The book om Eemaan

Från: Umm-Aicha (Ursprungligt meddelande) Skickat: 2005-02-25 14:25
: <NOBR>Umm-Aicha</NOBR> (Ursprungligt meddelande) Skickat: 2004-01-27 07:20
The Book of Eemaan


By Imaam Aboo Ubayd al-Qaasim Ibn Sallaam Tahqeeq Muhammad Naasirud-Deen al-Albaanee




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"PIVOTAL QUOTE"

Indeed have you asked me about faith, and the difference of the nation concerning it’s completion and it’s increasing and decreasing, and you mentioned that you would like to know the position of Ahlus-Sunnah with regards to this, and the proof of those that differ from them on this. So indeed, may Allaah have mercy upon you, this subject was discussed by the Salaf at the beginning of this Ummah and by those that followed them (taabi’een) and those who followed them till this day of ours.

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Biography of the Author:

He is Abu Ubaid al-Qaasim bin Sallaam al-Baghdaadee, the Imaam, the Mujtahid, the Ocean of knowledge, the Linguist and the Legal Jurist.

He was born in Harraa in about the year 158 and his father was a Roman slave to some of the people of Harraa.

He heard (learnt) from a group of the trustworthy Imaams, like Sufyaan bin Uyaynah, Ismaa’eel bin Ulayyah, Yazeed bin Haaroon, Yahya bin Sa’eed al-Qattaan, Abd ar-Rahmaan bin Mahdee, Hammaad bin Salma and others.

And Imaam ad-Daarimee, Abu Bakr bin Abee ad-Dunya, Alee bin Abd al-Azeez al-Baghawee, Muhammad bin Yahya al-Marwazee and others narrate from him.

Imaam Ishaaq bin Raahawayyah said: Allaah loves the truth, Abu Ubaid is more knowledgeable and has deeper understanding then me.

He also said: we are dependant upon Abu Ubaid, and Abu Ubaid is not dependant upon us.

Imaam Ahmad bin Hanbal said: Abu Ubaid is a teacher (Ustaadh) and every day he increases in good.

And Yahya bin Ma’een was asked about him to which he replied that people should ask Abu Ubaid about him!

Abu Dawood said: trustworthy, reliable.

Al-Haafidh adh-Dhahabee said: whosoever looks into the books of Abu Ubaid will know his high rank in memorisation and knowledge, he was a haafidh of hadeeth and it’s defects. Knowledgeable of fiqh and the difference of opinions, a pillar in the Language, an Imaam in recitation and he had books concerning them. I have come across his books, ‘Kitaab al-Amwaal’ and ‘Kitaab an-Naasikh wal Mansookh’.

Al-Khateeb al-Baghdaadee said: he was possessing nobility, religion, excellent manners, a good madhab and excellent books sought after in every land. And the narrators from him are famous and trustworthy. Deserving of mention and excellence, and his book concerning ‘al-Amwaal’ is one of the best books written on fiqh.

I say: despite these virtues and excellent qualities the Six Imaams (of the famous six books on hadeeth) did not report any of his hadeeth, and this is from the many evidences that they reported from only some of the trustworthy narrators of hadeeth. So there is nothing strange, after knowing this, that Imaam Bukhaaree did not narrate from some of the trustworthy narrators from the Ahlul Bait, may Allaah be pleased with them.

From the words of Abu Ubaid, may Allaah have mercy upon him, are: the follower of the Sunnah is like one holding onto hot stones, and in this day he is more excellent in my eyes then the one who raises the sword in the Way of Allaah.

I say: this was in his time, so what would be said about our times?

He, may Allaah have mercy upon him, stayed in Baghdaad for a time, then he became the Qaadee in Turtoos, then after that he moved to Mecca and he lived there until he died in the year 224.



Chapter 1: the Characteristics of faith concerning it’s completion and it’s levels

Indeed have you asked me about faith, and the difference of the nation concerning it’s completion and it’s increasing and decreasing, and you mentioned that you would like to know the position of Ahlus Sunnah with regards to this, and the proof of those that differ from them on this. So indeed, may Allaah have mercy upon you, this subject was discussed by the Salaf at the beginning of this ummah and by those that followed them (taabi’een) and those who followed them till this day of ours. And I have written to you a short explanation of what I know concerning this.

Know, may Allaah have mercy upon you, that the People of Knowledge and Concern for the religion have split into two groups over this issue.

One of them says: Faith is sincerity in the heart to Allaah, and testimony of the tongue, and action of the limbs.

The other says: Rather faith is in the heart and upon the tongue, and as for actions then they are from taqwaa (God-consciousness) and birr (piety) and are not included in faith.

And we looked into the difference of opinion of these two groups, and we found that the Book and the Sunnah affirmed the truth of the group that made Faith intention, saying and action together, and negated the opinion of the other group.

And the basis of this, which is our proof, is following what the Qur’aan has spoken of, for indeed Allaah has said in the unequivocal verse of His Book, "so if you differ amongst yourselves on anything then refer it back to Allaah and the Messenger if you believe in Allaah and the Last Day, that is better and more suitable for final determination." (4:59) and so we referred the matter to that which Allaah sent His Messenger (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) with and revealed in His Book. So we found that He made the commencement of faith to be the testimony that none has the right to be worshipped except for Allaah and that Muhammad is His Messenger (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam). And the Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) remained in Mecca after his Prophethood for ten years or ten odd years calling to this testification only, and at that time nothing else was prescribed to be part of faith, so the one who responded to this call was a believer and it was not necessary to call him anything else but a believer, and zakaah or fasting or the other regulations of the religion were not obligatory upon him. And as the scholars have said, this leniency at that time was a Mercy and Kindness from Allaah to His Servants, because they had just come out of the Jaahiliyyah and it’s harshness and had He charged them with all of the obligations then their hearts would have become averse to the revelation, and their bodies would have felt burdened. So He made the faith that was obligatory upon them at that time affirmation with the tongues only, and this is what made them to be believers during the whole of the Meccan period and ten odd months in Madeenah after the Hijrah.

