Friday, 7 Jumâda al-Thânî 1423 AH / 16th August 2002 CE
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The Sharî'ah : Its Completeness and Perfection
by Shaykh 'Alee Al-Halabee
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Allâh Most High says, favouring His Servants (5:3):
(Today I have perfected for you your Religion and completed My Favour upon
you, and I am pleased with Islâm as your Religion)
This noble verse is a proof for the completeness of the Sharî'ah, its
perfection, how it supplies everything needed by the creation, those about
whom Allâh sent down His Statement (51:56):
(And I did not create the Jinn or mankind except to worship Me)
Ibn Kathîr said about this verse, (Today I have perfected... ) :
"...This is the greatest of Allâh's bounties on this nation, for when He
completed their Religion for them, they do not need any other religion, nor
do they need other than their Prophet (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam).
For this reason, Allâh made him the Seal of the Prophets and sent him to
both the Jinn and mankind. So there is no halâl except he made it
permissible, and no harâm except he prohibited it, and no Religion except
what he legislated.
Everything the Messenger of Allâh (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) informed us
of is the truthful reality; he never lied nor can one find any
contradictions, as Allâh says (6:115): (And the Word of your Lord was
completed, truthfully and fairly)
Meaning truthfully in its conveyance and fairly with regards to the orders
and prohibitions found in it. So when He perfected the Religion for them,
the favour was completed upon them..." [Tafseer Ibn Kathîr v.2, p.19]
And as Tawfîq Al-Wâ'î wrote:
"...So it is unimaginable for someone to come (after hearing this verse)
and introduce something into the Sharî'ah, because his addition would imply
that Allâh's work needed corrected, and that the Sharî'ah is lacking. This
idea contradicts what comes in the Book of Allâh. So it is impossible for
someone to add to what Allâh legislated, except that it would be
blameworthy..." [Al-Bid'ah wal-Masâlih Al-Mursalah, p.111]
The adherents of other religions are inwardly convinced of this, and for
Allâh is the praise, but many of them deny it, as Allâh says (27:14):
(And they rejected it wrongfully and arrogantly, even though they
themselves were thoroughly convinced of it)
On the authority of Târiq bin Shihâb, who narrated that the Jews said to
'Umar (may Allâh be pleased with him),
"You people recite verse in your Book; if that verse would have been
revealed to us, we would have taken that day as an 'Eîd!" So 'Umar asked
them, "Which verse is that?" They said, (Today I have perfected for you your
Religion and completed My Favor upon you...) So then 'Umar remarked, " By
Allâh I surely know the very day that verse was revealed to the Messenger of
Allâh (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam),and even the time of day! It was
revealed to the Messenger of Allâh (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) the night
of 'Arafah and it was Jumu'ah." [Al-Bukhârî and Muslim]
And verily the Messenger of Allâh (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) said:
"There was never any prophet before me except that he had the duty of
directing his nation to every good he knew of, and warning them about every
evil he knew of..." [Al-Bukhârî]
It was Abű Tharr Al-Ghifârî (radhiyallâhu 'anhu) who said that after the
Messenger of Allâh (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) had left them, there was
not a single bird flapping its wings in the air, except that he (sallallâhu
'alayhe wa sallam) mentioned something about it to them.
He said that the Prophet (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) said:
"There is nothing left that draws one closer to Paradise and distances one
from the Hellfire, except that it has been made clear for you." [Sahîh,
At-Tabarânî's Al-Mu'jamul-Kabîr]
This hadîth of the dignified Prophet (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) is a
clear, unmistakable proof for that fact that he indeed explained every
single thing that draws one close to Paradise in great detail, and that
there is no action that distances us from the Hellfire except that he
(sallallâhhu 'alayhe wa sallam) clarified it for us.
So any invention or innovation is only an attempt to correct the Sharî'ah,
an ugly crime by which the criminal calls out, "The Sharî'ah is not
sufficient! It is not complete! It needs my invention!"
This is exactly what the Companions of the Messenger (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa
sallam)understood, as it has been authentically reported that Ibn Mas'űd
(radhiyallâhu 'anhu) said,
"Follow and do not innovate, for verily that is sufficient for you, and
know that every innovation is misguidance." [An authentic report found in
Abű Khaythamah's book Al-'Ilm (#54) by way of Ibrâheem An-Nakhâ'î, who said
that 'Abdullâh bin Mas'űd said it.]
