The Month of Ramadan (Part 1) by Mufti Taqi Usmani db

The Month of Ramadan (Part 1) 

by Mufti Taqi Usmani db

The ninth month of the Islamic calendar is called "Ramadan" and it is the most meritorious month of the whole year. Since there are many specific rules peculiar to this, month, we would like to deal with its characteristics in a rather detailed manner under different sections.

  

THE PHILOSOPHY OF RAMADAN 

The Holy Qur'an has expressly told us that the basic objective for which man is created by Allah is that he "worships" Him:

وما خلقت الجن والإنس إلا ليعبدون    

And I did not create Jinn and human beings except that they should worship Me.

]سورة الذاريات:  [  56

The word used by the Holy Qur'an for the worship is "Ibadah" which has a much wider sense than "worship". In English, the word "worship" normally indicates to some specific acts or rituals meant exclusively to show one's reverence to his Creator. But the word "ibadah' is not restricted to such acts or rituals, rather, it embodies any act done in submission to Allah's commands and to seek His pleasures. Therefore, many acts which seem to be mundane in nature are included in the word of ‘ `ibadah’  like earning one's livelihood through halal (permissible) means and in order to fulfill one's obligations towards his dependants.

However, `ibadah is of two kinds. At the first place there are acts meant exclusively to worship Allah, having no worldly objective, like Salah, fasting etc. These are direct acts of `ibadah' while the other kind of `ibadah' includes the acts which are primarily mundane, but they are converted into an `ibadah' when they are performed in full conformity with Shari`ah and with an intention to discharge one's obligations. Therefore, these acts are treated as 'ibadah' in an indirect manner. It is obvious that the direct acts of '`ibadah' should be superior to the indirect ones.

Now, while prescribing very few acts of direct `ibadah in one's daily life, like the salah which is performed five times a day, Islam has left its followers mostly with the indirect acts of 'ibadah like eating, drinking, earning the livelihood and association with one's wife, children, parents, relatives, friends and other human beings. But the primary nature of these acts being mundane, one becomes so absorbed in their worldly pleasures that their material aspects prevail on their spiritual aspect. Therefore, these acts have less spiritual strength than the direct acts of worship.

Since the direct acts of `ibadah are very few in one's daily life as compared to the indirect ones, his spiritual progress becomes slow vis-à-vis his material progress. The month of Ramadan has been designed to maintain a balance between material and spiritual aspects of the human life. This month is meant to maximize the direct acts of `ibadah and to minimize the pure' mundane activities, so that one may accelerate his spiritual progress to make up the distance and to repair the spiritual loss one may have suffered through his deep involvement in the mundane activities during the year. The days of Ramadan are designed to keep fast which is an act of `ibadah for the whole day, and depriving oneself from any material food for many hours, it lessens the bad spiritual effects, if any, of the material pleasures. The nights of Ramadan, on the other hand, are spent in offering Tarawih and waking up for tahajjud and suhur, reducing the time of one's sleep much less than in the normal days. Moreover, apart from the prescribed acts of worship, one is supposed to offer as much optional (nafl) `ibadah in this month as he can. In this way the level of one's spiritual activities in this month is raised up much higher than in other days of the year.

This philosophy of the month of Ramadan makes it clear that this month should be devoted to the direct acts of worship as far as possible. That is why the reward of the virtuous acts in this month has been multiplied. This is to encourage the Muslims to the maximum possible acts of `ibadah.

 

THE MERITS OF RAMADAN

The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم  , has mentioned the merits of Ramadan in a large number of ahadith Some of them are reproduced here with translation:

عن سلمان رضي الله عنه قال: خطبنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في آخر يوم من شعبان فقال: يا أيها الناس: قد أظلكم شهر عظيم مبارك فيه ليلة خير من ألف شهر، جعل الله صيامه فريضة وقيام ليله تطوعا من تقرب فيه بخصلة كان كمن ادى فريضة فيما سواه، ومن ادى فريضة فيه كان كمن ادى سبعين فريضة فيما سواه، وهو شهر الصبر والصبر ثوابه الجنة، وشهر المواساة ، وشهر يزاد فيه رزق المؤمن، من فطّر فيه صائما كان مغفرة لذنوبه وعتق رقبته من النار وكان له مثل اجره، من غير ان ينقص من اجره شيء، قالوا: يا رسول الله ! ليس كلنا يجد ما يفطر به الصائم، فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: يعطي الله هذا الثواب من فطّر صائما على تمرة أو شربة ماء، أو مذقة لبن، وهو شهر أوله رحمة، وأوسطه مغفرة، وآخره عتق من النار ، واستكثروا فيه من أربع خصال: خصلتين ترضون بهما ربكم، وخصلتين لاغناء بكم عنهما. فأما الخصلتان اللتان ترضون بهما ربكم ، فشهادة أن لا إله الا الله ، وتستغفرونه وأما الخصلتان اللتان لا غناء بكم عنهما، فتسئلون الله الجنة وتعوذون به من النار، ومن سقى صائما سقاه الله من حوضي شربة لا يظمأ حتى يدخل الجنة (رواه ابن خزيمة في صحيحه والبيهقي وغيرهما) (الترغيب والترهيب للمنذري ص٢،٣)

Salman, the Persian رضي الله عنه   in has reported the following: The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم   addressed us on the last day of Sha`ban wherein he said:

 "O men, a great, blessed month has cast its shadow upon you. It is a month which contains a night far better than one thousand months, a month Allah has made it obligatory to fast therein and made it commendable to stand up praying in its nights. If someone seeks Allah's nearness by offering an optional act of worship in this month, it will be as rewarding as to offer an obligatory worship in other days, and if someone performs an obligatory act of worship in this month, it will carry as much reward as the reward of performing seventy obligatory acts of worship in other days. It is the month of patience and the reward of patience is Jannah (paradise). It is a month of sympathy, a month in which the provision for a believer is increased. If someone provides another person with food to make Iftar (terminate one's fast by eating or drinking something) it will cause forgiveness to his sins and freeing his neck from hell and he will be awarded the same thawab as the fasting person will be rewarded for his fast, without decreasing his own thawab.