Then, when the people had returned to Islaam and their desire for it became good and proper, Allaah increased for them in their faith that they change the prayer direction to the Ka’bah after they had been praying to Bail al-Maqdis, saying, "Verily We have seen the turning of your face towards the heaven. Surely, We shall give you a Qiblah that you are pleased with, so turn your face in the direction of the Holy Mosque. And wheresoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in that direction." [2:144].

Then He addressed them, when they were in Madeenah, by the appellation of faith that had previously been given them whenever He ordered them with something or forbade them from something. So He said, while commanding, "O you who believe! Bow and prostrate" [22:77], "O you who believe! When you intend to offer prayer, wash your faces, and your arms upto the elbows." [5:6]. And he said, while prohibiting, "O you who believe! Do not devour usury doubled and multiplied." [3:130]. "O you who believe! Kill not game while you are in a state of ihraam" [5:95].

So in every address that was directed to them after the hijrah containing a command or prohibition, He named them with this name (believers) due to their affirming the shahaadah alone - since at that time nothing else had been made obligatory for them. But afterwards, when the religious laws were revealed, these were made obligatory upon them in exactly the same way as the first obligation (of testifying to the shahaadah) was, this because they were all from Allaah (sent) by His Command and Obligation. So if they had refused to turn to the direction of the Ka’bah in their prayer and stuck to that faith [they had in the beginning of Islaam] whose appellation they were ascribed to, and they had stuck to the qiblah that they used to pray towards, then this would not have helped them at all, and they would have violated their affirmation of the shahaadah. This because the first obedience was not more deserving of the appellation of ‘faith’ then the second, so therefore when they responded to Allaah and His Messenger and accepted the (obligation of) prayer just as they had responded by affirming (the shahaadah) then all of this would now be included in the appellation ‘faith’ - due to the prayer being added to the affirmation.

And the proof that the prayer is a part of faith is the saying of Allaah, Azza wa Jall, "And Allaah would never make your faith to be lost. Truly Allaah is full of Kindness, the Most Merciful towards mankind" [2:143]. This verse was revealed concerning some of the Companions of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) who turned towards the Qiblah while they were praying in the direction of Bait al-Maqdis, so the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) was asked about this and then this verse was revealed. {1} So what proof is needed after this to show that prayer is part of faith?

So they remained like this for a period of time and when they started going to prayer eagerly and their hearts found it easy, Allaah revealed the obligation of zakaah in their faith in addition to what had preceded, saying, "establish the prayer, and give the zakaah" [2:83, 110]. And He said, "take sadaqah from their wealth in order to purify them and sanctify them with it." [9:103]. {2} So if they affirmed the shahaadah with their tongues and established the prayers but they refused to give the zakaah then this would have effaced all that came before this obligation and would have violated their affirmation (of the shahaadah) that had preceded just as their aversion to the prayer would have violated their affirmation that preceded. And the testifier to the truth of this was the Jihaad that Abu Bakr fought alongwith the Muhaajiroon and the Ansaar against those Arabs that refused to pay the zakaah, just as the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) made Jihaad against the People of Shirk. There is no difference between these two Jihaads with regards to shedding blood, taking children as captives, and taking the spoils of war. And all the Arabs did was to refuse to give zakaah, not reject its institution.

Then all of the laws of Islaam became like this, each time a law was revealed it became joined to the laws that had preceded, and all of them were included under the appellation of ‘faith’, and those that followed them were named believers.

This is the place in which those who held that faith was merely saying erred that when they heard Allaah calling them believers they attributed complete faith to them. And likewise they erred in their explanation of the hadeeth of the Prophet (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) when he was asked as to what faith was to which he replied, "that you believe in Allaah …." {3} And their explanation of the hadeeth in which he (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) was asked by the one who had a believing slavegirl about freeing her so he ordered that she be free and he called her a believer. {4} These are to be taken to mean, as I have explained to you, their entering faith and their acceptance and belief in what had been revealed from it at that time. And indeed it was revealed in stages, just as the Qur’aan was revealed in stages.

And the witness and evidence for what we say is the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam). So from the Book of Allaah is His Saying, "and whenever there comes down a chapter (of the Qur’aan) some of them (the hypocrites) say: ‘Which of you has had his faith increased by it?’ As for those that believe, it has increased their faith, and they rejoice." [9:124] and His saying, "the believers are those who, when Allaah is mentioned, feel a fear in their hearts and when His verses are recited unto them, they increase their faith, and they put their trust in their Lord." [8:2] and other places in the Qur’aan similar to this.

Do you not see that Allaah, the Blessed and Exalted, did not reveal faith as one entity, just as he did not reveal the Qur’aan as one entity? So this is the proof from the Book - that if faith were complete with the affirmation of the shahaadah, then there would be no meaning to ‘increasing faith’ and no need to mention this.

As for the proof from the Sunnah and narrations then they are mutawaatir giving this meaning of increase in the tenants of faith. So in the following hadeeth 4 (articles of faith) are mentioned, in the next 5, in the third 9, and in the fourth even more.