Excellent translations

I got this link from a sister, may Allah reward her, with some excellent translations of scholarly works by mainly shaykh al-Albani and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah: http://abdurrahman.org/knowledge/Abbas-Abu-Yahya.html

Is it valid to follow the Salafi madhhab?

A  very nice and balanced answer masha’Allah to the question above from ustadh Abdullah bin Hamid Ali: http://www.lamppostproductions.com/node/240

Tablighi Jama’at

After having spent much time with the Tablighis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablighi_Jamaat) in Kenya when I was there I decided to write a small post on them with my personal opinion and experiences on them and their da’wah.

In my own country I have had few encounters with the Tablighis, I remember to have seen and met  them only twice in our local mosque (and once in another mosque) although I know there are (Moroccan) Tablighis in a neighbouring mosque who live in the neighbourhood around that mosque. So before I met many of them in Kenya I didn’t have a clear picture of this movement and I was influenced by the somewhat negative things I heard about them from befriended brothers but who never went into details only that they refused to give salams (??) to Tablighis (speaking of Ahl ul-Bid’ah) and that they referred to somewhat condemning fatawa from some (“Salafi”) Saudi scholars they follow. That was it. Then I went to Kenya for four months in 2008 (and 2 months spread over 2009 and 2010) and I sat with Tablighis daily in our local musalla or small mosque. This musalla was founded by my father in law and the amir of the Tablighis in our area. My father in law apparently went for Tabligh in Pakistan when he was younger and also did my brother in law, he is the amir of the Tablighis in the village he lives in. Now I had close encounters with members of the movement. Everyday after salaat al-maghrib and ‘ishaa they read from “Fadaa’il ‘Amaal” and I was asked to read too several times, which I did. The musalla always had Tablighis coming in from all kinds of countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Egypt, the Comores, Malawi, South-Africa and some other countries I forgot. I sat with them, ate with them and talked to them up to the moment I even went for three days with them in the end. It was a great experience alhamdulillah.

Last year when I was in Kenya I spent some time again with Tablighis and I even went to a big 3-day ijtima’ of the movement which was being held in Nairobi (dec. 2009), I really loved it. I got to know a lot of people through my experiences with the Tablighis and the ijtima’ was just amazing, I saw Tablighis from countries like Somalia, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda and some other countries. There were bayaans (lectures) and afterwards we ate together.

I don’t consider myself a Tablighi but I do sympathize with them and their da’wah. From my own experience I can tell that I saw nothing but good in these  people and the things they do. Their jihad, their humility, their call, their stress on prayer, their following of the Sunnah in every aspect, their avoiding of controversial and sectarian issues and fiqh issues, not going into politics, their reverence for the scholars and elders, their respect for every human being, their attachment to the mosque and many more things which can be mentioned and for which they deserve nothing but praise. I can say they are truly the people of the Sunnah and they have made a big change in the lives of many people all over the world. They have some amazing stories to tell.

Then I recently came across this wonderful poem on the Tablighi movement (on the site of brother Abu Eesa Ni’matullah) which I want to share with everyone, check this link: http://alternativeentertainment.wordpress.com/2010/01/06/in-defence-of-the-tjs/  You really need to read this poem. It is a poem in defense and praise of the movement, better of the people who go out, leaving everything behind, forgetting about the dunya and trying to purify and rectify their souls. May Allah give them tawfiq.

Here is a blog with poems on the movement: http://tazkiyya.wordpress.com/category/poems-about-the-jamah-tableegh/

Now as we know the movement originated in Deoband, India and their founder was Muhammad Ilyas rahimahullah, a scholar (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ilyas_al-Kandhlawi.)

The wonderful book Fadaa’il ‘Amaal (for a review see here: http://truelife200vi.wordpress.com/2006/11/14/review-fazail-e-amaal/) was written by the Tablighi muhaddith Muhammad Zakariyya Kandhlawi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Zakariya_al-Kandahlawi), rahimahullah, and this book is the cornerstone of this movement. In Kenya we read from that book many times to educate ourselves and those in the mosque, t’alim is what it is called. I have an old copy at home from my wife. There is some controversy about this book saying that it contains weak ahadith (next to the fact some people say it is not allowed to read at all, that it contains bid’ah and shirk; this is a manifest lie!). Weak ahadith can be used for fadaa’il especially and moreover, the author was an established and recognized muhaddith, he knows best why he used those ahadith. An English translation of this book can be read online here:http://www.fazaileamaal.com/ The book is translated in many languages but not in Dutch yet (may be in Afrikaans, which is spoken in South Africa, which I have to check from a brother).

