"Questions that the Quranites Have No Good Logical Responses To" -- by Bassam Zawadi
I'm not a Qur'an Only Muslim [i just have some doubts about many of them] (i'm not sure if any of you are 'Quranites'), but these questions can be answered by anyone who has any kownledge of the Qur'an. I was wondering how some of you would respond to them. I've already read answers to most of them on this site already so you don't have to answer them, unless you want to leave a link or say a little something. I'll might point the author to some of the answers. If you don't mind.
1) Why don't we have any record of early Muslims completely rejecting hadith?
2) How do you know how to pray using the Quran alone?
3) How do you know how much Zakah to pay using the Quran alone?
4) The Quran says that men could beat up their wives. But we know according to hadith that this is meant to be a light beating that inflicts a spiritual punishment and not a harmful physical one. What is to stop a man from misinterpreting the Quran and beating his wife severely?
5) It says in the Quran to shorten the prayer when you travel. How long do you have to travel in order to be eligible to have this privilege? How short to cut the prayer?
6) The Qur'an says to cut the hand of the thief. Does the word 'cut' in the verse mean to cut off or to cut in sense of making a little mark, or could it be metaphorical and mean cutting off the resources of the thief?
7) Prophesies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came true from hadith. Thus proving that there are divine revelations sent down to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) except the Quran. How do you explain this?
8) Qur'an says that we obey Allah and the Messenger (Surah 3:31-32,132; Surah 4:13-14,59,61,64,69,80; Surah 24:56). There are two separate commands here. One is to obey Allah and the other is to obey the Prophet. In order to obey someone, he would need to issue a command. So if we want to obey Allah we have to do so by reading the commands of Allah in the Quran and adhering to them. If we want to obey the Prophet then we have to do so read the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the authentic hadith and adhere to them. Or is there another way?
9) It says in the Qu'ran (Surah 33:21) that we have the Messenger as a good example to follow. How would we know his example without the traditions to turn to?
10) We have different forms of reciting the Qur'an, which means that certain letters are taken away from the word or pronounced differently. Through authentic hadith, we know that these were accepted forms of reading approved by the Prophet (peace be upon him). But without hadith, how would we know this? Using the Qur'an alone, if I see that there are different forms of recitation then I would think that there is more than one Qur'an won't know which one is correct.
11) In Surah 2:221, God forbids us to marry polytheist women. Yet in Surah 5:5, God says that we can marry the believing women and the chaste from the People of the Book. A clear differentiation between believing women and people of the book. You can't have a believing person today from the people of the book who is not a Muslim. So if God were talking about the believing women from the people of the book He wouldn't have differentiated the "believing women" phrase from them. Plus the believing people from the people of the book were the ones who truly followed the teachings of Jesus and Moses, which are lost today. So by using the Quran alone, how do I know which verse came first. Did Surah 2:221 come first and then God sent down Surah 5:5 making an exception or did God send down Surah 5:5 first and then sent Surah 2:221 completely prohibiting that we marry the women from the people of the book?
12) Surah 24, verse 31 says "And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof" What exactly is this part that "appears thereof"?
--------------------------------------
I have a question of my own too. Can someone point me to some good Hadith recorces? I saw on the site that there was a Hadith book, but it wasn't up for download.
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
Salaam Aleikum,
We are not "Quranites", we are Muslims that uphold the Quran and use the Quran to explain History, not History to explain the Quran, also we reject sects, as the Quran commands us.
1) Why don't we have any record of early Muslims completely rejecting hadith?
What a NONSENSE!
Inspite of the companions consent Hazrat OmarR was not convinced. For complete one month Hazrat OmarR performed Istekhara. Then one morning when Allah calmed his body and mind and he was able to concentrate on the issue at hand in serenity, he talked to his people about his decision to compile the hadiths. But then he said I thought about the generations that have passed before us, who wrote books and adhered to those books so strongly that they forgot the Book of Allah. I swear upon Allah, I will not let the word of Allah be amalgamated with other words." (Quoted in Tadween e Hadith, page 394)
"During Hazrat Omar's caliphate the ahadith were in abundance. He made sure by putting the people under oath that whatever hadith the people had in their possession ought to be brought before him. As ordered, the public submitted whatever they possessed. He then ordered to make a public bonfire of those hadiths." (vol.5, page 141)
No one knows if these sayings written down were ever verified by the Messenger himself or not and whether they have come down to us in its original version. We have no knowledge of any collected works or hadith that Messenger himself gave to the Muslims before his departure from this world. We do in fact find in the Hadith of Bukhari, that someone asked Hazrat Ibn e AbbassR as to what MuhammadPBUH had left behind for the Muslims. He said, 'The Messenger left behind nothing, save the Quran.' (Bukhari, Vol. III, Fuzail ul Quran.) (Sahih Bukhari: Virtues of the Quran)
Do not have anything else dictated from me, save the Quran. If anyone of you has written any word other than the Quran, erase it! [Bukhari and Muslim]
The Messenger ordered his companions not to ask him to dictate anything else besides the Quran.
Whatever Hadith collection was present among the companions, it was ordered to be ignited.
Hazrat Abu Bakr made a bonfire of his own collection and banned others from quoting any hadith.
Hazrat Omar after giving his best thought for one month, reached the conclusion to ban the compilation and collection of ahadith.
Hazrat Omar also asked to submit all ahadith in possession of the public who were under oath and then ignited them all.
He also sent a circular in all cities to destroy any evidence of hadith.
Hamam Ibn Mamba's Manuscript
What the religious scholars of hadith, after much struggle, have succeeded in discovering, has come down to us under the title of Hamam ibne Mamba's manuscript. This was published by Dr. Hameed ullah several years ago from Hyderabad (India). It is believed that Hamam ibne Mamba was the student of Abu HurairaR who died in hijra 131. In this manuscript there are 138 ahadith in total, which its author states were compiled before his teacher Abu Huraira. His teacher is believed to have departed from us in hijra 58. By other means we can say that this manuscript was compiled before hijra 58. We also notice that Imam Mamba writes these hadiths before hijra 58 in Medina and is able to obtain only 138 ahadith. Whereas in hijra 300 when Imam Bokhari decides to collect ahadith he gathers six hundred thousand. (Imam Humbal found 1,000,000 ahadith and Imam Yahya bin Moeen found 1,200,000 hadiths) Another fact we observe that those ahadith that have been confered upon Abu HurairaR amount to thousands, though his student was able to write only 138 ahadith. However, in the first century of the Islamic calendar, the sum total of all individual collection is Imam Mamba's 138 ahadith. There are no other written records of Holy Messenger's gospel belonging to that period of Islamic history.
Imam Zuhri
At the close of hijra100 we notice that Caliph Omar bin Abdul AzizR on his own, had some work done on Hadith. After him was Imam Ibne Shahab ZuhryR who at the order of Caliph Bannu Umayya compiled a concise edition of Hadith and that also according to its author was against his desire. At present we neither have any copy or manuscript of hadith of Hazrat Omar bin Abdul AzizR nor the concise edition of Shahab Zuhry. Although ahadith confered in their names are mentioned at a later period, when the need was felt to bring into record the historical events of Holy Messenger's life. The material for the historical records was a conglomerate of all that had been coming down to them through the generations. Some writers narrowed their research to only those records that refer to the parables, gospels or sayings of the Messenger MuhammadR. This collection is titled Hadith (the very word hadith means conversations).
The first compilation of Hadith that is present today belongs to Imam Malik (died hijra179) and is called Muta. In it we find three to five hundred various ahadith, it further informs us about the activities of Messenger's companions in Medina. After Imam Malik we find various other scholars venturing on this subject and compiling several different editions of Hadith.
During the Abbasids period we observe spectacular progress in the field of Islamic arts and sciences and along with that the number of hadith compilations also increased. The most famous of all compilations that has come down to us is known as the 'Sahiheen,' these books are authored by Imam BokhariR and Imam MuslimR. Imam BukhariR who died in hijra 256 had made a collection of 600,000 ahadith. After sifting through various ahadith he finally decided to retain 2,630 and produced them in book form under the title of 'Us'hal Kitab baaduz Kitab e Allah' (The most pure book after the book of Allah).
http://www.tolueislam.com/Parwez/mh/mh_01.htm
See also:
http://www.beacon2005.com/criminals.pdf
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
http://www.ourbeacon.com/DUAL.pdf
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Manzoor/MH_hadith_I.htm
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Manzoor/MH_hadith_II.htm
2) How do you know how to pray using the Quran alone?
The Hadiths on prayer (salat) and on the origin of prayer
Hadith literature is often concerned with the ritual part of our prayers i.e. the method, the times and the number of prayers. However, we must remember that any statement by the Hadiths on this issue must not contradict the Qur'an.
According to the Hadiths the method and the times of prayer were revealed to the Prophet in the same way as the Qur'an was revealed (that is, as a direct revelation from Allah). Moreover, it is maintained that Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 demonstrated to the Prophet the method of praying at stated times by leading each of the prayers himself (Bukhari Vol. 1, No. 500 and Vol. 4 No. 444). This immediately raises the question: if the method or the ritual part of the prayer was a revelation, why was it not, then, included in the Qur'an? Do we then accept that the Qur'an is incomplete? On the other hand, if we accept the view that the Qur'an, as the Final Revelation is complete and has remained intact, word for word, and that Allah has taken it upon Himself to protect it, then the above Hadiths must be false. In other words, Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 did not demonstrate to the Prophet the method of the prayers, as stated in the Hadiths.
The question then arises as to how these methods or rituals originated. Before answering this question (section 11.2.ii), it would be useful to discuss the question of the five daily prayers. Bukhari gives us an example of the kind of narration we are expected to swallow regarding this issue in Vol. 1, No. 345, Vol. 4, No. 429 and Vol. 9 No. 608. According to him, the matter was so important that the Prophet was taken by Gabriel (Jibreel) to see Allah to settle this issue. According to him, Allah initially ordained fifty prayers a day. However, after a lot of bargaining, in which the Prophet Moses acted as an adviser to the Prophet, Allah relented and reduced the burden to five times a day. What is most surprising is that the Qur'an does not mention such an important journey whatsoever, whereas it mentions historical incidents of much lesser importance. The one Qur'anic verse which, it is claimed, refers to this journey is in Sura 17:1 given below:
(17:1) Glorified be He Who carried His servant by night from the nearest mosque (The Kaba) to the farthest mosque, the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our Signs!
There seem to be four different interpretations on this verse:
(i) The majority of commentators take this night to mean that the Prophet was transported by Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 from the nearest mosque (Masjid-Al-Haram) in Mecca to the farthest mosque (Masjid-Al-Aqsa) in Jerusalem, (which did not exist at the time), so presumably they mean the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem or whatever existed there at that time.
(ii) The Hadith literature goes further by stating that the Prophet was taken to see Allah from Jerusalem by GabrielA1, and that at that meeting the five daily prayers were sealed.
(iii) The whole journey was spiritual, possibly in a dream.
(iv) That it refers to the flight of the Prophet (Hijra) with Abu Bakr from Mecca (where the nearest mosque – the Kaba – was) to Medina, where a mosque (the farthest mosque i.e. Masjid-Al-Aqsa) was established before Muhammad's arrival there. In support of this there is historical evidence that a delegation of 73 people from Medina came to see the Prophet while he was at Mecca and that the Prophet sent Musab-bin-Umair with the delegation to conduct prayers and help the people in Medina to enter the brotherhood of Islam. The Medinans, therefore, must have built the mosque before the arrival of the Prophet.
The last interpretation seems the most logical since Medina was more conducive to his mission, and was thus a neighbourhood blessed by Allah to be used for the later part of the Prophet's mission. Some indication of this can be found in in the following verses:
(93:4,5) And verily the latter portion will be better for thee than the former, and verily thy Sustainer will give unto thee so that thou will be content.
Format or method of prayer in the Hadiths1,2
Bukhari does not give the methods of prayer in a coherent form. One has to go through a lot of his quoted hadiths to form some sensible idea. According to Bukhari (Vol.1 No. 346) when Allah enjoined prayer, it was two rakatsA4 in every prayer, both when at home or on a journey. Then the prayers offered on journey remained the same, but the rakats of the prayers for non-travellers were increased. For example in Hadith (Vol. 1, No. 474), the Prophet leads the prayer with 2 rakats for Zuhr and 2 rakats for Asr. In Hadith (Vol. 1, No. 518) the Prophet prayed 8 rakats for the Zuhr and Asr and 7 rakats for Magrib and Isha in Medina. In Hadith (Vol. 1. No. 566) Allah's messenger never missed 2 rakats before Fajr prayer and 2 rakats after Asr prayer. In fact, the number of rakats of the compulsory prayers i.e. 2 rakats for the Fajr, 4 rakats for the Zuhr, 4 rakats for Asr, 3 rakats for Magrib and 4 rakats for Isha, are not specified in Bukhari at all. And the same applies for the sunnat prayers that we perform today. It is only after searching through a large number of hadiths that we can find what perhaps we are meant to say while performing the set of postures from standing to bending and then in prostration but only, it should be emphasised, after a wide search, and not without variations and contradictions. So one can quite clearly see that Hadith does not give any organised or co-ordinated methods of prayer that can be followed universally. This is an interesting point when you consider how easy it would be for any even moderately educated Muslim to give a precise list of the mechanics of all the daily prayers as prescribed by the 'scholars'. Another important point that comes out is that although at-tahiyatu in the sitting position is mentioned in Bukhari, the darud we recite after at-tahiyatu is not.
The hadiths in Muslim do not give any clear indication of the methods of prayer either. The number of rakats of the compulsory prayer is not given in the format as performed at the present time. The only similarity between Bukhari and Muslim is in the set of postures from standing to bending and then the prostration and pronouncements in these positions. Muslim mentions at-tahiyatu in the sitting position, and the darud. However, the latter is not mentioned by Bukhari at all. Muslim is very clear about the recitation of Al-Fatiha in every rakat, the main confusion lies in the number of rakats, particularly for the compulsory prayers. For example, hadith 1017 states that the Prophet performed two rakats for Zuhr and two for Asr prayer. This appears to contradict hadith 911:
(911) Abu Said al-Khudri reported: The Apostle of Allah used to recite in every rakat of the first two rakat of the noon (Zuhr) prayer about 30 verses and in the last two about fifteen verses, and in every rakat of the Asr prayer of the first two rakats about fifteen verses and in the last two half of the first ones.
The above hadith seems to contradict hadith 909 also which states that in the last two rakats the Prophet would recite sura Al-Fatiha only, and that he would sometimes recite loud enough to make the verses audible. This is at variance with the present-day practice whereby Zuhr and Asr are performed silently.
Regarding the Witr prayer, we see a clear contradiction between hadiths nos. 1602, 1604, and 1607, which mention one, five, and three rakats respectively.
Concerning the sunnat prayers, there seems to be no clear indication. These are prayers which according to 'traditional Islam' are recommended over and above the compulsory prayers. For example, hadith 1579 states that a house will be built in Paradise for anyone who prays twelve rakats in a day and a night.
It is a disturbing fact that, according to the Hadith, the Prophet appears to be wholly occupied with prayers – day and night – as if that were the only thing Allah required of us. The prayers mentioned include his forenoon prayer of four to eight rakats (no. 1549); additional prayers at home after leading the compulsory prayers in the mosque; night prayers (Tahajjud) after Isha leading to the morning prayer (no. 1584; etc.). Hadith nos. 927 and 928 state that the Prophet used to recite 60 to 100 verses in the morning prayer. One begins to wonder how the Prophet managed to carry out all his other duties, including the compilation of the Qur'an, the guidance of the people, state activities, plus his many other duties, not to speak of his personal and family life.
The point that can be taken from all this is that the format of all our prayers underwent substantial changes before it was finally established in its present form, and that most of these changes took place well after the death of the Prophet. There is nothing wrong in this as long as we accept that the ritual part of the prayer did not require any revelation. It was purely a common sense way of developing the rules within the boundary conditions (see verses on the salat) specified in the Qur'an, and if the Prophet had not done so, a proper Islamic State would have. The point we must remember is that rituals are only important when we place them in the context of many important duties which Allah has asked us to perform. Otherwise they become just forms without any substance or value.
Conclusion
It has already been stated that the method or the ritual part of the prayer cannot possibly a revelation as it is not in the Qur'an. Yet, a standard question is always raised: as the Hadith gives the method of prayer how could we learn to pray if we ignored the Hadith? We have already shown that Bukhari does not give the format of the prayers that we perform today and that the format of all our prayers underwent substantial changes before it was finally established in its overall present form, and that most of these changes took place well after the death of the Prophet. Besides, there is a gap of about 250 years before the Hadith literature appears (see section 10.1 for discussion on Hadith). So how did the people pray during this time? Obviously, the Prophet must have established a method, by taking into account the principles in the Qur'an and by consulting his companions. There is no difference in this matter than in establishing any subsidiary laws within the bounds of the fundamental principles (see Section 13.5).