The companions of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم   said, "O Messenger of Allah, every one of us does not have enough food to offer for iftar to another fasting person." The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم   said, "This thawab will also be given to a person who offers to a fasting person one date or a drink of water or a little milk for his iftar. And this is a month the first part of which is mercy from Allah, the middle of which is the forgiveness from Allah and the last part of which is liberation from hell. If someone relaxes the burden of work from his slave in this month, Allah will forgive him his sins and will free him from the Fire. In this month you should do four acts frequently. Two acts are such that you will please your Lord through them and two are such that you can never claim to be need-free of them. As for the two acts you please Allah through them, they are: to bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and to seek forgiveness from Allah. And the two acts you can never be need-free of them are: to pray Allah to give you the Jannah (the Paradise) and to seek refuge to Allah from the Fire. And if someone serves a drink to a fasting person, Allah will make him have such a drink from my canal (the Kauthar) that he will never get thirsty after it until he enters the Jannah."

This hadith gives us a detailed account of the peculiar merits of the month of Ramadan and of what we should try to do in it. The upshot of the hadith is that one should not restrict himself to fasting in this month; rather he should maximise the number of his virtuous acts and take this opportunity to seek forgiveness for his sins and to secure as much thawab as he can, by offering the nafl acts of worship including charitable acts.

In another hadith, reported by Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه   in the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم   has said:

خمس خصال في رمضان لم تعطهن أمة قبلهم: خلوف فم الصائم أطيب عند الله من ريح المسك، وتستغفرلهم الحيتان حتى يفطروا، ويزين الله عزوجل كل يوم جنته ثم يقول: يوشك عبادي الصالحون أن يلقوا عنهم المؤونة وليصيروا إليك، وتصفد فيه مردة الشياطين، فلا يخلصوا فيه إلى ما كانوا يخلصون إليه في غيره وليغفر لهم في آخر ليلة (رواه احمد والبزار والبيهقي، كما في الترغيب)

  “My Ummah has been given five characteristic honours in the month of Ramadan which have not been given to any other ummah before.

1. The smell coming out from the mouth of a fasting person is better with Allah than the smell of musk.

2. fishes (in the water) keep praying Allah to forgive the fasting persons until they make iftar.

3. In every day of Ramadan, Allah decorates the Jannah and addresses it saying, "It is not too far that my righteous servants shall throw away the burdens (of the worldly life) and shall proceed towards you.”

4. The rebellious satans are shackled in this month, and they cannot do in it what they do in other days (i.e. instigating men and women to commit sins.)

5. In the last night of this month, they (the fasting persons) are granted amnesty.”

In a hadith narrated by `Ubadah ibn al Samit, رضي الله عنه   the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم   is reported to have said:

"أتاكم رمضان، شهر بركة يغشاكم الله فيه فينزل الرحمة ويحطّ الخطايا يستجيب فيه الدعاء ينظر الله تعالى إلى تنافسكم فيه، ويباهي بكم ملائكته فأروا الله من أنفسكم خيرا، فإن الشقي من حرم فيه رحمة الله عزوجل.

“Ramadan has come to you. It is the month of blessing in which Allah envelops you (with His kindness) He makes His mercy descend upon you, He forgives your sins and accepts your prayers. Allah witnesses you when you race one another (in virtuous deeds) in this month and becomes proud of you before His angels. Therefore, show Allah the best of deeds from your side, because unfortunate is that person who deprives himself from Allah's mercy in this month.”

These ahadith are sufficient to explain the great merits Allah has invested this month with.

HOW TO SPEND RAMADAN

The month of Ramadan is the season of divine blessings. It is the month of purification, it is meant for annual renovation of the inner spiritual qualities. It is a golden opportunity for every Muslim to strengthen his 'Iman, to purify his heart and soul and to remove the evil effects of the sins committed by him.

This month invites a Muslim to minimize his other mundane involvements and maximize the acts of worship. One should plan his schedule for this month, before-hand, so as to spare maximum time for 'ibadah.

 Here is a brief list of the acts which should be carried out in Ramadan with due care:

1. To offer every prayer with jama'ah in a masjid.

2. To rise up a little earlier than the exact time of suhoor and to offer the salah of tahajjud. There is no prescribed number of the Tahajjud prayer. Yet, it is better to pray 8 Rak'at.

3. To offer the nafl prayers of Ishraq (two rak'at after sunrise) Duha (Four rak'at which may be performed at anytime after Ishraq before noon) and Awwabin (six rak'at after maghrib).

4. The recitation of the Holy Qur'an. No specific limit is prescribed. But one should recite as much of it as he can.

5. Dhikr or Tasbeeh, specially the following recitations:

  

(a) سبحان الله وبحمده سبحان الله العظيم

(b) سبحان الله والحمد لله ولا إله إلا الله والله اكبر

(c) استغفرالله ربي من كل ذنب وأتوب إليه

(d)اللهم صل على محمد النبي الأمي وعلى آله وصحبه وسلم

(e) لا حول ولا قوة إلا بالله العلي العظيم

Apart from reciting these words, one hundred times each, at a particular time, they may also be continued frequently throughout the day, even if one is engaged in some light work, when walking and when in bed.

