Usool ul Fiqh #4 Ahkaam Taklifiyah – Waajib

Islam is divided into two types of ahkaam;

i) Ahkaam Taklifiyah

ii) Ahkaam Wad’iyah

In this lesson we will be concentrating on Ahkaam Taklifiyah which are of 5 types according to majority;

- Fard

-Sunnah

-Haram

-Makrooh

-Mubah

What is Ahkaam Taklifiyah?

These rulings consists of some hardship and due to that are called taklifiyah. Takleef in Arabic language means to burden oneslef with something so we understand from this that Allah has burdened His slaves to perform actions related to one of these rulings such as obligating prayer, obligation not to drink alcohol etc.

Thus, from these Takleef is the first ruling which is Fard;

Fard; has many other terms applied by ulema of usool such as Waajib, Laazim, Hathmon etc and there is no distinction between them. However, Imam Abu Hanifa separated between the two terminologise. So, a Fard is more higher in degree than Waajib. A fard for them is that which is based upon sound, explicit evidence from Quran. However, a Waajib is of lesser degree which is built upon sound implicit evidence from sunnah. This categorisation is not agreed by majority of ulema because this is mere difference in terminology and not in essence just as calling sunnah either mandoob or sunnah- both means the same thing.

How do we define Waajib?

A waajib is a commandment legislated by Allah to do something. There are other scholars who give definition for waajib by stating the ruling pertaining to it. So, they would define it as;

“Waajib is that if one was to do it will be rewarded and if he does not will be punished.”

However, this method is incorrect in defining waajib because;

• it is describing something using an alien element to it which is the ‘action’
• who said that if someone does not do a waajib that he will be punished for it? Rather, we say that he is more susceptible to punishment of Allah but we do not state for certain because it is under the Will of Allah either to forgive him or account him.

Thus, waajib is defined as something commanded by Allah to do something.

Elements of Waajib

A waajib has two elements;

i) to do something (ijaadu shay minal adm)

ii) to abstain from something (tarku shy)

So a Waajib could be either to do something which means that Allah has obligated a slave to perform something when it was non existance, or , to abstain from something as mentioned in the hadith of our prophet of Allah;

Narrarted by Abu Hurairah the Messenger of Allah said, ‘whatsoever i have forbade you from then abstain from it and whatsoever i have ordered you to do then do as much as you can’ [agreed upon]

Which is higer in degree from these two types of Waajib?

If one was to look at the story of Adam and Ibless, it would seem clear that when Allah ordered Ibless and rest of Angels to prostate to Adam, only Iblees refrained from obeying His command thus he was expelled out from Paradise. Although Adam was similarly commanded not to eat from the fruit but his sin was not on the level magnitute as that of Satan. This is because Satan refused to perform ‘ijaadu shy’ (command to do an action) and Adam errored in tarku shay (leaving an action). This is also the view adopted by Sheikh ul Islam ibn Taymiyyah.

What are the methods applied to formulate Waajib?

There are three ways to formulate an obligation in usool ul fiqh

1- Seegu Amr and it is also divided into 3 aspects

a) Fa’l Amr (command tense) e.g. ‘Wa Aqeemu As salah’

b) Fa’lul Mudari’ al muqtarin bi laam al amr (present tense attached with laam of obligation) e.g. ‘wal yufoo nudhuraahum’

c) Ism Fa’lul Amr (Commanding noun) e.g. ‘kitaabulAllahi alykum’   kitaab here presents noun for command meaning Kataba = Allah ordained

2- alfaaz maudoa’ fil lughati lil ijaab (arabic terms used in language for commandments) such as

i) kataba

ii) wajaba

iii) amara etc

3- al wa’ed alat tarki (punishment for leaving it) such as ‘And whosoever does not believes in Allah and His prophet then verily We have promised for the disbelievers  blazing Fire’ [al-Fath v 13]

Fiqh of Travel #3

Fiqh of Travel [part 3]

Whenever the prophet would move from place to another, whenever there was such a change in the situation (tahawwal) then this would have a Dua with it also.

As for the Safar there are two main hadeeth:

1) Ibn Umar’s report in Muslim

2) Ali’s hadeeth reported in at-Tirmidhi

1) Ibn Umer reported (in Muslim) a dua for riding a riding beast (or nowadays cars). So this is the dua for the ride. The text of this dua is shown with the addition subhanaladhi at the beginning. See below:

حَدَّثَنِي هَارُونُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا حَجَّاجُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، قَالَ قَالَ ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ أَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو الزُّبَيْرِ، أَنَّ عَلِيًّا الأَزْدِيَّ، أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ ابْنَ عُمَرَ عَلَّمَهُمْ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ إِذَا اسْتَوَى عَلَى بَعِيرِهِ خَارِجًا إِلَى سَفَرٍ كَبَّرَ ثَلاَثًا ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏”‏ سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ فِي سَفَرِنَا هَذَا الْبِرَّ وَالتَّقْوَى وَمِنَ الْعَمَلِ مَا تَرْضَى اللَّهُمَّ هَوِّنْ عَلَيْنَا سَفَرَنَا هَذَا وَاطْوِ عَنَّا بُعْدَهُ اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ الصَّاحِبُ فِي السَّفَرِ وَالْخَلِيفَةُ فِي الأَهْلِ اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ السَّفَرِ وَكَآبَةِ الْمَنْظَرِ وَسُوءِ الْمُنْقَلَبِ فِي الْمَالِ وَالأَهْلِ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ وَإِذَا رَجَعَ قَالَهُنَّ ‏.‏ وَزَادَ فِيهِنَّ ‏”‏ آيِبُونَ تَائِبُونَ عَابِدُونَ لِرَبِّنَا حَامِدُونَ ‏[1]“

Ibn Umar (Allaah be pleased with them) reported that whenever Allaah’s Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) mounted his camel while setting out on a journey, he glorified Allaah (uttered Allaah-o-Akbar) thrice, and then said: Hallowed is He Who subdued for us this (ride) and we were not ourselves powerful enough to use It as a ride, and we are going to return to our Lord. O Allaah, we seek virtue and piety from Thee in this journey of ours and the act which pleaseth Thee. O Allaah, lighten this journey of ours, and make its distance easy for us. O Allaah, Thou art (our) companion during the journey, and guardian of (our) family. O Allaah, I seek refuge with Thee from hardships of the journey, gloominess of the sights, and finding of evil changes in property and family on return. And he (the Prophet) uttered (these words), and made this addition to them: We are returning, repentant, worshipping our Lord and praising Him.

This has with it three Takbiraat ( كَبَّرَ ثَلاَثًا) which may have been referring to the second hadeeth of Ali that is mentioning the dua said after being seated upon the (daa’bah) riding beast (transport nowadays)

2) The hadeeth of Ali which is shown below is the dua for mounting the transport and this is slightly different to the dua for the actual ride (in the hadeeth of Umer in 1).

حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ رَبِيعَةَ، قَالَ شَهِدْتُ عَلِيًّا أُتِيَ بِدَابَّةٍ لِيَرْكَبَهَا فَلَمَّا وَضَعَ رِجْلَهُ فِي الرِّكَابِ قَالَ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ ثَلاَثًا فَلَمَّا اسْتَوَى عَلَى ظَهْرِهَا قَالَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏:‏ ‏(‏ سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ ‏)‏ ثُمَّ قَالَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ثَلاَثًا وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ ثَلاَثًا سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي قَدْ ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ ‏.‏ ثُمَّ ضَحِكَ ‏.‏ فَقُلْتُ مِنْ أَىِّ شَيْءٍ ضَحِكْتَ يَا أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ قَالَ رَأَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم صَنَعَ كَمَا صَنَعْتُ ثُمَّ ضَحِكَ فَقُلْتُ مِنْ أَىِّ شَيْءٍ ضَحِكْتَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ ‏”‏ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَيَعْجَبُ مِنْ عَبْدِهِ إِذَا قَالَ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذُنُوبِي إِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ غَيْرُكَ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ رضى الله عنهما ‏.‏ قَالَ هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيح[2]ٌ

It starts with him saying (بِسْمِ اللَّهِ), then when he was sat he said (الْحَمْدُ لِلَّه) then he said
(سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ), Then he said three times (الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ) then he said three times (اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ) then he said (سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي قَدْ ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ)

Then Ali smiled and he said the prophet did as I just did then he smiled so I asked him why he smiled and he said:

‘Allah admires on of you when he says (رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذُنُوبِي إِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ غَيْرُكَ)’

* * *

As a reflection on this it is good to read the translation of the dua and some of these two dua seem as they are repeating parts, but it may be good just to repeat, and the fact that we are saying them and thinking about them is good as this building our connection with Allah.

سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ[3]

Hallowed is He Who subdued for us this (ride) and we were not ourselves powerful enough to use It as a ride, and we are going to return to our Lord.

Allah gave us trained Animals to ride and make use of, like trained horses, and they were wild then we couldn’t make use of them as we do. Further more, it was His gift of the intellect to us that enabled us to make cars and manufacture these other modes of transport.

As for the second part: (وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ) then this is a reflection of the situation, and that trust is needed upon Allah as He has control over the beast. This is like travelling at night as the situation has more danger and is less in our control, so this is why there is a narration from the Prophet ‘Ma saara raakibun fil-layl’. And in this situation, the rider is nor t like the walker, there is a difference, the walker is relying on his legs while the rider is not in that degree of control over the beast.

From the hadeeth of Umer, the Prophet is asking Allah for Birr, and this is a sustenance for that traveller: (اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ فِي سَفَرِنَا هَذَا الْبِرَّ وَالتَّقْوَى) And here is a point that change can make a change in that person so we want that person to have a good and better change

So this dua of safar, is divided into three parts.

1. regarding the hereafter
2. regarding the actual safar
3. Regarding ones companions and family and asking Allah to look after them.
   And there is also a dua for the leaving and the leaver:
   For bidding farewell to the leaver:

([4]أَسْتَوْدعُ اللّهَ دِينَكَ ، وَ أَمَانَتَكَ ، وَ خَواتِيمَ عَمَلِكَ وَأَقْرَأُ عَليْكَ السَّلاَم)

For the remaining ones:

([5]أَسْتَوْدِعُكَ اللَّهَ الَّذِى لا تَضِيعُ وَ دَائعُهُ)

As for the statement: (إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ السَّفَرِ) then here wa’thaa means an appearance of roughness and untidy due to lack of facilities.

