4. The fourth of the six fundamentals of iman is "to believe in Allahu ta'ala's prophets," who were sent to make people attain the way He likes and to guide them to the right path. Literally 'rusul' (pl. of Rasul) were the 'people sent, messengers.' In Islam, 'Rasul' means 'noble, respectable person whose nature, character, knowledge and intellect are higher than those of all the people of his time, having no bad trait in his character and no disliked manner.' Prophets had the quality 'Isma, that is, they did not commit any grave or small sin before or after they were informed of their nubuwwa (prophethood, prophetship).(21) After they were informed of their nubuwwa and until their nubuwwa was known and spread out, they did not have such defects as blindness, deafness or the like. It has to be believed that every prophet had seven peculiarities: Amana (trustworthiness), Sidq (devotion), Tabligh (communication), Adala (justness), 'Isma (purity), Fatana (super-intelligence) and Amn al-'azl (security against dismissal from nubuwwa).
A prophet who brought a new faith is called a "Rasul" (messenger). A prophet who did not bring a new faith but invited people to the previous faith is called a "nabi" (prophet).(22) In the communication (tabligh) of commands and in calling the people to Allahu ta'ala's religion, there is no difference between a Rasul and a nabi. We have to believe that all prophets, without exception, were devoted and truthful. He who does not believe in one of them is regarded as not believing in any.
Nubuwwa cannot be attained by working hard, by suffering hunger or discomfort, or by praying very much. It is possessed only with Allahu ta'ala's favor and selection. Religions were sent through the mediation of prophets in order that people's affairs might be useful in this world and the next, and in order to prevent them from harmful acts and make them attain salvation, guidance, ease and happiness. Though they had many enemies and were mocked and treated harshly, prophets did not fear the enemies and showed no hesitation in communicating to people Allahu ta'ala's commands about the facts to be believed and the things to be done. Allahu ta'ala strengthened His prophets with mujizas to show that they were devoted and truthful. No one could stand against their mujizas. The community of a prophet is called his umma. On the Day of Judgement, prophets will be permitted to intercede for their ummas, especially for the ones who are gravely sinful, and their intercession will be accepted. Allahu ta'ala will permit also the 'ulama', sulaha' and awliya' among their ummas to intercede, and their intercession will be accepted. Prophets ('alaihimu 's-salawatu wa 't-taslimat) are alive in their graves in a life we cannot know; earth does not cause their blessed bodies to rot. For this reason, it was said in a hadith ash-Sharif, "Prophets perform salat and hajj in their graves."(23)
While the blessed eyes of a prophet slept, the eyes of this heart did not sleep. All prophets ('alaihimu 's-salam) were equal in doing their duties as prophets and in possessing the excellences of nubuwwa. The above-mentioned seven peculiarities existed in all of them. Prophets were never dismissed from nubuwwa. The awliya', however, may be deprived of wilaya. Prophets were human beings but not genies or angels, who could never be prophets for human beings or attain the degree of a prophet. Prophets had superiority to and honors above one another. For example, because his umma and the countries he was sent to were larger and because his knowledge and marifa spread in a vaster area and because his miracles were more plentiful and continual and because there were special blessings and favors for him, the Prophet of the Last Age, Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), was higher than all other prophets. The prophets called Ulu'l'azm were higher than the others. The Rasuls were higher than the nabis who were not Rasuls.
The number of prophets ('alaihimu 's-salam) is not known. It is well known that they were more than 124,000. Among them, 313 or 315 were Rasuls; the six higher Rasuls among them, called Ulu'l'azm, were: Adam, Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), 'Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad Mustafa ('alaihimu 's- salatu wa 's-salam).
The following thirty-three prophets are well-known: Adam, Idris, Sheet (or Shis), Nuh, hud, Salih, Ibrahim, Lut, Ismail, Ishaq, Yaqub, Yusuf, Ayyub, Shu'aib, Musa, Harun, Khidir, Yusha' ibn noon, Ilyas, Alyasa', Dhu 'l-kifl, Sham'un, Ishmoil, Yunus ibn Mata, Dawud, Sulaiman, Luqman, Zakariyya, Yahya, 'Uzair, 'Isa ibn Mariam, Dhu 'l-qarnain and Muhammad ('alaihimu 's-salatu wa 's-salam).
Only the names of twenty-eight of them are written in the Qur'an al-karim. Sheet, Khidir, Yusha', Sham'un and Ishmoil are not written. Among the twenty-eight, it is not certain whether Dhu 'l-qarnain, Luqman and 'Uzair were prophets or not. Dhu 'l-kifl ('alaihi 's-salam) was also called Harqil, who was also said to be Ilyas, Idris or Zakariyya. Ibrahim ('alaihi 's-salam) was Khalil- Allah, because there was no love for creature but only for Allahu ta'ala in his heart. Musa ('alaihi 's-salam) was Kalim-Allah, because he spoke with Allahu ta'ala. Isa ('alaihi 's-salam) was Kalimat- Allah, for he did not have a father and was born only upon al-Kalimat al-ilahiyya (the Divine Word) 'Be!' Furthermore, he preached Allahu ta'ala's words, which were full of Divine Wisdom, and communicated them to the ears of people. Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), who was the reason for the creation of all creatures and the highest, the most prominent, the most honorable of mankind, was and is Habib-Allah (Allahu ta'ala's Darling). There were many evidences proving his greatness and superiority and that he was Habib-Allah. For this reason, such words as 'was overcome' or 'was defeated' cannot be said about him. At Resurrection, he will get up from his grave before everybody. He will go to the place of Judgement first. He will go to Paradise before everybody. Though the beautiful traits in his character cannot be concluded by counting, nor would human energy suffice to count them, we will ornament our book by writing down some of them:
One of his miracles was his ascent to the Miraj: while he was in bed in al-Makkat al-Mukarrama, he was awaken and his blessed body was taken to the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem (Quds), thence to the heavens, and after the seventh heaven, to the places which Allahu ta'ala determined. We have to believe in the Miraj in this manner.(24) How the Miraj happened is written in detail in many valuable books, particularly in Shifa'-i Sharif.(25) He went with Jabrail ('alaihi's-salam) from Mecca to Sidrat al-muntaha, a tree in the sixth and seventh heavens. No knowledge, no ascent could go further than there. In Sidra, Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) saw Jabrail ('alaihi 's-salam) in his own shape with his six hundred wings. Jabrail ('alaihi 's-salam) remained in Sidra. From Mecca to Jerusalem, or to the seventh heaven, Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) was taken on Buraq, which was a white, very fast, sexless and unworldly animal of Paradise and which is smaller than a mule and bigger than an ass. It stepped beyond eyeshot. At the Aqsa Mosque, Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) became the imam for prophets in the night or morning prayer. Prophets' souls were present there in their own human figures. From Jerusalem up to the seventh sky, he was made to ascend in a moment with an unknown ladder named Miraj. On the way, angels lined up on the right and on the left, praised and lauded him. At each heaven, Jabrail ('alaihi 's-salam) announced the good news of Rasulullah's ('alaihi 's-salam) arrival. In each heaven he saw a prophet and greeted him. In Sidra, he saw many astonishing things, the blessings of Paradise and the tortures of Hell. He looked at none of the blessings of Paradise out of the desire for and the pleasure of seeing Allahu ta'ala's Jamal. Beyond Sidra, he went ahead alone, among nurs (lights). He heard the sounds of the angels' pens. He went through seventy thousand curtains. The distance between two curtains was like a way of five hundred years. After this, on a bed named Rafraf, which was brighter than the sun, he went through the Kursi and reached the 'Arsh. He went out of the 'Arsh, out of the worlds of time, space and matter. He reached the stage to hear Allahu ta'ala's Speech. He saw Allahu ta'ala in a manner that cannot be understood or explained, like Allahu ta'ala will be seen in the next world without time and space. He spoke with Allahu ta'ala without letters and sounds. He glorified, praised and lauded Him. He was given innumerable gifts and honors. Fifty times of performance of salat in a day were made fard for him and for his umma, but this was gradually reduced to five times a day with the mediation of Musa ('alaihi 's-salam). Before this, salat had been performed only in the mornings and in the afternoons or at nights. After such a long journey, having attained gifts and blessings and having seen and heard so many bewildering things, he came back to his bed, which had not become cold yet. What we have written above was understood partly from ayats and partly from hadiths. It is not wajib to believe all. Yet, since the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat communicated them, those who deny these facts will be separated from Ahl as-sunnat. And he who does not believe an ayat or a hadith becomes a disbeliever.
