The meaning of thinking about going forjihaad, and combining da’wah and jihaad

Assalaau Alaykum,
My dear respected Shaikh,
I am an undergraduate student studiying in the field of Computer
Engineering in University of XXXXX . InshaAllah I will be graduating
next year. Alhamdulillah I am married and expecting akid very soon !
InshaAllah. AlhamdulillahI make efforts to gain knowledge and
implement it upon the way of Salaf-us-Salih and I know this is the
right way . But there is one thing I do not reallyunderstand : that
isthe issue of Jihaad. InshaAllah please do clarify this for me in the
following context:
1. My obligation with regards to Jihaad
2. The meaning of the Hadith : Whoever dies and did not fight in
battle, nor did he have the sincere wish to fight in battle, dies on a
branch of hypocrisy." [Muslim]
3. How do I prepare for Jihaad.
4. How should I weigh the affair between gaining knowledge, Da'waf and Jihaad.
I would also like to know what the major Ulama say with regards to this.
Jazakallahu Khairan.
Praise be to Allaah.
Imaam Muslim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in his Saheeh:
"Chapter: Condemnation of the one who dies without having gone out for
jihaad or having thought of doing so." Then he quoted the hadeeth of
Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him), who said: "The
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:
'Whoever dies without having gone out for jihaad or having thought of
doing so, dies on a branch of hypocrisy.'" (Saheeh Muslim, 3533).
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:"What is meant is that
the one who does this is behaving, in this regard,like the hypocrites
who stay behind and do not go out for jihaad, because not engaging
injihaad is one of the branches of hypocrisy. This hadeeth also
indicates that the one who intended to do an act of worship but died
before he could do it is not to be condemned to the same extent as one
who died without any such intention."
Al-Sindi said, in his footnotes to Sunan al-Nisaa'i: " '… without
having thought of [it]…' means without having said to himself, 'I wish
I could go out for jihaad.' Or it could mean that he did not intend to
go out for jihaad, and the sign of intending to go out for jihaad is
preparing equipment. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): 'And
if they had intended to march out, certainly they wouldhave made some
preparation for it…" [al-Tawbah 9:64]."
A person can prepare himself for jihaad in many ways, such as:
Learning the virtues of jihaad and the rulings concerning it;
preparing oneself with different kinds of acts of worship;
training oneself to makesacrifices;
forcing oneself to prefer others to oneself;
spending for the sake of Allaah;
studying and reading the biographies of mujaahideen and heroesof Islam;
studying Islamic battles;
constantly telling oneselfthat if jihaad is established and one has
the means and is able to go for jihaad, there is nochoice but to
enlist;
knowing how sinful it is to run away from the battlefield or flee
beforethe kuffaar;
studying the Seerah (biography) of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) during both the Makkan and Madani periods, and
studying his battles and campaigns, to see how he conducted the jihaad
in the context of his owncircumstances, what he started with and how
heprepared himself;
understanding that jihaad has to go throughstages, beginning with the
nearest enemy, until one reaches the stage of being able to fight all
the mushrikeen;
being aware of the movements of hypocrisy;
waging jihaad on four fronts – against one's own nafs or base self,
against the Shaytaan, against the kuffaar and against the hypocrites;
understanding the importance of waging jihaad with one's wealthas well
as with one's self.
Know, my brother, that it is not difficult to combine jihaad with
da'wah, because each ofthem has its own time and place. When the
mujaahideen were waging their conquests, they used to call people to
Allaah before the battle started. When they conquered a country, they
would call its people to Islam and teach them the religion. When there
was no battle or jihaad going on, the doors of da'wah were still wide
open, and they would make da'wah to their wives, children, relatives,
neighbours and all people, Muslim and non-Muslim, calling themwith
wisdom and beautiful preaching, andarguing with them in a way that is
better. May Allaah help us and you todo that which He loves and which
pleases Him. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad.

Moving away from places of shirk

We have decided to buy a new house to live in, inBaghdad. But my
father refuses to live anywhere except the area in whichhe grew up,
which is a Shi'i area where rituals of shirk are done every year and
the people whip themselves with chains in mourning for al-Husayn, or
so they say.Now we, the sons, are confused: should we go against our
father and prevent him from buying a house in this area, or should we
give in to what he wants out of obedience to him even though we are
ableto stop him from doing that?
