An Exposition of His Errors

And

Other Important Issues

Compiled by: Sayf ad-Din Ahmad ibn Muhammad

Al-Albani Unveiled An Exposition of His Errors and other important issues Compiled by Sayf ad-Din Ahmed ibn Muhammad In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful PRE ACE All praise be to Allahu ta'ala. Peace and blessings be on His final Messenger, Sayyidina Muhammad. Auspicious salutations be on his pure Ahl al-Bayt (people of the Prophet's House and on all his !ust and de"oted #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them all % and last but not least praise be upon the glorious pious predecessors (Salaf as-Salihin and their successors $ho are the Ahl-as-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah (People of the Sunnah and #ommunity of the four e'isting schools of Sacred (a$ ()i*h . + you $ho belie"e, -hat you are about to read is of dire importance to the belie"er $ho accepts the authority of the .oble Hadith, second only to the Holy /ur'an al-0arim. 1 here present to the open minded belie"er an e'position of the mista2es and contradictions of probably the foremost Hadith Shay2h of the 'Salafiyya' sect, by the name of Shay2h Muhammad .asiruddeen alAlbani. 1 $as as2ed by some brothers on the status and ran2 of al-Albani, and fearing the declaration of Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him 3 4He $ho is as2ed something he 2no$s and conceals it $ill ha"e a bridle of fire put on him on the 5ay of 6esurrection4 (Sunan Abu 5a$ood, 7879:;, <nglish ed'n % 1 decided to compile this short $or2. (et me stress at the outset, this $or2 $as primarily compiled to correct some notions held by al-Albani and secondarily the 4Salafi4 sect% hence the last part of this $or2 has been entitled3 4and Other Important issues.4 =his short piece of $or2 has been edited and abridged from the four "olume set $hich emphatically and clearly outlines al-Albani's mista2es, contradictions, slanders and e"en lies in the honourable and sacred 1slamic Science of Hadith (>loom al Hadith , by the $ell 2no$n scholar, Al-Shay2h Hasan ibn Ali al-Sa**af (may Allah re$ard him for his effort of Amman, &ordan% from his $or2 entitled3 4Tanaqadat al-Albani al-Wadihat4 (=he #lear #ontradictions of al-Albani . Shay2h Sa**af is a contemporary Shafi'i scholar of Hadith and )i*h. His Shay2h's include Hashim Ma!dhub of 5amascus in Shafi'i )i*h, Muti' Hammami in estate di"ision, Muhammad Hulayyil of Amman in Arabic ?rammar, and he has been gi"en $ritten authori@ation (1!a@a in the field of Hadith from one of the greatest Hadith scholars of our time - Shay2h Abdullah Muhammad al-?himari (may the Mercy of Allah be upon him of =angiers, Morocco Aborn BCB; #.<% died )eb. BDB78BCC7 #.<E% an e'-Professor of Hadith at Al-A@har >ni"ersity, author of nearly B:; $or2s, his late brother3 Ahmad ibn Muhammad (Allah's mercy be upon him $as a great Hafi@ of Hadith, (see later for the definition of Hafi@ of Hadith . Shay2h ?himari has declared in one of his published )at$a's that al-Albani is an inno"ator (mubtadi in 1slam, (alAlbani has criticised Shay2h ?himari's classifications of Hadith in some of his $or2s% but then

contradicted himself in others - see the *uotes from Shay2h Sa**af later . Shay2h Sa**af presently teaches a circle of students in Amman and has published o"er forty fi"e boo2s and treatises on Hadith, tenets of faith (A*eeda , )i*h and heresiology. So as to enlighten the reader $ho is una$are of al-Albani's status, the follo$ing is a short biography as gi"en in the inside bac2 co"er of the <nglish translation of al-Albani's boo2let by the title 'Adaab u@ Fufaaf' (=he <ti*uettes of Marriage and -edding as published by his follo$ers in <ngland ("i@.3 4&ami'at 1hyaa Minha! al Sunnah4 34Muhammad .aasir-ud-5een Al-Albani $as born in the city of Ash2odera, capital of Albania in BCBD #<. -hile he $as young his parents migrated $ith him to 5amascus, Syria. )rom an early age he became fascinated by the science of Hadith and thereafter spent his time de"oted to see2ing 2no$ledge. 1n later life he $as gi"en Professorship of Hadith at the 1slamic >ni"ersity of Madinah. He is $ell 2no$n to students and scholars for his 2no$ledge and $ritings. He has many $ell 2no$n students and has "isited places through out the Middle <ast and <urope. He $as forced to migrate from Syria to &ordan. He has been of enormous ser"ice to the Prophetic Hadith, ta2ing great pains to chec2 and sort out the authentic from the $ea2 and fabricated narrations. He has produced many pamphlets and boo2s, some of them running into many "olumes - on topics of great importance to the Muslims - and has fully chec2ed many of the famous boo2s of Hadith - the Sunan of =irmidhi, Abu 5a$ood, An-.asai and 1bn Ma!ah, along $ith Suyooti's huge 4&ami-us-Sagheer4 and 4Mish2at-ul Masabih4. He is the foremost scholar of Hadith and related sciences of this age.4 1t is this last statement $hich is highly far-fetched, and it is the predominantly imaginary belief of his misguided follo$ers in certain parts of the $orld. Since only Allah 2no$s $ho is the 4foremost scholar of Hadith and related sciences of this age.4 1 say this because there are others $ho may $ell be the 'foremost scholar'. +ne thing that may be noticed from the abo"e biography, is that al-Albani does not seem to ha"e been gi"en any authori@ation (ijaza in Hadith from any recognised scholar of Hadith. 1 ha"e read other biographies and as2ed some of his supporters in <ngland to gi"e me the name of al-Albani's Hadith Shay2h% but to no a"ail. 1t seems that al-Albani 4taught4 himself the science of Hadith by spending many hours in the famous library of 5amascus - al-Ma2tabatu@ Fahiriyyah. 1n the biography $ritten in the preface of the <nglish edition of his $or2 - 4Sifah salah an-.abee4, it $as also stated that he $as3 4influenced by articles in 'al-Manaar' maga@ine.4 =he last named maga@ine $as edited by the notorious freemason - Muhammad 6ashid 6idah (d.BC7: #< , Al-Albani has not made a handful of forgi"able errors, but rather $ell o"er BG;;, $hich are only forgi"able if he himself admits and corrects his mista2es by repenting in front of the People of 0no$ledge, as $ell as the sincere belie"ers $ho may ha"e been relying on his 'classifications of Hadith'. =he selected contradictions from 4=ana*adat al-Albani al--adihat4 ha"e been deri"ed for sa2e of bre"ity from "olume's one and t$o only, and $hene"er the symbol H is indicated, this corresponds to the original reference to the Arabic edition. =he reader should also remember that $hene"er anything appears in brac2ets, then these are usually my $ords and not that of Shay2h Sa**af. 1t should also be said that Iolume B of the original contains G:; ahadith, in $hich alAlbani has said Sahih (an authentic Hadith in one of his boo2s and then contradicted himself by saying 5aeef (a $ea2 Hadith in another of his boo2s, or similar mista2es and contradictions.

Iolume G contains 9:G Ahadith of the same description as the abo"e, or similar contradictions in indi"idual ri!al (biography of a Hadith narrator of the Sanad (the chain of transmission of a specific Hadith of the Hadiths in *uestion. 1n some instances (e.g. Iol.G, pp. 97-9D , Shay2h Sa**af sho$s ho$ a Hadith narrator is 'trust$orthy' $hen al-Albani $ants to use a Hadith to pro"e something, but becomes 'untrust$orthy' $hen in a Hadith used by the person al-Albani is arguing against% an e'tremely embarrassing mista2e for anyone of any scholarly integrity. =hese boo2s by Shay2h Sa**af ha"e already done much to pull the rug from under 'Salafiyyism' in &ordan and e"en in 'Saudi' Arabia, $here the first "olume alone has seen no less than S1J reprints in a single year alone, =hese boo2s are e'tremely hot property that any 'Salafi' (or antiSalafi $ho reads Arabic $ill $ant to buy. 1 as2 you, ho$ many times does an inept student of Hadith li2e al-Albani ha"e to contradict himself before he ceases to be of authorityK #an you find e"en ten such contradictions in the $or2s of the traditional memori@ers of Hadith (Huffa@ , those $ho had memori@ed at least B;;,;;; Ahadith $ith their sanad'sK =he great scholars li2e Abu Hanifah, Mali2, Shafi'i, 1bn Hanbal, Bu2hari, Muslim, Abu 5a$ood, =irmidhi, 1bn Ma!a, al-.asai, 5ara*utni, Ha2im, As*alani and so on . . . . Allah's mercy be upon them. =he discerning belie"er should 2no$ that al-Albani has not in his memory any$here near a B;;,;;; Ahadith in his memory, in fact as far as $e 2no$ there is no one $ho is a Hafi@ of Hadith today, 1f there is, $e say please come for$ard and pro"e it, and only Allah 2no$s best, 5uring the course of e'amining "arious Hadiths, Shay2h Sa**af compared them to the $ritten opinion of al-Albani. <"entually Shay2h Sa**af began a compilation of al-Albani's mista2es. He came across contradictions, supposition, inade*uate research and the blatant per"ersion of sayings *uoted from the great scholars of 1slam. He $as especially $orried by the fact that many students and members of the youth $ho do not ha"e enough or no 2no$ledge are simply not bothering to in"estigate the Hadiths classified by al-Albani, are being misled into blind ignorance% e"en though these "ery people are the one's calling staunchly and "ociferously for the complete abandonment of ta*leed (usually translated as 4blind follo$ing4 by the opponents, but in reality it is the follo$ing of *ualified and "erified scholarship of a Mu!tahid Mutla* Aan absolutely independent scholar of the highest calibreE li2e the 1mam's Abu Hanifah, Mali2, Shafi'i, 1bn Hanbal (Allah's mercy be upon them and the li2e, as $ell as the scholars $ho adhered to and promulgated a particular school of fi*h AMadhhabE for the greater part of 1slam's history% ta*leed in simple language is the follo$ing of one of the four e'isting schools of fi*h . =hese people seem to contradict themsel"es, as $ell as displaying hypocrisy $hen they go around ma2ing it a priority to attac2 the follo$ers of the Hanafi, Mali2i, Shafi'i or Hanbali schools of Sacred (a$% e"en though they themsel"es are practising ta*leed of an indi"idual(s , Bearing in mind the Hadith reported by Abu Sa'eed al-0hudri (may Allah be pleased $ith him from the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him 3 4-hoe"er sees an e"il, he must pre"ent it $ith his hand, and if he has no po$er for this action, then he should pre"ent it $ith his tongue, and if he cannot do this, then he should at least consider it a "ice in his heart, and this is a "ery lo$ le"el of one's 1man (faith .4 Asee Sahih Muslim, =irmidhi, 1bn Ma!ah, .asai - as recorded in =argheeb -a'l-=arheeb by Al-Hafi@ Mundhiri, d. BG:L #.<% 6ahimahumullahE,

and e"en more e'plicitly from 1mam al-5arimi (6ahimahullah $ho reported Fiyad 1bn Hudair (6ahimahullah saying3 4>mar (Allah be pleased $ith him said to me3 5o you 2no$ $hat can destroy 1slamK4 1 said3 4.o.4 He said3 41t is destroyed by the mista2es of scholars, the argument of the hypocrites about the boo2 (of Allah , and the opinions of the misguided leaders.4 (see Mish2atul Masabih, B8G9C, =rans. A.H. Siddi*ui . -e too2 the liberty to fore$arn and guide the many sincere belie"ers $ho are turning to their faith from blundering into miscomprehension and $rong by translating selecti"ely from Shay2h Sa**af's boo2s. 1n order to safe 2eep today's youth from falling into heresy, Shay2h Sa**af has embar2ed upon a *uest to e'pose such a person $ho considers himself to be among the great scholars of Hadith li2e, 1mam's al-Bu2hari and Muslim (6ahimahumullah , to the e'tent that one of his deluded follo$ers considered him to be in the ran2 of the Amir al-Mu'minin fil Hadith, Shay2h al-1slam al-Hafi@ Ahmad 1bn Ha!ar al-As*alani (the Shafi'i 1mam $ho authored the most famous commentary of Sahih al-Bu2hari and many other boo2s, d. L:G8BDDC #.<% 6ahimahullah . As for Shay2h Sa**af, the respected reader may get the impression that he has an uncompromising demeanour in some of his comments made straight after he e'poses an error of al-Albani. 1 ma2e no apology for his style of e'position, since many Allah fearing scholars ha"e been uncompromising in the past $hen it comes to en!oining the ?ood and )orbidding the <"il as has been prescribed in the /ur'an and Sunnah (e.g. in the refutations against the heretical sects li2e the 0ha$ari!, Mu'ta@ila, Shi'ah . . . . , so long as it fore$arns the general masses from accepting the falsities of the heretics and other li2e minded 4scholars4. May be Shay2h Sa**af considers al-Albani to be an inno"ator, !ust as his late teacher - Shay2h ?himari (6ahimahullah considered him to be. =here are many Hadith $hich command us to detest the Heretics. )or e'ample, 1brahim ibn Maisara reported Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him as saying3 4He $ho sho$ed respect to an inno"ator he in fact aided in the demolishing of 1slam.4 (Bayha*i - see Mish2atul Masabih, B8BLC, <nglish ed'n . 1 hope the esteemed reader $ill read this short piece of $or2 $ith "igilance and an open mind, especially those $ho ha"e been loyal readers and supporters of al-Albani's boo2s and decrees. 1 sincerely hope that this $or2 $ill be of great benefit to all $ho read it and pray that Allah accept it as a good deed done purely for His pleasure. 1 $ould also li2e to than2 all those brothers $ho assisted me in the compilation of this $or2, especially to the brother $ho supplied me $ith Shay2h Sa**af's boo2s. May Allah forgi"e us for any shortcomings and errors. Amin.

Al-Albani >n"eiled Al-Albani's -ea2ening of Someof 1mam Bu2hari's and Muslim's Ahadith.

Al-Albani has said in "Sharh al-Aqeedah at-Tahaweeah, pg. 27-28" (8th edition, Maktab alIslami) by Shaykh Ibn Abi al-Izz al- ana!i ("ahimah#llah), that any adith $oming !%om the Sahih $olle$tions o! al-&#kha%i and M#slim is Sahih, not be$a#se they 'e%e na%%ated by &#kha%i and M#slim, b#t be$a#se the Ahadith a%e in !a$t $o%%e$t. &#t he $lea%ly $ont%adi$ts himsel!, sin$e he has 'eakened Ahadith !%om &#kha%i and M#slim himsel!( )o' let #s $onside% this in!o%mation in the light o! elabo%ation *-

SELECTED TRANSLATIONS FROM VOLUME 1 No. 1: (*Pg. 10 No.1) Hadit * +he ,%ophet (,ea$e and blessings be #pon him) said* "Allah says I 'ill be an opponent to - pe%sons on the day o! %es#%%e$tion* (a) .ne 'ho makes a $o/enant in my )ame b#t he p%o/es t%ea$he%o#s, (b) .ne 'ho sells a !%ee pe%son (as a sla/e) and eats the p%i$e ($) And one 'ho employs a labo%e% and gets the !#ll 'o%k done by him, b#t doesn0t pay him his 'ages." 1&#kha%i no 2223-A%abi$ /e%sion, o% see the 4nglish /e%sion -53-6 pg 2-78. A!"A!#a$i %aid that this adith 'as 9A44: in "Daeef al-Jami wa Ziyadatuh, 35222 )o.36;3". <ittle does he kno' that this adith has been na%%ated by Ahmad and &#kha%i !%om Ab# #%ay%a (Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( No. &: (*Pg. 10 No.&) Hadit * "Sa$%i!i$e only a g%o'n #p $o' #nless it is di!!i$#lt !o% yo#, in 'hi$h $ase sa$%i!i$e a %am." 1M#slim )o.2=7--A%abi$ edition, o% see the 4nglish /e%sion -538-7 pg. 26878. A!"A!#a$i %aid that this adith 'as 9A44: in "Daeef al-Jami wa Ziyadatuh, 7573 )o.7222." Altho#gh this adith has been na%%ated by Imam0s Ahmad, M#slim, Ab# 9a'ood, )isai and Ibn Ma>ah !%om ?aabi% (Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( No. ': (*Pg. 10 No.') Hadit * "Amongst the 'o%st people in Allah0s sight on the 9ay o! ?#dgement 'ill be the man 'ho makes lo/e to his 'i!e and she to him, and he di/#lges he% se$%et." 1M#slim )o.23-7A%abi$ edition8. A!"A!#a$i (!ai)% that this adith is 9A44: in "Daeef al-Jami wa Ziyadatuh, 252=7 )o.266;." Altho#gh it has been na%%ated by M#slim !%om Abi Sayyed (Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( No. *: (*Pg. 10 No.*) Hadit * "I! someone 'oke #p at night (!o% p%aye%s) let him begin his p%aye%s 'ith 2 light rak'ats." 1M#slim )o.7788. A!"A!#a$i %tat+d that this adith 'as 9A44: in "Daeef al-Jami wa Ziyadatuh, 2522)o.728." Altho#gh it is na%%ated by M#slim and Ahmad !%om Ab# #%ay%a (may Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( No. ,: (*Pg. 11 No.,)

Hadit * "@o# 'ill %ise 'ith shining !o%eheads and shining hands and !eet on the 9ay o! ?#dgement by $ompleting A#dh# p%ope%ly. . . . . . . ." 1M#slim )o.2378. No. ,: (*Pg. 11 No.,) Hadit * "@o# 'ill %ise 'ith shining !o%eheads and shining hands and !eet on the 9ay o! ?#dgement by $ompleting A#dh# p%ope%ly. . . . . . . ." 1M#slim )o.2378. No. -: (*Pg. 11 No.-) Hadit * "+he g%eatest t%#st in the sight o! Allah on the 9ay o! ?#dgement is the man 'ho doesn0t di/#lge the se$%ets bet'een him and his 'i!e." 1M#slim no0s 223 and 23-78 A!"A!#a$i (!ai)% it is 9A44: in "9aee! al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 252=2 )o.2=87." Altho#gh it has been na%%ated by M#slim, Ahmad and Ab# 9a'ood !%om Abi Sayyed (Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( No. .: (*Pg. 11 No..) Hadit * "I! anyone "4A9S the last ten /e%ses o! Surah al-Kahf he 'ill be sa/ed !%om the mis$hie! o! the 9a>>al." 1M#slim )o.86=8. A!"A!#a$i %aid that this adith 'as 9A44: in "9aee! al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, ;52-- )o.;772." N/- +he 'o%d #sed by M#slim is M4M."IB49 and not "4A9 as al-Albani $laimedC 'hat an a'!#l mistake( +his adith has been na%%ated by M#slim, Ahmad and )isai !%om Abi 9a%da (Allah be pleased 'ith him)(( (Also %e$o%ded by Imam )a'a'i in ""iyadh #s-Saliheen, 252622" o! the 4nglish ed0n). No. 0: (*Pg. 11 No.0) Hadit * "+he ,%ophet (,ea$e and blessings be #pon him) had a ho%se $alled al-<ahee!." 1&#kha%i, see :ath al-&a%i o! a!iz Ibn a>a% 75;8 )o.28;;8. /1t A!"A!#a$i %aid that this adith 'as 9A44: in "9aee! al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 35268 )o.338=." Altho#gh it has been na%%ated by &#kha%i !%om Sahl ibn Sa0ad (Allah be pleased 'ith him)((( S a23 Sa44a5 %aid* "+his is only ange% !%om ang#ish, little !%om a lot and i! it 'asn0t !o% the !ea% o! lengthening and bo%ing the %eade%, I 'o#ld ha/e mentioned many othe% eDamples !%om al-Albani0s books 'hilst %eading them. Imagine 'hat I 'o#ld ha/e !o#nd i! I had t%a$ed e/e%ything he '%oteE"

AL"AL/ANI6S INADE7UAC8 IN RESEARCH (*Vo!. 1 9g. &0) Sa44a5 %aid* "+he st%ange and amazing thing is that Shaykh al-Albani misF#oted many g%eat adith s$hola%s and dis%ega%ds them by his la$k o! kno'ledge, eithe% di%e$tly o% indi%e$tly( e $%o'ns himsel! as an #nbeatable so#%$e and e/en t%ies to imitate the g%eat s$hola%s by #sing s#$h te%ms like "Lam aqif ala sanadih", 'hi$h means "I $o#ld not !ind the $hain o! na%%ation", o% #sing simila% ph%ases( e also a$$#ses some o! the best memo%ize%s o! adith !o% la$k o! attention, e/en tho#gh he is the one best des$%ibed by that(" )o' !o% some eDamples to p%o/e o#% point*

No. : : (* Pg. &0 No. 1) A!"A!#a$i %aid in "I%'a al-Ghalil, 752;2 )o.2837" (in $onne$tion to a na%%ation !%om Ali)* "I $o#ld not !ind the sanad." Sa44a5 %aid* ""idi$#lo#s( I! this al-Albani 'as any s$hola% o! Islam, then he 'o#ld ha/e kno'n that this adith $an be !o#nd in "S#nan al-&ayhaFi, 75222" *- )a%%ated by Ab# Sayyed ibn Abi Ama%ah, 'ho said that Ab# al-Abbas M#hammad ibn @aFoob 'ho said to #s that Ahmad ibn Abdal amid said that Ab# Hsama !%om S#!yan !%om Salma ibn Iahil !%om M#0a'iya ibn Soayd 'ho said, 0I !o#nd this in my !athe%s book !%om Ali (Allah be pleased 'ith him).0" No. 10 : (* Pg. &1 No.&) A!"A!#a$i %aid in 0I%'a al-Ghalil, -528-0* !ind the sanad."

adith o! Ibn Hma% 0Iisses a%e #s#%y,0 I $o#ld not

Sa44a5 %aid* "+his is o#t%ageo#sly '%ong !o% s#%ely this is mentioned in 0:ata'a al-Shaykh ibn +aymiyya al-Mis%iyah (-52=;)0* 0 a%b said .baid#llah ibn M#0az said to #s, my !athe% said to me that Soayd !%om ?iballa 'ho hea%d Ibn Hma% (Allah be pleased 'ith him) as saying* Iisses a%e #s#%y.0 And these na%%ato%s a%e all a#thenti$ a$$o%ding to Ibn +aymiyya(" No 11 : (* Pg. &1 No.') Hadit o5 I#$ Ma%61d (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "+he J#%0an 'as sent do'n in 7 diale$ts. 4/e%yone o! its /e%ses has an eDpli$it and impli$it meaning and e/e%y inte%di$tion is $lea%ly de!ined." Al-Albani stated in his $he$king o! "Mishkat #l-Masabih, 2586 )o.2-8" that the a#tho% o! Mishkat $on$l#ded many Ahadith 'ith the 'o%ds ")a%%ated in Sha%h #sS#nnah," b#t 'hen he eDamined the $hapte% on Ilm and in :adail al-J#%0an he $o#ld not !ind it( Sa44a5 %aid* "+he g%eat s$hola% has spoken A%ongly as #s#al. I 'ish to say to this !%a#d that i! he is se%io#sly inte%ested in !inding this adith 'e s#ggest he looks in the $hapte% entitled 0Al-Ih#sama !i al-J#%0an0 !%om Sha%h-#s-S#nnah (25272), and na%%ated by Ibn ibban in his Sahih ()o.73), Ab# @a0ala in his M#snad ()o.;36-), +aha'i in Sha%h al-M#shkil al-Atha% (35272), &azza% (-5=6 Iash! al-As%a%) and aythami has mentioned it in Ma>moo0a al-Ba'aid (752;2) and he has as$%ibed it to &azza%, Ab# @a0ala and +aba%ani in al-A'sat 'ho said that the na%%ato%s a%e t%#st'o%thy." No 1& : (* Pg. && No.*) A!"A!#a$i %tat+d in his "Sahihah, 252-6" 'hile he 'as $ommenting on adith )o.23=* "+he belie/e% is the one 'ho does not !ill his stoma$h. . . . +he adith !%om Aisha as mentioned by Al-M#ndhi%i (-52-7) and by Al- akim !%om Ibn Abbas, I (Albani) $o#ld not !ind it in M#stad%ak al- akim a!te% $he$king it in his 0+ho#ghts0 se$tion." Sa44a5 %aid* ",lease don0t en$o#%age the p#bli$ to !all into the /oid o! igno%an$e 'hi$h yo# ha/e t#mbled into( I! yo# $he$k M#stad%ak al- akim (2522) yo# 'ill !ind it( +his p%o/es that yo# a%e #nskilled at #sing book indeDes and the memo%ization o! adith(" No 1' : (* Pg. &') Anothe% %idi$#lo#s ass#mption is made by al-Albani in his "Sahihah, 25377" 'he%e he $laims that the adith* "Ab# &ak% is !%om me, holding the position o! (my) hea%ing" is not in the

book 0 ilya0. Ae s#ggest yo# look in the book " ilya , 357-(" No 1* : (*Pg. &' No.,) A!"A!#a$i %aid in his "Sahihah, 257-8 )o.-7;, 3th edition"* "@ahya ibn Malik has been igno%ed by the 7 main s$hola%s o! adith, !o% he 'as not mentioned in the books o! +ahdhib, +aF%eeb o% +adhhib." Shaykh SaFFa!* "+hat is 'hat yo# say( It is not like that, !o% s#%ely he is mentioned in +ahdhib al-+ahdhib o! a!iz ibn a>a% al-AsFalani (2252= 9a% al-:ik% edition) by the ni$kname Ab# Ayoob al-Ma%aagi(( So be'a%e(