Let us cite some of the innumerable evidences showing that Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) is the Most Superior (Sayyid al-Anbiya') of prophets ('alaihimu 's- salawatu wa 't-taslimat).
On the Day of Judgement all prophets will shelter in the shade of his banner. Allahu ta'ala commanded all prophets ('alaihimu 's-salam) that, if they would remain alive till the time of Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), who, among creatures, was His Darling Elect, they should believe him and be his assistant. Also, all prophets ordered their ummas the same in their last requests.
Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) was the Khatam al- anbiya' (the Last Prophet), that is, no prophet will succeed him. His blessed soul was created before all prophets.' The status of nubuwwa was given first to him. Nubuwwa was completed with his honoring the world. Towards the end of the world, during the time of Hadrat al-Mahdi, 'Isa (alaihi 's-salam) will descend from the sky to Damascus and belong to Muhammad's ('alaihi 's-salam) umma and preach Islam on the earth.(26)
Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) is the highest of prophets and is Allahu ta'ala's compassion for all creatures. 18,000 'alams (worlds of beings) received benefit from his ocean of blessings. By the consensus [of the 'ulama'], he is the Prophet for all human beings and genies. Many [scholars] said he was the Prophet for angels, plants, animals and for every substance. While other prophets had been sent to certain tribes in certain countries, Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) was and is the Prophet of all worlds and all the living and lifeless creatures. Allahu ta'ala had addressed other prophets by their names. As for Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), He favored him by addressing him, "Oh My Prophet (Rasul)!" The like of every miracle that had been granted to every prophet was presented to him.
Allahu ta'ala bestowed upon His Beloved Prophet more gifts and granted him more miracles than He had done to any other prophet of His. He was made superior to all prophets with countless honors and excellences: the moon split into two when he made a sign with his blessed finger; the stones in his palm uttered the Name of Allah; trees greeted him by saying, "O Rasulullah"; the dry log named Hannana cried because Rasulullah ('alaihi 's- salam) departed from its side and left it alone; pure water flowed down through his blessed fingers; the high grades of al-Maqam al-Mahmud, ash-Shafaat al-kubra, al-Hawd al-Kawthar, al-Wasila and al-Fadila were said to be given to him in the next world; he had the honor of seeing Allahu ta'ala's Jamal before entering Paradise; he had the greatest moral quality in the world, the most perfect faith, knowledge, gentleness, patience, gratitude, zuhd (devotion, asceticism), chastity, justness, heroism, bashfulness, bravery, modesty, wisdom, beautiful manners, helpfulness, mercy and inexhaustible honors and honorable traits. No one but Allahu ta'ala knows the number of miracles given to him. His religion abrogated all other religions. His religion was the best and highest of all the religions. His umma is higher than all other ummas. The awliya' of his umma are more honorable than the awliya' of other ummas.
Among the awliya' of the umma of Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), the one who deserved to be his Khalifa (caliph) was Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (radi- Allahu ta'ala 'anh), who was loved most by the awliya' and imams and was more suited for the caliphate than others. After prophets, he is the highest and the most auspicious of all human beings that have come and that will come. He was the first to attain the status and honor of caliphate. With the favors and blessings of Allahu ta'ala, he had not worshipped idols before Islam commenced. He had been protected against the defects of disbelief and heresy.(27)
After him, the highest of human beings is the second Khalifa 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), whom Allahu ta'ala chose as a friend to His Beloved Prophet.
After him the highest of human beings is the third Khalifa of Rasulullah ('alaihi's-salam), Dhu'n- Nurain 'Uthman ibn 'Affan (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), the treasure of favors and blessings and the source of modesty, faith and spiritual knowledge.
After him, the most auspicious of human beings is the fourth Khalifa of Rasulullah ('alaihi's -salam), 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), the possessor of astonishing superiorities and the Lion of Allahu ta'ala.
Hadrat Hasan ibn 'Ali (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum)(28) became the Khalifa after him. The thirty years of caliphate mentioned in the hadith ash-Sharif was completed with him. After him, the highest human being is Hadrat Husain ibn 'Ali(radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum), the light of Rasulullah's ('alaihi's-salam) eyes.
These superiorities were based on their having earned more thawab; abandoned their country and their beloved ones for the sake of Islam; being Muslims before others; adapted themselves to Rasulullah ('alaihi's-salam) to the highest extent; given themselves up to his sunnat; struggled in spreading his religion; and prevented disbelief, fitna and corruption.
Hadrat Ali (radi-Allahu 'anh) embraced Islam before everybody with the exception of Hadrat Abu Bakr (radi- Allahu 'anh). Yet he was a child and had no property and lived in Rasulullah's ('alaihi 's-salam) house and served him. Therefore, his embracing Islam did not cause disbelievers to become Muslim, to take warning or to be defeated. Whereas, the embracement of the other three Khalifas strengthened Islam. Because Hadrat 'Ali and his sons (radiAllahu ta'ala 'anhum) were the closest relatives of Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) and of Rasulullah's blessed blood, they might be said to have been higher than Hadrat Abu Bakr and Hadrat 'Umar, but their superiority was not a superiority in every respect and did not help them surpass these great persons in every way. It was similar to Khidir's ('alaihi 's-salam) having taught something to Musa ('alaihi 's-salam)(29). Hadrat Fatima was higher than Hadrat Khadija and Hadrat Aisha (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhunna) because she was closer to the Prophet in respect of blood. But one type of superiority should not show a superiority in every respect. The 'ulama' remarked differently on which of these was the highest. As it is understood from the hadith ash-Sharif, these three, Hadrat Mariam and the Pharaoh's wife, Hadrat Asiya, were the five highest of all the worldly women. The hadith ash-Sharif, "Fatima is superior to the women of Paradise, and Hasan and Husain are the highest youths of Paradise," referred to a superiority only in one respect.
The next highest ones of the Sahabat al-kiram (Companions of the Prophet) were al-'Asharat al-Mubashshara, the ten people blessed with the good news of [going to] Paradise. After them, the highest Muslims were the 313 Muslims who took part in the Holy Battle of Badr. The next were the 700 brave Muslims who took part in the Holy Battle of Uhud. Next to them were the Bi'at ar-Ridwan, the 1400 Muslims who took the oath of allegiance to Rasulullah under the tree.
As-Sahabat al-kiram (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum ajmain) sacrificed their lives and property for the sake of Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) and assisted him. It is incumbent (wajib) upon us to mention the name of any of them with veneration and love. It is never permissible to say words unbecoming their greatness. It is a heresy to mention their names disrespectfully.
One who loves Rasulullah ('alaihi 's-salam) has to love all of his Companions. A hadith ash-Sharif says, "He who loves my companions loves them because he loves me. He who does not love them does not love me. He who hurts them hurts me. And he who hurts me hurts Allahu ta'ala. A person who hurts Allahu ta'ala will certainly suffer torture." In another hadith ash-Sharif he declared, "When Allahu ta'ala wants to favor one of my umma, He places in his heart the love of my Companions, and he loves them dearly."