Importantly, the Prophet did not record either the method of prayer, or his own sayings and practices. We can only infer from this that he realised that this would have created confusion between the recordings of his own sayings and practices, and the recordings of the Qur'an. However, a ritual once established, and practised regularly by the Muslim communities of that time was unlikely to have fallen apart, even though it was not written down. Thus, the contention that without the Hadith the practice of salat could not be carried out does not hold water. It is a curious fact that, Bukhari has successfully avoided people's outrage on the many denigrating hadiths he quoted regarding the Prophet, by means of the simple and yet effective contention that without his investigations and writings on salat the practice today would have been impossible – which is evident nonsense. The truth is that a practice which survived for 250 years without the influence of the Hadith, would have continued to survive simply by virtue of its regular practice – passed from generation to generation.
Moreover, the rapid expansion of Islam within a few decades, gave the added resilience to the practice of salat. During the Abbaside period, some changes came in the methods and practices of prayer, caused by the four schools of law i.e. Hanafi, Shafi, Maliki and Hanbali. Further changes, particularly in the number of rakats to be performed during each prayer time, must have taken place over time due to human interference. Some changes also came due to cultural differences in various parts of the world and one doesn't have to travel too far to see these variations. How do we explain these? And where is the common consensus regarding our methods of prayer?
Note: In this study we have restricted salat to its most commonly understood sense of 'the ritual prayer'. The Qur'an uses the word salat in a much wider sense than that of simple prayer. We also observe that in the Qur'an the word salat is used in the plural number. We have concentrated here on the general meaning of 'prayer' in order to bring out some of our confusion and preoccupation, regarding this everyday practice.
Conflicts between the present-day prayer and the Qur'an – a personal view
The verses recited must be relevant to the prayer. At present, apart from the first sura (Al-Fatiha), many of the verses we recite have no relevance to our prayer; that is, we do not know what we are saying or whether it is meaningful for the purpose. For example, in reciting sura 112 in our prayers we say: 'Say: He is Allah, the One![...]' In other words we are telling Allah: 'Say: He is Allah, the One![...]' – a scenario which is ridiculous. Prayer is a supplication of the believer to Allah, and so verses which do not fulfil this purpose are inappropriate. We need to choose what we say – that is, choose verses and doas of which there are many – which convey the sense of our supplication to Him. Failing this, it would be better to perform the bowing and prostration immediately after the recitation of the first sura. The utterances we use in the position of bowing and prostration conform to sura 17:107, 108, i.e. the Glorification of Allah in those positions. However there are words in both at-tahiyatu and the darud, recited in the sitting position, which go against Qur'anic guidance. For example, the words in at-tahiyatu translate as:
All reverence, all worship, all sanctity are due to Allah. Peace be on you O Prophet! and the Mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be on us and the righteous sevants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.
The inclusion of 'peace be on you, O Prophet' addresses the Prophet in the second person vocative - a grammatical construction which assumes the person addressed is still alive. This is completely wrong, and doubly so since the Qur'an forbids us to make any distinction between the Prophets. The appropriate phrase would be 'Peace be on all the Prophets' as this would conform with the Qur'an (37:181). For explanation on the final part of 'I bear witness...' see section 11.1.
The following verses give further relevant points on prayer.
(72:18,19) And the places of worship are only for Allah. So invoke not anyone along with Allah: And when the slave of Allah (the Prophet) stood up in prayer to Him, they crowded on him, almost stifling.
(72:20) Say (unto them, O Muhammad): I pray unto Allah only, and ascribe unto Him no partner.
We need to understand that the form of prayer we use is a ritual, although this ritual performed in congregation is important as it helps to bring people together. But the function of the mosque must be more than just a place for performing the congregational prayer. The Imam or the person who leads the prayer should be a scholar well versed in the Qur'an so he can use it meaningfully and be able to arrange lectures or seminars on the Qur'an. It is important, too, that the mosque be open for community and social functions beneficial to the society, instead of being kept empty except at prayer times (see section 11.2.v).
There are many Qur'anic verses relevant to prayer. I have selected a few, including some from the verses of prayer which the Prophets performed during their lifetimes.
(2:286) [...]O our Sustainer! condemn us not if we forget, or fall into error. O our Sustainer! Lay not on us such a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us! Impose not on us that which we have not the strength to bear! Pardon us, absolve us and have mercy on us! Thou art our Protector, so grant us succour against those who reject Thee. ( A general prayer verse)
(2:127, 128) And when Abraham and Ishmael were raising the foundations of the House, (Abraham prayed): Our Sustainer! Accept from us (this duty). Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower. Our Sustainer! and make us submissive unto Thee and of our seed a nation submissive unto Thee, and show us our ways of Prayer, and relent towards us. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Relenting, the Merciful.
(7:155) And Moses chose seventy of his people for Our place of meeting; when they were seized with violent quaking. He prayed: O my Sustainer if it had been Thy Will Thou couldst have destroyed, long before, both them and me: wouldst Thou destroy us for the deeds of the foolish ones amongst us? This is no more than Thy trial: by it Thou causest whom Thou wilt to stray, and Thou leadest whom thou wilt into the right path. Thou art our Protector: so forgive us and give us Thy mercy; for Thou art the Best of those who forgive.
(5:118) If Thou punish them, lo! they are Thy slaves, and if Thou forgive them (lo! they are Thy slaves) Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Mighty, the Wise. (Prayer of Jesus)
(23:97, 98) O our Sustainer! I seek Thy protection against the incitements of the rebellious ones and I seek Thy protection, lest they should approach me. (Prayer of Muhammad).
Other instances of verses of in the Quran which we can use in our supplication to Allah are: 2:127,128,201,286; 3:8,16,26,27,38,53,191,192,193,194; 4:75; 5:83,84; 7:23,126; 11:45; 12:101; 14:40,41; 20:25,2,27,28,29,114; 21:83,87,89,112; 23:28,29,93,94,97, 98,118; 24:65,61; 25:74; 26:83,84,85; 27:19; 37:100.
Finally, we must remember that Allah is always near (2:186). He will listen to us and help us if we pray to Him, provided we are following 'the straight path'. If, instead of glorifying Him and praying for our guidance, we tell Him what is in the Qur'an by reciting verses which have no relevance to our prayers, then I cannot see how He can benefit us. We can reach Him, but only by hearing His call and His guidance - all of which involves good deeds.
(2:186) When My servants ask you concerning Me, tell them that I am always near. I hear the prayer of the suppliant whenever he calls out to Me. Therefore, let them hear My call and put their trust in Me, that they may be rightly guided.
The role of the mosque:
At present we have magnified the importance of the five daily prayers out of all proportion to our other duties specified in the Qur'an. Let me explain this by means of an example: in the U.K. the Muslims have established over 700 mosques, almost exclusively for the purpose of prayers. It is impossible to use these mosques for any sensible discussion on the Qur'an or for issues which face Muslims in this country, unless our views are in conformity with those of the governors and the Imam. The result is that these mosques are totally underused. Enormous sums have been spent in their construction, but the Muslims can hardly use them except for prayers. The only sermon that one gets from the Imam is before the Friday prayer and in that the topics are mostly based on the Hadiths and are hardly understood by the younger generation. So little is invested in the education of the younger generation that with the demise of the older generation the mosques will suffer the same fate as the churches in this country i.e.they will either remain empty or become bingo halls. Moreover, continual in-fighting for the control of the mosque is so common that people are moving away in disgust. Hence, unless we are able to put well-educated Imams in the mosques, Imams who have been brought up in this country, who can communicate with the younger generation, who are able to organise seminars on important issues and are able to organise some sensible teaching of the Qur'an for the younger generation, the future looks extremely bleak for Muslims in this country. People who are interested in organising lectures or education for the benefit of the community are not able to use these mosques. Instead, they have to use a church hall or some other rented hall and thereby incur unnecessary expenses.
Source:
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=60,0,0,1,0,0
4:103 Be mindful of God’s Commands whatever state you are in, standing, sitting or lying down. And when you are once again secure, establish the congregations of Salaat. Joining the congregations of Salaat at the times appointed by the Central Authority is a duty unto believers.
[Verses 4]
What Exactly Was NAMAAZ (Ritual Salaat): Analytically searching our history and Hadith, following was the probable situation in the lifetime of the exalted Prophet and Sahaba Kiraam.
• Ritual prayer or Namaaz was a small part of Aqamatis-Salaat, i.e. establishing the System that facilitates the following of Divine Commands.
• The ritual prayer was always congregational.
• Women and men both formed this congregation, women on the right side of men.
• The frequency and timing of the congregations were determined by the State as needed. It was never fixed as five times a day ritual.
• Namaaz was performed with the Imam (Central or local government official) reciting some verses from the Qur'an relevant to the situation at hand as the congregation listened to the Imam. Then the Imam would lead two units of prayers standing.
• Masjid was not a temple of worship. It was the Assembly, the School, the Municipality, the Parliament and the Government House. So, after that recitation, the leader would discuss real issues about the community, entertain questions, present bills, announce decisions of the Shura (Counsel) and the Assembly would legislate. People came up with their ideas for betterment of the society. Masjid was also the place where the leader was elected.
Source:
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=618
3) How do you know how much Zakah to pay using the Quran alone?
” And they ask you what they should give. Say, "All that is surplus."
2:219 [Certain things that hinder humans from attaining the aforementioned Noble Objective are now mentioned.] They ask you (O Messenger), concerning alcohol, intoxicants, games of chance, and gambling and money earned without labor. Say, “There is great detriment in these things as well as some benefits for mankind. But the detriment of them is much greater than the benefit of them. They drag down the individual and collective social potential.” And they ask you what they should give. Say, "All that is surplus." Thus Allah makes His Messages plain for you, that you may reflect -
See also:
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=628
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Mansoor/MA_zakah_i.htm
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=66,0,0,1,0,0
4) The Quran says that men could beat up their wives. But we know according to hadith that this is meant to be a light beating that inflicts a spiritual punishment and not a harmful physical one. What is to stop a man from misinterpreting the Quran and beating his wife severely?
What a NONSENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dharaba means more then a 100 things, it depends on the object and the possibilities of the object, for example, you can HIT a rock, but also MOVE the rock.
You can HIT a Woman, but also MOVE away from her, you also admonish her with examples which is also a meaning of Dharaba.
Also, the verse talks about RIJAL and NISAA, which is not used for husband and wife, but for MEN and WOMEN in society. It refers to a State Law, not a personal marriage law.
Their blind following of the Hadith has made them blind for the Quranic meanings.
4:34 Men are the protectors and maintainers of women. They shall take full care of women with what they spend of their wealth. God has made men to excel in some areas and women to excel in some areas. Men must see to it that women are provided for, and that they are able to stand on their feet in the society. So, righteous women are obedient to God’s Ordinances and guard their moral values even in privacy, the Values that God Commands to be guarded. If you (the society) experience(s) rebellion from women against the Permanent Values, and they stand up against you, apprise them of possible consequences.
Next, (you, the husbands will) leave them in their
resting places apart from you. And keep admonishing them with examples that they stop rebelling, else they may receive chastisement through a court of law (just as rebellious men would) If they pay heed to you, seek not a way against them. God is Most High, Great.
[‘Qawwam’ = Protector = Maintainer. ‘Nushooz’ = To stand up 2:259, 58:11, to stand up against, to rebel against the society, to rebel against the Permanent Values / ‘Wa’az’ = To apprise of consequences 2:231, 3:66 / ‘Dharb’ = Example 13]
5) It says in the Quran to shorten the prayer when you travel. How long do you have to travel in order to be eligible to have this privilege? How short to cut the prayer?
4:100 Anyone who emigrates in the Cause of God, will find that God has
placed refuge and abundance on earth. Whoever forsakes his home, as 'An
immigrant to God and His Messenger', and death overtakes him, his reward is then incumbent upon God. God is ever Forgiving, Merciful.
4:101 When you go forth in the land, there is no blame on you if you shorten the congregations of prayers, if you fear that the unbelievers may attack you. Surely, the rejecters are an open enemy to you.
There can be NO limits given, as it depends clearly on the situation. Hadith about this, are again clearly nonsense.
6) The Qur'an says to cut the hand of the thief. Does the word 'cut' in the verse mean to cut off or to cut in sense of making a little mark, or could it be metaphorical and mean cutting off the resources of the thief?
The context of the verses is clear:
5:38 (Theft is a crime that steals away the sense of security from a society) A habitual thief, male or female, must have their ability (to steal) cut off. This is the reward for their doings, and a deterrent from God. God is Almighty, Wise.
[For QAT’A, the so-called cutting of hands, please see 12]
Punishment for stealing
The last few years have seen the introduction of 'Islamic Law' (Shariah or Shariat) in some countries which call themselves Islamic States. One law in particular, quite often labelled by the West as barbaric, is the severing of a hand for theft. The so-called Islamic States which carry out these punishments do so for various political reasons, primarily to create fear and to hold on to power. Unfortunately, they go unquestioned, simply due to the fact that most people in the countries in question have no solid grounding in the Qur'anic injunctions regarding these issues.
According to the Qur'an, any punishment should fit the crime. The Qur'an says:
(5:45) And We prescribed for them therein: The life for the life, and the eye for the eye, and the nose for the nose, and the ear for the ear, and the tooth for the tooth, and for wounds of retaliation. But whoso forgoeth it (in the way of charity) it shall be expiation (atonement for past sins) for him. Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed; such are wrong-doers.
If we are to follow the Qur'anic guidance that the punishment should fit the crime, then we cannot cut off the hand of a person who has stolen wealth as such a punishment would be utterly inconsistent with the nature of the original offence. Rather, we have to look very carefully at the verses which deal with this issue. The Law regarding this punishment is given in verses 5:38,39. In verse 38 the word yad is translated in its literal sense as 'hand'. However, besides 'hand' the word yad also means 'strength of hands', 'power', 'property', 'wealth', 'blessings', 'obligation', and 'support'. Many Arabic words contain such multiple meanings and it is important to note that the appropriate meaning will always depend on the context in which it is used. Here the context is stealing (i.e. of wealth) and therefore for the punishment to fit the crime wealth should be recompensed for wealth and not 'hand' for 'wealth'. The thief should be given a punishment where he is made to give up his wealth to make good the loss of the person he has robbed. Hence the following translation of the verse, as given by the late Ahmed Ali Khan Jullundri in his translation and commentary of the Qur'an, is accurate:1
(5:38) As for the thieves, male or female, cut off their means of support and favours, take away their wealth and what they have hoarded, and make their hands and strength work (for the person whom they have robbed till the price of the stolen goods and some fine is recovered), an exemplary punishment from Allah for their serious crime and Allah is Mighty, Over-powering and the Possessor of great knowledge and He is the best disposer.2
The above translation also makes clear sense of the verse that follows it.
(5:39) But if the thief has repented and returned all the stolen goods and has mended himself, then truly Allah turns to him in forgiveness; surely Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.
On the other hand if verse 5:38 is translated literally to mean cutting off the physical hand, then verse 5:39 cannot be sustained logically. It would be ridiculous to suggest that Allah turns to a repentant thief who is now minus a hand! How is forgiveness appropriate after such a heavy penalty! However, we are told that if the thief returns the stolen goods and repents and reforms then he should be forgiven. This facility is directly at odds with any thought of cutting off a limb as a means of retribution, since such an action is irreversible.
In fact, in a truly Islamic State the question of cutting off a hand would not arise at all. There would be social justice and the State would act as trustee for the entire population. Hunger, injustice and poverty would be eliminated, as the wealth would be used for the benefit of the people. Further, the Qur'an states quite clearly that any such crime must be forgiven if there are mitigating circumstances i.e. poverty, hunger etc., as stated in the following verse
(5:3) [...]whoso is forced by hunger, not by will, to sin: (for him) lo! Allah is forgiving, Merciful.
So how can these verses ever be construed to advocate the cutting off of a hand? In tracking down the cause, for the mistranslation of verse 5:38 we need look no further than the prolific Hadith compilers who 'report' this un-Qur'anic retribution for theft (Bukhari 5.597, Muslim 4190, Abu Daud 4367, 4396)
7) Prophesies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came true from hadith. Thus proving that there are divine revelations sent down to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) except the Quran. How do you explain this?
Show us 1 prophecy that came "true" and I will show you 100 Christian prophecies that came "true".
But Mohammed could not have prophecied ANYTHING, WHY? Because the Quran says so:
7:187 (They even venture into predicting the end of the world) They ask you (O Messenger), about the Hour, when the end of the world will come to pass.
Say, "That knowledge is only with my Lord. He alone will manifest it at the
appropriate time. Heavy it is in the heavens and the earth. It will come upon
you suddenly." They ask you as if you could gain insight into this mystery with persistent inquiry. Say, “The knowledge thereof is with God only. But most people do not know that even Messengers were not given this knowledge.”
7:188 Say, "I do not even have the power to benefit myself or to avert harm
from myself, contrary to the Laws of God. If I had the knowledge of the
Unseen, I would have amassed abundant fortune, and no adversity would
have touched me. I am but a Warner and a bearer of good news for those who have Faith."
