Thursday, November 15, 2007

Lecture 3

Hadith # 36

On the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said:

p "Whosoever removes a worldly grief from a believer, Allah will remove from him one of the griefs of the Day of Judgment. Whosoever alleviates [the lot of] a needy person, Allah will alleviate [his lot] in this world and the next. Whosoever shields a Muslim, Allah will shield him in this world and the next. Allah will aid a servant [of His] so long as the servant aids his brother. Whosoever follows a path to seek knowledge therein, Allah will make easy for him a path to Paradise. No people gather together in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, without tranquility descending upon them, mercy enveloping them, the angels surrounding them, and Allah making mention of them amongst those who are with Him. Whosoever is slowed down by his actions will not be hastened forward by his lineage."

related by Muslim in these words.



On the authority of Omar bin Al-Khattab, who said : I heared the messenger of Allah salla Allah u alihi wa sallam say :

"Actions are but by intention and every man shall have but that which he intended. Thus he whose migration was for Allah and His messenger, his migration was for Allah and His messenger, and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take some woman in marriage, his migration was for that for which he migrated." related by Bukhari and Muslim
____________________________________________________________________________
The following is based on a hadith from Sahih Bukhari Volume 4, Book 56, Number 676.

There was a man who had heartlessly murdered ninety-nine people. Then, he felt remorse.

He went to a learned man and told him about his past, explaining that he wished to repent, reform, and become a better person. "I wonder if Allah will pardon me?" he asked.

For all his learning, the scholar was a man who had not been able to digest what he had learned. "You will not be pardoned;' he said. "Then I may as well kill you, too," said the other. And kill him he did.

He then found another worthy individual and told him that he had killed a hundred people. "I wonder," he said, "whether Allah will pardon me if I repent?" Being a truly wise man, he replied, "Of course you will be pardoned; repent at once. I have just one piece of advice for you: avoid the company of wicked people and mix with good people, for bad company leads one into sin:"

The man expressed repentance and regret, weeping as he sincerely implored his Lord to pardon him. Then, turning his back on bad company, he set off to find a neighborhood where righteous people lived.

On the way, his appointed hour arrived, and he died. The angels of punishment and of mercy both came to take away his soul. The angels of punishment said that as a sinful person he rightfully belonged to them, but the angels of mercy also claimed him, saying, "He repented and had resolved to become a good man. He was on his way to a place where righteous people live, but his appointed hour had come." A great debate ensued, and Gabriel was sent as an arbitrator to settle this affair.

After hearing both sides he gave this verdict: "Measure the ground. If the spot where he died is closer to the good people, then he belongs to the angels of mercy, but if it is nearer to the wicked people, he will be given to the angels of punishment."

They measured the ground. Because the man had just set out, he was still closer to the wicked. But because he was sincere in his repentance, the Lord moved the spot where he lay and brought it to just outside the city of the good people.

That penitent servant was handed over to the angels of merry.

Friday, November 9, 2007

Sunday, November 4, 2007

40 Hadith of Imam Nawawi

Email: fatima.khanum@gmail.com


Lesson 1 , contains 42 hadith but referred to as 40, examine 20

12 weeks live lessons, 1 week midterm, 1 week final exam

overview week 1 intro, compiler, text, overview of the science of hadith

week 2 hadith 1 intentions & 36, merits of seeking sacred knowledge

week3 hadith 2, foundational hadith of jibrael

week 4 hadith 11 & 31,overall theme Spiritual excellence

week 5 hadith 25 & 26 about charity

week 6 hadith 2 hadith on faith 13 & 21

week 7 hadith 27 & 28 sacred law and adherence to sunnah

week 8 hadith 3 &29 prayer obligatory and voluntary

week 9 hadith 7 & 34 social responsibility and activism

week 10 hadith 16 & 27 on good character

week 11 hadith 29 & 40 journey to Allah swt and how to become beloved
to Allah swt

week 12 hadith 38 journey to Allah swt

covering half of the collection in roughly 12 weeks.

Memorize 5 hadith in English and Arabic. midterm and finals.

Bismillah ir Rahman ir Raheem (basmala)

The Prophet pbuh said "Every important matter that is not commenced in
the name of Allah, the most Gracious, the Most Merciful, is cut
off(aqta)."speech, matter etc. for barakah (Abda Qadi al Rahawi and al
Khatib). Many other similar ahadith.