6. Prayers and supplications: No particular prayer is prescribed. One can pray for everything he needs both in this world and in the Hereafter. However, the supplications of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم are so comprehensive that they encompass all that a Muslim can need in his life and after his death. It is, therefore, much advisable to pray Allah Almighty in the prophetic words used by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم.

There are several books where these prophetic supplications have been compiled. Here is the name of two books which should be kept by every Muslim in his home and be used for praying daily:

(i) Al-hisnul-hasin الحصن الحصين By Allamah aljazri.

(ii) Munajat-e-Maqbool مناجات مقبول  By Maulana Ash-raf Ali Thanvi.

7. Sadaqah (charity): Apart from paying zakah, which is obligatory, one should also pay optional sadaqah in Ramadan according to his best ability. It is reported in authentic ahadith that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم used to pay special attention in Ramadan to look after the poor and to help them financially. Therefore, a Muslim should give as much money in sadaqah as he can afford.

WHAT SHOULD BE AVOIDED IN RAMADAN

All sinful acts should be avoided completely during the month of Ramadan. Although the sinful acts are totally prohibited in Shariah, whether in Ramadan or at any other time, but their prohibition becomes more severe in this month. It is evident that every Muslim avoids certain lawful acts, like eating and drinking, during the fasts. If he continues to commit sins in Ramadan, it will be a mockery to avoid lawful things and yet be engaged in unlawful acts never allowed in Shari'ah. Thus, the abstinence from sins becomes all the more necessary in this month.

Specially the following acts should be avoided totally:

(1) Telling a lie.

(2) Gheebah or backbiting i.e. condemnation of a person in his absence.

(3) Quarrelling.

(The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has particularly forbidden from it when one is in the state of fasting. He has directed us that, if someone wants to quarrel in Ramadan, we should tell him that we are fasting, hence we are not prepared to indulge in any quarrel.)

(4) Eating unlawful things.

(5) Earning through unlawful means.

(6) Any act which may harm a person without a valid cause.

(7) Burdening one's servants or employees with a toilsome job beyond their ability, without providing them facilities to carry it out.

In short, one should try his best to refrain from all kinds of sins, and protect his eyes, ears, tongue and all other organs from indulging in an unlawful activity.

Once a Muslim spends the month of Ramadan in this way, he will insha’allah, find himself equipped with a spiritual strength which will facilitate for him to conduct a good Islamic life in accordance with the pleasure of Allah.

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Refuting the salafi claim about 15th night of sha’aban by Shaikh A.Rahim Limbada db

Dear readers!
The following is an answer I wrote to a friend who emailed me a question saying “How can we refute these claims?” He sent a very long article which was said to be written by sheikh Abdul Aziz ibn al baaz. I doubt it’s relation to the marhoom sheikh. Because sheikh’s eyesight had deteriorated at age of 16 and by the age of 20, he was completely blind. This article has so many details that it does not corroborate with sheikh’s other writings. Wallahu A’lam.

If you want to read the whole article, you can read it at the end of this reply, provided you have the patience to do so.

————————–

Walaikumussalam w w

Jazakallah for your query. I will try to keep my reply as brief as possible.

There is great mix up within the article.
First, It’s written from an extremist salafi or should I say wahabi point of view. They regard everything they don’t like as bid’ah. They only know a few Hadith like “Every innovation is bid’ah”. They don’t know or they don’t want to know the Hadith of Daarami in Mishkat which states
و من ابتدع بدعة لا يرضاها الله ورسوله……

“and whosoever invents any innovation which Allah and his Rasul don’t like…..” This clearly indicates that there are some innovations which Allah and his Rasul like .

Therefore, كل محدثة بدعة “every innovation is bid’ah” has been interpreted by imam nawawi and others as غالب البدع ضلالة. Ie most innovations are misguidance.

Imam Izzuddin ibn abdissalam has divided bid’ah into 5 categories.
1,wajib bid’ah 2, mustahabb bid’ah 3, mubaah bid’ah 4, makrooh bid’ah and 5, haram bid’ah. It would be very lengthy to explain each type and give it’s example in this brief reply.

However, through this categorisation we can understand the compiling of the Quran in a mus’haf, Initiation of taraweeh, extra Azan before jumuah salah, shafiyyah shaking hands after fajr and asr, hugging and shaking hands on eid day, ijtimai dua after fardh salah etc

All those ahadeeth which mention grave warnings for bid’ah are regarding such innovations which corrupt the Deen. Eg the Shia’s bid’ah of adding in azaan اشهدان عليا ولي الله
They did this to increase Ali’s love in people’s mind but at the same time to criticise and curse Abu Bakr and Umar. So this bid’ah is blameworthy.

When a bid’ah causes fasaad fid Deen, then that is a bad innovation. This attitude of classing everything as bid’ah is in itself a bida’h. Salaf’s attitude was to be calm and keep things in perspective, looking at all angles of a shar’ee mas’alah.

When we read this article which you have posted to me, we notice that there are many flaws in it.

1) ‘Religion being completed’ does not mean there will be no new needs and no new mas’alas. It simply means foundations have been laid down and all the rules and regulations have been established and masaail can be derived from Quran and sunnah according to the needs of times. ThIs is for the ulema of the Ummah to explain what is in confirmation with the roots and what is not. This is no tahleel and tahreem issue. This is simply research in the most detailed manner possible.

Now we will analyse a few of their paragraphs:

2) Look at this sentence ‘ Among the bid’ahs that have been invented by some people is celebrating the middle of Sha’baan (Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’baan), and singling out that day for fasting’

Two things are mentioned here.

