Isn’t this that time?

It is reported that Al-Fudayl b. ‘Ayyâd – Allâh have mercy on him – said:
How will you be if you reach a time when you will see people who do not distinguish truth from falsehood, believer from unbeliever, trustworthy from treacherous, nor ignorant from knowledgeable, and neither recognize what is right nor censure what is wrong?

Ibn Battah, Al-Ibânah Al-Kubrâ 1:188.

After reporting this narration, Imâm Ibn Battah (d. 387H) said:

To Allâh we belong and to Him we will return! We have reached that time, we have heard this and have come to know most of it and witnessed it. If a man to whom Allâh has bestowed sound reasoning looks and thinks carefully and ponders the matter of Islâm and its people and treads the rightly guided path as regards to them, it will become clear to him that most people have turned back on their heals, deviated from the correct path, and turned away from  correct proof. Many people have started to like what they used to hate, allow what they used to forbid and recognize what they used to reject. And for sure – Allâh have mercy on you – this is not the [right] character of the Muslims, nor the behaviour of those who have insight into this religion, and neither of those who believe in it and are certain about it.

March 25, 2010 - الخميس 11 ربيع الثاني 1431 | 'Aqîdah, Bid'ah, fitnah

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How the Salaf studied the Quran

Abdullâh b. Mas’ûd – Allâh be pleased with him – said:

When a man amongst us learned ten verses [of the Quran], he would not move on [to the next verses] until he had understood their meanings and how to act by them.

Al-Tabarî, Al-Tafsîr 1:80. Shaykh Ahmad Shâkir graded its chain of transmission sahîh.

Abû ‘Abd Al-Rahmân Al-Sulamî said:

Those who used to teach us the Quran (the Companions) told us that they used to learn the Quran from the Prophet – Allâh’s peace and blessings be upon him; when they had learnt ten verses they would not move on until they put into practice what was in them. So we learnt knowledge and deeds (implementation) together.

Ibid. Shaykh Ahmad Shâkir graded its chain of transmission sahîh also.

March 21, 2010 - الأحد 07 ربيع الثاني 1431 | Good deeds, Quran, knowledge, tafsir

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The Blessings of Marriage according to the Sunnah

Yahyâ b. Yahyâ Al-NaysâbûrÎ reports:

I was once with Sufyân b. ‘Uyainah – Allah have mercy on him, when a man came to him and said, “O Abû Muhammad, I complain to you of so-and-so”, meaning his wife, “I am the lowest and most despicable thing to her.” [Sufyân] lowered his head for a few moments, then said, “Perhaps you wanted her in order to better your status.” The man said, “Indeed, o Abû Muhammad.” Sufyân said, “Whoever goes for glory will be tried with ignominy, whoever goes for wealth will be tried with poverty, but whoever goes for religiousness, Allah will bring together for him glory and wealth with the religion.” He then started to narrate to him:

We were four brothers: Muhammad, ‘Umrân, IbrâhÎm and I. Muhammad was the eldest, ‘Umrân was the youngest, and I was in the middle. When Muhammad wanted to marry, he desired status and married a woman of higher standing, so Allah tried him with ignominy. ‘Umrân desired wealth, so he married a richer woman and Allah tried him with poverty: [her family] took everything from him and gave him nothing.

I pondered their situation. Mu’ammar b. Râshid once came to us so I consulted him on the situation and told him the story of my brothers. He reminded me of the hadÎth of Yahyâ b. Ja’dah and the hadÎth of ‘Â`ishah. The hadÎth of Yahyâ b. Ja’dah states that the Prophet – Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – said, “A woman is married for four things: her religion, her status (lineage), her wealth or her beauty; so take the religious one and be successful.” The hadÎth of ‘Â`ishah states that the Prophet – Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him – said, “The most blessed woman is she who is easiest to maintain.”

Thus, I chose [to marry a woman of] religion and modest dowry, in accordance with the Sunnah of Allah’s Messenger – Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, and Allah gave me status and wealth along with the religion.

Abû Nu’aym, Hilyatu Al-Awliyâ` 7:289, 290.

Note
The first hadÎth is recorded by Al-BukhârÎ and Muslim. The second is found in Al-Nasâ`Î and other collections but has been graded weak by scholars including Shaykh Al-AlbânÎ. However, scholars point out there is another narration that supports and adds to its meaning. This hadÎth states:
It is from the blessing in a woman that she has an easy dowry, an easy proposal [via her guardian] and an easy womb (i.e. she is fertile and bares children without difficulty). One of the reporters of this narration, ‘Urwah, said “And I say from myself, one of the first signs of evil from a woman is for her to have a high dowry.”
This hadÎth is recorded by Imâm Ahmad and others and is graded hasan by Shaykh Al-AlbânÎ.

March 1, 2010 - الاثنين 17 ربيع الأول 1431 | Sunnah, family, love

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