General Doubt & clear, - * Devilish whispers – theircauses and remedy

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I have a serious problem. I was learning more about Islam, but now, as exams are drawing near, I am developing unutterable doubts and confusion. What I mean is doubts such as: was Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) really a prophet? And things of this nature. I can no longer focus on my studies. Please advise me.
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Praise be to Allah
Firstly:
It is good that you are worried about yourself, it is good that you are upset about what you are suffering from, and it is good that you have written to us, asking for advice. This indicates that your heart is alert and cautious. We ask Allah to help you to do that which pleases Him.
Secondly:
This state in which you find yourself is what is called “compulsive waswaas [whispers]”. We would like to reassure you and lift your spirits by noting the following:
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These whispers have no implications and no rulings are based on them. Therefore no divorce is valid, no oath is binding, no state of purity is rendered invalid, and no Muslim becomes an apostate if the whispers have to do with some fundamentals of belief. So if a person is overwhelmed with whispers to the point that he begins to doubt the existence of Allah or his belief in the Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), none of that has any impact on him, and the ruling of his being a Muslim remains valid. Therefore you may rest assured, and let the Shaytaan die in his distress and suppression.
It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Allah has forgiven my ummah for whatever whispers [waswasah] cross their minds so long as they do not act upon it or speak of it.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (2391) and Muslim (127).
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
What we may understand is that there is no blame for what crosses a person’s mind, unless it is translated into actions or words as a result of that thought. What is meant by whispers [waswasah] is when a thought resides in a person’s mind without him feeling happy with it, or it takes root in his mind.
Fat-h al-Baari(5/161).
For some important details mentioned by Shaykh al-‘Uthaymeen, please see the answer to question no. 10160, where he stated that no harm will befall a Muslim if he experiences compulsive whispers about Allah and His existence, or about His Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) or His religion.
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These whispers are indicative – in sha Allah – of strong faith and certainty, because of which the Shaytaan is eager to subject you to this waswasah. Were it not that he sees that you have strong faith and are righteous, he would not have resorted to this method of whispering, especially since you regard as abhorrent the thoughts that he is trying to instill in your mind.
We are not saying that just to be nice to you; rather this is what the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) stated, and it is what the trustworthy scholars of this ummah understood from the hadiths.
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The Shaytaan may come to one of you and say: ‘Who created such and such, who created such and such?’ Until he says to him: ‘Who created your Lord?’ If it goes that far, let him seek refuge with Allah and stop (such thoughts).”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3102) and Muslim (134).
According to a report narrated by Muslim, “…let him say, ‘I believe in Allah and His Messenger.’”
According to another report from Abu Hurayrah, he said: Some of the companions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) came and asked him: We find in our hearts thoughts that are too awful for any of us to speak of them. He said: “Do you really find that?” They said: Yes. He said: “That is [a sign of] clear faith.”.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
What this means is that the Shaytaan only resorts to whispering to those whom he despairs of ever misleading. So he tries to annoy them with his whispers, because he is unable to misguide them. As for the disbeliever, he can lead him in any direction he wants, and in that case he is not limited to whispering; rather he toys with him however he wishes. This is what the hadith means: the cause of the waswasah is strong faith or, in other words, waswasah is indicative of a person’s strong faith. This is the view favoured by al-Qaadi ‘Iyaad.
Sharh Muslim(2/154).
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The remedy for this waswasah is very simple. All you have to do is adhere to the instructions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) to stop going along with those whispers, ignore them, seek refuge with Allah, say “I believe in Allah,” and distract yourself from it by glorifying Allah, may He be exalted, remembering Him and calling upon Him, and sending blessings upon the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to the words of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): “let him seek refuge with Allah and stop (such thoughts)”, what is meant is: If he is faced with these whispers, let him turn to Allah, may He be exalted, to help him ward off this evil. He should stop thinking about it and should realise that this thought is one of the whispers of the Shaytaan, who is only trying to corrupt him and mislead him. So let him stop listening to these whispers and hasten to put a stop to it by focusing on something else. And Allah knows best.
Sharh Muslim(2/155, 156).
