3]Are the angels superior or the Prophet and the righteous?

3]
Do the angels worship Allah better and more perfectly than the
Prophets themselves?.
Praise be to Allaah.
The angels are honoured slaves and do not disobeyAllah in what He
commands them to do; they do whatever they are commanded. Allah
created them and made their innate nature one of obedience and worship
ofHim. Some of them are appointed in charge of the revelation, some
are appointed in charge of provision, some are appointed in charge of
the mountains and some are created to worship, pray, and glorify and
remember Allah.
At-Tirmidhi (2312) narrated, in a report which he classed as
hasan,that Abu Dharr said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) said: "Verily I see what you do not see and I
hear what you do not hear. The heaven is creaking and it should creak,
for there is no space in it the width offour fingers but there is an
angel there, placing hisforehead in prostration toAllah."
Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh at-Tirmidhi
In the hadeeth of the Isra'(Prophet's Night Journey) it says: "Then
the Much-Frequented House (al-bayt al-ma'moor) was raised up for me,
and I asked Jibreel (about it). Hesaid: 'This is the Much-Frequented
House. Every day seventy thousand angels enter it and when they depart
from it, they never return to it.'"
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3207) and Muslim (164).
At-Tabari narrated in his Tafseer (21/127) from Ibn Mas'ood (may Allah
be pleased with him) that he said: Among the heavens is one in which
there is nospace the size of a handspan but on it there is the
forehead of an angel or his foot standing there. Then he recited the
words: "Verily, we (angels), we stand in rowsfor the prayers (as you
Muslims stand in rows for your prayers). Verily, we (angels), we are
they whoglorify (Allah's Praises i.e. perform prayers)" [as-Saffaat
37:165-166].
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in as-Saheehah,1059
Such worship is beyond the capabilities of any human being, and they
are not able to do it. The angels do not slow down or become tired, as
Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
"But if they are too proud (to do so), then there are those who are
with your Lord (angels) glorify Him night and day, and never are they
tired"
[Fussilat 41:38].
What is instilled in humanbeings is human nature, including the
Prophets and Messengers of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
them); theyare different from the angels in their attributes and
natures.
The angels are able to do feats of worship that no human is able to do.
But the fact that their worship is greater does not mean that they are
superior to the Prophets; the Prophets are to be viewed on the basis
that they are human beings with human nature. It is because they have
risen to such a high status in obedience to their Lord that they have
a particular virtue and sublime position, so muchso that more than one
of the scholars has said that the righteous among mankind are of a
higher status than the angels, because the angels do nothave any
inclination towards evil or disobedience, whereas the righteous among
mankind have these inclinations, but they resist them and overcomethem
in order to obey Allah.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah was asked about those who obey Allah
among the ummah of Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him): are they superior to the angels?
He replied:
It was proven that 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr said: The angels said: O Allah,
You have created the sonsof Adam, and they eat anddrink and enjoy life
in the world; create for us the Hereafter as you created the world for
them. He said: I shall not do that. They asked Him again andHe said: I
shall not do that. Then they asked Himagain two or three times and He
said: By My Glory, Icannot regard the righteous among the descendants
of the one whom I have created withMy own hand as being like one to
whom I said: Be! And he was (i.e., the angels). This was narratedby
'Uthmaan ibn Sa'eed ad-Daarimi.
It was narrated from 'Abdullah ibn Salaam that he said: Allah has not
created any creation dearer to Him that Muhammad. It was said tohim:
Not even Jibreel and Mika'eel? He said to the one who asked him: Do
you know what Jibreel and Mika'eel are? Jibreel and Mika'eel are
subjugated creations like the sun and the moon. Allah has not created
anyone who is dearer to him than Muhammad (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him).
I do not know of any one among the Sahaabah whodisagrees with that.
This is the well-known view among those who claim to belong to Ahl
as-Sunnah, the companions of the four imams and others, namely (the
view that) the angels and close friends of Allah (awliya') are
superior to the angels.
End quote from Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 4/344

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Ruling on Salaat ul Taraaweeh for Women

