Journey to Kenya
Salam akeykum to all,
I’m about to leave for Kenya for four months which will mean I will not be able to write any new post until I return in 2009 insha’Allah. Ramadhan mubarak to evyerone and take care and may Allah give us a good ending!
Over a 1000 views, alhamdulillah!
Since I started this blog I have already had over a 1000 views, alhamdulillah. May be I don’t receive a lot of comments but people do watch and follow my blog which is great. This is just a humble and simple blog and I never expected people to watch and follow it because it is merely a reminder for myself and to virutally store info on islam which has a chance to get lost.
Arabic text of the Jawhar al-Maknun by al-Akhdari
Well, I have managed to find the Arabic text of the Jawhar al-Maknun by shaykh al-Akhdari – rahimahullahu ta’ala – and you can download it here:
http://www.2shared.com/uploadComplete.jsp?sId=Cdv9TSpof10P96kx
Here is a full translation of the Sullam by al-Akhdari:
http://www.2shared.com/uploadComplete.jsp?sId=ak2JZ0hQd30IV8CO
Mufti al-Kawthari on the Etiquettes of Difference of Opinion
A lecture by mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari – hafidhahullah – on the Etiquettes of Difference of Opinion.
Part 1.
Part 2.
Part 3.
Arabic text of as-Sullam (and the sharh) by al-Akhdari
After some research on the internet I was able to find the Arabic text of as-Sullam (on mantiq – Aristotlian logic) by al-Akhdari together with the sharh. It can be downloaded here for those interested:
I’ll keep looking out for the Jawhar as well insha’Allah.
Other texts by ‘Abd ar-Rahman al-Akhdari
After a request from a brother this is another post on shaykh ‘Abd ar-Rahman al-Akhdari – rahimahullahu ta’ala – and his works, especially his texts on logic (mantiq) and balagha (rhetoric) which has to do with or is a – major – branch of (Arabic) grammar also. As is known to all students of knowledge and scholars the science of logic, just like the Arabic language, is a prerequisite science for all other islamic sciences; although it is said in the past the likes of shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) – and others – have denied this fact (and he was recently refuted by shaykh Sa’id Foudah – see www.al-razi.net - in his work “Critiquing a critique” to be downloaded from www.marifah.net). This logic is based on the logic of Aristotle and further refined by muslim scholars. In the usual curriculum for a student a work by al-Akhdari on (classical) logic is taught and studied called:
“as-Sullam al-Munawraq fi ‘Ilm al-mantiq“
This work is a 144-line poem written by al-Akhdari when he was still young. Al-Akhdari also wrote a sharh on it. This work or primer is still studied all over the islamic world from Morocco to Indonesia. In English it can be translated as “The Ornamented Ladder”. You can take an online course on it with SunniPath.
The work on balagha by al-Akhdari is called:
“al-Jawhar ul-Maknun / al-Jawahir al-Maknuna fi’l-ma’ni wa’l-bayan wa’l-badi’“
Both of these work proof and haven proven their usefulness in the study of the usul ud-din and (usul) al-fiqh. Several commentaries have been written on these works which I’m not going to mention, partly because I don’t know them but for those who want to find out: search the internet and you will find insha’Allah.
A document which may be of use for people who are interested on mantiq can be downloaded here: mantiq
As far as I know no online version of the Sullam and the Jawhar is available and I am not aware of any translations into English until now. Insha’Allah in the future. People who are interested in reading about logic in English can read the book by J.A. Oesterle called “Logic: The Art of Defining and Reasoning”.
I’ll try to find out if both ore at least one of these works of al-Akhdari are available online and let you know in another post insha’Allah.
There is another (to me unknown) work from the shaykh available in the French language “The 1000 questions and answers about religious practices in islam according to the Malike rite”, check here:
http://www.amazon.fr/1000-questions-r%C3%A9ponses-pratiques-religieuses-islam/dp/291154627X
In honour of shaykh ‘Abdallah Sirajuddin al-Husayni
This post is to honour shaykh ‘Abdallah Sirajuddin al-Husayni, rahimahullah, and one of his books that recently has been translated into English. A biography of the honourable shaykh can be read here: shaykhabdallahsirajuddin-hamoudeh
The book itself is called “Our Master Muhammad” and is praised all over the islamic world by muslims from every denomination, from Sufi’s to Salafi’s. Two excerpts of the book can be read here:
- theexemplar-sirajuddin-ommv1-p2
(The source for these articles is www.marifah.net)
The translator is sidi Khalid Williams, hafidhahullah, and his blog can be found here: http://muridslog.blogspot.com/
The book has been published by Sunni Publications, website: www.sunnipubs.com
May we all benefit from this wonderful book insha’Allah and may Allah reward the shaykh.