The scholars of the Standing Committee were asked:
I am a young Muslim man who has recently become religiously committed, and the Shaytaan is causing me a great deal of trouble. Every time I manage to overcome one thing, he presents me with another obstacle. After I attained a level of religious commitment and I thought – praise be to Allah – that I was a little better than those around me, I began to see those who I had thought were less committed than me as now being better than me, and doing more righteous deeds than me; I look at myself and I find myself to be going downhill fast, drifting away from the level of commitment that I had achieved. I am trying to resist my evil inclinations and the Shaytaan by all possible means, but I cannot find anyone who appreciates my pain and the suffering that I am enduring silently, or anyone I can talk to about the evil thoughts that the Shaytaan is putting into my mind. These whispers do not leave me even for a minute, no matter what I do or where I am, in the mosque, in the street, at home or in school. Is there anyone who could stand by me and help me against this Shaytaan? Is there anyone whom Allah might inspire to help me?
They replied:
We advise you to ignore these whispers and to pay no attention to them, to read a great deal of Qur’an, do a lot of righteous deeds, and turn to Allah, beseeching Him and calling upon Him to ward off from you the tricks of the Shaytaan, to make you steadfast in adhering to the truth, and to guide you. For He, may He be glorified, is in control of all creatures, both jinn and humans, and He directs them as He wills. Beware of being filled with self-admiration because of your worship, or being deceived by your good behaviour and conduct or your many righteous deeds. When it comes to matters of worship and issues connected to the hereafter, do not look at those who are less than you, for that will lead to you developing self-admiration and will cause you to do fewer righteous deeds and to become slow in doing them; it will cause the Shaytaan to toy with you and discourage you from doing good. Rather you should look at those who are better than you in adhering to the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Cling to that and be keen to adhere to it, for that will motivate you to increase your righteous deeds and help you to attain the forgiveness and mercy of Allah, and a high position in Paradise, and everlasting bliss. Perhaps Allah will make you steadfast in adhering to the truth and will guide you to the straight path, and will relieve you of this waswasah.
We also advise you to read the bookTalbees Iblees, by Abu’l-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi, in which he discusses this issue. We hope that Allah will benefit you thereby.
Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz, Shaykh ‘Abd ar-Razzaaq ‘Afeefi, Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Ghadyaan, Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Qa‘ood.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa’imah(2/194)
You should not worry, after reading these glad tidings and reassuring words, for all you have to do now is follow the advice of the scholars, which is based on the advice of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). We ask Allah to protect you from the Shaytaan and to make what is good easy for you, wherever it may be.
And Allah knows best.

General Doubt & clear, - * None of the hadiths about the timing of cupping are saheeh

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Is cupping on Saturday or Friday makrooh if it happens to be the 17th, 19th or 21st, as mentioned in the hadith “Do not do cupping on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays”? This has become something that is regarded as important among the Muslims in Britain. I hope that you can explain: are these hadiths da‘eef or saheeh?
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Praise be to Allah
Firstly:
There are many hadiths from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) about the timing of cupping, which refer to his words or actions. They may be divided into two categories:
1.
Hadiths which state the preferred days for cupping, which are the seventeenth – especially if it happens to be a Tuesday – the nineteenth and the twenty-first of the lunar month, and Mondays and Thursdays among the days of the week.
2.
Hadiths which forbid cupping on certain days of the week, namely Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday. There are also hadiths which encourage doing cupping on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Most of the leading scholars have stated that all the hadiths in these two categories are da‘eef and not one of them is soundly narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). There follow some of their statements:
1. Imam Maalik was asked about cupping on Saturdays and Wednesdays, and he said:
There is nothing wrong with that; there is no day on which I have not had cupping done, and I do not regard any of that as makrooh. End quote.
Al-Muntaqa Sharh al-Muwatta’(7/225), quoted fromal-‘Atabiyyah
It says in al-Fawaakih ad-Dawaani(2/338), which is a Maaliki book:
(Cupping is permissible) on all days, even Saturdays and Wednesdays. In fact Maalik deliberately used to have cupping done on those days, and he did not regard any kind of medical treatment as makrooh on those two days. The hadiths which warn against cupping on those days were not regarded as saheeh by Maalik (may Allah be pleased with him). End quote.
2. ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan ibn Mahdi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
There is no saheeh report from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) concerning the timing of cupping; however he enjoined doing it. End quote.
Narrated by Ibn al-Jawzi inal-Mawdoo‘aat(3/215)
3. Al-Khallaal narrated from Imam Ahmad that the hadith is not proven.
Narrated by Ibn Hajar inFath al-Baari(10/149)
4. Al-Bardha‘i said:
I saw Abu Zar‘ah not confirming any hadith about cupping being makrooh on a particular day or being mustahabb on a particular day. End quote.
Su’aalaat al-Bardha‘i(2/575)
5. Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar said, commenting on the words of Imam al-Bukhaari, “Chapter on what time cupping should be done, and Abu Moosa had cupping done at night”
Concerning the suitable times for cupping, there are hadiths none of which meet his (al-Bukhaari’s) conditions. It is as he was indicating that it may be done when needed, and it is not restricted to one time rather than another, because he mentioned cupping being done at night. End quote.
Fath al-Baari(10/149)
6. Al-‘Aqeeli (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
No report has been proven sound about this matter – i.e., the best day for cupping. End quote.
Ad-Du‘afa’ al-Kabeer(1/150)
7. Ibn al-Jawzi (may Allah have mercy on him) included some chapters in his bookal-Mawdoo‘aat(3/211-215) in which he compiled these hadiths on this topic, after which he said:
None of these hadiths are saheeh. End quote.
8. Imam an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
To sum up, nothing is proven about the prohibition on cupping on particular days. End quote.
al-Majmoo‘(9/69).
However, an-Nawawi classed as hasan the hadith about doing cupping on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first (of the lunar month).
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
None of these hadiths is saheeh. End quote.
Fath al-Baari(10/149)
Secondly:
Many of the scholars regarded it as mustahabb to do cupping on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first of the lunar month, based on a number of points of evidence:
1. That was narrated with saheeh isnaads from the Sahaabah (may Allah be pleased with them):
It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Companions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to do cupping on the odd-numbered days of the month.
Narrated by at-Tabaraani inTahdheeb al-Athaar(no. 2856). He said: Muhammad ibn Bashshaar told us: Abu Dawood told us: Hishaam told us, from Qataadah, from Anas.
This is a saheeh isnaad. Abu Zar‘ah said: The best report concerning it is the hadith of Anas: The companions of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to do cupping on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first.
Su’aalaat al-Bardha‘i(2/757)
After the report mentioned above, at-Tabari also narrated that Rafee‘ Abu’l-‘Aaliyah said: They used to regard it as mustahabb to do cupping on odd-numbered days of the month.
It was narrated that Ibn ‘Awn said: Some of his companions used to advise doing cupping on the seventeenth and nineteenth. Ahmad said: Sulaym said: Hishaam told us, from Muhammad, that he added: and the twenty-first.
Perhaps the Sahaabah learned that from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), which gives the impression that these hadiths were originally marfoo‘. In fact some of the scholars are of the view that some of the marfoo‘ hadiths concerning that are qawiy, such as Imam at-Tirmidhi when he narrated the hadith of Anas ibn Maalik (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to have cupping done on the two veins at the side of the neck and between the shoulder blades, and he used to have cupping done on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first. (No. 2051). He (at-Tirmidhi) said: A hasan hadith.
Some of the later scholars did likewise, such as as-Suyooti inal-Haawi li’l-Fataawa(1/279-280); Ibn Hajar al-Haytami inal-Fataawa(4/351); and Shaykh al-Albaani inas-Silsilah as-Saheehah(no. 622, 1847).
However the texts that we have mentioned above from the imams, which described the marfoo‘ report as da‘eef, are more likely to be correct.
2. That is also supported from a medical point of view:
Al-‘Allaamah Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said – after narrating the hadiths that speak of doing cupping on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first –:
These hadiths are in accordance with what is agreed upon among doctors, which is that cupping in the second half and third quarter of the month is more beneficial than in the first half and last quarter.
However, if it is used when there is a need for it, then it is beneficial at any time, whether that is at the beginning of the month or the end.