FURTHER E;AMPLES OF AL"AL/ANI6S CONTRADICTIONS No 1, : (* Pg. .) A!"A!#a$i a% (<iti(i=+d the Imam al-M#haddith Ab#0l :adl Abd#llah ibn al-SiddiF alGhima%i ("ahimah#llah) !o% mentioning in his book "al-Ianz al-+hameen" a adith !%om Ab# #%ay%a (Allah be pleased 'ith him) 'ith %e!e%en$e to the na%%ato% Ab# Maymoona* "Sp%ead salaam, !eed the poo%. . . ." A!"A!#a$i %aid in "Silsilah al-9aee!a, -53=2", a!te% %e!e%%ing this adith to Imam Ahmad (252=;) and othe%s* "I say this is a 'eak sanad, 9a%aF#tni has said 0Jatada !%om Ab# Maymoona !%om Ab# #%ay%a* Hnkno'n, and it is to be dis$a%ded.0" Al-Albani then said on the same page* ")oti$e, a slapdash has happened 'ith S#y#ti and M#na'i 'hen they $ame a$%oss this adith, and I ha/e also sho'n in a p%e/io#s %e!e%en$e, )o.;72, that al-Ghima%i 'as also '%ong !o% mentioning it in al-Ianz." &#t in %eality it is al-Albani 'ho has be$ome slapdashed, be$a#se he has made a big $ont%adi$tion by #sing this same sanad in "I%'a al-Ghalil, -52-8" 'he%e he says, "Klassi!ied by Ahmad (252=;), al- akim . . . !%om Jatada !%om Ab# Maymoona, and he is t%#sted as in the book 0al-+aF%eeb0, and akim said* 0A Sahih sanad0, and al-9hahabi ag%eed 'ith akim( So, by Allah glan$e at this mistake( Aho do yo# think is '%ong, the M#haddith al-Ghima%i (also S#y#ti and M#na'i) o% al-AlbaniE No 1- : (* Pg. &. No.') Al-Albani 'anted to 'eaken a adith 'hi$h allo'ed 'omen to 'ea% golden >e'elle%y, and in the sanad !o% that adith the%e is M#hammad ibn Ima%a. Al-Albani $laimed that Ab# aatim said that this na%%ato% 'as* ")ot that st%ong," see the book " ayat al-Albani 'a-Atha%#. . . pa%t 2, pg. 267." +he t%#th is that Ab# aatim al-"azi said in the book 0al-?a%h 'a-+aadeel, 853;0* "A good na%%ato% b#t not that st%ong. . ." So note that al-Albani has %emo/ed the ph%ase "A good

na%%ato% (" N/-(al-Albani has made many o! the adith 'hi$h !o%bid Gold to 'omen to be Sahih, in !a$t othe% s$hola%s ha/e de$la%ed these adith to be daee! and ab%ogated by othe% Sahih adith 'hi$h allo' the 'ea%ing o! gold by 'omen. .ne o! the 'ell kno'n Shaykh0s o! the "Sala!iyya" - @#s#! al-Ja%da'i said in his book* 0Islami$ a'akening bet'een %e>e$tion and eDt%emism, pg. 8;* "In o#% o'n times, Shaykh )asi% al-9in al-Albani has $ome o#t 'ith an opinion, di!!e%ent !%om the $onsens#s on pe%mitting 'omen to ado%n themsel/es 'ith gold, 'hi$h has been a$$epted by all madhahib !o% the last !o#%teen $ent#%ies. e not only belie/es that the isnad o! these Ahadith is a#thenti$, b#t that they ha/e not been %e/oked. So, he belie/es, the Ahadith p%ohibit gold %ings and ea%%ings." So 'ho is the one 'ho /iolates the i>ma o! the Hmmah 'ith his eDt%eme opinionsE() No 1. : (* Pg. '. No.1) Hadit * Mahmood ibn <#bayd said, "Allah0s Messenge% (,ea$e and blessings be #pon him) 'as in!o%med abo#t a man 'ho had di/o%$ed his 'i!e - times (in one sitting), so he stood #p ang%ily and said* 0Is he playing 'ith Allah0s book 'hilst I am still amongst yo#E0 Ahi$h made a man stand #p and say, 0. Allah0s Messenge%, shall I not kill himE0" (al-)isai). A!"A!#a$i d+(!a<+d this adith to be 9aee! in his $he$king o! "Mishkat al-Masabih, 25=82, -%d edition, &ei%#t, 236; A. C Maktab al-Islami", 'he%e he says* "+his man (the na%%ato%) is %eliable, b#t the isnad is b%oken o% in$omplete !o% he did not hea% it di%e$tly !%om his !athe%." A!"A!#a$i t +$ (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 in the book "Ghayat#l Ma%am +akh%ee> Ahadith alalal 'al a%am, )o.272, pg. 273, -%d 4dn, Maktab al-Islami, 236; A. "C by saying it is SA I ((( No 10 : (* Pg. '. No.&) Hadit * "I! one o! yo# 'as sleeping #nde% the s#n, and the shado' $o/e%ing him sh%ank, and pa%t o! him 'as in the shado' and the othe% pa%t o! him 'as in the s#n, he sho#ld %ise #p." Al-Albani de$la%ed this adith to be SA I in "Sahih al-?ami al-Saghee% 'a Biyadat#h (252775772)", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is 9A44: in his $he$king o! "Mishkat #l-Masabih, -52--7 )o.372;, -%d 4d" and he has %e!e%%ed it to the S#nan o! Ab# 9a'ood(" No 1: : (* Pg. '0 No.') Hadit * "+he :%iday p%aye% is obligato%y on e/e%y M#slim." Al-Albani %ated this adith to be 9A44: in his $he$king o! "Mishkat al-Masabih, 253-3", and said* "Its na%%ato%s a%e %eliable b#t it is dis$ontin#o#s as is indi$ated by Ab# 9a'ood". e then $ont%adi$ts himsel! in "I%'a al-Ghalil, -5;3 )o. ;=2", and says it is SA I ((( So be'a%e o 'ise men( No &0 : (* Pg. '0 No.*) A!"A!#a$i a% )ad+ a$ot +< (o$t<adi(tio$. e has t%#sted Al-M#ha%%a% ibn Ab# #%ay%a in one pla$e and then 'eakened him in anothe%. Al-Albani $e%ti!ies in "I%'a al-Ghalil, 35-62" that M#ha%%a% is a t%#stee 'ith Allah0s help, and a!iz (Ibn a>a%) saying abo#t him "a$$epted", is not a$$epted, and the%e!o%e the sanad is Sahih. H+ t +$ (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 in "Sahihah 352;7" 'he%e he makes the sanad 9A44: by

saying* "+he na%%ato%s in the sanad a%e all &#kha%i0s (i.e.C #sed by Imam al-&#kha%i) men, eD$ept !o% al-M#ha%%a% 'ho is one o! the men o! )isai and Ibn Ma>ah only. e 'as not t%#sted a$$ept by Ibn ibban, and that0s 'hy al- a!iz Ibn a>a% did not t%#st him, Instead he only said 0a$$epted(0" So be'a%e o! this !%a#d( No &1 : (* Pg. ': No.,) Hadit * Abdallah ibn Am% (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "+he :%iday p%aye% is in$#mbent on 'hoe/e% hea%d the $all" (Ab# 9a'ood). Al-Albani stated that this adith 'as ASA) in "I%'a al-Ghalil -5;8", he then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is 9A44: in "Mishkat#l Masabih 253-3 no 2-7;"((( No && : (* Pg. ': No.-) Hadit * Anas ibn Malik (Allah be pleased 'ith him) said that the ,%ophet (,ea$e and blessings be #pon him) #sed to say * "9o not be ha%d on yo#%sel!, othe%'ise Allah 'ill be ha%d on yo#. Ahen a people 'e%e ha%d on themsel/es, then Allah 'as ha%d on them." (Ab# 9a'ood) A!"A!#a$i %tat+d that this adith 'as 9A44: in his $he$king o! "Mishkat, 2573", b#t he then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying that this adith is ASA) in "Ghayat#l Ma%am, pg. 232"(( No &': (* Pg. *0 No..) Hadit o5 Sa22ida Ai% a (Allah be pleased 'ith he%)* "Ahoe/e% tells yo# that the ,%ophet (,ea$e be #pon him) #sed to #%inate 'hile standing, do not belie/e him. e ne/e% #%inated #nless he 'as sitting." (Ahmad, )isai and +i%midhi) A!"A!#a$i %aid that this sanad 'as 9A44: in "Mishkat 25227." e then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is SA I in "Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahihah 25-3; )o.262"((( So take a glan$e dea% %eade%( No &* : (* Pg. *0 No.0) Hadit : "+he%e a%e th%ee 'hi$h the angels 'ill ne/e% app%oa$h* +he $o%pse o! a disbelie/e%, a man 'ho 'ea%s ladies pe%!#me, and one 'ho has had seD #ntil he pe%!o%ms abl#tion" (Ab# 9a'ood). A!"A!#a$i (o<<+(t+d t i% Hadit i$ "Sahih al-?ami al-Saghee% 'a Biyadat#h, -572 )o.-6;7" by saying it 'as ASA) in the $he$king o! "Al-+a%ghib 25=2" 1Also said to be hasan in the 4nglish t%anslation o! 0+he 4tiF#ettes o! Ma%%iage and Aedding, pg. 228. e then makes an ob/io#s $ont%adi$tion by saying that the same adith 'as 9A44: in his $he$king o! "Mishkat#l-Masabih, 25233 )o.373" and says that the na%%ato%s a%e t%#st'o%thy b#t the $hain is b%oken bet'een al-hasan al-&as%i and Amma% (Allah be pleased 'ith him) as alM#ndhi%i had said in al-+a%ghib (25=2)(( No &, : (* Pg. *& No.10) It %ea$hed Malik ("ahimah#llah) that Ibn Abbas (Allah be pleased 'ith him) #sed to sho%ten his p%aye%, in distan$es s#$h as bet'een Makkah and +a0i! o% bet'een Makkah and Hs!an o% bet'een Makkah and ?eddah. . . .

10

A!"A!#a$i a% >+a3+$+d it in "Mishkat, 25327 )o.2-;2", and then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is SA I in "I%'a al-Ghalil, -523"(( No &- : (* Pg. *' No.1&) Hadit * "<ea/e the 4thiopians as long as they lea/e yo#, be$a#se no one takes o#t the t%eas#%e o! the Ia0ba eD$ept the one 'ith the t'o 'eak legs !%om 4thiopia." Al-Albani has 'eakened this adith in his $he$king o! "Mishkat -523=; )o.;32=" by saying* "+he sanad is 9A44:." &#t then he $ont%adi$ts himsel! as is his habit, by $o%%e$ting it in "Sahihah, 2532; )o.772."

A$ +?a)9!+ o5 a!"A!#a$i 9<ai%i$g %o)+o$+ i$ o$+ 9!a(+ a$d t +$ di%9a<agi$g a$ot +< 9!a(+ i$ i% #oo3%

i) i$

No &. : (* Pg. '&) H+ 9<ai%+% S a23 Ha#i# a!"Ra )a$ a!"A=a)i in the book 0Sahih al +a%ghib 'a +a%hib, page 7-0, 'he%e he says* "I 'ant yo# to kno' one o! the things that en$o#%aged me to. . . . 'hi$h has been $ommented by the !amo#s and %espe$ted s$hola% Shaykh abib al-"ahman al-Azami" . . . . And he also said on the same page, "And 'hat made me mo%e anDio#s !o% it, is that its $he$ke%, the %espe$ted Shaykh abib al-"ahman al-Azami has anno#n$ed. . . ." A!"A!#a$i t 1% 9<ai%+% S a23 a!"A=a)i in the abo/e mentioned bookC #1t t +$ )a3+% a (o$t<adi(tio$ in the int%od#$tion to 0Adaab #z B#!aa! (+he 4tiF#ettes o! Ma%%iage and Aedding), ne' edition page 80, 'he%e he said* "Al-Ansa%i has #sed in the end o! his lette%, one o! the enemies o! the S#nnah, adith and +a'hid, 'ho is !amo#s !o% that, is Shaykh abib al-"ahman al-Azami. . . . . :o% his $o'a%dliness and la$k o! s$hola%ly ded#$tion. . . . ." N/ - (+he abo/e F#otation !%om Adaab #z B#!aa! is not !o#nd in the 4nglish t%anslation by his s#ppo%te%s, 'hi$h sho's that they delibe%ately a/oided t%anslating $e%tain pa%ts o! the 'hole 'o%k). So ha/e a glan$e at this(

SELECTED TRANSLATIONS FROM VOLUME & No &0 : (* Pg. 1*' No.1) Hadit o5 A#i /a<=a (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "&y Allah, yo# 'ill not !ind a man mo%e >#st than me" (S#nan al-)isai, 75226 )o.326-). A!"A!#a$i %aid that this adith 'as SA I in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 7526; )o.7=78", and then he astonishingly $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is 9A44: in "9aee! S#nan al-)isai, pg. 273 )o.287."

11

So be'a%e o! this mess( No &: : (* Pg. 1** No.&) Hadit o5 Ha<)a!a i#$ A)<1 a!"A%!a)i !%om his Hn$le* "+h%o' pebbles at the ?ima% by p#tting the eDt%emity o! the th#mb on the !o%e-!inge%." (Sahih Ibn Ih#zaima, 35277-277 )o.2873) A!"A!#a$i a(3$o>!+dg+d it% >+a3$+%% in "Sahih Ibn Ih#zaima" by saying that the sanad 'as 9A44:, #1t t +$ $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is SA I in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 25-22 )o.=2-(" No '0 : (* Pg. 1** No.') Hadit o5 Sa22idi$a @a#i< i#$ A#d1!!a (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "+he ,%ophet (,ea$e be #pon him) 'as asked abo#t the seD#ally de!iled 1junubi8. . . $an he eat, o% sleep. . . e said *0@es, 'hen this pe%son makes '#dh#.0" (Ibn Ih#zaima )o.227 and Ibn Ma>ah )o.;=2). A!"A!#a$i a% admitted its 'eakness in his $omments on "Ibn Ih#zaima, 25268 )o.227", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by $o%%e$ting the abo/e adith in "Sahih Ibn Ma>ah, 25=7 )o.382 "(( No '1 : (* Pg. 1*, No.*) Hadit o5 Ai% a (Allah be pleased 'ith he%)* "A /essel as a /essel and !ood as !ood" ()isai, 7572 )o.-=;7). A!"A!#a$i %aid that it 'as SA I in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 252- )o.2372", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! in "9aee! S#nan al-)isai, )o.27- pg. 2;7", by saying it is 9A44:((( No '& : (* Pg. 1*, No.,) Hadit o5 A$a% (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "<et ea$h one o! yo# ask Allah !o% all his needs, e/en !o% his sandal thong i! it gets $#t." A!"A!#a$i %aid that the abo/e adith 'as ASA) in his $he$king o! "Mishkat, 257=7 )o.22;2 and 22;2", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! in "9aee! al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, ;57= )o.3=37 and 3=38"((( No '' : (* Pg. 1*- No.-) Hadit o5 A#1 D a<< (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "I! yo# 'ant to !ast, then !ast in the 'hite shining nights o! the 2-th, 23th and 2;th." A!"A!#a$i d+(!a<+d it to be 9A44: in "9aee! al-)isai, pg. 83" and in his $omments on "Ibn Ih#zaima, -5-62 )o.2227", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by $alling it SA I in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, 2526 )o.2338" and also $o%%e$ted it in "Sahih al-)isai, -5=62 )o.3622"(( So 'hat a big $ont%adi$tion( N/- (Al-Albani mentioned this adith in 0Sahih al-)isai0 and in 09aee! al-)isai0, 'hi$h p%o/es that he is #na'a%e o! 'hat he has and is $lassi!ying, ho' inept() No '* : (* Pg. 1*. No..)

12

Hadit o5 Sa22ida Ma2)oo$a (Allah be pleased 'ith he%)* "+he%e is nobody 'ho has taken a loan and it is in the kno'ledge o! Allah. . . ." ()isai, 75-2; and othe%s). A!"A!#a$i %aid in "9aee! al-)isai, pg 2=6"* "Sahih, eD$ept !o% the pa%t al-9#nya." +hen he $ont%adi$ts himsel! in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, ;52;7", by saying that the 'hole adith is SA I , in$l#ding the al-9#nya pa%t. So 'hat an amazing $ont%adi$tion( No ', : (* Pg. 1*. No.0) Hadit o5 /1<a2da (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "Ahy do I see yo# 'ea%ing the >e'elle%y o! the people o! hell" (Meaning the I%on %ing), 1)isai, 85272 and othe%s. . .8. A!"A!#a$i a% %aid that it 'as SA I in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, ;52;- )o.;;36", b#t then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying it is 9A44: in "9aee! al-)isai, pg. 2-6"((( No '- : (* Pg. 1*0 No.:) Hadit o5 A#1 H1<a2<a (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "Ahoe/e% b#ys a $a%pet to sit on, he has - days to keep it o% %et#%n it 'ith a $#p o! dates that a%e not b%o'nish in $olo#%" ()isai 752;3 and othe%s). A!"A!#a$i a% >+a3+$+d it 'ith %e!e%en$e to the 0- days0 pa%t in "9aee! S#nan al-)isai, pg. 287", by saying* "Ko%%e$t, eD$ept !o% - days." &#t the 0geni#s0 $ont%adi$ts himsel! by $o%%e$ting the adith and app%o/ing the 0- days0 pa%t in "Sahih al-?ami 'a Biyadat#h, ;5226 )o.;863". So 'ake #p (al-Albani)(( No '. : (* Pg. 1*0 No.10) Hadit o5 A#1 H1<a2<a (Allah be pleased 'ith him)* "Ahoe/e% $at$hes a single %ak0ah o! the :%iday p%aye% has $a#ght (the 'hole p%aye%)." ()isai -5222, Ibn Ma>ah 25-;7 and othe%s). A!"A!#a$i a% 'eakened it in "9aee! S#nan al-)isai, )o.78 pg. 3=", 'he%e he said* "Abno%mal (shadh), 'he%e :%iday is mentioned." e then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying SA I , in$l#ding the :%iday pa%t in "I%'a, -583 )o.722 ." May Allah heal yo#(

AL"AL/ANI AND HIS DEFAMATION AND AUTHENTICATION OF NARRATORS AT AILLB No '0 : (* Pg 1,. $o 1) CANAAN I/N A/DULLAH AN"NAHM8 *- A!"A!#a$i %aid in his "Sahihah, -5382" * "Ianaan is $onside%ed hasan, !o% he is attested by Ibn Ma0een." Al-Albani then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by saying, "+he%e is 'eakness in Ianaan" (see "9aee!ah, 35282")(( No ': : (* Pg. 1,0 No.&) MA@A6A I/N AL"DU/AIR *- A!"A!#a$i a% >+a3+$+d MaEa6a in "I%'a al-Ghalil, -5232", by saying, "+his is a 'eak sanad be$a#se Ahmad has said* 0+he%e is nothing '%ong 'ith

13

Ma>a0a0, and 9a%aF#tni has 'eakened him. . ." A!"A!#a$i t +$ )ad+ a (o$t<adi(tio$ in his "Sahihah, 2572-" by saying* " is men (the na%%ato%s) a%e t%#sted eD$ept !o% Ma>a0a 'ho is a good na%%ato% o! adith." An amazing $ont%adi$tion( No *0 : (* Pg. 1,0 No.') UT/A I/N HAMID AL"DHA/I *- Al-Albani has 'eakened him in "I%'a al-Ghalil, ;52-7" by saying* "And this is a 'eak (9aee!) sanad 'hi$h has th%ee de!e$ts. . . . the se$ond de!e$t is the 'eakness o! al-9habi, the a!iz said* 0A t%#th!#l na%%ato% 'ith hall#$inations0". A!"A!#a$i t +$ makes an ob/io#s $ont%adi$tion in "Sahihah, 253-2", 'he%e he said abo#t a sanad 'hi$h mentions Htba* "And this is a good (hasan) sanad, Htba ibn amid al-9habi is t%#st'o%thy b#t has hall#$inations, and the %est o! the na%%ato%s in the sanad a%e t%#sted." (( No *1 : (* Pg. 1,: No.*) HISHAM I/N SA6AD *- A!"A!#a$i %aid in his "Sahihah, 25-2;"* " isham ibn Sa0ad is a good na%%ato% o! adith." H+ t +$ (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 in "I%'a al-Ghalil, 2528-" by saying* "&#t this isham has a 'eakness in memo%izing" So 'hat an amazement(( No *& : (* Pg. 1-0 No.,) UMAR I/N ALI AL"MU7ADDAMI *- A!"A!#a$i a% >+a3+$+d i) in "Sahihah, 25-72", 'he%e he said* " e in himsel! is t%#sted b#t he #sed to be a /e%y bad !o%ge%, 'hi$h makes him #ndependable. . . ." A!"A!#a$i t +$ (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 again in "Sahihah, 252;=" by a$$epting him and des$%ibing him as being t%#st'o%thy !%om a sanad 'hi$h mentions Hma% ibn Ali. Al-Albani says* "Klassi!ied by akim, 'ho said* 0A Sahih Isnad ($hain o! t%ansmission)0, and al-9hahabi 'ent along 'ith it, and it is as they ha/e said." So 'hat an amazement ((( No *' : (* Pg. 1-0 No.-) ALI I/N SA6EED AL"RADI *- A!"A!#a$i a% >+a3+$+d i) in "I%'a, 752-", by saying* "+hey ha/e said nothing good abo#t al-"azi." H+ t +$ (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 in anothe% 0!antasti$0 book o! his, "Sahihah, 352;", by saying* "+his is a good (hasan) sanad and the na%%ato%s a%e all t%#st'o%thy." So be'a%e ((( No ** : (* Pg. 1-, No.1') RISHDIN I/N SA6AD *- A!"A!#a$i %aid i$ his "Sahihah, -57=" * "In it (the sanad) is "ishdin ibn Sa0ad, and he has been de$la%ed t%#st'o%thy." &#t t +$ + (o$t<adi(t% i)%+!5 by de$la%ing him to be 9A44: in "9aee!ah, 35;-"C 'he%e he said* "And "ishdin ibn Sa0ad is also daee!." So be'a%e(( No *, : (* Pg. 1-1 No.0) ASHAATH I/N ISHA7 I/N SA6AD *- Ahat an amazing !ello' this Shaykh(( Al-Albani(( ,%o/es to be. e said in "I%'a al-Ghalil, 25228"* " is stat#s is #nkno'n, and only Ibn ibban

14

t%#sted him." &#t then he $ont%adi$ts himsel! by his #s#al habit( &e$a#se he only t%ans!e%s !%om books and nothing else, and he $opies 'itho#t kno'ledgeC this is p%o/en in "Sahihah, 253;6", 'he%e he said abo#t Ashaath* "+%#st'o%thy". So 'hat an amazement((( No *- : (* Pg. 1-& No.:) I/RAHIM I/N HAANI *- +he hono#%able(( +he geni#s(( +he $opie%(( as made Ib%ahim ibn aani t%#st'o%thy in one pla$e and has then made him #nkno'n in anothe%. Al-Albani said in 0Sahihah, -53270* "Ib%ahim ibn aani is t%#st'o%thy", b#t then he $ont%adi$ts himsel! in "9aee!ah, 2522;", by saying that he is #nkno'n and his Ahadith a%e %e!#sed(( No *. : (* Pg. 1-' No.10) AL"I@LAA I/N A/DULLAH AL"CUFI *- Al-Albani has $o%%e$ted a sanad by saying it is good in "I%'a, 857", 'ith the 'o%ds* "And its sanad is good, the na%%ato%s a%e t%#st'o%thy, eD$ept !o% Ibn Abd#llah al-I#!i 'ho is t%#th!#l." e then $ont%adi$ts himsel! by 'eakening the sanad o! a adith 'he%e al-I>laa is !o#nd and has made him the %eason !o% de$la%ing it 9A44: (see 09aee!ah, 35720)C 'he%e he said* "I>laa ibn Abd#llah has a 'eakness." Al-Albani then F#oted Ibn al-?a'zi0s ("ahimah#llah) 'o%ds by saying* "Al-I>laa did not kno' 'hat he 'as saying ."((( No *0 : (* Pg. -."-:) A/DULLAH I/N SALIH : CAATI/ AL"LA8TH *- Al-Albani has $%iti$ised Al- a!iz alaythami, Al- a!iz al-S#y#ti, Imam M#na'i and the M#haddith Ab#0l-:adl al-Ghima%i (Allah0s me%$y be #pon them) in his book "Silsilah al-9aee!ah, 35-62", 'hen $he$king a adith $ontaining the na%%ato% Abd#llah ibn Salih. e says on page -66* " o' $o#ld Ibn Salih be all %ight and his adith be good, e/en tho#gh he has got many mistakes and is o! little a'a%eness, 'hi$h also made some !%a#d#lent adiths ente% his books, and he na%%ates them 'itho#t kno'ing abo#t them(" e has not mentioned that Abd#llah ibn Salih is one o! Imam al-&#kha%i0s men (i.e. #sed by al-&#kha%i), be$a#se it does not s#it his mode, and he does not state that Ibn Ma0een and some o! the leading $%iti$s o! adith ha/e t%#sted him. AlAlbani has $ont%adi$ted himsel! in othe% pla$es in his books by making adiths $ontaining Abd#llah ibn Salih to be good, and he%e they a%e *A!"A!#a$i %aid in "Silsilah al-Sahihah, -522=" * "And so the sanad is good, be$a#se "ashid ibn Sa0ad is t%#st'o%thy by ag%eement, and 'ho is less than him in the men o! Sahih, and the%e is also Abd#llah ibn Salih 'ho has said things that a%e #nha%m!#l 'ith Allah0s help((" Al-Albani also said in "Sahihah, 25367" abo#t a sanad 'hi$h $ontained Ibn Salih* "a good sanad in $ontin#ity." And again in "Sahihah, 35737"* " e0s a p%oo! 'ith $ontin#ity." N/- ( asan al-SaFFa! then $ontin#ed 'ith some impo%tant ad/i$e, this has been le!t #nt%anslated !o% b%e/ity b#t one may %e!e% to the A%abi$ !o% !#%the% elabo%ation). &y the g%a$e o! Allah, this is eno#gh !%om the books o! Shaykh SaFFa! to $on/in$e any seeke% o! the t%#th, let alone the $ommon !olk 'ho ha/e little kno'ledge o! the s$ien$e o! adith. I! anyone is inte%ested !o% h#nd%eds o! othe% simila% F#otes !%om Shaykh SaFFa!, then I s#ggest yo# '%ite to the !ollo'ing add%ess to obtain his book Tanaqadat al-Albani alWadihat (+he Klea% Kont%adi$tions o! al-Albani). THE IMAM AL-NAWAWI HOUSE PO BOX 925393 AMMAN

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JORDAN 1+he $ost !o% /ol#me 2 is L3.66 HS pl#s shipping and the $ost !o% /ol#me 2 is L7.66 pl#s shipping8. Allah kno's best. HERE ENDS THE 7UOTATIONS FROM AL"SA77AF

T i% a% #++$ E1%t *0 %+!+(t+d (o$t<adi(tio$% !%om the 'o%ks o! al-Albani, as de%i/ed by Shaykh SaFFa!. 9#%ing the $o#%se o! my o'n %esea%$h into al-Albani0s 'o%ks 'hi$h ha/e been t%anslated into 4nglish by his !ollo'e%s in 4ngland, I mysel! $ame a$%oss some sta%tling e%%o%s. I 'as gi/en some p#bli$ations $oming !%om his s#ppo%te%s in 4ngland 1?ami0at Ihyaa Minhaa> al-S#nnah8C one by the title* "9aee! Ahadith o! Ab# 9a'#d0s S#nan (a$$o%ding to Shaikh al-Albaanee, )o0s a$$o%ding to the 4nglish +%anslation o! ,%o!esso% Ahmad asan, p#blished in 232252==2 K.4.)", and the othe% by the title* "9aee! Ahadith o! an-)a'a'i0s "iyaad-#s-Saaliheen (a$$o%ding to the $he$king o! )aasi% #d-9een Al-Albani, )o0s a$$o%ding to the 4nglish +%anslation o! S. M. Madni Abbasi)". I !o#nd some se%io#s $ont%adi$tions 'hen I $%oss-%e!e%en$ed the abo/e named p#bli$ationsC b#t I $ontent mysel! by F#oting >#st t'o o! the $ont%adi$tions, so that a %o#nd !ig#%e o! !i!ty e%%o%s is a$hie/ed( &esides these e%%o%s the%e a%e othe%s 'hi$h 'ill be displayed in the !ollo'ing pages, !%om the one 'ho $laims to be gi/ing #s the most 0a#thenti$0 S#nnah th%o#gh his 0$lassi!i$ations o! Ahadith0( +he main aim in $a%%ying o#t the latte% eDe%$ise is !o% the bene!it o! those belie/e%s 'ho do not and $an not %ead the A%abi$ 'o%ks o! al-Albani !o% one, and se$ondly to gi/e the oppo%t#nity to any do#bting "+homas"C 'ho may o% may not be one o! al-Albani0s s#ppo%te%s at the time o! %eading this sho%t eDposition, to a$t#ally go along and $he$k the %e!e%en$es I ha/e F#oted !%om (mainly in 4nglish). &y doing this, Insha0Allah, all do#bts abo#t the a#thenti$ity o! this eDposition 'ill be alle/iated and the hea%ts o! those 'ho do#bt may be$ome $ontent( Allah kno's best. No *: :" Hadit * Aisha (Allah be pleased 'ith he%) %epo%ted the Apostle o! Allah (,ea$e and blessings be #pon him) as saying* "Allah and is Angels bless those 'ho a%e on the %ight !lanks o! the %o's (in p%aye%)." 1See S#nan Ab# 9a'ood, 25777 pg. 27;, 4nglish ed0n and "iyadh-#sSaliheen, 2526=3 pg. ;388. A +$ I ( +(3+d t + a1t +$ti(it2 o! the abo/e adith by #sing the list "9aee! Ahadith o! Ab# 9a'#d0s S#nan", it 'as not $o#nted amongst the daee! ones, 'hi$h means to the #se% o! this list that the abo/e adith is SA I (o% at least ASA)) a$$o%ding to the $he$king o! al-Albani( &#t, 'hen I !o#nd the same adith in "iyadh-#s-Saliheen, it 'as de$la%ed to be 9A44: by al-Albani. +he a$t#al 'o%ds #sed by the a#tho% o! "9aee! Ahaadith o! an-)a'a'i0s "iyadh#s-Saliheen", 'as*- "Al-Albaanee b%ings a long note. . . . . . +he 'o%ding (0#pon those on the %ight %o's0) is Shaadh o% M#nka% - the $o%%e$t na%%ation being * (0#pon those 'ho >oin the %o's0) - see Mishkaat, )o.26=7, 09aee! Abi 9a#d0, )o.2;-. . ."((( N/- al-Imam )a'a'i (Allah0s me%$y be #pon him) said that the abo/e adith has been $ited

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on the te%ms o! Imam M#slim by Imam Ab# 9a'ood (see the abo/e %e!e%en$e in 0"iyadh0). No ,0 :" Hadit * Ab# Hmamah (Allah be pleased 'ith him) says that the oly ,%ophet (,ea$e be #pon him) said* "A pe%son 'ho did not take pa%t in >ihad o% !ailed to eF#ip a !ighte%, o% did not look 'ell a!te% the !amily o! a !ighte%, 'o#ld be se/e%ely p#nished by Allah be!o%e the day o! >#dgement." ( Ab# 9a'ood, 2523=7, pg. 7=- and "iyadh-#s-Saliheen, 252-38, pg. 73-) A +$ I ( +(3+d t + a1t +$ti(it2 o! the abo/e adith by #sing the list 09aee! Ahadith o! Ab# 9a'#d0s S#nan0, it 'as not listed as being 9A44:, hen$e it has been de$la%ed to be SA I (o% at least ASA)) in al-Albani0s $he$king o! Ab# 9a'ood( &#t 'hen I !o#nd the abo/e adith in "iyadh-#s-Saliheen, al-Albani de$la%ed it to be 9A44:. +he a$t#al 'o%ds #sed by the a#tho% o! 09a0ee! Ahaadith o! An-)a'a'i0s "iyaad-#s-Saaliheen0 'as* "Its isnad $ontains al-Aaleed ibn M#slim-a-m#dallis - and he has #sed 'an'anah he%e(0!%om. . .0). See 0at-+a0leeF-#%-"agheeb0, 25266." N/- Imam an-)a'a'i said that the abo/e adith has been %elated 'ith a Sahih isnad, besides that, a$$o%ding to Shaykh Sh#0ayb al-A%naoot0s $he$king o! the abo/e adith in his edition o! "iyadh-#s-Saliheen, the abo/e adith is not daee! (this in!o%mation has been de%i/ed !%om anothe% p#bli$ation o! 0?ami0at Ihyaa Minhaa> al- S#nnah, by the title "<ist o! daee! ahadiths in "iyaad-as-Saliheen a$$o%ding to Sh#aib A%nao#tt," b#t as !o% the lists a#thenti$ity, I say* it needs to be $he$ked). I lea/e yo# to de$ide 'hose $he$king yo# 'ill adopt. )o' that I ha/e F#oted yo# ;6 mistakes o! al-Albani in adith, I 'ish to del/e into some %athe% impo%tant iss#es o! !iFh, espe$ially by $ompa%ing al-Albani0s de$la%ations 'ith the /ie's o! othe% a#tho%s( :o% the %e$o%d let me say at the o#tset, that most o! the opinions that I 'ill be F#oting !%om al-Albani a%e so#nd and a$$eptable to one s$hool o! !iFh o% anothe%. &#t i! the %eade% may sometimes get the !eeling that I ha/e in$lined too m#$h to'a%ds one pa%ti$#la% s$hool, then I ha/e only done so to de!end othe% so#nd and a$$eptable /ie's 'hi$h ha/e been and a%e still being p%a$tised by la%ge se$tions o! the Hmmah, indi!!e%en$e to the /ie's o! al-Albani and othe%s. +o all o! #s, mo%e than one /ie' sho#ld be a$$eptable i! a M#>tahid has #sed his pe%sonal %easoning to eDt%a$t a %#ling !%om the so#%$es o! the Sha%i0ahC sin$e this 'as the attit#de o! the glo%io#s Sala! as-Salihin (pio#s p%ede$esso%s o! the !i%st th%ee gene%ations o! Islam), may Allah be pleased 'ith them all. &#t as !o% al-Albani and the gene%ality o! his s#ppo%te%s they ha/e adopted the ta$tless 'ay o! e>e$ting5$%iti$ising all othe% 'ays 0#na$$eptable0 to thei% ded#$tions !%om the J#%0an and S#nnah as yo# shall see belo'. Allah kno's best.

