Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Allah, may He be exalted,sent Messengers to everynation and He stated
that they came one afteranother, as He says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"Then We sent Our Messengers in succession, every time there came to a
nation their Messenger, they denied him, so We madethem follow one
another(to destruction), and We made them as Ahadeeth (the true
stories for mankind to learn a lesson from them). So away with a
people whobelieve not"
[al-Mu'minoon 23:44]
"Verily! We have sent you with the truth, a bearer of glad tidings,
and a warner. And there never was a nation but awarner had passed
among them"
[Faatir 35:24].
Allah has named some ofthose Messengers and told us the stories of
some of them, but not ofmany others. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Verily, We have inspiredyou (O Muhammad SAW) as We inspired Nooh
(Noah) and the Prophets after him; We (also) inspired Ibrahim
(Abraham), Ismail (Ishmael), Ishaque (Isaac), Yaqoob (Jacob), and
Al-Asbat (the twelve sons of Yaqoob (Jacob)), Iesa (Jesus), Ayub
(Job), Yoonus (Jonah), Haroon (Aaron), and Sulaiman (Solomon), and to
Dawood (David) We gave the Zaboor (Psalms).
And Messengers We havementioned to you before, and Messengers We have
not mentioned to you, - and to Moosa (Moses) Allah spoke directly"
[an-Nisa' 4:163-164].
Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
These are the names of the Prophets whose names are mentioned in the
Qur'an: Adam, Idrees,Nooh, Hood, Saalih, Ibraaheem, Loot, Ismaa'eel,
Ishaaq, Ya'qoob, Yoosuf, Ayyoob,Shu'ayb, Moosa, Haroon, Yoonus,
Dawood, Sulaymaan, Ilyaas, al-Yasa', Zakariya, Yahya,and 'Eesa
(blessings and peace be upon them), as well as Dhu'l-Kifl according to
many commentators, and theirleader is Muhammad (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him).
The words "and Messengers We have not mentioned to you" mean: other
people whoare not mentioned in the Qur'an.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/469
Secondly:
The scholars differed as to the number of Prophets and Messengers,
according to what reached them and their opinions on the authenticity
of the hadeeths that mentioned their numbers. Those who classed the
hadeeths as saheeh or hasan gave their opinion based on those reports;
those whoclassed the hadeeths as da'eef said that the number could not
be known except through Revelation, so they refrained from stating a
number.
The hadeeths that mentioned a number areas follows:
1.
It was narrated that Abu Dharr said: I said: O Messenger of Allah, how
many Prophets were there? He said: "One hundred and twenty four
thousand." I said: O Messenger of Allah, how many of them were
Messengers? He said: "Three hundred and thirteen, a good number." I
said: O Messenger of Allah, who was the first of them? Hesaid: "Adam."
…
Narrated by Ibn Hibbaan, 361
This hadeeth is da'eef jiddan (very weak). Its isnaad includes
Ibraaheem ibn Hishaam al-Ghassaani, of whom adh-Dhahabi said: he is
matrook (rejected). Indeed, Abu Haatim said:(He is) a liar. Hence Ibn
al-Jawzi ruled that the hadeeth was fabricated and false.
Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This hadeeth was narrated at length by al-Haafiz Abu Haatim ibn
Hibbaan al-Basti in his book al-Anwaa' wa't-Taqaaseem, and he said
that it was saheeh. But Abu'l-Faraj ibn al-Jazwi disagreed with him
and included this hadeeth in his book al-Mawdoo'aat (the fabricated
hadeeths) and accused Ibraaheem ibn Hishaam of fabricating the
hadeeth. There is no doubt that more than one of the imams of al-jarh
wa't-ta'deel (evaluation of hadeeth narrators) criticised him because
ofthis hadeeth.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/470
Shu'ayb al-Arna'oot said:Its isnaad is da'eef jiddan (very weak) –
andhe quoted the commentsof the scholars about Ibraaheem ibn Hishaam.
Tahqeeq Saheeh Ibn Hibbaan, 2/79
2.
A hadeeth mentioning this number - one hundred and twenty four
thousand – was alsonarrated via another isnaad:
It was narrated that Abu Umaamah said: I said: O Prophet of Allah, how
many Prophets were there? He said: "One hundred and twenty four
thousand, of whom three hundred and fifteen were a good number."