8) Qur'an says that we obey Allah and the Messenger (Surah 3:31-32,132; Surah 4:13-14,59,61,64,69,80; Surah 24:56). There are two separate commands here. One is to obey Allah and the other is to obey the Prophet. In order to obey someone, he would need to issue a command. So if we want to obey Allah we have to do so by reading the commands of Allah in the Quran and adhering to them. If we want to obey the Prophet then we have to do so read the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the authentic hadith and adhere to them. Or is there another way?
See my article:
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=546
9) It says in the Qu'ran (Surah 33:21) that we have the Messenger as a good example to follow. How would we know his example without the traditions to turn to?
There is a BIG difference between learning the wisdom of the history of the Prophet, and following historical accounts blindly and use them to understand the Quran. ALso the Quran explains the behaviour of the Prophet in many details.
10) We have different forms of reciting the Qur'an, which means that certain letters are taken away from the word or pronounced differently. Through authentic hadith, we know that these were accepted forms of reading approved by the Prophet (peace be upon him). But without hadith, how would we know this? Using the Qur'an alone, if I see that there are different forms of recitation then I would think that there is more than one Qur'an won't know which one is correct.
There are detail differences, and these were not accepted by the Prophet, they were created in the Middle Ages.
Part 2 of Answers coming tomorrow.
We are not "Quranites", we are Muslims that uphold the Quran and use the Quran to explain History, not History to explain the Quran, also we reject sects, as the Quran commands us.
1) Why don't we have any record of early Muslims completely rejecting hadith?
What a NONSENSE!
Inspite of the companions consent Hazrat OmarR was not convinced. For complete one month Hazrat OmarR performed Istekhara. Then one morning when Allah calmed his body and mind and he was able to concentrate on the issue at hand in serenity, he talked to his people about his decision to compile the hadiths. But then he said I thought about the generations that have passed before us, who wrote books and adhered to those books so strongly that they forgot the Book of Allah. I swear upon Allah, I will not let the word of Allah be amalgamated with other words." (Quoted in Tadween e Hadith, page 394)
"During Hazrat Omar's caliphate the ahadith were in abundance. He made sure by putting the people under oath that whatever hadith the people had in their possession ought to be brought before him. As ordered, the public submitted whatever they possessed. He then ordered to make a public bonfire of those hadiths." (vol.5, page 141)
No one knows if these sayings written down were ever verified by the Messenger himself or not and whether they have come down to us in its original version. We have no knowledge of any collected works or hadith that Messenger himself gave to the Muslims before his departure from this world. We do in fact find in the Hadith of Bukhari, that someone asked Hazrat Ibn e AbbassR as to what MuhammadPBUH had left behind for the Muslims. He said, 'The Messenger left behind nothing, save the Quran.' (Bukhari, Vol. III, Fuzail ul Quran.) (Sahih Bukhari: Virtues of the Quran)
Do not have anything else dictated from me, save the Quran. If anyone of you has written any word other than the Quran, erase it! [Bukhari and Muslim]
The Messenger ordered his companions not to ask him to dictate anything else besides the Quran.
Whatever Hadith collection was present among the companions, it was ordered to be ignited.
Hazrat Abu Bakr made a bonfire of his own collection and banned others from quoting any hadith.
Hazrat Omar after giving his best thought for one month, reached the conclusion to ban the compilation and collection of ahadith.
Hazrat Omar also asked to submit all ahadith in possession of the public who were under oath and then ignited them all.
He also sent a circular in all cities to destroy any evidence of hadith.
Hamam Ibn Mamba's Manuscript
What the religious scholars of hadith, after much struggle, have succeeded in discovering, has come down to us under the title of Hamam ibne Mamba's manuscript. This was published by Dr. Hameed ullah several years ago from Hyderabad (India). It is believed that Hamam ibne Mamba was the student of Abu HurairaR who died in hijra 131. In this manuscript there are 138 ahadith in total, which its author states were compiled before his teacher Abu Huraira. His teacher is believed to have departed from us in hijra 58. By other means we can say that this manuscript was compiled before hijra 58. We also notice that Imam Mamba writes these hadiths before hijra 58 in Medina and is able to obtain only 138 ahadith. Whereas in hijra 300 when Imam Bokhari decides to collect ahadith he gathers six hundred thousand. (Imam Humbal found 1,000,000 ahadith and Imam Yahya bin Moeen found 1,200,000 hadiths) Another fact we observe that those ahadith that have been confered upon Abu HurairaR amount to thousands, though his student was able to write only 138 ahadith. However, in the first century of the Islamic calendar, the sum total of all individual collection is Imam Mamba's 138 ahadith. There are no other written records of Holy Messenger's gospel belonging to that period of Islamic history.
Imam Zuhri
At the close of hijra100 we notice that Caliph Omar bin Abdul AzizR on his own, had some work done on Hadith. After him was Imam Ibne Shahab ZuhryR who at the order of Caliph Bannu Umayya compiled a concise edition of Hadith and that also according to its author was against his desire. At present we neither have any copy or manuscript of hadith of Hazrat Omar bin Abdul AzizR nor the concise edition of Shahab Zuhry. Although ahadith confered in their names are mentioned at a later period, when the need was felt to bring into record the historical events of Holy Messenger's life. The material for the historical records was a conglomerate of all that had been coming down to them through the generations. Some writers narrowed their research to only those records that refer to the parables, gospels or sayings of the Messenger MuhammadR. This collection is titled Hadith (the very word hadith means conversations).
The first compilation of Hadith that is present today belongs to Imam Malik (died hijra179) and is called Muta. In it we find three to five hundred various ahadith, it further informs us about the activities of Messenger's companions in Medina. After Imam Malik we find various other scholars venturing on this subject and compiling several different editions of Hadith.
During the Abbasids period we observe spectacular progress in the field of Islamic arts and sciences and along with that the number of hadith compilations also increased. The most famous of all compilations that has come down to us is known as the 'Sahiheen,' these books are authored by Imam BokhariR and Imam MuslimR. Imam BukhariR who died in hijra 256 had made a collection of 600,000 ahadith. After sifting through various ahadith he finally decided to retain 2,630 and produced them in book form under the title of 'Us'hal Kitab baaduz Kitab e Allah' (The most pure book after the book of Allah).
http://www.tolueislam.com/Parwez/mh/mh_01.htm
See also:
http://www.beacon2005.com/criminals.pdf
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
http://www.ourbeacon.com/DUAL.pdf
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Manzoor/MH_hadith_I.htm
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Manzoor/MH_hadith_II.htm
2) How do you know how to pray using the Quran alone?
The Hadiths on prayer (salat) and on the origin of prayer
Hadith literature is often concerned with the ritual part of our prayers i.e. the method, the times and the number of prayers. However, we must remember that any statement by the Hadiths on this issue must not contradict the Qur'an.
According to the Hadiths the method and the times of prayer were revealed to the Prophet in the same way as the Qur'an was revealed (that is, as a direct revelation from Allah). Moreover, it is maintained that Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 demonstrated to the Prophet the method of praying at stated times by leading each of the prayers himself (Bukhari Vol. 1, No. 500 and Vol. 4 No. 444). This immediately raises the question: if the method or the ritual part of the prayer was a revelation, why was it not, then, included in the Qur'an? Do we then accept that the Qur'an is incomplete? On the other hand, if we accept the view that the Qur'an, as the Final Revelation is complete and has remained intact, word for word, and that Allah has taken it upon Himself to protect it, then the above Hadiths must be false. In other words, Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 did not demonstrate to the Prophet the method of the prayers, as stated in the Hadiths.
The question then arises as to how these methods or rituals originated. Before answering this question (section 11.2.ii), it would be useful to discuss the question of the five daily prayers. Bukhari gives us an example of the kind of narration we are expected to swallow regarding this issue in Vol. 1, No. 345, Vol. 4, No. 429 and Vol. 9 No. 608. According to him, the matter was so important that the Prophet was taken by Gabriel (Jibreel) to see Allah to settle this issue. According to him, Allah initially ordained fifty prayers a day. However, after a lot of bargaining, in which the Prophet Moses acted as an adviser to the Prophet, Allah relented and reduced the burden to five times a day. What is most surprising is that the Qur'an does not mention such an important journey whatsoever, whereas it mentions historical incidents of much lesser importance. The one Qur'anic verse which, it is claimed, refers to this journey is in Sura 17:1 given below:
(17:1) Glorified be He Who carried His servant by night from the nearest mosque (The Kaba) to the farthest mosque, the neighbourhood whereof We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our Signs!
There seem to be four different interpretations on this verse:
(i) The majority of commentators take this night to mean that the Prophet was transported by Gabriel (Jibreel)A1 from the nearest mosque (Masjid-Al-Haram) in Mecca to the farthest mosque (Masjid-Al-Aqsa) in Jerusalem, (which did not exist at the time), so presumably they mean the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem or whatever existed there at that time.
(ii) The Hadith literature goes further by stating that the Prophet was taken to see Allah from Jerusalem by GabrielA1, and that at that meeting the five daily prayers were sealed.
(iii) The whole journey was spiritual, possibly in a dream.
(iv) That it refers to the flight of the Prophet (Hijra) with Abu Bakr from Mecca (where the nearest mosque – the Kaba – was) to Medina, where a mosque (the farthest mosque i.e. Masjid-Al-Aqsa) was established before Muhammad's arrival there. In support of this there is historical evidence that a delegation of 73 people from Medina came to see the Prophet while he was at Mecca and that the Prophet sent Musab-bin-Umair with the delegation to conduct prayers and help the people in Medina to enter the brotherhood of Islam. The Medinans, therefore, must have built the mosque before the arrival of the Prophet.
The last interpretation seems the most logical since Medina was more conducive to his mission, and was thus a neighbourhood blessed by Allah to be used for the later part of the Prophet's mission. Some indication of this can be found in in the following verses:
(93:4,5) And verily the latter portion will be better for thee than the former, and verily thy Sustainer will give unto thee so that thou will be content.
Format or method of prayer in the Hadiths1,2
Bukhari does not give the methods of prayer in a coherent form. One has to go through a lot of his quoted hadiths to form some sensible idea. According to Bukhari (Vol.1 No. 346) when Allah enjoined prayer, it was two rakatsA4 in every prayer, both when at home or on a journey. Then the prayers offered on journey remained the same, but the rakats of the prayers for non-travellers were increased. For example in Hadith (Vol. 1, No. 474), the Prophet leads the prayer with 2 rakats for Zuhr and 2 rakats for Asr. In Hadith (Vol. 1, No. 518) the Prophet prayed 8 rakats for the Zuhr and Asr and 7 rakats for Magrib and Isha in Medina. In Hadith (Vol. 1. No. 566) Allah's messenger never missed 2 rakats before Fajr prayer and 2 rakats after Asr prayer. In fact, the number of rakats of the compulsory prayers i.e. 2 rakats for the Fajr, 4 rakats for the Zuhr, 4 rakats for Asr, 3 rakats for Magrib and 4 rakats for Isha, are not specified in Bukhari at all. And the same applies for the sunnat prayers that we perform today. It is only after searching through a large number of hadiths that we can find what perhaps we are meant to say while performing the set of postures from standing to bending and then in prostration but only, it should be emphasised, after a wide search, and not without variations and contradictions. So one can quite clearly see that Hadith does not give any organised or co-ordinated methods of prayer that can be followed universally. This is an interesting point when you consider how easy it would be for any even moderately educated Muslim to give a precise list of the mechanics of all the daily prayers as prescribed by the 'scholars'. Another important point that comes out is that although at-tahiyatu in the sitting position is mentioned in Bukhari, the darud we recite after at-tahiyatu is not.
The hadiths in Muslim do not give any clear indication of the methods of prayer either. The number of rakats of the compulsory prayer is not given in the format as performed at the present time. The only similarity between Bukhari and Muslim is in the set of postures from standing to bending and then the prostration and pronouncements in these positions. Muslim mentions at-tahiyatu in the sitting position, and the darud. However, the latter is not mentioned by Bukhari at all. Muslim is very clear about the recitation of Al-Fatiha in every rakat, the main confusion lies in the number of rakats, particularly for the compulsory prayers. For example, hadith 1017 states that the Prophet performed two rakats for Zuhr and two for Asr prayer. This appears to contradict hadith 911:
(911) Abu Said al-Khudri reported: The Apostle of Allah used to recite in every rakat of the first two rakat of the noon (Zuhr) prayer about 30 verses and in the last two about fifteen verses, and in every rakat of the Asr prayer of the first two rakats about fifteen verses and in the last two half of the first ones.
The above hadith seems to contradict hadith 909 also which states that in the last two rakats the Prophet would recite sura Al-Fatiha only, and that he would sometimes recite loud enough to make the verses audible. This is at variance with the present-day practice whereby Zuhr and Asr are performed silently.
Regarding the Witr prayer, we see a clear contradiction between hadiths nos. 1602, 1604, and 1607, which mention one, five, and three rakats respectively.
Concerning the sunnat prayers, there seems to be no clear indication. These are prayers which according to 'traditional Islam' are recommended over and above the compulsory prayers. For example, hadith 1579 states that a house will be built in Paradise for anyone who prays twelve rakats in a day and a night.
It is a disturbing fact that, according to the Hadith, the Prophet appears to be wholly occupied with prayers – day and night – as if that were the only thing Allah required of us. The prayers mentioned include his forenoon prayer of four to eight rakats (no. 1549); additional prayers at home after leading the compulsory prayers in the mosque; night prayers (Tahajjud) after Isha leading to the morning prayer (no. 1584; etc.). Hadith nos. 927 and 928 state that the Prophet used to recite 60 to 100 verses in the morning prayer. One begins to wonder how the Prophet managed to carry out all his other duties, including the compilation of the Qur'an, the guidance of the people, state activities, plus his many other duties, not to speak of his personal and family life.
The point that can be taken from all this is that the format of all our prayers underwent substantial changes before it was finally established in its present form, and that most of these changes took place well after the death of the Prophet. There is nothing wrong in this as long as we accept that the ritual part of the prayer did not require any revelation. It was purely a common sense way of developing the rules within the boundary conditions (see verses on the salat) specified in the Qur'an, and if the Prophet had not done so, a proper Islamic State would have. The point we must remember is that rituals are only important when we place them in the context of many important duties which Allah has asked us to perform. Otherwise they become just forms without any substance or value.
Conclusion
It has already been stated that the method or the ritual part of the prayer cannot possibly a revelation as it is not in the Qur'an. Yet, a standard question is always raised: as the Hadith gives the method of prayer how could we learn to pray if we ignored the Hadith? We have already shown that Bukhari does not give the format of the prayers that we perform today and that the format of all our prayers underwent substantial changes before it was finally established in its overall present form, and that most of these changes took place well after the death of the Prophet. Besides, there is a gap of about 250 years before the Hadith literature appears (see section 10.1 for discussion on Hadith). So how did the people pray during this time? Obviously, the Prophet must have established a method, by taking into account the principles in the Qur'an and by consulting his companions. There is no difference in this matter than in establishing any subsidiary laws within the bounds of the fundamental principles (see Section 13.5).
Importantly, the Prophet did not record either the method of prayer, or his own sayings and practices. We can only infer from this that he realised that this would have created confusion between the recordings of his own sayings and practices, and the recordings of the Qur'an. However, a ritual once established, and practised regularly by the Muslim communities of that time was unlikely to have fallen apart, even though it was not written down. Thus, the contention that without the Hadith the practice of salat could not be carried out does not hold water. It is a curious fact that, Bukhari has successfully avoided people's outrage on the many denigrating hadiths he quoted regarding the Prophet, by means of the simple and yet effective contention that without his investigations and writings on salat the practice today would have been impossible – which is evident nonsense. The truth is that a practice which survived for 250 years without the influence of the Hadith, would have continued to survive simply by virtue of its regular practice – passed from generation to generation.
Moreover, the rapid expansion of Islam within a few decades, gave the added resilience to the practice of salat. During the Abbaside period, some changes came in the methods and practices of prayer, caused by the four schools of law i.e. Hanafi, Shafi, Maliki and Hanbali. Further changes, particularly in the number of rakats to be performed during each prayer time, must have taken place over time due to human interference. Some changes also came due to cultural differences in various parts of the world and one doesn't have to travel too far to see these variations. How do we explain these? And where is the common consensus regarding our methods of prayer?
Note: In this study we have restricted salat to its most commonly understood sense of 'the ritual prayer'. The Qur'an uses the word salat in a much wider sense than that of simple prayer. We also observe that in the Qur'an the word salat is used in the plural number. We have concentrated here on the general meaning of 'prayer' in order to bring out some of our confusion and preoccupation, regarding this everyday practice.
Conflicts between the present-day prayer and the Qur'an – a personal view
The verses recited must be relevant to the prayer. At present, apart from the first sura (Al-Fatiha), many of the verses we recite have no relevance to our prayer; that is, we do not know what we are saying or whether it is meaningful for the purpose. For example, in reciting sura 112 in our prayers we say: 'Say: He is Allah, the One![...]' In other words we are telling Allah: 'Say: He is Allah, the One![...]' – a scenario which is ridiculous. Prayer is a supplication of the believer to Allah, and so verses which do not fulfil this purpose are inappropriate. We need to choose what we say – that is, choose verses and doas of which there are many – which convey the sense of our supplication to Him. Failing this, it would be better to perform the bowing and prostration immediately after the recitation of the first sura. The utterances we use in the position of bowing and prostration conform to sura 17:107, 108, i.e. the Glorification of Allah in those positions. However there are words in both at-tahiyatu and the darud, recited in the sitting position, which go against Qur'anic guidance. For example, the words in at-tahiyatu translate as:
All reverence, all worship, all sanctity are due to Allah. Peace be on you O Prophet! and the Mercy of Allah and His blessings. Peace be on us and the righteous sevants of Allah. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.
