Category Archives: K. Fiqh

Sufi’s piety

Someone informed Hadhrat Mianji Nur Mohammad (Allah have mercy on him) of a man who had an exceptionally beautiful voice. The informer suggested to listen to his performance of  a naa’t (poetry in praise of Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace) .

Hadhrat Mianji said:

“Sometimes people ask me to be the Imam (leader in prayers). There is difference of opinion on the validity of singing even without the accompaniment of musical instruments. Therefore,  it is more cautious not to  listen to it. Hence, I shall not listen.”

After narrating this episode Hakim al-umma Mawlana Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) commented:

“This indicates the degree of his respect and regard for the post of Imam. He abstained from even an ikhtilaaf (an act which some say is permissible and others say is impermissible). This was a real Sufi who cared so much for the Shariah.”

Tarikh Mashaikh e Chisht, page 94

The four worst sins in Shariah

 


Hujjat al-Islam Imam Ghazali (Allah have mercy on him)  has mentioned following to be the worst sins in Shariah:

1. Associating partners with Allah SWT. Either in His being or His attributes.
2. Considering a sinful act to be within the acceptable limits in Shariah. That is, to consider it halal.
3. Because of failure in one’s efforts, give up performance of  good actions (yaas).
4. Because of being unafraid of Allah SWT, commit the prohibited actions without any reservation (nedar).

We all must ponder over the second crime (in bold).
How many sins prevail in our daily life and how lightly do we take them?

Sayyidi wa sanadi Moulana Mohammad Taqi Usmani sahib (Allah preserve him) tells us to leave all the sins immediately. However, due to our weak determination, non-Islamic surroundings or secular social pressures if we are not able to do so, we should make a habit of repenting for these sins every night, each single day. This will at least keep our balance sheet of deeds clear. And if God forbid, we were to die, there won’t be the huge amount of sins in arrears for punishment waiting.

توبہ میری جام شکن، جام میرا توبہ شکن
سامنے ڈھیر ہے – ٹوٹے ہوۓ پیمانوں کا

Self delusion

Recently it was mentioned that in Tasawwuf error and misguidance is most of the time because of a delusional state  resulting from lay public admiration and following.

Hakim al-Umma Shaykh Ashraf ‘Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) elaborated this very nicely in an anecdote.

There was an individual who owned a horse. This horse was of no use to him. It was a huge, lazy, stubborn and stolid creature. He ate a lot , defecated and farted much. And was totally unproductive.  Involving him in any chore led to more trouble than ease in effort of the work.  The owner tried everything possible to make him useful. However, neither reward nor punishment worked. He even resorted to amulets and wazifas. All in vain. Exasperated by this irritating creature the owner decided to get rid of him.

He went to the local market to sell this horse. He was approached by a shrewd professional agent who offered his services for selling in return for a decent commission. They agreed on it after some haggling.

The agent brought the animal on the exhibition stall and proceeded with his introduction to draw in customers. In his smart and domineering style he spoke about the noble ancestry of this Arabian stallion. He elaborated on the physical beauty of the animal. Stressing that this steed was worth a fortune. An appropriate gift for a prince. Exalting his enormous strength and stamina. Exaggerating enormously that how economically he ate and how well trained and sharp he was. A life time bargain for sale at a nominal price. He started the bidding.

The horse owner stood mesmerized at the agent’s artful speech. Before anyone else could utter a bidding price he rushed towards the agent and told him that he had changed his mind. He did not want to sell such a magnificent horse with so many qualities. He felt honored to own it.

Similar is my condition. I am well aware of my shortcomings, sins and gross transgression of Shariah,however, the kind comments, praise and admiration of others lead me to believe that there must be something special about me.

This is the self delusion.

It is very common in the religious elite.

A complete antithesis to the teachings of Tasawwuf!

Seeker’s affliction

narcissim

Sidi Ahmad Zarruq al-Barnusi al-Fasi (Allah have mercy on him) [1442 – 1493 CE] said,

I have also seen that the seekers of this age are afflicted with five things:

1.The preference of ignorance over knowledge

2. Being deluded by every spiritual impostor

3. The inability to prioritize important matters

4. Using the spiritual path as a means to inflate the selfish soul

5. Attempting to expedite a spiritual opening without fulfilling its prerequisite conditions.

This has resulted in five other afflictions:

1. Preferring innovations as opposed to the tried and true prophetic practice (Sunna)

2. Following the people of claims and conceit as opposed to the truth

3. Acting on capricious desires in all of their affairs, even the most celestial

4. Preferring fantasies to realities

5. The manifestation of claims without sincerity.

Foundations of the Spiritual Path Translated by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf Hanson

The permissible mawlid

muhammad-saw

Hakim al-Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah ahve mercy on him) said regarding this,

The first type of gathering is that which does not contain any of the prevalent and customary restrictions (quyud). Neither [does it contain] mubah (permissible) restrictions nor makruh (prohibitively disliked) ones, i.e., it is free from all [sorts of] restrictions. For instance, a few people gathered by coincidence, no one had invited them with any extraordinary effort; rather they were gathered for some other permissible event. In this gathering, either by reading from a book or by delivering a lecture, the blessed event of the birth and the characteristics, habits, miracles and virtues of our Radiant Master (Allah bless him and give him peace), the Lord of the Universe, the Source of Pride for the Prophet Adam (may Allah’s peace be upon him), were narrated based on sound sources.