Here is an article which deals with the questions if there are any fabricated ahadith in the Fadaa’il:  http://www.al-inaam.com/dhadith/ffaamaal.htm

Answering objections of objectors of the Fadaa’il: http://jaamiahamidia.wordpress.com/2008/03/03/answering-objections-to-objectors-of-fazaile-amaal/

Some fatawa from the imam / mufti of al-Inaam in South Africa:

- http://www.askimam.org/fatwa/fatwa.php?askid=ccff5d03c271bc933bec1ef7667b1276

- http://www.askimam.org/fatwa/fatwa.php?askid=ef8cd9eae3ddcbeb6016c3b41d2134fa

A fatwa from Mufti Muhammad al-Kawthari: http://www.daruliftaa.com/question.asp?txt_QuestionID=q-23350053

- A fatwa from Faraz Rabbani: http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=1705&CATE=91

There is a good thread on the Fadaail and the Tabligh movement on Sunniforum with a lot of links to articles which provide answers to questions and objections: http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/showthread.php?29176-Objections-on-Fazail-e-Aamal-Answered-by-Darul-uloom-Deoband&p=368849

It needs to be mentioned that shaykh Kandhlawi wrote another great book which I can really recommend to anyone: “The Differences of the Imams” (in English and published by White Thread Press). Last but not least there is a wonderful two volume autobiography of the shaykh with the title: “Aap Beti”, which I bought in Indian print (Idara) in Kenya. There is weblog on this book with the naam Aap Beti: http://www.aapbeti.blogspot.com/

No Star – Wars but ‘Aqidah – Wars

I recently posted an add on a well known Dutch islamic forum (www.ontdekislam.nl) about a lecture in our mosque that was given by a good – masha’Allah – brother (topic: “Imam al-Ghazali on knowledge”) and as soon as I posted it someone reacted to my post with the question: “What is his ‘aqidah“? Subhanallah, what kind of a question is this I thought to myself, although knowing it came from a (pseudo -) “Salafi”? The thought went through my mind of replying to the brother if he happened to be from the ['aqidah - police or customs] so to speak or the ['aqidah - inquisition] but I refrained from doing that and I decently answered him the brother is a (Sunni) muslim and that that should suffice. He didn’t respond anymore.

This reminded me of something that is going on in our ummah, on the internet and outside the internet as well, namely the so called or what I’d call ['aqidah - wars] between mainly Salafis and those who ascribe to one of the 3 Sunni schools / madhahib of ‘aqidah: the Ash’aa-irah, the Maturidiyyah and the Athariyyah / Ahl ul-Hadeeth (which are not the nowadays Salafiyyah). Yes, the Ash’aa-irah and the Maturidiyyah belong to Ahl us-Sunnah wa’l-Jama’ah, this is even confirmed by what one could call Salafi scholars like Yusuf al-Qardawi and Muhammad Hassan ad-Dido.

Several websites can be mentioned in this regard to get a good grip of what exactly is going on, namely:

1.) Marifah and their forum: http://www.marifah.net/forums/ which is mainly Ash’ari and Maturidi, as opposed to:

2.) the Multaqa Ahl al Hadeeth forum: http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/index.php which is mainly Salafi.

3.) Next to these two main sites there are 2 more Salafi sites which are really fighting the stances on the Marifah site:

- Asharis.com: http://www.asharis.com/creed/ On this site they speak about “Ash’ari burnout” as opposed to the so called “Salafi burnout” (see this link: http://salafiburnout.wordpress.com/ - which is suspended but one can read about that phenomenon on several websites) and they have – lol – a clinic to treat Ash’ aris who have a burnout. They also call the Marifah site “Knowledge and Realisation through Intellectual Fraud” subhanallah.

- Above the Throne: http://www.abovethethrone.com/arsh/

Both these sites seem to be from the same group of people behind it, stemming from apparently Philadelphia in the United States. There seems to be a heavy battle fought in Philadelphia. This website is representing the opposite view: http://www.nuruzzamaaninstitute.org/Nur_uz-Zamaan_Home_Page.html and they have a whole series on the ‘aqidah of imam al-Ash’ari on YouTube.

Also from another side or angle the Ahbash / Habashis attack the Salafis, see for example: http://www.aicp.org/home-mainmenu-1

What are the issues they are fighting each other over? I came to realize several things after much reading and researching:

1.) the issue of tawassul and tabarruk

2.) the Sifaat of Allah

3.) the division of tawheed in ar-Rububiyyah, al-Uluhiyyah and al-Asmaa wa’s-Sifaat

4.) the status of scholars like Ibn Taymiyyah and Muhammad ibn ‘Abd ul-Wahhaab

5.) saying “Ya Muhammad” or “Ya Rasulullah”

and several other issues.

A lot of these issues have to do with the interpretation of verses of the Qur’an, whether they are muhkam or mutashabbih, this is very important. Nex to this the strength of ahadith in matters of ‘aqidah and also fiqh, the difference between ahad ahadith and mutawatir ahadith and also, close to this the question whether a proof / dalil is qati’ or dhanni. If one understands this one gets a clearer picture of what exactly is going on and who is right. I’m leaving you to judge.

