him as an authority, if not, the foremost, in their attempts to practice Islam as the Salaf [pious predecessors] did. Ibn Taymiyya writes:
When someone calls upon someone else, saying Ya! it may be used in one of two ways – physically or by the knowledge of that person. An example of this is when the Messenger of Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] warned the people at the time of Dajjal: “Yaa ‘ibaadillaahi Fathbutu…” (Oh servants of Allah! Keep your feet steadfast…) The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said this to the people who would be present at the time of Dajjal, and who were not yet born.
Another example, is when Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, was walking through the plain of Karbalah, he said ‘Ya Abu ‘Abd Allah Hussayn, Fasbir! [Oh, (my son) Abu ‘Abd Allah Hussayn! Be patient (when facing the enemy in this place]’ This was because ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, was informed by the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), that his son, Hussayn [May Allah be pleased with Him], would be martyred at Karbalah. Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, called Hussayn despite the fact that he was not present with him, and even though Hussayn could not hear his Father ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, but remained in his thoughts.
[Ibn Taymiyya, Minhaj-as-sunna, chapter Aswad-al-Qadeem]
The above example demonstrates, as provided by Ibn Taymiyya, that at least in one way, Ya can be used in the Arabic language to call someone who is not physically present, but who is present in the thoughts of the caller, as when Sayyidna ‘Ali, may Allah be pleased with Him, remembered his son and called to him.Evidence to support the permissibility of saying Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Hafidhh ibn al Qayyim writes that the Prophet of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:
Send salutations on me, but send more salutations on Friday. When you recite the salutation, your voice will reach me wherever you are. Some companions asked, “ even after your death?” The Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, “Allah has made it unlawful for the earth to decompose my body”.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim, Jala-ul-Afhaan page 145]
Imam Nasa’i narrates that there are specific angels who visit the earth and whose sole duties are to go to the persons who sends salutations upon the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), and then to take those salutations to the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace)
[Mishkat chapter on Salaah al Nabi]
The above mentioned Ahadith, indicate that if anyone were to send salutations to the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), he himself would either hear the salutations, or an angel will convey them to him. In both cases, salutations will reach the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
The Salaf used to say Ya Muhammad![May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Imam Bukhari, Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani all posed the same question, that if a person’s foot becomes numb, what should he do? Their recommendations were the same, and included with their answer, the following hadith:
Some time after Rasul Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), had passed away, ‘Abd Allah Ibn ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] was in Najd where one day his foot became numb. As a remedy to alleviate the pain, a person said to him. “Remember the one whom you love the most!” Upon hearing this Ibn ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] said “Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]” and his foot made an immediate recovery from numbness.
[Imam Bukhari, Adab al Mufrad al Kalim al Tayyab; Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya and Qadi Shawkani, Tuhfah al Dakireen chapter on Khadirat Rijluhu, and also Imam Nawawi’s Kitab al Adkar]
Hafidhh Ibn Taymiyya writes,
In the same way as ‘Abd Allah ibn Umar’s foot became numb and he remembered the one he loves the most, ‘Abd Allah Ibn Abbas’s foot also became numb. Someone also said to him to remember the one who he loves the most, whereupon ‘Abd Allah Ibn Abbas said Ya! Muhammad [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and his foot immediately recovered from numbness.
[Hafidhh ibn Taymiyya, Al Kalim al Tayyib chapter on Khadirat Rijluhu]
Qadi Shawkani writes:
If one is in trouble or is in distress, he should perform two nawafil rakats and then make a supplication. They should say ‘‘Ya Muhammad!’’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and Allah most High will grant them what they requested and their problems and troubles should be resolved. The scholars of hadith say that this hadith is authentic and Tirmidhi, Hakim, Nasa’i, Ibn Majah and at-Tabarani record it.
[Qadi Shawkani, Tofah al Dhakireen chapter on Salaah al Hajah]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir, Imam Tabari and Imam Ibn Athir all wrote [that]:
During the Khilafa of Abu Bakr as- Siddique, may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a battle against the false prophet Musaylima [of Najd]. When the battle commenced, the Muslims lost their footing at which point Khalid bin Walid, may Allah be pleased with Him, and the rest of the companions called out “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and proceeded to win the battle.
[Tarikh at Tabari, Tarikh Ibn Kathir and Tarikh Qamil by Imam Tabari, Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Ibn Athir and Ibn Jarir in Chapter Musaylima Kadhaab]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Tabari both write:
During the Khilafah of ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, there was a famine outside the city of Madinah. A companion called Bilal bin Harith al Muzni, may Allah be pleased with Him, said to his people “The famine is very severe, [let us] sacrifice a goat”. Apart from a red bone nothing came from the goat [the goat was very thin due to famine and as such, there was no meat on the bones]. Bilal bin Harith, may Allah be pleased with Him, called out “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]. The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), then appeared in the dream of Bilal bin Harith and informed him that there will be rain.