During this narration, if the need was felt to enjoin good actions and discuss religious rulings and one proceeded in doing so without hesitation or this gathering was held to listen to a religious discourse and within it these blessed events and virtues were narrated, then this is the type [of mawlid] that is permissible without any objection. Moreover, it is sunnah and mustahabb (recommended).

The Honorable Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) narrated his personal events and virtues in a similar way and later his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) narrated them, the chain of which continues through the hadith scholars of present with the blessings of Allah Most High and it will continue until the end of time.

Read the rest of article………………………Mawlid, Deoband and Hanafi fiqh

Source: Deoband.org

Precious advice

tresure

Shaykh Syed Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi (Allah have mercy on him) said the following addressing the students of Medina (al-munawwarah) University,

‘A scholar should be more pious and congnizant (of Allah).

Being excessively involved in contraversial issues makes one negligent of his/her own personal improvement.

Focus more on practice of issues that are  held unanimous. For example, khushu in salah. Do not be involved in peripheral minor issues.

You are aware of the scholarly acheivements of Imam Ahmad and Hafiz Ibn Taymiyyah (Allah have mercy on them). However, you are not aware of their high moral character, humility, fear of Allah and being busy in night crying.

It was the practice of Hafiz Ibn Taymiyyah (Allah have mercy on him) that whenever, he faced a difficulty he would go to an isolated mosque, cry and make the following supplication repeatedly,

Ya mu’alim al Ibrahim ‘alimni, ya mufham al Suleman fahimni

The greed and desire of the worldly has made the scholars worthless.

Be an example for others.’

Tazkirah wa sawanih Mawlana Hasan Jan shaheed ra, page 43

Advice to reader of Sufi works!

old-book-shelf

Sayyidi wa sanadi Mawlana Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him and allow us to benefit from him a lot. Ameen!) gives the following invaluable advice to those interested in classic Sufi works:

“A point never to be forgotten when reading the books of venerable Sufi masters is that the things to acquire from them are;

– the special relationship with Allah (ta’aluq ma’Allah),

– remembrance and contemplation of hereafter,

– turning to Allah with humility (inabat),

– recognizing the plots & deceptions of nafs and methods to prevent them,

– methods of cleansing the heart and

– love of Allah and His messenger صلی اللہ علیہ و الہ وسلم.

As far as the fiqh (Shariah juristic rulings) and kalam (science of logic and art of reasoning) issues, historic events and narrations (rewayat) are concerned these are neither their (i.e. Sufi masters) field of specialization nor one can rely on them solely in these matters.

لکل فن رجال”

Tabseray 476

Fast of ‘Ashura

ashurafast

Sayyidi wa sanadi Shaykh Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah presrve him) writes,

Abdullah ibn Musa, (Allah be pleased with him), reports that the Holy Prophet, (Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him), preferred the fast of ‘Ashura’ (10th Muharram) on the fasts of other days and preferred the fasts of Ramadhaan on the fast of ‘Ashura’. (Bukhari and Muslim)

Muharram:Albalagh

Rights of Fellow human beings!

IlahiAqibat_001

Sayyidi wa sanadiMawlana Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him and allow us to benefit from him a lot. Ameen!) said:

“If someone drank alcohol, he can repent by asking forgiveness from Allah.
If he commits zina (adultery), he can repent by asking forgiveness from Allah.
If he were to eat pork, he can repent by asking Allah’s forgiveness.

BUT,
if he is rude,
arrogant,
hurts some-one’s feeling,
does ghibah (backbiting) or
inflicts material loss on an individual

then the scenario for repentance is different.
He can not repent by asking forgiveness from Allah alone.

He has to ask forgiveness from the  person he has wronged first.
Apologise for the mistake committed.
Compensate for the material loss, if any.
Only then he can fulfill the criteria for tawabah (true repentance).
(And remember Tawbah is the first step of tareeq!)

So be very, very careful with the rights of others!”

Allah SWT give me the taufeeq.
Ameen bi haq e Sayyidul mursaleen.

The Reality of Jihad

walladinajahadu

Hakeem ul Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) tells an anecdote in one of his discourses:

A sufi aspirant busy with his islah (reformation) was overwhelmed with a thought of abandoning his spiritual struggle and to enlist in the Muslim Army engaged in Jihad. Being sincere he consulted his Shaykh before embarking on this holy journey.