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Al-Albani Unveiled !mportant !ssues of i"h #$urispruden%e& Movin' the in'er in (ashahhud -ith reference to al-Albani's recently translated boo2 4=he Prophet's Prayer described from the beginning to the end as though you see it ( ifah alah-al-Nabee 4, al-Albani claimed (pg. 99 3 4)urther, the Hadith that he $ould not mo"e his finger does not ha"e an authentic 1snad, as 1 ha"e e'plained in 5aeef Abi 5aa$ood (BM: .4 But $hen 1 loo2ed this Hadith up in the <nglish =ranslation of the Sunan of 1mam Abu 5a$ood (B8CLD, pg. G:G 1 found that Abdallah ibn al-Fubair (Allah be pleased $ith him said 3 4=he Prophet (Peace be upon him used to point $ith his finger (at the end of tashahhud and he $ould not mo"e it.4 But lo and behold, this "ery Hadith has not been listed 1n 4!aeef Ahadith of Abu !a"ud#s unan4, by his follo$ers% $hich means to the user of this list that this Hadith is acceptable to them, and is either of the ran2 of SAH1H or HASA. to the user of this list, 1mam Muslim (6ahimahullah also reported 1bn al-Fubair (Allah be pleased $ith him narrating from his father3 4=hat $hen the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him sat for supplication, i.e. =ashahhud, he placed his right hand on his right thigh and his left hand on his left thigh, and pointed $ith his forefinger, and placed his thumb on his (middle finger, and co"ered his 2nee $ith the palm of his left hand.4 (Sahih Muslim, B8BG;G, <nglish ed'n According to the Hanafi, Hanbali and Shafi'i Madhhabs, one should not continuously ma2e supplications $ith the fore-finger. 1t is $ritten in the <nglish translation of )i*h-us-Sunnah, by As-Sayyid Sabi*, ("ol. B, pg. B:M 3 4-a'il ibn Ha!r (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him $ould place his left palm on his left thigh and 2nee. He $ould place the end of his right elbo$ upon his right thigh and $ould then close his right hand, forming a circle. 1n another narration it states, he $ould ma2e a circle $ith his middle finger and thumb and point $ith his inde' finger, and ("a#il sa$ him mo"ing it to ma2e supplications (related by Ahmad .4 <'plaining the Hadith, al-Bayha*i (6ahimahullah says, 4=he implication of 'he $ould mo"e it' is that he $ould point $ith it, not that he $ould continue to mo"e it.4 =his $ould be in agreement $ith the narration of 1bn a@-Fubair (Allah be pleased $ith him , $ho reported, 4=he Prophet (Peace be upon him $ould point $ith his finger $hile supplicating, and he $ould not mo"e it.4 =his is related by Abu 5a$ud $ith a Sahih chain. An-.a$a$i also mentioned it. ()* - Both 1mams al-Bayha*i and .a$a$i $ere great Shafi'i scholars of Hadith $ho follo$ed this Hadith of 1bn al-Fubair, besides so many other scholars of Hadith . .o$, there is also a footnote (no BB by the translator &amal Farabo@o $ho said, 41n his notes to Mish2at al-Masabih, al-Albani has discussed the Hadith of -a'il ibn Ha!r and of 1bn a@-Fubair. He said that the first Hadith has a Sahih chain. =he narrators of the latter Hadith (i.e of 1bn alFubair are all trust$orthy. Muhammad ibn 1!lan (a narrator in the chain going bac2 to 1bn a@Fubair has some $ea2ness due to his memory, but his memory $as not so poor as to drop to the ran2 of hasan (a good Hadith . =herefore, the statement recorded by Sabi* that the chain is Sahih is incorrect (i.e only if you accept al-Albani's classification of Hadith % =he important $ords in

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the latter Hadith are, #and he "ould not mo$e it.' According to al-Albani this addition is irregular and re!ected (shadh and mun%ar .4 And 1 Say3 4al-Albani's follo$ers ha"e not said that it is shadh and mun%ar in their 5aeef Ahadith of Abu 5a$ud's Sunan ,4 Again referring to )i*h-us-Sunnah ("ol. B, pg. B:L , Sabi* says3 4According to the Shafiyyah, one points $ith the finger only once, $hen saying 'e'cept Allah' in the statement bearing $itness. =he Hanafiyyah raise the finger in the denial part of the Statement (there is no ?od and put it bac2 do$n during the confirmation part (e'cept Allah . =he Mali2iyyah (see belo$ for the Mali2i "ie$ mo"e the finger to the left and to the right until they finish the prayer. =he Hanbaliyyah point $ith the finger e"ery time they mention Allah, as a reflection to the oneness of Allah, and they do not mo"e it.4 Another t$o Hadith on this issue ha"e been related by 1mam Muslim (6ahimahullah in his Sahih3 41bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that $hen the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him sat for the tashahhud he placed his left hand on his left 2nee, and his right hand on his right 2nee, and he raised his right finger, $hich is ne't to the thumb, ma2ing supplication in this $ay, and he stretched his left hand on his left 2nee. Another "ersion on the authority of 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him says3 -hen the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him sat for the tashahhud, he placed his left hand on his left 2nee and placed his right hand on his right 2nee, and he formed a ring li2e (Arabic number :7 and pointed $ith his finger of attestation. (Also Ali ibn Abd al-6ahman al-Mu'a$i reported3 Abdullah ibn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him sa$ me playing $ith pebbles during prayer. After finishing the prayer he forbade me (to do it and said3 5o as the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him used to do. 1 said3 Ho$ did Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him doK He said that he (the Messenger of Allah sat at tashahhud, placed his right palm on the right thigh and closed all his fingers and pointed $ith the help of the finger ne't to the thumb, and placed his palm on his right thigh.4 (Sahih Muslim, B8BG;7-D, <nglish ed'n 1mam 1bn Abi Faid al-/aira$ani (d. 7LC AH% 6ahimahullah $ho is famed $ith the title 'little Mali2', ga"e the "ie$ of the Mali2i Madhhab in his al-6isala (pg. 7B in the follo$ing $ords3 4At the time a $orshipper reads the tashahhud, that is the tahiyyah, he places his hands on his thighs. He then folds the fingers of his right hand, but he lea"es his inde' finger unfolded and pointing for$ard $ith its side pointing to$ards his face. =here are differences of opinion about the interpretation of the state of the finger. Some belie"e that, 2eeping the finger still signifies that Allah is one ?od. =hose $ho sha2e it consider it a club $ith $hich to $ard off the Satan. 1 consider that the interpretation of that is that it reminds the $orshipper that he is in the state of prayer, and that mo"ing the finger shall pre"ent him from forgetting himself. =he $orshipper then places his left hand on his left thigh $ith the palm do$n$ards, he must not mo"e it nor point $ith it.4 )inally, it is $ritten in the <nglish translation of >mdat al-Sali2 $a >ddat al-.asi2 - N=his boo2 gi"es the Shafi'i Madhhab's "ie$sO (=he 6eliance of the =ra"eller, by Shay2h Ahmad 1bn .a*ib al-Misri, d. M9CAH8B79L #<% 6ahimahullah, trans. .uh Ha Mim 0eller, pg. BDG, fL.DD 3 4+ne does not mo"e it $hile it is thus raised (Shay2h >mar Bara2at said in his commentary to >mdat

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al-Sali23 follo$ing the Sunnah from a Hadith related by Abu 5a$ud. 1t is offensi"e to mo"e it here, though some hold that it is recommended, the e"idence for $hich is also from the Sunnah, in a Hadith related by Bayha*i, $ho states both Hadiths are rigorously authenticated (Sahih . Precedence is gi"en to the former Hadith (i.e of 1bn A@-Fubair , $hich negates mo"ing the finger, o"er the latter Hadith, $hich affirms it, because scholars hold that $hat is sought in prayer is lac2 of motion, and mo"ing it diminishes one's humility . (1 say3 al-Albani's comment on the Hadith of 1bn al-Fubair3 '<"en if it $ere authentic, it is negatory, $hile the Hadith abo"e is affirmatory3 the affirmatory ta2es precedence o"er the negatory, as is $ell 2no$n among the scholars' Asee pg. 99 of Sifah Salah an-.abeeE is of no conse*uence to $hat most of the )u*aha (&urisprudents ha"e said from amongst the Hanafi, Shafi'i and Hanbali scholars, but his opinion is only supported by the Mali2iyyah, so do not be confused . =he Prophet's mo"ing it $as merely to teach people that it $as permissible (and Shay2h Abdal--a2il 5urubi said3 'As it $as the Prophet's (Peace be upon him duty to distinguish for his #ommunity the acts that $ere offensi"e from those that $ere unla$ful, and he $as gi"en the re$ard of the obligatory for doing such offensi"e acts' . Moreo"er, Bayha*i says that the meaning of 'mo"ing it' in the latter Hadith is simply raising it, so there is no actual contradiction .4 )rom the abo"e discussion $e may briefly say in summary that al-Albani labelled the Hadith of Abdallah ibn al-Fubair as being 5A<<) according to $hat he said in 'Sifah-Salah an-.abee, (pg. 99 , but his follo$ers ha"e not labelled it as being 5A<<) in '5aeef Ahadith of Abu 5a$ud's Sunan',, Also according to &amal Farabo@o's *uotation from al-Albani's chec2ing of Mish2at ulMasabih, this same Hadith $as of the ran2 of HASA., and not 5A<<) as he had said in '5aeef Abi 5a$ood (no BM: '% is this not a gra"e contradictionK -e should rather accept the chec2ing of such great memori@ers of Hadith li2e the 1mam's Bayha*i and .a$a$i (Allah's mercy be upon them . Allah 2no$s best.

(he Pla%in' of Hands in Prayer -ith regard to the placing of the hands belo$ the na"el in Salah (see Sifah Salah an-.abee, appendi' D, pg. B;G-B;7, <nglish ed'n , al-Albani has declared all the Hadith that reached him on this issue to be 5aeef, due to the presence of the narrator Abdar-6ahman ibn 1sha* al--asiti al0oofi. =his may be true due to $hat the scholars of Hadith ha"e said, but he has either o"erloo2ed the fact that there are many other Ahadith $hich order the placing of the hands belo$ the na"el, or has deliberately not bothered to mention them to his readers $ho are usually una$are of this fact, Al-Albani claims on page BG of the same boo2 3 4=o place them on the chest is $hat is pro"ed in the Sunnah, and all that is contrary to it is either 5aeef or totally baseless.4 But he contradicts himself on page B;G-B;7 of the same boo2 by saying3 4-hat further points to its $ea2ness (i.e. the Hadith of Abdar-6ahman ibn 1sha* is that contrary to it has been narrated on the authority of Ali (Allah be pleased $ith him $ith a better 1snad3 the Hadith of 1bn &areer al-5abbi an (from his father, $ho said, '1 sa$ Ali holding his left arm $ith his right on the $rist, abo"e the na"el (1 say3 =he statement abo"e the na"el, does not mean on the chest, but literally abo"e the na"el and belo$ the chest, since this is the opinion of the Shafiyyah scholars li2e Bayha*i, .a$a$i, Muslim and so on - this 1snad is a candidate for the ran2 of HASA.% Baiha*i

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(B87;B firmly designated it to be Hasan, and Bu2hari (B87;B designated it $ith certainty $hile gi"ing it an abridged, ta'lee* form.4 1s this not a clear contradiction from $ithin the same boo2K And this is not all my dear reader... Al-Albani claimed that it $as found in Bu2hari (B87;B , but $hen 1 e'amined the Sahih alBu2hari (Iol. B, #hapter. 9, no. M;M, pg. 7C9, <nglish ed'n , 1 did not find this narration of 1bn &arir al-5abbi (Allah be pleased $ith him , but instead a Hadith from Sahl ibn Sa'ad (Allah be pleased $ith him $ho said3 4=he people $ere ordered to place the right hand on the left forearm in the prayer.4 Abu Ha@im said, 4 1 2ne$ that the order $as from the Prophet (Peace be upon him .4 Asee also Mu$atta of 1mam Mali2, section C.B:, no :;, pg M;, <nglish trans'n by A. Abdarahman and P. &ohnson for a "ery similar narrationE. According to the author of &a'al Ha**, Shay2h Ahmad 0han, there is not e"en one Hadith in the Sahih collections of al-Bu2hari and Muslim $hich specify $here the hands should be placed, .o$ you ha"e !ust read abo"e that al-Albani classified the Hadith of 1bn &arir al-5abbi to be HASA., but $hen 1 found this "ery Hadith in the Sunan of Abu 5a$ood (B8M:9, pg. BCD, <nglish ed'n and cross referenced it to the list, 45aeef Ahadith of Abu 5a$ud's Sunan.4 1 found that his follo$ers listed it as being 5A<<),, 1mam Abu 5a$ood (6ahimahullah said after relating the Hadith from 1bn &arir al-5abbi3 4Sa'id ibn &ubair narrated the $ords3 'abo"e the na"el'. Abu Mi!la@ reported the $ords3 'belo$ the na"el'. =his has also been narrated by Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased $ith him . But that is not strong.4 =he latter *uote is one $hich alAlbani failed to mention in 4Sifah Salah an-.abee,4 .ote also that al-Albani said $ith regard to the placing of the hands on the chest (see Sifah Salah an-.abee, pg. BG, in the footnote 3 41n fact, 1mam 1sha* ibn 6ah$aih acted on this Sunnah, as Mar$a@i said in 'Masaa'il (pg GGG 3 '1sha* used to pray $itr $ith us.... he $ould raise his hands in *unoot, and ma2e the *unoot before bo$ing, and place his hands on his breast or !ust under his breast.'4 But $hen 1read the footnote to Abu 5a$ood's Sunan ("ol. B, pg. BCD, fn. 7D:, <nglish ed'n , 1 noticed that the author of A$n al- Mabood (B,GM: , Shams al-Ha** A@imabadi, claimed that both Abu 1sha* al-Mar$a@i and al-Hafi@ 1sha* ibn 6ah$aih (one of 1mam al-Bu2hari's teachers held the position that the hands should be folded belo$ the na"el, 1n his Sahih Muslim sharifMu2htasar Sharh .a$a$i ("ol. G, pg. GL, fn. G7 , -ahid a@-Faman (a late scholar of the 'Salafiyya' in Pa2istan also affirmed that the 1mam's Sufyan al-=ha$ri, Abu Hanifah, 1sha* ibn 6ah$aih and Abu 1sha* al-Mar$a@i (Allah's mercy be upon them all used to place their hands belo$ the na"el, So $ho do you thin2 is *uoting correctly, al-Albani or al-A@imabadi and a@FamanK Here is the full *uote from Abu 5a$ood's Sunan3 4=he *uestion of folding hands in prayer belo$ the na"el is disputed amongst the !urists. According to Abu Hanifah, Sufyan al-=ha$ri, 1sha* ibn 6ah$aih, Abu 1sha* al-Mar$a@i (1 say3 others $ho held the same "ie$ include the Mu!tahid's li2e 1brahim al-.a2hai, Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman, Abu Pusuf, Muhammad al-Shaybani, Fufar ibn Hudayl and many other scholars,

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Allah's mercy be upon them , the hands should be folded belo$ the na"el. =his tradition is follo$ed by them (1 say3 it is not !ust this tradition $hich lends support to placing the hands belo$ the na"el, but others as $ell . According to al-Shafi'i, the hands should be placed belo$ the chest (1 say3 this is also the opinion of 1mam Muslim, according to the chapter heading used by him3 '=he placing of the right hand o"er the left hand after the first ta2bir in prayer belo$ the chest and abo"e the na"el and then placing them opposite the shoulders in prostration' -see Sahih Muslim, "ol. B, pg. GG;, <nglish ed'n . Al-.a$a$i says that this is the "ie$ of the ma!ority of the !urists (this may ha"e been in 1mam .a$a$i's day, but it is $ell 2no$n that through out the centuries of 1slam in aggregate, most of the >lama as $ell as the common fol2 ha"e been placing their hands belo$ the na"el, by Allah's decree and $ill . =$o statements ha"e been attributed to Ahmad ibn Hanbal (see al-Albani's ifah alah an-Nabee, footnote on pg. :B . According to the third "ie$ ascribed to him he does not gi"e any preference to any of these t$o "ie$s. +ne has the choice of placing the hands. Mali2 is also reported to ha"e held t$o different "ie$s. According to the second, he held that one should lea"e the hands in their natural position $ithout folding them. +ne should not fold them placing one on the other.4 .B- =he most authoritati"e position of 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah has been recorded in alMuda""ana al-&ubra, by /adi Sahnoon (d. GD; AH . =his boo2 contains the most authentic positions of al-1mam Mali2 and his illustrious disciples, namely 1mam ibn al-/asim and 1mam ibn -ahb. /adi Sahnoon recorded the declarations of 1mam Mali2 directly from 1mam ibn al/asim, hence there is no real doubt in my mind that $hate"er has been recorded in this boo2 is the Madhhab of al-1mam Mali2, and usually the amal (practise of the people of Madinah in his day. 1n al-Muda""ana ("ol. B, pg. M:-M9 , 1mam Mali2 has been recorded to ha"e said, 4Putting the right hand on the left in salah, 1 ha"e no 2no$ledge of it in the compulsory (fard prayer, it is thus disli2ed (ma%rooh . But in the supererogatory (nafl prayer there is no harm (in folding the hands , it is left to the indi"idual to decide.4 =his statement from 1mam Mali2 is a strong proof against those $ho claim that 1mam Mali2 only prayed $ith his hands at his sides, after he recei"ed a se"ere beating (see The '$olution of (iqh, pg. M;, by A.A. Bilal Philips , Al-Albani has only 'chec2ed' si' Hadith $hich allo$ the placing of the hands belo$ the na"el (see his 'Sifah', pg. B;G, App'. D . But there are more than 9 other Hadith ($hich allo$ the placing of the hands belo$ the na"el $hich he has not bothered to mention8chec2% may be he has not come across them, +ne of such Hadith is "ery similar to $hat al-Albani mentioned in 4Sifah Salah an-.abee,4 pg. BB3 4-e, the company of Prophets, ha"e been commanded to hasten the brea2ing of the fast, to delay the meal before the fast, and to place our right arms on our left arms during prayer Afrom 1bn Hibban and 5iyaa', $ith a Sahih 1snad according to al-AlbaniE. =he "ersion 1 ha"e is related by Sayyidina Ali (Allah be pleased $ith him 3 4=hree things are from the habits of Prophethood3 =o hasten the brea2ing of the fast, to delay the Sehri (pre-fast meal as late as possible, and to place one's right hand on top of the left hand belo$ the na"el (transmitted by Hafi@ 1bn Shaheen .4 =o finish, As-Sayyid Sabi* *uoted 1mam =irmidhi (6ahimahullah as saying in (iqh-us- unnah ("ol. B, pg B7G 3 40no$ledgeable #ompanions (Allah be pleased $ith them all , their follo$ers and those that came after them belie"ed that one should put his right hand o"er the left during prayer, $hile some say abo"e the na"el and others say belo$ the na"el.4

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Raful-+adain , (he Raisin' of Hands in Prayer Another point 1 $ish to raise concerns the long disputed issue of raising the hands in prayer (salah . 1t is a $ell 2no$n fact that al-Albani and the generality of people amongst the 'Salafiyya' ha"e made a mountain out of a molehill, and ha"e bre$ed a storm in a tea cup $ith regards to this issue, such that many of them are bold enough to accuse those $ho do not raise their hands in Salah (i.e. after the initial raising called =a2bir-=ahrimah of not follo$ing the Sunnah, as $ell as going to the disgusting length of openly detesting and despising those $ho do not raise their hands after the first =a2bir, 1 must also admit that among those $ho do not raise their hands in the subse*uent stages of Salah, usually the ignorant people ha"e accused those $ho raise the hands in the other stages of Salah to be '-ahabbi's,' =his is due to ignorance and pride of both sides, $hich usually stems from the lac2 of 2no$ledge of the opinion of our great Mu!tahid 1mam's, and the Ahadith based e"idences used by the research scholars in their respecti"e defence of either raising or not raising the hands in the other stages of Salah. +ur brothers and sisters $ho accuse those of raising the hands in the other stages of prayer should as2 themsel"es3 4-ere the great 1mam's li2e al-Shafi'i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Allah's mercy be upon them -ahhabi'sK4 1 pose this *uestion because it is $ell 2no$n that both of the latter named 1mam's used to practise 6aful-Padayn after the initial =a2bir, besides many other #ompanions and successors (=abi'een , may Allah be pleased $ith them all, 1t is a $ell 2no$n fact from the Muta$ateer Ahadith (a report of a large number of narrators $hose agreement upon a lie is inconcei"able a"ailable to us, that the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him used to raise his hands $hen pronouncing the initial =a2bir in Salah. Sayyid Sabi* stated in his )i*h-us-Sunnah ("ol. B, pg BGC 3 4Says 1bn al-Mundhir, 'All scholars agree that the Prophet (Peace be upon him raised his hands at the beginning of his prayer.' #ommenting upon this report, 1bn Ha!ar (al-As*alani says, '=he Prophet's raising his hands at the beginning of his prayer has been narrated by fifty companions, including the ten $ho $ere gi"en the tidings of Paradise.' Al-Bayha*i related that al-Ha2im said, '1 do not 2no$ of any Sunnah other than this one $hich is accepted by the four rightly guided 0halifahs, the ten companions $ho $ere gi"en the tidings of Paradise, and other #ompanions scattered across many lands.4 (.B-1n my o$n e'perience, the only people 1 ha"e met $ho do not raise their hands in any stage of the Salah ha"e been the remnants of a 0hari!ite sect called the 1baadiyah, nor do they fold their hands in Salah . .o$, the difference in opinion stems on the *uestion of $hether the raising of the hands is necessary in the other stages of Salah, li2e $hen going into 6u2oo, standing up from 6u2oo, in bet$een the prostrations (sa!dah and $hen standing up for the third ra2ah in Salah... Al-Albani said in 4Sifah Salah an-.abee, pg. DG, fn. D43 4=he raising of the hands is reported as Muta$ateer from him (Peace be upon him , as is the raising of the hands on straightening up after 6u2oo. 1t is the Madhhab of the three 1mams Mali2, Shafi'i and Ahmad, and of the ma!ority of scholars of Hadith and )i*h. 1mam Mali2 practised it right up to his death, as reported by 1bn Asa2ir (B:8ML8G . Some of the Hanafi's chose to do it, among them 1sam ibn Pusuf Abu Asamah al-Bal2hi (died. GB; A.H. , a student of 1mam Abu Pusuf, as has been e'plained in the introduction.4

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1 $ish to say to the bias of al-Albani, 4Pou ha"e *uoted a portion of the truth correctly, but ha"e also blundered in one of your opinions,4 1t is absolutely true that the great Mu!tahid 1mams li2e al-Shafi'i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Allah's mercy be upon them recommended the raising of the hands in the other subse*uent stages of Salah, but it is a mista2e to say that the great 1mam of Madinah, Mali2 ibn Anas (6ahimahullah 4practised it right up to his death4 as al-Albani claims, by *uoting from 1mam 1bn Asa2ir (a Shafi'i scholar of Hadith, and a staunch defender of 1mam Abu'l Hasan al-Ashari, he $rote a $or2 entitled '=he <'posure by al-1mam Abu'l Hasan alAshari of Mischie"ous untruths, d. :MB AH% 6ahimahullah . )or the real and authoritati"e "ie$ of 1mam Mali2 and his follo$ers, one must study the boo2s $ritten by the Mali2i Madhhab, and then *uote their opinions, 1 say this due to the sensible ad"ice gi"en to me by one of my friends in a $ritten communication. He said3 4+ne lesson you should learn from all this is not to, for e'ample, ta2e Hadith from someone $ho is mainly speciali@ed in )i*h or some other sub!ect, or ta2e Hanafi dalils (e"idences used to gi"e legal "erdicts from someone $ho is not a specialist in the Hanafi madhhab's methodological bases and e"idences, or ta2e a Hanbali scholar's $ord about some ruling in a different madhhab, or ta2e Hadith 2no$ledge from scholars $ho ma2e large numbers of mista2es, and so on. 1n general, one does not ta2e an accounting problem to a shoe salesman.4 )or the most authentic "ie$ and stance of 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah and his disciples please refer to the appropriate title and discussion later, but as for $hat al-Albani *uoted from 1mam 1bn Asa2ir (6ahimahullah , then 1 say the authenticity of this report needs to be chec2ed, since al-Albani has failed to classify it himself in his 4Sifah Salah an-.abee,4 (does this not mean that he $ants his readers to 'blindly' accept his "erdictsK , and e"en if Hafi@ 1bn Asa2ir's reference pro"es to be Sahih, then there is no doubt in my mind that this statement coming from 1mam Mali2 must be re!ected in fa"our of the real position of 1mam Mali2 himself. =he statements that 1 shall be *uoting in fa"our of 1mam Mali2's authoritati"e opinion, comes directly from his most famous disciples, $here as the reference coming from 1bn Asa2ir as gi"en by alAlbani, $as recorded $ell o"er 7;; years after the death of 1mam Mali2 (.B- 1mam Mali2 passed a$ay in the year BMC AH% $hile 1mam 1bn Asa2ir $as born in the year DCC AH , As you ha"e read abo"e al-Albani stated that the 1mam's Shafi'i and 1bn Hanbal (Allah's mercy be upon them performed 6aful-Padayn, but one should also 2no$ that on the other hand, the great Mu!tahid's amongst our Pious-Predecessors, li2e Abu Hanifah, Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman, 1brahim al-.a2hai, Al*ama, As$ad (t$o famous disciples of the great #ompanion Abdallah ibn Masood , Abu Pusuf, Muhammad al-Shaybani, Sufyan al-=ha$ri and many other >lama (Allah's mercy be upon them all did not perform 6aful-Padayn, e'cept in the initial =a2bir, based on many sound chains of narration, So you may no$ as23 4-hy the difference of opinionK4 =he ans$er to this small problem is simple% it is only due to preference gi"en to the deri"ed 1!tihad of the a"ailable Ahadith on this sub!ect, by indi"idual Mu!tahid's of the highest scholarly ran2, and not that of the laity amongst the general masses of this >mmah. Since many a scholar has said that it is impermissible to deri"e legal "erdicts from the /ur'an and Sunnah, if one is not *ualified to do 1!tihad (see the section on =a*leed , but con"ersely, $hat do $e see today (see later K =he 1mams $ho held the "ie$ that 6aful-Padayn is unnecessary, besides the initial =a2bir, ha"e based their "ie$s from many authentic Ahadith coming from the Holy Prophet

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(Peace and blessings be upon him , as $ell as directly from the great #ompanions (May Allah be pleased $ith them all . =he fact of the matter is, that in their "ie$ the practise of performing 6aful-Padayn in the other stages of prayer ha"e been abrogated, and hence unnecessary in performance. #ontrary to this, 1mam's li2e al-Shafi'i, 1bn Hanbal.... belie"e it to be desirable to perform 6aful-Padayn, and in their "ie$ the practise has not been abrogated. #onse*uently, many of the $ell 2no$n and $ise research scholars ha"e said that one's Salah is correct and acceptable by the practise of either mode, So please do not fall into the abyss of ignorance, by accusing and abusing each other of performing Salah incorrectly, since it $as not generally the $ay of our foremost Mu!tahid's of the pious generations (see the discussion bet$een 1mam al-A@am Abu Hanifah and 1mam alA$@ai later , Al-Albani has said that some of the Hanafi's li2e Shay2h 1sam ibn Pusuf al-Bal2hi (6ahimahullah chose to perform 6aful-Padayn because he did not 2no$ the e"idence of his 1mams $ho held the "ie$ that 6aful-Padayn $as unnecessary after the initial =a2bir (See 4Sifah Salah an-.abee, pg '"ii,4 and also 4=he <"olution of )i*h, pg. BG94, by A.A. Bilal Philips . 1 find it strange that Shay2h 1sam ibn Pusuf did not 2no$ the e"idence for not performing 6afulPadayn, since by simple logic one can deduce the fact that he must ha"e seen his t$o main 1mams (Muhammad al-Shaybani and Abu Pusuf not performing 6aful- Padayn, and hence he must ha"e been curious enough to as2 his 1mams for the e"idence they used for not performing 6aful-Padayn, -hat seems more apt in a situation li2e this, is to say that probably Shay2h 1sam ibn Pusuf felt that the e"idence for performing 6aful-Padayn $as more con"incing to him, than the con"erse e"idence for not performing 6aful- Padayn, and Allah 2no$s best. +ne lesson $hich can be learnt from this incident, is that if Shay2h 1sam ibn Pusuf $as a Mu!tahid $ithin the Hanafi school, then li2e all other Mu!tahid scholars it is incumbent on him to follo$ his o$n 1!tihad, e"en if it has at times contradicted the founder of the Madhhab he belonged to. =hus, Shay2h 1sam had to follo$ his o$n 1!tihad. =he proof for $hat 1 ha"e !ust said has been agreed upon by most of the scholars $ho $ere speciali@ed in the fundamentals (>sool of 1slam. )or e'ample, it is $ritten in the boo2 4Principles of 1slamic &urisprudence4, by Mohammad Hashim 0amali (pg. 7M; 3 4=he >lema of >sul are in agreement that the Mu!tahid is bound by the result of his o$n 1!tihad. +nce he has deduced the ruling on a particular issue $hich is founded in his true con"iction and belief, he may not imitate (=a*leed other Mu!tahids on that matter regardless as to $hether they agree $ith him or other$ise. )or the Mu!tahid, the conclusion that he reaches is tantamount to a di"ine command $hich he must obser"e. 1t is therefore unla$ful for him to abandon it or to follo$ anyone else in respect of it. But if he had not rendered his o$n 1!tihad on an issue $hich is not urgent, and he has time to in"estigate, then according to some ulema he may imitate other Mu!tahid's. Ho$e"er, the preferred "ie$ is that he must a"oid ta*leed, e"en of one $ho might be more learned than him. +nly the ammi (layman8non-Mu!tahid's $ho is incapable of 1!tihad is allo$ed to follo$ the opinion of others.4 (=he abo"e author has *uoted from 1mam ?ha@@ali's Mustasfa, "ol.G pg. BGB% 1mam Amidi's 1h2am, "ol.D pg. G;D and from al-0assab's Ad$a, pg. BBC . =he abo"e *uote clears some of the misconceptions held by some people on the role of Mu!tahid's in 1slam. )or e'ample, some people $ho try to refute the =a*leed of the Mu!tahid's,