Upon return the dua is: (‏آيِبُونَ تَائِبُونَ عَابِدُونَ لِرَبِّنَا حَامِدُونَ) this is said on return because we turn back to Allah. It isn’t a regular dua, so when it is said it causes us to ponder. And it is a sunnah to say it.

When going up and down the landscape then say Allahu akbar when going up, as going up can create a sense of greatness and a sense of confidence and Allah is above all things. And the Takbir was given as an advice to a companion. And on going down say Subhanallah as not many people like in terms of natural feeling of going down[6], so this is said as a relief, like when Yunus was in the Huut (whale) and Allah knows best. But this is a Sunnah forgotten today.

Three peoples dua’a are accepted, the Musafir, the Saa’im (fasting) and the parent for the child. So make as much du’a as possible.

When the traveller rests then he says: (أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللّهِ التَّامَّاتِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ) and this is saheeh muslim. So that no harm comes to him.

When entering a town or city or when seeing it He salallaahu alaihi wa salaam would say:

اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّ السَّمَوَاتِ السَّبْعِ وَمَا أَظْلَلْنَ، وَرَبَّ الأَرَاضِينَ السَّبْعِ وَمَا أَقْلَلْنَ، وَرَبَّ الشَّيَاطِينِ وَمَا أَضْلَلْنَ وَرَبَّ الرِّيَاحِ وَمَا ذِرَيْنَ. أَسْأَلُكَ خَيْر هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ وَخَيْرَ أَهْلِهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا فِيهَا، وأَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّهَا وشَرِّ أَهْلِهَا، وشَرِّ مَا فِيها

O Allah!  Lord of the Seven heavens and all they overshadow, Lord of the seven worlds, and all they uphold, Lord of the devils and all they lead astray, Lord of the winds and all they scatter. I ask You for the goodness of this town and for the goodness of its people, and for the goodness it contains. I seek refuge in You from its evil, from the evil of its people and from the evil it contains[7]

This makes us think of the Aadaab (good conduct) on the safar. And as Muslims in this country this is important. When you’re all together, then get up and pay for the petrol, don’t leave it to the driver, or go and buy food for everyone, as goodness, this shows the difference in aadaab between us Muslims and them. Or if you’re in the tube queue to get a ticket and you talk to the person in front or behind, then offer to buy their ticket. They admit that Arabs do this more that Europeans.

Here the sheikh mentioned a story of a man crying on the train station on the phone so a woman came to him with coffee and chocolates and he cheered up and said ‘this is the best company thank you!’

---

[1] Saheeh Muslim 2/998

[2] Sahih At-Tirmidhi 3/156

[3] Surah Az-Zukhruf, ayah 13/14

[4] Sahih At-tirmidhi 3/155

[5] Ahmad 2:403, ibn Majah 2:943, at-Tabarani

[6] Al-Bukhari (Al-Fath) 6/135

[7] Al-Hakim, Ath-Thahabi 2:100, Ibn as-Sunni; 524

Fiqh of Travel #7

The Fiqh of Travel – part 7

The differences between shortening the prayer (Qasr) and combining (Jam’a) is essentail in understanding the different rulings related to them both.

• Imam An-Nawawi (May Allah have mercy upon him) reported that Imam Al-Gazali (May Allah have mercy upon him) (d 505H) said “leaving Jam’a is better’. Hence Jam’a is a concession while Qasr is highly recommended during travel.
• Qasr is legislated during travel, Hajj (some scholars relate this ruling to the travel involved in Hajj) and Jihad (some scholars relate this ruling to the travel involved in Jihad).
• Jam’a is permitted during travel due to a need ‘Ithaa jada bi his Sayr’ ie ‘the travel party is moving and there is a great haste’.
• It is related that the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) made jam’a during torrential rain. Scholars disagree whether the underying reason (illah) for this ruling is torrential rain in and of itself or torrential rain with hardship. Similarly scholars disagree whether travel in and of itself is an excuse for jam’a or travel with great hardship.
• It is related that the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) combined in Medina without any particular reason such as torrential rain or travel. Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) was asked regarding this incident and he explained that the (Peace and Salutations be upon him) ‘did not want to cause hardship for his ummah’.

Imam Ahmed (May Allah have mercy upon him) was asked regarding a person who had worked in the fields from dawn to dusk and was so tired that when he returned home he feared that he would fall asleep and miss Esha prayer. He was therefore given permission to combine between Maghrib and Esha prayer. Imam Ahmed (May Allah have mercy upon him) was also asked regarding a breast-feeding woman who finds difficulty continually purifying herself for prayer and he ruled she could combine prayers.

The Illah (underlying reason) for Qasr is travel and for Jam’a is hardship. A person may question why then is jam’a permissible during travel. Any form of travel will inevitably involve relative hardship compared to the resident, hence the underlying reason for jam’a still exists.

For any shariah ruling you cannot seperate the ruling from the illah, for example take the case of the prohibition of seclusion between a man and woman. The Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) said ‘when a man is with a woman alone the devil will be the third’. A man may come and argue he is not at all tempted by the woman so the ruling does not apply with him. In response we need to firstly consider wether fitnah (temptation) is the only illah for this prohibition. When the Prophet (Peace and Saluations be upon him) was walking with his wife Safiyyah at night(May Allah be pleased with her) and was seen by Umar who became embarassed and crossed over the path, the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) reassured him that she was his wife. When Umar objected that he would not harbour suspicion against the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him), the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) described how the devil runs through the arteries of a human being like the circulation of blood. Hence one of the illah for the prohibition of seclusion between a man and woman may be to avoid false suspicion. There are many cases where the mere fact that a woman is alone with another man can cause resentment and false suspicion with her husband. Also more pertanent is the fact that people assume temptation is from the man to the woman but it can also be from the woman to the man hence even if a man claims he has no desire the prohibition stands because the woman may be tempted. Ibn Taymiyyah has generally commented on matters like this when said how can we deny or reject what Allah has already confirmed. The hadith states explicitly that when a man and woman are alone the devil will be the third party so there will always be an element of fitnah whether a person accepts it or not.

In another example illustrating the connection between a shareeah ruling and illah is the ruling of renewing wudhu when overtaken by sleep. The Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) said ‘if the eyes sleep the knot will be untied’ (a reference to the fact that a person’s bowls can be weakened while slpeeing leading to breaking of wind or excretions of urine). In another narration ‘whoever sleeps should make wudhu’. So the illah for renewing wudhu after sleeping seems to be that a person may have broken their wudhu during a state of sleep when the bowls become loose.

However a person may claim that he is sure he has not broken his wudhu during sleep because a friend was next to him assuring him that he had not broken his wudhu. The ruling still stands because it is the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) himself who has said that ‘if the eyes sleep the knot will be untied’ so a person cannot come and break this connection and claim that when he is asleep there is no losening of bowls.

On the other hand there is a narration by Anas in sunan Abi Dawood of the companions nodding off or even snoring in the mosque while sitting waiting for Esha. When the Iqaamah was made they stood up and prayed without renewing their wudhu. This narration weakens the attachment between sleeping and renewing wudhu. However other scholars state the narration of Anas is merely an exception to the ruling of loose container. The exception is for people for a short while sleeping in a sitting position where the pressure with the ground closes the container and prevents excretions.

If however there were many other hadith breaking the connection between sleep and renewing wudhu then sleep would no longer be a mathinnah (very likely cause leading to) or mainnah (definate cause leading to) breaking of wudhu.

Consider the example of the prohibition. If we say the illah for drinking alcohol is intoxiation, in small amounts alcohol which does not intoxicate should be allowed? Go back to the origin that the sharia is declaring that when you drink you will be intoxicated, hence don’t claim you will not be intoxicated. The Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) said ‘whatever intoxicates in large amounts will intoxicate in small amounts’. Hence the illah for the prohibition is not whether the person gets intoxicated or not at a particular time but the fact that the drink itself intoxicates.

A separate issue is of diluted alcohol in medicine. If the level of dilution is large enough for the medicine to be classified as an intoxicant then it is prohibted. If the amount is so small that it is not considered an intoxicant eg analagous to small amounts of urine in a lake which do not change the classification of the water, then the medicine is permissible. Also the ruling is connected to the effect on an average or typical person not exceptional individuals who may or may not become intoxicated.

And Allah knows best

Fiqh of Travel #5,6

Fiqh of Traveling [part 5 & 6]

What constitutes travel?

The scholars differed with regards to defining what type of travel brings about the concession to shorten ones prayer and to break the fast.

1) Traveling a distance of four Burd which is ~48miles (88.7km) – Ahmed, ash-Shafi’ee and Malik (May Allah have mercy on them all). They relied on the following evidences:

a. Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said “it is not permissible for a woman who believes in Allah and the last day to travel the distance of a day and night except with a Ma’hram”[1]

b. It is narrated with a weak line of transmission that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: “People of Mecca! Do not shorten your prayers on a journey of less that four barîd – the distance between Mecca and `Asfân.”[2]

Though the hadîth is weak, this ruling is established as being the opinion of the Companion Ibn `Abbâs (may Allah be pleased with him).

When people asked him if they could shorten their prayers on the way from Mecca to `Arafah, he replied: “No. But you can do so if you are going to `Asfân, Jeddah, or Ta’if.”[3]

c. It was the practice of both Ibn `Abbâs and Ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) to shorten their prayers and break their fasts whenever they undertook a journey of more than four barîd.

Ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), for instance, shortened his prayers on a journey from Madinah to the town of Dhât al-Nasb, which was at a distance of four barîd.[4]

One barîd is equal to 22.176 km. This means that four barîd equals 88.704 km.

2) Three days travel on a fast horse which is ~ 74.5miles (120km) – Abu Haneefah (may Allah be pleased with him) as the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said that a traveler is allowed to wipe over his footwear for three days.