Does this come under the heading of moving away from places of shirk?
What are its conditions and obligations? Please note that my father is
a religiously committed man, but he is influenced by the place where
he grew up.
Praise be to Allaah.
Parents have to understand that Allah, may He be exalted, has made
them shepherds oftheir families and they will be responsible for them
on the Day of Resurrection, as it was narrated that 'Abd-Allah ibn
'Umar said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) say: "Each of you is a shepherd and each of you is
responsible for hisflock. The ruler of the people is a shepherd and is
responsible for hisflock. A man is the shepherd of his household and
is responsible for his flock…" Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 853;
Muslim,1829.
Allah, may He be exalted,has instructed the believers to protect
themselves and their families from the Fire of Hell, as He says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"O you who believe! Ward off yourselves and your families against a
Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones, over which are (appointed)
angels stern (and) severe…"
[al-Tahreem 66:6].
Hence we can say to the good father that staying among people of
extreme innovation and corrupt beliefs poses a danger to you and your
family in terms being influenced by their beliefs. If the father is
religiously committed and feels safe, in sha Allah, against their
misguidance and innovations, and if you are likewise, the danger still
exists for your offspring and children.
Because we know that those innovators are the Raafidis, then our
warning to you is further emphasized because there is the fearfor you
and your family that they may cause you real harm, and real life
events in your country testify to that. So you should not let emotion
take precedence over reason and religious commitment; rather you
should reconsider the idea of your staying among those who carry out
rituals of shirk and revile the best of this ummah, namely the
Companions of the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him). The scholars have stated thatif the believer does not feel
that he or his family are safe from fitnah or that he cannot openly
practice his religion, then he has to leave his home and migrate, and
it makes no difference whether his land is a land of evildoing,
innovation or shirk. If the Muslim is in such a land, then he has to
leave it, so how about if he chooses to go and live in the land and
among those people who openly practise shirk in the name of Islam and
revile the Sahaabah (may Allah be pleased with them) and denounce Ahl
al-Sunnah as disbelievers?!
Ibn al-'Arabi al-Maaliki (may Allah have mercy on him) said,
describing the types of migration:
… The second is migration from the land of innovation. Ibn al-Qaasim
said: I heard Maalik say: It is not permissible for anyone to stay in
a land in whichthe salaf (early generations of Muslims) are reviled.
And this is true. If the one who objects to evil is not able to change
it then he should keep away from it. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"And when you (Muhammad) see those who engage in a false conversation
about Our Verses (of the Qur'ân) by mocking at them, stay away from
them till they turn to another topic. And if Shaitân (Satan) causes
you to forget, then after the remembrance sit not youin the company of
those people who are the Zâlimûn (polytheists and wrong-doers)"
[al-An'aam 6:68].
End quote from Ahkaam al-Qur'aan, 2/412, 413
What we think is that your father should avoidliving among the people
of that deviant sect, for the reasons mentioned above.
If your father insists on living in that place, after you have tried
to advise him in the best way, thatyou have to beware of the plots and
the evil of the Raafidis and take precautions to protect your
religious commitment against the fitnah of their religious practices;
try to ensure that your closest neighbours are Sunnis who live in that
area.
What we suggest to you is do not buy a house or land in that place;
rathertry to make your stay there temporary in the hope that Allah
will guide your father and he will become convinced to keep away from
that place and choose somewhere better than it.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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Abu Huraira: The Beloved Narrator

" 'An Abi Huraira radiyallahu anhu qal, qala Rasul Allahi, sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam...."
(On the authority of Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, he
said: Allah's Messenger (s.a.w) said...)
Through this phrase millions of Muslims from early history of Islam to
the present have come tobe familiar with the name Abu Huraira, who you
expect to find his name in most Hadith, Sirah or Fiqh books.
Abu Huraira (r.a.a) enjoyed a great talent, he was gifted with an
extraordinary long term memory to the extent that he would hear a
discussion or a speech and be able to reproducethe identical
discussion or speech years later without changing or deleting one
single word from it.