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bring for$ard e'amples in $hich the disciples of the four main 1mams contradicted the 1!tihad of their Master's on certain points. =hese people should al$ays remember that if a disciple contradicts the opinion of his master, then this is the result of the natural prerogati"e besto$ed upon him, $hen he attained the high and honourable grade of 1!tihad. =here is a $ell 2no$n story related from the great 1mam Abu Hanifah (d. B:; AH% 6ahimahullah , $ho said3 41 follo$ the boo2 of Allah, and if 1 find no solution there, 1 follo$ the Sunnah of =he Prophet (peace be upon him . 1f 1 find no solution in either the /ur'an or the Sunnah, 1 follo$ $hiche"er of the pronouncements of the Sahabah 1 prefer, and lea"e $hiche"er 1 $ish. 1f there is a pronouncement on a particular matter by any of the Sahabah, 1 $ould not adopt any other made by any other scholar. But, if 1 found a solution only in the opinions of 1brahim (al-.a2hai , al-Shabi, 1bn Sirin, Hasan al-Basri, Ata (ibn Abi 6abah or Sa'eed ibn al-Musayyib (they $ere all Mu!tahid's , 1 $ould ma2e 1!tihad !ust as they did.4 ("ide3 4>sul al-)i*h al-1slami,4 pg. 9D, by =aha &abir alAl$ani, $ho reported this account from =ari2h Baghdad, "ol. '''i, pg. 79L, al-1nti*a of 1bn Abdal Barr, pg. BDG, and Mashayi2h Bal2h al-Hanafiyah, pg. BC; . =his report e'emplifies the prerogati"e of a Mu!tahid, as $ell as $hy Shay2h 1sam ibn Pusuf may ha"e held different opinions from his Masters. 1 must stress, the abo"e discussion only refers to those $ho can perform 1!tihad, and not to those $ho are unable to fulfil the conditions recogni@ed by the scholars of >sool for carrying out the duties of a Mu!tahid. =hose $ho are not Mu!tahid's are bound to the opinions of *ualified Mu!tahid's, and this is =a*leed. Al-Albani said in 'Sifah Salah an-.abee', (pg. B;:-9 3 4About raising the hands on going into 6u2u and rising from it, many Ahadith ha"e been narrated from the Prophet (Peace be upon him 3 they are actually muta$ateer in the eyes of the scholars% in fact, raising the hands $ith e"ery ta2bir is pro"en on his authority in many Ahadith% $hereas not raising the hands is not authentically related from him e'cept once "ia Abdallah ibn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him , but this is not suitable for putting into practise, for it is naaf (negatory . 1t is firmly established, in the eyes of the Hanafi's and others, that the muthbit (affirmatory ta2es precedence o"er the naaf (negatory % this is e"en $hen the affirmatory is on its o$n, let alone the case $hen it is a multitude of narrations, as in this issue, +n the basis of this principle, and in the absence of anything contrary, this renders it binding on them to adopt the raising of the hands, and not to stic2 @ealously to the Madhhab after the establishment of proof. Ho$e"er, it is a pity that only a handful of the earlier or later ones ha"e adopted it, so much so that not raising the hands has become a land mar2 for them,4 =he abo"e *uote sho$s the limited and superficial 2no$ledge of al-Albani, in the e"idences used by the Hanafi scholars for not performing 6aful-Padayn, 1t is true that the Ahadith confirming 6aful-Padayn are Muta$ateer, but $hat the reader should also 2no$, is that not performing it has also come do$n to us in a Muta$ateer $ay, 1n fact there are more than :; Ahadith pro"ing the con"erse of $hat the 4great scholar,4 al-Albani holds, as $ell as those $ho bolster his claims, Al-Albani claims that not raising the hands has come to us authentically only, 4once through Abdallah ibn Masood, but this is not suitable for putting into practise.4 =o $hich 1 reply, $hy should it not be possible to put into practise the Hadith related by the great #ompanion 1bn

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Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him K 5id he (Allah forbid lie or fabricate from the Prophet (Peace be upon him K Please do not forget that there are many other authentic Ahadith to bac2 up the opinion of the Hanafi's (and Mali2i's , Al-Albani only e'plains this Hadith of 1bn Masood a$ay by bringing in the !urisprudential principle of, 4the affirmati"e ta2es precedence o"er the negatory4, but his argument is fallacious in this case, since 1 ha"e already said that the Hanafi's belie"e that the performance of 6aful-Padayn has been abrogated by many other Ahadith, hence the abo"e principle is inapplicable in this case, He claims the Hadith from 1bn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him has been only related authentically once. 1 say this is incorrect, and only due to his ignorance of all the a"ailable routes (Asanid coming from 1bn Masood. As far as 1 2no$ he has not listed the Hadith of 1bn Masood to be 5aeef, in his chec2ing of 1mam Abu 5a$ood's Sunan, since his follo$ers ha"e not recorded it in their, 45aeef Ahadith of Abu 5a$ud's Sunan4. =he Hadith in *uestion is from Al*amah (6ahimahullah , $ho said3 4Abdallah ibn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him said 3'Should 1 pray in the $ay the Apostle of Allah (Peace be upon him had performed itK' He said3 'He prayed, raising his hands only once.'4 AAbu 5a$ood, B8MDM, pg. BC7, <nglish ed'nE. Since it has not been listed in the abo"e mentioned publication, this means that the abo"e narration is either Sahih, or at least Hasan to the user of the list. .ote also, according to Shams al-Ha** A@imabadi, in his boo2 A$n al-Mabood (B,GMG-M7 , the abo"e Hadith $as regarded to be Hasan by Hafi@ 1bn Ma'een (6ahimahullah , and it is $ell 2no$n that 1mam =irmidhi (6ahimahullah rated it to be Hasan (see Sunan al-=irmidhi, G8G:M, pg. D;-DB, edited by Ahmad Muhammad Sha2ir . =he abo"e Hadith has been related from 1mam al-A@am Abu Hanifah (6ahimahullah , through an absolutely SAH1H chain (all the narrators gi"en belo$ $ere $ell 2no$n Mu!tahid's and absolutely truthful , and here it is3 1mam Abu Hanifah (6ahimahullah has related to us from his teacher, 1mam Hammad ibn Abi Sulayman (6ahimahullah , $ho related from his teacher, 1mam 1brahim al-.a2hai (6ahimahullah , $ho related from his t$o teachers 1mam Al*amah and 1mam As$ad (Allah's mercy be upon them , the t$o distinguished pupils of 1bn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him , $ho related from 1bn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him , $ho related from the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him . =he reference for this is gi"en after the discussion bet$een 1mam Abu Hanifah and 1mam al-A$@ai (Allah's mercy be upon them , please see belo$. So my dear reader, 1 ha"e !ust pro"en to you that the Hadith from 1bn Masood has come to us authentically, through at least t$o authentic routes, as gi"en abo"e. #an you no$ belie"e in al-Albani's assertion that it has only come through one authentic narrationK As for al-Albani saying, 4Ho$e"er, it is a pity that only a handful of the earlier or later ones (i.e. Hanafi's ha"e adopted it, so much so that not raising the hands has become a landmar2 for them,4 1 say this statement is due to his ignorance, lac2 of scholarly deduction and 2no$ledge of the principles and proofs held by the Hanafi's, He claims that it has become a 4landmar24, for the Hanafi's only, 1 say, 4+ 'Shay2h', ha"e you not contradicted yourself by admitting that others besides the Hanafi's do not raise their hands in Salah in the same boo2K4 Here is al-Albani's admission that it is not !ust the Hanafi's $ho ha"e made it a 4landmar24% he said in 4Sifah Salah an-.abee,4 (footnote to pg CB 3 4=he 1baadiyyah ha"e distorted this hadeeth3 their scholar 6abee'

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has related it in his unreliable Musnad $ith a different $ording to !ustify their "ie$ that raising the hands $ith ta2beer in"alidates the Prayer, =hat $ording is false, as 1 ha"e e'plained in ad5a'eefah (9;DD .4,,, =his by Allah, is a gra"e contradiction from $ithin the same boo2, and tantamount to his admission that besides the Hanafi's, the 1baadiyyah sect do not also raise their hands, 1n fact $e ha"e on record some scholars $ho initially used to perform 6aful-Padayn, but later on in their li"es they stopped performing it altogether, e'cept for the initial =a2beer% $hen they had ta2en into account all the arguments and e"idence. =$o of such great scholars are as follo$s3(A 1mam Abu &a'far al-=aha$i (d. 7GB AH% 6ahimahullah 3 He $as a Mu!tahid in specific issues (Mu!tahid fi al-Masa'il and also the famous author of the $or2 'Al-A*eeda al-=aha$iyya' (=he Muslim Belief According to al-=aha$i , $hich has been translated into <nglish by t$o different organisations, and many other $or2s on Hadith. He $as originally a Shafi'i scholar $ho gained mastery in Shafi'i )i*h from his famous uncle 1mam alMu@ani (6ahimahullah Amentioned in Sifah Salah an-.abee, pg. '"iE, $ho $as the famous disciple of 1mam al-Shafi'i (6ahimahullah . But later in his life he !oined the Hanafi school and hence stopped performing 6aful-Padayn indifference to the Shafi'i "ie$ of performing it. 1mam =aha$i li"ed in a time $hen most of the Hadith had been collected (after Bu2hari, Muslim etc , hence he had an ideal opportunity to sift through the Hadith on 6aful-Padayn and he came to the conclusion that 1mam Abu Hanifah's (6ahimahullah "ie$ point $as more con"incing to him, and in this regard he *uoted some Hadiths negating the practise of 6aful-Padayn in some of his $or2s. (B 1mam Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin (d.BG:G8BL79% 6ahimahullah 3 He $as also originally a Shafi'i scholar $ho changed his school and became the foremost Hanafi 1mam of his time. Hence he also changed his original opinion of performing 6aful-yadayn, to not performing it. His most famous $or2 is 'Hashiya 6add al-Mu2htar'. Al-Albani has *uoted from him in 'Sifah Salah an-.abee' (pg's "iii, '"ii . (he -ie. of !mam Mali/ and his Madhhab on Raf-ul-+adayn 1 ha"e already *uoted the opinion of al-Albani $ith regard to his *uotation from 1mam ibn Asa2ir. Al-Albani has claimed that 1mam Mali2 used to perform 6aful-Padayn right upto his death. But this is in direct contradiction to $hat has been related from 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah by his famous disciple, 1mam ibn al-/asim. =he foremost boo2 of the Mali2i Madhhab in terms of )i*h is a boo2 called 'Al-Muda$$anah' (A Boo2 of (egal #ases . 1t is a recension of /adi Sahnoon (6ahimahullah , containing his *uestions, ans$ered by 1mam 1bn al-/asim (6ahimahullah . =hese ans$ers repeat the literal $ords of 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah by occasional personal interpretation of 1bn al-/asim himself. 1t is $ritten in 4alMuda$$anah4, ("ol. B, pg. MB 3 41mam Mali2 has said that he does not 2no$ of 6aful-Padayn being done in any =a2beer, e"en $hen going into (6u2oo or rising from it, e'cept in the =a2beer =ahrimah (the initial =a2beer , then ibn al-/asim said that in the opinion of 1mam Mali2 the performance of 6aful-Padayn $as 5aeef (a $ea2 practice .4 =he diligent reader may ha"e noticed that 1mam Mali2 has *uoted t$o Hadith $hich seems to support the practice of performing 6aful- Padayn, in his celebrated al-Mu$atta, =he Hadith

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*uoted is as follo$s, 4Pahya related to me from Mali2 from 1bn Shihab from Salim ibn Abdullah from Abdullah ibn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith them that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to raise his hands to the le"el of his shoulders $hen he began the prayer and $hen he raised his head from ru2u he raised them in the same $ay, saying, 'Allah hears $hoe"er praises him, our (ord and praise belongs to Pou.' He did not raise them in su!ud (prostration .4 Also, 4Pahya related to me from Mali2 from .afi that Abdullah ibn >mar used to raise his hands to the le"el of his shoulders $hen he began the prayer and $hen he raised from the ru2u he $ould raise them less than that.4 (see Mu$atta section 7.D, no. BM and GB, pg. GM, trans. by A. Abdarahman and P. &ohnson . =he abo"e Hadith has also been related by 1mam's Bu2hari and Muslim in their respecti"e collections, besides many other boo2s of Hadith $ith slight "ariations in $ording and description. =he abo"e Hadith has been one of the main proofs used to pro"e the performance of 6afulPadayn by some great scholars. But, the Hanafi and Mali2i schools put for$ard some of the follo$ing arguments to e'plain their contention. =he 1mam Abu 5a$ood (6ahimahullah reported a Hadith "ery similar to the one abo"e, he said that 1mam .afi said on the authority of 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him that $hen he began his prayer, he uttered the =a2beer (Allah is most great and raised his hands% and $hen he bo$ed (he raised his hands % and $hen he said3 4Allah listens to him $ho praises Him,4 (he raised his hands % and $hen he stood up at the end of t$o ra2'ahs, he raised his hands. He (1bn >mar traced that bac2 to the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him . Abu 5a$ood then said3 4-hat is correct is that the tradition reported by 1bn >mar does not go bac2 to the Prophet (may peace be upon him .4 Abu 5a$ood then said3 4=he narrator Ba*iyyah (found in the 1snad reported the first part of this tradition from >baid Allah and traced it bac2 to the Prophet (may peace be upon him % and the narrator al-=ha*afi reported it from >baid Allah as a statement of 1bn >mar himself (not from the Prophet . 1n this "ersion he said3 '-hen he stood at the end of t$o ra2'ahs he raised them up to his breasts. And this is the correct "ersion.4 Abu 5a$ood then said3 4=his tradition has been transmitted as a statement of 1bn >mar (and not of the Prophet by al-(ayth ibn Sa'ad, Mali2,Ayyub, and 1bn &urai!% and this has been narrated as a statement of the Prophet (Peace be upon him by Hammad ibn Salamah alone on the authority of Ayyub. Ayyub and Mali2 did not mention his raising of hands $hen he stood after t$o prostrations, but al-(ayth mentioned it in his "ersion. 1bn &urai! said in his "ersion3 1 as2ed .afi, 45id 1bn >mar raise (his hands higher for the first timeK' He said, '.o.' 1 said, 'Point out to me. He then pointed to the breasts or lo$er than that.'4 (see Sunan Abu 5a$ood, B8MD;, pg. BCB, <nglish ed'n . .o$, the Hadith related by 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him stated that the Prophet (Peace be upon him 4used to4 perform 6aful-Padayn% although 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah *uoted this particular Hadith it does not necessarily mean that he himself, as $ell as 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him performed 6aful-Padayn, 1n fact $e ha"e to remember that 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him , 4used to4 perform 6afulPadayn. 1 say this because $e ha"e many other Ahadith $hich ha"e been related from Abdullah 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him himself $hich pro"e that he did not al$ays perform 6aful-Padayn, as $ell as indicating that the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him himself stopped performing 6aful-Padayn% but Allah 2no$s best, Here follo$s a fe$ of these Ahadith from 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him 3- (A =he 1mam of Hadith, Abu A$aanah

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(6ahimahullah related in his 4Sahih4 ("ol. G, pg. C; from Sufyan ibn >yayna, $ho related from 1bn Shihab al-Fuhri, $ho related from Salim ibn Abdullah, $ho related from his father Abdullah ibn >mar, $ho said3 41 sa$ the Prophet (Peace be upon him raise both his hands up to the shoulders $hen starting Salah, but he did not raise his hands $hen going into ru2oo, or $hen rising from it% not e"en bet$een the prostrations (su!ud .4 (B =he 1mam of Hadith and teacher of 1mam al-Bu2hari, Abdullah 1bn Fubair al-Humaidi (6ahimahullah related in his 4Musnad4 (G89BD, pg. GMM from Sufyan ibn >yayna, $ho related from 1bn Shihab al- Fuhri, $ho related from Salim ibn Abdullah, and he from his father 1bn >mar3 41 sa$ the Prophet (Peace be upon him raise both his hands at the beginning of Salah up to his shoulders, but $hen going into 6u2oo and $hen raising his head from ru2oo he did not raise his hands, not e"en bet$een the prostrations.4 (# =he Hanafi scholar of Hadith, 1mam Pusuf al-Faylai (d. M9G AH% 6ahimahullah *uoted in his boo2 4.asb ar-6ayah4 ("ol. B, pg. D;D , a narration from Abdallah ibn al-0harra@, $ho related from 1mam Mali2, $ho related from 1bn Shihab al-Fuhri, and he from Salim ibn Abdallah, $ho related from 1bn >mar, $ho said3 4=he Prophet (Peace be upon him raised his hands $hen beginning Salah, and he ne"er repeated again.4 (5 =he t$o $ell 2no$n scholars of Hadith, 1mam =aha$i and 1mam 1bn Abi Shaybah (Allah's mercy be upon them , related that 1mam Mu!ahid (the disciple of 1bn Abbas% Allah be pleased $ith them said3 41 prayed many times behind 1bn >mar, but he raised his hands only once at the beginning.4 (see &a'al Ha**, pg. ::, by Mufti Ahmad P. 0han =hese four narrations gi"e strong e"idence in fa"our of the Hanafi and Mali2i "ie$s that 6aful-Padayn has been abrogated. So no$ as2 yoursel"es, 4#an the opinions of al-Albani be relied upon, if he does not base his opinions from the boo2s of the Hanafi and Mali2i Schools, plus the proofs used by them for not performing 6aful-PadaynK4 .o$, 1 lea"e it to you to decipher for yourself, $hy certain 1mams decided to perform 6afulPadayn and others not to% but before 1 finish on this issue let me relate to you a famous incident that too2 place bet$een the 1mam's Abu Hanifah and al-A$@ai (Allah's mercy be upon them of Syria, $hen they met in Ma22ah. =he purpose of the follo$ing debate is to sho$ that e"en though the t$o great 1mams had different narrations to pro"e their particular opinions, they did not abuse or despise each other in the derogatory $ay that some of us ha"e become accustomed to, 1nsha'Allah, $e should respect each others opinions, if it has a sound basis from the sources of the Shari'ah. 1mam al-A$@ai said, 4-hy do you not raise your hands !ust before ru2oo and afterK4 1mam Abu Hanifah replied, 4=here is no recorded $ord or action of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him , to authenticate this (any longer .4 4Ho$ so4, replied al-A$@ai, 4-hen al-Fuhri has reported this to me on the authority of Salim and that of his father (ibn >mar $ho said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him used to raise his hands at the beginning of the Salah and before and after ru2ooK4 Abu Hanifah also reported, 4Hammad related to me through 1brahim, through Al*amah, through al-As$ad, and through ibn Masood, that the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him , only raised his hands at the beginning of the Salah and did not repeat this action again.4 Al-A$@ai then suggested that his authorities $ere more reliable than those of Abu

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Hanifah, $ho countered, 4Hammad $as more 2no$ledgeable than al-Fuhri, and 1brahim $as more 2no$ledgeable than Salim. And if 1bn >mar is to be credited as a #ompanion of the Prophet, then al-As$ad has many merits. And the merits of Abdullah ibn Masood spea2 for themsel"es.4 At this, al- A$@ai remained silent. (Iide3 '=he <thics of 5isagreement in 1slam', pg. :C-9;, by =aha &abir al-Al$ani% also see '1mam Abu Hanifah3 (ife and -or2' pg. 99-9M, by Shibli .umani . =his incident has also been recorded $ith slight "ariations by Hafi@ 1bn al-Humam in his ')ath al-/adir', and Shah -aliullah 5ehla$i's 'Hu!!at Allah al-Baligha'. Allah 2no$s best.

(he Abro'ation of Performin' Prayer Sittin', *ehind a Sittin' !mam Al-Albani stated in # ifah alah an-Nabee# (pg. D 3 4He (Peace be upon him prayed sitting during the illness of $hich he died. He also prayed sitting on another occasion before that, $hen he $as in!ured, and the people behind him prayed standing% so he indicated to them to sit, so they sat (and prayed . -hen he finished, he said, Pou $ere going to do as the Persians and the 6omans do 3 stand for their 2ings $ho sit. So do not do so, for the 1mam is there to be follo$ed 3 -hen he ma2es ru2u, ma2e ru2u, $hen he rises, rise, and $hen he prays sitting, pray sitting (all of you .4 (See Sahih Muslim, B8LGD, pg. GGM, <nglish ed'n . =he abo"e statement made by al-Albani seems to indicate his lac2 of 2no$ledge about the Hadiths on this rare issue% or to be safe $e may say that again he has gi"en us half of the 'story'. According to Shah -aliullah 5ehla$i (6ahimahullah , the abo"e command is concerned $ith the earlier period $hen the present mode of prayer $as made obligatory. =he Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him stressed this point $ith a "ie$ to effacing out of the minds of his people the undue respect and re"erence $hich the neighbouring people of Persia and 6ome sho$ed to their 2ings. =hey 2ept standing before them in all humility and dared not sit do$n before them. =he Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him did not appro"e of this type of respect $hich is against the dignity of man. He, therefore, in contra"ention of the practises amongst the 6omans and the ?ree2s, ordered them to sit do$n $hen the 1mam $as sitting and not to obser"e this type of ceremonious respect. But $hen the sense of human dignity and e*uality too2 hold of the minds of the Muslims, then this practise $as abrogated and the Muslims $ere permitted to say their prayer standing behind a sitting 1mam, $hen there is no "alid reason for it, as standing in prayer is part of prayer and it should not be abandoned in normal circumstances (Hu!!atullah-al-Baligha, "ol. G, pg. GM, *uoted in the <nglish translation of Sahih Muslim, "ol. B, fn. 977, pg. GGM . =he proof against al-Albani's opinion is found in the Sahih collections of al-Bu2hari and Muslim% and it is of greater authority as e"idence than the Hadith *uoted by al-Albani. 1 say3 so much for al-Albani gi"ing his follo$ers the most authentic Sunnah, $hen he himself has contradicted the authentic Sunnah by not realising that his opinion has been clearly abrogated by a later practise of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him , 1mam Muslim has a chapter heading titled3 '=he 1mam is authorised to appoint one as his deputy $hen there is a "alid reason for it (for e'ample, illness or !ourney or any other , and if an 1mam leads the prayer sitting as he cannot do so standing, his follo$ers should say prayer standing pro"ided they are able to do it and there is an abrogation of saying prayer sitting behind a sitting 1mam.' (see Sahih Muslim, "ol. B, pg. GGL, <nglish ed'n .

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=he actual Hadith that pro"es our point is found in a long narration reported from >baidullah ibn Abdullah ibn >tba (6ahimahullah from Aisha (Allah be pleased $ith her % the most important part of the Hadith is as follo$s3 4Abu Ba2r (Allah be pleased $ith him $as leading the people in prayer. -hen Abu Ba2r (Allah be pleased $ith him sa$ him (the Prophet, peace be upon him , he began to $ithdra$, but the Apostle of Allah (Peace be upon him told him not to $ithdra$. He told his t$o (companions to seat him do$n beside him (Abu Ba2r . =hey seated him by the side of Abu Ba2r. Abu Ba2r (Allah be pleased $ith him said the prayer standing $hile follo$ing the prayer of the Apostle (Peace be upon him and the people said prayer (standing $hile follo$ing the prayer of Abu Ba2r. =he Apostle (Peace be upon him $as seated.4 (for full Hadith see Muslim, B8L7G, pg. GGL-GGC and Bu2hari, B89::, pg. 7MB-7MG .B - 1mam Bu2hari (6ahimahullah said, 4=he 1mam is appointed to be follo$ed. =he Prophet (Peace be upon him in his fatal illness led the people in prayer $hile he $as sitting (and the people $ere standing ....4 (see Bu2hari "ol. B, chapter :B, pg. 7M;, <nglish ed'n . 1mam al-Bu2hari (6ahimahullah also *uoted 1mam al-Humaidi (6ahimahullah as saying3 4=he saying of the Prophet (Peace be upon him 3 'Pray sitting, if he (1mam prays sitting' $as said in his former illness (during his early life but the Prophet (Peace be upon him did not order them to sit. -e should follo$ the latest actions of the Prophet (Peace be upon him 4 (see Bu2hari, B89:M, pg. 7M7 . )inally, Abdul Hamid Siddi*i said in his footnotes to Sahih Muslim ("ol. B, footnote 97G, pg. GG9 3 4According to 1mam A$@ai and 1mam Mali2, this mode is essential in offering (i.e according to al-Albani's opinion . 1mam Shafi'i and 1mam Abu Hanifah (as $ell as al-Bu2hari, Muslim and many others are of the opinion that it is not ad"isable to say prayer sitting behind an 1mam $ho has not been obliged to say prayer in a sitting posture due to illness or some other reason...4 But according to Shams al-Ha** A@imabadi in A$n al-Ma'bood (B,G77-G7D , 1mam Mali2 does not allo$ anyone to lead the prayer sitting, (see Abu 5a$ood, "ol. B, fn. G99, pg. B:C <nglish ed'n .

