Innovations by Khulfa-e-Rashadeen, (Follow Up: the Question of the Role of Hadith)
Question:
Thanks to your answer sir
1. i am less convinced with this argument that just due to increase crowd hazrat uthman initiated second azan, and muslims have been following as consistent relegious practice,it has become the basis of bidat-e-hasaana,.
2. In oman Ibadi sect is dominated they fall down their hands like shai,they start prayer by saying Allah o akbar without raising hands even first time,also some more differences, how one can decide whether they are right or others without hadees?
I have been studying Farahi school of thought in the last few years it gives answers many questions but still I have some doubts /confusions how hadees is not inevitable or can not increase any thing in islam (quran and sunnah).
Please give your advise and recommendation with this regard.
Answer:
1. I did not refer to anything as bid’ah al-hasana in my answer. The core of what I wrote was this:
“Azan is simply a tool to call people to prayer. Just as today we use speakers and microphones to make sure people hear the azan in a large residential area, at the time of Uthman ibn Affan too a need was felt to make sure people would know the prayers are about to start. … in the absence of the technology that we have today, the Khalifa of Muslims advised to give a second azan to make sure all will hear the azan on time. It is of course incorrect to consider the second azan as part of Shari’ah. … At the same time, if the only way to make sure all are given chance to attend the prayer in the mosque is to say azan it twice, then not saying it twice will defeat the very purpose of azan, that is informing about the start of the prayer.”
My purpose is not to convince anybody, however if you find any part of the above answer to be illogical please explain it for me and I will study it and comment on it.
2. Those differences you mentioned are not part of the principles of prayers that the Established Sunnah has provided. Even among the traditional jurists of the mainstream Muslims there are views that do not consider holding hands or not moving hands at the first Takbir to be a necessary part of the prayer.
As for the issue of Hadith vis a vis the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah, the issue is not whether hadith adds anything to our knowledge or not. Hadith no doubt is an invaluable source of information and adds a lot to our knowledge. The question is whether hadith is an independent source of understanding Islam. In other words, the question is, whether hadith on its own, without any evidences and basis in the Qur'an or the Established Sunnah, can add a necessary piece of information to our understanding of Islam.
Methodologically, in my view, the answer is only obvious:
Hadith has reached us through individual narrators, the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah have reached us through the consensus of generations. No matter how much technically we try to verify the authenticity of a hadith, the fact remains that we are dealing with an information that is far less reliable than the information derived from the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah. So if someone puts the hadith in the same level as the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah and treat them the same then this is a fundamentally irrational methodology. The onus is on the followers of this methodology to justify it.
From another perspective, one may ask:
"Why would the Almighty put the responsibility of delivering some of the essentials of His religion on the shoulder of one or a few fallible individuals (who narrate a hadith), while He could detail them in His Book or instruct His prophet (pbuh) to establish them among his companions?"
I suggest you read the rather long discussion I had with some students in the past about the role of hadith versus Sunnah and then let me know if you have any specific questions or criticisms. You can find it at the end of the answer to this question: Sunnah vs. Hadith Please also read the related topics at the end of this page.
After reading these writings if you had any further questions then please let me know.
May God be satisfied with the family of the Prophet (pbuh) and his pious companions.
-----------
Related Topics:
- Innovations by Khulafa
- Sunnah vs. Hadith
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 1: Imitating the Prophet - pbuh)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 2: Criteria for Accepting a Hadith)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 3: Definition of Established Sunnah)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 4: Beard)
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February 2014
Thanks to your answer sir
1. i am less convinced with this argument that just due to increase crowd hazrat uthman initiated second azan, and muslims have been following as consistent relegious practice,it has become the basis of bidat-e-hasaana,.
2. In oman Ibadi sect is dominated they fall down their hands like shai,they start prayer by saying Allah o akbar without raising hands even first time,also some more differences, how one can decide whether they are right or others without hadees?
I have been studying Farahi school of thought in the last few years it gives answers many questions but still I have some doubts /confusions how hadees is not inevitable or can not increase any thing in islam (quran and sunnah).
Please give your advise and recommendation with this regard.
Answer:
1. I did not refer to anything as bid’ah al-hasana in my answer. The core of what I wrote was this:
“Azan is simply a tool to call people to prayer. Just as today we use speakers and microphones to make sure people hear the azan in a large residential area, at the time of Uthman ibn Affan too a need was felt to make sure people would know the prayers are about to start. … in the absence of the technology that we have today, the Khalifa of Muslims advised to give a second azan to make sure all will hear the azan on time. It is of course incorrect to consider the second azan as part of Shari’ah. … At the same time, if the only way to make sure all are given chance to attend the prayer in the mosque is to say azan it twice, then not saying it twice will defeat the very purpose of azan, that is informing about the start of the prayer.”
My purpose is not to convince anybody, however if you find any part of the above answer to be illogical please explain it for me and I will study it and comment on it.
2. Those differences you mentioned are not part of the principles of prayers that the Established Sunnah has provided. Even among the traditional jurists of the mainstream Muslims there are views that do not consider holding hands or not moving hands at the first Takbir to be a necessary part of the prayer.
As for the issue of Hadith vis a vis the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah, the issue is not whether hadith adds anything to our knowledge or not. Hadith no doubt is an invaluable source of information and adds a lot to our knowledge. The question is whether hadith is an independent source of understanding Islam. In other words, the question is, whether hadith on its own, without any evidences and basis in the Qur'an or the Established Sunnah, can add a necessary piece of information to our understanding of Islam.
Methodologically, in my view, the answer is only obvious:
Hadith has reached us through individual narrators, the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah have reached us through the consensus of generations. No matter how much technically we try to verify the authenticity of a hadith, the fact remains that we are dealing with an information that is far less reliable than the information derived from the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah. So if someone puts the hadith in the same level as the Qur'an and the Established Sunnah and treat them the same then this is a fundamentally irrational methodology. The onus is on the followers of this methodology to justify it.
From another perspective, one may ask:
"Why would the Almighty put the responsibility of delivering some of the essentials of His religion on the shoulder of one or a few fallible individuals (who narrate a hadith), while He could detail them in His Book or instruct His prophet (pbuh) to establish them among his companions?"
I suggest you read the rather long discussion I had with some students in the past about the role of hadith versus Sunnah and then let me know if you have any specific questions or criticisms. You can find it at the end of the answer to this question: Sunnah vs. Hadith Please also read the related topics at the end of this page.
After reading these writings if you had any further questions then please let me know.
May God be satisfied with the family of the Prophet (pbuh) and his pious companions.
-----------
Related Topics:
- Innovations by Khulafa
- Sunnah vs. Hadith
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 1: Imitating the Prophet - pbuh)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 2: Criteria for Accepting a Hadith)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 3: Definition of Established Sunnah)
- Sunnah vs. Hadith (Follow Up 4: Beard)
-----------
February 2014