Al-Khallaal said: ‘Usmah ibn ‘Isaam told me: Hanbal told us: Abu ‘Abdullah Ahmad ibn Hanbal used to have cupping done at any time he felt the need, at any hour of the day. End quote.
Zaad al-Ma‘aad(4/54)
But with regard to choosing days of the week for cupping, nothing is proven concerning that from a medical point of view, as far as we know, although there are reports from some of the Sahaabah concerning that. It is proven from Imam Ahmad that he used to avoid cupping on Saturdays and Wednesdays. That was narrated by Ibn al-Qayyim inZaad al-Ma‘aad(4/54) from al-Khallaal.
Ibn Muflih (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Cupping is makrooh on Saturdays and Wednesdays. This was stated in a report of Abu Taalib and a number of others. Ahmad added the report of Muhammad ibn al-Hasan ibn Hassaan. They also mentioned Fridays. This is what was stated definitively inal-Mustaw‘aband elsewhere.
Al-Marwadhi said: Abu ‘Abdullah used to have cupping done on Sundays and Tuesdays.
Al-Qaadi said: It is clear that Sundays and Tuesdays are preferred, and Saturdays and Wednesdays are disliked. Nothing was said about Fridays. End quote.
It was narrated from az-Zuhri in a mursal report: “Whoever has cupping done on a Saturday or a Wednesday, and is afflicted with leprosy, let him blame no one but himself.”
This was mentioned by Ahmad and quoted as evidence. Abu Dawood said: Its isnaad is not saheeh.
Al-Bayhaqi said that it was regarded as mawsool by more than one scholar, but he regarded that as incorrect. Rather it is munqati‘ (interrupted). End quote.
It was narrated by Abu Bakr ibn Abi Shaybah with his isnaad from Mak-hool in a mursal report.
Ahmad was told that a man was treated with cupping on a Wednesday and he took the hadith lightly and said: What is this hadith? Then he was afflicted with leprosy. Ahmad said: No one should take the hadith lightly. This was narrated by al-Khallaal.
It was narrated from Ibn ‘Umar in a marfoo‘ report: “On Friday there is an hour when no one is treated with cupping but he is exposed to a disease from which there is no healing.”
Narrated by al-Bayhaqi with a hasan isnaad. It includes ‘Ataaf ibn Khaalid, in whom there is some weakness. End quote.
Al-Adaab ash-Shar‘iyyahby Ibn Muflih (3/333)
Something similar was also narrated from Ibn Ma‘een and ‘Ali ibn al-Madeeni.
And Allah knows best.

Common Doubt clear, - * Guideline on moving from fasting to feeding the poor in the case of expiation for intercourse during the day in Ramadan

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I had intercourse with my wife during the day last Ramadan, and I read in the fatwas that the penalty for that is to fast two consecutive months. I tried to start fasting, but in fact I found that I was falling short in my work and not doing my job properly as a result of feeling exhausted and working for long hours, although I tried to delay the fast until the cold days. I hope that you can advise me what to do.
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Praise be to Allah
Difficulty in working, in which a person feels that he is not doing his job properly, is not one of the excuses that makes it permissible not to observe an obligatory fast and move to the option of feeding the poor, whether it is fasting during Ramadan, fasting in expiation for having intercourse during the day in Ramadan, or fasting for any other reason.
The Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas was asked about a man who works in a bakery and suffers extreme thirst and exhaustion whilst working. Is it permissible for him not to fast?
They replied: It is not permissible for that man not to fast; rather what he must do is observe the fast. The fact that he is baking during the day in Ramadan is not an excuse for not fasting. He must work according to what he is able to do.
End quote fromFataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa’imah lil-Buhooth al-‘Ilmiyyah wa’l-Iftaa’(10/238).
We put this question to our shaykh, ‘Abd ar-Rahmaan ibn Naasir al-Barraak and he replied: Work is not an excuse for not observing an obligatory fast, such as the Ramadan fast.
Based on that, you should be patient and seek reward with Allah, for seeking reward with Him and remembering the reward will reduce the feelings of difficulty. Moreover these feelings usually arise in the first few days, then you get used to it. So seek the help of Allah, may He be exalted, and Allah will make things easy for you.
And Allah knows best.