[Tarikh Ibn Kathir and Ibn Jarir chapter of khilafah of ‘Umar (May Allah be pleased with Him]
As-Sayyid Mawdudi writes:
When Hajaj bin Yusuf had placed tax upon some new Muslims, they left Basra crying with their fuqaha [scholars] and they were all saying, Ya Muhammad!, Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
[Sayyid Mawdudi, Khilafah wa Malukiyat, page 270 and Tarikh Ibn Athir]
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir and Imam Tabari both write that
After the occasion of Karbala, Sayyida Zaynab, May Allah be well pleased with her, [the sister of Hussayn, may Allah be pleased with Him] and her company were taken as prisoners to Syria. When she passed the dead bodies she proclaimed: “Ya Muhammad!” [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] Your Hussayn is drenched in blood without a shroud or a grave, and Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace], your daughters are taken prisoners and your children have been killed
[Ibn Jarir and Tarikh Ibn Kathir in Chapter of Karbala*]
*For those of us, who have forgotten, Karbala took place in Iraq in 60AH. At that time Zaynab may Allah be well pleased with her, said ‘Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]
Imam Waqdi writes:
During the khilafah of Abu Bakr Siddiq [may Allah be pleased with Him], there was a battle at Halb. Ka’ab. Abu Bakr [may Allah be pleased with Him] said “Ya Muhammad! Ya! Muhammad, [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] and shouted, “Oh Companions! Stay firm footed!”
['Allama Waqdi, Futoohusham, in the chapter on the Battle of Halb]
Imam Ibn Sa'ad writes:
After the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), had passed away, Arwa bint ‘Abd al Muttalib, May Allah be well pleased with her, recited the: “Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace]. You were our place of hope.”
[Imam Ibn Sa'ad, Tabaqat Ibn Sa’ad, chapter on the Death of the Prophet]
Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
Muhammad bin ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, relates: ‘I was sitting in the company of Abu Bakr bin Mujahid in Baghdad when Shaykh Shibli came before them. Whereupon Abu Bakr bin Mujahid stood up and hugged Shaykh Shibli, kissed his forehead and sat him by his side.’ Muhammad bin ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with Him] enquired: “You are the Shaykh [Abu Bakr bin Mujahid] whilst the whole of Baghdad regards Shibli as Majnun [Mad] - why have you treated him with so much respect?” To this, Abu Bakr bin Mujahid replied “I have done nothing strange, I have treated him exactly as I have seen the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), treat him. In my dream I saw the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), kiss Shibli between his two eyes. I asked the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), “Why did you treat Shibli in this way?” to which he, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), replied “I love him because after every Salaah he recites the last verse of Surah Tauba after which he recites Sallal la ho ‘alayka Ya Muhammad! [Peace and blessings from Allah be upon you Oh Muhammad!) Three times.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim, Jala-al-Afham., page 80]
The above mentioned Ahadith clearly illustrate that the Companions and others of the Salaf used to say Ya Muhammad or Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] when they experienced difficulty, and that the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) did help us either by making supplication for their success or appearing in their dreams to comfort them. Those Companions who were ill and said Ya Rasul Allah [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] found that they would get better; and if they were in a battle which they were losing - they would soon win; and if they were facing a famine - they would soon have rain.
The last quotation from Hafidhh Ibn al-Qayyim shows that the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), loves the one who pronounces ‘Ya Muhammad!’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] to a considerable high degree. All these occurances took place many years after the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), passed away. So if it was kufr to say ‘Ya Muhammad!’ [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] today and after the lifetime of the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), the Prophet, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), would not have expressed any love for Shibli. Also, if this is an unreliable narration, why did Ibn al-Qayyim choose to quote it? Was he someone who supported shirk or kufr?
What has been said above supports the fact that it is not kufr or shirk to call out Ya Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace).
However, still people will insist, despite of all the above, that to say Ya Muhammad (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) is shirk, and will deduce to the fact that this is a form of worshipping someone besides Allah. They often put forward the following ayat of the Qur’an:
And the masjids are only for Allah, so worship none with Allah
[Surah al Jinn verse 18]
This is just a doubt and a misunderstanding of the grammatical use of the words Tad`u/Yad`u in the Arabic language - since Tad’u and Yad’u have been used in two different contexts in the Qur’an: in the context of worship and also in the context of calling.
In the above verse it has been used in the context of worship and we agree that anyone who worships something besides Allah is a kafir and a mushrik. However, when a Muslim says Ya Rasul Allah! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] he is not worshipping the Messenger of Allah, but merely calling him, as Ibrahim, peace be upon him, called all the people to Hajj [Tafsir Ibn Kathir under Surah Hajj] and as ‘Umar, may Allah be pleased with Him, called Sariah. This type of calling is not worship, of which an example is provided in the Qur’an when Allah commanded Ibrahim, peace be upon him, to call the dead birds [Surah Al- Baqara, verse 260]
This should demonstrate that the word ‘call’ is not always used in the context of worship. Whoever says Ya Muhammad! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] cannot be called either a kafir or mushrik because he is calling with the love of the Prophet Muhammad, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), as was the case when the salaf called upon the Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace). His intention is not the intention to worship him.
