I have joined this forum to seek guidance and knowledge in regards to the sunni madhabs.
I am 28 years old, and have been a shia all my life. I have always been a strong shia unshakable in my beliefs although there were questionable actions of some in the community which i disregarded as misguidance and blamed it on ignorance of the teachings. It was only this year that i have that i have come across certain information that began me to question everything. It was always my belief that the only difference in salah between shia and sunnah was the act of folding the hands,however when i came across someone and we sat down to compare there were quite a few differences even in the way of recitation of the salam and suraht al fatiha in third and fourth rukaa. As a shia we were never told or taught about reciting suraht alfatiha in the third and fourth rukaa but only tasbeeh, which began my journey of research. Also of shia do not know what i found out that it is mustahab for shia to recite suraht al fatiha in the 3rd and 4th rukaa but were never told this directly, it took me hours to come across this information. I felt this was due to perhaps maintain segregation and difference.I went on to study especially the controversial issues such as fasting in ashura, the infallibility of the imams, the opinion of the sahaba. The more i learn the more confused i became, because as a shia i did not know any of this. And some of these issues are hidden or not spoken of yet they are major parts of the madhab. This confusion left me in a state of loss and chose to do istikhara, 4 of them to be precise, 2 are khira(shia version of istikhara) 2 istikhara. All 4 pointed me towards sunnah, which made me take the leap of faith without further study. However as i made the leap, i faced 4 doors, 4 madhabs each so extensive and rich in history, which left me overwhelmed on what to choose where to start studying.
Thus i am here to learn from everyone and to gain understanding of the madhabs and inshallah i will be able to choose a school of thought.
Also i would call my self sunni now however i am not part of any school as of yet, but i have learnt alot about shiaism, and i understand why many sunni brothers would say they are mushriks kafirs etc. I would like to say this, me and my family when i was shia, we did everything to be closer to allah, the flavors of shirk never went well with us and what we see in ashura of blood and other activities we didnt agree with, but that is because we genuinely believed some of these acts and thoughts were misguidance and not part of the madhab, only i realised it was part of it, and infact me disagreeing with some of the things,makes me a deviant from shia. However, due to this, i would call the shia misguided, lied to, kept away from truth, but not kufar and mushrikeen. Just like sunnah, all they want is to worship allah and seek his forgiveness, however, they have been told certain ways can achieve that faster, such as beating your chest.
Anyways, it would be nice to talk to some of you,also if you have any questions about my experience as a shia, or questions in regards to their school of thought please do ask, and i will ask in return and inshallah allah will guide us all on the right path
Also i would call my self sunni now however i am not part of any school as of yet
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Why do you want to be the part of any school of thought?
In the famous words of Imam Abu Haneefah : “If the hadeeth is saheeh then that is my madhhab.” And he said: “It is not permissible for anyone to follow what we say if they do not know where we got it from.” According to another report he said: “It is haraam for the one who does not know my evidence to issue a fatwa based on my words.” And according to another report he added: “We are human, we may say something today and retract it tomorrow.” And he said: “If I say something that goes against the Book of Allaah or the report of the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), then ignore what I say.”
Imam Maalik (may Allaah have mercy on him) nailed it: “I am only human, sometimes I make mistakes and sometimes I get things right. Look at my opinion and whatever is in accordance with the Qur’aan and Sunnah, take it, and whatever is not in accordance with the Qur’aan and Sunnah, ignore it.” And he said: “There is no one after the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) whose words cannot be taken or left, apart from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).”
Sincere piece of advise by Imam al-Shaafa’i (may Allaah have mercy on him) : “There is no one who will not be unaware of some of the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Whatever I say or whatever guidelines I establish, if there is a report from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) which is different to what I said, then what matters is what the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, and that is my opinion.”
Last but not least, the opinion of our master Imam Ahmad : “Do not follow me blindly and do not follow Maalik or al-Shaafa’i or al-Awzaa’i or al-Thawri blindly. Learn from where they learned.” And he said: “The opinion of al-Awzaa’i and the opinion of Maalik and the opinion of Abu Haneefah are all mere conjecture and it is all the same to me. Rather evidence is to be found in the reports – i.e., in the shar’i evidence.”
Good question brother. One problem with not choosing a madhab is how we preform the prayer, Although it is the same there are certain aspects that differ. For example, in hanbali and shafi schools, during prayer, everytime you do takbir, you must raise the hands adjacent to your ears whereas in hanafi that is not required, another example is beggning suraht al fatiha in hanbali and shafi with bismillah alrahman alrahim, where as hanafi do not. Suraht al fatiha in 3rd and 4rd rukaa is compulsory in hanbali school while hanafi, if your traveling or in a state of haste, you can subhannallah 3 times rather than fatiha. Its these little differences, and i cant pick and mix i do not feel it is right. There are different issues too but i just mentioned prayer for now
Good question brother. One problem with not choosing a madhab is how we preform the prayer, Although it is the same there are certain aspects that differ. For example, in hanbali and shafi schools, during prayer, everytime you do takbir, you must raise the hands adjacent to your ears.