A) ‘Celebrating’ Celebration is of birthdays, weddings etc Nobody celebrates on this night. People just exhort themselves into worship, by listening to some naseehah in which people are advised to get ready for Ramadhan and then by reciting some Quran, performing a little bit of tahajjud, fasting on the following day. This can hardly be classed as celebration. especially when naseehah, tilaawah, fasting and tahajjud are all recommended aspects of shariah.

B, Singling out the next day for fasting is based on the Hadith of sayyiduna Ali radiyallahu anhu, narrated by Ibn majah, bayhaqi and others. So how can it be a reason for criticism? Especially when their criticism is based on qiyaas and analogy, And among rules of qiyas is that the analogy should not be in confrontation with a nass, (text of Quran and Hadith). Over here qiyaas is done upon the Hadith of ‘Not singling out Friday for a special worship’. And this qiyas is in confrontation with the many ahaadeeth in virtue of The 15th night of sha’abaan.

3) Ponder over this text
“Some da’eef (weak) ahadith have been narrated concerning its virtues, but we cannot regard them as reliable. The reports which have been narrated concerning the virtues of prayer on this occasion are all mawdoo’ (fabricated)”

Can you see how cunningly the writer contradicts himself by mixing dhaeef and mawdhoo’ both in one paragraph?

There are two Hadith here.

One is dhaeef, which concerns Qiyamullayl (performing tahajjud at night) and Siyamunnahaar (fasting the following day). This Hadith is dhaeef but NOT mawdhoo’.

Second is praying special salah with a specific number of surahs, which we also categorise as being mawdhoo’. The writer gives the impression that they are both mawdhoo’

4) when mentioning ‘following Allah and his messenger’, Do they think that the pious muttaqi ulema, who invite people to worship Allah on this night, hate Allah and his Rasul and therefore go against their instructions?

5) Read the following:
‘There is no saheeh basis for celebrating the middle of Sha’ban, so we cannot follow the da’eef ahaadeeth either. This important principle was mentioned by Imam Abu’l-‘Abbaas Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him’

The principle mentioned is not correct. Dhaeef Hadith has been used for fadhaail by most of the salafe saliheen. Imam Ahmed ibn hanbal, Abdurrahman ibn Mahdi, imam nawawi, ibn salah, Hafidh ibn hajar are just some of them. Ibn taymiya also holds this opinion. And ibn al qayyim’s books are filled with dhaeef ahadeeth. Only a handful say that dhaeef should not be used for fadhaail.

The ahadeeth regarding virtue of this night have been narrated from 10 sahaba. See mufti Taqi Saheb’s Islaahi khutubaat p264 vol 3

In fact sheikh Fadhlurrahman A’zami has narrated in his article on this subject that ibn taymiya accepted that this night does hold virtues.

In fact Al-Albani has classed the Hadith of maghfirat in laylatunnisfi min sha’abaan as SAHEEH.

He has narrated it on the authority of 8 sahabah. Their names are as follows.
1, Abu Bakr siddique 2, Muaaz ibn jabal 3, Abu tha’labah al khushani 4, Abdullah ibn amr 5, Abu Musa al ash’ari 6, Abu hurayrah 7, Awf ibn Malik and 8, Aisha siddiqah radhiallahu anhum ajmaeen.

After giving references in full 3 pages, he wrote:
وجملة القول ان الحديث بمجموع هذه الطرق صحيح بلا ريب والصحة تثبت بأقل منها عددا ما دامت سالمة من الضعف الشديد كما هوالشان في هذا الحديث، فما نقله الشيخ القاسمي في إصلاح المساجد ص١٠٧ عن اهل التعديل والتجريح انه ليس في فضل ليلة النصف من شعبان حديث يصح، فليس مما ينبغي الاعتماد عليه. و ان كان احد منهم اطلق مثل هذا القول فإنما اوتي من قبل التسرع و عدم وسع الجهد لتتبع الطرق علي هذا النحو الذي بين يديك (سلسلة الأحاديث الصحيحه ص١٣٨/٣)

(Silsilatul ahaadeethis saheehah p138
vol 3)

6) Reflect upon the following:

Al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab (RAA) said in his book Lataa’if al-Ma’aarif concerning this matter – after previously discussing it – “Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’baan (the middle of Sha’ban) was venerated by the Tabi’een among the people of al-Sham, such as Khalid ibn Mi’dan, Makhool, Luqman ibn ‘Amir and others, who used to strive in worship on this night. The people took the idea of the virtue of this night and of venerating it from them. It was said that they heard of Isra’eli reports (reports from Jewish sources) concerning that”.

Hafiz ibn rajab’s attitude is totally opposite of what the writer is trying to portray. Ibn rajab has shown great respect to the tabioon who used to respect this night. And who are they? Tabioon!! They are from Khayrul quroon. Can something that was practised in that period be criticised in this manner?? Makhool shami was a great muhaddith. Khalid ibn ma’dan was a great wali of Allah, same with Luqman ibn amir.

And in order to put these legends down, the writer fabricates a lie that they took this idea from Jewish sources. Why blame everything on the Jews? Why would the Jews revere the 15th night of sha’abaan?