The pious can hear from afar
1) The Prophet Sulaiman, peace be upon him, heard the conversation of the ants from a distance.
[Al- Qur’an Surah al Namal verse 19]
2) The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), heard the footsteps of Bilal,may Allah be pleased with Him, in Paradise. [Bukhari and Muslim Kitab-al-Manaqib., Muslim., fazail Bilal]
3) Hafidhh Ibn al Qayyim writes:
The Messenger of Allah, (May Allah bless him and grant him peace), stated: ‘I hear the voice of every person who sends salams (peace and blessings) upon me, wherever he may be’.
[Hafidhh Ibn-al-Qayyim Jala-al-Afham page 145]
4) When women quarrel with their husbands who are righteous (and who go to paradise) the Hoors (fair Maidens of Paradise) listen to their arguing from Paradise whilst they are still on the earth. [Mishkat-al-Masabih in Chapter of Mu’ashirat-an-Nisa]
To conclude this chapter, we would like to state that:
From the above statements it is proved that the pious can hear from a far distance, by the grace of Allah most High.
Secondly, it is not shirk to call them using the word Ya! We would like to clarify that to call upon the pious using Ya! is simply permissible: being neither fardh, nor wajib, nor sunna.
Thirdly, as proven, the Salaf did proclaim Ya Muahammed! [May Allah bless him and grant him peace] at times of distress – and this difficulty was alleviated.
The reason for writing this article is only to clarify, to those people who shout ‘kafir’ and ‘mushrik’, to those Muslims who call using the word Ya! - that we can use the word Ya!
We also say that help should only be asked from Allah most High. We should only present the Waseela of the pious, when asking from Allah.
Wahabi & Salafi
Muhammad bin ‘Abdal Wahab and the “Wahabis.”
The reason why this Sect are often called Wahabis boils down to the name of one of their main leaders; Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab. It is often believed, that Abdul Wahab started the “crusade” against the Sunni Muslims, but In reality, he did not start this, it was started in the time of Ali RadiAllao-unho. Throughout history there have been different names for this Sect, but in the eighth century, one of their leaders use to call himself Salafi. Even today, this Sect has four names SALAFI, WAHABI, NAJDI and AHL-HADITH - although today they prefer to call themselves Salafi.
This Sect would not have been as famous as it is but at the time of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab. Even today, if a person or a number of people were to petition the country of Saudia Arabia, they would receive funds or grants if they promise that a Masjid or Madrassah would be built - to teach the Wahabi cirriculum. Or if a magazine would begin to circulate then, it too would receive funds to propogate the Wahabi beleifs. It is in this way, and by currently owning large, well equipt publishing houses, that the Wahabis have been able to mass distribute and mass circulate misinformation about the Ahle As Sunnah Wal Jammat and propogate their own beliefs passing them under the guise of “Salafi” Islam. Many, if not all, of their publications are beautifully designed but, this cannot hide the fact that they are continually trying to break Sunni Muslims from a scholarship this has flourished for over 1400 years. The head office of this “organisation” is in the Najd region, that was where Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab was born.
He was born at the beginning of the 12th century (Hijri) In Jazeera tul Arab, the name given by the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) to which has been changed by the Saudi Royal family to that of their grandFathers to Saudi Arabia. He was born in Najd so that is why often he was referred to as Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi in his time.
Shaytan came in the form of the Najdi Shaykh
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes: when the Kuffar of Makkah had a meeting concerning the Prophet Sallal laho alihi wasalam, an old man came claiming
“I am a Najdi, what ever you want to know, I will be helpful”. This Najdi Shaykh then gave his view against the Prophet (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam), through out the meeting.
[Tareekh Ibn Kathir. Volume 4]
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] stated: I fear from the Najdi’s.
[Bukhari Chapter on Jihad]
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] stated: That the Fitnah will emerge from the east. [Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Fitnah]
Abdullah Ibn Umar narrates:
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] made Du’a for Syria and Yemen, some people asked him: “Ya Rasoolallah (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam) pray for Najd.” The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] again repeated Dua for Syria and Yemen. They again requested for Najd. Upon the third time the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] said: “There will be earthquakes there, tribulations will emerge there and a horn of Shaytan will emerge from there”. [Bukhari, Kitabul Fitan]
The brother of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab al Najdi, Shaykh Sulaiman bin Abdul Wahab, said about his brother, “The horn of Shaytan which the Prophet (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam) referred to is you.”
[Sawaa’iqul Ilahiya]
The false Prophet, Musailima Kadhab was also born in Najd. After reading the history of Najd, you will see that this is a place of Sh’yateen. Secondly the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] predicted earthquakes and tribulations for this place indeed there occurred such an earthquake that we can still hear its bang over 2 centuries later.