3) There is no limit rather it depends on what the people of your country deem to be travel i.e. it is defined by the custom of the people as there is no sound textual proof to define travel– at-Dhaahiriyyah and Ibn Taymiyya (may Allah have mercy on them).

Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) mentions an insightful criticism of this opinion. He stated that this opinion seems to be very accurate however the problem with it is that it is against ‘Ijmaa’ of the Salaf. He meant by this that there are no reports of this opinion ever being held by any of the earlier generations.

It is important to understand that those who set this as a minimum distance for a journey are talking about the full distance of the journey one-way, and not the distance when a person can start shortening his prayers. He can start shortening his prayers as soon as he departs from his own city, as long as the journey he is taking is at least 88 km or 120km long.

The shortening of the prayer

And when you (Muslims) travel in the land, there is no sin on you if you shorten your Salat (prayer) if you fear that the disbelievers may attack you, verily, the disbelievers are ever unto you open enemies[5].

Ya’la bin Umayyah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I said to ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allah be pleased with them both) “Verily Allaah has said ‘… if you shorten your prayers, for fear the unbelievers may attack you…’ and now the people feel secure.” ‘Umar (‘may Allah be pleased with him) said, “[Indeed] I wondered the same thing you are wondering, so I mentioned it to the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and he said ‘[It is] a charity that Allaah has bestowed upon you so accept His charity.’[6]

The issue was also referred to ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) when she said: “The Salah was made fard in Makkah in sets of two Rak’ah. When the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) came to Madinah, two rak’at were added to each salah except the Maghrib salah because it is the witr of the daytime, and the dawn prayer due to its lengthy Quranic recital. But if one travels, he performs the original prayer [i.e., only two rak'at].”[7]

The scholars believe that the statement of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) “it is a Sadaqah from Allah so accept the Sadaqah” means that the words in the Quran “if you fear that the disbelievers may put you in a trial” have now been abrogated. Shiekh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said that the religion of Islam has allowed two different types of concession in Salah which apply whilst traveling or whilst being in a state of fear. If one is in a state of fear, then he can eliminate some of the pillars of the Salah like facing the Qiblah, performing complete Rukoo’ and Sujood etc whereas if one is simply travelling he can eliminate two of the four Rak’aat from the Salah, though all the pillars of these shortened two Rak’aat must be kept. To this effect there is an Ijmaa’ that only Duhr, Asr and ‘Isha can be shortened to two.[8]

Ibn Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) states that if one is in a state of fear whilst traveling then both concessions apply to him and so he may pray Zhur as two Rak’ah whilst fighting the enemy if needs be.

Hence we find that the earlier scholars referred to Qasr as shortening of the Arkaan (pillars) whereas the latter scholars of Fiqh referred to Qasr as shortening of the number of Rak’aat. In this context we can understand Umar ibn al-Khattaab’s (May Allah be pleased with him) statement, “Prayer while travelling is two Rak’ah, Jumuah prayer is two Rak’ah, ‘Eid prayer is two Rak’ah; whole not shortened, by the words of Muhummed (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and those who lie will earn failure![9] i.e. the Arkaan do not fall away from the prayer only the number of units.

Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) stated that it has never been reported that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) travelled except that he prayed Zhur or Asr as two Rak’aat. He intended by this statement that the Hadith of Ai’sha (may Allah be pleased with her) reported in the Sunan of al-Bayhaqi in which she says that the prophet would sometimes shorten the prayer and sometimes lengthen it, is fabricated and that this notion is falsely attributed to the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). He also mentioned that it is impossible that the wife of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) would intentionally do the opposite of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) in his presence.

The various opinions of the Fuqaha regarding al-Qasr al-Salah whilst travelling are as:

1) Completing the prayers is better – an early statement from ash-Shafi’ee (may Allah have mercy on him)

2) Whether you complete or shorten both are permissible

3) Shortening is recommended and not doing so is makrooh – Ahmed, Malik and the later opinion of ash-Shafi’ee (may Allah have mercy on them)

4) It is waajib to shorten the – attributed to Abu Haneefah (may Allah have mercy on him)

It seems that the strongest opinion is that of the majority which is that shortening the prayer is best though the opinion of Abu Haneefah (may Allah have mercy on him) is well grounded in the textual proof due to the command of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) “accept (Allah’s) charity” [“faqbiloo sadaqah”]. In any case one should follow the continual practice of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and to take the concession given to us by Allah subhaanahu wa ta’laa.

The strongest indication from the various ahadith that shortening is not obligatory is that of Ibn Mas’ood (may Allah be pleased with him) in which he was told that ‘Uthman ibn Affaan (may Allah be pleased with him) offered the prayer as four Rak’ah in Mina, he replied “Inna lillahi wa innaa ilayhi raaji’oon! I prayed two Rak’ah behind the messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) at Mina and similarly with Abu Bakr and Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) [during their caliphates]. May I be fortunate enough to have two of the four Rak’ah accepted (by Allah)” [10] From this hadith we can infer that shortening the prayers is not Wajib as the entire congregation of companions behind Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) would not have allowed a haraam action to take place. Likewise a traveler has to offer the complete prayer behind a resident, again indicating that shortening is not a matter of Wujoob.

It should be noted that if one is doubtful about whether they are on a journey then they should return to the general ruling with regards to prayer and hence should complete it. As for the hadith of ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) about the Salah being prescribed as two Rak’ah, then that was the general ruling before it was abrogated to four Rak’ah when the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) came to Madinah.

Length of stay for a traveler

The various opinions with regards to length of stay constitute travel are as follows:

1) 15 days or less- the opinion of Abu Haneefah (may Allah have mercy on him)

2) There is no limit – Dhaahiriyyah and Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on them)

3) 4 days or less – Ahmed, Malik, ash-Shafi’ee (may Allah have mercy on them) except that ash-Shafi’ee (may Allah have mercy on him) excluded the day one arrives and the day one leaves. Some of the Hanaabilah said 21 salah as opposed to four days (20 salah).

The last opinion seems to be the most correct position to take.

The general ruling with regards to a four Rak’ah Salah is that it should be completed and not shortened except when travelling. Hence the second opinion would be rejected as it conflicts with the general ruling in that a person who travels to another land for a long period of time would be following a concession without limits; which is incorrect. A concession always has limits and they are set in order for one to return back to the general ruling. Also, this opinion is problematic when seen in context of the conquest of Makkah. Here we find that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) knew he would one day return and conquer Makkah even before he left for Madinah but this did not result in him shortening the prayer until he returned.

The majority of the scholars relied upon the hadith of Jaabir and Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allaah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) came to Makkah in the morning of the fourth of Dhu’l-Hijjah for the Farewell Pilgrimage, and he stayed for the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh, and he prayed Fajr in al-Abtah on the morning of the eighth and then left Makkah for Mina. He shortened his prayers during these days and he formed the intention to stay there as is well known. Therefore anyone who is travelling and intends to spend the same length of time or less may shorten the prayers. Whoever intends to stay longer than that should offer the prayers in full, because he does not come under the ruling on travelers.

It should be noted that one is not permitted to shorten their prayer in a land where they have married. This was the action and explanation of why ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affaan (may Allah be pleased with him) completed his prayer in Mina during Hajj.

One is only permitted to begin shortening the prayer when he leaves the boundaries of his city or town. This is because when the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) left for Hajj she only began shortening when he left Madinah and reached Dhul ‘Huthayfah (approx 5km from Madinah). Likewise one would cease shortening the prayers when he enters his city of residence.

It was related from Naf’i that Ibn ‘Umar was in Azerbaijan for six months, as there was snow blocking the pass, and he would pray two rak’at. This report alludes to an important principle concerning shortening the prayers: If one was to travel to another land with the intention of staying for less than four days but then upon arrival his circumstances changed which resulted in him not knowing if he would be leaving the next day or not then he would be considered a traveler until he left or became certain that he was staying for more than four days. Hence if Ahmed from UK reached the US on Monday and was set to leave for Thursday after attending an important meeting; he is considered a traveler according to all the various opinions. If circumstances changed and the meeting was cancelled but re-scheduled for a near by unknown date then he would be considered a traveler until he became sure as to when this meeting was. Hence, if on Thursdays the meeting was then announced for Friday he could leave on Saturday the next day and would thus be have been a traveler even though he stayed there for five days. This is how some of the Fuqaha explain the narrations of the companions, like Ibn Umar’s, considering themselves as travelers even though they may have stayed for more than four days. In the narration above it was not the case that Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) intended to stay for more than four days but rather the snow prevented him from leaving such that he would intend to leave the next day ‘if the snow had cleared away’. This is like Ahmed who would leave the day after the meeting takes place.

Combining prayers [making Jam’]

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

The specific reason for shortening the prayers is travelling, and it is not permissible to shorten prayers when not travelling. With regard to combining prayers, the reason for it is if there is a need or an excuse. So if a person needs to do so, he may join prayers whilst travelling, whether he is travelling a long distance or a short one, and he may join prayers because of rain etc., or because of sickness etc., or for any other reason, because the point is to spare the Muslims any difficulty or hardship.[11]

Generally speaking there are five regular prayers in a day; however when there is an incidental difficulty upon a person, such as travelling long distance, the prayers can be combined into three.

Ibn Taymiyyah further stated that with respect to combining the prayers all scholars agree that prayers can be combined during Hajj however they disagreed on its permissibility outside Hajj. The opinions can be summarized into three:-

1) It is permissible to combine at all times whether one is traveling or not- Ahmed, ash-Shafi’ee and one narration from Malik (May Allah have mercy on him)

2) It is not permissible at all- Abu Haneefah (May Allah have mercy on him)

3) Only permissible whilst on the journey to your destination of travel- Maalik (May Allah have mercy on him)

The most correct opinion is the first which is that it is permissible to combine whilst travelling or resident [with a valid reason of course].

There are two main ahadith in as-Saheehayn which supports the position that one can combine prayers whilst travelling.

1) Narrated ‘Aun bin Abi Juhaifa: I heard my father saying, “The prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) led us in prayer and prayed a two Rak’ah Zuhr prayer and then a two Rak’ah ‘Asr prayer at Al-Batha’ with an ‘Anza (planted) in front of him (as a Sutra) while women and donkeys were passing in front of him (beyond that ‘Anza).”

