Alhuda Bolton

40 Hadith: Lesson 10

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Sunday 25th Nov 2018

Lesson 10: Hadith 2 (Parts 7 and 8)

    • We are currently on Hadith 2 (which we started in lesson 4);
      • Also on the authority of `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: “While we were one day sitting with the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) there appeared before us a man dressed in extremely white clothes and with very black hair. No traces of journeying were visible on him, and none of us knew him. He sat down close by the Prophet (ﷺ) rested his knees against the knees of the Prophet (ﷺ) and placed his palms over his thighs, and said: “O Muhammad! Inform me about Islam.” The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) replied: “Islam is that you should testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger (ﷺ), that you should perform salah (ritual prayer), pay the zakah, fast during Ramadan, and perform Hajj (pilgrimage) to the House (the Ka`bah at Makkah), if you can find a way to it (or find the means for making the journey to it).” He said: “You have spoken the truth.” We were astonished at his thus questioning him (ﷺ) and then telling him that he was right, but he went on to say, “Inform me about Iman (faith).” He (the Prophet) answered, “It is that you believe in Allah and His angels and His Books and His Messengers and in the Last Day, and in fate (qadar), both in its good and in its evil aspects.” He said, “You have spoken the truth.” Then he (the man) said, “Inform me about Ihsan.” He (the Prophet) answered, “It is that you should worship Allah as though you could see Him, but if you cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you.” He said, “Inform me about the Hour.” He (the Prophet) said, “About that the one questioned knows no more than the questioner.” So he said, “Then, inform me about its signs.” He said, “They are that the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and that you will see the barefooted ones, the naked, the destitute, the herdsmen of the sheep (competing with each other) in raising lofty buildings.” Thereupon the man went off. I waited a while, and then he (the Prophet) said, “O `Umar, do you know who that questioner was?” I replied, “Allah and His Messenger know better.” He said, “That was Jibreel. He came to teach you your religion.” [Muslim]
  • Recap of Lesson 9
    • Belief in Angels
    • Different duties of the angels
    • Belief in the Books
    • What do we mean when we say we believe in the previous scriptures?
    • What distinguishes the Qur’an from the previous scriptures
    • Belief in the Messengers

Part 7 continued: Belief in the Last Day

  • This is to believe, accept and affirm everything which has come in the Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah concerning the afterlife
  • There are two abodes; that of this world and that of the hereafter. This world is a place of action and earning deeds while the hereafter is a place of recompense
    • Why is the world called “Dunya”?
  • Death and the blowing of the trumpet separate these two abodes
    • When a person dies, they depart from this world and the life of the grave (Barzakh) is part of the recompense of the afterlife
    • Shaykh Abdelmuhsin Al-Abbād says that life after death is of two types, the first is the life grave, this is Al-Barzakh and no one knows about its true nature except Allah, and the second type is the life of the hereafter (Paradise or Hell)
  • Everything that has been mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah regarding the afterlife is included within this pillar
    • For example:
      • The Gathering
      • The Hawd (Pond of the Prophet (ﷺ))
      • The Bridge over Hell
      • Paradise itself
      • Hell itself
  • There are benefits which are achieved as a result of having belief in the afterlife:
    • A person who believes that there will be recompense after the life of this world, then he becomes eager in order to perform good deeds and keeps away from evil whereas this is not truly the case for the one who does not believe in this
    • Belief in the afterlife gives one comfort and consolement as you may go through difficulties in life but indeed the afterlife is greater and Allah will not allow one’s good deeds to be lost in vain, therefore the one who believes in Allah and performs good deeds, then indeed a far greater good is in store for him/her
      • Hadith of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) [Muslim]
    • There is justice in the afterlife, therefore one who believes in the hereafter has security in this
    • Those who do not believe in the afterlife have a very negative attitude towards life, they see nothing except for this world and therefore they spare no effort in running after it even if it is at the expense of others

Belief in the Pre-decree of Allah

    • This is to believe that Allah has pre-decreed every single thin
  • Belief in the Pre-decree of Allah is of four levels;
    • Knowledge: Allah has eternal knowledge of everything that will occur, has occurred, has not occurred and even that of those matters which did not occur, but if they had occurred, he knows how they would have occured, when and where
    • Recording: Allah recorded this knowledge in the, fifty thousand years before the creation
    • Will: He allows every pre-decreed matter to occur by his will
    • Creation: Allah brings into existence everything which he has decreed
  • Anything which Allah has not decreed will never occur and can never occur

Part 8: Regarding the statement of Jibraeel “Inform me about Ihsan”

    • He (the Prophet (ﷺ)) answered, “It is that you should serve Allah as though you could see Him, but if cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you.”
    • Muslims are in different levels in regards to their practising of this religion
      • Islam (the basic five pillars of Islam)
      • Eemaan (the six pillars of faith)
      • Ihsan
    • Indeed Ihsan is the pinnacle of of our religion
    • What does “Ihsan” mean?
      • Linguistically this means perfection or to perfect (an act)
  • What is the difference between a “muslim” and a “mu’min”?
      • A muslim is one who fulfils the five pillars of Islam
      • A Mu’min is one who fulfills the pillars of Islam and Eemaan
      • Allah says:”The bedouins say: “We believe.” Say: “You believe not but you only say, ‘We have surrendered (in Islam),’ for Faith has not yet entered your hearts. But if you obey Allah and His Messenger (SAW), He will not decrease anything in reward for your deeds. Verily, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”” [Surah Hujaraat () verse 14]
      • A muslim may not necessarily be a mu’min
      • A mu’min may not necessarily have attained ihsan
  • Ihsan has two levels:
    • The highest level is to worship Allah as though you are standing right infront of him and as though you can see him
    • The second level which is not as high as this is for one to worship Allah whilst being conscious that Allah is watching him