Many people say that Najd is high land and that the Dua was not made regarding the high land. However in this Hadith the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] mentioned the places Syria, Yemen and not the type of land, therefore the word Najd in this Hadith refers to the place Najd itself which is in Saudi Arabia not in Iraq.Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab’s Education
He was educated in the Najd, Basra and Damascus, his brothers and parents were of the Aqeedah of Ahl-e-sunnah but, through reading Ibn Taymiyyah’s books, he chose to differ in belief with the rest of his family, who were not pleased with him. His brother Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Sulaiman wrote a book against him called ‘Suwaa’iq-ul-Ilahia’, in which he gives the answers to all Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahab’s objections.
Shaykh Uthman Bin Basheer & Shaykh Juhri takes all the information we will provide here from Tareekh-e-Najd, in the book called Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab. Some Najdi says that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Sulaiman, during his lifetime, converted to Wahabism, however there is no evidence to prove this.
Shaykh Najdi started a conspiracy against Ahl-as-Sunnah. This movement is called Al-Wahhabiyyah. (“Shaykh Juri in Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab. Page 13”)
There are four names by which Wahabis are famous, Wahabis, Najdi, Salafi, & Ahl-e-Hadith. Ah-l-Hadith was at the time when the British were ruling in India, and the followers of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi were called Wahabis but Maulana Muhammad Hussain Batalvi made an application to the viceroy of India that they be called Ahl-e-Hadith rather than Wahabi, this application was granted. That is the reason why Maulana Muhammad Hussain wrote: It is Haram to do Jihad (War) against the British. [“Iqtisaad-fi-Massaiil-Jihad”]
Mirza Hairat from Delhi in his book Hayyat-e-Tayybiyah writes that Moulana Ismail from Delhi a founder of Wahabi in India, said in his speech in Calcutta “ It is Harram to do Jihad against the British.” These people are so loyal to the British so how could the British not accept their application.
Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi influenced the spouse of the Amier of Dur’iyaa, Muhammad bin Sa’ud, to his movement and later the Amir also followed. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi asked him to aid his movement with his power. Muhammad bin Sa’ud assisted with spreading their reign over boundaries beyond Duri’yaa. Lawrence of Arabia was a spy for the British in Arabia and pretended to be a Muslim. He promoted Arab Nationalism and always said to the people, ‘O Arabs, Islam started in Arabia, so to rule is your right, why do you live under the Uthmanni Khilaffat? This brainwashing worked well and helped in destroying the Uthmaani Khilaffat. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi and Muhammad bin Saood were attracted to this nationalistic movement. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi labelled this to be Jihad and said: “In Hijaz, the people are worshipping other than Allah”.
“Tareek Najd-Uthman bin Bashir”
Muhammad Hasni wrote that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi said: “When I went to study in Basra, mushriks would ask me questions and I would leave them very surprised with my answers”. “Tareek Aal-e-Saood”
Shaykh Juri states: “Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi called The Ahl-e-sunnah Muslims Kafirs & Mushriks apart from himself and his (blind) followers”. The proof for this is that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab himself said that in Basra, Mushriks would come and ask me questions, these people were Muslims and thus Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab only considers himself and his followers to be Muslims.
[“Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab”]
Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab wrote. Those people who ask for intercession from Prophets and Angels and make Du’a through their Waseela, to become closer to Allah, are commiting sins. Due to this crime it is permitted to kill them and to take their possessions.
[“Kashf-u-Shubhaat”]
Shaykh Attar wrote that Shaykh Najdi said: “I declare war on these people as the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] declared war on the Kuffar of Makkah, against those people with corrupt beliefs”. Corrupt beliefs refers to those people who seek intercession from Anbiyah, Awliyah, and they make their Dua through them (Waseela) and those people who travelled to the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace]’s grave with the intention to seek help other than Allah’s.
[“Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab’ page.55”]
The people who leave their corrupt beliefs and join us then, their blood will be saved, and those people who do not do ‘Tasuba’ (Repent) or pay jiz’eiya get ready to do battle. Then Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Attar says: “To spread the good, It is in Islam as to do Jihad, who can refuse this.”
[“Shaykh Ahmed Attar”]
Mas’ood Aalam Nadwi wrote that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi has called only those Muslims kafir who make Du’a with the Waseela of Prophets and Awliya, and he made jihad against them. [“Mas’ood Aalam Nadwi”]
All these statements prove that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi’s Jihad was not against kafirs but against those Muslims who held the Aq’aid of Ahl-e-Sunnah, like the Khawarij, he considered all other Muslims to be kafirs.
Khawarji’s are those people who consider all other Muslims to be non-believers apart from themselves. They are supposed to kill people who have trust in pious people, as they did with Khabab for saying that he loved Ali radi-allah-ho-unho. Also they would call any person who has committed a major sin a non-believer. Even for anything small they would call the Sahabas non-believer’s as they did with Uthman, Talha, and Zubair Radi allahu taala unhu ajmaeen.
The Khawrij’s would only take the literal meaning of the Holy Qur’an and that would be it they would take it no further. They would call the Sahee (true) Hadith fabricated, such as Hadith-e-Rajm, (stoning the Adulator to death), they would label their opponents non-believers and consider it right to take their belongings and their wives as slave girls. When the Khawarij spoke they would try to refer to the Qur’an or the Hadith as much as possible.