2) It was related by Anas that the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) used to postpone Zuhr prayer until the time of `Asr when he traveled before midday. Then he would come down and combine the two prayers together. But in case he departed after midday, he would pray Zuhr before riding.

Though the ahadith seem to make clear the validity of performing Jam’ why did other scholars disagree? The reason for disagreement are many, amongst them, as Ibn Taymiyyah stated, is that the jam’ by the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) was not reported except as a rarity. Reports such as `Abd Allah b. Mas`ûds clearly show this. He once said: “I never saw the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) combine between two prayers except in Muzdalifah, and on that day he prayed Fajr before its due time”.[12] This is one of the reasons why Abu Haneefah said that one cannot combine between two prayers. The Hanafi scholars also said that the regular practice of Jam’ goes against the ayah “Verily, As-Salât (the prayer) is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours” and so one needs an equally weighty proof in order to qualify it further to make exceptions. Hence, when it came to understanding the two aforementioned Hadith in which the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) combined the Salah, they considered it as merely an apparent combination i.e. the earlier Salah was delayed up until its ending time and then prayed and then the following Salah was prayed immediately after in it own respective time; though such an interpretation was not taken by many of the other scholars.

Furthermore an-Nawawi quoted al-Ghazaali as saying: “The ‘Ulema have agreed that leaving off Jam’ is best.” Hence the scholars are in agreement that it is better to pray the prayers in their own respective times if one is able to do so without undue hardship, even though one may be travelling.

In conclusion one should only perform Jam’ if there is a real, incidental, and undue hardship in performing the Salah in its respective time.

Lastly, it would thus be Makrooh to join between the prayers if the effective cause (‘illah) of hardship is absent. An example of this would be a traveler who is settled with some relatives or friends in an area and is living comfortably without the usual hardship of travelling; in this case it would be wrong to combine the prayers as the general ruling with respect to prayers is that they be prayed in their allotted times. This is at odds with the ruling of shortening prayers, in that the traveler should always try and shorten the prayers regardless of hardship.

How to combine the prayers

There are two main views on how to combine the prayers. Some scholars opined that the prayers should be combined in the time o the earlier Salah. For instance Asr should be prayed with Zhur and ‘Isha with Magrib. Others believe that they should be prayed in the time period of the later Salah. For instance praying Zhur with Asr and Magrib with ‘Isha. They opposed the view of the other scholars by stating that there is considerable disagreement amongst the scholars of Hadith regarding the authenticity of the Ahadith indicating that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) combined the prayers in the earlier time. It is also well known that if the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) left for a journey after the time of Zhur had commenced he would pray that Zhur Salah with the Asr later on in the journey. Hence it would be better to delay Zuhr until Asr and Magrib until ‘Isha.

The five different circumstances when combining is permissible, in the event of:-

1) Rain, snow, and hail, except for light drizzle- i.e. if one left their house their clothes would become drenched

2) Strong wind

3) Times of fear

4) Extreme heat

5) Sickness

All of these situations are analogous to example set by the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) when he once performed Jam’ in Madinah without undue hardship. It was narrated from ‘Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) combined the noon prayer with the afternoon prayer and the sunset prayer with the ‘Isha’ prayer in Medina without being in a state of fear or there being any rainfall [in another narration ‘without being in a state of travel’]. And in the hadith transmitted by Waki’ (the words are):” I said to Ibn ‘Abbas: What prompted him to do that? He said: So that his Ummah should not be put to (unnecessary) hardship.” And in the hadith transmitted by Mu’awiya (the words are):” It was said to Ibn ‘Abbas: What did he intend thereby? He said he wanted that his Ummah should not be put to unnecessary hardship.”

---

[1] Reported by al-Bukhari

[2] Mu`jam al-Tabarânî al-Kabîr (11162), Sunan al-Dâraqutnî (1/387), and Sunan al-Bayhaqî (3/137)

[3] al-Talkhîs al-Habîr (2/46)

[4] Fath al-Bârî (2/566)

[5] Surat- al-Nisaa verse 101

[6] Reported by at-Tirmidhi, hadith 2960 who said it is Hasan Sahih

[7] Reported by Ahmad, al-Baihaqi, Ibn Hibban, and Ibn Khuzaimah

[8] Reported by Ibn Qudaamah in al-Mughni as well as Ibn Muthir in Kitaab al-‘Ijmaa’

[9] Reported by Ahmed

[10] Reported by al-Bukhari (1022)

[11] See Majmoo’ al-Fataawa, 22/293; published by King Fahd Complex

[12] Reported by Sahîh al-Bukhârî (1598) and Sahîh Muslim (1289)

Fiqh of Travel #4

Fiqh of Travel [part 4]

Etiquette of the return from a journey:

1) From the hadith of Ibn Umar we learn that the Prophet (SAW) would say on returning from a journey “ aaeeboon, taaeeboon, aaabidoon, wa lirabbina hamidoon”

2) The Prophet (SAW) also advised that someone returning should not go back to this family in the night. The reason for this is that the family (i.e. wife) would be able to prepare themselves to meet you. Giving the wife time to prepare herself puts love between the husband and wife as she looks her best for him (as per the hadith about the best of women “when he looks at her he is pleased”)

This does not seem to mean that nowadays we should not return at night – because the prophet has given an illa (reason). Therefore if we can ring our family and let them know that we are coming back then the reason is not there. This hadith was more relevant in the past when people used to travel for long periods of time with no way of determining or communicating when they would be back.

Note that implication of the above is that families (especially the wife) should prepare themselves when they know that the husbands are returning.

3) Sunnah to pray 2 rakaat in Masjid on return from a journey and before going home. Two hadiths as proof of this are:

A) Hadith Ka’b – When the Prophet (SAW) came back from a journey it was his habit to start by praying 2 rakaats in the masjid.

B) Hadith Jaabir – When the Prophet (SAW) bought a camel from Jaabir he (SAW) said keep it until you reach Madina. The Prophet (SAW) got there first and when he (SAW) saw Jaabir arriving he (SAW) advised him to go and pray 2 rakaat in the masjid

Scholars differ whether this is khaas (specifc) for leaders, students of knowledge, scholars etc or aam (general) for all muslims. Allah knows best but even if it were to be that it is most specifically for the first group it is still a sunnah that we could all do.

Possible benefit of this practice is that people will know you have returned from your journey. Another benefit may be that you will thank Allah for your safe return before going home and forgetting this when caught up in other family matters.

4) It is good to buy gifts for your family – there are some weakfish hadith on this but it is generally felt to be something good to do “Ithaa kunta fee safar fa’ti wa low bi hajar” (when you have been on a journey then come [with a present] even if it’s just a stone)

DEFINITION OF SAFAR –

a) Definition by duration

b) Definition by distance

c) Definition by custom of the people (urf)

Definition by duration of travel – Zaman

3 days and 3 nights Hanafi opinion

Hadith “ A woman does not travel a journey of 3 days and 3 nights except with a mahram”

Hadith of Ali ibn abi Taalib “We would not take off our socks during a journey for 3 nights and 3 days except from janaabah”

2 days and 2 nights Hanafi opinion

1 day and 1 night Hanbali opinion

Note that some scholars argue that we are sleeping during the night anyway so not travelling so we do not need to count one of the nights, as it is not sandwiched between a day of travel so above would be

3 days and 2 nights

2 days and 1 night

1 day

Also stopping to rest for a short period during a journey still counts as being on a journey as long as it is not prolonged and does not therefore contribute a significant amount to the overall journey time. Also safar is considered as each leg of the journey, not the overall journey (which is 2 separate safars).

The above definition can be problematic in today’s world as most journeys, even trans-continental ones, take less than a day. The reasoning behind defining travelling by time is that, although distances may be long, it needs time to be actually properly mentally and physically engaged in safar (e.g. if travelling 100 miles but done in 90mins then don’t even pass from one time of prayer to another so how would joining and shortening of prayer apply?)

Definition by distance of travel Maseerah – (Opinion of al Jumhur)

Hanbali opinion – 54 modern miles (48 old miles)

Hadith ibn abbas “Salaah is not shortened for a journey of less than 4 buld and each buld is 4 farsakh and each farsakh is 3 miles (Today a mile is 1600 metres but at time of rasool was 1800 metres) – so 48 old miles and about 54 modern miles (note that most scholars say this hadith is weak)

Hanbali opinion – 3 old miles

Hadith ibn abbas “When the Prophet travelled for 3 miles or 3 farsakh (the narrator was not sure which) then he shortened the prayer. Some argue that this does not mean the full length of journey but that after having travelled the first 3 miles from a journey he would then consider himself a traveller so start shortening his prayer. This would obviously mean that the journey must be longer than 3 miles.

Ibn Hajm says 1 mile due to athar from ibn umar that he himself would shorten salaah for this distance.

Makkah to jaddah, isfan or taif – then can shorten – (riwayah about this but cant remember)

Makkah to muzdalifah or safaa then no shortening

The above opinions are not exhaustive as there are many different opinions. Ibn Taymiyyah says that the opinions above are only examples of safar but not an actual definition…..to continue next week.

AHKAM OF SAFAR – (To be covered in next lesson)

These relate to things in which the rulings are changed in some way by being on a journey.

1) Salaah is effected

2) Sawm is effected

3) Jihad is effected

4) Trade is effected (buyoog)

Salaah

Tahaarah -

Wudoo (wiping occurs for 3 days during safar….hadith of Ali)

Tayammum (wa in kuntum fee safarin wa lam tajidoo maa)

Salaah – shortening and combining during safar

Not to pray nawaafil (rawaatib) during safar

Fiqh of Travelling #2

Whenever the prophet would move from place to another, whenever there was such a change in the situation (tahawwal) then this would have a Dua with it also.

