THE RIGHTS OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD OVER MANKIND Extracted from The Cure SAHIH-SHEFA by Supreme Justice Abulfadl Eyad, died (1123CE - Islamic Year 544H) Reported by Grand Muhaddith Habib Hafiz Abdullah Ben Sadek Revised by Muhaddith Abdullah Talidi An adaptation by Servant of Hadith, Shaykh Ahmad Darwish (Arabic) Khadeijah A. Stephens (English) Ayesha Nadriya (Indonesian) Copyright © 1984-2011 Allah.com Muhammad.com. All rights reserved. Terms of Service - Copyright/IP Policy – Guidelines The Rights of Prophet Muhammad Over Mankind The obligation to believe and obey the Prophet and follow the way of te Prophet (Sunnah). With these established factors it is incumbent to believe in Prophet Muhammad and the authenticity of his message thereby accepting the faith and believing in the Revelation he brought to you. Allah tells us to, "Believe in Allah, and His Messenger, and in the Light which We have sent down" (64:8). He speaks of the Prophet saying, "We sent you (Prophet Muhammad) as a witness and as a bearer of glad tidings and warning, so that you believe in Allah and His Messenger and that you support him, revere him (Prophet Muhammad), and exalt Him (Allah) at the dawn and in the evening" (48:8-9). He also says, "Believe in Allah and His Messenger, the Unlettered Prophet" (7:158). From these verses it is made known to the individual that there is an obligation to believe in Prophet Muhammad . Without it, belief is incomplete because one's belief is only valid with the belief in the Oneness of Allah and the acceptance and belief in Prophet Muhammad . Allah warns, "Whosoever disbelieves in Allah and His Messenger; We have prepared a Blazing Fire for the unbelievers" (48:13). Abu Hurayrah heard the Messenger of Allah say, ”I have been ordered to fight (the idolatry of) people until they bear witness that there is no god except Allah, and believe in me, and what I have brought. When they do this, their blood and property are protected from me, except when an Islamic right is violated. Their reckoning is with Allah." The meaning of belief in the Prophet is that one bears witness to his prophethood, the Message Allah entrusted to him, being supportive of all that he brought and said. What is in one's heart is then born witness by the tongue that, he is indeed the Messenger of Allah . This meaning of belief is ratified by the hadith in which the Archangel Gabriel came to the Prophet and said, "Tell me about Islam." The Prophet replied, "It is that you bear witness that there is no god except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah …." Then Gabriel asked the Prophet about the meaning of belief to which he replied, "It is that you believe in Allah, His Angels, His Books and His Messenger..." Belief in the Prophet implies the acceptance of the heart whereas Islam only demands its verbalization. However, if the testimony is simply upon the tongue without the confirmation of the heart that, is tantamount to hypocrisy. Allah speaks of the hypocrites saying, "When the hypocrites come to you they say, 'We bear witness that you are the Messenger of Allah.' Allah knows that you (Prophet Muhammad) are indeed His Messenger, and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are truly liars!" (63:1). Such people lie with their tongues concealing what is really in their hearts and such testimony has no benefit in the Everlasting Life because their witnessing is incomplete and they will join the unbelievers. As for their punishment it will be in the deepest part of the Fire, below that of the unbelievers. However, in this life because they uttered the verbal testimony such people are determined by Muslim judges to be Muslims, because judges do not have access to see the reality of what is in the heart. Judges have been forbidden to investigate the reality of a person's witnessing because the Prophet censured the actions of a certain person by asking him, "Did you split open his heart?" Verbal testimony is part of Islam and confirmation with the heart is part of belief. The Obligation to Obey the Prophet There is an obligation upon all Muslims that requires obedience to the Prophet . This obligation is made apparent in the Koran which he delivered. Allah says, "Believers, obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not turn away from him when you are hearing. Do not be like those who say, 'We hear,' but they do not listen" (8:20). And, "Say, 'Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger ….. If you obey him, you shall be guided" (24:54). "Obey Allah and the Messenger in order to be subjected to mercy" (3:132). "Whosoever obeys the Messenger, indeed he has obeyed Allah" (4:80). And, "Whatever the Messenger gives you, accept it; and whatever he forbids you, abstain" (59:7). "Whosoever obeys Allah, and the Messenger, they are with those whom Allah has favored" (4:69). "We did not send a Messenger except that he should be obeyed, by the permission of Allah" (4:64). In these verses Allah clearly states that when someone obeys His Messenger he is in fact also obeying Allah. Obedience to whatever Prophet Muhammad commanded and abstaining from whatsoever he forbade are synonymous to being obedient to Allah. Allah also speaks of the reward for such obedience and warns of the punishment that will fall upon whosoever disobeys. Scholars and Imams are of the opinion that obeying the Messenger of Allah means to cling to his prophetic way and submit to what he brought. They said that Allah did not send a Messenger to a nation without placing the obligation upon them to obey His