Introduction
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be to Allah, Benediction and Peace be on the Messenger of Allah, his family,
his companions, and his adherents.
This is a lecture which the late Sheik Al-Albaani, Allah's Mercy be with
him, delivered in the city of Doha, the capital of Qatar, in the blessed
month of Ramadhan 1392 A.H. At the suggestion of some of his friends who
asked him to publish his lecture due to the need of the Muslims for a
work of this type. In reply to their request he printed it for general
propagation because of advantage, having regard for the reminiscences
and history. He did add some separate titles to enable the reader to collect
the main ideas. Pray for our beloved sheik and scholar of Islam, that
Allah will accept from him and open wide his grave with the smell and
light of Paradise.
Declaration that it cannot dispense with The Qur'an
All Praise be to Allah, we praise Him, seek His help and His forgiveness.
We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and evils
of our deeds. One whom Allah guides, none can lead him astray,
and one whom He misguides, none can guide him. I bear witness
that there is no deity to worship [1] other than
Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is
His servant and His messenger.
"O you who believe. Fear Allah truly, and don't die except in
a state of Islam" (3:102).
Men fear your Lord who created you from one soul, and created
its partner, and from them spread men and women in numbers. Take
care, Allah will question you about it and the kinship. Surely,
Allah is ever watchful of your deeds." (4:1).
those who believe. Fear Allah and say what is correct so that
it fits you. He will forgive your sins. Whoever obeys Allah and
His messenger that is a great achievement." (33:70-71).
The best of speech is the speech of Allah. That is The Book of
Allah. The best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. Of all
matters, the worst are innovations; and everything new is an innovation,
and every innovation is a deviation, and every deviation leads
to Hell-fire.
I do not think that I will be able to offer this high ranking
assembly - especially when there are distinguished ulema (scholars)
and professors present - some knowledge which has not been dealt
with before. If what I think is true, I will rest contented that
my address will be a reminder, as Allah says in the Qur'an:
"Remind,
for the reminder would benefit the believers." (51:55).
I do not think that my talk in this blessed month of Ramadhan,
the month of importance, is an exposition of something of its
merits, rules and their practice, and the like, which generally
the preachers and instructors touch on, on account of the benefit
they give to the listeners, and procure for them good and blessing;
but I have chosen my talk to be a study of a general nature, surely
it is one of the roots of the Shari'ah (Islamic law). It is a
declaration of the importance attached to the Sunnah in the Islamic
law.
Role of Sunnah Towards The Qur'an
all know that Allah, The Blessed and Mighty, chose Muhammad (peace
be upon him) as His Prophet and picked him to deliver the final
message. The Qur'an was revealed to him and commanded him to obey
all what He had ordered him to do, that is, to expound His message
to the people. Allah says, We have revealed to you the Reminder
(The Qur'an) to expound to people what was revealed to them (16:44).
think that the declaration mentioned in the verse contains two
orders:
Declaration of the word and its arrangement. It is the communication
of the Qur'an and its non-concealment, and its pursuit to Mankind
just as Allah, The Blessed Almighty, has revealed to the heart
of the Prophet (peace be upon him) which is the intent of His
saying O Messenger proclaim what is revealed to you from your
Lord (5:67). Sayyida Ayesha (may Allah be pleased with her) is
reported to have said "Whosoever says that Muhammad (peace be
upon him) concealed something which he was commanded to communicate,
is a great calumny against Allah." Then she read the abovementioned
verse. (Bukhari and Muslim have stated it.)
And according to the narration of Muslim: "If the Messenger of
Allah (peace be upon him) had concealed something which he was
commanded to communicate, he would have concealed the saying of
The Almighty Behold thou didst say to one who had received the
grace of Allah and thy favor: Keep your wife to yourself and fear
Allah. But thou didst hide in thy heart that which Allah was about
to make manifest; you did fear the people, whereas Allah had a
better right that you should fear Him (33:37).
The explanation of the meaning of the word or sentence or
verse for which man needs an explanation, most of which bear reference
to 'Mujmal' (comprehensive) verses or 'Amah' (general) verses
or 'Mutlaq' (unbounded) verses.
Then comes the Sunnah and clarifies the sentences and specifies
the verses called 'Amah' and defines what is 'mutlaq' that is,
in reference to the saying (Qaul) of The Prophet (peace be upon
him), his deed (Fi'l) and the act he confirmed (Iqrar).