Books shaykh ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Nasir as-Sa’di at-Tamimi
Shaykh ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Nasir as-Sa’di was at-Tamimi – rahimahullah – was a well known Saudi scholar who wrote several interesting books, ranging several topics. A short biography can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abd_ar-Rahman_ibn_Nasir_as-Sa%27di and here: http://abusuliyman.multiply.com/tag/biography%20as-sa’dee Several works of his hand are translated into English. To let everyone benefit from these works they can be downloaded here:
1.) al-Durrat al-Fakhirah – The Exquisite Pearl (translated by Abu Aaliyah Surkheel Sharif from the Jawziyyah Institute), a poem on suluk with commentary.
(Source: www.kalamullah.com)
2.) Taysir al-Karim ar-Rahman fi Tafsir al-Qur’an - Tafsir of the Qur’an and his most famous work (partly translated; also available in Dutch, the last hizb, nr. 60)
(Source: www.abusuliyman.multiply.com)
3.) al-Qawa’id wa’l-Usul al-Jami’ah wa’l-Furuq wa’t-Taqasim al-Badi’ah an-Nafi’ah – The Basic Rulings and Principles of Fiqh, The Beneficial, Eloquent Classifications and Differentiations
4.) Risalah Latifah Jami’ah fi Usul il-Fiqh il-Muhimmah - An Essay Concerning Usul ul-Fiqh
(Source for 3. and 4. http://siraajunmuneer.wordpress.com/usul-al-fiqh/)
May Allah reward the translators of these works and help us benefit from these works.
Salafism and spirituality / Salafisme en spiritualiteit
The title of this short post may be somewhat strange as it is claimed by some of our brethren that Salafism (or the – various – Salafi movements) is devoid of or lacks (any) spirituality. It may also be somewhat strange because this post has been written by someone who is not a Salafi (nor a Sufi). May be it is strange for a Salafi to read there is something called spirituality in his experience, w’Allahu ‘alam (and Allah knows best). May be, may be….I have come to this conclusion after reading some books of Salafi signature which are abundantly available in my country or in other words: they dominate the market for the biggest part. First let us define spirituality. Spirituality according to the dictionary means that which is related to the (human) spirit. For a more extensive explanation of spirituality see the article on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spirituality The books (just to name a few) that inspired me (a.o.) or led me to this conclusion were:
- The Weakness of the Faith, Symptoms, causes and cure by Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid
- Does Allah love you? by imam Ibn al-Qayyim
These books, one written by a well-known contemporary Salafi shaykh and the other a translation of a part of Madarij as-Salikin (which is or can be considered as a masterwork on tasawwuf) by Ibn ul-Qayyim, are highly spiritual books if you like. Both were published (in the Dutch language) by Salafi - oriented publishers (I don’t know whether these book are available in the English language). Ibn ul-Qayyim is also called at-tabib al-qulub, the doctor of hearts, because his writings often go into the heart and related matters and contain cures for a sick heart in spiritual perspective – and only Allah cures. If you look at the things that are being said about this great scholar, may Allah be pleased with him and have mercy on him, from an (objective) distance you will notice he is claimed by Salafi’s and Sufi’s, both “camps” love him and his writings. This seems strange and contradictory. The common factor that binds them is: spirituality. Whether we call it tazkiyah (purification of the soul) or tasawwuf, does it really matter? I wonder why Salafi’s reject tasawwuf as such but at the same time accept this science under another name, namely tazkiyah.
I hope with this short and humble post Salafi’s and Sufi’s can – insha’Allah – come together and agree on this issue. How you call it is not important, whether tasawwuf or tazkiyah, it is all about SPIRITUALITY and this was the way of the Salaf us-Salih, may Allah be pleased with them.