The brother who gave the lecture in our mosque explained the Mukhtasar Minhaj al-Qasidin by Ibn Qudamah and gave some examples with the regards to these issues and adviced us not busy ourselves with theses issues because they don’t bring any benefit. What benefit is there to argue about the meaning of the يد (which has 25 meanings according to Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani) of Allah? He mentioned that once a shaykh in Syria had two visitors, a Salafi scholar and a Ash’ari scholar and they were arguing with each other about the hadith which says that Allah descends to the lowest heaven in the last 3rd of the night to see if He can answer the du’as of the believers who are awake at that time and they couldn’t agree. Then the shaykh asked them who of them actually makes du’a in that part of the night and they both answered they didn’t. He made clear to them they completely missed the importance of that hadith. This is the stance we should take when trying to practice our faith insha’Allah, look at the real meanings instead of arguing with each other over secondary issues. May Allah make us of al-Qasidin.

Persoonlijke voornaamwoorden in het Arabisch

Sinds kort heb ik een persoonlijke leraar Arabisch die mij 1 keer in de week thuis bezoekt en wat ik van hem leer wil ik graag met jullie delen. In de toekomst zal ik een apart weblog aanmaken met mijn aantekeningen. Deze keer een schema met de persoonlijke voornaamwoorden in het Arabisch, te downloaden hier: http://www.2shared.com/file/9212599/ca04fbc2/Ahwaal_us-Sarf.html

al-Murshid al-Mu’in

Last Sunday (Nov. 1) I started an online (free) course on the Maliki fiqh text called: “al-Murshid al-Mu’in” which can be translated as “The Guiding Helper” by Ibn ‘Ashir rahimahullah, given by ustadh Abdusshakur Brooks from The Medina Way, link: http://www.themedinaway.com/site/  I studied part of the Mukhtasar al-Akhdari with him online before (last year).

Here are some links and documents related to that text for those interested:

- http://maliki.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=107&Itemid=62  A biography of Ibn Ashir

- http://zaytuna.org/ibnashirbook.asp  A translation by Hamza Yusuf that still needs to be published

- Videos on You Tube and other websites: http://video.google.nl/videosearch?hl=nl&source=hp&q=Ibn+Ashir&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=gcL2Sv3sGI3T-QbCuqT6DQ&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCMQqwQwAw#  (Mainly in French)

- The text and recitation can be bought and downloaded for a very cheap price on the website of Abdullah bin Hamid Ali: http://www.lamppostproductions.com/catalog/18/downloads

- Here is an English translation along with the matn (text) in Arabic and explanation: http://www.seekingilm.com/books/murshid.pdf

- Here a video with the whole text recited:  http://habibwahid.magnify.net/video/La-croyance-Sunnite-matn-ibn-as

There used to be a website with the name The Guiding Helper but it is offline / not functioning anymore.

For those interested studying the Maliki madhhab here some more beneficial links:

- A great article on the development of the Maliki madhhab in Morocco: http://www.dar-sirr.com/Moroccan-Malikism.html  They also have  a bio of imam Malik r.

- Log of brother Said Bak with a lot of resources on the Maliki madhhab: http://www.muwatta.com/

Adhaan in Germany (and the Netherlands)

I visited a small German city yesterday (Saturday the 7th of November) called Dueren (near Aachen) to go to a dars/lesson in another place (Siegen, in the so called Sauerland, south-east Germany). While walking around with another brother enjoying some lunch at hand I sudden heard the start of the adhaan out loud in public but no mosque was to be seen. I was not sure if I heard it correctly because I couldn’t believe my ears. The adhaan in Germany? Yes indeed, we kept listening and starting walking towards the direction we heard it coming from.  We stumbled upon a big Turkish mosque and the adhaan was being called. Subhanallah just at the moment I thought it was time for the ‘asr –  prayer I heard the adhaan. This is amazing, we asked the people there about it and they confirmed it is allowed in their city three times a day, except for fajr and ‘ishaa. Dueren apparently is the only city in the whole of Germany where calling the adhaan in public is allowed masha’Allah wa la hawla wa la quwatta illah billah! Our day already started off blessed. We prayed ‘asr at that mosque and continued on our way. Here is a picture of the mosque: http://www.2shared.com/file/9012345/3f59141d/Afb0002.html

We were not able to record the adhaan on our mobiles though. Islam is growing, also in Europe wa’l-hamdulillah! Coming from the Netherlands we know that Geert Wilders wouldn’t like this of course. I think it is not allowed except for one mosque in our country to call the believers to prayer. Little did he know that the adhaan was already called in the Netherlands in 1957 at/from the second mosque of the country established by muslims from the Moluccan islands in Indonesia (and he – Geert Wilders –  is of Indonesian descent subhanallah!). Watch this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo4VOn6I5SU  At one time in history the Netherlands could even be called the biggest/largest muslim country in the world because of their ruling over Indonesia as a colonial power. He doesn’t seem to be aware of his own history, the history of the Netherlands and Indonesia. Wouldn’t it be great to hear the adhaan all over our country? Isn’t a human voice much more beautiful than the noise/voice a clocktower makes?