For this reason, it should not be supposed that as-Sahabat al-kiram fought each other for becoming the Khalifa or satisfying their evil thoughts or their sensual desires. It is hypocrisy which leads one to ruination to speak ill of them out of such a supposition, since jealousy and desire for position and addiction to the world had been completely cleared away from their hearts by sitting in the presence of Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) and hearing his blessed words. They were corrected and became free from greed, ambition, grudge and evil nature; they were wholly purified. Considering the fact that a person who stays for a few days in the presence of one of the walis of the umma of the Exalted Prophet benefits from the wali's beautiful morals and excellences and gets clean of worldly ambitions, how could it ever be presumed that the Prophet's Companions, our masters, who loved Rasulullah more than anybody else and sacrificed their possessions and lives for him and abandoned their country for him and were fond of his company, which was nourishment for spirits, were not free from bad morals, that their nafses were not clean and that they fought for the carrion of this temporary world? Those great people were certainly cleaner than everybody. It is unbecoming to liken the disagreements and combats between them to those between us, an ill-willed people, or to say that they fought to satisfy their evil, sensual and worldly desires. It is not permissible to bear such improper thoughts against as-Sahabat al-kiram. A person who would say something against them should know that to be hostile towards as-Sahabat al-kiram is to be hostile towards Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam), and to speak ill of them means to speak ill of him, who educated and trained them. For this reason, the great men of Islam say that he who does not respect and have a high opinion of as-Sahabat al-kiram is in disbelief in Rasulullah. The battles of "Jamal" (Camel) and Siffin cannot be taken as grounds for slandering them. Because of some religious reasons, none of those who stood against Hadrat 'Ali in these battles was evil; in fact, they all deserved to be rewarded on the Day of Judgement. A hadith ash-Sharif says, "One reward will be given to the mujtahid who is mistaken, and two or ten to him who finds out what is right. One of the two rewards is for employing ijtihad. The other is for finding the truth." The disputes and combats among those great people of Islam were not out of obstinacy or hostility but because of their [different] ijtihads and out of their wish to carry out what Islam ordered. Each of as-Sahabat al-kiram was a mujtahid.(30)
It was fard for every mujtahid to act in accordance with the conclusion he had found by his own ijtihad, even if his ijtihad might not be in agreement with that of a mujtahid much higher than he. It was not permissible for him to follow another's ijtihad. Abu Yusuf and Muhammad ash-Shaibani, the disciples of al-Imam al-azam Abu Hanifa Numan ibn Thabit [d. Baghdad, 150 A.H. (767)], and Abu Sawr and Ismail al-Muzani, the disciples of Imam Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi'i, [d. Egypt, 204 A.H. (820)], disagreed with their masters on many aspects, and about some of the things which their masters said 'haram' (forbidden) they said 'halal' (permitted), and about some of the things which their masters said 'halal' they said 'haram.' They cannot be said to be sinful or evil on that account. No one has said so, for they were mujtahids like their masters.
It is true that Hadrat 'Ali (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) was more exalted and learned than Hadrat Muawiya and Hadrat 'Amr ibn al-'As (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhuma). He had many superior qualities to distinguish him from them, and his ijtihad was stronger and sharper than their ijtihads. However, since all as-Sahabat al-kiram were mujtahids, it was not permissible for those two to follow the ijtihad of that great religious leader. It was necessary for them to act upon their own ijtihads.
Question: "In the battles of 'Jamal' and Siffin, a great many of the Muhajirun and Ansar among as-Sahabat al-kiram took part with, obeyed and followed Hadrat 'Ali. Though all of them were mujtahids, they considered it was wajib to follow him. This shows that it was wajib also for mujtahids to follow Hadrat 'Ali. They had to follow him even if their ijtihads did not agree with his, did they not?"
Answer: Those who followed Hadrat 'Ali and fought on his side joined him not with the view of following his ijtihad but because their ijtihads were in agreement with his ijtihad and showed that it was wajib to follow Imam 'Ali. Similarly, the ijtihads of many prominent Companions of the Prophet did not agree with that of Hadrat 'Ali, and it became wajib for them to fight against him. The ijtihads of as-Sahabat al-kiram happened in three different ways then: some of them understood that Hadrat 'Ali was right, and it became necessary for them to follow Hadrat 'Ali; another side saw that the ijtihad of those who fought Hadrat 'Ali was right, and it became wajib for them to follow those who fought Hadrat 'Ali and to fight against him; the third group said it would be necessary not to follow either side and not to fight, and their ijtihad required them not to enter into the war. All these three sides were certainly right and deserved to be rewarded in the next word.
Question: "The [above] answer shows that those who fought against Hadrat 'Ali (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) were also right. Whereas, the scholars of Ahl
as-Sunnat have said that Hadrat 'Ali was right, that his opponents were wrong, that they were forgivable because they had an excuse, and that they even gained thawab. What can be said about that?"
Answer: Al-Imam ash-Shafi'i and 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, two great men of Islam, said that it was not permissible to use the word 'wrong' about any of as-Sahabat al-kiram. For this reason, it was said, "It is wrong to say 'wrong' about the superiors." It is not permissible for inferiors to say such words as, "He did right," "He did wrong," We approve," or "We disapprove," about the superiors. As Allahu ta'ala did not dirty our hands with the blood of these great people, so we should protect our tongues against uttering such words as 'just' and 'unjust.' Those profound scholars who studied the evidences and events and said that Imam 'Ali was right and his opponents were mistaken, in fact, meant that if Hadrat 'Ali had the opportunity to talk with those on the other side, he would have led them to employ ijtihad in conformity with his ijtihad. As a matter of fact, Hadrat Zubair ibn Awwam was against Hadrat 'Ali in the Battle of "Jamal" but, after studying the facts more deeply, he changed his ijtihad and gave up fighting. The words of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat who consider the mistake as permissible should be taken as such. And it is not permissible to say that Hadrat 'Ali and those who were with him were on the just way and the other Companions of the Prophet, who were on the other side with our mother Aisha as-Siddiqa, were on the corrupt way.
These combats among as-Sahabat al-kiram were out of the differences of ijtihad in the branches of the Ahkam ash-Shariyya (the rules of Islam). They did not have any disagreements on the fundamentals of Islam. Today, some people speak ill and disrespectfully of the great men of Islam such as Hadrat Muawiya and 'Amr ibn al-As (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhuma). They cannot realize that they in reality defame and belittle Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) by defaming as-Sahabat al-kiram. It is written in Shifa' ash-Sharif that Imam Malik ibn Anas said, "A person who swears at and slanders Muawiya(31) and 'Amr ibn al-As(32) deserves the words he says against them. It is necessary to punish severely those who talk and write against and do not show respect for them." May Allahu ta'ala fill our hearts with the love for His Beloved's companions! Not hypocrites or sinful people but pious and Allah-fearing Muslims love those superiors.
Those who realize the value and greatness of Rasulullah's (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) Companions and who love and respect all of them and follow them are called Ahl as-Sunnat. Those who claim to love some of them and don't love others thus slander most of them, and those who do not follow any of them, are called Shiites. There are many Shiites in Iran, India and Iraq. There are none in Turkey. Some of them, in order to deceive the pure Muslim 'Alawis in Turkey, call themselves 'Alawi, which means 'Muslim who loves Hadrat 'Ali'. Loving someone necessitates following in his footsteps and loving those whom he loves; if they loved Hadrat 'Ali (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) they would follow in his footsteps. He loved all of the Prophet's companions. He was a counsellor to the Khalifa Hadrat 'Umar, who confided his woes to him. He married his and Hadrat Fatima's daughter Umm Ghulsum to Hadrat 'Umar. In a khutba, he said about Hadrat Muawiya, "Our brethren disagreed with us. Yet they are not disbelievers or sinners. Their ijtihad occurred in that manner." When Hadrat Talha (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), who was fighting against him, died a martyr, he himself cleaned the dust from his face and became the imam in the salat performed for his death. Allahu ta'ala declared, "believers are brothers." In the last ayat karima of the Surat al-Fat'h He reports, "The Prophet's Companions loved one another." Not to love even one of the Prophet's Companions, or the worst of it, to bear hostility towards him, is to disbelieve the Qur'an al-karim. The scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat understood the superiority of as-Sahabat al-kiram (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum ajmain) correctly and ordered Muslims to love all of them and thus rescued Muslims from the danger.
Those who disliked and bore hostility towards our superiors Hadrat Ali (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) and his sons and descendants, the apples of the eyes of Ahl as-Sunnat, were called Kharijis (Khawarij). Now they are called Yazidis. Their faith is so corrupt that they hardly have any relation with Islam.