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De titel van deze korte post is wellicht vreemd aangezien door sommige van onze broeders wordt beweerd dat het in het Salafisme (of de – diverse – Salafi bewegingen) geheel ontbreekt aan (enige) spiritualiteit. Het is wellicht ook vreemd omdat deze post is geschreven door iemand die geen Salafi is (noch een Sufi). Wellicht is het vreemd voor een Salafi om te lezen dat er zoiets is als spiritualiteit naar zijn ervaring, w’Allahu ‘alam (en Allah weet het het beste). Wellicht, wellicht….Ik ben tot deze conclusie gekomen na het lezen van enkele boeken van Salafi(s)tische signatuur die overvloedig aanwezig zijn in mijn land of met andere woorden: ze domineren de markt voor het overgrote deel. Laat ons eerst spiritualeit definieren. Spiritualiteit betekent volgens het woordenboek datgene wat te maken heeft met de (menselijke) geest. Voor een meer uitgebreide uitleg van spiritualiteit zie het artikel op Wikipedia: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiritualiteit De boeken (om er slechts enkele te noemen) die me o.a. inspireerden of mij tot deze conclusie leidden waren:
- De zwakheid van het geloof, Symptomen, oorzaken en genezing door Mohammed Salih Al-Moenadjid
- Houdt Allah van jou? door imam Ibn al-Qayyim
Deze boeken, eentje daarvan geschreven door een zeer bekende Salafi(s)tische sheikh en het andere een vertaling van een deel van Madarij as-Salikin (welk is of kan worden beschouwd als een meesterwerk over tasawwuf) door Ibn ul-Qayyim, zijn zeer spirituele boeken zo je wil. Beiden zijn gepubliceerd (in de Nederlandse taal) door Salafi(s)tisch georienteerde uitgevers (ik weet niet of deze boeken verkrijgbaar zijn in de Engelse taal). Ibn ul-Qayyim wordt ook ook at-tabib al-qulub genoemd, de dokter de harten, omdat zijn geschriften vaak ingaan op het hart en aanverwante zaken en genezingen bevatten voor een ziek hart in spiritueel opzicht – en alleen Allah geneest. Als je van een (objectieve) afstand kijkt naar de dingen die worden gezegd over deze grote geleerde, moge Allah tevreden met hem zijn en genade met hem hebben, zal je opvallen dat hij wordt geclaimd door Salafi’s en Sufi’s, beide “kampen” houden van hem en zijn geschriften. Dit lijkt vreemd en tegenstrijdig. De gemeenschappelijke factor die hen verbind is: spiritualiteit. Of we het tazkiyah (reiniging van de ziel) of tasawwuf noemen, maakt dit echt wat uit? Ik vraag me af waarom Salafi’s tasawwuf als zodanig verwerpen maar deze wetenschap tegelijkertijd accepteren onder een andere naam, namelijk tazkiyah.
Ik hoop met deze korte en bescheiden post that Salafi’s en Sufi’s tot elkaar – insha’Allah – kunnen komen en het over dit onderwerp eens worden. Hoe je het noemt is niet belangrijk, tasawwuf of tazkiyah, het gaat allemaal om: SPIRITUALITEIT en dit was de weg van de Salaf us-Salih, moge Allah tevreden met hen zijn.
Sufi nor Salafi
Sufi nor Salafi, that is what I am. For those who have been reading my log so far: I’m not a Sufi and I’m not a Salafi. What am I? ….Still no clue? The answer is very simple, I’ll spell it for you:
M.U.S.L.I.M.
This suffices and should suffice for everyone. End of discussion. For those that think that I’m a Sufi: I’m far from a Sufi. I like to read about tasawwuf and I acknowledge this is a science just as any other science of this beautiful din, which has always been a part of the curriculum of students of knowledge.
I can’t imagine anyone thinks I’m a Salafi but in a way I probably am: just as any other Muslim I follow the Salaf us-Salih. To be honest I can’t imagine any Muslim not to follow the Salaf us-Salih.
I feel there is no need to stress I am this or that or to distinguish myself from other Muslims (whether Sufi, Salafi, Sunni, Shi’a or ‘Ibadhi), in the end Allah is our Judge and I leave the judgment to Him, the only thing that matters to me is if I die as a Muslim, in a state of complete submission to Allah. La ilaha ill’Allah, Muhammad ar-Rasul’Allah. May He grant us all a beautiful and good ending.
Make dua!
Make dua, this was the title of a semi rap/nashid by some American nashid group if I’m correct that came to my mind. I thought of this when I discovered the beautiful website www.duapower.com All go and visit that site, it’s amazing and start downloading immediately!