As for the Safar there are two main hadeeth:

1) Ibn Umar’s report in Muslim

2) Ali’s hadeeth reported in at-Tirmidhi

1) Ibn Umer reported (in Muslim) a dua for riding a riding beast (or nowadays cars). So this is the dua for the ride. The text of this dua is shown with the addition subhanaladhi at the beginning. See below:

حَدَّثَنِي هَارُونُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا حَجَّاجُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ، قَالَ قَالَ ابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ أَخْبَرَنِي أَبُو الزُّبَيْرِ، أَنَّ عَلِيًّا الأَزْدِيَّ، أَخْبَرَهُ أَنَّ ابْنَ عُمَرَ عَلَّمَهُمْ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ إِذَا اسْتَوَى عَلَى بَعِيرِهِ خَارِجًا إِلَى سَفَرٍ كَبَّرَ ثَلاَثًا ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏”‏ سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ فِي سَفَرِنَا هَذَا الْبِرَّ وَالتَّقْوَى وَمِنَ الْعَمَلِ مَا تَرْضَى اللَّهُمَّ هَوِّنْ عَلَيْنَا سَفَرَنَا هَذَا وَاطْوِ عَنَّا بُعْدَهُ اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ الصَّاحِبُ فِي السَّفَرِ وَالْخَلِيفَةُ فِي الأَهْلِ اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ السَّفَرِ وَكَآبَةِ الْمَنْظَرِ وَسُوءِ الْمُنْقَلَبِ فِي الْمَالِ وَالأَهْلِ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ وَإِذَا رَجَعَ قَالَهُنَّ ‏.‏ وَزَادَ فِيهِنَّ ‏”‏ آيِبُونَ تَائِبُونَ عَابِدُونَ لِرَبِّنَا حَامِدُونَ ‏[1]“

Ibn Umar (Allaah be pleased with them) reported that whenever Allaah’s Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) mounted his camel while setting out on a journey, he glorified Allaah (uttered Allaah-o-Akbar) thrice, and then said: Hallowed is He Who subdued for us this (ride) and we were not ourselves powerful enough to use It as a ride, and we are going to return to our Lord. O Allaah, we seek virtue and piety from Thee in this journey of ours and the act which pleaseth Thee. O Allaah, lighten this journey of ours, and make its distance easy for us. O Allaah, Thou art (our) companion during the journey, and guardian of (our) family. O Allaah, I seek refuge with Thee from hardships of the journey, gloominess of the sights, and finding of evil changes in property and family on return. And he (the Prophet) uttered (these words), and made this addition to them: We are returning, repentant, worshipping our Lord and praising Him.

This has with it three Takbiraat ( كَبَّرَ ثَلاَثًا) which may have been referring to the second hadeeth of Ali that is mentioning the dua said after being seated upon the (daa’bah) riding beast (transport nowadays)

2) The hadeeth of Ali which is shown below is the dua for mounting the transport and this is slightly different to the dua for the actual ride (in the hadeeth of Umer in 1).

حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الأَحْوَصِ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ رَبِيعَةَ، قَالَ شَهِدْتُ عَلِيًّا أُتِيَ بِدَابَّةٍ لِيَرْكَبَهَا فَلَمَّا وَضَعَ رِجْلَهُ فِي الرِّكَابِ قَالَ بِسْمِ اللَّهِ ثَلاَثًا فَلَمَّا اسْتَوَى عَلَى ظَهْرِهَا قَالَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏:‏ ‏(‏ سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ ‏)‏ ثُمَّ قَالَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ثَلاَثًا وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ ثَلاَثًا سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي قَدْ ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ ‏.‏ ثُمَّ ضَحِكَ ‏.‏ فَقُلْتُ مِنْ أَىِّ شَيْءٍ ضَحِكْتَ يَا أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ قَالَ رَأَيْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم صَنَعَ كَمَا صَنَعْتُ ثُمَّ ضَحِكَ فَقُلْتُ مِنْ أَىِّ شَيْءٍ ضَحِكْتَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ ‏”‏ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَيَعْجَبُ مِنْ عَبْدِهِ إِذَا قَالَ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذُنُوبِي إِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ غَيْرُكَ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ قَالَ وَفِي الْبَابِ عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ رضى الله عنهما ‏.‏ قَالَ هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيح[2]ٌ

It starts with him saying (بِسْمِ اللَّهِ), then when he was sat he said (الْحَمْدُ لِلَّه) then he said
(سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ), Then he said three times (الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ) then he said three times (اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ) then he said (سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي قَدْ ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي فَاغْفِرْ لِي فَإِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ)

Then Ali smiled and he said the prophet did as I just did then he smiled so I asked him why he smiled and he said:

‘Allah admires on of you when he says (رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي ذُنُوبِي إِنَّهُ لاَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ غَيْرُكَ)’

* * *

As a reflection on this it is good to read the translation of the dua and some of these two dua seem as they are repeating parts, but it may be good just to repeat, and the fact that we are saying them and thinking about them is good as this building our connection with Allah.

سبْحَانَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ لَنَا هَذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لَهُ مُقْرِنِينَ * وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ[3]

Hallowed is He Who subdued for us this (ride) and we were not ourselves powerful enough to use It as a ride, and we are going to return to our Lord.

Allah gave us trained Animals to ride and make use of, like trained horses, and they were wild then we couldn’t make use of them as we do. Further more, it was His gift of the intellect to us that enabled us to make cars and manufacture these other modes of transport.

As for the second part: (وَإِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا لَمُنْقَلِبُونَ) then this is a reflection of the situation, and that trust is needed upon Allah as He has control over the beast. This is like travelling at night as the situation has more danger and is less in our control, so this is why there is a narration from the Prophet ‘Ma saara raakibun fil-layl’. And in this situation, the rider is nor t like the walker, there is a difference, the walker is relying on his legs while the rider is not in that degree of control over the beast.

From the hadeeth of Umer, the Prophet is asking Allah for Birr, and this is a sustenance for that traveller: (اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّا نَسْأَلُكَ فِي سَفَرِنَا هَذَا الْبِرَّ وَالتَّقْوَى) And here is a point that change can make a change in that person so we want that person to have a good and better change

So this dua of safar, is divided into three parts.

1. regarding the hereafter
2. regarding the actual safar
3. Regarding ones companions and family and asking Allah to look after them.
   And there is also a dua for the leaving and the leaver:
   For bidding farewell to the leaver:

([4]أَسْتَوْدعُ اللّهَ دِينَكَ ، وَ أَمَانَتَكَ ، وَ خَواتِيمَ عَمَلِكَ وَأَقْرَأُ عَليْكَ السَّلاَم)

For the remaining ones:

([5]أَسْتَوْدِعُكَ اللَّهَ الَّذِى لا تَضِيعُ وَ دَائعُهُ)

As for the statement: (إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ وَعْثَاءِ السَّفَرِ) then here wa’thaa means an appearance of roughness and untidy due to lack of facilities.

Upon return the dua is: (‏آيِبُونَ تَائِبُونَ عَابِدُونَ لِرَبِّنَا حَامِدُونَ) this is said on return because we turn back to Allah. It isn’t a regular dua, so when it is said it causes us to ponder. And it is a sunnah to say it.

When going up and down the landscape then say Allahu akbar when going up, as going up can create a sense of greatness and a sense of confidence and Allah is above all things. And the Takbir was given as an advice to a companion. And on going down say Subhanallah as not many people like in terms of natural feeling of going down[6], so this is said as a relief, like when Yunus was in the Huut (whale) and Allah knows best. But this is a Sunnah forgotten today.

Three peoples dua’a are accepted, the Musafir, the Saa’im (fasting) and the parent for the child. So make as much du’a as possible.

When the traveller rests then he says: (أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللّهِ التَّامَّاتِ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا خَلَقَ) and this is saheeh muslim. So that no harm comes to him.

When entering a town or city or when seeing it He salallaahu alaihi wa salaam would say:

اللَّهُمَّ رَبَّ السَّمَوَاتِ السَّبْعِ وَمَا أَظْلَلْنَ، وَرَبَّ الأَرَاضِينَ السَّبْعِ وَمَا أَقْلَلْنَ، وَرَبَّ الشَّيَاطِينِ وَمَا أَضْلَلْنَ وَرَبَّ الرِّيَاحِ وَمَا ذِرَيْنَ. أَسْأَلُكَ خَيْر هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ وَخَيْرَ أَهْلِهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا فِيهَا، وأَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّهَا وشَرِّ أَهْلِهَا، وشَرِّ مَا فِيها

O Allah!  Lord of the Seven heavens and all they overshadow, Lord of the seven worlds, and all they uphold, Lord of the devils and all they lead astray, Lord of the winds and all they scatter. I ask You for the goodness of this town and for the goodness of its people, and for the goodness it contains. I seek refuge in You from its evil, from the evil of its people and from the evil it contains[7]

This makes us think of the Aadaab (good conduct) on the safar. And as Muslims in this country this is important. When you’re all together, then get up and pay for the petrol, don’t leave it to the driver, or go and buy food for everyone, as goodness, this shows the difference in aadaab between us Muslims and them. Or if you’re in the tube queue to get a ticket and you talk to the person in front or behind, then offer to buy their ticket. They admit that Arabs do this more that Europeans.

Here the sheikh mentioned a story of a man crying on the train station on the phone so a woman came to him with coffee and chocolates and he cheered up and said ‘this is the best company thank you!’

Umer’s notes:

Etiquettes of the safar

Du’a for mounting the daabah.

- Ali (r) smiled when he made this dua, and said Prophet (s) also smiled during this, as he (s) said that Allah admires the one who says this.

o Bismillah, Alhamdulillah, subhanalladhi…, takbeer 3, tahmid 3, subhanakAllahumma inni dhalamtu nafsi faghfirli fa innahu laa yaghfiru-dhunuba illa ant

o Bismillah is BEFORE settling on seat; alhamdulillah and subsequent is once you have settled on the seat.

o Some scholars say it is good to smile just as Prophet (s) smiled, and as Ali did (as Allah admires he who says this du’a).

Du’a for safar:

- Some narrations mention the takbeer but others explain this is the dua for the daabah; and then one must recite the sua “Allahumma inni as’alaku…”

- One should ponder over the meanings of the du’a as that will bring him closer to Allah.

