10/04/2020
NISFU-SHA’BAN:BARAKA OR BID’AH ?
In a recently published book that supposedly points out mistakes common among today’s
Muslims, one of the ‘mistakes’ is treating the middle night of Sha’ban as blessed for optional/nafl
worship. On page 44 it states, “Specifying this night with worship has no proof, so it is an
innovation. The narrations mentioning specifying this night are not authentic according to the
scholars. Specifying this night is among the innovations prohibited by the evidence”. However
looking at the information cited as proof for this will lead to a different assessment and conclusion.
The statement “specifying this night with worship has no proof”, is the first lie/deception as it is
in one of the Sahih—Sitta (six authentic) collections, namely the Sunan of Ibn Majah. On the
contrary, one scholar writes, “Though the line of narrators of none of these is reliable, as judged
by the criteria laid down by the scholars of the traditions (Hadith), the number of such narratives
is quite large and these have been related on the authority of different Companions, and as such,
some scholars like Ibn-is-Salah are disinclined to hold them as wholly unfounded.” The Meaning
and Message of the Traditions, By Mohammad Manzoor Nomani, Translated from Urdu by Mohammad Asif Kidwai
Vol 3, Pg.92 The scholar’s statement “the number of such narratives is quite large and these have
been related on the authority of different Companions”, is an important fact. How is the large
number of narrations from the Sahabi (rah) reconciled with “specifying this night is among the
innovations prohibited by the evidence.” Aren’t the narratives, legal pronouncements and
knowledge from the Prophet’s (pbuh) Ashab evidences for a variety of religious practices that
have reached us? Clearly the above statement is another lie/deception the gravity of which moves
one dangerously close to sectarian deviation if not complete deviation from the way of Islam.
Does this imply the Prophet’s (pbuh) blessed Sahaba (rah) were Ah-oozo—billah-he, innovators
or deceivers? Isn’t the above statement the equivalent of throwing aspersions on them despite the
100+ ayats of Allah’s Holy Book and the numerous authenticated ahadith reports on their virtue
and status as the best of this Ummah which is among the stated beliefs of the Ahle-sunnah-walJammah. Isn’t any view or belief challenging or worse rejecting the words of the Qur’an and
Hadith tantamount to unbelief, hypocrisy or Bi’da? The word most often regurgitated by the antiSunnah gang in their accusation of practically everyone in the Muslim Ummah? Is the
established status of the Sahaba as sources of guidance to be negated or ‘revoked’ because of the
rantings of a few uneducated morons masquerading as scholars or those who blindly lap up their
putrid najis?
In the Sahaba’s capacity as guides for this Ummah related to the issues under discussion was
their well-known fear of misquoting or falsifying anything attributed to the Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh). The late scholar Dr. Taha Jabir Al-Alwani writes, “...when the great Mujtahid Imams’
would seek source material from the Sahabi (rah) or Tabi’un (successors) for legal rulings they
would often cite an opinion of a Sahaba or Tab’iun as evidence that was actually a hadith of the
Prophet (pbuh) that was stated as an opinion of theirs rather than misquote the Prophet (pbuh).
In light of this information is it even conceivable that the Prophet’s companions (rah) would
have adopted and then passed on a doubtful or innovated practice? Is this consistent with the
Prophet (pbuh) directing the Muslims to follow Him and His Companions to the extent of
describing the rightly guided group or sect of Muslims as those who follow this way?
The problem for those seeking the truth on this matter and several others is centered around
a singular point: The issues in question are connected to the science of Usul-al-fiqh that many
Muslims may not fully appreciate because of the lack of education on the subject and several
interconnected topics. This is essentially the ‘achilles heel’ of the rank and file to whom the
deviants consistently push their wares. The point raised by Dr. Taha Jabir Al-Alwani regarding
the source material for the Mujtahid Imam’s to make various rulings includes the practice or living
tradition of the early Muslims that was also viewed as a legal precedent in addition to the authentic
ahadith by Imam Malik and some of the other Mujtahid Imams. "The Syrian Jurists attached great
importance to the practice of the Muslims (sunnat al-Muslimin). Al-Awza'i, their chief
representative, incessantly and recurrently invoked the practice of the Muslims of his time. This
practice, according to him, had its starting point with the Prophet (pbuh) and was followed by the
Caliphs after him and verified by scholars.” Abu Hanifa and his companions are said to have
accepted Sunnah as authoritative only when it is accompanied or backed up by the general
practice of the Muslims.” This way of approaching Juristic issues by Imam Malik and the other
Mujtahids were credible attempts to determine the actual Sunnah in light of abrogated Hadiths
and practices that may have been in vogue in an earlier part of the prophetic Mission/movement
and later abrogated. In addition to resolving new legal questions and cases that hadn't arisen during
the lifetime of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Sahabi (rah).