Bekende (tot de islam) bekeerde Nederlanders
Hier volgt een lijstje met – veelal hedendaagse – bekende (tot de islam) bekeerde Nederlanders, voor zover bij mij bekend:
- Jan Janszoon (zie: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Janszoon)
- De Veenboer (zie: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Veenboer)
- Meinart Dircxen
- Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje (?)
- Abdulwahid van Bommel
- Yassin Hartog
- Jan Beerenhout
- Rafiq Fris
- Poncke Princen
- Seyfullah Kors
- Riza (rapper)
- Abdul Jabbar van de Ven
- Stella van de Wetering
- Ceylan Pektas-Weber
- Arie Visser
- Abdullah Haselhoef
- Robin van Persie
- dr. van de Hoog (van zalfjes etc.)
Advice by Ibn Khaldun
Knowledge can be taken from two sources:
- people; and
- books
Ibn Khaldun rahimahullah warned against the dangers of accepting knowledge from books for which no key is provided by teachers: naqlu’l-’ilmi min al-kutubi min ghayri miftahi’l-mu’allimin.
What do you do if there are no teachers around? You read the books but the problem is the book will not be completely opened to you because you have no entry key. People nowadays think they can read books without teachers and after reading some they think they have an understanding of islam. I used to be one of those people and this is a reminder for everyone. Books have certain levels, not everyone is able to read certain books; we have to be honest with ourselves and acknowledge our shortcomings. Coming from an academic background I thought I could just read any book and have an understanding but w’Allahi there are some, if not most, books out there on islam that you just can’t read on your own. For example, a while ago I bought a book called Difference of Opinion in Fiqh, a small translation of a book by Shah Wali Allah al-Dihlawi (al-Insaf) and I was fooled by its size, very compact and not a lot of pages but this book was very, if not extremely, difficult to read. I have seldom come across such a difficult book. Without any understanding of fiqh and usul al-fiqh one can not read this book on your own, you need a teacher, I need a teacher. Not only to read this book but also other books.
The best way to study this din is to take knowledge from people, that is how it traditionally worked and still works, you sit with the ‘ulama. Alhamdulillah, nowadays we have internet and in that way you can study online with pre-recorded and live lessons. Not completely the traditional way but it is an outcome for all those people who lack contact with ‘ulama like myself.
(Strange) Sayings of Ayatollah Khomeini
In my search for (mainly second-hand) books and knowledge I stumbled upon a translation of the book of Ayatollah Khomeini, called The Little Green Book, translated by Clive Irving. I bought it because I was curious. Take a look at what (to name a few) strange (and seemingly hypothetical) sayings I found inside:
- The meat of horses, mules, or donkeys is not recommended. It is strictly forbidden if the animal was sodomized while alive by a man. In that case, the animal must be taken outside the city and sold.
- If one commits an act of sodomy with a cow, a ewe, or a camel, their urine and their excrements become impure, and even their milk may no longer be consumed. The animal must then be killed as quickly as possible and burned, and the price of it paid to its owner by him who sodomized it.
- A Moslem who insults one of the Twelve Imams or declares himself their enemy is impure.
- Wine and all other intoxicating beverages are impure, but opium and hashish are not.
- If a man – God protect him from it! – fornicates with an animal and ejaculates, ablution is necessary.
- During daily prayer, it is permissible to cover one’s body and genitals with grass or the leaves of trees, but it is better to do this only when there are no other means at hand.
- If a man sodomizes the son, brother, or father of his wife after their marriage, the marriage remains valid.
These are just some of the odd and strange sayings by Khomeini. Odd and strange in the sense that one can not even imagine doing the acts mentioned by him and then he gives the ruling on it.
Istihsan and loans
For those familiar with the science of usul al-fiqh there is a well known statement by imam Malik bin Anas – may Allah have mercy on him – on istihsan related by Ibn al-Qasim that he said that istihsan (discretion) was nine-tenths of knowledge. Judgements based on istihsan or which make it the deciding factor when weighing up different proofs are numerous in the Maliki madhhab according to ash-Shatibi rahimahullah. One example of this is loans. Often it is heard loans are haram just as riba is. A loan may indeed be considered as riba because one dirham, for example, or one euro is exchanged for one euro for a period of time but it is permissible under the principle of istihsan because of the way people are helped by it. If loans had remained forbidden people might have suffered great hardship and our din after all is yusr: ease, as the famous hadith goes.
