“And Noah called to his Lord and said, “My Lord, indeed MY SON IS OF MY FAMILY (AHLI)and indeed, Your promise is true; and You are the most just of judges! He said, “O NOAH, INDEED HE IS NOT OF YOUR (AHLIKA) FAMILY; indeed, he is one whose work was other than righteous, so ask Me not for that about which you have no knowledge. Indeed, I advise you, lest you be among the ignorant. Noah said, “My Lord, I seek refuge in You from asking that of which I have no knowledge. And unless You forgive me and have mercy upon me, I will be among the losers.”(Qur’an 11:45-47)
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We are often told that our presuppositions may preclude us from being fair in accessing certain hadith traditions. That we would approach the text with our own suppositions. I don’t disagree with this statement. The real point is who doesn’t approach something with their own suppositions?
However, I think the point is we all approach any situation with our own suppositions. The point is to be mindful of this, and know when it may impede our ability to look at something from a different perspective, or not.
What better example than the attacks upon ‘sahih’ -ahadith found in the collection of Muslim, by those who hold to the Ashari theological school.
In particular, things that the ‘Sufi‘ find troubling about the following sahih hadith. As well as those who have been affected by the Shia-fication of Sunnism as follows:
Narrated from Anas (ra) that a man said: “O Messenger of Allah, where is my father?” He said: “In Hell.” When he turned away he called him back and said: “My father and your father are in Hell.”
Source: (https://sunnah.com/muslim/1/408)
Some may say why even talk about this subject? It is bad manners?
The very people who say that, are the very people themselves who have brought the topic up.
There is actually no good reason to reject this hadith. The only reason to reject this hadith is based upon an emotional attachment to the ‘Ahl Bayt‘ and to the family of the Blessed Prophet (saw).
“Say, [O Muhammed], “If your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your relatives, wealth which you have obtained, commerce wherein you fear decline, and dwellings with which you are pleased are more beloved to you than Allah and His Messenger and jihad in His cause, then wait until Allah executes His command. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.” (Qur’an 9:29)
If this is the state of faith that Muslims are to have in regards to Allah (swt) It is certain that the Blessed Messenger (saw) had this state of faith, a state of faith that none of us would pale in comparison to.
There is also the reality that hellfire is real. That some people will go to hellfire. Those people will be other people’s fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers, and sisters. All of us live with the reality that either ourselves or our most beloved family will not be in paradise.
With the Blessed Messenger (saw) making that statement about his father, it makes the Blessed Prophet (saw) very relatable to our grievances.
Now the “Sufis” will go on and on about knowledge of the unseen that the Blessed Messenger (saw) is said to have had.
However, when it comes to something like this they simply cannot accept that the Blessed Messenger (saw) may have had some insight into what happened to His (saw) parents; albeit a very painful insight.
The same people will go absolutely ballistic when anyone challenges their Sahih hadith canons, but themselves will pull out all the stops when they come across something that goes against their presuppositions.
It is worth it to watch the entire video presentation of Dr. Jonathan Brown. However, for the purpose of this entry, it would suffice to watch from @42:50, to see exactly what I am talking about.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_r1GhCQGf9w
At @43:50 Dr. Jonathan Brown takes liberties by saying ‘there is an important principle in Islam that in order to be accountable for anything you have to have knowledge‘.
First, it should be very clear what he is about to present to the audience is not necessarily the position of ‘Islam’. It is a position of creed, one that a certain group of Muslims with their own presuppositions hold to.
Basically what Dr. Jonathan Brown is doing is expounding upon a position in the Ashari theological school. (Albeit in a very superficial manner)
They assume that just because people have not heard about Islam, these people would automatically enter into paradise.
In other words, if divine guidance has not come to you, you will automatically enter paradise.
Think of the implications of that for a moment. Now, if your going to talk about justice this creedal position of the Ashari turns the justice of Allah (swt) into a cosmic comedy.
Why?
Well, how is it fair for people who have been exposed to Islam entered into it and possibly still end up in hell?
Whereas it would have been more preferable (I mean we are talking about eternity here) for said people to have never heard about Islam, and enter into heaven automatically, simply by virtue of the fact of not receiving guidance.