Imam Malik Ibn Anas (rmtll) was an acknowledged master of the sciences of Hadith, Fiqh
and sunnah, meaning that he possessed a through grasp of the ahadith and its Isnad. The context
and meaning of Hadith (matn), the legal texts and principles of the Qur'an, the legal decisions of
the Prophet (pbuh), the legal opinions (fatwa) of the Sahabi (rah) and their collective legal
decisions (Ij'ma). The fatwa of a group of ataba-Tabieen fiqh Jurist-consult lawyers, the
acknowledged masters of Medinan Jurisprudence collectively known as the seven jurists of AlMedina (although some authorities say there were at least ten) and the living tradition (sunnah)
of the early Muslims. In certain cases Imam Malik would set aside a ahadith of the Prophet (pbuh)
in favor of a practice or fatwa attributed to a Companion or a group of Companions (rah) based
on the argument that the precedents of the Sahabi (rah) actually represented the genuine Sunnah
as the Companions were in a better position to know the authentic Sunnah because of their long
association with the Prophet (pbuh). This view cannot be undervalued or ignored as the Mujtahid
scholars among the Sahabi (rah) initiated practices and made fatwa after the Prophet (pbuh) in
light of new situations that arose during their time, an action they were competently trained for by
the master himself (pbuh). Imam Malik also considered the practice of the people of Medina to be
a source of law and would reject a solitary (ahad) ahadith that conflicted with it. “In his opinion
the Madinese practice [amal] represents the narration of thousands upon thousands of people
from ultimately, the Prophet. It is, in other words, equivalent to a Mushhur[well known] or even
Mutwatir" classification of Hadith. Principles of Islamic jurisprudence by Mohammad Hashim Kamali pg.76
This information adequately demonstrates that one of the first and most enduring elements of Usulal-Fiqh initiated by the Prophet (pbuh) and handed down from the Sahaba (rah) to their successors
was the “living Sunnah or practice.” Contrary to the view that only authenticated ahadith
determines the authentic Sunnah, the legal fatwa both individually and collectively (I’jma) of the
Sahaba is also an integral part of it so that when this primary source material was authoritatively
passed on to the succeeding jurists/Mujtahid Imams it became part of the foundation for what is
known today as the Ahle-Sunnah-wal-Jammah Math’habs.
What has to be the biggest stumbling block for many Muslims on the issues in question that
provides an entrance way for the deviated to ply their deception is expressed in the following words,
“…Practice was stressed because being in conformity with the ideal conduct of the Prophet did not
require documentation …it was a proof by itself. But when in the first place this practice lost its
resemblance with the ideal Sunnah because of the gap in time, the need of Hadith became more and
more acute. “…Those who were nearer to the time of the Prophet laid more stress on practice than
those who were farther from his time…” The early Development of Islamic Jurisprudence by Ahmad Hasan
Pg.91
The scholars mention of the ‘gap in time’ and the need of Hadith because of it is significant.
There was no need for classification of Hadith in the age of the early Fuqaha because the Ahadith were
acquired from the highest authorities, namely, from the Sahaabah themselves or from the illustrious
Ulama and Fuqaha who were Students of the Sahaabah. The words and views of the Fuqaha are
therefore, final and binding, not the classification of the Muhadditheen. Clearly, “…Islam did not begin
with the age of Hadith compilation by the Muhadditheen two centuries after Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi
wasallam). Islam which was acquired by the Sahaabah from Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam)
was passed on by these Sahaabah to the Taabieen who in turn transmitted it on. In this manner it reached
us in a chain of unbroken and authoritative transmission, independent of the compilations of the
Muhadditheen. Thus, if a Muhaddith has classified a Hadith as Dha-eef (weak/forged) while the Fuqaha
and Aimmah Mujtahideen had formulated a hukm (Shar'i ruling) on the basis of that same Hadith, the
classification of the Muhadditheen cannot be cited to negate the ruling of the Fuqaha.” The Fuqaha and
Hadith Classification: The Majlis, Voice of Islam Vol. 5, No.4 This is because “…a hadith which has been
classified dha-eef by the Muhadditheen some 200 years later could have been Saheeh during the age of
the Sahaabah and the Taabieen on account of the source of authenticity from which the fuqaha had
acquired the Hadith. With the passing of time, a weak link could have crept into the sanad (chain of
narrators).” The Fuqaha and Hadith Classification: The Majlis, Voice of Islam Vol. 5, No.4Thus, the canonical
collections of ahadith by the Muhadditheen (i.e. Sahih Sitta and others) centuries later had little or no
impact on the authority and status of the fiqh schools and their rulings, especially when based on the
“living tradition”. Here again we witness the misguided twisting the function and source material of the
schools/Math’habs’ by accusing them of what they are doing instead of their actual function; protecting
the Ummah from Bi’dah/deviant beliefs and practices, past and present.