It has been said by Abdullah bin Umar radi-allah-hounho that Khawarij’s are so mischievous that they fit those Qur’anic verses that were revealed about the non-believers.
“Bukhari chap, Al-murtadeen”
For further details please consult books by Ibn Hazam Sharastani, Abu-Mansoor Ma’tirdi, Abu-Zahra Misrei and Mazhabe Islamiyah This was a strange thing as even Abdul Wahab’s blind followers could not digest it. Shaykh Juhri wrote: ‘I think that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi apart from himself and his followers has labelled all other Muslims as kafir; while not all Muslims have worshipped graves and especially the Ulama. At the time no Muslim’s worshiped grave’s but that was an excuse by Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi so that he could kill the Muslims.
[“Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahab page 36”]
Shaykh Juhri says: “I cannot find any reason why they should all have been labelled Kafirs”. Juhri was a strong follower of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab but even he was surprised at this action by [Muhammad Bin Abdal Wahab ]
Now returning to the movement of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi, with the help of Amir-e-Duriya He destroyed the shrines. (Graves of Companions) Companions who were in the Najd.
He killed those people who were leaders of the Ahl-e-Sunnah and took their properties and possessions. With the support of those Arabs that were nationalist. They continued increasing their reign, coming out of Najd until Hijaz was taken by them and they managed to win control over the whole of Jazeerat-ul-Arab.
During this time the Ottoman Khilafah was busy engaged in international battles and was therefore unable to respond in a swift manner. In 22 June 1792, Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi died upon which Qadhi Shawkaani wrote a poem with regard to this incident; one sentence was: “Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab was that son, with whose Noor the Hijaz and its surrounding places became enlightened”. See how the person who sought help from the Kafirs is being praised!!!
For some time after, the rule was in the hands of Ahle-Saud. It was during this time, during the reign of the son of Muhammad ibn Saud, that the Ottomans sent Muhammad Ali Pasha against him, who defeated him, finished their influence in the reign. Again’ Jazeeratul Arab became part of the Islamic Caliphate, the royal family fled to Kuwait. Some time later, the Ahl-e-Saood managed to re-gain control over Jazeeratul Arab and changed its name to Saudi Arabia. Grants were given from abroad to spread Wahabi’ism. Initially it was spread by the sword but now it is through money. The Saudis came to Europe and spent the wealth from the Bait-ul-Maal as though it were their Father’s wealth. In front of the guilty Saudi Ulamas all this Haram and Bid’ah goes on but they say nothing, but will still give Fatwa’s against Milad-un-Nabi.
An interesting story: When Shaykh Faisal was deputy prime minister of Saudi Arabia, he toured India, and put flowers upon Mahatma Ghandi’s grave:
[“News, 11th May 1955”]
In 1957 Shah Sa’ud went on a tour to America, with him was the defence minister Fahad bin Sa’ud, who put flowers on the grave of George Washington. [“Kohstaan 2nd February 1957”]
When Saudi Shaykhs go to Muslim countries they do not place flowers on any of the graves of the Awliya because it may dent their Aqeedah, but by placing flowers upon the graves of Mahatma Ghandi & George Washington maybe this strengthens their Aqeedah.
Shah Sa’ud whilst on tour in India said, “I am satisfied with Indian government that they are treating the Muslims with justice”. This was at the time when Muslims were being sacrificed in Kashmir.
Shah Sa’ood invited the Indian Prime Minister, Pandat Jawahar Nehru to tour Saudi Arabia, When he arrived, the newspaper ‘Al-Balad Sa’oodia Makkah’ reported thus:
“When Nehru arrived in Riyadh, the Indian national anthem was played, the women of the royal family left their homes in the cars to welcome him.” Every thing we have written about Nehru is taken from Tareek Najd-wa-Hijaz by Allma Ghulam Rasood Sa’idi and Safar Nama by Muhammad Asim Najdi who was with Maudoodi when he toured in 1960.
Al-Balad Sa’oodia then wrote an article: We welcome Nehru as he is a peaceful and sensible person, and it is our prayer that he lives thousands of years. Shah Sa’ood secretary colonel Sadat said: ‘Mr Nehru soft voice has more effect than the bang of guns’ and called him the angel of Asia and also called him a Rasool’ our assumption is that he did not mean Prophet but messenger just as many Muslims use the name Abdul Mustafa, meaning not a worshipper but a follower.
When they received Nehru, they called him Aman-ur-Rasool. He toured a school where the rulers studied, where the Geeta was sung. We have a right to ask: “why do not the Saudi Ulama say that these things are Haram, to sing Geeta, for Muslim women to come out of their homes to welcome Kafir rulers, to put flowers on the graves of kaafirs, to call the person who slaughtered uncountable Muslims in India a messenger of peace (Amman)? Oh those who ask for authentic proof for Milad-un Nabi, by Allah show us even a da’eef (weak) hadith to justify these actions”.