We narrate here the text of ibn Rajab for the benefit of the ulema

كان التابعون من أهل الشام كخالد بن معدان ومكحول و لقمان بن عامر و غيرهم يعظمونها و يجتهدون فيها في العبادة و عنهم أخذ الناس فضلها و تعظيمها و قد قيل أنه بلغهم في ذلك آثار إسرائيلية فلما اشتهر ذلك عنهم في البلدان اختلف الناس في ذلك فمنهم من قبله منهم وافقهم على تعظيمها منهم طائفة من عباد أهل البصرة و غيرهم و أنكر ذلك أكثر علماء الحجاز منهم عطاء و ابن أبي مليكة و نقله عبد الرحمن بن زيد بن أسلم عن فقهاء أهل المدينة و هو قول أصحاب مالك و غيرهم و قالوا : ذلك كله بدعة

و اختلف علماء أهل الشام في صفة إحيائها على قولين : أحدهما : أنه يستحب إحياؤها جماعة في المساجد كان خالد بن معدان و لقمان بن عامر و غيرهما يلبسون فيها أحسن ثيابهم و يتبخرون و يكتحلون و يقومون في المسجد ليلتهم تلك و وافقهم إسحاق بن راهوية على ذلك و قال في قيامها في المساجد جماعة : ليس ببدعة نقله عنه حرب الكرماني في مسائله و الثاني : أنه يكره الإجتماع فيها في المساجد للصلاة و القصص و الدعاء و لا يكره أن يصلي الرجل فيها لخاصة نفسه و هذا قول الأوزاعي إمام أهل الشام و فقيههم و عالمهم و هذا هو الأقرب إن شاء الله تعالى و قد روي عن عمر بن عبد العزيز أنه كتب إلى عامله إلى البصرة عليك بأربع ليال من السنة فإن الله يفرغ فيهن الرحمة إفراغا أول ليلة من رجب و ليلة النصف من شعبان و ليلة الفطر و ليلة الأضحى و في صحته عنه نظر و قال الشافعي رضي الله عنه : بلغنا أن الدعاء يستجاب في خمس ليال : ليلة الجمعة و العيدين و أول رجب و نصف شعبان قال : و أستحب كل ما حكيت في هذه الليالي و لا يعرف للإمام أحمد كلام في ليلة نصف شعبان و يتخرج في استحباب قيامها عنه روايتان من الروايتين عنه في قيام ليلتي العيد فإنه في رواية لم يستحب قيامها جماعة لأنه لم ينقل عن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم و أصحابه و استحبها في رواية لفعل عبد الرحمن بن يزيد بن الأسود و هو من التابعين فكذلك قيام ليلة النصف لم يثبت فيها شيء عن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم و لا عن أصحابه و ثبت فيها عن طائفة من التابعين من أعيان فقهاء أهل الشام

A dear friend of mine who is a mawlana sent me the above text. He adds:

“I think the person who wrote this should be fair when citing hafiz ibn rajab rahimahullah. I looked back into the source and I found much more kalaam, i think he cut just a tiny bit and made it out as if this was the opinion of ibn rajab rahimahullah. that is incorrect, hafiz ibn rajab is quite simply relating the opinion. If i say, “fulan maulana said its jaiz to make masah on socks” this does not make it my opinion, i’m just relating it. similarly in this article, the person manipulates hafiz ibn rajab’s writing and twists it to be his opinion.

The above is the asl ibarat, (original text) I think he stopped reading when he saw the text ذلك كله بدعة . he must have got really happy when he saw bid’ah and thought, ‘BAS! i’ve found the answer!’

Another thing he didn’t mention was ishaq ibn rahways rahimahullah opinion which also comes in support of the ulema of shaam.

Perhaps one can say after reading both sides that it is good to worship so long as one doesn’t do guloo (exaggeration) like some groups who have biryani, halwa, full blast naats, shabeena, salatuttasbeeh with jama’ah etc. wallahu a’lam..

7) The writer then says that “The ulema of Makkah ie Ata’ ibn Abi rabah and ibn Abi mulaykah would not pay much attention to this night”. If they did not pay attention, then it does not mean that it’s haram to do so. They don’t have the right to make halal and haram. It was simply their research and we respect them for that.

Ibn Abi mulaykah’s threat of hitting Ziyad with a stick was because ziyad would compare this night with laylatul qadar which was wrong of him to do so. No night can be equal to laylatul qadar.

8) Then the writer talks about salatur raghaib and says that it’s mawdhoo’. We also say that salatur raghaaib has no basis. We never instruct anyone to pray it. However, we do instruct them to pray salatuttasbeeh which is mentioned in the Hadith of tirmizi and ibn majah, which has been classed by Al-Albani as Hasan.

9) The rest of the article is about the month of Rajab and about isra wal mi’raj so we don’t want to comment on it at this moment.

10) At the end, the publishers of this article say that this article is to bring communities together. I would say This type of article does not ‘Bring communities together’ It only ‘Divides communities and causes confusion and chaos’.

11) Finally, I would like to ask you a question? Why have we been created? Allah will tell us in Surah az-zaariyaat
و ما خلقت الجن والإنس الا ليعبدون
ie “so that we may worship Allah”. Therefore, we should try and promote worship of Allah and not discourage people from worshipping. These types of articles do the complete opposite of the goal behind our creation.

May Allah give hidayat to the whole Ummah. May He show us the truth as truth, and false as false. May He give us the tawfeeq to promote virtue and prevent vice. Ameen

————- —————- ————

Assalamu alaykum w w

Sheikh! How can we refute such an article as the following, which is spread around by some people.

Ruling on Celebrating the Middle of Sha’ban

Praise be to Allah Who has perfected our religion for us, and has completed His Favor upon us. And blessings and peace be upon His Prophet and Messenger Muhammad, the Prophet of repentance and mercy.
Allah says (interpretation of the meanings):
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion [al-Maa’idah 5:3]
“Or have they partners with Allaah (false gods) who have instituted for them a religion which Allah has not ordained? [al-Shooraa 42:21]
In al-Saheehayn it is reported from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that the Prophet (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:
“Whoever innovates something in this matter of ours [Islam] that is not part of it, will have it rejected.”
In Saheeh Muslim it is narrated from Jaabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (PBUH) used to say in his Friday khutbahs: “The best of speech is the Book of Allah and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The most evil of things are those which are newly-invented, and every innovation (bid’ah) is a going-astray.”
And there are many ayaat and ahadith which say similar things.