It is from this standpoint that a sign of deviation is to take fiqh out of the equation and rely only on
the ahadith despite many of the early fuqaha were ahadith scholars themselves or in the case of Abu
Hanifa possessed extensive knowledge of the subject. “…His standard of criticism has been considered
as extremely rigorous…Ibn Khaldun writes: Why Abu Hanifa has so few traditions is because he imposed
strict conditions on narration and transmission.”. “The idea, although it failed to meet with popular
acceptance, did not fail to exert its influence in determining the future development of Hadith. Its
influence is clearly visible in the principles of personal judgment laid down by Malik and Shafi”.
Secondly, as the above quote shows the standards of the Imam’s of fiqh were adopted and later became
among the foundations of the ahadith sciences. Thus,“the classification of ahadith by the Muhadditheen
(Hadith Authorities) is not applicable to the earlier Fuqaha and the Aimmah-e-Muujtahideen such as
Imaam Abu Hanifah and Imaam Maalik.” The Fuqaha and Hadith Classification: The Majlis, Voice of Islam Vol. 5,
No.4
But what has to be the most important proof of the difference between the muhhadith and the fuqaha
is the knowledge and insight of the fuqaha having precedence from the Prophet (pbuh) who made the
distinction. “…For some of those who deliver (the hadith) do not understand the knowledge and they
deliver it to some such persons who possess greater understanding than the deliverer.” (Abu Daw’ud,
Tirmidhi) “This hadith shows very clearly that some narrators of hadith (Muhadith) inspite of being a
Hafiz of hadith are men of little understanding in so far as the meanings and subtleties are concerned”.
Taqleed wa-Ijtihad by Maulana Muhammad Masihullah Khan pg. 15. The scholar’s words are proven by several
reports in the early fiqh works such as Imam Malik’s Muwatta where certain Sahaba corrected their
brethren who could not make Ij’tihad or whose understanding of a particular fiqh issue was deficient. It
is reports like this that prompted Imam Malik’s esteemed colleague, one of the seven Jurists of Medina,
Ibn Uyayna to say, “Hadiths are a source of misguidance except for the fuqaha”.When commenting on
a weak narrative (Ahadith) on not praying two ra’ka of attiyat-ul-masjid during Juma’s khutbah, we
have, “One of the principles of Hadith (usul-al-Hadith) is that any narration supported by the constant
practice of the Companions and Followers will acquire enough strength to be used as evidence. This
means that the message of the above Hadith, despite the criticism leveled at its chain, can be accepted.”
Fiqh al-Imam (Key proofs in Hanafi Fiqh) by Abdur-Rahman Ibn Yusuf, pg. 168.
To summarize, the rejection of a practice that comes from a ‘weak’ ahadith despite many narratives
from the Sahabi or Tabi’un is not a simple cut and dried matter as some people might like to believe.
This is why one Mujathid would accept a particular ahadith while another would take an established
practice going back to the Prophet (pbuh) despite in some cases based on a supposedly ‘weak’ ahadith.
Suffice it to say the issues involved are essentially of a juristic nature belonging to the scholarly realm
meaning the logic, evidence and subsequent rulings of the fiqh scholars are to be accorded the respect
due to them as the Prophet’s (pbuh) inheritors. It is because of the myriad of issues involved that
ensures numerous blunders when in the hands of the uneducated effectively reinforcing the necessity
of acquiring knowledge from religious scholars and their students as Allah (shwta) and our Prophet
(pbuh) directed.
Al Minhaj the publication consists of various articles on the Islamic Tradition.