This great gift that Abu-Huraira enjoyed could have been the worst
thing that could have happened to him assome people used his well
known and authentic name to make up false Ahadith about our beloved
Prophet, andlink these false Ahadith to Abu Huraira (r.a.a). However,
through hard and sincere efforts put in by some of the pious scholars
who sacrificed their lives to preserve and save our beloved Prophet's
Ahadith (sayings) and save them from any harm by the enemies of Islam
who tried to mislead Muslims by adding to them thing that were never
said by the Prophet of Allah (s.w.t), Abu Huraira's reputation was
saved from their wrong doing until our present day.
Abu Huraira became a Muslim at the hands of At-Tufayl Ibn Amr who was
the chief of the tribe to which he belonged. When he submitted to the
truthfulness of this religion, he accompaniedAt-Tufayl to Makkah and
had the privilege of meeting the noble Prophet (s.a.w.). The Prophet
(s.a.w) asked Abu Huraira what his name was, "Abdu-Shams"(the servant
of the sun), Abu Huraira replied. So he was introduced by theholy
Prophet (s.a.w) to change his name to"Abdur-Rahman" (the servant of
the Beneficent). However, he continued to be known among people as
"Abu Hurrah" (the kitten's father) because of his love for a cat he
looked after and fed, and which used to stick to him wherever he went.
Abu Huraira lived with his mother who was still a Mushrik. He prayed
for her and tried hard to convince her to join Islam, but she
adamantly refused. One day when he was telling her about Islam she
uttered some words about the Prophet which saddened Abu Huraira
greatly. He went to the Prophet (s.a.w), hiseyes full of tears and
told him about what had happened between him and his mother. He also
asked the Prophet to make supplication to Allah (s.w.t) for her to
make her heart respond to Islam. The Prophet responded to Abu
Huraira's request and prayed for his mother. When Abu Huraira returned
home he was delighted to hear his mother, who had just taken a shower,
testifying that there is nogod but Allah and that Muhammad is His
Servantand His Messenger. So he rushed back to the Prophet with his
eyes glowing with joy, and informed him that Allah had answered his
prayers, and guided his mother to Islam. He then said: "O Allah's
Messenger,Ask Allah to make me andmy mother lovable to the believing
men and women" . So he (s.a.w.) said: "O Allah, make this servant of
yours and his mother lovable to every believing man and woman" .
With his great gift and talent, Abu Huraira realised that he was able
to serve this religion a great deal. He realised that, because many of
the early companions who had the most knowledge died in the battles in
Allah's cause, this religion needed people to preserve it, as in these
days the companions used to write only the Qur'an fearing it might get
mixed with the Hadith of the Messenger, if the latter was to be
documented too. Even among those who had a great deal of
knowledge,many of them were occupied by their trades and didn't have
as much free time as Abu Huraira to spend with the Prophet (s.a.w).
Also the fact that he had an extraordinary long term memory meant that
he could hear the Prophet's teachings and be able to ask a writer to
write them later knowing that he will not forget any of them.
Therefore, during the four years Abu Huraira stayed with the Prophet
(s.a.w) in Madinah, he set himself to accompany the holy Prophet to
gain knowledge and memorise his sayings andteachings in order to
preserve the word of Allah (s.w.t) and the teachings of his beloved
Prophet (s.a.w). The Prophet (s.a.w.) himself directed Abu Huraira to
an effective way to memorise his Hadiths, Abu Hurrah said: Allah's
Prophet one day said to us: "whoever spreads his dress until I finish
my talk, and then takes hold of it, will not forget anything from what
he heard from me" .
The fact that Abu Huraira set himself to preserve the teachings of the
noble Prophet, meant that he was always close to the Prophet (s.a.w)
in his stay in Madinah, as hehad free time at his disposal, unlike the
Muhajirin he did not work in trade and unlike the Ansar he did not
havea land to look after. This enabled Abu Huraira to stay with the
noble Prophet at Madinah and to go with him on journeys and
expeditions.
He loved the Prophet a great deal, he was never tired of looking at
the Prophet nor was he tired of listening to him. Often he would
praise Allah for his good fortune and say "Praise be to Allah who has
guided Abu Huraira to Islam, Praise be to Allah who taught Abu Huraira
the Qur'an, Praisebe to Allah who has bestowed on Abu Hurairathe
companionship of Muhammad (s.a.w)" .