When they welcomed Nehru in such a way, back. In India and Pakistan marches and rallies were organised in protest. The King was sent a telegram in 1960 by Saiyed Maududi, who came from Hajj to Saudi, he was invited on Royal order to Riyadh. Delivering his speech he said: “If we were to invite the Prime Minister of Israel to Pakistan and welcome him like you welcomed Nehru, how would you feel? You called the enemy of Muslims the messenger of peace”. The whole world criticised them for this, but no Saudi Ulama made any objections.
In the west people do Dhikr in Masjids, and do Na’at Khanni, once a month they read the Qur’an and convey the reward to Muslims who have parted from this world, especially Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilanis. The Najdi students who come to the west Write piles of books against this and ask for authentic proofs but the people and leaders of their own countries they were to put flowers on the graves of kaffirs they would quietly digest it .
The reason why this Sect are often called Wahabis boils down to the name of one of their main leaders; Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab. It is often believed, that Abdul Wahab started the “crusade” against the Sunni Muslims, but In reality, he did not start this, it was started in the time of Ali RadiAllao-unho. Throughout history there have been different names for this Sect, but in the eighth century, one of their leaders use to call himself Salafi. Even today, this Sect has four names SALAFI, WAHABI, NAJDI and AHL-HADITH - although today they prefer to call themselves Salafi.
This Sect would not have been as famous as it is but at the time of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab. Even today, if a person or a number of people were to petition the country of Saudia Arabia, they would receive funds or grants if they promise that a Masjid or Madrassah would be built - to teach the Wahabi cirriculum. Or if a magazine would begin to circulate then, it too would receive funds to propogate the Wahabi beleifs. It is in this way, and by currently owning large, well equipt publishing houses, that the Wahabis have been able to mass distribute and mass circulate misinformation about the Ahle As Sunnah Wal Jammat and propogate their own beliefs passing them under the guise of “Salafi” Islam. Many, if not all, of their publications are beautifully designed but, this cannot hide the fact that they are continually trying to break Sunni Muslims from a scholarship this has flourished for over 1400 years. The head office of this “organisation” is in the Najd region, that was where Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab was born.
He was born at the beginning of the 12th century (Hijri) In Jazeera tul Arab, the name given by the Prophet (May Allah bless him and grant him peace) to which has been changed by the Saudi Royal family to that of their grandFathers to Saudi Arabia. He was born in Najd so that is why often he was referred to as Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi in his time.
Shaytan came in the form of the Najdi Shaykh
Hafidhh Ibn Kathir writes: when the Kuffar of Makkah had a meeting concerning the Prophet Sallal laho alihi wasalam, an old man came claiming
“I am a Najdi, what ever you want to know, I will be helpful”. This Najdi Shaykh then gave his view against the Prophet (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam), through out the meeting.
[Tareekh Ibn Kathir. Volume 4]
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] stated: I fear from the Najdi’s.
[Bukhari Chapter on Jihad]
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] stated: That the Fitnah will emerge from the east. [Bukhari, Kitab-ul-Fitnah]
Abdullah Ibn Umar narrates:
The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] made Du’a for Syria and Yemen, some people asked him: “Ya Rasoolallah (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam) pray for Najd.” The Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] again repeated Dua for Syria and Yemen. They again requested for Najd. Upon the third time the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] said: “There will be earthquakes there, tribulations will emerge there and a horn of Shaytan will emerge from there”. [Bukhari, Kitabul Fitan]
The brother of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab al Najdi, Shaykh Sulaiman bin Abdul Wahab, said about his brother, “The horn of Shaytan which the Prophet (Sallallahu’ aliahi wa sallam) referred to is you.”
[Sawaa’iqul Ilahiya]
The false Prophet, Musailima Kadhab was also born in Najd. After reading the history of Najd, you will see that this is a place of Sh’yateen. Secondly the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] predicted earthquakes and tribulations for this place indeed there occurred such an earthquake that we can still hear its bang over 2 centuries later.
Many people say that Najd is high land and that the Dua was not made regarding the high land. However in this Hadith the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] mentioned the places Syria, Yemen and not the type of land, therefore the word Najd in this Hadith refers to the place Najd itself which is in Saudi Arabia not in Iraq.Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab’s Education
He was educated in the Najd, Basra and Damascus, his brothers and parents were of the Aqeedah of Ahl-e-sunnah but, through reading Ibn Taymiyyah’s books, he chose to differ in belief with the rest of his family, who were not pleased with him. His brother Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Sulaiman wrote a book against him called ‘Suwaa’iq-ul-Ilahia’, in which he gives the answers to all Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahab’s objections.
Shaykh Uthman Bin Basheer & Shaykh Juhri takes all the information we will provide here from Tareekh-e-Najd, in the book called Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab. Some Najdi says that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Sulaiman, during his lifetime, converted to Wahabism, however there is no evidence to prove this.
