History of the Sunnah – III: The era of the Companions and their followers

As a part of our discussion of the Companions'methodology in
preserving the Sunnah of the Prophetwe mentioned thus far two of its
aspects; namely, prudence in narrating the Hadeeth, and verification
and substantiation of the Hadeeth before accepting it. Three more
aspects are presented here.
3. Study, critique, and assessment of the narrations
Of the ways the Companionsused to preserve the Sunnah, properly
learning and studying it, was perhaps the most important. They refer
to this using terms like, "Tadaarus" and "Muthaakarah," both of which
indicate a studying that involves more than one person as well as a
mutual exchange of knowledge and ideas. The results of this "studying
and discussing" were manifold. Learning the Sunnah correctly, free of
mistakes was one of the goals, and so was the firm memorization of it.
And since it was physically impossible for a large number of the
Companionsto have equal time access to the Prophetthese discussions
were the means through which the narrations known to only a few
individuals were passed on to many others, thus expanding the circle
of narrators. Books such as Jaami' Bayaan Al-'Ilm by Ibn Abd
Al-Barrand Al-Jaami' Li Akhlaaq Ar-Raawi by Al-Khateebhave many
authentic narrations from the Companionsbearing witness to the
effectiveness of these discussions in preserving the Sunnah.
Another aspect of the Companions'methodology in preserving the Sunnah
was the critical assessment and evaluation of what they narrated and
taught to one another. Anytime a Companionfelt what he heard from
another had a problem, he or she would critically analyze it and give
his/her opinion about it. A major example of this effort by the
Companionswas demonstrated by Badruddeen Az-Zarkashiwho wrote a book
in which he collected more than seventy narrations in which one
Companion, 'Aa'ishah, the Mother of the Believerswas reported as
having corrected other Companions'narrations based on her assessment
of the narrations in light of the Quran and the Hadeeth.
4. Traveling in search of the Hadeeth
Another great effort they made was traveling in search of the Hadeeth,
for after the death of the Prophetthe Companionsmoved to different
places within the Muslim land, and traveling became an essential
method of Hadeeth collection, authentication and preservation. Here
are a few examples of the Companions'travel for the sole purpose of
confirming certain narrations:
Jaabir Ibn Abdullaahtraveled a whole month to Ancient Syria only to
verify one Hadeeth. ]Al-Bukhaari[
One of the Companionstraveled to visit Fudhaalah Ibn 'Ubaydand told
him that he came not to visit him but only to ask him about a
narration that they both heard together from Prophetand he was hoping
that Fudhaalahhad the complete wording of that Hadeeth. ]Abu Daawood[
One of the Companionsleft his home in Madeenah in order to meet Abu
Ad-Dardaa'in Damascus only to have Abu Ad-Dardaa' confirm a narration
which this Companionhad already heard from the Prophet. ]Ibn Abd
Al-Barr[traveled all the way to Egypt to ask 'Uqbah Ibn 'Amrabout one
Hadeeth. Abu Ayyoob told 'Uqbahthat the two of them were the only
living Companions who have heard that Hadeeth directly from the
Prophetand he wanted to confirm the Hadeeth from 'Uqbah. ]Ahmad[
5-Memorization of the Hadeeth
Muslims – one generation after the other – did all that is humanly
possible to preserve the texts of the Quran and the Sunnah as accurate
as they received it from the Prophet. Beside the extra effort they
exacted to develop the Methodology, the Companionsbenefited from a
talent that came naturally to them, one that was truly befitting to
the main undertaking of that methodology—the verbatim transmission of
the Sunnah. This unique quality of the Companionswas that they enjoyed
powerful memories. It was easy for anyone of them to commit to heart
any number of narrations and retain them as such for a very long time.
This quality was not specific only to the Companionsbut rather was a
common feature of the Arab society as a whole. Many scholars—Muslims
and non-Muslim alike – established the fact that the Arabs of that era
were masters of language, and their society had a profoundly strong
oral tradition. The known narrator of poet­ry, Hammaad, for example,
was reported to have memorized at least one hundred long poems for
each letter in the Arabic alphabet. That is more than 2800 pieces of
poetry. Powerful memory was a source of pride for them and they placed
more con­fidence in it than in writing, they believed that writings
could be tampered with. Some even took this pride to extreme levels,
they would not write anything down for fear that may be taken as
indication of defective memory.