Is taraaweeh prayer required for women?
Which is better for women, to perform Taraaweeh at home or in a mosque?
Praise be to Allaah.
Taraaweeh prayer is not obligatory for women, and it is still better
for them to perform the Night Prayer at home, because the Prophet SAWS
(Peace & Blessings of Allah be upon Him) said:
"Do not prevent your women from going to themosque, even though their
houses are better forthem." (Reported by Abu Dawud in al-Sunan, Baab
maa jaa'a fee khurooj al-nisaa' ilaa'l-masjid: Baab al-tashdeed fee
dhaalik. See also Saheeh al-Jaami', no. 7458) .
Whenever a woman praysin a place that is more private and more hidden,
that is better for her, as the Prophet SAWS (Peace& Blessings of Allah
be upon Him) said: "A woman's prayer in her house is better than her
prayer in her courtyard, and her prayer in her bedroom is better than
her prayer in her house." (Reported by Abu Dawud in al-Sunan, Baab maa
jaa'a fee khurooj al-nisaa' ilaa'l-masjid. See also Saheeh al-Jaami',
no. 3833).
Umm Humayd, the wife ofAbu Humayd al-Saa'idi reported that she came
tothe Prophet SAWS (Peace& Blessings of Allah be upon Him) and said:
"O Messenger of Allaah, I loveto pray with you." He said: "I know that
you love to pray with me, but praying in your house is better for you
than praying in your courtyard,and praying in your courtyard is better
for youthan praying in the mosque of your people, and praying in the
mosque of your people is better for you than praying in my mosque." So
she ordered that a prayer-place be built for her in the furthest and
darkest part of her house, and she always prayed there until she met
Allaah (i.e., until she died). (Reported by Imaam Ahmad; the men of
its isnaad are thiqaat (trustworthy) ).
But the fact that praying at home is preferable does not mean that
that women are not permittedto go to the mosque, as is clear from the
following hadeeth:
From 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, who said: "I heard the Messenger of Allaah
SAWS(Peace & Blessings of Allahbe upon Him) say: 'Do not prevent your
women from going to the mosqueif they ask your permission.'" Bilaal
ibn 'Abdullah said, "By Allaah, we will prevent them." (Ibn 'Umar)
turned to him and told him off in an unprecedented fashion, saying: "I
tell you what the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (Peace & Blessings of Allah
be upon Him) said, and you say 'By Allaah, we will prevent them'!!"
(reported by Muslim, 667).
But there are conditions attached to the permission for women to go to
the mosque, as follows:
(1) She should wear complete hijaab.
(2) She should not go out wearing perfume.
(3) She should have the permission of her husband.
Her going out should not involve any other kind of prohibited acts,
such as being alone in a car with a non-mahram driver. If a woman does
something wrong like that, her husband or guardian has the right to
stop her; in fact it is his duty to do so.
I asked our shaykh, Shaykh 'Abd al-'Azeez, about Taraaweeh prayer in
particular, and whetherit is better for a woman toperform this prayer
in the mosque. He replied in the negative and said that theahaadeeth
that state that it is preferable for a woman to pray in her house
apply to all prayers,and this includes Taraaweeh as well as others.
And Allaah knows best.

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3a] Ramadan - A Reminder of Unity

3a]
Thus, Abu Daawood relates(1/307) that 'Uthmaan (raa) prayed four
rak'ahs atMinaa, so 'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood criticized him saying: "I
prayed two rak'ahs with the Prophet (saws) and two rak'ahs with Abu
Bakr, and two rak'ahs with 'Umar, and two rak'ahs with 'Uthmaanin the
beginning of his rule, then he completed it (i.e. by praying four
rak'ahs). After that the ways became divided withyou all. So I hope
from these four rak'ahs, that two of them would be accepted." Then Ibn
Mas'ood prayed four rak'ahs. So it was said to him: You criticized
'Uthmaan, yet you prayed four? So he said: "Differing is evil."
Its chain of narration is Saheeh (authentic), and something similar to
this isrelated in the Musnad (5/155) of Imaam Ahmad, from Abu Dharr
(raa).
So those who continue splitting-up with regards to the Prayer, and who
refuse to follow the local Imaams in some mosques - especially in the
witr Prayer during Ramadaan - using as proof that this is against
their madhhab (school of thought), then they should reflect upon the
above mentioned hadeeth and athar (narration). Likewise, thosewho
claim knowledge of astronomy and who, due to their opinion, fast and
end their fast alone - preceding or lagging behind the majority of
Muslims, not seeing any problem in doing so - should also reflect upon
the previously quoted proofs. So all of them should consider, and
reflect upon the knowledge that has been mentioned. Perhaps they will
find for themselves a cure for their ignorance and self-delusion, so
that they may then become a unified rank along with their Muslim
brothers - for indeed the Hand of Allaah Subhanahu wa Taa'ala is over
the Jamaa'ah.