The Wahhabis, while claiming to love all as-Sahabat al-kiram, follow not their path but their own heretical path which they ascribe to as-Sahaba. They do not like the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat, great sufis and Alawis and slander all of them. They suppose that they alone are Muslims. They regard those who are not like them as "polytheists" and consent to taking their lives and property. Therefore, they become Ibahatis. They draw wrong, heretical meanings from the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif and think that Islam consists merely of those meanings. They deny the adilat ash- Shariyya and most hadiths. The notables of the four madhhabs have written many books proving with documents that those who depart from Ahl as-Sunnat have gone astray and do much harm to Islam(33).
Ayyub Sabri Pasha (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala) said, "Wahhabism came out with a bloody, torturous rebellion on the Arabian Peninsula in 1205 (1791)." Muhammad 'Abduh of Egypt was one of the people who tried to spread anti- madhhabism through his books around the world. In the time of the Union and Progress Party, 'Abduh's books were translated into Turkish and were presented to the youth as the "work of the great scholar of Islam, the enlightened man of ideas, the eminent reformer 'Abduh." Whereas, 'Abduh had openly written that he admired Jamal ad-din al-Afghani [d. 1314 A.H. (1897)], who was a freemason and chief of the Cairo Masonic Lodge. The enemies of Islam, who were in ambush to abolish Ahl as-Sunnat and to annihilate Islam by words falsely praising Islam, insidiously incited this fitna by disguising themselves as religious men. 'Abduh was lauded to the skies. Great scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat, the aimmat al-madhahib, were announced to have been ignorant people. Their names were no longer mentioned. But the pure and noble descendants of our ancestors, who had sacrificed their lives for the sake of Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) and Islam, the sons of honorable martyrs, would not succumb to propaganda and advertisements, for which millions of pounds had been spent. They would not even listen to or acknowledge these false "heroes of Islam." Allahu ta'ala protected the children of martyrs against these heinous attacks. Today, translated books of the anti-madhhabites like Mawdudi (34), Sayyid Qutb(35) and Hamidullah are presented to the youth. They contain heretical ideas unconforming with what the scholars of ahl as-Sunnat said and are extolled extravagantly through gigantic advertisements. We must be always alert and careful. May Allahu ta'ala wake up Muslims from unawareness for the sake of His Beloved Prophet Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam)! May He protect us against being taken in by the lies and slanders of the enemies! Amin. Let us not deceive ourselves by praying only! To pray without clinging to al-Adat al-ilahiyya (Divine Law) of Allahu ta'ala, without working or holding on to the means, would be to ask miracles of Allahu ta'ala. A Muslim should both work and pray. We should first hold on to the means and then pray. The first means for escaping disbelief is to learn and teach Islam. As a matter of fact, it is obligatory (fard) and the primary duty for everybody, man or woman, to learn the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat, the commands and prohibitions.
Those who do not learn the faith and teachings ('ilm al-hal) of Ahl as-Sunnat or teach them to their children are exposed to the danger of deviating rom Islam and falling into the abyss of disbelief. The prayers of such people are not acceptable. Then, how can they protect themselves against disbelief? Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) said, "There is Islam where there is knowledge. There is no Islam where there is no knowledge." As it is necessary to eat and drink in order not to die of hunger, so it is necessary to learn our religion in order not to be deceived by disbelievers and not to become non-Muslims. Our ancestors frequently assembled and read 'ilm al-hal books and thus remained Muslim and enjoyed Islam. They communicated this light of bliss correctly to us. So, for remaining Muslim and not letting our children be captured by the enemies inside or outside, the first and the most necessary preventive measure is to read and digest the 'ilm al-hal books prepared by the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. Parents who
want their child to be a Muslim should send it to a teacher and make certain that it shall learn how to read the Qur'an al-karim. Let us read, learn and teach our children and those we are responsible for while we have the chance. It will be difficult or even impossible for them when they go to school. It will be useless to lament after the degeneration takes place. We should not believe the enemies of Islam, their deceptive and false books, newspapers, magazines, television and radio programs, and motion pictures. Ibn Abidin (rahimah- Allahu ta'ala) wrote in the third volume [of Radd al-mukhtar ] that those insidious disbelievers who, though they do not believe in any religion, pretend to be Muslims and teach things that cause disbelief as if they were Islamic, and who strive to cause Muslims to go out of Islam, are called "zindiqs."
Question: "A person who has read translations of their corrupt books says:
'We should read interpretations (tafsir) of the Qur'an al-karim. To entrust the job of comprehending our religion and the Qur'an al-karim to religious scholars is a dangerous and horrible thought. The Qur'an al-karim says not "Oh Religious Scholars" but "Oh Muslims" and "Oh Mankind." For this reason, every Muslim should understand the Qur'an al-karim himself and should not expect this job from anybody else.'
"He wants everybody to read tafsir and hadith books. He does not recommend reading the books of kalam, fiqh and 'ilm al-hal written by Islamic scholars and great men of Ahl as-Sunnat. The publication of Rashid Rida's (36) book Islamda Birlik ve Fikh Mezhebleri by the Chief Office of Religious Affairs (publication no. 157; 1394/1974) has all the more confused readers. On its many pages, particularly in the "Sixth Dialogue," the book states:
'They [muqallids, followers of one of the four madhhabs] extolled the mujtahid imams to the degree of prophethood. They even preferred a mujtahid's word which disagreed with the Prophet's hadith to the hadith. They said that the hadith could have been annulled (naskh) or there could have been another hadith in their imam's view. By acting upon the words of those people who might have been wrong in their judging and who might have not known the matter, and by relinquishing the hadith of the Prophet, who was free from error, these muqallids also contradict mujtahids. They even contradict the Qur'an by doing so. They say that no one but a mujtahid imam could understand the Qur'an. Such words of faqihs and other muqallids show that they have adopted them from Jews and Christians. On the contrary, it is easier to understand the Qur'an and the Hadith than understanding the books written by the men of fiqh. Those who have digested Arabic words and grammar will not have difficulty in understanding the Qur'an and the Hadith. Who on earth could deny the fact that Allah is capable of explaining His own religion explicitly? Who could object to the fact that Rasulullah was more able than anybody else to understand what Allah meant and could explain it better than others? To say that the Prophet's explanations were insufficient for Muslims is to claim that he was not able to carry out his duty of communication (tabligh) precisely. If the majority of people had not been able to understand the Qur'an and the Sunnat, Allah would not have charged all people with the rules in the Book and the Sunnat. One should know what one believes together with its documentary evidences. Allah disapproves of taqlid (adapting oneself to a madhhab) and says that their [muqallids'] imitating their fathers and grandfathers would not be deemed excusable. Ayats show that taqlid is never approved by Allah. It is easier to understand that part of the religion concerning the furu' from its dalil (document, source) than it is to understand the part pertaining to faith (usul, iman). While charging with the difficult one, would not He charge with the easy one? It will be difficult to draw rules from some rare matters, yet then it will be deemed as an excuse not to know or do them. The men of fiqh invented a number of masala (problems, matters) by themselves. They produced rules for them. They attempted to introduce such things as ra'y, qiyas jali and qiyas khafi as documents for them. These were made to overflow into the field of 'ibadat, on which it is impossible to acquire knowledge through reasoning. Thus they expanded the religion several times. They drove Muslims into trouble. I do not deny qiyas; I say that there is no qiyas in the field of 'ibadat. Iman and 'ibadat were completed in the time of the Prophet. No one can add anything to them. The mujtahid imams prohibited people from imitating (taqlid) and made taqlid a prohibition.'
"This passage, which is taken from the book published by the Chief Office of Religious Affairs, like all anti- maddhabite books, prohibits following the imams of the four madhhabs. It commands that everybody should learn tafsir and hadith. What would you say about it?"
Answer: If the passages written by the non-madhhabite are read with attention, one will easily see that they try to deceive Muslims by embellishing their heretical thoughts and separatist views with an unsound series of reasoning and false statements. The ignorant, thinking that the writing is based upon knowledge within the framework of logic and reason, may fall for it, yet the learned, keen-sighted people will never be caught in their traps.