0oin' into Prostration 1Sa2ud3, Hands or 4nees irst5 Al-Albani is of the firm opinion that $hen one goes into Sa!dah, he or she should place his hands onto the ground before his 2nees. He stated in 'Sifah Salah an-.abee' (pg. :G 3 4He (the Prophet, peace be upon him used to place his hands on the ground before his 2nees.4 =hen alAlbani said in the footnote of the same page (pg. :G, fn. G 3 41bn 0hu@aimah (B8M98B , 5ara*utni and Ha2im, $ho declared it Sahih and 5hahabi agreed. All the Ahadith $hich contradict this are inauthentic. =his $ay has been endorsed by Mali2, and similar is reported from Ahmad in 1bn al&a$@i's al-=ah*ee* (B;L8G . Also, al-Mar$a@i *uoted $ith a Sahih isnad, 1mam al-A$@ai in his Masaa'il (B8BDM8B as saying3 '1 found the people placing their hands before their 2nees.' =hen alAlbani continued on the same page3 4He used to instruct li2e$ise, saying3 -hen one performs Sa!dah, he should not 2neel li2e a camel, but should place his hands before his 2nees4 (related by Abu Hurayra, see Abu 5a$ood, B8L7C, pg. GB: <nglish ed'n . Al-Albani has *uite categorically claimed that the Ahadith $hich pro"e that one should place one's 2nees do$n before one's hands are all '1nauthentic' according to his 'classification'

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standards. But as usual $hen there seems to be 'contradictory' Ahadith, al-Albani fails to tell his readers that many other scholars of Hadith and e"en the Mu!tahid 1mams li2e Abu Hanifah and al-Shafi'i (Allah's mercy be upon them are indifference to his "ie$ of placing the hands on the ground before the 2nees, 1n fact Sayyid Sabi* said in )i*h-us-Sunnah ("ol. B, pg. B:B 3 4Most scholars prefer that one place his 2nees on the floor before his hands. 1bn al-Mundhir related this from >mar (ibn al0hatab , an-.a2hai, Muslim ibn Pasar, Sufyan al-=hauri, Ahmad (ibn Hanbal, according to one of t$o "ie$s reported from him , 1sha* (ibn 6ah$aih and other !urists including 1bn al-Mundhir himself. Abu at-=ayyeb said that most !urists agree $ith this. 1bn al /ayyim (al-&a$@iyya, the disciple of 1bn =aymiyyah said3 '-hen the Prophet, upon $hom be peace, prayed, he $ould place his 2nees (on the floor before his hands, then his hands, his forehead and nose. =his is $hat is authentic and has been related by Shurai2 from Asim ibn 0aleeb on the authority of his father from -a'il ibn Ha!r (Allah be pleased $ith him $ho said3 1 sa$ the Messenger of Allah, upon $hom be peace, $hile prostrating, place his 2nees (on the floor before his hands. >pon getting up, he $ould raise his hands before his 2nees. 1 ne"er sa$ him do other$ise.'4 (see Abu 5a$ood, B8L7M-L7L, pg. GB: . Sayyid Sabi* then ga"e the opinion of Mali2, al-A$@ai, 1bn Ha@m and Ahmad (according to his other opinion $hose opinions coincide $ith al-Albani's. =he Hadith from -a'il ibn Ha!r and Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased $ith them can also be found in the <nglish translation of Mish2at- ul-Masabih (see "ol. G, no's LCL-LCC, pg. BMG $here it says3 4Abu Sulayman al-0hattabi (d. 7LL8CCL% 6ahimahullah said that the tradition of -a'il ibn Ha!r is more sound than this (i.e the Hadith of Abu Hurayra and it is also said that it is an abrogated one (i.e the Hadith of Abu Hurayra . Also the author of A$nal-Ma'bood ("ol B, 7BB7BG , Shams al-Ha** A@imabadi said in his commentary to Abu 5a$ood% after *uoting the opinions held by some scholars that the hands should be placed before the 2nees3 4But al0hattabi is of the opinion that the tradition of -a'il ibn Ha!r is better established because it is supported by se"eral other sound traditions ($hich ha"e not been *uoted by al-Albani . 1bn 0hu@aimah (a Shafi'i scholar of Hadith, d. 7BB8CGD% 6ahimahullah obser"es that the tradition of Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased $ith him has been abrogated. He reports a tradition on the authority of Sa'ad ibn Abi -a**as (Allah be pleased $ith him 3 -e used to place our hands (on the ground before our 2nees, but later on $e $ere commanded to place our 2nees before our hands,4 =he Hadith of -a'il ibn Ha!r is also found in 1mam =irmidhi's Sunan, $here 1mam =irmidhi said that the Hadith $as Hasan ?harib (see Sunan al-=irmidhi, G8G9L, edited by Ahmad Sha2ir . =he author of A$n al-Ma'bood also said3 4Abu Hanifah, al-Shafi'i and Ahmad (according to his second "ie$ maintain that one should place his 2nees before his hands. And this seems to more con"enient (see Sunan of Abu 5a$ood, "ol. G, fn. 7L7-7LD, pg. GB: <nglish ed'n .4 Al-Albani Unveiled (ARA6EEH PRA+ER 7 8R 9: RA4;AHS5 by Ahmed ibn Muhammad

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1n a handout by al-Albani's follo$ers in <ngland, by the title 4Some %ommon "uestions ans.ered4 (dated +ctober BCC; , there appeared the follo$ing *uestion and ans$er (.o. GG 3 1a3 Aisha 1Allah be pleased .ith her3 reports that the Prophet 1Pea%e be upon him3 never prayed more than 7 rak'aats in taraweeh< so ho. %ome nobody disapproves of 9:51b3 !s it true that Umar 1Allah be pleased .ith him3 introdu%ed it5 Ans= 99 1a3 As re'ards the taraweeh prayer - people a'ree that the Sunnah of the Prophet 1Pea%e be upon him3 and the best .ay is >> rak'aats= As re'ards any addition - then this is D!SAPPR8-ED of and DEC?ARED AS A *!D;AH 1A bad innovation3 by Shay/h alAlbani and by a fe. earlier s%holars - that bein' reported from !mam Mali/< !bn ul-Arabee and as-San;aanee 1see Salat-ut-taraweeh of Shay/h al-Albani3= 1b3 !t is not true that Umar 1Allah be pleased .ith him3 either prayed or ordered 9: rak'aats= Rather he ordered Ubayy ibn 4a;b to lead the people .ith >> rak'aats 1al-Muwatta >@>AB< .ith a Sahih !snad3= 1 do not $ish to go into much detail on this issue, but Insha#Allah a separate publication is $hat is really re*uired, to sho$ $hich opinion is the most correct. But any $ay it should be said that the "ast MA&+61=P of the scholars of hadith, )i*h, and e"en the four Mu!tahid 1mams are in agreement that G; ra%#ahs are the most appropriate, follo$ed by 7 ra%#ahs of "itr, and this is also the opinion of the 1mam of the 4Salafiyya4, Ahmad ibn =aymiyya, )irst, it should be said that the hadith reported from Aisha (Allah be pleased $ith her about BB ra%#ahs is not at all to do $ith tara"ee, according to the ma!ority of scholars, but in fact concerns the number of ra%#ahs of =AHA&&>5 prayer, =he hadith in *uestion is as follo$s3)arrated Abu Salama ibn Abdur Rahman that he as/ed Aisha 1Allah be pleased .ith her3< CHo. .as the prayer of Allah;s Apostle 1Pea%e be upon him3 in Ramadan5C She replied< CHe did not pray more than eleven raka'at in Ramadan or in any other month= He used to pray four raka'at - let alone their beauty and len'th - and then he .ould pray four - let alone their beauty and len'th - and then he .ould pray three rak'aat 1witr3=C She added< C! as/ed< ;8 Allah;s ApostleD Do you sleep before prayin' the witr5; He replied< ;8 Aisha< My eyes sleep but my heart does not sleep=;C ()u%hari, 78G7;, <nglish edn According to the author of 4(ata"a *ahimi++ah4, Mufti Abdur 6ahim (a!puri ("ol. B, pg. GM: % in his defence of G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, C(he %ommentator of al-Sahih al-Bukhari and the erudite traditionist< Shay/h ShamsudDin al-4ermani 1d= B7E AHF Rahimahullah3 said, ;!n the hadith 1above3< the tahajjud prayer is meant= Abu Salama;s "uestion and Hadrat Aisha;s ans.er %on%erned the tahajjud=; He adds further3 ;!f the tahajjud prayer is not meant< then this tradition .ill be at varian%e .ith the tradition that states that the Holy Prophet 1Pea%e be upon him3 led t.enty rak'ahs ea%h for t.o ni'hts< and in the %ase of su%h %lash the tradition of t.enty rak'ahs .hi%h is affirmative 1muthbit3 shall have pre%eden%e be%ause a%%ordin' to the

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prin%iples of hadith< the affirmative ta/es pre%eden%e over the ne'ative 1naaf3C ("ide3 Al&a"a%ib ud-!urari harh ahih al-)u%hari, "ol. C, pg B::-B:9 . 1 say, does this not mean that people $ho perform L ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, should pray G; ra%#ahs insteadK Since according to the principles of hhadith (as affirmed by al-Albani , C(he affirmative ta/es pre%eden%e over the ne'ative in %ertain %ases=C A great fact that should also be noted by the reader is that the 1mam's of hadith ha"e placed the hadith from Aisha (Allah be pleased $ith her under the section of tahajjud prayers, $hich indicates their belief that the hadith applies to tahajjud only. =he 1mam al-Muhaddithin alBu2hari (6ahimahullah has placed the hadith from Aisha under at least t$o sections of his ahih, first under the section of 'GB3 =he tahajjud Prayer at .ight' (see ahih al-)u%hari, "ol. G, chapter B:, no. GDL, <nglish ed'n and then under the section of '7G3 =he Boo2 of tara"eeh Prayers' (see ahih al-)u%hari, 78G7;, pg. BGL <nglish ed'n . =his means that 1mam Bu2hari belie"ed that the prayer mentioned by Aisha $as that of taha!!ud only, and since the taha!!ud prayer is performed also in 6amadan, then 1mam Bu2hari also *uoted the same hadith under '=he boo2 of tara"eeh prayers', but Allah 2no$s best. 1mam Muslim (6ahimahullah has also placed the hadith from Aisha under the taha!!ud prayer section (see Sahih Muslim B8B9;M, pg. 7:9, <nglish ed'n . Also 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah has placed Aisha's hadith under the Boo2 of taha!!ud (see Al-Mu$atta, Boo2 M, section M.G, no. C, pg. :, <nglish ed'n . =he 1mam Abu 5a$ood (6ahimahullah has also placed the same hadith under the chapter '+n the number of ra%#ahs of the prayer at night (taha!!ud ' (see Abu 5a$ood B8B779, pg. 7:B, <nglish "ersion . <"en 1mam's =irmidhi and .isai (Allah's mercy be upon them placed Aisha's hadith under the taha!!ud section (see =irmidhi, "ol. B, pg. :L and .isai, "ol. B, pg. B:D . <"en one of the most prominent 1mams of the 'Salafiyya', 1bn /ayyim al-&a$@iyya placed the aforementioned hadith in the section of taha!!ud prayers in his boo2 Faad al Ma'ad ("ol. B, pg. L9 , Mufti Abdur 6ahim said about Aisha's hadith3 4And if this tradition may ha"e been *uoted in some boo2 under the de"otions of 6amadan along $ith the tara"eeh. (i2e the tara"eeh, the taha!!ud, too, is a prayer of 6amadan, and because of this affinity, it can be mentioned along $ith the tara"eeh (as 1mam Bu2hari did . Hence, supposing it may ha"e been mentioned in some boo2, it cannot be made thereby a categorical argument. '-hen uncertainty creeps in, the argument is falsified.' Moreo"er, Hafi@ al-hadith 1mam /urtubi's (d. 9MB8BGM7% 6ahimahullah statement regarding this hadith (of Aisha should not be o"erloo2ed that, 'many a man of 2no$ledge considers the aforesaid hadith mudtarib (i.e. confounded .'4 ("ide3 1mam Ayni in his Sharh Sahih al-Bu2hari, "ol. G, pg. BLM . 1n short, the aforesaid report is in no $ay a proof for eight ra%#ahs of tara"eeh. 1n contradistinction to this, as regards the t$enty ra%#ahs the #ompanions #onsensus (Ijma-asahaba has ta2en place o"er the appro"al of 1bn Abbas' hadith (about G; ra%#ahs being performed by the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him and practically the ma!ority of >lama ha"e accepted it.4 ()ata$a 6ahimmiyah, "ol. B, pg GM9-GMM . Although Aisha (Allah be pleased $ith her had said3 4He did not pray more than BB 6a2a'at,4 $e also ha"e reports from her that the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him also prayed more than BB 6a2a'ats, =he proof for this $as gi"en by her in another narration in"ol"ing Abu Salama ibn Abdal 6ahman (6ahimahullah . Abu Salama as2ed Aisha about the prayer of the Messenger of

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Allah (Peace be upon him , she said, 4He obser"ed B7 6a2a'ahs (in the night prayer . He obser"ed L ra2a'ahs and $ould then obser"e (three ra%#ahs of "itr and then obser"e t$o ra2a'ahs sitting (nafl prayer , and $hen he $anted to bo$ he stood up and then bo$ed do$n, and then he obser"ed t$o ra2a'ahs in bet$een the A@an and 1*ama of the da$n prayer (i.e. fa!r .4 (See Sahih Muslim B8B9;7, pg. 7:M and also al-Albani's Sifah Salah an-.abee, appendi' M, pg. BB; . So does this not mean that the 'Salafiyya' should perform B7 6a2a'ats of tara"eeh in 6amadanK .o$, the statement 'the best $ay is BB ra2'aats' is only the opinion of a small group of the ulama, in fact there are more than :; opinions to say that the best $ay is G; ra%#ahs according to the Prophet (Peace be upon him and his #ompanions (Allah be pleased $ith them all practise, -hat is more interesting to note is that the four great Mu!tahids, Abu Hanifah, Mali2, Shafi'i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Allah's mercy be upon them are in agreement that the tara"eeh consists of t$enty ra%#ahs. =he statement that 1mam Mali2 appro"ed of eight ra%#ahs needs to be pro"ed, most li2ely this ascription $as made to him because he *uoted the hadith $hich is used to pro"e eight ra%#ahs of tara"eeh in his al-Mu$atta (see Mu$atta, 9.G, no. D, pg. DL by a small group of scholars. Although 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah *uoted this hadith in his boo2, it has no bearing on $hat his actual opinion and practise $as, on the contrary 1mam Mali2 belie"es in thirty-si' ra%#ahs of tara"eeh (i.e. G; ra%#ahs and B9 ra%#ahs of e'tra nafl prayers, see later for the official "erdict of the Mali2i Madhhab , Also the hadith $hich seems to pro"e BB ra%#ahs of tara"eeh (including three ra%#ahs of "itr in 1mam Mali2's Mu$atta has been e'plained a$ay by many other con"incing arguments. 6ecently 1 came across a boo2let by the title, 41s tara"eeh G; 6a2aatsK4 (Published by Madrasah Arabia 1slamia, A@aad"ille, South Africa, author un2no$n . 1n this boo2let the hadith *uoted from the Mu$atta of 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah , about BB ra%#ahs of tara"eeh (including three "itr $as *uite elo*uently analysed. =he actual hadith in *uestion $as related by Pahya ibn Pahya al-(aythi, $ho related from his teacher 1mam Mali2, $ho related from Muhammad ibn Pusuf, $ho said that as-Saaib ibn Pa@id said, 4>mar ibn 0hattab (Allah be pleased $ith him ordered >bayy ibn 0a'b and =amim ad5ari (Allah be pleased $ith them to $atch the night in prayer $ith the people for ele"en ra%#ahs. =he reciter of the /ur'an $ould recite the Mi'in (a group of medium si@ed surah's until $e $ould be leaning on our staffs from ha"ing stood so long in prayer. And $e $ould not lea"e until the approach of da$n.4 (see abo"e reference in al-Mu$atta . 1t $as stated in the aforementioned boo2let (chapter M, pg. G; , after *uoting the abo"e narration, 41f $e analyse the chain (1snad of this hadith, $e notice that Muhammad ibn Pusuf narrates from Saaib ibn Pa@id. Muhammad (ibn Pusuf has : students and the narration of each student differs from the ne't (i.e. the te't of the hadith is different from each student . =he fi"e students are3 (B (G (7 (D (: 1mam Mali2 Pahya ibn /attan Abdul A@i@ ibn Muhammad 1bn 1sha* and Abdur 6a@@a*

36

=heir narrations are as follo$s 3 (B 1mam Mali2 says that >mar ordered >bayy ibn 0a'b and =amim 5ari to perform BB ra2aats. (-hat practise occurred thereafter is not mentioned, nor is 6amadaan mentioned . (G Pahya ibn /attan says that >mar made the people gather $ith >bayy ibn 0a'b and =amim 5ari and both of them began performing BB ra2aats. (Hadrat >mar's command is not mentioned, nor is any mention of 6amadaan made . (7 Abdul A@i@ (ibn Muhammad says that $e used to perform BB ra2aats in the era of >mar. (.either is the command mentioned, nor is >bayy ibn 0a'b or 6amadaan mentioned . (D 1bn 1sha* says that $e used to perform B7 ra2aats in 6amadaan during the era of >mar. (.either is the command of >mar mentioned. 1nstead of BB ra2aats, B7 are mentioned . (: Abdur 6a@@a* says that >mar ga"e the command of GB ra2aats. (1n this narration GB ra2aats are mentioned instead of BB . Besides the narration of 1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah , BB ra2aats can not be established from the other narrations. 5ue to this difference, the narrator 1bn 1sha* ga"e preference to B7 $hile 1bn Abdal Barr al-Mali2i preferred GB (from the narration of Abdur 6a@@a* . =herefore this narration is Mudtarib (A hadith that is transmitted in different manners, so that the contents of each transmission differ, and it is not possible to gi"e preference to any particular transmission $ith regards to the number (of ra%#ahs and hence unacceptable. =he abo"e $as an analysis of Muhammad ibn Pusuf's narration "ia Saaib ibn Pa@id. .o$ let us e'amine the narration of Pa@id ibn 0haseefah "ia Saaib (ibn Pa@id , $hich is mentioned in the Sunan al- 0ubra of al-Bayha*i ("ol. G, pg. DC9 3 Abu Fi'b narrates from Pa@id ibn 0haseefah, $ho reports from Saaib ibn Pa@id that the people used to perform G; ra2aats in the month of 6amadaan during the era of >mar. 1mam .a$a$i, 1ra*i and Suyuti (all three $ere great scholars of hadith amongst others ha"e accepted the authenticity of this hadith (see =uhfatul A2hyaar, pg. BCG and 1rshaadus Saari, pg. MD, (by 1mam al-/astallaniE . Muhammad ibn &afar (another narrator in the chain has *uoted the statement from Pa@id (ibn 0haseefah as Abu Fi'b (had . =his narration is mentioned in Marifatus Sunan of al-Bayha*i. Allamah Sub2i and Mullah Ali al-/ari ha"e stated in Sharh Minhaa! and Sharh Mu$atta respecti"ely that the chain of narrators of this hadith are correct. (=uhfatul Ah$a@ee, "ol.G, pg M: . )rom the abo"e narration $e can clearly see that both the students of Pa@id (ibn 0haseefah , unanimously narrate the fact that during >mar's (Allah be pleased $ith him era G; ra2aats $as the standard practise. +n the contrary, the : students of Muhammad ibn Pusuf *uote Saaib (ibn Pa@id differently.

37

1n such a situation the correct approach $ould be to rely on the narration of Pa@id ibn 0haseefah. Ho$e"er the Ahl al-hadith (another name for the 4Salafiyya4 ha"e un!ustly discarded this narration and adopted the doubtful one of Muhammad ibn Pusuf, $hich has differing "ersions. =his goes against the principles of hadith.4 Here ends the *uote . Another hadith that is used by the protagonists of eight ra%#ahs of tara"eeh has been related by &abir ibn Abdullah (Allah be pleased $ith him 3 4=he Prophet (Peace be upon him led the people in prayer during 6amadan $ith L ra%#ahs and the "itr. -e gathered in the Mos*ue the follo$ing night hoping that he $ould come again. -e remained $aiting till the ne't morning (until he came out . =he Prophet (Peace be upon him said, '1 feared that the "itr may become incumbent on you.'4 (related by 1bn .asr al-Mar$a@i in /iyamul-(ayl, pg. C;, al-=abarani and 1bn Hibban - see belo$ for the actual hadith =he abo"e hadith has been analysed by Shay2h Abdur 6ahim in his 4)ata$a4 ("ol. B, pg. GML-C $ith the conclusion that the hadith is 5aeef. =he Shay2h said3 4=he strange thing about this hadith is that its chain of authorities (1snad is not trust$orthy. Please e'amine the statements of the 1mams of this science concerning the narrators of this chain. 1n this chain one narrator is 1bn Hameed 6a@i, about $hom the opinions of the great and august critics of hadith are as under3 (B 'He is $ea2.' - Hafi@ al-5hahabi (see his Mi@anul 1'tidal, "ol.7, pp. DC-:; (G 'He narrates many diso$ned (mun2ar hadiths.' - Pa'*ub ibn Shaybah (7 'He is ob!ectionable.' - 1mam Bu2hari (D 'He is a liar.' - Abu Fur'ah (: '1 testify that he is a liar.' - 1sha* 0ausa! (9 'He narrates hadiths about e"erything% 1 ha"e not seen a man bolder than him "is-a-"is ?od.' Sauleh &a@rah (M 'By ?od, He is a liar.' - 1bn 0harash (L 'He is not reliable.' - 1mam .isai .o$, about the second narrator, Pa'*ub ibn Abdullah Ash'ari al-/ummi3(B 'He is not strong.' - 5ara*utni (see Mi@anul 1'tidal, "ol. 7, pg. 7GD . About the third narrator, 1sa ibn &ariyah3(B 'He has had diso$ned (mun2ar hadiths.' - 1bn Ma'een (G 'His hadiths are disa"o$ed.' - .isai (7 'His hadiths are re!ected (matru2 .' - .isai (D 'His hadiths are disa"o$ed.' - Abu 5a$ood - synopsis (: 'He is counted among the $ea2.' - (see Mi@anul-1'tidal, "ol. G, pg. 7BB, by Hafi@ al-5hahabi .4 Here ends the *uote. Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar al-As*alani (6ahimahullah has reported a similar narration to the abo"e hadith in his Bulugh al-Maram min Adillat al-Ah2am (no. 7C9, pg. B:C , on the authority of Hafi@ 1bn Hibban (6ahimahullah 3 4.arrated &abir ibn Abdullah (Allah be pleaed $ith him 3 Allah's Apostle (Peace be upon him prayed during the night in 6amadan% the people $aited for him on the ne't day, but he did not come out% and he said, '1 feared that the "itr might be en!oined on

38

you.'4 .ote the abo"e narration does not e"en state ho$ many ra%#ahs $ere performed by the Prophet (Peace be upon him ,, =he abo"e t$o hadiths can not be used as !ustifiable proof in fa"our of L ra%#ahs of tara"eeh on their o$n. Al-1mam Mali2 (6ahimahullah has in fact *uoted a hadith $hich pro"es the performance of G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh in 6amadan% and that is as follo$s3Pahya related to me from Mali2 that Pa@id ibn 6uman said,4=he people used to $atch the night in prayer during 6amadaan for G7 ra%#ahs (i.e G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, follo$ed by 7 ra%#ahs of "itr in the time of >mar ibn al-0hattab.4 ("ide3 al-Mu$atta, 9.G, .o. :, pg. DL, <nglish ed'n Although the abo"e hadith is Mun*ati (a lin2 is missing in the chain and has thus been declared to be 5aeef by some scholars (including al-Albani , it ne"er the less has been used as proof. Besides, the hadith has been gi"en a full 1snad (chain by either 1mam 1bn Abdal Barr al-Mali2i (d. D978B;MB% 6ahimahullah or Shay2h Muhammad Habibullah ibn Mayabi ash-Shan*iti (6ahimahullah , in their thorough research to complete all the chains of transmission (1snad $hich ha"e an incomplete chain% as found in the Mu$atta of 1mam Mali2, 1n fact the latest edition of the <nglish "ersion of al-Mu$atta (translated by A. A. at-=ar!umana and Pa*ub &ohnson says (pg. '''i" 3 41bn Ha!ar (al-As*alani said, '=he boo2 of Mali2 is sound by all the criteria that are demanded as proofs in the mursal, munqati (t$o types of hadith $hich ha"e a missing lin2 and other types of transmission.' =hen as-Suyuti follo$ed $hat 1bn Ha!ar said here% and said, '=he mursal hadith in it are a proof $ith him (i.e. ash-Shafi'i as $ell because the mursal is a proof $ith us $hen it is properly supported. <"ery mursal in the Mu$atta has one or more supports as $ill be made clear in this commentary (i.e. Suyuti's commentary on alMu$atta called =an$ir al-Ha$ali2 . 1t is absolutely correct to say that the Mu$atta is sound $ithout e'ception.' 1bn Abdal-Barr collected together all the mursal, mun*ati and mu'addil hadiths in the Mu$atta and said that the total number of hadiths in the Mu$atta $hich do not ha"e an 1snad are si'ty one. He stated that he found the isnads of all of them in other sources $ith the e'ception of four hadiths. =he erudite scholar of hadith, Shay2h Muhammad Habibullah ibn Mayabi ash-Shan*iti says in 1da'a al-Hali2 that he had found $itnesses for these four hadith and he then mentioned these $itnesses. He said, 'Some of the people of 2no$ledge made these 1snads complete.' He mentioned from 1bn Abdal-Barr that there $as no mun2ar(re!ected hadith in the Mu$atta, nor anything fundamentally refuted.4 1n the light of $hat the erudite scholars of hadith ha"e said abo"e, $e may emphatically state that the apparently 'mun*ati' hadith from Pa@id ibn 6uman has a complete 1snad% hence it may be used as a proof, since 1mam 1bn Abdal-Barr has said that there is, 4.o mun2ar hadith in the Mu$atta nor anything fundamentally re!ected.4 Hence, many scholars of hadith and )i*h ha"e used the abo"e hadith as a proof in fa"our of G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh. =he *uote from 4Some common *uestions ans$ered,4 also claimed that, 46ather he (>mar ordered >bayy ibn 0a'b to lead the people $ith BB ra2aats.4 1 say, this is half of the truth, since it

39

is clearly stated in al-Mu$atta 34>mar ibn 0hattab ordered >bayy ibn 0a'b A.5 =amim ad-5ari ....(see Mu$atta, 9.G, no. D, pg. DL ,, Al-Albani has said that if anyone performs more than BB ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, then he or she is basically committing a Bid'ah (a "ery bad inno"ation , -e see2 refuge in Allah from such a disgusting statement, Since this tantamountally means that the foremost 1mams of the sa"ed sect (al-)ir*at an-.a!iyyah of Ahl-al-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah ha"e been committing a gross inno"ation (Allah forbid . Al-Albani seems to be implying that the "enerable #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them and increase their ran2 , the four great Mu!tahid 1mams (Allah's mercy be upon them , as $ell as the foremost scholars of hadith and )i*h of the last BD;; years ha"e 'inno"ated' the practise of G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, if considered in the light of penetrati"e elaboration, implicitly and co"ertly, -hat alternati"e conclusion can one deri"e, if the 4Albani Madhhab4 says, 4As regards any addition (to BB ra%#ahs - then this is disappro"ed of and declared as a bid'ah by 'Shay2h' al-AlbaniK4 1 as2 you, are the so called 4Salafiyya4 in the true path of the original and true Salaf-as-Salihin (the pious predecessors of the first three generations of 1slam , $hen they ha"e declared the practise of G; ra%#ahs to be a bid'ah, e"en though the Salaf ha"e been reported to ha"e practised G; ra%#ahsK =he actual hadith $hich states that the Holy Prophet (Peace and blessings be upon him performed G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh has been reported by 1bn Abbas (Allah be pleased $ith him . He said, 4Ierily, the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him in the month of 6amadaan, used to perform G; ra%#ahs and the "itr prayer (after$ards $ithout congregation.4 (6eported in alSunan al-Bayha*i, "ol.G, pg. DC9, Musannaf 1bn Abi Shaybah, 0abiri of 1mam al-=abarani, 1bn Aadi in his Musnad, and by 1mam Bagha$i in his Ma!mua-as-Sahabah Although some scholars ha"e declared this hadith to be 5aeef on its o$n, it does not mean that it should be $hole heartedly re!ected% since 5aeef does not mean Maudu (fabricated . Please refer to the ne't section on 5aeef hadiths, and $hen they are acceptable to scholars for further elaboration. =he hadith related from 1bn Abbas (Allah be pleased $ith him is supported by many other narrations coming from great #ompanions li2e >thman, Ali, 1bn Masood...(Allah be pleased $ith them all , as $ell as their successors (=abi'in . Besides, some of the scholars of hadith ha"e e"en declared some $ea2 Ahadith to be Sahih, if it has a firm basis. 1t $as stated in the boo2 4#riticism of hadith among Muslims $ith reference to Sunan 1bn Ma!a,4 (pg. B7B, by one of the leading 4Salafi4 Shay2hs in Britain, Suhaib Hasan 3 4Shafi'i also recognises a $ea2 hadith as authentic (sahih if it is found to be accepted by the $hole >mmah (see al-Sa2ha$i3 )ath al-Mugith . But he does not accept Mali2's "ie$ of restricting the practise to the people of Madinah. According to the later scholars of the Hanafi school li2e 1bn al-Humam, a hadith $ill be declared Sahih, if it is supported by the practise of the >mmah (see Abdal 6ashid .u'mani3 Ma tamusu ilaihe al-Ha!a, pg. BL . Among traditionalists, =irmidhi often remar2s, after *uoting a less authentic hadith3 '1t is being practised by the people of learning (Ahl al-1lm .' Suyuti deduces3 '1t indicates that the hadith is supported by the sayings of the people of learning. More than one scholar has said that a hadith is declared Sahih if supported by the sayings of the people of learning, e"en if it lac2s a proper 1snad (see Suyuti3 al-=a'a*ubat, folio G; .4

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As stated abo"e, the great research scholar (Muha**i* Hafi@ 0amal ibn al-Humam (d. L9B8BD:M% 6ahimahullah had actually said3 4+ne of the factors from $hich the authenticity of a hadith is 2no$n is that the learned (>lama may conform to it, $hich is a proof of its being sound ("ide3 )ath al-/adir, "ol. 7, pg. 7DC . =here are many *uotes from scholars $hich pro"e a near uni"ersal !uridical acceptance of G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, but 1 content myself by *uoting a select fe$ from some of the foremost scholars of the Ahl-as-Sunnah, as $ell as the 1mam of the 4Salafiyya4 ($hen it suits their $hims and desires , Ahmad ibn =aymiyya. (B Shay2h al-1slam Ahmad ibn Ha!ar al-As*alani (d. L:G8BDDC% 6.A. =he Hafi@ of hadith, 1bn Ha!ar al-As*alani has reproduced from 1mam 6afi'i (Allah's mercy be on him 3 4)or t$o nights the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him led t$enty ra%#ahs of prayer each night% on the third night the people gathered but the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him did not come out. =hen the ne't morning, he told the people, '1t so occurred to me that it $ould be made obligatory for you, and you $ould not be able to discharge this obligation.'4 After reproducing this tradition, Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar said3 4All the traditionalists (Muhaddithin are unanimous about the soundness of this report.4 (see =al2his al-habir fi ta2hri! ahadith al-6afi'i al-0abir, "ol. B, pg. BBC, by Hafi@ ibn Ha!ar . (G 1mam al-A@am Abu Hanifah (d. B:; AH% 6ahimahullah 1t $as stated in )ayd ul-Bari Sharh Sahih al-Bu2hari (by Shay2h An$ar Shah 0ashmiri 3 41mam Abu Pusuf (6ahimahullah as2ed 1mam Abu Hanifah (6ahimahullah , '5id Hadrat >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him ha"e any compact from the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him for G; ra%#ahs of tara"eehK' =he 1mam replied, 'Hadrat >mar $as not one to in"ent on his o$n% certainly he had some proof $ith him for this,'4 (also found in Mara*i ul-)alah, pg. LB, by 1mam al-Shurunbulali and Bahr ur 6a'i*, "ol.G, pg. 99, by 1mam ibn .u!aim al-Misri . (7 1mam al-=irmidhi (d. GMC8LCG% 6ahimahullah 1mam =irmidhi said3 4>mar, Ali as $ell as other #ompanions (Allah be pleased $ith them all and Sufyan al-=hauri, 1bn al-Mubara2 and 1mam al-Shafi'i (Allah's mercy be upon them , all belie"ed in G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh, and 1mam Shafi'i has stated that he had seen the people of Ma22ah saying G; ra%#ahs (see Sunan al-=irmidhi, "ol.B, pg. CC . (D 1mam Mali2 ibn Anas (d. BMC AH% 6ahimahullah 1t $as $ritten in the most authentic boo2 on Mali2i )i*h, al-Muda$$anah ("ol.B, pg. BC7-CD , by /adi Sahnoon (6ahimahullah 3