All important sciences have an overriding spiritual aspect. All
sciences are means to an end to reach Allah swt and His pleasure. They
are just a means to an end. Everything we do for the sake of Allah
swt. Every work has to be grounded in the remembrance of Allah swt.
Prophet saws began every correspondence with the basmala.

course goals:

1. Appreciate:facilitate our goal of reaching Allah swt and
inculcating love of the Prophets saws. Significance of the hadith
tradition and how the apply to daily life of a Muslim.

2. Identify the topics covered and related to the hadih

3. Memorize 5

4. Discuss relationship between hadith and lessons derived.

5. Reflect upon the ethical lessons.

Intro hadith course.hadith singular, ahadith plural.

1. Sayings : Narration of the Prophets speech, deed, or approval or
disapproval, whether spoken or tacit about something

2. Most scholars extend this nomenclature of the sayings of the
companions and some of the successors.

3.however, many reserve the term for prophetic narrationa and call
every other narration as athar or khabar akhbar.

Sunna =tariqa the way, road, path practive

saying qawl, action fi'l, approval taqrir, attribute sifa

According to usul & hadith scholars, Sunna everything transmitted form
the prophet pbuh of speech, action or approval. According to fuqaha
sunna legal implications (according to key classifications in contrast
to other actions like fardh performance necessitates reward or non-
performance necessitates punishment or haram whose non-performance
necessitates a reward and performance necessitates punishment or mubah
a neutral) what is firmly expablished thabata, as called for matlub
however, not fardh or wajib, on the basis of legal proof, dalil shar'i
but without being obligatory, the continued abandance of which means
disregard of religion. Perfoming sunnah entails great reward and
continued abandance is condemned. Opposite of bida.

Sunna usually referring to a hadith- saying, act or approval but Sunna
has a very broad term to include the hilya-describes his build and
stature, khulqia - moral attributes like his names - mustafa, sadiq,
al-amin, and character traits like trustworthy, generous, compassion,
so both physical and moral attributes and the way he was with people.
Seerah,magazihs, shamail, etc are all included in the sunna.The fiqh
scholars do not look at the the siffat but all human actions in 5
categories - obligatory fardh or wajib, actions unlawful or haram,
actions makruh or disliked, actions that are mubah or permissable,
actions that are sunnah i.e., actions that established in religion
that Prophet Pbuh did but not make it obligatory. Fuqaha very well
aware of other disciplines.

Why we study the science of hadith? It is the study o Prophet's pbuh
sayings actions attributes,approvals. It also encompasses the ilmul
rijaal i.e., how these reports were narrated and how they were
authenticated.

Why study hadith? numerous reasons.

The merit of hadith science after ilmul tawhid. It is the noblest of
sciences because its study leads to knowledge of how o follow the
Prophet, whom Allah Most High ordered us to follow, "Say, if you do
love Allah, then follow me, and Allah will love you?(Aal-i-Imran,3:31)
Scholars took this literally, whether memorizing, writing them down
commenting on them etc.

Glossary of terms

1.Sanad=Rijal alhadith, the people mentioned in the isnad, or chain of
transmission.

2.Matn=the text of hadith

3.Isnad=chain of transmission, ascription of the hadith to its
transmitter. Very complicated as multiple transmissions.

mukhrij- compiler of hadith,studied mentioned with all its chain and
narrators like bukhari and muslim most famous

muhadith- hadith scholar, many many muhaditheen women. A book out
about women muhaditheen.

hafiz - someone who is a hadith master, very higher proficiency then a
muhadith. Hadith an nabawi or hadith marfuh specifically ascribed to
the prophet saws.

There are sahih, hasan and daeef hadith.In the arbaeen of nawawi, all
the hadith are sahih but it is important to understand that there are
three main categories to sahah or soundness of hadith.

what is meant by sahih? Sahih = a hadith that is rigorously
authenticated. That we are sure that is ascribed to Prophet saws.
These are jamae collections - bukhari and muslim. Def. of al hadith us
sahih= A hadith who sanad is fully authenticated that has been
reliably transmitted from one narrator to another from beginning to
end and is free from defect. A hadith that is impeccable in terms of
the people who transmitted it and the way it was transmitted. They
would look at the matn and also look at the sanad. Hadith sahih has
continous transmission, no unknown people in the chain and that is
key, ascribed directly to the prophet pbuh.