To conclude, Al-Imâm Ash-Shâtibî said:
"...Verily those who try to make their innovations acceptable, they cling
to their idea that the Sharî'ah is constantly evolving. So they always
manage to have their own personal way to explain away Allâh's Statement,
(Today I have perfected for you your Religion... )..." [Al-I'tisâm v.1,
p.111]
He also said: "...If that is the case, then the innovator is only saying,
"Verily the Sharî'ah was not completed, there is something we must correct
in it!" Because if he was certain about its completion and perfection from
every angle, then he would not have innovated, he would have had no reason
to follow after Allâh's Sharî'ah, correcting and adjusting it. So a person
who says this is clearly far astray from the Straight Path. Ibn Al-Mâjishűn
said that he heard Imâm Mâlik saying,
'Whoever innovates anything in Islâm, and views it as something good, he
has accused Muhammad (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam) of betraying the trust
of messengership, because verily Allâh Most High says, (Today I have
perfected for you your Religion... ), so whatever was not part of the
Religion that day, it is not part of the Religion today.'..." [Al-I'tisâm
v.1, p.49]
As Al-Ma'sűmî said:
"...So the various ways of proper, correct worship found in the Religion
have been made clear by the One who created all of the creation, through the
tongue of His Messenger Muhammad (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam). So whoever
adds anything or takes anything away stands (with his assembly of traditions
from his own self) in direct opposition to the All-Wise, All-Knowing
Creator. So perhaps his medicine will be his sickness, his worship will be
punishable disobedience, and he will not even detect it. For verily the
Religion has been completed perfectly, and the one who adds to it assumes it
is lacking, so he comes to make it better with his corrupt intellect, his
stagnant arrogance..." [Miftâh Al-Jannah Lâ Ilâha Illallâh with 'Alî Hasan's
tahqîq, p.58 ]
Al-Imâm Ash-Showkânî said, in a discussion with some innovators, refuting
their opinions:
"...Since Allâh completed His Religion before taking the life of His
Prophet (sallallâhu 'alayhe wa sallam),what are these ideas his nation comes
up with after his Lord completed His Religion? If they are saying that this
new matter is part of the Religion, then they are saying the Religion was
not complete except with the addition of their idea, therefore in their
belief is a rejection of the Qur'ân! And if they say that the new matter is
not part of the Religion, then what benefit is there in occupying yourself
with things not found in the Religion? And this is an awesome proof, and a
magnificent piece of evidence! No follower of opinions can ever refute it,
so make this honourable verse the first thing you strike the faces of the
people of opinions with, and force their reluctant noses to it, and disprove
all of their arguments with it..." [Al-Qowl Al-Mufîd p.38]
Because, as it is said,
"Everything invented after the revelation of this verse is an unwanted
surplus, an undesirable excess, a cursed innovation." [Sayr A'lâm
An-Nubalâ', v.18, p.509]
And Allâh knows best.
[This is a translation of Ilm Usűlil-Bid'ah, p. 17-22, translated by M.
Richardson]
Question:
What is the concept of engagement in Islam.Usually an engagement party is
one in which the fiance/fiancee exchange rings. Is this the prescribed
method in the shariah?.
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
Engagement according to sharee’ah means that the man asks the woman to marry
him. The view of the scholars is that engagement is prescribed for one who
wants to get married. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And there is no sin on you if you make a hint of betrothal…”
[al-Baqarah 2:235]
and it was narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) got engaged to ‘Aa’ishah. (Al-Bukhaari, al-Nikaah, 4793). And in
al-Saheeh it also states that the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) got engaged to Hafsah. (Al-Bukhaari, al-Nikaah, 4830).
The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
encouraged the one who wants to get engaged to look at the woman to whom he
wishes to propose. According to the hadeeth, “When any one of you proposes
marriage to a woman, if he can look at that which will encourage him to go
ahead and marry her, then let him do so.” (Abu Dawood, al-Nikaah, 2082;
classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood, 1832).
But in Islamic sharee’ah there are no specific practices that must be
followed with regard to engagement. What some Muslims do, announcing the
engagement, having a party to celebrate and exchanging gifts, all comes
under the heading of customs which are permissible in principle, and none of
them are haraam except those which sharee’ah indicates are haraam – which
includes the exchange of rings between the engaged couple, a custom which is
known in Arabic as “dublah.” This custom goes against sharee’ah for the
following reasons:
1 – Some people think that these rings increase the love between the spouses
and have an effect on their relationship. This is an ignorant (jaahili)
belief and is an attachment to something for which there is no basis in
sharee’ah and which does not make sense.
2 – This custom involves imitating the non-Muslims such as Christians and
others. It is not a Muslim custom at all. The Messenger (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) warned us against that when he said, “You will
inevitably follow the paths of those who came before you, handspan by
handspan, cubit by cubit, until even if they entered the hole of a lizard,
you will follow them.” We said, “O Messenger of Allaah, (do you mean) the
Jews and Christians?” He said, “Who else?” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari,
al-I’tisaam bi’l-Kitaab wa’l-Sunnah, 6889; Muslim, al-‘Ilm, 6723).
And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever
imitates a people is one of them.” (Narrated by Abu Dawood, al-Libaas, 4031;
classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood, 3401).
3 – This engagement usually takes place before the ‘aqd (marriage contract),
in which case it is not permissible for the man to put the ring on his
fiancée’s hand himself, because she is still a stranger (non-mahram) to him,
and has not yet become his wife.
Finally, we will quote the words of Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have
mercy on him) on this matter:
“ ‘Dublah’ is a word that refers to the engagement ring. In principle there
is nothing wrong with rings (i.e., they are permissible), unless they are
accompanied by certain beliefs, as some people do when the man writes his
name on the ring that he gives to his fiancée, and the woman writes her name
on the ring that she gives to her fiancé, believing that this will guarantee
the bonds between the spouses. In this case this ‘dublah’ or engagement ring
is haraam, because it represents an attachment to something for which there
is no basis in sharee’ah and which does not make sense. Similarly it is not
permissible for the man to put the ring on the woman’s hand himself, because
she is not yet his wife, so she is still a stranger (i.e., non-mahram) to
him; she is not his wife until after the marriage contract is done.”
Al-Fataawa al-Jaami’ah li’l-Mar’ah al-Muslimah, 3/914.
And Allah knows best.
With the very best of good wishes,
Musa Amadu Pembo
Glasgow,
Scotland
UK.
[log in to unmask]
Da’wah is to convey the message with wisdom and with good words. We should
give the noble and positive message of Islam. We should try to emphasize
more commonalities and explain the difference without getting into
theological arguments and without claiming the superiority of one position
over the other. There is a great interest among the people to know about
Islam and we should do our best to give the right message.
May Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,guide us all to His Sirat Al-Mustaqim (Righteous
Path).May He protect us from the evils of this life and the hereafter.May
Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,grant us entrance to paradise .
We ask Allaah the Most High, the All-Powerful, to teach us that which will
benefit us, and to benefit us by that which we learn. May Allaah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family
and
companions..Amen.
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