Sheikh admonished him saying that this was the conspiracy of his nafs (lower self) to escape.

The nafs was tired of the daily jihad (struggle). That is, struggle of withholding it self from all the haram (forbidden) activities and engaging in extra (nafil) worship. For example, avoiding lustful glances, backbiting, anger, self-pride etc. and being humble, patient, pious, etc.. Tired of this daily struggle it wanted to escape by dying fighting in Jihad.

This might be the reason of calling the daily struggle of self-reformation (islah) Jihad e Akbar (The greater struggle) as compared to the holy war, Jihad e Asghar (The lesser struggle) in one of the Prophetic narrations (dha’eef).

At this point it is most appropriate to clear any misconception about Jihad in our days.
Sayyidi wa sanadi Mawlana Mohammad Taqi Usmani sahib (Allah preserve him) explains:

“Jihad is, no doubt one of the intuitions enshrined by Islam. But it does not mean a war to compel people to accept Islam, as the Holy Quran has declared that there is no compulsion in religion. Nor does it mean to occupy lands and extend territory of a Muslim state without a just cause.

Jihad is in fact means a well disciplined struggle against aggression and oppression. The struggle of jihad may be with or without arms. Armed struggle is allowed only when peaceful means have totally failed.

Apart from a just and rightful cause it is necessary that it is carried out under a competent Amir or leader in strict compliance with dictates of Shariah.

This armed struggle can never target innocent persons.
It is always a legitimate struggle against an oppressor or a tyrant and his warriors.

It has, therefore, nothing to do with terrorist activities which target innocent people and have been termed by the Quran as ‘Fasad fil-ard’ (spreading disorder in the land).”

Source:Usmani M T, Albalagh International: Vol 16 No. 8/September 2005 “Islamic vision on interfaith cooperation for peace”

Principles of tareeq

bleeding-heart

Shaykh Wasiullah Allahabadi (Allah have mercy on him) quotes from the book ‘Minhej al-A’amal’, that from the principles of the people of Tasawwuf are,

1.  Eating the lawful (halal)

2.  Having the beautiful manners (husun e khulq), and

3.  Avoiding the company of those who do not share the same goal as the salik (azdad/najins).

Tasawwuf wa nisbet o ihsan, via Ma’arif e Sufiya, page 301-3

Major sins (kabair)

fire_1

Shaykh Abu Taleb Makki (Allah have mercy on him) said that I complied the Prophetic sayings related to major sins and found out that there are 17 mentioned explicitly. They include,
Four related to heart,
1. Associating partners with Allah (shirk)
2. Intention of persisting on a sin
3. Being hopeless of Allah’s mercy
4. Being heedless of Allah’s wrath

Four related to tongue,
1. Bearing false witness
2. Allegation of adultery on innocent
3. Swearing falsely
4. Doing magic

Three related to stomach,
1. Drinking alcoholic beverages
2. Consuming the wealth of orphans
3. Taking unlawful tax/rent for agricultural land

Two related to genitalia,
1. Illicit sexual relations
2. Homosexuality

Two related to hands,
1. Killing someone unjustly
2. Stealing

One related to feet,
1. Fleeing from the battlefield in jihad

One related to the whole body,
1. Being disobedient to the parents

May Allah save us from all of these by His mercy. Amin!

Adab e Shaykh wal murid, page 16

Treatment of skepticism

flower

An aspirant wrote,

Respected Sir,
I have certain degree of skepticism in my personality. Listening to the criticism of the opponents greatly perturbs me. For this reason I only read your books. All praise is to Allah, whenever this kind of skepticism arises there is no effect on my acts of worship. However, the interest in worship that already existed is lost and I feel sad and depressed.  At the same time I dislike and hate these doubts and suspicions. But they persist. I feel as if I have become a hypocrite. Please, inform me how to get rid of this ailment.

Hakim al-Umma Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) replied,
Do not read anything that will create doubts and suspicions.
If inadvertently you hear something of this category and this state (mentioned above) arises then there is no need to take any special measures to rectify it. This is because this effort will result in increasing distress and a permanent involvement (that is, seeking explanation & clarification) will afflict you. Therefore, instead of this effort ignore it actively. Do be bothered at all in spite of recurring random thoughts. However, continue making supplications and showing humility (to Allah).

Consider this to be enough.

InshaAllah, very soon the state (described) will be cleansed.

Once this habit is formed such power will develop in the heart that it will not be perturbed by such things.

This is a hikami (Divinely inspired wisdom) prescription. Bestowed  by Allah’s grace recently and is very significant information.

And all praise is for Allah!

Tarbiyet us Salik, volume 3, page 135