Necessity of Sunnah to Understand The Qur'an and Parables
The male thief and female thief cut off their hands (5:38) is
a fitting example of that. The thief in it is general like the
hand.
The oral tradition explains the first of
them and restricts it by 'as-sareq' (the thief) who steals something
worth a fourth of a Dinar [2] according to the
saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him) There is no cutting - of the hand
- unless the thing stolen is worth a fourth of a Dinar or more
(Bukhari & Muslim) the two sheikhs have recorded this Hadeeth.
Again, the other is explained by the action of the Prophet (peace be upon him)
or the action of his companions and his confirmation. They used
to cut the hand of the thief from the wrist as is known in the
work of Hadeeth. The oral tradition explains the hand mentioned
in the verse on Tayammum (dust ablution) And rub therewith your
faces and hands (5:6) is also the palm of the hand as is stated
in a Hadeeth Tayammum is the wiping of the face and the hands
recorded by the two sheikhs and Ahmad and others from a tradition
reported by Ammar bin Yaasir (may Allah be pleased with them).
There
are other verses that cannot be completely understood except through
Sunnah. They are:
It is whose who believe and confuse not their beliefs with wrong,
'dhulm' that are (truly) in security for they are on (right) guidance
(6:82).
The companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) understood the
word 'dhulm' in its general sense to mean every wrong doing, even
if it be little. On this account the verse is regarded as dubious
and they said, "O Messenger of Allah, which of us did not involve
his faith with obscurity?" He (peace be upon him) said; It
is not that. It is only the 'shirk'(3). Have you not heard what
Luqman said: Verily, 'shirk' is a very great sin (dhulm) (31:13).
The two sheikhs have recorded it with others.
2. Allah
says: When you travel on earth, there is no blame on you to shorten
your prayer, for fear the unbelievers will persecute you (4:101).
It is obvious from this verse that fear is a pre-requisite for the
shortening of prayers. Some of the Prophet's companions asked him:
"Why do we shorten our prayers while we feel safe?" He said: It
is a charity from Allah, so accept it (Muslim).
Allah
says: The carcass and it's blood are forbidden to you (5:3). In
explanation of this verse, the corpse of locusts, fish, the livers,
spleen of blood are lawful. So the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
He has made two dead things and blood lawful: the locusts and
the fish, the liver and the spleen.
Baihaqi and others have recorded it as 'marfu' type of hadeeth as
also 'mauquf' type. The 'isnad' or 'mauquf' is authentic and it
is as good as 'marfu' tradition, since it is not stated in the form
of a 'ra'y' (decision based on one individual's judgment not on
Qur'an and Sunnah).
Allah says: I find not in the message received by me by inspiration
any (food) forbidden to be taken by one who wishes to, unless
it is dead meat or blood poured forth or the flesh of swine, for
it is an abomination, or what is impious (meat) on which a name
has been invoked other than Allah's (6:145).
The Sunnah has forbidden many things not mentioned in the verse
mentioned above, as for example in the saying of the Holy Prophet
(peace be upon him): All predatory animals with tusk and every
bird with claw are forbidden for consumption. There are other
traditions which have forbidden the consumption of such animals
as the Prophet (peace be upon him) is reported to have said on the Day of Khaibar:
Allah and His Messenger have prohibited the consumption of
domesticated asses, for they are filth. The two sheikhs have
reported it.
Allah says: Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah which He
has produced for His servants, and the things clean and pure (which
he has provided for sustenance) (7:32).
The Sunnah, too, has forbidden some adornments, and this is evident
from the Prophet (peace be upon him) who is reported to have met some of his
companions, and had a silk garment in one hand, and gold in the
other, and said: These are prohibited to Muslim males, lawful
to females. The hadeeths in their interpretation are many
and well known in both the authentic collections of hadeeths,
and others and the like of many examples well known to scholars
familiar with hadeeth and Islamic Jurisprudence.
