Dought & clear, - Guidelines on takfeer (ruling someone to be a kaafir).

We hope that you can define the guidelines by means of which it is possible to determine whether someone is a kaafir or faasiq, so that I will not fall into the innovations into which many groups have fallen. Which books do you advise me to read? Please note that I am a beginner seeker of knowledge.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
Determining whether someone is a kaafir or a faasiq (faasiq) is not up to us, rather it is up to Allaah, may He be exalted, and His Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This is one of the rulings of sharee’ah that is to be referred to the Qur’aan and Sunnah, so we should be very careful and base our judgement on clear proof. No one may be judged to be a kaafir or faasiq except the one whom the Qur’aan and Sunnah indicate is a kaafir or faasiq.
The basic principle is that the one who appears outwardly to be a Muslim of good character is regarded as still being a Muslim of good character, until it is proven that this is no longer the case by means of evidence that is acceptable in sharee’ah. It is not permissible to take lightly the matter of judging someone to be a kaafir or faasiq, because that involves two very serious matters:
1 – It implies fabricating lies against Allaah with regard to this ruling, and fabricating lies against the one who is being judged.
2 – Falling into that which one accused one’s brother of, if he is free from that.
InSaheeh al-Bukhaari(6104) andSaheeh Muslim(60) it is narrated from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “If a man declares his brother to be a kaafir, it will apply to one of them.” According to another report: “Either it is as he said, otherwise it will come back to him.”
Secondly:
Based on this, before ruling that a Muslim is a kaafir or a faasiq, two things must be examined:
1 – The evidence of the Qur’aan or Sunnah that this word or this action implies that a person is a kaafir or a faasiq.
2 – Applying this ruling to a specific person who says or does that thing, such that the conditions of judging a person to be a kaafir or faasiq will be met in his case, and there are no impediments.
Among the most important of these conditions are the following:
1 – That he should be aware of his transgression that renders him a kaafir or faasiq, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger (Muhammadصلى الله عليه وسلم( after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers’ way, We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell — what an evil destination!”
[al-Nisa’ 4:115]
“And Allaah will never lead a people astray after He has guided them until He makes clear to them as to what they should avoid. Verily, Allaah is the All-Knower of everything”
[al-Tawbah 9:115]
Hence the scholars said that a person who denies obligatory duties should not be judged to be a kaafir if he is new in Islam, until that has been explained to him.
2 – A reason why he cannot be ruled to be a kaafir or faasiq is if he does something that incurs such a judgement involuntarily. This may take several forms such as:
For example, he may be forced to do that, so he does that because he is forced to, not because he accepts that. He is not a kaafir in that case, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Whoever disbelieved in Allaah after his belief, except him who is forced thereto and whose heart is at rest with Faith; but such as open their breasts to disbelief, on them is wrath from Allaah, and theirs will be a great torment”
[al-Nahl 16:106]
Another example is when he is not thinking straight, so he does not know what he is saying because of extreme joy or sorrow or fear and so on. The evidence for that is the report narrated inSaheeh Muslim(2744) from Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Allaah rejoices more over the repentance of His slave when he repents to Him than one of you who was on his mount in the wilderness, then he lost it, and his food and drink are on it, and he despairs of finding it. He goes to a tree and lies down in its shade, having lost hope of finding his mount, and whilst he is like that, there it is standing in front of him, so he takes hold of its reins and says, because of his intense joy, ‘O Allaah, You are my slave and I am your lord,’ making this mistake because of his intense joy.”
3 – Misinterpetation. He may have some confusion and some misinterpretation that he adheres to, thinking that it forms evidence for his beliefs, or he may not be able to understand and comprehend shar’i evidence and proof in the proper way. Therefore, judging someone to be a kaafir is not valid except in the case of one who deliberately goes against the shar’i evidence and who knows that he is wrong.
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And there is no sin on you concerning that in which you made a mistake, except in regard to what your hearts deliberately intend. And Allaah is Ever Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”
[al-Ahzaab 33:5]
Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said inMajmoo’ al-Fataawa(23/349):
Imam Ahmad (may Allaah be pleased with him) prayed for mercy for them (i.e., the caliphs who were influenced by the view of the Jahamis who claimed that the Qur’aan was created, and supported it) and prayed for forgiveness for them, because he knew that it was not clear to them that they were disbelieving the Messenger and denying what he had brought, rather they misinterpreted and erred, and followed those who said that to them. End quote.
And he (may Allaah have mercy on him) said inMajmoo’ al-Fataawa(12/180):