Obviously, the Companionswho had more passion for preserving the
Sunnah than poetry and literature used this powerful quality to
protect and maintain the Sunnah. Imaam Ad-Daariminarrated that the
Companion Abu Hurayrahsaid: "I used to divide the night into three
parts. In the first, I would perform the optional night Prayer, in the
second I would sleep, and in the third I would spend committing
Hadeeth to my memory." Actually, all of the Companionsconsidered this
an honor and a blessing, for they were encouraged to do so by the
saying of the Prophet: "May Allaah make radiant )bestow vigor upon(
anyone who heard what I said and commit­ted it to his memory until he
is able to convey it to another. Perhaps the person who hears it from
him can have a better understanding of it than him." ]At-Tirmithi[
On the other hand, the Prophetalso taught the Companionstwo aspects
that brought a needed balance to the use of memorization in conveying
his Hadeeth, namely the importance of writing, and the need of being
moderate in all matters. This fact complemented their efforts in
establishing a sound and well rounded methodology.
The phenomenon of "Memory Power" continued to be a general character
of the Arab society well into the third and fourth centuries of
Hijrah, the time by which all of the Sunnah was collected into books
and records. But the diminishing of its prevalence in the society with
time did not minimize the role memory played in the preserving of the
Sunnah. "Memory Power," or Dhabt—proficiency in narration, as it later
came to be known—became an essential part of the standards used to
judge authenticity. Judging the narrators memory power is central in
what we know as the science of "Al-Jarh wa Ta'deel."

** Dought & clear, - Was the adhaan revealed by wahy or was it suggestedby a sahaabi?.

** I think i once read that the adhan (call to prayer)was suggested to
our prophet Muhammed () by another muslim after he said he didnt want
to use the bells that the christians used or the rams-head(?) that the
jews used to call people to prayer. How does the idea of everything
the prophet ordered being an inspiration that is inspired fit in with
this?
I am not trying to be picky here, but am asking purely to aid my understanding.
Praise be to Allaah.
"Adhaan" in Arabic means conveying; in Islam it means announcing that
the time (for prayer) has come. It was prescribed during the time of
the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) in
Madeenah. According to the hadeeth of 'Abd-Allaah ibn Zayd ibn Abd
Rabbihi, when the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) decided to use a bell even though he disliked it because it
was like what the Christians used, 'there appeared to me in a dream a
man who was wearing two green garments, in whose hand was a bell. I
said, "O slave of Allaah, will you sell that bell?" he said, "What
will you do with it?" I said, "We will call the people to prayer with
it." He said, "Shall I not show you something better than that?" I
said, "Yes." He said, "Say,Allaahu akbar Allaah akbar… (to the end of
the adhaan)." When morning came, I went to the Messenger of
Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and told him what I
had seen. He said, "This is a true dream, in sha Allaah. Get up with
Bilaal and tell him what you have seen, so that he can give the call,
because he has a more beautiful voice than you." So I got up with
Bilaal and started telling him what I had seen, and he gave the call
to prayer. 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab heard that whilst he was in his
house, and he came out, dragging his cloak behind him, saying, "By the
One Who sent you with the truth, O Messenger of Allaah, I saw the same
as he saw." The Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: "To Allaah be praise."'(Narrated by Ahmad, 1588;
al-Tirmidhi, 174; Abu Dawood, 421, 430; Ibn Maajah, 698).
It is clear from this hadeeth:
That the words of the adhaan came in a dream which was seen by a great
sahaabi and approved of by our great Prophet. They were not a
suggestion as you mentioned, but a dream, and it is known that dreams
are one of the seventy parts of Prophethood, because it was stated in
a hadeeth narrated by Ibn 'Umar that the Prophet(peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: "Dreams are one of the seventy parts of
Prophethood."(Narrated by Ahmad, 4449).
Al-Bukhaari narrated a different version: "True dreams are one of the
forty-six parts of Prophethood."(Narrated by al-Bukhaari,, 6474;
Muslim, 4203, 42005).