The inclusion of 'peace be on you, O Prophet' addresses the Prophet in the second person vocative - a grammatical construction which assumes the person addressed is still alive. This is completely wrong, and doubly so since the Qur'an forbids us to make any distinction between the Prophets. The appropriate phrase would be 'Peace be on all the Prophets' as this would conform with the Qur'an (37:181). For explanation on the final part of 'I bear witness...' see section 11.1.
The following verses give further relevant points on prayer.
(72:18,19) And the places of worship are only for Allah. So invoke not anyone along with Allah: And when the slave of Allah (the Prophet) stood up in prayer to Him, they crowded on him, almost stifling.
(72:20) Say (unto them, O Muhammad): I pray unto Allah only, and ascribe unto Him no partner.
We need to understand that the form of prayer we use is a ritual, although this ritual performed in congregation is important as it helps to bring people together. But the function of the mosque must be more than just a place for performing the congregational prayer. The Imam or the person who leads the prayer should be a scholar well versed in the Qur'an so he can use it meaningfully and be able to arrange lectures or seminars on the Qur'an. It is important, too, that the mosque be open for community and social functions beneficial to the society, instead of being kept empty except at prayer times (see section 11.2.v).
There are many Qur'anic verses relevant to prayer. I have selected a few, including some from the verses of prayer which the Prophets performed during their lifetimes.
(2:286) [...]O our Sustainer! condemn us not if we forget, or fall into error. O our Sustainer! Lay not on us such a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us! Impose not on us that which we have not the strength to bear! Pardon us, absolve us and have mercy on us! Thou art our Protector, so grant us succour against those who reject Thee. ( A general prayer verse)
(2:127, 128) And when Abraham and Ishmael were raising the foundations of the House, (Abraham prayed): Our Sustainer! Accept from us (this duty). Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower. Our Sustainer! and make us submissive unto Thee and of our seed a nation submissive unto Thee, and show us our ways of Prayer, and relent towards us. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Relenting, the Merciful.
(7:155) And Moses chose seventy of his people for Our place of meeting; when they were seized with violent quaking. He prayed: O my Sustainer if it had been Thy Will Thou couldst have destroyed, long before, both them and me: wouldst Thou destroy us for the deeds of the foolish ones amongst us? This is no more than Thy trial: by it Thou causest whom Thou wilt to stray, and Thou leadest whom thou wilt into the right path. Thou art our Protector: so forgive us and give us Thy mercy; for Thou art the Best of those who forgive.
(5:118) If Thou punish them, lo! they are Thy slaves, and if Thou forgive them (lo! they are Thy slaves) Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Mighty, the Wise. (Prayer of Jesus)
(23:97, 98) O our Sustainer! I seek Thy protection against the incitements of the rebellious ones and I seek Thy protection, lest they should approach me. (Prayer of Muhammad).
Other instances of verses of in the Quran which we can use in our supplication to Allah are: 2:127,128,201,286; 3:8,16,26,27,38,53,191,192,193,194; 4:75; 5:83,84; 7:23,126; 11:45; 12:101; 14:40,41; 20:25,2,27,28,29,114; 21:83,87,89,112; 23:28,29,93,94,97, 98,118; 24:65,61; 25:74; 26:83,84,85; 27:19; 37:100.
Finally, we must remember that Allah is always near (2:186). He will listen to us and help us if we pray to Him, provided we are following 'the straight path'. If, instead of glorifying Him and praying for our guidance, we tell Him what is in the Qur'an by reciting verses which have no relevance to our prayers, then I cannot see how He can benefit us. We can reach Him, but only by hearing His call and His guidance - all of which involves good deeds.
(2:186) When My servants ask you concerning Me, tell them that I am always near. I hear the prayer of the suppliant whenever he calls out to Me. Therefore, let them hear My call and put their trust in Me, that they may be rightly guided.
The role of the mosque:
At present we have magnified the importance of the five daily prayers out of all proportion to our other duties specified in the Qur'an. Let me explain this by means of an example: in the U.K. the Muslims have established over 700 mosques, almost exclusively for the purpose of prayers. It is impossible to use these mosques for any sensible discussion on the Qur'an or for issues which face Muslims in this country, unless our views are in conformity with those of the governors and the Imam. The result is that these mosques are totally underused. Enormous sums have been spent in their construction, but the Muslims can hardly use them except for prayers. The only sermon that one gets from the Imam is before the Friday prayer and in that the topics are mostly based on the Hadiths and are hardly understood by the younger generation. So little is invested in the education of the younger generation that with the demise of the older generation the mosques will suffer the same fate as the churches in this country i.e.they will either remain empty or become bingo halls. Moreover, continual in-fighting for the control of the mosque is so common that people are moving away in disgust. Hence, unless we are able to put well-educated Imams in the mosques, Imams who have been brought up in this country, who can communicate with the younger generation, who are able to organise seminars on important issues and are able to organise some sensible teaching of the Qur'an for the younger generation, the future looks extremely bleak for Muslims in this country. People who are interested in organising lectures or education for the benefit of the community are not able to use these mosques. Instead, they have to use a church hall or some other rented hall and thereby incur unnecessary expenses.
Source:
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=60,0,0,1,0,0
4:103 Be mindful of God’s Commands whatever state you are in, standing, sitting or lying down. And when you are once again secure, establish the congregations of Salaat. Joining the congregations of Salaat at the times appointed by the Central Authority is a duty unto believers.
[Verses 4]
What Exactly Was NAMAAZ (Ritual Salaat): Analytically searching our history and Hadith, following was the probable situation in the lifetime of the exalted Prophet and Sahaba Kiraam.
• Ritual prayer or Namaaz was a small part of Aqamatis-Salaat, i.e. establishing the System that facilitates the following of Divine Commands.
• The ritual prayer was always congregational.
• Women and men both formed this congregation, women on the right side of men.
• The frequency and timing of the congregations were determined by the State as needed. It was never fixed as five times a day ritual.
• Namaaz was performed with the Imam (Central or local government official) reciting some verses from the Qur'an relevant to the situation at hand as the congregation listened to the Imam. Then the Imam would lead two units of prayers standing.
• Masjid was not a temple of worship. It was the Assembly, the School, the Municipality, the Parliament and the Government House. So, after that recitation, the leader would discuss real issues about the community, entertain questions, present bills, announce decisions of the Shura (Counsel) and the Assembly would legislate. People came up with their ideas for betterment of the society. Masjid was also the place where the leader was elected.
Source:
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=618
3) How do you know how much Zakah to pay using the Quran alone?
” And they ask you what they should give. Say, "All that is surplus."
2:219 [Certain things that hinder humans from attaining the aforementioned Noble Objective are now mentioned.] They ask you (O Messenger), concerning alcohol, intoxicants, games of chance, and gambling and money earned without labor. Say, “There is great detriment in these things as well as some benefits for mankind. But the detriment of them is much greater than the benefit of them. They drag down the individual and collective social potential.” And they ask you what they should give. Say, "All that is surplus." Thus Allah makes His Messages plain for you, that you may reflect -
See also:
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=628
http://www.tolueislam.com/Bazm/Mansoor/MA_zakah_i.htm
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=66,0,0,1,0,0
4) The Quran says that men could beat up their wives. But we know according to hadith that this is meant to be a light beating that inflicts a spiritual punishment and not a harmful physical one. What is to stop a man from misinterpreting the Quran and beating his wife severely?
What a NONSENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dharaba means more then a 100 things, it depends on the object and the possibilities of the object, for example, you can HIT a rock, but also MOVE the rock.
You can HIT a Woman, but also MOVE away from her, you also admonish her with examples which is also a meaning of Dharaba.
Also, the verse talks about RIJAL and NISAA, which is not used for husband and wife, but for MEN and WOMEN in society. It refers to a State Law, not a personal marriage law.
Their blind following of the Hadith has made them blind for the Quranic meanings.
4:34 Men are the protectors and maintainers of women. They shall take full care of women with what they spend of their wealth. God has made men to excel in some areas and women to excel in some areas. Men must see to it that women are provided for, and that they are able to stand on their feet in the society. So, righteous women are obedient to God’s Ordinances and guard their moral values even in privacy, the Values that God Commands to be guarded. If you (the society) experience(s) rebellion from women against the Permanent Values, and they stand up against you, apprise them of possible consequences.
Next, (you, the husbands will) leave them in their
resting places apart from you. And keep admonishing them with examples that they stop rebelling, else they may receive chastisement through a court of law (just as rebellious men would) If they pay heed to you, seek not a way against them. God is Most High, Great.
[‘Qawwam’ = Protector = Maintainer. ‘Nushooz’ = To stand up 2:259, 58:11, to stand up against, to rebel against the society, to rebel against the Permanent Values / ‘Wa’az’ = To apprise of consequences 2:231, 3:66 / ‘Dharb’ = Example 13]
5) It says in the Quran to shorten the prayer when you travel. How long do you have to travel in order to be eligible to have this privilege? How short to cut the prayer?
4:100 Anyone who emigrates in the Cause of God, will find that God has
placed refuge and abundance on earth. Whoever forsakes his home, as 'An
immigrant to God and His Messenger', and death overtakes him, his reward is then incumbent upon God. God is ever Forgiving, Merciful.
4:101 When you go forth in the land, there is no blame on you if you shorten the congregations of prayers, if you fear that the unbelievers may attack you. Surely, the rejecters are an open enemy to you.
There can be NO limits given, as it depends clearly on the situation. Hadith about this, are again clearly nonsense.
6) The Qur'an says to cut the hand of the thief. Does the word 'cut' in the verse mean to cut off or to cut in sense of making a little mark, or could it be metaphorical and mean cutting off the resources of the thief?
The context of the verses is clear:
5:38 (Theft is a crime that steals away the sense of security from a society) A habitual thief, male or female, must have their ability (to steal) cut off. This is the reward for their doings, and a deterrent from God. God is Almighty, Wise.
[For QAT’A, the so-called cutting of hands, please see 12]
Punishment for stealing
The last few years have seen the introduction of 'Islamic Law' (Shariah or Shariat) in some countries which call themselves Islamic States. One law in particular, quite often labelled by the West as barbaric, is the severing of a hand for theft. The so-called Islamic States which carry out these punishments do so for various political reasons, primarily to create fear and to hold on to power. Unfortunately, they go unquestioned, simply due to the fact that most people in the countries in question have no solid grounding in the Qur'anic injunctions regarding these issues.
According to the Qur'an, any punishment should fit the crime. The Qur'an says:
(5:45) And We prescribed for them therein: The life for the life, and the eye for the eye, and the nose for the nose, and the ear for the ear, and the tooth for the tooth, and for wounds of retaliation. But whoso forgoeth it (in the way of charity) it shall be expiation (atonement for past sins) for him. Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed; such are wrong-doers.
If we are to follow the Qur'anic guidance that the punishment should fit the crime, then we cannot cut off the hand of a person who has stolen wealth as such a punishment would be utterly inconsistent with the nature of the original offence. Rather, we have to look very carefully at the verses which deal with this issue. The Law regarding this punishment is given in verses 5:38,39. In verse 38 the word yad is translated in its literal sense as 'hand'. However, besides 'hand' the word yad also means 'strength of hands', 'power', 'property', 'wealth', 'blessings', 'obligation', and 'support'. Many Arabic words contain such multiple meanings and it is important to note that the appropriate meaning will always depend on the context in which it is used. Here the context is stealing (i.e. of wealth) and therefore for the punishment to fit the crime wealth should be recompensed for wealth and not 'hand' for 'wealth'. The thief should be given a punishment where he is made to give up his wealth to make good the loss of the person he has robbed. Hence the following translation of the verse, as given by the late Ahmed Ali Khan Jullundri in his translation and commentary of the Qur'an, is accurate:1
(5:38) As for the thieves, male or female, cut off their means of support and favours, take away their wealth and what they have hoarded, and make their hands and strength work (for the person whom they have robbed till the price of the stolen goods and some fine is recovered), an exemplary punishment from Allah for their serious crime and Allah is Mighty, Over-powering and the Possessor of great knowledge and He is the best disposer.2
The above translation also makes clear sense of the verse that follows it.
(5:39) But if the thief has repented and returned all the stolen goods and has mended himself, then truly Allah turns to him in forgiveness; surely Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.
On the other hand if verse 5:38 is translated literally to mean cutting off the physical hand, then verse 5:39 cannot be sustained logically. It would be ridiculous to suggest that Allah turns to a repentant thief who is now minus a hand! How is forgiveness appropriate after such a heavy penalty! However, we are told that if the thief returns the stolen goods and repents and reforms then he should be forgiven. This facility is directly at odds with any thought of cutting off a limb as a means of retribution, since such an action is irreversible.
In fact, in a truly Islamic State the question of cutting off a hand would not arise at all. There would be social justice and the State would act as trustee for the entire population. Hunger, injustice and poverty would be eliminated, as the wealth would be used for the benefit of the people. Further, the Qur'an states quite clearly that any such crime must be forgiven if there are mitigating circumstances i.e. poverty, hunger etc., as stated in the following verse
(5:3) [...]whoso is forced by hunger, not by will, to sin: (for him) lo! Allah is forgiving, Merciful.
So how can these verses ever be construed to advocate the cutting off of a hand? In tracking down the cause, for the mistranslation of verse 5:38 we need look no further than the prolific Hadith compilers who 'report' this un-Qur'anic retribution for theft (Bukhari 5.597, Muslim 4190, Abu Daud 4367, 4396)
7) Prophesies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came true from hadith. Thus proving that there are divine revelations sent down to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) except the Quran. How do you explain this?
Show us 1 prophecy that came "true" and I will show you 100 Christian prophecies that came "true".
But Mohammed could not have prophecied ANYTHING, WHY? Because the Quran says so:
7:187 (They even venture into predicting the end of the world) They ask you (O Messenger), about the Hour, when the end of the world will come to pass.
Say, "That knowledge is only with my Lord. He alone will manifest it at the
appropriate time. Heavy it is in the heavens and the earth. It will come upon
you suddenly." They ask you as if you could gain insight into this mystery with persistent inquiry. Say, “The knowledge thereof is with God only. But most people do not know that even Messengers were not given this knowledge.”
7:188 Say, "I do not even have the power to benefit myself or to avert harm
from myself, contrary to the Laws of God. If I had the knowledge of the
Unseen, I would have amassed abundant fortune, and no adversity would
have touched me. I am but a Warner and a bearer of good news for those who have Faith."
8) Qur'an says that we obey Allah and the Messenger (Surah 3:31-32,132; Surah 4:13-14,59,61,64,69,80; Surah 24:56). There are two separate commands here. One is to obey Allah and the other is to obey the Prophet. In order to obey someone, he would need to issue a command. So if we want to obey Allah we have to do so by reading the commands of Allah in the Quran and adhering to them. If we want to obey the Prophet then we have to do so read the commands of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the authentic hadith and adhere to them. Or is there another way?
See my article:
http://ourbeacon.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=546
9) It says in the Qu'ran (Surah 33:21) that we have the Messenger as a good example to follow. How would we know his example without the traditions to turn to?
There is a BIG difference between learning the wisdom of the history of the Prophet, and following historical accounts blindly and use them to understand the Quran. ALso the Quran explains the behaviour of the Prophet in many details.
10) We have different forms of reciting the Qur'an, which means that certain letters are taken away from the word or pronounced differently. Through authentic hadith, we know that these were accepted forms of reading approved by the Prophet (peace be upon him). But without hadith, how would we know this? Using the Qur'an alone, if I see that there are different forms of recitation then I would think that there is more than one Qur'an won't know which one is correct.
There are detail differences, and these were not accepted by the Prophet, they were created in the Middle Ages.
Part 2 of Answers coming tomorrow.
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
11) In Surah 2:221, God forbids us to marry polytheist women. Yet in Surah 5:5, God says that we can marry the believing women and the chaste from the People of the Book. A clear differentiation between believing women and people of the book. You can't have a believing person today from the people of the book who is not a Muslim. So if God were talking about the believing women from the people of the book He wouldn't have differentiated the "believing women" phrase from them. Plus the believing people from the people of the book were the ones who truly followed the teachings of Jesus and Moses, which are lost today. So by using the Quran alone, how do I know which verse came first. Did Surah 2:221 come first and then God sent down Surah 5:5 making an exception or did God send down Surah 5:5 first and then sent Surah 2:221 completely prohibiting that we marry the women from the people of the book?
Order has nothing to do with this. The Quran differs between 2 different Christians and 2 different Jews.
You have what we now call Uniterians, Christians who never accepted the Trinity, and are thus no Mushrikeen.