Messenger and that by the Messenger the person is obeying Allah. Abu Hurayrah heard the Messenger of Allah say, "Whosoever obeys me has obeyed Allah. Whosoever disobeys me has disobeyed Allah. Whosoever obeys my envoy has obeyed me and whosoever disobeys my envoy has disobeyed me." Obeying the Messenger constitutes being a part of obeying Allah, because Allah has commanded that he is the one to be obeyed. As for the unbelievers who resist the Prophet Allah informs us, "On that Day when their faces are turned about in the Fire, they shall say, 'Would that we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger!'" (33:66), but it is too late and their wishful thinking will be of no benefit to them, it will be a constant source for regret. The Prophet also said, "When I forbid you to do something, abstain. When I command you to do something, do as much as you are able." Abu Hurayrah recalled the time when the Prophet spoke of Paradise, and said, "All of my nation will enter Paradise except those who refuse." The Companions asked, "O Messenger of Allah , who will refuse?" He replied, "Whosoever obeys me will enter Paradise whereas whosoever disobeys me has refused." Another time the Prophet told his Companions. "My likeness and the likeness of what Allah has sent me with is like a man who comes to his people saying, 'O people, I have seen the army with my own eyes, and I am a bearer of warning – save yourselves!' One group of his people obey him and travel at nightfall, they go at their leisure and are saved. Another group reject him and remain. The army arrives in the morning and they are annihilated. Such is the likeness of those who obey me and follow what I bring, and the likeness of those who disobey me and belie what I bring," The Prophet drew another simile saying, "It is similar to a person who builds a house and then prepares a fine feast in it and sends forth a summoner. Whosoever answers the summoner enters the house and eats from the feast, whereas whosoever does not answer the summoner neither enters the house nor eats from the feast." The "house" referred to in the preceding hadith means Paradise and the "summoner" is Prophet Muhammad . Whosoever obeys the Prophet, praise and peace be upon him, has obeyed Allah, whereas whosoever disobeys the Messenger of Allah has in fact disobeyed Allah. The Obligation to Follow the Guidance of the Prophet The obligation to obey, practice the way, follow the guidance of the Prophet . Allah says, "Say, 'If you love Allah, follow me (Prophet Muhammad) and Allah will love you, and forgive your sins" (3:31). He also says, "Believe in Allah and His Messenger, the Unlettered Prophet, who believes in Allah and His Words. Follow him in order that you are guided" (7:158). And, "But no, by your Lord, they will not believe you until they make you the judge regarding the disagreement between them, then, they will not find in themselves any discomfort concerning your verdict, and will surrender to you in full submission" (4:65). Allah says, "In the Messenger of Allah you have a fine example for he who hopes for Allah and the Last Day" (33.21). Several scholars explained that 'a fine example' means a role model and that one should emulate him by following his way of life and neither oppose him in either word or action. Therefore, whosoever follows the command of Allah to do this is promised by Him that they will be guided, because Allah sent Prophet Muhammad with His guidance and the Religion of truth to purify us, and to teach us the Holy Koran coupled with the wisdom, all of which guides to the Straight Path. In the verse that reads "If you love Allah, follow me (Prophet Muhammad) and Allah will love you, and forgive your sins" (3:31) it is understood that whosoever follows the Prophet preferring him over and above personal desires and inclinations will be forgiven by Allah and will be loved by Him. The foundation of the strength of one's belief is submission to the Prophet coupled to the satisfaction of his judgment and forsaking opposition to him. The love of a worshiper of Allah and His Messenger lies in obedience and being pleased with the commands of both Allah and His Prophet . The love of Allah for such worshipers is that He pardons them and blesses them with His Mercy. Our attention is drawn to the fact that love from Allah manifests itself in protection and success, whereas the love of a worshiper manifests itself in obedience. A poet wrote: "Do you disobey Allah when you claim to love Him? By my life, this is a strange logic! If your love had been true, then you would have obeyed Him. The lover obeys the one he loves." It has been explained that the love of a worshiper is expressed in his exaltation of Allah and in his awe of Him, and the love of Allah for His worshiper is the mercy He bestows together with His concern for him. The Prophet warned, ”You must follow my prophetic way and the way of the rightly guided Caliphs. Cling to it voraciously and beware of new things. New things are innovations and each innovation (which is not in accordance with the principals of Islam) is misguidance." In addition to this warning Jabar reported having heard, "Each misguidance is in the Fire." (Shaykh Darwish added: Scholars say innovations are either negative or positive. Those in keeping with Islamic principals are positive, whereas those which are negative are those against Islamic principals. Both types are categorized under the five jurisprudence classifications which are: obligatory, forbidden, likeable, dislikable, permission either to practice something or not to practice