The dream here, which the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) described as a true dream, came from Allaah and was not a
suggestion from a person. So it was a part of Prophethood because it
was approved of by the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) and was described by him as a true dream. If the Prophet had not
approved of it, it would not have been considered a true dream and it
would not have been a part of Prophethood. The one who judged it to be
true was the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and
the one who commanded them to act upon it was the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him), who received revelation (wahy) from
his Lord.
'Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) had seen a similar dream. Let
us not forget that 'Umar was one of the Rightly-guided khaleefahs
(al-khulafaa' al-raashidoon), of whom the Messenger(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, "I exhort you to adhere to my
sunnah (way) and the sunnah of the rightly-guided khaleefahs. Hold on
tight to it with your back teeth."(Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 2600; Ibn
Maajah, 43; Ahmad, 16519).
'Umar's view frequently coincided with the wahy and divine
legislation. 'Aa'ishah reported that the Prophet(peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) used to say, "Among the nations who came before
you there were people who were muhaddathoon (inspired). If there is
anyone like this in my ummah, it is 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab."(Narrated
by al-Bukhaari, 3282; Muslim, 2398).Ibn Wahb said muhaddathoon means
inspired.
You may ask, why did the adhaan start in this fashion, being seen in a
dream by two sahaabis then being confirmed by the wahy? Why was it not
revealed directly? The answer is that Allaah decrees whatever He
wills, however He wills, may He be glorified and exalted. Perhaps the
way it happened was meant to demonstrate the virtue of these two
sahaabis and to confirm the how good this ummah is, because among them
are some whose opinions coincide with the wahy and some who had true
dreams which confirmed their truthfulness, for the people who have the
truest dreams are the truest in speech as the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said.
Finally:
The definition of the Sunnah given in the books of the scholars is
that it consists of everything that was narrated from the
Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), everything that
he "said, did or approved of."
What is meant by his words and actions is clear. What he approved of
refers to when someone did something in front of him and he approved
of it – this is also part of the sharee'ah, not because that person
did it, but because the Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) approved of it. The Messenger(peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) never kept quiet about falsehood and he never approved of
anything false or misguided that was done by others. He would
disapprove of it and speak out against it, as he did in the case of
the sahaabi Abu Israa'eel, as was narrated by Ibn 'Abbaas, who said:
"Whilst the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was
giving a khutbah, he saw a man standing in the sun, and he asked about
him. They said, 'That is Abu Israa'eel. He vowed to stand and not sit
down, not to seek shade, not to speak, and to fast.' He said, 'Tell
him to speak, seek shade and sit down, but let him complete his
fast.'"(Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 6326).
The Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) approved of Abu
Israa'eel's vow to fast, but he cancelled the rest of his vow and did
not approve of it.
So it is clear that the adhaan became part of the religion when the
Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) confirmed what
Allaah had shown the two sahaabis in their dreams, and commanded
'Abd-Allaah ibn Zayd to teach it to Bilaal so that he could call the
people to prayer. Hopefully the explanation given above will dispel
your confusion and make matters clearer to you. We ask Allaah to grant
us and you understanding of Islam. And Allaah knows best.

Dought & clear, - The length of du‘aa’ al-Qunoot and reciting it.

What is the ruling on reciting du'aa' al-qunoot and making it last for
more than twenty minutes, which includes du'aa' that resembles how
people ordinarily talk?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
Qunoot in Witr prayer is Sunnah and mustahabb; it was narrated from
the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and there are
some hadeeths which give the wording for du'aa' al-qunoot.
It was narrated that al-Hasan ibn 'Ali may Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
taught me some words to say in Qunoot of Witr:
"Allaahumma ihdini feeman hadayta wa 'aafini feeman 'aafayta wa
tawallani feeman tawallayta wa baarik li feema a'tayta, wa qini sharra
ma qadayta , fa innaka taqdi wa la yuqda 'alayk, wa innahu laa
yadhillu man waalayta wa laa ya'izzu man 'aadayta, tabaarakta Rabbana
wa ta'aalayta(O Allaah, guide me among those whom You have guided,
pardon me among those whom You have pardoned, turn to me in friendship
among those on whom You have turned in friendship, and bless me in
what You have bestowed, and save me from the evil of what You have
decreed. For verily You decree and none can influence You; and he is
not humiliated whom You have befriended, nor is he honoured who is
Your enemy. Blessed are You, O Lord, and Exalted.)."