With regard to takfeer (judging someone to be a kaafir), the correct view is that a member of the ummah of Muhammad(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) who strives to reach the truth concerning a certain issue, but reaches the wrong conclusion, is not to be deemed a kaafir, rather he will be forgiven for his mistake. But the one who understands the message brought by the Messenger, but deliberately goes against the way of the Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) after true guidance has become clear to him, and follows a path other than that of the believers, is a kaafir. The one who follows his whims and desires and fails to seek the truth and speaks without knowledge is a disobedient sinner, and may be a faasiq, but he may have some good deeds that outweigh his bad deeds. End quote.
And he (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: (3/229):
However, and those who sit with me know this about me, I am always one of those who most emphatically forbid describing a specific person as a kaafir, faasiq or sinner, unless it is known that shar’i proof has been established against him, and it has been proven whether he is a kaafir, a faasiq or a sinner. I affirm that Allaah has forgiven this ummah for its mistakes, which includes mistakes in narrative and practical issues. The salaf continued to debate many of these issues but none of them testified that anyone else was a kaafir or a faasiq or a sinner.
He mentioned some examples, then he said:
I also state that what has been narrated from the salaf and the imams, stating that the one who says such and such is a kaafir, is also true, but it is essential to differentiate between general rules and specific cases.
… Takfeer is a kind of warning; even though the words may be a rejection of what the Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, the man may be new in Islam, or he may have grown up in a remote region. Such a person cannot be ruled to be a kaafir, no matter what he denies, unless proof has been established against him. The man may not have heard of those texts, or he may have heard them but they were nit proven to him , or he may have some ideas that are contrary to what he heard, that med him to misinterpret the text.
I always remember the hadeeth inal-Saheehayn, which speaks of the man who said: “ ‘When I die, burn me and crush (my bones), then scatter me in the sea, for by Allaah, if Allaah grasps hold of me He will punish me as He has not punished anyone else in the world.’ They did that, and Allaah said: ‘What made you do what you did?’ He said: ‘Fear of You.’ And He forgave him.”
This man doubted the power of Allaah and doubted that He would restore him if his remains were scattered; rather he believed that he would not be resurrected, which is kufr according to the consensus of the Muslims. But he was ignorant and did not know about that; however, he was a believer who feared that Allaah would punish him, so He forgave him because of that.
One who is qualified to engage in ijtihaad and who bases his incorrect notion on some misinterpretation of some text but is sincere in his keenness to follow the Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) is even more deserving of forgiveness than such a person. End quote.
(Based onKhaatimah al-Qawaa’id al-Muthlaby Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him).)
Because the matter of takfeer is so serious, and mistakes therein are so grave, the seeker of knowledge, especially if he is a beginner, should refrain from indulging in that, and he should focus on acquiring beneficial knowledge that will set his own affairs straight in this world and the Hereafter.
Thirdly:
Before we suggest some books to you, we should advise you to seek knowledge directly from scholars of Ahl al-Sunnah, because that is the easiest and safest way; but that is subject to the condition that the one from whom you learn is trustworthy in terms of his knowledge and religious commitment and following of the Sunnah, and in avoidance of whims and desires and innovations.
Muhammad ibn Sireen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: This knowledge is the (foundation of) religion, so watch from whom you learn your religion. Narrated by Muslim in the Introduction to hisSaheeh.
If it is not possible where you are to attend lessons given by scholars, then you can make use of their tapes, as it has become easy to obtain them on CDs and websites, praise be to Allaah. You can also benefit from some seekers of knowledge who are keen to acquire shar’i knowledge and follow the Sunnah; hardly any place is without such people, in sha Allaah.
Fourthly:
Books which you should strive to acquire and study include the following:
Tafseer:Tasfeer Ibn Sa’di;Tafseer Ibn Katheer.
Hadeeth:al-Arba’een al-Nawawiyyah(al-Nawawi’s 40), with a commentary thereon;al-Ihtimaam bi Jaami’ al-‘Uloom wa’l-Hukamby Ibn Rajab;Riyaadh al-Saaliheen– you may pay special attention to this blessed book, and you can also learn from the commentary thereon by Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him).
‘Aqeedah: StudyKitaab al-Tawheedby Shaykh Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhaab, with its commentary;al-‘Aqeedah al-Waasitiyyahby Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah; some other useful essays on this topic such asTahqeeq Kalimat al-Ikhlaasby Ibn Rajab andal-Tuhfah al-‘Iraaqiyyah fi’l-A’maal al-Qalbiyyahby Ibn Taymiyah.
You can also benefit fromZaad al-Ma’aadby Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) and many of his other books such asal-Waabil al-Sayyibandal-Da’ wa’l-Dawa’.
This is a start. If you study these books, especially if there is someone who can help you to read and understand them, then you can move on to other books, in sha Allaah.
And Allaah knows best.