41

41bn al-/asim said, '=he ra%#ahs (of tara"eeh $ith "itr are 7C.' 1mam Mali2 said, '=his is $hat the people ha"e agreed upon from amongst the predecessors, and the people ha"e not stopped doing it.'4 ()or an e'planation of $hy it $as 79 ra%#ahs see the *uote belo$ from Allamah An$ar Shah 0ashmiri . (: Hafi@ 1bn Humam (d. L9B8BD:M% 6ahimahullah Allamah 1bn Humam asserts that it has been established from genuine authority that the #ompanions and their Successors (tabi'in used to say t$enty ra%#ahs of tara"eeh during the auspicious time of >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him % this authority of Pa@id ibn 6uman has been reported from Sa'ib ibn Pa@id that, 'during >mar's auspicious time $e used to say t$enty ra%#ahs.' =he genuineness of this authority has been "erified by 1mam .a$a$i in the synopsis (see )ath al-/adir, "ol.B, pg. D;M and .asb-ur-6ayah, "ol.B, pg. GCD, by Hafi@ al-Faylai . Hafi@ 1bn Humam also said in )ath al-/adir ("ol.B, pg. DM; 3 4At last unanimity $as formed on G; ra%#ahs of prayer and this alone is in succession.4 =his last statement has also been said in similar $ords by 1bn =aymiyya in his Minha! us-Sunnah ("ol.G, pg. GGD . (9 1mam Ata ibn Abi 6abah (6ahimahullah =he august successor (=abi'in and Mufti of Ma22ah in his time said3 41 ha"e seen the #ompanions, and other people in Ma22ah saying G7 ra%#ahs, including the "itr.4 =his report is Hasan (good . (see Musannaf 1bn Abi Shaybah, pg. D;9, )ath al-Bari, "ol.D, pg. GBC, of Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar al-As*alani, /iyam ul-(ayl, pg. CB, by 1mam 1bn .asr al-Mar$a@i . (M 1mam Mu$affa* al-5in 1bn /udama al-Ma*disi (d. 9G;8BGG7% 6.A =he 1mam of the Hanbali's in his time, 1bn /udama al-Ma*disi, said in his boo2 al-Mughni ("ol.B, pg L;7 3 4=here has been the #ompanion's consensus (1!ma-as-Sahaba on G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh.4 (L Allamah An$ar Shah 0ashmiri (d. B7:G AH% 6ahimahullah 1t $as stated in his published lecture, =irmidhi al-ma'ruf ba-Arfa'sh-Sha@@i ("ol.B pg. 7GC 3 4.ot e"en one of the the four 1mams belie"es in less than G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh% the practise and belief of the ma!ority of the #ompanions $as also this. 1mam Mali2 (Allah's mercy be upon him belie"es in more than G; ra%#ahs% he is positi"e that they are 79. According to 1mam Mali2's practise only G; ra%#ahs of tara"eeh $ill be said in congregation, but the general practise and method of the citi@ens of Madinah $as that during the brief rest inter"al (after e"ery D ra%#ahs , $hen the 1mam sat do$n after D ra%#ahs, they used to perform D more ra%#ahs. =he men $ho said the tara"eeh in the sacred mos*ue at Ma22ah, used to circumambulate (=a$af the 0a'ba during this brief recess. =he people of Madinah, naturally, could not circumambulate the 0a'ba and hence, instead, they used to perform B9 ra%#ahs more (in total during these brief recesses.4 (C 1mam al-Ayni (d. L::8BD:B% 6ahimahullah

42

Allamah Ayni $rote in his Sharh al-Bu2hari3 4=he number of ra%#ahs in the tara"eeh is t$enty. 1mam Shafi'i and 1mam Ahmed (Allah's mercy be upon them assert the same thing. =heir proof is the report $hich Bayha*i has, $ith genuine authority, narrated from Sa'ib ibn Pa@id. =he great #ompanions, including >mar, >thman and Ali (may Allah be pleased $ith them , as also the re"ered Successors (=abi'in , used to perform t$enty ra%#ahs.4 =hen he said3 4=he most e'cellent and the most ad"isable course to conform to is that of the Holy Prophet's and his (Peace and blessings be upon him #ompanions (practise .4 (>mdat ul-/ari Sharh-alBu2hari, "ol. M, pg. BML . (B; Hafi@ =a*i-ad-5in Ahmad 1bn =aymiyya al-Hanbali (d. MGL8B7GL He has said in his )ata$a 1bn =aymiyya ("ol.B, pg. BCB 3 41t has been pro"en $ithout doubt that >bayy ibn 0a'b (Allah be pleased $ith him used to lead the #ompanions, during 6amadan, for G; ra%#ahs and 7 ra%#ahs of "itr. Hence it is the principle (masla% of most of the >lama that this is the Sunnah, because >bayy ibn 0a'b led G; ra%#ahs of prayer in the presence of the Muha!irin (the emigrants and the Ansars (the helpers and not a single #ompanion repudiated it,4 So please as2 yoursel"es3 4-ho are the 'Salafiyya'% are they the people $ho conform to the $ay of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him , his #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them all , and their successors (this includes the four Mu!tahid 1mams, Allah's mercy be upon them consensus on G; ra%#ahs, or is it the li2es of al-Albani and his follo$ersK4 May Allah guide them. Many of us $ho are practising Muslims or other$ise, are familiar $ith the epithet '-ahhabi'. =he founder of this sect $as Muhammad ibn Abdal -ahhab (d. BG;9 AH , from the .a!d area of 'Saudi' Arabia. He is also 2no$n as Shay2h an-.a!di by his opponents and his follo$ers ha"e been labelled as either '.a!di's' or '-ahhabi's' by the Ahl al-Sunnah. He claimed to be a Hanbali in )i*h. 1t is $ell 2no$n that he fully digested the a*eedah and ideas of 1bn =aymiyya. =he scholars of his time $arned the Muslims to be on their guard from accepting his 'reformatory' ideas% and this $or2 is still e'istent among the scholars of the Ahl alSunnah e"en today. =he neo- 'Salafi's' of today respect 1bn Abdal -ahhab *uite highly by besto$ing upon him such great titles li2e 'Shay2h al-1slam'. 1 do not $ant to say much about his mo"ement and acti"ities, but a fe$ *uotes from three $ell 2no$n scholars should suffice for no$. (B =he foremost Hanafi scholar of his time, 1mam Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin (d. BG:G8BL79 6ahimahullah said in his celebrated $or2 Hashiyya radd al-Mu2htar ("ol. 7, pg. 7;C 3 41n our time 1bn Abdal -ahhab (.a!di appeared, and attac2ed the t$o noble sanctuaries (Ma22ah and Madinah . He claimed to be a Hanbali, but his thin2ing $as such that only he alone $as a Muslim, and e"eryone else $as a polytheist, >nder this guise, he said that 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah $as permissible, until Allah destroyed them (-ahhabi's in the year BG77 AH by $ay of the Muslim army.4

43

(G Shay2h Fayni 5ahlan (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 )utuhat al-1slamiyya ("ol. G, pg. G9L 3 4=he sign of the 0ha$ari! (the first de"iant sect that appeared in the time of the #ompanions concerning the sha"ing of the head, $as not found in the 0ha$ari! of the past, but only in the .a!di's of our time,4 (7 Shay2h al-1slam Hussain Ahmad al-Madani (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 ash-Shihab as-sa*ib (pg. DG 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab arose in the beginning of the thirteenth 1slamic century in the .a!d. His thin2ing $as false, and his beliefs $ere corruptional% on these grounds he opened the $ay for 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah.4 (D A more contemporary "ie$ on the -ahhabite sect has been e'pressed by Abdal-Ha2im Murad in the !ournal 1slamica (pg. C 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab, ho$e"er, $ent far beyond this (i.e% of 1bn =aymiyya . 6aised in the $astelands of .a!d in #entral Arabia, he had little access to mainstream Muslim scholarship (1 say3 =his may be disputed by his supporters . 1n fact, $hen his da'$ah appeared and became notorious, the scholars and muftis of the day applied to it the famous hadith of .a!d3 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Prophet (Peace be upon him as saying3 4+h ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said3 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 But he said, 4+ ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said, 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 1bn >mar said that he thought that he said on the third occasion3 4<arth*ua2es and dissensions (fitnah are there, and there shall arise the horn of the de"il.4 (Sahih al-Bu2hari . And it is significant that almost uni*uely among the lands of 1slam, .a!d has ne"er produced scholars of any repute. =he .a!d-based da'$ah of the -ahhabi's, ho$e"er, began to be heard more loudly follo$ing the e'plosion of Saudi oil $ealth. Many, e"en most, 1slamic publishing houses in #airo and Beirut are no$ subsidised by -ahhabi organisations, $hich pre"ent them from publishing traditional $or2s on Sufism, and remo"e passages in other $or2s considered unnacceptable to -ahhabist doctrine. =he neo-0hari!ite nature of -ahhabism ma2es it intolerant of all other forms of 1slamic e'pression. Ho$e"er, because it has no coherent fi*h of its o$n - it re!ects the orthodo' madhhabs - and has only the most basic and primiti"ely anthropomorphic 'a*idah, it has a fluid, amoebali2e tendency to produce di"isions and subdi"isions among those $ho profess it. .o longer are the 1slamic groups essentially united by a consistent madhhab and the Ash'ari 'a*idah (see later . 1nstead, they are all trying to deri"e the Shari'ah and the 'a*idah from the /ur'an and the Sunnah by themsel"es. =he result is the appaling state of di"ision and conflict $hich disfigures the modern salafi condition.4 Another person $ho is a reference for today's neo-4Salafi's4, is Muhammad ibn Ali alSha$2ani (d. BG:;8BL7D . He $as a leading scholar of the Faydi (Shi'ah sect found mainly in the Pemen. He claimed to ha"e departed from his old Shi'ite $ays and !oined the Ahl alSunnah. He $as attac2ed by the scholars of his day for saying =a*leed $as completely haram, as $ell as other important issues. Some scholars had accused him of still holding on to his de"iant Faydiyyah-Mu'ta@ilite (rationalistic thin2ing that $as propounded by one of the first de"iant sects of 1slam thin2ing, $hile pretending to be $ithin the fold of orthodo' Sunni

44

1slam% but Allah 2no$s best, 1t is a $ell 2no$n fact that he denied the consensus of the #ompanions (1!ma as-Sahaba , as $ell as re!ecting the "alidity of the )at$a of a #ompanion, +ne may refer to An$ar Ahmad /adri's boo2 1slamic &urisprudence in the Modern -orld (pg. BDG for a lenghthier discussion. Many scholars ha"e noticed the e'treme tendencies $ithin the 4Salafiyya4 sect around the $orld, for its lac2 of respect for the scholars of the four Madhhabs, its A*eedah and some untenable !uristic positions it has produced o"er a short period of 1slam's history. =he scholars ha"e not been afraid of declaring the neo- 4Salafi's4 to be neo-0hari!ites in their beha"iour and attitude to other Muslims. .ote, the scholars are not saying that the neo-4Salafi's4 are 0hari!ites, but rather they seem to ha"e certain traits $hich $ere only found amongst the 0hari!ites of the past. +ne of the most stri2ing things 1 ha"e noticed amongst these 'neo-0hari!ites', is their direction of /ur'anic "erses that $ere re"ealed specifically for the unbelie"ers, as referring to the belie"ers $ho do not seem to ha"e their $ay of thin2ing, =his $as a $ell 2no$n practise of the 0hari!ites of old% as $e shall see belo$. A $ell 2no$n scholar of the 4Salafiyya4, 5r. Pusuf al-/arda$i ($ho has himself been attac2ed by other members of the 4Salafiyya4, especially for holding some untenable positions in his boo2 al-Halal $al Haram fil 1slam said in his boo2 1slamic a$a2ening bet$een 6e!ection and <'tremism (pg. DB-7 3 41mam al-Shatibi (6ahimahullah $rote (in his boo2 al-1'tisam, G. BLG-D 3 '1bn Abbas (Allah be pleased $ith him $as right. -hen a person 2no$s the reason behind a certain "erse or surah, he 2no$s ho$ to interpret it and $hat its ob!ecti"es are. Ho$e"er, ignorance of that leads people to misinterpret it and to ha"e different opinions, $ithout an insight and 2no$ledge $hich could lead them to the truth, and pre"ent them from indulging ignorantly in such matters $ith no support or e"idence from al Shari'ah, and therefore go astray and lead people astray. =his can be demonstrated by $hat is reported by 1bn -ahab from Ba2ir $ho as2ed .afi'3 -hat does 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him thin2 of al-Haruriyyah (i.e% al-0ha$ari! $ho $ere also called al-Haruriyyah after the place -Hara$ra- $here they gathered and $ere found by Ali ibn Abu =alib and the #ompanions of the Prophet Amay Allah be pleased $ith them allE $ho supported him K .afi' ans$ered3 He thin2s they are the most e"il of people. =hey applied the "erses $hich pertain to the 2uffar on the belie"ers.' (.B- 1mam al-Bu2hari has recorded 1bn >mar as saying in his Sahih A"ol.C, pg.:;% <nglish ednE3 =hese people (the 0ha$ari! and heretics too2 some "erses that had been re"ealed concerning the disbelie"ers and interpreted them as describing the belie"ers . Al-/arda$i also said (pg. DG 3 +ne of the causes of such shallo$ness is that e'tremists ne"er listen to people $ho hold different "ie$s (and 1 can personally testify to that , ne"er accept any dialogue $ith them or imagine that their o$n "ie$s could be tested in the light of others, and may thereby be either accepted or re!ected. Most of them ha"e not been taught by reliable Muslim ulama $ho are specialised in the field. 6ather, they ha"e recei"ed semi2no$ledge directly from boo2s and ne$spapers $ithout any opportunity for re"ision or discussion $hich could test the learner's understanding and analy@e the depth of his 2no$ledge. =hey simply read, 'understand', then deduce $hat they $ish. Ho$e"er, their reading, understanding, and deduction may $ell be $rong or deficient. =here might be someone some$here $ho opposes their opinions on stronger and more "alid bases, but they are not

45

a$are of that because nobody has dra$n their attention to such a possibility. =hese de"out young people ha"e ignored the facts that if they $ant to study al Shari'ah, they must see2 the help of reliable Muslim scholars. =hey cannot "enture into this e'tensi"e and entangled discipline $ithout the guidance of reliable Muslim scholars $ho can interpret and e'plain obscurities, define terms, and point out the relationships bet$een the parts and the $hole and also e*uate similarities. =hose $ho "enture into it alone $ill meet $ith the same catastrophic results $hich could certainly befall the uns2illed s$immer $ho "entures into dangerous $aters. Proper 2no$ledge of al Shari'ah cannot be perfected $ithout practice and close contact $ith the e'perts, especially in those areas $here opinions di"erge, e"idences seem to contradict each other, and certain matters seem to be under suspicion. =his is $hy our "enerable 'ulama' ha"e $arned us not to see2 to study and understand al /ur'an al 0arim through a person $ho has only memori@ed it $ithout any 2no$ledge of its contents, nor to see2 2no$ledge through a person $ho has ac*uired his o$n 42no$ledge4 from reading ne$spapers and !ournals only, $ithout being properly instructed by reputable and *ualified scholars.4 =his topic began $ith a brief discussion on =a*leed and 1 $ould li2e to finish $ith the follo$ing t$o *uestions for you to ponder o"er. (A -ould it not be classified as being =a*leed if one $ere to accept the classifications of Hadiths, e'egesis of the /ur'an etc% by a reno$ned 1slamic scholar, if one $as not to go bac2 to the original sources $hich are used to authenticate the Hadith and so onK ()or e'ample, if a scholar claimed that a Hadith found in the Sunan of 1mam Abu 5a$ood $as Sahih and you accepted it as being Sahih - since you trust him, then are you not practising =a*leed% if you, yourself do not go bac2 to the original sources used to classify the Hadith in *uestion, since sometimes a Hadith classified to be Sahih by one scholar can be classified as being 5a'eef by another, . (B 1s it not true that those $ho are calling for the abandonment of =a*leed, are calling for the =a*leed of their o$n boo2s and speeches% hence creating their o$n little 'Madhhabs'KMany of us $ho are practising Muslims or other$ise, are familiar $ith the epithet '-ahhabi'. =he founder of this sect $as Muhammad ibn Abdal -ahhab (d. BG;9 AH , from the .a!d area of 'Saudi' Arabia. He is also 2no$n as Shay2h an-.a!di by his opponents and his follo$ers ha"e been labelled as either '.a!di's' or '-ahhabi's' by the Ahl al-Sunnah. He claimed to be a Hanbali in )i*h. 1t is $ell 2no$n that he fully digested the a*eedah and ideas of 1bn =aymiyya. =he scholars of his time $arned the Muslims to be on their guard from accepting his 'reformatory' ideas% and this $or2 is still e'istent among the scholars of the Ahl al-Sunnah e"en today. =he neo- 'Salafi's' of today respect 1bn Abdal -ahhab *uite highly by besto$ing upon him such great titles li2e 'Shay2h al-1slam'. 1 do not $ant to say much about his mo"ement and acti"ities, but a fe$ *uotes from three $ell 2no$n scholars should suffice for no$. (B =he foremost Hanafi scholar of his time, 1mam Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin (d. BG:G8BL79 6ahimahullah said in his celebrated $or2 Hashiyya radd al-Mu2htar ("ol. 7, pg. 7;C 3 41n our time 1bn Abdal -ahhab (.a!di appeared, and attac2ed the t$o noble sanctuaries (Ma22ah and Madinah . He claimed to be a Hanbali, but his thin2ing $as such that only he alone $as a Muslim, and e"eryone else $as a polytheist, >nder this guise, he said that 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah $as permissible, until Allah destroyed them (-ahhabi's in the year BG77 AH by $ay of the Muslim army.4

46

(G Shay2h Fayni 5ahlan (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 )utuhat al-1slamiyya ("ol. G, pg. G9L 3 4=he sign of the 0ha$ari! (the first de"iant sect that appeared in the time of the #ompanions concerning the sha"ing of the head, $as not found in the 0ha$ari! of the past, but only in the .a!di's of our time,4 (7 Shay2h al-1slam Hussain Ahmad al-Madani (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 ash-Shihab as-sa*ib (pg. DG 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab arose in the beginning of the thirteenth 1slamic century in the .a!d. His thin2ing $as false, and his beliefs $ere corruptional% on these grounds he opened the $ay for 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah.4 (D A more contemporary "ie$ on the -ahhabite sect has been e'pressed by Abdal-Ha2im Murad in the !ournal 1slamica (pg. C 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab, ho$e"er, $ent far beyond this (i.e% of 1bn =aymiyya . 6aised in the $astelands of .a!d in #entral Arabia, he had little access to mainstream Muslim scholarship (1 say3 =his may be disputed by his supporters . 1n fact, $hen his da'$ah appeared and became notorious, the scholars and muftis of the day applied to it the famous hadith of .a!d3 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Prophet (Peace be upon him as saying3 4+h ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said3 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 But he said, 4+ ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said, 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 1bn >mar said that he thought that he said on the third occasion3 4<arth*ua2es and dissensions (fitnah are there, and there shall arise the horn of the de"il.4 (Sahih al-Bu2hari . And it is significant that almost uni*uely among the lands of 1slam, .a!d has ne"er produced scholars of any repute. =he .a!d-based da'$ah of the -ahhabi's, ho$e"er, began to be heard more loudly follo$ing the e'plosion of Saudi oil $ealth. Many, e"en most, 1slamic publishing houses in #airo and Beirut are no$ subsidised by -ahhabi organisations, $hich pre"ent them from publishing traditional $or2s on Sufism, and remo"e passages in other $or2s considered unnacceptable to -ahhabist doctrine. =he neo-0hari!ite nature of -ahhabism ma2es it intolerant of all other forms of 1slamic e'pression. Ho$e"er, because it has no coherent fi*h of its o$n - it re!ects the orthodo' madhhabs - and has only the most basic and primiti"ely anthropomorphic 'a*idah, it has a fluid, amoebali2e tendency to produce di"isions and subdi"isions among those $ho profess it. .o longer are the 1slamic groups essentially united by a consistent madhhab and the Ash'ari 'a*idah (see later . 1nstead, they are all trying to deri"e the Shari'ah and the 'a*idah from the /ur'an and the Sunnah by themsel"es. =he result is the appaling state of di"ision and conflict $hich disfigures the modern salafi condition.4 Another person $ho is a reference for today's neo-4Salafi's4, is Muhammad ibn Ali alSha$2ani (d. BG:;8BL7D . He $as a leading scholar of the Faydi (Shi'ah sect found mainly in the Pemen. He claimed to ha"e departed from his old Shi'ite $ays and !oined the Ahl alSunnah. He $as attac2ed by the scholars of his day for saying =a*leed $as completely haram, as $ell as other important issues. Some scholars had accused him of still holding on to his de"iant Faydiyyah-Mu'ta@ilite (rationalistic thin2ing that $as propounded by one of the first de"iant sects of 1slam thin2ing, $hile pretending to be $ithin the fold of orthodo' Sunni

47

1slam% but Allah 2no$s best, 1t is a $ell 2no$n fact that he denied the consensus of the #ompanions (1!ma as-Sahaba , as $ell as re!ecting the "alidity of the )at$a of a #ompanion, +ne may refer to An$ar Ahmad /adri's boo2 1slamic &urisprudence in the Modern -orld (pg. BDG for a lenghthier discussion. Many scholars ha"e noticed the e'treme tendencies $ithin the 4Salafiyya4 sect around the $orld, for its lac2 of respect for the scholars of the four Madhhabs, its A*eedah and some untenable !uristic positions it has produced o"er a short period of 1slam's history. =he scholars ha"e not been afraid of declaring the neo- 4Salafi's4 to be neo-0hari!ites in their beha"iour and attitude to other Muslims. .ote, the scholars are not saying that the neo-4Salafi's4 are 0hari!ites, but rather they seem to ha"e certain traits $hich $ere only found amongst the 0hari!ites of the past. +ne of the most stri2ing things 1 ha"e noticed amongst these 'neo-0hari!ites', is their direction of /ur'anic "erses that $ere re"ealed specifically for the unbelie"ers, as referring to the belie"ers $ho do not seem to ha"e their $ay of thin2ing, =his $as a $ell 2no$n practise of the 0hari!ites of old% as $e shall see belo$.

Al-Albani Unveiled Some 8bservations about the Salafi@6ahhabi se%t Many of us .ho are pra%tisin' Muslims or other$ise, are familiar $ith the epithet '-ahhabi'. =he founder of this sect $as Muhammad ibn Abdal -ahhab (d. BG;9 AH , from the .a!d area of 'Saudi' Arabia. He is also 2no$n as Shay2h an-.a!di by his opponents and his follo$ers ha"e been labelled as either '.a!di's' or '-ahhabi's' by the Ahl al-Sunnah. He claimed to be a Hanbali in )i*h. 1t is $ell 2no$n that he fully digested the a*eedah and ideas of 1bn

48

=aymiyya. =he scholars of his time $arned the Muslims to be on their guard from accepting his 'reformatory' ideas% and this $or2 is still e'istent among the scholars of the Ahl alSunnah e"en today. =he neo- 'Salafi's' of today respect 1bn Abdal -ahhab *uite highly by besto$ing upon him such great titles li2e 'Shay2h al-1slam'. 1 do not $ant to say much about his mo"ement and acti"ities, but a fe$ *uotes from three $ell 2no$n scholars should suffice for no$. (B =he foremost Hanafi scholar of his time, 1mam Muhammad Amin ibn Abidin (d. BG:G8BL79 6ahimahullah said in his celebrated $or2 Hashiyya radd al-Mu2htar ("ol. 7, pg. 7;C 3 41n our time 1bn Abdal -ahhab (.a!di appeared, and attac2ed the t$o noble sanctuaries (Ma22ah and Madinah . He claimed to be a Hanbali, but his thin2ing $as such that only he alone $as a Muslim, and e"eryone else $as a polytheist, >nder this guise, he said that 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah $as permissible, until Allah destroyed them (-ahhabi's in the year BG77 AH by $ay of the Muslim army.4 (G Shay2h Fayni 5ahlan (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 )utuhat al-1slamiyya ("ol. G, pg. G9L 3 4=he sign of the 0ha$ari! (the first de"iant sect that appeared in the time of the #ompanions concerning the sha"ing of the head, $as not found in the 0ha$ari! of the past, but only in the .a!di's of our time,4 (7 Shay2h al-1slam Hussain Ahmad al-Madani (6ahimahullah said in his boo2 ash-Shihab as-sa*ib (pg. DG 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab arose in the beginning of the thirteenth 1slamic century in the .a!d. His thin2ing $as false, and his beliefs $ere corruptional% on these grounds he opened the $ay for 2illing the Ahl as-Sunnah.4 (D A more contemporary "ie$ on the -ahhabite sect has been e'pressed by Abdal-Ha2im Murad in the !ournal 1slamica (pg. C 3 41bn Abdal -ahhab, ho$e"er, $ent far beyond this (i.e% of 1bn =aymiyya . 6aised in the $astelands of .a!d in #entral Arabia, he had little access to mainstream Muslim scholarship (1 say3 =his may be disputed by his supporters . 1n fact, $hen his da'$ah appeared and became notorious, the scholars and muftis of the day applied to it the famous hadith of .a!d3 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Prophet (Peace be upon him as saying3 4+h ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said3 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 But he said, 4+ ?od, bless us in our Syria% + ?od, bless us in our Pemen.4 =hose present said, 4And in our .a!d, + Messenger of ?od,4 1bn >mar said that he thought that he said on the third occasion3 4<arth*ua2es and dissensions (fitnah are there, and there shall arise the horn of the de"il.4 (Sahih al-Bu2hari . And it is significant that almost uni*uely among the lands of 1slam, .a!d has ne"er produced scholars of any repute. =he .a!d-based da'$ah of the -ahhabi's, ho$e"er, began to be heard more loudly follo$ing the e'plosion of Saudi oil $ealth. Many, e"en most, 1slamic publishing houses in #airo and Beirut are no$ subsidised by -ahhabi organisations, $hich pre"ent them from publishing traditional $or2s on Sufism, and remo"e passages in other $or2s considered unnacceptable to -ahhabist doctrine.

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=he neo-0hari!ite nature of -ahhabism ma2es it intolerant of all other forms of 1slamic e'pression. Ho$e"er, because it has no coherent fi*h of its o$n - it re!ects the orthodo' madhhabs - and has only the most basic and primiti"ely anthropomorphic 'a*idah, it has a fluid, amoebali2e tendency to produce di"isions and subdi"isions among those $ho profess it. .o longer are the 1slamic groups essentially united by a consistent madhhab and the Ash'ari 'a*idah (see later . 1nstead, they are all trying to deri"e the Shari'ah and the 'a*idah from the /ur'an and the Sunnah by themsel"es. =he result is the appaling state of di"ision and conflict $hich disfigures the modern salafi condition.4 Another person $ho is a reference for today's neo-4Salafi's4, is Muhammad ibn Ali alSha$2ani (d. BG:;8BL7D . He $as a leading scholar of the Faydi (Shi'ah sect found mainly in the Pemen. He claimed to ha"e departed from his old Shi'ite $ays and !oined the Ahl alSunnah. He $as attac2ed by the scholars of his day for saying =a*leed $as completely haram, as $ell as other important issues. Some scholars had accused him of still holding on to his de"iant Faydiyyah-Mu'ta@ilite (rationalistic thin2ing that $as propounded by one of the first de"iant sects of 1slam thin2ing, $hile pretending to be $ithin the fold of orthodo' Sunni 1slam% but Allah 2no$s best, 1t is a $ell 2no$n fact that he denied the consensus of the #ompanions (1!ma as-Sahaba , as $ell as re!ecting the "alidity of the )at$a of a #ompanion, +ne may refer to An$ar Ahmad /adri's boo2 1slamic &urisprudence in the Modern -orld (pg. BDG for a lenghthier discussion. Many scholars ha"e noticed the e'treme tendencies $ithin the 4Salafiyya4 sect around the $orld, for its lac2 of respect for the scholars of the four Madhhabs, its A*eedah and some untenable !uristic positions it has produced o"er a short period of 1slam's history. =he scholars ha"e not been afraid of declaring the neo- 4Salafi's4 to be neo-0hari!ites in their beha"iour and attitude to other Muslims. .ote, the scholars are not saying that the neo-4Salafi's4 are 0hari!ites, but rather they seem to ha"e certain traits $hich $ere only found amongst the 0hari!ites of the past. +ne of the most stri2ing things 1 ha"e noticed amongst these 'neo-0hari!ites', is their direction of /ur'anic "erses that $ere re"ealed specifically for the unbelie"ers, as referring to the belie"ers $ho do not seem to ha"e their $ay of thin2ing, =his $as a $ell 2no$n practise of the 0hari!ites of old% as $e shall see belo$. A $ell 2no$n scholar of the 4Salafiyya4, 5r. Pusuf al-/arda$i ($ho has himself been attac2ed by other members of the 4Salafiyya4, especially for holding some untenable positions in his boo2 al-Halal $al Haram fil 1slam said in his boo2 1slamic a$a2ening bet$een 6e!ection and <'tremism (pg. DB-7 3 41mam al-Shatibi (6ahimahullah $rote (in his boo2 al-1'tisam, G. BLG-D 3 '1bn Abbas (Allah be pleased $ith him $as right. -hen a person 2no$s the reason behind a certain "erse or surah, he 2no$s ho$ to interpret it and $hat its ob!ecti"es are. Ho$e"er, ignorance of that leads people to misinterpret it and to ha"e different opinions, $ithout an insight and 2no$ledge $hich could lead them to the truth, and pre"ent them from indulging ignorantly in such matters $ith no support or e"idence from al Shari'ah, and therefore go astray and lead people astray. =his can be demonstrated by $hat is reported by 1bn -ahab from Ba2ir $ho as2ed .afi'3 -hat does 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him thin2 of al-Haruriyyah (i.e% al-0ha$ari! $ho $ere also called al-Haruriyyah after the place -Hara$ra- $here they gathered and $ere found by Ali ibn Abu =alib and the #ompanions of the Prophet Amay Allah be pleased $ith them allE $ho supported him K .afi'