Narrated by Abu Dawood, 1425; at-Tirmidhi, 464. Classed as hasan by
at-Tirmidhi and as saheeh by Ibn 'Abd al-Barr inal-Istidhkaar, 2/285
and an-Nawawi inal-Adhkaar, 86
See question no. 14093.
InSaheeh Ibn Khuzaymah(1100) it is narrated that the people, at the
time of 'Umar, used to pray against the disbelievers in the middle of
Ramadan, (saying): "O Allah, destroy the disbelievers who seek to
prevent people from following Your path and who disbelieve in Your
Messengers and do not believe in the Day of Resurrection. Create
disunity among them and instil fear in their hearts, and send Your
wrath and punishment upon them, O God of truth."
Then he would send blessings on the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) and pray for the Muslims for whatever he could of
good, then he would pray for forgiveness for the believers. He said:
And he used to say when he had finished praying against the
disbelievers, sending blessings upon the Prophet, praying for
forgiveness for the believing men and women and asking for good: "O
Allah, You (alone) we worship and to You (alone) we pray and
prostrate; for Your sake we strive and worship. We hope for Your
mercy, our Lord, and we fear Your inevitable punishment, for Your
punishment will surely befall the one whom You oppose." Then he would
say takbeer and fall down in prostration.
Al-Albaani said: Its isnaad is saheeh
Secondly:
Paying attention to the du'aa' that was narrated from the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), then from his Companions
after him, is better and is preferable and brings more blessings than
making up flowery supplications and invented awraad, for which there
is no guarantee that they will be free from mistakes in meaning or
that they will not be contrary to proper etiquette when calling upon
Allah, may He be exalted, and it will be more likely to keep one safe
from showing off.
Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Allah, may He be
exalted, has given us permission to call upon Him and has taught
du'aa' in His Book to His creation, and the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) has taught his ummah how to offer du'aa'.
The du'aa' of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
is based on three things: proper knowledge of Tawheed (the Oneness of
Allah), proper knowledge of the (Arabic) language and sincerity to the
ummah. So no one should turn away from his du'aa' (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him).
Al-Maawardi (may Allah have mercy on him) said inal-Haawi
al-Kabeer(2/200): What is narrated from the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) is what is more liked by us than anything
else, but whatever a person says in Qunoot of 'du'aa's narrated from
the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and otherwise
is good for that purpose.
Both texts were quoted by Shaykh Muhammad Ismaa'eel al-Muqaddim in his
essay:'Oodu ila khayr al-Huda, p. 45-46]
Ibn 'Uqayl al-Hanbali (may Allah have mercy on him) narrated that
'du'aa's narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) should be what is recited as regular wird, and anything
added to it is by way of a concession. He said: What is mustahabb in
our view is that which was narrated by al-Hasan ibn 'Ali from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him): "Allahumma
ihdini…" – the well-known hadeeth. He said: If one adds to that the
words narrated from 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), "Allahumma
inna nasta'eenuka…(O Allah, we seek Your help)…", there is nothing
wrong with that. End quote.
This was quoted by Ibn Muflih in his comment onal-Muharrar, 1/89
Indeed, some of the scholars spoke sternly about the issue of adding
to the 'du'aa's narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him, to the extent that al-'Izz ibn 'Abd as-Salaam (may
Allah have mercy on him) said – as it says in hisFataawa, 87 –: It is
not appropriate to add anything to or subtract anything from what the
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said in
Qunoot.
Quoted from'Oodu ila Khayr al-Huda, p. 45
Thirdly:
There is nothing wrong with adding to the wording narrated from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) in Qunoot words
that may be appropriate to the situation, because this is the issue of
du'aa' (supplication), and the issue of du aa' is broad in scope, and
adding to it is something that is allowed in Islam. Concerning the
du'aa' narrated from 'Umar, it says: … and he would pray for whatever
he could of good for the Muslims, then he would pray for forgiveness
for the believers.
An-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said inal-Majmoo'(3/477-478):
Shaykh Abu 'Amr ibn as-Salaah said: The view of those who say that one
should limit du'aa' in Qunoot to that which is narrated from the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is odd (shaadhdh)
and is not acceptable; it is contrary to the opinion of the majority
of our companions and in fact is contrary to the opinion of the
majority of scholars. Al-Qaadi 'Iyaad narrated that the scholars were
unanimously agreed that there is no specific du'aa' for Qunoot… The
author ofal-Haawisaid: It may be done reciting the du'aa' narrated
from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) or by
saying other du'aa's. End quote.