Narrated by Ibn Hibbaanin his Tafseer, 963
Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Mu'aan ibn Rifaa'ah as-Silaami is da'eef; 'Ali ibn Yazeed is da'eef;
andal-Qaasim Abu 'Abd ar-Rahmaan is also da'eef.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/470
3.
The hadeeth of Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) was also
narrated via another isnaad, without any mention of the number of
Prophets; rather it mentions the number of Messengers:
He said: I said: O Messenger of Allah, how many Messengers were there?
He said: "Three hundred and umpteen, agood number."
Narrated by Ahmad, 35/431
According to another report (35/438): "three hundred and fifteen, a
good number."
Shu'ayb al-Arna'oot said:
Its isnaad is da'eef jiddan (very weak), because 'Ubayd ibn
al-Khashkhaash is majhool (unknown) and Abu 'Umar ad-Dimashqi is
da'eef. Ad-Daaraqutni said: al-Mas'oodi from Abu 'Umar ad-Dimashqi is
matrook (rejected).
Al-Mas'oodi is 'Abd ar-Rahmaan ibn 'Abdullah ibn 'Utbah.
Tahqeeq Musnad Ahmad,35/432
4.
It was narrated that Anassaid: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Allah sent eight thousand Prophets,
four thousand to the Children of Israel and four thousand to the rest
of mankind."
Narrated by Abu Ya'la in his Musnad, 7/160
This hadeeth is da'eef jiddan (very weak).
Al-Haythami (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It was narrated by Abu Ya'la and its isnaad includes Moosa ibn
'Ubaydah ar-Rabdhi, who is da'eef jiddan.
Majma' az-Zawaa'id, 8/210
Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This is also a da'eef isnaad. It includes ar-Rabdhi who is da'eef, and
his shaykh ar-Raqqaashi is also weaker than him.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/470
5.
It was narrated that Abu'l-Waddaak said: AbuSa'eed said to me: Do
theKhaarijis believe in the Dajjaal? I said: No. He said: The
Messenger of Allah (sa) said: "I am the Seal of a thousand Prophets or
more; no Prophet was sent but he warned his nation aboutthe Dajjaal…"
Narrated by Ahmad, 18/275
This hadeeth is da'eef because Mujaalid ibn Sa'eed is da'eef.
Al-Haythami (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It was narrated by Ahmad, and its isnaad includes Mujaalid ibn Sa'eed.
An-Nasaa'i classed him as thiqah (trustworthy) in one report but he
said concerning another: He is not qawiy (strong). A number of
scholars classed him as da'eef.
Majma' az-Zawaa'id, 7/346
It was also classed as da'eef by al-Arna'oot in Tahqeeq al-Musnad, 18/276
6.
This hadeeth was narrated from Jaabir ibn'Abdullah (may Allah be
pleased with him):
It was narrated by al-Bazzaar in his Musnad,3380, Kashf al-Astaar.
Its isnaad includes Mujaalid ibn Sa'eed; it has been stated above that
he is da'eef.
Al-Haythami (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
It was narrated by al-Bazzaar and its isnaadincludes Mujaalid ibn
Sa'eed, who was classed as da'eef by the majority.
Majma' az-Zawaa'id, 7/347
From the hadeeths quoted above – and there are others that we have not
quoted to save space, all of which are da'eef – it is clear that the
reports differ concerning the number of Prophets and Messengers. Every
group spoke on the basis of thereports that were saheeh in their
opinion. The most well-known of the reports mentioned above is the
hadeeth of Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him), which says that
the number of Prophets was one hundred and twentyfour thousand, among
whom the number of Messengers was three hundred and fifteen. Some of
the scholars even said that the number of Prophets was the same as the
number of Companions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and the number of Messengers was the same as the number of
those who were present at Badr.
But by examining the isnaads of these reports, it does not seem to us
that these hadeeths are saheeh, either individually or when their
isnaads are put together.
Thirdly:
There follow the opinions of some of the leading scholars who said
that these hadeeths and the numbers mentioned in them are not saheeh
(sound):
1.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
From what is mentioned by Ahmad, Muhammad ibn Nasr and others, it is
clear that they did not know the number of Books and Messengers, and
the hadeeth of Abu Dharr that speaks of thatwas not proven in their
view.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 7/409
From this report from the two imams Ahmad and Muhammad ibn
Nasral-Marwazi it is clear thatthey regarded the hadeeths which speak
ofthe number of Prophets as da'eef. What appears to be the case is
that Shaykh al-Islam (may Allah have mercy on him) supported them in
that. And he indicated that the hadeeth of Abu Dharr was da'eef. As he
said: It was narrated in the hadeeth of Abu Dharr that their number
was three hundred and thirteen, but that hadeeth was not quotedas
evidence; rather whatis quoted as evidence is the verses that speak of
their large number.