Wrong.
He(Prophet Muhammad) used to raise his hands when he stood up from rukoo’ (reported by al-Bukhaari and Muslim), and this raising of the hands is mutawaatir (reported by so many to so many that it is inconceivable that they could all have agreed on a lie).
You have certainly no excuse whatsoever for not following Ahadiths. Imam Abu Haneefah lived at the time of tribulation so the other Imams and it was impossible for them to have the collection of all Saheeh Ahadiths.
Imaam al-Shaafa’i (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “The scholars are agreed that if the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) becomes clear to a person, it is not permissible for him to ignore it in favour of the opinion of anyone.”
Seek guidance from Ulamas whose opinions are based on the evidence, analogies, following the general principles of sharee’ah(Quran and Ahadees), if the verdict of XYZ Alim contradict Saheeh Ahadees then preference should be given to Ahadees and those Ulama who adhere to the established Sunnah.
No problem brother, any rational person who follow any religion would also prefer to follow the guidelines laid down by its founder.
And let those who oppose the Messenger’s commandment beware, lest some fitnah (trial, affliction, etc.) befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.” [al-Nur 24:63]
But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you [Muhammad] judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.” [al-Nisaa’ 4:65]
Contrary to popular belief, a madhhab isn’t merely an opinion. A madhhab is a methodology, a framework of usool, based on which its scholars derive the rulings from the Qur'an and Sunnah. Each madhab has well defined Usool, that had been derived and refined over the centuries, and scholars have always stuck to this methodology.
If a person does not confine himself to one madhhab he will ultimately fall prey to the evil of his nafs. He will always be looking for what suits his whims and desires.
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Subhanallah so if a person follows Ulamas who take guidance from Saheeh Ahadees he will ultimately fall prey to the evil of the nafs? The extreme you guys would go to reject Ahadees in favour of an Imam(not all the opinions and views of the Hanafi madhhab that is named after Imam Abu Haneefah are the words of Abu Haneefah himself) is astonishing!
Each imam issued fatwas on the basis of the evidence that reached him. A hadeeth may have reached Imam Maalik on the basis of which he issued fatwas, that did not reach Abu Haneefah, so he issued fatwas stating something different, and vice versa. Similarly a hadeeth may have reached Abu Haneefah with a saheeh isnaad so he issued fatwas on that basis, and the same hadeeth may have reached Imam al-Shaafa’i with a different isnaad that was da’eef (weak), so he did not issue fatwas based on it, or he may have issued a fatwa saying something that went against the hadeeth based on the conclusion he reached. This is why differences arose among the scholars, but ultimately the point of reference is the Qur’aan and Sunnah.
It's important to understand it's not possible to follow every Sahih Hadith example the Hanafi school do not say Surah Fatihah when praying behind an Imam but the those who follow the Shafi school of thought do; both of these practices can be backed by Sahih hadiths and both are equally valid. All Madhabs back their practices using Sahih Hadiths. All 4 boats (Madhabs) go to the same destination and are on the same path. There is an intrinsic mercy in following Madhabs as you accept opinions of others of your faith even though their practice slightly differs from yours. The Sahabas themselves differed in opinion nor were they always aware of every saying of Mohammad(SAW) and they lived through great tribulations however we do not doubt their credibility in passing teaching from Mohammad(SAW) to Tabi-een like Abu Hanifa(RA) however we do doubt the credibility of one who claims to know better then they did! Rather there are more than one correct answer.
Also as the article mentions that Madhabs have evolved over the centuries and the great scholars who were part of it simply did not remain stagnant:
The evolution of the Four Schools did not stifle, as some Orientalists have suggested,[39] the capacity for the refinement or extension of positive law.[40] On the contrary, sophisticated mechanisms were available which not only permitted qualified individuals to derive the Shariah from the Quran and Sunnah on their own authority, but actually obliged them to do this. According to most scholars, an expert who has fully mastered the sources and fulfilled a variety of necessary scholarly conditions is not permitted to follow the prevalent rulings of his School, but must derive the rulings himself from the revealed sources. Such an individual is known as a mujtahid,[41] a term derived from the famous hadith of Muadh ibn Jabal.[42]
I would recommend you follow a Madhab which you can easily refer when needed; maybe an imam of your local Mosque. We need to refer to experts and follow them, make Taqleed on scholars of Madhabs, as it's not feasable for every Muslim to peruse thousands of Hadiths and become experts in fiqh in order to follow Islam properly! Regarding when one should make Taqleed:
In “Al-Taqih Wal-Mutafaqah”, Khateeb Baghdadi writes:
“There are two kinds of legal commands:
i) Those that are known to be essential part of religion, like five times salah, zakah, fasting during Ramadhan, Hajj, unlawful nature of adultery, consumption of wine and other such things. Since everyone has knowledge of these things, so taqleed is not proper in this kind.
ii) Those that cannot be known without concentration and deduction, like the branch issues of worship, mutual dealings and marriage. In this kind, taqleed is proper because Allah سبحانه و تعالى has said:
'So ask the people (having knowledge) of the Message, if you don’t know' (16:43)
Besides, if we disallow taqleed in these branch issues of religion then it would require everyone to pursue the sciences of religion. If that is made necessary for the people then all the necessities of life will be ruined. Fields and cattle will be ignored. So, such a command cannot be given.”