Abu Huraira underwent much hardship and difficulties as a result of
devoting his life to knowledge and companionship of the holy Prophet
(s.a.w): "Oneday, my hunger became so severe that I placed a stone on
my stomach. I then sat down in the path of the companions. Abu Bakr
passed by and I asked him about an Ayah of the book of God. I
onlyasked him so that he would invite me but he didn't".
Despite the fact that Abu Huraira set himself to preserving the word
of Allah and the teachings of his Prophet, he by no means neglected
his other duties as much of his time was spend in prayers and devotion
to God. He often rotated staying up at night with his wife and his
daughter, as he would stay up for a third of the night, his wife for
another third and his daughter for a third, this way in the house of
Abu Huraira no hour of the night would pass withoutIbadah and Salat.
Abu Huraira's presence was also felt in the battlefield when needed to
protect and establish the religionof Islam by the sword, as he lived
all his life, since becoming a Muslim, as a soldier of Islam not
missing a single battle with the holy Prophet (s.a.w).
After the death of the holy Prophet (s.a.w), Abu Huraira continued his
duties in conveying the teachings of the Prophet (s.a.w). He went on
preaching a great number of Ahadith, which made some of his friends
curious of the large amount of Ahadith that he memorised in such a
short time. Although the fact that he was able to memorise so many
Ahadith was justified by the fact that he was dedicated to staying
with the Prophet and due to the extraordinary ability to memorise
speeches from the first time.
During the caliphate of Umar (r.a.a), Umar appointed him as a governor
of Bahrain where he became quiet rich. Umar, being very scrupulous
about the type of persons he appointed as governors, he was concerned
that his governors should live simply and frugally and not acquire
much wealth even through lawful means. When Umar (r.a.a)heard about
Abu Huraira's wealth he recalled him to Madinah, thinking that Abu
Hurairahad acquired his wealth through unlawful means.
When Abu Huraira arrived in Madinah, Umarquestioned him about the way
he acquired sucha fortune. Abu Huraira replied "from breeding horses
and gifts that I received" . Umar then ordered him to hand his fortune
over to the treasury of the Muslims. Abu Huraira did as he was ordered
and raised his hands to the heavens and prayed "O Lord, forgive Amir
ul-Muminin" . After a while Umar called upon Abu Huraira and offered
him to regain his position as thegovernor of Bahrain but Abu Huraira
refused the offer. When he was asked by Umar why he refused his offer
he replied "So that my honorwould not be besmirched, and my wealth
would not be taken and my back would not be beaten" . He then added "I
also fearto judge without knowledge and speak without wisdom".
Abu Huraira continued tolive a righteous life, devoting himself to
servethe religion of Islam and being kind to his mother as well as
encouraging others to be kind to their parents. One day when Abu
Huraira's health was deteriorating quickly andhis friends were praying
for him to recover, he looked to the heavens and said "O Allah I love
meeting you and ask you to love meeting me" . He then died in the year
59 after Hijra when he was seventy eight years old.
He died after having accomplished his duty and his desire to preserve
and transmit the teachings of the Holy Prophet (s.a.w), leaving
Muslims a great debt of gratitude for helping to preserve the
teachings ofthe noble Prophet (s.a.w)and setting them a perfect
example and platform to follow in preaching and conveyingto the
humanity what he and others had worked relentlessly, facing all sorts
of hardships, in order to preserve. We askAllah (s.w.t) to reward Abu
Huraira and grant him the companionship of the holy Prophet in
thehereafter just as he was granted his companionship in this world.

Umm 'Umara: The Prophet's Shield atUhud

Umm 'Umara was blessed with many honours, amongst these her presence
at Uhud, al-Hudaybiyya, Khaybar, the Fulfilled Umra, Hunayn, and the
Battle ofYamama. But her most noble role came about during the battle
of Uhud.
Umm 'Umara set out to the battle with her husband, Ghaziya, and her
two sons. Her inhad been to give water to thewounded, but Allah had
planned for her a more rewarding role.