- “we would not be able to use them (otherwise)” - in context of daabah who would be wild animals; but also in context of modern vehicles as this is all due to the permission of Allah who caused us to discover this technology.

- Wa inna ilaa rabbina la munqalibun – as one is not controlling the situation to the degree that is the case with one who is walking.

o This is similar to the hadith regarding travelling by night (??)– ulama differ with respect to whether this applies to the one walking or on a daabah.

- Allahumma inna nas’aluka fee safarina haadhaa al-birra wat-taqwa – one hadith mentions Prophet (s) prayed for one Sahabi to be increased in al-birr and al-taqwa.

o This is because musafir is normally going through some changes – so this dua is to ask Allah to remain firm in the state he is in (i.e. not to be placed in a bad state); OR to change him for the better.

- Wa minal-‘amali ma tarda

o This is specific to what occurs on the journey – i.e. that he is doing good things during those different situations.

o This dua and the previous is for the akhira.

- Allahumma hawwin alaina safarana haadhaa watwi anna budah – this is dua for the actual safar. Think about the times that a journey that often seemed so long previously now seems very easy in comparison. Reasons for this are multifactorial but part of this is due to Allah’s shortening the journey for us.

- Allahumma anta al-sahibu fil-safar – this is not directly a supplication but the wording, that one is stating that Allah is the sahib fi’l-safar, implies that one is asking Allah to give his aid and company during safar.

- Wal-khalifatu fil-ahl – implies du’a for the family left behind.

- Allahumma inna na’udhubika min wa’tha’is-safar – as traveller may not be as tidy and clean as when resident. Wa’tha implies unkemptness/untidiness; thus dua is to protect against this.

- Wa ka’abatil-manDhar – dua against being one who has deep sorrow, reflected on the face.

- Wa su-il-munqalab – and a bad return – i.e. I do not want to change my situation to a bad one.

- Fil-mali wal-ahl wal-walad – with respect to one’s wealth and family and children.

- (On way back home) A’ibuna ta’ibuna ‘abiduna, lirabbina hamidun – on return – …., repent, worship Allah, thanking Allah for what He has given us.

- Abu Dawud – Rasul (s), when travelling with Sahabah, they would say takbir when going up; and when going down, tasbih.

o Takbir because when you go up, you feel a little elevation, but one must remember Allah is Greater and Most High.

o Tasbih on descending – going down is normally something people don’t normally like, so tasbih is a relief for the person, e.g. Yunus (as) said tasbih when he wanted some relief.

o Also, one sahabi said, ‘awsini’…Rasul (s) said: ”Fear Allah, and make takbir when you go on higher land.”

- In general, musafir should make dua as much as possible, as three prayers are accepted, among them musafir.

- Among the etiquettes is that when the person sees some people when he reaches a place to take a rest, it is sunnah to say du’a “Audhubillaah bi kalimatillahit-taamaati min sharri ma khalaq – 3 times – and nothing will harm him.

- When approaching a town, Rasul (s) recited dua for khair from town/people; and seek refuge …. (see dua book).

o …Lord of the heavens and what they cover

o …Lord of these lands and what they…

o …Lord of the shayatin…

- Also, musafir should be generous to his companions on the journey.

o Practically speaking, this is from the good manners that will facilitate a journey.

- Some tabi’in would also pay for his companions as part of this etiquette.

o An important aspect of da’wah to show we are not just those who keep beards.

o Perhaps sit with others one does not know, on the train; and do small acts of kindness.

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[1] Saheeh Muslim 2/998

[2] Sahih At-Tirmidhi 3/156

[3] Surah Az-Zukhruf, ayah 13/14

[4] Sahih At-tirmidhi 3/155

[5] Ahmad 2:403, ibn Majah 2:943, at-Tabarani

[6] Al-Bukhari (Al-Fath) 6/135

[7] Al-Hakim, Ath-Thahabi 2:100, Ibn as-Sunni; 524

Fiqh of Travelling #1

Last time we spoke about the ettiquettes of Safar (travel – Arabic terminology and meaning apply)

Etiquettes are:

1. Before Travel like
   1. Praying Istikhara
   2. To do Istishaara (shura – consultation)

i. With those of similar experience

ii. And those who have been to that place

1. 1. We discussed to start in the morning

i. Hadith of Sakhr. This was his 1 famous Hadith reported, there is also some who have mentioned he has one more not famous Hadith

ii. Hadith of Anas (‘Dulja’ – during darkness) and (‘al-ardh tutwa billayl’ – the earth is shrunk at night.) The sheikh mentioned that he wants to find more on reconciliation between these two Hadith. Though if we look at them we can find that both would include the early morning, while it is still dark.

1. 1. Thursday (as Ibn Qayim mentions) from the narration of Ka’b ibn Maalik ( famous for his staying behind on the battle of Tabook and an ayah was revealed regarding him and 2 others)
   2. Some scholars say Monday as well if cannot do Thursday based on pure Qiyas that both Monday and Thursday are beloved days to the Prophet. Though there is no prohibition of any day.
   3. Ibn Hajr mentions that some journeys were set out on Saturday (based on calculations of when the Prophet left for the Hijjatul Widdaa’, which was 10 days before the end, (or was it beginning) of Dhul Qa’dah) Ibn Qayim confirmed that He left on Saturday, as the prophet prayed 4 ra’kah. And if he had left on Friday he would have prayed Jumu’ah. However some other scholars were of the opinion that he left on Saturday, some even said Thursday.< We should try but these are sunan that we don’t put an effort to implement, and they are easy to do, and this would show our love of the Prophet.>
      
      

   4. Regarding travelling on Jumu’ah there are a number of opinions. A summary is that there are 5 main opinions.<this is in general cases, the necessity will always mean you have to travel, if you have to>
      
      

i. Some Hadith (with questionable authenticity) prohibit travelling on Friday. As you would most likely miss the Jumu’ah, which is an important congregation, like an eid. This is because the main part of Eid is the gathering, and gathering for the salah, especially when there is the glorification of Allah is reminiscent of Eid. So both the Eid and the Jumu’ah you gather for Eid and it is the main part of eid and for eid and Jumu’ah there is a sermon. So if one misses the Jumu’ah then some said he misses the eid.

ii. Some scholars said it is Haram

iii. Some scholars said it is makrooh

iv. Some said it is Haram if the start time of Jumu’ah has come. There is also a differing on the start time of Jumu’ah. There are three opinions:

a. Duha Time – early

b. Zhuhr time – This is the hanbali madhhab

c. Some say in the middle of Zuhr and Duha

v. Some said (and this is the Rajih [common] opinion and Allah knows best) that if he knows he will miss Jumu’ah then it is Haram. So if he can do it before prayer and likely to get to the destination then it is fine.

<If he will stop in between in another place where the Jumu’ah is being prayed, he must join>

1. 1. After Jumu’ah there is no talk of prohibition so the Illah (main cause) is the point of not missing Jumu’ah.<So plan your journey so as to not miss Jumu’ah, unless it is a real necessity.>
      
      

   2. Whether one should travel in the beginning middle or end of a month is a research topic but the sheikh says he has not read anything on it.
      
      
2. During Travel
   
   
3. After Travel

* * *

A discussion on the Hadeeth of Abu Dawood[1]

As regards the hadeeth from Abu Daud, that informs us that 1 traveller is a shaitan and two travellers are also 2 shayateen, while three are travellers. The word used in the hadeeth for three travellers is ‘rukb’ meaning three as a team.

Here some scholars looked at the minimum numbers needed for a jama’ah. The Hanabila said that the total number needed or a jama’ah was 40, while the maalikiya said 12, the ahnaaf said three was the minimum needed and some from the hanaabila also said this. Bin Baaz explained this as meaning that 1 to give a khutbah and 2 to listen. If there is only two then how can 1 person lecture 1 person, this cannot be a congregation.

Therefore the point here is that a team in islam is 3 people, and two are not considered a team or a group (plural could possibly be a good translation here).

As for the meaning of 1 traveller being a shaitan, then the scholars differed about its meaning, as they differerd for example on the meaning of the hadeeth ‘wa laa tarji’oo kufaraa’ meaning ‘and do not return back, after me, as kuffaar’. So here they said:

1. it means he has one or some of the qualities of the shaitan
2. or that he is putting himself in a situation where the shaitan is going to accompany him because he is alone, as though this person has exposed himself to the shaitan.

But three are the minimum needed to expel the shaitan, so this makes three the team/or the group.

Does it mean that there is a prohibition to travel alone? Ibn Hajr in Fath says no, but in normal circumstances (with no urgency) then yes. So it is as the Prophet has condemned that which makes it haram, and if we say it is haram, then in normal circumstances it is not allowed to travel like that. This is a point here that the prophet sent many individuals as spies, also he sent Muadh alone to Yemen, and Amr ibn al ‘aas alone, just like he sent messengers with letters to the kings alone. So if there s no real necessity then to travel alone should be avoided, as in the hadeeth in bukhari ‘if a rider knew what is in being alone, then he the traveller would not travel at night.

If it is two, they fight and may disagree and become split up and also, children do not count, it is referring to adults.

In effect what does travelling alone mean?

If a person leaves home alone, and then boards a plane to China, does that mean he travelled alone?

If we think about it, then he was always with some people all the way, on board the plane there may have been 300 people, so this isn’t travelling alone. Alone here means with no people around, like travelling in the desert or wilderness. However if it is possible then one should still try to leave in a group this is particularly the case when someone may need to contact home.

Here is a story of two Saudis who went to Germany and stayed in a hotel and 1 died and the other had to contact home.

When three people travel they should appoint 1 person as the ameer as from the hadeeth. Some scholars have said this is the Sunnah, and some have said it is a waajib.

Some people say don’t be hizbees and don’t follow an ameer, but in this case it is different. It is very important to have an ameer to avoid problems and to get training in leadership skills and if there is a wise person then he should be chosen as an ameer, if there isn’t then it can be training for leadership.

And for the others then we listen to this ameer not because he is the wisest, but because of the principle of leadership, which is so important that we cannot have a sensible organisation without a leadership.