So if you do not receive divine guidance you automatically enter into heaven?
However, if you do hear about divine guidance and reject it you will go to hell.
In General: Assurance of salvation is not a doctrine in Islam.
Then if you embrace the divine guidance you have a 50/50 chance of going to heaven/hell.
Something seems very inconsistent here.
As educated and eloquent as Dr. Jonathan Brown is he gives an example. What that would be relatable to the Ashari school. He gives the example about ‘the man living in a remote part of Nebraska‘.
So you mean to tell us this man who lives in a remote part of Nebraska and never heard about Islam, or even had an adequate presentation of Islam delivered to him, can steal from his mother, rape a child, rob a bank, never pay back any of his loans, constantly lie, beat his wife and lead an overall horrible life and he will enter heaven?
Whereas countless Muslims all of the world are trying their utmost to have a relationship with their Creator and to fulfill the commands as they understand them, in a sea of competing sects and schism, and then there is a very likely chance that they could end up in hell?
Does that honestly make any sense to anyone at all?
Notice Dr. Jonathan Brown says @45:13 “God will judge them on the day of judgement like God judges everybody“
So why would God judge them? If they would automatically enter into heaven? If God judges them than doesn’t that mean they stand a chance to be condemned?
If they do stand the chance to be condemned than the Ashari needs to explain based upon what.
Apologies to the readers, as I digress.
However, this is fundamentally important to the discussion, because it is an ironclad proof! It is an ironclad proof from within that if those from the Ashari school find something that goes against their presuppositions they will discard a hadith!
Gibril Fouad Haddad is a modern scholar who gave a lengthy apologetic response to the issue in pages 51-64 of his book “The Four Imams and Their Schools“
Which by the way if you don’t have that book you absolutely should buy it. You should buy everything written by Gibril Fouad Haddad for that matter. He has absolute astute attention to detail. He is in our view one of the most, candid and truthful traditonalist scholars in our time. Surely he will receive his reward with his Lord.
In the pages of his book, there are some eye-opening admissions. His book also contains his own biases and leanings for example:
Mulla ‘Ali al-Qari and his Minah Al-Rawd Al-Azhar, commentary on Al-Fiqh Al-Akbar is simply thrown under the bus.
Shaykh Haddad states:
“Mulla Ali al-Qari claimed in Sharh al-Fiqh Al Akbar, Mu’taqad Abu Hanifa, and Shar al-Shifa that Imam Abu Hanifa said, “The parents of the Prophet (saw) died as disbelievers.” and that this was the Maturidi position. He was refuted harshly by his student, the Faqih and Friend of Allah, Imam Abd al-Qadir ibn Muhammed ibn Ahmad al Tabari, during the latter’s lessons in the Makkan Sanctuary, Al-Qari died in Makka shortly after those lectures from a bad fall-May Allah have mercy on him and forgive him. Shaykh Ibrahim al-Halabi, the Hanafi faqih, held the same view as Mulla Ali al-Qari as well as does al-Azim Abadi in AAwn al-Mabud.” (pg 51 The Four Imams and Their Schools)
The innuendo is certainly not subtle at all.
“Al-Qari died in Makka shortly after those lectures from a bad fall-May Allah have mercy on him and forgive him.”
The implication is Allah (swt) made the learned scholar, Mulla Ali al-Qari die from a bad fall for simply repeating what he found attributed to Imam Abu Hanifa.
Is what is attributed to Imam Abu Hanifa a forgery?
Shaykh Haddad quotes Dr. Inayatullah Iblagh al-Afghani in the 1987 2nd edition of his published doctoral thesis titled ‘al-Imam al-A’zam Abu Hanifa al-Mutakallim (“The Greatest Imam, Abu Hanifa, the Theologian”), said:
“Regarding the text [of al-Fiqh al-Akbar] we find in some of them: “and the two parents of the Prophet (saw) died according to pristine disposition” (mata ala al-fitra), In some others, it is: “did not die as disbelievers” (ma mata ala al-kufr) while in others yet, we find: “died as disbelievers” (mata ala-al kufr)”
Shaykh Haddad continues: The erudite scholar al-Kawthari noted that the word fitra can be easily altered to read kufr in Kufic Arabic calligraphy. It is highly probable, therefore, that the copy with “died according to pristine disposition” was changed to “died disbelievers.” The original reading implies that the Greatest Imam was arguing against those who adduce the hadith; “My father and your father are both in Hellfire.” (pg 57 The Four Imams and Their Schools.”