Shaykh Najdi started a conspiracy against Ahl-as-Sunnah. This movement is called Al-Wahhabiyyah. (“Shaykh Juri in Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab. Page 13”)
There are four names by which Wahabis are famous, Wahabis, Najdi, Salafi, & Ahl-e-Hadith. Ah-l-Hadith was at the time when the British were ruling in India, and the followers of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi were called Wahabis but Maulana Muhammad Hussain Batalvi made an application to the viceroy of India that they be called Ahl-e-Hadith rather than Wahabi, this application was granted. That is the reason why Maulana Muhammad Hussain wrote: It is Haram to do Jihad (War) against the British. [“Iqtisaad-fi-Massaiil-Jihad”]
Mirza Hairat from Delhi in his book Hayyat-e-Tayybiyah writes that Moulana Ismail from Delhi a founder of Wahabi in India, said in his speech in Calcutta “ It is Harram to do Jihad against the British.” These people are so loyal to the British so how could the British not accept their application.
Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi influenced the spouse of the Amier of Dur’iyaa, Muhammad bin Sa’ud, to his movement and later the Amir also followed. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi asked him to aid his movement with his power. Muhammad bin Sa’ud assisted with spreading their reign over boundaries beyond Duri’yaa. Lawrence of Arabia was a spy for the British in Arabia and pretended to be a Muslim. He promoted Arab Nationalism and always said to the people, ‘O Arabs, Islam started in Arabia, so to rule is your right, why do you live under the Uthmanni Khilaffat? This brainwashing worked well and helped in destroying the Uthmaani Khilaffat. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi and Muhammad bin Saood were attracted to this nationalistic movement. Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi labelled this to be Jihad and said: “In Hijaz, the people are worshipping other than Allah”.
“Tareek Najd-Uthman bin Bashir”
Muhammad Hasni wrote that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi said: “When I went to study in Basra, mushriks would ask me questions and I would leave them very surprised with my answers”. “Tareek Aal-e-Saood”
Shaykh Juri states: “Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi called The Ahl-e-sunnah Muslims Kafirs & Mushriks apart from himself and his (blind) followers”. The proof for this is that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab himself said that in Basra, Mushriks would come and ask me questions, these people were Muslims and thus Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab only considers himself and his followers to be Muslims.
[“Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab”]
Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab wrote. Those people who ask for intercession from Prophets and Angels and make Du’a through their Waseela, to become closer to Allah, are commiting sins. Due to this crime it is permitted to kill them and to take their possessions.
[“Kashf-u-Shubhaat”]
Shaykh Attar wrote that Shaykh Najdi said: “I declare war on these people as the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace] declared war on the Kuffar of Makkah, against those people with corrupt beliefs”. Corrupt beliefs refers to those people who seek intercession from Anbiyah, Awliyah, and they make their Dua through them (Waseela) and those people who travelled to the Prophet [May Allah bless Him and grant Him peace]’s grave with the intention to seek help other than Allah’s.
[“Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab’ page.55”]
The people who leave their corrupt beliefs and join us then, their blood will be saved, and those people who do not do ‘Tasuba’ (Repent) or pay jiz’eiya get ready to do battle. Then Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Attar says: “To spread the good, It is in Islam as to do Jihad, who can refuse this.”
[“Shaykh Ahmed Attar”]
Mas’ood Aalam Nadwi wrote that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi has called only those Muslims kafir who make Du’a with the Waseela of Prophets and Awliya, and he made jihad against them. [“Mas’ood Aalam Nadwi”]
All these statements prove that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi’s Jihad was not against kafirs but against those Muslims who held the Aq’aid of Ahl-e-Sunnah, like the Khawarij, he considered all other Muslims to be kafirs.
Khawarji’s are those people who consider all other Muslims to be non-believers apart from themselves. They are supposed to kill people who have trust in pious people, as they did with Khabab for saying that he loved Ali radi-allah-ho-unho. Also they would call any person who has committed a major sin a non-believer. Even for anything small they would call the Sahabas non-believer’s as they did with Uthman, Talha, and Zubair Radi allahu taala unhu ajmaeen.
The Khawrij’s would only take the literal meaning of the Holy Qur’an and that would be it they would take it no further. They would call the Sahee (true) Hadith fabricated, such as Hadith-e-Rajm, (stoning the Adulator to death), they would label their opponents non-believers and consider it right to take their belongings and their wives as slave girls. When the Khawarij spoke they would try to refer to the Qur’an or the Hadith as much as possible.
It has been said by Abdullah bin Umar radi-allah-hounho that Khawarij’s are so mischievous that they fit those Qur’anic verses that were revealed about the non-believers.
“Bukhari chap, Al-murtadeen”
For further details please consult books by Ibn Hazam Sharastani, Abu-Mansoor Ma’tirdi, Abu-Zahra Misrei and Mazhabe Islamiyah This was a strange thing as even Abdul Wahab’s blind followers could not digest it. Shaykh Juhri wrote: ‘I think that Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi apart from himself and his followers has labelled all other Muslims as kafir; while not all Muslims have worshipped graves and especially the Ulama. At the time no Muslim’s worshiped grave’s but that was an excuse by Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab Najdi so that he could kill the Muslims.