In order to warn the youth against the danger of non-madhhabism or anti-Sunnism, which has been driving Muslims towards eternal perdition, the 'ulama' of Islam (rahimahum-Allahu ta'ala) have written thousands of valuable books for fourteen centuries. The following is the translation of some passages from the book Hujjat- Allahi 'ala 'l-'alamin by Yusuf an-Nabhani [d. Beirut, 1350 A.H. (1932)] as an answer to the question above:
"Not everybody can draw ahkam (rules, conclusions) from the Qur'an al-karim. Since even the mujtahid imams would not be able to draw from all the rules in the Qur'an al-karim, Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) explained the rules in the Qur'an al-karim in his hadiths. As the Qur'an al-karim was explained by him only, so the hadiths could be understood and explained by as-Sahabat al-kiram and the mujtahid imams only. In order that they could understand them, Allahu ta'ala endowed upon His mujtahid imams scientific and religious knowledge, strong comprehension, keen sight, superfluous mind, and many more virtues. Ahead of all these virtues was taqwa. Next came the Divine Light in their hearts. With the help of these virtues, our mujtahid imams understood what Allahu ta'ala and Rasulullah meant in their words, and, as for those they could not understand, they showed [solutions for] them through qiyas. Each of the four aimmat al-madhahib informed that he did not speak out of his own opinion and said to his disciples, 'If you find a sahih hadith, leave my word aside and follow Rasulullah's hadith!' Whom our aimmat al-madhahib told this were profound scholars who were mujtahids like them. These scholars were the mujtahids of tarjih (ability to distinguish between) who knew the documentation of the four madhhabs. They studied the documents and the transmitters of the hadith on which the madhhab imam had based his ijtihad and those of the newly encountered sahih hadith, and examined which was said later and many other conditions, and thus understood which was to be preferred (tarjih). Or, the mujtahid imam [the imam al-madhhab] decided about a problem (masala) through qiyas because he did not know the hadith which would document [or solve] it, and his disciples, finding that hadith, decided differently. But, while employing such an ijtihad, the disciples did not go beyond the rules of the imam. Those mujtahid Muftis who succeeded them gave fatwa in this manner, too. As it is understood from all that has been written here, those Muslims who have been following the four aimmat al-madhhahib, and the mujtahids who were educated in their madhhabs, have been following the rules of Allahu ta'ala and His Messenger. These mujtahids understood the rules in the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif, which nobody else could understand, and conveyed what they understood. Muslims have been living up to what mujtahids understood and communicated from the Nass, that is, the Book and the Sunnat. Because Allahu ta'ala declares in the 43 rd ayat karima of surat al-Nahl, "If you do not know, ask those who know."(37)
"Only upon the Umma of His Beloved Prophet (sall- Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) did Allahu ta'ala bestow the fortune that the aimmat al-madhahib would perform ijtihad and establish their madhhabs, and that all Muslims would come together in these madhhabs. Allahu ta'ala, on the one hand, created the imams of itiqad 38) and prevented heretics, zindiqs, mulhids and Satan- like men from defiling the knowledge of itiqad, and, on the other, protected His religion from being defiled by creating the imams of madhhabs. Since this blessing did not exist in Christianity and Judaism, their religions were defiled and were turned into playthings."
"By consensus of the scholars of Islam, there came no deep scholar capable of employing ijtihad after the four hundred years following Rasulullah's (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) death. A person who says that it is necessary to employ ijtihad now must be mad or ignorant of the religion. When the great scholar Jalal ad-din as-Suyuti 'Abd ar-Rahman [rahimah-Allahu ta'ala, d. Egypt, 911 A.H. (1505)] said he had reached the grade of ijtihad, other contemporary scholars asked him about a question to which two different answers had been given and inquired of him to tell which answer was more dependable. He could not answer them. He said he was too busy to spare any time for it. Whereas, what he was asked to do was to employ ijtihad on a fatwa, which was the lowest degree of ijtihad. Seeing that such a deep scholar as as-Suyuti evaded employing ijtihad on a fatwa, what shall we call those who force people to employ absolute (mutlaq) ijtihad, if we should not call them mad or spiritually ignorant? Al-Imam al-Ghazali (39) (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala) reported in his book Ihya' 'Ulum ad-Din that there was no mujtahid in his time."
"If a non-mujtahid Muslim learns a sahih hadith and if it becomes hard for him to do the way (that disagrees with the hadith) of the imam of his madhhab, he has to search and find within the four madhhabs another mujtahid whose ijtihad was based on that hadith and do that affair of his in accordance with the madhhab that mujtahid belonged to. Great scholar al-Imam Yahya an-Nawawi [rahimah-Allahu ta'ala, d. Damascus, 676 A.H. (1277)] explained this in detail in his Rawdat at-talibin. For, it is not permissible for those who have not reached the grade of ijtihad to draw rules from the Nass, that is, the Book and the Sunnat. Now some ignoramuses claim that they have reached the grade of absolute ijtihad, that they can draw rules from the Nass and that they no longer need to follow one of the four madhhabs, and they abandon the madhhab they have followed for years. They attempt to refute the madhhabs with their unsound thoughts. They say such ignorant, stupid statements as, 'We will not follow the opinion of a religious man who was as ignorant as we are.' Deluded by Satan and provoked by the nafs, they claim superiority. They cannot realize that by saying so they reveal not their superiority but their stupidity and ignominy. Among these, we see also those heretical ignoramuses who say and write that everybody should read and derive rules from tafsir books and [the Sahih of] al-Bukhari. Oh My Muslim Brother! Completely avoid making friends with such idiots or supposing that they are religious men! Hold fast to the madhhab of your imam! You are free to choose whichever you like of the four madhhabs. But it is not permissible to collect the facilities (rukhsas) of the madhhabs, that is, to unify the madhhabs, which is called 'talfiq'.(40)
"A Muslim who can read and understand hadiths well should learn the hadiths that are his madhhab's documents, then do the actions praised and shun those prohibited by the hadiths and learn the greatness and value of the Islamic religion, the perfection of Allahu ta'ala's and Rasulullah's (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) names and attributes, Rasulullah's life, his virtues and miracles, the order of this and the next worlds, of the Resurrection, of the Judgement and Paradise and Hell, angels, genies, ancient ummas, prophets and their books, the superiorities peculiar to Rasulullah and to the Qur'an al-karim, the lives of his Al (immediate relatives) and those of his Companions, the harbingers of the Last Day and many more items of information pertaining to this world and the next. All the information pertaining to this world and the next has been accumulated in Rasulullah's hadiths."
"When what we have written here is understood, it will become apparent how ignorant are those who say that those rules of Islam which were not derived from hadiths are useless. Among the innumerous items of information given in hadiths, those hadiths teaching 'ibadat and muamalat are very few. According to some scholars, there are about five hundred [including the repetitive ones, there are no more than three thousand]. It is not presumable that any one of the four aimmat al-madhahib might not have heard one sahih hadith among so few hadiths. Each sahih hadith was used as a document by at least one of the four aimmat al-madhahib. A Muslim who sees that some affair in his own madhhab is unsuitable with a sahih hadith should do the affair by following another madhhab which based its ijtihad on that hadith. Perhaps the imam of his own madhhab also heard of the hadith, but, following another hadith which he understood was more sahih or was [said by the Prophet] later in date and annulled the former, or, for some other reasons known to mujtahids, he did not take the former hadith as a document. It is good for a Muslim who understands that the former hadith is sahih to give up his own madhhab's ijtihad which is not suitable with the hadith and to follow the hadith, yet, in this case he has to follow another madhhab which used that hadith in its ijtihad for this matter. For, the imam of that second madhhab, knowing those documents of the rules (ahkam) which he did not know, found out that there was nothing to deter acting upon that hadith. Nevertheless, it is as well permissible for him to carry out that affair in accordance with his own madhhab, for it is doubtless that the imam of his own madhhab relied upon a sound document in his ijtihad. Islam deems it excusable for a muqallid not to know that document. For, none of the imams of the four madhhabs overflowed the Book and the Sunnat in ijtihad. Their madhhabs are the explanations of the Book and the Sunnat. They explained the meanings and rules in the Book and the Sunnat for Muslims. They explained them in a way that Muslims can understand
them, and wrote them down in books. This work of the aimmat al-madhahib (rahimahum-Allahu ta'ala) was such a tremendous service to Islam that human power would not have sufficed for doing it if Allahu ta'ala had not helped them. [Existence of] these madhhabs is one of the most perfect evidences of the fact that Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) is the True Prophet and Islam is the True Religion."