2.
Ibn 'Atiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his commentary on
the verse in an-Nisa':
The words of Allah, may He be exalted, "and Messengers We have not
mentioned to you" [an-Nisa' 4:164], imply a large number of Prophets,
without mentioning a specific number. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And there never was a nation but a warner hadpassed among them"
[Faatir 35:24]
"and many generations in between"
[al-Furqaan 25:38].
What has been narrated about the number of Prophets is not correct;
Allah knows best about their number, may the blessings of Allah be
upon them. End quote.
3.
The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked:
What is the number of Prophets and Messengers (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon them)?
They replied:
No one knows their number except Allah, because He says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And, indeed We have sent Messengers before you (O Muhammad SAW);of
some of them We have related to you theirstory and of some We have not
related to you their story"
[Ghaafir 40:78].
Those who are known are those who are mentioned in the Qur'an or in
the saheeh Sunnah.
Shaykh 'Abd al-Azeez ibnBaaz, Shaykh 'Abd ar-Razzaaq 'Afeefi, Shaykh
'Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Qa'ood
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 3/256
4.
Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah havemercy on him) said:
In the hadeeth of Abu Dharr that is narrated byAbu Haatim ibn Hibbaan
and others, it says that he asked the Prophet (sa) about the
Messengers and about the Prophets, and the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: "The Prophets were one hundred and
twenty-four thousand and the Messengers were three hundred
andthirteen." According to the report of Abu Umaamah: three hundred
and fifteen. Butthese are both da'eef hadeeths according to the
scholars. They have corroborating reports, but those are also da'eef,
as we have mentioned above. According to some of them it says that the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said that there
were a thousand Prophets or more, and insome it says that the number
of Prophets was three thousand. All the hadeeths that speak of this
matter are da'eef; infact Ibn al-Jawzi regarded the hadeeth ofAbu
Dharr as being fabricated. The point is that there is no reliable
report about the number of Prophets and Messengers; no one knows their
number except Allah, may He be glorified and exalted. But they were a
good number. Allah has told usthe stories of some of them and He has
not toldus the stories of others in His wisdom, may He be glorified
and exalted.
Majmoo' Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz, 2/66, 67
5.
Shaykh 'Abdullah ibn Jibreen (may Allah preserve him) was asked:
What is the number of Prophets and Messengers? Is not believing in
some of them (because we are unaware of them) regarded as kufr? What
is the number of divinelyrevealed Books?
He replied:
In a number of hadeethsit is stated that the number of the Prophets
was one hundred and twenty-four thousand, and that the number of
Messengers among themwas three hundred and thirteen; it was also
narrated that the number of Prophets was eight thousand. All of these
hadeeths were quoted in Ibn Katheer's Tafseer al-Qur'an al-'Azeem, at
the end of Soorat an-Nisa', in his commentary on the verse in which
Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning): "and
Messengers We have not mentioned to you" [an-Nisa' 4:164]. But the
hadeeths about this matter are all da'eef, despite the fact that there
are so many. So it is better to refrain from discussing this matter.
What is required of the Muslim is to believe specifically in those
Prophets whose names were mentioned by Allahand His Messenger, and to
believe in the rest in general terms. Allah condemned the Jews for
differentiating between them, as He said (interpretation of the
meaning): "…saying, We believe in some but reject others…"
[an-Nisa'4:150]. We believe in every Prophet and every Messenger whom
Allah sent at some time or another, but each one's message was for the
people of his own time and his Book was for his nation and his people.
With regard to the number of Books, it says in the lengthy hadeeth
narrated from Abu Dharrthat the number of books was one hundred books
and four books, aswas mentioned by Ibn Katheer in his commentary on
the verse quoted above. But Allah knows best how sound this is. Allah
has mentioned the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms (Zaboor), and the
Scriptures of Ibraaheem and Moosa, so we believe in that and we
believe that Allah has many Books of which wehave no knowledge; it is
sufficient for us to believe in them in general terms.
Fataawa Islamiyyah, 1/41
And Allah knows best.
No comments:
Post a Comment