It says inal-Mawsoo'ah al-Fiqhiyyah, 34/63:
He may add whatever he wants of du'aa's that are permissible to say
during prayer. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) said inash-Sharh
al-Mumti', 4/52:
If he adds to that, there is nothing wrong with that, because it is
the matter of du'aa' (supplication). End quote.
Fourthly:
It is important to note that although adding (phrases not narrated in
the Sunnah) to a du'aa' narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace
of Allah be upon him) is permissible according to the majority of
scholars, it is not permissible to take that as a regular practice,
thus neglecting the Sunnah and missing out on the blessing (barakah)
of following the Sunnah as a result of that. Indeed, one should not
always combine the two and regard them as being the same in status.
Rather the worshipper should do that sometimes and not do it
sometimes, according to the situation.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Undoubtedly dhikr and du'aa's are among the best kinds of worship.
Acts of worship are based on tawqeef and following, not on whims and
desires and innovation. The du'aa's and dhikrs narrated from the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) are the best that
anyone can find of dhikr and du'aa', and the one who limits himself to
them will be safe and sound. The beneficial results that they bring
cannot be put into words or fully comprehended by man. Any other
dhikrs may be haraam or they may be makrooh. They may involve shirk
which most people may not realize and which would take too long to
explain in detail.
No one has the right to prescribe for people any kind of dhikr or
du'aa' that is not narrated in the Sunnah and make it an act of
worship that people should perform regularly as they perform the five
daily prayers regularly. Rather this is a kind of innovation in
religion for which Allaah has not given permission… As for adopting a
wird that is not prescribed in sharee'ah and dhikr that is not
prescribed in sharee'ah, this is something that is forbidden. Moreover
the du'aa's and adhkaar that are prescribed in sharee'ah are the best
and lead to achieving all aims and goals; no one turns away from them
and adopts innovated and invented adhkaar except one who is ignorant,
negligent or a wrong doer.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 22/510- 511
Fifthly:
How long should Qunoot be? Is it prescribed to make it lengthy or not?
If we study the hadeeth of al-Hasan ibn 'Ali quoted above, we will
find that the du'aa' that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) taught him is a brief and concise du'aa' that only takes a
few minutes. This indicates that what is appropriate in du'aa'
al-Qunoot is to make it brief and to stick to concise phrases.
It says inMughni al-Muhtaaj, 1/369:
It says inal-Majmoo', narrating from al-Baghawi: It is makrooh to make
Qunoot lengthy, like the first tashahhud. Al-Qaadi Husayn said: If he
makes Qunoot longer than is usual, that is makrooh. End quote.
In fact an-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) indicated that
combining the du'aa' of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and the du'aa' of 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) in
Qunoot comes under the heading of making it lengthy, and one should
pay attention to the people's circumstances and find out whether they
approve of that.
He said: Our companions said: It is mustahabb to combine the Qunoot of
'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and that which is mentioned in
the hadeeth quoted above. If they are combined, then the more correct
way is to recite the Qunoot of 'Umar second. And if he wants to keep
it short, he should limit it to what is narrated in the hadeeth.
Rather it is mustahabb to combine the two if he is praying on his own
or if he is an imam of people who approve of making it lengthy. And
Allah knows best.
Al-Majmoo', 3/478
If combining the two du'aa's mentioned, even though they are brief, is
regarded as a kind of making it lengthy, then how about what is
mentioned in your question of making it last for twenty minutes or
thereabouts? What about those who offer du'aa' for double that time or
more, which many imams do who do not care about anything except giving
a performance in front of people, Allah forbid? People have seen
strange things of that nature nowadays.
The best approach in all of that – and Allah knows best – is to be
moderate, for the best of affairs are those that are moderate; and
Islam forbids making things difficult for people, especially if there
is a custom of doing that every night.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen was asked the following question inFataawa
'Ulama' al-Balad al-Haraam(152):
In Ramadan, some of the imams in the mosques make the du'aa' long, and
some make it short. Which is the correct way?