Dought & clear, - Is seeing Allaah is a dream possible?.

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Is seeing Allaah is a dream possible or not?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Seeing Allaah in this world is definitely not possible. The evidence for that is the fact that Moosa, who was one of the greatest Messengers and one of the five Messengers of strong will said:“ ‘O my Lord! Show me (Yourself), that I may look upon You’”Allaah said to him:“ ‘You cannot see Me, but look upon the mountain; if it stands still in its place then you shall see Me.’So when his Lord appeared to the mountain, He made it collapse to dust.”So the mountain crumbled before Moosa as he was looking on, and“Moosa (Moses) fell down unconscious”So he lost consciousness, because he was watching something that he could not bear.“Then when he recovered his senses he said: ‘Glory be to You, I turn to You in repentance and I am the first of the believers.’”[Quotations from al-A’raaf 7:143 – interpretation of the meaning]. So he repented to Allaah for having asked this question, because it was asking for something that was not possible, and Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Invoke your Lord with humility and in secret. He likes not the aggressors”
[al-A’raaf 7:55]
Seeing Allaah in this world when one is awake is something that is not possible. Even the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) on the night of the Mi’raaj (ascent into heaven) did not see his Lord. He was asked ‘Did you see your Lord?’ He said, “I saw Light.” According to another report: “Light – how could I see Him?” i.e., between me and Him there was a great veil of light. According to a hadeeth inal-Saheeh, it is narrated that Allaah is veiled in Light. That appears in the hadeeth in which the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “His veil is Light and if He were to remove it, the glory of His Countenance would burn everything of His creation, as far as His gaze reaches.” Because His sight reaches everything, and everything would be burned by this immense Light. Based on this, we say that it is not possible to see Allaah in this world when one is awake.
As for dreams, the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) saw his Lord in a dream, but is it possible for anyone else to see Him? It is narrated that Imam Ahmad (may Allaah have mercy on him) saw his Lord, and some of the scholars said that this is possible. And Allaah knows best. But I am afraid to open the door to Sufi shaykhs and others who will start saying, “I saw my Lord last night and we chatted and talked together,” then he will come up with myths and lies for which there is no basis. I think it is better to keep this door closed from the outset.

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Dought & clear, - Are there any weak points in Islam that enable the kaafirs to attack it?.

