Its been a rough month for me.... I won't go into details, but I've had a lot of time to think about things and see what is really around me. At the time when I needed people most, a lot of them have not been there for me. It really is a sign that I can only trust in Allah, and not his servants here on earth. What I wanted to write about in this post was how it seems that there is such a struggle in the Ummah to make things 'fit' with an ideal that has little to do with Islam. I've been reading a lot of forums and finding a vast array of posts and opinions. I've been really shocked by some of the things I've read. The Ummah is splitting at the seams. One theme that I've noticed is the attack against traditional Islam. There are Muslims that want to be so far of it that they mock it, and make fun of those who try to follow it. I wonder if they realize that they are being influenced by the same media bias that turns the rest of the world against Muslims?
On my internet travels I've noticed a lot of rejection of Hadith. Now I'm not talking about 'Quran only' people, I'm talking about people who consider themselves sunni Muslims, but want to be able to pick and choose what Hadiths they believe are authentic. This all goes back to the theme of this post... why do people work so hard to trim bits off and make Islam fit in the little box they want it too? I find in quite presumptuous for the average Muslim to think they have the training and knowledge to reject a hadith, just because it does not agree with what they want Islam to be. The intricate science behind authenticating Hadith takes years to understand fully, but yet people still try to take a chance with it, to fulfill their own desires.
My next point involves scholars and their rulings. Now lets just assume that everyone that claims to be a scholar is in fact a scholar (for arguments sake). If there are 2 scholars with differing opinions on a matter, it is our responsibility to read the proofs they bring from Quran & Sunnah and decide which has the more accurate proofs. Now this is where it gets tricky. We are not supposed to just pick the ruling we like more, or the one that affirms our own thoughts, but the one that truly brings more accurate and meaningful proofs. The scholars themselves (if they are in fact qualified scholars) will get 1 reward for a wrong opinion and 2 rewards for the right one. Us, on the other hand do not get this sort of blessings. We are held accountable for determining which brings more accurate proof and accepting the right one. If we follow the wrong one out of our own desires we are sinning.
Finally, as we approach Ramadan, lets all try to remember that we are one Ummah. Regardless of our differences. While some might see others as too strict, others might find someone to lax. In the end we are responsible for our own actions and Allah Subhannah wa Ta'ala will be the one to judge us. As Muslims, we can only help to guide each other to the straight path.
6 comments:
asalam alaikum
I think those rough times in life make us choose paths....the right path towards Allah or the wrong path. We have to follow the path Allah gave us and this means that people who don't want the best for us or themselves will be lost along the way. It's sad and we wish that everyone finds their way somehow inshallah.
I know what it's like to feel alone, but we aren't really alone since Allah knows all and He is The Most Merciful. I know what you mean about muslims who attack Islam, I can never understand it......how can any muslim mock or ridicule what Allah has given us, or the words of our Prophet Muhammad. How can anyone openly criticise or make fun of fellow brothers and sisters? What has happened to respect, or even just kindness? Some might laugh, but those would be the same ones who would be the first to point out faults in their brothers and sisters.
Since we all have free will to follow our paths as we choose, I really wish the ummah would stick together more so we all stay on the strong path and earn our way to Jannah inshallah. Ramadan is such a good time to be reminded of how we should be all year, how we should treat eachother.
salam
hannah
alsalamo alaikom sis
i faced the same fact many many times before..
but u know, its a good thing.. Allah doesnt let us forget Him ..this means a lot..was just checking the Quran.. came across these ayats..
"..and put your trust in Allah; Allah is sufficient as a guardian" (sura al ahzab 48)
"if Allah helps you,none can overcome you.if He abandons you,who then can help you? therefore, the sincere believers should trust Allah alone" (sura al ali imran 160)
we are safe as long as Allah is there for us.. we dont need anyone else elhamdulillah..
it really makes me sad to see muslims trying to change islam into the way they like.. they are so under the control of their nafs..
there is an ayah amazes me whenever i read it..
Allah is emphasizing a very important point..
it says " ya ayyuha allazeena amanoo, amenoo....."
meaning " O Believers! Believe in Allah and His messenger and in every Scripture that He sent down before this......" (sura al nisa 136)
He is telling "Believers" to believe in Him,and His messenger.. not the non believers!
a very important meaning is hidden here..
n i think we can include the muslims who are trying to make islam fit into their way of thinking into this meaning.. we need to believe in everything as it is..
Allah is the One who knows the best.. whether we like it or not, everything He orders is for our own good.. muslims should be aware of that..
may Allah guide us all to the right path.. ameen
Salaam my dear Jamilah
You wrote in your post We are held accountable for determining which brings more accurate proof and accepting the right one. If we follow the wrong one out of our own desires we are sinning.
This is not my understanding. How are we to know which proof is more correct or accurate? That's why we have to go to scholars in the first place! If they have a disagreement, then how can we possibly just look at their proofs and decide which is right? That would put us at their level trying to make ijithad, wouldn't it?
We ask them so that we can follow them. And we can pick the easier as long as it seems to us to be halal, because Islam is not supposed to be a difficulty.
However, I want to affirm that I agree with the latter part of your statement, that it is incorrect to follow our desires.
But if we follow a scholar, with proofs, out of sincerity--then how can there be blame on us?
Amy
If we find an opinion from 2 scholars, and they are different opinions we are responsible to look at the one with more proofs. Yes it involves us making up our own mind, but we have to dig deep for this one. If one scholar says its ok to do xyz and one says its not. We have to look at both scholars proofs before we make a choice. And that choice needs to be based on proof from the Quran and sunnah and not our desires. I've seen many examples of this myself going to two different fatwah websites and seeing that one will say its ok and the other will not. Which ever one has true and clear proof is the one we should follow.
I actually wrote this because of something my teacher told me. She has never steered me wrong. And I trust her. May Allah reward her.
One other thing, we can pick the easier route if it in fact is the right one... but a lot of times people choose the easier one for their own needs.
Islam is easy, and you know what makes it easy? Knowing your Rabb... knowing what he wants from you and obeying it. Obeying those rules aren't hard when you have the right intention.
As salaamu 'alaikum wa Rahmatullah!
Sorry to hear about your struggles.Allah will make it easy for you soon, Insha-Allah.
There is so much I would like to share about this subject, so much that my comments would turn into an article, so I'll be brief, and say that Islam itself- the Islam that Allah wants from us, the Islam that he completed and has chosen, is actually very easy, and it is we who make it complicated.
At the same time, everything is not always so black and white. In the end, everyone can find texts [even muftis] and use them to support this or that view, and it is up to each person to determine whether he or she agrees or disagrees with the conclusion being presented.
Islam is also, in my opinion, a very rational and reasonable religion. So, if something is presented and it does not seem logical, that means it probably is not true at all, and thus would be contradictory in some way or another from the religion of Islam.
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