He (may Allah have mercy on him) replied:
The correct way is not to exaggerate or to fall short. Making it so
long that it causes hardship for the people is forbidden. When the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) heard that Mu'aadh
ibn Jabal was making the prayer very lengthy when he led his people in
prayer, he got angry in exhortation in an unprecedented manner, and he
said to Mu'aadh ibn Jabal: "O Mu'aadh, do you want to put people off
their religion?" Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 6106; Muslim, 465.
So what should be done is adhering to the words narrated (in hadeeth)
or one may add more to that.
Undoubtedly making it very lengthy causes hardship to people and
exhausts them, especially the weak ones among them. Among the people
are those who have work ahead of them but they do not like to leave
before the imam, although it is difficult for them to stay with the
imam. So my advice to my brother imams is to adopt a moderate
approach. By the same token, they should refrain from offering du'aa'
on occasion, so that the common folk do not think that du'aa' is
obligatory. End quote.
See also the answer to question no. 93051
Sixthly:
With regard to what you asked about reciting du'aa' al-Qunoot (in a
manner like reciting Qur'an) and beautifying the voice in it, if he
exaggerates about that and is preoccupied with it and makes it his
main concern, and he uses it as a means of attracting people's
attention to him, or he crosses the boundary between du'aa' and
exhortation or speaks as people ordinarily do, as in the case of the
person referred to in your question, and as is done by many imams who
toy with the people's worship and emotions – if the situation is as
described, then it is objectionable and is disapproved by everyone who
knows the teachings of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) and is rejected by everyone who has a sound nature.
Al-Kamaal ibn al-Humaam al-Hanafi (may Allah have mercy on him) said,
when discussing the mu'adhdhins who used to repeat the takbeers behind
the imam – in his time –
With regard to what you are accustomed to in this city, it is not
unlikely that it is wrong, because it usually involves elongating the
first syllable in the words "Allah" and "akbar", or the second
syllable in the word "akbar", and that is wrong. Even if it does not
involve that, they still raise their voices too much, more than is
needed to convey the words, and they focus too much on their
performance of tunes to show their proficiency in doing so, which has
nothing to do with carrying out the act of worship properly.
It is obvious that the purpose behind this is to impress the people.
It is as if he is saying: Look at my beautiful voice and how I come up
with nice tunes, and that is wrong. I do not think that this would
come from one who really understands the meaning of prayer and
worship!
If this is what he said concerning the mu'adhdhins, then what about
the imams who do that in the prayer itself?! It is no wonder that he
commented further and said:
Similarly, I think that coming up with nice tunes in du'aa', as some
reciters do in our times, is not done by one who understands the real
meaning of du'aa' and asking of Allah. That is no more than a kind of
playing about. If you saw someone making a request of a king and he
put on this kind of performance, with his voice rising and falling as
if singing, he would be accused of mockery and fooling about, because
the appropriate way to ask is with beseeching and humility, not
singing! End quote.
Fath al-Qadeerby Kamaal ibn al-Humaam, a Hanafi faqeeh, 2/225-226
With regard to paying attention to making the voice beautiful, without
exaggerating or pronouncing the letters differently from the correct
Arabic pronunciation, it seems that this does not come under the
heading of blameworthy singing referred to above.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about
this and he replied in detail.
He (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked the following question, as
it says inFataawa al-Balad al-Haraam, 153:
Some imams of mosques try to soften people's hearts and move them by
changing the tone of voice sometimes during taraweeh prayer and in
du'aa' al-Qunoot, and I heard that some scholars disapprove of that.
What is your opinion of that?
His reply was:
What I think is that if this is done within shar'i limits, without
exaggerating, then there is nothing wrong with it. Hence Abu Moosa
al-Ash'ari said to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him): If I had known that you were listening to my recitation, I would
have beautified it for you." If someone has a beautiful voice or
recites in a way that softens people's hearts, I do not think there is
anything wrong with that. But exaggerating with regard to that so that
he does this with every single word of the Qur'an, as mentioned in the
question – I think that this is excessive and should not be done. And
Allah knows best. End quote.
And Allah knows best.
See [in Arabic] the essaysDu'aa' al-Qunootby Shaykh Bakr ibn 'Abdullah
Abu Zayd;'Oodu ila Khayr al-Hudaby Shaykh Muhammad Ismaa'eel
al-Muqaddim.