next category hasan, good or fair. Hadith connected from one narrator
to another, but it has a slightly less rigorous perhaps transmitter
not as precise as a sahih.

the one not continuous or good is Weak or daeef, problems in
continuity, transmittors not contemporaries, not met each other,
character not reliable.

maukoof - hadith only ascribed to companion, chain of transmission
stop at sahabah

qudsi - special category, 40 hadith al qudsi separate text. What make
a hadith al qudsia special? Unlike most hadith starts with the last
person who transmitted back to the sahabi and then the sahabi says
that qaala rasul saws says but hadith qudsi goes at the end rasul saws
says that qaala Allah swt says, ie. attributed to Allah swt.

mursal- tabaiee ascribes to a prophet but doesn't mention which sahabi
he got it from.

mutawatir- continous, from group to group, Quran a text that is
mutawatir, how is the quran mutawatir? Mass transmitted. Allah swt
promise of preservation by mutawatir, so many masses have memorized
that impossible that they have colluded in memorization or alternation
of the text.

majhool - a famous hadith, a level almost reaches mutawatir, related
by groups but not as large as the mutawatir. They might be famous but
not sahih, hasan or daeef. Mashur label to a hadith very common known
to many people.

"Wama yantiqu anil hawa"Quran 53:3. That prophet saws does not speak
from whim or caprice. Allah swt mentions many times that He sent the
quran and the hikma and hikma. Hikma meaning the sunna of the Prophet
Mohammad saws in executing the quran.

Ghareeb - means strange but it means something unique. only one
companion narrated the hadith. like hadith 1 that is narrated by Omar
ra but it is sahih.

khabr or asr by companions or generation after the companions.

typically isnad directly to the source without the lengthy isnad but
if you see more extensive collection many others transmitting the
hadith.

Initially Prophet pbuh forbade the sahaba to write down the hadith but
later when he saws saw their integrity, he instructed them to write
them. They wrote in sahifas, they were vessels of narration, he pbuh
would instruct them and repeat it again and again and have them repeat
it to him and they transmitted this information down through the
centuries. Hadith science began with Prophet pbuh, another way it
emerged was that people around him memorized and recorded in depth
everything they learnt like his wives and companions. Prominent
sahifas still there today like that of Amr ibnal Aas. Phase three the
phase we will study the second century after hijra Umar ibn Abd
al-Aziz or Umar II afraid the loss of ahadith due to the death of
those who had memorized it. This was done by Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri. The
next era was of Bukahari and Muslim, concerned about authentication,
many sects had emerged and some would fabricate a hadith to cement
their position. We see the grading of the narrators according to their
veracity. Canonical Sahifa Amriibn Al Aas, ibn jurayj, muwatta,
bukhari, muslim, nasai and dawud,tirmidhi , ibn majah. Six major sahih
collections.

A look at author and the text

Hadith Master born in village of Nawa on the Horan plain, nawa Syriia
in 631 AH/1233 CE. Most famous scholar of Shafii school of law.
Fascinating story began studying at a very tender age. Age of 10
memorizing Quran studying Fiqh when in 649 AH, when 18 went to
Damascus to study in Dar ul hadith memorizing entire books of hadith
and law. 2 years later made hajj. very strict routine to study very
little sleep very famous for knowledge. KNown for 3 things :
commitment to seek knowledge, vast learning and prolific scholar. Some
of famous works Shafii fiqh book studied in Yemen- minhajul ul
Talibeen, Sharh commentary on Sahih al Muslim, very famous =arden of
the righteous riyadulsaaliheen, famous Kitab al athkaar book of
remembrance, and arbaeen an nawawi. He died at the young age of 44 in
year 676AH.

Why he compiled 40 hadith relates two things in his introduction,
because Allah most high, said, "So take what the messenger assigns
you..." (Al-Hashr 59:7. Scholars took verses of the Quran and
implemented them

Foundational hadith in Islam every believer should be familiar with
these tradition. Prophet saws tradition "Whoever memorizes and
preserves for the people forty hadith relating to their tradition,
Allah swt will resurrect him on the Day of Judgement in the company of
jurists and religious scholars". Even though said to be daef or weak
hadith but sound in meaning and as Imam Nawawi and Shafii scholars
say it is proper to act in matters of virtue on weak hadith. There
similar hadith on memorizing hadith that are sound and corroborate
this tradition.