50

ans$ered3 He thin2s they are the most e"il of people. =hey applied the "erses $hich pertain to the 2uffar on the belie"ers.' (.B- 1mam al-Bu2hari has recorded 1bn >mar as saying in his Sahih A"ol.C, pg.:;% <nglish ednE3 =hese people (the 0ha$ari! and heretics too2 some "erses that had been re"ealed concerning the disbelie"ers and interpreted them as describing the belie"ers . Al-/arda$i also said (pg. DG 3 +ne of the causes of such shallo$ness is that e'tremists ne"er listen to people $ho hold different "ie$s (and 1 can personally testify to that , ne"er accept any dialogue $ith them or imagine that their o$n "ie$s could be tested in the light of others, and may thereby be either accepted or re!ected. Most of them ha"e not been taught by reliable Muslim ulama $ho are specialised in the field. 6ather, they ha"e recei"ed semi2no$ledge directly from boo2s and ne$spapers $ithout any opportunity for re"ision or discussion $hich could test the learner's understanding and analy@e the depth of his 2no$ledge. =hey simply read, 'understand', then deduce $hat they $ish. Ho$e"er, their reading, understanding, and deduction may $ell be $rong or deficient. =here might be someone some$here $ho opposes their opinions on stronger and more "alid bases, but they are not a$are of that because nobody has dra$n their attention to such a possibility. =hese de"out young people ha"e ignored the facts that if they $ant to study al Shari'ah, they must see2 the help of reliable Muslim scholars. =hey cannot "enture into this e'tensi"e and entangled discipline $ithout the guidance of reliable Muslim scholars $ho can interpret and e'plain obscurities, define terms, and point out the relationships bet$een the parts and the $hole and also e*uate similarities. =hose $ho "enture into it alone $ill meet $ith the same catastrophic results $hich could certainly befall the uns2illed s$immer $ho "entures into dangerous $aters. Proper 2no$ledge of al Shari'ah cannot be perfected $ithout practice and close contact $ith the e'perts, especially in those areas $here opinions di"erge, e"idences seem to contradict each other, and certain matters seem to be under suspicion. =his is $hy our "enerable 'ulama' ha"e $arned us not to see2 to study and understand al /ur'an al 0arim through a person $ho has only memori@ed it $ithout any 2no$ledge of its contents, nor to see2 2no$ledge through a person $ho has ac*uired his o$n 42no$ledge4 from reading ne$spapers and !ournals only, $ithout being properly instructed by reputable and *ualified scholars.4 =his topic began $ith a brief discussion on =a*leed and 1 $ould li2e to finish $ith the follo$ing t$o *uestions for you to ponder o"er. (A -ould it not be classified as being =a*leed if one $ere to accept the classifications of Hadiths, e'egesis of the /ur'an etc% by a reno$ned 1slamic scholar, if one $as not to go bac2 to the original sources $hich are used to authenticate the Hadith and so onK ()or e'ample, if a scholar claimed that a Hadith found in the Sunan of 1mam Abu 5a$ood $as Sahih and you accepted it as being Sahih - since you trust him, then are you not practising =a*leed% if you, yourself do not go bac2 to the original sources used to classify the Hadith in *uestion, since sometimes a Hadith classified to be Sahih by one scholar can be classified as being 5a'eef by another, . (B 1s it not true that those $ho are calling for the abandonment of =a*leed, are calling for the =a*leed of their o$n boo2s and speeches% hence creating their o$n little 'Madhhabs'K Al-Albani >n"eiled -ho are the Ahl as-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ahK

51

Many people today li2e to classify themsel"es as belonging to the Sa"ed Sect ((irqatunNaji++ah - Ahl as-Sunnah Wa'l Jama'ah% but do these people really 2no$ $hich is the Sa"ed Sect, from the many sects $e ha"e todayK =he follo$ing is an attempt to clarify some misconceptions by $ay of definiti"e proofs from the /ur'an and Sunnah, as $ell as *uotes from the profoundly learned #lassical Scholars of 1slam. 0no$ that there is only one Sa"ed Sect in 1slam, and this is the original pristine form of 1slam that has been transmitted to us by Allah Subhana -a =a'ala in his /ur'an, his 6asul (Peace and blessings be upon him , the blessed #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them all and the great scholars of 1slam (Allah's mercy be upon them all $ho ha"e been follo$ing their Straight Path for more than one thousand years of 1slam's history. =he first *uestion that should be raised is3 4What differentiates one sect from another sect?4 =he ans$er to this is simple and definiti"e, 0no$ that the chief characteristic that distinguishes one sect from another, lies not in the differences of opinion that its scholars ha"e attained by ma2ing ijtihad from the sources of the Shari'ah (this leads to the formation of the Madhhabs , but rather the actual belief (aqid#ah or i#tiqad in Arabic that the scholars and laity of the sect in *uestion are clinging onto - since the founding of their respecti"e sect. According to the un2no$n author of the boo2 )elief and Islam (pp. ML-C , the faith of the People of the Sunnah and &ama'ah $as spread as follo$s3 4.o$adays, some mouths fre*uently use the name of 'Salafiyya'. <"ery Muslim should 2no$ "ery $ell that in 1slam there is nothing in the name of the Madhhab of Salafiyya but there is the Madhhab of the alaf as-salihin $ho $ere the Muslims of the first t$o 1slamic centuries (i.e% the #ompanions, their successors and the follo$ers of the successors $hich $ere lauded in a Hadith sharif. =he ulama of 1slam $ho came in the third and fourth centuries are called &halaf assadiqin. =he i#tiqad (belief of these honourable people is called the Madhhab of Ahl as- unnah "a#l -ama#ah. =his is the Madhhab of 1man, tenets of faith. =he 1man held by the ahaba al&iram (may Allah be pleased $ith them all and by the Tabi#un (Allah's mercy be upon them all $as the same. =here $as no difference bet$een their beliefs. =oday most Muslims in the $orld are in the Madhhab of Ahl as- unnah (i.e% most Muslim's claim to be Sunni's . All the se"entyt$o heretical groups (see later for the actual Hadith and its commentary of bid#ah appeared (mainly after the second century of 1slam. )ounders of some of them li"ed earlier, but it $as after the Tabi#un that their boo2s $ere $ritten, and that they appeared in groups and defied the Ahl as- unnah. 6asulullah (Peace and blessings be upon him brought the beliefs of Ahl as-Sunnah. =he Sahaba al-2iram (may Allah be pleased $ith them all deri"ed these teachings of 1man from the source (the /ur'an and Sunnah . And the =abi'un (successors , in their turn, learned these teachings from the Sahaba al-2iram. And from them their successors learned, thus the teachings of Ahl asSunnah reached us by $ay of transmission and ta$atur (through many undeniable chains of transmission . =hese teachings cannot be e'plored by $ay of reasoning. 1ntellect cannot change them and $ill only help understand them. =hat is, intellect is necessary for understanding them, for reali@ing that they are right and for 2no$ing their "alue. All the scholars of Hadith held the beliefs of the Ahl as-Sunnah. =he 1mams of the four Madhhabs in deeds, too, $ere in this Madhhab. Also, al-Maturidi and al-Ashari (Allah's mercy be upon them , the t$o 1mam's of our Madhhab in beliefs, $ere in the Madhhab of the Ahl as-Sunnah. Both of these 1mams promulgated this Madhhab. =hey al$ays defended this Madhhab against heretics and materialists, $ho had been stuc2 in the bogs of ancient ?ree2 philosophy. =hough they $ere

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contemporaries, they li"ed in different places and the $ays of thin2ing and beha"ing of the offenders they had met $ere different, so the methods of defence used and the ans$ers gi"en by these t$o great scholars of Ahl as-Sunnah $ere different. But this does not mean that they belonged to different Madhhabs (rather they $ere both from the Ahl as-Sunnah . Hundreds of thousands of profoundly learned ulama and a$liya (friends of Allah coming after these t$o e'alted 1mams studied their boo2s and stated in consensus that they both belonged to the Madhhab of the Ahl as-Sunnah. =he scholars of the Ahl as-Sunnah too2 the nass (/ur'an and Sunnah $ith their out$ard meanings. =hat is, they ga"e the ayats and Hadiths their out$ard meanings, and did not e'plain a$ay (ta#"il the nass or change these meanings unless there $as a darura (necessity to do so. And they ne"er made any changes $ith their personal 2no$ledge or opinions. But those $ho belonged to heretical groups and the la-Madhhabi (those $ho do not belong to one of the four Madhhabs did not hesitate to change the teachings of Iman and Ibadat ($orship as they had learned from (the boo2s of ?ree2 philosophers and from sham scientists, $ho $ere 1slam's ad"ersaries.4 (et us no$ see $hat the definition of Ahl as-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah $as according to the classical scholars of this aided, Iictorious sect (Tai#fatul-Mansoorah of 1slam. (B Shay/h al-!slam Ahmad ibn Ha2ar al-Haytami (d. CMD8B:9M% 6.A. Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar al-Haytami defined the Sunni Muslims as follo$s in his boo2 (ath al-ja"ad3 4A mubtadi (inno"ator is the person $ho does not ha"e the faith (aqid#ah con"eyed unanimously by the Ahl as-Sunnah. =his unanimity $as transmitted by the t$o great 1mam's Abu'l Hasan al-Ashari (d.7GD8C79% 6ahimahullah and Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (d.7778CDD% 6ahimahullah and the scholars $ho follo$ed their path.4 Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar al-Haytami also said in his boo2 al-(ata"a al-.adithi++a (pg. G;: 3 4Man of bid'ah means one $hose beliefs are different from the Ahl as-Sunnah faith. =he Ahl as-Sunnah faith, is the faith of Abu'l Hasan alAshari, Abu Mansur al-Maturidi and those $ho follo$ed them. +ne $ho brings forth something $hich is not appro"ed by 1slam becomes a man of bid#ah.4 (G !mam Ahmad Shihab ad-Din al Galyubi (d.B;9C8B9:C% 6.A. 1mam al-/alyubi $rote on the fourth "olume of his marginalia to the boo2 &anz ar-ra/hibin3 4+ne $ho departs from $hat Abu'l Hasan al-Ashari and Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (Allah's mercy be upon them reported is not a Sunni. =hese t$o 1mam's follo$ed the footprints of 6asulullah (Peace be upon him and his Sahaba (may Allah be pleased $ith them all .4 (7 !mam Abdullah ibn Ala.i al-Haddad (d. BB7G AH% 6ahimahullah 1mam al-Haddad stated in The )oo% of Assistance (pg. D; 3 4Pou must correct and protect your beliefs and conform to the pattern of the party of sal"ation, $ho are those 2no$n from among the other 1slamic factions as the 4People of the Sunnah and &ama'ah4 (Ahl as-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah . =hey are those $ho firmly adhere to the $ay of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him , and of his #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them all .

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1f you loo2 $ith a sound understanding into those passages relating to the sciences of faith in the Boo2 (/ur'an , the Sunnah, and the saying of the "irtuous predecessors, $hether they be #ompanions or follo$ers, you $ill 2no$ for certain that the truth is $ith the party called the Ashari (.B-the Maturidi's are also upon the truth , named after the Shay2h Abu'l Hasan alAshari, may Allah ha"e mercy on him, $ho systemati@ed the foundations of the creed of the people of the truth, and recorded its earliest "ersions, these being the beliefs $ith the #ompanions and the best among the follo$ers agreed upon.4 (D !mam Abdal 0hani an-)ablusi (d. BBD78BM77% 6ahimahullah 1mam an-.ablusi stated in his boo2 al-.adiqat an-Nadi++a ("ol. G, pg. B;7 3 4&ama'ah is rahma, that is, the union of Muslims on truth brings Allahu ta'ala's #ompassion. Tafriqa is adhab, that is, separation from the #ommunity of Muslims brings about punishment from Allahu ta'ala. Hence, it is necessary for e"ery Muslim to unite $ith those $ho are on the right path. He must !oin and belie"e li2e them e"en if they are only a small group. =he right path is the path of as-Sahaba al-0iram. =hose $ho follo$ this path are called Ahl as-Sunnah -a'l &ama'ah. 1t should not confuse us that many heretical groups appeared after the time of as-Sahaba al-0iram. Al-Imam al-)a+haqi (d. D:L8B;99% 6ahimahullah said, 'When Muslims /o astra+, +ou should follo" the ri/ht path of those "ho came before them0 1ou should not /i$e up that path e$en if +ou are left alone on the path0' Najm ad-!in al-Ghazzi (d. B;9B8B9:B% 6ahimahullah $rote3 'Ahl as- unnah Wa#l -ama#ah are those ulama "ho %eep on the ri/ht path of *asullullah 23eace and blessin/s be upon him4 and as- ahaba al-&iram5 As- a"ad al-Azam, that is, the majorit+ of Islamic scholars, ha$e follo"ed this ri/ht path5 The (irqatun-Naaji++ah "hich "as defined to be the /roup of sal$ation amon/ the se$ent+ three /roups is this true -ama#ah5' =he /ur'an al-0arim declares, '!o not disunite0' =his ayat means '!o not disunite in i#tiqad, in the teachin/s of beliefs0' Most ulama, for e'ample, Abdullah ibn Masood (may Allah be pleased $ith him , interpreted this ayat as abo"e and said that it meant, '!o not de$iate from the ri/ht path b+ follo"in/ +our desires and corrupt ideas5' =his ayat does not mean that there should be no disagreement in the 2no$ledge of fiqh. 1t forbids separation $hich causes discord and dissension in the 2no$ledge of i#tiqad (see 1mam al-/urtubi's opinion later . =he disagreement in the 2no$ledge (of fiqh deri"ed through ijtihad in the field of practices (amal is not a discord, because such disagreement has brought to sight the rights, the fards and the subtle teachings in amal and Ibadah ($orship . As-Sahaba al-2iram (Allah be pleased $ith them all , too, differed from one another in those teachings that e'plained the daily life, but there $as no disagreement among them in the 2no$ledge of i#tiqad.4 (: Allamah Sayyid Ahmad at-(ahta.i (d. BG7B8BLB9% 6ahimahullah Allamah Sayyid Ahmad at-=ahta$i, a great Hanafi fiqh scholar of <gypt, $rote on the sub!ect of '6aba+ih' in his .ashi+a al-!urr al-Mu%htar3 4According to the ma!ority of scholars of tafsir, the ayat, 'The+ parted into /roups in the reli/ion,' referred to the people of bid#ah $ho $ould arise in this >mmah. 1n a Hadith reported by >mar (may Allah be pleased $ith him , 6asulullah (Peace and blessings be upon him said to Aisha (may Allah be pleased $ith her , '=he a+at about the partitions into groups in the religion refers to the people of bid#ah and to the follo$ers of their nafs $ho $ould arise in this >mmah.' Allah declared in the B:7rd a+at of urah Al-An#am, 'This is M+ trai/ht path, so follo" it0

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(ollo" not other "a+s, lest +ou be parted from .is "a+0' (that is, &e$s, #hristians, and other heretics departed from the right path% you should not part li2e them, . 1n the B;7rd a+at of urah Al-Imran, Allah declares, 'And hold fast, all of +ou to/ether, to the rope of Allah, and do not separate0' (see later for a brief commentary . Some scholars of tafsir said that Allah's rope meant -ama#ah, unity. =he command, '!o not separate', sho$s that it is so and the -ama#ah are the possessors of fiqh and ilm (2no$ledge . +ne $ho descents from fuqaha (scholars of fiqh as much as a span falls into heresy, becomes depri"ed of Allah's help and deser"es Hell, because the fuqaha ha"e been on the right path and ha"e held on to the Sunnah of 6asulullah (Peace and blessings be upon him and on to the path of al-0hulafa ar-6ashideen, the )our 0haliphs (may Allah be pleased $ith them . As-Sa$ad al-A@am, that is, the ma!ority of the Muslims, are on the path of fuqaha. =hose $ho depart from their path $ill burn in the fire of Hell. + belie"ers, )ollo$ the uni*ue group $hich is protected against Hell, And this group is the one that is called Ahl as- unnah Wa#l -ama#ah. )or, Allah's help, protection and guidance are for the follo$ers of this group, and His $rath and punishment are for those $ho dissent from this group. =oday, this group of sal"ation comes together in the )our Madhhabs, namely the Hanafi, Mali2i, Shafi'i, and Hanbali.4 1t is "ery important to ha"e unity in the >mmah, and to achie"e this goal of unity it is incumbent that the $hole >mmah has the correct and preser"ed aqidah of the Salaf as-salihin (may Allah be pleased $ith them all % since Allah $ill no doubt as2 us about our aqidah if it is not in conformity $ith the di"ine re"elation and $hat his Messenger (Peace and blessings be upon him transmitted to us. =he $ay of the Salaf as-salihin is the $ay of the sa"ed sect of the Ahl asSunnah $a'l &ama'ah. And $e should all 2no$ that the &ama'ah is the sect $hich has the most correct and united aqid#ah out of all other &ama'ahs. =o 2no$ $hat is the real &ama'ah, one must loo2 into the /ur'an and Hadith for e"idence. 1f one $as to loo2 deeply in to this matter $ith an open and scholarly mind, one $ill come to the conclusion that this great &ama'ah is the one $hich is composed of the foremost scholars of /ur'anic commentary, Hadith, fi*h and other 1slamic sciences% it is no doubt the &ama'ah $hich has had the greatest follo$ing throughout 1slamic history in terms of scholars and laity, and this alone is the main body of 1slam $hich represents the "ie$s of the great mass of belie"ers (as-Sa$ad al-A@am as $e shall see from the Hadith e"idence belo$. (et us no$ see $hat Allah ta'ala has said about unity and schism in the Holy /ur'an.

Gur;ani% Eviden%e
(B Surah al-!mran (73B;7 3 4And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah and be not di"ided.4 !mam Sayf ad-Din al-Amidi (d. 97B8BG77% 6ahimahullah said in his al-Ih%am fi usul al-ah%am (=he proficiency3 on the fundamentals of legal rulings, pg. GC: $ith regard to the abo"e /ur'anic "erse3 4Allah has forbidden separation, and disagreement $ith consensus (ijma is separation.4 Hence, if Allah has forbidden separation then surely $e must all unite on the unanimously accepted aqid#ah of our pious predecessors. And 1 ha"e already *uoted Hafi@ 1bn Ha!ar alHaytami (6ahimahullah as saying3 4(his unanimity 1in aqidah3 .as transmitted by the t.o

55

'reat !mam;s Abu;l Hasan al-Ashari and Abu Mansur al-Maturidi 1Allah;s mer%y be upon them3 and the s%holars .ho follo.ed their path=4 Mahmoud Ayoub $rote in The 7ur#an and Its Interpreters ("ol. 11, GM:-9 3 4!bn 4athir (d. MMD8B7M7% 6ahimahullah interprets the 'rope of God' in "erse B;7 as 'The co$enant of God,' citing in support of this interpretation "erse BBG belo$ (in Surah al-1mran . Another "ie$, he adds, is that 'The rope of God' here refers to the /ur'an, as reported on the authority of Ali (Allah be pleased $ith him $ho said that 'The 7ur#an is God#s stron/ rope and the strai/ht "a+5' He cites another Hadith, on the authority of Abu Sa'id al-0hudri (Allah be pleased $ith him , $here the Prophet (Peace be upon him declared, 'The boo% of God is God#s rope stretched from hea$en to earth5' Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud (Allah be pleased $ith him reported -that the Messenger of ?od (Peace be upon him said, ' urel+ this 7ur#an is God#s stron/ rope, manifest li/ht, and beneficial source of healin/5 It is protection for those "ho hold fast to it, and a means of sal$ation for those "ho abide b+ it5' !bn 4athir interprets the in!unction, 'and do not be di$ided' to mean strict adherence to unity among Muslims. He reports on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (Allah be pleased $ith him that the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, '0od .ill be pleased .ith three a%ts from you< and .rathful .ith three others= He .ishes that you .orship Him alone .ithout asso%iatin' any thin' .ith HimF that you hold fast all to'ether to the rope of 0od and be not dividedF and that you sho. loyalty to those .hom 0od has set in authority=' (Tafsir Ibn &athir, 11, pp. L7D Gurtubi (d. 9MB8BGM7% 6ahimahullah agrees $ith (abari (d. CG7 #<% 6ahimahullah and !bn 4athir regarding the meaning of 'the rope of God' in "erse B;7. He cites $ith appro"al the famous traditionist !bn al-Mubara/ (d. BLB8MCM% 6ahimahullah $ho said, ' urel+ unit+ is God#s rope8 therefore hold fast all to/ether to #its firm handle# (see /ur'an G3G:9 .' /urtubi adds that 'God enjoins concord and forbids dissension, for in disunit+ is perdition, and in unit+ sal$ation5' /urtubi offers t$o possible interpretations of the phrase 'And be not di$ided'3 '*e not divided in your reli'ion as .ere the $e.s and Christians divided in their reli'ions' and '*e not divided in follo.in' different false opinions and purposes= Rather< be brothers in 0od;s reli'ion=' As a !urist, /urtubi obser"es that, '(here is no indi%ation in this verse of the prohibition of disa'reement in the bran%hes 1furu'3 #of fiqh& as this in reality is not dissension= (his is be%ause true dissention is one .herein %on%ord and unity be%ome virtually impossible= As for disa'reement in 2ud'ements based on personal effort 1ijtihad3< it is due to differen%es in dedu%in' obli'ations 1fara'id3 and the minutiae of la.=' +n page GMC, !mam al-RaHi (d. 9;98BGB;% 6ahimahullah $as *uoted as saying in conclusion to his commentary on the abo"e ayat3 ;!f a person 'oin' do.n into a .ell must hold fast to a rope in order that he may not fall in< so also the *oo/ of 0od< His %ovenant< reli'ion and obedien%e to Him< as .ell as unity and harmony amon' the people of faith are means of se%urity for anyone .ho holds fast to them from fallin' into the bottom of Hell=;C (G Surah al-1mran (73B;: 3 4And be not li/e those .ho separated and disputed after the %lear proofs had %ome unto

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them, or su%h there is an a.ful doom=4 (7 Surah al-1mran (73BB; 3 4+e are the best %ommunity that has been raised up for man/ind= +e en2oin the 'ood and forbid the evilF and ye believe in Allah4 (D Surah Al-An'am (93B:C 3 4As for those .ho divide their reli'ion and brea/ up into se%ts< thou has no part in them in the least, (heir affair is .ith Allah, He .ill in the end tell them the truth of all that they did=4 (: Surah Al-Mu'minun (G73:G-:7 3 4And verily this Ummah of yours is a sin'le Ummah and ! am your ?ord< so /eep your duty unto Me= *ut they have bro/en their reli'ion amon' them into se%ts< ea%h se%t re2oi%in' in its tenets=4 (9 Surah Al-6um (7;37G 3 4(hose .ho split up their Reli'ion< and be%ome Se%ts< ea%h se%t exultin' in its tenets=4 (M Surah Al-.isa (D3BB: 3 4He that disobeys the Apostle 1Muhammad3 after 'uidan%e has been made %lear to him and follo.s a .ay other than that of the believers< 6e appoint for him that unto .hi%h he himself hath turned< and expose him unto Hell - a hapless 2ourney;s endD4 (L Surah Al-An'am (93B:7 3 4(his is My Strai'ht path< so follo. it= ollo. not other .ays< lest ye be parted from His .ay= (his has he ordained for you< that ye may .ard off 1evil3=4

Hadith Eviden%e
(B !mam Abu Da.ood (6ahimahullah has *uoted the $ell 2no$n Hadith concerning the di"ision of the Muslim >mmah into se"enty-three sects in his Sunan (78D:L;, <nglish edn 3 Abu Amir al-Ha$dhani said, 4Mu'a$iyah ibn Abi Sufyan (may Allah be pleased $ith him stood among us and said, 'Be$are, =he Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him stood among us and said'3 'Be$are, =he People of the Boo2 before (you $ere split up into MG sects, and this community $ill be split up into M7, se"enty-t$o of them $ill go to Hell and one of them $ill go to Paradise, and it is the ma!ority group (&ama'ah .' Another "ersion of the abo"e Hadith has been reported by Hafi@ 1bn 0athir (6ahimahullah in =he signs before the day of &udgement (pg. BD 3 4A$f ibn Mali2 reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, '=he &e$s split into MB sects3 one $ill enter Paradise and M; $ill enter Hell. =he #hristians split into MG sects3 MB $ill enter Hell and one $ill enter Paradise. By Him in -hose hand is my soul, my >mmah $ill split into M7 sects3 one $ill enter Paradise and MG $ill enter Hell.' Someone as2ed, '+ Messenger ofAllah (Peace be upon him , $ho $ill they beK' He replied, '=he main body of the Muslims (al&ama'ah .' A$f ibn Mali2 is the only one $ho reported this Hadith, and its isnad is acceptable.4 And in another "ersion of this Hadith the Prophet (Peace be upon him goes onto say that the sa"ed sect, 4...Are those $ho follo$ my and my Sahaba's path4 (=irmidhi, "ol. G, pg. LC

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Shay/h al-!slam Ahmad al-Sirhindi (d. B;7D8B9GD% 6ahimahullah $ho is regarded by many people in the 1ndian sub-continent as a great reno"ator of the =enth 1slamic #entury (Mujaddid alf Thani $rote in his Ma%tubat (Iol. 7, (etter 7L 3 41t $as declared in a Hadith that this >mmah $ould part into M7 groups, MG of $hich $ould go to Hell. =his Hadith informs us that the MG groups $ill be tormented in the )ire of Hell. 1t does not inform us that they $ill remain in torment eternally. 6emaining in the torment of Hell )ire eternally is for those $ho do not ha"e 1man. =hat is, it is for disbelie"ers. =he MG groups, on account of their corrupt beliefs, $ill go to Hell and $ill burn as much as the corruptness of their beliefs. +ne group, the M7rd, $ill be sa"ed from Hell )ire because their belief is not corrupt. 1f among the members of this one group there are those $ho committed e"il deeds and if these e"il deeds of theirs ha"e not been forgi"en through repentance or intercession, it is possible that these, too, $ill burn in Hell as much as their sins. All of those $ho are in the MG groups $ill go to Hell. But none of them $ill remain in Hell eternally. .ot all of those $ho are in this one group $ill go to Hell. +f these only those $ho ha"e committed e"il deeds $ill go to Hell. =he MG reported groups of bid'ah, $hich $ill go to Hell, should not be called disbelie"ers, because they are Ahl al-/ibla (people of the /ibla in prayer . But, of these, the ones $ho disbelie"e those facts in the 5een that are indispensably re*uired to be belie"ed, as $ell as those $ho deny the rules of the Shari'ah $hich e"ery Muslim has heard and 2no$s, become disbelie"ers.4 1n another letter ("ol. B, letter L; he said3 4=here is no doubt $hatsoe"er that the sect that made conforming to the conduct of the Prophet's #ompanions (may Allah be pleased $ith them all necessary, that alone is the Ahl as Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah.4 Shay2h Abdal /adir al-&ilani (d. :9B8BB99% 6ahimahullah stated in his commentary to the abo"e Hadith in Ghun+at at-Talibin (pg. C; , 4=he Belie"er should adapt himself to the Sunnah and to the &ama'ah. =he Sunnah is the $ay sho$n by 6asulullah (Peace be upon him . =he &ama'ah is composed of the things done unanimously by the Sahaba al-0iram $ho li"ed in the time of the four caliphs called &hulafa# ar-*ashidin (and others in their path . A Muslim must pre"ent the multiplication of the men of bid#ah and 2eep a$ay from them, and should not greet them (as gi"en in many Hadith on this issue . Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahimahullah , the 1mam of our Madhhab, said that greeting a man of bid#ah meant lo"ing him since it had been declared in a Hadith, '!isseminate 2+our4 /reetin/ 2salaam40 9o$e one another in this "a+04 He also said (pg. BD7 3 4The title, Ahl as- unnah, "hich the inno$ators ha$e e:pressed for themsel$es is not appropriate for them54 Although 1bn =aymiyya $as accused of holding certain corrupt points in his aqid#ah, $hich led so many scholars to denounce him for his heresy, he ne"er the less hit the right point $hen he described those $ho are the real Sunni's in his Aqeedat-il-Wasiti++ah (pg. B:D 3 4 =heir creed is the religion of 1slam $hich $as sent to the $orld by Allah through the Prophet (Peace be upon him . But the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, 'My >mmah $ill get di"ided into M7 sects and each one $ill go to Hell sa"e one and that one is the &ama'at.' Also in one

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Hadith he said, '=hey are those people $ho $ill follo$ this path $hich 1 and my Sahaba follo$ today.' =herefore they ha"e caught hold of 1slam unalloyed from e"ery adulteration and these are the people of Ahl as-Sunnah -a'l &ama'ah. =his group includes the truthful, the martyrs and the "irtuous% it includes the minarets of guidance, lamps in the dar2ness and o$ners of such superiorities and "irtues $ho ha"e been already mentioned. 1t includes the saints and also those 1mams on $hose guidance Muslims are unanimous. 1t is this successful group about $hich the Prophet (Peace be upon him has said3 '+ne group from my >mmah $ill al$ays remain dominant $ith truth% the opponents $ill ne"er be able to harm its members or afflict them upto the 5oomsday.'4 (G !mam Muslim (6ahimahullah has collected a number of "ariant Hadith on the sa"ed sect. He has related a longer "ersion of the last Hadith *uoted abo"e3 4Abdal 6ahman ibn Shamasa al-Mahri said3 '1 $as in the company of Maslama bin Mu2hallad and Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-Aas (may Allah be pleased $ith them .' Abdullah said, 'The .our shall come onl+ "hen the "orst t+pe of people are left on the earth5 The+ "ill be "orse than the people of pre-Islamic da+s5 The+ "ill /et "hat e$er the+ as% of Allah5' -hile $e $ere sitting >*ba ibn Amir came, and Maslama said to him, ';qba, listen to "hat Abdullah sa+s5' >*ba said, 'He 2no$s, so far as 1 am concerned, 1 heard the Prophet (Peace be upon him say3 A /roup of people from m+ ;mmah "ill continue to fi/ht in obedience to the <ommand of Allah, remainin/ dominant o$er their enemies5 Those "ho "ill opose them shall not do them an+ harm5 The+ "ill remain in this condition until the .our o$er ta%es them5' (At this Abdullah said, '1es5 Then Allah "ill raise a "ind "hich "ill be fra/rant li%e mus% and "hose touch "ill be li%e the touch of sil%8 2but4 it "ill cause the death of all 2faithful4 persons, not lea$in/ behind a sin/le person "ith an iota of faith in his heart5 Then onl+ the "orst of men "ill remain to be o$er"helmed b+ the .our5#4 ( ahih Muslim, 78DMGB, <nglish ed'n, see also ahih al-)u%hari, C8DBD, <nglish ed'n !mam )a.a.i (d. 9M98BGMM, 6ahimahullah said in his harh Muslim ("ol. G, pg. BD7 3 4=he group of people (mentioned in the abo"e Hadith consists of scholars, !urisprudents, authorities on Hadith, those $ho en!oin ?ood (Maroof and forbid <"il (Mun2ar and all such persons $ho do good deeds. Such righteous persons may be found spread all o"er the $orld.4 !mam al-(irmidhi (6ahimahullah said3 4=he e'planation of al-&ama'ah according to the people of 2no$ledge3 =hey are the people of fi*h, 2no$ledge and Hadith.4 ( unan al-Tirmidhi, D8GB9M% Ahmad Sha2ir ed'n !mam *u/hari (6ahimahullah stated in his ahih ("ol. C, chapter. B;, <nglish ed'n , 4=he statement of the Prophet (Peace be upon him 3 'A group of my follo$ers $ill remain "ictorious in their struggle in the cause of the =ruth.' =hose are the religious(ly learned men (Ahl ul-1lm .4 !mam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (6ahimahullah said about this group3