And Qaraim Jews, who only accept the Thora, and not the Rabbi explanations and their superstitions, and are thus also no Mushrikeen.
Is very simple when you study Christian and Jewish Theology and groups and how the Quran differs in explaining these groups.
12) Surah 24, verse 31 says "And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof" What exactly is this part that "appears thereof"?
HIJAB - ONCE AND FOR ALL
IS HIJAB OK? THREE RULES FOR WOMEN'S DRESS CODE:
"Veiling is the biggest impediment in the way of conveying Islam in the West." (Murad Hoffman)
01) The BEST garment is the criterion of righteousness. 02) Whenever you dress, cover your chest (bosoms). 03) Lengthen your garment.
COVER YOUR BOSOMS:
24:31 Here God orders the women to cover their bosoms whenever they dress up. But before quoting 24:31, let us review some crucial words that are always mentioned with this topic, namely "Hijab" and "Khimaar".
THE WORD HIJAB IN THE QUR'AN:
Hijab is the term used by many Muslim women to describe their head cover that may or may not include covering their face except their eyes, and sometimes also covering one eye. The Arabic word Hijab can be translated
into veil or yashmak. Other meanings for the word Hijab include screen, cover(ing), mantle, curtain, drapes, partition, division, divider etc.
Can we find the word "Hijab" in the Qur'an? The word "Hijab" appears in the Qur'an seven times, five of them as "Hijab" and twice as "Hijaban". See 7:46, 33:53, 38:32, 41:5, 42:51, 17:45 & 19:17. None of these "Hijab" words are used in the Qur'an in reference to what the traditional Muslims call today as the dress code for the Muslim woman. Hijab in the Qur'an has nothing to do with the Muslim Women dress code.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: While many Muslims call "Hijab", an Islamic dress code, they completely ignore the fact that, Hijab as a dress code has nothing to do with Islam and nothing to do with the Qur'an.
In reality, "Hijab" is an old Jewish tradition that infiltrated into the Hadith books like many innovations that contaminated Islam through alleged Hadith and Sunnah. Any student of the Jewish traditions or religious books will see that head cover for the Jewish woman is encouraged by the Rabbis and religious leaders. Religious Jewish women still cover their heads most of the time and especially in the synagogues, weddings, and religious festivities. This Jewish tradition is a cultural, not a religious one. Hijab was observed by the women of the civilizations that preceded the Jews and was passed down to the Jewish culture.
Christian women cover their heads on many religious occasions while the nuns cover their heads all the time. This religious practice of covering the head was established from traditions thousands of years before the Muslim scholars claimed the Hijab as part of the Muslim dress code. The traditional Arabs of all religions, Jews, Christians and Muslims used to wear "Hijab," not because of Islam, but because of tradition. In Saudi Arabia, up to this minute most of the men cover their head, not because of Islam but because of tradition. Thank God this tradition for men has not been counted as Islamic dress code yet!
North Africa is known for its Tribe (Tuareg) that have the Muslim men wearing "Hijab" instead of women. Here the tradition has the Hijab in reverse. If wearing Hijab is the exclusive sign of a pious and righteous Muslim woman, Mother Teresa must be the first woman to be counted. In brief, Hijab is a traditional dress and has nothing to do with Islam or religion. In certain areas of the world, men are the ones who wear the Hijab while in others the women do.
Mixing religion with tradition is a form of idol-worship, because not knowing (or not trying to find out) what God asked you to do in His Book, the Qur'an, is a sign of disregarding God and His Message. When tradition
supersedes God's Commandment, the true religion (Deen) takes a second place. God never accepts to be second, God has to be always the First and to Him there is no second.
THE WORD KHIMAAR IN THE QUR'AN: "Khimaar" is an Arabic word that can be found in the Qur'an 24:31. Dress Code For Women can be found in 24:31. Some Muslims quote verse 31 of Surah 24 as containing the Hijab, or head cover by pointing to the word, khomoorehenna, (from Khimaar), forgetting that God already used the word Hijab, several times in the Qur'an. Those blessed by God can see that the use of the word "Khimaar" in this verse is not for "Hijab" or for head cover. Those who quote this verse usually add (Head cover or veil) after the word Khomoorehenna, and usually between ( ), because it is their addition to the verse, not God's. Here is 24:31,
"And tell the believing women to subdue their eyes, and maintain their chastity. They shall not reveal any parts of their bodies, except that which is necessary. They shall cover their chests, with their Khimaar and shall not relax this code in the presence of other than their husbands, their fathers, the fathers of their husbands, their sons, the sons of their husbands, their brothers, the sons of their brothers, the sons of their sisters, other women, the male servants or employees whose sexual drive has been nullified, or the children who have not reached puberty. They shall not strike their feet when they walk in order to shake and reveal certain details of their bodies. All of you shall repent to God, O you believers, so that you may succeed."
Most of the translators, obviously influenced by Hadith (fabrications) translate the word as VEIL and thus mislead people to believe that this verse is advocating the covering of the head.
In 24:31, God is asking the women to use their cover (khimaar, being a dress, a coat, a shawl, a shirt, a blouse, a tie, a scarf . . . etc.) to cover their bosoms, not their heads or their hair. If God willed to order the women to cover their heads or their hair, He would have simply said, "Cover your hair." God is neither vague nor forgetful! God does not run out of words. He does not wait for a scholar to put the correct words for Him!
The Arabic word for Chest (Jayb) is in the verse 24:31, but the Arabic words for Head (Ra’s) or Hair (Sha'r) are NOT in the verse. The Commandment in the verse is clear - Cover your chest or bosoms, but also the fabrication of the scholars and most of the translators is clear by claiming-cover your head or hair.
The last part of the verse 24:31 translates as, "They shall not strike their feet when they walk in order to shake and reveal certain details of their
bodies. The details of the body can be revealed or not revealed by the dress you wear, not by your head cover. The word Zeenatahunna in this verse refers to the woman's body parts (beauty) and not to ornaments and decorations as some people interpret it or translate it. At the end of the verse, God tells the women not to strike with their feet to show their Zeenat. You do not need to strike your feet to show your ornaments but the way you strike your feet while walking can expose or shake certain parts of the body that do not need to be emphasized.
Accepting orders from anybody but God means idol-worship. That is how serious the matter of Hijab/Khimaar is. Women who wear Hijab because they think God ordered it are committing idol-worship, as God did not order it, the scholars did. These women have found for them another god than the One who revealed the Qur'an, complete, perfect and fully detailed. Idol-worship is the only unforgivable sin, if maintained till death. (4:48)
LENGTHEN YOUR GARMENTS: The first regulation of the Dress Code for Muslim women is in 7:26, the second in 24:31 and the third is in 33:59.
33:59 O Prophet! Tell your wives, your daughters, and the wives of the believers that they shall lengthen their garments. Thus, they will be recognized and avoid being insulted. God is Forgiver, Most Merciful."
Here God sets the other regulation for the dress code for women during the Prophet's life. This verse does not only address the wives of the Prophet, but also wives of the believers, and therefore, to all believing women.
If you reflect on this verse, you would understand the great wisdom of the Most Wise, the Most Merciful. In this verse, God never said how long is long. God could have said to lengthen their garments to their ankles or to their mid-calf or to their knees, but He did not. He did not, out of His Mercy, not because He forgot. God knows that we will be living in different communities, times and cultures, so the minor details of the dress code are left for the people of every community to decide for themselves. Modesty for a woman who lives in New York may not be accepted by a woman who lives in Cairo. Modesty of a woman who lives in Cairo may not be accepted by a woman who lives in Saudi Arabia. Modesty of a woman who lives in Jeddah may not be accepted by a woman who lives in a desert oasis in the same country. This difference in the way we perceive modesty is well-known to God. He created us, and He put NO hardship on us in this great religion. He left it to us to decide what modesty would be.
HARDSHIP IN RELIGION: God decided that those who will reject His complete Book and go look for other sources for guidance will suffer in this life and in the Hereafter by their choice. God never put any hardship on the believers but the scholars did. They invented their own laws in defiance
of God, to regulate everything from the side of bed you sleep on, to which foot should step in the house, to what to do with a fly in your soup, to what to say when having intercourse with your spouse.
Those who believe God and believe that His book is complete, perfect and fully detailed, will have everything easy for them as God promised, See 10:62-64, 16:97, while those who could not believe God and have been seeking other sources than the Qur'an will have all the hardship in this life and the life to come. In the Hereafter they will complain to God, "We were not idol-worshipers," but God knows best, He knows they were. See 6:22-24
"On the day when We summon them all, we will ask the idol worshipers, "Where are the idols you set up?" Their disastrous response will be, "By God, our Lord, we never were idol worshipers." Note how they lied to themselves, and how the idols they had invented have abandoned them."
CONCLUSION: God, the Most Merciful, gave us three basic rules for the Dress Code for Women in Islam.
01). The best garment is the criterion of righteousness.
02). Whenever you dress, cover your chest (bosoms).
03). Lengthen your garment.
While these three basic rules may not sound enough for those who do not trust God, the true believers know that God is ENOUGH. God could have given us more details to the point of having graphs, designs and color rules, but He, the Most Merciful, wants to give us exactly these very basic rules and leave the rest for us. After these three basic rules every woman is more aware of her circumstances and can adjust her dress for her situation. Any addition to these basic Qur'anic rules is an attempt to correct God or improve on His Merciful design. What is better than to quote God's Words in description of this trait of the human race:
18:54 We have cited in this Qur'an every kind of example, but the human being is the most argumentative creature.
We have no obligation to follow but God's Rules, just as His Messenger did all the time. Innovations and fabrications that add countless rules to the women dress code are nothing but idol-worship and should be refused. Stay with God; that is where the winners go.
WHAT BODY PARTS CAN WOMEN SHOW IN PUBLIC?
Face, hands and forearms, heads, feet and ankles.
5:6 O You who have chosen to be graced with belief! When you congregate for Salat, wash your faces and your forearms, hands to the elbows. Lightly rub your heads and your feet to the ankles."
Ibn Umar said that during the times of Rasulullah (S) men and women used to do Wudhu together." (Bukhari published by Madina Publishing Company, Karachi, 1982, Printer Hamid & Co, vol 1, pg 169 Kitabil Wudhu. The translator is “Maulana” Abdul Hakim Khan Shahjahan Puri)
Source:
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
And SE, we will have some Hadith avaible for download on the new website soon inshAllah.
Order has nothing to do with this. The Quran differs between 2 different Christians and 2 different Jews.
You have what we now call Uniterians, Christians who never accepted the Trinity, and are thus no Mushrikeen.
And Qaraim Jews, who only accept the Thora, and not the Rabbi explanations and their superstitions, and are thus also no Mushrikeen.
Is very simple when you study Christian and Jewish Theology and groups and how the Quran differs in explaining these groups.
12) Surah 24, verse 31 says "And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof" What exactly is this part that "appears thereof"?
HIJAB - ONCE AND FOR ALL
IS HIJAB OK? THREE RULES FOR WOMEN'S DRESS CODE:
"Veiling is the biggest impediment in the way of conveying Islam in the West." (Murad Hoffman)
01) The BEST garment is the criterion of righteousness. 02) Whenever you dress, cover your chest (bosoms). 03) Lengthen your garment.
COVER YOUR BOSOMS:
24:31 Here God orders the women to cover their bosoms whenever they dress up. But before quoting 24:31, let us review some crucial words that are always mentioned with this topic, namely "Hijab" and "Khimaar".
THE WORD HIJAB IN THE QUR'AN:
Hijab is the term used by many Muslim women to describe their head cover that may or may not include covering their face except their eyes, and sometimes also covering one eye. The Arabic word Hijab can be translated
into veil or yashmak. Other meanings for the word Hijab include screen, cover(ing), mantle, curtain, drapes, partition, division, divider etc.
Can we find the word "Hijab" in the Qur'an? The word "Hijab" appears in the Qur'an seven times, five of them as "Hijab" and twice as "Hijaban". See 7:46, 33:53, 38:32, 41:5, 42:51, 17:45 & 19:17. None of these "Hijab" words are used in the Qur'an in reference to what the traditional Muslims call today as the dress code for the Muslim woman. Hijab in the Qur'an has nothing to do with the Muslim Women dress code.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: While many Muslims call "Hijab", an Islamic dress code, they completely ignore the fact that, Hijab as a dress code has nothing to do with Islam and nothing to do with the Qur'an.
In reality, "Hijab" is an old Jewish tradition that infiltrated into the Hadith books like many innovations that contaminated Islam through alleged Hadith and Sunnah. Any student of the Jewish traditions or religious books will see that head cover for the Jewish woman is encouraged by the Rabbis and religious leaders. Religious Jewish women still cover their heads most of the time and especially in the synagogues, weddings, and religious festivities. This Jewish tradition is a cultural, not a religious one. Hijab was observed by the women of the civilizations that preceded the Jews and was passed down to the Jewish culture.
Christian women cover their heads on many religious occasions while the nuns cover their heads all the time. This religious practice of covering the head was established from traditions thousands of years before the Muslim scholars claimed the Hijab as part of the Muslim dress code. The traditional Arabs of all religions, Jews, Christians and Muslims used to wear "Hijab," not because of Islam, but because of tradition. In Saudi Arabia, up to this minute most of the men cover their head, not because of Islam but because of tradition. Thank God this tradition for men has not been counted as Islamic dress code yet!
North Africa is known for its Tribe (Tuareg) that have the Muslim men wearing "Hijab" instead of women. Here the tradition has the Hijab in reverse. If wearing Hijab is the exclusive sign of a pious and righteous Muslim woman, Mother Teresa must be the first woman to be counted. In brief, Hijab is a traditional dress and has nothing to do with Islam or religion. In certain areas of the world, men are the ones who wear the Hijab while in others the women do.
Mixing religion with tradition is a form of idol-worship, because not knowing (or not trying to find out) what God asked you to do in His Book, the Qur'an, is a sign of disregarding God and His Message. When tradition
supersedes God's Commandment, the true religion (Deen) takes a second place. God never accepts to be second, God has to be always the First and to Him there is no second.
THE WORD KHIMAAR IN THE QUR'AN: "Khimaar" is an Arabic word that can be found in the Qur'an 24:31. Dress Code For Women can be found in 24:31. Some Muslims quote verse 31 of Surah 24 as containing the Hijab, or head cover by pointing to the word, khomoorehenna, (from Khimaar), forgetting that God already used the word Hijab, several times in the Qur'an. Those blessed by God can see that the use of the word "Khimaar" in this verse is not for "Hijab" or for head cover. Those who quote this verse usually add (Head cover or veil) after the word Khomoorehenna, and usually between ( ), because it is their addition to the verse, not God's. Here is 24:31,
"And tell the believing women to subdue their eyes, and maintain their chastity. They shall not reveal any parts of their bodies, except that which is necessary. They shall cover their chests, with their Khimaar and shall not relax this code in the presence of other than their husbands, their fathers, the fathers of their husbands, their sons, the sons of their husbands, their brothers, the sons of their brothers, the sons of their sisters, other women, the male servants or employees whose sexual drive has been nullified, or the children who have not reached puberty. They shall not strike their feet when they walk in order to shake and reveal certain details of their bodies. All of you shall repent to God, O you believers, so that you may succeed."
Most of the translators, obviously influenced by Hadith (fabrications) translate the word as VEIL and thus mislead people to believe that this verse is advocating the covering of the head.
In 24:31, God is asking the women to use their cover (khimaar, being a dress, a coat, a shawl, a shirt, a blouse, a tie, a scarf . . . etc.) to cover their bosoms, not their heads or their hair. If God willed to order the women to cover their heads or their hair, He would have simply said, "Cover your hair." God is neither vague nor forgetful! God does not run out of words. He does not wait for a scholar to put the correct words for Him!
The Arabic word for Chest (Jayb) is in the verse 24:31, but the Arabic words for Head (Ra’s) or Hair (Sha'r) are NOT in the verse. The Commandment in the verse is clear - Cover your chest or bosoms, but also the fabrication of the scholars and most of the translators is clear by claiming-cover your head or hair.
The last part of the verse 24:31 translates as, "They shall not strike their feet when they walk in order to shake and reveal certain details of their
bodies. The details of the body can be revealed or not revealed by the dress you wear, not by your head cover. The word Zeenatahunna in this verse refers to the woman's body parts (beauty) and not to ornaments and decorations as some people interpret it or translate it. At the end of the verse, God tells the women not to strike with their feet to show their Zeenat. You do not need to strike your feet to show your ornaments but the way you strike your feet while walking can expose or shake certain parts of the body that do not need to be emphasized.
Accepting orders from anybody but God means idol-worship. That is how serious the matter of Hijab/Khimaar is. Women who wear Hijab because they think God ordered it are committing idol-worship, as God did not order it, the scholars did. These women have found for them another god than the One who revealed the Qur'an, complete, perfect and fully detailed. Idol-worship is the only unforgivable sin, if maintained till death. (4:48)
LENGTHEN YOUR GARMENTS: The first regulation of the Dress Code for Muslim women is in 7:26, the second in 24:31 and the third is in 33:59.