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As you know Muslims are facing many challenges, pressures and criticisms from non-Muslims in the world. In light of this atmosphere, should we Muslim not be the most open and honest about our shortcomings and try to tackle them as opposed to being overly defensive and seeming to make excuses or cover our faults? The reason for this question is that if we seem to deny or gloss over obvious shortcomings it will not help us to overcome them. Perhaps some Muslims feel that to deal with our problems openly will assist the kufaar in their attacks on Islam. Please advise.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
There are no weak points in Islam – praise be to Allaah – that the Muslim needs to worry about. Islam is the perfect religion of Allaah, and Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And the Word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice”
[al-An’aam 6:115]
One of the scholars said that this means, it tells the truth in its reports and is just in its rulings.
Allaah has blessed us by completing His religion and perfecting the blessing, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion”
[al-Maa'idah 5:3]
If an Islamic ruling seems to a person to be a weak point, he should realize that the fault lies in his way of thinking, because some of the rulings of sharee’ah that are absolutely wise and just may appear otherwise to some people, either because of their whims and desires, or because it goes against what people are used to in their lives, that goes against sharee’ah. For example, some think that a man’s being the protector and maintainer of women is a weak point in Islam, because they are used to something which is contrary to that and which also goes against the fitrah (natural inclination of man).
Secondly:
An important matter which should be pointed out here is that it is not permissible for anyone to speak about the rulings of Islam or the tafseer of Qur’aan or the meanings of hadeeth, rather that should be referred to the scholars who are well-versed in knowledge.
What happens is that a question is put to an ordinary Muslim, and he cannot find an answer for it or he gives a wrong answer, or it leaves some doubt in his heart that he cannot rid himself of.
“if only they had referred it to the Messenger or to those charged with authority among them, the proper investigators would have understood it from them (directly). Had it not been for the Grace and Mercy of Allaah upon you, you would have followed Shaytaan (Satan), save a few of you”
[al-Nisa’ 4:83 – interpretation of the meaning]
Hence we say that Allaah has protected the religion for us through the scholars and has enabled them to understand it correctly so as to refute hostile ideas and explain its wisdom to people. That is not for the ordinary people, rather it is only for the elite, namely the scholars.
Some of scholars used to challenge people to bring them a verse that contradicts another verse or a hadeeth, or a hadeeth that contradicts another hadeeth or a verse of Qur’aan, and they would explain to them anything that appeared to be a contradiction, and they used to openly challenge everyone on this matter.
Al-Daaraqutni – who was one of the imams of hadeeth – stood in Baghdad as a khateeb and said: “O people of Baghdad! No one can tell lies against the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) whilst I am alive.” These words indicate the depth of their knowledge and understanding of Islam, which was so great that the people of falsehood could not attack Islam or introduce into it things that were not part of it.
Hence our advice to this questioner and other Muslims, especially those who mix with kuffaar because of their work or because they live in their countries, is to strive to seek knowledge and to learn the correct rulings of Islam that are derived from the Qur’aan and Sunnah, whilst paying attention to learning the reasons behind these rulings, so that they will have knowledge with which to refute the specious arguments of those who seek to attack Islam, and this will enable them to call people to Allaah with proper insight and understanding.
And Allaah knows best.

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For children, - Concept of Friendship in Islam: Three Muslim Friends Story

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Waqidi - who was one the greatest scholars during the time of Abbasid Caliph Mamun Rashid - narrates the following incident:
I had two friends, one of who was a Hashemite. Our friendship was so sincere, that we were in fact one soul in three bodies!
Once during Eid Festival season, I had no money. My wife said to me, "You and I can tolerate these hardships. However, I am very much grieved because our children see other children wearing new dresses and adorning themselves for Eid Festival, whereas their own clothes are old and torn. See if you can get some money so that I can make new clothes for them."
I could not think of any solution to the problem, so I wrote a letter to my Hashemite friend and requested him to assist me.
My Hashemite friend sent me a sealed bag and informed me that it contained 1000 dirhams. I had not yet opened the sealed bag when someone who was sent by my other friend came. He informed me about my friend's financial difficulties and sough help from me. I gave him the same sealed bag to take it to my other friend. I then went to the mosque with a heavy heart. As I felt ashamed to face my wife, I spent the night there. When I went home in the morning, to my surprise, she received me with a cheerful face and was pleased at my having done good to my friend and having considered his needs before considering my own.
In the meant time, my Hashemite friend arrived at my house and asked me curiously, "Tell me the truth. What have you done with the bag of money which I had sent to you yesterday?"
I told him the whole incident. After hearing me out, he bowed his head down for a moment and then said, "Yesterday when you sent me a message and asked for help, I had no money except this sealed bag. I sent it to you and wrote a letter to our other friend seeking his help. He sent me my own sealed bag and I could not understand the matter till you just explained it to me."
Waqidi says, "The three of us divided the money amongst ourselves and one hundred dirhams out of it was given to my wife. When Abbasid Caliph Mamun Rashid heard about this strange incident he sent me and enquired about the matter. I related the entire incident to him. Abbasid Caliph Mamun Rashid then ordered that 2000 dinars should be given to each one of us and 1000 dinars to my wife as a gift."
F - Few, R - Relations, I - In, E - Earth, N - Never, D - Die

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