This clearly indicates that Allah has perfected the religion of this ummah, and completed His favor upon them. He did not take the soul of His Prophet (PBUH) until he had conveyed the Message clearly and explained to the ummah everything that Allah had prescribed for it of words and deeds. He (PBUH) explained that everything that people would innovate after he was gone, all the words and deeds that they would attribute to Islam, all of that would be thrown back on the one who invented it, even if his intention was good. The companions of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) knew this matter, as did the scholars of Islam after them. They denounced bid’ah and warned against it, as has been stated by all those who wrote books praising the Sunnah and denouncing bid’ah, such as Ibn Waddah, al-Tartooshi, Ibn Shamah and others.

Among the bid’ahs that have been invented by some people is celebrating the middle of Sha’baan (Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’baan), and singling out that day for fasting. There is no evidence (daleel) for that which can be regarded as reliable. Some da’eef (weak) ahadith have been narrated concerning its virtues, but we cannot regard them as reliable. The reports which have been narrated concerning the virtues of prayer on this occasion are all mawdoo’ (fabricated), as has been pointed out by many of the scholars. We will quote some of their comments below, in sha Allah.

Some reports have also been narrated on this matter from some of the salaf in Syria, and others. What the majority of scholars say is that celebrating this occasion is bid’ah, and that the ahadih concerning the virtues of this occasion are all da’eef (weak), and some of them are mawdoo’ (fabricated) Among those who pointed this out was al-Haafiz Ibn Rajab, in his book Lataa’if al-Ma’aarif, and others. The da’eef ahaadeeth concerning acts of worship can only be acted upon in the case of acts of worship which are proven by saheeh evidence. There is no saheeh basis for celebrating the middle of Sha’ban, so we cannot follow the da’eef ahaadeeth either.
This important principle was mentioned by Imam Abu’l-‘Abbaas Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him).

The scholars (may Allah have mercy on them) were agreed that it is obligatory to refer matters concerning which the people dispute to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH). Whatever ruling both or one of them give is the sharee’ah which must be followed, and whatever goes against them must be rejected. Any acts of worship which are not mentioned in them are therefore bid’ah and it is not permissible to do them, let alone call others to do them or approve of them. As Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. (And) if you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination [al-Nisaa’ 4:59]
“And in whatsoever you differ, the decision thereof is with Allah (He is the ruling Judge).”[al-Shooraa 42:10]
“Say (O Muhammad to mankind): “If you (really) love Allah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic Monotheism, follow the Qur’an and the Sunnah), Allah will love you and forgive you your sins.” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:31]
“But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.” al-Nisaa’ 4:65]
And there are many similar ayaat which clearly state that matters of dispute are to be referred to the Qur’an and Sunnah, and that their ruling is to be accepted. This is the requirement of faith and this is what is best for people in this world and in the next: “That is better and more suitable for final determination” [al-Nisaa’ 4:59 – interpretation of the meaning] means, in the Hereafter.
Al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab (RAA) said in his book Lataa’if al-Ma’aarif concerning this matter – after previously discussing it – “Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’baan (the middle of Sha’ban) was venerated by the Tabi’een among the people of al-Sham, such as Khalid ibn Mi’dan, Makhool, Luqman ibn ‘Amir and others, who used to strive in worship on this night. The people took the idea of the virtue of this night and of venerating it from them. It was said that they heard of Isra’eli reports (reports from Jewish sources) concerning that. Most of the scholars of the Hijaz denounced that, including ‘Ata’ and Ibn Abi Malekah. ‘Abdel-Rahman ibn Zayd ibn Aslam narrated that view from the fuqaha’ of Madenah, and this was the view of the companions of Malik and others. They said: this is all bid’ah… No comment from Imam Ahmad concerning Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban is known of… Concerning spending the night of the middle of Sha’ban in prayer, there is no sound report from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) or from his companions…”
This is what was said by al-Hafiz Ibn Rajab (RAA). He clearly states that there is no sound report from the Prophet (PBUH) or from his companions (RAA) about Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban (the middle of Sha’baan).
In every case where there is no sound shar’i evidence that a thing is prescribed in Islam, it is not permissible for the Muslim to innovate things in the religion of Allah, whether these are individual acts or communal acts, whether he does them in secret or openly, because of the general meaning of the hadith of the Prophet (PBUH): “Whoever does any action that is not a part of this matter of ours [Islam], will have it rejected.” And there are other dalels (evidence) which indicate that bid’ah is to be denounced and which warn against it.
Imam Abu Bakr al-Tartooshi (RAA) said, in his book al-Hawadith wa’l-Bida’: “Ibn Waddah narrated that Zayd ibn Aslam said: We never met anyone among our shaykhs and fuqaha’ who paid any attention to Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban, or who paid any attention to the hadith of Makhool, or who thought that this night was any more special than other nights. It was said to Ibn Abi Maleekah that Ziyad al-Numayri was saying that the reward of Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban was like the reward of Laylat al-Qadr. He said, If I heard him say that and I had a stick in my hand, I would hit him. Ziyad was a story-teller.”
Al-‘Allamah al-Shawkani (RAA) said in al-Fawa’id al-Majmoo’ah:
“The hadith: ‘O ‘Ali, whoever prays ne hundred rak’ahs on Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban, reciting in each rak’ah the Opening of the Book [Sorat al-Fatihah] and Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad ten times, Allah will meet all his needs…’ This is mawdoo’ (fabricated) [i.e., it is falsely attributed to the Prophet (PBUH). Its wording clearly states the reward that the person who does this will attain, and no man who has any common sense can doubt that this is fabricated. Also, the men of its isnaad are majhool (unknown). It was also narrated via another isnaad, all of which is mawdoo’ (fabricated) and all of whose narrators are majhool (unknown).
In al-Mukhtasar he said: The hadith about the salah for the middle of Sha’ban is false, and the hadith of ‘Ali narrated by Ibn Hibbaan – “ When it is the night of the middle of Sha’ban, spend that night in prayer and fast that day” – is da’eef (weak).
In al-La’aali’ he said, “One hundred rak’ahs in the middle of Sha’baan, reciting (Soorat) al-Ikhaas ten times in each… (this is) mawdoo’ (fabricated), and all its narrators in its three isnaads are majhool (unknown) and da’eef (weak). He said: and twelve rak’ahs, reciting al-Ikhlaas thirty times in each, this is mawdoo’; and fourteen (rak’ahs), this is mawdoo’.
A group of fuqahaa’ were deceived by this hadith, such as the author of al-Ihyaa’ and others, as were some of the mufassireen. The prayer of this night – the middle of Sha’ban – was described in different ways, all of which are false and fabricated.”
Al-Hafiz al-‘Iraqi said: “The hadith about the prayer during the night of the middle of Sha’ban is fabricated and is falsely attributed to the Messenger of Allah (PBUH).”
Imam al-Nawawi said in his book al-Majmoo’: “The prayer that is known as salat al-raghaa’ib, which is twelve rak’ahs between Maghrib and ‘Ishaa’ on the night of the first Friday in Rajab, and the prayer of Laylat al-Nusf min Sha’ban, of one hundred rak’ahs – these two prayers are reprehensible bid’ahs. No one should be deceived by the fact that they are mentioned in the books Qoot al-Quloob and Ihyaa’ ‘Uloom al-Deen, or by the hadeeth which is mentioned in these two books. All of that is false. Nor should they be deceived by the fact that some of the imams were confused about this matter and wrote a few pages stating that these prayers are mustahabb, for they were mistaken in that.”
Shaykh al-Imam Abu Muhammad ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Isma’il al-Maqdisi wrote a very valuable book proving that these (reports) are false, and he did a very good job. The scholars spoke at length about this matter, and if we were to quote all that we have read of what they have said about this matter, it would take far too long. Perhaps what we have already mentioned is sufficient to convince the seeker of truth.
From the ayahs, ahadith and scholarly opinions quoted above, it is clear to the seeker of truth that celebrating the middle of Sha’ban by praying on that night or in any other way, or by singling out that day for fasting, is a bid’ah which is denounced by most of the scholars. It has no basis in the pure share’ah; rather it is one of the things that was innovated in Islam after the time of the Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them). It is sufficient for the seeker of truth, in this case and in others, to know the words of Allah (interpretation of the meaning):
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you…”[al-Ma’idah 5:3]
and other similar ayat; and the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
“Whoever innovates something in this matter of ours [Islam] that is not part of it, will have it rejected”
and other similar ahadith.