From
what has been stated above, O Muslim Brethren, you can see the
importance attached to Sunnah in Islamic Law. When we divert our
intention again to the examples mentioned beside others not mentioned,
we are certain that there is no way to understand the Qur'an correctly
except in association with the interpretation of the Sunnah.In
the first example, the understanding of the 'sahabah' of 'dhulm'
mentioned in the verse is on its general sense, despite the fact
that the (Allah be pleased with them) were, as stated by Ibn Mas'ud:
"The best of this community, most pious, profound in learning,
least of dissimulation." Yet with all that they erred in their
understanding of that.Were
it not for the Prophet (peace be upon him), who held them back
from their mistaken notion, and made them take the step in the
right direction in that the correct meaning of 'dhulm' in the
context is shirk (association of partnership with Allah), we too
would have followed in their wrong thinking. Allah, The Blessed
and The Most High saved us from that wrong notion by the grace
of the right direction of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and
his Sunnah.In
the second example - with Allah's guidance - if not for the hadeeth
mentioned above, we would have been in doubt at least with regard
to the shortening of prayer (qasr-as-salat) during a journey while
secure - if we did stipulate the condition of fear as obvious
in the verse - till the companions saw the Prophet (peace be upon
him) shorten the prayers when it was safe and secure.In
the third example, if not for the hadeeth, we would have forbidden
ourselves the consumption of good things made lawful to us: locusts,
fish, liver, and the spleen.In
the fourth example, if not for the hadeeths, some of which we
have mentioned, we would have considered lawful what Allah has
made unlawful through the dictum of the holy Prophet (peace be
upon him) like predatory animals, and the birds which have claws.
And
so in the fifth example, if not for the hadeeths in regard to
this question, we would have considered lawful what Allah prohibited
through the words of His Prophet (peace be upon him) like gold
and silk.It
is for this, some forbearers (as-Salaf) say that 'Sunnah' pronounces
judgment of The Book (al-Qur'an).
Deviation of those who are satisfied with
The Qur'an to the exclusion of Hadeeth
It
is a matter of regret that according to the interpretation found
in the works of some commentators and modernist authors, that
it is permissible to do what is stated in the last two examples:
Consumption of the predatory animals and the wearing of gold and
silk by referring their interpretation only to the Qur'an.Today,
a sect exists called "Quranites" who comment according to their
whims and fancies; without seeking the explanation of the authentic
Sunnah. They only accept and follow the Sunnah which suit their
desires, the rest they throw behind. The Prophet (peace be upon him) is reported
to have said that:
None of you reclines on his bed, the order comes to him on an
affair which I am commanded to do or not to do. He says: "I don't
know, what is found in The Book of Allah we follow" (Tirmidhi).
According to another report: What is found in The Book of Allah
as 'Haram,' we pronounce it 'haram' (forbidden). Surely, I am
given The Qur'an and its example with it. Yet, according to
another report: What the Messenger of Allah has forbidden,
Allah has prohibited it.It
is a matter of regret that one renowned scholar has written a
book on Islamic law and its dogma, and in its preface, he says
that he has written it and that he has made reference only
to The Qur'an.This
true hadeeth gives positive evidence that the divine law of Islam
- As-Shari'ah - is not merely Qur'an, but Qur'an and Sunnah.
Therefore, whoever holds fast to one source for reference to the
exclusion of the other, he held fast to neither of them, since
both complement each other. The Qur'an says Whoever obeys the
Messenger, obeys Allah. Allah says:
"No, by your Lord they do not believe until they submit to your
adjudication in all disputes between them, then they do not find
themselves oppressed with your decisions and they completely submit."
(4:65)
Again, Allah says:
"When a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger, it
does not behoove a believer, man or woman, to have choice in their
matter. One who disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he is indeed
on a clearly wrong Path." (33:36)
Furthermore, Allah says:
"What the Messenger teaches you, take it, and what he forbids
you, avoid doing it." (59:7)
connection with this verse, I am marveled by what is corroborated
by Ibn Mas'ud (Allah be pleased with him) that is:
woman came to Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, and asked
him:
"Are you the one who says: 'May Allah's curse be on 'Al-Namisat'
and 'Al-Motanamisat'(4) and those who tattoo?"
He said "Yes."
She said, "I read the Book of Allah (Al-Qur'an) from beginning
to its end. I did not find what you have said."
He told her: "If you have read it, you would have found it.
As for your reading what the Messenger teaches you, take it, and
what he forbids you, avoid doing it."
She said, "Certainly."
He said: "I have heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)
say:
"May Allah's Curse be on the Al-Namisat."