So she set out with her family with a waterskin, and arrived at the
battle field during the beginning of the day. The Muslims had the
upper hand, and she went to see how the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w)was.
But then the Muslims committed a fatal error - seeing the Quraysh on
the retreat, they ran towards the booty, ignoring the Prophet's
command to remain on the hill. Khalid bin Walid, (who hadn't embraced
Islam yet), seeing the open flank, made a charge against the Muslims
and suddenlythe tide had swung towards the Quraysh. TheMuslims
panicked and began to flee, leaving behind only the Prophet (s.a.w)
and a handful of his Companions. Among these was Umm Umara.
Seeing the Muslims flee, Umm Umara ran to the defense of the Prophet
and took up arms, along with her husband and two sons. The Prophet
noticed that she had no shield, and so said to oneof the retreating
men:"Give your shield to the one who is fighting." So he handed her
the shield,and she defended the Prophet of Allah with it, using also
the bow and arrow along with a sword. She was attacked by horsemen,
but never wavered nor felt fear. She later boldly claimed,"If they had
been on footas we were, we would have trounced them, Allah willing."
Abdullah ibn Zayed, her son, was wounded during the battle. His wound
bled profusely. His mother ran to him and bandaged his wounds, and
then commanded him, "Go and fight the people, my son!" The Prophet
(s.a.w) admired her sense of sacrifice, and commended her, "Who can
endure what you canendure, Umm 'Umara!"
Suddenly, the man who had struck her son advanced, and the Prophet
called out to her,"This is the one who struck your son." She bravely
confronted the man, who her very son described as being like a great
tree trunk, and struck at his leg, sending him to his knees. The
Messenger of Allah smiledso much his teeth became visible, and
remarked, "You have retaliated, Umm 'Umara!".Having finished him off,
the Prophet then said"Praise be to Allah who has given you victory
anddelighted you over your enemy and let you enjoy your revenge
directly."
At one stage, the Prophet(s.a.w) was left alone, so taking the
opportunity, the enemy Ibn Qumay'a charged at the Prophet, shouting
"Show me Muhammad! I will not be saved if he is saved!" So Mus'ab ibn
'Umayr, along with some other of the Companions, dashed to the
protection of the Prophet. Umm 'Umara was among them, and began
fiercely striking at the enemy of Allah, even though he was wearing
double armour. Ibn Qumay'a managed to strike a blow at her
neck,leaving a serious wound. The Prophet quickly called on her son
"Your mother! Your mother! Bind her wound! May Allah bless you, the
people of a house! The stand of your mother is better than the stand
of so-and-so. May Allah havemercy on you, people of a house! The stand
of your foster father is better than the stand of so-and-so. May Allah
havemercy on you, people of a house!" Umm 'Umara, seeing the Prophet's
pleasure on her determination and valour , earnestly requested"Ask
Allah to make us your companions in the Garden!" So he said "O Allah,
make them my companions in the Garden." And this was thedesire of Umm
'Umara, to which she replied "I do not care what afflicts me in this
world!"
That day, she received thirteen wounds, and was treated for her neck
wound for a complete year. She also participated in the Battle of
Yamama, where she received eleven wounds and lost her hand.
Her courageous characterearned her the respect ofall the Companions,
especially the Khalifa's who would visit her and pay special attention
to her.
'Umar bin Khattab (r.a.a) was brought some silk garments which
contained excellent quality material. One of the people remarked"This
garment is worth such-and-such (meaning how expensive it was). You
should send it to the wife of 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, Safiyya bint Abi
'Ubayd." 'Umar (r.a.a) however did not desire such a garment for his
daughter in law. "That is something which I will not give to Ibn
'Umar. I will send it to someone who is more entitled to itthan her -
Umm 'Umara Nusayba bint Ka'b. On theday of Uhud, I heard the Messenger
of Allah (s.a.w)say, 'Whenever I looked to the right or left I saw her
fighting in front of me'."
This was the life of Umm 'Umara, the warrior who stood when many fled,
who sent her wounded son back into the thick ofthe battle, and was
prepared to lose her life to save the Prophet's. In return, she
received the du'a for the Prophet's companionship in Paradise.
May Allah bless our women with such courage, self-sacrifice and perseverance.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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