Also there is a hadeeth of the Messenger of Allah, Whoever obeys the ameer, obeys me, and whover obeys me obeys Allah, and who ever disobeys the ameer disobeys me and whoever disobeys me disobeys Allah.

This hadeeth is in regard to matters that are ijtihaad in our deen and not in matters of ibaadah. And it is worth mentioning here that there is a need to have unified opinion. For example if one doesn’t eat halal chicken if it is not HMC then there is no need to force it upon him, the ameer should understand this.

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[1] Book 14, Number 2601

Um Habibah Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan #6

After Juwayriyyah the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) married Um Habibah Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan. She had been previously married to Ubaidullah ibn Jahash who had formerly been a Christian in Makkah and accepted Islam. There they had their first daughter, Habibah, and migrated to Abyssinia. Almost all historians agree that in Abyssinia she saw a dream in which her husband started to drink alcohol and was holding filthy things. She woke up startled and told him of the dream. Within a few days he informed her that he had apostated from Islam, arguing that he had compared Christianity and Islam and found that Christianity is better.

A researcher recently wrote a thesis arguing that it is not possible that a Companion of Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) would apostate, citing weakness in the chain of the narration. Moreover Ubaidullah ibn Jahash was the brother of Zainab bint Jahash, one of the Wives of the Prophet (Peace and Saluations be upon him) and he was from the clan of the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him). Also Ubaidullah was the brother of Abdullah ibn Jahash who was famously martyred at the Battle of Uhud. He had in fact made dua for martyrdom before the battle and he was also the first husband of Zainab Um Ul-Masakeen who became one of the Wives of the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him). However none of the classical scholars of Seerah stated that the incident is not authentic. The real lesson from this incident is that no person should feel secure that their faith is preserved. During our lives we should fear Allah more and at the time of death we should have more hope in Allah’s Mercy. The incident also illustrates the danger of intermingling with non-Muslims and the deadly effects of committing sins.

It is clear that Ubaidullah ibn Jahash was not executed for his apostacy because he was not in the land of Islam where the punishments of Islam are implemented. There is also the question of whether the ruling of apostasy had been revealed at this time. However, the fact that the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) married Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan in 5AH suggests he did denounce Islam after the ruling of apostasy had been revealed.

Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan had seen a dream in Abyssinia that she was holding the moon and she was being called by the name ‘Um ul Mu’mineen (Mother of the Believers)’. A servant of the Najashee, named Abraha approached her and said that the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) had asked the Najashee for her hand in marriage. She instantly agreed and in her joy took off her silver bangles and rings and gave them as a gift to Abraha. The Najashee had of course converted to Islam secretly and in fact the servant also converted to Islam and she sent her salutations to the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) who duly replied when the Companions returned to Medina in 7AH. The Najashee gathered the Muslims for the Wedding Ceremony (Waleemah) and gave an eloquent Khutbah in which he bore witness that Jesus gave glad tidings of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Salutations be upon him). Khalid ibn Saeed ibn al-Aas was the Guardian of Ramlah and it was a great honour for the Najashee that he represented the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) in this marriage ceremony. He also gave 400 dinars as a dowry, hence Um Habibah is the wife of the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) with the highest dowry.

The Companions returned to Medina in 7AH headed by Jafar ibn Abi Talib. The Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) said ‘I don’t know what is more pleasing, the Conquest of Khaybar or the return of Jafar’.

She was very generous, pious and wise and after returning from Abyssinia she took up her apartment with the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him). Abu Sufyan when he heard about the marriage of his daughter he praised the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) and said ‘that is the strong man who cannot be defeated’. There is a famous incident that when Abu Sufyan visited his daughter he was about to sit on the mattress of the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) and she pulled it away. Abu Sufyan became surprised and asked her whether she felt that he was not good enough for the mattress or the mattress was not good enough for him. She replied that no idol worshiopper could sit on the mattress of the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him).

The story of Najaashee is an interesting story indeed. He was the only child of his father who was the king. His uncle assassinated his brother to assume kingship for himself and his 10 children and the Najaashee was sold as a slave. All of the 10 sons were found to be foolish and realising the peril of their kingdom they searched for the Najashee who had been sold to the Arabs as a Sheppard. Some narrations indicate that it wwas during this time that the Najashee learnt Arabic whereas other narrations speak of Najashee learning Arabic because of trade links with the Arabs and Abyssinia.

The integrity of the Najashee can be seen in the incident involving Amr ibn al-Aas, who was a non-Muslim at the time, and from the true leaders of the Arab. He was sent to retrieve the Muslims from Abyssinia and in preparation for the trip he bribed the close Bishops to the Najashee with gifts of valuable leather. The Najashee however bore witness to the truth of the Muslim’s belief regarding Jesus and insisted that the gifts be returned, declaring that Allah returned his Kingdom to him with no effort on his part, so now that kingship was his, he was in no need to accept bribes.

The Muslims returned to Medina from Abysinnia in three phases, the last of which were the Companions returning during the Conquest of Khaybar. They had returned due to the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) sending a delegation ordering them to return. It is not clear if the apostacy of Ubaidullah ibn Jahash influenced the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him)’s decision and whether the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) feared the long-term effects of Muslims living in the land of the non-Muslims.

When the Muslims arrived to Medina they brought 40 Muslims converts from Abysinnia including two children of Najashee.

Ramlah bint Abu Sufyan came to the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) at the age of 36 and She died in 44 AH.

Among the famous hadeeth she narrated is that the Prophet (Peace and Salutations be upon him) said:

“A house will be built in Paradise, for anyone who prays in a day and a night twelve rak’ahs”[1]; and she added: I have never abandoned (observing them) since I heard it from the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam). A narration by Tirmithi further adds, “Four before Zuhr, two rakats after it, two after maghrib, two after Isha and two before Fajr”.

She also narrated a very important hadeeth clarifying the rules of who is permissible for marriage:

“I said, “O Allah’s Messengeer! Marry my sister, the daughter of Abu Sufyan.” The Prophet said, “Do you like that?” I replied, “Yes, for even now I am not your only wife and I like that my sister should share the good with me.” The Prophet said, “But that is not lawful for me.” I said, We have heard that you want to marry the daughter of Abu Salama.” He said, “(You mean) the daughter of Um Salama?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “Even if she were not my step-daughter, she would be unlawful for me to marry as she is my foster niece. I and Abu Salama were suckled by Thuwaiba. So you should not present to me your daughters or your sisters (in marriage).”[2]

On the death of her father Abu Sufyan it is narrated by Zainab bint Abi Salamah:

Narrated Zainab bint Abi Salama:

When the news of the death of Abu Sufyan reached from Sham, Um Habiba on the third day, asked for a yellow perfume and scented her cheeks and forearms and said, “No doubt, I would not have been in need of this, had I not heard the Prophet saying: “It is not legal for a woman who believes in Allah and the Last Day to mourn for more than three days for any dead person except her husband, for whom she should mourn for four months and ten days.”[3]

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[1] Saheeh Muslim, The Book of Prayer, hadeeth 1579

[2] Saheeh al-Bukhari (62:38)

[3] Saheeh al-Bukhari (23:370)

The Wives of the Prophet [Part 5] Juwayriah bint al-Harith ibn Diraar

The Wives of the Prophet [Part 5]

The next wife of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) after Zainab bint Jahash bint Rubaab Al-Asadiyyah (may Allah be pleased with her) was Juwayriah bint al-Harith ibn Diraar (may Allah be pleased with her). Her father was the chieftain the Banu Mustaliq, a branch of the Banu Khuza’a tribe residing in the region of Hijaaz. A cursory glance at the circumstances surrounding the marriage of the prophet to Juwayriah would indicate that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) would have taken into consideration the influential back round of Juwayriah when considering to marrying her. Coupled with the fact that her father’s tribe had a strong allegiance with Abu Sufyaan; marrying into such a prominent family would have had a greatly beneficial impact on the Ummah, as hostilities between the two tribes would be neutralized as well as paving the way for the Muslims to tactfully conquer Makkah. Such fine details of the Seerah undoubtedly illustrate the legendary leadership qualities of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam).

After the defeat of Uhud, many tribes, including that of Khuzaa’a, sought to opportunistically attack and defeat the Muslims. For this reason the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) initiated acute military engagements with these surrounding tribes in order to ward off the threat and to further facilitate the spread of Islam.

It was around the end of the 4^th Hijri year or the beginning of 5^th that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) dispatched a regiment of Mujahideen to launch a pre-emptive strike against Khuzaa’a located near the well of Muraisee’. Allah granted victory to the Muslims in this battle which resulted in the acquisition of much war booty. Approximately 600 people were taken as captives; one of which was Juwayriah bint al-Haarith (the daughter of the chief) whose name was Barraa at the time.

The prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) knowing the status of this woman separated her from the other captives and delegated Thabit ibn Qays (may Allah be pleased with him) to look after her for the time being. Other reports indicate that she became a slave girl to Thaabit and that after seeing the beauty of Islam and the truth of the prophethood she accepted Islam under his care. Her lifestyle must have changed considerably as she went from being the daughter of a chieftain to a slave in a foreign land; a change that clearly was very hard on her. It is reported that she came to the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) and said: O Prophet, you know what calamity has befallen me; I am the daughter of the chief and I have asked Thaabit to free me in exchange for money (kitaaba[1]). The Prophet replied by saying, “Should I inform you of something which is better than that. I will pay this kitaba for you and then you may marry me” i.e. I will help you to free yourself by paying this amount off. Juwayriah (may Allah be please with her) was pleased by the prophets proposal and accepted it. Due to the fact that the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) proposed to her it is seems likely that she was indeed a Muslim at this time and this notion is further supported by Juwayriah’s own address to the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) as “O Prophet”.

However, according to another story, which is more probable, after the arrest of his daughter, al-Haarith the father of Juwairiyah, approached the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) and asserted that his daughter should not be made a slave, as she was the daughter of the chieftain, and that she should be freed. The prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) said that it would be better to leave the matter to the choice of his daughter. Al-Haarith then went to his daughter and told her that the holy prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) had left the matter to her free will, and that he hoped that she would not bring disgrace to him. To his dismay she replied that she preferred to remain in the service of the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam). Thereafter the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) married her. Ibn as-S’ad mentions in his famous book ‘al-Tabaqat’ that the father of Juwayriah paid her ransom amount, and when she became free, the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) married her. As a result of this marriage all the prisoners of war who were now slaves, numbering around 600, were manumitted by the Muslims as they did not like that any member of the family in which the holy Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) was married be made a slave. The prisoners became known as the in-laws of the prophet.

