Is Differing a Rahmah? What Should We be United upon?

Is Differing a Rahmah? What Should We be United upon?

By Abul-'Abbaas Moosaa Richardson
An important session considering that we live in a era of multiple groups and parties, all claiming to be upon the Sunnah, some upon separate paths, others supposedly cooperating in the name of ‘unity’ yet completely divided in their beliefs and aspirations, desiring to unite people upon falsehood, agreeing to be silent about deviation, hizbiyyah and utter opposition to the pure Islaamic ‘Aqeedah, all disguised by the pure and beautiful term of ‘Islamic Unity’.

Listen/Download
52 Min.

Review:

• What is true Islaamic unity built upon?
• How do we view differing in the Ummah?
• What are the real solutions?
  

These pressing issues are discussed in the following class:
Class 10 of 12 from the ‘Aqeedah Course of the 2007 Summer Islaamic Courses in Toronto, Canada (available Autumn '07 insha'Allaah).

The ‘Aqeedah course is based upon the ‘haa’iyyah’ peom of Ibn Abee Daawood. The tenth sitting focused on the final three verses of the 33 lines of outstanding poetry:

(31) And keep yourself from the opinions of people and their stances,
Since the stance of the Messenger of Allaah is more befitting and easier on one's chest.

(32) And do not be from those who play games with their religion,
Attacking the people of hadeeth and reviling them.

(33) If you keep this belief all your life, O holder of this (poem),
You will be upon goodness, day and night.

Allaah says,

O you who believe! Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad – sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. (And) if you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allaah and His Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), if you believe in Allaah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination. (Soratun-Nisaa’, 4:59)

“…We have been given guidance, a directive from our Lord, then return it back to Allaah, meaning refer back to the book of Allaah, the Qur’aan, and also the Rasool (the Prophet – sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and this is done one of two ways:

1) During the lifetime of the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), they (the sahaabah) would return to him personally.
2) And after his death (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), it is done by returning back to his Sunnah.

…And the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) further told us what to do when the people differ, “And whoever lives upon you long will experience many affairs of differing, so upon you is to hold to my sunnah and the sunnah of the khulafaa’ ar-rashideen (the rightly guided caliphs).” [Ahmad (4/126), Ibn Maajah (no. 43), al-Haakim (1/96) and others - Hasan]

You find the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) ordering us how to behave after his death specifically. ‘Whoever lives after me is going to experience differing’ knowing that He was upon revelation from Allaah, if it was obligatory in our deen, after the death of the Prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) to hold tight to one of the four well known madhaabs, then he would have told us to do that…if it was from the khayr that Allaah wanted for this ummah, and it was something to the degree some people make it out to be, that after choosing Islaam, your next choice is to pick out one of the four madhaabs, this is how they introduce Islaam to some people…you’re a muslim and now you have to choose your denomination, you have to be hanbalee, shafi’ee, maalikee or hanafee. If that were the case, then the Messenger (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) as the Companions used to say, ‘there is no khayr coming after the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) important for this Ummah except that the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) showed it to us’, how can it be, such a big decision upon every muslim for the last 1200 years and the Prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) didn’t speak about it?”

The Prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) also mentioned,
“’I am leaving you with something, that if you hold tightly to it, you will never go astray after me, the book of Allaah and my Sunnah’ so it is not permissible ever for a person to hold to statements he desires, or to take positions on issues in Islaam based on his whims, what is convenient for him, what his cravings like and what is more suitable for him. Rather he holds to what he believes to be the order of Allaah, what Allaah wants from him found in the book of Allaah and what has been authentically narrated from the Prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).”

Is Differing a Mercy?

“Ikhtilaaf is not a rahmah, when one person claims that an issue is halaal and another comes and claims it is haraam, this is not the rahmah of Allaah, rather the rahmah is in the Sunnah and holding to unity and holding to what is correct from the book and the Sunnah and being united upon what is correct…and it is not division and separating in to opinions that oppose each other and clash, this is division and this is prohibited…”

From the Questions:

[Q1]: What about the differing of the sahaabah and their specific conflicts?

[Q2]: You spoke about the hadeeth of the prophet (sallaallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that we have to be from one of those sects...isn't the idea of forming a sect something we are supposed to do, and if we did that and gave ourselves the name 'salafees', how do we understand that in light of the lecture you have given?