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41f it is not the people of Hadith, then 1 do not 2no$ $ho they may be.4 ( ahih Muslim harifMu%htasar harh Na"a"i, "ol. :, pg. BL7, -. Faman Gadi !yad (6ahimahullah said in ash- hifa (pg. BLL 3 41n a Hadith from Abu >mama (Allah be pleased $ith him , the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, QA /roup of m+ communit+ "ill remain constant to the truth, conquerin/ their enem+ until the command of Allah comes to them "hile the+ are still in that condition5' He $as as2ed, 'Messen/er of Allah 23eace be upon him4, "here are the+=' He replied, QIn -erusalem5'4 (7 !mam Muslim (6ahimahullah has related in his ahih (78D::7 under the chapter heading '!nstru%tion to sti%/ to the main body of the Muslims in the time of the trials and .arnin' a'ainst those invitin' people to disbelief', a Hadith on the authority of Hudhaifa ibn al-Paman (Allah be pleased $ith him , $ho said3 4People used to as2 the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him about the good times, but 1 used to as2 him about (the bad times fearing lest they o"erta2e me. 1 said, 'Messenger of Allah, $e $ere in the midst of ignorance and e"il, and then ?od brought us this good (time through 1slam . 1s there any bad time after this good oneK' He said, 'Pes'. 1 as2ed, '-ill there be a good time again after that bad timeK' He said, 'Pes, but therein $ill be a hidden e"il.' 1 as2ed, '-hat $ill be the e"il hidden thereinK' He said, '(=hat time $ill $itness the rise of the people $ho $ill adopt $ays other than mine and see2 guidance other than mine. Pou $ill 2no$ good points as $ell as bad points.' 1 as2ed, '-ill there be a bad time after this good oneK' He said, 'Pes. (A time $ill come $hen there $ill be people standing and in"iting at the gates of Hell. -hoso responds to their call, they $ill thro$ them into the fire.' 1 said, 'Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him , describe them for us.' He said, 'All right. =hey $ill be a people ha"ing the same comple'ion as ours and spea2ing our language.' 1 said, QMessenger of Allah (Peace be upon him , $hat do you suggest if 1 happen to li"e in their timeK' He said, 'Pou should stic2 to the main body of the Muslims and their leader' 1 said, '1f they ha"e no (such thing as the main body of the Muslims and ha"e no leaderK' He said, 'Separate yourself from all these factions, though you may ha"e to eat the roots of trees until death comes to you and you are in this state.'4 (.B-1t is not li2ely that there $ill be an absence of a &ama'ah, since 1 ha"e already *uoted the Prophet, peace be upon him, as saying3 'A 'roup of people from my Ummah .ill %ontinue to fi'ht in obedien%e to the %ommand of Allah< remainin' dominant over their enemies= (hose .ho .ill oppose them shall not do them any harm= (hey .ill remain in this %ondition until the Hour overta/es them=' (D Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him as saying3 4-ho (e"er defected from the obedience (to the Amir and separated from the main body of the Muslims - then he died in that state - $ould die the death of one belonging to the days of &ahiliyya (pre-1slamic ignorance . And he $ho is 2illed under the banner of a man $ho is blind (to the cause for $hich he is fighting , $ho gets flared up $ith family pride and fights for his tribe - is not from my >mmah, and $hoso from my follo$ers attac2s my follo$ers (indiscriminately 2illing the righteous and the $ic2ed of them, sparing not (e"en those staunch

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in faith and fulfilling not his obligation to$ards them $ho ha"e been gi"en a pledge (of security , is not from me.4 ( ahih Muslim, 78D::M R D:::% <nglish ed'n !mam al-*ayha"i (d. D:L8B;99% 6ahimahullah stated in his3 The e$ent+- e$en )ranches of (aith (pg. DG-7 , under the fiftieth branch of faith (>? - .oldin/ firml+ to the position of the majorit+ 3 4?od Most High has said3 .old fast, all to/ether, to the rope of God, and do not be disunited5 A73B;7E. Muslim (6ahimahullah relates on the authority of Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased $ith him that the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, 'Whoe$er is disobedient, and departs from the majorit+, and then dies, has died in a state of -ahili++a5' He also relates the follo$ing Hadith on the authority of 1bn Shurayh (Allah be pleased $ith him 3 'After I am /one, there "ill come da+s of corruption and turmoil5 When +ou see people dama/in/ the unit+ of the <ommunit+ of Muhammad 23eace be upon him4, +ou must fi/ht them, "hoe$er the+ ma+ happen to be5' Abdal Ha2im Murad (the translator of the abo"e boo2 said in the footnote to the fiftieth branch of faith3 '+rthodo'y in 1slam is defined as the doctrine of ahl al-sunna $a'l !ama'a, the People of the Sunna and the #ommunity. =o 2no$ $hether a doctrine or practise is orthodo' or heretical, the Muslim is re*uired to find out $hether it is recognised by the ma!ority of Muslim scholars (see later for 1mam al-Muna$i's commentary . =hus e"en $ithout loo2ing into their theology, he $ill 2no$ that sects such as the 1sma'ilis, the 0hari!i's, the -ahhabi's, the =$el"er Shi'a and others (not to mention anti-1slamic groupings such as the Ahmadiya and the Bahais are to be repudiated.'4 (: !bn Abbas (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Prophet (Peace be upon him as saying3 4+ne $ho found in his Amir (the ruler of the true 1slamic state% $hich is absent today something $hich he disli2ed should hold his patience, for one $ho separated from the main body of the Muslims e"en to the e'tent of a handspan and then he died, $ould die the death of one belonging to the days of &ahiliyya.4 ( ahih Muslim, 78D::C% <nglish ed'n R ahih al-)u%hari, C8G:M% <nglish ed'n (9 !mam;s Ahmad and Abu Da.ood (Allah's mercy be upon them said that Abu 5harr (Allah be pleased $ith him reported the Prophet (Peace be upon him as saying3 4He $ho separates from the main body (of the >mmah by e"en a hand's breadth from the #ommunity he thro$s off 1slam from his nec2.4 (Mish%at-ul-Masabih, B8BL: R unan Abu !a"ood, 78DMD; )*-=he follo$ing fi"e Hadith ha"e been mentioned by the great scholar of Hadith, Hafi@ Abd al-6ahman ibn al-&a$@i (d. :CM8BG;B% 6ahimahullah in his Talbis Iblis (section entitled3 Adherence to the unnah and -ama#ah . A section of the abo"e $or2 has been translated by Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips in to <nglish, under the title3 The !e$il#s !eception of the hee#ah (pp. D: . Bilal Philips has put footnotes to the fi"e Hadith that 1 $ill be *uoting belo$ (to declare some of the Hadith to be 5a'eef , but one thing that should be mentioned is that he has mainly relied upon al-Albani's classification of the Hadiths in *uestion% hence these 'classifications' of alAlbani need re-"erifying, 1 say this because it is a $ell 2no$n fact that Hafi@ 1bn al-&a$@i $as noted for his e'ceptional stringency in accepting Hadith, and he has been 2no$n to ha"e declared some of the Hadith in Bu2hari8Muslim to be 5a'eef, as $ell as declaring some sound Hadith to be fabricated, .e"ertheless, 1 $ould li2e to ma2e it clear to those readers $ho are una$are of the status of Bilal Philips, that he has hea"ily depended on the classifications of al-

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Albani in most of his boo2s, 1f the esteemed reader is con"inced that the errors of al-Albani are most apparent, then one should be$are of the status of those Hadiths that ha"e been used by Bilal Philips (on account of his accepting al-Albani's classifications . Bilal Philips seems to be a leading critic of =a*leed $ho has been s$ept a$ay by the tide of modern day 4Salafiyyism4% and it seems that he has 'blindly' accepted the classifications of al-Albani $ithout himself re"erifying al-Albani's classifications, 1 as2 you, is this not a clear cut e'ample of =a*leedK 1f it has been pro"en that al-Albani's classifications are unreliable, $ould it not be !ust for Bilal Philips to re"erify all the Hadiths that ha"e been authenticated by al-Albani and correct any misclassifications in his boo2sK Allah 2no$'s best. (M ;Umar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that on one occasion Allah's Messenger (Peace and blessings be upon him stood up among them and said, 46hoever amon' you desires the %entre of paradise should /eep %lose to the $ama;ah for the Devil %losely a%%ompanies the solitary individual and is more distant from t.o=4 (#ollected by 1mam =irmidhi (L And ;Arfa2ah (Allah be pleased $ith him reported (Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, as saying 3 4that Allah;s hand is over the $ama;ah and the Devil is .ith .hoever deviates from the $ama;ah=4 (#ollected by 1mam al-=abarani (C ;Abdullah ibn Masood (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that once Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him dre$ a line in the dust $ith his hand and said, 4(his is the strai'ht path of Allah=4 =hen he dre$ a series of lines to the right of it and to the left and said, 4Ea%h of these paths has a devil at its head invitin' people to it=4 He then recited (/ur'an 93B:7 , 4-erily this is my strai'ht path so follo. it and do not follo. the 1t.isted3 paths=4 (#ollected by Ahmad, .isai and 5arimi% see Mish%at ul-Masabih, B8B99 (B; Mu;adh ibn $abal (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him said, 4(he Devil is li/e a .olf amon' humans as a .olf is amon' sheepF it snat%hes the stray sheep= So be.are of the paths .hi%h bran%h off and adhere to the $ama;ah< the masses and the mas2id=4 (#ollected by 1mam Ahmad% .B- =he "ersion gi"en in Mish2at, B8BLD, also on the authority of 1mam Ahmad does not ha"e the addition 'the masses and the mas!id.' (BB And Abu Dharr (Allah be pleased $ith him reported from the Prophet (Peace be upon him that, 4(.o are better than one< and three better than t.oF so sti%/ to the $ama;ah for verily Allah< Most 0reat and 0lorious< .ill only unite my nation on 'uidan%e=4 (#ollected by Ahmad (BG Al-Harith al-Ashari (Allah be pleased $ith him reported that the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him said3 41 bid you to do fi"e things3 to remain attached to the main body (&ama'ah of Muslims , listen to your ruler (the 0halif of the 1slamic state and obey him, and migrate, and fight in the $ay of Allah. And he $ho detaches himself from the main body of the Muslims (&ama'ah to the e'tent of one span of hand, he in fact, thro$s off the yo2e of 1slam from his nec2, and he $ho calls $ith the call of ignorance, he is one from the deni@ens of Hell beyond doubt, e"en if he obser"es fast

62

and says prayers and considers himself as a Muslim.4 (Musnad Ahmad, "ide3 Selection from Hadith, no. GLL% by A.H. Siddi*ue (B7 !bn Umar (Allah be pleased $ith him reported Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him as saying3 4)ollo$ the great mass (as-Sa$ad al-A@am for he $ho 2ept himself a$ay from it, in fact $ould be thro$n in Hell )ire.4 (1bn Ma!ah% "ide3 Mish2at, B8BMD, by A.H. Siddi*ui . =he translator of Mish%at-ul-Masabih (A.H. Siddi*ui, pg. BB7 said in the footnote to the last Hadith3 4=here is a good deal of difference of opinion as to $hat the term Sa$ad al-A@am implies. =he o"er$helming ma!ority of the scholars are of the "ie$ that As-Sa$ad al-A@am means the largest group of the learned scholars and pious persons $hose opinions are held in high esteem in 1slam.4 (BD 1mam al-Shafi'i (6ahimahullah said in his *isala (pg. G:G-7 3 4Sufyan (ibn >yayna told us from Abd al-Mali2 ibn >mayr from Abd al-6ahman ibn Abd Allah ibn Masood from his father, that the Prophet (Peace be upon him said, QGod "ill /rant prosperit+ to .is ser$ant "ho hears m+ "ords, remembers them, /uards them, and hands them on5 Man+ a transmitter of la" is no la"+er 2faqih4 himself, and man+ ma+ transmit la" to others "ho are more $ersed in the la" than the+5 The heart of a Muslim shall ne$er harbour $indicti$e feelin/s a/ainst three, sincerit+ in "or%in/ for God8 faithfulness to Muslims8 and conformit+ to the communit+ of belie$ers 2-ama#ah4 - their call shall protect 2the belie$ers4 and /uard them from 2the !e$il#s4 delusion5'4 ("ide3 unan al-!arimi, "ol. B, pp. MD-9% 1bn Hanbal, "ol. 9, pg. C9% Musnad al- hafi#i, "ol. B, pg. B9% Mish%at-ul-Masabih, B8GGL% and al-Bayha*i in his al-Mad%hal . 1mam al-Shafi'i said (pg. G:7 3 4=he Apostle's (Peace be upon him order that men should follo$ the Muslim community is a proof that the ijma (consensus of the Muslims is binding.4 (B: !mam al-Shafi;i (6ahimahullah stated in al-*isala (pg. GL9-M 3 4And Sufyan (also told us from QAbd Allah ibn Abi (abid from QAbd Allah ibn Sulayman ibn Pasar from his father, $ho said3 Q>mar ibn al-0hattab (Allah be pleased $ith him made a speech at al-&abiya in $hich he said3 The Apostle of God 23eace be upon him4 stood amon/ us b+ an order from God, as I am no" standin/ amon/ +ou, and said, Belie"e my #ompanions, then those $ho succeed them (the Successors , and after that those $ho succeed the Successors% but after them untruthfulness $ill pre"ail $hen people $ill s$ear (in support of their saying $ithout ha"ing been as2ed to s$ear, and $ill testify $ithout ha"ing been as2ed to testify. +nly those $ho see2 the pleasure of Paradise $ill follo$ the community, for the de"il can pursue one person, but stands far a$ay from t$o. (et no man be alone $ith a $oman, for the de"il $ill be third among them. He $ho is happy $ith his right (beha"iour , or unhappy $ith his $rong beha"iour, is a (true belie"er.'4 (see also Musnad al- hafi#i, "ol. G, pg. BLM% and 1bn Hanbal, "ol. B, pg. BBG-B7, BM9-LB . 1mam al-Shafi'i said in conclusion to this Hadith3 4He $ho holds $hat the Muslim community (&ama'ah holds shall be regarded as follo$ing the community, and he $ho holds differently shall be regarded as opposing the community he $as ordered to follo$. So the error comes from separation% but in the community as a $hole there is no error concerning the meaning of the /ur'an, the Sunnah, and analogy (qi+as .4 (B9 !mam Ha/im (B8BB9 has related a Sahih Hadith from the Prophet (Peace be upon him in the follo$ing $ords3 4My Ummah shall not a'ree upon error=4

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(BM !mam al-(irmidhi (D8GB9M reported on the authority of 1bn >mar (Allah be pleased $ith him from the Prophet (Allah bless him and gi"e him peace , $ho said3 4-erily my Ummah .ould not a'ree 1or he said the Ummah of Muhammad3 .ould not a'ree upon error and Allah;s hand is over the 'roup and .hoever dissents from them departs to Hell=4 (see also Mish2at, B8BM7 !mam al-AHiHi (d. B;M;8B99;% 6ahimahullah *uoted 1mam al-Muna$i's (d. B;7B8B9GG% 6ahimahullah commentary to the last Hadith in his al- iraj al-munir sharh al--ami al-sa/hir (7.DDC , as follo$s3- Allah's hand is over the rou! (al-AHiHi 3 Muna$i says, 4Meaning his protection and preser"ation of them, signifying that the collecti"ity of the people of 1slam are in Allah's fold, so be also in Allah's shelter, in the midst of them, and do not separate yoursel"es from them.4 =he rest of the Hadith, according to the one $ho first recorded it (=irmidhi , is3and whoever descents from them de!arts to hell" Meaning that $hoe"er di"erges from the o"er$helming ma!ority concerning $hat is la$ful or unla$ful and on $hich the #ommunity does not differ has slipped off the path of guidance and this $ill lead him to hell.4 ("ide3 The *eliance of the Tra$eller, pg. G:

(he Ash;ari S%hool (he follo.in' is a defen%e of the Ash;ari s%hool by one of the foremost s%holars of Hadith and i"h in Ma//ah at the moment - Shai/h Sayyid Muhammad Ala.i al-Mali/i alMa//i=

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Shay/h Muhammad ;Ala.i Mali/i3 4Many sons8daughters of Muslims are ignorant of the Ash'ari School, $hom it represents, and its positions on the tenets of the 1slamic faith (aqidah , and yet some of them are not ?od-fearing enough to refrain from accusing it of de"iance, departure from the religion of 1slam, and heresy about the attributes of Allah. =he ignorance of the Ash'ari school is a cause of rendering the unity of the Ahl al-Sunnah dispersing its ran2s. Some ha"e gone as far as to consider the Ash'aris among the categories of heretical sects, though it is beyond me ho$ belie"ers can be lin2ed $ith misbelie"ers, or ho$ Sunni Muslims can be considered e*ual $ith the most e'treme faction of the Mu'ta@ilites, the &ahmites. 4Shall -e deal $ith Muslims as -e do criminalsK Ho$ is it that you !udgeK4 A/ur'an 9L37:-79E =he Ash'aris are the 1mams of the distinguished figures of guidance among the scholars of the Muslims, $hose 2no$ledge has filled the $orld from east to $est, and $hom people ha"e unanimously concurred upon their e'cellence, scholarship, and religiousness. =hey include the first ran2 of Sunni scholars and the most brilliant of their luminaries, $ho stood in the face of the e'cesses commited by the Mu'ta@ilites, and $ho constitute $hole sections of the foremost 1mams of Hadith, Sacred (a$, /uranic e'egesis. Shay/h al-!slam Ahmad ibn Ha2ar ;As"alani (d. L:G8BDDC% 6ahimullah , the mentor of Hadith scholars and author of the boo2 4(ath al-)ari bi sharh ahih al-)u%hari4, $hich not a single 1slamic scholar can dispense $ith, $as Ash'ari. =he shay2h of the scholars of Sunni 1slam, !mam )a.a.i (d. 9M98BGMM% 6ahimullah , author of 4 harh ahih Muslim4 and many other famous $or2s, $as Ash'ari. =he master of /ur'anic e'egetes, !mam Gurtubi (d. 9MB8BGM7% 6ahimullah , author of 4al--ami# li ah%an al-7ur#an4, $as Ash'ari. Shay/h al-!slam ibn Ha2ar Haytami (d. CMD8B:9M% 6ahimullah , $ho $rote 4al6a"ajir #an iqtiraf al-%aba#ir4, $as Ash'ari. =he Shay2h of Sacred (a$ and Hadith, the conclusi"e definiti"e Ia/ariyya Ansari (d. CG98B:G;% 6ahimullah , $as Ash'ari. !mam Abu *a/r *a"illani (d. D;78B;B7% 6ahimullah , !mam ;As"alani% !mam )asafi (d. MB;8B7B;% 6ahimullah % !mam Shirbini (d. CMM8B:M;% 6ahimullah % Abu Hayyan (a.hidi, author of the /ur'anic commentary 4al-)ahr al-muhit4% !mam ibn $uHayy (d. MDB8B7D;% 6ahimullah % author of 4al-Tashil fi #ulum al-Tanzil4% and others - all of these $ere 1mams of the Ash'aris. 1f $e $anted to name all of the top scholars of Hadith, /ur'anic e'egesis, and Sacred (a$ $ho $ere 1mams of the Ash'aris, $e $ould be hard put to do so and $ould re*uire "olumes merely to list these illustrious figures $hose $isdom has filled the earth from east to $est. And it is incumbent upon us to gi"e credit $here credit is due, recognising the merit of those of 2no$ledge and "irtue $ho ha"e ser"ed the Sacred (a$ of the ?reatest Messengers (Allah bless him and grant him peace . -hat good is to be hoped for us if $e impugn our foremost scholars and righteous forbearers $ith charges of aberrancy and misguidanceK +r ho$ should Allah gi"e us the benefit of their scholarship if $e belie"e it is de"iance and departure from the $ay of 1slamK 1 as2 you, is there a single 1slamic scholar of the present day, among all the Ph5.'s and geniuses, $ho has done $hat 1bn Ha!ar 'As*alani or 1mam .a$a$i ha"e, of the ser"ice rendered by these t$o noble 1mams (May Allah enfold them in His mercy and bliss to the pure Prophetic SunnahK Ho$ should $e charge them and all Ash'aris $ith abberancy $hen it is $e $ho are in need of their scholarshipK +r ho$ can $e ta2e 2no$ledge from them if they $ere in errorK )or as 1mam Fuhri (d. BGD8MDG% rahimullah says, 4(his /no.led'e is reli'ion< so loo/ .ell to .hom you are ta/in' your reli'ion from=4

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1s it not sufficient for someone opposed to the Ash'aris to say, 4Allah ha"e mercy on them, they used reasoning (ijtihad in figurati"ely interpreting the di"ine attributes, $hich it $ould ha"e been fitter for them not to do4% instead of accusing them of de"iance and misguidance, or displaying anger to$ards $hoe"er considers them to be of the Sunni #ommunityK 1f 1mams .a$a$i, 'As*alani, /urtubi, Ba*illani, al-)a2hr al-5in al-6a@i, Haytami, Fa2ariyyah Ansari, and many others $ere not among the most brilliant scholars and illustrious geniuses, or of the Sunni #ommunity, then $ho are the SunnisK 1 sincerely entreat all $ho call others to this religion or $ho $or2 in the field of propagating 1slam to fear Allah respecting the honour of the #ommunity of Muhammad (Allah bless him and grant him peace is possessed of goodness until the )inal Hour, $e are bereft of any if $e fail to ac2no$ledge the $orth and e'cellence of our learned.4 1n conclusion, the Ahl al-Sunnah $a'l &ama'ah are the true follo$ers of the Prophet (Peace be upon him and his #ompanions (Allah be pleased $ith them all , follo$ed by by those $ho trod their path for the last BD;; years. 1t is in summary the follo$ers of 1mam Abu'l Hasan al-Ash'ari (6ahimullah and 1mam Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (6ahimullah in A*eedah, and this sa"ed sect is represented by the adherents of one of the four schools - Hanafi, Mali2i, Shafi'i and Hanbali today. =his is the sect $hich has had the largest follo$ing throughout 1slamic history as- a"ad al-Az#am as confirmed by the /ur'anic and Ahadith based e"idence and it $ill remain dominant until the Hour is established, inshaAllah.

Al-Albani Unveiled Con%lusion and *iblio'raphy

66

By the $ill of Allah, it has been pro"en $ithout a shado$ of doubt that al-Albani has fallen into the abyss of contradictions, errors, mis*uotes and so on. -hether these blunders of his are due to a $ea2 memory gained through old age, or other$ise, Allah alone 2no$s best, -e 2no$ that al-Albani sincerely admits on some occasions his errors in the classification of Hadith% and this is praise$orthy. )or e'ample, he admitted in Sifah salah an-.abee (pg. GL, footnote B about the classification of a particular Hadith3 41 used to declare this hadeeth hasan (good in pre"ious $or2s, until 1 realised that 1 had been mista2en, because this hadeeth depends on Han@alah al-5a$si, $ho is da'eef, and 1 do not 2no$ ho$ this $as un2no$n to me% maybe 1 thought he $as someone else. Any$ay, praise is due to Allah $ho guided me to recognise my mista2e, and that is $hy 1 hurried to correct it in print...4 As far as 1 2no$ at the time of $riting this short e'position, al-Albani has not ta2en much heed to correct his errors let alone ma2e a$are to his readership his mista2es - as $ell as their necessary rectifications. 1 say this because e"en at the time of $riting, his supporters in <ngland are still *uoting his 4authentications4 of Hadith in "arious boo2s that ha"e been translated into <nglish. 1 ha"e noticed *uite surprisingly that most of his follo$ers are still obli"ious of the fact that Shay2h Sa**af has publicised al-Albani's errors% e"en though Shay2h Sa**af's boo2s ha"e been a"ailable in &ordan (and other countries for more than t$o years, 1 sincerely entreat all serious see2ers of the truth to be$are of al-Albani's 4classifications4, 4fat$a's4 and his e'treme re"ilement to$ards the scholars and laity $ithin the four schools of 1slamic !urisprudence. =his no doubt applies most strongly to those brothers and sisters $ho may ha"e $holeheartedly relied on al-Albani's classifications of Hadith by $ay of =a*leed% in their *uest to adhere to the authentic Sunnah. 1t is al$ays possible for criticism to be made by a group of people $hose understanding is inade*uate and $ho lac2 sufficient 2no$ledge. But3 4Ho$ many there are $ho find fault $ith a sound statement, $hile their trouble is due to faulty understanding,4 -e should all ta2e heed of the Ayat3 4.ay, but those $ho do $rong follo$ their o$n lusts $ithout 2no$ledge. -ho is able to guide him $hom Allah has sent astrayK )or such there are no helpers. (/ur'an 7;3 GC And my last $ord on this sub!ect are in the $ords of 1mam Muhammad ibn Sirin (d. BB; AH% 6ahimahullah, "ide3 Mish2atul-Masabih, B8GM7, on the authority of 1mam Muslim 3 4Ierily this 2no$ledge is the 2no$ledge of religion. Pou must carefully see from $hom you are recei"ing the 2no$ledge of your religion.4 =he $ea2, mee2, sla"e in need of Allah Ahmed ibn Muhammad *S% 1Hons3< 0RSC Sha..al@Mar%h >J>J@>KKJ En'land

*iblio'raphy

67

(B Al-Albani, M. .. Adaab UH-Iufaaf, Ma2tab al-1slami and Ma2tab al-1slamiyyah, Amman, BD;C AH. - Daeef al-$ami al-Sa'hir 6a Iiyadatuh, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, 7rd edn. - 0hayatul Maram (a/hree2 Ahadith al-Halal 6a;l Haram, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, 7rd edn, BD;: AH. - !r.a al-0halil, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, Gnd edn, BD;: AH. - Mish/at Ul-Masabih, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, 7rd edn, BD;: AH. - Sahih al-$ami al-Sa'hir .a Iiyadatuh, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, 7rd edn, BD;G AH. - Sahih al-(ar'hib .a;l (arhib, Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, Gnd edn, BD;9 AH. - Sharh al-A"eedah at-(aha.eeah (by 1bn Abi al-1@@ , Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, Lth edn, BD;D AH. - Silsila al-Ahadith al-Daeefah (45aeefah4 Ma2tabal-1slami, Beirut, "ol. B, :th edn, BD;: AH. - 4Daeefah4, Ma2tab al-1slami, Amman, "ol. G, Gnd edn, BD;D AH. - 4Daeefah4, Ma2tab al-Ma'rif, 6iyadh, "ol. 7 and D, Bst edn, BD;L AH. - Silsila al-Ahadith al-Sahihah (4Sahihah4 , Ma2tab al-1slami, Beirut, "ol. B and G, Dth edn, BD;: AH. - 4Sahihah4, Ma2tab al-Ma'rif, 6iyadh, "ol. 7, Gnd edn,BD;M AH. - 4Sahihah4, Ma2tab al-1slami, Amman, "ol. D, 7rd edn, BD;9 AH. - (he Eti"uettes of Marria'e L 6eddin', &am'iat 1hyaa' Minhaa! Al-Sunnah, May BCCG. - (he Prophet;s Prayer des%ribed from the be'innin' to theend as thou'h you see it ( ifah salah an-nabee , =rans. Hasan >. al-Haneef publications, Bst edn, BDB78BCC7. (G Asad, M. Sahih al-*u/hari, 5ar al-Andalus, Gnd edn, BCLB. (7 Ayoub, M. M. (he Gur;an and its interpreters, "ol. G3 =he House of 1mran, State >ni"ersity of .e$ Por2, BCCG. (D Bayha*i - (he Seventy Seven *ran%hes of aith, =rans. Murad, A. H% =he /uilliam Press, BCC;.

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(: Bu2hari, al-1mam. Sahih al-*u/hari, <ng. =rans. 0han, M. M% 5ar al-)i2r, C "ol's. (9 5a$ud, Abu. Sunan Abu Da.ud, <ng. =rans. Hasan, A. Sh.M. Ashraf Publishers, Bst edn, BCLD. (M 5hahabi, M. Siyar a;lam al-)ubala, <d. by Shu'ayb al-Arnaoot, Mu'assasa al-6isala, G7 "ol's, BD;B8BCLB. (L ?ibb, H. 1bn Battuta, (ravels in Asia and Afri%a, BCGC. (C Harras, M. 0. Sharh-ul-A"eedat-il-6asitiyyah - (of 1bn=aymiyya , =rans. 0han, M.6% Salafi Press, Iaranasi, 1ndia,BCLC. (B; 1bn Abdal Hadi, U"ud al-Durriyya min mana"ib Shay/h al-!slam !bn (aymiyya, ed. al)i*i, M. H% Matba'at Hi!a@i, #airo,BC7L. (BB 1bn Ha!ar al-As*alani, *ulu'h al-Maram, =rans. al-Sele2, M.5ar al-)i2r, Beirut, BCC7. - Durar al-/amina fi a;yan al-mi;a al-thamina, ed. al-Ha**, M. S. &% 5ar al-0utub alHaditha, #airo, BC99. - (al/his al-habir fi ta/hri2 ahadith al-Rafi;i al-/abir, D"ol's in G, Ma2taba al-0ulliyyat alA@hariyya, #airo,B7CC8BCMC. (BG 1bn Ha!ar al-Haytami, al- ata.a al-Hadithiyya, ..d. 5ar al-Ma'rifa, Beirut. (B7 1bn al-Humam, 0. B7LC8BCM;. ath al-Gadir, B; "ol's. Mustafa al-Babial-Halabi $a a$laduhu, #airo,

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