The Basis of Islaam is to Act upon the Book and the Sunnah (contd)

FOOT NOTES
[1] Sooratun-Nisaa(4):65

[2] The following of madhabs has not only led the blind followers to prefer the sayings and opinions of men to the clear texts of the Quran and Sunnah,it has further taken them even to forget the authentic sayings of their own Imaams(ra)-preferring the sayings of the later followers,thinkinbg that they are the madhabs of the scholars, without discrimination or research and that is due only to the severity of their blind following.It is known that the scholars wrote down their positions in books and left what they regarded to be correct according to their own ijtihaad.Imaam Maalik(ra) -left his position in al-Muwatta and Imaam ash-Shafiee left his position in al-Umm. If we wish to know the madhab of any of those scholars we have to refer back to his book.It is not fitting as being the saying of Imaam Maalik, Imaam Ash-Shafiee and Imaam Abu Haneefah (ra) -which they never said or did. For example, the Maalikees leave their arms at their side, during the Slaah and read Qunoot in fajr,whereas we find Maailik-(ra) quotes in al-Muwatta: "Chapter: placing the two hands, one upon the other in Prayer."He reported narrations therein,from them: That Abdul Kareem ibn Abil Makhaariq al-basaree said, "From the sayings of prophethood is: If you feel shame, then do as you wish; placing the hands one upon the other in prayer;being early in breaking the fast;and delaying taking the predawn meal (suhoor)"

But the later Maalikees use as evidence that Maalik used to pray with his hands hanging at his side,this is ignorance with regard to the madhab which they follow.Since Jafar ibn Sulayman, the governor of al-Madeenah lashed the Imaam in the year 146H and streched out his arms until his hands became dislocated and so he was not able to place his hands one over the other in Prayer.(See al-Intiqaa, p.44). He wrote al-Muwatta two years after this happened. Imaam Maalik (ra) also reports in the chapter of the Qunoot in Fajr prayer (1/159) that, "Ibn Umar(ra) did not read the Qunoot in any of his prayers".

As for Imaam ash-Shafiee (ra) then it is ignorantly attributed to him that he holds the salaat upon the Prophet(saw) to be a sunnah whereas he says in al-Umm (1/117) that it is obligatory:"Allaah, the Most high, made obligatory the salaat upon His Messenger(saw) saying:

"Allah and the angels send salaat upon the Prophet(saw): O you who believe send salaat upon him and greet him with respect.( Sooratul-Ahzaab (33):56)

There is no place which has more right for that be obligatory therein than within the Prayer.We find proof from Allahs Messenger (saw) of what I have said,that salaat upon His Messenger (saw) is obligatory in prayer and Allaah, the Most high, knows best.

As for the books of later Hanafees, such as al-Khulaash of al-Kaidanee,they quote that amongst those things which are prohibited in prayer is making a sign with your forefinger, like Ahlul-Hadeeth. In the book of Prayer of al-Masoodee, he states that pointing with the forefinger was a Sunnah with the older generations, then was practiced by the Sheeah and Raffidees and so the later scholars of Ahlus-Sunnah left it and so became abrogated.Whereas we find in fath-ulQadeer of ibn ul-Hammaam and he is one of the greatest of them, that the pointing is Sunnah and that he who says other than that then he has gone against what is related, rather Muhhamad ibn al-Hasan ash- Shaybaanee, the student of Abu Haneefah reported in his Muwatta that it is Sunnah. Is there not in these examples a clear proof that blind following of madhabs is a calamity that has taken the Muslims away from the following the way of the beset of generations?!

[3] This excellent saying,overflowing with great wisdom,was said by the learned man of this Ummah, Abdullaah ibn Abbas (ra) as quoted by Taqiyyuddeen as-Subkee in his Fatawaa(1/148) being amazed by its beauty. It was taken from Ibn Abbaas (rta) by Mujaahid, as occurs in Jaami Bayaan ul-ilm wa Fadlihee (1/91) and al-Ihkaam fee Usool il-Ahkaam (1/145). Maalik took it from Mujaahid and it is ascribed to Maalik and became well known from him. It was taken from them by Imaam Ahmad (ra) Abu Daawood says in Masaa-il-ul-Imaam Ahmad (p.276) "I heard Ahmad say: There is no one except that his opinion may be taken or left,except fpr the prophet(saw).