What kind of a muslim I am

Two articles on brother Suhaib’s log caught my eye:

1.) “Suhaib! Where do you stand? What kind of muslim are you?”: http://www.suhaibwebb.com/blog/counseling/suhaib-where-do-you-stand-what-kind-of-muslim-are-you/

2.) “Drop the prefix: I’m just muslim”: http://www.suhaibwebb.com/personaldvlpt/drop-the-prefix-i%e2%80%99m-just-muslim/#more-6554

This is me and this (and Allah) is enough for me. I’m a MUSLIM. I’m thankful to be a muslim – alhamdulillah – and I don’t want to be associated with any other hizb than that of islam. I’m sick of all those subdivisions and affiliations people ascribe themselves to, whether Salafis or Sufis or anything else. I am a muslim who follows the Salaf and who recognizes the science of tasawwuf (purely based on the Qur’an and the Sunnah) as an integral and important part of islam, that’s it. I do recognize the four Sunni schools in fiqh and the three schools in ‘aqidah but as a layman I don’t follow any of these schools, I do study them, because I put my trust in a scholar from one of these schools whether in fiqh or ‘aqidah when I want to know something. I’m closest to the Shafi’i and Maliki madhhab and in ‘aqidah to the Athari madhhab. I’m a moderate or try to follow the middle road/path, al-wasatiyyah, as advocated by shaykh Yusuf al-Qardawi and others like imam Ahmed Saad.

Leading contemporary scholars and students of knowledge for me are:

- al-Qardawi

- ‘Ali Jumu’ah

- Bin Bayyah

- Salman al-Awdah

- Muhammad Hasan al-Dido

- Haytham al-Haddad

- Hamza Yusuf

- Zaid Shakir

- Suhaib Webb

- Muhammad Akram Nadwi

- Samir al-Nass

Good quote Hamza Yusuf and an advice

Hamza Yusuf said in one of his fabulous lectures: “Our society is a society that celebrates the death of the spirit in giving life to the lowest pursuits of humanity. That is the death of the soul.“

See his video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-92aAr6Z_4&feature=related

Dear brothers and sisters we need to wake up from our sleep. This was said by Hamza Yusuf in 1995 and what we see nowadays 14 years later is still true and it has even become worse: this Western society is sick, really sick. We are not aware of the impact of the sicknesses of our hearts and the great blessings Allah has bestowed upon us to cure these sicknesses and to cure the people around us with the gift of islam. Our beloved Prophet came to cure the hearts of the peoples and since his time until now we see the same sicknesses only on a larger scale than he probably could have imagined. What can we do?

Throw out the television out of our houses as a first step because watching television is a full time job for a lot of people. Watching television creates these sicknesses. I already stopped watching television for more than a year now and I can only say: ALHAMDULILLAH! All that time I have after coming home from work, blessed time which can be spent usefully. Dear brothers and sisters, spend your time well and stop wasting time watching television. Bring your dead spirit back to life, surrender to al-Hayy and don’t give in to what this society promotes: celebrating the death of the spirit and celebrating the dominance of the lower, evil nafs and pleasing the shaytaan and following your hawaa because you are “free”. Wake up before you really die as sleep is the cousin of death, the little death. This is my humble nasihah to myself and to all of you who read this.

Learning Arabic is a personal obligation

Salam,

See this link for the complete article on this title: http://www.2shared.com/file/8665042/fca233e7/To_master_the_Arabic_language_is_a_personal_obligation.html#

After a brother – with whom I had some e-mail correspondence about learning Arabic – read the article he made the following comments:

“Many of the quotes you made, though they are correct, do not justify your conclusion that mastering arabic is fard…Just because Umar ra hit his children for making language mistakes do not in any way establish the fact that arabic is fard…So we have to disregard such and similar quotes…Yes, learning arabic strengthens one’s intelligence, and it can also increase one’s murua’ah…but from these statements we cannot deduce that learning arabic is fard ayn…” and: ” These quotes merely show that mastering arabic is very desirable, and recommandable, which every muslim agrees by default..”

 

The brother – may Allah preserve him is correct. I want to add to this though I didn’t mean to quote these sayings from the Salaf to prove that learning or mastering Arabic is fard ‘ayn but only to illustrate the importance of the Arabic language in our religion and how the Salaf valued this language and to show their devotion and love for the Prophet and everything he did in which many of us are lacking, including myself. They were the best of the generations who followed him and they tried to imitate him – out of pure love for Allah and His messenger – in every way possible, also with regard to the language (although it might seem extreme to us to hit your children because they make mistakes in the language; and we all know Ibn ‘Umar followed the Prophet s.a.w.s. in a very strict way). My point was to make clear that if you really want to understand your religion, you learn and study Arabic to the utmost of your capabilities and possibilities with the help of Allah else I really wonder if you take your religion and the upbringing of your children – who will insha’Allah follow you in your religion out of conviction – seriously. Also, just because something is not fard and “merely” and emphasized sunna doesn’t mean we shouldn’t follow it or leave it because it is not an obligation.  