(Bukhari and Muslim)
of Philology to understand The Qur'an
From
what has been stated above, it is clear that there is no scope for anyone
with all his Arabic Scholarship to understand the glorious Qur'an, without
the help of the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him), his sayings
and actions.The
companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) were the most knowledgeable
in the language, which The Qur'an was revealed in, when it was not blemished
by the incorrectness of the common folks knowledge or their grammatical
mistakes. Yet, they erred in understanding the verses quoted above when
they relied on language alone.It
is self-evident that a man well-informed of the Sunnah is more appropriate
to understand The Qur'an and deduce the rules from it than one who is
ignorant of it. How can it be a source to one who does not reckon it and
does not make reference to it?For
this reason, it is part of the rules agreed upon that Qur'an should be
interpreted by the Qur'an itself as well as the Sunnah, then by the sayings
of the Sahabah... etc. (5)It
is here that the cause of deviation of scholastic theologians (Ahlu-el-Kalam)
become clear, both ancient and modern, and their opposition to the forbears
'As-Salaf' (May Allah be pleased with them) in their doctrines not to
speak of their laws. They are far from Sunnah, and knowledge of it, and
rely on their intelligence and desires to decide on the verses of attributes
and others.What
is best is what was written down in the exposition of Tahawi's doctrine
(page 212 Fourth Edition):
When
one is not well-informed of The Book and Sunnah, what would
he say about the Fundamentals of Religion (Usulu-d-din)?
He only receives the assertion of someone. If he says that
he takes it from The Book of Allah, he does not study the
commentary of The Qur'an on the basis of prophetic traditions,
and reflects over it, nor what the companions (Sahabah),
and the following generations narrated, which is transmitted
to us from the authorities whom the critics chose. They
have not transmitted the system and arrangement of The Qur'an,
but its poetic expression and meaning. They did not learn
the Qur'an like children, but studied it with meaning. One
who does not follow in their footsteps, speaks on his own
accord. One who does that thinks it be the religion of Allah,
and does not study The Book of Allah, he sins, even if he
is right.One
who studies The Qur'an and The Sunnah, he is rewarded, even
if he goes wrong, but if he is right in his opinion, his
reward is doubled.Then
he says: What
is obligatory, is submission to the Messenger (peace be upon him) carrying
out his saying and accepting his saying with satisfaction
and belief without contradicting it with false ideas called
'apprehensive faculty' (Ma'qul) bearing doubt or complaint,
or offering the opinions of men and the garbage of their
intellect.We
unite with The Prophet (peace be upon him) in judgment, submission, obedience
and compliance, just as we have unison with Allah, glory
be to Him, by worshipping Him by humility, submissiveness,
repentance and reliance.
In
short, what is obligatory on all Muslims is that they do not
separate between Qur'an and Sunnah; whereas, it is obligatory
to take both of them and to formulate the law on both of them.
This
is a safeguard for them, so that they won't fall right or left;
and that they won't fall back in error as explained by The Prophet
(peace be upon him) : I leave behind me two things. You will never go astray
if you hold fast to them: The Qur'an and my Sunnah.
CAUTION It is self-evident
after this that I say:
Sunnah which has an important bearing on Islamic Law is only
the Sunnah confirmed by scientific channels, and authentic
chains of narrations known to the learned in regard to hadeeths
and the background of the narrators.It
is not the one which is found in different works of Tafseers
(commentaries of The Qur'an) and Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh),
and in different writings of longing, intimidation, advices,
and admonitions, etc...They
contain weak, spurious, and fabricated hadeeths, of which Islam
absolves, like the story of 'Harut and Marut,' and the story
of 'Gharanik.' I have a special letter which makes it void and
it is printed(6). A major part of it is recorded
in two huge books namely "A chain of weak and fabricated hadeeths
and their evil impact on the community." Their number up to
date have reached approximately four thousand hadeeths(7).It
is obligatory on the learned, especially those who spread the
knowledge of fiqh and legal opinions among the public, that
they shouldn't dare to argue with hadeeth unless it is well-attested.
Books of jurisprudence, which they refer to, are normally filled
with traditions which are not well-attested, nor have any bases,
as is well-known to the learned.I
have begun an important project, and I think it will be of use
to those occupied with jurisprudence, and I will name it: "Weak
and Fabricated Hadeeths in the Major Jurisprudence 'fiqh' Books,"
by which I mean:
- Al-Hidayah,
by Al-Marghinani, in Hanafi fiqh,- Al-Modawwanah,
by Ibnil-Qasim, in Maliki fiqh,- Sharhul-wajeez,
by Al-rafiee, in Shafiee fiqh,- Al-Mughni,
by Ibn Quddamah, in Hanbali fiqh, and- Bidayatul
Mujtahid, by Ibn Rushd-al-Andalusi, in comparative fiqh.I
regret that I did not get the opportunity to finish it, because
the journal "Al-Wa'e-al-Islami" of Kuwait which promised to
publish it, when perused it, didn't print it.Although
I missed this opportunity, perhaps I will succeed on another
occasion, Allah willing, to offer to my brethren occupied with
jurisprudence a precise learned course to help them to facilitate
their knowledge of the different categories of hadeeth with
reference to various sources from books on hadeeth, with an
explanation of its special nature and character and reliance
on them. Allah is the source of success.