It was for this reason that Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said, “I have never known a woman who has been the cause of so much Barakah being showered on her people as Juwayriah (may Allah be pleased with her).”

By marrying Juwayriah, the Banu Mustaliq were able to enter Islam with honour, and have the humiliation of their recent defeat tacitly removed thus neutralising the need for counter engagement for tribal vengeance.

There is not much else reported about Juwayriah except that she was an extremely beautiful woman who was pious and bashful. She was steadfast in performing acts of worship to her Lord. She would often sit in her prayer place remembering her Lord after Fajr until mid-noon.

She has two ahadith which are reported in as-Saheehayn. There is the hadith narrated by Abu Aiyub from Juwayriah bint Al-Haarith,

The Prophet visited her on a Friday and she was fasting. He asked her, “Did you fast yesterday?” She said, “No.” He said, “Do you intend to fast tomorrow?” She said, “No.” He said, “Then break your fast.” Through another series of narrators, Abu Aiyub is reported to have said, “He ordered her and she broke her fast.”[2]

It should be noted that the majority of the scholars of Islam (may Allah have mercy on them all) said that it is makrooh to single out Friday for fasting and that if one chooses to fast on that day he should either follow it up with a fast on Saturday or fast one day before on thursday. However the Maalilkies and Hanafees opposed this view.

The second hadith she narrated is found in Saheeh Muslim.

Juwayriah reported that Allah’s messenger (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) came out from (her apartment) in the morning as she was busy in observing her dawn prayer in her place of worship. He came back in the forenoon and she was still sitting there. He said to her: You have been in the same seat since I left you? She said: Yes. Thereupon Allah’s Apostle (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) said: I recited four words three times after I left you and if these were to be weighed against what you have recited since morning they would outweigh them. They are:

“Hallowed be Allah and praise is due to Him according to the number of His creation and according to the pleasure of His Self and according to the weight of His Throne and according to the ink (used in recording) words (for His Praise).”[3]

Our mother (may Allah be pleased with her) Juwayriah bint al-Haarith passed away in 56 H.

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[1] Kitabah: when a slave buys back his freedom from his master in consideration of a sum of money and has completed payment of the amount. The kitabah is lawful, in accordance with the agreement between the slave and his master over an amount of money to be paid by installments which can be large or small. As mentioned in surah an-Noor:33

[2] al-Bukhari- 207

[3] Muslim- 6575

The Two Eids of Islam [part 2]

The Two Eids of Islam [part 2]

On ‘Eid the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) would proceed to the Musallah via one route and to return via another. There are many wisdoms behind the prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) practicing this Sunnah; as Ibn Hajar mentioned approximately twenty!

Al-Haafiz said:

The scholars differed greatly as to the reason for this. I have collected more than twenty different opinions, which I have summed up and highlighted those that are weak. Al-Qaadi ‘Abd al-Wahhaab al-Maaliki said: Several opinions have been mentioned concerning that, some of which are likely to be correct but most of which are far-fetched.

For example:

1-     He did that so that the two routes would bear witness for him, or it was said: so that their inhabitants, jinns and humans, would bear witness for him.

2-     It was said that it was so as to make them equal because they are blessed by his passing through.

3-     It was said that his route to the prayer-place was to his right, and if he came back the same way he would be coming to the left, so he went back by a different route. This requires evidence.

4-     It was said that it was to make manifest the symbols of Islam on both routes, or to make manifest the remembrance of Allaah.

5-     It was said that it was to annoy the hypocrites or the Jews, or to alarm them by showing the large number of those who were with him. Ibn Battaal thought this was most likely to be correct.

6-     It was said that he did that in order to make more people happy or bring blessing to them by his passing through or by their seeing him, and so that he might attend to their needs, answer their questions, teach them, give them charity, greet them with salaam, etc

[See al-Fath al-Bari]

It is also an established Sunnah to make Takbeer on the ‘occasion’ of ‘Eid and the proclaiming of Takbeer by the masses is a Sha’air (Symbols) of Islam. The Sunnah of making Takbeer is more established in the event of ‘Eid ul-Adha but is also part of ‘Eid ul-Fitr as was reported by al-Daaraqutni and others who narrated that on the morning of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, Ibn ‘Umar would strive hard in reciting Takbeer until he came to the prayer place, then he would recite Takbeer until the imam came out.

What is the Takbeer?

It is to say: Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, wa Lillaahi’l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god except Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, and all praise be to Allaah).

Or one can say Allaahu akbar three times, so you say:

Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, wa Lillaahi’l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god except Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great , Allaah is Most Great, and all praise be to Allaah).

Both are permissible.

Takbeer on ‘Eid ul-Fitr

Al-Shaafa’i said in al-Umm:

Allaah says concerning the month of Ramadaan (interpretation of the meaning):

“(He wants that you) must complete the same number (of days), and that you must magnify Allaah [i.e. to say Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar: Allaah is the Most Great)] for having guided you”[1]

I heard from some scholars whom I trust and who are knowledgeable about the Qur’aan:

That ‘you must magnify Allah’ means that you venerate Him in your hearts and on your lips, by pronouncing the Takbeer. And the time for Takbeer begins when the sun sets (after Magrib) on the last day of the month of Ramadhan.

Then al-Shafi’ee said:

When they see the new moon of Shawwaal, I like all the people to recite Takbeer together and individually in the mosques, the marketplaces, the streets, the houses, travellers and non-travellers in all situations, no matter where they are. They should pronounce the Takbeer openly and continue to recite it until they come to the prayer-place the next morning, and after that until the imam comes out to lead the prayer, then they should stop reciting the Takbeer.

Then he narrated from Sa’eed ibn al-Musayyib, ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr, Abu Salamah and Abu Bakr ibn ‘Abd al-Rahmaan, that they used to recite takbeer on the night before Eid al-Fitr in the mosque, reciting the takbeer out loud.

It was also narrated from ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr and Abu Salamah ibn ‘Abd al-Rahmaan that they used to recite the takbeer out loud when they came to the prayer-pace in the morning, and that Naafi’ ibn Jubayr used to recite the takbeer out loud when he came to the prayer-place in the morning of the day of Eid.

End quote.

Takbeer on ‘Eid ul-Adha

With regards to Takbeer on Eid al-Adha, it is prescribed from the beginning of the month until the end of the thirteenth day of Dhu’l-Hijjah, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“That they may witness things that are of benefit to them (i.e. reward of Hajj in the Hereafter, and also some worldly gain from trade), and mention the Name of Allaah on appointed days”[2]

The ‘appointed days’ are the ten days of Dhul Hijjah. In addition to this you have the days of Tashreeq, as mentioned in the following ayah (interpretation of the meaning):

“And remember Allaah during the appointed Days [These are the three days of staying at Mina during the Hajj; 11th, 12th and 13th days of the month of Dhul-Hijjah]”[3]

Al-Bukhaari mentioned in his Saheeh, in a mu’allaq report, that Ibn ‘Umar and Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with them both) used to go out to the market-place on first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah, reciting Takbeer, and the people used to recite Takbeer because of their Takbeer. ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab and his son ‘Abd-Allaah (may Allaah be pleased with them both) used to recite Takbeer during the days of Mina in the mosque and in the camps, and they would raise their voices until Mina echoed with their Takbeer.

It was narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and a group of the Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) used to recite Takbeer following each of the five prayers from Fajr on the day of ‘Arafaah until ‘Asr on the thirteenth day of Dhu’l-Hijjah. This applies to those who are not on Hajj; for those who are on Hajj, they should concentrate on their ihraam and recite the Talbiyah, until they throw the stones at Jamarat al-‘Aqabah on the Day of Sacrifice (Yawm al-Nahr); after that they may recite Takbeer. The Takbeer should start with the first stone thrown at the Jamarah mentioned. If the pilgrim recites the Takbeer along with the Talbiyah, that is OK, because Anas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “Some would recite the Talbiyah on the Day of ‘Arafaah, and they were not told off for doing so, and some would recite Takbeer and they were not told off for doing so.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari). But it is better for the one who is in ihraam to recite the Talbiyah and for the one who is not in ihraam to recite Takbeer on the days mentioned.

Hence we know that according to the most correct scholarly view, unrestricted Takbeer and Takbeer restricted to certain times are combined on five days, i.e., the Day of ‘Arafaah, the Day of Sacrifice and the three days of Tashreeq. With regard to the eighth day (of Dhu’l-Hijjah) and the days preceding it, Takbeer on those days may be done at any times, not only at certain times, because of the ayahs and reports mentioned above. In al-Musnad it is narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “There are no days on which good deeds are greater or more beloved to Allaah than on these ten days, so recite much Tahleel (saying Laa ilaaha ill-Allaah), Takbeer (saying Allaahu akbar) and Tahmeed (saying al-hamdu Lillaah),” or similar words.

Another Sunnah is to delay the ‘Eid al-Fitr Salah as to give more time for the sacrifice and to make early the ‘Eid al-Adha Salah to give more time to distribute the zakatul fitr.

It is also from the Sunnah not to go out to pray on Eid al-Fitr until one has eaten some dates, because of the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari from Anas ibn Maalik, who said that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used not to go out on the morning of Eid al-Fitr until he had eaten some dates… of which he would eat an odd number.[4]

It is mustahabb to eat before going out to emphasize the fact that it is forbidden to fast on that day and to demonstrate that the fast has ended.

Ibn Hajar (may Allaah have mercy on him) suggested that the reason for that was so as to ward off the possibility of adding to the fast, and to hasten to obey the command of Allaah. [5]

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[1] al-Baqarah 2:185

[2] al-Hajj 22:28

[3] al-Baqarah 2:203

[4] al-Bukhaari (953)

[5] Al-Fath, 2/446