 

He also wrote me concerning the quote: “Do not learn the language of the non-Arabs, and do not enter upon them in their churches on their festivals, for indeed wrath descends upon them.” “I don’t want to divorce this quote from its textual and contextual conditions of historical emergence; obviously it makes a reference to entering churches on festivals etc…However, saying “don’t learn the language of non-arabs“  is not only a hidden arab nationalism, but also fundamentally against islamic values, and the life our Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wassalam).  Just to remind you, the famous sahabe named Zayd bin Thabit learned Hebrew and many Syriac languages when the Prophet asked him to learn foreign languages…Then Zayd became a translator, and guided in da’wah activities as well…I don’t know how people come up with bizarre statements such as ‘do not learn non-Arab languages..“

 

I do agree with the brother here. This seems to be some hidden Arab nationalism or fanaticism here which is not of the teachings of islam, moreover it is well known that this saying contradicts the practice of the Prophet s.a.w.s. and his Sahaba. For example, when some of the first Muhajirin arrived in Medina from Abessynia and they presented to him some clothing from that place as a gift he said something in the language of the Abessynians to make clear he liked it.

 

Concerning my quote: “Always remember … without total fluency in the Arabic language, you can only attain basic islamic knowledge … but basic knowledge is the path to advanced knowledge.” He wrote: “Yes, true. Absolutely!  One cannot achieve more than basic islamic knowledge without Arabic fluency. But what is fard ayn is only that basic islamic knowledge.. (which includes recitation of surahs in Arabic for prayer as well, but not knowledge of Arabic language itself).“

 

Concerning imam al-Shafi’i’s statement: “It is obligatory upon every muslim to learn the Arab tongue [language] to the utmost of his power {to be able} to profess through it that “there is no God at all but Allah and [that] Muhammad is His servant and apostle [messenger]”, and to recite in it {i.e. the Arabic tongue/language} the Book of Allah, and to utter in mentioning what is incumbent upon him, the takbir, and what is commanded, the tasbih, the tashahhud and others.“ he wrote: “This is definitely true……if you say that knowing arabic is fard…you don’t mean that one must be able to speak it, for example, in a court situation, explaining his situation to the qadi in Arabic…A muslim would not be sinful if he cannot express himself in Arabic during a court, or any other situation, right?  In that case, you are using the word “mastering” in a wrong way…Because, for example, I mastered the English language…and this means that I can fully express myself in that language in whatever context it is…But clearly, this is not what you mean…You only mean Arabic knowledge related to islam…Yes, I agree that it is fard ayn to master Arabic to the extent that you can say ‘there is no God at all but Allah and that Muhammad is his servant and apostle” in Arabic, and to the extent that you can recite the book of Allah (which, technically only requires pronunciation and tajwid, not knowledge of Arabic language itself..For example, I can recite the whole Qur’an, but I don’t understand it) and to the extent that you can utter what is incumbent upon him, e.g. takbir etc…As long as you can do all these, that means you satisfy the fard ayn requirement of Arabic knowledge…which, linguistic wise, does not mean you mastered Arabic language. And lastly, it will come as a suprise…Abu Hanifa ra.  held the opinion that one’s salah would be valid if he recited the Fatiha in Persian language under extreme conditions…(The sahaba Selman Al-Fârisî had made a Persian translation of Fatiha, and the Persians recited this translation in salah until their tongue became familiar with Arabic pronunciation. But I don’t know whether this was during or after the life of our Prophet.“

 

Masha’Allah, this last part especially is some great piece of valuable info. Salman al-Farisi was actually the first one to translate the Qur’an into a foreign language. About the recitation of the Qur’an in Persian, this can be read here: http://www.answering-islam.org/Books/MW/translatable/koran.htm But be warned: this is an anti-islam site but quotations are provided which can be checked on veracity. In the Wikipedia article with the title “Hanafi” it can be read: “Abu Hanifa held that “the Qur’an” consists of the meaning of the text and so in the daily prayers it was permissible to recite “the Qur’an” in any language unconditionally. Later Hanafis only held that this meant it was only permissible if the person praying was unable to recite the Qur’an in Arabic, but the original opinion is still upheld as a difference.” No source is provided though. See also this fatwa on the same subject (especially nr. 12): http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503546068  There is much more to find on this subject if one delves into it. Here are some more links:

 

- http://suzyashraf.tripod.com/htm/_ed._Syed_Mumtaz_Ali.htm

- http://www.quranicstudies.com/articles/language-of-the-quran/muslim-discourse-in-the-early-twentieth-century-on-the-translation-of-the-quran.html (HIGHLY INTERESTING!!)

 

May Allah reward the brother for his useful comments.

 

 

Islam en Ramadan in Kenia

Afgelopen Ramadan heb ik in de plaatselijke moskee een lezing mogen geven over de islam en Ramadan in Kenia. Degene die hierover graag iets willen lezen kunnen hier een PDF downloaden met de inhoud van die lezing: http://www.2shared.com/file/8049397/dd6f08b9/Islam_en_Ramadan_in_Kenia.html

Hier zijn tevens wat foto’s van moskeeen in Kenia die mijn ouders en ik zelf genomen hebben: http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=&w=42418512%40N07 zodat men een beetje een beeld kan krijgen bij de lezing.

