40 Hadith: Lesson 12 – Alhuda Bolton

Sunday 23 December 2018

Lesson 12: Hadith 3 (Part 7-12) and Hadith 4 (Parts 1-5)

We are currently on Hadith 3:
- On the authority of Abdullah, the son of Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with them both), who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say, “Islam has been built on five [pillars]: testifying that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, establishing the salah (prayer), paying the zakat (obligatory charity), making the hajj (pilgrimage) to the House, and fasting in Ramadhan.” [Bukhari & Muslim]
What is the difference between this hadith (i.e. hadith 3) and hadith 2 which both covered the five pillars of Islam
Previous Lesson we covered Parts 1-6 of the explanation of this hadith

Part 7: Fasting in the Month of Ramadhaan

This is and act of worship which is physical in nature
It is not apparent to others whether one is fasting or not, it is an act of worship which is secret between the servant and his Lord
Why has fasting been made special by Allah?

Part 8: Hajj

Part 9-10: The order

why are the pillars of Islam ordered in such a way (Testimony of Faith, Prayer, Zakah, Fasting, Hajj)? Are there different orders in other narrations? What is the clearest narration?
These five pillars have been mentioned based on their importance (e.g. the Shahaadah is the first pillar of Islam as everything else depends upon it, etc)

Part 11: Is Jihad from the pillars of Islam?

The Context of this Hadith, why did Abdullaah Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrate this?
Difference between Fard Kifaayah (collective obligation) and Fard Ayn

Part 12: Summary of benefits

1. This hadith highlights the importance of these pillars as it refers to them as pillars and that Islam is built upon them
2. In this hadith we can see that something non physical (the Pillars of Islam) are explained using something physical (i.e. physical Pillars)
3. The most important matter is begun with, then the others follow
4. The two testimonies of faith are pillars in themselves
5. After the first pillar, the Prayer has been given precedence over the rest of the acts of worship as it forms a firm connection between a slave and his Lord

Hadith 4

On the authority of Abdullah ibn Masood (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and he is the truthful, the believed, narrated to us, “Verily the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for forty days in the form of a nutfah (a drop), then he becomes an alaqah (clot of blood) for a like period, then a mudghah (morsel of flesh) for a like period, then there is sent to him the angel who blows his soul into him and who is commanded with four matters: to write down his rizq (sustenance), his life span, his actions, and whether he will be happy or wretched. By Allah, besides Whom there is no deity worthy of worship, verily one of you performs the actions of the people of Paradise until there is but an arms length between him and it, and that which has been written overtakes him, and so he acts with the actions of the people of the Hellfire and thus enters it; and verily one of you performs the actions of the people of the Hellfire, until there is but an arms length between him and it, and that which has been written overtakes him and so he acts with the actions of the people of Paradise and thus he enters it.” [Bukhari & Muslim]
Shaykh Abdelmuhsin Al-Abbad explains this hadith in 11# parts

Part 1: The statement of Ibn Mas’ud “and he is the truthful, the believed”

Part 2: The statement of the Prophet (ﷺ) “the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for forty days”

Part 3: The stages of the fetus

Stage 1: the “Nutfah” (a Drop of fluid)
Stage 2: the “‘Alaqah” (Clot of blood)
Stage 3: the Mudghah (a Morsel of flesh)
Qur’an Verse: “O mankind! If you are in doubt about the Resurrection, then verily! We have created you (i.e. Adam) from dust, then from a Nutfah (mixed drops of male and female sexual discharge i.e. offspring of Adam), then from a clot (a piece of thick coagulated blood) then from a little lump of flesh, some formed and some unformed (miscarriage), that We may make (it) clear to you (i.e. to show you Our Power and Ability to do what We will). And We cause whom We will to remain in the wombs for an appointed term, then We bring you out as infants, then (give you growth) that you may reach your age of full strength. And among you there is he who dies (young), and among you there is he who is brought back to the miserable old age, so that he knows nothing after having known. And you see the earth barren, but when We send down water (rain) on it, it is stirred (to life), it swells and puts forth every lovely kind (of growth).” [Surah Al-Hajj (The Pilgrimage) verse 5]
See also in the Qur’an Surah Al-Mu’minuun (The Believers) verses 12-14

Part 4: The Soul

The hadith mentions that after these three stages are completed after forty days, an Angel blows the soul into the fetus
Prior to this point the fetus is not considered
Once the soul is blown into the fetus it is now considered a living human being and so all of the rulings which apply take effect. This has particular importance to matters such as birth, miscarriage, abortion etc
There are four stages which every human being goes through
- Death (the forty days prior to receiving the soul)
- Life (during this world until death)
- Death (death of this world and until resurrection)
- Life (The life after the resurrection, a life that never ends)

Part 5: Sustenance

The Angel writes down the sustenance which a person will receive through their life
In other narrations it is also mentioned that the Angel writes down whether the fetus is male or female
Only Allah knows what is in the womb and so this is knowledge from the unseen which only Allah knows, however when it is time (i.e. after the forty days) Allah permits the Angel to know and write down matters such as whether the unborn is a male or female etc

Q&A:

What do the terms “Tawheed”, “Aqeedah” and “Manhaj” mean linguistically?
What was the approach of the Salaf towards oppressive rulers and the people of innovation?