"The difference in the ijtihads of our aimmat al-madhahib were only in matters pertaining to furu' ad-din, that is, in matters of fiqh. There was no disagreement among them in respect to usul ad-din, that is, in the knowledge of itiqad or iman. Nor did they differ from one another in those teachings of furu' which are known to be essential in the religion and which were taken from those hadiths whose documents were reported by tawatur. They differed only in some aspects of knowledge concerning furu' ad-din. This arose from the difference in their understanding the soundness of the documents of these matters. And this little difference among them is [Allahu ta'ala's] compassion over the umma; it is permissible (jaiz) for Muslims to follow any madhhab they like and find easy. Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) foretold this difference as glad tidings, and it has happened as he foretold."
"It is not permissible to employ ijtihad in the knowledge of itiqad, that is, in the facts to be believed. It gives way to deviation and heresy. It is a grave sin. There is only one correct path in matters pertaining to itiqad: ahl as-Sunnat wal-Jamaat. The difference which was declared to be [Allahu ta'ala's] compassion in the hadith ash-Sharif was the difference in furu' or ahkam."
"In a matter on which the judgements of the four madhhabs differ from one another, only one of the judgements is correct. Those who do this correct way will be given two thawabs, and those who act according to one of the incorrect judgements will be given one thawab. That the madhhabs are compassion shows the fact that it is permissible to give up one madhhab and follow another. But it is not permissible to follow any madhhab - other than the four- that belongs to Ahl as-Sunnat, nor even as-Sahabat al-kiram, since their madhhabs were not put into written form and have been forgotten. There is now no possibility for following any madhhab other than the known four. Imam Abu Bakr Ahmad ar-Razi [rahimah-Allahu ta'ala, d. 370 A.H. (980)], too, reported that it had been declared unanimously by the 'ulama' of Islam that it was not permissible to follow [directly] as-Sahabat al-kiram. I recommend that those who want to understand well the superiority of the madhhabs, of mujtahids, especially of the four aimmat al-madhhahib, the fact that their madhhabs did not go beyond the Book and the Sunnat and that the rules which they conveyed through ijma' and qiyas were not their own opinions but were taken from the Book and the Sunnat, should read the books Al-mizan al-kubra and Al-mizan al-Khidriyya by Imam 'Abd al-Wahhab ash-Sharani (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala)."(41)
It is not correct to say, "Qur'an al-karim does not say 'religious scholars.' " Various ayats in praise of scholars ('ulama') and knowledge ('ilm). Hadrat 'Abd al-Ghani an-Nabulusi [d. 1143 A.H. (1731)] wrote in his Al-Hadiqa: "The 7th ayat of surat al-Anbiya says, 'Ask the men of dhikr what you do not know.' 'Dhikr' means 'knowledge'. This ayat karima commands those who know little to find scholars and learn from them." It is declared in the seventh ayat karima of surat Al 'Imran, "Only possessors of knowledge understand the meaning of inexplicit ayats"; in the 18th ayat karima of the same sura, "That Allahu ta'ala is existent and unique is understood and reported by possessors of knowledge"; in the 81st ayat karima of surat al-Qasas, "Possessors of knowledge said to them, 'Shame on you! The rewards Allahu ta'ala will give to those who believe and do good deeds are better than worldly favors'"; in the 56 th ayat karima of surat Rum, "Possessors of knowledge and belief will say, 'Well, this is the Day of Resurrection which you denied in the world'"; in the 108th ayat karima of surat Isra, "Possessors of knowledge, upon hearing al-Qur'an al-karim, will prostrate and say, 'There is no defect in our Owner, who does not break His Word'"; in the 54th ayat of surat Hajj, "Possessors of knowledge understand that al-Qur'an al-karim is the Word of Allah"; in the 50th ayat karima of surat Ankabut, "Al-Qur'an al-karim has settled in the hearts of possessors of knowledge"; in the sixth ayat karima of 'surat Saba', "Possessors of knowledge know that al-Qur'an al-karim is the Word of Allah and renders attaining to Allahu ta'ala's consent"; in the eleventh ayat karima of surat al-Mujadala, "High ranks will be granted to possessors of knowledge in Paradise"; in the 27th ayat karima of surat al-Fatir, "Only possessors of knowledge fear Allahu ta'ala"; in the 14th ayat karima of surat al-Hujurat, "Most valuable among you is the one who fears Allahu ta'ala much." It is declared in the hadiths quoted on the 365th page of the same book, "'Allahu ta'ala and angels and all creatures pray for him who teaches people what is good'; 'On the Day of Judgement, first prophets, then scholars and then martyrs will intercede'; 'Oh Men! Be it known that knowledge can be acquired by listening to the scholar'; 'Learn knowledge! Learning knowledge is an 'ibada. The teacher and the learner of knowledge will be given the reward of jihad. Teaching knowledge is like giving alms. Learning knowledge from the scholar is like performing midnight salat.' "Tahir Buhari(42), the author of the fatwa book Khulasa, states: "Reading fiqh books is more thawab than performing salat at nights. For, it is fard to learn the fards and harams from ['alims or their] books. To read fiqh books in order to carry out what is learned or to teach others is better than performing salat at-tasbih. It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif, 'Learning knowledge is more thawab than all supererogatory 'ibadat, for it is useful both for oneself and for those whom one will teach'; 'The person who learns in order to teach others will be rewarded like Siddiqs.' The knowledge of Islam can be learned only from a master and from books. Those who say that the books of Islam and guides are unnecessary are liars or zindiqs. They deceive Muslims and lead them to ruination. The knowledge in religious books is derived from the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif." The translation from Hadiqa(43) ends here."
Allahu ta'ala sent His Messenger ('alaihi's-salam) so that he would communicate and teach the Qur'an al-karim. As-Sahabat al-kiram learned the knowledge in the Qur'an al-karim from Rasulullah. The scholars of Islam learned it from as-Sahabat al-kiram, and all Muslims learned it from the scholars of Islam and their books. It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif, "Knowledge is a treasury. Its key is to ask and learn"; "Learn and teach knowledge!" "Everything has a source. The source of taqwa is the hearts of 'arifs." "Teaching knowledge is an atonement for sins."
Al-Imam ar-Rabbani (rahmat-Allahu ta'ala 'alaih) wrote in the 193 rd letter of the first volume of his work Maktubat:
"A responsible person [one at the age of puberty] first has to correct his iman, his faith. That is, to learn and believe faith as taught by the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat wal-Jamaat. May Allahu ta'ala give much thawabs to those great men for their endeavors. Amin. Escape from torture in the next world depends only upon learning and believing the knowledge which these great people deduced correctly. [Those who follow their path are called Sunni.] It is declared in a hadith ash-Sharif that one group will be saved from Hell, and they are those Muslims who follow in the footsteps of these scholars. The real Muslims who follow the path of Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) and his Companions (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum) are only these Muslims. The right and valuable knowledge derived from the Qur'an al-karim and the hadith ash-Sharifs, is the knowledge which the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat deduced from the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharifs. For, every heretical man of religion carrying a Muslim name claims that his own heretical beliefs have been taken from the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif. Every person with wrong ideas and heresies says that he adapts himself to the Book and the Sunnat. It is seen that not what everybody understands and deduces from the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharifs is right.
