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عن عبد الله بن عمر أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم جاء ليصلي على عبد الله بن أبي فجذبه عمر فقال أليس قد نهاك الله أن تصلي على المنافقين فقال اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ فنزلت وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ فترك الصلوة عليهم
‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar reports that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam came to perform Salat al Janazah upon ‘Abdullah ibn Ubay (the hypocrite). ‘Umar diverted him and said, “Has Allah not prohibited you from praying over the hypocrites?”
Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam recited:
اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ
Ask forgiveness for them, [O Muhammad], or do not ask forgiveness for them. If you should ask forgiveness for them seventy times – never will Allah forgive them.[1]
Then the following verse was revealed:
وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ
And do not pray [the funeral prayer, O Muhammad], over any of them who has died – ever – or stand at his grave.[2]
Consequently, Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam abandoned praying over them.[3]
The Rawafid ask, “Was ‘Umar more knowledgeable or Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam?”
Answer:
This incident appears in two narrations, it is not correct to separate one from the other. Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu intended to remind Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of the verse which prohibits praying over the hypocrites while Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam on the other hand understood that it was not a prohibition, but rather a choice as clarified in the other hadith. Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said:
إنما خيرني الله أو أخبرني فقال اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ فقال سأزيده على سبعين قال فصلى عليه رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم و صلينا معه ثم أنزل وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوْا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ وَمَاتُوْا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُوْنَ
Allah gave me a choice or informed me:
اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ
Ask forgiveness for them, [O Muhammad], or do not ask forgiveness for them. If you should ask forgiveness for them seventy times – never will Allah forgive them.
Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam then said, “I will increase upon seventy.”
The narrator states, “Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam prayed upon him and we prayed with him.”
Thereafter Allah revealed:
وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوْا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ وَمَاتُوْا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُوْنَ
And do not pray [the funeral prayer, O Muhammad], over any of them who has died – ever – or stand at his grave. Indeed, they disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger and died while they were defiantly disobedient.[4]
Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu enquiring from Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam does not mean that he was more knowledgeable than the latter. Once, Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam forgot in his salah and Dhu al Yadayn reminded him. It will not be said that Dhu al Yadayn claimed that he was more knowledgeable than Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. We believe that the Ambiya’ can forget, contrary to those who oppose and challenge the Qur’an.
This type of questioning is not impermissible. The angels said to ‘Umar’s Rabb:
أَتَجْعَلُ فِيْهَا مَنْ يُفْسِدُ فِيْهَا وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّمَاءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ
Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and sanctify You?[5]
If the Rawafid object to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu for acting in this way, which manifests their possessiveness and honour for Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, then why do they not object against Khomeini who claims that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was unsuccessful in reforming his Companions? Why do they not object against al Majlisi and others who claim that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would leave Sayyidina ‘Ali and Sayyidah ‘Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anhuma to sleep under the same covering.
From here we learn that the Rawafid objecting to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu is only in conformity to their tradition which ‘Abdullah ibn Saba’ developed for them, viz. blaspheming and criticising the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum.
The word al jabdh means to move from a place. This has been quoted by Ibn Manzur in Lisan al ‘Arab[6] from Sibawayh. He cites the statement of Mutarrif as proof:
وجدت الإنسان ملقى بين الله و بين الشيطان فإن لم يجتذبه إليه جذبه الشيطان
I found man thrown between Allah and Shaitan. If He does not pull him towards Himself, Shaitan will divert his attention.”
When al jabdh is qualified with quwwah (force/strength) then it refers to al natr (to wrest away, pull away with force). It is said: jabadha bi quwwah (he pulled him with force). This is used to qualify the type of al jabdh. The Rawafid narrate the incident of the bedouin who:
جذب النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم جذبة شديدة
Pulled Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam with force.[7]
In conclusion, the jabdh mentioned in the narration refers to diverting Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam away from salah (not forcefully pulling him aside). The Rawafid themselves have narrated this in the books of fiqh saying:
أن يأتي أحد من خلف الصلوة و يجذب واحدا من مقدم الصف ليقيم به صفا ثانيا
If anyone comes late for salah, he should gently motion one person from the front saff to join him to form the second saff.[8]
It is not permissible to understand it the way the of the Shia, who have learnt blasphemy of the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum from Ibn Saba’, coupled with misinterpreting their actions.