So now let us think about this claim.
The text could read:
did not die as disbelievers/did not die in pristine disposition
or
could read died as disbelievers/died according to pristine disposition.
Now, we can’t assume that the version that Shaykh Hadad prefers is the original version. Especially if it simply a copyist error. However, something that was not pondered upon at all is the possibility of forgery. The reason I believe this was not discussed is that to discuss forgery we need to discuss a motive. We have a high motive for someone to change the text from disbeliever to pristine disposition. However, what possible motive would any Muslim have for changing the text from pristine disposition to disbeliever?
Let us look at some other evidence that shows contrary to what some people desire that relatives of the Blessed Messenger (saw) were indeed people who do not make it to paradise.
“The daughter of Abu Lahab, Subay’a came to the Messenger of Allah (saw) and said, “Messenger of Allah!” The people are calling me the daughter of the Fuel of the Hellfire! The Messenger of Allah (saw) stood angry and said on the pulpit: “What is the matter with the people that harm me in my relatives? Whoever harms my relatives harms me, and whoever harms me has harmed Allah!”
Source: (Narrated from Ibn ‘Umar, Abu Hurayra, and Ammar bin Yasir by Ibn Abi ‘Asim in al-Ahad wal-Mathani (5:470 & 3165).
“May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he.” (Qur’an 111:1)
Did Allah (swt) find it insensitive to name someone’s father as a resident of hellfire?
Ali himself said that Abu Bakr is the only Companion to have both parents, Abu Quhafa and Umm al-Khayr enter Islam.
Sources: (Aisha by Malik in Muwatta, Ibn Sa’d (3:194-195) Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Sunan al-Kubra (6:169-170 & 11728, 6:178 & 11784, 6:257 & 12267, Abd Al-Razzaq (9;101) , Al-Tahawi in Sharh Ma’ani al-Athar (4:880, Istiab (4:1807), Nasb (2:630), al-Lalika’i in Karamat al-Awliya (p 117), al-Mizzi in Tadhib al-Kamal (35:380) and Muhhib al-Din al-Tabari in al-Riyad al-Nadira (2:122-123 & 576)
Narrated by Al Musaiyab:
“When Abu Talib’s death approached, the Prophet went to him while Abu Jahl and ‘Abdullah bin Abi Umaiya were present with him. The Prophet said, “O uncle, say: None has the right to be worshipped except Allah, so that I may argue for your case with it before Allah.” On that, Abu Jahl and ‘Abdullah bin Abu Umaiya said, “O Abu Talib! Do you want to renounce ‘Abdul Muttalib’s religion?” Then the Prophet said, “I will keep on asking (Allah for) forgiveness for you unless I am forbidden to do so.” Then there was revealed: ‘It is not fitting for the Prophet and those who believe that they should invoke (Allah) for forgiveness for pagans even though they are of kin after it has become clear to them that they are companions of the Fire.’ (9.113)”
Source: (https://sunnah.com/bukhari:1360)
The point being is that all of these groups and factions you are hard-pressed to find anyone to be consistent.
People will attack Shaykh Nasir Ad-Deen Al Abani because he said that Bukhari itself was bound to have mistakes.
However, the same people in our humble opinion apply double standards. They use their own presuppositions to evaluate the truthfulness of a text even if it said hadith is within the category of something deemed ‘sahih’ -sound!
“O you who have believed, why do you say what you do not do?” (Qur’an 61:2)
It is not for the Prophet and those who have believed to ask forgiveness for the polytheists, even if they were relatives after it has become clear to them that they are companions of Hellfire.” (Qur’an 9:113)
So extreme are these presuppositions concerning that the father of the Prophet (saw) that these same people have taken some strange approaches concerning the father of Prophet Ibrahim (as)
You may read about that here:
You may also be interested in reading the following:
May Allah (swt) guide the Ummah!
May Allah (swt) Forgive the Ummah!
Prima Quran 