In Saheeh Muslim it is narrated that Abu Hurayrah (RAA) said: “The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: ‘Do not single out the night of Jumu’ah (Friday) for praying qiyam and do not single out the day of Jumu’ah for fasting, unless is it part of the ongoing regular fast of any one of you.’”
If it were permissible to single out any night for special acts of worship, the night of Jumu’ah would be the most appropriate, because the day of Jumu’ah (Friday) is the best day upon which the sun rises, as is stated in the saheeh hadith narrated from the Messenger of Allah (PBUH). Since the Prophet (PBUH) warned against singling out that night for praying qiyam, that indicates that it is even more prohibited to single out any other night for acts of worship, except where there is saheeh evidence to indicate that a particular night is to be singled out.
Because it is prescribed to spend the nights of Laylat al-Qadr and the other nights of Ramadan in prayer, the Prophet (PBUH) drew attention to that and urged his ummah to pray qiyam during those nights. He also did that himself, as is indicated in al-Saheehayn, where it says that the Prophet (PBUH) said: “Whoever prays qiyam in Ramadan out of faith and seeking reward, Allah will forgive him his previous sins” and “Whoever spends the night of Laylat al-Qadr in prayer out of faith and seeking reward, Allah will forgive him his previous sins.”
But if it were prescribed to single out the night of the middle of Sha’ban, or the night of the first Friday in Rajab, or the night of the Israa’ and Mi’raaj, for celebration or for any special acts of worship, then the Prophet (PBUH) would have taught his ummah to do that, and he would have done it himself. If anything of the sort had happened, his companions (RAA) would have transmitted it to the ummah; they would not have concealed it from them, for they are the best of people and the most sincere, after the Prophets, may blessings and peace be upon them, and may Allah be pleased with all the companions of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH).

