Table of Contents Blessing of Seeking Knowledge………………………………………………..……..2 Etiquettes of Students Seeking Knowledge………………………………..……….…4 Importance of ‘Aqeedah: In general…………………………………..………………7 Terms of ‘Aqeedah………………………………………………….…………….…..9 Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah…………………………………………..………………..18 Responding to Atheists……………………………………………….………….…..24 ar-Ruboobiyyah alone is not sufficient………………………………….……….…..28 Shahaadah: Meanings and Conditions………………………………………..….…..29 ‘Ibaadah: Its concepts………………………………………………..………………30 ‘Ibaadah: Its three Pillars………………………………………………………...…..34 Shirk: Definition, Dangers, and Types…………………………………………....…37 Manifestations of ‘Ibaadah……………………………………………………..……47 Tabarruk……………………………………………………..……………………….49 Talismans and Omens………………………………………………..………………53 Magic and Astrology……………………………………………………..………..…56 Exalting the Status of Saints…………………………………………………………60 Intercession: Its meanings and Types………………………………………………..67 Tawassul……………………………………………………………………………..74 The Prophet’s Protection of Tawheed…………………………………………...….108 Major and Minor shirk………………………………………………..…………….121 Kufr and Nifaq………………………………………………………..……….……128 Manifestations of Kufr ………………………………………………..……………133 Incorrect Perceptions of Tawheed …………………………………………………139 Miscellenous……………………………………………………………………..…146 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah A gift to the students of AlMaghrib Institute from Qabeelat Tayybah. Note: This project is a compilation of the questions asked on the student forums in regards to the Light of Guidance class offered by Almaghrib Institute. These questions were then answered by Shaykh Yasir Qadhi on the forums. This has not been reviewed by Yasir Qadhi after the compilation and was taken from the forums directly. Source : www.forums.almaghrib.org 1 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah Blessings of Seeking Knowledge Question: What was the name of the Sahaabi who was the first to say this quote: “Knowledge calls out to action; if it does not respond, (the knowledge) leaves .” Answer: ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib . ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ Question: In the Qur’aan, when Allaah says he taught Adam the names of all things, what does “the names of all things” mean? Is it literally the name of every single thing? I am tempted to think from my limited studies of linguistics, that what is hinted at is the teaching of the symbolic relationship between sounds and meaning. Thus what was taught was language. A more significant question: if indeed it is literal then the superiority of man over angel is, at least in this case or at this stage of creation, in secular knowledge. If, following the above hypothesis, what Allaah taught man was language, then the superiority of man was in his knowledge of language and perhaps his capacity for eloquence. Yet that doesn’t hold any water with me because angels obviously have a certain command of language while they also have at least some knowledge of the names of things. Unless, yet another theory is that Adam is capable of the learning process that makes him superior to the angels while they may simply be created with all the knowledge they will ever need. 2 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah How is the creation of Adam different from the Jinn (aside from the actual components)? I have been told (perhaps someone knows the daleel of this) that amongst the jinn and the angels, Iblees was the most knowledgeable and exalted in status. And if humans are superior to the jinn in what ways are they superior? This all hinges on what the meaning of “the names of all things” is. Answer: but it appears that اء آ There is a huge Ikhtilaaf regarding what exactly is meant by we can take it at face value and state that Allaah taught Adam the names of physical objects that the angels did not know (what you would term ‘secular’ knowledge). Therefore, Allaah proved the superiority of Adam over the angels by ,means of honor) for mankind) ف teaching him this knowledge. Such knowledge is a would not necessarily be religiously advantageous to them - it could ف even though this be, and then again it could not. The point I was stressing in class is that we should not take the texts pertaining to the blessings of knowledge and apply them primarily to non-religious knowledge; they apply to religious knowledge. This does not mean that ‘secular’ knowledge is a sheer and utter waste of time or bereft of benefit. One who possesses such knowledge (e.g., an engineer or more noble) than one who doesn’t (e.g., manual laborer). But) اف doctor) is considered this does not mean in and of itself that the ‘more noble’ one will go to Paradise or occupy a status higher than the less noble in the sight of Allaah , since ” ان اآآ ا اآ“ The best example is that of a noble lineage (e.g., Quraysh). One who possesses it is considered better (in our eyes) than one who doesn’t, but it doesn’t necessarily make him better in the sight of Allaah . Also don’t forget that the very fact that Allaah taught Adam directly something that the angels did not know is a sign of honor. ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ 3 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah Etiquettes of Students Seeking Knowledge Question: Some scholars say that we should continue to seek knowledge even if we are not able to implement everything that we know. I don’t understand why; because on the Day of Judgment a person is going to be held accountable for everything he knew and if the knowledge is not acted upon, it will increase the person’s chances of entering hell. As regular human beings, we are not capable of implementing everything we learn, so should we only learn as much as we can implement? (And if I am right, a person who commits a sin despite having knowledge of it being bad will receive a greater punishment than the person who has committed the same sin without having knowledge). From what I know, some Muslim scholars never got married, as they used to spend their day and night studying the religion and writing books. I do not understand why they are referred to as ‘scholars’ if they did not practice the things they have learned (or did not have the time to practice what they have learned--at least to a certain degree). Answer: This is more of an adab question; but briefly, knowledge should always be strived for as long as it is within the domain of ‘beneficial’ knowledge. Learning in and of itself is a motivation for more action. If a person finds that he/she is not acting more based upon that knowledge, the solution is not to stop learning but to try to figure out why one is not acting on the knowledge. It is not obligatory to get married; if a person does not do one of the Sunnahs it does not make him a non-scholar! Also, for some people marriage might not be the best option; there are always exceptions to the rule. For example if a person fears that he will not treat his wife in a good manner, and he has no desire to get married, then it is better for him not to do so. ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ 4 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah Question: When should a person seeking knowledge start learning something like ‘Aqeedah al- Wasatiyyah? Or, in other words, when would you recommend that a person start studying these texts? Answer: These texts should be studied with people who are qualified to teach them; I wouldn’t recommend the average person just picking these books up (especially in English) without a guide. As for when they should be studied, it depends. The average Muslim is not required to know the details of this science, so if he wishes to remain an ‘average’ Muslim, he may do so. However, the student of knowledge, and one who wishes to increase his Imaan, needs to study this science perhaps more than any other; so for his case, I would say: “As soon as he finds someone who is qualified to teach him.” ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ Question: Is it considered inappropriate for the Student of Knowledge to ask his Shaykh/Ustaadh questions like the following? • Is there a difference of opinion? • What is the majority’s opinion? • Shaykh xyz has opinion abc, what do you think about that opinion? Answer: In general, the beginning student of knowledge would probably get more confused by asking such questions. However, if the question is phrased properly, and is asked without mentioning the name of a contemporary scholar who differs (as this would be rude), then I personally don’t mind receiving such questions. There are others, though, who would. ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ 5 Light of Guidance Q and A Qabeelat Tayybah Question: ?(saying) with its (person who said it) ل Could you please help me correlate each 1. “It was possible that a person would leave in search of one manner for two or more years.” Mukhallad Ibn al-Hussayn, Al-Muhallabee Al-Basri or Al-Hassan Al-Basri? 2. “Good Manners are almost two-thirds of knowledge.” Abdullah Ibn al-Mubaarak? 3. “We are more in need of a little bit of Akhlaaq than a lot of knowledge.” Abdullah Ibn al-Mubaarak or Al-Hassan Al-Basri? Answer: The first quote is from Al-Hassan Al-Basri, the second from Abdullah Ibn al-Mubaarak, and the third from Mukhallad Ibn al-Hussayn to Ibn al-Mubaarak. ﻭ ﺍﷲ ﺍﻋﻠﻢ Question: Any suggestions for books related to the instruction of the student? Answer: Published by Message of Islaam (UK). Also, Imaam Al-Ajurri’s “Etiquettes of the Carriers of the Qur’aan”, recently translated by Usama b. Suhaib Hassan (don’t remember who published it) is indispensable, a truly spiritual work written by one of the foremost theologians of the salaf themselves. Of course, if you read Arabic, there is a whole host of material available.