The Sunnah of the Prophet: Definitions

"Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It isnot but a
revelation revealed." [Quran 53:3-4]
Lexically, the word Sunnah has several, different yet close meanings.
Sunnah may mean a way of life, or a path or behavior that is followed
whether praiseworthy, or otherwise. Mostly, however, it refers to
something good. The Prophet said, "Whoever starts a good Sunnah he
will get the reward for it and the reward of others who would do the
same thing until the Day of Judgment. And whoever does a bad Sunnah he
will have the punishmentfor doing it and the punishment of others who
practice it." [Muslim]
Another Arabic root of the word Sunnah is bayaan , or making something
clear through talking or acting. The most common meaning indicates
that Sunnah is to initiate something or set an example to be followed.
Hence, if a person started somethingthat people then followed, he is
considered to have established a Sunnah. The Prophet said, "For any
soul, unjustly killed, the first son of Aadam, Abel, will carry a
burden of its shedding, for he was the first to begin the Sunnah (or
crime) of murder." [At-Tirmithi]
As an Islamic term, scholars of the different disciplines of Sharee'ah
(Islamic Law) have defined Sunnah in slightly different ways to suit
their fields' perspectives. According to Legal theorists who typically
regard the Sunnah as a source for the principles used in thederivation
of rulings of various Islamic Jurisprudence matters, define it as "The
statements, actions and approvals (or disapprovals) of Prophet
Muhammad ."
The jurists use the word Sunnah in two different ways. On one hand,
like the Legal theorists, they define Sunnah as the statements,
actions, and approvals of' the Prophet, . On the otherhand, and since
the role of the jurists is to judge actions and indicate theirrulings
as obligatory, recommended, etc., they use the term Sunnah to indicate
actions as being recommended or praise-worthy.
However, the definition of Sunnah, according to the scholars of
Hadeeth, is more comprehensive for it is inclusive of everything
related to the person and life of the Prophet . They definedthe Sunnah
as "Anything narrated from or about the Prophet either before or after
he became a prophet, of his statements, actions, confirmations,
biography, and his physical character and attributes." This is the
definition, which we will be using throughout this series InshaAllaah.

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Dought & Clear, - If he does ghusl following a wet dream, maniy continues to comeout of him during the prayer.

May Allah reward you with good for answering my question, but I think
that it needs further explanation of the issue of sprinkling hot water
on the privatepart, because the wet dream occurred at the time of 'Asr
prayer, and I have a problem, which isthat maniy and even madhiy
continue to come out for a considerable period after they are first
emitted. It often happens with me that one of them is emitted at the
time of prayer, whether that is because of thinking or because of a
wet dream, but in order not to miss the prayer, I sprinkle hot water
(on my private part) so that whatever is left will come out.
Pleasenote that I do not feel any desire when I use this method. Now I
am going to make up the fast of that day that I told you about, in sha
Allah, but what should I do if maniy continues to come out whilst I am
praying? Should I pray inthat case?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
We appreciate this further explanation and we ask Allah, may He be
exalted, to help us and you avoid reprehensible words and actions.
Secondly:
If it does not come out continually all the time, then it does not
come under the ruling on incontinence; rather it invalidates wudoo' as
soon as it comes out, even if that happens during the prayer. The one
who is faced with that should stop praying,do wudoo' and then repeat
the prayer. He also has to do wash off whatever has gotten onto him if
what came out was urine or madhiy, because they are both najis
(impure), unlike maniy which is taahir (pure).
But the one who is praying should not interrupt his prayer unless he
is certain that something has come out of him, because the basic
principle is that he remains in a state of purity, and that which is
certain cannot be changed by mere doubt or uncertainty.
If maniy came out of a person and he did ghusl for that, then more
cameout but without desire, then he does not have todo ghusl again,
but it does invalidate his wudoo'.
See: ash-Sharh al-Mumti',1/337
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were asked:
If I do wudoo' for every prayer and then go out to the mosque, I
always emit madhiy; can I pray, knowing that if I take a bath and go
out, madhiy will come out without desire. So do I have to take a bath
every time?
They replied:
If that comes out of you continually, then it comes under the same
ruling as incontinence, and you have to do wudoo' for every prayer
when the time for it begins, then your prayerwill be valid even if it
comes out whilst you arepraying. If it does not happen frequently with
you, then you have to dowudoo' as prescribed forprayer, after washing
the penis and testicles. But you do not have to do ghusl (take a bath)
for that. End quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 5/413
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked: When I
finish wudoo' and go to pray, I feel that a drop of urine comes out of
the penis; what should I do?
He replied: What you should do is pay no attention to that and ignore
it, as the Muslim scholars have enjoined. Do not pay any attentionto
it and do not go and look at your penis to see if anything came out or
not. If you seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Shaytaan and
ignore it, it will go away,by Allah's leave. But if you are absolutely
certain about it, then it is essential to wash whatever the urine has
gotten onto and repeat your wudoo'. Some people, if they feel any
coolness on the head of the penis, think that something has come
out.So if you are certain, then do what I have toldyou. What you have
mentioned is not incontinence, because it stops and starts, whereas
incontinence is ongoing and continual. But this happens after movement
and one or two drops come out; thisis not incontinence, because once a
couple of drops have come out, it stops. In this case, he should wash
it off and do wudoo' again. He should always do this, and he should be
patientand seek reward with Allah.
End quote from Liqa' al-Baab al-Maftooh, 15/184
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Dought & Clear, - If the spouses were notpraying at the time of the marriage contract, do they have to renew the marriage contract?.