This was a possessive stance of Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu over Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Why not, when Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was ridiculed, abused, and criticised by ‘Abdullah ibn Ubay ibn Salul just as is the practice of his children of the Saba’iyyah Saluliyyah sect, whom Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu dislikes that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam pray over. This stance is similar to the stance of Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu who was commanded by Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to delete the words Messenger of Allah on the Day of Hudaybiyyah with the Quraysh.
Had the reason for objecting against Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu been ghayrah (possessiveness and honour) for Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, they would have ridiculed Khomeini. In fact, they would have declared him a disbeliever for criticising Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and all the Ambiya’ of being unsuccessful, giving superiority to al Mahdi over him, and claiming that al Mahdi will be successful when he emerges.
The Rawafid report that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam jadhaba (pulled) Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu and entered him under his garment.[9]
Similarly, they report that Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu came close to Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam pulled him and seated him next to himself.[10]
If every jadhbah is disrespectful then why do you not say the same about Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam? Moreover, this pulling would be practiced by Jafar al Sadiq publicly.[11] Furthermore, jadhb (pulling) in salah has appeared in the books of the Rawafid but they have not stated that such an act is disrespectful.
Next⇒ Are you not pleased to be the fourth of four
[1] Surah al Tawbah: 80.
[2] Surah al Tawbah: 84.
[3] Sahih al Bukhari Hadith: 5460.
[4] Surah al Tawbah: 84.
[5] Surah al Baqarah: 30.
[6] Lisan al ‘Arab vol. 5 pg. 190.
[7] Bihar al Anwar vol. 108 pg. 223.
[8] Al Khallaf vol. 1 pg. 555.
[9] Bihar al Anwar vol. 22 pg. 511 and vol. 39 pg. 128; al Saduq: al Amali pg. 736; ‘Abbas al Qummi: al Anwar al Bahiyyah pg. 41.
[10] Hashim al Bahrani: Madinat al Ma’ajiz vol. 1 pg. 393.
[11] Qutb al Din al Rawindi: al Khara’ij wa al Jara’ih vol. 2 pg. 743.
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عن عبد الله بن عمر أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم جاء ليصلي على عبد الله بن أبي فجذبه عمر فقال أليس قد نهاك الله أن تصلي على المنافقين فقال اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ فنزلت وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ فترك الصلوة عليهم
‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar reports that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam came to perform Salat al Janazah upon ‘Abdullah ibn Ubay (the hypocrite). ‘Umar diverted him and said, “Has Allah not prohibited you from praying over the hypocrites?”
Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam recited:
اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ
Ask forgiveness for them, [O Muhammad], or do not ask forgiveness for them. If you should ask forgiveness for them seventy times – never will Allah forgive them.[1]
Then the following verse was revealed:
وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ
And do not pray [the funeral prayer, O Muhammad], over any of them who has died – ever – or stand at his grave.[2]
Consequently, Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam abandoned praying over them.[3]
The Rawafid ask, “Was ‘Umar more knowledgeable or Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam?”
Answer:
This incident appears in two narrations, it is not correct to separate one from the other. Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu intended to remind Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam of the verse which prohibits praying over the hypocrites while Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam on the other hand understood that it was not a prohibition, but rather a choice as clarified in the other hadith. Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said:
إنما خيرني الله أو أخبرني فقال اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ فقال سأزيده على سبعين قال فصلى عليه رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم و صلينا معه ثم أنزل وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوْا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ وَمَاتُوْا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُوْنَ
Allah gave me a choice or informed me:
اسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ أَوْ لَا تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ إِنْ تَسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ سَبْعِيْنَ مَرَّةً فَلَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ
Ask forgiveness for them, [O Muhammad], or do not ask forgiveness for them. If you should ask forgiveness for them seventy times – never will Allah forgive them.
Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam then said, “I will increase upon seventy.”
The narrator states, “Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam prayed upon him and we prayed with him.”
Thereafter Allah revealed:
وَلَا تُصَلِّ عَلىٰ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ أَبَدًا وَلَا تَقُمْ عَلىٰ قَبْرِهِ إِنَّهُمْ كَفَرُوْا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُوْلِهِ وَمَاتُوْا وَهُمْ فَاسِقُوْنَ
And do not pray [the funeral prayer, O Muhammad], over any of them who has died – ever – or stand at his grave. Indeed, they disbelieved in Allah and His Messenger and died while they were defiantly disobedient.[4]
Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu enquiring from Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam does not mean that he was more knowledgeable than the latter. Once, Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam forgot in his salah and Dhu al Yadayn reminded him. It will not be said that Dhu al Yadayn claimed that he was more knowledgeable than Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. We believe that the Ambiya’ can forget, contrary to those who oppose and challenge the Qur’an.