it.) Abu Rafi' narrates that the Prophet told his Companions, "Do not let any one of you be found reclining on his bed after hearing news of my order that either commands or forbids, so that later on he says, 'I do not know, I follow only what is found in the Book of Allah.'" (Shaykh Darwish commented: Unfortunately in Syria and also in several western countries a false innovated doctrine has arisen. Adherents wear "T" shirts proclaiming statements such as, "The People of Koran". These people cannot be considered to be representative of their claim in fact they are the opposite. ) Lady Ayesha, Mother of Believers, may Allah be pleased with her, tells us that the Messenger of Allah would do something in order to simplify a matter for his followers. However, there were some who were negligent from its doing. When news of their negligence reached the Prophet he would praise Allah and say, "What do you think of people who neglect to do something I myself do? By Allah, my knowledge of Allah is greater than theirs and my fear of Allah is greater than theirs!" The Prophet said "Whosoever abandons my prophetic way is not of me." (Shaykh Darwish added: when we learn that the prophet practiced something we should follow as much as we can, but if he ordered us not to do something we should stop immediately. However, if he did not do something, there is no obligation to refrain from its doing unless it is subject to prohibition.) The Prophet warned of times to come saying, "The children of Israel divided into seventy-two sects. My nation will divide into seventy-three, all will be in the Fire except one." The Companions asked who would be the exception whereupon he replied, "They are those who establish themselves on what I and my Companions do today." (Shaykh Darwish added: Most of these sects came into existence then vanished. Some of these sects had good manners and were neither given to lying nor cheating. However this cannot be said of the Kharijites whose example was revived by ibn Taymia and then by the Wahabis known for their distortions, fabrications and falsifications of Islamic literature and creed. An outrageous example of their distortion, fabrication and lies became apparent when it was discovered the Wahabis had altered the wording of most of the references of elite Muslim scholars from the early and later generations whose Islamic references have always been a source to rely upon. The Wahabis took these references, inserted their falsification and reprinted them, thereby deceiving and misguiding the reader. For example, Wahabis claim most of the elite scholars of Islam – more than 1232 Hafiz of Hadith – deviated from the Islamic faith even though these elite scholars are known to have followed the way of the Prophet! Yet it has been proven that Wahabis elect to promote and follow the flawed teachings of ibn Taymia alone - who passed away in the beginning of the 8th century of Islam - and make his teachings an essential condition to understand Allah and His Prophet. Please pay attention to this warning, they are misguided innovators. Traditional scholars of nowadays are wary of traditional books reprinted in the last 70 years because of Wahabi subtle distortions and fabrications. For obvious reasons scholars have made it their policy not to use these books, rather, they rely on editions either stone printed or hand written manuscripts. An example of Wahabi dishonesty is found in their reprinting of Imam Nawawi's book of supplications. The Wahabis removed a complete chapter relating to the supplications to be made when visiting the tomb of the Prophet, because ibn Taymia's doctrine forbids the visiting of the Prophet's tomb. The first three generations of Muslims comprised of the Companions of the Prophet and then their followers the Tabien and thereafter Tabi Tabien who were the followers of the Tabien. Of all the Tabien, the Prophet, praise and peace be upon him, said, "Owais Qarani is the best of the Tabien". Note how the Prophet mentioned the word "Tabien". He did not use the word "Salaf" whereas the Wahabis, refer to these generations as "Salaf" and include several people who were known deviators of the prophetic way. Ibn Taymia was neither one of the Companions, Tabien nor of the Tabi Tabien, he passed away in the 8th century of Islam, however, Wahabis revere him in such a way that it is as if he were the leader of these elite generations. They make him conditional to understand the Revelation of Koran and Hadith and use as their standard, his erroneous interpretations of the Divinity.) The Prophetic Way and Guidance as Adhered to by the Companions, and Their Followers (Tabien and the Tabi Tabien) The narrations of the Companions, Tabien and the Tabi Tabien (first three generations of Muslims) and the esteemed learned persons concerning the following of the prophetic way, and accepting the guidance of the Prophet. Abdullah Omar's son was asked, "In the Koran we find the prayer when one is fearful, and the prayer at home, but we cannot find the prayer of a traveler." Omar' son replied, " O my nephew, Allah sent Prophet Muhammad to us when we did not know anything, we did what we saw him doing." Omar son of Abdul Aziz said, "The Messenger of Allah had his prophetic way and the four caliphs who came after him also had ways. To adopt them is to comply with the Book of Allah and to act upon them is obedience to Allah and the strengthening of the Religion of Allah. No one should change or alter the prophetic way or consider the opinion of those in opposition. Whosoever follows it is guided, and whosoever seeks help