[4] From the sayings of Imaam Abu Haneefahan-Nauman (ra) and it is established from him by a number of narrations.See al-Intiqaa of Ibn 'Abdul-Barr(p.145) and Alaam ul-Muwaqqieen of Ibn ul-Qayyim(2/309).

[5] The two Imaams Abu Haneefah and ash-Shaafiee (ra) stated that. See Rasm ul-Muftee from the collected Rasaa'il of ibn 'Abideen (1/4) and Eeqaz ul-Hamam of al-Fulaanee (p.62 and 107).Imaam ash-Shafiee (ra)-said to Imaam Ahmad (ra) "You know better about hadeeth than us, so if an authentic hadeeth comes to you,then inform me of it,that I may according to it,whether its source is the Hijaaz or Koofa or Egypt" (See al-Intiqaa of Ibn Abdul-Barr,p.75).

[6] This is a saying of ash-Shafiee(ra). See al-Majmoo of an-Nawawee(1/63) and Alaam ul-Muwaqqieen of Ibn ul-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (2/361)

[7] You should know,O brother in Islaam,may Allaah grant you success by His obedience and guide you to the truth by his permission,that the truth about the matters which the author mentioned from the later Hanafees is as follows:

(i) As regards the pointing with the forefinger in Tashahhud:

The author mentioned that the later hanafees reject pointing with the forefinger in more than one place in his treatise and that they go against the 'verfiers' within their own madhab. (Amongst them) Imaam at-Tahawee said in his book Sharh Maaniyy ul-Aathaar" In it is a proof that it was at the end of prayer" and ash-Shaykh Abul Hasan as-Sindee says in his footnotes to the Sunan of an-Nasaee(2/236), "The hadeeth about pointing has preceded and the majority of our scholars and others have accepted that,as for rejection of that by some of our scholars,than that deserves no attention".The sunnah with regards to pointing ,is to move the forefinger throughout the tashahhud,in accordance with the hadeeth of Wail ibn Hujr(ra) -which is reported by Ahmad(4/138), Abu Daawood(no.727), an-Nasaaee(2/236), ad-Daarimee (1/314-315),I bn ul-Jaarood(no.208) and Ibn Khuzaimah (no.714) with Saheeh isnaad and there occurs in it,

"...then he closed his fingers and made a ring,then he raised his finger and I saw him moving it and making duaa with it, then I came in a time and when it was cold and so I saw the people with cloaks upon them moving their hands beneath their clothes due to the cold".

As for the hadeeth of Abdullah ibn az-Zubair (ra)- where in is mentioned that the Prophet (saw) used to point with his finger when he made duaa and not move it.It is reported by Abu Dawood(no.989), its isnaad is not authentic since it contains Muhammad ibn 'Ajalah,about whom adh-Dhabee says, "of average memory," The ahadeeth of the like of him are not acceptable if they contradict anyone who is more reliable than him and his narration becomes shaadh and therefore Muslim does not report from him except to endorse something. Even if this hadeeth were established,then it is a denial and the hadeeth of Waail ibn Hujr is affirming. That which affirms is taken over that which denies, since the one who affirms something has an increase in knowledge and what he knows is a proof against he who does not. This sunnah is also from the sayings of Imaam Maalik (ra)-as occurs in the book ar-Risaalah of Abdullah ibn Abee Zaid al-Qairwanee al-Maalikee (p.27) and the book al-Fiqh alal madhaahib il-Arbaah (no.98).Imaam Ahmad was asked,Should a man point his finger in the Prayer? So he said,"Yes strongly." See Masaail ul-Imaam Ahmad,the narration of Ibn Haani (1/80).