For learning the precise faith of Ahl as-Sunnat, the Persian book Al-mu'tamad, written by Hadrat Tur Pushti(44), the great Islamic scholar, which explains the true faith transmitted by the Ahl as-Sunnat scholars, is very estimable. The meaning in the book is very clear. It is easy to understand. The book was printed by Hakikat Kitabevi (Bookstore) in 1410 [1989 A.D.].
"After correcting 'aqa'id, the teachings to be believed, we should learn and obey halals, harams, fards, wajibs, sunnas, mandubs and makruhs from books of fiqh written by the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat. We should not read the heretical books published by ignorant people who could not understand these great scholars. Those Muslims who have a belief unconformable to the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat will not escape going to Hell in the next world may Allahu ta'ala protect s! If a Muslim whose faith is correct is slack in 'ibadat, he may be forgiven even if he does not make tawba. Even if he would not be forgiven, he will be saved from Hell after torture. The main thing is to correct one's faith. Khwaja 'Ubaid- Allah al-Ahrar [qaddas-Allahu ta'ala sirrahu 'l-aziz, d. Samarqand, 895 A.H. (1490)] said, 'If I were given all the kashfs and all the karamat, yet were deprived of the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat, I would consider myself ruined. If I did not have any kashf or karama but had lots of faults, and if [only] the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat were bestowed on me, I wouldn't feel sorry.'
"Today, Muslims in India are very desolate. The enemies of Islam attack from every direction. One coin given for serving Islam today is more thawab than thousands of coins given some other time. The greatest service to be done for Islam is to get the books of Ahl as-Sunnat, which teach iman and Islam, and to distribute them to villagers and young people. A person who is vouchsafed this lot shall feel pleasure; he shall thank Allahu ta'ala profusely; he is so lucky, so fortunate. It is always a good deed to serve Islam. But at such a time as this, when Islam is weakened, when many efforts are made to annihilate Islam through lies and slanders, it is a much better deed to strive to disseminate the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat. Rasulullah (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) said to his companions, 'You live at such a time that if you obey nine-tenths of Allahu ta'ala's commands and prohibitions but disobey one, you will perish. You will be tortured! After you, there will come such a time that those who then obey only one tenth of the commands and prohibitions will be saved.' [These are written in Mishkat-ul mesabih, vol. 1, 179 th article and in Tirmizi, Kitab-al Fitan, 79 th article.] It is the present time that the hadith ash-Sharif points out. It is necessary to struggle against disbelievers, to know those who attack Islam and to dislike them.(45) For disseminating the books and words of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat, one does not have to be a man of karama or a scholar. Every Muslim should struggle to do it. The opportunity should not be missed. On the Day of Judgement, every Muslim will be questioned on this and will be asked why they did not serve Islam. Those who do not strive to distribute the books teaching Islam and those who do not help people and institutions promulgating Islamic knowledge will be tortured very much. Excuse or pretext will not be accepted. Though prophets ('alaihimu 's- salam) were the highest and the most superior human beings, they never looked after their own comfort. In disseminating Allahu ta'ala's religion, the way to endless bliss, they strove day and night. To those who asked for miracles they replied that Allahu ta'ala created miracles, and their duty was to communicate Allahu ta'ala's religion. As they worked for this purpose, Allahu ta'ala helped them and created miracles. We, too, should disseminate the books and the sayings of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat (rahimahum-Allahu ta'ala) and tell the youth and our friends the baseness of disbelievers and expose the lies of the enemies and of those who slander and persecute Muslims.(46) Those who do not work for this purpose through wealth, power or profession will not escape torture. While working for this purpose, suffering distress and persecution must be deemed as a great happiness and a big profit. Prophets ('alaihimu 's-salam), while communicating Allahu ta'ala's orders to people, underwent the attacks of ignorant and ignoble people. They suffered very much. Muhammad ('alaihi 's- salam), Allahu ta'ala's Beloved, who was chosen to be the greatest of those great men said, 'No prophet suffered so much ill-treatment as I did.'"
Ahl as-sunnat scholars who showed the right path to all Muslims on the earth and guided us to learn the religion of Muhammad ('alaihi's-salam) without any change or interpolation are the scholars of the four madhhabs who reached the grade of ijtihad. The most prominent ones of them are four. The first of them was al-Imam al-azam Abu Hanifa Numan ibn Thabit (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala). He was one of the greatest 'ulama' of Islam. He became the leader of Ahl as-Sunnat. His biography is written in the Turkish books Seadet-i Ebediyye and Faideli Bilgiler. He was born in Kufa in 80 A.H. [699] and was martyred in Baghdad in 150 [767].
The second one was the great scholar Imam Malik ibn Anas (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala). The book Ibni Abidin says that he lived eighty-nine years. His grandfather was Malik bin Abi Amir.
The third one was Imam Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi'i (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala), who is the apple of the eyes of Islamic scholars. He was born in 150 [767] in Ghazza, Palestine, and passed away in Egypt in 204 [820].
The fourth one was Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahimah- Allahu ta'ala), who was born in Baghdad in 164 [100%] and passed away there in 241 [855]. He is the archstone of the Islamic building.
Today, he who does not follow one of these four great imams is in great danger. He is in heresy. Besides them there were many other Ahl as-sunnat scholars who had righteous madhhabs, too. But in the course of time their madhhabs were forgotten and could not be committed to books. For instance, the seven great Medinan scholars who were called al-Fuqaha' as-saba and 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, Sufyan ibn 'Uyayna,(47) Ishaq ibn Rahawah, Dawud at-Tai, Amir ibn Sharahil ash-Shabi, Laith ibn Sad, 'A'mash, Muhammad ibn Jarir at-Tabari, Sufyan ath-Thawri [d. Basra, 161 A.H. (778)] and 'Abd ar-Rahman Awzai (rahimahum- Allahu ta'ala) were among them.
All the Sahabat al-kiram (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anhum ajmain) were rightfully the "stars" for guidance. Any of them would have sufficed to guide the whole world to the right path. They were mujtahids, each belonging in his own madhhab. Most of their madhhabs were alike. Yet, since their madhhabs were not written into books, it is not possible for us to follow them. The madhhabs of the four imams, that is, what they communicated about the things to be believed and about the things to be done, were gathered together and explained by their disciples. They were committed to books. Today every Muslim must belong to the madhhab of one of the above mentioned four imams and live up to and perform 'ibadat in accordance with that madhhab.(48)
Among the disciples of these four imams, two scholars reached very high grades in spreading the teachings of iman. Thus, there became two madhhabs in itiqad or iman. The right faith in accord with the Qur'an-al- karim and the Hadith ash-Sharifs, is only the faith shown by these two imams, who spread on the earth the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat, which is the Group of Salvation. One of them was Abu 'l-Hasan 'Ali al-Ashari (rahimah- Allahu ta'ala), who was born in Basra in 226 A.H. [879] and died in Baghdad in 330 [941]. The other was Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (rahimah-Allahu ta'ala), who died in Samarqand in 333 [944]. In iman, every Muslim has to follow one of these two great imams.
The paths (turuq) of the awliya' are right. Not to a smallest degree have they separated from Islam.(49) The awliya' do possess karamat. All their karamat are right and true. Al-Imam 'Abdullah al-Yafii [d. Mecca, 768 A.H. (1367)] said, "Ghawth ath-Thaqalain Mawlana 'Abd al-Qadir al-Geilani 's (qaddas-Allahu ta'ala sirrahu'l- aziz)(50) karamat have been so widely known that one cannot doubt or disbelieve them since tawatur (the state of being widespread) is a sanad (documentary evidence) for authenticity."
It is not permissible to call, by imitating others, a person who performs salat "disbeliever" unless his disbelief is understood from his saying, openly and without darura (strong necessity or compulsion), a word or his using something causing him to become a disbeliever. We cannot call down curses upon him unless it is certainly known that he has died as a disbeliever. It is not permissible to curse even a disbeliever. For this reason, it is better not to curse Yazid.