Veel lees- en kijkplezier insha’Allah!

Wonderful statement imam al-Shafi’i

Shaykh Samir an-Nass – may Allah preserve him for the ummah –  from Syria quoted – during the halaqah in Peterborough (UK) last april I attended- a wonderful statement from imam al-Shafi’i rahimahullah, see here:http://www.2shared.com/file/7774451/c3711659/Statement_imam_Shafii.html

This is the summit of akhlaaq and forgiveness that we should be teaching and spreading amongst our brethren. I thought it was a statement from imam Malik r. but was mistaken. The source of this statement is the Diwan of imam al-Shafi’i, see this link: http://lisanularab.org/forums/showthread.php?p=3734#post3734.

Here it is in Arabic:

من نال مني او علقت بذمته
ابراته لله شاكر نعمته
كيلا ارى ممن يعوق موحدا
او من يسو ء محمدا في امته

Transcribed it goes like this:

“Man naala minni aw ‘aliqtu bidhimmatihi

 

aabraa-tuhu lillahi shaakira ni’matihi

 

kayla uraa mimman ya’ooqu muwahhiddan

 

aw man yasoo-u Muhammadan fee ummatihi”

 

 

Translation: Whosoever injures me (i.e. has done me a wrong) or there is something in his charge that is due to me (i.e. he owes me something), then I clear/absolve him thereof for Allah’s Sake (i.e. I forgive him) being grateful to Him for His Bounty, because I do not want to be seen as one of those who impede (the progress of) a muwahhid (one who upholds Allah’s Oneness) (on the Day of Judgment) or of those who have done Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) a wrong with respect to his Ummah.]

Waarom de mujtahids meningsverschillen hadden

Hier een vertaald artikel met als titel: “Waarom de mujtahids meningsverschillen hadden“, te downloaden van: http://www.2shared.com/file/7774234/e1cc39e2/Waarom_de_mujtahids_meningsverschillen_hadden.html

Dit artikel is overgenomen van de volgende link: http://www.ahlu-sunnah.de/main/fiqh/165-wieso-die-rechtsschulen-meinungsverschiedenheit-hatten

Het (bekerings-)verhaal van Salman al-Farisi r.a.

In het kader van de Ramadan-tour 2009 van het Landelijk Platform Nieuwe Moslims (www.lpnm.nl) heb ik een lezing mogen geven over het bekeringsverhaal van Salman al-Farisi radi Allah ‘anhu, een hele bekende metgezel van de Profeet Mohammed sall Allahu ‘aleyhi wa sallam. Een PDF-document met dit verhaal / deze lezing kan hier gedownload worden: http://www.2shared.com/file/7765705/3ef1d689/Van_Isfahan_naar_Medina.html

Deze lezing is met name gebaseerd op het boekje van dr. Abdur Rahim: http://www.goodwordbooks.com/product-details/From-Esfahan-To-Madinah/397.html en de lezing van Anwar al-Awlaki “Quest for truth”, die hier gedownload kan worden: http://www.kalamullah.com/anwar-alawlaki.html

Hier volgen nog enkele links met interessante artikelen over Salman al-Farisi:

- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salman_the_Persian

- http://www.naqshbandi.org/chain/3.htm

- http://www.ezsoftech.com/islamic/salman.asp

- http://www.readingislam.com/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1176631679060&pagename=Zone-English-Discover_Islam%2FDIELayout

- http://www.islamiska.org/e/salman.htm

- http://www.al-islam.org/masoom/companions/salman.html (Shi’a site)

- http://ibnyaaqub.wordpress.com/2008/10/18/salman-al-farisi-and-identity/

- Een ander boek over Salman: http://store.dar-us-salam.com/product/104.html

- http://www.geocities.com/ahlulbayt14/salman.html

- http://www.dawaatelislam.com/Sahabah/Salman%20Al-Farisi%20Radi-Allahu%20anhu.htm

- http://www.lastprophet.info/en/a.ali-ural/salman-al-farsi-from-fire-to-divine-light-from-mabih-to-salman-al-khayr.html

- http://www.inter-islam.org/Biographies/SalmanfarsiR.htm

Mijn posts in het Nederlands

Voor de Nederlandse lezers van mijn blog, hier mijn posts in het Nederlands tot nu toe:

Stellingen en woordspelingen, deel 2

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/07/02/stellingen-woordspelingen-deel-2/

Stellingen en woordspelingen, deel 1

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/06/20/stellingen-deel-1/

De correcte uitspraak van de shahadah volgens het klassiek Arabisch en de Shafi’i madhhab

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/03/16/de-correcte-uitspraak-van-de-shahadah/

Boek “De omstreden bronnen van de islam”

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/03/15/boek-de-omstreden-bronnen-van-de-islam/

Motieven voor bekering tot de islam

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/02/17/motieven-voor-bekering-tot-de-islam/

