The noble Shaykh was asked about the meaning of the statement of Allaah :(تعالى)

Transcription

1 ( CHOSEN GEMS FROM THE FATAAWAA OF SHAYKHUL ISLAAM MUHAMMAD IBN ABDUL WAHHAAB AT TAMEEMEE 1 Translated by Hishaam Ibn Zayd Date Published: April 27 th 2005 The noble Shaykh was asked about the meaning of the statement of Allaah :(تعالى) tβθý y ö7ムŸω $pκ Ïù óοèδuρ $pκ Ïù öνßγn= yϑôãr& öνîκö s9î) Åe uθçρ $uηtft ƒî uρ $u Ρ 9$# nο4θušysø9$# ß ƒí ムtβ%x. tβ $ Β ÏÜ t/uρ $pκ Ïù (#θãèuζ ¹ $tβ xýî7xmuρ â $ Ψ9$# ωî) Ïοu ½zFψ$# Îû öνçλm; } øšs9 t Ï%!$# y7í s9'ρé& tβθè=yϑ ètƒ (#θçρ$ÿ2 Whosoever desires the life of the world and its glitter; to them We shall pay in full (the wages of) their deeds therein, and they will have no diminution therein. They are those for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter but Fire; and vain are the deeds they did therein. And of no effect is that which they used to do. [Soorah Hood, 11:15 16] He االله) (رحمه replied: 1 From Fataawaa wa masaa il Al Imaam Muhammad Abdul Wahaab, pg. 5 8

2 The people of knowledge from the salaf have mentioned the various types of actions people can do without being aware of the true meaning of their actions. An example of this would be good deeds that many people do, such as giving charity, maintaining family ties, being kind to people and so forth. Likewise, avoiding the oppression of others, or not speaking ill about them, all of which a person can do sincerely for Allaah s sake, however without yearning for His reward in the next life. Rather all he hopes for is that Allaah will protect his wealth and his family, or cause it (his wealth) to increase, or make his name be remembered forever and so on. He has no concern to seek the Jannah or flee from the Naar (Fire). Such a person will be given his reward in this life, and in the next life he will have no portion therein, and these are the kind of people that Ibn Abbaas was referring when he gave the tafseer of the (aforementioned) ayah. Some of our mashaayikh have misunderstood this matter (of ikhlaas) due to an expression that is mentioned in Al Iqnaa 2 in the chapter of Niyyah (intention), wherein this matter was discussed along with the various levels of sincerity. Hence, they thought that the one who is referred to as being sincere (in his actions) is a commendation of that person, whereas this is not necessarily the case. Rather, what the author meant is that this person does not show off, however his deeds are null and void in the next life. The second group of people are more in number and their condition is more fearful, and they are the ones whom the Mujaahid (Imaam Ibn Abdul Wahhaab) said the ayah was revealed concerning; and that is the person who does a righteous deed and his intention is to show off for the people, not to seek the reward of the hereafter. When the hadeeth of Aboo Hurayrah was mentioned to Mu awiyyah about the first three people who will be thrown into the hellfire, and they are; the one who taught so that it 2 Translator s note: A book of Hanbalee fiqh Section: Qur aan: Tafseer: Selected Tafaaseer 2

3 can be said of him that he was a scholar, the one who gave charity so that it can be said of him that he is a generous person, and the one who fought so that it can be said of him that he is brave. He (Mu awiyyah) said upon hearing the hadeeth, If this is the condition of those people, then what about the rest of mankind? He then began to cry so profusely that the people thought that it (the crying) was going destroy him. Then when he regained consciousness, he wiped his face and said, Indeed Allaah and His Messenger spoke the truth: Whosoever desires the life of the world and its glitter; to them We shall pay in full (the wages of) their deeds therein, and they will have no diminution therein. They are those for whom there is nothing in the Hereafter but Fire; and vain are the deeds they did therein. And of no effect is that which they used to do. 3 The third group are those who do good deeds but at the same time that intend some type of worldly gain, such as those who perform Hajj not for Allaah s sake, but to make money, or the one who makes hijrah for a worldly benefit or to marry a woman, or the one who fights jihaad for the sake of the war booty. This category of people have also been mentioned in reference to the tafseer of this ayah, as it has been mentioned in Al Bukhaaree from the hadeeth of the Messenger االله عليه وسلم),(صلى Destroyed is the one who worships the dinaar, destroyed is the one who worships the dirham. 4 Likewise, a person can learn or can teach the Qur aan so that his family can gain positions of leadership, or he frequents the masjid because he works for the masjid, as is the case of many people. These people are more intelligent than the second group because they do deeds that satisfy their personal interest, whereas the others do deeds simply so that they can be praised and glorified by the people, even though they do not gain anything in reality. The first group display more intelligence than the other two groups because they do deeds that are sincerely for Allaah s sake, 3 Saheeh At Tirmidhee (hadeeth no. 1492) 4 Al Bukhaaree (hadeeth no. 5955) Section: Qur aan: Tafseer: Selected Tafaaseer 3

4 without committing any kind of shirk, however they did not desire the abundant good that is everlasting which is the Jannah, nor did they hope to flee from the great punishment which is the Naar. The fourth category are those who do acts of obedience that are sincerely for Allaah s sake, however they simultaneously commit acts of kufr which put them outside of the fold of Islaam, such as the Jews and the Christians, or many people from this ummah, who worship Allaah, give charity, and fast, all for the sake of Allaah and His reward in the next life. However, they commit acts of shirk or kufr that puts them outside of the fold of Islaam or prevents their deeds from being accepted. These are the ones whom Anas Ibn Maalik also included when he gave the tafseer of this ayah. Hence, some of the salaf used to say, If I only knew that Allaah accepted at least one sajdah from me, I would immediately wish for death because Allaah says: t É) Fßϑø9$# z ÏΒ ª!$# ã 7s)tGtƒ $yϑ ΡÎ)... Indeed Allaah accepts from those who are pious. [Sooratul Ma idah, 5:27] However, there remains the issue of those who pray the five salawaat, give the zakaat, fast, perform the Hajj, all for Allaah s sake, but afterwards they begin to do these acts of worship for worldly reasons, such as the one who performs the Hajj because of money, as is the present day reality. In such a situation, it depends on which of the two intentions dominates the other. This is why some of the scholars have said that the Qur aan often mentions the people who are undoubtedly of the Jannah and the people who are undoubtedly of the Naar, and it remains silent about the fate of those who possess traits of both parties (i.e. the people of the Jannah and the people of the Naar). And Allaah knows best. Section: Qur aan: Tafseer: Selected Tafaaseer 4

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