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If a man did the marriage contract at a time when he was not praying,
and the husband and wife, the wife's father, and the two witnesses
also were not praying, and the onewho did the marriage contract did
not do it in the correct manner, rather he did it in a language other
than Arabic and he did not recite the Shahaadatayn (twin declaration
of faith) or say the words of the marriage contract,what is the ruling
on thismarriage? Is this marriage regarded as legitimate or not? If
theyhave repented from not praying and have begunto pray, should they
do anew marriage contract, or is the old marriage contract regarded as
Islamically acceptable?
Praise be to Allah.
If the one who does not pray does not do so because he is denying that
it is obligatory, thenhe is a kaafir according to scholarly consensus.
But if he does not pray because he is heedless and lazy, then he is a
kaafir according to the more correct of the two scholarly opinions.
Please see the answer to questions no. 5208 and 2182 .
If the husband and wife were not praying at the time of the marriage
contract, then they repented and began to pray, then they remain
married on the basis of the original marriage contract, because the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) ruled that people
remained married on the basis of non-Muslim marriage contracts, and he
did not instruct them to repeat the marriage contract after they
became Muslim,. Also, the Sahaabah did not instruct those who came
back to Islam after apostatising to renew their marriage contracts.
Ibn Qudaamah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The marriage
contracts of the kuffaar are valid and approved if they become Muslim
… there is no need to examine the form of their marriage contracts or
how they were done, and they are not subject to the same conditions as
Muslim marriages, namely the presence of the wali (wife's guardian)
and witnesses, and the proposal and acceptance, and so on. There is no
difference of opinion among the Muslims concerning this matter. Ibn
'Abd al-Barr said: The scholars are unanimously agreed that if the two
spouses become Muslim togetherat the same time, they remain married on
the basis of their original marriage contract, so long as they are not
mahrams through blood ties or breastfeeding. Many people became Muslim
at the time of theMessenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him), as did their wives; their marriages were approved and the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not
ask them about the conditions of marriage or the nature of their
marriage contract. This is something that is well-known from
mutawaatir reports, so itis certain.
End quote from al-Mughni, 10/5
It says in Mataalib Ooli an-Nuha (5/13):
Note: if an apostate marries a kaafir apostatewoman or the like, or
anapostate woman marriesa kaafir man, then both spouses become Muslim,
what should be said in this case is that we accept their marriage,
just as in the case of the harbi (non-Muslim whose people are in a
state of war with the Muslims), if his marriage was not done properly,
then they (he and his wife) become Muslim. The matter is the same.
Apostates came back to Islam at the time of the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and his successors (i.e.,
the Rightly Guided Caliphs) and they were not instructed to renew
their marriage contracts.This is a good analogy, and was stated by
Shaykh Taqiy ad-Deen (i.e., Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah). End quote.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were asked:
I used to pray only rarely, and during that period of my life I got
married. Now, praisebe to Allah, I pray regularly and I have done Hajj
and have repented to Allah, but I do not know what is the ruling on my
marriage, is it valid or not? What should I do if it is not valid?
Please note that I have five children from my wife.
They replied: If your wife was like you at the time of the marriage
contract and did not pray, or she only prayed sometimes, then the
marriage is valid and it does not have to be renewed, because you were
equal in terms of the ruling having to do with not praying, which is
(that the one who does not pray) is a kaafir. However, if the your at
the time of the marriage contract prayed regularly, then what you must
do is renew the marriage contract according to the more correct of the
two scholarly opinions, if both of you still want to be married to the
other. It is also essential to repent from not praying and to pray
regularly in future.
With regard to the children who were born before the renewal of the
marriage contract, they are legitimate and are to be attributed to
their father because the marriage appeared to be valid.
We ask Allah to set your affairs straight and to guide you to all that
is good. And Allah is the source of strength. May Allah send blessings
and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions. End
quote.
Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 18/290
Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) said: But if both of
them did not pray at the time of the marriage contract, then Allah
guided them and they began to pray regularly, then the marriage
contract is valid. This is similar to the case of disbelievers who
become Muslim; their marriage contract does not need to be renewed if
there is no shar'i impediment to the continuation of the marriage,
because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not
instruct the disbelievers who became Muslim at the time of the
conquest of Makkah and so on to renew their marriage contracts.
End quote from Fataawa Ibn Baaz, 10/291
Based on that, if the spouses have repented from not praying and they
have started to pray, they do not need to repeat the marriage
contract; rather their original marriage contract remains valid.
And Allah knows best.