Now we know from the words of the scholars quoted above that there is no report from the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) or from his companions (RAA) concerning the virtue of the first night of Jumu’ah in Rajab, or the night of the middle of Sha’ban. So we know that celebrating these occasions is an innovation that has been introduced into Islam, and that singling out these occasions for acts of worship is a reprehensible bid’ah. The same applies to the twenty-seventh night of Rajab, which some people believe is the night of the Israa’ and Mi’raaj; it is not permissible to single this date out for acts of worship, or to celebrate this occasion, on the basis of the evidence (daleel) quoted above. This is the case if the exact date (of the Israa’ and Mi’raaj) is known, so how about the fact that the correct scholarly view is that its date is not known! The view that it is the night of the twenty-seventh of Rajab is a false view which has no basis in the saheeh ahadith. He indeed spoke well who said: “The best of matters are those which follow the guided way of the salaf, and the most evil of matters are those which are newly-innovated.

audio is here
http://www.tafseer-raheemi.com/refut...e-baraat-urdu/

more bayanat/books about shaban and ramazan are here
 http://www.attablig.com/razmzan-bayanat

new updates

assalamu alaikum
plz see our website www.attablig.com for  new updates of

Mufti Hanif Jonpuri(d.b)	(!03 Years  old buzurg & shaikh of Haji shakil) bayan in Haji shakil's khanqah
haji Shakil sb(d.b)	Bayan about Shaban,Tablig  01-07-2012
Mo.Muslihuddin (d.b) -UK	Khatme Bukhari - Takoli 01-07-2012
Mo.Ibrahim dewla(d.b)	Takoli 01-07-2012
Shaikh Yunus Jonpuri(d.b)	Khatme Bukhari - jamiatul ilm wal huda- Blackburn
Mufti Khalil Kawiwala(d.b)	Wo Zamane me Muazzaz the aamile Quran ho ker 02-07-2012
Mo.Kalim Siddiqi(d.b)	Annual Seerat conf.- Masjide Abu bakar - Bradford 01-07-2012
Mufti Ahmed Khanpuri(d.b)	Annual jalsa - Kanthariya 01-07-2012
Mo.Tariq Jamil(d.b)	Bayan in Weekly Ijtema   27-06-2012
Mo.Sajjad nomani(d.b)	Annual jalsa - Jamia Dabhel 30-06-2012
Mo.Yunus palanpuri(d.b)	Annual jalsa - Jamia Dabhel 30-06-2012
Mufti Ahmed Khanpuri(d.b)	Annual jalsa -  Khambhia  27-06-2012
Mo.Sajjad nomani(d.b)	Sahih Ilm ki pehchan - Jamia Haqqaniya- Kathor  30-06-2012
Mufti Ahmed Khanpuri(d.b)	Khatme bukhari 26-06-2012 Kolhapur
Shaikh Hanif Luharvi(d.b)	Aane wali Nasl ki fikr kare -Annual jalsa-Kharod 28-06(must)
Shaikh Hanif Luharvi(d.b)	Khatme bukhari - Sidokar  24-06-2012
Shaikh Hanif Luharvi(d.b)	Annual jalsa -Darul ulum belhongle - Karnataka  23-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	Uleema bayan- jamiahtul ilm val huda- blackburn 26-06-2012
Mo.Sajjad nomani(d.b)	Mahe shaabaan kaisey guzare  24-06-2012 (must)
Mo.Qamruzzama sb(d.b)	Annual Jalsa - Darululum Markaze Islami 24-06-2012
Mo.Kalim Siddiqi(d.b)	Station Masjid - Ankleshwar  24-06-2012
Mo.Sajjad Nomani(d.b)	Sifaat ki mehnat (Tableeghi markaz - Pune) (must)
Mufti Mahmudhasan Gangohi	Moulana Ilyas ra aur un ki dawat  (must)

assalamu alaikum
plz see our website www.attablig.com for  new updates of

Mo.Sajjad nomani(d.b)	Mahe shaabaan kaisey guzare  24-06-2012
Mufti Mahmud Bardoli(d.b)	Tafsir e Surah baqarah - part 28  25-06-2012
Mo.Qamruzzama sb(d.b)	Annual Jalsa - Darululum Markaze Islami 24-06-2012
Mo.Kalim Siddiqi(d.b)	Station Masjid - Ankleshwar  24-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	Khatme Bukhari - Blackburn 25-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	English bayan - - Blackburn 25-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	Madni high school - Lester 24-06-2012
Shaikh A.Rahim Limbada	Legacy of Haz.Thanvi ra- Lester 24-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	The Reviver & Spiritual Physician of the Ummah: Shaykh Ashraf Ali Thanawi
Mo.Sajjad Nomani(d.b)	Sifaat ki mehnat (Tableeghi markaz - Pune) (must)
Shaikh Hanif Luharvi(d.b)	Dunyawi taalim se pehle deeni taalim zaruri he  22-06(must)
Shaikh Hanif Luharvi(d.b)	Waqiya e Meeraj(darse hadis)  19-06-2012 (must)
Qari Rashid ajmeri(d.b)	Parab Masjid - Kathor 19-06-2012
Mufti Taqi Usmani(d.b)	Tawazuo ki Haqeeqat aur Tareeq e Tahseel  17-06-2012
Qari Rashid ajmeri(d.b)	Rusumate Rajab w meeraj  - Sagrampura-Surat 15-06-2012
Mufti Ahmed Khanpuri(d.b)	Bad gumani se bacho  (darse hadis) 16-06-2012
M.Juned	27Rajab ki haqiqat - Jama masjid - Kathor  15-06-2012
Mufti Mahmudhasan Gangohi	Moulana Ilyas ra aur un ki dawat  (must)

Mufti Taqi Usmani (DB)'s final programme of UK Tour

Assalamu alaikum ww
here is final programme of Haz.Mufti Taqi usmani db's UK tour
for latest upldate please visit Turath Publishing's website. www.turath.co.uk

here is promo of this tour

Bayanat,books about the month of rajab and meeraj

assalamu alaikum
Alhamdulillah we uploaded many bayanat and books about rajab and meeraj.
plz see this link
http://www.attablig.com/rajab--meeraj   or
visit our website www.attablig.com to download it