by it will be amongst those who win. Whosoever opposes it and follows a path other than that of the believers Allah will assign to him that which he turns to and roast him in Hell, and that is an evil arrival." During the caliphate of Omar, Al Khattab’s son Omar sent a letter to his governors instructing them to learn the prophetic sayings relating to the shares of inheritance and dialects. He wrote, "People will try to argue with you (using the Koran), when this occurs overcome them with the prophetic way. The people who follow the way of the Prophet have the greatest knowledge of the Book of Allah." Imam Ali joined the Greater Pilgrimage and the Lesser Pilgrimage together whereupon Othman, who was unaware of the permissibility to join them asked, "Who has told you to do this, when I have forbidden the people to do so?" Ali respectfully replied, "I do not abandon the way of the Messenger of Allah in preference to the statement of another." Commenting on the words of Allah, "Should you dispute about anything refer it to Allah and the Messenger" (4:59), Ata explained that it means that in the event of a disagreement one should consult the Book of Allah, and also the prophetic way. Ash-Shafi'i said, "The Prophetic Way of the Messenger of Allah is only in its following." One day Omar was heard saying as he stood before the Black Stone in Ka’bah. "You are only a stone and can neither help nor harm. If I had not seen the Messenger of Allah kiss you, I would not kiss you" and he kissed it. Abdullah, Omar's son was observed making his she-camel turn about in a certain place and was asked why he had made her do this. He replied, "I do not know. Once I saw the Messenger of Allah doing it, so I do it." The father of Othman Al Hiri said, "Whosoever places the authority of the prophetic way above himself either by word or deed speaks with wisdom. But whosoever gives passion authority over himself speaks by evil innovation." Sahl At-Tustari described his school of jurisprudence saying, "The foundations of our school are three: following the Prophet in character and actions, eating that which is lawful, and making our intention sincere in all actions." The jurist Ahmad, Hanbal's son said, "One day I was with a party of people who stripped off all their clothes, and went into the water. I applied the saying of the Prophet that says, 'Whosoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should enter the baths in a loin cloth', so I did not strip. That night I had a vision, in which a voice said to me, 'O Ahmad, Allah has forgiven you, because you implemented the prophetic way, and He has made you an imam who will be followed.' I asked, 'Who are you?' He replied, 'Gabriel'" The Danger of Disobeying the Prophet (Shaykh Darwish added: "Before reading this section one should understand that any good innovation promoting activities in keeping up with Islamic principals is encouraged and never condemned. Those who condemn activities reflecting Islamic principals Islam are grossly deficient in Islamic knowledge and consequently their intellect fails them. This leads to flawed opinions and they are found to be fanatical, lacking compassion. Such people hold firm to the opinion that if the Prophet , did not do something, we should not do it, and if this is so then people from far away countries would not be able to go by boat or airplane on pilgrimage – which is one of the pillars of Islam – because the Prophet, praise and peace be upon him, only went on foot or by camel! An innovation that is condemned is one that replaces the Prophetic way and goes against the principals of Islam. If anyone should tell you that anything the Prophet did not do is to be taken as a bad innovation, when it is known to comply with the principals of Islam, it is through sheer ignorance.) If one were to change the way of Prophet Muhammad then one would be misguided and be among the innovators and therefore subject to the threat and severance of Allah. Allah warns, "So let those who disobey His command beware, lest they are struck be sedition, or, they are stricken with a painful punishment" (24:63). He also warns, "But whosoever opposes the Messenger after guidance has been made clear to him and follows a path other than that of the believers, We shall let him follow what he has turned to and We shall roast him in Hell – and evil arrival" (4:115). Abu Hurayrah tells us of the time the Prophet visited a graveyard. During the visit he described some of his nation saying, "Some (on the Day of Judgement) will be driven away from my Pool just as a stray camel is driven away. I will call to them saying, 'Come here, come here!' But it will be said, 'After you they made changes.' Whereupon I will say, 'Go away, go away!'" The Prophet told his Companions, "Anyone who adds something to my commands, which is not part of them, is a deviant." Anas reports that the Prophet said, "Whosoever avoids my Prophetic Way is not of me." Abu Rafi' narrates that the Prophet told his Companions, "Do not let any one of you be found reclining on his bed after hearing news of my order that either commands or forbids, so that later on he says, 'I do not know, I follow only what is found in the Book of Allah.'" Al-Miqdam said, "What the Messenger of Allah makes unlawful is like that which Allah makes unlawful." Prophet Muhammad told his Companions, "Those who go to extremes in speech will be destroyed." The first Caliph, Abu Bakr As-Siddiq said, "Of the things the Messenger of Allah used to do, I have omitted none. I feared that had I left out any of his commands I would have deviated."