De edelgesteenten der geloofsleer over de uiteenzetting van het islamitische geloof

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2009/02/16/de-edelgesteenten-der-geloofsleer-over-de-uiteenzetting-van-het-islamitische-geloof/

Nederlandse woorden van Arabische oorsprong

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/10/07/nederlandse-woorden-van-arabische-oorprong/

Salafisme en spiritualiteit

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/08/17/salafism-and-spirituality-salafisme-en-spiritualiteit/

Bekende tot de islam bekeerde Nederlanders

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/08/11/bekende-tot-de-islam-bekeerde-nederlanders/

De Mudawwanah

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/08/03/de-mudawwanah/

Waaruit bestaat het soefisme

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/24/waaruit-bestaat-het-soefisme/

Liefde – 2

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/24/liefde-2/

Liefde is mijn fundament

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/24/liefde-is-mijn-fundament/

Ik ben niet

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/20/ik-ben-niet/

Liefde komt…

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/20/liefde-komt/

Geduld (nog niet af)

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/12/geduld/

Liefde

- http://baytulhikma.wordpress.com/2008/07/11/liefde/

10.000!!

Allahu akbar kabira wa’l-hamdulillahi kathira: I have had more than 10.000 visitors wa la hawla wa la quwatta illa billah!! Never expected this when I started about a year ago. Here are my most read, top 10, posts of all time:

Top Posts for all days ending 2009-09-04 (Summarized)

Title	Views
Fatawa shaykh Muhammad al-Hassan al-Amin	783
Sayyid Sabiq and his Fiqh us-Sunnah	706
al-Akhdari	340
Partial English translation of al-’Itqan	284
Sharh Mukhtasar al-Akhdari	274
Poems by imam al-Shafi’i	274
Recommended books	264
Riyadh us-Salihin	216
About me / Over mij	203
Basic classical texts for the beginning	180

 

Keep reading my log insha’Allah and remember me in your prayers, wa sallallahu ta’ala ‘ala sayyidina Muhammadin wa ‘ala alihi wa sahbihi ‘ajma’in.

The Risalah of Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani

Because of Ramadhan I was going through the chapter on fasting in the Maliki fiqh-book the Risalah of Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani, rendered to English by F. Amira Zrein Matraji. Although the translation is not really great the nice thing about this book is you can read the English text which is accompagnied by the Arabic text WITH TASHKEEL. This makes reading the Arabic text easier, it builds your vocabulary and understanding of Arabic and you get familiar with fiqhi terms. In short this is very beneficial. I was inspired to do this after listening to a short explanatory course / lecture on the chapter of fasting by Rami Nsour from the Tayba Foundation (http://www.taybafoundation.org/instructors.html). It is said Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani was the “little Malik”, the second most important scholar in the Maliki madhhab after imam Malik. He wrote the Risalah when he was only seventeen years old and the text was originally meant for children and comes after having studied the Mukhtasar of al-Akhdari in the traditional Maliki curriculum. The lecture by Rami Nsour is very beneficial and once again proves you need to read and study a fiqh text with a teacher else you will misunderstand and wrongly apply some of the issues.

Here are some resources on Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani and the Risalah:

- The lectures (3) by Rami Nsour can be downloaded and listened to here: http://andalus.wordpress.com/2009/08/20/fiqh-of-fasting/ Enjoy!

- The translation mentioned above can be bought here: http://www.sunnipubs.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=60&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=26&vmcchk=1

- Here is his biography: http://www.sunnahonline.com/ilm/seerah/0067.htm and here too: http://kitaabun.com/shopping3/article_info.php?articles_id=14&osCsid=b0d

- Another translation of the Risalah: http://www.iiu.edu.my/deed/lawbase/risalah_maliki/index.html

- A translation of another book by Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani on ‘aqidah called “A Madinah View”:  http://www.lamppostproductions.com/node/194#

‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam

I bought ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam, a book on fiqh ul-hadeeth, in Kenya in a cheap Indian print version, for only 1 euro. This book is especially popular with our Salafi brethren and explained by many contemporary Salafi scholars, some of them mentioned below. Here is what one can find online on this book:

- The whole book in Arabic: http://www.esnips.com/doc/28584ba2-ca84-4c80-a53a-5ff88e751231/UMDATUL-AHKAAM-ARABIC-TEXT

- ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam with the notes of shaykh bin al-Uthamin (in Arabic) – rahimahullah – under the name “Tanbeeh ul-Afhaam“: http://www.binothaimeen.com/soft/moton/OmdatAlahkam.exe  The book can be bought here: http://www.salafilibrary.com/slib/ See a short remark on the book here: http://www.salafitalk.net/st/viewmessages.cfm?Forum=6&Topic=3934

- Here a short translated (English) transcript of the sharh by shaykh al-Jabiri on the subject of menstruation: http://www.salafitalk.net/st/uploads/ACFDBD.pdf