of Hadeeth of Muadh in the opinion
And its disapproval
Before
I conclude my talk, I think I must direct the attention of brethren
present to a well known hadeeth. It is devoid of one of the
books of jurisprudence on account of its weakness in respect
of its chain of narration (isnad) and its contradiction with
what we have concluded in this talk, regarding the illegitimacy
of discrimination in law between The Qur'an and Sunnah; and
the necessity of taking both.It
is a hadeeth of Muadh bin Jabal (May Allah be pleased with him)
that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him when he sent him to Yemen:
By what source will you decide? He said, "By the book
of Allah." He then asked, If you don't find any guideline?
He said, "I will make an effort to form my own opinion." He
said, Praise be to Allah who makes success the effort of
the envoy of the Messenger of Allah, to what The Prophet likes.
As
for the weakness of its 'isnad,' there is no scope for its explanation
now. But I have explained it clearly in the above mentioned
chain(8).It
would suffice now to mention that the Commander of the Believers
in the hadeeth 'Imam Al-Bukhari' (may Allah have mercy on him)
says that the hadeeth is not recognized (Munkar). After this
I am permitted to begin to explain the conflict which I pointed.
The
tradition of Muadh gives the ruler a method of three stages
which does not permit to search for any rule with regard to
'Ra'e' (personal opinion) except that he does not find it in
the Sunnah, nor in the Sunnah, except that after he does not
find it in The Qur'an. It is in relation to 'Ra'e' a genuine
method with all the learned (ulema), so that they say, "Where
there is a tradition relating the deeds and utterances of The
Prophet (peace be upon him), personal opinion is void." But in relation to
Sunnah, it is not true, because Sunnah dictates The Qur'an and
clarifies its doctrines. It is then essential to search for
a ruling in Sunnah, even if he thinks it is found in The Qur'an
as we have mentioned it.Sunnah
is not with The Qur'an in the same manner as 'Ar-Ra'e' with
the Sunnah. No, definitely not. It is rather necessary to regard
the Qur'an and Sunnah as being one source with no discrimination
between the two whatsoever. This is indicated in a saying of
the Prophet (peace be upon him) : Certainly I have come with The Qur'an
and its like (meaning the Sunnah). He said They are never
separated until they come to the Basin(9). The compilation mentioned
between them is not correct because the separation between them
is void as we have explained.This
is what I wish to draw attention to. If I am right, it is from
Allah; if wrong, it is from me. I ask Allah Almighty to protect
us and you from errors and from all that displeases him. I conclude
my praising by "Al-Hamdu-Lillaahi Rabbil Alameen" - Praise be
to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds.
Related Pages: HADEETH
Footnotes
i.e.: There is no true god - but Allah - who really deserves
to be
worshipped by Mankind
2. Dinar: A form of currency
3. Shirk is to disbelieve in the oneness of Allah, or to offer
any form of worship to other than Allah.
4. Namisah: a woman who plucks hers or others eyebrows - to
be a thin line - to seek beauty. Such an act is forbidden. It
is a means to change the form of Allah's creation. Motanamisah:
a woman who asks others to do it for her.
5. This states other than what is known by many of the learned:
to comment on The Qur'an itself if there is not any Sunnah,
then by the Sunnah. This will be explained in at then end of
this treatise on the hadeeth of Muadh bin Jabal - may Allah
be pleased with him.
6. Its title is "Pitch of majaniq to demolish the story of gharaniq"
printed by AlMaktabul-e-Islami Story of gharaniq: is a fabricated
story found in some commentaries, claiming that a verse in The
Qur'an acknowledged the polytheists in their beliefs.
7. The number at present [1394 A.H.] has exceeded five thousand
and may Allah make easy its publication in the near future.
So far only five hundred have broken into print.
8. No. 885 of the chain mentioned, and we hope that the volume
which includes it will be published
shortly, 'Insha Allah.'
9. i.e. until the Day of Judgment.
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