Dought & clear, - Qunoot during salaah.

I would like to about the Qonute in Salat(raising hand after rukoo)
was that the common practice of Prophet Salalaho Alehy Wasalm or was
it exceptional as the situation arouses. Please respnod me cause Ameer
of our masjid said Prophet (pbuh) once asked which of the salat is
best He (pbuh) replied the one which has longer Qonute.
Praise be to Allaah.
Qunoot, according to the definition of the fuqaha', "is the name of a
du'aa' (supplication) offered during prayer at a specific point while
standing." It is prescribed in Witr prayer after the rukoo' (bowing),
according to the more correct of the two scholarly opinions.
If a calamity (naazilah) befalls the Muslims, it is prescribed to say
Du'aa' al- Qunoot after standing up from rukoo' in the last rak'ah of
each of the five daily obligatory prayers, until Allaah relieves the
Muslims of that calamity.
(SeeTasheeh al-Du'aa'by Shaykh Bakr Abu Zayd, p. 460).
With regard to saying Du'aa' al-Qunoot in Fajr prayer all the time, in
all circumstances, there is no saheeh report that the Prophet(peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) singled out Fajr for Qunoot, or
that he always recited it in Fajr prayer. Rather what is proven is
that he(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said Du'aa'
al-Qunoot at times of calamity with words that were appropriate to the
situation. He said Du'aa' al-Qunoot in Fajr and in other prayers,
praying against Ra'l, Dhakwaan and 'Usayyah for killing the
Qur'aan-readers whom the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) had sent to them in order to teach them their religion. And it
was proven that he prayed in Fajr prayer and other prayers for the
weak and oppressed believers, that Allaah would save them from their
enemies. But he did not do that all the time. The Rightly-Guided
khaleefahs after him followed the same practice. It is better for the
imam to limit Qunoot to times of calamity, following the example of
the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), as
it was proven that Abu Maalik al-Ash'ari said: "I said to my father,
'O my father, you prayed behind the Messenger of Allaah(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) and behind Abu Bakr, 'Umar, 'Uthmaan
and 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased with them). Did they used to say
Du'aa' al-Qunoot in Fajr?' He said, 'O my son, this is a
newly-invented matter.'" (Narrated by the five, apart from Abu Dawood;
classed as saheeh by al-Albaani inal-Irwa', 435). The best of guidance
is the guidance of Muhammad(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him).
And Allaah is the Source of strength. May Allaah send blessings and
peace upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and companions.
(al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah li'l-Buhooth al-'Ilmiyyah wa'l-Iftaa', 7/47)
If you ask, is there a specific wording for Qunoot during Witr prayer,
or Qunoot at times of calamity?
The answer is: for Du'aa' al-Qunoot in Witr prayer a number of
wordings have been narrated, including the following:
1 – The version which the Messenger of Allaah(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) taught to al-Hasan ibn 'Ali (may Allaah be pleased
with him), which is:
"Allaahumma ihdini feeman hadayta wa 'aafini feeman 'aafayta wa
tawallani feeman tawallayta wa baarik li feema a'tayta, wa qini sharra
ma qadayta , fa innaka taqdi wa la yuqda 'alayk, wa innahu laa
yadhillu man waalayta wa laa ya'izzu man 'aadayta, tabaarakta Rabbana
wa ta'aalayta la munji minka illa ilayk
(O Allaah, guide me among those whom You have guided, pardon me among
those whom You have pardoned, turn to me in friendship among those on
whom You have turned in friendship, and bless me in what You have
bestowed, and save me from the evil of what You have decreed. For
verily You decree and none can influence You; and he is not humiliated
whom You have befriended, nor is he honoured who is Your enemy.
Blessed are You, O Lord, and Exalted. There is no place of safety from
You except with You)."
(Narrated by Abu Dawood, 1213; al-Nasaa'i, 1725; classed as saheeh by
al-Albaani inal-Irwa', 429).
It was narrated from 'Ali ibn Abi Taalib that the Prophet(peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to say at the end of Witr:
"Allaahumma inni a'oodhu bi ridaaka min sakhatika wa bi mu'aafaatika
min 'uqoobatika wa a'oodhu bika minka, la uhsi thana'an 'alayka anta
kama athnayta 'ala nafsika(O Allaah, I seek refuge in Your pleasure
from Your wrath and in Your forgiveness from Your punishment. I cannot
praise You enough; You are as You have praised Yourself."
(Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 1727; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani
inal-Irwa', 430; Saheeh Abi Dawood, 1282).
Then he should send blessings upon the Prophet(peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) as it was narrated that some of the Sahaabah (may
Allaah be pleased with them) – including Ubayy ibn Ka'b and Mu'aadh
al-Ansaary (may Allaah be pleased with them) – did that at the end of
Qunoot al-Witr.
(SeeTasheeh al-Du'aa'by Shaykh Bakr Abu Zayd, p. 460).
Qunoot at times of calamity (Qunoot al-Naazilah)
When praying Qunoot at the time of calamity, one should make
supplication as is appropriate to the situation, as it was narrated
that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) cursed
some Arab tribes who had betrayed his companions and killed them, and
he prayed for the weak and oppressed believers in Makkah, that Allaah
would save them. It was narrated that 'Umar prayed Qunoot with the
following words:
"Allaahumma inna nasta'eenuka wa nu'minu bika, wa natawakkalu 'alayka
wa nuthni 'alayka al-khayr, wa laa nakfuruka. Allaahumma iyyaaka
na'budu wa laka nusalli wa nasjudu, wa ilayka nas'aa wa nahfid. Narju
rahmataka wa nakhsha 'adhaabaka, inna 'adhaabaka al-jadd bil kuffaari
mulhaq. Allaahumma 'adhdhib il-kafarata ahl al-kitaab alladheena
yasuddoona 'an sabeelika
(O Allaah, verily we seek Your help, we believe in You, we put our
trust in You and we praise You and we are not ungrateful to You. O
Allaah, You alone we worship and to You we pray and prostrate, for
Your sake we strive. We hope for Your mercy and fear Your punishment,
for Your punishment will certainly reach the disbelievers. O Allaah,
punish the infidels of the People of the Book who are preventing
others from following Your way)."
(Narrated by al-Bayhaqi, 2/210; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani
inal-Irwa', 2/170. Al-Albaani said: This was reported from 'Umar
concerning Qunoot in Fajr, and it seems that this Qunoot is Qunoot
al-Naazilah (Qunoot at times of calamity) as is indicated by his
praying against the kuffaar).
If you ask, can we make du'aa' using words other than those mentioned here?
The answer is:
Yes, that is permissible. Al-Nawawi said inal-Majmoo'(3/497): "The
correct view which was stated definitively by the majority of scholars
is that there are no specific words, rather any du'aa' may be said."
The version narrated from 'Umar is not something that we have to
follow, and the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did
not pray using these words, so there is nothing wrong with adding more
to them. Shaykh al-Albaani (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: "There
is nothing wrong with adding more to this, cursing the infidels and
sending blessings upon the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him), and praying for the Muslims."
(Qiyaam Ramadaanby al-Albaani, 31).
We still have an important question which is: should Du'aa' al-Qunoot
be said before rukoo' (bowing) or after?
The answer is: Most of the ahaadeeth and the opinion of most of the
scholars state that Qunoot comes after rukoo', but if you say Qunoot
before rukoo' that is acceptable. So you have the choice of doing
rukoo' when you have finished reciting Qur'aan, then standing up and
saying "Rabbana wa laka al-hamd" then saying Qunoot… or saying Qunoot
when you have finished reciting Qur'aan, then saying "Allaahu akbar"
and bowing. Both of these were narrated in the Sunnah.
(Shaykh Muhammad ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on
him),al-Sharh al-Mumti', 4/64)
Note: The questioner says that the best of prayer is that which has
longer Qunoot. Perhaps he is referring to the hadeeth narrated by
Muslim (1257) from Jaabir (may Allaah be pleased with him), which says
that the Prophet(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "The
best of prayer istool al-qunoot(the longest in standing)."
Al-Nawawi said: "What is meant byqunoothere is the standing,
according to the consensus of the scholars, as far as I know."
So the hadeeth is not referring to Qunoot in the sense of the du'aa'
said after standing up from rukoo', rather it is referring to standing
for a long time.
And Allaah knows best.