This type of questioning is not impermissible. The angels said to ‘Umar’s Rabb:
أَتَجْعَلُ فِيْهَا مَنْ يُفْسِدُ فِيْهَا وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّمَاءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ
Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and sanctify You?[5]
If the Rawafid object to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu for acting in this way, which manifests their possessiveness and honour for Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, then why do they not object against Khomeini who claims that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was unsuccessful in reforming his Companions? Why do they not object against al Majlisi and others who claim that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam would leave Sayyidina ‘Ali and Sayyidah ‘Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anhuma to sleep under the same covering.
From here we learn that the Rawafid objecting to Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu is only in conformity to their tradition which ‘Abdullah ibn Saba’ developed for them, viz. blaspheming and criticising the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum.
The word al jabdh means to move from a place. This has been quoted by Ibn Manzur in Lisan al ‘Arab[6] from Sibawayh. He cites the statement of Mutarrif as proof:
وجدت الإنسان ملقى بين الله و بين الشيطان فإن لم يجتذبه إليه جذبه الشيطان
I found man thrown between Allah and Shaitan. If He does not pull him towards Himself, Shaitan will divert his attention.”
When al jabdh is qualified with quwwah (force/strength) then it refers to al natr (to wrest away, pull away with force). It is said: jabadha bi quwwah (he pulled him with force). This is used to qualify the type of al jabdh. The Rawafid narrate the incident of the bedouin who:
جذب النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم جذبة شديدة
Pulled Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam with force.[7]
In conclusion, the jabdh mentioned in the narration refers to diverting Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam away from salah (not forcefully pulling him aside). The Rawafid themselves have narrated this in the books of fiqh saying:
أن يأتي أحد من خلف الصلوة و يجذب واحدا من مقدم الصف ليقيم به صفا ثانيا
If anyone comes late for salah, he should gently motion one person from the front saff to join him to form the second saff.[8]
It is not permissible to understand it the way the of the Shia, who have learnt blasphemy of the Sahabah radiya Llahu ‘anhum from Ibn Saba’, coupled with misinterpreting their actions.
This was a possessive stance of Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu over Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Why not, when Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam was ridiculed, abused, and criticised by ‘Abdullah ibn Ubay ibn Salul just as is the practice of his children of the Saba’iyyah Saluliyyah sect, whom Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu dislikes that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam pray over. This stance is similar to the stance of Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu who was commanded by Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam to delete the words Messenger of Allah on the Day of Hudaybiyyah with the Quraysh.
Had the reason for objecting against Sayyidina ‘Umar radiya Llahu ‘anhu been ghayrah (possessiveness and honour) for Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, they would have ridiculed Khomeini. In fact, they would have declared him a disbeliever for criticising Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and all the Ambiya’ of being unsuccessful, giving superiority to al Mahdi over him, and claiming that al Mahdi will be successful when he emerges.
The Rawafid report that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam jadhaba (pulled) Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu and entered him under his garment.[9]
Similarly, they report that Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu came close to Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Nabi salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam pulled him and seated him next to himself.[10]
If every jadhbah is disrespectful then why do you not say the same about Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam? Moreover, this pulling would be practiced by Jafar al Sadiq publicly.[11] Furthermore, jadhb (pulling) in salah has appeared in the books of the Rawafid but they have not stated that such an act is disrespectful.
Next⇒ Are you not pleased to be the fourth of four
[1] Surah al Tawbah: 80.
[2] Surah al Tawbah: 84.
[3] Sahih al Bukhari Hadith: 5460.
[4] Surah al Tawbah: 84.
[5] Surah al Baqarah: 30.
[6] Lisan al ‘Arab vol. 5 pg. 190.
[7] Bihar al Anwar vol. 108 pg. 223.
[8] Al Khallaf vol. 1 pg. 555.
[9] Bihar al Anwar vol. 22 pg. 511 and vol. 39 pg. 128; al Saduq: al Amali pg. 736; ‘Abbas al Qummi: al Anwar al Bahiyyah pg. 41.
[10] Hashim al Bahrani: Madinat al Ma’ajiz vol. 1 pg. 393.
[11] Qutb al Din al Rawindi: al Khara’ij wa al Jara’ih vol. 2 pg. 743.