- English translation and explanation of the first chapter on tahaarah by shaykh dr. Abdul Majid Ali, one of the students of Bilal Philips: http://drabdulmajid.com/explanationofumdatulahkaam.aspx 

- The explanation by way of threads / posts of ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam on the Multaqa Ahl al-Hadeeth forum: http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/showthread.php?t=663

- Fiqh ul-Hadeeth, the whole book including sharh; translated English text and lectures by shaykh Abu Muhammad ‘Abdur-Rauf Shakir: http://www.islamlecture.com/fhadeeth.htm

- Lectures and documents on the explanation of ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam “Tayseer al-’Allaam” (by shaykh Aal Bassaam): http://www.islamhouse.com/p/43394 (Arabic)

- Partly explanation of ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam in Dutch: http://www.al-yaqeen.com/nieuw/bibliotheek/rubriek.php?id=70 and here http://www.soennah.com/content/category/14/42/41/ (fasting / vasten)

This book is sometimes confused with the Hanbali fiqh - book -’Umdat ul-Fiqh-, as can be read here:   http://forums.islamicawakening.com/1241-post1.html and here: http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/showthread.php?t=5483

- An explanation with the name “Riyaadh al-Afhaam fi Sharh ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam” (Arabic) by Taj ud-Din al-Fakihani can be downloaded here: http://www.2shared.com/file/7188488/11dc1bc4/Riyaadh_al-Afhaam.html

- Lectures on the sharh of ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam by the late shaykh Ibn Jibrin rahimahullah: http://www.archive.org/details/ibnJibrin_umdat (Arabic)

- Lectures (Arabic) on the sharh by shaykh Ibn Daqiq al-’Ied “Ihkaam ul-Ahkaam” can be downloaded here: http://www.archive.org/details/Wakil-Ihkam-02

-  On the website of the Islamic Online University from Bilal Philips a free course can be taken on the “Fiqh of Tahaarah” based on the sharh of ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam “Tayseer al-’Allaam“, of which the documents can be downloaded here: http://kalamullah.com/fiqh-of-tahaarah.html

- Shaykh an-Najmi also wrote a sharh on ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam with the name “Ta’sis ul-Ahkaam“. This is mentioned in his biography: http://www.fatwa-online.com/scholarsbiographies/15thcentury/ahmadannajmee.htm

- A small book review on ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam can be read here: http://darul-fusha.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=90&Itemid=88

- Lectures in English by the late shaykh Saleh as-Saleh on ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam: http://darul-fusha.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=90&Itemid=88

- Lessons in English on ‘Umdat ul-Ahkaam: http://www.ibnfarooq.com/lessons.html

Muhammad Asad and Alija Izetbegovic (rahimahumallahu ta’ala)

Muhammad Asad and Alija Izetbegovic (rahimahumallahu ta’ala) were too great contemporary Muslim thinkers of the last century. Click on the following link and you will find a good read on how how they thought on the islamic state:  http://www.salaam.co.uk/knowledge/essay01.php  Here is one of the quotes from that essay by Alija Izetbegovic:

“An islamic society without an islamic authority is incomplete and without power; islamic governance without an islamic society is either utopia or violence.“

Subhanallah what a powerful statement by him and how true this is. He was a man of great vision. We can see many examples of this in recent history, think of Somalia right now and what is happening there. I remember a statement by Muhammad Asad in this context that was also very true: “the implentation of the hudud laws is the final stage of the islamic state and not the other way around“. Or something like that, I can’t remember where I read it. This is the big mistake many islamic revival movements have made – in my humble opinion - when wanting to implement the shari’ah when they took power or want to take power in a certain state.

I encourage anyone to read the books mentioned in the essay above, including myself. I have read some of the things of Muhammad Asad like his biography “The Road to Mecca” (partly) and parts of his Qur’an translation and explanation. A beautiful documentary about his life with the same name also has been made recently and can be seen on the internet if you search well; I have seen it in Dutch. I have not read anything yet by Alija Izetbegovic although his books are available in English.

Translated biography of imaam Ibn Qudaamah rahimahullah

I have translated the biography of the Hanbali imaam Ibn Qudaamah – rahimahullah – from Arabic to English with extensive footnotes and remarks from my own hand, may it guide and benefit everyone who reads it. For the ones who are interested, it can be downloaded here: http://www.2shared.com/file/6708551/9c321472/Ibn_Qudaamah.html

 

Here one can read a part (in 3) of his famous Mukhtasar Minhaj al-Qasideen on Khushoo’ and Beautification of the Prayer: http://www.sahihalbukhari.com/sps/sp.cfm?subsecID=IBD06&articleID=IBD060002&articlePages=1

Important note: The Minhaj was not from this Ibn Qudaamah but by a family member, this is a mistake, also in the footnotes of the translation, may Allah forgive me.

 

Lectures / podcasts on one of the books of his students and family members ((Fadaa’il al-’Amaal [not to be confused with the infamous Tablighi book] – Diya’ al-Maqdisee)) can be listened and downloaded here:  http://seekersguidance.org/site/podcast.html