33:59 O Prophet! Tell your wives, your daughters, and the wives of the believers that they shall lengthen their garments. Thus, they will be recognized and avoid being insulted. God is Forgiver, Most Merciful."
Here God sets the other regulation for the dress code for women during the Prophet's life. This verse does not only address the wives of the Prophet, but also wives of the believers, and therefore, to all believing women.
If you reflect on this verse, you would understand the great wisdom of the Most Wise, the Most Merciful. In this verse, God never said how long is long. God could have said to lengthen their garments to their ankles or to their mid-calf or to their knees, but He did not. He did not, out of His Mercy, not because He forgot. God knows that we will be living in different communities, times and cultures, so the minor details of the dress code are left for the people of every community to decide for themselves. Modesty for a woman who lives in New York may not be accepted by a woman who lives in Cairo. Modesty of a woman who lives in Cairo may not be accepted by a woman who lives in Saudi Arabia. Modesty of a woman who lives in Jeddah may not be accepted by a woman who lives in a desert oasis in the same country. This difference in the way we perceive modesty is well-known to God. He created us, and He put NO hardship on us in this great religion. He left it to us to decide what modesty would be.
HARDSHIP IN RELIGION: God decided that those who will reject His complete Book and go look for other sources for guidance will suffer in this life and in the Hereafter by their choice. God never put any hardship on the believers but the scholars did. They invented their own laws in defiance
of God, to regulate everything from the side of bed you sleep on, to which foot should step in the house, to what to do with a fly in your soup, to what to say when having intercourse with your spouse.
Those who believe God and believe that His book is complete, perfect and fully detailed, will have everything easy for them as God promised, See 10:62-64, 16:97, while those who could not believe God and have been seeking other sources than the Qur'an will have all the hardship in this life and the life to come. In the Hereafter they will complain to God, "We were not idol-worshipers," but God knows best, He knows they were. See 6:22-24
"On the day when We summon them all, we will ask the idol worshipers, "Where are the idols you set up?" Their disastrous response will be, "By God, our Lord, we never were idol worshipers." Note how they lied to themselves, and how the idols they had invented have abandoned them."
CONCLUSION: God, the Most Merciful, gave us three basic rules for the Dress Code for Women in Islam.
01). The best garment is the criterion of righteousness.
02). Whenever you dress, cover your chest (bosoms).
03). Lengthen your garment.
While these three basic rules may not sound enough for those who do not trust God, the true believers know that God is ENOUGH. God could have given us more details to the point of having graphs, designs and color rules, but He, the Most Merciful, wants to give us exactly these very basic rules and leave the rest for us. After these three basic rules every woman is more aware of her circumstances and can adjust her dress for her situation. Any addition to these basic Qur'anic rules is an attempt to correct God or improve on His Merciful design. What is better than to quote God's Words in description of this trait of the human race:
18:54 We have cited in this Qur'an every kind of example, but the human being is the most argumentative creature.
We have no obligation to follow but God's Rules, just as His Messenger did all the time. Innovations and fabrications that add countless rules to the women dress code are nothing but idol-worship and should be refused. Stay with God; that is where the winners go.
WHAT BODY PARTS CAN WOMEN SHOW IN PUBLIC?
Face, hands and forearms, heads, feet and ankles.
5:6 O You who have chosen to be graced with belief! When you congregate for Salat, wash your faces and your forearms, hands to the elbows. Lightly rub your heads and your feet to the ankles."
Ibn Umar said that during the times of Rasulullah (S) men and women used to do Wudhu together." (Bukhari published by Madina Publishing Company, Karachi, 1982, Printer Hamid & Co, vol 1, pg 169 Kitabil Wudhu. The translator is “Maulana” Abdul Hakim Khan Shahjahan Puri)
Source:
http://www.ourbeacon.com/truehistory.pdf
And SE, we will have some Hadith avaible for download on the new website soon inshAllah.
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
As you can clearly see, their so-called questions are all answered easily through the Quran and logic. Those who have splitted up Islam into sects and make Islam a religion instead of a Divine System, will never attain the Glory Allah has promised in the Quran.
As the blind following of the Hadith and Tafseers, writings which were made by the people who tried to destroy the Quranic System, will block them from the Glory the first generations of Muslims attained.
Those who make sects in the Deen, we have nothing to do with them:
6:159 (There is only one Straight Path) O Messenger! Those who break the unity of their DEEN and become sects, you have nothing to do with them whatsoever. Indeed, their case will go to God and He will then tell them what they had been doing.
2:27 [Just as there is One Creator, likewise mankind is but one
Community.]
Those who break this ratified Bond of God and cut asunder the
unity of mankind that God has commanded them to uphold - into
races, colors, sects and regions, and thus lay the foundation of
chaos on earth, those will be the losers in the long run. (9:33-34,
9:111, 10:19, 13:20-24, 31:28, 83:6, 114:1)
9:33 He it is Who has sent His Messenger with Guidance and the True
Religion (DEEN = The System of Life), that He may cause it to prevail over all religions and systems of life, even though the idolaters may detest it. (9:31-33, 13:31, 14:48, 18:48, 41:53, 48:28, 51:20-21, 61:9)
9:34 O You who have chosen to be graced with belief! A great many religious leaders, rabbis, priests, monks, Mullas, yogis, and mystics devour the wealth of mankind in falsehood, and debar them from the Path of God. All those who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the Cause of God, to them give tidings (O Prophet) of a painful doom. (‘Ahbaar’ = Clergy of any religion. ‘Ruhbaan’ = Sufis & Monks)
2:176 This is so, because God has revealed the Book in absolute
Truth, therein is no contradiction. Obviously, those who set their
own views against the Book, split deeply into sects and fall into
mutual disputes.
[4]
3:103 You must hold fast, all of you together, to the Bond of God
and be not divided into sects. (The Bond or Rope of God is the
Quran which is an Unbreakable Support 2:256) Always, remember
God’s Favor upon you when you were enemies and, almost
overnight, He brought mutual affection in your hearts. Thus, you
became brothers and sisters by His Grace. And recall that you
were on the brink of the pit of fire, and He saved you from it.
(Various tribes used to attack one another, and personal enmity
plagued them) This is how effectively God has made His
Messages clear for you to journey on the lighted road. (6:165,
30:31-32, 'Huda' = Guidance = Walk the right path = Travel on a
lighted road)
3:104 Let yours be the community (in the world) that rises up and
invites unto all that is collectively good. Advocate virtue by
example, and close the doors to vice by example. For, such are
they, they who are truly successful and eternally prosper.
What Allah says about the Quran in the Quran:
-There is no doubt in this Book (2:2).
-Allah has taken the responsibility to explain it (75:19).
-Allah says He has revealed the Quran and He will protect it (15:9).
-Allah’s revelation to the Prophet (PBUH) is written in the Quran (6:19). There is no verse in the Quran which says that Allah’s revelation to the Prophet (PBUH) is outside the Quran.
-Momineen are asked to obey the revelation from Allah (7:3).
-The Prophet (PBUH) was asked to obey the revelation sent down on him (10:109).
-He was asked to follow the Quran (75:18).
-Allah required the Prophet (PBUH) to follow the blessed Book sent down on him (6:155).
-The Prophet (PBUH) used to judge matters according to the revelation sent down on him (5:48).
-Those who do not judge matters according to what Allah has revealed are Kaafirs (5:44).
-In the Quran, Allah has completed His message and no one can change anything in it (6:34, 6:115).
-The Quran encompasses the message of earlier revelations (5:48). So, the truth of earlier revelations is now contained in the Quran.
-In it there are no contradictions (4:82).
-Allah has called the Quran "Tibyaanan li Kulli Shaiyin (16:89)". This means it explains everything.
-Allah gives many verses on a particular topic over and over again (6:105, 17:41). This means that we have to collect all the verses on a topic in order to understand it fully. This is the Divine method of understanding the Quran.
-The Prophet (PBUH) was required to solve all human differences through the Quran (16:64).
-The Prophet (PBUH) was required to admonish and remind people through the Quran (50:45).
-The Quran itself is light (5:15). So, it is not dependent on another source of light.
-This light (i.e., the Quran) has been given so that human beings, using this light, can travel safely on the path of life (6:122).
-Allah undertook the responsibility to collect the Quran (75:17).
-Whatever difference human beings have, the decision is with Allah (42:10). [Since Allah’s decision is contained only in the Quran, it is logical to believe that it has the power to serve as the constitution for the entire world, creating a universal brotherhood. The model implemented by the Prophet (PBUH) is a proof of this.]
What do we know about the Quran, and what do we know about Hadith and Sunnah:
-The Quran is the final word of God.
-It has been preserved exactly as it was revealed to the Prophet (PBUH).
-The Prophet (PBUH) left only the Quran in written form since he forbade writing of hadith during his life time (Sahih Al-Muslim).
-The Quran was written by very honorable scribes (80:16).
-There were many companions who had memorized the entire Quran word by word.
-Unlike the authenticity of hadith, there is no dispute among scholars (Sunni or Shi’ia) about the authenticity of the Quranic verses.
-There are six Sunni books of hadith which are normally referred to as "sa’hha sitta" (six true books). Shi’ias have their own four important books of -hadith. These were compiled and written based on (a chain of) oral narration mostly in the third century Hijrah or later.
-Scholars agree that the chain of narrators transmitted the meaning of hadith and not the exact words of the Prophet (PBUH).
-It is generally agreed that the chain of narrators, no matter how reliable, were humans and subject to human errors. Consequently, their narrations -are subject to errors. The Quran is the only Book beyond error.
-As a consequence, ahadith are classified into several categories starting from "correct" on one side to "coined" on the other. (Verses of the Quran do not have such classification.)
-Shi’ia scholars do not accept Sunni books of hadith. Even among the Sunnis, there are some ahadith which are accepted as ‘correct’ by one group of scholars (Ahlul-Hadith, for example) but not by other groups (like Ahlul Fiqh and others).
-The authenticity of hadith is not equal to the authenticity of the verses of the Quran.
-"The sayings of the Prophet (PBUH) and the sayings we find in the books of ahadith are not necessarily one and the same." (Maulana Maududi, Rasayel-o-Massayel, Volume I, 1951 edition, page 270).
-Sahih Bukhari: This was compiled by Imam Muhammad Isma’il Bukhari. He was born in Bukhara and died near Samarqand in 256 A.H. (or in 260 A.H.). It is said that he collected about 600,000 ahaadith. From these he selected about 7,300 for his book, having discarded the rest.
-Sahih Muslim: This was compiled by Imam Muslim Bin Hujjaj. He was born in 204 A.H. in the famous Iranian city of Nishapur and died in 261 A.H. He collected about 300,000 ahaadith and selected 4,348 for his book.
-Tirmidhi: This was compiled by Imam Abu ‘Isa Muhammad Tirmidhi. He was born in the Iranian city of Tirmidh in 209 A.H. and died in 279 A.H.. He collected 300,000 ahaadith and selected 3,115.
-Abu Daawood: He was born in 202 A.H. in the Iranian city of Sistaan and died in 275 A.H. He collected 500,000 ahaadith and kept only 4,800 in his book.
-Ibn Maaja: This was compiled by Imam Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Zayd Ibn Maaja. He was from the Iranian city of Qazwin. He was born in 209 A.H. and died in 273 A.H. He collected 400,000 ahaadith and selected only 4,000 for his book.
-Nisayee: This was compiled by Imam Abdul Rahman Nisayee. He was born in the village of Nisa in the province of Khurasaan in Iran. He died in 303 A.H. He collected 200,000 and selected 4,321 for his book.
The Quran is Islam, all else is human interpretation and recording of History and understanding and thus can NEVER have authoriy over the Quran, the Quran has the authority over ALL else.
25:1 Most Blessed is He Who has revealed to His servant, the Criterion of the right and the wrong so that it might be a warning to the entire world.
[And, hence, the Prophet, with his conduct well-preserved in the Quran, shall be a Warner to all people anywhere and at all times 6]
As the blind following of the Hadith and Tafseers, writings which were made by the people who tried to destroy the Quranic System, will block them from the Glory the first generations of Muslims attained.
Those who make sects in the Deen, we have nothing to do with them:
6:159 (There is only one Straight Path) O Messenger! Those who break the unity of their DEEN and become sects, you have nothing to do with them whatsoever. Indeed, their case will go to God and He will then tell them what they had been doing.
2:27 [Just as there is One Creator, likewise mankind is but one
Community.]
Those who break this ratified Bond of God and cut asunder the
unity of mankind that God has commanded them to uphold - into
races, colors, sects and regions, and thus lay the foundation of
chaos on earth, those will be the losers in the long run. (9:33-34,
9:111, 10:19, 13:20-24, 31:28, 83:6, 114:1)
9:33 He it is Who has sent His Messenger with Guidance and the True
Religion (DEEN = The System of Life), that He may cause it to prevail over all religions and systems of life, even though the idolaters may detest it. (9:31-33, 13:31, 14:48, 18:48, 41:53, 48:28, 51:20-21, 61:9)
9:34 O You who have chosen to be graced with belief! A great many religious leaders, rabbis, priests, monks, Mullas, yogis, and mystics devour the wealth of mankind in falsehood, and debar them from the Path of God. All those who hoard up gold and silver and spend it not in the Cause of God, to them give tidings (O Prophet) of a painful doom. (‘Ahbaar’ = Clergy of any religion. ‘Ruhbaan’ = Sufis & Monks)
2:176 This is so, because God has revealed the Book in absolute
Truth, therein is no contradiction. Obviously, those who set their
own views against the Book, split deeply into sects and fall into
mutual disputes.
[4]
3:103 You must hold fast, all of you together, to the Bond of God
and be not divided into sects. (The Bond or Rope of God is the
Quran which is an Unbreakable Support 2:256) Always, remember
God’s Favor upon you when you were enemies and, almost
overnight, He brought mutual affection in your hearts. Thus, you
became brothers and sisters by His Grace. And recall that you
were on the brink of the pit of fire, and He saved you from it.
(Various tribes used to attack one another, and personal enmity
plagued them) This is how effectively God has made His
Messages clear for you to journey on the lighted road. (6:165,
30:31-32, 'Huda' = Guidance = Walk the right path = Travel on a
lighted road)
3:104 Let yours be the community (in the world) that rises up and
invites unto all that is collectively good. Advocate virtue by
example, and close the doors to vice by example. For, such are
they, they who are truly successful and eternally prosper.
What Allah says about the Quran in the Quran:
-There is no doubt in this Book (2:2).
-Allah has taken the responsibility to explain it (75:19).
-Allah says He has revealed the Quran and He will protect it (15:9).
-Allah’s revelation to the Prophet (PBUH) is written in the Quran (6:19). There is no verse in the Quran which says that Allah’s revelation to the Prophet (PBUH) is outside the Quran.
-Momineen are asked to obey the revelation from Allah (7:3).
-The Prophet (PBUH) was asked to obey the revelation sent down on him (10:109).
-He was asked to follow the Quran (75:18).
-Allah required the Prophet (PBUH) to follow the blessed Book sent down on him (6:155).
-The Prophet (PBUH) used to judge matters according to the revelation sent down on him (5:48).
-Those who do not judge matters according to what Allah has revealed are Kaafirs (5:44).
-In the Quran, Allah has completed His message and no one can change anything in it (6:34, 6:115).
-The Quran encompasses the message of earlier revelations (5:48). So, the truth of earlier revelations is now contained in the Quran.
-In it there are no contradictions (4:82).
-Allah has called the Quran "Tibyaanan li Kulli Shaiyin (16:89)". This means it explains everything.
-Allah gives many verses on a particular topic over and over again (6:105, 17:41). This means that we have to collect all the verses on a topic in order to understand it fully. This is the Divine method of understanding the Quran.
-The Prophet (PBUH) was required to solve all human differences through the Quran (16:64).
-The Prophet (PBUH) was required to admonish and remind people through the Quran (50:45).
-The Quran itself is light (5:15). So, it is not dependent on another source of light.
-This light (i.e., the Quran) has been given so that human beings, using this light, can travel safely on the path of life (6:122).
-Allah undertook the responsibility to collect the Quran (75:17).
-Whatever difference human beings have, the decision is with Allah (42:10). [Since Allah’s decision is contained only in the Quran, it is logical to believe that it has the power to serve as the constitution for the entire world, creating a universal brotherhood. The model implemented by the Prophet (PBUH) is a proof of this.]
What do we know about the Quran, and what do we know about Hadith and Sunnah:
-The Quran is the final word of God.
-It has been preserved exactly as it was revealed to the Prophet (PBUH).
-The Prophet (PBUH) left only the Quran in written form since he forbade writing of hadith during his life time (Sahih Al-Muslim).
-The Quran was written by very honorable scribes (80:16).
-There were many companions who had memorized the entire Quran word by word.
-Unlike the authenticity of hadith, there is no dispute among scholars (Sunni or Shi’ia) about the authenticity of the Quranic verses.
-There are six Sunni books of hadith which are normally referred to as "sa’hha sitta" (six true books). Shi’ias have their own four important books of -hadith. These were compiled and written based on (a chain of) oral narration mostly in the third century Hijrah or later.