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3] Ramadan - A Reminder of Unity

3]
Abu Hurayrah (raa) related that the Prophet sallallahualaihi wa sallam said:
"Fast when they fast, endthe fast when they end theirs, and sacrifice
the day that they sacrifice." [2]
Al-Bayhaqee relates by way of Abu Haneefah, whosaid: 'Alee ibn
al-Aqmar related to me, from Masrooq, who said: I entered upon
'Aaishah on the day of 'Arafah, so she said: "Serve Masrooq with some
gruel, and make it more sweet." Masrooq said: Nothing prevented me
from fasting this day except that I feared that it may be the day of
Sacrifice. So 'Aa'ishah said to me: "The day of Sacrificeis when the
people sacrifice, and the day of ending the fast is when the people
end their fast." This chain of narration is jayyid (good) due to what
has preceded.
Understanding This Hadeeth:
Imaam at-Tirmidhee says after quoting the hadeeth:"One of the people
of knowledge has explained this hadeeth by saying: Its meaning is to
fast and endthe fast along with the Jamaa'ah and the majority of
people."
As-San'aanee said in Sublus-Salaam (2/72): "In this (hadeeth) is a
proof that being in agreement with the people is accepted in
establishing 'Eed, and that the individual person who believes that it
is the day of 'Eed - because of the sighting of the moon - then it is
obligatory upon him to be in agreement with the people, and that the
ruling of the people - concerning the Prayer, breaking the fast, and
sacrificing - is binding upon the individual."
Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullaah) mentioned this meaning
inTahdheebus-Sunan (3/214), and said: "It is said: In it a refutation
of those who say that whosoever knows the positions of the moon due to
astronomical calculations, then it is permissible for him to fast and
end the fast, even if others do not know. It is also said: That the
individual witness who sees the moon, but the qaadee (judge) has not
accepted his testimony, then there is no fasting forhim, just as there
is no fasting for the people."
Abul-Hasan as-Sindee said in Haashiyah 'alaa Ibn Maajah, after
mentioning the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah which was related by
at-Tirmidhee:"And its apparent meaningis: That there is no room for
individual (opinions) toenter into these affairs, norto act
individually in this. Rather, this affair goes back to the Imaam (the
Leader of the Muslims) andthe Jamaa'ah (united body of Muslims under
the Imaam). It is obligatory upon the individuals to follow the Imaam
and the Jamaa'ah. From this is that is an individual sights the moon,
but the qaadee rejects his witness, then the individual has no right
in these matters, but rather he must follow the Jamaa'ah in this."
And this is the meaning which is evident from the hadeeth, and which
is emphasized by the fact that 'Aa'ishah (raa) used it with Masrooq
when he prevented himself from fasting on the day of 'Arafah, fearing
that it could be the day of Sacrifice. So she explained to him that
there is no weight given to his individual opinion in this, and that
he should follow the Jamaa'ah. So she said to him: "The day of
Sacrifice is when the people sacrifice, and the day of ending the fast
is when the people end theirfast."
Unity is One of the Goals of the Sharee'ah
And this is what is befitting for the easy-natured and tolerant
Sharee'ah (Prescribed Islaamic Law), one of the goals of which is
uniting the people together, unifying their ranks and keeping away
from them all that would split their comprehensive unity - from the
individual opinions. So the Sharee'ah does not give any weight to the
individual opinion in matters concerning 'ibaadah jamaa'iyyah
(collective acts of worship),such as Fasting, 'Eed and Prayer in
congregation - even if the opinion is correct, from one angle. Doyou
not see that the Sahaabah (the Companions) - radiallaahu 'anhum - used
to pray behind each other. So fromthem were those who heldthe view
that touching a woman, or the flowing of blood from the body
invalidates the wudhoo' (ablution), along with those who did not hold
this view. From them werethose who would complete the Prayer
whilsttraveling, whilst others shortened. Yet these, and other such
differences, did not prevent them from collectively praying behinda
single Imaam and deeming it to be acceptable. And this is because they
knew that tafarruq (splitting-up) in the Religion is more evil than
having ikhtilaaf (differences) in some opinions. Indeed, the matter
with one of them reached the extent that hewould not even deem
acceptable any opinion which differed with the great Imaam in the
major gatherings; such as the gathering at Minaa (duringHajj), to the
extent that he would totally abandon acting upon his opinion in that
gathering - fleeing from that which could result from this evil,
because of acting according to his own opinion.

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