Last edited by InToTheRain; 07-20-2015 at 01:27 PM.
I would recommend you follow a Madhab which you can easily refer when needed; maybe an imam of your local Mosque. We need to refer to experts and follow them, make Taqleed on scholars of Madhabs, as it's not feasable for every Muslim to peruse thousands of Hadiths and become experts in fiqh in order to follow Islam properly!
It's feasable for every muslim to pursue Ulamas who adhere to Saheeh Ahadees and has no excuse whatsoever to reject them in favour of opinions of other Ulamas.
format_quote Originally Posted by InToTheRain
Regarding when one should make Taqleed:
And yet it was al Khateeb al-Baghdadi who said:
Allaah has made these people – Ahl al-Hadeeth – the pillars of sharee’ah, and He has destroyed through them all abhorrent innovations. They are the trustees of Allaah among His creation, the intermediaries between the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his ummah. They are the ones who are striving hard to protect his religion; their light is shining, their virtues are well known, the signs of their sincerity are obvious, their way is prevailing, and their evidence is supreme. Every group has its own focal point which is based on whims and desires, apart from the people of hadeeth, whose reference point is the Qur’aan, whose evidence is the Sunnah and whose leader is the Messenger to whom they belong; they do not pay any attention to whims and desires, and they do not care about personal opinions. They are content with what is narrated from the Messenger, and they are the ones who are entrusted with it and they take care of it. They are the guardians and keepers of the faith, the vessels and bearers of knowledge. If there is a difference of opinion concerning a hadeeth, people refer to them, and what they rule is what is accepted and listened to. Among them are prominent faqeehs, great imams, ascetics who are well-known among their tribes, men who are known for their virtue, skilled reciters of Qur’aan and good speakers. They are the majority and their way is the right way. Every innovator pretends to be following their path, and cannot dare to claim any other way. Whoever opposes them, Allaah will destroy him, and whoever goes against them, Allaah will humiliate him. They are not harmed by those who forsake them, and those who stay away from them will not prosper. The one who cares for his religion needs their help, the one who looks down on them is a loser, and Allaah is able to support them.
Sharf Ashaab al-Hadeeth, p. 15
Why are you making the religion difficult for him? If an Alim justify his stance by presenting a Saheeh Hadith, then follow him. If you read a hadith that contradcits your Imam's opinion, then follow hadith. It's certainly not a rocket science and nobody is telling you to pursue thousand of hadiths rather follow Ulamas who are Ahl al-Hadeeth.
You're rejecting the Sunnah of the Prophet in favour of an opinion(yes, it's called opinion) .
For example, in the issue of “does laughing in salaah break your wudoo?,” Imam Abu Hanifa says yes, and cites a mursal hadith as his proof. The majority of scholars disagree, and insha’Allah this is the correct opinion–why?
Because the hadith is mursal (i.e. da’eef) and Ibn Abbas(r.a) rejected the mursal hadith:
Basheer bin Ka'ab (Tabiyee) came to Ibne Abbas (Sahabi) and said Prophet peace be upon him said this(he again said) Prophet peace be upon him said this but Ibne Abbas was not paying attention to him in fact he was not even watching him, He( Tabiyee) said I do not see you hear my hadeeth, I am narrating the hadeeth of Prophet peace be upon him but you do not hear? Ibn Abbas replied: previously when we heard a person saying Prophet of Allah peace be upon him said this, our eyes also sees him quickly and our ears listened him, But when People started following wrong way(started narrating weak and fabricated ahadeeth) then we left listening ahadeeth except the ahadeeth we already knew.[Muqaddimah Sahih Muslim no: 21]
Muhammad bin Yahya bin saeed al Qattan Narrates from his Father that he said we have never seen righteous people lying in anything except in (narrating) hadeeth )same is narrated from Ibn Abi Attab) Imam Muslim said they do not lie deliberately but it appear on their tongue (unintentionally)
Meaning righteous people who were not muhadditheen, they used to hear narrations and preach because they considered them authentic but in reality the narrations were false.
Mursal ahadith are ahadith where the chain cuts off at the tab’iee level; it doesn’t go directly to the Prophet (صلى الله عليه و سلم
Last edited by AabiruSabeel; 07-22-2015 at 02:50 AM.
Reason: Merged multiple consecutive posts
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, so the raising of the hands is not compulsory
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