-Scholars agree that the chain of narrators transmitted the meaning of hadith and not the exact words of the Prophet (PBUH).
-It is generally agreed that the chain of narrators, no matter how reliable, were humans and subject to human errors. Consequently, their narrations -are subject to errors. The Quran is the only Book beyond error.
-As a consequence, ahadith are classified into several categories starting from "correct" on one side to "coined" on the other. (Verses of the Quran do not have such classification.)
-Shi’ia scholars do not accept Sunni books of hadith. Even among the Sunnis, there are some ahadith which are accepted as ‘correct’ by one group of scholars (Ahlul-Hadith, for example) but not by other groups (like Ahlul Fiqh and others).
-The authenticity of hadith is not equal to the authenticity of the verses of the Quran.
-"The sayings of the Prophet (PBUH) and the sayings we find in the books of ahadith are not necessarily one and the same." (Maulana Maududi, Rasayel-o-Massayel, Volume I, 1951 edition, page 270).
-Sahih Bukhari: This was compiled by Imam Muhammad Isma’il Bukhari. He was born in Bukhara and died near Samarqand in 256 A.H. (or in 260 A.H.). It is said that he collected about 600,000 ahaadith. From these he selected about 7,300 for his book, having discarded the rest.
-Sahih Muslim: This was compiled by Imam Muslim Bin Hujjaj. He was born in 204 A.H. in the famous Iranian city of Nishapur and died in 261 A.H. He collected about 300,000 ahaadith and selected 4,348 for his book.
-Tirmidhi: This was compiled by Imam Abu ‘Isa Muhammad Tirmidhi. He was born in the Iranian city of Tirmidh in 209 A.H. and died in 279 A.H.. He collected 300,000 ahaadith and selected 3,115.
-Abu Daawood: He was born in 202 A.H. in the Iranian city of Sistaan and died in 275 A.H. He collected 500,000 ahaadith and kept only 4,800 in his book.
-Ibn Maaja: This was compiled by Imam Abu Abdullah Muhammad Bin Zayd Ibn Maaja. He was from the Iranian city of Qazwin. He was born in 209 A.H. and died in 273 A.H. He collected 400,000 ahaadith and selected only 4,000 for his book.
-Nisayee: This was compiled by Imam Abdul Rahman Nisayee. He was born in the village of Nisa in the province of Khurasaan in Iran. He died in 303 A.H. He collected 200,000 and selected 4,321 for his book.
The Quran is Islam, all else is human interpretation and recording of History and understanding and thus can NEVER have authoriy over the Quran, the Quran has the authority over ALL else.
25:1 Most Blessed is He Who has revealed to His servant, the Criterion of the right and the wrong so that it might be a warning to the entire world.
[And, hence, the Prophet, with his conduct well-preserved in the Quran, shall be a Warner to all people anywhere and at all times 6]
-
SE
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
very good answers, two questions I forgot to post over. I'll show him the link.
13) If the Quran is so easy to understand on our own, then why did Allah have some Muslims staying behind in Madinah in order to become very well versed in religion, while the others go out to the battlefield so that they can then come back to be taught (Surah 9:122)?
14) Allah says in the Qur'an (Surah 75:19) that the Qur'an will be recited. But then in the verse right after (verse 20) it is also said that then the Qur'an will be explained. If the Qur'an is self-explanatory then the only thing that needs to be done is reciting it out. However, in verse 19 the function of reciting is done and then in the verse right after, the function of explaining is done. Clearly these are two different tasks, which means that just reading the Qur'an alone does not give you the full explanation required. It has to be explained through some other source. What is that other source?
13) If the Quran is so easy to understand on our own, then why did Allah have some Muslims staying behind in Madinah in order to become very well versed in religion, while the others go out to the battlefield so that they can then come back to be taught (Surah 9:122)?
14) Allah says in the Qur'an (Surah 75:19) that the Qur'an will be recited. But then in the verse right after (verse 20) it is also said that then the Qur'an will be explained. If the Qur'an is self-explanatory then the only thing that needs to be done is reciting it out. However, in verse 19 the function of reciting is done and then in the verse right after, the function of explaining is done. Clearly these are two different tasks, which means that just reading the Qur'an alone does not give you the full explanation required. It has to be explained through some other source. What is that other source?
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
13) If the Quran is so easy to understand on our own, then why did Allah have some Muslims staying behind in Madinah in order to become very well versed in religion, while the others go out to the battlefield so that they can then come back to be taught (Surah 9:122)?
So because it is adviced not to march out with the whole population, which by the way is normal strategy, the System is immediately difficult to understand? This interpretation goes directly against the Quranic Message:
54:17 And We made the Quran easy to learn. Do any of you wish to learn?
54:22 We made the Quran easy to learn. Do any of you wish to learn?
54:32 We made the Quran easy to learn. Does any of you wish to learn?
There were constant new believers coming in to Medina, these had to be taught the Islamic Deen. They believed in the Deen, but you can only be a full Mumin after gaining knowledge about it too. So you were only valuable after being taught the Deen, as you were completely convinced of the Islamic Deen being true. The Quran cannot be taught in a day or two, of course not, it took years to be conveyed to the people. But this does not mean the Quranic System is difficult or needs outside sources to be explained.
This argument even destroys the need for Hadith, as only a few people can have the time to go through the 1.5 million Hadith and thousands of Tafseer and Fiqh books. While everyone, EVERYONE, can be taught Arabic and study the Quran.
14) Allah says in the Qur'an (Surah 75:19) that the Qur'an will be recited. But then in the verse right after (verse 20) it is also said that then the Qur'an will be explained. If the Qur'an is self-explanatory then the only thing that needs to be done is reciting it out. However, in verse 19 the function of reciting is done and then in the verse right after, the function of explaining is done. Clearly these are two different tasks, which means that just reading the Qur'an alone does not give you the full explanation required. It has to be explained through some other source. What is that other source?
The Quran is explained through the Classic Arabic meanings and the REPITITION of words and subjects, this is why the recital of the Quran EXPLAINS the Quran. See also:
http://members.tripod.com/lebou/authorityof.htm
Explanation of the Qur'an by the Qur'an
As discussed in the previous chapter there are many verses in the Qur'an which are easy to understand and which should form the basis for our lives (for examples see sections 6.1 and 6.2). When looking to understand the Qur'an further we should bear in mind that Allah says in many verses that He will explain the Qur'an. A few of these verses are quoted below:
(75:19) And that behold, it will be for Us to explain it. (by-ya-nahu)
(41:3) A Book, the signs which have been explained in detail as a Qur'an in Arabic for people of knowledge to be a herald of glad tidings as well as a warning.
There are a number of points here: it is a Book which has been explained in detail and Allah is explaining it. Another important point is that it is for people of knowledge. Therefore, we must have the desire to understand the Qur'an by studying it, and thereby acquire knowledge with Allah's help.
(17:41) We have explained (things) in various (ways) in the Qur'an, in order that they may receive admonition, but it only increases their flight from the truth.
(17:89) And We have explained to mankind, in this Qur'an, every kind of similitude, yet the greater part of mankind refuse (to receive it) except with ingratitude [...]
(39:27) And verily We have coined for mankind in this Qur'an all kinds of similitudes, that perhaps they might reflect [...]
(18:54) We have explained in detail in this Qur'an, for the benefit of mankind, every kind of similitude, but man is in most things contentious.
(30:58) Verily, We have propounded for mankind in this Qur'an, every kind of parable [...]
(6: 65) Behold how many facets We give to these signs, so that they might understand the truth [...]
(7:52) [...] For indeed We did convey unto them a Book which We expounded with knowledge (ilm) -- a guidance (huda) and a grace (rahmat) for people who believe.
(6:114) Shall I seek other than Allah for judge when it is He who has revealed unto you (this) Book, fully explained [..?]
(2:219) [...] Thus Allah makes plain to you (His) revelations, that perhaps you may reflect.
(3:103) [...] Thus Allah makes clear His revelations unto you that perhaps you may be guided.
(6:97) [...] clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these signs unto people of knowledge.
(6:98) [...] clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these signs unto people who can grasp the truth.
(6:99) [...] Verily in all this are signs (ayats) for people who will be convinced.
Since the Qur'an itself states that it has propounded all and every kind of similitude, has displayed its signs in various forms, has explained its signs in detail, and that it is based on knowledge and is for people of knowledge who reflect and think, the only conclusion we can reasonably come to is that the Qur'an explains itself, i.e. the Qur'an is self-explanatory. We, on our part, must receive it as Allah's word, and do our best to study and understand it. Mohammed Asad, a translator of the Qur'an, has stated that the Qur'an is self-explanatory, it needs nothing else. This point has been echoed by other famous scholars, such as Mohammed Abduh of Egypt, Dr. Abdul Wadud, Inayat Ullah Khan El- Mashriqi and Allama G. A. Parwez. The Book should be interpreted as it says, that is, through itself. This is the correct method, the method which the Qur'an specifies.
To summarise: (1) The Qur'an is the only source of true and comprehensive guidance. (2) The Qur'an is in Arabic. (3) To study it, we must have an open mind, no pre-conceived notions, and a desire for knowledge. (4) The Qur'an indicates very clearly that it does its own tafsir (explanation).
References:
1. Tafsir Al-Qur'an Bil Qur'an (Explanation of the Qur'an by the Qur'an): Lecture by Syed Mustafa Ali. Section based on the handout supplied.
2. Translations of the quoted Qur'anic verses are based on M.Pickthall and Yusuf Ali.
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=12,0,0,1,0,0
So because it is adviced not to march out with the whole population, which by the way is normal strategy, the System is immediately difficult to understand? This interpretation goes directly against the Quranic Message:
54:17 And We made the Quran easy to learn. Do any of you wish to learn?
54:22 We made the Quran easy to learn. Do any of you wish to learn?
54:32 We made the Quran easy to learn. Does any of you wish to learn?
There were constant new believers coming in to Medina, these had to be taught the Islamic Deen. They believed in the Deen, but you can only be a full Mumin after gaining knowledge about it too. So you were only valuable after being taught the Deen, as you were completely convinced of the Islamic Deen being true. The Quran cannot be taught in a day or two, of course not, it took years to be conveyed to the people. But this does not mean the Quranic System is difficult or needs outside sources to be explained.
This argument even destroys the need for Hadith, as only a few people can have the time to go through the 1.5 million Hadith and thousands of Tafseer and Fiqh books. While everyone, EVERYONE, can be taught Arabic and study the Quran.
14) Allah says in the Qur'an (Surah 75:19) that the Qur'an will be recited. But then in the verse right after (verse 20) it is also said that then the Qur'an will be explained. If the Qur'an is self-explanatory then the only thing that needs to be done is reciting it out. However, in verse 19 the function of reciting is done and then in the verse right after, the function of explaining is done. Clearly these are two different tasks, which means that just reading the Qur'an alone does not give you the full explanation required. It has to be explained through some other source. What is that other source?
The Quran is explained through the Classic Arabic meanings and the REPITITION of words and subjects, this is why the recital of the Quran EXPLAINS the Quran. See also:
http://members.tripod.com/lebou/authorityof.htm
Explanation of the Qur'an by the Qur'an
As discussed in the previous chapter there are many verses in the Qur'an which are easy to understand and which should form the basis for our lives (for examples see sections 6.1 and 6.2). When looking to understand the Qur'an further we should bear in mind that Allah says in many verses that He will explain the Qur'an. A few of these verses are quoted below:
(75:19) And that behold, it will be for Us to explain it. (by-ya-nahu)
(41:3) A Book, the signs which have been explained in detail as a Qur'an in Arabic for people of knowledge to be a herald of glad tidings as well as a warning.
There are a number of points here: it is a Book which has been explained in detail and Allah is explaining it. Another important point is that it is for people of knowledge. Therefore, we must have the desire to understand the Qur'an by studying it, and thereby acquire knowledge with Allah's help.
(17:41) We have explained (things) in various (ways) in the Qur'an, in order that they may receive admonition, but it only increases their flight from the truth.
(17:89) And We have explained to mankind, in this Qur'an, every kind of similitude, yet the greater part of mankind refuse (to receive it) except with ingratitude [...]
(39:27) And verily We have coined for mankind in this Qur'an all kinds of similitudes, that perhaps they might reflect [...]
(18:54) We have explained in detail in this Qur'an, for the benefit of mankind, every kind of similitude, but man is in most things contentious.
(30:58) Verily, We have propounded for mankind in this Qur'an, every kind of parable [...]
(6: 65) Behold how many facets We give to these signs, so that they might understand the truth [...]
(7:52) [...] For indeed We did convey unto them a Book which We expounded with knowledge (ilm) -- a guidance (huda) and a grace (rahmat) for people who believe.
(6:114) Shall I seek other than Allah for judge when it is He who has revealed unto you (this) Book, fully explained [..?]
(2:219) [...] Thus Allah makes plain to you (His) revelations, that perhaps you may reflect.
(3:103) [...] Thus Allah makes clear His revelations unto you that perhaps you may be guided.
(6:97) [...] clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these signs unto people of knowledge.
(6:98) [...] clearly, indeed, have We spelled out these signs unto people who can grasp the truth.
(6:99) [...] Verily in all this are signs (ayats) for people who will be convinced.
Since the Qur'an itself states that it has propounded all and every kind of similitude, has displayed its signs in various forms, has explained its signs in detail, and that it is based on knowledge and is for people of knowledge who reflect and think, the only conclusion we can reasonably come to is that the Qur'an explains itself, i.e. the Qur'an is self-explanatory. We, on our part, must receive it as Allah's word, and do our best to study and understand it. Mohammed Asad, a translator of the Qur'an, has stated that the Qur'an is self-explanatory, it needs nothing else. This point has been echoed by other famous scholars, such as Mohammed Abduh of Egypt, Dr. Abdul Wadud, Inayat Ullah Khan El- Mashriqi and Allama G. A. Parwez. The Book should be interpreted as it says, that is, through itself. This is the correct method, the method which the Qur'an specifies.
To summarise: (1) The Qur'an is the only source of true and comprehensive guidance. (2) The Qur'an is in Arabic. (3) To study it, we must have an open mind, no pre-conceived notions, and a desire for knowledge. (4) The Qur'an indicates very clearly that it does its own tafsir (explanation).
References:
1. Tafsir Al-Qur'an Bil Qur'an (Explanation of the Qur'an by the Qur'an): Lecture by Syed Mustafa Ali. Section based on the handout supplied.
2. Translations of the quoted Qur'anic verses are based on M.Pickthall and Yusuf Ali.
http://www.astudyofquran.org/web/index.php?id=12,0,0,1,0,0
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
I was reading the questioners own "Sunnah" answers to the questions he has given. I will address them also one by one when I have time.
But here is already one that collapses on its own argument:
7) Prophesies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came true from hadith. Thus proving that there are divine revelations sent down to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) except the Quran. How do you explain this?
His answer:
Some argue that the Prophet did not know the unseen; therefore we cannot appeal to these hadith that prophesize the future. They argue by quoting verses from the Qur'an such as Surah 7:188 and Surah 46:9. However, no one argued that the Prophet knew these things BY HIMSELF. The verses quoted prove that the Prophet could not know on the unseen his own, but that does not mean that God can inform him.
Is this all he can give? Oh, this doesn't rule out that the Prophet was told outside of the Quran....? Would a courtroom or a scientist accept this explanation? No, it is based on an interpretation that has no evidence at all, AND goes against the Quranic verses that all the Revelation can only be found IN the QUran, plus, it would create a contradiction.
If the Prophet received prophecies through outside Revelation, then why did God left these out of the Quran, but for example left these in?
30:2 The Romans have been defeated.
30:3 In the lands close-by; yet it is they, who despite this defeat of theirs, shall be victorious.
[Byzantine Romans were defeated at the hands of the Persians in the nearby lands of Syria-Palestine-Egypt in 613-615 C.E. The war between the two super powers of the times carried on from 603 to 624 C.E. Muhammad (S) had been commissioned as Prophet in 610 C.E.]
30:4 Within ten years! For with God is the Command in the Past and in the
Future. And on that day the believers too will have cause to rejoice.
Can he give us ONE convincing reason why this prophecy was in the Quran, and the others were not?
Why were these "important" prophecies left to be mixed up in very confusing history books?
2:41 “Do not trade my revelations of great value for something which is cheap.”
So bits and pieces of 'Revelations' that are found in history books are equal to the Quran, the above verse reminds me immediately...
But here is already one that collapses on its own argument:
7) Prophesies of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came true from hadith. Thus proving that there are divine revelations sent down to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) except the Quran. How do you explain this?
His answer:
Some argue that the Prophet did not know the unseen; therefore we cannot appeal to these hadith that prophesize the future. They argue by quoting verses from the Qur'an such as Surah 7:188 and Surah 46:9. However, no one argued that the Prophet knew these things BY HIMSELF. The verses quoted prove that the Prophet could not know on the unseen his own, but that does not mean that God can inform him.