FOOTNOTES
(21) Those disbelievers who insidiously try to abolish Islam say, "Before becoming the Prophet, Muhammad ('alaihi-'s-salam) had sacrificed victims to idols," and give reference to non-madhhabite books as documents. The lines above prove that this statement is a lie.
(22) 'Rasul' is also translated as 'prophet' in the text.
(23) Today, in Arabia there are people called Wahhabis. They do not believe such hadiths. They call true Muslims who believe these hadiths "disbelievers." Though they, on account of explaining wrongly the inexplicit or dubious nasses away, do not become disbelievers, they become people of bidat. They greatly harm Muslims. Wahhabism originated from the heretical ideas of Ahmad Ibn Taymiyya [d. Damascus, 728 A.H. (1328)]. It spread out among the Turks and everywhere through the books of an Egyptian named Muhammad 'Abduh [d. Egypt, 1323 A.H. (1905)]. The scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat pointed out in hundreds of their books that the Wahhabis were not the followers of a fifth madhhab, but those who are in heresy and on a wrong path. Also detailed information is given in Endless Bliss and Advice for the Muslim. May Allahu ta'ala protect young men with religious duty from falling into the path of Wahhabism, and may He not disconnect us from the right path of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat, who are praised greatly in many hadiths! Amin.
(24) The Ismaili heretics and the enemies of faith disguised as Islamic scholars try to deceive the youth by saying and writing that the Miraj was not a bodily ascent but a spiritual state (hal). We should not buy such corrupt books; we should not be deceived by them.
(25) See also our Endless Bliss, Third Fascicle. Qadi 'Iyad al-Maliki, author of Shifa', passed away in Morocco in 544 A.H. (1150).
(26) The heretical people called Qadianis, or Ahmadis, who were organized by the British in India in the lunar Hijri year 1296 (1880), tell slanderous lies about 'Isa ('alaihi 's-salam), too. Though they claim to be Muslims, they strive to abolish Islam from within. A fatwa has been issued on that they are not Muslims.
(27) It can now be understood by this statement about Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) how poor and how ignorant are those who think and write that RasulAllah ('alaihi's-salam) worshipped idols before his nubuwwa.
(28) Hasan bin Ali passed away because of being poisoned in Madina-i Munawwara in [669 A.D.].
(29) If blood relationship were the only criterion for superiority, Hadrat 'Abbas should have been regarded superior to Hadrat 'Ali. Moreover, Abu Talib and Abu Lahab, who were very close in respect of blood, did not even have the honor and superiority existing in the lowest believer.
(30) For example, it is declared in the hadith as-Sharif on the 298 th page of Al-Hadiqa that 'Amr ibn al-As (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) was a mujtahid.
(31) Hadrat Muawiya bin Abu Sufyan passed away in Damascus in 60 [680 A.D.].
(32) 'Amr Ibni al-As passed away in Egypt in 43 [663 A.D.].
(33) For more detailed information, please read the English books Advice for the Muslim and Endless Bliss, and also the Arabic Al-minhat al-wahbiyya fi 'r-raddi 'l-Wahhabiyya, At-tawassuli bi 'n-Nabi wa jahalat 'l-Wahhabiyyin and Sabil an-najat and the Persian Saif al-abrar. These works and the valuable books written in refutation to ahl al-bidat are published by Hakikat Bookstore in Istanbul. Both in Radd al-mukhtar, (written by Muhammad Emin Ibni Abidin who passed away in Damascus in 1252 [1836 A.D.] (volume III, the chapter on "Baghi") and in the Turkish Nimat-i Islam (the chapter on "Nikah"), it is clearly written that the Wahhabis are Ibahatis. Ayyub Sabri Pasha [d. 1308 A.H. (1890)], Rear-Admiral during the time of Sultan 'Abd al-Hamid Khan II, in his Turkish works Mirat al-Haramain and Ta'rikh-i Wahhabiyyan, and Ahmad Jawdat Pasha, in the seventh volume of his Turkish Ottoman History, explained in detail about the Wahhabis. Also Yusuf an-Nabhani, in his Arabic work Shawahid al-haqq (3rd ed. Cairo, 1385/1965), refuted the Wahhabis and Ibn Taymiyya at length. Fifty pages of his work have been reproduced in the Arabic book 'Ulama' al-Muslimin wa Wahhabiyyun (Istanbul, 1972).
(34) Mawdudi is the founder of the association in India named Jamaatul-islamiyya. He died in 1399.
(35) Sayyid Qutb was put to death in Egypt in 1386 [1966 A.D.]
(36) Rashid Rida is the disciple of Muhammad Abduh. He died in 1354 [1935 A.D.].
(37) This ayat shows that not everybody can understand the Book and the Sunnat correctly. It commands those who cannot understand them not to try personally to understand the Qur'an al-karim or the Hadith ash-Sharif but to learn them by asking those who have understood them. If everybody had understood the meanings in the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif correctly, the seventy-two heretical groups would not have appeared. All of those who started these groups were deeply learned, but none was able to understand the meanings in the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharif correctly. Misunderstanding them, they deviated from the right path and caused millions of Muslims to end up in perdition. Some of them have been very excessive in giving wrong meanings to ayats and hadiths so much so that they have become as heretical as to call Muslims of the right path 'disbelievers' and 'polytheists'. In the book titled Kashf ash-shubuhat, which has been translated into Turkish and slipped into Turkey in a clandestine way, it is said that it is mubah (permitted) to kill and confiscate the property of those Muslims who hold the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat.
(38) See page 59.
(39) Imam-i Muhammad Ghazali passed away in the city of Tus is 505 [1111 A.D.].
(40) 'Talfiq' means 'performance of an act by unifying or mixing the easy ways of madhhabs and in a way which is not compatible with any of them'. After one carries out an act according to one of the four madhhabs, that is, after his performance is sahih (valid, suitable) in that madhhab, his observing additionally as many as possible of the conditions that are put in the other three madhhabs with the view that the act shall be sahih and acceptable also in these madhhabs is called 'taqwa', which is very reward-deserving.
(41) Yusuf an-Nabhani, Hujjat-Allahi 'ala 'l-'alamin, p. 771-. The above quotation, which is translated from the Arabic original, does not contain
any words added by the translators, who, as done in all our books, has put additions from other books in blocked brackets here, too, to prevent confusing them with the translated text. The Arabic original of the above passage from Hujjat-Allahi 'ala 'l-alamin was reproduced by offset in Istanbul in 1394 (1974).
(42) Tahir Buhari passed away in 542 [1147 A.D.].
(43) The author of the book Hadiqa passed away in 1143 [1731 A.D.].
(44) Fadlullah bin Hasen Tur Pushti, a Hanafi fiqh scholar, passed away in 661 A.H. (1263).
(45) Jihad through force (jihad qatli) is made by the State, by its army. Muslims' making jihad is their undertaking as soldiers, the duty given to them by the State. That jihad qawli, that is made through speech and writing, is better than jihad qatli is also written in the 65 th letter.
(46) Telling them will not be gossip but al-amru bi'l-maruf. Every Muslim has to learn the faith of Ahl as-Sunnat and teach it to people whom he can influence. Books, magazines and papers explaining the words of the scholars of Ahl as-Sunnat should be bought and sent to young brothers and acquaintances. We should strive hard in order that they read them. Also, books exposing the real purposes of the enemies of Islam should be distributed.
(47) Sufyan bin 'Uyayna passed away in the city of Mecca in 198 [813 A.D.].
(48) A person who does not want to follow one of these four madhhabs does not belong to Ahl as-Sunnat. See page 9.
(49) In every century there have been liars and heretics who made the religion a means for their worldly advantages and who came forward in disguise of walis, murshids or men of religious authority. Still there are evil people in every profession, in every branch of crafts and in every official post today. Seeing those who look for their advantages and pleasures in others' harm, it would be injustice or ignorance to blemish all crafts and people with whom they are mixed. It would help factious people. For this reason, the existence of heretical men of religion and ignorant, false men of turuq should not cause us to speak ill of the 'ulama' of Islam or great men of tasawwuf whose services have filled up honorable pages in history. We should realize that those who slander them are unjust.