Also ash-Shatibi said that istihsan is the foundation of knowledge.
(Source: M. Abu Zahra, The Four Imams, pp. 103, 104)
The Trinity – a Muslim perspective
Always interested how Muslims look at the Christian concept of Trinity, the concept of God / Allah? Read this lecture by Abdal-Hakim Murad - hafidhahullah – and be enlightened. As a convert / revert I never understood how God could be three no matter what explanations I heard for this concept; it never played a big role though in my conversion process, may be more subconciously or at the background. God or Allah has always been one and indivisable in my conception.
Download here: the_trinity
If Christians believe in the concept of Trinity one could ask if they believe in the same God as we Muslims do. The answer to this question I will not even try to give because I’m not a theologian.
W. Montgomery Watt on al-Ghazali
Read what W. Montgomery Watt said on al-Ghazali:
“Deep study of al-Ghazali may suggest to Muslims steps to be taken if they are to deal successfully with the contemporary situation. Christians, too, now that the world is in a cultural melting-pot, must be prepared to learn from Islam, and are unlikely to find a more sympathetic (spiritual) guide than al-Ghazali”
W. Montgomery Watt. The Senior Lecturer in Arabic University of Edinburgh 1952. (Source: www.allah.com)
Bell’s Introduction to the Qur’an by W. Montgomery Watt was one of the first books I read about the Qur’an as far as I can remember. I wonder if Montgomery Watt never considered to become a Muslim after studying the Qur’an and the works of al-Ghazali.
Hamza Yusuf – Who are the rightly guided scholars?
Why Ibn Hazm began studying fiqh
In ‘Siyar A’lam an-Nubala” (13/547), adh-Dhahabi narrated that Abu Muhammad ‘Abdullah bin Muhammad – the father of the famous Spanish scholar Ibn al-’Arabi – said:
“Ibn Hazm related to me the reason he began studying Fiqh.
He was once at a funeral prayer. So, he entered the mosque, and sat down without praying. A man then said to him: “Get up and pray tahiyyat al-masjid,” and he was 26 at the time.
Ibn Hazm himself said: “So, I got up and prayed. When we returned from the janazah, I entered the mosque, and prayed before sitting down. It was then said to me: “Sit down, sit down. This is not a time to pray,” as it was after the time of ‘Asr. So, I walked away while I was very sad. I went to my teacher that had nurtured me, and said: “Direct me to the house of the scholar Abu ‘Abdillah bin Dahhun.” So, I went to him, told him of what had happened, and he directed me to ‘al-Muwatta” of Malik. So, I began studying it at his hands, and continued studying it with him and others for a period of three years. After this, I began debating with the people.””
After mentioning this story, adh-Dhahabi then goes on to list almost 80 books that Ibn Hazm had written during his lifetime, the largest being ‘al-Isal ila Fahm Kitab al-Khisal,’ which is a longer version of the more well-known ‘al-Muhalla,’ and is over 15,000 pages long!
Considering that Ibn Hazm began studying Islam at 26, and died at the age of 71, this meant that he wrote an average of two books per year – and this is just in terms of the books whose titles we know of, as he had written over 300 other books that were burned up by the ruler of the time, al-Mu’tadid.
It is quite interesting that such a tremendously influencial scholar, with so many awesome and brilliant works, was driven to study the Din because of this single incident.
(Source: http://iskandrani.wordpress.com/category/articles/authors/ibn-hazm/)
al-Fawa’id by Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah
This book, aI-Fawa’id (The Benefits): A Collection of Wise Sayings is one of the well-known compilations of Imam Shams ad-Din Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, who is well known by the name Ibn ul-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy upon him). This blessed book is not like others that simply contain sections, chapters and themes, but it consists of the elevated thoughts that Allah, Exalted be He, bestows upon some of His servants as He wills. So whenever any of these scattered pearls of wisdom occurred to the Imam, he would immediately record them. I am sure that he did not sit down and write this book in one or two weeks, but surely it was developed over a long period of time. Whenever something came to his mind, he would record it, and whenever he learnt a lesson or anything crucial in his life, he would illuminate the lines of his page with the ink of his pen. Download here: al-fawaid