Is this all he can give? Oh, this doesn't rule out that the Prophet was told outside of the Quran....? Would a courtroom or a scientist accept this explanation? No, it is based on an interpretation that has no evidence at all, AND goes against the Quranic verses that all the Revelation can only be found IN the QUran, plus, it would create a contradiction.
If the Prophet received prophecies through outside Revelation, then why did God left these out of the Quran, but for example left these in?
30:2 The Romans have been defeated.
30:3 In the lands close-by; yet it is they, who despite this defeat of theirs, shall be victorious.
[Byzantine Romans were defeated at the hands of the Persians in the nearby lands of Syria-Palestine-Egypt in 613-615 C.E. The war between the two super powers of the times carried on from 603 to 624 C.E. Muhammad (S) had been commissioned as Prophet in 610 C.E.]
30:4 Within ten years! For with God is the Command in the Past and in the
Future. And on that day the believers too will have cause to rejoice.
Can he give us ONE convincing reason why this prophecy was in the Quran, and the others were not?
Why were these "important" prophecies left to be mixed up in very confusing history books?
2:41 “Do not trade my revelations of great value for something which is cheap.”
So bits and pieces of 'Revelations' that are found in history books are equal to the Quran, the above verse reminds me immediately...
-
Arnold Yasin Mol
Questions for 'Quranites'//Hadith Questions
Another rebutal on the clergy idea of "shorten the prayer during travel":
The nonsense of the fiqh by brother Pazazu:
The Sunnis , in their prayers , tend to address God from the 3rd person point of view ( as though God is not present ) ,while addressing the prophet from the 1st person point of view, as if he is still with us, and listening to our prayer!
Furthermore, they recite Quranic verses like parrots, when these verses should logically not be spoken during a prayer.
I'll elaborate more:
Prayer should be a form of calling upon GOD, and establishing a link with Him. This means that the words/phrases recited during a prayer should be in the form of conversing with God directly ( in the present tense and first person point of view ). This is the true form of a "dua" ( prayer ).
Yet the sunni, during his prayer will say nonsense things that have no place in a dua to God. For example:
111:1 Condemned is the hand of Abu-Lahab; condemned indeed.
111:2 His money will not avail him, nor what he has earned.
111:3 He will be sent to a flaming Fire.
111:4 And his wife who carries the logs.
111:5 On her neck will be a rope of thorns.
Now I will say to the sunni:
"What is the occasion of these verses"??
He will reply:
"God is telling us that Abu Lahab and his wife are going to Hell"
So I will say:
"Why are you saying it in your prayer?? What place does it have in a dua that should be made to God?"
He will shrug his shoulders and say:
"It's from the Quran. My sheikh sez you can recite anything from the Quran during prayer".
Another example:
After reciting the Fatiha, he will recite sura 110.
110:1 When God's victory and conquest comes.
110:2 And you see mankind entering into God's system in flocks.
110:3 You shall glorify your Lord's grace, and seek His forgiveness. He is the Redeemer.
Again the same problem.
God is addressing his prophet in these verses, and telling him about a prophecy that will come to pass.. Why does the sunni repeat these words during a prayer to God?
In my opinion this is absurd.
Another example:
114:1 Say: "I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind,"
114:2 "The King of mankind,"
114:3 "The god of mankind,"
114:4 "From the evil of the sneaking whisperer,"
114:5 "Who whispers into the chests of mankind,"
114:6 "From among the Jinn and mankind."
Is it proper to recite this verse during a prayer (dua) to God??
This is a command from God to his prophet which begins with the command word "Say"
Do you recite it in your prayer? Do you repeat the word like a parrot?
To whom are you issuing the command to "Say" ?
to God??
So as you can see, the absurdity of the method of their ritual prayer proves that they could not have learned it from the prophet.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other points I would like to elaborate are:
1- the matter of "shortening" the prayer during travel
2- the matter of breaking your fast when traveling.
The sectarians will say: "How do you know what the distance is? Is it mentioned in the Quran? "
THe idea that they can't seem to get through their thick skulls is that the Quran is for ALL times. And God, who revealed it, knows that a time will come when means of travel will be more advanced.
The sectarians will say that the distance which allows you to break your fast is around 40 km. They claim that the prophet revealed it during hadith.
Is traveling 40 km on camel back, under the scorching desert sun, the same as driving the distance in your air-conditioned Lexus on a highway, with cruise control activated and listening to music?? Nowadays, a distance of 40 km is trversable in less than half an hour.
Do I still have to break my fast?? Is the distance of 40 km revealed by God? Or was it dictated by a scholar of the 9th century ( in which the sectarians are still living?)
Imagine, 50 years from now, we have spectacular advancements in science, allowing us to "warp" from one place to another. You enter a pod, press a button, and PRESTO!! you're in Japan!!
Do I still have to break my fast if I travel 40 km???
Now you see what happens when you use HADITHS to "complete" the Quran..
2- Regarding the "shortening" of prayer from 4 units to 2 when traveling, this also has no basis in the Quran.
I think it would be better to quote the verses in question , starting from [4].
4:101 وإذا ضربتم في الأرض فليس عليكم جناح أن تقصروا من الصلوة إن خفتم أن يفتنكم الذين كفروا إن الكفرين كانوا لكم عدوا مبينا
4:102 وإذا كنت فيهم فأقمت لهم الصلوة فلتقم طائفة منهم معك وليأخذوا أسلحتهم فإذا سجدوا فليكونوا من ورائكم ولتأت طائفة أخرى لم يصلوا فليصلوا معك وليأخذوا حذرهم وأسلحتهم ود الذين كفروا لو تغفلون عن أسلحتكم وأمتعتكم فيميلون عليكم ميلة وحدة ولا جناح عليكم إن كان بكم أذى من مطر أو كنتم مرضى أن تضعوا أسلحتكم وخذوا حذركم إن الله أعد للكفرين عذابا مهينا
4:103 فإذا قضيتم الصلوة فاذكروا الله قيما وقعودا وعلى جنوبكم فإذا اطمأننتم فأقيموا الصلوة إن الصلوة كانت على المؤمنين كتبا موقوتا
Now I would like your opinion on 4:101.
The sectarians interpret this verse as follows: If you are traveling a certain distance "X" , then it is OK ( some actually say it is "WAJIB" ) to shorten your prayers ( from 4 "raka3at" to 2 "raka3at" ) They will then seek fatwas from their gods ( mullahs ) , concerning what this distance is. ( The distance is fixed and cannot be changed until the end of time , because their Mullah said so ).
But the truth is that 4:101 is not talking about just any kind of travel..It is being more specific. It's talking about a certain travel that can bring hardship to the faithful, because they will be passing through enemy territory
Proof: The verse immediately following it, ( 4:102 - the one you have quoted ), talks about performing the physical aspect of "salat" in SHIFTS, at times of danger, and assumes that the Prophet is among the faithful. One group would prostrate themselves, while another would guard them, then they would switch roles. The verse also talks about hardships due to extreme weather conditions ( Note here how God ALWAYS uses the word "مطر" in a negative way - this was subject of a debate on an older thread which I cannot seem to find).
Is this really applicable today? Can you think of an instance now, in the 21 Century, when we can travel vast distances in air-conditionned / heated cars, of such hardships in travel?? According to the Mullah, if I travel a distance of X Kilometers then I MUST "shorten" my prayers ?? How ridiculous is this ? Is driving X Kilometers in an air-conditioned car, on an asphalt road, with your cruise control on, and listening to music, the same as riding on a camel's back with the hot desert winds blowing in your face continuously??
The only instance I can think of is a case of a civil-religious war, where a person would be travelling in his car in enemy territory, and decides to stop her / his car, get out, and perform a physical prayer in the open.
Furthermore, does the verse really say "SHORTEN" your prayer??
If this is true, then the verse is not making sense, since there is no other verse in the Reading ( that I'm aware of ) which states exactly how long the prayer should be - wether in terms of unit "raka3ats" or time in minutes.
The sectarians claim that the verse is giving them a license to shorten their prayers from 4 unit "raka3as" to 2.
This is absurd for 2 reasons:
1- Why does travelling X kilometers or more give you this license? What's the point?
2- If there is a danger of enemies seeing you, then "shortening" from 4 to 2 will not get you anywhere, because as soon as you are prostrating and not paying attention to your surroundings, you will be killed. So, wether you do 4 "raka3a" or 2, the result is the same: DEATH.
The sectarians don't seem to understand the second point, because they are interpreting the verse as mentioning travel for the sake of travel. The truth is, that it's not ANY kind of travel which gives you this license, but only when there is DANGER ( enemies ) or extreme weather conditions.
So I have come to the conclusion that the verse is not saying "SHORTEN" your prayers, but rather it is saying "DO NOT PERFORM PHYSICAL "SALAT" AT ALL ". ( or, more precisley :" do not perform the full physical form of salat - the one that calls for prostarting yourself" ).
The word being used is "تقصروا" . This word can have 2 meanings:
- If we stress the letter "ص" : It will mean "shorten"
- If we do not stress it, it will mean something else entirely...
Do you see what I'm trying to get at?
My understanding is therefore as follows:
1- The verse is talking about changing / simplifying the FORM of the physical "salat" in such a way that it will not include physical prostration, and NOt shortening the unit "raka3as" as the sectarians claim.
2- This license is to be done only when there is a danger to one's life ( enemies around ) or extreme weather conditions.
The nonsense of the fiqh by brother Pazazu:
The Sunnis , in their prayers , tend to address God from the 3rd person point of view ( as though God is not present ) ,while addressing the prophet from the 1st person point of view, as if he is still with us, and listening to our prayer!
Furthermore, they recite Quranic verses like parrots, when these verses should logically not be spoken during a prayer.
I'll elaborate more:
Prayer should be a form of calling upon GOD, and establishing a link with Him. This means that the words/phrases recited during a prayer should be in the form of conversing with God directly ( in the present tense and first person point of view ). This is the true form of a "dua" ( prayer ).
Yet the sunni, during his prayer will say nonsense things that have no place in a dua to God. For example:
111:1 Condemned is the hand of Abu-Lahab; condemned indeed.
111:2 His money will not avail him, nor what he has earned.
111:3 He will be sent to a flaming Fire.
111:4 And his wife who carries the logs.
111:5 On her neck will be a rope of thorns.
Now I will say to the sunni:
"What is the occasion of these verses"??
He will reply:
"God is telling us that Abu Lahab and his wife are going to Hell"
So I will say:
"Why are you saying it in your prayer?? What place does it have in a dua that should be made to God?"
He will shrug his shoulders and say:
"It's from the Quran. My sheikh sez you can recite anything from the Quran during prayer".
Another example:
After reciting the Fatiha, he will recite sura 110.
110:1 When God's victory and conquest comes.
110:2 And you see mankind entering into God's system in flocks.
110:3 You shall glorify your Lord's grace, and seek His forgiveness. He is the Redeemer.
Again the same problem.
God is addressing his prophet in these verses, and telling him about a prophecy that will come to pass.. Why does the sunni repeat these words during a prayer to God?
In my opinion this is absurd.
Another example:
114:1 Say: "I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind,"
114:2 "The King of mankind,"
114:3 "The god of mankind,"
114:4 "From the evil of the sneaking whisperer,"
114:5 "Who whispers into the chests of mankind,"
114:6 "From among the Jinn and mankind."
Is it proper to recite this verse during a prayer (dua) to God??
This is a command from God to his prophet which begins with the command word "Say"
Do you recite it in your prayer? Do you repeat the word like a parrot?
To whom are you issuing the command to "Say" ?
to God??
So as you can see, the absurdity of the method of their ritual prayer proves that they could not have learned it from the prophet.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Other points I would like to elaborate are:
1- the matter of "shortening" the prayer during travel
2- the matter of breaking your fast when traveling.
The sectarians will say: "How do you know what the distance is? Is it mentioned in the Quran? "
THe idea that they can't seem to get through their thick skulls is that the Quran is for ALL times. And God, who revealed it, knows that a time will come when means of travel will be more advanced.
The sectarians will say that the distance which allows you to break your fast is around 40 km. They claim that the prophet revealed it during hadith.
Is traveling 40 km on camel back, under the scorching desert sun, the same as driving the distance in your air-conditioned Lexus on a highway, with cruise control activated and listening to music?? Nowadays, a distance of 40 km is trversable in less than half an hour.
Do I still have to break my fast?? Is the distance of 40 km revealed by God? Or was it dictated by a scholar of the 9th century ( in which the sectarians are still living?)
Imagine, 50 years from now, we have spectacular advancements in science, allowing us to "warp" from one place to another. You enter a pod, press a button, and PRESTO!! you're in Japan!!
Do I still have to break my fast if I travel 40 km???
Now you see what happens when you use HADITHS to "complete" the Quran..
2- Regarding the "shortening" of prayer from 4 units to 2 when traveling, this also has no basis in the Quran.
I think it would be better to quote the verses in question , starting from [4].
4:101 وإذا ضربتم في الأرض فليس عليكم جناح أن تقصروا من الصلوة إن خفتم أن يفتنكم الذين كفروا إن الكفرين كانوا لكم عدوا مبينا
4:102 وإذا كنت فيهم فأقمت لهم الصلوة فلتقم طائفة منهم معك وليأخذوا أسلحتهم فإذا سجدوا فليكونوا من ورائكم ولتأت طائفة أخرى لم يصلوا فليصلوا معك وليأخذوا حذرهم وأسلحتهم ود الذين كفروا لو تغفلون عن أسلحتكم وأمتعتكم فيميلون عليكم ميلة وحدة ولا جناح عليكم إن كان بكم أذى من مطر أو كنتم مرضى أن تضعوا أسلحتكم وخذوا حذركم إن الله أعد للكفرين عذابا مهينا
4:103 فإذا قضيتم الصلوة فاذكروا الله قيما وقعودا وعلى جنوبكم فإذا اطمأننتم فأقيموا الصلوة إن الصلوة كانت على المؤمنين كتبا موقوتا
Now I would like your opinion on 4:101.
The sectarians interpret this verse as follows: If you are traveling a certain distance "X" , then it is OK ( some actually say it is "WAJIB" ) to shorten your prayers ( from 4 "raka3at" to 2 "raka3at" ) They will then seek fatwas from their gods ( mullahs ) , concerning what this distance is. ( The distance is fixed and cannot be changed until the end of time , because their Mullah said so ).
But the truth is that 4:101 is not talking about just any kind of travel..It is being more specific. It's talking about a certain travel that can bring hardship to the faithful, because they will be passing through enemy territory
Proof: The verse immediately following it, ( 4:102 - the one you have quoted ), talks about performing the physical aspect of "salat" in SHIFTS, at times of danger, and assumes that the Prophet is among the faithful. One group would prostrate themselves, while another would guard them, then they would switch roles. The verse also talks about hardships due to extreme weather conditions ( Note here how God ALWAYS uses the word "مطر" in a negative way - this was subject of a debate on an older thread which I cannot seem to find).
Is this really applicable today? Can you think of an instance now, in the 21 Century, when we can travel vast distances in air-conditionned / heated cars, of such hardships in travel?? According to the Mullah, if I travel a distance of X Kilometers then I MUST "shorten" my prayers ?? How ridiculous is this ? Is driving X Kilometers in an air-conditioned car, on an asphalt road, with your cruise control on, and listening to music, the same as riding on a camel's back with the hot desert winds blowing in your face continuously??
The only instance I can think of is a case of a civil-religious war, where a person would be travelling in his car in enemy territory, and decides to stop her / his car, get out, and perform a physical prayer in the open.
Furthermore, does the verse really say "SHORTEN" your prayer??
If this is true, then the verse is not making sense, since there is no other verse in the Reading ( that I'm aware of ) which states exactly how long the prayer should be - wether in terms of unit "raka3ats" or time in minutes.
The sectarians claim that the verse is giving them a license to shorten their prayers from 4 unit "raka3as" to 2.
This is absurd for 2 reasons:
1- Why does travelling X kilometers or more give you this license? What's the point?
2- If there is a danger of enemies seeing you, then "shortening" from 4 to 2 will not get you anywhere, because as soon as you are prostrating and not paying attention to your surroundings, you will be killed. So, wether you do 4 "raka3a" or 2, the result is the same: DEATH.
The sectarians don't seem to understand the second point, because they are interpreting the verse as mentioning travel for the sake of travel. The truth is, that it's not ANY kind of travel which gives you this license, but only when there is DANGER ( enemies ) or extreme weather conditions.
So I have come to the conclusion that the verse is not saying "SHORTEN" your prayers, but rather it is saying "DO NOT PERFORM PHYSICAL "SALAT" AT ALL ". ( or, more precisley :" do not perform the full physical form of salat - the one that calls for prostarting yourself" ).
The word being used is "تقصروا" . This word can have 2 meanings:
- If we stress the letter "ص" : It will mean "shorten"
- If we do not stress it, it will mean something else entirely...
Do you see what I'm trying to get at?
My understanding is therefore as follows:
1- The verse is talking about changing / simplifying the FORM of the physical "salat" in such a way that it will not include physical prostration, and NOt shortening the unit "raka3as" as the sectarians claim.
2- This license is to be done only when there is a danger to one's life ( enemies around ) or extreme weather conditions.