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Islamic Stories - Allah is the Most Forgiving

It was narrated that in the days that Musa (Alahisalaam) wandered with
Bani Israel in the desert an intense drought befell them. Together,
they raised their hands towards the heavens praying for the blessed
rain to come. Then, to the astonishment of Musa (Alahi salaam) and all
those watching, the few scattered clouds that were in the sky
vanished, the heat poured down, and the drought intensified.
It was revealed to Musa that there was a sinner amongst the tribe of
Bani Israel whom had disobeyed Allah (Subhanahu wa ta�ala) for more
than forty years of his life. �Let himseparate himself from the
congregation,� Allah (Subhanahu wa ta�ala) told Musa (Alahi
salaam).�Only then shall I showeryou all with rain.�
Musa (Alahi salaam) thencalled out to the throngsof humanity, �There
is a person amongst us who has disobeyed Allah for forty years. Let
him separate himself from the congregation and only then shall we be
rescued from the drought.� That man, waited, looking left and right,
hoping that someone else would step forward, but no onedid. Sweat
poured forth from his brow and he knew that he was the one.
The man knew that if he stayed amongst the congregation all would die
of thirst and that if he stepped forward he would be humiliated for
all eternity.
He raised his hands with a sincerity he had never known before, with a
humility he had never tasted, and as tears poured down on both cheeks
he said: �O Allah, have mercy on me! O Allah, hide my sins! O Allah,
forgive me!�
As Musa (Alahi salaam) and the people of Bani Israel awaited for the
sinner to step forward, the clouds hugged the sky and the rain poured.
Musa (Alahi salaam) asked Allah (Subhanahu wa ta�ala), �O Allah, you
blessed us with rain even though the sinner did not come forward.� And
Allah (Subhanahu wa ta�ala) replied, �O Musa, it is for the repentance
of that very person that I blessed all of Bani Israel with water.�
Musa (Alahi salaam), wanting to know who this blessed man was, asked,
�Show him to me O Allah!� Allah (Subhanahu wa ta�ala) replied, �O
Musa, I hid his sins for forty years, do you think that after his
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