[“Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahab page 36”]
Shaykh Juhri says: “I cannot find any reason why they should all have been labelled Kafirs”. Juhri was a strong follower of Muhammad Bin Abdul Wahab but even he was surprised at this action by [Muhammad Bin Abdal Wahab ]
Now returning to the movement of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi, with the help of Amir-e-Duriya He destroyed the shrines. (Graves of Companions) Companions who were in the Najd.
He killed those people who were leaders of the Ahl-e-Sunnah and took their properties and possessions. With the support of those Arabs that were nationalist. They continued increasing their reign, coming out of Najd until Hijaz was taken by them and they managed to win control over the whole of Jazeerat-ul-Arab.
During this time the Ottoman Khilafah was busy engaged in international battles and was therefore unable to respond in a swift manner. In 22 June 1792, Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab Najdi died upon which Qadhi Shawkaani wrote a poem with regard to this incident; one sentence was: “Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab was that son, with whose Noor the Hijaz and its surrounding places became enlightened”. See how the person who sought help from the Kafirs is being praised!!!
For some time after, the rule was in the hands of Ahle-Saud. It was during this time, during the reign of the son of Muhammad ibn Saud, that the Ottomans sent Muhammad Ali Pasha against him, who defeated him, finished their influence in the reign. Again’ Jazeeratul Arab became part of the Islamic Caliphate, the royal family fled to Kuwait. Some time later, the Ahl-e-Saood managed to re-gain control over Jazeeratul Arab and changed its name to Saudi Arabia. Grants were given from abroad to spread Wahabi’ism. Initially it was spread by the sword but now it is through money. The Saudis came to Europe and spent the wealth from the Bait-ul-Maal as though it were their Father’s wealth. In front of the guilty Saudi Ulamas all this Haram and Bid’ah goes on but they say nothing, but will still give Fatwa’s against Milad-un-Nabi.
An interesting story: When Shaykh Faisal was deputy prime minister of Saudi Arabia, he toured India, and put flowers upon Mahatma Ghandi’s grave:
[“News, 11th May 1955”]
In 1957 Shah Sa’ud went on a tour to America, with him was the defence minister Fahad bin Sa’ud, who put flowers on the grave of George Washington. [“Kohstaan 2nd February 1957”]
When Saudi Shaykhs go to Muslim countries they do not place flowers on any of the graves of the Awliya because it may dent their Aqeedah, but by placing flowers upon the graves of Mahatma Ghandi & George Washington maybe this strengthens their Aqeedah.
Shah Sa’ud whilst on tour in India said, “I am satisfied with Indian government that they are treating the Muslims with justice”. This was at the time when Muslims were being sacrificed in Kashmir.
Shah Sa’ood invited the Indian Prime Minister, Pandat Jawahar Nehru to tour Saudi Arabia, When he arrived, the newspaper ‘Al-Balad Sa’oodia Makkah’ reported thus:
“When Nehru arrived in Riyadh, the Indian national anthem was played, the women of the royal family left their homes in the cars to welcome him.” Every thing we have written about Nehru is taken from Tareek Najd-wa-Hijaz by Allma Ghulam Rasood Sa’idi and Safar Nama by Muhammad Asim Najdi who was with Maudoodi when he toured in 1960.
Al-Balad Sa’oodia then wrote an article: We welcome Nehru as he is a peaceful and sensible person, and it is our prayer that he lives thousands of years. Shah Sa’ood secretary colonel Sadat said: ‘Mr Nehru soft voice has more effect than the bang of guns’ and called him the angel of Asia and also called him a Rasool’ our assumption is that he did not mean Prophet but messenger just as many Muslims use the name Abdul Mustafa, meaning not a worshipper but a follower.
When they received Nehru, they called him Aman-ur-Rasool. He toured a school where the rulers studied, where the Geeta was sung. We have a right to ask: “why do not the Saudi Ulama say that these things are Haram, to sing Geeta, for Muslim women to come out of their homes to welcome Kafir rulers, to put flowers on the graves of kaafirs, to call the person who slaughtered uncountable Muslims in India a messenger of peace (Amman)? Oh those who ask for authentic proof for Milad-un Nabi, by Allah show us even a da’eef (weak) hadith to justify these actions”.
When they welcomed Nehru in such a way, back. In India and Pakistan marches and rallies were organised in protest. The King was sent a telegram in 1960 by Saiyed Maududi, who came from Hajj to Saudi, he was invited on Royal order to Riyadh. Delivering his speech he said: “If we were to invite the Prime Minister of Israel to Pakistan and welcome him like you welcomed Nehru, how would you feel? You called the enemy of Muslims the messenger of peace”. The whole world criticised them for this, but no Saudi Ulama made any objections.
In the west people do Dhikr in Masjids, and do Na’at Khanni, once a month they read the Qur’an and convey the reward to Muslims who have parted from this world, especially Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilanis. The Najdi students who come to the west Write piles of books against this and ask for authentic proofs but the people and leaders of their own countries they were to put flowers on the graves of kaffirs they would quietly digest it .
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